INNOVATION IN HR PRACTICES

N. Peri Sastri

Human-resource management is undergoing a massive transformation that will change career paths in as-yet uncertain ways. Employers are placing greater emphasis on business acumen and are automating and outsourcing many administrative functions, which will force many HR professionals to demonstrate new skills and compete for new, sometimes unfamiliar roles. Job titles and functions will likely remain in flux for some time, say business leaders, academics, HR consultants and HR professionals. But they say that some of the standard niches -- such as HR generalist and benefits specialist -will become less common and less important, giving way over time to new ones such as HR business analyst. The innovativeness in HR will have to become more strategic, more proactive and more involved in the overall business of their employer, say the exper ts. The magnitude of innovativeness can be measured with respect to business result, this can happen only when proper coupling with HR practices and business operations can be done with prudent economic sense. In the era of globalization while racing towards the 21st century, organizations are becoming increasingly competitive, dynamic, innovative and productive. It is in this context that we would need to innovate HR practices to prepare employees meet challenges of a knowledge-based economy and to respond to the dynamics of the work environment with technological skills
10

and a high level of thinking skills. It has now become increasingly significant for human resource development to be recognized as an important tool for corporate business strategies and integrating conceptual values with human values. In fact business strategy comes from the vision of the organization and goal setting done through a proper analysis and management philosophy of the organization. It therefore becomes imperative that HRM be integrated with the business objectives and should be seen as a competitive strategy. HR professionals need to develop business competencies and embrace new roles as Business Development Managers. This has gained importance in view of the fact that those in HR who need to evolve themselves as providing service to their internal / external customers. They need to have comprehensive perspective of the entire business operation. There are some companies who have even transferred HRD Managers to Marketing and other departments not only as a part of job rotation but also after they are found to be having the aptitude to undertake such jobs in those departments, they may even get absorbed based on their contribution and performance and recognized by the company for their true worth in such activities. One of the focal points to be borne in mind while formulating a HRD Policy in any organization should now be shifting its awareness from entitlement to perfor mance mode. The days are

numbered where employees would always make demands for entitlements to various benefits in the Company. Today the buzz is branding HR. In other words the HR function can develop a brand equity if the brand can deliver what it promises. There is a paradigm shift in HR today. HR people are seen more as facilitators than implementators. In fact it is a well-established fact that all line managers are the real HRD Managers since they play a key role in shaping HR processes and systems in their departments in view of having a span of control to focus on people's skills. There is therefore a need to forge a strategic alliance between HR management and business/financial strategies. HR jobs of the future are as follows : Internal resource consultant: The role is to spread HR competencies through the Organization and empower line managers to recruit, interview, hire and retain the people that they need while also counseling the managers on crucial, legal and other important matters of the company. HR as a business/financial analyst : In this context, one needs to demonstrate the inherent economic value of HR and also to analyze the cost effectives of various HR practices. How much do certain employees contribute to the bottom line? How much does the right training
BMA REVIEW Mar.-April 2003

help the business? Which functions or programmes do not add value and should be eliminated? Talent hunter : This person is mainly responsible for identifying, nurturing and developing the potential to bring out the stars who would play a key role to meet the organizational needs and requirements. He or she will manage learning succession, planning, moving people through the talent pipeline. Knowledge manager : A learning culture and environment to be created by holding brain storming sessions through various departments independently and create a knowledge bank or reservoir of ideas which may come in handy for the benefit of the working of an organization. The MIS Manager : Knowledge technology has assumed greater significance for computerization of total HRD processes by way of proper documentation for retrieval of information as and when required. There are signals for change with regard to new values emerging in human resources management aspects as given below.
Commitment to delighting customers: active contribution to the continuous improvement of services & products Seeking challenges ; meeting objectives & taking pride in achievement Good team work : building good relationships with colleagues and offering help & support without being asked Taking responsibility : for improving service to customers, getting the job done, for ones own job and career, and for the achievements of the team Respecting diversity : seeing customers & colleagues as individuals and being open to new ideas, opinions & approaches Commitment to the business : taking an interest in the performance & success of the business

Being flexible : not rule bound or rigid. Provision of good service comes before sticking to procedure Showing initiative : not waiting to be told what to do Getting it right : checking your own quality, not relying on others doing it for you Being eager : to acquire new skills & knowledge.

Giving confidence : to customers and colleagues.

Doing what: we say we will do when we say we will do it.

Being professional : displaying integrity and honesty, looking for opportunities rather than problems, being competent in all aspects of the job.

Many software companies are tending to outsource HR in large numbers. There are also some organizations where HR functions as a separate entity to provide consultancy services to external clients thus establishing itself as a separate profit center. The new challenge before the top-class HR professionals is to create and develop future CEOs and make organizations pro-active to change. This is the biggest challenge for the HR function. It is to ultimately integrate itself with the corporate future and to become a part of the business processes and strategies of any organization to succeed. The speed at which today's business processes are changing can be kept phased only through innovative HR practices, which can be done by gearing people's innovation in workplace, which adds to the economy of business operations. Perhaps the day is not so far off when the line mangers themselves would take up the total role of HR activity and seek support and

advice from external HRD consultants for achieving the desirable results in their departments. In other words there may not be any HRD dept functioning as such in organizations, which would ultimately lead to the path of total HRD outsourcing. Why is the HRD profession not held in high regard? It is because too often it is seen as a department that likes to say NO rather than as enabler of change. The trend is now to move away from being fire fighters and more about developing people and organizations for competitive success.

HR Outsourcing : In the new age of mergers/acquisitions, organizations are tending to become mean and lean and therefore the need to outsource HR particularly in the areas of recruitment, training, performance management, and other related areas. External consultants would provide the required training and support to the line managers for implementing the HRD practices and policies. HR expertise would be provided by these consultants.

N. Peri Sastri is Sr. VicePresident (HR), Gujarat Ambuja Cements Ltd.

Email: nperi@ambujamail.com nperi@rediffmail.com

BMA REVIEW Mar. - April 2003

11