Managing Critical Factors of HR The prerequisite for an organization to excel in all aspects of its business activities is absolute strategic management of its HR functions.Human resource management is an extensive term that covers various aspects of personnel function. This discussion is focused on three main aspects that constitute human resource management. Personnel administration Human resource development Industrial relations Personnel administration: It can be also called as the HR module where policies and programmes are laid down by the HR department for the benefit of the human resource personnel. Employment and compensation are chiefly dealt with in personnel administration. While business firms in the corporate environment are in constant demand of man power, finding the right person for the right job is always a testing task for them. Right from job analysis to HR planning, recruitment, selection, placement, induction and orientation, HR department is held accountable to define and develop these operative functions. Mere acquisition and incorporation of human resource is not adequate, the organizations have to engage themselves in empowering their employees through competent training, motivation and refining their social relations. Job Assessment: Job assessment has to be done for fixing compensation that includes wages and salary administration, incentives, bonus, fringe benefits and social security measures. The shifting business environment and consumer requirements compel the organizations to restructure and re-engineer their organizational functions. These moves can be viewed as strategic responses reflecting from all domains of an organization, namely product, marketing, manufacturing etc., where people are the centre of focus. Human resource development: This is easier said than done. Firms are trying to evolve and employ various methodologies of training to enhance the performance levels to the desired standards. Performance cannot be achieved by coercion or bureaucracy, as the work force is protected by numerous enactment of labor laws enforced by various governments. Training and development is a separate entity by itself and is a continuous process that aims at the development of the organization as a whole and also facilitates employee career planning and development. Industrial relations: The following factors have to be scrutinized by the management to maintain good personal relations with the employees. Motivation Morale Job satisfaction Communication Grievance handling Discipline procedure Quality of work life Employee participation All said and done, the organizational health can be measured by checking the effectiveness of HR management through aspects like HR audit and research that aid the firms to analyze and understand the extent to which they are efficient in utilizing human resource for the benefit of their organization. The experience of a human resource manager comes in handy at situations like these, where he has to don different roles to suit the occasion. Personnel role-advisor for top management, policy maker, counselor to employees, spokesman of the company, change analyst, liaison Welfare role-researcher, catering man, motivator Clerical role-time keeping, wages and salary administration, record maintenance, human engineering Fire fighting legal role-negotiator, trouble shooter, peace maker, problem solver, grievance handling. The management employs scientific, analytical, psychological and social techniques to build the business around human resource, who are the real value additions to the...

An entrepreneur is one person who has the ability to think outside the box, to cash in on the opportunities, to think big and different, to go for innovative ideas, to take unwarranted risks and to make a difference amongst the ordinary lot. Women entrepreneurs are no exception as they have the ability to bring unique perspectives to problem-solving that truly sets them apart as trailblazers in every field they venture into. Modern business world and the society as a whole have understood the importance of women emerging as successful and powerful entrepreneurs which has proven good for the growth of a country’s economy. Challenges of Being a Woman The challenges start at the grass root level: being a woman is sufficient enough to create a gender bias and to be looked down. Physically the differences are obvious and the strength that a man is empowered with cannot be overruled, but the inner strength and the power to conquer that a woman is empowered with can never be equaled. Running a household is even more difficult than running a corporate business. All your management principles come under the household umbrella. No tactics or strategy is left unturned for the smooth running of the household. A woman needs no training in areas of strategic planning decision making (comes naturally) developing interpersonal relationship delegating authority decentralization managing leadership motivating others and self-motivation crisis management impression management quality of work Women CEO’s add Value to their Companies Nature has blessed her with all these and many more managerial qualities that are needed to manage an organization effectively and efficiently. Gone are the days when they were treated a step down, now most of the corporates have very efficient CEOs and their ability is reflected in terms of productivity and profitability. Moreover, a woman adds value to the company as responsibility is her second name and this works out in favor of the organization to gain the trust and confidence of its consumers, suppliers and stake holders. A woman can occupy any post of its highest kind including the presidential or prime ministerial positions. The enthusiasm that a woman entrepreneur exuberates is infectious and induces positive vibes in the organization. Be it negotiations, tackling the union leaders and workers, business travels or bargaining, nothing is a problem. She is more efficient in clinching deals and proves adventurous in concluding new business ventures. Work – Life Balance A woman has to have a balance between her family, relationships, children and work. That is the biggest ever challenge which she handles with ease. The financial pinch that the recent economy has created has served as an eye opener for men in realizing the fact that a house needs two financial paymasters for running the show. Success Ratio of Women Entrepreneurs Few women entrepreneurs emerge out as victors as most of them lack support from their counterparts and lack of financial support from banks, financial institutions may also slacken the pace and hinder their progress. The success ratio has considerably increased when compared to olden days but still many of them lack the nerve to start their own business. Ignorance and lack of self-reliance are the major factors hindering the development of female entrepreneurs. I have seen many women who are born in business families with natural business instinct and their added advantage would be the already available infrastructure, platform and guidance to grow and make it to the top. Even circumstances force certain women to go in for self owned business and once they taste the essence of success they never want to look back. The society has a bigger role to play in developing more women entrepreneurs by giving positive support. Women have a better...

