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WEBFACK04/03/2017xii18:49:5Page xiiAcknowledgmentsI often joke about geeking out over those who have had a significant impact onmy career or helped shape my thinking. In this way, having Dave Ulrich write theForeword to this book was a career highlight. My first read of his book The HR ValueProposition many years ago helped root within me the goal of educating HRprofessionals on how to be the most valuable players within any organization. Myabundant thanks for his patience and flexibility with the schedule, and generosity insharing his profound insights with us in this text. Additionally, many thanks to AndyFleming of Way to Grow, Inc. for a delightful conversation where he shared with mehis thoughts regarding twenty-first-century employee development. His work is wellworth a deep dive beyond the scope of this publication. The professionalism andthoroughness of the case study provided by Jack and Patti Phillips from the ROIInstitute is an excellent example of why their group has set the standard for measuringbusiness outcomes. Katrina P. Merlini’s phenomenal case study on the importantconcept of organizational justice is also well worth the time it takes to digest, and I amindebted to her for her professional courtesy and contribution to my lifelong learningobjectives in the area of industrial-organizational (I-O) psychology.Navigating the ins and outs of the publishing process would have beenimpossible without the direction, guidance, and project management skills ofJeanenne Ray at John Wiley & Sons. I always picture her in my mind at her deskpressing buttons, flipping toggles, and pulling levers, working her magic to keepour project on track. Additionally, the optimism and hard work of Chris Webb wereinstrumental in getting this manuscript from concept to launch—many thanks toJeanenne, Chris, and their team at Wiley.Finally, I must acknowledge the dedication of the leaders at the HR CertificationInstitute . Their vision for our industry is unflinchingly represented by the precisionand excellence of their core staff; their commitment to the principles of theprofession of HR is a testament to why HRCI has and will continue to lead thecertification efforts of HR practitioners across the world. It was a pleasure workingwith Amy Dufrane, CEO, Kerry Morgan, Rebecca Hastings, Inga Fong, and the manyothers I came into contact with through the course of this manuscript development.Thank you for the opportunity to serve the HR community through this work.

WEBFACK0104/03/201718:51:43Page xiiiAcknowledgments fromthe First EditionThe process of building out the Human Resource Body of KnowledgeTM (HRBoKTM)is evolutionary, requiring the time and attention of many practitioners. I would beremiss if I failed to acknowledge the professionalism and expertise of those thatworked on the inaugural edition of this guide.HR Certification Institute (HRCI ) recognizes and thanks the many individualswho assisted with the creation of the first edition of the HRBoK Guide.The following individuals comprised the HRBoK Working Group:Chair:John D. Varlaro, PhD, MBA, SPHR, GPHRVice Chair:Linda J. Haft, MS HRM, SPHR, CCPSubgroup Leaders:Business Management and Strategy: Javiel Lopez, SPHR, MSWorkforce Planning andEmployment:Human Resource Development:Lynda D. Glover, MA, SPHRCompensation and Benefits:Alisa Guralnick, SPHREmployee and Labor Relations:Karla M. Knowlton, MAOM, PHR,GPHRRisk Management:Nancy L. Hill-Davis, MHSA, MJ,SPHR, CHHRLori L. Rolek, SPHRWorking Group Members:Amy Gulati, GPHR, SPHR, PHRca, CPDMArmando A. Villasana, MBA, PHRDiana Kroushl, SPHRDoris M. Sims, SPHRGary W. Sexton, SPHR, CLRSKathusca Johnson, PHRxiii

WEBFACK0104/03/2017xiv18:51:43Page xivAcknowledgments from the First EditionLee S. Webster, JD, MBA, SPHR, GPHRLin Little, SPHRLori S. Goldsmith, SPHR, GPHRPantelis Markou, PhDQ VanBenschoten, MBA, SPHR, CFERafael M. Uzeda de Oliveira, CHRL, PHR, GPHRRoland C. Howell, SPHR, GPHRRon Drafta, CIH, CSP, SPHRSharon L. Beaudry, JD, SPHRShiva Dubey, MBA, CCP, GRP, PHRStephen I. Otterstrom, SPHRSue S. Stalcup, SPHR, LPC-MHSPVictoria Clavijo, SPHRProject Consultant Team:PSI ServicesRory E. McCorkle, PhD, MBA, SPHR, CAE, NPDPBeth Kalinowski, MBA, SPHRSiddiq Kassam, MSAlexandra KassidisMelissa McElroyHRCI HRBoK Team:Amy Dufrane, EdD, SPHR, CAE, CEOLinda K. Anguish, SPHR, GPHRRebecca R. Hastings, SPHR, PHRcaInga Y. Fong, SPHR, GPHRNaomi M. Cossack, SPHR, PHRca

