Evil HR Lady?

There is a great HR blog titled Evil HR Lady where an anonomyous HR professional shares info about current HR trends and answers questions from readers about HR issues that they are facing in the workplace. The HR pro behind Evil HR Lady is not really evil, but she explains that is the perception of HR in many organizations. She is trying to break through the fluff and tell the readers like it is, for better or worse.

Although already taken, I think that I borrowed the title of "Evil HR Lady" last week. I may have even had a target on my back by the end of the week. One of my facebook friends asked how one of the nicest HR people that she knows could possibly earn such a title. Here are just a few of statement that I made last week to earn this title:

1. Employees own their annual performance objectives, not their manager. Employees have plenty of time during the objective year to argue, object, support, validate, or update performance objectives. I don't want to hear about how the objective was unfair after the fact - it's too late. We can only improve the situation going forward.
2. Annual evaluations should be fair and consistent. That means that most employees should be rated 3, not a 4. This means that there ARE a few 5s AND a few 2s in the organization. Do not tell me that a person cannot be rated a 5 because HR said so.
3. If you cannot separate personal relationships from business objectives, you should not be a manager.
4. If you are unclear about measurements, I can help you create them, but it's after the fact. I recommend that you start with the idea that everyone is a 3 (meets expectations) and then evaluate each person individually, even if you have 65 direct reports.
5. If your organization/department/manager did not meet it's objectives (or an objective) and your employees exceeded expectations, your goals stink.
6. If most of your employees are rated a 4, your expectations are too low. Challenge your top performers next year and watch your performance soar!
7. If all of your employees are 4, you had better have justification about why you give them different merit increases. I will ask you about each and every one.
8. If you choose not to follow the recommended process guidelines, I need to know why. I want to help you reward and retain top talent, but I will not go out on a limb if I don't understand the business justification. Help me help you.

None of these statements are new to HR professionals and it is uncomfortable for everyone involved to deliver these messages. However, pushing back is part of the job and I own it. You may call me an Evil HR Lady, but I call myself a HR Business Partner.