Good and objective measures of performance are hard to come by. Giving human resources specialists a role in evaluating general managers may turn recommendations from the same specialists into something closer to "commands," an outcome we would very much like to avoid. On balance, however, this is a role that can often play and a role that ought to be undertaken by someone; so this is a task we urge you to consider assigning to specialists. And there is ample precedent for such a role. After all, many companies have used a similar approach in other arenas-for instance, having specialists charged with overseeing corporate quality or ethics initiatives are responsible for training, coaching, and helping to evaluate general managers in contributing to those initiatives. A dotted-line relationship between service providers and (especially) in-the-field human resources specialists is an excellent idea. Should you hire for this newly configured human resources function? What sort of training should you give them? What kinds of career paths should they follow?
One should think of these people as "nearly" general managers who specialize in these issues. They should be trained in business generally. They should be interested in and knowledgeable about business, particularly your business. As part of their on-the-job training, they should get exposure to the other business realities facing your enterprise. The reasons should be obvious: To be successful, human resources needs to be integrated with other general business concerns. A specialist, in an advisory position or otherwise, who doesn't appreciate the larger general business picture facing the organization is poorly situated to provide sensible guidance. And even if the guidance given is sensible, this person is less likely to be able to get the ear and respect of general managers. leia todo o artigo
