If you’ve been reading WorkPuzzle for awhile, you’ve probably noticed that our organization likes numbers and metrics.  We believe that anything worth doing is worth measuring. (Workpuzzle Blogs about Metrics:  articles 1, 2, 3, and 4)

I may have found a kindred spirit this week — Dr. Richard Beatty at Rutgers University.  Dr. Beatty spoke at a recent conference of more than 300 Chief Financial Officers (CFOs).  You’d think a Human Resources (HR) Specialist like Dr. Beatty would hang out with the HR folks, but this guy seems to me more at home with CFOs.

Excerpts from his speech were recorded in CFO Magazine this month.  In the speech, Dr. Beatty is quite critical of most HR organizations.  He makes the point that people in these roles cannot be trusted because they don’t understand metrics.

"…the language of organizations is numbers, HR isn't very good at data analytics.  They don't think like business people.  Many of them entered human resources because they wanted to help people, which I'm all for, but I'm also for building winning organizations."

Of course, what’s prompting this type of rhetoric is financial pressure.  One of the case studies he referenced shows how an unnamed financial firm was spending more than $30M per year in salaries and benefits to employees in the lowest quartile.  There was a direct connection made showing how this poor performance cost the firm as much as $50 million worth of business.

There are several lessons that can be gleaned from this topic:

Regarding organizations, Dr. Beatty made the point that competent companies use recessions to upgrade their talent bases.  They get rid of poor performers and replace them with more talented people in search of work.  Of course, to do this effectively, you have to be able to measure performance.  Specifically, you need to be measuring the performance of  your existing employees, and measuring the performance of the new talent you’re evaluating.

As for individuals, find solace in knowing that there’s hope.  If you’re a talented person who happens to be unemployed at the moment, then you should find encouragement in the knowledge that good companies still need people like you.  As you look for a job, quantify your experience in a measurable way.  Show on your resume that your past accomplishments actually produced measurable business results, and then be prepared to communicate with metrics in an interview.  Who knows, you might be interviewing with a CFO…

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