Harding, who is director of people operations at FormFire
in the Cleveland area. “Better to take the time to research
than to give advice that could put the company in a position
of liability.”
Talking to others is also key. “You have to remain humble
and not be afraid to ask questions,” said Ericka S. Browning,
a Detroit-based HR practitioner. “Don’t always automatically
assume. Really take the time to learn and nurture your craft.”
‘SHORTCUTTING’ OR FAILING TO TAKE THE
POSITION SERIOUSLY
Like being a know-it-all, the tendency to
oversimplify complex issues often arises
from not knowing enough, which can be a real blind spot for
those starting out in any endeavor. We don’t know what we
don’t know, as the saying goes. As a result, people can sometimes suggest Band-Aid solutions to problems more akin to
gushing wounds.
For example, “you can’t successfully recruit and retain
employees if you don’t understand what their role is and what
impact they have on the organization,” wrote Jessica Taylor,
SHRM-CP, an HR generalist at ITW Deltar Components in
Lakeville, Conn. “The further you dig to understand your
business and its pain points, the better you can support the
organization.”
That may be why “new HR professionals tend to not be
as proactive in solving complex employee relations issues,”
commented Jonathan Flickinger, J.D., chief human capi-
tal ofcer at Quality Life Services in the Pittsburgh area.
“They sometimes let [the problem] go, and it can spiral out
of control quickly—afecting culture, legal liability and/or
employee morale.”
Seasoned HR leaders can help less-experienced colleagues
to settle into their roles by providing insight into the things
beginners might not know—and then giving them the time
and space to learn. “We need to remember they are new
professionals, and we cannot expect them to solve complex
issues,” said Michael Smith, an HR manager with Greenstone
in Sydney, Australia. “The frst thing they need to learn … is
to build relationships, fnd a rapport with senior manage-
ment, to understand how they think.”
Spending time fostering relationships and learning will
pay dividends down the line. In the near term, though, “we
cannot expect results from them,” Smith said. “Once they
have cemented their relationships and know how to handle
conversations with management, they will then be able to
infuence—which I don’t expect in the frst year.”
BELIEVING THAT AN HR DEGREE EQUALS REAL
EXPERIENCE
As important as an HR education is, it’s also
critical to realize that the real world is con-
siderably more nuanced than the classroom. Failure to grasp
to follow—the “right” solution to a problem can often vary
depending on the situation, organization, industry, the busi-
ness’s goals and the people your company serves.
“You need to understand your organization very well using your business acumen,” wrote Salman Alsuhail, an HR
consultant and trainer in Dammam, Saudi Arabia. “Then
see what fts and what works.” As many of you pointed out,
there are rarely textbook answers in the real working world.
Yet new professionals often fall into the trap of thinking
there should be a black-and-white answer to everything—
when in fact there is a lot of gray in the workplace.
Or, as Ivette Dupuis, SHRM-SCP, put it, her biggest mistake was “failure to recognize that HR is more than simply
knowing the right answer. Over my 20-year career, I’ve learned
the diference bet ween imparting knowledge and infuencing
change or inspiring others.” Dupuis is an HR consultant and
adjunct instructor in the Orlando/Tampa area.
COMING IN WITH AN ‘I KNOW IT ALL’ AT TITUDE
It’s hard to admit when you aren’t quite
grasping something—or a lot of things—
and sometimes rookies hide what they
don’t know by pretending they have all the answers. Indeed,
many of you agreed that a frequent amateur error was, as
Natalie Stuller Harding, SHRM-SCP, stated, “being afraid to
say, ‘I don’t know. Let me look into that and get back to you.’ ”
That fear may stem in part from a lack of perspective that
comes with experience; those who have been in the work
world for a while usually understand that learning on the fy
is part of the deal. So it’s important to let novices know that
“no one is expected to know everything all the time,” wrote
8
‘We need to
remember they are
new professionals,
and we cannot
expect them to solve
complex issues.’
MICHAEL SMITH
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