Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

LettersHR practiceHR strategy

HR needs to stick to its role as defender of the business

by Personnel Today 30 Jun 2008
by Personnel Today 30 Jun 2008

In your interview with new Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) chief executive Jackie Orme, she said the role of HR had changed during her career from a job keeping organisations out of trouble into one of ‘adding value’ (‘Orme: my results will speak for themselves’, front page, Personnel Today, 10 June).


I keep reading about this need ‘to add value’, and I still struggle with it. I realise it is the latest ‘management speak’ – but could someone please tell me how to do it?


I can see that this phrase can be applied to people in the sense that they can be trained and become more capable of flexibility, higher skilled roles and so on, but we do that anyway, don’t we?


An awful lot of management speak has crept into our profession over the past few years. I was rather hoping that the new CIPD chief executive would grasp the reality of the day-to-day jobs that most of us hold. I find that with all the employment rights now available, I spend much of my time trying to keep my employer out of tribunals.


Leave it to sales and marketing to add value to the business. HR, whether we like it or not, is the defender of the business.


Joanna Elms, posted on Personneltoday.com


 

Personnel Today
Personnel Today

Personnel Today articles are written by an expert team of award-winning journalists who have been covering HR and L&D for many years. Some of our content is attributed to "Personnel Today" for a number of reasons, including: when numerous authors are associated with writing or editing a piece; or when the author is unknown (particularly for older articles).

previous post
Equality Bill measures could open a can of worms
next post
Orme needs to operate outside CIPD ‘bubble’

You may also like

What does it mean to be an HR...

22 Sep 2023

AI has positive impact on jobs market, report...

20 Sep 2023

Long-term sickness crisis: how employee data can help

13 Sep 2023

Lloyds of London boss urges greater return to...

7 Sep 2023

Bank holidays: six things employers need to know

25 Aug 2023

Foreign workers’ interest in UK roles doubles

23 Aug 2023

How to avoid fads in HR

18 Aug 2023

Business leaders must face up to new HR...

17 Aug 2023

Amazon joins Google in demanding more office attendance

11 Aug 2023

Kemi Badenoch: ‘confused HR colleagues’ misunderstand Equality Act

31 Jul 2023

  • Discover the value of CIPD accreditation PROMOTED | See how the CIPD can increase your earning potential...Read more
  • What does it mean to be an HR professional in 2024? (survey) PROMOTED | The world of HR is changing rapidly...Read more
  • The Contractor Management Mastery Pack: Everything you need to manage and pay global contractors PROMOTED | Answers to cross-border...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2023

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2023 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+