Ep. 30: Human Resources is an Abomination and Should Be Burned to the Ground

Career Design Podcast

Ep. 32 Human Resources is an Abomination and Should Be Burned to the Ground

Lindsay 00:00

I'm Lindsay Mustain and this is the career design podcast made for driven ambitious square pegs and round holes type professionals who see things differently and challenge the status quo. We obliterate obstacles and unlock hidden pathways to overcome and succeed where others have not stagnation feels like death. And we are unwilling to compromise our integrity and settle for being average in any way. We are the backbone of any successful business and those who overlook our potential are doomed to a slow demise. We do work that truly matters aligns with our purpose, and in turn, we make our lasting mark on the world. We are the dreamers, doers, legends, and visionaries who are called to make our most meaningful contribution and love what we do.

Lindsay 00:43

I am about to piss off a lot of people. But today, the day that I am recording this is the four-year anniversary of my very first day in the talent paradigm. I've been talking about this a lot because I've had a lot of nostalgia, I've been traveling back on my own personal timeline. And looking back at that moment, when I thought I can do better I can make a shift in the world, I can help others and as I've got myself in the soapbox, and as I said, there is more out there for you. The realization after working with 15,000, high-powered executives, leaders changemakers inside of an organization is we are literally breathing, breathing, these authoritarian leadership principles that diminish people's worth. We breathe it like a point of pride, we treat people as if they're disposable. We treat people as if they don't matter. We forget that everyone is an actual human being. And then we wonder why they're not loyal or engaged. And why there is this epidemic and employee exodus where people are leaving in droves. And I'm going to tell you today, why human resources is an abomination and should be burned to the ground. This is a very provocative statement. So I want you to listen with an open heart if you're hearing this rallying call because I want you to know that I am through and through an HR person I was bred in that world, I have been doing this for 20 years, I went to school at night for 10 years to get my degree, I got my SPHR, I got my Senior Certified Professional from the Society of Human Resource Management, I have done everything in this world. And I want it to come back to the root word of human resources, which is human, human. I, as a little girl, people would ask me, What do you want to be when you grow up. And what I would say is, I want to help people and the first time I ever walked into an HR department of my very first job, I thought, this looks like a really amazing place. And that's why I wanted to be there was to help people. But when we look at human resources, I'm going to break this down here about why HR doesn't really help people, and how we've really lost the humanity inside of human resources. And I want you to know, this is not about the people inside of human resources, because I believe the majority of human resource people came because they wanted to help people that they believe in human beings. But we have literally bred out that humanity. And then we have created this risk mitigation mindset, which is never about actually helping people but preventing litigation. And that is the antithesis of being invested in human beings when you are only looking to "C.Y.A" of your business. And so I'm going to break this down a little bit here. But if you look at the most genius, revolutionary CEOs when you ask them what they think about human resources, that department inside of an organization, the likelihood that they're going to go hell yes, about HR is slim to none, you know, they disdain that inevitable bureaucracy that's created your HR administration, it's like enough to make their head spin. And it's considered a necessary evil. It's considered a necessary evil, we've been fighting for the seat at the table. And really the structure that they said, Here's your box, here's where we want you to play in. It's all about covering our ass to make sure that we don't get sued. We don't get into litigation. It's really not about how do we help our employees win. That is the problem that I have with human resources. So it's important you know, as a leader, that you understand how to engage and empower your workforce to do work that's both meaningful and profitable. That is the driver here I am. From the beginning, I began my career in operations. Everything I've ever align to has always been about how do we drive the bottom line, HR should not get in the way of that. So people are not the barrier. They're the bridge to getting the result. But we also have to think about some of the functions that happen inside of human resources, things like recruiting, and learning and development, total rewards, employee relations, safety, compliance, these are things these are very tactical things, typically, that is handled by the HR department. And the whole reason like when you look at this HR was created to help mitigate risk for organizations hear that, okay? HR is here to prevent me prevents you from I'm here to stop you from having reasons to litigate against my company. So that means that what I am trained in is around corporate law. And I'm here to protect the company's best interest. This is where people are like, Oh, I went to HR and nothing happened, here's why. Okay, we are trying to handle the entire employee lifecycle from hiring the termination, and minimize the risk associated with employment issues. So, in short, the HR department is the one team that everyone loves to hate. And it's the first on the chopping block because it's considered a non-value add department that doesn't generate any revenue, it does protect our company, but it doesn't generate revenue. And so we've been fighting for this seat at the table. When why would we all do it cost money and create complexity. So this necessary evil is why I say HR, we have a problem, we have a problem. And we've been worried about like HR transformation, fuck that. What we need to do is burn it to the ground. Okay, stop band-aiding with engagement strategies and doing things like hiring, you know, succulent planting environments where we can put big ping pong tables and drink beer on the job because we've neglected some of the key parts of how to engage the workforce. These things are not these are Band-Aid measures trying to fix a very broken system. So I spent a lot of time for years now trying to figure this out. And what I realized is that this is no longer sustainable. This is not a practice that is going to actually create profitability for a business, okay. And we have relied on managing people through these antiquated and outmoded, HR structure and leadership philosophies, by building unnecessary policies, and creating these fluffy engagement strategies that do nothing to both empower your workforce, scale, and grow a business that drives profitability. So here's my rallying call, it's time to stop treating your people like toddlers that need to be babysat coddled, or bribed into doing the work by giving them the tools to express their true genius, and get out of their fucking way. Because the truth is, you can create an environment where you drive explosive revenue growth and industry innovation, and under the guidance of new paradigms of people leadership, and that begins with torching this thing down. And what I mean by that is that when a field no longer can yield crops, what farmers do, they burn it, and the burning and the destruction that actually infuses the soil so they can raise something new. And so I want to talk about this, because this is where people go, Whoa, what are you doing? I'm not talking about unemployment, human resources, I am talking about reimagining. I'm going to talk about why this doesn't work and what the future really holds. Okay. So you might think that HR is actually preventing problems. But in reality, the cost that we invest in HR is actually creating problems, if you spend your whole time managing problems that actually will actually impact about 3% of the workforce. And in general, the bottom 15%. That's what that entire department is focused on is really about driving and a C's terminology, but the bottom feeders in the company, the ones who are actively disengaged, or the ones who are actually trying to destroy the work that they're doing. And that actually comes to some other human principles I'm going to talk about here. But that's why this is happening. we've actually created a structure that's all about managing the bottom feeders instead of amplifying the top. Now, this is not some sort of genius strategy here. Like let's lean on people's straights, let's go into what actually gives them passion around their work. And know that bought the byproduct. There are a million studies, I'll be talking about this. But that is actually what creates profitability. So we built an entire structure. We wonder why both HR and the people who need to go to it hate it. It does nothing to actually solve the issue, which is how do we amplify talent for profitability?
Lindsay09:52

