Tips for Learning and Growth in HR Roles

Many of my HR colleagues (myself included) "fell into" this field. Since a lot of my career just happened 🤷♀️ upon reflection, there are some things I do wish I had learned back in years 1 or 2 ... not the least of these being the expectation that HR leaders become an expert in everything. 🚀 1️⃣ Mastering the Multifaceted: HR professionals often wear many hats, from recruitment to benefits, compliance, employee relations, and more. Embrace the challenge of becoming a multi-disciplinary expert. 2️⃣ Continuous Learning: The expectation to excel in diverse HR domains reinforces the importance of lifelong learning. Seize every opportunity to expand your knowledge and skills, both within and outside HR. 3️⃣ Leverage Technology Wisely: In a world of HR tech, remember that technology is a tool, not a substitute for expertise. Understand how to wield these tools effectively to enhance your HR capabilities. 4️⃣ Legal Acumen: As an HR expert, navigating complex employment laws is paramount. Invest time in mastering the legal landscape to protect both your organization and its employees - and find good legal experts you can partner with to minimize risk for your company! 5️⃣ The Human Element: Beyond expertise, never underestimate the power of the human touch. Building relationships, understanding emotions, and practicing empathy are skills that transcend specialization. 6️⃣ Diversity & Inclusion Advocate: Being an expert means advocating for diversity and inclusion at every level. Champion these values to create a harmonious, innovative, and equitable workplace. 7️⃣ Strategic Vision: Elevate your HR expertise by aligning your strategies with organizational goals. Be a strategic partner who influences positive change. 8️⃣ Networking's Role: Forge connections within and beyond HR to access expertise when needed. Remember, you don't have to be an expert in everything; you just need to know where to find the experts. 🌟📣And probably the most important of all! 9️⃣ Adapt and Overcome: Expertise also includes the ability to adapt swiftly in the face of change. Flexibility is a hallmark of seasoned HR professionals. Growing a career in HR is a journey that fosters growth, adaptability, and the opportunity to make a meaningful impact in the workplace. We're all learning as we go! The important thing is not to be intimidated and embrace the chaos! #HRCareer #Expertise #HRExpectations #HRCommunity

What’s it really like to be a Chief People Officer? One thing is for certain - you never stop learning. Ever. Last month I wrote a post with generative AI about what is like to be a CPO. It identified seven major parts of a CPO role. This week, I wanted to share more about #5: Continuous Learning. Here's what it said: "The world of HR is always evolving. We're lifelong learners, staying on top of trends, technologies, and legal requirements." Long ago, in a galaxy far, far away (or, about ten years ago, a few miles from where I work now), I was a paper-first leader. What do I mean by that? I led with compliance - people had a place of course, but that was secondary to the business. As I learned, unlearned, grew and changed, I learned to lead people-first, putting people above all else. Does this mean I can avoid tough decisions? Of course not. Does it mean that sometimes there are really difficult choices involving people. Yes, there are. This is a complicated role, with so many different moving parts. But back to continuous learning. When you are an HR practitioner caught up in the day to day, it is REALLY hard to see through the stacks of (sometimes literal, sometimes virtual) paper to really see your people. To really learn the things you need to know to lead your team, your people, your company and yourself. It can be completely overwhelming. I get it. But, I've learned over the past few years to put myself first. You should too. That goes not only for self-care, but also for learning. Take time to learn. Take time to grow. Take time to unlearn. That thing you have to do can wait an hour, a day, a week. Learn in a way that makes sense for you. It doesn't have to be books, articles or conferences. My favorite way to learn? It's from others. I talk with others, but I listen more than I talk. Be open to changing those ideas you hold onto so tightly. Maybe, just maybe, there's room for you to grow there. I know there is for me. I think the tough thing for those of us who've grown up in HR, or even worked for a number of years, is that learning is never done. You cannot check learning off that checklist you love so much (I do too!) Sure, you can finish a book, article or module, but you are always learning something, and everything we learn about eventually changes in some way, leading to a continuous cycle of learning. So, sometimes it's easier not to start something that can't be finished. Don't get caught up in that. Start today. Start with something new that expands your mind or changes your view on something. Talk to someone who is different from you in several ways. And listen. Talk to your people. And listen. Talk to your team members. And listen. It will make you a better CPO, HR practitioner and person. I know it has for me. And I can't wait to see what else I learn today, tomorrow, next week and beyond.

This morning I joined in on a wonderful discussion led by Accenture learning gurus Dana Alan Koch and Bob Gerard called the Science of Biology and Learning. I learned so much from my fellow "learning geeks" Alexandria Pabst, PhD, Paul Zak, and Tessa Forshaw. Of course I wanted to talk about the intersections between well-being and learning, as both play an instrumental role in human capital management, talent retention, innovation, growth and productivity...essentially all aspects of business performance. Sharing something I shared with the group, based on research we collected as a team at Accenture that we dubbed "learning accelerators": Stress influences learning in powerful ways. *Negative* stress negatively impacts our: 🛑 Memory  🛑 Knowledge retention  🛑 Self-efficacy (belief in our ability to accomplish a task) 🛑 External locus of control (feeling in control of our circumstances and ability/potential to learn) 🛑 Openness and willingness to learn and adapt in the moment of need  🛑 Negative stress also plays a large role in increased extraneous load (Jarret, 2011). But here's the thing: stress in and of itself isn't the issue. In fact, based on the research, a little stress enhances learning (even acute stress!). On a macro level, external workplace stressors employees face can inhibit learning and growth, so it's important to consider this BEFORE designing or implementing a training. For example: if you're asking a group to take time out of their busy work days to learn something new, consider how to mitigate potential stressors that could be barriers to learning. Consider things like: ⚡ Spaced learning where there are plenty of breaks. Spaced learning is actually great for learning anyway - but it offers a chance for learners to get some recovery between learning moments. ⚡ Don't schedule the learning outside of regular work hours, forcing them to make accommodations for childcare, commutes, losing precious family time or workout time, etc. ⚡ Consider neurodiverse learner needs as best as possible: factor for group work, accessibility needs, social needs, etc. ⚡ Provide enough time for catch up after the learning. Can certain calls, meetings, regular tasks etc. be deleted or delegated away so they can bring their best focus to the learning? If not, can you offer space in the training (or before or after) for catch up so they're not backlogged? The optimal amount of stress for learning and performance is learner specific, task specific, and situation specific (Bong, 2016). A little positive stress can enhance learning (challenges, exercises, competition, quizzes, etc.), but there's a tipping point where stress can negatively impact learning. Know your audience and how stress plays a role in learning to best to elevate their performance and learning potential.

