Information Technology and Personnel Management - Essay Example

?IT PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT Contents Introduction Activities Associated with HR management of IT personnel Recruitment and Selection Training On job performance monitoring Motivation Managing Knowledge Workers Specifics of Managing IT Personnel Service Sector versus Traditional Management Role of IT Strategic HRM People as Sources of Competitive Advantage Aligning HRM with Overall Corporate Strategy Strategies to Attract and Retain IT Talent Comparison of Approaches across Cultures and Regions India Saudi Arabia Conclusion Introduction With the passage of time and the advent of globalization, the world is rather shrinking. The concept of the world as a global village is now more pertinent than ever before. Competition is taking a toll as there is expansion in all markets with the aid of more advanced information technology and communication among all parts of the globe; industries are no more limited to geographical barriers. The job market is becoming more and more competitive as people are acquiring more skills and expertise making it a rat race for those who can perform the best (Jones and George, 2007) The human resource department is one of the many divisions of an organization that combine and integrate to work towards the organizational aims and goals. The main purpose of the Human resource department revolves around the process of recruitment, training and the most efficient utilization of the personnel in order to give out maximum productivity while achieving the goals and objectives of the organization. It is claimed that manpower and workforce of an organization is its most significant resource. As the world progresses and technology evolves day by day, gaining competitive advantage with the help of a focused and well-motivated workforce is imperative. In addition, there is more flexibility seen in the labor market around the world as well-qualified staff is moved between businesses. Hence, it is more pertinent to attract the most qualified employees in order to gain differentiation. Due to the importance of the people of the company it is equal important and difficult for the managers to manage these people. (Robbins and Coulter, 2004) This paper will discuss the It Personnel management and how it is different from traditional human resource management. It would elaborate over the various aspects of Personnel management and its implications. Moreover, it would compare and contrast IT management in different cultures and different countries including Saudi Arabia and India. Activities Associated with HR Management of IT Personnel Recruitment and Selection The recruitment of the right person to the right job at the right time is vital to the success of a company and is a key element of what the human resource department does.The process of recruitment of IT personnel is not very different from that of non-IT personnel. There are additional skills that the IT personnel should posses. The process of recruitment can be divided into three core stages starting with the definition of requirements, then the recruitment and then the selection process. (Amit and Belcourt, 1999) It is important to define the qualities, competencies and general requirements sought from the potential employee. For an efficient selection process and to avoid future problems (including high staff turnover, lack of satisfaction and wastage of resources), it is necessary to have a preset profile of the skills and abilities of the candidate. The process of defining the requirements should start with an analysis of the job. Job analysis is the collecting, analyzing and setting out information about a job under the headings of overall purpose, content, accountability, performance criteria, competencies, responsibilities and more. Job analysis is for internal purposes and it is important in terms of job evaluation for pay purposes, for planning training programs and for efficient and effective recruitment. The analysis is used for drawing up the job description which is referred to a statement that defines the purpose, duties and the responsibilities pertaining to the job. (Stimpson, 2002) The next stage is the recruitment stage. This purpose of this stage is to attract suitable applicants for the IT job. The applicants can be found from sources that are internal, external, private employment agencies, jobcenters or unsolicited letters and calls. The choice of method will vary based on the nature of the job. IT workers are often recruited via job and training centers. The more specialized the job is, the more it is likely to be advertised nationally.(Crompton and Nankervis, 2009) Having attracted a number of applicants, it is now necessary to select the most appropriate candidate. Rarely is selection based purely on written evidence. More often, written evidence provides the basis for short-listing suitable candidates. Actual selection is based on interviews, possibly combined with ability tests, aptitude tests, group discussion and personality test. Training Training and development are the initiative taken to teach employees how to perform on their current, as well as their future jobs. it can be in the forms of orientation, performance management skills training, and productivity enhancement. While, Training is focused upon the job at present, development prepares employees for possible future jobs. As technology is constantly evolving, systems are being replaced with newer versions and advancements are making it imperative to be up to date, there is a high need for training for IT personnel. The changing demands of technology make it difficult to work on the same skills for a long period of time. Skills need to be upgraded and new abilities have to be learnt (Jones and George, 2007) Training can be on-the-job or off-the-job depending upon the nature of the training. Some sessions are more time consuming hence, off-the-job can be used, while some need hands on experience and practice which are conducted while being on the job. On Job Performance Monitoring Performance monitoring enables in recognizing the progress of the employees and how well they are performing on the job. It allows the management to find out any weak areas and conduct training if required. As IT jobs are more complex, it is important to conduct on job monitoring in order to know how the employees are performing and to reward them accordingly with help of performance appraisals. Performance appraisal is the set of activities that compare the performance of an employee against preset goals and standards. It involves the development of new goals that would enable the employee to improve the