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Charles Srinarayan
Charles Srinarayan

Charles Srinarayan

Business

Charles Associates Internationale

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Recruiting new generation:
The present generation are certainly very ambitious, but they fall short in making a career plan or perspectives of the jobs or careers they want to get into. They attend interviews with great excitement, are able to express themselves better than those in the generations preceding 10 -15 years ago. One of the reasons being so much of information and technology at their fingertips. Hence care must be given while recruiting candidates of this generation. Rather that the staid and old fashioned "Tell me about yourself" in the beginning, this is to be reserved in the end, if you believe that you got the right guy. Describe to him the job function in the beginning and ask him how he sees himself in that function and what are his strengths for the same. Retention is the biggest challenge, and hence it has to be chalked out with reward systems upon his achieving the milestones as defined in his KRAs.
HR Challenges:
First of all Human Resource in India has a long way to go before it can evolve. I am saying this knowing fully well of the flak I will receive when this interview sees the light of the day. Forget about strategies. Our very methodologies and interview techniques as practiced in many organization are still ancient. Professionalism is lacking with scheduled interviews and the practice of making people wait beyond their interview schedule is still a sadistic delight. This also happens at Leadership hiring levels. I would have got more than a thousand interview feedback over the past 15 years from my candidates. The number of interviews which are conducted with objectivity techniques are very miniscule as compared to those which are discussed subjectively. Hence interviews can go on for hours with both sides loving the sound of their voices. Change should being with change in interview techniques, just like having horses for courses.
Relationship with HR and Top Management
The HR Department should function next to the CEO's office !!! Many times when a new CEO comes in, he has great plans and visions for the organization. Sadly those visions do not get translated into missions to accomplish the CEO's plans. One of the major reason is because the HR mindset has not changed and the same type of people hired to drive the business under the previous CEO are hired to drive the business under the new CEO. End result - different CEO, same people, same results. A good CEO need the backing of a strong HR Department to get the right talent for him to drive the business. The CEO should be involved in driving new HR strategies rather than leaving it to his HR Head.
Helping to develop the country
There is a greater need to change the attitudes of professionals in two areas of their professional sphere. First of all positive attitude is very important. Secondly is the attitude towards work. Are you seeing your work as just a means of livelihood or a means to be of best-of-breed service in your job function. Sadly either both or one of these are lacking in professionals in India. This is partly because many professionals are in jobs or careers not suited to their personality traits or inherent characteristics required for the job. Not many are challenged by what they can to for their organizations but would rather want to see what their organizations can do for them. Unless there is a major change in these attitudes, India becoming a developed country is still a distant dream. Development has to happen in each professional, and then only this country be a developed nation.
Improving Education system
Education in India especially at primary and secondary level in schools has a long way to go before we can be world class and lessen the burden on the children. We are still in our chalk and talk mode in the classrooms which does not give the child any initiative to express himself. Excessive homework and study by heart rather than by thought will continue to prevail for many more years, thereby hampering creativity. At undergraduate level, it is very important to put each child through a psychometric program at the beginning of the course and towards the last semester of the course. This will enable students to have an insight into their brain patterns and as to what career options are most suited for them rather than the herd mentality of following where the majority of their classmates / batch mates are headed.
Leadership Programs in Place:
I cannot comment much since I've not been involved in Leadership Development programs for many years. However going by the feedback from the industry, I am ready to paint a bleak picture on the achievements of these Leadership Development Programs in many of the organizations. One of the reasons is that there are no specific or defined intervals from one Leadership Development Program to the next. Mostly it is either done on a need basis or that if there was underutilized or non-utilization of the budgets set aside for these Leadership Development Programs. I'm sure if a survey was conducted amongst the Leadership Development Programs across organizations, we would have a dismal picture of how many of their current leaders reached there because of the Leadership Development Programs conducted.
Identifying and Promoting New Leaders:
A leader is a leader, no matter what. There are leaders in organizations who keep to the perceived good side of things and there are leaders who are perceived to be the bad apple meant to be thrown out at the first opportunity. However the underlying factor here is to note that both of these are leaders in their own right who command sizable followers in their organization. Good, Bad or Ugly are labels from management perspective depending upon who will toe their line without any questions and who are the possible rabble rousers. Leadership traits can be easily identified if upper management has the heart to search for them. By promoting a leader you perceive to be divergent from your views, you will be giving him a kick upstairs to perform or perish. In most cases their performances come as great surprises to the management.
Recommended Reading
Would not want to touch this question, but would rather say "to each his own" There are so many resources nowadays, so it is best you seek what you are looking for.
Pain Points:
Recruitment, Training, Retention and Organizational Development.
Advice For Fellow HR Leaders:
Just a simple one liner "If you have been following the same patterns and strategies since the past 10 years, it's time for a change." This is one area which does not subscribe to the idiom "If it is not broken, do not break it". You will need to break off from the past practice, because the modern generation are a different bunch and that paradigms keep shifting. Hence to be competitive, Change you must.
Parting Thoughts
Hope better sense prevails in the Human Resource Departments so as to gear up for the challenging times ahead. Wishing SiliconIndia all the very best too.
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