Does the board care about HR?  A significant study I did with Andrew Lambert shows that good boards do care a lot about people factors. This has implications for HR leaders.

The HR function has always suffered from being inward looking. There are good historical reasons for that tendency, but if you are looking for a change in your role then looking out -- or in this case 'up' -- is a good approach.

Why hasn't your board called you up and asked for your advice on strategic human captial issues.? What Lambert and I found is that HR needs to take the initiative in driving the relationship. 

If you are the head of HR enhancing your ties with the board really is a responsibility not a just a 'nice to do'.

If you are head of an HR function, like head of recruiting, then getting involved in this is optional and slightly constrained. However, there is an option to produce your own board-level reports about your own area--not for direct consumption by the board, but for your boss (the CHRO) or even simply as an exercise to help you develop your own strategic mindset.

If you are lower in the HR hierarchy you may have to wait to get involved. At this level it's likely you have neither the repsonsiblity nor the mandate to start talking about the board. So if you are keen on this kind of strategic thinking aobut human capital what can you do?  You can to be part of a team or task force to work to reporting to the board. It need not be a big deal; maybe more an evenings and weekend project than a part of the regular work day.  Nonetheless, a little time thinking at the board level can freshen your perspective on all the other work you do.

There are bigger forces at work than just your company and I'll talk about those sometime in the future.  As always I'm happy to talk about HR's relationship with boards as well as with investors.  Feel free to get in touch.

Daivd Creelman,
Creelman Research
dcreelman@creelmanresearch.com