All of us certainly know what a lab is – a place where people take existing products and services and test out new ideas. However, have you ever hear of a HR lab?
You may wonder, why does HR need a lab for? There is no groundbreaking research to be done, no vaccination to test and no need for HR to run test to lab rats. Sure, that is what a traditional lab is used for. However, broadly speaking, a lab is a place whereby people test out new ideas and solutions. And this can be applied to a HR context as well.
Still not convinced how a HR lab works? Here are some situations in which setting up a HR lab might prove extremely useful for the organisation.
Focus group for new ideas
Think of the times whereby your senior leaders have sought your opinion on rolling out new HR initiatives or ideas. Did you have any inkling as to how your employees might have thought about these new initiatives? Instead of running employee pulse surveys or mass sending out emails for employees to provide their feedback, a HR lab would prove useful for employees to come together to have these discussions. It does not necessarily mean that all ideas floated during the focus group will be implemented, but it provides an avenue for employees to share their opinions and feedback.
Testing out policy changes
Ever wondered how a new HR policy or HR procedure might impact employees? Why not test out all these changes in the HR lab? The only implication is that HR and management need to provide employees with total freedom to share feedback about the proposed policy or procedure while testing it out in the HR lab.
Experimental group for new programmes
Thinking of switching to a flexible benefit plan? Or perhaps organizing a new health programme to encourage employees to stay healthy? A HR lab would be the best place to test out these new programmes. The HR lab can drive the new programme for a few weeks and gather employees’ feedback before rolling out the programme.
Pilot group for phased implementation
Rolling out a new policy or initiative needs to be done in phases in order to minimise the impact on employees. However, problems and issues are likely to come up even at the first stage of implementation. The HR lab can serve as a pilot group during implementation and this allows for feedback or issues to be addressed before the new policy or initiative is being implemented on other groups of employees.
A HR lab is certainly new and unheard of in the workplace. However, it serves as a great way for HR to test out new ideas, policies and initiatives before implementation. With the HR lab, this can help organisations to better plan their long term HR strategies.
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