Optimas® Winners Toast HR’s Triumphs

Ever think about what you enjoy most about your job? Maybe it’s something you don’t give much thought to — until someone outside of work asks you what you do. Then you share a project or two you’ve been working on lately — and just the way Thanksgiving reminds us to count our blessings, you’re reminded why you chose human resources.

If it’s been awhile since you indulged in a little career-focused validation, you’ve come to the right place. Who better to serve up testimonials to the joy of being an HR professional than the senior-level practitioners at Optimas Award-winning companies? So, as we pause this month to celebrate the progress of our profession, take a few minutes to consider what your experience in HR has meant to you. And read what it means to the HR folks responsible for some of the most exemplary practices of our time.

Evelyne Steward
Senior Vice President of HR
Calvert Group
Bethesda, Md.
Quality of Life 1995
“I’m honored to be a member of the human resources profession, and I’m so proud to be committed to and responsible for making a significant difference in the quality of life of our employees and our community. I believe it’s through the leadership of human resources that companies are beginning to change the way they do business. Employees are an organization’s most important and unique asset. It’s our responsibility — as leaders in our field — to meet the needs of our employees at all levels. Spearheading efforts that provide opportunities to address the survival, emotional, psychological and spiritual needs of one’s life is challenging, exciting and helps me to live my life with purpose.”

Barbara Beck
Vice President of HR
Cisco Systems
San Jose, Calif.
Innovation 1996
“I’m most proud of the increasing recognition of the human resources component as a key element in developing and sustaining competitive advantage.

“And at the end of the day, after all of the HR programs and policies have been implemented, the greatest satisfaction for me comes from having made a significant difference to the personal satisfaction, goals and lives of our employees at an individual level and to the community we serve.”

Tharon Green
Director of Human Resources
City of Hampton
Hampton, Va.
General Excellence 1995
“I’m proud of being able to demonstrate that public sector HR can be at the forefront of organization transformation and workplace innovation in ways that rival even the private sector. The image of the public sector HR professional as bean-counter and bureaucrat is changing, and we must take every opportunity to push the envelope. Public sector HR professionals who are finding ways to help their organizations build capacity for fast, flexible, economical services to citizens will ultimately create a much more positive perception of the value of government. [It will also] help us attract employees who are talented and view public service as a higher calling.”

Michael Plunkett
Senior VP, Engineering, Technology and HR
Deere & Company
Moline, Ill.
Financial Impact 1992
“Over the past few years, I’ve enjoyed working in a position that allows me to support the vision and operating strategies of Deere & Company. Through implementation of learning and development, benefits and compensation programs, changing employee needs and interests have been balanced with practical business objectives. Today, HR is at a stage in which there’s an opportunity and a requirement to continue our role as a full-business ally with operating organizations — as opposed to the more traditional role of being tactical and administrative. I’ve been proud to participate in the HR capacity during this period of significant change within our organization.”

James H. Wall
National Director of HR
Deloitte & Touche LLP
Wilton, Conn.
Competitive Advantage 1996
“I maintain a deep sense of pride in our profession’s fundamental shift from one of administration and compliance to that of a true strategic business partner. Such a transformation has required each of us to literally reinvent ourselves. Although the challenges of such a transformation are significant and the path before us is unclear, we’re demonstrating our critical role in creating real and sustained competitive advantage for our organizations. My greatest personal pride is serving a firm that understands and embraces this challenge and will, as a result, realize its mission of becoming the best professional services firm in the world.”

Pedro Granadillo
Director of Human Resources
Eli Lilly & Company
Indianapolis
Global Outlook 1996
“To meet the expectations of our health-care customers during this time of change, we’re stretching for innovation throughout our operations. We’re keenly aware that our employees-their talent, energy and creativity — remain our only source of genuine competitive advantage. Indeed, our success depends first and foremost on our ability to achieve individual and collective excellence throughout our global organization. We must help line management ensure that we have the right people with the right skills in the right jobs, that employees’ efforts are fully aligned with our strategy, and that our processes and structures enable them to constantly improve. Consequently, the roles of human resources professionals have never been more exciting — or more critical.”

James A. Perkins
Senior VP of Personnel
Federal Express
Memphis, Tenn.
Competitive Advantage 1992
“Much of the emphasis in business today is placed on strategies, products, assets and numbers. But, in the final analysis, the key ingredient in any recipe for success is the same as it was 50 years ago-the performance of people. The thing that makes me most proud about working in human resources is knowing that I play a part in developing programs that allow FedEx to reach its full potential as a company while helping our employees reach their full potential as individuals. If a company is not playing win-win with its employees, employees end up playing lose-lose with their customers.