performance for future reviews. The main purpose of performance appraisal is to improve the current productivity and performance of the individual and provide suitable feedback on the performance, increase motivation, identify potential of the IT personnel and improvement areas where training would be needed, award salary increases, solve job problems, clarify job objectives and provide information for human resource planning (Stimpson, 2002). Motivation Motivation can be defined as an influence that causes people (in this case the IT personnel) to want to behave in a certain way. Motivation combined with ability results in performance. A worker that is motivated would be keen to work, have a positive attitude, would be satisfied with the work and hence, committed to the job and the organization. Motivation is more pertinent to IT personnel as the job is more often than not , seen to be tedious and dry. The work is more complex, requiring analytical thinking, problem solving and generally, more effort. Hence, it is seen that the satisfaction levels of the IT employees are often low if they are not compensated well. According to the motivation theory of Abrahan Maslow, every employee has a hierarchy of needs that starts with the physiological needs at the bottom of the pyramid, followed by the safety needs, love needs, esteem needs and finally the self-actualization needs. According to Maslow, each lower need has to be fulfilled in order to move on up in the pyramid. (Chen, 2008) It is one of the core HRM practices to ensure that the employees are well motivated. A motivated employee is more productive and adds to the positive corporate culture while a demotivated employee tends to add to absenteeism, low productivity, low quality work and obstructiveness. Motivating the IT workforce is imperative in keeping up the morale of the employees. Managing the knowledge workers According to Austin, a knowledge worker is someone who is not hired to do manual work as they are most productive when given the autonomy to work with their skills as they are the workers who are employed due to their deep knowledge over a subject, this quality of the knowledge worker makes them exclusive and diverse from traditional workers (Austin). A precise characterization of knowledge workers can be quoted by Davenport in his article “Knowledge work and the Future of management’ which states them as “the workers who contribute in disseminating knowledge such as product development engineers, or the workers whose work revolves around the application of knowledge, such as financial auditors” (Davenport, 2006). IT personnel are more often Knowledge workers for the organization. Managing a knowledge worker requires the development of skills and acknowledges that “managers themselves act as good follower and team player as well as leader and technologist. Since the process of influencing the performance of knowledge workers is mainly developmental, they need also to hone skills in appraising, coaching, mentoring, and providing feedback. One measure of their effectiveness will be by the quality of the (internal and external) relationships that they create.”(Serrat, Managing Knowledge Workers) It is imperative for the manager to be able to clarify the nature of the job and find the appropriate fir for assigning the work and projects that are inline with the skills of the employees while aligned with the organizational goals (Johnson, 2006). Often managers fail to recognize the abilities of the IT workers to become knowledge workers when in actuality, every worker is a knowledge worker as they would be able to, if given the opportunity, assume the roles of player/coach. A worker being employed by an organization would be, with the passage of time, adding his or her knowledge into the corporate culture of the organization. The enhanced corporate culture would become a strong aspect for the business as it would help in improving the work practices by adding value to the knowledge base of the organization and helping it function better. The process would bring out the role of a coach/player from a knowledge manager who was initially a knowledge worker in the organization. (Jones and George, 2007) A vital measure of the efficacy of the knowledge manager is through the relationships that they inculcate and maintain with the IT personnel (Serrat, Managing Knowledge workers). The management of knowledge workers can only be accomplished by managers who do not only possess the skills of good leaders, but who are equally as competent being team players and followers. It involves progression of talent by influencing skills of knowledge workers which is more often than not, developmental including the skills of communication, mentoring and appraising. The process of managing knowledge workers is a task that remains demanding, yet rewarding for the manager. The management of knowledge workers would be a phenomenon that would continue to prosper in the future as the roles keep shifting based on the needs. Specifics of Managing IT Personnel Managing people has never been easy. In current conditions of rapid change and rising staff expectations of their experience at work, the effective management of people has become a major determining factor in influencing the success of business enterprises. The main aspects and responsibilities of managers revolve around leading, motivating, inspiring and encouraging the workforce. The management hires, fires and need to discipline and evaluate the workers from time to time. IT people are more often than not, aloof for the usual socializing and interactions. It is seen that the IT personnel is more centered towards working individually while having minimal interactions with others. Managing IT personnel requires given the employees their space. Moreover, as technology is evolving incessantly, regular training sessions would be helpful in keeping the employees up to date with the IT systems (Chen, 2008). In order to manage IT personnel the manager should be able to make the job descriptions clear, assign the projects to the right workers and as per the objectives of the organization as a whole, and posses the ability to devise appropriate methods to appraise the performance of the IT workers. Managing the IT personnel requires one to prevail over the challenges of identifying, measuring and quantifying the knowledge and being responsive to the nature of the work and molding the roles as per the circumstances (Vargas et al., 2003). Job satisfaction is one of the most important aspects for IT personnel. Businesses often face high employee turnover in the IT departments due to the low levels of satisfaction among the employees. The area of information