HR in the Times of Slowdown

Slowdown may not be all that bad for organizations if they retain the balance to pull out all those quadrant two items that never saw daylight during long period of growth.


Here’s a list of things that HR departments may want to run through;

1. Take time from CEO and run through manpower plan just in case it was given to you before mid-September 2008.

2. If you’re still hiring, take a hard look at salary structures that you’d offer. You’ll be surprised how much de-risking you can do for your organization now.

3. Offer a salary correction rather than raise at interview. Remember if all assets were over valued, so was human asset and there is no reason that later shouldn’t get corrected. My guess is 20 – 25% correction is a fare call.

4. Functions where deliverables can be easily measured, keep performance linkages to payouts. You can provide for higher payouts on better performance considering value of high performance during slowdown can be much more than usual days.

5. It’s a great time to test senior management commitments, propose a salary cut. Up to 15% salary cut doesn’t hurt anyone’s lifestyle at senior level.

6. While you look at costs, please note that cutting a few cups of tea may not impact costs much but can cause discomfort to large part of the team, so avoid high visibility low impact calls.

7. This is a great time to bring everyone’s attention to performance. Leaders can inspire people to deliver unexpected performances in tough times. This has been seen during wars, natural calamities time and again.

8. Lastly do not stop smiling, playing, movies, rewards, recognitions. Interact with teams regularly and in high spirits. Listen to some Bob Dylan...times they are a changin... :)

Tagged Economic Slowdown Employees Entrepreneurship Human resources Management Performance Management Team building

plugHR launches "sharedPages" - The Book Club

In most of my meetings with senior management at corporates, training needs are discussed without exception. In almost 80% cases the need is severly felt in behavioural & attitudinal enlightenment space rather than core skills.

This makes the job difficult because unlike skill training that revolves around transfer of skill and then fine tuning through practise, behavioural changes are more evolutionery in speed. Behaviour, beliefs and attitudes developed over some 25-30 years of cconditioning do not get addressed in 3 day seminars. At best these efforts can act as triggers through which one can identify and establish the need to change.

Actual process of change is more long term, self driven and isolated attempt in most cases. In absence of a robust mentoring machinery around this goal in organization, learning material like books, movies, cases etc can provide enthusiasts with the required armery.

Having entrusted with the task of talent development at our client organizations, plugHR initiated an attempt in that direction by launching sharedPages - A book Club that allows members to benefit from recommended selection of such learning content without investing time & money.

Currently launched as a private club for plugHR employees and those of its clients, sharedPages works through close relationship with organizations.

Check out www.sharedPages.wordpress.com for more details.

sharedPages is on now!!! Happy reading.....

Tagged Book Club Books Employees HR Hobbies Training