Human Resource Development Portfolio - Essay Example

Human Resource Development Portfolio Name Institution Human Resource Development Portfolio The paper herein presents a program that can be applied to develop employees to management positions. The case analysis involves the marketing manager at Sevidoc Company Limited, MR. George Lewisa. This is a medium sized private company that manufactures toothpaste and toothbrush. The choice of has been influenced by his acumen in business management demonstrated in the manner in which he handled the diversification strategy that saw, Sevidoc move from manufacture of toothpaste to include manufacturer of tooth brush. Lewisa has grown with Sevidoc ever since its inception when he worked as a direct sales representative. He has climbed up the ranks thanks to good mentorship programs and human resource development initiatives in the company. There are notable characteristics in his way of working that has made him such a unique success story. Persistence has been the core to his achievements. He knows how to hold cool and strong until the deal is done. This was demonstrated ever since his initial days when he worked as a direct sales representative officer. This was the time the company was penetrating the market and was virtually unknown. Lewisa helped to implement the pull marketing strategy despite the difficulty that there were in marketing a new product from an unknown producer. This spirit has kept him succeeding and helping others within the organization in times of down turns. Lewisa is a great negotiator. His position involves sourcing and closing so many business goals. He has done this perfectly well over the time and has seen the marketing department win the annual award at Sevidoc for the best performing unit over and over again. For a market that is dominated by huge multinationals, that is not an easy feat to achieve. Lewisa has won the trust of many corporate customers. Many non-governmental organizations that supply aid to lowly nourished regions in Asia get their supplies of tooth paste from Sevidoc. This is a trust that has been won thanks to the skills of the marketing manager. What he likes doing most is crafting new strategies for market penetration and consolidation of the customer base thorough creating customer loyalty be emphasizing on quality products and service delivery. Lewisa has demonstrated great creativity and innovation. He was the master strategist in the scheme to expand the scale of operations of Sevidoc my engaging in production of tooth paste. He initiated the idea of diversification when the company was desperate to deal with market risks by engaging in something new but related to the current operations. Besides, the technicalities of working out the logistics of production, there were handles of company reorganization. Through his acumen the challenges were met by outsourcing the services of experts in the design of tooth brush; dividing of both the productions and marketing departments and the creation of more management positions. The performance standards of Lewisa match those of a real professional. According to him, being ethical and acting professionally goes beyond the prescribed code of conduct for a profession. It encompasses giving everything under your personal or academic power to benefit the organization. He trades on the principles of integrity, honesty, dedication and zero tolerance to corruption. Traits of Effective Managers To be effective as a manager one must possess certain attributes. Some of these traits may be inherent within the personality of the manager but most of them are learnt pr acquired in formal or informal ways of work. Organizations can help to stage a setting that transforms its employees from the potential managers they are to become movers and innovators in the corporate world. It would be important to evaluate various characteristics that human resource development program should equip employees with so as an effective one can be devised in light of those requirements (James & Cecil, 2009). Leadership – the most central role of manager is to give direction to activities of the organization. Thinkers of organization management contend that without leaders as organization is a muddle of machines. It follows therefore, that managers must equip themselves with necessary skills to enable them effectively direct the efforts of employees (Edwards & Wright, 2001). It is through leadership acumen that the goals of the organization are optimized by ensuring that efforts are not duplicated, not conflicting but are complementing one another. Creativity – an effective manger is able to venture into new undertakings. This involves devising ways of reorganizing the resources of the organization to generate something of value that can be marketed to generate revenues. Such a figure is always needed by the organization to take the tough decisions of tasting the waters where others shy away. Motivation – employees want to be supervised by somebody who rejuvenates their moods when they are low. It starts with self motivation where the manger is able to keep sprits high even when things are not working out (Edwards & Wright, 2001). Organization – this entails use of expert power to arrange activities in sequential order such that they do not overlap or conflict. The ability to do this is coined form the expert power that a person gains out of formal training and on the job experience. Positive attitude – it is virtually important for a manger to demonstrate positive attitude towards people and work. Positive attitude towards work implies that the manger enjoys what he/she does and has passion to continue. Having the right attitude towards employees means that he/she is willing to offer facilitation to those who need it and can assist junior employees solve problems related to their tasks. Team player – organizations are run through teams of people with different types of training and expertise. This is what forms the human resource function. Employees must be viewed and treated as the most important resources of any organization and managers must create a corporate culture that respects that fact. People management is tricky enough since they are susceptible to emotions and perceptions (Edwards & Wright, 2001). A manager who wants to succeed must have tactics of making them work in teams while he/she also acts as a team player. Problem solving skills – this entails the ability to make decisions in tough circumstances. It would be imperative for manager to effectively resolve conflicts quickly so as to restore order and mitigate losses (Edwards & Wright, 2001). Plan of HRD Program to Prepare Employees for Management Positions HRD is a set of organized activities done in an organization with an aim of improving performance and personal growth so as to improve the job performance, the individual and the organization at large. HRD touches on