HR's Primary Role and How To Fulfill It

As I was reading Twitter posts today I came across one posted by a favorite of mine. Sharlyn Lauby, the HR Bartender, conducted an Interview with Libby Sartain. She is an author and speaker, the former board chair for SHRM and is famous as the proactive, forward-thinking Chief Human Resources Officer for both Southwest Airlines and Yahoo. She is, as Sharlyn calls her, "...the real deal – business savvy, HR smart, and volunteer leader." She is certainly a model for up-and-coming HR pros to follow.

In the interview she made a statement that made me say "Yes, she has it! What a perfect summary!" Her quote was:

"The primary role for HR is to ensure that the business succeeds by having

the right workforce in the right place at the right time.

There is so much more involved including strategic workforce planning and talent management,

the right rewards and recognition, flexibility to add and delete workers according to

business requirements. And, ensuring a culture that inspires and leads to a higher performance than the competition."

What is the skill set needed for this level of performance for HR? Here is my list:

1. Knowledge of the business your business is in. How can you know if you are finding the right people if you don't know what is needed. So you need to know your industry and your competition. And that means more than just the names.
2. You need to be a futurist. You need to know what is happening and what may happen. How are things like demographics, technology, social trends and legal developments going to impact your business. This is the proactive stuff. If you don't foresee it you are doomed to react to it.
3. You need to understand how your business operates, how it makes its money. If you don't you will  be adding or deleting people without understanding why. You can help upper management make reasoned decisions rather than just reacting to their perceived need to cut costs.
4. You need to know compensation and motivation. Remember her statement was "the right rewards".
5. You need to know the laws of the land. There are many "legal landmines" that can thwart your best efforts to run a good HR show. So know your stuff.
6. You need to have a "very good presence." All leaders (and that is what HR should be) at some point have to make a presentation, make a speech in front of a group of employees or an executive board, or represent the company in a public setting. Learn how to speak and to do so effectively. Get over that fear by going to a Toastmasters program or a Dale Carnegie class or even get a private coach.

Those are my thoughts on required skills. What would you add to it?

Thanks to Sharlyn Lauby and Libby Sartain for this stimulation! If you do not follow them both you should, you will learn a tremendous amount on a weekly basis. And I see Libby's most recent book, Brand for Talent: Eight Essentials to Make Your Talent As Famous As Your Brand, making its way to my bookshelf in the very near future.

Stepping Up To Get a Seat: Reaching for the Brass Ring

Libby Sartain, one of the most respected leaders in HR, is retiring. As the past head of HR for both Southwest Airlines and Yahoo her interviews are filled with some very good advice to aspiring HR professionals. One such interview was published by WorkForce magazine in an article entitled Seats at the Table, but Who's Ready? The article starts out "When it comes to the long-sought "seat at the table" for HR leaders, Libby Sartain sees both good news and bad. Sartain, who sits on the board of directors at retailer Peet’s Coffee & Tea, notes that human resource leaders are increasingly joining such boards—a clear sign of growing clout for the profession. But she notices a dearth of HR practitioners who are prepared for top jobs in the field." (Emphasis is mine.)

So if you are one of those HR practioners that is clamoring to have your "seat at the table" how do you get prepared? Well one way is to have a boss/mentor who prepares you through education and example. But many of us don't have that opportunity. So how do we get it?

The answer is VOLUNTEER to serve on the Boards of community groups. Many community service groups are always looking for people to serve on their boards. They need people, they need expertise, they need different points of view, they need different contacts, basically they need help. Many would find a human resources perspective especially valuable when it comes to involvement with people decisions, such as hiring directors.

What do you get out of it? A valuable learning experience. You get out of the rut of your day-to-day. You see the decision-making process of a board in action. You learn about the financial operations of a group, an experience most HR people have sorely missed in their experience. You learn negotiation skills and you have the opportunity to lead. If capable, and you want it, you can step up and take on the Chair role of the organization. This truly gives you leadership experience you may not have the opportunity to get in your job. I have had the opportunity to work with several groups, a symphony orchestra board, a Rotary Club, and a Leadership Alumni group. I learned something every time.

Can it be time consuming? Sure, there will be trade-offs you have to make. Might you be asked to do some fundraising? Probably, but that in itself is a great experience for HR to have. ALL HR people should know something about raising money and being "salesy." Volunteering on a board is not for the vaint of heart or the lazy, but it is well worth the experience. It is what will help you get into that strategic, decsion-making HR leadership position.

The "Brass Ring" of strategic HR leadership is out there you just have to lean a little further to get it. And if you are not willing to "put up" to get there then shut up. Keep your day-to-day role and your 8 to 5 and don't complain when the go-getter ends up as your boss.