HR Professionals Should Be Sharing Resources, Not Recipes.
Written by HRuprise coach, Heather Eyerman.
After 10+ years in the professional world, I never thought a 45-minute breakout session could make me question everything that HR represents.
In August of 2018, having just completed my Master’s degree, I attended a large, well-known annual conference. The topic was Artificial Intelligence (AI) in HRM and how these functions and systems can enhance your employee engagement. We openly discussed how analytics impact our organizations and what obstacles we can predict based on data provided through various platforms.
Nearing the end of the presentation, the floor opened for participants to share their thoughts. The prompt was, “Now that you know more about AI, what can your organizations do to enhance employee engagement?” The first volunteer jumped up and stated, “I like to host potlucks.”
My jaw dropped to the floor (this was pre-COVID masks). I could not wrap my mind around how we go from AI to potlucks. I exchanged an awkward and concerned glare with the presenter and she eloquently stated, “Thanks for sharing.”
“Nooo!” I screamed internally. How could she ignore this? Even as prestigious conferences are giving airtime to radical new approaches to HR, are we ultimately doomed to the age-old stereotypes of birthday boards, terminations, employee handbooks, and the dreaded potlucks?
How do we in HR change the way employees and employers view us in a post-COVID world? I have 3 proposals: 1) Redefine your role, 2) Understand and appreciate the job functions of your team, and 3) Show humility.
Redefine Your Role
Many of us were forced into hybrid roles this year. We have made our homes into offices, restaurants (with varying cuisines), schools, childcare facilities, and places for respite from a raging pandemic. Many of us are jumping at the chance to have human interactions again, but the old expectations of work-life balance are a thing of the past. 2020 was about creating work-life integration. We became experts at weaving our professional obligations into our personal lives. We need to carry this skill into the post-pandemic world with clear boundaries and balance, so that we’re no longer opposing work on one side with life on the other, but integrating both together into one whole, happy, productive life.
This type of reimagining and redefining can often come with difficult or nebulous conversations. Professionals in our field, like myself, have no issue telling others that they must advocate for themselves, so why is it so hard for us to advocate for our own professional wants and needs? Take time to think about what it is you do, what you’ve done, and what you’d like to do to make an impactful contribution to yourself and your organization. Then have those tough conversations to redefine your role and carry forward that work-life integration you worked so hard to build over the last year.
Understand and Appreciate the Job Functions of Your Team
Sure, we can craft a stellar job description, but have you ever made that Frappuccino or handled the customer that inevitably complains about each meal? Do you know the time and energy it takes to obtain the credentials to drive a forklift, Michael Scott? The time you spend getting to know your staff is important, but it needs to be balanced with a deeper understanding of what they do for your organization. Showing appreciation not just for not a job well-done, which for most people means perfunctory completion and nominal analysis, but a job that was handled well, with thought, reflection, and the full engagement of the individual, is a sign of a strong infrastructure.
Show Humility
It is in our blood to do it all, and to do it all well. But if the pandemic taught us anything, it's that we have to draw boundaries around our workloads to protect our own mental and physical health. Speak up if you are struggling and juggling too much. This has been a hard year for you and the vast majority of your team. Demonstrating humility and leaning into those who support you will help your team see that they’re not alone in the struggle, and they too can reach out for help.
You chose a career in HR not to sample from Crockpots or buy cakes, but because you care about making a difference. It is our professional obligation to make sure that on the other side of COVID, we ditch the potlucks and focus instead on redefining HR to better serve our employees' needs, understand their day-to-day work, and advocate for our own health and wellbeing.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: HEATHER EYERMAN
Heather Eyerman earned her M.A. in Human Resource Management while simultaneously working for the nation's leading charter school network in 2010. Currently, she works as the Director of Culture and People for Coyotes Ice & Affiliates and resides in her hometown of Scottsdale, Arizona. LEARN MORE
