This is my final column. I took on the job of columnist because I am passionate about the importance of people and organisations in delivering strategic goals and because I believed that much of what was written about HR practice did quite the opposite. I also took it on because I believed that the CIPD was failing to deliver any strategic leadership for the profession, its reputation and its future development.
Regrettably, there is little if anything I am going to say here that will be any more positive. I guess the best we can say is that the banking crisis has at least ensured we are off the bottom of the list of most-valued professions, but it still seems that the perceived value of HR is pretty low.
Yet despite this, individual HR professionals are rated highly in their organisations, often with these words: 'They're not the typical HR person.' Regardless of individual achievement, the stereotype hasn't changed and it won't do so for a long time - not until we do something about four big issues.
First we have to either deliver the concept of the HR business partner, or drop it. Far too many of our colleagues are called it without having the ability to do it. Often this isn't their fault; it's much more likely the fault of an ambitious HR director who failed to realise what being a business partner entails and the extent to which the professional qualification and education fail to deliver real business understanding. The best HR people I have had in my organisation understand its business, processes and weaknesses better than anyone else. They understand the culture, assess it effectively, report on it well and advise action when it is required: they are senior partners in the job of meeting goals.
Second, we have to accept that we are committed to making things happen, not neutral advisers on legislation and process. The changes to employment legislation over the period haven't helped, yet they have been the catalyst in many organisations for the HR team to turn into the local branch of LA Law. The first remark after a briefing on required change is 'you can't do that', and the second contribution is an assessment of the worst possible outcome should it all go wrong. This is guaranteed to ensure that HR is seen as a blocker to change and resolution. We have to develop a culture of delivery where the goal is legitimate and the discussion is about how best to get there.
Third, organisations need liberating from complex people processes. Byzantine performance-management systems, development centres, potential assessment processes and pay and benefit structures do more to confuse, demotivate and divert organisations from their real purpose than do poorly performing IT or erratic financial reporting. How many times does the phrase 'I'd like to do this but HR won't let me' get said in your organisation? How much of this could you clear out if you simplified the processes and invested time in building better line managers?
Finally, we have to lead from the very top to set the standard for responsible corporate behaviour. We have to stand up for what is right as opposed to what our colleagues want us to propose. Our finance colleagues lay down the law on accounting practice, and we shouldn't be afraid to do the same on, say, remuneration. Ultimately it's not a talent issue but one of creating a positive culture that will perform better for longer than one built entirely on getting rich.
This all sets a challenge for the leaders of our professional body. Lots of activity and internal conversations about HR careers is no substitute for powerful public leadership on standards of HR practice, business-led thinking and corporate responsibility. The track record of their contribution to the executive pay debates doesn't fill me with much hope, but in the absence of a rival, hope is all we have.
Chris Bones is dean of Henley Business School, chris.bones@haymarket.com
