Hearts & Minds: Does your job title draw derision?

In a news story, The Times reports: ‘However, about a fortnight after that was issued, Victoria Smith, the “group chief people officer” at the south London hospital trust, issued a statement on behalf of the executive team.’

The quotation marks around her job title are theirs. Her employer did not use them and in all probability, neither did the reporter who would have written as they found. No, the chances are they were inserted by a sub-editor or editor. Why? Because it’s another way of saying so-called, because they cannot take seriously someone called group chief people officer.

In the corporate sphere the title is commonplace. It’s a modern alternative to saying ‘head of human resources’, more direct and well, human. The term human resources is anodyne and cumbersome - taking two words to say one. People. Nobody in the real world uses the phrase human resources, except in relation to describing someone’s job or the department in which they work, in HR. But among those who produce The Times it is modish and therefore improper and to be ridiculed. It may even, perish the thought, be viewed as an American import and for the traditionalists at Britain’s oldest national daily, that will not do.

Job titles are often inflated, to give the holders status. Unfortunately, that can quickly spill over into conveying something that was not intended, namely self-importance. Here are some genuine examples: talent delivery specialist instead of recruitment consultant, media distribution officer for someone who did a paper round, retail Jedi rather than shop assistant, wet leisure attendant and not lifeguard, great service agent is the hotel receptionist, change magician… And others: brand evangelist (marketing brand manager), accounting Ninja (financial manager), conversation architect (digital marketing manager), social media trailblazer (digital marketing executive).

There are many more. Their boss, the chief people officer, thinks they are doing them a service. It could also be a feint to distinguish them from another colleague, to reward them with better terms. Within the organisation and with stakeholders it does not matter, it is accepted. That is what they are known as.

Sadly, there is a serious comms downside. It’s all very well bigging up a person but not if it invites belittling, from the public, in the media, in The Times, a paper of record no less.

Victoria Smith issued a statement from management. What she and they received in return was laughter.

Chris Blackhurst is one of the UK’s foremost business journalists. He was previously Editor of The Independent and City Editor of the Evening Standard.