Sustainability in business, Florin Godean, Adecco Group: Swapping short-term objectives with sustainable long-term business strategies and business vision

In the past year, the labor market dynamics and the shortfall of employees challenged the business strategies of multiple companies and brought the HR departments closer than ever to the decision-making table. In the current landscape of economy and business operations, the focus on HR strategies increased even more and we can say that the pressure is on. In this respect, Outsourcing-Today talked to Florin Godean, Cluster Manager, Romania and Hungary, Adecco Group to take the pulse of the industry and find out what are the main objectives and steps to be taken at the larger scale of doing business.

 HR team should communicate the management decisions clearly and transparently, so that everyone knows what’s going on

We can firmly claim that most of the companies are being affected by the current economic crisis. To keep businesses afloat, the main objective at the moment is cutting on costs. Thus, the HR department should closely work with the management to decide on the internal measures they could implement from the Government’s social and economic initiatives, such as the technical unemployment. Today, it is very important to stay informed on the latest financial & judicial legislation updates, in order to react on them immediately.

It is also important the HR team communicates the management decisions clearly and transparently, so that everyone knows what’s going on. Communicating what’s happening at the organizational level around finances, client relationships and bigger-picture goals keeps everyone in the loop. Some people may be nervous about revenue goals and other deliverables. Share as much information as you can, with as many people as you can, to help them feel like things are going to be OK.

In the following weeks, it is important for the government to prepare and initiate actions that will encourage the restart of businesses and local employment

A fiscal update which would be useful for the local market is facilitating the electronic signature and its gratuity, so the employer could sign a new contract without having to come to company headquarters. I don’t believe it’s a complicated decision for the Government, and it could also represent a beneficial measure, not only in a pandemic context.

I think a lot of good initiatives have been already taken, such as the technical unemployment. However, in the following weeks, it is important for the government to prepare and initiate actions that will encourage the restart of businesses and local employment. It is better to prepare now, before all the lockdown restrictions will be lifted.

The needs of our clients vary depending on the industry. The manufacturing, entertainment or HORECA industries, which are the most affected by this economic crisis, need a lot of judicial consultancy and recommendations on how to proceed while considering the authorities’ initiatives. In other industries, such as IT & Telecommunications, we can attest a demand for personnel. The recruitment process is at a lower rate, but we continue to have requests.

More focus on the long-term sustainable business strategies

I consider this crisis a good lesson for the management of companies which avoided sustainability or a sustainable development in favor of short-term opportunities, such as market share. A lot of the companies developed or extended their business without taking into consideration the long-term objectives. The survivors will definitely come out of this period with great lessons and will most certainly update their approach on sustainability.