Human Resources Management Like a Good Pair of Shoes

I have something on my mind I thought was important to share. Mostly because in my umpteenth conversation with other HR Consultants, business advisors and employment lawyers, we all agree - the pain many employers experience regarding employee issues is ignored until it becomes out of control. And even then, some of these employers don’t even think they need to acknowledge other employee issues once that larger issue has been dealt with.

Let me give you something to visualize. You are an employer and you are walking on a wooden deck that you built to support your business. In this scenario, the wooden planks are your employees that provide a function enabling you to reach your destination. Some planks are polished and sturdy from training, experience, work ethic, whatever. Other planks are rough and can be polished over time or are too knotty to be smoothed out but either way you use them because they were cheap and easy and somehow they manage to get you to where you want to go. Now comes you – the business owner and you walk across these planks as you need to.

Now visualize yourself without a buffer between your bare feet and the planks. You get an occasional splinter but you can stop and dislodge them and go on your merry way. Others you may have to sit for a spell and really dig out. Sometimes you may even need help getting out and even then they may give you an infections. Now you must deal with fixing the issue and not focus on anything else. Hopefully these splinters or issues don’t become so imbedded and infected that you end up losing more than just time and money, but your whole foot.

OK, I really simplified this analogy to give everyone a very basic concept to visualize. However, it really is this simple.

Now, let’s imagine Human Resources as a shoe. Like shoes, they come in different styles, sizes and provide different services but all in all they protect your bare foot from damage caused by rough, knotty planks or even from getting knocked down from a polished one popping up or shifting. Your lawyer can fix an infection or help you dislodge a thorn. But then it’s like putting ointment and a bandage on the site of a particular issue. That still won’t protect the rest of your foot from other issues.

Human Resources Management can assist in the issue and help prevent others.

Don’t wait until you have splinters. Put on your darn shoes and get help choosing your planks and polishing the rough ones and keep walking. Enough said.