When I started my corporate career, there were two huge obstacles blocking my professional and personal development: 

1. Labelling myself (and being labelled by others) as "too junior" to lead a project.  
2. Being a strict stickler for the tasks of my Job Description—never looking left or right to take initiative, even if I knew there was a better way.

Later in my career, as a Human Resources practitioner, I came to realise that labels such as job levels, performance ratings, or personality types are an essential part of almost all aspects of human resources, from recruitment to talent development, to performance rewards, and everything in between. 

But to what extent are those labels useful today? Do they bring value in a world where we have to deal with rapid changes and complex challenges that can only be solved with a strong focus on people over processes? 

How do we restructure Human Resources so it doesn’t depend so heavily on labels?
 
Driven to find a solution for my personal and professional questions around what can happen in the workplace when employees are liberated from labels, I started investigating, interviewing, and writing about this important topic.