As a child I was definitely a “plays well with others” kid. That’s one of the reasons that I love Human Resources.  I enjoy working with others. I like the face time, the relationships, and working with other people to facilitate change. 

I am also in the midst of two overlapping HRIS projects.  You know the kind – they involve an enterprise system that is being modified to develop some previously paper-driven HR function into a technologically amazing process and workflow.   

Although I was excited about the projects, I found the meetings with the HRIS programmers difficult. Even for someone who “enjoyed working with others,” it was trying.   I would ask questions, but because I was not fluent in “techno speak” it was easy for key elements to get lost in translation. Wondering if it was just me, I talked with other HR professionals across the state and found my experiences were common. Technology continues to change the way we do business. We all know we need to improve our processes, but the road to change is not marked in signs that we can easily read. As I discussed the issue with my peers, several key questions arose: “How can HR ‘people-people’ and ‘policy geeks’ meet the new expectations of the profession?”; “Why can’t these programmers talk to us in a way that makes sense?”; “Can we ever learn the techno language well enough to express our needs and concerns?”

One of my hobbies is learning Italian. My husband and I share a grandson with a wonderful couple in Sardinia, Italy, with whom we look forward to visiting.  Their English is improving faster than our Italian.  So after trying various books, we made a significant financial investment last spring in a computer program that literally immerses the student in the language. There are no translations – the student learns Italian as any young child learns a language – through visual and verbal immersion, one word and concept at a time. As I sat down to study Italian one weekend afternoon, I began to think of my recent HRIS issues.  How could I be learning Italian and still be struggling with “techno speak”? Why is learning a foreign language so much easier? What is the difference?

Then I realized I was struggling with “techno speak” because I wasn’t immersing myself in the language.  Immersion might be the key!  Realizing I had nothing to lose but my time, I began going to optional meetings with HRIS staff.  I volunteered to do data entry, test modules, asked questions, entered more data, attended more meetings, asked more questions, ran queries, and corrected anomalies. It took all summer, but I am finally beginning to speak and understand the language. In fact, I am actually enjoying working with the HRIS people!

Technology is a critical aspect of our HR world. We can wait for techies to learn how to communicate with us or we can learn their language and how to use it to our advantage.  Jump in, immerse yourself, and progress at your own pace.  You might find that you can learn this new language the same way you learned your first language, one word and concept at a time.  You might even find you can enjoy working with HRIS people once you’re able to break through the communication barriers.   Simply making the effort to take on technology as a second language can make all the difference.