THE FUTURE OF HR?

Prof. Navin Mathur Vice Chancellor Jai Narain Vyas University, Jodhpur

SHIFTS THAT ARE RE-SHAPING HR ROLES

FROM
Local markets, operations Manufacturing, clerical work Hierarchy Intermediaries; face-to-face Obedience to formal authority Stability, efficiency, control Full time job Customer service Work done by employees Fixed work location Management prerogative Loyal service White, male workforce Financial performance Get a job

TO
Global markets, operations Service, knowledge work Networks Direct access,virtual relationship Questioning of formal authority Change, creativity, flexibility, order Part-time and project work Shareholder, stakeholder value Work done by many contributors Diverse work locations Social licence Marketable knowledge, skills Diverse workforce Triple bottom line Get a life

CHANGING WORKER ASPIRATIONS

RICHARD BRANSON MICHAEL JORDAN

RICHARD BORES (Wizard Home Loans)

MERY STREEP AND JODIE FOSTER ANITA RODDICK

NELSON MANDELA AND JERRY MAGUIRE

had a dream and went through with it...loved what he did lives life the way he wants... created this lifestyle for herself out of what could have been a downward spiralreally inspiring
AFR BOSS magazine, June 2001. Survey of work role models for white collar Australians, in 20-30 years age range.

HR AT A CROSSROADS
Results of a forum on the "The State of the HR Profession" held in conjunction with the 2001 Annual Conference of the Society for Human Resource Management Significant change is inevitable for HR but what HR will be and do is not yet clear SRHM is doing research to develop a vision for the future of HR and a profile of the future HR practitioner An HR practitioner might be "a hybrid line manager" who is "first and foremost a business executive" but has expertise in at least one HR function. SHRM President and CEO, Helen Drinan We have to get management to understand that they're responsible for people AND If we do our joband work ourselves out of a jobso be it."
Also see FT.com online forum on Human Resources: A career in crisis?

EMERGING LEGAL ISSUES AT WORK

NEW TECHNOLOGY ISSUES AGE CONSCIOUSNESS IN THE WORKPLACE GLOBALISATION OF EMPLOYMENT LAW TRAINING FOR LEGAL COMPLIANCE WORKPLACE SAFETY

HR EXECUTIVES VIEW OF THE FUTURE

TOP 5 BUSINESS CHALLENGES Developing new markets TOP 3 HR CHALLENGES Attracting and retaining talented people Improving organisational capabilities Developing leadership skills

Improving profitability
Market share growth Becoming the recognised global market leader Building shareholder value

The bad and the ugly in HR

Many HR people still lack business acumen We have not adequately managed high expectations of HR Theres too much modeling of mediocrity and way too little real research going on We have overhyped e-learning and some other fads We do much order-taking and mistaking talk for action

DEFENCE: In the Box Scenario Matrix

Open globalised world economy

Global middle class

Social polarisation and exclusion

Source: Hardin Tibbs report to Australian Defence HQ 1999

Closed protectionist world economy

DEFENCE: Way Out of the Box Scenario Matrix

Revolution in basic science

Single world government

Social progress with no discontinuity

Psycho-social evolutionary punctuation

Discontinuity in human consciousness

Source: Hardin Tibbs report to Australian Defence HQ 1999

Science reaches a plateau

TWO SCENARIOS OF THE 21ST CENTURY ORGANISATION

MIT Initiative on Inventing the Organizations of the 21st Century (January 1997) facilitated by Peter Schwartz of the Global Business Network:http://ccs.mit.edu/21c/21CWP001.html

The scenarios were developed during 1994-1997 by MIT academic and research staff in discussions with hundreds of executives at various MIT Symposia, executive education programs, etc.

