Art Kleiner's commission from Fast Company is an interesting and important
one. But what I detect, both in the underlying assumption and in the
responses I've read so far on this list, is a much-too-broad
generalization of HR as a staff function that does payroll and benefits.
Without breaking a sweat I can think of at least three very different
organizations whose HR "functions" are at least as strategically placed
(in LO terms) as, e.g., marketing or product development. (I don't come
from an HR background, by the way, but was involved in getting to know a
number of organizations that were and continue to be looking at HR's role
as a strategic player.) I'm not suggesting that we generalize on the
universal transformation of HR (or any other organizational entity, for
that matter); only that there's a tremendous amount of case study material
available to show HR pulling its weight in helping to transform and
integrate organizations.
Thanks.
-- Ron Mallis ron2785@eworld.com