Importance of People Factor in Service Encounter - Essay Example

Why is the people factor so crucial in the service encounter and how can Human resource Managers make full use of their staff? Without a doubt, people factor has played an important role within any organization mainly due to the fact that it is the ultimate resource which brings about completion of work and duties. Within the service encounter, people factor has gained an even more significant position. Thus a company can move from a position of stability to one of a complete unstable stance as it acquires different means of gathering the market and its driving factors that come along with it. The firm has to change its position with the changing times otherwise it will literally vanish away from its competitors and more so the customers, for which it actually exists. It must bring about certain efforts which are geared up to make it sound, look and eventually feel different from the rest of the lot and in the long run, have a selling proposition in it and in its products that help it in winning the customers time and time again. It is significant to understand that having the most sought after employees and workers in the market is necessary since they will give the most productivity in the toughest times possible. Speaking from a truly organizational standpoint, the current needs in the training regimes require the employees to get themselves acquainted with the ever changing role of Information Technology and the like within the business quarters as well as learn for their own betterment the different mechanisms through which they can make use of the business processes and management activities in a steady and quick manner. They need to align themselves with the advanced technological applications and that too in a quick way because the corporate world of present times is on the move. The training needs are required within any organization since the same would ensure that all the employees understand what they are doing and there are as such no hiccups in the office place so to speak. It is a fact that the workers must know what the end goal for the business is like and on what parameters success is measured as far as the top management of the organization is concerned. There must be unison in their working mechanisms so that they are all on the same wavelength no matter how trying or tough the circumstances turn out to be. Moving on, one of the most essential training programs is to make sure that all the employees learn to make use of the Information Technology tools and methodologies that are in line with the present day regimes. This would guarantee them success right away since they would all be on the same level as far as understanding of the IT world is concerned. Then they must be trained about the different sales force mechanisms like Sales Force Automation (SFA) methodologies and the like. If the workers hail from the procurement and business development side, then there should be training in the Just In Time (JIT) and Business Development Re-engineering modules. If the workers are from the IT department, there should be continuous training regimes in the IT sector whereby they are made to learn more and more about the firewalls, ever changing security issues and their remedies, different tools that help in having security in the IT infrastructure and so on. When we speak of the management training needs, we must make sure that they are being taught about the different software which keep a close look on the performance measurement aspects of the different employees and workers and this could include a number of different software as and when one goes on to research and eventually select them. Training needs are pretty central to an organization’s ever changing quest for achieving more and more, both in front of the channel members and customers but also the outlook that it creates for itself in the related industrial domains and the marketplace which has thus been established as a result of the stiff competition. What this means is the fact that competition would lead to more and more new training processes which would eventually be imparted to the employees and workers who would ultimately benefit the cause of the individuals by all means and extents. This step definitely comes under the proactive vision as laid down in the management aspects. Training of staff would only facilitate the basis of growth and prosperity within an organization and this must be ensured no matter what the organization is trying to achieve both in the short term as well as in the long run. So from an office standpoint, there are certain instances when it is best to choose different people for the various jobs that are assigned in the working environment. This holds true for the rationale that a single person cannot and will not be able to do his work as well as the additional burden that is thrust upon him with zeal and enthusiasm. Hence the need of the hour is to understand that employees and workers need a manager to comprehend their shortcomings in the field of work and thus be assigned tasks and responsibilities in line with the same. The need for recruiting able and established staff is very much there since every organization or company for that matter wants to achieve efficiency and effectiveness when it comes to getting the things done in a quick manner. There are instances when employees have been known to prolong things just because they do not feel to be in the mood to do so. This is a definitive statement on the part of the employees that they were recruited wrongly at the time of their hiring and the organization did indeed make a mistake in choosing such a worker over other options that were available to it around the world. At times, the top line personnel present in offices delegate jobs and assignments to their sub-ordinates without even thinking that the same might not be the correct manner and mode of action as to go about carrying out the tasks and responsibilities. They think that delegation would prosper a sense of getting more work within the sub-ordinates who themselves are pretty much occupied with their already assigned tasks and jobs. This is hence not the correct manner in which things should be done and hence a need has to be chalked out to ramify the very same problem. The best possible diversity that could be made in this regard is to appoint top line managers who understand the psyche of the people working under him or on the same level as his so that he or she can get a grasp as to what employees usually are best suited at and what they do not prefer under certain strenuous conditions in the office place environment. As a consequence, being able to do more work