For the past 25 years, I have noticed that the issues of attracting, engaging, and retaining talented people remain unchanged. One must ask why traditional approaches to human resources continue to have limited success.
With Gallup consistently finding employee engagement hovering between 30% and 35%, organizations clearly need an innovative approach to break the cycle of repackaging the ones that continue to perpetuate these challenges.
Based on my many years working with corporate clients, I have concluded that the problem lies in a failure to recognize the interconnectedness of people, culture, and systems.
The HR function within an organization is no longer a series of isolated activities but a complex system. The human infrastructure™ offers a transformative perspective that addresses the people side of business.
What Is the Human infrastructure™?
The human infrastructure™ is the intersection of three core elements: people, culture, and systems. These elements have traditionally been addressed individually rather than as an integrated system that creates a structure supporting organizational success.
People: The individuals who bring skills, knowledge, creativity, and energy to an organization. Their engagement, development, and well-being are fundamental to success.
Culture: Culture is often described as "the way things are done around here." It is the collection of shared values, norms and behaviors that influence every interaction between people, teams as well as with customers.
Systems: The organizational frameworks that support employee experience throughout their journey. These include:
Development systems (training, mentoring, feedback)
Career advancement mechanisms (promotion pathways, succession planning)
Engagement and satisfaction measurement tools
Recognition and reward structures
A New Way of Thinking About the People Side of Business
Traditional HR practices tend to focus on compliance and talent metrics rather than strengthening the interconnection of people, culture and systems. This limited perspective results in people-related initiatives being categorized as administrative expenses verses drivers of revenue or innovation. This leads to underfunding and missed opportunities to leverage the full potential of the workforce.
The human infrastructure™ shifts this perspective by:
Understanding the interconnections: Recognizing how these elements impact each other creates a systemic view of the organization.
Creating alignment: Ensuring that people, culture, and systems are working in concert toward shared goals throughout the organization from the C-Suite to staff level.
Enabling adaptability: As change continues to accelerate, a robust human infrastructure™ is critical for sustaining a competitive advantage and effectively adapting to evolving business requirements.
Organizations that neglect the human infrastructure™ face significant challenges including high turnover (with replacement costs of 50-200% of annual salary per SHRM), poor collaboration, increased resistance to change, and inefficient resource use.
Conversely, investing in the human infrastructure™:
fosters stronger engagement
enhances performance (with research showing companies with strong cultures see a fourfold increase in revenue growth)
sustained organizational growth
significant cost savings recaptured from losses due to disengagement (approximately $2,500 per employee; 34% lower team productivity)
The human infrastructure™ is a change in basic assumptions in how organizations think about the people side of business. By recognizing and investing in the intersection of people, culture, and systems, businesses can create environments where employees thrive, and organizations succeed.
The above presents a transformative way to think about the people-side of business. If companies are going to thrive in this volatile business environment, they must recognize that the human and technical infrastructures are interconnected. Investing in one without investing in the other creates another barrier to success.
I will be discussing the various aspects of the human infrastructure™ in subsequent articles designed to help HR professionals and senior leaders successfully navigate through today's dynamic challenges. The articles will cover:
Diagnosing Your Human Infrastructure™: Finding and Fixing the Weakest Links
The Leadership Multiplier Effect: How Leaders Shape Human Infrastructure™
Beyond Engagement Surveys: Measuring What Actually Matters in Human Infrastructure™
Synchronized Systems: Aligning Your Technical and Human Infrastructure™
Each article will offer actionable insights and real-world examples to help you unlock the full potential of your organization's human infrastructure™.
Interested in learning more about your organization's human infrastructure™? I offer complimentary 30-minute consultations to help leaders assess their current state and identify key opportunities for improvement. Reach out to schedule time to learn more.
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