Alright, why does the Human Resources Department always get off the cuff when businesses fail?  We are calm, analytical, people oriented, we give you your paycheck.  Oh and one more, we are usually quiet and innocent.  Right?  Wrong!  Perhaps we are the sole reason why businesses fail!  That’s right!  It’s not the CEO, it’s not the executives, it’s not the sales staff.  Ok, perhaps there might be a little blame to put on their shoulders, but if you take all of the layers of the problem apart piece by piece and think outside the box, HR plays a crucial role in the success or failure of the business.  Prime example is Toyota.  Yes the designs failed.  Yes the executives overlooked safety.  Here is the kicker, who was in charge of designing the training program, reviewing talent’s success, ensuring that responsibilities were detailed in writing?  Yes the executive have some responsibility, but look beyond the executives.  It’s HR.  Granted we don’t sell the product, we don’t manage the production floor, we don’t draw the blue prints, we don’t know how to make cars, we don’t make the big corporate decisions.  We are  the eyes of the executives, designing the training program, handle policies and procedures, etc.   Now in Toyota’s case there is blame to go all around, not just HR and their CEO, Akio Toyoda.  In many of the cases where businesses have been struggling HR plays a crucial role.  I know it’s a bold statement, but I truly believe that we are overlooking the source of the problem.  Perhaps businesses need to completely digest their HR Department to ensure that there aren’t any cracks open.  Think about it.  What department is usually the last department to be reviewed and analyzed?  Human Resources.  Now I know I have confused a lot of HR professional who read this blog daily, but it’s true.  Yes we may seem to be in a little bubble, but perhaps we need to get out of it and take a look at the business from a big picture and not just look at policies and procedures, benefits, compensation, employee relations, etc.  Maybe we need to be involved with the corporate decisions, because we are the people who deal with Humans everyday.  It’s not machines that run the business, it’s the people.

No, I did not get yelled at, no I didn’t piss off a client, no I am not ranting for the heck of it.  I have been thinking about why businesses have been struggling so much recently.  And after analyzing businesses here in Milwaukee who have been struggling, in almost all of the cases there are key components that impacted their struggles that lie in the Human Resources hands.  Think about businesses in your city that are struggling.  Why do you think that they are failing?  Oh and don’t listen to the news.  I used to work in television, believe me, we looked for words that made the story great.  It’s all about the ratings.  Out of respect I am not going to tell you who I worked for.  In other words, do your own research and don’t let others impact your conclusion of the problem.

This is why when I work with businesses I always look at the big picture.  Strategic planning in HR is absolutely crucial.  Not just 2 – 5 year plan, but 3, 5, 10 and 15 year plan.  Lay out what the executives want to accomplish and draw out a plan that will be in line with those goals.  This will help lay down the foundation of how you will train staff, improve your orientation program, and so on.  It is a failure on your end if you are not communicating with the executives of your firm.  Don’t get comfortable, because you control the success and or the failure of your firm.  You may be on the hot seat and you don’t even know it.