WEBFABOUT04/03/201718:46:39Page xvAbout the AuthorSandra M. Reed, SPHR, is a leading expert in the certification of human resourceprofessionals, and has had 20 years of practical HR experience. She is the author ofthe fourth edition of the PHR/SPHR: Professional in Human Resources CertificationStudy Guide and PHR/SPHR Exam For Dummies. Sandra is a sought-after, engagingfacilitator of human resource and management principles, with a strong focuson strategic business management and employee development. She is currentlythe owner of epocHResources, a management and consulting group based inCalifornia. She holds a bachelor of arts in applied psychology with an emphasis onindustrial-organizational (I-O) psychology from Florida Tech University and an adultvocational teaching credential from California State University, San Bernardino. Shehas been SPHR certified since 2007.xv

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WEBFINTRO04/03/201716:24:28Page 17ForewordHR Rising to the OpportunityDave UlrichRensis Likert Professor of Business at the Universityof Michigan and Partner, the RBL GroupThe professionals who commit to helping organizations and people succeedthrough human resource (HR) practices have impact because they recognize andrespond to the unprecedented opportunities available in today’s business world.This exceptional volume holds the Human Resource Body of Knowledge (HRBoKTM),offering both conceptual frameworks and practical tools to enable HR professionals.Let me set the context for the opportunities implicit in this work with three simpletenets.First, it is a great time to be in HR. HR is not about HR, but about helpingorganizations and individuals in organizations be more successful. Organizationalsuccess includes investor confidence (evidenced by market value), customer com mitment (evidenced by customer share), and community reputation (evidenced insocial responsibility). Individual success includes measures of productivity (evi denced by output/input indicators), as well as personal well-being (evidencedby sentiment indicators).Four forces make HR more central to organization and individual success: thecontext of business: social, technological, economic, political, environmental, anddemographic changes (STEPED); the increased pace of change: volatility, uncer tainty, complexity, ambiguity (VUCA); the demise of employee well-being (individ uation, isolation, indifference, intensity); and the requirement to be outside-in(attend to customers, investors, and communities). Collectively, these four forcesshift HR to center stage of organizational and individual success. Competitors canaccess and match financial resources, strategic insights, and technologicalxvii

WEBFINTRO04/03/201716:24:28xviiiPage 18Foreword: HR Rising to the Opportunityplatforms. HR issues around talent, leadership, and capability become differentiators that are more difficult to copy, but critical to success.Because HR is not about HR, HR analytics are less about an HR scorecard, andmore about how HR practices and HR professionals impact business results. Forexample, increasingly HR insights are less about innovations on how to hire, train, orpay people, and more about how the hiring, training, or compensation choicesimpact and deliver value to stakeholders outside (e.g., customers, investors) andinside (employees) the organization. These business-based analytics provide lead ers with information to make more informed choices about HR practices, and HRprofessional standards become clearer.It is a great time to be in HR because HR matters more than ever in the valuecreation process.Second, we know what it takes to be successful. As the HR profession evolves, itbecomes more evident how to be a successful HR professional, both in terms ofmanaging a career and in terms of developing competencies that matter.HR Career MosaicWhen diagnosing choices that make up an HR career, there has been an evolutionfrom a career stages (stage 1, 2, 3) logic to a career mosaic based on two questions:1. Where do you work? There are four choices where HR professionals can work(generalist, specialist, geography commitment, or outside HR).2. What level or type of work do you do? There are three levels, each with increasingscope for HR work (individual contributor, manager, or leader).These two questions shape an HR mosaic so that HR professionals may create apersonal career path that works for them (see Figure F.1).Within this mosaic, HR professionals may embark on a number of career paths asevidenced in the options in Figure F.1. Three examples of HR career paths are:Functional specialist (1, 2, 3, 4) These HR professionals take increasingly seniorjobs within a functional expertise (e.g., compensation, training, organization devel opment, labor relations). With each career move (1, 2, 3, 4), they expand their scopewithin their chosen functional expertise.Specialist to generalist (A, B, C, D, E) These HR professionals move from specialistto generalist world and back again (with a stint in geography). As they move backand forth, they gain awareness of the types of HR work.Broad-based experience (a, b, c, d, e) These HR professionals have careers thatoffer broad exposure and experience, including work outside the HR function (e.g.,

