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Published April 2009

Human Resources and the Future of Detroit

 

  Jeff Leitner

A community's reputation is a critical but seriously overlooked factor in recruiting executive talent, according to Detroit's leading human resources professionals.

HR executives at Masco, Ilitch Holdings, Quicken Loans, Henry Ford Health System, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and the city of Detroit reported their findings at Ford World Headquarters in January.

Adayana, a global human capital development company with offices in Detroit, convened the group and sponsored the project to advise One D, a consortium of the region's prominent civic organizations — including the Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Detroit Regional Chamber, the United Way of Southeastern Michigan — focused on economic prosperity, educational preparedness, regional transit, race relations and quality of life.

"Talent attraction and retention are huge issues in our community," said Kathleen Owsley, director of One D. "And while it affects all of us, these [HR executives] are the people who live it and feel it everyday. They're on the frontlines."

The most surprising finding was how little these executives participate in civic projects. Despite millions spent locally on branding, recruitment, training, and  internship programs, executives at the most prominent organizations in Detroit were unfamiliar with many programs and were unimpressed with others.

Perhaps even more alarming, none of the executives was consulted when the civic jobs programs were developed, despite the fact that they represent many of the region's largest employers.

In an informal survey, Adayana found that HR executives rarely are consulted when civic job programs are developed anywhere in the United States. More often, corporate leaders are recruited to serve on civic boards of directors, while others — social workers, educators and community organizers — are tasked with developing the actual programs.

"We're the people who aren't usually at the table," said Linda Oliver, director of operations, development and learning management at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan. "Yet, we're the people who have to go execute on these kinds of strategies in our own organizations and who aren't just theorizing about it. We're the boots on the ground."

In addition to being up-to-speed on best practices in talent management, senior HR executives also can offer corporate planning experience, said Barbara Van Every, a performance consultant at Adayana.

"The people we were working with are very strategic," she said. "They don't just look at today's needs, but what organizations — or in this case, a whole region — will need three or five years down the line."

Adayana found that because HR executives rarely are convened to tackle regional causes, they also are not accustomed to collaborating with peers in other companies to solve area-specific recruiting and retention challenges.
"Initially, we couldn't see how such varied organizations — with varied interests, varied workforces, varied hiring needs — could develop a singular vision," said Stephanie Stevenson, director of team relations for Quicken Loans, an online lender.