Friday rolls around once more, and I’m thinking HR Transformation (as I often am)
As ever, to gauge the temperature of the waters, I turn to Google, where a quick search for the term “Human Resources sacred cows” turns up…
Around 12.6 million hits.
Which sounds like a lot…
No, a LOT!
And it certainly is, when you consider:
“Leadership sacred cows” gives 6.1 million…
“Business sacred cows” gives 5.5 million…
And “Management sacred cows” gives 3.5 million…
Now, logic says that the highest to lowest of that list should be:
Business > Management > Leadership > Human Resources
Because, there are more businesses, managers, and leaders in the world than Human Resources functions.
Even if we wanted to refute that logic, surely there couldn’t be MORE Human Resources functions than businesses?
[all right, non-profits, simmer down – we see you and love what you do]
But for Human Resources to have TWICE AS MANY HITS as even the nearest contender suggests that there may be something to this question, doesn’t it?
Let’s be kind and make no preloaded, jaundiced assumptions, asking instead: Why is the term “Human Resources” associated with the term “Sacred Cows”?
A clue could be in John Boudreau’s scholarship (start with Beyond HR) that despite the passage of decades, opinion of the Human Resources function remains stubbornly negative.
Or it could be that Human Resources as a function is trapped in a never ending Möbius Strip of having to respond to newly promoted managers and leaders learning the ropes of processes, practices and culture before moving on to greener pastures.
It really could be Groundhog Day every day.
So, maybe, Human Resources is associated with Sacred Cows because, well, the more things change in the business, the more things stay the same in HR?
An alternative thought, though – maybe it has something to do with Human Resources’ reluctance to take anything off the transactional table.
We are, after all, a function that rarely receives effusive praise and celebration; more likely caught in whirlwinds of recrimination and justification because the latest hire didn’t happen quickly enough, or we didn’t process benefits correctly, or the 9-box talent planning process seems to be turning up a number of high potential duds.
[and, yes, all that recrimination may be completely unfair]But for all the recrimination, the business rarely cries: “I wish you weren’t involved!”
No-one wants to be thought of as a necessary evil.
And let me ask you this, when was the last time your Human Resources function went to the business and proudly stated: “From this point forward, we are not in the business of <insert HR responsibility here>…”?
When was the last time you said to your HR Business Partners: “From now on, when your lead client asks you to <do something you’ve always done>, politely tell them no, and carry on with more important work…”?
Unless you’re instigating such thinking, decision and action regularly, I’m afraid there’s a good chance that you may be treating your HR responsibilities, and ultimately the function, as a sacred cow.
And ending up just another 1 among 12.6 million data points…
All of which is interesting in concept, but does little for reality.
So here’s my question:
Of all the responsibilities your Human Resources function currently shoulders, name the one (and only one) that you would cease completely if given the chance?