Inspirational Women
Patricia Bustamante A NEW APPROACH TO HUMAN RESOURCES By Judith A. Habert
W
HEN YOU MEET SOMEONE for the first time, it is often common to form first impressions about them which may not always be accurate. With Patricia Bustamante, my impression was right on target. Patricia is a consummate professional. She exudes confidence and experience, but more importantly, she is an extremely nice person. This last fact is undoubtedly how she ended up as an atypical Human Resources professional. “I started working for a startup Tech company, and before too long the CEO informed me of an upcoming divestiture and the company would be needing its own Human Resources Department. He asked me if I would be willing to create and run this new department.” Patricia was honored that the CEO chose to put so much trust in her, but at the same time, she felt she was facing a dilemma.
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In her past work experience, she realized that most people at the companies where she worked didn’t particularly like the members of the Human Resources department of their firms. They feared them and rarely went to them when a problem existed. Patricia was not the type of person, and if she took the job heading the Human Resources Department, she did not want to be viewed as an obstacle among the other employees. “In no uncertain terms I told the CEO that I would be thrilled to take the job, but under one condition. I told him that I needed to put ‘me’ into the position. I needed to be there for the employees, to help them in any way I could. They needed to look at me as an ally and a partner. I would create a friendly, people-centric and nurturing Human Resources department, where staff would be eager to share any concerns and allow me to be part of solving their problems and be part of their success.” The CEO agreed, and Patricia began her career as a Human Resources professional. “I am so glad he gave me that opportunity to discover my passion. If I can’t help people by what I am doing, I am not happy.” The job went so well for Patricia that when the CEO left for a position at another firm six years later, he invited her to come along and she did. “I love what I do particularly my opportunities to interact with people. Setting up an HR department from the ground up was a great learning experience.” This experience allows Patricia to now work
independently as an HR Consultant helping companies successfully set up and maintain Human Resources departments in their organizations. Born in the Philippines, Patricia’s family relocated to Hawaii when Patricia was 9. An outdoor enthusiast, she was in her element. She attended the University of Hawaii, during which time she did a test to determine what her future career should be. The top three professions were Human Resources, Medicine, or Law. She remained in Hawaii through college, but after graduating, she felt the need to explore and ended up in Newport Beach and eventually San Diego. Her move to California allowed her to build her skills in operations but soon discovered her passion in the Human Resources field when you joined a start-up tech company. She has now spent thirteen years as a Human Resources Specialist, definitely proving that college career test correct. “It’s been a wonderful ride, 13 years in HR. For the last two years, Patricia has been an outside consultant. “I’ve spent most of this time helping startups create fully functional HR departments.” I had to ask if there was a part of her business she disliked. Immediately my mind went to how difficult it must be to fire someone from their position. Although, Patricia admits it is hard to do she has always maintained relationships with those whom she had to release from employment,
