“People are our greatest asset” is a mantra that companies have been chanting for years. But only a few companies have started putting Human Resources Management (HRM) systems in place that support this philosophy. There are a number of challenges in the Indian IT industry which require the serious attention of HR managers to ‘find the right candidate’ and build a ‘conducive work environment’ which will be beneficial for the employees, as well as the organization. The IT industry is already under stress on account of persistent problems such as attrition, confidentiality, and loyalty. Other problems are managing people, motivation to adopt new technology changes, recruitment and training, performance management, development, and compensation management. With these challenges, it is timely for organizations to rethink the ways they manage their people. Managing HR in the knowledge based industry is a significant challenge for HR managers as it involves a multi-task responsibility. In the present scenario, HR managers perform a variety of responsibilities. Earlier their role was confined to administrative functions like managing manpower requirements and maintaining rolls for the organization. Now it is more strategic as per the demands of the industry.
Managing People
In view of the industry dynamics, in the current times, there is a greater demand for knowledge workers. Resumes abound, yet companies still fervently search for the people who can make a difference to the business. Often talented professionals enjoy high bargaining power due to their knowledge and skills in hand. The attitude is different for those who are taking up responsibilities at a lesser age and experience. These factors have resulted in the clear shift in approach to individualized career management from organization career commitment.
Motivating the Workforce
As the competition is growing rapidly in the global IT market, a technological edge supported by a talent pool has become a crucial factor for survival in the market. Naturally, as a result every organization gives top priority to technology advancement programs. HR managers are now performing the role of motivators for their knowledge workers to adopt new changes.
Competency Development
Human capital is the real asset for any organization, and this makes the HR role important in recruiting, managing, and retaining the best. The HR department has a clear role in this process and determines the success tempo of any organization. An urgent priority for most of the organizations is to have an innovative and competent HR pool; sound in HR management practices with strong business knowledge.
Recruitment and Training
Recruitment has become a major function from an imperative sub-system in HR, particularly in the IT industry. HR managers play a vital role in creating assets for the organization in the form of quality manpower. Attracting new talent also is a top priority for software companies, but less so for smaller companies. Another challenge for HR managers is to put systems in place to make the people a perfect fit for the job. Skill redundancy is fast in the IT industry. To overcome this problem, organizations give the utmost priority to training and skill enhancement programs on a continuous basis. Many IT companies are providing technical training to the employees on a quarterly basis. These trainings are quite useful also in terms of providing security to the employees.
The Trust Factor
Low levels of trust inhibit tacit knowledge sharing in the knowledge based industry. It is essential that the IT industry takes more initiatives to improve the security levels of the employees.
Work Life Balance Factor
Another dimension to the challenges faced by IT Industry is the growing pace of talent acquisition. This aspect creates with it the challenge of a smoother assimilation and the cultural binding of the new comers into the organization fold. The pressure of delivering the best of quality services in a reduced time frame calls for ensuring that employees maintain a work life balance.
One of the most important duties of the modern HR manager is to get things done through people. He has to bring employees into contact with the organization in such a way that the objectives of both groups are achieved. He must be interested in people, the work and the achievement of assigned objectives. To be effective, he must balance his concern for people and work. In other words he must know how to utilize human as well as non-human resources while translating goals into action.
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