So the first problem that we have, that HR operational policies are creating problems is that we are in the business HR policies people problems. It's only about 15% of your workforce that needs to be managed through policies, but it's our go-to strategy, HR strategy methodology, let's create punitive strategies to get people to do their work. Okay, do it or else and most of the time your HR team is focused on fighting fires that impact less than 3% of your workforce. Okay? So, like, let's go burrito principle 8020 rule, we don't want to be building work that actually creates additional work. It's a non-virtuous cycle, okay, we want to be creating a strategy that amplifies talent to create innovation, engagement, longevity, and we continue to perform and outshine our competition. So the truth is that policy policing isn't needed for most employees. But we use these punitive tactics to force employees to do their work. And we're spending time fighting fires and litigious matters, that only affect a small percentage of the workforce. So the work that we tend to do in HR doesn't apply to the employee population, it's 100% tactical most days, if I'm really honest here, you know, when we are we're creating forms and surveys, it's not the thing that's going to actually engage your employees, these are data points. And we can do all that through automation and artificial intelligence tools, we don't need that what we need is somebody who's actually there to be a partner with your employee. So here's the paradigm shift. You're funding a department that focuses on creating red tape for nonexistent issues and wasting money on solving problems that don't exist. When we go away from that people are the problem. And we go to the paradigm shift that humans are a resource and not an issue. People have the potential for greatness when they feel empowered and supported. And the focus needs to be on amplifying people's potential, rather than policing people's problems, okay.

Lindsay 11:54

The second thing is that we need to stop treating people like they are cattle. And it comes back to the very root of human resources, which is human. What happened to the human and human resources, it's time for your people and yourself as a leader to stop treating each other like resources or capital or an asset? Okay, we diminish that there are actual human beings, because the most powerful untapped asset that you have, is already existing in your business, to create profitability and impact and growth is just waiting for you to tap it and called into existence it's your people and their genius. So when you look at your employee population, I had a leader one time that called these people belly buttons, like we've dehumanized them so much. They're just numbers on spreadsheets, or they're a piece of their body. I want you to remember that FTE headcount that represents an individual person that has a beating heart and a family to take care of. We deserve to treat people like human beings, we deserve to be treated with empathy. And we need to stop thinking of them as faceless numbers that are cogs and wheels that are there just to drive profit for you. When we do that it stifles growth, it stifles innovation, and it's creating employee resentment that's actually creating this Exodus. It's happening right now the great resignation of high-caliber talent. So the paradigm shift is you need to stop bleeding, you're bleeding out your intellectual capital, and treat human beings worthy of respect. It's time to stop these Band-Aid engagement strategies and culture initiatives that ignore the core basic human need that we all have, which is the desire to contribute to a larger mission and do our best work.

