Controversial Kristi Noem hire lights fire for HR to put out

For HR leaders, that means working alongside leadership, communications, public relations, and marketing to build a coordinated response — not waiting to be handed one, says Ariganello. “It’s really important that HR is leading and supporting the other departments, because that’s really, really critical,” he says. 

The parallel for HR leaders navigating their influence at the executive table is clear: the function’s credibility in a crisis depends in large part on whether it was present before the decision was made, says Ariganello. 

Proactive over reactive: the harder lesson 

Ariganello believes most important lesson for HR leaders watching this situation unfold from their own organizations is that the time to build the structures that protect culture is before a controversial hire happens. 

“HR should be at the table before decisions are made and not after, because after it’s about damage control,” he says. “HR brings a unique perspective that understands workforce sentiment, which is critical — the culture, the engagement of staff, and the values an organization has built. That’s why we need to be there — to identify potential risks, anticipate employee reactions, and help develop mitigation strategies.” 

For Hancock, it’s about being proactive rather than reactive. “If HR doesn’t want something like this to happen in the future, there are processes they should have in place beforehand,” she says. “So that you only have people progressing who are meeting the job requirements and having that value alignment, so that you don’t end up in a similar situation in the future.”