“Keeping employees satisfied is tougher than it was 10 years ago. Consumers have become much more demanding and the competitive landscape has changed as a result. But that added challenge just makes today’s HR job that much more satisfying. It’s also extremely gratifying to work on programs that support people who render a vital service to society. Whether they’re delivering medical supplies or disaster-relief items or payroll checks, people count on our employees — and they deliver. We’re all proud of that.”

Stephen G. Patscot
Manager of Global Organization Staffing and Leadership Development
GE Medical Systems
Milwaukee
Global Outlook 1992
“Being part of the world’s most competitive, dynamic and profitable company is a tremendous source of pride for everyone within GE. As human resources professionals, we’re proud of the fact that we’re living the vision of being the strategic business partner that everyone talks about becoming. Our visible partnership exists clearly today, beginning with the relationship between Chairman Jack Welch and Senior VP of HR Bill Conaty. Their partnership provides the enabling framework for the rest of us to contribute fully to the business equation.

“Personally, the biggest source of pride comes from knowing that the company is counting on my leadership, energy and ideas as an HR professional. I’m proud to be in a role in which I have great systemic impact on our organizational capability and competitiveness. I can create an organizational legacy as a direct result of my contributions, which is measured by how much more competitive we are as a business.”

Pete Peterson
Senior Vice President
of Personnel
Hewlett-Packard Co.
Palo Alto, Calif.
General Excellence 1993
“Historically, human resources has been viewed primarily as an administrative function. But over the past several years, a dramatic transformation has moved our profession into new and much more strategic roles. This major transition is described exceedingly well by University of Michigan Professor Dave Ulrich in his new book, ‘Human Resource Champions.’ Dave defines four areas of focus in his well-known model for HR management: strategic human resources, transformation and change, infrastructure and employee contribution. By achieving excellence in all four, human resources can truly provide a competitive advantage to an organization. Being a human resources professional during this dramatic time of change is both challenging and rewarding. Human resources can make a difference.”

Jerry Ramsdale
Senior VP and Director
of Human Resources
Hotel del Coronado
Coronado, Calif.
Innovation 1995
“I’m most proud of having an influential role in deciding how a company should be managed and then following through to make it happen. Of course, this is something that human resources can’t do directly — it must be facilitated through a visionary CEO. The president of my company has led a century-old organization, steeped in traditional systems of management, into state-of-the-art processes. The role of human resources has been key in this transformation.”

Sharon Richards
Intercultural Training
Program Manager
Intel Corp., Business
Practices Network
Santa Clara, Calif.
Partnership 1995
“Working in human resources provides the opportunity to contribute to achieving corporate results-not through products but through people. The effect of world competition and globalization is impacting employees, customers and suppliers on a daily basis as they strive to work together across borders, boundaries, time and space.

“As an interculturist, I take pride in working in human resources at this particular time because there are unique opportunities to link intercultural communication skills (involving people) with high-technology tools (products) to create new ways of doing business in today’s burgeoning global economy.

“Being able to bring worldwide work teams together to succeed in their global business endeavors is professionally challenging. And to have the privilege of working with people from countries and cultures throughout the world is personally rewarding.”

Bob Peixotto
VP, Total Quality & Human Resources
L.L. Bean Inc.
Freeport, Maine
Managing Change 1994
“Ultimately, our businesses need to be increasingly productive — and great places to work. In our profession we stand for respect for all people and fairness. We champion social responsibility and enable learning. We collaborate across our businesses to create and maintain motivating and healthy work environments. And we are catalysts for human and organizational development.

“We do all these things in an effort to drive peak performance both individually and collectively. This work is challenging. It’s consistent with my personal values, and it’s good for our people, our business and society. I’m proud of that!”

Donna Klein
Director of Work & Family Life
Marriott Corp.
Washington, D.C.
Quality of Life 1991
“My initial response to the question, ‘Why am I proud to be in human resources?’ was a Dave Letterman Top-ten list beginning with: ‘You meet the nicest people in airports!’ But in fact, my Top Ten comes from the heart, and I hope it expresses my sincere pride in my chosen field:

“10. Just as all politics are local, all resources are ultimately ‘human.’

“9. Just as all resources are ‘human,’ all work is honorable, because it supports families-the corporate family, the family of communities in which we do business and the individual family unit.

“8. Since the family is the seedbed of society, the future will depend on how work obligations intersect with family obligations-and that’s what my job is all about.

“7. At Marriott, we measure success in human terms, one family at a time.

“6. When it comes to human resources challenges and rewards, I feel we’re on the cutting edge.