Grading employees’ performance helps identify strengths and areas for improvement, fostering growth and productivity. It ensures fair evaluations and supports career development within the organization. Organizational Development Organizational Development denotes an overall and comprehensive development of an organization supported by the entire team of employees working for that organization. A useful technique in the management process that serves as a measure of performance and productivity is “performance evaluation” or performance appraisal. Performance refers to the degree of accomplishment of the task that makes up an individual’s job.  Performance appraisal serves the following purpose To assess the present levels of employee performance. To understand the future needs in training and development based on the strengths and weaknesses of the employees. To provide feedback on their performance. Serves as a basis for reward allocation, such as, increase in pay scale, promotions and many other decisions like, confirmations, transfer, demotion etc., Establishes performance standards and offers scope for improvement. Acts as a motivational tool for workers to perform better. Checks and facilitates employees who exhibit poor performance. Also assesses behavioral pattern of the employees. People who work for big corporate companies identify themselves with the objectives of the company and expect feedback, either in the form of a compliment or criticism. Compliments act as morale boosters to perform better and criticism though initially might puncture the ego, induces the potential to perform, to prove oneself. Managers should never be reluctant on their part to appraise subordinates on the job expectations and demands. In an activity as important as managing, there must be no pitfalls to measure performance as accurately as possible.  The Appraisal Process The next important aspect in the appraisal process would be deciding the content to be appraised. Individual task outcomes where performance is evaluated on the outcomes delivered by the individuals, evaluation of personal characteristics and traits or behavior are done to rate the employees as to where they stand in terms of performance. Appraisal Techniques The widely used managerial technique in the appraisal process is evaluating performance against verifiable objectives, which truly makes sense, because the employees would be blind folded if they don’t have the right direction to proceed. Evaluation can be done in a comprehensive, periodic or continuous fashion. It all depends on the nature of work done, company practice and other situational factors. Say, for instance, performance review can be done after the completion of a major project, that makes sense, doesn’t it?  Periodical reviews Formal reviews can be supplemented and supported with frequent and short informal reviews, for the superior- subordinate relationship to prosper and to keep communication channels open. All said and done, performance review based on verifiable objectives, although gives better vision and clarity, doesn’t allow the manager or subordinate to grow individually. It does not help in personality development; the emphasis ever being focused on accomplishing the operating objectives.  The 360 Degree Appraisal The latest approach of performance evaluation is the 360 degree appraisal that well suits the managerial cadre. It provides for performance feedback from the full circle of daily contact, that a manager might have, ranging from customers, peers, subordinates, boss etc. , This also fits into organizations that have introduced teams, employee participation and total quality management...

Coaching and Mentoring are the two strategic pillars of a business organisation without which the employees would be mere robots working without job satisfaction. The Definition. A coach is someone who provides guidance to a client on their goals and helps them reach their full potential. A mentor is someone who shares their knowledge, skills and/or experience, to help another to develop and grow. Objectives of Coaching The main purpose of coaching is to develop the employee as an effective perfomer. It involves the following: 1) Helping him to realise his potential as a manager. 2) Helping him to understand himself – his strengths and his weaknesses. 3) Providing him an opportunity to acquire more insight into his behaviour, and analyse the dynamics of such behaviour. 4) Helping him to have better understanding of the environment. 5) Increasing his personal and inter-personal effectiveness through effective feedback. 6) Encouraging him to set goals for further improvement. 7) Encouraging him to generate alternatives for dealing with his problems and prepare an action plan. 8) Helping him to review in a non-threatening way his progress in achieving various objectives. 9) Providing empathetic atmosphere for sharing and discussing his tensions, conflicts, concerns and problems.  Download this Coaching Goals planner that will help you in measuring the outcome effctively. 👇 Coaching-Goals-PlannerDownload Objectives of Mentoring The main purpose of mentoring is to provide opportunity to young people to share their concerns and get both moral support and guidance for their development. It involves the following : 1) Establishing a relationship of trust 2) Modeling beahviorual norms for the young person 3) Listening to the person’s concerns and problems 4) Helping him to search alternative solutions for the problems 5) Sharing own relevant experiences 6) Responding to his emotional needs, without making him depend on the mentor 7) Developing long-lasting, personal, and informal relationship. Who is your most trusted advisor when it comes to important issues affecting your business? A small stats in percentage. Fellow business owner – 31Business coach – 24Family member – 18Accountant – 8Employee – 6Consultant – 4Friend – 3Lawyer – 2Other – 4 In which areas would a business coach have the most impact for your business? Strategic planning – 31PR / Marketing / Social media – 14Leadership – 11Succession planning – 9Managing change – 8Profitability – 8Productivity – 7Employee relations – 5Other – 7 Five Tips for Coaching Employees Define your role as a coach Create a safe environmentHelp them define and verbalize their answers, directions and actions. 