HR’s problem? It’s obsessed with problems

Here’s an uncomfortable truth: HR is the only department in the business that defines itself by problems.

Think about it. Sales talks about growth. Marketing talks about reach. Product talks about innovation. Finance talks about profit. HR? Problems.

• Performance issues? HR.
• Employee conflicts? HR.
• Morale dipping? HR.

Why?

Because HR has been conditioned to believe its job is to react. To be the corporate firefighter, always on standby with a handbook and a mandatory training session. But here’s the kicker: the rest of the business doesn’t operate this way.

When revenue drops, Sales doesn’t run a “Revenue Underperformance Intervention Workshop.” They adjust, pivot, and focus on outcomes. When product features flop, Product doesn’t create a “Feature Failure Response Committee.” They learn, iterate, and launch again. They carry problems as collateral damage—the necessary friction of progress.

So, why is HR so addicted to fixing problems when it should be obsessed with creating success?

Forget the endless list of “strategic priorities.” HR’s role boils down to two things:

1. Capability: Are our people good enough?
2. Capacity: Can we deploy them to do more?

That’s it. That’s the list. If an HR activity doesn’t fall into one of these categories, it’s probably not worth doing.

1. Capability: are our people good enough?

Not just “qualified.” Not “met expectations on the annual review.” Good enough to drive the business forward.

• Are we hiring the right people with the right skills?
• Are we developing them to stay ahead, not just keep up?
• Are we brutally honest about what excellence looks like, or are we stuck in mediocrity because “feedback is hard”?

Capability isn’t about potential. It’s about readiness. The gap between “can” and “will” is where HR should live.

2. Capacity: how can we deploy them to do more?

Not “work harder.” Not “take on more tasks.” More impact.

• Are we optimising talent, or just filling seats?
• Are we aligning skills with business priorities, or are we busy creating competency models no one reads?
• Are we agile in how we deploy people, or trapped in rigid org charts because “that’s how it’s always been”?

Capacity is about stretch, not stress. It’s not more hours; it’s more value.

Let’s test this:

• Drafting another policy that no one reads? Not capability. Not capacity.
• Running a “culture survey” with no plan to change anything? Not capability. Not capacity.
• Mediating between two adults who can’t figure out how to work together? Sorry, not your job.

Imagine if HR stopped reacting to noise and started building engines. Engines that create capability and capacity at scale. Because that’s how you drive business outcomes—not by managing problems, but by enabling performance.

The business doesn’t care about HR’s “strategic seat at the table” if all you bring are reports on problems. What the business cares about is whether you can help them win.

• Not how many grievances were filed.
• Not how many people attended a workshop.
• Not how many policies were updated.

Can you make the people better? Can you make the business faster? That’s it.

If HR keeps defining itself by problems, it’ll stay stuck in the waiting room of relevance—invited in only when something goes wrong.

But if HR owns capability and capacity, it becomes the engine behind business growth, not the emergency hotline when things break.

So, HR—are you managing problems, or are you building potential? Choose wisely.