?HR is fully equipped and capable of thriving in the “new abnormal” that the world has entered post-pandemic, where “everything is new again,” according to SHRM President and Chief Executive Officer Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP.
Taylor offered an impassioned message to the crowd during the closing general session of the SHRM Annual Conference & Expo 2023 on June 14 in Las Vegas, capping off the organization’s largest conference ever.
He spoke about HR’s history of driving change—including HR professionals taking on still-greater responsibilities at their companies through leadership roles—while noting that HR must also react quickly to technological changes. AI is not “here to take your jobs,” he offered as an example.
“HI [human intelligence] plus AI equals ROI [return on investment],” Taylor quipped. “Automation has stalked the workplace for years and now it, including ChatGPT, is here. These are game-changing tools that will scare the heck out of employees, including HR professionals. We are here to guide our employees through this and to calm their fears.
“But there are things that AI can’t do, and one is having heart. It can’t replicate the things that humans can do to make a difference in others’ lives. After all, we are the humans in human resources. When you take care of your people, they will go spread the word about how great it is to work at your company.”
Taylor pointed to recent survey results from The Conference Board that showed employee job satisfaction is at a 37-year high. “HR did that!” he said.
Three Areas of Expertise for Today’s HR Professionals
HR has become more than just a partner in companies’ executive circles, Taylor said. “We give companies the knowledge equity that is so important, and we’re truly a valuable part of the business,” he said.
To meet the needs of this new abnormal, Taylor said HR professionals must be three things: people experts, business experts and culture experts.
“HR must be that person everyone can trust and that person who can predict how humans—a company’s workers—will respond to action and behaviors,” Taylor said. “We need to understand our people at the deepest levels.”
He said understanding the business—what makes money and what loses money—will help them make smart decisions and guide their own understanding of the company. Having a similar awareness of the company’s culture is equally important.
“You must be very clear when describing your culture. It’s not just a ‘soft’ word anymore. Job candidates want to understand this before they come work for you because they are dedicating most of their waking hours to you,” Taylor said. “If the culture is not what you said it would be, they will leave. They will go online and talk to friends, trashing your company.”
Addressing Future Workplace Issues in the Present
Looking at the present and ahead to the future, Taylor addressed recent augmented and virtual reality technologies introduced by Google and Apple.
“This is not just for video gamers,” he said. “HR working in a virtual space isn’t coming in 100 years; it’s almost here now.”
Presently, he applauded the HR industry for having its most diverse workforce ever, saying, “It’s not just the right thing to do, it’s the only thing to do.” But there are more untapped pools of talent waiting to be re-engaged in the workforce, and more HR can do to reach them.
Older workers and those without college degrees can thrive as employees, Taylor said. “For example, you’ll have the 75-year-old workers not wanting to retire, but wanting a promotion,” he said.
Ultimately, HR has made the transition to the new abnormal—including to fruitful remote working arrangements—and though Taylor expects a “bumpy ride” going forward, it is one that HR professionals can manage.
A Call to Action for HR
The crowd followed Taylor’s speech raptly, taking many of the resonant themes to heart.
Lorraine Altamore, director of HR and recruiting at KM Systems Group in Buford, Ga., said she deeply felt the human element of human resources. “I was touched when he said that HR professionals do such a great job of attaching themselves to the people they work with through interactions and that we are a great judge of character.”
Lindsey Garito, SHRM-SCP, director of people and culture at the Westchester Country Club in Rye, N.Y., said she was reassured by Taylor’s message around emerging technologies that have garnered a lot of at-times scary headlines. “I’m glad he gave us confidence that our jobs aren’t going away because of AI,” she said. “His line that HI plus AI equals ROI was powerful.”
Lazarus Dawson, SHRM-CP, an HR generalist at Tampa Microwave in New Port Richey, Fla., echoed the praise for Taylor’s forward-looking vision of HR. “I appreciate that he talked about the emerging tech in our industry. That [Taylor] is always thinking to the future is what is great about his speeches. He’s a future thinker,” he said.
“HR is probably the most thankless job in America, so it was nice that he called out the recent high approval ratings for job satisfaction in the U.S. and how HR is a big reason for that,” Dawson added.
Paul Bergeron is a freelance writer based in Herndon, Va.
