HR Ink

Build rapport! Build relationships! Make connections! Every HR professional has heard this a million times throughout their career, but we all understand the importance of it and how building rapport and connections can impact your career within an organization and outside. The best way to build relationships with those on your team and employees is by taking the time to build rapport with each person.

Strong rapport fosters trust and open communication which are elements to any strong relationship. The best time to start this is on your first day. Your ability to navigate relationships is essential as someone who takes care of other humans. It is what will help you build a network that you can rely on and assist you with your career development.

Here are 4 great strategies you can use to build rapport:

1. Take the Time to Say Hi

Despite what some may say, we can get quite busy in HR and that can lead to spending the whole day at our desk. When we do this, we may cross off a few items our to do lists, but we are missing out on an essential component of another aspect of our job by not building relationships.

Therefore, take the time to say “hi” to everyone and ask how they are doing. Taking interest in people on your team and outside is what will get them to open up and eventually approach you to do the same. The important aspect with these conversations is to be interested in the person and remember key details they divulge. This allows you to have the ability to follow up for later conversations on some of those details.

One of the best ways to remember to do this is to book some time on your calendar as a reminder to walk away from your desk and chat with your great employees and teammates.

2. Ask for Help

It is often intimidating to ask for help, especially when you first start as you want to show that you are capable and competent (after all, that is why they hired you). However, the probationary period is your time to play the ‘newbie’ card so if you are not sure, make sure you ask for help!

How does this build rapport you may be wondering? Well, since you are coming from a vulnerable place when you are doing this, it builds trust and shows that you value your team’s input. There is a great article on LinkedIn on this, that you can find here.

3. Eat Lunch With Your Team

I have seen many people that choose to eat lunch at their desk rather than with their team. Now, do not get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with taking some time for yourself when needed. However, doing this everyday will cause you to miss out on crucial time to chat with employees and colleagues.

During lunch is typically when people are more open to talk about personal things going on in their life, or their interests outside of work, and sometimes you may even pick up on the hot gossip that is going around that week (not saying you should gossip, just that it happens). This is why it is important to have lunch throughout the week with those in your organization as it is a great time to build those relationships.

4. Don’t be Robotic, Be Personable

This can be a tough line in HR as we know it is our job to be professional and to ensure we do not say the wrong thing. This can cause some HR reps to clam up and lose their personality. There was even a time when I tried it, thinking it would help me more in my career if I just always stuck to the point and never talked about myself. However, it just made people lose interest in speaking with me as they felt they could not relate, which you can’t blame them, I am sure it seemed like I had no interests.

Being personable is very beneficial in the HR realm and it will help you find more success. People love other people that are happy, empathetic, and can discuss interests with. It really helps. If you are in HR, be personable!

So, take the time to build connections and rapport with those in your organization. It will help you enjoy your job more, build a strong foundation with your team, and may even just help you get that promotion one day.

It is also a skill that translates well outside of work, so when you go to conventions, conferences, and other networking gigs, you will be able to build rapport with ease. Do not underestimate the power of building relationships as you just never know who may be hiring one day.