Jomana Elwenni
VP, People & Culture
Momentic Studios
Episode 146
HR Credibility Isn't Handed Out: Deliver Solutions, Show Founders Your Impact
Current chapter: Built by People podcast features insights from world's top HR leaders
Built By PeopleJune 16, 2025 · 15:46
Thesis
“HR credibility is earned, not granted by title, through demonstrating actionable solutions and proactively communicating the impact of foundational work, particularly when partnering directly with founders during critical growth or market shifts.”
Show notes
"Credibility isn't handed to you with a title." Jomana Elwenni has built her career on that reality — arriving as the first HR leader in founder-led environments where the function had no existing credibility to inherit, and earning trust through a simple but demanding principle: solve actual business problems, not just people problems. When founders see HR removing friction and making the business move faster, that's when trust starts to build.
Her insight about the invisible work of HR is particularly sharp: the infrastructure you're building — the compensation frameworks, the compliance systems, the hiring processes — produces no visible output until the moment it's missing. Most founders don't understand what they've been protected from until something goes wrong. Jomana's strategy is proactive communication: narrate the build as you go, and translate HR infrastructure into the business advantages and risk mitigation it provides. If you don't bring people along during the build, they miss the lift — and most importantly, the impact of your role.
Her description of HR's function during difficult market shifts is among the most honest in recent memory: the HR leader is the steady, calm anchor for the leadership team — someone who can reframe conversations, guide emotional processing with integrity, and hold the space for hard decisions without losing their own footing. That's not in any job description. But it's often the most important thing the function does.
- Earning credibility in founder-led environments — the approach that turns "nice to have" into "can't operate without"
- Making HR's invisible work visible — how to communicate the value of infrastructure before it's needed
- Scaling HR without predefined systems — building as you go while navigating real-time business changes
- HR as the calm in market turbulence — the steady leadership function that guides organizations through difficult shifts
- When to step away — Jomana's advice for HR leaders whose contributions aren't being recognized or respected
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What you'll take away
- 1HR credibility is earned by providing actionable solutions to business problems and demonstrating value, not by title or assumed trust.
- 2Proactively communicate the 'invisible' impact of HR infrastructure work to founders and executives, translating HR efforts into business advantages and risk mitigation.
- 3When working directly with founders, HR leaders must be both strategic and adaptable, building scalable systems while simultaneously navigating real-time business changes.
- 4During challenging market shifts, HR leaders serve as the steady, calm anchor for the leadership team, reframing conversations and guiding emotional processing with integrity.
- 5Recognize when an environment lacks mutual trust and respect for HR; staying in such a role will diminish energy and impact, and it's okay to seek better alignment elsewhere.
What most organizations get wrong
- •Credibility isn't really handed to you with a title. (1:23) – Challenges the notion that senior HR titles automatically command respect or influence without demonstrated value.
- •protecting culture doesn't mean avoiding hard conversations. It really means making them with integrity, transparency, and alignment. (9:32) – Counters the common belief that cultural protection equates to always maintaining a positive atmosphere, even at the cost of addressing difficult truths.
- •discipline doesn't really dilute culture, it protects it. (10:01) – Argues that strategic rigor and tough decisions, when handled correctly, strengthen rather than weaken organizational culture.
In Jomana's words
“credibility isn't really handed to you with a title.”
This highlights Jomana's core belief that authority in HR is earned through demonstrated value rather than organizational rank.
“Founders want partners who think like operators, people who can remove friction, help the business move faster. And when they see you're solving business problems, not just managing people, That's when the trust starts to build.”
This emphasizes the critical shift in perception required for HR to be seen as a strategic business partner rather than a purely administrative function.
“if you don't bring people along during the build, they're really going to miss the lift, and most importantly, the impact of your role.”
This stresses the importance of continuous communication and visibility for HR initiatives, particularly those that are foundational but not immediately visible.
“You're not just driving HR, but you're really shaping the business alongside the leadership team. So, you need to be both strategic and scrappy.”
This describes the unique demands on HR leaders working directly with founders, requiring adaptability and a dual focus on strategy and practical implementation.
“protecting culture doesn't mean avoiding hard conversations. It really means making them with integrity, transparency, and alignment.”
This offers a nuanced perspective on cultural preservation during difficult times, advocating for honest communication over avoidance.
“the unsexy backend work that HR spends their time working on was actually the enabler for everything they wanted on the frontend.”
This articulates the fundamental value proposition of HR infrastructure, connecting foundational work to visible business outcomes.
The problems this episode addresses
- •Founders viewing HR as purely administrative, under-resourced, or failing to understand its strategic value beyond surface-level tasks.
- •Rapidly scaling organizations lacking foundational HR infrastructure (job architecture, policies, scalable systems) leading to bottlenecks in hiring and retention.
- •Executive resistance to adapting to major market shifts, making emotional decisions rather than strategic ones during periods of contraction.
- •High-growth environments where recruiting efforts are hampered by undefined roles and inadequate onboarding, resulting in high turnover rates.
- •HR leaders struggling to establish credibility and gain buy-in when working directly with founders who may not yet see HR as a strategic partner.
In this episode
Built by People podcast features insights from world's top HR leaders
Built by People
Jomana Alwani shares a little bit about her career journey
My Journey Through HR
Giovanna has had to establish credibility as first HR leader working with founders
Establishing credibility as the first HR leader
How does your approach to scaling up HR operations change when working directly with executives
How does your approach to scaling up HR operations change when working directly
Shimana: One of the most challenging moments was during market shift
What's the Most Challenging Moment in Your Career?
Giovanna shares a story about implementing a significant HR initiative while working with founders
How to Lead a High-Growth HR Initiative
Jomana Germanna: Get aligned early with founders and executives
Jomana Germanna on Being Aligned With Founders
Topics covered
Organizations and entities mentioned
Full transcript
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