HR leaders can reconnect with their purpose at work

Sasha could remember when working in HR felt deeply purposeful. Early in her career, she had seen the difference she could make: helping people recognise their strengths, navigate difficult moments and find roles in which they could thrive. She was playing to her own strengths while enabling others to play to theirs.

Over time, however, that sense of purpose began to fade. Now in a leadership role, relentless operational demands left little room to think and organisational politics required her to spend increasing amounts of energy managing competing agendas. Her days were now dominated by urgent problems, difficult conversations and an inbox that was never empty.

Sasha was still successful, but she no longer felt connected to her work. Somewhere along the way, she had lost touch with who she was and why she had entered HR in the first place.

Her experience is far from unusual. HR leaders devote their careers to helping other people find meaning, grow and perform at their best. Yet the intensity of the role can leave them with little time to consider those questions for themselves.

Reconnecting with purpose requires more than completing a one-off exercise or defining some grand achievement we believe we must deliver. Purpose is not simply a destination. It emerges from the relationship between who we are and the contribution we want to make.

Three questions can help HR leaders rediscover that connection.

Who am I?

Purpose begins with identity. This means looking beyond job titles and professional responsibilities to understand who we are as our confident selves.