When HR hurts itself - session reflection at #cipdACE

Thoughts from "How can we evolve the HRBP model to make it more effective" 

I have heard several times at the #cipdACE conference that HR (and L&D and OD) needs to do something about it's reputation.

This morning John Amaechi galvanised a whole room (based on what I could see and have heard since) around how and what we could do to becoming giants and why and how to be more human, as we've been hearing about from Peter Cheese and others.

There has been so much to be proud of as a profession here at the annual conference, but the lat session I went to also showed that we still have work to do to be 'stronger together' (yes really, and yes I know how political/trite etc that sounds). It seems we sometimes struggle to break down silos and see the 'value' of all within HR, or at least explain it.

And when the question of outsouring came, the responses showed how 'conflicted' we are ourselves, even though there was clear sense-making (A: its about the quality of the relationship). This again raised how important it was to do what we do in context of our organisations - their culture, size, customer need. In other words, their is a place for that diversity and a reason for it.

On top of this, there were some sound points made including:

• Everyone needs a business partner mindset, eg understanding the business
• To understand the business, we must venture into it and talk to people!
• It's about understanding the business environment we operate in.
• Skills must be fit for purpose across different roles
• We need to be mindful of the career trajectory of different roles in HR

But it is what happened after the session reflecting the 'mood' to something said in the session, that really emphasises my title point - that HR must model values like collaboration and kindness rather than undo itself. It doesn't mean that we all have to bend but we should all blend. Yet one comments was taken as creating a them and us of BP and COE and was taken by some to seemingly dimish some work. That did not seem to be the intent. But it was what people heard. It upset some. It changed the mood. Some of the good points that followed, were I suspect, lost in the mood-fog.

Having said that, what was good was that audience participants 'called it out' - people said how they felt, listened to clarification, supported each other and didn't lose sight of the intention that we want to do what's right for our businesses. And there was challenge as to whether we were really future thinking though it was hinted at.

What I got from it is that we need to listen to each other better, rank less, learn more, forgive, explain better, do better, move on. And perhaps set our bold future.

We're all in this. We all matter. We are all and must strive to act as giants. Us, not leaders, not robots, not AN Other. It is you, and me and all of US.

I'm thinking about what my actual 'pledge and do is' from what I've heard and experienced - what's yours? Share on Twitter or engage on LinkedIn. See you there!

Denise.
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