Part 1 - Acronyms with meaning
Frequent use of abbreviations and buzzwords, which has gone rogue lately in daily conversation, stops me in my tracks. Just a few buzzwords can hold power over [1] people with a wink of exclusivity, while some people may refrain from voicing their uncertainty or discomfort for the sake of maintaining consensus or to preserve a professional halo. Many of those who aren’t “in the know” just hope it will make sense later (it usually does, but not immediately… and not always for the better).
Welcome to my first article in a series, sharing thoughts about the ongoing identity crisis of HRwhich has become an ongoing search for clarity and purpose in the future of work, intertwined with digitalization in business reality and its long shadow deposited on the social pieces of our lives.
Why language matters
Abundant amounts of abbreviations (and associated meanings) circulate in our conversations, growing by the minute. Some are rather universal (e.g. KPI, ROI, OECD, UN, EU). while others differ depending on context, area of expertise, and agreed customs. It is not uncommon that a single abbreviation takes new life and totally new meaning within the same organization. Good luck finding out how it is meant and keeping up with the rest.
Language matters.
Our attention to perpetuating a shared concept is essential to belonging, fulfilment and progress. It could become cut-off or engine for inclusion and participation.
None wants to sound dumb or missing out, especially when common business terms do not share common definitions. It takes courage to say out loud: “I don't know what you mean, could you explain?".
It is a shared human experience that our readiness for contributing with confidence is based on the ability to keep up with the words used and meant. AuthorsLiz Fosslien and Mollie West Duffysummarized it perfectly: “Diversity is having a seat at the table, inclusion is having a voice, and belonging is having that voice be heard.”[2]Experts and business professionals build their own lingo, a common thread in every industry and profession, for faster and simplified interactions. If they fail to communicate this language to their cohort, then inclusion and belonging are limited, regardless of the team’s diversity.
Word play
Let's start a thought experiment, in which I look behind the abbreviations HR and P&C [3], for connection by association:
-‘HR’, the 102th among popular acronyms, is most associated with 'human resources', sharing meaning with 'hour', 'human rights', 'heart rate', 'high risk'; and some others not in scope for this thought experiment.
-‘P&C’, is most associated with property and casualty, and a few unrelated business terms. People & culture doesn’t show in this ranking.
Here is a hypothesis: P&C became an attractive alternative to HR, because it is more nebulous, yet sounds refreshing; it doesn’t necessarily change the approach to employment, yet sounds different to employees in companies which adopt it.
HR's rebranding to ‘P&C’ became a movement in the past few years; changing legacy job titles, department names and references from Human Resource to People and Culture. (This transformation will be explored in an upcoming article.)
Over the past few years, I saw a rapid infectious spread of this hom*ogenous change contracted by most of my professional network. I wondered who started this movement and why, and am convinced that proper contact tracing is needed for better context. (a topic for a separate article as well)
The name change, in my opinion, is a clear sign of an identity crisis, which is sort of expected after 30 years of endured "support function" spell. A name change doesn’t necessary indicate the end of one thing and start of another, but it does imply an evolution of concept. Whether this change is adopted positively or simply perceived as misleading (or sort of self-marketing), depends on how related actions eventually affect existing relationships with organizations and employees.
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References and sources:
[1] Brené Brown's "Unlocking us" podcast on power and leadership, Oct 2020 https://brenebrown.com/podcast/brene-with-joe-biden-on-empathy-unity-and-courage/
[2]Liz Fosslien and Mollie West Duffy on https://www.lizandmollie.com/workshops
[3] Search results for 'HR' and ‘P&C’ on https://www.abbreviations.com