is definitely considered a plus and an added advantage for an employee but this should not, under any level, exceed his capabilities and skill sets. He must be assigned the amount of work which is proportionate with his pay, already set working conditions and more so the skills on the basis of which he was selected in the first place. Consequently the diverse workforce issue gets its resolve from the fact that people work as a team rather than working alone yet they perform their own respective tasks and duties in their own capacities within the office environment for which there is no direct or indirect connection as concerns the groups and teams that they are working under from time to time. The manager thus chalks out a plan to review each and every sub-ordinate’s performance and then allot him the potential duties which may or may not be linked to their strengths over a given period of time. Hence diversity certainly takes its roots from this scenario and employees feel somewhat at ease whilst carrying out their jobs and assigned tasks. The ramifications of the issue of diversifying work and making people accustomed to management tactics only helps the corporate ladder as much as the employees, specialists and top management themselves. Thus a clear understanding has to be the guiding force to tell one and all in this situation as to the rationale behind doing the same. The end result is achieving success for the company or the enterprise that they all strive to be a part of and not to forget their individual growth that will take them up the ladder of expansion and development over the years. However, on the flip side of the coin, falling short of this diversification within the organization can have poor employee morals as well as a work ethic that does not support progress within the company nor amongst the personnel present in different departments of the business and at the end of the day, everyone is on the losing end with no winners to take the center stage. Therefore, diversity in work and its related fields is the order of the day and must be supported by managers, top management and people who are in a position to bring about a change in the hierarchy of the business enterprise. When it comes to recruitment and selection issues, the pertinent aspects require stiff challenges on the part of the recruiters, the organization’s human resources department and top management since they need to make the right decision when it comes to employees coming from different professional backgrounds. There could be so many reasons behind a person’s leaving a job and coming to a new organization. He could state completely different reasons for doing the same but then again one cannot be sure as to what is right and what indeed is wrong when it comes to taking the final call of judgment. The reasons could be best ascertained by an able and competent human resources unit present within the organization so that it gives its very best for the positives that will eventually be gained by the organization itself. Human resources could make a better use of their staff if they chalk out a strategy as to what exactly their set criterion would be for selecting the employees. A more diverse workforce could only be encouraged when there are efforts made by the organization to incorporate certain policies which are in line with the ethical and moral code of workers regimes. This means that the workers must be considered human beings first and then they are assigned work in a manner which is manageable for them realistically as well as theoretically. Just getting the work done out of them is an exercise in futility since it would not reap rich dividends at the very end and there would be problems for the organizations left, right and center. The laws that permit the effective handling of employees and workers within a country must be followed to the end limits since the authorities at the helm of affairs know that it is best for both the organizations as well as the employees to make effective use of these laws and respective procedures as the end result is one that will benefit not only them but also the country’s government and the related industries. In the end, it would be fitting to state that the human resources management can be managed much better and in a more effective manner if the above mentioned points are incorporated every now and then. It is only the determination of the people sitting at the helm of affairs that things could change further and that too in a positive direction, in the times to come. People factor will continue to strengthen the basis of organizations in the times to come since people are the real resource of the business and without them there would be no business and organization in entirety. For achieving a corporate vision, it is necessary to acknowledge the fact that people need to be respected and they must be given the credit where it is due. Bibliography BOLING, Patricia. (1996). Privacy and the Politics of Intimate Life. Cornell University Press CAPPELLI, Peter. (1999). Employment Practices and Business Strategy. Oxford University Press EGAN, Mary Lou. (2001). Workforce Diversity Training: From Anti-Discrimination Compliance to Organizational Development. Human Resource Planning, Vol. 24 GRONFELDT, S & STROTHER, J. (2006). Service Leadership: The Quest for Competitive Advantage HOLLINS, B & SHINKINS, S. (2006). Managing Service Operations: Design and Implementation. London: Sage Publications LEE, Monica. (2004). Human Resources, Care Giving, Career Progression, and Gender: A Gender Neutral Glass Ceiling. Routledge LLEWELLYN, Robert N. (2002). The Four Career Concepts: Managers can learn how to better develop their people by learning how they’re motivated – Management Tools: Supervisor Resources. HR Magazine NEELY, Andy. (2002). Business Performance Measurement: Theory and Practice. Cambridge University Press ORPEN, Christopher. (1985). The Effects of Long Range Planning on Small Business Performance: A Further Examination. Journal of Small Business Management, Vol. 23 PALMER, A. (2005). Principles of Services Marketing. Chapter 12. (4th ed). Maidenhead: McGraw-Hill Education SCHNEIDER, B, WHITE, S S & PAUL, M C. (1998). Linking Service Climate and Customer Perceptions of Service Quality: Test of a Causal Model. Journal of Applied Psychology SIMS, Ronald R. (2002). Organizational Success through Effective Human Resources Management. Quorum Books TAYLOR, Paul J. (1999). Effects of Introducing a Performance Management System on Employees Subsequent Attitudes and Effort. Public Personnel Management, Vol. 28 VAREY, Richard J. (2001). Marketing Communication: An Introduction to Contemporary Issues. Routledge Word Count: 2,022 Read More