Many businesses do not think of their human resources department as revenue-generating cost centers; however, there is a direct correlation between HR-related activities and an employer’s overall profit. Recruitment, retention, training and even benefits and compensation practices are examples of how an HR professional can directly contribute to a company’s bottom line. Once these activities have been recognized, employers can better utilize their human resources team as a part of their strategic revenue-generating initiatives.

Recruitment

One of the biggest impacts on a business’s revenue is the success of its employees. Top-performing candidates, however, don’t just show up at your doorstep begging for work. It is the job of the HR department to find, attract and retain these talented individuals to join your team. Instead of relying solely on candidate resumes and interviewing skills, incorporate a technical skills assessment to ensure you are truly selecting candidates who are as skilled as they claim to be. You may even consider bringing in individuals on a temp-to-hire basis to confirm their ability to deliver the results you are looking for before extending an offer for full-time employment.

Training

To make money, your business must be willing to invest the time and money that is required to properly train your employees. The HR department contributes to increased revenue by performing training needs assessments for each department and designing training programs to provide employees with the tools and resources they need to succeed. Low-performing employees should be coached until their performance improves or terminated if they are consistently unable to meet the job expectations.

Compensation

People often associate a business’s compensation policy with cost-cutting; however, this can also be used to generate revenue. Instead of offering set salaries for revenue-generating positions, encourage your HR department to tie in performance-based pay and incentives. While commission is not out of the norm for sales representatives, other departments such as marketing, production and operations can also benefit from this premise by offering monetary incentives once competitive goals are achieved. This, in turn, drives revenue by boosting productivity.

Professional Services

In addition to indirectly boosting the company’s earnings, your HR department can turn a profit by offering professional consulting services to third parties. While this is not commonly done, some businesses, including Disney, Wachovia and Southwest Airlines, have found an extra source of income by having their HR departments provide external recruiting, training and strategic human resources services. By using this strategy, your business would retain the revenue made from these external services, while also making your company more visible in the community.