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HR Comes In All Flavors
By Ron | October 28, 2008
I heard an audio clip on another blog recently describing four types of HR people. It was satirical, but I do believe that the author was trying to make a valid point. The four types were: Cold and Analytical (Comp and Benefits folks), Amiable (likes people and works on building company culture), Expressive (Drama Queens who conduct team building sessions like swinging from trees) and, Driven (tough guys who work at keeping salaries down).
In a more serious vein, I would tweak this list as follows:
Analytical/Detail Oriented: Person enjoys numbers, spread sheets and preparing reports. Their focus is on Compensation, Benefits, HRIS and Employment Law.
Helper/Counselor: Person likes to counsel employees. Their focus is on Employee Relations.
Extrovert/Socializer: Person enjoys heavy interaction with people. Their focus is on Recruiting and Employee Relations.
Teacher/Trainer: Person likes training others. Their focus is on Training and Organizational Development.
I think that this analysis is important for a couple of reasons. Let’s say you are a CEO of a small company and you are ready to add a Human Resource organization to your operation. You came to this conclusion because of a pending EEO problem and the need to formalize the Staffingprocess. You interview several candidates and really like Melvina Jones who is very outgoing and personable. So, you end up hiring the Extrovert/Socializer when you really needed an Analytical/Detail Oriented candidate.
The reverse is also true. If you fall in the Helper/Counselor category, you don’t want to work for a company who thinks they need an Analytical/Detail Oriented HR department.
If you are the Human Resources Manager and your bent is towards Teaching/Training, your organization will probably be heavily weighted towards the OD arena and so on.
All parties need to know what flavor of HR they want.
Topics: HR |