HR is Changing - Are You?

I love focusing on the future of work, and I embrace change as inevitable. I strive to make sure I stay on top of and understand "new" things in the worlds of business and technology. In fact, I could not do my job the way I need to do it if I did not. But many years ago, at the start of my career in Human Resources, I was very black and white. Policies were policies and could never change. Rules had to be followed exactly as they were. Then, an unexpected thing happened. I encountered my first co-worker I could not stand. He was a rebel (more on that later) and I could not understand why he did not follow the rules! My supervisor knew this and helped me........by assigning me to report to him instead. While this was horrifying at the time, I very quickly grew to know and respect my new supervisor, who taught me the world of HR was not black and white - there were many colors of the rainbow! More than twenty years later, I still often point to this as one of the pivotal points in my career. It opened up my worldview and helped me change myself.

HR has always changed, and will continue to do so. From tactical paper-pushers to administrators to business partners to strategic leaders to HR as the business, those of us in the HR field awhile have seen quite an evolution. But are we all doing all it takes to change with the world, and our field? In order to be seen as a strategic business leader - which is something most of us strive for - we have to first see ourselves that way. And this starts with committing to change. We must change and embrace continuous learning in order to grow in our careers. Hopefully you are already reading business publications, articles and books regularly. If you aren't, start there. If you are, here are some other ways to learn, grow and change in your career:

Network

I was a bad networker early in my career. Or I should say, I did not network - ever. I'm an introvert, so networking is harder for me than some of my extroverted friends. But, especially in recent years, I have embraced it and even gained some skill. NETWORKING IS EVERYTHING. Do you want a new job? Chances are, an opportunity will come from your network, not an ad. Do you need help with a tricky situation at work? Tap into your network and it's a guarantee someone will help. Networking is a broad word, and this could be a separate article itself, but online is a great place to start. You likely are on LinkedIn, but use it - message colleagues, join LI groups. Join Facebook groups. And if you are not on Twitter, get on it right now. Some of the best conversations in HR are happening on Twitter, like SHRM's #Nextchat, headed by Mary Kaylor. And #HRSocial Hour led by Wendy Dailey and Jon Thurmond. I just started participating in Twitter chats last year, and have learned so much, they are now an integral part of my continuous learning. Meet regularly with your friends and colleagues - inside and outside HR. I have an #HRTribe that includes many in HR, and some outside of HR. I am also now a proud #HRRebel, part of an amazing community of forward-thinking business leaders, who just happen to specialize in people.

Vendors

Do you call vendors back or return their emails? Probably not. And I did not either, until I committed to doing it early last year. Since then, vendors have become one of the best sources of learning opportunities for me. Tap into the knowledge of your current vendor partners, and potential future partners. Build relationships. You never know when you might need them.

Conferences and Forums

I love attending conferences. I learn best in person, and conferences combine in person learning and networking. From attending sessions held by thought leaders, to talking with vendors, conferences like SHRM and the HR Technology Conference are an excellent opportunity to learn.

Have you heard of DisruptHR or Hacking HR? If you have not, you will soon. They have different platforms but share a similar idea - HR needs to be disrupted/hacked. We need to grow and change, and that can start by getting a community together to share information and learn from each other. There are many others in this area doing great work, but as a DisruptHR co-organizer, and having had the pleasure of conferencing in my class to a HackingHR call, I can tell you that Jennifer McClure (DisruptHR) and Enrique Rubio (Hacking HR) are doing amazing work to change the face of HR. And, Michelle Strasburger and I have co-founded HR Rebooted, a project aiming to innovate the people business through our podcasts, videos and blogs.

Teach or Mentor

Two years ago, I started teaching the SHRM Certification Course at SNHU. Some of the material (hello, Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs!) I had not worked with regularly since graduate school. So, I had to study the entire body of knowledge of HR myself so I could teach it with credibility. And, I do the same thing again each semester, as HR is always changing. Concepts like Agile and AI are now at the forefront of HR, and in order to teach students, I have to know and understand this.

Finally, if you have spent some time in HR and anyone asks you to help them out with a question, do it. Do it regularly and without asking anything in return, and I promise you that you will get more out of it than they do.

Change is inevitable, and necessary for growth. We cannot just do things the way they have always been done. In order for us to grow in our careers, help our companies grow, and help our profession grow, we must embrace change, and continuously learn and grow ourselves.

"If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got." - Henry Ford