Human resources was originally a function that covered compliance-based, administrative tasks. The professionals working in the HR department focused on employee well-being, hence, they were perceived as people who were adding value to the business like salesmen, marketing practitioners or engineers do.

If you go in the depth of how human resources practitioners of the past generation have handled their career, you would realize that they stuck to a liner path by paying full attention to their own field and never diverted toward any other sphere of work. Therefore, their contribution was limited to the HR department, thereby not making them the supporters of an organization.

However, with changing times the role of HR professionals has also changed. Going by a report provided by HR Open Source, a community platform for human resources practitioners, 68 percent of HR people have obtained work experience in other fields besides HR. This indicates that the HR role is being combined with some new ideas and skills to make it more organization oriented. Thus, it is time for HR professionals to add some new competencies into their kitty in the pursuance of becoming a more valuable part of a company.

If you are an HR person seeking new skills to renovate your career or a freshman looking for ways to kick start your journey in HR, developing these 3 HR leadership qualities will take a long way ahead.

Absorbing Agility

Technology is pervading countless area of work and HR is one of them. There are more than 24000 software tools build for supporting the HR function, as per William Tincup, an HR tech analyst. The market for these products is worth 400 billion dollars and it encompasses every giant technology of today, from automation to artificial intelligence to blockchain. Hence, becoming tech-savvy is a crucial quality that modern HR leaders must possess.

2. Creativity

New tides have begun to grow in the HR sector over the past few years. With employer branding becoming a top priority for organizations who want to stay in the limelight, HR professionals are expected to direct their efforts toward building a brand, telling stories along with molding the perspective of the prospective hires to attract the best talent out there. So, exhibiting your creative side is a relevant leadership quality that can help you support the marketing team on boosting its branding initiatives.

3. Business & data awareness

Apart from undertaking the responsibility of running the HR department in the sharpest way possible, today’s HR leaders have to walk beside the CEO to offer advice on a wide array of business matters. Thus, owning a profound knowledge of business and its operation is a critical HR leadership trait at this age. To infuse effectiveness into functions like hiring, learning, and development & performance assessment, HR professionals must be aware of the company’s business model, industry dynamics, and market strategies.