EFFECTIVE TALENT MANAGEMENT

Talent Management, often times referred to as Human Capital Management, is the process of recruiting, managing, assessing, developing and maintaining an organization’s most important resource- people. It’s pretty clear that people are a business’s most important asset and in this regard, organizations are seeking ways to build data-driven decision making

Integrated talent management is not a payroll system with some HR forms; it is not a recruitment system; and it is not a Performance Appraisal system. It could be HR Information System, but not by default. Technically, it’s a framework of tightly integrated HR processes that assist in making informed decisions that support your strategic objective to be profitable and successful.

‘Talent management starts with the business strategy and what it signifies in terms of the  people through the talent pipeline’ ( Armstrong-2014)

‘Talented people possess special gifts, abilities and aptitudes which enable them to perform effectively.  (CIPD (2007f),

‘Talent management as a more comprehensive and integrated bundle of activities, the aim of which is to secure the flow of talent in an organization, bearing in mind that talent is a major corporate resource’( Armstrong-2009)

‘ Goal-oriented and integrated process of planning, recruiting, developing, managing ,and compensating employees’ ( Dessler-2013)

Mentoring is one component of talent development that can be an effective method of transferring skills in a cost-effective manner. What does it mean to mentor? To mentor is to teach or give advice or guidance to someone less experienced. Mentoring can be highly effective in professions that require a considerable amount of soft skills. Higher education procurement is an area that should rely heavily on mentoring, as technical skill preparation cannot address all the needs of procurement professionals.

MENTORING

"Mentoring is a long term relationship that meets a development need, helps develop full potential, and benefits all partners, mentor, mentee and the organization.it is a protected relationship in which learning and experimentation can occur, potential skills can be developed, and in which results can be measured in terms of competencies gained and a mutual relationship with an intentional agenda designed to convey specific content along with life wisdom from one individual to another. Mentoring does not happen by accident, nor do its benefits come quickly. 

Mentoring is only one form of support. Individuals may be supported in other ways, eg by colleagues (peer support), line managers, counselors, tutors/teachers and groups, eg action learning groups or work teams, friends or parents. It is important to recognize that an individual may have a variety of support, for a variety of reasons, including more than one mentor, at any one time and that this mix of support may vary over a period of time. The traditional form of mentoring is one-to-one mentoring but there are other  models of mentoring such as co­ mentoring or  peer  mentoring and group mentoring. 

CONCLUSION

The most recognizable organizations in the world see mentorship as a competitive advantage.

Boeing’s mentorship programs give their 156,921 employees the opportunity to develop the career, leadership and diversity of skills they need to succeed in a dynamic global workforce.

 Boeing established formal best practices to drive program success across their organization. Programs operate under strict parameters and defined goals. Programs even feature orientation sessions where program participants develop the skills necessary to maintain mutually beneficial relationships. In Boeing’s Rotational Program interns and new employees partner with senior managers and executives to set career goals and plans across business, engineering, HR and IT departments.

Boeing believes that diversity is essential for success and their 1-to-1 Learning Program backs that up. Peers from a wide range of backgrounds meet 1-to-1 to expand their perspectives and learn the skills they need to succeed in a global workforce.

Armstrong, M(2014) Armstrong’s handbook of human resource management practice , 13th  ed, Kogan Page

Armstrong, M(2009) Armstrong’s handbook of human resource management practice , 11th  ed, Kogan Page

Dessler, G (2013) Human Resource Management, Pearson, 13th ed., USA

CIPD (2007) Talent Management Fact Sheet, CIPD, London

(https://blog.gloo.us/corporate-mentorship-program-examples) accessed on 22^nd  Nov 2017 at 9.46 am

The Role of Collective Bargaining

What is 'Collective Bargaining?'

Collective bargaining is the process of negotiating the terms of employment between an employer and a group of workers. The terms of employment are likely to include items such as conditions of employment, working conditions and other workplace rules, base pay, overtime pay, work hours, shift length, work holidays, sick leave, vacation time, retirement benefits and health care benefits.

