Beth – I completely agree with you that there are many cases of HR Executives doing an outstanding job delivering HR Strategy in very difficult circumstances. As mentioned in the article, specialized knowledge in HR is essential whoever is in charge; my personal view is that this knowledge does not always necessarily need to sit with the boss. Finding a new HR Exec has to be someone who has the right skills and experience for that particular role, which will usually be from HR – this is the norm. What is interesting are the reasons why Business Leaders are increasingly looking outside of HR (thanks to Mike for providing a couple of other examples) to bring fresh ideas, innovation and a different way of thinking.

Steve brings up a point that many people will agree with – ‘sticking with what you know’ is probably best – as mentioned many sports stars (thankfully) do not make the transition to movies! However, in business, many CEOs are brought into organizations for their leadership skills often from completely different industries.

Like Mark I want HR to have a stronger position in leading organizations, but wonder if there is still a skill and perception gap in some areas? In terms of solutions – Mark brings up a great point about career development. HR Execs, like everyone else, would benefit from brushing up on their broader strategic thinking and leadership skills and consider rotation of roles across different corporate domains. Would it be beneficial for HR professionals to adopt this principle as another option for career development?

I think this gets to the fundamental truth about the state of HR today. Let’s be honest, HR is being outsourced for many of the reasons IT is being outsourced; many companies are not seeing the strategic value of these functions. They view them as commodity, operational functions that can be performed by any outside provider.

HR needs a radical shakeup in thinking, process, and execution if it is to start delivering the type of strategic thinking that CEO’s needs in regards to People Mgmt. If a fresh perspective can be brought in from a strong and disciplined manager, then that should be viewed as a positive. To say that a talented individual cannot pick up the needed skills within HR to be an effective leader is not quite right.

We are talking about LEADERS here. Much like we would not expect the CEO of an established company to start writing computer code or filling out a cash flow analysis, we should not expect an HR leader to be immersed in OSHA rules, benefits jargon, or applicant tracking processes. What HR leaders need to do is connect people issues with strategic business directives.

Also, let’s face it, the vast majority of star managers are not coming out of the HR ranks. The people going to the top business schools are looking at careers in finance, technology, and marketing. HR is not seen as a lucrative career path to someone paying over $100K to get their MBA. Most HR leaders could never manage another corporate function as they lack the strategic thinking and leadership skills. It is up to HR professionals to spend time outside of HR, to get management / leadership training, and start to get more strategic in their thinking. The best run companies are those that rotate talented individuals across many corporate domains to help foster strategic thinking, innovation, and future leaders. HR leaders can be strong leaders in their domain, and a few can even jump across other functions, but by and large, there is a dearth of great HR leaders at the moment.

I would really welcome your thoughts on this question of the quality of HR leadership. I would really like to see HR seen as a key player in the boardroom.

But I think those are unusual cases. My unscientific rationale is the long line of actors that fail as pop stars and sports figures that fail as actors. Sometimes a major mid-career shift works out, but I think many times it does not.

Great stuff, Andy.

Thanks for raising my question.

It’s important for any Executive level position to have experience in the field for which they will be responsible. Human Resources is no different.

Would GM hire a CFO without Finance/Accounting background or a Chief Technology Officer without IT/Engineering background?

Unlikely.

So what gives?

I have to disagree with the generalization that HR is not delivering on talent and people issues. All across the globe, HR executives are doing an outstanding job helping their organizations (from a people standpoint) reach their strategic corporate goals.

Are there some bad apples? Sure — probably as many as in every other field.

If an HR leader is not succeeding then bring in an HR executive better fit for the job. Why blame the entire profession?

It’s a big mistake (and a little naive) to assume that there isn’t any specialized knowledge in Human Resources.

Can Mary Barra succeed as the head of HR? Sure and I hope that she does. Just as a smart Human Resources person could succeed as the head of Production or Finance.

I haven’t seen Ms. Barra’s resume and she may be amazing and awesome. So how about we credit her for the position because she’s great–not because she’s NOT HR?