The Perception Of HR

Last week, I had the privilege of participating in a global meeting with HR professionals, and one recurring theme was clear: 𝗛𝗥 𝗱𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱𝘄𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗛𝗥 𝗮𝘀 𝗽𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹, 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗮 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿, remains a significant obstacle.

Based on a survey I conducted, I found that these challenges are widespread. During one of my consultancy projects, I faced a similar issue when I asked the CEO to involve HR in the company’s strategy and upcoming projects to support workforce planning and create an HR strategy. Unfortunately, the response I received was, 'Why should HR know our projects? We’ll inform them when we need to recruit.' 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱𝘀𝗲𝘁 𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗛𝗥’𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴-𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗺 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀.

🔵 𝗞𝗲𝘆 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗛𝗥 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗚𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆:

𝟭. 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗛𝗥 𝗮𝘀 𝗡𝗼𝗻-𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰

🔹 𝗟𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗜𝗻𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆: HR is often viewed primarily as a support function, which restricts its ability to contribute meaningfully to business goals.

🔹 𝗙𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗔𝗱𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗧𝗮𝘀𝗸𝘀: Time spent on administrative duties like payroll, compliance, and employee records often overshadows HR's strategic potential.

𝟮. 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗘𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗛𝗥’𝘀 𝗥𝗼𝗹𝗲

🔹 𝗟𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝗦𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀: Some HR professionals may lack the strategic skills or business acumen necessary for effective participation in high-level decision-making.

🔹 𝗕𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘁𝘀: Securing budgets for strategic initiatives can be challenging, as their value may not be immediately apparent to top management.

🔹 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗕𝘂𝘆-𝗜𝗻: Without strong support from leadership, HR’s role in shaping company strategy can be limited, as leaders may not always recognize HR's long-term value beyond traditional functions.

𝟯. 𝗠𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗔𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗛𝗥 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗲

🔹 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿-𝗦𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗛𝗥 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸: 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲’𝘀 𝗮 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗶𝗻 𝗛𝗥 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗱 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄𝗹𝗲𝗱𝗴𝗲, which underestimates the complexities of managing people, understanding labor laws, and aligning human capital with business goals.

🔹 𝗨𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗛𝗥’𝘀 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁: The significant impact HR can have on employee engagement, company culture, and overall business success is often undervalued, leading to HR remaining reactive rather than proactive.

🟢 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀:

🎓 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗲𝘀: HR professionals should focus on developing skills like data analysis, business understanding, and change management to showcase their value as strategic partners.

💪 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗡𝗲𝗴𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗹𝘂𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀: Enhance the ability to negotiate and influence upper management by presenting clear evidence, facts, and demonstrating ROI (Return on Investment).

🎯 𝗔𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝗛𝗥 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗚𝗼𝗮𝗹𝘀: Ensure that HR initiatives are closely tied to business objectives to shift the perception of HR from being merely operational to being a driver of organizational success.

🏆 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗼𝗰𝗮𝗰𝘆: Build strong relationships with key leaders and demonstrate HR’s impact on business outcomes to gain necessary buy-in for strategic initiatives.

💼 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗕𝘂𝘆-𝗜𝗻: Your secret weapons are Facts, data, and evidence.

🛡️ 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝘃𝘀. 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹: Remember, it's not about you. It's about the work.

𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀:

📊 𝗟𝗲𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗧𝗮𝗹𝗸: Present clear data to support your initiatives.

🧠 𝗘𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲: Recognize your feelings, but don't let them drive decisions.

🏋️𝗣𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁: Find healthy ways to decompress and recharge.

🤝 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗮 𝗦𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗡𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸: Connect with other HR pros facing similar challenges.

📚 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴: Stay updated on global HR trends and best practices.

𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗛𝗥 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗱𝗼𝘄𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗼𝘁𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗸𝗲𝘆 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗻 𝗱𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵. 🌟💼

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