2. Listen to what is said Be curious, Seek to understand“Tell me more….” “What’s happening….” 3. Observe what is heard and seen Focus on just the factsShare what you observe providing a judgement-less summary.“Here is what I heard you say….”“So it sounds like you are or want to….” 4. Validate what is felt -share the emotion and acknowledge it 5. Empower what is possible – Forward the thinking, explore, options showing faith and optimism. If you are like most of us, you are constantly striving for more engaged employees. Engagement not only leads to higher job satisfaction and lower turnover but also increases productivity and revenue. But how do we boost engagement among our teams? The answer is through coaching. 80% of those who have received coaching report positive impact  in areas such as work performance, communication skills, well-being and business management strategies. Download this Achieving Goals Planner to form an idea about effective habits. 👇 Achieving-Goals-PlannerDownload 65% of employees in a strong coaching culture are highly engaged. Organisations with strong coaching cultures report revenues above those of their industry peer group and report higher employee engagement. While more and more organisations are using coaches as a key strategy...

You Can Delegate Authority, but Not Responsibility Responsibility of a Manager: A corporate manager is accorded with the huge responsibility of leading his subordinates in the right direction, by giving proper insights on the tasks to be accomplished. The success rate depends on how well he delegates his authority down the line to get things done. The art of delegation results not only in down sizing his work pressure but also in the empowerment of subordinates, that elevates them to a higher plane of understanding and achievement. An Excerpt from The Art of Delegation: Developing This Essential Managerial Skill Delegation helps you handover the authority of certain tasks to capable team members so that you free up your time to work on more pressing issues. But you still remain responsible to get those completed in proper way. Hence it is essential to have a status check or communication with the team member on regular basis. Accountability of Subordinates: The subordinates, when entrusted with the responsibilities of performing a task by themselves and the necessary authority to make decisions within the area of their assigned duties, are obliged to perform. The necessary assistance and training for the new assignment has to be planned for, by the manager to make them perform as per the expected standards. The thing is right people should be chosen for the entrusted job. They should possess the zeal and enthusiasm to deliver the desired output. Some people perform beyond expectations and they should be rewarded with additional responsibilities. Whatever the case may be, it is a wise thing to delegate simple assignments at the initial stage, and proceed with more challenging jobs depending upon the caliber of the incumbent. THE ENTREPRENEUR’S GUIDE TO DELEGATION Clear and Clever Delegation: Clear and clever delegation facilitates to build a formal organization structure, where the subordinates are trained well and they look up to the manager for direction and guidance. Although the authority is delegated, the manager is held accountable and answerable to the management for the performance output or the end result. Some managers hesitate to delegate, just for the reason that their weaknesses might get exposed. Some don’t have confidence in their subordinates. Some even fear that they might lose their power if the subordinate is very shrewd and exceeds the expectations. Managers fail because of poor delegation; the reasons being personal attitude of managers in delegating authority. Let us understand some of the basic principles to be adhered to while delegating: The authority delegated to subordinates should be adequate enough to ensure their ability to accomplish the expected results. Authority can be delegated but responsibility can never be delegated. Responsibility of subordinates is “performance” and that of managers is “responsibility for the action of their subordinates”. One cannot be held responsible for a task if he has only limited authority. There need to be a balance between authority and responsibility. The presence of a single superior will invoke greater feeling of personal responsibility among the subordinates. Lack of receptiveness on the superior’s part will incur greater loss in terms of performance and efficiency. Instead, a manager should develop a trustful attitude towards his subordinates and should have the patience to explain the policies, objectives and guidelines and give sufficient authority to perform a duty. HOW WELL EMPLOYEES KNOW ABOUT YOUR ORGANIZATION? Although initially the efforts taken to train a subordinate is time consuming, the more empowered he becomes, less is your time taken to accomplish the enterprise objectives. The superior must be able to create a climate of mutual trust and goodwill, to make delegations effective in the light of expected...