Have you ever met the person working in HR who shouldn’t be? LOL, yes, those people do exist. And in my mind, they’re pretty easy to spot. Come on; you know the ones… They’re the ones who aren’t at the table, the ones who try to shove policy down your throat, the ones who get results by scaring management and the ones who have no idea how to consult. Most importantly, they’re the ones who don’t listen.
You see; I’ve made a career out of building relationships. And as a part of that, you realize that most HR Professionals find themselves maneuvering between three roles:
- To be the conscious of the organization
- To be the voice of the employees
- To be the policy enforcer when required
It’s not always easy. I mean; sometimes you’re the hero and sometimes you’re the thorn. And you’re not always going to get along with Operations or Accounting – that’s a given. But I assure you of one thing; it all goes back to building and having relationships. Because, if they won’t talk to you, you won’t know what’s going on, you won’t be at the table…and therefore, you won’t be able to deal with or diffuse it. And then the problems begin.