Marketing, through HR's eyes

For years I've talked about holding an HR and Communications Summit, where for one high price a communicator brings her favorite HR goon, or an HR pro brings her favorite communication powderpuff, and we gather at a fancy hotel and work it all out over a couple of days.

This tale from the front from a friend in HR reminds me what a serious (and funny) couple of days it would be:

	So, we were all assembled today in a conference room to hear our current Leader to discuss the year’s accomplishments. Our HR Leader was just ending his 18 month stint, having been “rotated” into the role between his last Marketing Leadership role, and his future incredibly lucrative, possibly redundant role as one of the Credit Card company leaders. 

	After a nice little pep talk about what the HR & Communications department had accomplished over the year, Dear Leader took a few questions. Here’s the one that made my day:

Q: So what have you learned in your 18 months as the Leader of HR and Communications?

So, we were all assembled today in a conference room to hear our current Leader to discuss the year’s accomplishments. Our HR Leader was just ending his 18 month stint, having been “rotated” into the role between his last Marketing Leadership role, and his future incredibly lucrative, possibly redundant role as one of the Credit Card company leaders.

“I learned that people actually decide on HR as a profession when they are in college. They actually go and get degrees, and sometimes advanced degrees...."

Not sure the rest of the statement as I laughed out loud so hard, I actually started crying. Thank God for mute buttons.

Oh, and this was one of the questions he received in advance.

This, coming from the pretty boy, fits the “mold,” glad hander who while he was in Marketing made such genius moves as:

• Establishing a multi-million dollar NASCAR sponsorship for our Financial Services company. Oh, did I mention he always had to attend the events in the premium sponsor seats? And continued to “own the relationship” after he left Marketing for HR. By the way, we sure did drop that sponsorship like a hot potato once expense controls got serious.

• Asking his HR person to go and coach his direct report when they screwed up. (The HR person declined to provide the service, and told Boy Genius to go coach is own employee.) ...

Now, I’m probably the first one to critique my own profession, and the short comings of my own department, but it is a rare treat to be insulted by some narcississtic douche bag who’s too clueless to fucking figure out he’s just insulted you.

Comments

[Kristen]

Reading this, I was reminded, yet again, of one of MY pet rants, which is that Marketing and Communications are two separate and entirely different skill-sets with completely different objectives.

I know that wasn't your point here David, but it always irks me when I as a "communications person" get lumped in or, in some cases, tarred with the same brush and feathers, of the marketing people.

In fact, and I know this will be heresy to some of your readers, but given a choice as a communicator (internal or external) I would rather report to HR than to Marketing. The arguments you have to have with a HR boss are far more manageable than trying to convince a Marketing person why you really do need to do more than just "sell stuff" in order to be an effective, responsible organization. I say this from experience reporting to both.

[David Murray]

Ah, but we are lumped in, and we must do a better job of differentiating ourselves (in our minds and in our actual practices) from the colleagues WE think of in a way that HR people think of us.

And then there's the battle between internal communicators and public relations people, the former with their systems and vehicles and processes and programs ... the latter with their--I can hardly bear to say the word--campaigns.

And of course we must understand that marketing people see all of us--HR pros, internal PR pros and internal communicators--as cost-centers, as chickenshit bureaucrats, as deck-chair rearrangers and paper shufflers who only weigh down the bottom line while the marketers raise the top line.

All part of my Summit, Kristen. All part of my Summit.

[Susan]

I would love to attend your Summit, David. I'd really like to tackle the "oh, you are just a writer" (and thus expendable) issue.

[Susan]

I would love to attend your Summit, David. I'd really like to tackle the "oh, you are just a writer" (and thus expendable) issue.

[Diane]

What about when PR and internal communications are one and the same?

[Diane]

What about when PR and internal communications are one and the same?

[David Murray]

Not sure what you mean, Diane. Pls. specify.

[David Murray]

Not sure what you mean, Diane. Pls. specify.