HR has always been slow to change and keep pace with changes in the business and the external environment. The time has come for HR to totally reinvent itself or become obsolete as a function. But as HR transforms itself to keep pace with the environment, it needs to also consider how it can reshape the environment. We need to tackle head on the challenges and opportunities in front of us, in light of what I believe are five huge disruptions facing the world –political, economic, social, demographic and technological; and these will have huge implications on HR as a function. Political A more rightist and nationalistic tilt to politics with more insular and local sentiments are emerging both in the developing and developed countries. Political leaders using race, religion, income inequality etc. are propagating isolation and protection of local jobs, restriction of immigration, focus on local manufacturing, import barriers, etc. One can see these trends emerging in various coun...