systems covers many intricate technologies, abstract behavioral concepts, and specialized applications in numerous businesses. The task of the IT workers are difficult and complex as their effective performance in IS functions and resources is important in order to achieve high performance for the business. Hence, there is a direct relation between the motivation, job satisfaction and performance for IT personnel (Chen, 2008). Service Sector versus Traditional Management Customers are the most essential aspect of the organizations objectives. The happier the customers, the more successful the company is likely to be. Hence, there has been increasing influence laid upon the after sales services and providing the consumer with not only the product but an entire experience. How a company serves to its customer can be a differentiating factor leading to its success in terms of customer satisfaction and ultimately, profits. The labor market of customer service related jobs is on a rise, there is increasing awareness among companies over the importance of services and hence there is more weight laid upon this aspect so as to retain the customers and give them more than just a shopping experience (Jackson and Schuler, 1992). The services organization has an intangible nature; this makes it difficult for the managers and supervisors to monitor performance directly. The only way is to allow the employees to be trusted to monitor their own performance. As services are directly correlated to client, the satisfaction of clients is imperative and the needs of the clients must be monitored and met with. Due to these factors, it is important for the management to conduct performance appraisals based on both, the employee input as well as the customer input, which is not the case in traditional organizations (Keel et al., 2007). Role of IT Information technology in a broader sense is referred to as the use of hardware and software store, retrieve and manipulate information. Servers, operating systems, databases etc come under information technology. Information technology is being used by businesses since almost 5 decades and has evolved drastically with the passage of time. IT is a phenomenon that is on a constant verge of improvement. Newer, better and more efficient changes are taking place that lead in IT becoming more and more expedient, convenient and effective (Hubbard et al., 1998). The article written by Nicolas Carr, the former executive editor of the Harvard Business Review suggests a basic observation by him which is, that as time progresses information technology is no more a tool that can help a business gain competitive advantage. He suggests that due to the growing awareness and responsiveness of industries, IT is no longer a remote notion and has now become accessible by any firm that may wish to use it (Carr, 2003). The real success of IT in a business does not lie in large amount of investments and huge systems. Rather the most vital contributor is the way it is integrated in the business practices and how it is being used. Information technology investments need to be aligned with the core business goals. Merely the use of information technology is not enough and would certainly not lead to a gain in competitive advantage. What is most vital is the strategy that is followed by the company (Gunderson, 2001). Differentiation is not a result of the large amounts that are invested instead, these should be cut back and focus should be laid on the planning, execution and methods of using the system in the best, more efficient, manner possible. IT personnel are crucial in the success of the IT infrastructure of a company. The way that the IT systems are used is imperative and hence, an IT personnel is, with time, becoming the most important counterpart of an organization (Olugbode et al., 2007). Strategic HRM People as Sources of Competitive Advantage Since the early years of the twentieth century and the advent of mass production, there has been a change in the way that workforce management is dealt with. The concept of 'hire and fire' of workers is still pertinent in some businesses where there is seldom training and development to the employees. nevertheless, these are now the exception rather than the rule as contemporary HRM has come into existence not merely due to legal and legislative constraints over the treatment of the workers but also with the acceptance and awareness of the fact that a successful and competitive organization is reliant over the support, coordination and management of a well trained, satisfied and motivated team of staff. The Human Resource department of an organization has the key role of the recruitment, traning and the effective employment of the workforce in a way that is most productive and effective for the organization in achieving its goals and objectives. (Stimpson, 2001). Aligning HRM with Overall Corporate Strategy HR strategy is defined as the set of ideas, policies and practices that management adopts to achieve a people management perspective. Strategic HRM activities are based on the 5 P's, HR philosophy, policies, programs, practices and processes. Strategic human resource allows change based on the external needs of work. It is based on strong communication with flexible rules and regulations. Strategic human resource sees the employees as intellectual assets as apposed to people who are there to do work. They consider the employees to be a source of competitive advantage. It is based on proactive and systematic changes where change is seen as transformational. (Gunderson, 2001) The alignment of the HRM with the corporate strategy is related to business growth, it focuses on improving the performance of the workers while keeping the costs low (Harvey et al., 2000). The aligned HR is not focused on the satisfaction of the personnel but is more concerned about achieving the strategic goals of the entire company. It is about getting the insight into the roots elements of successful HRM in the company where the managers identify the goals and objectives of the company and how they could be achieved through the Human resource of the organization. Strategies to Attract and Retain IT Talent HRIS can be defined as a Human Resource Information system which serves as a technological solution for the activities of the human resource department. The purpose of the system is to provide a real0time access to data and automated solutions to data entry, data tracking, and data information needs of the Human Resources, payroll, management, and accounting functions within a business. The HR metrics include factors such as recruitment, retention, attitude of the employees, employee turnover, training