If people really are an organisation’s greatest asset, who is responsible for looking after them?
I want to explore something that I’ve often wondered about.
In most organisations, there is a department responsible for looking after the people.
It might be called Human Resources, People & Culture, People Experience or something equally impressive.
It will probably have a team of dedicated professionals who deal with recruitment, employee relations, training, performance management, policies and all the other things associated with employing people.
And that’s absolutely fine.
But I think there’s a rather important question that sometimes gets overlooked.
Does having an HR department mean that looking after people is HR’s responsibility?
I don’t think so.
Not really.
It starts at the top
In my view, the ultimate responsibility for the way people are treated in an organisation sits with the CEO.
Not because the CEO should be involved in every recruitment decision, performance review or employee concern.
That would be ridiculous.
But because the CEO is responsible for setting the tone, establishing expectations and making sure that the organisation behaves in a way that reflects what it says it believes in.
If a CEO genuinely believes that people make or break an organisation, that belief needs to be visible.
Not just in speeches.
Not just in annual reports.
Not just in a beautifully worded statement about people being the organisation’s greatest asset.
It needs to be demonstrated through everyday decisions and behaviour.
And that includes the behaviour of the senior leadership team.
Because if the CEO says one thing and their direct reports do something entirely different, employees will quickly work out which message is the real one.
People watch what leaders do far more closely than they listen to what leaders say.
You can’t delegate leadership
I’ve sometimes seen organisations behave as though having a good HR department somehow absolves everyone else of responsibility for their people.
A manager has a problem with an employee.
Send them to HR.
An employee raises a concern.
Let HR deal with it.
Someone needs development.
Ask HR to organise some training.
A difficult conversation needs to happen.
Perhaps HR can have it.
And before long, the HR department becomes the place where managers send all the people-related issues they don’t particularly want to deal with themselves.
Now, don’t get me wrong.
A good HR team is incredibly valuable. It provides expertise, guidance, consistency and support. It helps managers make better decisions and ensures that employees are treated fairly.
But HR cannot be a substitute for good management.
And it certainly cannot take responsibility for the behaviour of every manager in the organisation.
That’s a leadership issue.
If a manager consistently treats people badly, sending them on another management course isn’t necessarily going to solve the problem.
Somebody needs to take responsibility.
And that somebody is their manager.
Which brings us back to the CEO.
If the CEO expects good leadership throughout the organisation, they have to make sure that expectation applies to everyone, including the people who report directly to them.
There shouldn’t be one set of rules for senior executives and another for everyone else.
The messages have to match
Imagine a CEO who regularly talks about people being the organisation’s greatest asset.
They promote teamwork, respect, inclusion and collaboration.
But their senior management team operates through fear, blame and control.
Managers are rewarded for hitting targets regardless of how they treat their teams.
Employees are reluctant to raise concerns because they know what might happen.
People who challenge decisions are labelled difficult.
What sort of culture do you think that organisation has?
It doesn’t matter how many posters are put on the walls or how many times the values appear in the staff newsletter.
The behaviour tells the real story.
And employees are very good at reading that story.
If you want people to behave with respect, leaders need to demonstrate respect.
If you want managers to listen, senior leaders need to listen.
If you want people to take responsibility, leaders need to be prepared to do the same.
It really isn’t that complicated.
But it does require consistency.
Would you want to work there?
Here’s another way of looking at it.
If you were an employee in your organisation, would you feel valued?
Would you feel that your manager was genuinely interested in your contribution?
Would you feel comfortable raising a concern or suggesting a different way of doing something?
Would you believe that decisions were made fairly?
And would you trust the people leading the organisation?
These are not particularly unreasonable expectations.
They’re the sort of things that influence whether people enjoy coming to work, whether they give their best, and whether they decide to stay.
Of course, no organisation gets everything right all the time.
People make mistakes. Managers get things wrong. Decisions don’t always work out as planned.
That’s life.
But there’s a big difference between an organisation that occasionally gets things wrong and one that consistently fails to take responsibility.
The important thing is what happens next.
Do leaders listen?
Do they acknowledge mistakes?
Do they learn?
Do they make changes?
Or do they simply pass the problem to HR and move on?
So, who is responsible?
I believe the CEO has ultimate responsibility for ensuring that people are treated in a way that reflects the organisation’s values.
That doesn’t mean the CEO does everything.
It means they make sure everyone understands what’s expected of them, that managers are supported to lead well, and that poor behaviour is addressed rather than ignored.
The HR or People & Culture department has an important role to play.
But it cannot do it alone.
You cannot outsource leadership.
And you cannot create a people-centred organisation simply by employing a good HR director.
If people really are your greatest asset, looking after them needs to be a priority for every leader, starting at the very top.
So here’s my question for you this week:
If you asked the employees in your organisation who is genuinely responsible for looking after them, what answer do you think they would give?
And would that answer be the one your CEO would want to hear?
