Why I stayed in HR

On a fine morning, in the sweltering heat of March, I started my career – buoyed with what now seems like extravagant energy and optimism which comes with youth. This is a story from 29 years ago as I started my career in HR, and in it, found my Purpose. I was, and believe still am, lucky to be a part of a function that is so drastically evolving in its nature and scope.

My formative days in GE and Toyota left a profound impact on me, building the foundational ethos that defines me. However, it was during my days in Britannia that I pushed myself to explore the great dream beyond. I got the opportunity to explore people supply chain management, delivery, and operations, managed P&L, and forayed into the business side of things.

While my foray between the business and Talent was an aberration to the rule, I can see the cross-over experience becoming a necessary element of the future. There are two articles that explore similar predicaments that stayed with me:

Why we hate HR, by Keith H. Hammonds, the article [https://www.fastcompany.com/53319/why-we-hate-hr] first emerged in 2005, while the header is tongue in cheek, it raised some thought-provoking questions on what the role of HR in an organization ‘ought to be’ versus ‘often is.’ There is an element of truth in it. HR functions can slide into administrative rigmarole, whereas the need is to deliver to the business vision. HR deserves a seat at the table, and it is well earned. The systems need to be disrupted to create value and employee experiences – that translates to customer experience.

Why did we ever go into HR? by Matthew D. Breitfelder and Daisy Dowling in Harvard Business Review [https://hbr.org/2008/07/why-did-we-ever-go-into-hr], again was written over a decade ago! It tracks the genesis of what we see today, through five characteristics:

• A focus on active and action-based learning
• Looking beyond P&L to generate value, through both savings and revenue
• Fostering a culture of creativity and innovation across organizational boundaries
• Making big places smaller by connecting people
• The upside of moving beyond fixing problems and implementing rules to enhance employee engagement, and capitalizing on people’s strengths

So, moving back to my story, why did I stay?

Often I have been asked why I have not moved to what is arguably described as more exciting spaces of business? I have two reasons – you would have heard me quote that I believe HR, like teaching and medicine, is a profession that is tied closely with people. And this has close ties with my Purpose of positively influencing people around me – teams, workforce, communities. The other equally compelling reason is, as knowledge becomes the most sought-after resource, it is now more important than ever that future leaders understand both Talent and Business.

The next question is: Was the stay worth it?

A resounding ‘yes’. HR leaned toward social sciences, psychology, and a large dose of common sense when I started my career. Not that any of these are dispensable, especially not the last one. We now have in the mix a healthy number of pure sciences – with research and analytics, we dig into technology – generously tapping into digitalization efforts with AI, ML, and methodologies like agile. Now HR finally has a well-deserved seat at the table; it is moving confidently in its partnership with the business – as comrades and equals.

Some key trends are:

• Culture curators – I cannot claim that HR is the custodian of organizational culture. We play a significant role in building one. And culture is the foundation for everything else determining success. For example, Six sigma in GE or TGI and Lean in Toyota are processed widely replicated in the industry. While they contribute immensely to the success, no one could truly replicate their success in GE and Toyota, at least in my experience. And there lies the importance of defining and building a distinctive culture aligned to the Purpose.
• Share responsibility – With employee experience being more intrinsically linked to customer satisfaction and market penetration, Talent is now everyone’s business. However, the business of Talent is Business, as much as people and processes.
• One Purpose – As Talent practices are vertically aligned with the business, the Talent organization is being horizontally integrated to provide a single experience from onboarding to exit. It means the traditional fault lines of roles and scope are fast evaporating to make way for the Talent professional of the future.

In all, the golden days of Talent are yet to come. I am proud and grateful to have been a part of the extraordinary transformation so far, but I am more excited about what is to come.

Being future-ready

As the next generation of leaders, what are the expectations from you?

• Gear up – Bring all the curiosity and agility you can muster, now is not the time to get complacent.
• Dial-up the energy – Purpose drives passion. The articles in the blog tell, so do I – ‘if you are in HR, because you are a people’s person’ you are in the wrong job. Find your Purpose to unlock the potential – yours and that of your function and business. Help your organization define the same.
• Learn and unlearn – With the digital disruptions, the landscape has evolved. To adopt, we need to adapt. The latter is a beautiful word, as it means embracing with the utmost openness. Innovate each day.
• Develop your business acumen – If you have a seat at the table, you need to speak the language.
• Find your voice – Nurture an ability to speak up. Talent will be in the middle of many conversations, and most won’t be easy. Keep your compassion and judgment. Be tenacious about your belief system.

This is why I stayed in Talent, its always been exciting, and the future is looking even more enticing!