the training and development, organization development and career development (Gilley & Eggland, 1989). The concept of HRD falls under the wider scope of human resource management which entails knowledge information systems, employee improvement, remuneration systems, recruitment and staffing, human resource planning and job design. HRD programs are implemented with an aim of improving the efficiency and performance levels of the people within the organization. The program also enhances better decision making by leaders and managers by making them more informed of their circumstances and challenges that confront them. Developing the entire human resource framework enables information to flow across systems in organization and this creates better understanding among people of different ranks. These initiatives can take a number of steps to effectively execute and ensure that employees are prepared for top management positions through nurturing and training. The first step entails determining the needs of the various management positions within the organization. The specific roles that are performed by holders of those positions as assessed and the qualifications of the personnel needed to handle them ascertained (Gilley & Eggland, 1989). This step precedes the planning since an organization needs to know what to train first before getting into the details of how to go about it. The details of various positions of an organization are unique to its operations and it would be prudent to use the experience of their current holders to highlight the major technicalities and challenges that go with them. Once the requirements have been ascertained, then development of the program design is effected. This design is based on the specific interventions that are required to prepare workers to a certain way of behaviour and thinking. It involves devising skills that can help adopt behaviors that match job requirements (McLagan, 1989). The next step involves training and development. This involves developing competencies that are crucial for specific positions. Employees are fed with the skills that maximize efficiency and productivity. Initiatives such as train the trainer programs are applied, where a junior worker is directly allowed to execute the duties of supervisor (McLagan, 1989). For example, an employee may be given a chance to chair a committee meeting in where the incumbent position holder assumes the position of an ordinary member. When organizations are training their workers it is crucial to develop personal strengths such as social skills, esteem and self confidence. Employees may be allowed a few days out in a resort or a pack to enhance social skills and team building. The mentorship sessions could be held in an out of work setting to eliminate the formality of the program and enhance sharing of information (McLagan, 1989). It would be crucial to hire the services of renowned personalities who have excelled in the field of management to nurture the employees. Where possible it would be necessary to pay for short training programs in learning institutions to enhance the totality of the person and specialization. It would also be crucial to ensure that employees have the certification for their professions from registered professional bodies. The next step involves organization development. This refers to design of systems to go in line with the intended structure that gives employees greater independence and responsibility. The structure of organization and work performance is revised to promote quality of life and participative management. The new structure enhances process consultation, job enrichment, decentralization of duties and responsibilities, action research and even revision of the organization’s reward structure (Gilley & Eggland, 1989). Having planned the affairs of the organization to support HRD program the organization engages in career development. Since the restricting results employee empowerment, activities are initiated aimed at career planning for the company staff (McLagan, 1989). The core duty of developing one’s career becomes the responsibility of organization. Individuals are provided with the opportunities that enable them to survive and progress in the new work environment. They get more form the organization and more is demanded from them. An evaluation is made for the whole program and organization research. The research and evaluation is aimed at justifying the current human resource development program and related package. Areas of flaws are identified and means of handling them devised. In essence, a justification is required as to whether the program is on track of achieving what it is intended to achieve. A cost benefit analysis is done to establish whether it would be rational for the organization to continue supporting it (Woolam, 2007). The program becomes a factory that produces the inputs that are desperately needed by the operations of organization (McLagan, 1989). There are many accruing benefits that go with implementing the program. For instance, employees are motivated to working in entities that will enable them develop their careers. It follows, therefore, that an organization will attract competent personnel upon implementing the program. Employees will be motivated in undertaking their duties as they feel valued. They are likely not to demand high remuneration packages since there are other incentives that motivate them to remain in the job. When organizations implement HRD programs and are willing to effectively support them in terms o f resources, then they are regarded as being professional. It is worth noting that implementing HRD program is a system rather than an activity. It starts with proper hiring of the right skilled personnel who have the capability to be developed and are willing to learn (Gilley & Eggland, 1989). For the program to be effective members of work force must be aggressive and willing to take up new challenges and confront change with the necessary vigor. They must have the courage and confidence to try new things and take risks in process of self driven innovation new things. Most importantly they must be ready and willing not only to accept responsibility but also to seek it or even initiate it. References Edwards P. & Wright, M. (2001). High-involvement work systems and performance outcomes: the strength of variable, contingent and context-bound relationships: International Journal of Human Resource Management. Vol. 12(4); 568-585 Gilley J.W. & Eggland, S.A. (1989). Principles of Human Resource Development. Addison: Wesley: NY. James K.L. & Cecil H. (2009). ‘Race and the development of career interest in accounting’, Journal of Accounting Education, Vol.27, no.4, pp.210–222. McLagan P.A. (1989). Models for HRD Practice. Training and Development Journal. 1, 49-59. Woolam J. (2007). Using Performance measurement to improve management. London: Wiley. Read More