Soft skills for higher learning students

I think it is high time now higher learning students especially here in Tanzania to be taught soft skills to improve their employability chances in nowdays crowded labour market, truth to be said the situation of our graduates in competing and conquering labour market is worse, they do not have or even know what soft skills are, what do you think? Please lets share ideas...

Strategic Plan

The impact of human resource (HR) management approach on the implementation of formal strategic planning process and its effect on organisation performance is very clear. Most of the organisations fail to recognise the role of human resource management in implementing the strategic plan. They normally apply the so called “Isolated’’ approach of human resources management and “Add-on” end of continuum when it comes to the process of formulating and implementing strategic plan. This means that human resource managers receive little recognition as compared to other managers in the organisation.

Ulrich (1997) argues that “at the “Add-on” end of continuum, HR planning is little more than a postscript to the business planning process. In this approach, only after extensive business planning, during which the business product, market and technological directions are defined and thereafter questions about HR practices are raised. At this end of continuum, HR issues are an afterthought, subsidiary to business strategy; they receive relatively little attention and become an accessory to business planning. At this extreme, line managers consider HR questions as an appendage and appendix to “real” planning efforts, which focus on how the business positions itself in its market. At the “isolated” end of continuum, HR planning is a distinct and separate planning process. The HR department not only initiates the efforts but designs and administers the HR plan. In these cases, the HR plan becomes the process of shaping HR rather than business priorities”. I think those organisations that apply the mentioned HR approaches cannot perform well. Certainly they will fail. What is your opinion on this issue?

Ulrich, D., (1997) “Human Resources Champions: The next agenda for adding value and delivering results.” Harvard Business School Press, USA.

Managing Change

Managing change is one of the most difficult tasks that human resource practitioners must perform. It becomes more difficult when individual interests supersede organisation interests. This can easily cause organisation conflicts, if it is poorly managed. In addition, a person who implements the proposed changes can be in a very difficult time in terms of labour relations. Employees claim that the human resource department does not protect them when changes are introduced in an organisation. It is because some of the employees might lose their jobs. But in my opinion, I believe that organisation change is inevitable and therefore we cannot escape from it. The organisation should aim at enabling the organisation to achive its objectives and not putting major focus on achieving individual interests.  Do human resource practitioners intend to fire employees by introducing organisation changes? Or do we have to resist changes in an organisation in order to protect the employees? What is your stand on this?

General Staff Meetings

This is purely from my observations during my tenure at various working stations I was involved with in my walk of life; the one and only simple avenue for employer and all employees to meet, voice and share some day to day issues, concerns and all other sorts of comments that really ticks both parts which were lingered in all types of inter office gossips is the general staff meetings.

As important and much needed as they are, and to my dismay (I know most of us are)these infamous staff meetings are rarely happening in many of organisations. And to those organisations which are keen enough to conduct these meetings, they usually do so either in case of emergency and/or the management need to announce or voice some of their concerns to employees - if not to reprimand them on some misconduct.

This is interesting part, and if during that rare general meeting some employees voice their concerns and empty their chests with a hope to get solutions or to see the results of their braveness of standing up in front of others, the much anticipated positive feedback or even the follow up meeting will not happen, only by luck the another general staff meeting will happen after a long time with other new issues. If lucky enough the brave employee will get away with anger and pay backs arising from his/her voiced concerns.

I am wondering from these observations, does organisation which does not conduct effective staff meetings encourage inter-office gossips which often divide the workforce and eventually lead to inefficiency at the work place? And do Human Resource practitioners in such organisation take notice on the situation? Do Industrial Relations being practiced in such organisations? Is there any other avenue where employer and employees can voice their issues concerning their working environment? Last and most importantly what are we (me and you) gonna do about it? Let us know your take on this...
You may visit the following link in order to know the factors contributing to employee motivation:-

http://www.jblearning.com/samples/076373473X/3473X_CH02_4759.pdf

http://www.facilitif.eu/user_files/file/herzburg_article.pdf;

http://postharvest.tfrec.wsu.edu/PC2002G.pdf

http://www.lmi-inc.com/articles/motivatingbehavior.pdf;

ftp://ftp.cba.uri.edu/classes/beauvais/HPR412/Rynes_et_al_2004.pdf

What challenges does Human Resource Managers face when dealing with complains from employees on poor performance or inefficiency on the part of their colleagues, which directly or indirectly causing failure on attainment of organisation objectives altogether, which means a failure on all employees...lets share

Challenges faced by human resource professionals

Human Resource Management Professionals are very important in every organisation, however they are not actively involved in making strategic business decisions.

Why does this happen to HRM Professionals?

WELCOME NOTE

Welcome to the new blog for Strategic Human Resource Management solutions. It has been established by Nuru Kalufya(ADPA,MSc HRM) and Riziki M.Nyello(BCOM(Hons)-Finance, MBA Candidate). Ms.Nuru Kalufya and Mr.Riziki M. Nyello are currently Lecturers at the Institute of Social Work, in the department of Human Resource Management. The primary objectives for this blog are but not limited to the following:-

• To assist HR practitioners to solve their professional problems

• To provide a venue for HR practitioners to express their views

• To promote HRM profession in the higher learning institutions

• To enable HR professionals to communicate

• To orient non HRM professional on HRM practice in the work organisation

The expected outcomes will be:-

• To improve efficiency on day to day HR practise

• HR professionals will be able to share information

• Increased number of HR professionals

The expected stakeholders for this blog are but not limited to the following:-

• HR practitioners/ professionals

        o NGOs o Business/private oriented organisations

        o Religious Institutions o Public organisations

• ATE (Association of Tanzania Employers)

• CMA (Commission for Mediation and Arbitration)

• ILO (International Labour Organisation)

• Non HRM professionals

         o In Healthy Industries (RMO, DMO, Hospital Administrators, etc)

         o Government departments/organs (MOHSW, Ministry of Labour and Youth Development, TAMISEMI,etc)

         o Media

• Higher Learning Institutions