By Jennifer Theurer
Crystal Malchose, HR professional for Geary County, was recently recognized as HR Professional of the Year from the Kansas County Human Resource Association in conjunction with the Kansas Association of Counties.
“It was very exciting,” she said. “It’s basically specifically for a county HR person and Kansas has 105 counties. They said that they received 15 nominations and I had received multiple nominations and I’m just doing my job, I’m doing what I do, and I love what I do. And I love HR.”
After the announcement was made, someone who nominated Malchose shared their entry with her. She was brought to tears that someone would notice that what she does matters to people. She prides herself on putting the human back in human resources and still hears horror stories of some HR departments not helping employees when boxes are left unchecked and mistakes are made.
“A lot of people think of HR as going to the principal’s office, it’s either really good or really bad and my goal and what I’ve seen that I’m able to do is be a resource for the people. I don’t look at them as the human resources. I am a human and a resource to them,” Malchose said.
After serving in HR for more than 27 years between Pottawatomie, Riley, and Geary counties, Malchose hasn’t let the way things have always been done get in her way. Her department makes sure employees are aware of how advancements in technology can affect them by conducting trainings on phishing scams and the use of AI. When her department was told that younger employees have four-legged dependents instead of two-legged dependents, they made every effort to offer pet insurance as well as regular health insurance to employees.
“I love the fine balance line that I walk that helps the employees but also sees to the best benefit of the organization,” she said. “And I do expressly think like it’s walking a tightrope. We can’t just go off and give everything all at once to everybody and still be responsible for our taxpayer dollars that we’re responsible for.”
