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What if HR Got a Do Over?
Featured Author:
Lance Haun
Lance Haun is a Human Resources Generalist practicing in the field for the past five years. His professional interests include recruitment, team building, training and development, employee relations and restraining himself from beating the crap out of bad managers and employees. He is a proud product of the Washington State University School of Business. In his spare time, he likes to recreate outdoors in the beautiful Northwest US with his flawless wife and tell stories about his co-workers with friends over a beer after work.Visit his blog!
More articles from this author:
October 16, 2009
A Golf Story
I love and hate playing the game of golf. There is something inherently peaceful about walking around a carefully landscaped course and there is something inherently vengeful and ridiculous about trying to get a small white ball into a cup 300 yards away. When I lived a bit closer to my dad, we’d play quite a bit in the season.
Now there is something in golf called a mulligan. After you take a terrible shot, you are told to take your mulligan and try again. With the pressure off and the mistake made, I’ve typically done considerably better after my mulligans. I remember one memorable shot as I was lined up to go over the water hazard and on to the green.
I lined up, took my shot, topped the ball and it rolled into the pond. I went down to the pond, grabbed my ball, took it back to the spot and shot again, this time hitting the downhill side of the green several yards away from the hole.
A Work Story
I believe HR is in a tough place and in need of innovation and reinvention. I also know that change doesn’t come from people who talk about it but from people who execute and initiate. And when you have ingrained systems with a stake in keeping the status quo, execution is the most difficult thing in the world. Think I am joking? Just ask President Obama (or, if your politics prefer, President Reagan).
HR’s situation is the same. We’ve progressed down a path decreased relevance and stature in organizations. The people who worked the staffing functions in the olden days would be ashamed at some of the disconnects between HR and the organization.
The need for change is bigger than ever but the ability to change is seen as less possible due to those ingrained systems driving organizations today.
EmilyCragg
20 days ago
16 comments
The old workplace was founded and grounded in relationships. Employees were also friends. My dad who owned a dry-cleaning and laundry facility employing 35 people, all blue collar workers, were friends and spent time together. As the "kid of the boss" it was my job to fix coffee for everybody at 10 o'clock. And we all had coffee and danish together; and then we all went back to work. THE coffee break was "two cigarettes long" in those days. .... In those days, there was no CV, no resume lottery (based in Anti-Discrimatory Laws). Somebody in the community walked in and said, "I know how to press pants." My dad would say, "Okay, let's see you do some." And either he knew how or he didn't. Either he showed up and did the job, or he didn't. The only paper work was the payroll function, to get the taxes paid. The rest of our time, we just cleaned, pressed and mended peoples clothes. I have no concept how HR is even needed in a business of under 50 employees. Everybody has to know and get along with everybody else; and that's that. .... Now with hundreds or thousands of employees, it's different.
charisma
about 1 month ago
10 comments
Interesting thoughts.