Keith Hammonds, Executive Editor of Fast Company, asks why human resources does such a bad job and what we can do to fix it.
In the August 2005 cover story titled Why We Hate HR, Keith Hammonds wrote: "The innovation economy, the knowledge economy, or the new economy - whatever you want to call it - rewards the companies with the best talent. This situation should put the human resources function at the center of value creation as it discovers, supports, and develops talent. By all accounts, this is not happening."
I met and interviewed Keith at the Catalyst Awards Conference regarding another of his thought-provoking (and controversial) Fast Company Articles, Balance is Bunk. Soon after the publication of the Why We Hate HR cover story, Keith went on Sabbatical. But I didn't forget, and Keith was kind enough to meet with me at the Fast Company offices in New York for a little chat about HR.
He cites four reasons why HR is poorly suited to maintain and grow the reputational and intellectual capital of the company, and concludes with some brief pieces of advice.
Four things explain why HR is not doing well, according to Hammonds: First, HR people aren't the sharpest tacks in the box: People applying for HR positions are generally not as smart, nor as independent in their thinking, nor do they operate according to clear values. Others enter the field with good intentions, but for the wrong reasons.
Second, HR pursues efficiency in lieu of value, because it’s easier, and its easier to measure. In this respect, HR is in the position of finance before DuPont showed how to calculate return on investment in 1912.
Third, HR isn't working for you. It's there to protect corporate assets. This leads to the pursuit of standardization and uniformity, which conflicts with the needs of a workforce that is heterogeneous and complex.
Fourth, the corner office doesn't get HR (and vice versa). One expert suggests that the disconnection between HR and strategy stems from HR's lacking a perspective on how organizations are going to change, and from an inherent difficulty in aligning HR policies with rapidly changing business strategy.
Hammond goes beyond criticism to offer five ways to work well: Say the right thing; measure the right thing; get rid of the "social workers"; serve the business; and make value, not activity.
In Brief...
Keith Hammonds joined Fast Company in 1999 from Business Week, where he had taken on a series of editorial roles over 10 years. He is a graduate of Dartmouth College and Harvard Business School. He worked in London and Johannesburg as a freelance journalist, and consulted to New Nation, a weekly newspaper in South Africa, on publishing strategy. He also co-founded a drought relief food distribution network in Namibia.
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