I Promise Not to be an Obstacle

I’m glad to have this guest post from a fellow HR colleague I’ve connected with only by the graces of Social Media. Richie Coladarci leads the human resource operations at St. Francis College in Brooklyn, NY.   He is an advocate for Higher-Ed HR professionals through his involvement with the College and University Professional Association for Human Resources (CUPA-HR), founding the NY Metro Chapter and currently serving on the Eastern Region Board of Directors.  He has a Master’s degree from The George Washington University, an SPHR certification and more than a decade’s experience of HR highs and HR headaches, thankfully more of the former than the latter. Though not native to Brooklyn, he pretends that he is at social functions.  He also thinks that Sunday morning motorcycle rides can solve the world’s problems. Get to know Richie by following him on Twitter (@richiecoladarci). And this is what he has to say…

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Repeat after me – I promise not to be an obstacle

I can’t speak for all HR professionals but I’d venture to say that one of the worst criticisms we can get is that we “just get in the way” – that we are a box to check, a hindrance, an obstacle. The funny thing is that trying to further one’s education in the discipline is often what perpetuates this stereotype. The long-time HR professionals in the trenches already know, the classroom doesn’t always translate into real life. For example, if you perform a job analysis as written in a textbook (i.e., very time consuming and laborious), eyes will roll and people will talk about you behind your back. Do it again and the hiring manager goes over your head and you’re now out of the loop – you’re an obstacle.

Am I saying skip the job analysis? Absolutely not. But can’t your job analysis questionnaire be substituted with a combination of a phone call to the hiring manager, a well-timed elevator ride with the department head, a walk-through of the workspace and insight from the incumbent’s exit interviewRegardless of what an academic may tell you, this is plenty for a blueline job description.

If you’ve done this type of effective, but adapted HR, pat yourself on the back. You did what you needed to do, and better yet, you’ll be asked to do it again.