Teams are People, not Resources

It’s not uncommon to run across folks that still use the language of “resources” when talking about people or teams. I think this language emphasizes the wrong philosophy. Optimistically this is just an engrained speech pattern in people that have been working for a long time, but I think it’s something that can change (like most habits) if focused effort is put into it.

Resources is a “nice” term when you don’t have to care about feelings, people, life, problems, or other things that are inherent in working with people.

You don’t have to care about:

• their mom having a broken leg and needs help for a couple of weeks and they don’t have enough PTO
• their partner having a medical issue post delivery and having to look after a new baby and their spouse
• their child being hospitalized for three weeks and not having a medical solution
• child care when their a single parent and their kid is sick
• their 13 year old dog suddenly having a cancer diagnosis and being told they don’t have more than a day or two

All of those things have happened to people I have worked with over the years. Those things happen to people, not resources. At the heart of it, nearly everyone I’ve worked with has been a decent human being, deserves to be trusted, and offers something unique to the team.

None of those situations describe resources.

I think it’s as much a habitual pattern that reflects on a culture more than any one person choosing to dehumanize people. Human Resources lays people off; Human Resources talks about policies that can get you fired. People Operations focuses on effective teams, how you recruit and retain, and how people work together.

It’s a choice – I choose to work with people.