Does HR really need to disappear? Is the whole idea of a central department to help manage all of an organization’s talent really a relic? Is HR dead? If HR is not dead, but just is on life support, how will it be revived? If you were able to start all over again and redesign the HR function from scratch, what would it look like?
These questions and potential answers will be bandied about on Steve Boese’s radio program on October 29th at 5pm (west coast time). My mentor, Employee Communications expert, Frank Roche is a guest.
I’ve touched on these issues many times right here in this blog. To sum up my position:
Human Resources should not ride into the sunset as long as Line Managers don’t get “it.” 
I would love to pose this question in a survey of HR professionals – Do we in Human Resources feel that CEOs, Vice Presidents, Managers and Supervisors have absorbed the human resource/management/leadership principles that most of us are dedicated to? In other words, are they, on their own…
- hiring the best people?
- promoting the people that deserve it?
- leading, managing, developing and motivating their employees to their maximum potential?
- arriving at compensation decisions objectively?
- successfully staying within legal constraints?
If the answers are a resounding “Yes!” then let’s wrap it up and go home. My sense is that – in general – management has become a little bit more sophisticated over the years, but still has a long, long way to go. They still need our help, but they resist our help for one or more of the following reasons:
- They think they know how to manage people
- They don’t want to admit that they need help
- They don’t think we have the answers
- They don’t think we understand their issues
- They have a negative view of the HR function and don’t want to use us
- We don’t give them the impression that we know the answers
- We act like bureaucrats, not business people
- We scare them with legal stuff
- We are only associated with event planning and benefits administration functions
Finally, I believe this -
In rare cases, the CEO gets “it.” He or she knows the value of HR, is a good leader and manager and makes it clear to the organization that Human Resources is a valued business partner and an equal player at the table. Without the CEO’s support, it is always an uphill battle for the HR function and many employees wish that we would disappear.
So, in Ron’s world, the only person we need in our corner is the CEO – everyone else will fall in line.
Sourced from: HRM Today Featured Posts
Tags: HRM, human resource management
