The 7 functions and roles of business psychologists

Psychology is a discipline that arouses a lot of interest today; however, many people associate the figure of the psychologist with the clinical setting.

Psychology professionals can carry out their work in different fields: the sport, school or work. In the latter case, they are called company psychologists..

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How does the psychologist help companies?

Organizations are as complex as they are varied in terms of the type of activities and ways of working that can take place within them. Precisely for this reason, psychologists trained to work with leaders, companies and departments can intervene from very changing roles.

It is clear that each corporation is different, but at the end of the day, it is possible to recognize typical tasks of this professional profile when intervening in companies. So that, In what areas does the company psychologist participate? What functions does it perform? This psychology professional performs different tasks within a company.

1. Improve the work environment

The positive work environment (relationships between workers, company culture, etc.) and the work environment work has a great influence on the results of the organization, since companies are made up of people. The business psychologist is an expert in understanding the behavior of workers and their needs and is capable of influencing their behavior for the good of the organization.

A positive work environment brings benefits to workers' mental health and keeps them motivated. On the other hand, when the work environment is toxic, it can generate stress and cause a decrease in their performance, and even facilitate the appearance of psychological disorders. The company psychologist can work to maintain a suitable work environment in which the behavior patterns of the people who make up the organization are not dysfunctional. Only in this way is it possible to allow people to be satisfied by this work context, and for the company to retain talent.

2. Job analysis and personnel selection

One of the most visible jobs of the company is the selection of personnel and the analysis of jobs. Human capital is, without a doubt, the great engine of the organization, and the good selection of the workers that are part of the company is decisive for its results.

The classic personnel selection only took into account how the worker fit into the job taking into account his experience and training, but in recent times Other variables of the organization (for example, the climate) and the competencies that the candidate has (their motivation, their personality, their concerns, their experience, etc.).

The contribution of psychology is key in all phases of a recruitment process, and psychologists actively participate in when implementing a comprehensive human resources system, in which the different positions and skills necessary to these. With a comprehensive human resources system, recruitment is connected to other areas of importance within the human resources department, such as compensation and benefits, talent detection or training.

An incorrect recruitment process can cause employee dissatisfaction and, as a consequence, poor performance of these, adaptation and integration difficulties, higher turnover, higher cost in training, etc.

• Related article: "Personnel selection: 10 keys to choosing the best employee”

3. Training and development

Selecting the right staff is key when looking for a new hire, but workers can often be trained to advance or perform other functions Inside the company.

In this case and in many others, employee training is key not only for the company to perform better, but also to keep employees motivated. Psychologists can train workers and, in addition, they can apply tools to detect talent or know in which areas it is necessary to train workers so that they are more competent.

4. Prevention of occupational hazards

Occupational health also influences the performance of workers, and psychological aspects are key in this regard. The occupational risk prevention department is multidisciplinary, and that is why they are usually made up of sociologists, psychologists and other professionals.

Business psychologists are important, for example, to reduce the impact of some psychological phenomena such as stress or burnout. In addition, they intervene when establishing workflow models that do not expose workers to risks unnecessary, and also assess the ways in which workspaces could be more ergonomic.

5. Marketing

The profile of a business psychologist is very versatile, since she can also actively participate in the marketing department, both in the design of campaigns and in the product design. Your profile is useful, for example, to pass questionnaires and detect user needs. Emotions are a very important part of marketing, and they often have a great influence on decision making.

• If you want to know more about the role of psychologists in this field, you can read our article: "7 keys of Psychology applied to Marketing and Advertising”

6. Support for the scorecard

Psychologists are experts in interpersonal relationships, communication and leadership, so their knowledge is very valuable to the higher ups. They can participate at the strategy level, training senior managers in the organization in more efficient leadership styles or evaluating their relationship with subordinates. They also help to make decisions in the field of Human Resources policies, and in the field of Public Relations that is reflected in the philosophy of the company by interact with workers, both to improve work models (taking into account emotional and human variables in general) and the image of the organization as entity.

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7. Diagnosis and advice in workflow

Psychologists also diagnose and advise regarding workflow or workflow, that is, what roles are assigned in the company, how the tasks are structured within the company, how the information that supports these tasks flows, etc.

Companies are made up of people and workflow influences them. The workflow, which aims to reduce work time and speed up its completion, makes it easier to staff mobility, automate methods, streamline the information exchange process, improve decision-making decisions ...

How does it do it and how does it influence the organization?

The business psychologist can work directly in a company or in a consultancy that performs services of human resources and organizational psychology for companies that want to outsource some functions or chores. For example, conducting massive selection processes.

The business psychologist can plan, organize or direct the development of people, retention of these, the admission, the evaluation of their performance or the economic compensation or remuneration that receive. She also analyzes, observes and, if necessary, intervenes in conflicts between workers, to ensure in this way a good organizational climate.

Observe and measure physical, social and psychological aspects that affect the correct performance of employees and impact the results of the company. Uses questionnaires, interviews, and other methods to assess phenomena such as organizational climate, productivity and employee health, and applies psychological techniques to correct possible mismatches. Intervenes and advises the scorecard when necessary, participate in collective bargaining and influences strategies to maximize corporate image.

What's more, is responsible for designing and implementing training programs for staff development, as well as career plans and promotions. In general, it analyzes the needs of personnel, the job and the organization and intervenes for the improvement of the performance of the employees and the company.