1. You cannot rely on the HR function to take care of your people. Every Manager in the company must understand the value of people. Executives and managers must do their part to address strategic people challenges. It is not all up to the HR Department; it is a shared responsibility.
2. HR cannot effectively drive change without a non-HR sponsor. Executive buy-in and in particular the CEO's ongoing and firm commitment are essential to change management. There tend to be just a few change agents in the organization as a whole and this is way many programs and changes fail miserably. See point 1 as well.
3. The entire HR function must learn to help leaders improve their talent decisions, not just implement them. HR practitioners must develop analytical insight to support executive “decision making”. HR is sitting on tons of data but few of which is properly monitored and adjusted to be ready and served up as management information.
4. Simply rebranding HR as “strategic” is not enough. Executives must either hire people capable of assessing people challenges and devising executable solutions or help HR staff develop the required skills and capabilities. If you do not know it, then find it elsewhere and bring it on board or invest in acquiring the skills first. HR strategy is much easier said than done.
5. Bonuses are not tokens to buy future performance. Executives must realize that a "bonus" is a sum of money given to an employee in addition to their regular pay because of excellent work, length of service, accumulated favors, etc. It is not a form of bribery to convince an employee to stay and perform well in the coming year. Concentrate on and fix the true reasons as to why an employee is seriously interested in leaving in the first place.
