How-To Get Your Seat At The Table: Part 5, Make a Friend In HR

This tip credit goes to Bonin Bough @bonin. I love talking with him when I get the chance...he's one of the most brilliant, interesting people I've met. I tend to keep up with what he's doing because he's inspiring.

I recently, read an interview by him where he talks about moving up the corporate ladder. Unique to his list of tips was "Make a Friend In HR". Due to my own pre-conceived notions, I'd never thought about HR as a partner. My experience had always set me up as an adversary. Whether trying to hire for my own team or get someone hired by my clients, more often then not they acted as the naysayers.

The truth is a well run HR team is the core of the company. They can be the most often is informative when it comes to advice for navigating your career at the company. HR can also be the most informed about what positions are opening, changes to the organizational chart, and workflow.

Connecting with the HR person who's working on career planning and succession in your company can be one of the smartest networking moves you make. Talking with the recruiters and talent acquisition or management people will give you insight into what skills are being promoted in the company. Make a friend of any of the people in these groups, let them know your interests, your qualifications, latest successes, that way, when the time comes to recommend internal staff for new positions, you've got an ally and advocate already in the room.

It's time to get know someone in HR.