What's So Cool About HR?

Every year, I get to talk with a group of medical center leadership candidates about the HR department. I present, they ask questions and, because it is a small group, we have lots of time to interact.

This time I want to connect.

I want to flip this whole "department overview" idea on it's head. OUT with understanding a little more about the complexities of Federal HR and IN with coolness. HR is one of THE coolest departments in the building and when I get through with them, the leadership candidates will be climbing over each other to get onto our team or going back out to their teams and singing our praises {this is you applauding me and no, I am not sniffing anything this morning!}

Hold your judgement when I tell you that, yes, I have been using very un-presentation Zen like PowerPoint's with staffing structure, lists of functional areas etc {this is me hanging my head in shame}. Not very cool. Not very cool at all.

I need your help. I am looking for anything you've got (slideshares, ideas, reasons, pictures, phrases, quotes) that I can use to get the word out to our leadership candidates that "HR is Cool." Now that I am thinking, I could probably use a boost myself. And so could my department.

Hit me in the comments, contact me, @ or DM me in Twitter, connect on LinkedIn, etc with whatever you got. I promise to put whatever I get to good use and I will share too.

So, what's so cool about HR?

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Comments

[Chris Ferdinandi - Renegade HR]

Lisa, I think you already know why I love HR, but let me reiterate anyways. I think the functional stuff is all part of the basic duties of the job. We manage comp, we manage benefits, we recruit. What makes HR cool that, when done right, it distinguishes the good companies from the great ones.

Great companies have highly strategic HR departments that know what they need to meet their business goals. They recruit great people. They inspire them through awesome programs. They help managers become better managers. They help people become better performers. And ultimately, we help the company make more money.

[Creative Chaos Consultant]

Hi Lisa,

I don't have any technical advice and I highly doubt that you need any. My suggestion is this-tell them stories. HR has the best stories, so tell them about the good, bad, and exciting things that your team tackles. Tell them about the strategic decisions made, opportunities provided, and risks managed. Paint a picture that will show those leadership candidates that HR is not just cool, it's AWESOME!

I hope that was helpful. Good luck with the presentation!

[Paul Hebert]

People are the only competitive advantage today. Therefore, HR is the driver of a company's competitive advantage. Those that understand this survive - those that don't get bailouts.

[Steve Boese]

To me, what makes HR cool are the people. Folks like yourself, the HR Maven, Chris, the HR Bartender and many more. You guys, and the thousands of other caring and insightful HR pros are what makes HR cool to me.

[Carl]

I use the phrase destination department. HR should become the place the best and the brightest fight to get into. We have a ways to go to get there. For sure I can tell you that the B-schools often tend to position HR as a dead-end location for careers.

[Jeremy Stone]

Hi Lisa,

To capture and communicate what's cool about HR, I've learned it's crucial to focus on how the team adds value to the organization. And where I think many HR leaders and practitioners miss the boat on this is in the widely-held belief that creating and improving efficiencies are value-additive. They aren't, and they won't be. Gearing HR department goals toward improving these efficiencies won't really attract the best talent to the jobs, and I hesitate to believe success in those areas will land the coveted "seat at the table."

Want to be cool? Show how a comprehensive strategy for talent management for the whole life cycle of an employee will increase productivity and improve employee engagement; it has to be more than implementing software and processes that improve time-to-hire.

Want to be cool? Walk through the research, the stakeholder and broker meetings, and the opportunities to connect with and enrich the lives of employees(and their families) that go along with implementing wellness and preventative health initiatives; COBRA and HIPAA and ERISA are just facts and figures and administration - part of the job, but no matter how well you do it, they will never tie to business outcomes.

[Trish]

Hi Lisa,
I agree with the HR pros who have already commented.

In addition, I like to think of HR like this...
I view HR as the clock/watch makers of the company. Instead of just looking at the surface to see what time it is, we're the ones who try to open it all up and see what makes it tick.

[laurie ruettimann]

You know what's cool about HR, Lisa? I think we're undiscovered gems -- and I think that's kind of cool. When we shine, Lisa, people will notice.

[T.Yuvarajah]

Hi Lisa,

I am not so sure what "cool" means, but I suppose it has got to do with getting the HR people pumped up to feel appreciated, valued and bursting with energy into saying, we make a difference.

I wrote a comment on HBP in respond to Tammy Erickson's article, "Who Are the "Right" People to Invite on Your Bus?
getting the right people on" - http://blogs.harvardbusiness.org/erickson/2009/05/who_are_the_right_people_to_in.html

I liked the analogy of a bus ride which was originally conceptualised by Bill Collins Good To Great. It would be a good eye opener to those leadership who may still be living the ice-age thinking HR are designed to dish out forms and punchcards. For a change, put the put the bus driver on the spotlight and see how people figure out where HR fit in. I am sure you will be able to faciliate and extract great insights on a great number of areas and angles. Who knows, it could be the start of something that could lead to a story like the pike's fish or who moved my Cheese.

I hope you will update us on how it went, should you accept the idea.

Good luck