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Karen Beaman
HR and the Human Genome
A colleague forwarded this interesting presentation on to me by Linda Avey of 23andme about the work being done on mapping the human genome:
“With the advent of the Human Genome Project came the birth of a new term and lifestyle: personalized medicine, which promises to provide better care by analyzing the genetic basis of a disease and tailoring the treatment to the individual. As the science of genomics continues to improve, the implications could rock the medical world — and the ethical one. But when does personal become too personal?”
So naturally I started thinking about how the implications of this could “rock the HR world.” What role should HR play — if any — and how should data privacy and protection laws expand in this new world? I’m not talking about genetic engineering and creating superbabies — that’s something still in the realm of science fiction… I hope! But rather what role could/should gene mapping play in recruitment and selection, competency management, training and development? For individuals endowed with certain SNPs causing them to have particular skills or to be predisposed to certain professions, what role should/could HR have in counseling individuals to move in (or run from) a particular direction, such as finance and accounting versus business development or research and development? Will we start recruiting and screening our candidates looking for certain traits that we “think” make an individual successful in a certain position?
23andme presents their new service as an interesting exercise in determining your ancestry and how similar/dissimilar you may be from your siblings. Certainly interesting dinner conversation and a great topic for social networking sites. But now — for only $399 — you can get a complete map of your genome.
How far away are we from a $35 background check as part of pre-employment screening? What role could/should HR professionals play in this emerging field? I’m interested in your thoughts.
The issue of genome screening reminds me of the 1997 film Gattaca, which was science fiction at the time, but has now landed on our doorstep. It seems as though if we can think it, we can achieve it, eventually. Maybe that’s a mixed blessing. And speaking of genomics, superbabies are no longer the subject of science fiction, according to this article published just yesterday:
http://singularityhub.com/2009/02/25/designer-babies-like-it-or-not-here-they-come/
Of course, if the 2009 film ‘Transcendent Man’ comes true, as Gattaca sort of has, then employee screening might take on a whole different angle in 2029, if indeed, employees are still necessary. Here’s Transcendent Man’s trailer for your edification and viewing pleasure: http://transcendentman.com/
Lastly, I hope the weather will improve sufficiently for us to enjoy the fruits of these technology advances: http://planetark.org/wen/51788
Comment by Grant — February 26, 2009 @ 10:12 am
HEADLINE: IBM promises it will not use genetic information in its employment decisions.
Late in 2005 IBM CEO Palmisano stated: “During our lifetimes, the practice of medicine and society’s approach to healthcare have changed in fundamental ways. But what lies ahead — perhaps in the next decade alone — seems likely to eclipse that progress dramatically,†While work in genetics is “enormously promising,†it “raises very significant issues, especially in the areas of privacy and security.â€
The company said consideration of the policy change started long before IBM began working with National Geographic on the Genographic Project and is unrelated (okay, I guess that I buy that, but …..)
My observation is this. In order for IBM to publicly state that it would NOT use genetic information in its employment decisions, it presumably first went through the exercise of considering that it would and/or should do just that. In 2005. Now in 2009 the work on the genome has progressed much further. There WILL be employers that decide to use this information. Almost certainly the government will, either for employees or citizens at large. And insurance companies; one shudders to think.
NO-ONE is exempt from this. By definition we all have genetic disposition to physical characteristics, including propensity to disease and death.
We need definitive laws protecting the right of each person to full privacy in this regard. And since a direct relative’s genetic makeup can also reveal the probability of your own we need to put in place rigorous safeguards. Now, before the genie is out of the bottle (and I suspect that she is already half way).
Comment by Ian Turnbull — March 23, 2009 @ 8:16 pm