Is Something Missing In Our HR Departments? - By Shamika Khatawkar

Dear Reader,

I am sure most of us on reading the title of the blog will be curious to find out as what is really missing in our HR departments…hold on for a while…as we proceed we will surely uncover what it is
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Change is inevitable! Every field no matter which it is, undergoes a series of change as it evolves; it is this change which broadens the scope and applicability of the field. The same goes for the field of Human Resources as well.

If we trace its development, we can broadly see that the field emerged as the ‘welfare department’ within factories, which then transformed to the ‘personnel department’ and finally to the ‘Human Resource Department’. With every transition, the focus of the field has been redefined.

If we see HR departments today, there is a considerable shift, where employees are not merely employees; but more of a ‘Resource’ and their ‘Performance’ is not merely performance in quantitative or qualitative terms but ‘Something beyond that’.  

So what is ‘something beyond that’, which organizations crucially consider along with an employee’s performance? 

Give it a guess…it’s not that difficult. 

 OK

…here it goes, it’s an Employee’s Behavior!

Yes, It is! 

Now if we relate back to the field of Human Resources, we can certainly identify that today, organizations are laying heavy emphasis on ‘Measuring Behavior’ along with one’s performance.

Organizations are recognizing the importance of mapping behavioral competencies across roles and levels and are also making competencies a part of their Performance Appraisal Systems. 

Organizations are also relying on using ‘psychometric tools’ for ‘n’ number of reasons. Attitude Surveys, Climate Surveys, Engagement Surveys have become a common practice.

They are striving hard to identify why employees behave in a particular way; what are the factors that motivate positive behavior and so on. Along with that they are also tackling several behavioral as well as psychological concerns of their employees within the workplace, such as low level of satisfaction, motivation, low morale, boredom etc.

Keeping all this as a background, now the question arises that: Does an organization or the HR department have someone certified, qualified or trained in the Behavioral Sciences.

Someone who is trained to know, what to look for and how to look for it, within an organization? One who has studied human behavior and the psyche; hence is well equipped within the organizational context to deal with areas pertaining to Behavior. 

May be a few organizations would state that they do have a behavioral specialist to cater to this need. However, I am sure there are many more who will acknowledge that, “This is what is missing in our HR departments.” 

What do you feel? 

   

Happy 69th Independence Day India

E mere vatan ke logo,

jara aankh me bhar lo paani,

jo shahid hue hai unki, jara yaad karo kurbani...

This song was meant for those brave souls who fought for our freedom over sixty decades ago. Soldiers, revolutionaries, freedom fighters to whom we owe our freedom and to whom we shall always be indebted.

On the occasion of our 69^th Independence Day, we at Search 4 Excellence want to devote a few words to the incredible men who won us our freedom and to those who are protecting it to this day.

We salute all our heroes: Mahatma Gandhi, Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru, Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, Rajguru, Bal Gangadhar Tilak and many more who won that Independence for us.

We are also be very grateful to Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, who made the Indian Constitution which describes our rights and duties and most importantly our freedom of expression.

We salute the inspiring and moving speech of our First Prime Minister Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru.

“Long years ago we made a tryst with destiny, and now the time comes when we shall redeem our pledge, not wholly or in full measure, but very substantially. At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom. A moment comes, which comes but rarely in history, when we step out from the old to the new, when an age ends, and when the soul of a nation, long suppressed, finds utterance. It is fitting that at this solemn moment, we take the pledge of dedication to the service of India and her people and to the still larger cause of humanity.”

We salute the soldiers who fought the 1947/1948 war with Pakistan

 

We salute the soldiers who fought the 1962 Sino-Indian war with China

 We salute the soldiers who fought the 1965 war against Pakistan

We salute the soldiers who fought the 1971 war for the liberation of Bangladesh (East Pakistan then)

We salute the soldiers who fought the 1999 Kargil war

We salute the soldiers and men who protected us during the 25/11 Mumbai attacks

We salute the soldiers and men who protected us during the 2010 German Bakery attacks 

“and when all the wars are over, a butterfly will still be beautiful.” ― Ruskin Bond, Scenes from a Writer's Life

And so is India!! Still beautiful, still thriving, still developing and flourishing. And we hope, pray and firmly believe that we will continue down this path in the future so that the following vision of Rabindranath Tagore is fulfilled.

Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high
Where knowledge is free
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments
By narrow domestic walls
Where words come out from the depth of truth
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way
Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit
Where the mind is led forward by thee
Into ever-widening thought and action
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake

Jai Hind Jai Bharat.

What it takes to be “The” Leader?

What it takes to be “The” Leader?

What is it that takes to be “The” leader? The world has pondered over this question since time immemorial. While pondering, we have also scrutinized and analysed the leaders that have existed. We love to criticize them and always hold onto the thought that we would turn out to be better leaders than our present leaders.

Think about it, doesn't everyone want to be a leader at least once? Unfortunately, we work under the impression that we are / will be good leaders. Because, this is fueled by our own “idea” of what a good leader is.

So, how do you find out if your “idea” is synonymous to the world’s idea? Well, we have highlighted 5 major skills or competencies that are the markings of a good leader. 

Shared Leadership

Being a leader is so much more than leading a team to achieve their goals. As a leader, your job is to know your organization’s vision and mission and constantly drive it within the team. To be a leader who is result oriented or profit oriented, you need to be able to connect with your team and counterparts at a personal level. You need to synergize partnerships with your stakeholders and most importantly, your customers. If you can create a bond with your customers then you can drive your team to please the customers as well. Being a leader is perceived as a solitary task and it sometimes is. However, a good leader will always bring people in together and then act rather than dictate what needs to be done. The central idea is be the leader who is a good follower.

Self Discovery

Who likes a leader who doesn't lead by example? It’s an age old wisdom that is often spoken but the meaning has become redundant. A leader is good only if s/he “Walks the Talks”. Live by your principles and preach them. Only then, will you have a team in sync with you. Be aware of your strengths and weakness. A leader is admired and respected if s/he accepts their limitations. Humility is a good trait to have in a leader. Be humble enough to open yourself up to learning new methods, but, always have passion to be the best. The key is to be humble and passionate which the team then perceives as approachable.

Supports People Development

Be a leader for the people. Easier said than done! Good leaders have good teams. Be a coach and mentor to your team. Empower by giving the space to explore and express. Demand excellence and motivate your team to constantly achieve more. However, in the end, be the leader who realizes that his or her team is humane and have issues far larger than work, as that’s the leader who is voted as the “best boss of the year”. 

Strives for Results

All the talk about being people oriented and discovering oneself is moot if you can’t drive results. It’s your task to set goals and find solutions. It’s your

responsibility to make decisions and execute them well. A leader is like the

captain of a ship, s/he needs to set a course, foresee problems and calamities and re – route the path accordingly. Lastly, deliver quality while meeting quantity. History proves that, a team that has delivered qualitative and quantitative results are valued more than teams with quantitative results only.

Strategic Innovation

Lastly, be a leader who lives, breathes and drives change. Don’t be the person who is comfortable with a system, so settles in and gets old living it. Be the change or be the one to help change. To state the cliché, change is the only permanent in life. You, as the leader, need to not only invite innovative ideas but also help your team to come up with ways to implement them.

In the end, be the captain who is approachable, humble, result oriented and drives change. To be an exceptional leader, use these 5 skills in tandem and you will have solutions to all problems you might face. Being a leader is easy, but being ‘The’ leader makes your team and you reach new heights.