WEBFINTRO04/03/201716:24:28Page 19Foreword: HR Rising to the OpportunityxixFigure F.1 HR Career Mosaicin operations, marketing, or consulting). They are likely to be seen as businessexperts who happen to work in HR.Obviously, within this mosaic a host of other career paths exist. The HR careermosaic reflects choices HR professionals make about how to manage their careers.HR Certification and CompetenciesHR certification ensures that HR professionals know the body of knowledge (theoryand research) that underlies HR. Certification validates base knowledge and ensuresthat HR professionals are legitimate. This volume offers exceptional insights into thecertification requirements in six areas of HR functional expertise:1.2.3.4.5.6.Business management and strategyWorkforce planning and employmentHuman resource developmentCompensation and benefitsEmployee and labor relationsRisk managementBecoming certified in these areas enables HR professionals to deliver insightsthat will have impact.In addition, HR professionals need to be competent. There are an increasingnumber of HR competency models created by HR associations and by organizations

WEBFINTRO04/03/2017xx16:24:29Page 20Foreword: HR Rising to the Opportunityworking to upgrade their HR professionals. Having researched and published on HRcompetencies for 30 years (primarily with Professor Wayne Brockbank from theUniversity of Michigan, but also with many exceptional colleagues), we haveidentified four principles of defining the right HR competencies.11. HR competence definition is not the goal; defining HR competencies that createpositive outcomes is the goal. Most competency models ask the question “Whatare the competencies of HR professionals?” This is the wrong question. Thequestion should be: “What are the competencies of HR professionals that havegreatest impact on business performance?” We have shown that different HRcompetencies have differential impact on three outcomes: personal effective ness of the HR professional, impact on key stakeholders, and business results. HRis not about HR, and HR competencies are not about the competencies, butabout how they deliver key outcomes.2. HR competencies are determined less by self-report and more by how thosecompetencies are perceived by others. HR competencies should be assessed notonly by the HR professional but by those who observe the HR professional.People generally judge themselves by their intent; others judge them by theirbehavior, so it is important to evaluate both intent and behavior.3. Global HR competencies exist, but they also may vary by geography, industry,size of organization, level in the organization, role in the organization, gender, timein role, and so forth. We empirically show that 50 to 60 percent of HR competencesare essential to all circumstances, and then 40 to 50 percent vary by setting.4. Key HR competencies change over time. Having done seven rounds of majorstudies over 30 years with a total of more than 100,000 respondents, we can saywith some certainty that every four to five years, 30 to 40 percent of HRcompetencies evolve. For example, in recent rounds of our research, we haveseen a rise in the importance of HR technology and HR analytics.In our most recent research, we identified nine competencies for being aneffective HR professional, as shown in Figure F.2.2Table F.1 summarizes the key questions and our findings from this recentresearch.In brief, we know what it takes to be successful in HR. Regardless of career path,HR professionals require a combination of certification and competence. Certifica tion gives one a license to act; competence ensures the right actions.Third, HR professionals can rise to their opportunities. Through hundreds of HRinterventions, we have learned how to be a better HR professional and how to buildbetter HR professionals. In both cases, there are four steps to upgrading HRprofessionals.First, create a theory or standard of what it means to be effective. The sixdomains of certification in this volume and the example of HR competencies citedearlier suggest a standard of what it means to be or build effective HR. The “be,know, and do” of these expectations may become a standard for effective HR.

WEBFINTRO04/03/201716:24:29Page 21Foreword: HR Rising to the OpportunityxxiFigure F.2 2016 HR Competency Model—Round 7Second, assess HR professionals against the standards and behaviors. Someof this assessment may come from personal profiling, and some may come from360-degree assessments. These assessments highlight strengths that can be builton and weaknesses that can be overcome. People are more likely to change whenthey have clarity about what to improve.Third, improve HR professionals through a host of development experiences.We have organized these development experiences into three categories. First,work experiences come when HR professionals take on new and demandingassignments, work on special projects, and/or receive coaching. Most learningcomes from personal experience with trial and error. Second, training and devel opment experiences come from learning in more structured education settings.Training is more effective when it emphasizes learning solutions, adapts to differentlearning styles, is focused on specific business challenges and personal behaviors,and is measured by accountable impact. Third, people learn from life experience.Some of life experience can be structured, such as using corporate philanthropy as aleadership development opportunity (e.g., IBM service corps offers aspiring leadersa way to learn by participating in IBM’s community service). But many life expe riences create incredible forums for learning, such as raising children, participatingin community organizations, traveling to new countries, reading and exploring new

