Human Resources in Malaysia - Essay Example

?Human Resource Practices in Malaysian Government Introduction Human Resources (HR) forms an integral part of an organization and helps in maintaining the stability and proper functionality within the organization. The growing prosperity of the organization will be enhanced by the employees provided they hold on to their attitude, beliefs, values and expectations. These beliefs are closely aligned with the corporate interest and beliefs. The study will deal with the strategic HR practices of existing Malaysian organizations and their impact on the organizational outcome and economy (Aaker 2009, 110- 125). HR policy has weak organizational linkages in Malaysia and also, has effect on the economy which would be discussed in the study. The various HRM practices would give an insight into the functionality of the Malaysian organizations and on the various procedures of conducting operations like training, selection, staffing and recruitment (Barnes 2002, 220-320). Finally, the study will highlight how the inclusion of OL and KM principles would lead to the betterment of the functionality of the organizations. Human Resources Management Practices in Malaysia In Malaysian organizations, the focus is on the integration of HR activities and practices which requires the alignment of the existing personal HR practices with the interests of the employee and personnel (Gelder 2005, 322). The strategic importance and emphasis is given on the integration of activities in the electronic industry of Malaysia. This strategic integration is an important element as it helps in solving the complexities of the problems and also, in assessing the interpretation of the problems (Gill 2000, 23). The HR strategy formulation is also given its much deserved importance in Malaysian organizations which lay emphasis on the development and implementation of internal consistent polices and practices designed for the accomplishment of objectives (Hashim 2009, 224). The HRM practices in the human resource development process helps in the organizational innovation process. Malaysian organizations concentrate on the importance of the HR business and organizational strategy and also, on the protection of assets. However, it has been observed that the Malaysian organization does not believe in the job rotation facilities and hammers on imparting the operation knowledge (Haslinda and Sarinah 2013, 324). The Malaysian organizations are highly dependent on technological innovations and procedures which need to be re-designed constructively for enhancing the organizational outcome and also, for improving the existing systems. Figure 1: Human Resources in Malaysia (Source: Curtin University of Technology 2005). Redesigning of HR Practices using the Knowledge & Organizational Learning Principles Knowledge Management (KM) principles help in the improvement of the existing systems by employing own attributes (Institutional Repository 2006).There are several methods to implement the change management techniques for continuous improvement in the existing systems (Laiken 2001, 23). This is because the KM principles vary according to the situation and help in the improvement of the operational abilities of the organization (Infed 2013). The process is not iterative and relies heavily on the management systems. It aids the amalgamation of the engineering process and systems and also, the analysis of the organizational dynamics (Lee and Ahn 2001, 213). The structuring of organizational dynamics would be required for the integration of activities and systems which would address all the organizational issues and problems. The model is used to hone the skills of the employees, redesign the organizational structure and also, gain expertise through the exchange of knowledge systems with their colleagues. The Malaysian organization needs to emphasize on their functioning in three important facets of the organization. They are namely, virtual work team, community of practice (COP) and expertise network systems. These three elements stress on the creation and requisition of the workers and also, have a complete understanding of the entire organizational development system. (Source: Lovell 2013) The KM principles would be applied in the following areas of the Malaysian organization and the impact of each HR element would be assessed in every department of the organization. Department Existing HRM practices Recommendations (KM) Recommendations (OL) Recruitment & Selection The Malaysian organization gives less importance to the hiring and recruiting process. This is because the talented employees seem to shift to the foreign owned companies for better opportunities (Maier 2000, 240). The organization hires through print media like, newspapers, magazines and media through television and radio. The e codification and personalization strategy would be used here. As per the codification strategy, college graduates would be hired for a junior level and at the senior level, qualified people like, MBA graduates would be hired. This would be done to solve the complex problems and opportunities (Marquardt 2002, 214). The co ordination of KM process systems on the other hand, would aid the development of a recruitment map for the assimilation of the existing data and then using it for future purposes. It helps in the identification of the errors and other anomalies that lead to several cultural problems. It also helps with the description of the process which would arise out of cultural problems. However, the evaluation would be done by tallying the actual requirements of the organization with the actual goals and objectives of the organization. This process provides a descriptive evaluation of the organizational activities and then establishes a standardized procedure for smooth operations (Thierauf 2000, 56). The two dimensional model would help in the accurate hiring and recruitment process. The recruitment medium would be determined for different designations. The cross functionality model alone can help in the development of an organizational learning system which helps in highlighting the experiential awareness and disseminating knowledge for the product development process. Dynamic strategic process helps to achieve a team oriented business environment and also, to enhance the continuous improvement of culture which is combined with the visionary leadership and commitment to experiential learning (Society for Organizational Learning 2006). Training & Development The Malaysian organizations focus more on the replacement and training of new recruits. The local Malaysian organization stresses only on providing training to the employees on a basic level. The foreign corporations in Malaysia on the other hand, invest specifically in the on job and off job training facilities. To achieve organizational prosperity the management needs to focus on replacement, training, retraining, development, promotion and succession planning, with the help of KM systems. As per the codified strategy of Boisot’s Knowledge Category Model, the management can focus on training the employees for process related and other specific services. The manufacturing organization should focus more on the one-to-one training provided to the highly qualified personnel. This would help in the improvement of the knowledge base of the senior level employees. (Roll 2005, 213). The cross functionality model would help in imparting training to the employees of all the departments of the organizations. It would also help in directing the employees from other countries through visual modes of training. The Nonaka and Takeuchi model will help in the smooth and adequate transfer of knowledge throughout the entire organization. This approach would help to form knowledge teams and groups. This