Diana Blancone
Chief People & Talent Officer
Omnicom Media Group
Episode 295
Break the HR Silo: Link Talent Strategy to Business & Financial Success
Current chapter: Built by People podcast features insights from world's top HR leaders
Built By PeopleFebruary 18, 2025 · 12:41
Thesis
“To be truly effective, HR leaders must integrate deeply into core business operations, understanding financials, client deliverables, and overall strategy, rather than operating in a departmental silo.”
Show notes
Diana Blancone has a line she delivers to her HR team that cuts through a lot of organizational confusion: "I am of no service or benefit to anyone if I don't truly understand what we're expected to deliver." At Omnicom Media Group — one of the world's largest media conglomerates — that means sitting in client meetings, joining pitches, and understanding the revenue dynamics of businesses that aren't HR's typical domain.
Diana came to HR through fashion retail and production management, which gave her something many HR executives lack: fluency in the operational side of a client-service business. At Omnicom, she uses that background to run an HR function that operates less like a department and more like an embedded business partner. Her core argument: HR cannot design relevant talent strategies from a silo. The intelligence that makes people programs effective comes from being present in the business conversations most HR leaders don't attend. Curiosity, in her framing, is not a personality trait — it's a professional discipline.
She's particularly strong on learning and development — specifically the failure mode of L&D programs that exist for their own sake, disconnected from actual career paths or business outcomes. At Omnicom, she's built L&D directly into skills-based career progression frameworks. Employees can trace a clear line from the learning they do today to the roles they're building toward. She's also candid about developing HR team members who've been conditioned to think like HR generalists rather than business leaders — and the intentional coaching required to close that gap.
- Deep business integration as HR's core job — why HR effectiveness starts with understanding financials, client deliverables, and strategy
- Curiosity as a professional discipline — how being present in business conversations produces better people programs
- L&D tied directly to career progression — designing learning that maps to skills-based advancement frameworks
- Coaching HR teams toward a business-leader mindset — encouraging data-backed solutions over administrative instincts
- Cross-functional relationships as competitive advantage — how strong internal partnerships surface insights that isolated HR functions miss
- Career shadowing programs — practical mechanisms for developing HR professionals' business fluency
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What you'll take away
- 1Prioritize a deep understanding of business financials, trends, and client deliverables to ensure HR initiatives are strategically aligned.
- 2Proactively engage in core business operations, such as client meetings and pitches, to gather vital context for talent strategy and development.
- 3Design learning and development programs that are directly linked to skills-based career paths and organizational objectives to boost internal mobility and retention.
- 4Coach HR team members to adopt a 'business leader' mindset by encouraging curiosity, data-backed solutions, and building strong cross-functional relationships.
- 5Consistently push personal comfort zones, learn the 'language of leadership' (finance, metrics), and utilize data to support and articulate HR's strategic value.
What most organizations get wrong
- •Challenges the notion that HR responsibilities are narrowly defined, stating that not understanding core business deliverables makes HR 'of no service or benefit to anyone.'
- •Suggests that feeling like 'the stupidest person in the room' when entering a new domain is a positive sign of evolution and necessary for growth.
In Diana's words
“I am of no service or benefit to anyone if I don't truly understand what we're expected to deliver on, in our case with clients.”
This quote highlights the critical need for HR to deeply understand business deliverables to be effective.
“L&D can't exist or should never exist in a vacuum. It must be tied to career growth, business objectives.”
This emphasizes the strategic integration of learning and development with broader organizational goals for maximum impact.
“Back it up with data and back it up with context in terms of why we need to do certain things or how we have had success in certain areas and building on that success.”
This stresses the importance of data-driven decision-making and storytelling to strengthen HR's proposals and influence.
“You need to make a seat for yourself at that table.”
This is a direct call to action for HR leaders to assert and secure their strategic importance within the organization.
“You feel like the stupidest person in the room, but that's a good thing. You need to feel that way in order to evolve.”
This quote encourages embracing discomfort and a continuous learning mindset for personal and professional growth.
The problems this episode addresses
- •HR professionals are often stifled and myopic in their roles without a deep understanding of the broader business, limiting their strategic impact.
- •Building and hiring talent without prior knowledge of client promises or business strategy leads to inefficient and reactive talent acquisition.
- •Retaining talent and keeping employees engaged is a significant challenge, especially after events like the Great Resignation.
- •HR initiatives and points of view lack impact and credibility without supporting data and business context.
- •The absence of HR representation in key business meetings prevents HR leaders from effectively contributing to the organization's overall success.
In this episode
Built by People podcast features insights from world's top HR leaders
Built by People
I started in fashion retail after graduating from college. I really didn't know what area of business
Descending the Career Path
One of the most important things is truly understanding the business, Diane says
Employee Engagement: Core Business Operations
Fanny, you've been involved in client meetings and active pitches
HR's Role in Strategic Planning
OMG focuses on connecting learning and development to career progression within organizations
The Linking Learning and Development to Career Promotion
How do you coach team members to become trusted business partners in your business
How to Coach Team Members to Become Business Partners
Diana, any parting advice you'd like to share with our community
A Few Words of Advice for Leaders
Topics covered
Organizations and entities mentioned
Full transcript
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