15 years after Dave Ulrich and his idea about “Human Resource Champions” it is time to assess his impact and success as well as to risk an outlook to the next 15 or 20 year of HR.
HR across the world, but also in Germany, shows a homogeneous picture – wherever you search you find Business Partner, Center of Expertise or Excellence as well as Shared Service Center. I haven’t found a single HR department where this is not the case. In Germany most of the DAX 30 companies are going that way. – and I myself haven’t done anything else than implementing, stabilizing or assessing this model in the recent 8 years. There was not a single client who did not want t go down that route. And after all these implementations across the world, it is time to draw the line and challenge that way.
The world hasn’t stopped moving in the last 15 years. The opposite is the case: Especially in business it goes faster! Who wants to question that? And this results in the question if Ulrich’s ideas and his model are still up to date, does his model still answer the questions HR and its clients have? Or have requirements for and of HR changed?
These questions I would like to critically review and analyze within this blog, based on my extensive practical HR experience as well as based on my theoretical background.
Aim is to combine research and reality so that each and every HR professional out there can relate to my assessments, analysis and ideas in his or her day-to-day work environment. But also to provoke discussion and opposition to bring the best possible results for HR and its customers.
Chief HR Officer 