The Little Black Book of Human Resources Management

Back in the day when I first got into HR, I would have loved to have had a resource like this! Long story short, I was an HR assistant, the HR director got fired, and the next thing I know I'm running the entire HR department for a company of almost 100 people! I was thrown into the water without a life preserver, but if you are new to the field, you certainly can use this book to help keep you afloat!One of the best things about this book is that though it seems as if it was written specifically for those in the human resources field, you can apply most of the concepts to any management or leadership role. It doesn't matter if it's in the workplace, a church, a community organization, or whatever, it all works!Do I agree with everything in this book? No, but as with anything, especially in the professional world, you are going to have different opinions.I would suggest this book to people interested in going into HR, those new in a management position, or anyone who works in a business where tye might deal with other employees.

It’s one thing to learn about the theories behind Human Resources, but applying the skills is another matter entirely. In this book, Barry Wolfe, who has worked in Human Resources for 20 years, provides very helpful, practical advice for HR professionals. He describes many different situations that HR professionals face and gives his advice on how to best handle them. Some of the topics Wolfe covers are employee training, performance appraisals, and interviewing and recruiting. He also advises how to effectively communicate with the company president and other employees, and what to do in difficult situations such as downsizing and handling problem employees. These are just some of the areas Wolfe discusses in his book.Though I am not in the field of Human Resources, I thought the book offered much needed practical advice that was easy enough to implement. Wolfe also gave a hard, honest look at the interpersonal challenges that HR professionals deal with and why learning how to handle them is essential to be successful in this field. In my opinion, every HR professional should read this book.

The name of Barry Wolfes book, “The Little Black Book of Human Resources Management” reminded me of a golf teaching legend’s book, called “Harvey Pennick’s Little Red Book”. Just as I would recommend Pennick’s book to all golfers, I recommend Wolfe’s book to all HR personnel, and to all business managers and executives.The story is told that a golfer once approached Mr. Pennick asking to be taught how to spin back balls shot to the green. Harvey is said to have replied. Do you usually hit the ball beyond the cup? The golfer replied “No”. To which Mr. Harvey cleared the air with “ Then why do you want to spin the ball back”?Both books have a feeling of authenticity, based as they are on working experiences. To a golfer, Pennick immediately covers the back-spinning of a ball hit below the cup. So also does Wolfe deal with the good parts and the bad parts of HR, and the need in some cases to make drastic decisions.I choose for your interest some guidelines which Mr. Wolfe says were derived from his experiences.A Good HR Person: A good HR person is a business partner who has to help “how his company manages performance – how it formulates and communicates expectations, how it evaluates performance, and how it responds to performance problems.”HR Persona: The characteristics of the HR persona which are framed in people believing that the Department will help them get “a fair shake in the organization”…..”when HR has that reputation, the entire organization has that reputation.”Writing: Write rules that the vast majority of your people can live with, and manage the hard cases as they come.Working for the President: Be loyal. Always look for ways to support the President to employees, and what is sometimes harder, to your peers.Training: Important decisions: (1) to deliver leadership training; (2) how your business is going to support the content that the trainer delivers; and (3) determine whether the training content transfers into actual behavior changes outside of the classroom.’Coaching: “The purpose of any coaching or disciplinary discussion is….. to get the person to change her behavior.”Leadership: to be a good leader, you must hold two beliefs: “One: Most people want to win. They want to play on a winning team. Two: Most of the time, people conform to expectations.”Substance Abuse: See the proffered reason why alcohol is not as stigmatized as drug abuse.Cultural Change; Top Executives, Managers, and supervisors must be change- leaders; and provide leadership by example.Problem Children and executing ‘work at-will’: See if you can find a parallel between the author’s terms “problem children” and “attitude problems” to work; and the home with an authority father saying , “this is my house and I say so. If you can’t come around, find your own house”). Here’s my question. Could it be that the ’work at-will’ procedure was made to protect or enhance the power of authority? Will that not always be a threat to an otherwise properly established HR system/culture, simply because it exists?There is much more in the book. I think it would be of interest to all HR managers and other company manages, though I think it would be most useful to someone in the early stages of setting up an HR system

Although I am interested in Human Resources, many of the principles in this book apply to most jobs. Barry Wolfe stresses the importance of knowing your co-workers and smiling at them when you look them in the eye. This instills trust and camaraderie when they realize you take an interest in them.Those in HR have to deal with the problems in the workplace without giving up the facts to other workers. I love how Wolfe pushes for integrity in the work place, not dictatorship. Make the rules clear so you don’t have to judge each situation. This would appear like you many favor one worker over another. And don’t make exceptions, just one opens a dam of excuses from everyone who feels their circumstance is excusable.I love when Wolfe explains how to deal with bosses who try to push their ideas through without thinking of the consequences. He is kind, but the wisdom and humble attitude he shows helps to defuse the situation.

This book is filled with tips at how to work in Human Resources in a successful and positive way.The author worked as a HR leader for over 20 years and in that time obviously learnt a thing or two about what often goes on and the best way to deal with it.They also obviously have a real passion for the job and convey that in their writing. You can feel the love they have at solving problems in the best possible ways and sharing that with others is just a great thing to do.Humorous at times, for a serious book it’s quite a fun read.