Where is the human in Human Resources?

Human Resources. The very name suggests care, understanding, people, and humanity. But where exactly is the human in Human Resources?

To understand where we are, shouldn’t we first ask where Human Resources began?
Why were Human Resources departments created in the first place?
Were they created to protect employees, or were they created to protect companies?
Was HR originally about people, or was it about productivity, compliance, and risk management?
When did personnel departments become Human Resources, and why did the language change from people to resources?
What does it mean when humans are referred to as resources, like equipment, software, or inventory?

What role does HR truly play inside an organization today?
Are they advocates for employees, or are they representatives of leadership?
When conflicts arise between employees and management, who does HR ultimately serve?
If HR is paid by the company, can they truly be neutral?
When HR says they are “there for you,” what does that actually mean?
Is HR there to help you, or to manage you?
Is HR there to listen, or to document?
Is HR there to protect your job, or to protect the company from liability?

If HR’s responsibility is to carry out the decisions of leadership, what happens when those decisions are not very humane?
What happens when policies matter more than people?
What happens when loyalty is not returned?

Consider John.
John dedicated his life to a company.
He showed up early, stayed late, trained new employees, covered shifts, and was known by his team leads as an excellent worker.
He missed family events, worked through illnesses, and believed he was building a future with the company.
Then one day, John went to work, and his swipe card didn’t work.
He couldn’t enter the building.
He couldn’t leave through certain doors.
His access had been turned off without anyone telling him.
Security was called.
HR met him in a room and told him his position had been terminated.

Why was John not told beforehand?
Why was his access shut off before a conversation was had?
Why was security involved for someone who had given years of loyalty?
Was that procedure, or was that humane?
Was that policy, or was that respect?
Where was the human in that moment?

Consider Mary.
Mary worked for five years at her company.
She received good performance reviews.
She had relationships with coworkers.
She believed she was doing well.
One day, on her way home from work, she received a phone call from HR.
Over the phone, she was told that the company had decided she was no longer a good fit and that her employment was ending effective immediately.

Why was this conversation not held in person?
Why was she told on her drive home?
What does “not a good fit” really mean?
How does someone work somewhere for five years and suddenly become “not a good fit”?
Was this about performance, or about convenience?
Was this about business decisions, or about people’s lives?
Where was the human in that phone call?

Consider pay.
James trains Gregory.
James teaches Gregory how to do the job.
James answers Gregory’s questions.
James corrects Gregory’s mistakes.
James has more experience and more knowledge.
But Gregory is paid more than James because Gregory negotiated better when he was hired, and HR approved the salary range.

How does the trainer make less than the trainee?
How are pay structures determined?
Is pay based on value, negotiation skills, timing, or favoritism?
Who decides what someone’s time, knowledge, and effort are worth?
Do job titles matter more than actual contribution?
Do budgets matter more than fairness?
Where is the human in compensation decisions?

When layoffs happen, why are they often called “restructuring,” “rightsizing,” or “realignment”?
Why do companies use soft words for hard realities?
Does changing the language make the outcome less painful?
Do spreadsheets sometimes matter more than families?
When someone loses their job, do we see a number being removed from payroll or a person losing their livelihood?

When HR says, “It’s just business,” what does that mean?
At what point did business become separate from humanity?
Can a company be successful and still be compassionate?
Can policies exist alongside empathy?
Can companies lead with both logic and humanity?

Do employees misunderstand HR, or does HR misunderstand employees?
Should HR be renamed Corporate Resources?
If HR is not truly for the employees, should that be made clearer?
What would a truly human Human Resources department look like?
Would they communicate better?
Would they treat exits with dignity?
Would they ensure fairness in pay?
Would they prioritize transparency?
Would they treat people as people instead of liabilities?

If someone can give 10, 15, or 20 years to a company and be walked out in 10 minutes, what does loyalty mean?
If employees are expected to give their best, should companies also give their best in how they treat people?
If culture is so important, why do people often feel disposable?
If people are called a company’s greatest asset, why are they sometimes treated like its easiest expense to cut?

So we return to the question:

Where is the human in Human Resources?