Thought Leadership from Ben Baran Ph.D., top management consultant in Ohio, educator, speaker. Expert in high reliability organizations, organizational agility, leadership training based on military, leadership methodologies, human resource strategy, human resource management, latest science on human resources.
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The future of human resources (HR) lies at the intersection of strategy, data analytics, design thinking, and a new set of practices and mindsets ushered in by the world of agile methods and organizational agility writ large.
And the time is ripe for HR professionals to have the bandwidth necessary to devote themselves to such matters. Numerous HR services—particularly those that are
Read MoreI worry about many companies that are starting to use scrum for project management or product development.
I worry not because scrum doesn’t work. It surely can, and when done right, it can be a highly invigorating and effective process for all involved.
I worry about companies that are starting to use scrum for two reasons:
Read MoreModels for planning and executing organizational change abound—for example, Kotter’s eight steps, among many others. These models are helpful in highlighting many of the critical aspects of organizational change, and I highly recommend immersing yourself in them.
That being said, I find that such models often deal more with planned organizational change than with unplanned or continuous organizational change.
And in an increasingly turbulent world, it’s important for human resources (HR) professionals and the HR function overall to
Read MoreI spend a fair amount of time around the human resources (HR) profession. Sometimes, that’s in the form of consulting and problem-solving alongside HR leaders; other times it’s through research or teaching graduate students. I’m also an HR officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve, and I maintain my HR certifications like thousands of other HR people.
But I’m often critical of HR. That’s not at all because I think HR people aren’t doing good work; rather, I think every profession should be critical of itself in an attempt to improve continually and stay relevant. We should all be on the lookout for how we can get better at what we do and how we do it.
In particular for HR, I see two areas in which HR could improve substantially.
Read MoreThe Alabama Crimson Tide lost on Monday evening, giving the Clemson Tigers their first national college football championship in 35 years.
But within the world of American college football, it’s undeniable that the University of Alabama’s football program—under head coach Nick Saban—is a powerhouse.
So despite the fact that Crimson Tide fans everywhere are in a state of mourning this week, there’s an interesting lesson to be learned from how Alabama has adapted its approach to the game of football during the past five years. It’s a lesson in
Read MoreMy children love the water. They swim, they splash, they laugh.
My children, like most children, are fast. They dart, they scurry, they hide.
Therefore, when my children encounter water, it can be an exhausting experience for my wife and me. We must be vigilant.
The pool we frequent has lifeguards. But their vigilance will never match mine.
Unless, of course, we’re talking about
Read MoreIn the American television comedy series "The Office," the hostility between Michael Scott, regional manager of the mythical paper company Dunder Mifflin’s branch in Scranton, Pa., and Toby Flenderson, the branch’s human resources director, is a recurring theme.
During one particularly humorous scene, Michael learns suddenly that Toby—who had left the office previously—has returned.
Michael’s reaction?
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