Regarding the discussion of terms: "human assets" and "human resources"
and similar terms...
I prefer the Elliot Jacques' term "human capability" (although I disagree
with some of his theory) as a more powerful way to understand the modern
value of the individual in an organization.
To me, the term "human assets" suggests that the people in an organization
can be valued at a constant level (and thus recorded on the books). Human
resources is a better term, in my opinion, because it suggests that
resources can be optimized, are not a set measure, and do not always
perform to their best potential (A "human resource" can have a bad day, a
lump of coal or a cash "asset" usually does not). However, "resources"
lacks the very human element of self-renewal and creation.
Human capability is a more compelling way to understand value people add.
For example, a firm may have " a lot of" or "many" human assets or human
resources, but this does not mean anything unless their potential is
turned into action. This requires systems and values that encourage
individuals to optimize their potential alone or in teams, with or without
technology. Without this larger context, assets are worthless, and
resources are inefficiently exploited. Capabilities, on the other hand,
remain dormant until they are enabled. More importantly, capabilities can
be created or renewed in existing personnel through education, training,
guidance, and a redesign of systems.
It may seem that we are mincing words here, but an understanding of human
capability is essential as firms begin to see themselves metaphorically
not as machines or organisms, but as knowledge-creating systems.
A final thought that may make this distinction clear. One can easily
provide an answer to such questions as "what are the limits of my human
resources?" or "what is the total value of my human assets?" But how do
we answer the question, "what are the limits of human capability?"
An intriguing topic. Thanks for bringing it up!
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A confession...
I confess I've been a lurker on this list for months. I've run across
several great topics on this list that I've wanted to chime in on; a rainy
Sunday finally allowed me to repond with some thoughts. I teach a couple
MBA classes and occassionally I run across a post that I, and they, find
fascinating and which leads to great classroom discussion. Thank you all.
By way of introduction, I'm Michael Kull and I am working toward
my Ph.D. in management & organization at George Washington University. My
dissertation topic is Organizational Intelligence, which I feel is a more
compelling way of understanding the value of knowledge management. Please
feel free to e-mail me if you are interested in either of these subjects.
Michael D. Kull http://gwis2.circ.gwu.edu/~mkull
Doctoral Fellow -- Management of Science, Technology and Innovation
Department of Management Science, George Washington University 20052
"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds."
--Michael David Kull <mkull@gwis2.circ.gwu.edu>
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>