Ask a seasoned executive and they will tell you, HR experience is not typically a requirement for executives being groomed for the C-suite. And the reverse is also true, HR executives often do not get the opportunity to participate in cross-functional assignments to learn and apply their HR experience to other areas of business operations.

In many ways, it is remarkable that this trend persists in an era where there is growing awareness that human capital management is critical to business success. In other words, now that we all know that most companies live or die on the performance of their employees, why isn’t HR being seen as an essential part of business operations? And moreover, why aren’t more top executives being asked to lead HR as part of their upward career path?

You know who we’re talking about. Employees who aren’t afraid to trumpet their own accomplishments, but who seem to be oblivious to the contributions others make. In general, these are the employees who don’t have a clue about how others perceive them.

Left unchecked, distorted egos can stoke resentment and cause morale problems among co-workers. Ego can derail priority projects and kill team spirit. Unfortunately, an out-of-control ego is a lot like a car alarm: it’s loud, incessant and in most instances, no one is quite sure how to turn it off.

You’re company is looking for an edge, so you’ve been investing heavily in your leaders – both acquiring new ones and building what you need for the future.
 
You’ve introduced intensive training or mentoring to ensure that current leaders have all of the skills of a modern, progressive leader.  And you’ve searched high and low to bring in new talent with just the right combination of skills and “fit”. And yet, despite all of the money and effort, you’re still not seeing the results. As an organization you have done all the things you’re supposed to, but something is missing.

What’s missing is a focus on changing leader’s mindset.