‘Collective bargaining is the establishment by negotiation and discussion of agreement on matters of mutual concern to employers and unions covering the employment relationship and terms and conditions of employment ’( Armstrong- 2009)

When and if the union becomes your employee’s representative, a day is set for management and labor to meet and negotiate a labor agreement. This agreement will contain specific provisions covering wages, hours, and working conditions.( (Dressler -2013)

Collective bargaining is a process of negotiation between employers and a group of employees aimed at agreements to regulate working salaries, working conditions, benefits, and other aspects of workers' compensation and rights. The interests of the employees are commonly presented by representatives of a trade union to which the employees belong. The collective agreements reached by these negotiations usually set out wage scales, working hours, training, health and safety, overtime, grievance mechanisms, and rights to participate in workplace or company affairs.

The union may negotiate with a single employer (who is typically representing a company's shareholders) or may negotiate with a group of businesses, depending on the country, to reach an industry-wide agreement. A collective agreement functions as a labor contract between an employer and one or more unions. Collective bargaining consists of the process of negotiation between representatives of a union and employers (generally represented by management, or, in some countries such as Austria, Sweden and the Netherlands, by an employers' organization) in respect of the terms and conditions of employment of employees, such as wages, hours of work, working conditions, grievance procedures, and about the rights and responsibilities of trade unions. The parties often refer to the result of the negotiation as a collective bargaining agreement or as a collective employment agreement

Conclusion

Collective bargaining may take place at the national, industry or enterprise level. In no country does it take place exclusively at one level only. However, in many industrialized countries, especially in Europe, the existence of strong employers' organizations and trade unions have resulted in many important agreements being concluded at the national or industry level, In the USA, however, bargaining at the enterprise level has been the more usual practice, other than in specific sectors such as coal, steel, trucking and construction. In Japan national level bargaining has been the exception, and it has been supplemented by a substantial amount of enterprise level bargaining. In many Asian countries relatively low rates of unionization have militated against national and industry level bargaining, and enterprise level bargaining has been more common. This accounts for the relative noninvolvement of some Asian employers' organizations in collective bargaining. Japanese employers and workers have demonstrated how a combination of enterprise level bargaining and shop floor mechanisms (such as joint consultation) enables the parties to take into account specific enterprise conditions and also to increase productivity.

References

Armstrong, M(2009) Armstrong’s handbook of human resource management practice , 13th  ed, Kogan Page

Dessler, G (2013) Human Resource Management, Pearson, 13th ed., USA

Hayter, S ( 2011)The Role of Collective Bargaining in the Global Economy: Negotiating for Social Justice  

LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT

Introduction

Learning and development strategies are focus to ensure that people in the organization acquire and develop the know ledge, skills and competencies they need to carry out their work effectively and advance their careers to their own benefit and the benefit of the organization.

Organizations need people with high and appropriate knowledge, skills and abilities. Steps taken to meet this need are business-led in the sense that they are based on an understanding of the strategic imperatives of the business and support the achievement of its goals. But organizations also need to take account of the personal needs of those they employ for development and growth. This is good in itself but it means that the organization will be a more fulfilling and therefore attractive place in which to work.

 ‘Learning and development is the process of acquiring and developing knowledge, skills, capabilities, behaviors and attitudes through learning or developmental experiences. It is concerned with ensuring that the organization has the knowledgeable, skilled, engaged and committed workforce it needs’.

(Armstrong; 2009)

E-learning

‘The delivery and administration of learning opportunities and support via computer, networked and web-based technology to help individual performance and development’.

(Pollard and Hillage 2001)

What is E-Learning?

E-Learning has many interpretations but in short it stands for learning by electronic means. This means learning not directly from lecture notes, books or face-to-face from teacher but through electronic means.  Common forms are computer-based training and web based lessons or on-line lessons. With the advent of advanced technology, lessons may be taken anytime anywhere. These lessons can be made more interesting using multimedia i.e. combination of text, graphics, sound and animation. Lessons can be delivered to the learner via various means e.g. PC, PDA, mobile phone and TV.

E learning can be further categorized into formal lessons, which are structured, and informal means e.g. discussions, e-mail, e-conference etc. The much talked about life-long learning through E-Learning includes both types of learning to help solve performance problems. In a mobile operational environment the role of e-learning is highly essential and on the other hand e-learning  is effected to the administration cost of an organization  too.

