Networking, Relationship Building and Teamwork share one exam pattern: know which behaviors sit under For All HR Professionals, because that is the set the SHRM-CP keys to.
Networking
The three indicators for all HR professionals cover:
- Internal contacts, including peers in both HR and non-HR roles, HR customers, and stakeholders such as the IT department.
- External partners, such as vendors.
- The HR community at large, for professional development and business needs such as identifying new talent.
Advanced only: creating opportunities for HR employees to network with higher-level leaders, and leveraging contacts such as legislative body members, community leaders and union heads. Confidentiality is no reason to confine networking to HR, and internal networking is not reassigned to Teamwork.
Trust-building techniques
The BASK key concept names five examples: emotional intelligence; relatability; vulnerability; transparency; recognizing individual strengths.
The alliterative set (consistency, confidentiality, competence, candor, commitment) is not the BASK's, however memorable. Neither is a list built from active listening, perspective taking and mediation, which borrow from Communication and negotiation.
Relationship Building in practice
- Use technology to build and maintain strong relationships with individuals who work at other work locations, such as remote workers. A quarterly newsletter is one-way distribution; waiting for managers to relay issues is passive.
- Ensure all HR team member and stakeholder voices are heard and acknowledged, and identify and leverage areas of common interest among stakeholders. When two stakeholders dominate and three object later by email, restructure the meeting rather than proceeding, surveying anonymously, or sending proxies.
- Develop relationships with supervisors by promptly and effectively responding to work assignments, communicating goal progress and project needs. Presenting HR's vision and strategy to senior leaders is an advanced Communication indicator under Exchanging Organizational Information.
Teamwork
Identifies and fills missing or unfulfilled team roles is the indicator for stepping into an unfilled coordination gap on a team that already exists. Creating or participating in project teams covers forming or joining; fostering a culture that supports intraorganizational teamwork is advanced.