Put Your Own Oxygen Mask On First: The Great Reshuffle in HR

Serena H. Huang, Ph.D.

It is time we talk about the "Great Reshuffle" in HR.

Have you seen the number of job postings and people starting new roles in HR? More than two years into the pandemic, the function is burned out and at the same time companies need HR more than ever in the hot labor market. It seems to be the perfect environment for a job change. While HR is busy solving the retention issues for the business, no one seems to be solving the retention problem for themselves. Why is this so challenging? It’s a group of professionals who know the ins and outs of a job search and negotiations. Once disengaged enough to take the calls from other recruiters or look for a role proactively, they often land great offers.?How can we solve the retention puzzle in HR??

1.??Provide Clear Career Path and Ample Development Opportunities. HR professionals are no different than others when it comes to their desire for career path and opportunities to learn and grow continuously. I often ask my team member what’s something new they have learned in the past week and if there’s something they aren’t doing that they’d like to take on. I sometimes hear managers say they were surprised by their employees leaving right after the promotion cycle, having not been in the role for “long enough”. In the era of the “Great Resignation”, don’t assume employees are staying for the “typical timeline”. Another company may provide that opportunity sooner than your organization, so the question to ask may be: are these “typical timeline” still competitive for retaining talent? How costly and disruptive is it to the organization to have increasing attrition?

Most importantly, check in with employees within HR regularly so it is clear what they are looking for in their career and whether their expectations have changed. According to the latest LinkedIn’s Workforce Confidence Index?from March 2022, "the survey also found that HR professionals outpace the average respondent in terms of seeking opportunities to move up (67% vs. 50%), extra flexibility in working hours (41% vs. 28%), and more flexibility in location (40% vs. 25%)."?

2.??Regular Recognition from the Business and Proactive Help with Burnout. One of the reasons employees become disengaged in the first place is feeling taken for granted for the work they do. When’s the last time you expressed genuine gratitude to your HRBP? In my conversations with HRBPs over the past two years, putting employees’ health and safety first and everything else second, and preparing for the “return to office” that kept getting disrupted by the variants, had contributed to the burnout. Various studies have shown anywhere from 53% to as high as 98% of HR professionals are burned out. We have gone from the initial reductions and layoffs in 2020 to now a hiring spree in many organizations in response to the Great Resignation. HR professionals may also be experiencing some version of compassion fatigue . While often called into help employees with work-life balance and mental health support, HR professionals may not be getting the support when they need. ?As a recent SHRM article points out, “While focusing on helping employees manage their stress, HR professionals may neglect themselves”. Proactive help may be needed, such as reminders of resources available at the company.

3.?Organizational Design to Ensure Clarity and Improve Collaboration. Is there clarity in roles and responsibilities between site/employee HR and client HRBPs? Is there clarity on what individual COEs do? Check your most recent survey to see what employees in the HR function are saying about collaboration. This is particularly important for organizations in growth mode where the roles and responsibilities may be changing frequently as the organization expands. It is equally important for organizations going through any transformation as the overall company leadership team, structure and business model can morph over time. Speaking of COEs, I’d be remiss if I didn't talk about the retention of People Analytics professionals. This is a group that may require even more care, because not only did most organizations now realized the value of people analytics, but they also have highly transferable and in-demand skills in the market. As David Green had mentioned in a recent McKinsey interview , “Employee expectations have gone up.” It’s an excellent insight especially in times like this. The only way to know what employees expect and how their expectations have changed is to ask them. Check out a focused discussion on the role of employee experience here .

I’ll close with a reminder that the best time to start the retention conversation is before new hires start. I often ask my candidates what they are looking for in the new role, new organization, and their direct manager. Do you know what those are for employees you had inherited on your team? When did you last check in with your new hires to see how the new role meets the expectations? Let's put our own oxygen mask on first!

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Dr. Serena Huang is currently a data analytics executive at PayPal. She is a thought leader and international keynote speaker in people analytics, HR technology, future of work, AI, and employee experience with deep expertise spanning large multinationals including GE, Kraft Heinz, Koch Industries, and Deloitte. Her monthly newsletter “From Data to Action ” currently has thousands of subscribers. As one of the?Top HR Leaders to Watch in 2022?and?30 People Analytics Leaders to Learn from in 2022, Dr. Huang is passionate about building high-performing global teams and helping business leaders see data as an asset in large organizations. Her recent interviews appeared on?People Matters ,?Data Chief podcast ,?AllVoices podcast ,?HR Leaders podcast ,?Workforce.com ?and?Rallyware .

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