References

Harrison, R (2009) Learning and Development, 5th edn, London, CIPD Walton, J (1999) Strategic Human Resource Development, Harlow, FT Prentice Hall

CA Pollard, E and Hillage, J (2001) Explaining e-Learning, Report No 376, Institute for Employment Studies,

Armstrong’s handbook of human resource management practice / Michael Armstrong. -- Eleventh ed. (2009)

Armstrong’s handbook of human resource management practice / Michael Armstrong. – 13^th  ed. (2013)

Emerging Trends in Human Resources Management (HRM)

‘An approach to the development and implementation of HR strategies that are integrated with business strategies and support their Achievement’ (Armstrong, 2014)

 HRM has also become involved in succession planning, business continuity planning, workforce diversity, labor relations and some aspects of mergers and acquisitions but competency based HRM creating a successive impact in global context.

Act of Competency on Human Resource Management in Global Context.

Competencies are a group of skills or attributes that employees need to carry out their work effectively. Competencies can vary between different industries and levels of seniority, though the majorities are found across many industries. Managing people is usually a competency reserved for supervisory or managerial roles but it can also be expected of junior staff. Being able to manage employees may form a significant part of the superior role. It is therefore important that you can demonstrate superior people management skills to achieve organizational objectives.

'Using the notion of competency and the results of competency analysis to inform and improve the processes of performance management, recruitment and selection, learning and development, performance, employee development and employee reward’ (Armstrong, 2014) 

Core competencies in HRM

1. Training and Development

This core competency can range from identifying training and development opportunities through to helping individual employees update their knowledge of emerging technologies. It can also involve skills development, so that employees can go for promotions or increase their responsibilities.

2. Managing Performance

This is a continuous process which involves making sure that employee performance contributes to the goals of the department and the wider business. This competency may be included in the person specification.

3. Coaching and Mentoring

In certain roles, particularly technical jobs in IT or programming, you may be expected to provide coaching and.mentor junior.

 Adopted by google.

4. Team Building

Employers need to know that you can work collaboratively as part of a team to meet defined objectives. People who possess this competency will encourage information sharing and partnership working, and actively encourage others to participate in the decision making process.

5. Commitment to Excellence

Demonstrating a commitment to quality means that you take pride in your work and strive to deliver the best possible results. You should always be looking for opportunities to improve the way you work, generate ideas for streamlining processes and thoroughly check your work. Resilience, determination and innovation are all qualities that you should emphasize if this core competency is required.

6. Mind Mapping and Structured Thinking

In certain careers, employees are required to deploy structured thinking skills and generate ‘mind maps’ (diagrams used to display connections between ideas or concepts). This could be either in a project-based role or a technical capacity. Setting out your ideas and thoughts in a logical pattern using mind maps is an essential skill in these types of roles.

7. Career Progression

Employers look favorably on employees who are committed to career progression and development. It shows that you are driven, committed and aim to deliver the very best that you can for the business. Career progression may appear in the form of promotions or can be as simple as being assigned more senior duties.

8. Strategic Management

All businesses need to be managed effectively to succeed. A strategic management competency relates to the coordination of business operations to achieve and maintain an advantage over the competition. Strategic management is about reviewing multiple business areas and evaluating data, systems and processes to make informed decisions.

9. Future Planning

All successful managers need to be able to plan effectively. There will be a number of business areas which require careful planning from finance through to marketing and general operations. You will need to demonstrate your capacity to meticulously plan business activities and implement projects successfully

 Adopted by google.

10. Persuading and Influencing Staff

As a manager you will be expected to influence and persuade a wide range of people in a variety of situations. This may include influencing budget managers to take greater control of their finances, or persuading a member of the team to change an approach or behavior that is negatively impacting on performance.

                                                                                                                                              

Reference of Images

https://www.google.lk/search?q=hrm+competency+model&dcr=0&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiM7cbz95zXAhVFQI8KHTv7DvMQ_AUICigB&biw=1366&bih=667#imgdii=7LgXL_TqBz0JQM:&imgrc=dyBHFOYsolt1QM:

                                                                                                                                                                             To be continued…….