Business and People / 6 Paradoxes Facing HR

This week we are charged with focusing on one of the six paradoxes facing HR. I have chosen the Business to People paradox. In these current times, there is more of an emphasis on the business side of things instead of the traditional stereotype of if you are a "people" person you are good for HR. A fine balance needs to be made between the business and the people side of the equation "overemphasis on people turns business enterprises into social agencies that may lose the ability to meet market requirements" (Ulrich, 2009). The flip side of this is the overemphasis on the business side that fails to pay attention to the people that actually are producing the work.

I found the lectures and readings valuable as they made me look at the HR function a little differently than I had been in a traditional sense. It challenged me to see the HR area as an actual business asset and not an expense of a salary that we need to manage year to year. Although expenses are important and HR is one of my biggest expenses at the Bank it also showed me the value of my people that have been with me for years and that is intangible in the way of dollars and cents, but extremely valuable to the Bank none the less. This new way of thinking has made me a better manager and I have been able to share this with my HR Director who has appreciated the information and a fresh set of vision with our employees. I have responded to the SRHM discussions and have posted a question as well, but have yet to hear back on the threads. It was helpful to see how other HR professionals are navigating through the business to people component and sharing information with others to help make more informed decisions.

Reference:

Ulrich, D., Younger, J., Brockbank, W. & Ulrich, M. (2009).  HR from the Outside In. Six Competencies for the future of Human Resources: SRHM.