Fancy Title: What Is It You Do?

By Chris Schneider, Captain of Ships
Published May 7, 2024

At HR Source, I am the captain of our ships of Membership, Sponsorship, and Partnership. Since being promoted a few years ago, I have grown into my title and coordinate many programs in service of our members, current and prospective. 

My actual title, “Director, Strategic Partnerships,” must mean I’m pretty special. Why, LinkedIn has noticed me and wants me to know about the plethora of available jobs that share my fancy title. I’m so flattered. It’s like they know me, they like me, and they want me! 

Algorithmic flattery aside, the world of HR has an interesting challenge with title inflation, though we’re not alone. In my first, right-out-of-college job, my employer knighted me “District Executive,” and many people I met thought I couldn’t go any higher up the hierarchy. Little did they know. 

Job titles can be a tricky balancing act of encapsulating a person’s responsibilities, conveying authority, and giving direction to the outside world as a brand reflection. Certain industries grow attached to a naming convention that stretches beyond the meaning of words. 

I guess I just hope for titles conveying meaning beyond their specific industry. My wife, who works in advertising, speaks of “Thought Leaders,” “Brand Awareness Champions,” and “Digital Gurus.” I had no idea you could ascend to “Guru” from a lowly start as “Devoted Follower.” I guess tenure counts for something. In HR we see titles following trends. “Chief Wellness Officer” broke onto the scene during the high-insurance-renewal-rate wellness push. And consider the highly descriptive and literal “Director of Attracting Talent” during the current labor market. 

For the uninitiated, here’s a quick reference guide for some of the newer HR titles and what I think they may mean:

Chief Cultural Officer = A member of the United Nations.

Director of People = A traffic cop.

CHO (aka Chief Happiness Officer) = Summer Camp Counselor.

If we don’t become our titles, we outgrow them, though striking the wrong balance can make a real mess of your org chart. In fact, you may need to hire a Sanitation Expert (Garbageman) or Maintenance Engineer (Janitor). Interestingly, I had a friend in college who went on to work for XM Radio as their “Director of Rock.” Maybe I picked the wrong industry.

Comedy shtick aside, job titles play an important role when it comes to recruiting, pay equity, and a host of other HR and employment law matters. Our team at HR Source stands ready to support your organization and help you minimize unnecessary risks related to inflated job titles. Whether you need help drafting job descriptions, benchmarking pay rates, developing your affirmative action program or responding to a discrimination claim, we can help ensure you are in compliance and your job titles are in alignment.