It’s a name that belongs to the history books, the dark ages, a time past. ‘Human Resources’. If there’s one corporate title I hate it’s ‘human resources’. If there’s one concept that represents all that is wrong with the traditional business mindset it’s the tying of the word ‘human’ to the word ‘resource’. And although there are many fine people doing many fine things in the world of ‘human resources’, the mindset that name embodies is still well alive in most businesses today.
The Trouble With HR
When HR professionals and leaders speak of ‘talent acquisition’, ‘competence management’, or ‘career development’, they speak of a top-down effort to drive the actions, thoughts, and behaviours of the people that work for them. They speak of the desire of ‘the business’ – itself an illusory idea in our minds – to enrich itself with talent that can be exploited, used, and improved. And yet whenever we have ideas about getting someone to do something for us, or making someone do something, or influencing someone (a very popular idea these days in the world of social media), we fail to grasp the most basic of realities: people are motivated by their intrinsic desires, and consciously or subconsciously will always fight against the influence and demands of others.
HR has become a name and mindset that is destined for the waste bin. We live in an age that is becoming dominated by a new generation of individuals that has been born into a new mindset: I determine what is best for me, and I seek out those that can help me best. This is in stark contrast to the traditional mindset of: I will follow those who are in positions of power and influence, because only they have and can give what I want. The mindset of this new generation of employees and customers means that HR as a concept will no longer work. This new generation knows deeply and intuitively: HR has no idea what I want and need unless I tell them, and if they don’t have what I need I’m going to look for it elsewhere.
Become A Human Enabler
The new mindset needed by HR is in fact HE: Human Enablement. HE embodies the mindset “you know what’s best for yourself, and I am here to enable your desires and dreams – wherever that path may lead”. Instead of jealously guarding the talents and work hours of an employee, HE is only interested in one thing: How can I help you achieve complete excellence in everything you do? In a business world that is characterized by increasing complexity and rapid change, the only hope a business can have in achieving its goals is to ensure that the people who are its business are completely enabled to achieve excellence.
The HE mindset is also essential to achieving customer excellence. The HR mindset sees the customer as a resource to be mined for revenue and profit. The HR mindset sees the product design process as a means to generating revenue streams and piling up cash. The HE mindset on the other hand is constantly in a state of self-evaluation: how can I help enable my customer’s desires and goals? The HE mindset constantly looks at the product design process as a means to an end: how do I enable my customer’s needs and wishes? That is why the HE mindset isn’t just a way of retaining a new generation of excellent employees, it’s also a way of retaining a new generation of excellent customers.
How to Start
How do you start with the HE mindset? It starts by changing your own mindset. Start by telling yourself what you don’t dare to say out loud: I don’t know anything about what that other person wants or needs. It may seem like the strangest of places to start, but in fact it’s the smartest of places. This new starting point doesn’t mean you don’t have any talents or value, but rather it means that you know that to be an enabler you have to connect with and understand those that you are enabling. You get yourself out of the illusions you’ve had in your mind about what you think others are feeling and needing, and you engage with them to learn and adapt as they do.
By adopting the HE mindset you embrace the unique talent, view, and value that every employee, customer, and you bring to our world. By adopting the HE mindset you ensure that you are constantly engaged with and are in tune with what matters most to yourself and others. The human enablement mindset creates trust, empowers creativity, and inspires social innovation on a grand scale.
Isn’t it time to change your mind?