Rogers Electric

From Recruiting to a Broader HR Perspective

My career in Human Resources did not begin with a plan to become an HR executive. I started in third-party recruiting immediately after college. Recruiting gave me an early understanding of talent, but after a few years, I realized I wanted to understand more about what happened after someone accepted the job.

That realization led me to the nonprofit world, where I spent seven years and wore many different hats. That experience fundamentally shaped how I lead today. I learned how to hire people, coach them, redirect them, when necessary, develop them and sometimes simply listen. Most importantly, I learned that HR is most effective when you understand both the person and the organization that they are part of.

For the past ten-plus years at Rogers Electric, that perspective has continued to evolve. As our organization has grown, so has my belief that HR cannot operate separately from the business. People strategy has to be a business strategy.

Making Talent Acquisition More Business-Driven

Talent acquisition cannot simply be about filling open positions. HR leaders need to understand where the business is going and build the workforce required to get there.

In the electrical construction industry, that is particularly important. Growth can happen quickly, projects can create significant workforce demands and skilled talent is increasingly competitive. Waiting until a position becomes vacant to begin recruiting puts the organization behind before the search even starts.

Our focus has shifted toward becoming more proactive: strengthening talent pipelines, improving recruiting processes, reducing hiring cycle times, leveraging employee referrals and maintaining close communication with operational leaders about upcoming workforce needs.

For HR to truly be a strategic partner, we have to understand the business well enough to anticipate what it will need next.

Strengthening Retention Through Leadership 

Recruiting great people is only part of the equation. Keeping them requires an environment where they can be successful.

Over the years, I have become increasingly focused on the role leaders play in retention. Employees want competitive compensation and opportunities for advancement, but they also want clarity, communication, recognition and a leader who takes an interest in their success. That means developing managers is just as important as developing employees.

“Talent acquisition cannot simply be about filling open positions. HR leaders need to understand where the business is going and build the workforce required to get there.”

High-performing employees also need to see what is possible for them within the organization. Providing career pathways, development opportunities, meaningful feedback and new challenges allows employees to envision a future with the company rather than feeling they have to leave to continue growing.

Balancing Employee Engagement with Accountability

I don't believe creating a strong employee experience means lowering expectations. Some of the healthiest cultures have both high engagement and high accountability.

People want to know what is expected of them. They also want to know that expectations are applied consistently. For HR, that means helping leaders become comfortable having both sides of the conversation, recognizing great performance while also addressing issues when expectations are not being met.

Listening is equally important. Employees should have opportunities to provide feedback and feel heard, but being heard does not always mean getting the answer you want. It means knowing your perspective was considered, understanding the decision and being treated with respect throughout the process.

That balance between empathy and accountability has become one of the most important parts of my leadership philosophy.

Creating a Culture of Continuous Improvement

Continuous improvement starts with being willing to challenge the way things have always been done. HR teams should regularly ask: Is this process still working? Does it make sense for employees? Does it make sense for the business? Are we solving the right problem?

Data is an important part of those conversations. Recruiting metrics, retention trends, employee feedback, performance data and other workforce indicators can help identify where improvements are needed. But data should start the conversation, not replace it.

Some of the best improvements come from simply listening to the people closest to the work. HR leaders also have to create teams that are comfortable questioning processes, including their own. We cannot ask the rest of the organization to embrace change if HR is unwilling to do the same.

Ultimately, my journey from recruiting to HR leadership has taught me that great HR is not about having ownership of the people side of the business. It is about helping leaders throughout the organization become better leaders of people.

When HR understands the business, anticipates talent needs, develops strong leaders, creates accountability and remains willing to evolve, we become much more than a support function. We become a partner in.