What’s in a name? From HR to PX

What’s in a name? From HR to PX

As of this week, we rebranded our department formerly known as Human Resources (HR) here at Advanced to People Experience (PX), and we did this for a number of reasons.

We are growing quickly as an organisation, and our people-related products being brought together under the Advanced People suite offered us the opportunity to think differently about our own internal HR team and assess what was truly reflective of the work we do and how we do it.

When we were discussing what this meant for us, one of the clear pieces of feedback we felt as a team was that there was an overarching word that underpinned everything we do: people. It’s the people that ultimately are fundamentally the most important part of this business. Every single person in the team makes a huge impact on each part of the employee lifecycle. Our team goes far beyond a traditional HR team as we endeavour to make people-centric decisions which elevate both the organisation and our people to new heights.

We have, and continue to, strive to make this organisation somewhere where people have a genuinely incredible experience.

Human Resources as a name no longer accurately represents the breadth and depth of the work the team does. A cursory Google search swiftly lets you know what the most popular searches are for the starter question “Why does human resources…”

Why do we exist?

Why do we matter?

Why do we interest you, why do we have a bad rep, why do we take so long, why does everyone hate human resources?

These views represent an archaic view of HR, and certainly not representative of the endeavours and strategic importance that we hold within this organisation. As a team, we have been far more than a “traditional” HR department, and we have opportunities to influence the business on a wider scale to make people-centric decisions which elevate both the organisation and our people to new heights.

To think of Humans simply as a Resource indicates an outdated viewpoint which will struggle to keep up with an ever-changing landscape – we focus on humans, not resources. People Experience accurately portrays a more holistic view of what this team does. Whether that is at the initial awareness stage for a candidate and telling the Advanced story, ensuring they have a great onboarding experience, or that they have compelling and meaningful reward and recognition, ensuring that interacting with us is smooth and easy, all the way through to when they leave or retire with us. Each touchpoint has never been more crucial in providing a genuinely differential experience that sets us apart in what is an unprecedented Talent landscape.

As an organisation we are always looking to do things differently from other companies to enhance the people experience. Last year we scrapped probation periods because they don’t fit our philosophy of trust and empowerment for our teams. We implemented Summer Fridays to give back to our people after an incredibly turbulent year for everyone. This year we have so much more planned.

For some, a name is just words on a page. But names have an impact and power. It is human nature to want to know and understand things, to identify things. For that we need names that accurately reflect our ethos, our vision, and our philosophy. And for us, that’s about People Experience.