People at Work & Play

The rapid growth in India’s economy has seen the creation of many jobs in the HR function. Most organizations are finding it increasingly difficult to attract competent HR functionaries. Job and growth opportunities have seen a wide variety of people enter the profession, some qualified, others not.

In this context, here is a program which has been well conceived by the National HRD Network, Bangalore Chapter. They have designed their Program on HR Competence Development to fulfill what I believe is a much wanted need.

This program spread over 13 weekend days over 6 months is targeted towards people in HR with 1-6 years experience who would like to get formal inputs in the different facets of HR.

Topics covered include HR Planning & Staffing, Performance Management, Compensation Management, Employee Development, Career Management & Managing Culture & Change.

The investment for this program is Rs. 33,000 with a special rate of Rs. 27,000 for NHRD members. Details can be had from Mr. Narayan, Tel: 91-80-26762661. You can also mail NHRDCOMPDEV@gmail.com.

Disclaimer: I am in no way connected with this program but recognize the good effort being done by the Bangalore Chapter of the NHRD Network.

Over the years, one person I have admired for his succinct and prolific writing on a variety of people management issues is Dr. John Sullivan.

I have gained, as I am sure have many around the globe, by his clear thinking and ability to expound complex issues in simple terms.

For over 20 years, Dr. Sullivan has been associated with the San Francisco State University
where he is the Professor of Management.

His thought leadership has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Fortune Magazine, Fast Company Magazine, Business 2.0, The Economist, The New York Times, HR Magazine, and Workforce Management Magazine.

His site is recommended for those who wish to sharpen their understanding of the management of people issues.

Every organization today is grappling with issues relating to human capital. These include the challenges of Attracting, Retaining & Engaging talent.

Engagement means a high degree of commitment where employees go the extra mile and put in discretionary efforts.

Research from a recent study by Towers Perrin on “Winning Strategies for a Global Workforce” covering 86,000 employees in many countries underscored that not only are the key drivers for Attraction, Retention & Engagement different but also vary at different stages of the employee’s life cycle.

This finding has great significance for all of us who deal with human capital.

Onboarding is a key process in Human Capital management. Many times employees hired at great expense after investing huge amounts of time in the hiring process are pretty much left to fend for themselves once they join an organization. Their onboarding is left to chance or the personal interest displayed by the new employee’s supervisor.

I would urge all managers to view the onboarding process as a crucial step in employee retention. An article by David Lee highlights the importance of onboarding and speaks of the Four Deadliest Onboarding Mistakes companies make. Read this to make sure you avoid making these mistakes.

ERC Dataplus, a leading HR technology company, and Human Resource
Executive magazine announced the results of their August survey covering “2007 Forecast” .
Respondents were asked to rate the importance of key HR activities to business success over the next 24 months.

Topping the list was talent retention with 75 % of respondents giving this issue a “very important” rating. This was followed by performance management with 65 %, leadership development with 58 %, talent acquisition 54 % and screening/assessment with 44 %.

When asked how much top leadership seeks HR input for key strategic decisions such as mergers, outsourcing, and retructuring, 51 % of the respondents reported “to some degree” while 31 % indicated “to a great degree.”

Asked about the direction of HR business process outsourcing, 23 % of the respondents expect the trend to escalate rapidly. The majority, 57 %, expect the trend to grow only slightly while 11 % expect the trend to flatten out and the remaining 9 % expect to see the functions brought back in house.