A few weeks back I was part of a team that facilitated a session for the national HR team of one of South Africa's private banks. It was a session that focussed on how the HR team could support and enable an audacious goal set by the company's leaders. Fairly early on in the session someone piped up and said, "We need to become business partners to the business to help the company achieve this goal!" All-and-sundry nodded in reverent appreciation for a true and noble statement. It was of course a truism that is beginning to apply more and more to HR teams globally.

We moved on in the discussion.

A little later on in the day the team leader was discussing the core competencies the HR team will require in becoming the team that will help the company achieve the aforesaid audacious goal. She listed "basic financial literacy" as one of these competencies.

The words were barely out of her mouth before I realised that I had nearly fallen off my chair. Basic financial literacy? This was a bank. Is it not a requirement that anyone coming in have some basic understanding of the core business of the company?

I was not the only one who nearly found them self on the floor. The team looked at their leader with disgust, jaws dropped and eyebrows were raised. The leader held her ground saying, "I want you guys to be able to read basic financial statements." Again, utter silence from the team.

"Why the hell would you want us to do that? We're HR, not accountants!" someone said.

I shook my head.

How the hell was this team expecting to become business partners to the business if they had absolutely no clue as to what the business was about. They bemoaned the fact that the business leaders gave them very little credit in the business, that they were glorified meeting minute takers.

No surprise there people!

I also chastised myself. I had made the assumption that in a company like this, getting a job in the HR department meant that you had at least an ounce of financial literacy.

No wonder HR is such an administration driven function in most businesses. We have failed to apply ourselves to the business and to add real value where it counts. We have not been business partners.

I remember my first job in HR. I actually knew nothing about the function nor the company (my bosses took a real chance on me). I realised early on that in order to aid the performance management of the company, I needed to know what it is that the employees were doing. I sat in front of accounting software in the Accounts Dept. I accompanied sales people out on client visits. I managed to get chair in management meetings and listened.

It saddens me that people see HR as a position in a company in itself, and not a position that should break the boundaries of cubicle-slavery.

Come on!