Continuing the thoughts….

Myth: HR’s job is to be the policy police and the health-and-happiness patrol.

Truth in 1997 – The HR function does not own compliance — managers do.  HR practices do not exist to make employees happy but to help them become committed.  HR professionals must help managers commit employees and administer policies.

Today? – Sarbanes-Oxley!  The audit policy are alive and well; while most work for accounting or a separate function, some still work in HR.  

Myth: HR is full of fads.

Truth in 1997: HR practices have evolved over time. HR professionals must see their current work as part of an evolutionary chain and explain their work with less jargon and more authority.

Today? – While HR practices continue to evolve, they do so with serious research behind them.  The vast profileration of certifications (PHR, SPHR) have added substance to the decision making of HR professionals.  Arguments for and against HR practices are now being made using research data rather than intuition or prior personal experiences.

Myth: HR is staffed by nice people.

Truth in 1997: At times, HR practices should force vigorous debates. HR professionals should be confrontive and challenging as well as supportive.

Today? – While the vigorous debates expected in 1997 haven’t happened yet, HR professionals are clearly more aggressive in addressing business issues that involve the workforce.  The limitations in this area, in my opinion, are the result of the HR professionals capabilities more than a restriction of other areas of the business.

Myth: HR is HR’s job.

Truth in 1997: HR work is as important to line managers as are finance, strategy, and other business domains. HR professionals should join with managers in championing HR issues.

Today? – From a training and development standpoint, HR has been effective in getting line managers more involved than in the past.  However, there are still misguided concerns within the HR community that “giving away” too many HR activities will lead to a reduction of HR’s influence (and resources); the truth is just the opposite for the companies that end up succeeding.  Until HR professionals realize that their value is in their leadership and not their “activities”, HR will never truly reach its potential as a business resource.

Myth – HR focuses on costs, which must be controlled

Truth in 1997: HR practices must create value by increasing the intellectual capital within the firm.  HR professionals must add value, not reduce costs.

Today? – Unfortunately, while expectations have changed, HR is still considered more of a cost control center rather than adding “intellectual capital”.  I believe this has arisen from two areas — first, the focus on controlling benefit costs has overshadowed a lot of HR’s work, and second, HR is trying too hard to leverage OD with poor metrics rather than trying to help implement business strategy by using all of the HR tools (such as policies and procedures).

The subject continues…

Myth: HR deals with the soft side of business and is therefore not accountable.

Truth in 1997: The impact of HR practices on business results can and must be measured.  HR professionals must learn how to translate their work into financial performance.

Today? – We are measuring our practices, but are we measuring the true impact on results?  How many more times are we going to see the impact of training measured in terms of dollars spent or hours teaching???  We haven’t made much progress in translating our work into financial performance, and we need to — ASAP

Continuing the revisiting of the myths:

Myth: Anyone can do HR.

Truth in 1997: HR activities are based on theory and research.  HR professionals must master both theory and practice.

Today? – HR activities are now based on business practice, as well as HR theory and research.  We have to approach human resources not from a traditional view of what has been done in the past, but from a business view of what results need to be achieved and then what HR practices and policies can help the company reach those results.

Myth: HR deals with the soft side of business and is therefore not accountable.

Truth in 1997: The impact of HR practices on business results can and must be measured. HR professionals must learn how to translate their work into financial performance.

Today? – We are moving forward from showing HOW HR activities impact the bottom line to showing WHICH HR activities should be done to achieve the business results desired.  It’s no longer about “proving” value; it’s about being a partner in designing the strategy to achieve business goals.

I’m re-reading Dave Ulrich’s great book, Human Resource Champions.  I was struck by the “myths that keep HR from being a profession” and how the truths that may have existed in 1997 have changed in the past ten years.

Myth #1 – People go into HR because they like people

Truth in 1997- HR departments are not designed to provide corporate therapy or as a social or health-and-happiness retreats.  HR professionals must create the practices that make employees more competitive, not comfortable.

Today? The truth may be closer to the myth that some would like to admit.  Today’s HR professionals are business people who enjoy the challenges of working with people; not unlike project engineers who enjoy building things.  This doesn’t make them the social workers that are implied in the myth, but they are also not the cold, calculators that are implied in the 1997 truth.

So I’m polishing up my resume, because it’s important to always have your resume up to date (and it makes me feel better after a long week at work).  I noticed three things: one, I was the most proud of the work I did that tied directly to a business issue that needed to be solved and the outcome had a positive affect on the business; two, that same work was the most enjoyable I had done; and three, it was a very small percentage of the work I did. 

There’s got to be a better way.

I swear to God that I have interests that are more entertaining to read about for the vast majority of the world than Strategic Planning and Tactical Execution.  But I refuse to believe that I am the only Human Resources professional that believes that we can provide a significant competitive advantage for our companies.

For too long it seems that the current generation of HR leaders are more than happy to talk about being “strategic” and “having a seat at the table” to fellow HR professionals, but when talking with fellow senior managers, the only value they can add is cost cutting (especially benefits), legal compliance (more paperwork before we terminate!), and presenting metrics showing effort (training hours) rather than results.

I truly believe that the bedrock of Human Resources is the ability to help the company achieve its business goals with proper strategic planning and effective tactical execution.  In other words, what Operations for a manufacturer does for raw materials to finished product, HR should be doing for employee potential to employee results. 

This blog is my humble attempt to refine my thoughts and beliefs about human resources in general and strategic planning and tactical execution specifically, by forcing me to express my thoughts (with the expectation that they will be refined and improved by both my own reflection and that of other contributors) and defend them.

Game on.