A recent conversation with a mentee trying to navigate the next steps in their career reminded me of an essential rule I always emphasize: You own your career, therefore you have to be in the driver's seat. They recently received some feedback from their manager that was confusing as it didn’t align with previous feedback. The conversation on next steps was very vague. Reality check: waiting for clear guidance or validation from others can leave you stuck in neutral. Instead, you must proactively manage your own career path. Here are a few things I suggested: 1. Do a Self-Assessment You need to understand your strengths, weaknesses, passions, and career aspirations. Identify what excites you and where you see yourself in the future. Remember they can all change due to new experiences and gaining new skillsets. 2. Seek Constructive Feedback While feedback from leadership is valuable, it’s important to triangulate. Reach out to mentors, peers, and others in your function that you admire for their insights. Feedback is just one piece of the puzzle. Use it as a tool for improvement, not as a definitive roadmap. You never know when you might run into an unconscious bias. 3. Continuous Learning and Development I’m ever curious and always looking for learning opportunities. Look for opportunities to learn from other functions. The business world is continusly changing, and staying on top of the game, requires investing time to learn. Stay informed about your current industry trends but also look for best practices in others. 4. Advocate for Yourself People can’t read your mind, so they don’t know what your career goals and aspirations are. Don’t be afraid to articulate them to your leadership. Express your interest in new projects, responsibilities, or roles that align with your goals. 5. Adaptability and Resilience Career paths are rarely linear. My own has been a lattice. Be adaptable. Embrace challenges and view setbacks as learning experiences. Being in the driver's seat of your career means taking an intentional role in your professional development. While others can give you guidance, the ultimate responsibility for your career lies with you. What else would you tell him?

Most managers are bad at a critical part of their job... b/c most probably don't think it's their job. 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐫 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭! It's something I frequently think about. And I hope anyone who has ever worked for me feels this. Here are some of the things I do to help develop my team. 𝐖𝐞𝐥𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐲 When someone joins the team, I send a Welcome Survey that covers work styles, professional development & personal interests. Questions include:  – What impact do you want to have at Crosschq? – What are you most excited to learn in your new role? – What are your career goals in the next 5 to 10 years? – List 3-5 professional skills that you'd like to develop in the next year. – What would make this job especially meaningful and enjoyable? DM me for my full survey. 𝐐𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤-𝐈𝐧𝐬 Different than a weekly 1:1, in this meeting, we take a step back to assess how things are going. I'll often pull up the welcome survey to guide the conversation, but it's a chance to ensure:  – They are getting what they need out of the job – The company is getting what it needs from them I'm asking questions like:  – Do you know what is expected of you? – Do you have what you need to be successful?  – Do you feel like your work is having an impact?  – Are you enjoying your work and the people you work with?  – Do you feel like you have the opportunity to do your best work? Then, we spend a chunk of time on career pathing so they know what’s needed to move to the next level. 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐅𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 Any good manager knows they must give frequent feedback, but there's still value in more formal performance reviews. Feedback is something I try to weave into the culture by training my team on how to give & receive feedback. Personally, it's something I'm still working on. 𝐂𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐚 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐬𝐞𝐭 One of the most important things a leader must do is intentionally create their team culture. I believe this is separate (but strongly aligned with) the company culture. The best way to do that: values & operating principles. One of the core principles I always set is continuous learning and a growth mindset. Other things I think about for good career development: 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 Open comm ensures everyone feels comfortable discussing their aspirations, concerns & feedback. 𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 Involve other stakeholders/depts to ensure that development plans are holistic and integrated into the broader org strategy. 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐝 Eveyrone is unique. Personalize the plan to suit their specific needs & aspirations. 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲 Be open about the business's needs and how they align with individual growth paths, so expectations are clear on both sides. 𝐄𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 Allow everyone the autonomy to make decisions regarding their career path, providing guidance and support as needed. What would you add? 

Before I knew the power of putting myself in an employee's shoes, I would stress about these 5 things: 1. High turnover rates. 2. Poor employee engagement. 3. Lack of team cohesion. 4. Ineffective communication. 5. Low job satisfaction. As I reflect, these 3 lifelong career habits killed the anxiety and boosted my development: (1) Empathy in Action - I began conducting regular one-on-one meetings. - It led to a deeper understanding of individual needs. - I started getting recognized for nurturing a supportive culture. (2) Transparent Leadership - I began sharing company goals and challenges openly. - It led to a more engaged and committed team. - I started getting recognized for fostering trust and transparency. (3) Continuous Learning - I began investing in professional development for my team and myself. - It led to innovation and efficiency improvements. - I started getting recognized for driving growth and excellence. From stressed to strategic. My name is Brad and I’m the Owner’s HR Advisor. What else do you want to know? Drop it in the comments. #humanresources #talentexperience #hradvisor #culture ___ Please ♻️ if you found this interesting.