process would also help to pass on the knowledge in a smooth manner. Performance Management & Reward System In a Malaysian organization, the focus is on the performance reward system of the senior level managers. It is done to retain them. The local enterprises on the other hand, regulate the performance based incentives according to the success of the projects. The transactional model would be used for the standardization of the input and output systems and the process they involve. It also helps in the creation of the transparent guidelines for designing accurate reward systems. For the junior level managers, the organization should lay emphasis on the linking of the incentives and rewards through experience. The implementation of the systematic thinking would help in the integration of the various activities. It aids the collaboration of the existing policies and also, assessment of the relationship between organizational members. The development of the learning forum would be an event that would bring together the participants, the team leaders and coordinators for the development and modification of the business activities. Succession Planning The Malaysian organizations emphasize a lot on the senior level employee retention program than the junior level one. A separate performance based reward and incentive system is developed for their benefits. The management needs to adopt the hard and soft contract method. In the hard contract method, it emphasizes on the Taylorist approach in the payment systems of the senior level managers. The long term planning for career development of senior level managers should be conducted. The “I space model” will help in scanning, solving problem, abstracting capabilities, integrating, impacting and absorbing capabilities. The Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) method should be integrated and should lead to cross functionality training of each department. The Wiig model would help in the design of a performance management team for the establishment of a system which provides congruency, connectivity, perspective, purpose and also, unity to the entire system. The semantic network system has helped in the development of the semantic relationships between various variables. After designing the system, it would help in the transferring of explicit knowledge, shared expertise and personal knowledge as well. This will improve the performance of the senior level managers. Strategic HRM practices It has been observed that certain organization focus more on the development of HRM initiative like, corporate, mission statement and strategy. Whereas certain other organizations had laid emphasis on the decision making and strategy formulation process. However, the organization failed to lay emphasis on the integration and effectiveness of the strategies and systems. The Hedlund and Nonaka’s Knowledge Management Model lays emphasis on the development of organizational culture, climate, quality process, team coordination and accurate documentation process. The implementation of CRM concepts and methods would help in the development of strategies which would enhance the relationship between employer, employee and other organizational members. Organizational Learning (OL) helps in the systematic development of a team and also, focuses on the practices to be implemented within the systems. OL techniques help in the formulation of several assumptions and learning systems for the accomplishment of the goals and objectives of the organizations. The collective intelligence system would help to meaningfully address the issues and also, develop powerful solutions for the enhancement of the existing systems. The Malaysian organizations should focus on the construction of alternative functions of the performance management systems which would lead to re-designing of the entire reward and incentive systems. The overall process and theoretical models would help to enhance the entire system, gain competitive advantage over its competitors and develop the product innovation process. The development and the design of various forums would help in the establishment of a higher degree of cohesiveness among organizational members. However, the Malaysian organizations should lay further emphasis on the implementation of the general KM systems which require improvement in the Business process Engineering (BPR), Document Management Systems (DMS), Quality Management (QM) and Product Data Management (PDM) and Information Management System (IF) (Osman, Ho and Carmen 2011, 123). In this process, different types of knowledge need to be adapted as per the different circumstantial demands of the organization. This process focuses on the enhancement of the individual and combined knowledge systems (Cook and Collinson 2006, 121).This is essential because there is a variety of knowledge in the organization which needs to be systematically sieved and organized at all managerial levels. This concept lays emphasis on the importance and necessity of the ongoing relationships between the tacit knowledge that should be imparted to project participants and the essential skills that are already possessed by the employees. It helps in the development of team building and team generating processes because those lead to the sustenance of competitive advantage (Cranfield University 2013). For example, the General Electric department in Malaysia had developed a learning team which was named, Action Plan. According to this plan, the training and development would be imparted, project wise, to traditional executives and non executives for the overall welfare of the organization. Another method which can be employed by the Malaysian organizations is the virtual cross functionality method. This method is considered as a powerful mechanism which facilitates smooth communication for the sharing of general and tacit knowledge at all levels. This face-to-face method is also known as a non-virtual method which brings stability within the empathetic communication process and also, in the behavioural patterns like chemistry and brain storming sessions. These elements would be significant contributors to the overall contextual value of the knowledge systems and further reinforcement of trust within communicators. Conclusion The recommendations through KM and OL systems encompass the hiring, recruitment, training and development functions which are facilitated by the inclusion of highly sophisticated Human Resource Management (HRM) techniques and tools. The effectively designed HR practices and policies will be installed to promote desired employee and organizational outcome which would enhance the role of the employees. The current organizational situation in Malaysia is very complex. This is because they believe in traditional forms of functionality of organizations which is inspired by British colonial techniques and also, by traditional ethics systems. In general, the KM and the OL system would help in the improvement of the performance systems of the Malaysian organization and develop strategies which in turn would lead to employee retention, capacity innovation, thinking ability and also, on succession planning. Reference List Aaker, David. 2009. Brand Portfolio Strategy: Creating Relevance, Differentiation, Energy, Leverage, and Clarity. Rockefeller: Simon and Schuster. Barnes, Stuart B. 2002. Knowledge Management Systems: Theory and Practice. London: Cengage Learning EMEA. Cook, Tanya F., and Vivienne Collinson, 2006. Organizational Learning: Improving Learning, Teaching, and Leading in School Systems. London: SAGE. Cranfield University. 2013. “Models of Organizational Learning .” Accessed November 2013. https://dspace.lib.cranfield.ac.uk/bitstream/1826/113/5/Chapter%203%20.pdf . 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