THE IMPORTANCE OF HAVING HR PROFESSIONALS ON THE EXECUTIVE TEAM

Companies and organizations are dependent on their employees to be productive and successful. In your smaller organizations, you may not have a designated Human Resource Manager, but whoever is overseeing the responsibilities and management of your employees needs the support of the employer , and should be included on the executive team.

Over the years, as well as currently, I have heard so many Human Resource Managers, Directors, and VPs express disappointment in regards to the relationship with their presidents/employers. Obviously, employers have a lot on their plates, but one of their key partners in their businesses/organizations should be their Human Resource Manager/Director/VP.

If an employer has hired a competent Human Resource professional, that person carries a huge responsibility for her/his company's bottom line -- note that HR should be hiring solid employees, training and developing their talents, making sure all employees are legal citizens and are treating their fellow employees fairly, as well as being aware of the company's goals in order to prepare employees to be effective, etc.

Many Human Resource Managers/Directors/VPs have experienced not being informed by the employers as to the company's strategic goals, which consequently leads to ill-prepared employees and not meeting goals. Additonally, if the Human Resource Manager/Director sees that training/coaching, etc. is needed for employees to provide the appropriate efforts for their companies, but the employer/executive team isn't supportive of that need, there is clearly a problem with the company's leadership.

It is unfortunate that some employers don't seem to understand the importance or value of including human resources in their key executive teams. This makes for a huge void in an effective strategic process of an organization. Human Resources touches most aspects of a company. Therefore, a company's HR should always be part of any company's "executive team".

An effective Human Resources professional, in turn, is responsible for encouraging proven measures to attain, develop and retain solid, proficient employees in order to produce successful results. Training and coaching should never be viewed as an expense but as a solid investment in the company's assets: their employees.

So, the point of this message is for employers to include and support their HR professionals in order to have a successful organization. This is a win-win for all!

Robyn Crigger