“5. Marriott’s workforce, incorporating some 20 cultures and more than 100 languages, is a microcosm of the global village in which diversity and work/ life issues overlap and complement each other.

“4. Marriott recognizes that our employees’ personal lives often affect productivity, so we view work/life concerns as a bottom-line issue.

“3. Marriott is breaking new ground as a family-friendly place for all employees and meeting the challenging needs of our hourly workforce, which constitutes more that 75 percent of our entire employee population.

“2. From modest beginnings, our work/life efforts are experiencing success in serving the workforce of today and are positioned for the workforce of the future.

“1. I’m proud that Marriott is pioneering Corporate America’s efforts to reframe the context in which the work and the greater community coexist.”

Dick Lidstad
Vice President of HR
3M
St. Paul, Minn.
Vision 1995
“Ten years ago, I moved from a line position into human resources. I based the decision in part on wanting to be in a position to influence the kind of a company we are. The most satisfying part of my job is the almost daily opportunity to reinforce our 3M values and HR Principles. I’m totally convinced that the most precious asset we have is the commitment of our people and that asset needs to be nurtured and protected. I feel very fortunate to be positioned to play a major role in that process.”

R. Timothy Epps
Vice President
of People Systems
Saturn Corp.
Spring Hill, Tenn.
Managing Change 1991
“I can’t help but feel high enthusiasm for our profession as the century turns. Since organizations increasingly have access to the same financial capitalization options and inroads to the global market, how these organizations enhance their human assets — their intellectual capital — will be the most telling determinant of greatest success. The best strategy for optimization of a highly diverse workforce and the best implemented, wins!

“Of course, this success strategy is vulnerable to human failure and not without complexity. I believe this puts the human resources professional at the ‘big table’ — representing one of the key components of organizational mission achievement. The challenges will be as different as the successive issues of Workforce will be into the next century. Congratulations on 75 years of proud service to our profession.”

Bonnie C. Hathcock
VP of Human Resources
Siemens Business Communication Systems Inc.
Santa Clara, Calif.
Managing Change 1996
“Having entered the profession of human resources six years ago after a career in sales and marketing, I am proud to say human resources is the place to be in the 21st century corporation. Our role is bold leadership in the optimization of human capital through competency renewal and cultural management. We do this from the front lines, not the sidelines — as a leader, not a tourist.

“Companies need organizational capability that’s competitively unique to surpass the competition. Organizational capability comes through tuned-in, turned-on people who have the skills to handle increasingly complex roles and who function in cultures that are appealing, rewarding and inspiring. This, in essence, is the 21st century human resources agenda and human resources is the driver.”

Chuck Nielson
Vice President, Human Resources
Texas Instruments Inc.
Dallas
Service 1992
“Those of us in HR have the opportunity to leverage organizations greater than any other discipline. The only nonduplicatable resource an organization has is its people. For those of us in the private sector in which our ability to compete equals our ability to survive, the key to sustained competitive advantage correlates with the performance of each person. You and I as HR folks can lead in this endeavor.”

Lynne Hellmer
Director of the Office of Human Resources Development
University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign
Champaign, Ill.
Service 1996
“Being able to make a real difference for people and for the organization I work in is important to me. As a professional in human resources development, I can do both. My mission is to make available learning opportunities designed to improve individual employee performance and foster leadership skills. By giving my associates the tools for personal and professional growth, I feel I’m providing them with the opportunity to realize their full potential, not just as employees but as human beings. And when they take advantage of these opportunities on an individual basis, the trickle-down effects of improved productivity and greater overall job satisfaction benefit the organization as a whole. We all know that satisfied employees are the heart of every successful organization. I’m proud to be working in a role that affords me the opportunity to help keep that heart healthy and strong.”

E.R. (Ed) Dunn
Corporate Vice President of HR
Whirlpool Corp.
Benton Harbor, Mich.
Global Outlook 1991
“From a purely functional perspective, these are arguably the most interesting and stimulating times to be in the profession. Each element of the traditional HR portfolio is being utilized as a critical driver of performance and value creation. The skills, capabilities and sophistication of HR professionals continues to improve, and the rush of globalization is bringing a certain freshness to the field. Also, I’m pleased to observe the old ‘HR psychosis’ (e.g., ‘We’re not involved,’ etc.) finally being replaced with a new mindset of aggressive, provocative ideas about how HR practices contribute to competitive advantage — vs. contributing to employee satisfaction. I’m proud to see our general managers leveraging HR systems to contribute to our global growth and integration.”

Workforce, January 1997, Vol. 76, No. 1, pp. 129-135.