Key Human Resource Issues before Corporate India

A survey was carried out by a market research firm in 2006 to find out how "Human Resource" is being managed in various Corporate houses in India.Right at the outset,please remember that it is a established fact that human resource is the most valuable resource of a business organization.
The two point briefs for the survey were:-
1) First brief was to identify the key human resource issues before the Corporate India,highlighting the crisis in "Peoples Management",
and
2) Second brief was to bring out the challenges ahead for the Corporate India.
The survey collected response from 653 respondents.Out of which 477 were managers from different line & support functions(Please note,it did not include managers from HR function).
98 Human Resource managers and 78 CEOs.
These 653 respondents were selected from 350 Corporate Houses spanning six metros of
New-Delhi,Chennai,Bangalore,Calcutta,Mumbai,and Hyderabad.
In the first stage of the survey,a mailed questionaire focusing on the CEOs perception of the role of HR in their business Organization was sent to following four genres of Companies:-
a) BT-500 Corporate Houses.
b)Transnationals not part of BT-500
C)Fast growing Corporate houses in terms of sales turnover.
and
d) Public Sector Undertakings.
In the second stage,a structured questionaire was administered to Human Resource Managers of various business Organizations.
The following were the findings of the survey:-
The top eight concerns expressed by Managers rating their Corporate Houses' "Human Resource Management policies and practices were:-
1) The lack of ability of business Organizations to attract the best professionals.
2) Absence of an effective Performance Appraisal & Reward System.
3) Absence of Team-Spirit.
4) Lack of Career growth opportunities and Career Planning.
5) Lack of Job satisfaction.
6) Unsatisfactory HR Practices while implementing Managerial exit.
and
7) Ineffectiveness of exit interviews.
The Survey used these critical issues to highlight the following main areas of disagreement between CEOs,Line Managers and Human Resource Managers:-
a) Recruitment --- 83% of the CEOs surveyed felt that their HR managers do a good job of recruiting people with the requsite skill sets.
Now,please note that the number of line managers agreeing with their CEOs are significantly lower at 72%.
Moreover,there is a consensus among HR managers and line managers that adequate number of people are not always recruited.
b) Job satisfaction --- 3/4(75%) of HR managers and line managers expressed satisfaction with the level of attention paid to Employees welfare and to work culture in their business organization but strongly stressed more needs to be done in these areas.
Now please note the worry,however, is that approximately 91% of CEOs feel that their Corporate Houses are Employee-friendly.
At the same time,please note that only 78% of the HR managers and line managers endorse this point of view. Also, 30% of Managers feel that no effective system for tracking employees satisfaction exist in their Corporate Houses.
c) Information flow --- 76% of the CEOs agree that seniors give adequate performance feedback to their subordinates.
However,only 66% of the line managers and 70% of the HR managers agree to this.
Please note that 79% of the HR managers are of the view that communication of Human Resource policies accurately is a high priority.
However, neither CEOs nor line managers share the HR managers' enthusiasm.
d) Career Planning --- 2 out of every 6 Human Resource managers feel that their business organizations do not have a well-defined career growth plans for all its employees.
However,70% of HR managers and line managers agree that most employees are given opportunities to work in a wide range of functions within the business organization.
e) Empowerment --- 52% of the HR managers and line managers surveyed agree that their business organizations nurture risk-taking abilities in their employees.
1/6th of HR managers and line managers feel that inadequate attention is given to employees' empowerment.
However,68% of the CEOs are of the opinion that Employees enjoy significant freedom in Corporate decision-making. But only 62% of the line managers agree to this.
f) Training and development --- 86% of HR managers and line managers agree that adequate attention is paid to employees growth and development.
However,most of the CEOs feel that more attention needs to be paid to "training and development of employees".
g) Line managers uniformly view the Human Resource function of "Performance Appraisal & Reward System"as an area of grave concern.
Please note,this is where the largest dissonance between HR managers and line managers emerge.
75% of HR managers and CEOs feel that there is a formal Appraisal & Reward System in their business organization.
However,only 68% of line Managers agree to this.
Approximately 72% of Human Resource managers and 54% of the line managers concur about the effectiveness of the "Performance Appraisal & Reward System".
h) Compensation or Salary Structure --- This is another critical area of difference between HR managers and line managers.
75% of CEOs hold that in their business organization "compensation packages ensure maximum employees benefits".CEOs and HR managers agree that their companies' salary packages match the best in the Industry.
However,only 47% of Human Resource managers agree to this.
i) Employees exit --- An uncomfortable issue at best.Firing or removing do not potray CEOs in a favourable light.
70% of CEOs feel that they are humane & fair towards the employees laid off.
The Final Analysis:-
The road to successful implementation of HR practices in business organization is a continuous process and a long one, as most of it still remains untravelled.
39% of HR managers feel that their companies' HR practices have to catch up with the best in the Industry.
51% of the line managers agree to this.
This opinion option has been expressed by Anupam Sinha.
Anupam Sinha
(Corporate Human Resource Advisor & Trainer).
Cell:+919650538286.
Place:GK-I,New-Delhi,India,Asia.
Date:19.01.2010
Time:12.30pm