By ALEX YONG

This article discusses some of the challenges that Human
Resource (HR) must address if it is to remain relevant to
business.

The HR Vision

For a long time, HR managers have taken comfort in managing
their HR function by tending to the basic administrative HR
needs for the organization.  This intimate relationship with
procedures and rules that started way back when the country's
manufacturing base grew will need to be re-examined in light of
the fierce competition that Malaysian businesses face today.
There is an urgent need to think how HR can support business
better.

The HR fraternity has awakened to the need for HR to play a
strategic role in the organization.  Contributing to the clarion
call are those who are outside organizational HR who highlight
this urgency to support business needs.  This is a good sign.
But if HR is to play a strategic role, there must be efficiency
first within the function before it considers this more
challenging role about effectiveness.  HR cannot think about
effectiveness if its efficiency is in doubt.  Unfortunately,
many organizations are still at stage one: getting the HR basics
right.

The emphasis on efficiency deals with transactions and is often
focused on the management of workflow, data, HR costs, and
activity reporting.  On the other hand, the emphasis on
effectiveness is about defining the HR vision, re-aligning and
integrating its processes to deliver change, managing
performance to deliver business results, and developing and
rewarding talent.  These are like the two faces of the same coin
- the organization needs the strategic and administrative
efforts of HR if it is to stay competitive.

HR has to think business, understand business and be business
focused.  It has to understand how it is going to develop,
motivate and reward people in the organization to play their
chosen roles.  It has to think of the right mix of competencies
to build the organization's competitive edge.  This HR
realization of supporting business results has to be driven from
the top of the HR function.  The HR vision must be clear and
relevant to the business and is constantly reinforced in the HR
team.  No one is left out of this vision and every person in HR
understands what he needs to contribute.  HR professionals have
to understand that at the end of the day, HR is about the
business of the organization and not more organization of the
business.

A commitment to strategizing HR to support the business is not a
mere wish - it has to be supported by identifiable and clear
objectives and sound strategies.  You will need the right sort
of people to support the change within HR - change HR first
before you think about changing the organization.  In most
situations, this will require new hiring or even changing the
leadership of HR.  The HR function even in the traditional mode
is not without value, but what it needs now is how to actualize
its new vision.

The HR People

To some extent, the collective HR experience has become a trap
for HR and it impedes its ability to manage change.  There is
simply too much emphasis placed on experience and not enough on
imagination and trying out new things.  Those who have not been
investing in their self-renewal would want to believe that all
they have is all they need to have. What used to be HR's
strength could now be its weakness!  

As HR has developed over the years, the type and quality of HR
people have also grown.  The HR market has two types of HR
professionals: people on the supply side and people on the
demand side.  On the supply side, there are three categories of
HR people: the seasoned practitioner, the process
expert/consultant and the theorist.  The organization that wants
to transform its HR would have to make careful decisions about
acquiring the right sort of HR people.

Most administrators in HR are seasoned practitioners who have
acquired their administrative know-how through years of learning
on the job and consequently, their strength lies in their
knowledge of labour laws, HR procedures and HR house-keeping.
The process experts know specific HR processes by being exposed
to consultancy training and the application of proprietary
products, but they lack systems understanding and practical
problem solving.  Theorists tend to operate in a very niche
market.  HR administrators who moved from the staid
administrative environment to the more vibrant competitive
scenario, either by choice or through organizational renewal,
are going to find difficulty in delivering the results to match
new expectations.  This is so because basic administration
relies heavily on rules and precedents and tries to provide
consistency by relying on the past, whereas managing change
always asks: How can it be better?

On the demand side are visionary strategists.  They are fewer in
number in the market and they have the know-how and the vision
to facilitate HR change to support the business.  These
visionary HR people understand the big picture and have depth of
knowledge and diversity of experience to manage difficult
situations.  They think business and are forward looking.  They
hire the best HR support they can get and are not afraid to hire
people who are more qualified than themselves.  The HR visionary
is able to motivate his HR subordinates and empower them to
perform their best not just through the lure of monetary gain,
but often, by encouraging others to learn and enjoy the work and
set challenges for themselves.

The HR Choice

Giving reality to your HR vision does not come from the rules
that you have crafted.  Many HR managers think that to re-invent
HR is to make better rules and introduce more controls, or for
that matter, to purchase a computerized payroll software.  That
is totally incorrect. Also, some corporate leaders still live in
the past by thinking that if you can build a more powerful
command-and-control model of management you would get better
business results!

For HR to become effective, the first decision affecting HR is
the choice of the right leader. One cannot expect an
administrator to become a strategist after attending a HR
seminar.  It is not that easy.  Without having the right leader,
nothing significant is going to happen.

The second HR choice is about the roles that HR will play.  This
should see HR expand its role from being a controller and
administrator to become a business partner and change
facilitator.  To play the strategic role, HR would need to shift
a couple of gears higher and think about the strategic
initiatives that are essential to transform the change.  The
acceptance of the organization's vision should see a total
commitment to the vision.  Steps must be taken to build the
organization's competencies and value system.  To achieve this,
performance expectations have to be aligned and the measurement
of performance has to be objective and quantifiable.

HR should shift its focus away from performing transactions to
aligning and integrating processes.  It should evaluate how much
of automation is necessary.  It is critical that HR reorganize
its structure to support business strategy.
 
After three decades of HR learning, we have many ideas of what
the HR function is all about.  We know that basic administrative
HR has many limitations and is unable to cope with the demands
of the competitive environment.  If the HR function is to
deliver value, then the HR deliverables and employees'
performance indicators must be identified and the processes to
achieve that objective must be put in place.  There must be a
radical realization by HR leaders regarding their new roles and
the core competencies that would spell organizational success.

While the HR fraternity recognizes people as assets and the key
factor to organizational success, there appears to be more talk
than action.  Businesses must begin to translate HR ideas into
powerful processes and linkages that contribute to competitive
advantage.  Unless this is done, HR will lose its relevance to
the organization.


Alex Yong is author of the book Malaysian Human Resource
Management, published by MIM.  For more details, please call MIM
Customer Service at 03-21654611, e-mail enquiries@mim.edu or
visit www.mim.edu.