Lots of discussion going on in the HR blogosphere about the SHRM Annual Conference. I wasn’t at the conference so I really can’t comment about the goings on except to say there might be some things better left unsaid. You know, that whole “what happens in San Diego…” But I digress.
I do want to explore a quote being tossed around by Conrad Venter from Deutsche Bank. He said that HR will be obsolete in 10 years if we stay on our current course. Many probably received this with shock and/or alarm.
My first reaction to the comment is duh! Evidently, Mr. Venter has a marvelous command of the obvious. Any profession that’s doing the exact same thing they did 10 years ago is probably antiquated today. And any profession that thinks it will be doing the same thing 10 years from now is naïve. This applies to every profession . . not just human resources.
But the part of the conversation I’m still looking for is “What should we be doing?” Give me something I can use. Don’t just tell me I need to change to stay current. I know that. It’s like saying “We need to do something” during an emergency. Tell me what kinds of things I might need to know to be successful now and in the future.
You know, years ago when the first PDAs came on the market, my HR colleagues were dead set against them. Didn’t want that “electronic leash”. Didn’t want to answer the CEOs email at 8:30 p.m. I decided to buck the trend and get one – exactly for that reason. My CEO had one. My CFO had one. My VP, Sales and Marketing had one too.
I learned that to be a good human resources pro…I need to be a good business person first.
The best career advice I can give someone is to pay attention to what the C-Suite is doing – what they’re reading, where they’re going, what statistics and trends they’re watching. Back in the day when I first started the blog, I wrote a series called the “5 Things Any Business Person Needs to Know”. The 5 things are:
It’s certainly not an exhaustive list but something to be aware of. None of us has the crystal ball into the future. But it’s clear the future will look different. We need to make educated decisions, find something we think is important to know and just do it. Start becoming familiar with those skills necessary to excel in the future.
And if the future of work throws us a curve ball as it’s been known to do? Well, we just learn something else. But, for right now, let’s just be the best business people we can possibly be.
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Mary Jo Asmus says
As a former HR exec, a stance I have believed the profession should was that we should be working as if we were going to work our way out of a job. It isn’t a popular stance, but can be put things into perspective AND be effective as a modus operandi. Funny thing is, as an executive coach, it seems to work now too.
Jennie Stone says
I’m right with you on the ‘duh’ reaction to Conrad Venter’s observations about the future of HR. But I was a little puzzled by your ‘5 Things Any Business Person Needs To Know’ list: surely points 1 – 4 are aspects of, rather than separate from, ‘business’? And I’d like to add – even put at the top of the list – something that HR folk rarely think about. That’s ‘customer’. And worryingly, too many HR people think that customers are internal. (Very few organisations – mostly very large ones – have that model actually up and working). Until the focus for HR is firmly on the same customers as their colleagues – the customer whose money appears in the sales line on the P & L – then the HR function will remain on the sidelines.
laurie ruettimann says
“Who the heck is Conrad Venter?”
That’s what I say.
laurie ruettimann says
PS – I must have missed something in San Diego because my conference experience was pretty tame. That’s how you know you’re getting irrelevant, I guess — people cause trouble without you!
Michael Peterson says
My first reaction is haven’t they been saying that for at least a couple decades now? I know it’s been at least since just before I got into Recruiting 15 years ago.
My next reaction is the same as yours. Duh and of course!
Mike
Sharlyn Lauby says
Thanks to everyone for the comments!
@Mary Jo – I’ve always had a similar philosophy. I can’t go do ‘cool stuff’ if the office falls apart every time I’m gone.
@Jennie – Good point. Everyone needs to understand how their business makes money and who their customers are.
@Laurie – I’m beginning to think the way to get a good HR conference experience is to not attend a HR conference. Rest assured, when it comes to trouble, it’s all about quality not quantity so we’re not redundant quite yet. ha!
@Michael – Yep, HR has been reinventing itself longer than Madonna. At least she’s finally found something that works for her and she’s sticking with it!
Kevin W. Grossman says
Some of the best advice I’ve read of late for HR or for anyone in the workplace who works hard to remain productive and relevant. Thank you, Sharlyn.
Mark Stelzner says
Here’s a short article on some of the advice Venter has for HR. (http://blog.hreonline.com/?p=618)
And here’s a quote from an interview he did in August of 2007 – “HR will support the business requirements and will change as needed, as both the client and the employee needs change. The HR function cannot, nor will it, stand still – it must be dynamic, must be fluid, must be flexible and must also help drive change.”
Not sure if that’s the level of specificity you wanted but thought I’d share nonetheless.
Sharlyn Lauby says
@Kevin – Many thanks for the comment. If we have a business focus, we will always be relevant.
@Mark – Thanks for sharing some additional information. IMHO, his comments still applies to any profession, industry, or business at any given time. It’s interesting that the conversations continue revolve around the same subjects – agility, speed, change, business focus. Lots of talk that we need to have these competencies, but nothing about how to develop them.
Benjamin McCall says
I believe in order to be better you have to be a good person first, understand the business and then finally apply all that within your job. While not everyone is good, I think in the long run it seperates people from being good at your job between those who are great at their jobs!
Amanda says
I think psychometric testing is becoming a big trend. It’s been around for a while but now i’m seeing more and more people talking about it and it’s impact on the HR world. I was recently looking for a psychometrics company to learn more about the tests themselves and what they really measure and I find Central Test to be a good site if anyone else might be interested in the subject. http://us.centraltest.com/
Sharlyn Lauby says
@Benjamin – I totally agree that the secret to success is be a good person, know your business and execute well. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
@Amanda – Thanks for adding to the conversation. I will have to check this out!
Jason says
Conrad Venter’s comment that ‘HR will be obsolete in 10 years if we stay on our current course’ could possibly be a very good prediction of where HR is headed.
Think about it for a moment. You have an HR department but your recruitment & resourcing specialist approaches recruitment agencies to find a majority of the candidates. Extra cost to the company wouldn’t you agree? Your Compensation & Benefits guy pays external vendors to conduct remuneration & benefits survey. He just needs to spend some time to get to know the world outside his organization. The Learning & Development person is busy getting ‘world class’ trainers to do his/her job. HR professional’s need to be well aware of the market they are in and they need to understand how they can add value in their respective roles. If consultants are being approached for ‘everything under the sun’, then do we really need this additional HR headcount? Hence, each and every function within HR needs to change. We all know what happened to the dinosaurs.
Most HR professional admit they are in HR because they despise working with numbers. Business today is about numbers (profitability, expansion, growth etc.). Check any org.’s vision! And if we HR professionals really want a seat in the boardroom then we need to find innovative ways to contribute to the bottomline of the org.
Sharlyn Lauby says
Thanks for the comment Jason. You’ve definitely given me some food for thought. In fact, so much so…that I think I’m going to write another post…have a wonderful New Year’s and stay tuned!