Lindsay 13:45

Okay, now, the third issue that we face is that job descriptions are cages that stifle talent, okay? job descriptions, limit people, potential talented individuals are not meant to be in a box. They're not meant to play in black and white and be told what they can't do. They want the opportunity for growth and evolution to work on projects that inspire them, rather than those in which the company's only interest is monetary gain. So when we have these black and white job descriptions, they act like cages that cripple our employee's natural talents, by dictating how they should be, operate or act without question. cages are the last thing you want for your employees because they become dissatisfied, and they get resentful after being hired. When they don't have a chance to grow. They need space, mentally and emotionally to do work that excites them, because passion is what's going to drive their talents forward. And so trying to trap and contain them. That's like trapping an animal with no way out. But either destruction or escape. Notice. That's what we're seeing. people realize they can't be successful, so they'd rather leave. That happened to me, you have that story to every single person who has had this moment. So the paradigm shift here is we need to allow people to Work that feels both passion and purpose for them. The company shouldn't define an employee by a job description. But instead, they need to let the employee own his or her innate talents and genius. The workplace is more than where you go every day to earn your living. It's also where people need to express themselves through what they are passionate about. And you can do this.

Lindsay 15:26

The fourth thing is that we need to quit perpetuating the burnout loyalty trap. So if you want to win the war on talent, and it is an all-out war right now, then stop lying about how lucky people are to work for your company. This untruth and antiquated mentality persist in all levels of the organization, and it's a leading cause of burnout, people aren't lucky to work for you stop believing that employees should be loyal solely because you pay them to be there. That is why people are leaving, okay, it's not enough for your employees to get a job or a paycheck, the people who are the most the people who I would go out and there are three people on the planet who can go and do this job, they are the most elusive high caliber talent. And they have a multitude of options to do meaningful work, that gets them energized and motivated. They're not lucky to have a job, they have options. And that is what's happening. people realize they have options, okay. They are driven by this strong feeling of fulfillment when they get to go into work and do something with a source of energy that gives them a place to use those passion and purpose. So now you get to choose you either value your people and embrace their genius or lose them to your competition. So here's the rethinking this mentality you are not lucky to have these are sorry, people are not lucky to have a job, okay? You are lucky that you get the chance to work with your people. People want to do work that matters. They don't just want a job, they crave an opportunity for meaning and fulfillment as well. So you have to create this workforce that has high performance and stays with you by cultivating an environment that supports them to achieve their goals that are in alignment with your company. When we do this, it is a win-win-win for the individual win for the company's bottom-line profitability.

Lindsay 17:11

The last thing is that we're managing our people right out the door and your best people are leaving before you can even utter the words for management and it's the number reason why people quit. Okay, we are seeing a mass employee Exodus and the reason, the main reason it's around leadership and honestly, the lack thereof. In fact, it's authoritarian micromanagement. Okay, trial by fire is another way to describe this. So authoritarian leadership is the equivalent of babysitting your employees, okay, that treating them like toddlers, and bribing or punishing them to get the work done. That is authoritarian leadership. It's disempowering. It's task-oriented, it leaves little room for creativity. It's the death of innovation. Okay? This management tactic is all about, what can I see I need to manage you because I can see you, because I could walk around, I need to be in an office so that I could go in and make sure you are doing your work. It's about task management, checking the boxes, and doing what you are told, you have been here and you hate it. This is time and money that you were investing in hiring and training and retaining this money that you're investing is wasted. If your employees feel disempowered, unheard, and unseen. You're literally killing the gift of their genius. So it is time to stop sending your best talent to your competition, to cultivate an environment that your talent can truly thrive in, you have to create a human-centric workforce, you have to understand that humanity is the core of this. And I will get into another episode about the six core human needs of what creates a human-centric workforce. But the thing is now, it's not about transforming or the transactional nature of HR. It's a dying practice, okay, it's being used by companies that are in this maturity where we think we are better than that we're not in the growth lifecycle anymore, or we're in the decline, the act of destruction of our business. And we are holding on to it like it's a life raft when it's actually the thing it is an anchor that is stopping you. So the call is a shift to a high-performance workforce. Okay. It is time to create workplaces where industries can be revolutionized. Genius, talent can thrive, and we can do work that transforms the world. And it is possible through a reimagined bleeding-edge HR philosophy that turns stagnant organizations into profit powerhouses through deliberate talent amplification. I'm gonna be talking about this a lot more, but it is time to call in the revolution and that revolution is intentional career design. Thank you for joining me for this podcast. If this resonated with you, please share it with somebody. The message begins here and now if we want to create a workforce that is how highly engaged creates massive profitability, it has to be done. Right leadership has to be through the right environment and it has to be through intentional design.

Lindsay 20:10

Thank you for listening