When HR really does get a seat at the table! Congratulations to Kathleen Hogan on being recognized as the HR Executive of the Year

It’s almost a meme among HR professionals — wanting a “seat at the table” while often being relegated to routine problem solving and dealing with the messier sides of humanity. But whoa, when its done right, the results are super impressive!

It was 2018. I’d been invited to speak at Microsoft’s annual leadership event, the Global Leadership Summit, held near the company’s headquarters in Bellevue, Washington. Just off the plane, I dashed over to the hotel where the event was being held, opened the door at the back of the packed ballroom, and beheld the projection, in letters as tall as I am, of the word “EMPATHY.” “Shoot,” I thought, “I must be in the wrong location!”

But what I was actually looking at, in real time, was the in-progress rapid transformation of a company culture. While I was out there, I had the opportunity to meet Kathleen Hogan, Microsoft’s then-and-now director of Human Resources. She and I hit it off immediately, and have kept in touch since. It is such a thrill, therefore, to notice that she’s being honored with HR Executive’s“HR Executive of the year” award, a well deserved honor!

People talk a lot about culture, and culture change, however the massive…