WEBFINTRO04/03/2017xxii16:24:31Page 22Foreword: HR Rising to the OpportunityTable F.1 Key Questions and Overall Findings from HRCompetency ResearchKey QuestionOverall Finding1. What are the competencies of HRprofessionals, and how do they differby individual and organizationalcontext?2. What competencies do HRprofessionals require to be personallyeffective (i.e., to be invited “to thetable”)?3. When engaged “at the table” (inbusiness discussions) and HRprofessionals represent themselves,what competencies are required toadd value to key stakeholders?4. When engaged “at the table” (inbusiness discussions) and HRprofessionals represent the HRdepartment’s practices and policies,what competencies are required to addvalue to key stakeholders?5. What competences do HRprofessionals require to drive businessresults?6. What is the relative importance of thecompetencies of HR professionalsversus the activities of the HRdepartment in driving business results? Nine overall competency domainsThree core drivers; three strategic ena blers; three foundational enablersBe a credible activist who buildsrelationships of trust and takes advocacypositions. If inside (employee, line), be a credibleactivist. If outside (customer, investor), be a stra tegic positioner.For the most part, the competencies ofindividual HR professionals that have animpact on stakeholder outcomes are thesame as the collective competencies ofHR professionals, with a few exceptions(culture, change, and analytics) wherethe collective competencies havebusiness impact.Navigate paradox (manage tension anddivergent-convergent cycle), followedby strategic positioner and technologyand media integrator. Recognize the importance of the HRdepartment (about four times the impactof the individual on business results). Build capabilities (information/externalsensing, speed, culture, collaboration,efficiency, customer responsiveness). ideas, representing one’s organization to public audiences, and simply being anactive observer of one’s world.Each HR professional should have an individual development program that laysout a road map to becoming a better HR professional. Each HR department shouldbe investing in HR professional development either through HR career manage ment (see previous discussion), through HR academies for HR professionals, orthrough other HR development opportunities.Fourth, evaluate HR improvement. Wanting to change indicates a desire, butwithout measures to track change, desires often languish. To rise to their opportu nities, HR professionals should track not only their personal improvements, but the

WEBFINTRO04/03/201716:24:31Page 23Foreword: HR Rising to the Opportunityxxiiiimpact of these improvements on desired outcomes. Personal change can bemonitored through sequential 360-degree assessments that track how othersperceive change. Organization change can be tracked through the impact of HRon desired outcomes. For example, we have created the leadership capital indexthat offers investors a way to measure how HR impacts investor value.These four steps essentially propose HR for HR. Often HR encourages leadersand others to define, assess, improve, and evaluate in order to grow. When HRprofessionals apply the same logic to themselves, they can make real progress.ConclusionWhat is the hope for the ideas in this book? To help HR practitioners, academics,and thought leaders deliver more value from a shared set of best practices andbenchmarks. Whether you are a student of HR, an international HR professional, aseasoned practitioner, or a professional influencer, it is indeed a great time to be inHR. We know what it takes to be successful, and because of this, HR professionalscan be valued business partners by rising to the opportunities.Notes1. Dave Ulrich, Wayne Brockbank, Mike Ulrich, and Dave Kryscynski, “Toward aSynthesis of HR Competency Models: The Common HR ‘Food Groups’ or Domains,”People and Strategy 4 (Fall 2015): 56–65.2. Dave Ulrich, David Kryscynski, Mike Ulrich, and Wayne Brockbank, Victory throughOrganization: Why the War for Talent Is Failing Your Organization and What You CanDo about It (New York:

Acknowledgments xi Acknowledgments from the First Edition xiii About the Author xv Foreword HR Rising to the Opportunity xvii Dave Ulrich HR Career Mosaic xviii Conclusion xxiii Notes xxiii HR Certification and Competencies xix Chapter 1 The Human Resource Body of Knowledge: HRBoKTM 1 The Building Blocks 1 The HR Profession 4 The Age of Organizational Behavior 10 .