The subject of this blog-post is not new. There are many blogs that simply scream about it. Personally, I cannot offer anything more radical than what was already said before me. Repetition is the mother of learning, so hopefully someone will listen.
One word, that seriously hurts my ear is - the “R” word. Resources! I do not hold anything specific against the word itself in any other context. However, when it is used to describe people - this is unbearable! It associates with something that is not alive, interchangeable, or just a thing. The least to say - it is very offensive.
According to wikipedia, a resource - is any physical or virtual entity of limited availability that needs to be consumed to obtain a benefit from it.
Do not know about you, but I think it is terribly wrong to think about people in the light of that definition. Especially, if someone would think like that about me.
Let’s get deeper. Wikipedia provides us with the definition of the Human Resources, and human resource management - a strategy that should maximize return on investment in the organization's human capital and minimize financial risk.
Probably, on some weird level this is right. However, this is not everything what we expect from the people. We want people to grow, make decisions, become more responsible, educate others, act on behalf of their benefit that would also benefit the organisation. We do not want to consume them to maximize the return of investment. People form the organisation itself and do the actual work.
People are not resources - they are live human beings! They breath, eat, feel, have different mood. They have non-deterministic behaviour and are not always rational. Same person in the same situation appearing again and again can behave differently.
When you treat a person the same way as you would treat, let’s say, a wood, coal or petrol, you would expect it to behave in the similar way. If you take a piece of wood from one campfire and bring it to another - it will burn, as it did before. If you take a petrol from one car and pour it into another, the car will work. But this analogy does not simply work with people. When you change a team, you cannot expect it to work the same way it just did.
You cannot treat people as something that you can only consume. In my opinion, you should only consider what you can give to the people. Let them do what they really like to do, be creative, to be heard, to have a time to live a life.
For a second, it might feel like it is a lot of freedom. But if you think about it, people is all you’ve got. And if you treat them right and if you guide them right - people are very grateful.
Treat people as people!
One word, that seriously hurts my ear is - the “R” word. Resources! I do not hold anything specific against the word itself in any other context. However, when it is used to describe people - this is unbearable! It associates with something that is not alive, interchangeable, or just a thing. The least to say - it is very offensive.
According to wikipedia, a resource - is any physical or virtual entity of limited availability that needs to be consumed to obtain a benefit from it.
Do not know about you, but I think it is terribly wrong to think about people in the light of that definition. Especially, if someone would think like that about me.
Let’s get deeper. Wikipedia provides us with the definition of the Human Resources, and human resource management - a strategy that should maximize return on investment in the organization's human capital and minimize financial risk.
Probably, on some weird level this is right. However, this is not everything what we expect from the people. We want people to grow, make decisions, become more responsible, educate others, act on behalf of their benefit that would also benefit the organisation. We do not want to consume them to maximize the return of investment. People form the organisation itself and do the actual work.
People are not resources - they are live human beings! They breath, eat, feel, have different mood. They have non-deterministic behaviour and are not always rational. Same person in the same situation appearing again and again can behave differently.
When you treat a person the same way as you would treat, let’s say, a wood, coal or petrol, you would expect it to behave in the similar way. If you take a piece of wood from one campfire and bring it to another - it will burn, as it did before. If you take a petrol from one car and pour it into another, the car will work. But this analogy does not simply work with people. When you change a team, you cannot expect it to work the same way it just did.
You cannot treat people as something that you can only consume. In my opinion, you should only consider what you can give to the people. Let them do what they really like to do, be creative, to be heard, to have a time to live a life.
For a second, it might feel like it is a lot of freedom. But if you think about it, people is all you’ve got. And if you treat them right and if you guide them right - people are very grateful.
Treat people as people!
I agree :)
ReplyDeleteIf you consume people as resources you will eventually wear them out. Then you don't have resources. Treat people as you would like yourself to be treated. All managers should realize that their sole purpose is to enable their employees to do their work.
Merriam-Webster's defines it as "source of supply or support: an available means—usually used in plural." When we say people can't be treated like wood, can't we just as easily say steel can't be treated like wood, or glass, or cars, or pencils, or gas, or wheat, or software...
ReplyDeletePeople are human beings that have value and feelings and should be treated with respect. But the behavior of not treating them with respect is the problem - not the word resource. http://management.curiouscatblog.net/2011/03/17/is-using-the-words-resources-or-assets-when-talking-about-people-the-problem/
Of course, we can say that steel cannot be used as wood. However, the point above – comparing people and natural resources – was that petrol does not have a mood not to work in another car. Petrol is a thing that you can toss around. If it just worked it will work again. You can easily throw it away if you do not need it. It implies that if people are treated as resources they are expected to behave that way too.
ReplyDeleteThe statement – it is not about the words, but about respect – is quite wide. The question is – how do you start showing that respect for the people. You probably won’t call your wife – a valuable asset in a household. Especially, in-front of your children or guests. What is the difference?
Using the proper words is not about being pedantic. It is one of the ways to show the respect. To keep in mind for yourself – who you are dealing with. Which words can be in one sentence and which even sound weird. No one said that you should stop here.