HR Freelancer Spotlight: Yuri Kruman
HR Lancers loves to feature its members! First up is HR strategist Yuri Kruman from the New York City area.
Yuri is a Principal Organizational Development and HR Strategy consultant for corporations and fast-growth startups, focused on helping C-suite executives create, implement and manage organizational change. A Forbes Coaches Council member, Forbes and Entrepreneur contributor, he's also been featured in Inc., Fast Co., Time, Mashable, BBC, PBS, numerous top blogs and podcasts.
His consulting, advising and coaching portfolio includes speaking and workshops at top companies (EY, Google). We asked him some questions about his experience via email.
What do you consider your top 3 skills as an HR freelancer?
Strategy, Design, Communication
Describe 2 of your past projects/gigs you were hired for?
Employee Experience / HR System overhaul around strategy/design/coaching/implementation for an Inc.5000 healthcare company in the Bay Area; Benefits / Payroll overhaul around strategy/design/implementation for a Consumer Goods (cookie) company owned by Danone
Which project from your past work are you most proud of?
Aforementioned Employee Experience / HR System overhaul for the healthcare company. It helped the company win a "Best Company To Work For" award, multiple industry and executive awards, as well as empower many employees through coaching to have breakout success within the company in new roles and on new projects, in addition to helping the company build a much improved set of HR systems around internal communication, productivity, project and performance management, as well as people analytics.
Do you believe the HR/recruiting industry is poised for more freelancers? If yes, why?
Yes, definitely. Fresh perspectives are critically needed in an HR function that's at once often left behind in the '90s for mindset and even systems, as well as to bring in fresh talent, tools, strategies and other, non-HR functional experience and best practices from other companies and industries that are far ahead in doing HR the right way to bring in, retain and develop the best talent, build mission-driven companies and increase revenue, in the process.
Whats a fun fact you want people to know about you?
HR is my 6th career, after coaching/consulting, tech, finance, law and academia. I'm a Russian who grew up in Kentucky and who's written 2 novels and 1 book of non-fiction, with one more on the way later this year.