Managing Human Resource part 1
A software company owner asked me: “We are a small software company but is growing fast because of our quality services and talented workers. We double our size every year and need more talents. Is it possible to grow the company and at the same time, keep our quality services intact?”
I told him: “It is possible. You can grow your company and maintain the quality as long as you increase the capability of your workers. If your software development capability is an attribute of your company and not depending on the talents of few individuals than you can still growing and keep your quality service intact. This will require that you manage your human resources accordingly.
He asked: Many people mentioned about manage human resources but no one explains it clearly of what does it means?
I explained: Managing human resources is a key function within a company that focuses on managing workers who work for the company. It is a strategic approach to managing workers and enables them to contribute effectively and productively to the company direction to achieve the business goals and objectives. Today technology changes fast, job market is changing faster, and competition is no longer local but global. Managing human resource is also changing and no longer the same as the traditional personnel administration.”
He seemed surprised: “Why is it differing from traditional personnel management?”
I told him: “Today the business assets are the knowledge and skills of workers. Due to global competition, every company is having difficulty retaining skilled workers. If you do not treat them well, you will have difficulty keeping them. The problem is many managers are not trained in managing human resources. They do not know how to respond to the needs of their workers. They perceive management is about producing results, not about managing people who produce results. Many often lack the skill on evaluating and improving the capability of their workers. If a company does not establish policies for managing its skilled workers, it should not be surprised when some managers still consider them no different from unskilled workers which are easily replaceable.”
“Today many companies are still operating the same way as fifty years ago. Management actions are done with no analysis of their impact. Hiring people, firing people, managing people are performed in an “Ad hoc” manner instead of well-defined processes that have been designed to achieve measurable results. Decision is made by managers without any consequences. If a manager does not like a person, he can fire that person as he wishes and nobody would ask why. If he likes a person, he can give that person a good raise without anyone asking. Consequently, this type of “ad hoc” can be damaging to the company effectiveness. When a company fails to have its human resources management system in place, workers pursue their own plans. Mediocre performance is typical when companies provide no incentives for workers to align themselves with the business objectives. Loyalty declines when workers do not perceive the company to be a place where they can achieve their career aspirations. That is why workers consider the company as only a place for them to develop specific skills that, once developed, will be used to pursue job opportunities elsewhere.”
“When talents workers leave, company no longer has the capability to do much. Eventually, the company’s ability to perform is limited. When customers are not happy, they will take the business elsewhere. In this highly competitive market, it would be very difficult to stay in business. The first step in changing this issue is to get managers to take responsibility for the capability and development of those who report to them and that is human resource management.”
He thought for awhile and asked: “How do I start? What should I do?”
I told him: “To manage human resources, management must begin with the hiring process. Currently many companies have an “ad-hoc” approach of hiring employees. What I mean “ad hoc” is there is no policy, no standard, or process of selecting employees. Each manager makes decision on their own which results in a mix of employees with different talents. In that case, it may result in failing to hire good workers or selecting the wrong workers. Having a documented standard process of selecting employee in place is an essential part of a successful company. The selection process must be fair and well documented to ensure consistency. Hiring worker is the “input” to the way a company operates, it also determines the future of the company. No one can expect right “output” or quality works if the “input” is wrong. This is often a weakness in software companies where most managers are technical people but not well trained in the skills of selecting people.”
“Today company rarely clarify the responsibilities of managers, inconsistencies are to be expected. The way workers are treated depends largely on personal characteristic, experience, and the manager’s soft-skills. Although some managers perform their duty responsible, others perform their activities with little thinking and sometime ignore their responsibilities. More than ever, human resource management training is needed. To improve and perform, you must start the improvement and the first step is to start with your managers. This is not easy as many managers do not want to change. There will be some resistance to change and that is why for many years, human resource management is a topic many people talk about but not much has happened.”
Sources
- Blogs of Prof. John Vu, Carnegie Mellon University
