Have you noticed how many elephants seem to have broken out of Africa and Asia and made their way into the rooms of David Cameron, Gordon Brown and Nick Clegg in this election?
Lib Deb surprise pin-up Vince Cable (the UK's favourite for the role of chancellor) started it all off, declaring the fiscal deficit to be the elephantidae in the room of British politics. But, depending where you sit, either the ageing population and resulting care issues, or the pensions timebomb, the jobless recovery, Europe and its increasing employment legislation or immigration is the biggest issue being swept under the carpet in the 'style over substance' electoral debate.
All these are areas of interest to HR and it is clear that, whichever party emerges victorious this week, employment policy will be high on the agenda. Business has worked hard to make its case in relation to the so-called 'tax on jobs', a rise in National Insurance. Meanwhile, councils are talking about job cuts of up to a third, with the consequent impact on local communities and services (not to mention the bill for unemployment).
The voice of HR has never been more important and, in the most closely contested election for years, the party leaders need your support. So it is interesting to note that if the view of HR directors is reflected throughout the country, Cameron will be in power on 7 May. A poll of HR professionals by legal firm Dickinson Dees finds nearly a third of HRDs will vote Conservative, with less than a fifth opting for Labour. Excessive regulation appears to be the elephant in the room here, with nearly three-quarters of HR professionals worrying about this.
Meanwhile, as the public sector prepares itself for swingeing cuts, many private-sector firms will be waiting to see what the effect of those elusive 'efficiency savings' mean for them. For, while prominent business lobbyists and their friends in the media are so keen to blame public sector inefficiency for all that is wrong with the country, many private companies provide products and services to the state. Big public sector cuts will hit these companies - and their employees.
One such area is defence. So it is great to see a success story in this sector in the shape of FTSE100 firm Cobham. Here is a company that has proved agile and flexible in light of changing market and customer needs, moving strategically to a bigger focus on homeland security. Its challenge now is a different type of security - that of its talent pipeline.
Cobham needs a pool of highly qualified engineers. Yet skills and training are the most likely losers in any new government. HRDs must prepare for more employer-funded training in the future.
Now, I hate to resort to the most popular cliche of 2009, according to one study, but that surely is the elephant in the room.
