The HR Power Model™: The End of Ulrich. The Rise of Authority.
Stop being a support function. Start owning the system that drives execution, accountability, and enterprise power.
For 25 years, HR has been trapped as a cost center—reduced to service work by Ulrich’s “strategic partner” model. That era is over.
The Woods HR Power Model™ gives HR structural ownership: of systems, of enforcement, of execution. It’s not influence. It’s authority. The kind CEOs can’t ignore, and leaders can’t bypass.
Here’s the truth: reading about it won’t move you forward. Mastery is what separates HR professionals who stay stuck in support roles from those who step into real enterprise power. And mastery doesn’t wait—it’s claimed.
Fix the model. Claim the authority. End the waiting.
HR’s Current Model Is Quietly Failing
For more than two decades, HR has been locked inside Ulrich’s 1997 framework. It standardized titles and processes, but it also locked HR into support.
HRBPs are overextended and under-leveraged
COEs generate policy, but stay disconnected from frontline execution
Shared Services chase efficiency at the expense of escalation and learning
CHROs still fight for a seat at the strategy table—instead of owning it outright
Every quarter this model stays in place, organizational trust and execution speed quietly erode.
Alignment Isn’t Authority
Legacy institutions like SHRM cemented Ulrich’s model with certifications, checklists, and competency grids. On paper, HR looked credible. In practice, it became powerless.
Alignment is not leadership.
Compliance is not capability.
Credibility cannot be outsourced.
The system hasn’t adapted. And the cost of keeping it grows larger with every disruption.
The Woods HR Power Model™
The Woods HR Power Model™ ends the Ulrich era. It is not a modernization—it is a replacement.
It doesn’t optimize delivery. It reclaims design.
It doesn’t serve the business. It architects the system.
It doesn’t ask for influence. It builds authority into the structure.
Created by Jim Woods, CEO of Seattle Consulting Group, the model draws on more than 20 years of enterprise redesign across the U.S. Army, Disney, the Canadian Government, and Fortune 500 organizations. The conclusion is consistent: HR gains authority only when it owns the system.
The HR Power Model™ codifies that truth—field-tested, enterprise-proven, and built for speed, volatility, and execution under pressure.
The Five Pillars of the HR Power Model™
Insurgent Leadership – HR leads. It doesn’t follow.
Systemic Ownership – HR architects performance, not programs.
Unified Accountability – One HR system. No silos.
Antifragile Design – Pressure strengthens, not breaks.
Strategic Centralization – Clarity at the core. Agility at the edges.
This Is Not Optional. It Is Structural.
The highest-performing companies of the next decade will not rely on Ulrich’s outdated design. They will demand new architecture.
CHROs will own systems, not interpret strategy
CEOs will measure HR by trust, speed, and performance under pressure
Execution will become the ultimate currency of enterprise success
If your HR system cannot scale through disruption, it will not survive it.
Book Your Executive Briefing
This is not a webinar. It is a 60-minute private redesign session for CHROs and CEOs ready to lead beyond legacy.
You’ll receive:
A diagnostic of where Ulrich’s model is eroding performance in your organization
A blueprint for implementing the HR Power Model™ at your scale
Strategic clarity on what to dismantle, what to build, and how to accelerate transition
Briefings are limited each quarter.
If your HR system can’t grow stronger under pressure—it’s already failing.