Transcript
Matthew: Let me give you the most negative spin. We have now gone from you doing that thing in the army to now we are at a bar. And I have got my CEO hat and I am like, okay Lee, so you want to come in, you want to be an HR leader. Why do I care? What are you actually going to do for me and our organization?
And my bias is you are probably going to tell me why we need more workshops. You are probably going to tell me why we need more training. And all I really care about is are you going to make more money? None of these workshops seem like they are making me any money. If anything, it seems like it is going to actually create more tension than what we currently got. So why do we need HR?
Lee Cage Jr.: One, if you do not understand what the business does, how can you be an HR leader or thought leader within it? So one is, does the HR person understand what the business does, the goals, the KPIs, what it is that you are actually looking to accomplish? That in itself, if they do, that actually helps serve the business even more.
Number two, not just workshops, not just trainings, not just more money on ERPs or whatever. But when people are happier in their jobs, they perform better. When they have a sense of purpose, they perform better.
I once worked at a very small organization, and there were only 10 people, but they created hierarchy, and that hierarchy created a path for people. That path creation created healthy competition where people wanted to perform better, where they wanted to show up better.
So I think HR helps to create that, but also helps create the culture that you want. HR helps insulate that culture. HR is that protector. And tied to protection, to me, HR is in some cases a cheaper attorney. They are helping to insulate the business and the employees.