and development. With the help of metrics, companies can base their decisions over concrete facts rather than relying over intuition. (Hussain et al., 2007). The HRIS would enable in the improvement of the HR metrics. Metrics would be calculated quickly and efficiently through online solution of HR information. Performance appraisal is an important element for companies and due as the number of IT employees increase, a manual performance appraisal becomes time consuming and tedious. HR metrics are imperative for the company and for proficient use of these metrics and measurements, an HRIS system would be a sophisticated solution (Hussain et al., 2007). Thus, in today's highly competitive and aggressive organizational environment, an organization requires effective recruiting, selection, training, compensation, and employment programs, as well as effective information systems to support these programs. It is also important to monitor the employee turnover and its reasons. With the aid of the HRIS the accountability of each employee would be clearer and this would enable better performance appraisals. Moreover, generation of reports would also be ensured which would save time as the information would not have to be extracted and analyzed. Lastly, an HRIS system also enables companies to comply with federal laws regarding the employees and protect itself from potential fines and litigations. Comparison of Approaches across Cultures and Regions India Scholars have found a strong connection between cultural dimensions and HR practices. There are different types of cultures and each has its own HR practices. One of the quickly emerging economies is of India, which has become the global hub of outsourcing. With a large number of educated population, companies of India are emerging on the global front and the economy is expanding rapidly. There has been a debate over the notion that the behavior of managers is depicted by the managerial values and culture that shape the structure of the organization. With the development of history, there have become multiple layers of values that have emerged in the organizational culture of India. The choice of individualistic or collectivistic behavior in the Indian culture depends on a number of culturally defined variables. There are three key variables that guide the landscape of Indian management, these are Desh (the location), Kaal (the timing), and Patra (the specific personalities involved). The interface of these variables is what forms as the guide for decision making (Chatterjee, 2007). In Indian staffing practices, the resumes with string educational background are preferred, many jobs are placed through employee referrals, most jobs especially that of the entry level require applicants to give an employment test, the use of online job portals started a decade ago and are now becoming predominant. Newspaper advertisements are more dominantly used to market the job openings to prospect employees where the requirements and the offerings are mentioned (Chatterjee, 2007). When it comes to training practices, education is extremely valued while training is seen as the extension of it. There is ongoing training and development programs, in-house training centers are common in Indian organization. Learning practices follow a top down approach where the learning principles start with basic concepts moving on to specific applications (Tymon et al., 2010). Performance appraisal is difficult in Indian organizations as the management and the employees often develop close relationships. The cultural dimensions of collectivism and power distance are pertinent and make it difficult to conduct appraisals. Appraisals are conducted annually, where the ratings of the supervisors are often inflated depending upon the relations with the employee. Some of the basic non financial compensation include house rent, medical allowance and leave travel allowance. The retirement age is general 60 years in all sectors and retirement benefits include provident fund and gratuity. One of the major differences in the corporate culture of the Asian organizations is that the company is seen as family. There are several forms of loans that could be extended from the company including personal loan, house loan or car loans. Moreover, executive level employees receive additional benefits such as club memberships, overseas training and company car (Tymon et al., 2007) Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia is rich in capital and natural resources but its human resources remain unskilled and unqualified. Culture plays a vital role in the HRM practices in Saudi Arabia. The businesses follow Islamic laws and values which are different from that of the west. Despite the high investments in education and development, the participation of women as employee is the lowest in Saudi Arabia as compared to the rest of the world. The attitudes and practices of the managers are shaped by the Islamic values and thus there is influence over obedience, harmony and coherence. Saudi Arabia could be defined as high in power distance based on the Muslim values of authority and respect, high on uncertainty avoidance and collectivist within in-group while being individualist with out-group (Rahman and Abdul-Gader, 1993). As there is a shortage of skilled workers in Saudi Arabian organizations and the competition is increasing with the emergence of international organizations, the HRM is developing to devise and implement strategies to attract, motivate and retain valuable workers. Saudi Arabia, being one of the richest counties of the Middle East, is now having HRM policies in local companies similar to that of the international companies. They are adopting competency based HR systems. Employees are now more valued and the HR practices are adopting western influence. There are also many Saudi Arabian companies that are aligning the HR functions with strategic planning (Al-Gahtani et al., 2007). Conclusion The appointment of the right person at the right time for the right job is crucial to the success of any organization and is a major activity of the human resource department. It is imperative that this process is carried out efficiently so as to employ the right personnel that would be motivated and satisfied and would lead the organization in attaining its goals rather than deviating it from its objectives. With the passage of time, the HRM practices have evolved and there has been more stressed laid upon the effective performance of the personnel. Bibliography Amit, Raphael and Monica Belcourt. "Human Resource Management Processes: A Value-creating source of competitive advantage." 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