The August, 2008 Issue of the McKinsey Quarterly Chart Focus Newsletter includes an interesting article highlighting the expanding perception gap between HR Professionals and Line Managers over HR’s role in Talent Management.
The article: Realigning the HR Function to Manage Talent, identifies three major challenges in the continuing war for talent:
- Minimal collaboration and talent sharing among business units
- Ineffective line management
- Confusion about the role of HR.
Additionally, the article offers up the latest survey results on what McKinsey describes as the declining influence of the human-resources function. Line Managers significantly differ with their HR counterparts over:
- HR’s capabilities to develop talent strategies aligned with business objectives (33 percentage point gap)
- HR’s accountability for success or failure of talent-management initiatives (28 point gap)
- Whether Talent Management is the responsibility of HR (22 point gap).
None of the gaps are favorable towards HR.
Art’s Quick-Take:
I’ve observed a few great HR leaders that really understand that they are key enablers of a firm’s talent management success and key participants in the strategy process. However, many others and many HR departments remain pigeonholed as compliance police and benefits administrators. An enlightened management team and CEO recognize the strategic value of HR. They also recognize that talent development and management is the responsibility of all of a firm’s leaders and not just HR.
As an aside, there are no excuses for the perception gaps highlighted above. Twenty lashes for the leadership groups that allow those gaps to emerge and sustain.
One suggestion if you are a manager or leader in a firm with a generally tactical HR function: ask for help. You might be surprised how anxious your HR professionals are to engage in something outside the normal bounds of compliance or benefits.
While not quick to throw stones as my own functional counterparts (sales and marketing) have plenty of their own challenges, it is time for HR to stand-up and be counted on as a key enabler of strategy. They can start by helping their firm institutionalize talent identification, recruitment, retention and development.
Bob,
the question of HR’s role is very interesting. They don’t sell products or services, so they don’t generate any revenue for the business. They don’t build products and have no experience delivering services, so they really can’t offer training that is meaningful to advance the businesses’ core services. Please note, I’m not down playing the importance of teaching people about 401K plans or other general business training, but they can’t teach someone how to code in C++ or how to architect a building or most other core business services a company offers. Likewise, they are not independently mandated like a CFO, to have independent authority over money.
Lacking these things, selling, building/developing or financial oversight; what other meaningful peg is there for HR to stake their leadership on? Talent management doesn’t even come into the question. If an executive or manager finds someone they like, they send that person (often with whispered apologies) through the HR process.
How can someone in HR who has never coded a program, wired a network, built a building, laid a highway, audited accounting books or any other core function of business, be able to meaningfully asses if a candidate has the appropriate talent? Let alone recruit, retain or develop core personal? The best they can do is look attractive. Yes that outlook is sexist, but if they’ve never done any of the core functions of a business, what else can they do? I defy you to find many companies, outside of HR consulting companies, for whom that is not true.
The stereotype, which depending upon the business is more or less believed and more or less whispered, is that HR provides a way for a business to have a woman (preferably a minority woman) as an executive, without disturbing the old-boys club.
Who’s Bob?
-Art