Should HR just ‘stay in their box’?

I just have to write and express my views about the article which appeared in the 13 December 2005 issue of Human Resources (p9) in the Opinion section titled ‘HR Department: know thy limitations’. The way in which this particular General Manager’s views came across was nothing short of arrogant and patronising of the HR profession in general.

I thought the article might be emphasising the benefits of HR practitioners having line management experience. By the end, however, I was astounded. His comments seem to be saying “stay in your box HR people, there is no part for you to play in the real running of the business”.

In addition, I found his comments about company mission and vision statements offensive and extremely cynical, especially the section where he basically stated that whilst many organisations say that people are their greatest asset, they are really just biding their time looking for opportunities to lay off staff and out-source. What absolute rubbish.

The General Manager’s views suggest he believes that HR practioners exist in a fairy tale world where they avoid the “bruises”. This is laughable. Exactly who does he think the HR practitioners are constantly running interference for? The answer – Operational Management! I’m sure many HR practitioners reading this could easily put forward examples where they have been asked to take on union negotiations , handle staff grievances, defend operational management decisions on issues such as claims of unfair dismissal in the various tribunals etc etc.

I won’t go on; however, he makes no mention of the strategic advantage having a good HR function can add in areas such as talent management, workforce planning, learning and development and employee relations.

I currently manage a multi-million dollar HR budget, and through my experience across a wide range of organisations have very sound operational knowledge of retail, advertising, local government, state government, communications, and aerospace industries – and I am not in any way unique in that regard. Just because we don’t directly supervise production, or sell products to customers, doesn’t mean we are naïve to the intricate detail of running a business.

If this is the best Human Resources can do in seeking an “opinion” then I would suggest a rethink. Maybe you would like to interview a forward thinking, contemporary CEO, who understands the pivotal role the human resources profession can play in adding value to an organisation.

There are many HR professionals who have to deal with line management dinosaurs on a daily basis, without it being thrust in our faces in a professional publication. Perhaps you wanted to give us a flash-back to the 1970s? – if so, well done!

– Geoff Woodcroft, HR Director

I find the article ‘HR Department: Know thy limitations’ offensive, and nothing more than a thinly veiled attack by Harry Houston on the HR profession. He states we should leave the HR department and “get a real job”. Seriously Harry, how much respect, or “support” do you think your HR department will afford you in future after reading this article?! The answer: always 100% because we ARE professionals who pull managers’ butts like his out of the fire time and time again.

– Rachel Mamaj, Human Resources Advisor, International Power Australia.

Reading through Issue 93 (15 November 2005, p2) of Human Resources magazine, I came across an article titled ‘HR among most wanted’. Although it is fantastic that the HR function is being recognised as a crucial role in an organisation, the article emphasised the fact that there is a great demand for “experienced HR managers”. So I am left to wonder about the demand for those of us that are trying to obtain the experience and are unsuccessful due to our lack of experience. How do we get our foot in the door? How do we obtain experience if no-one is willing to train and develop inexperienced HR graduates such as myself?

– Pauline Velkoska

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