Career Advice Talk

HR – Friend or Foe?

23rd July, 2007 - Posted by Robin Ogden -

I get a kick out of reading Jennifer Warwick’s blog – she’s got a lot of smart talk and very savvy advice when it comes to being ‘gutsy’ in your career. I especially like her recent comments regarding the corporate Human Resources department and the fine line between corporate responsibility and employee support.

Who can you trust? I agree with Jennifer that it is important to remember that when you are heading into your corporate HR department to file a complaint you need to remember where you are. Thinking that you’re speaking to a ‘counselor’ whose main interest is to ensure that you are happy is a big mistake. HR does have to take a look at both sides of the equation – and they are ‘paid’ by the corporation to do a job ‘for’ the corporation.

As Jennifer states “Your HR team is made up of professionals, but not professional therapists. Their mandate is to manage risk, monitor costs, and ensure compliance with the law, and most likely they have had extensive training in their specialties. It is not to serve as a sounding board for problems you are having with a co-worker but haven’t discussed with that person. It is not to listen to you talking trash about your boss, when the bottom line is that you just don’t get along. And it is definitely not the place to go if you are looking for a friendly ear for you to vent to about your lack of work-life balance or other personal issues, and expect that conversation to remain confidential when you are up for a promotion.”

I know there are HR people who will argue that they are there to ‘hear’ your difficulties and want to know what the issues are. But, there are reasons for this that are beyond making your life better and that is what you need to keep in mind when sharing information behind those closed doors.

It’s important to be smart about how and when you approach the HR team – as Jennifer advises: When is it appropriate to go to HR? When the issue is a serious one that puts your health, safety, or career in danger AND you have already spoken privately with your boss or colleague, not once, but several times AND you have carefully documented those conversations, as well as any results or outcomes.

Posted by Robin Ogden - FiredUP Careers

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