FUTURE OF ORGANISATIONS: Scenario 1

SMALL COMPANIES,LARGE NETWORKS
Autonomous teams of 1-10 people Temporary - task or project based Linked by high bandwidth, electronic network Venture capital infrastructure identifies promising teams and provides financing

Independent organisations for social networking, recreation, learning,reputation building and income smoothing evolved from professional associations, unions, clubs, university alumnis, neighbourhoods, families, churches they are home for our identity as projects come and go
Examples: Film industry; Prato Mills (Italy); Nike; Nokia PC Display Division

Small Company, Large Network HR

Very specific HR scope focused on project organisation (e.g. talent scouting/selection, pay, health & safety) Outsourced
agents, brokers, specialist providers contract staff organisations handle the HR for their talent as part of their brand and competitive strategy

Mutual employment obligations spelled out in project contracts

or implicit in industry standards or assumed from past working experience

Project Managers reputation depends on his/her people skills and hence there is a reluctance to delegate to HR specialists

Small Company, Large Network HR (cont.)

Selection is via networks, personal references, reputation Performance management is via peer pressure and industry/ professional standards Rewards are contractual or entrepreneurial (equity based) Development is via doing leading edge projects Innovation is via brokers, deal makers, agents, sponsors Individuals rely on professional associations, guilds, managers/agents

FUTURE OF ORGANISATIONS: Scenario 2

VIRTUAL COUNTRIES
Keiretsu-like alliances with operating companies in every country Minimal national allegiance - primary loyalty is to the corporation Traditional hierarchy or decentralised divisional structure Company is the focus for individual identity Company meets employees needs from cradle to grave Employees own the firm AND have right to elect the Board and management Open book accounting informs management elections Specialist organisational designers travel through firm brokering partnerships and fostering cross boundary communication Role of governments, industry unions is significantly reduced
Examples: Asea Brown Boveri; GE; Johnson & Johnson

Virtual Country HR
HR almost replaces social welfare, education systems and provides financial management and estate planning services, etc Corporate (strategic) HR
sets standards and monitors the corporate culture helps Marketing build the corporate brand

Divisional (operational) HR
total care of employees so they are free to focus on performance

Actively involved in local communities to reinforce the company culture and image

Virtual Country HR (cont.)

Selection emphasises fit with corporate values Performance management focuses on results achieved the XYZ way and on being a company ambassador in all areas of life Reward is via promotion, enhanced status, rights, benefits - and pay Development is via corporate colleges and universities in partnership with the worlds best educational institutions

Innovation is through internal R&D and improvement programs with heavy emphasis on protecting corporate intellectual property

CHANGING HR ROLES: Some Generalisations

PAST
HR ROLE WAS CLEARLY DIFFERENTIATED mechanistic (Personnel Admin) ritualistic, legalistic (IR) CEOs eyes and ears with the troops distinct professional career paths

FUTURE
PEOPLE/LEADERSHIP ROLE IS DISTRIBUTED AND DIFFUSE knowledge management relationship management; teamwork legal compliance change management no distinct HR profession new hybrid roles emerge

HR is HRs responsibility

People/Leadership is everyones responsibility

NEW CRITERIA FOR RATING HR?

Profit generated per employee (compared to industry benchmark) Salary/wages costs compared to industry median (reflecting value of corporate reputation/intangibles in labour market) Number of talented candidates applying for advertised (and unadvertised) vacancies Time taken to satisfy customer orders, inquiries, complaints (compared to agreed service standards) Incidence of customer complaints caused by employee behaviour Cost of re-work Cost/risk due to time lost through injuries, absences, disputes Rate/cost of unplanned turnover among good performers Percentage of customers citing service quality or competent, caring staff as a competitive edge for the company Net cost of generating organisational improvements Percentage of revenue/profits coming from initiatives taken in last 3 years Share price premium compared to industry peers

AN INTEGRATING STORY?
OUTCOMES
(Stakeholders)

ARCHITECTURE
(Leadership)

FUNCTIONS
(Management)

Shareholder/ Investor

VISION & MISSION CORPORATE STRATEGY Competitive strategy Development strategy Leadership style Culture/Values/Ethics ORGANISATIONAL DESIGN Structure Technology Place

Finance Investor Relations

Sales & Marketing Operations R&D Contributor Relations Contracts (Legal) Supply PR Community Relations

Customer

Contributor - employee - other

Community