HR Profession-In Transition­ Role of Line Managers

Sharika Gupta

The author discusses shifting of traditional HR responsibilities and roles from the HR department to either outsourcing or it being delegated to the functional managers. Speaking of HR' s growing importance in developing and implementing strategy, the paper suggests that redefining the role of HRO will get a lot of line manager involved in various HR processes. For a greater insight into the con-elation of HR function with the line managers, read on...

The increasing integration of the world economy and the proliferation of transnational companies has led to a need for evolving practices in organizations: ones that will give them a competitive advantage and also help them become attuned to the future needs of their employees. Very few companies today can claim to have remained unaffected by the pressures of competitive forces due to globalization. The ability of an organization to fight these forces lies in its capacity to utilize its Human Resources.

With the growth in the industries and the increase in the number of workers, who are much knowledgeable and skilled today what they were before, the pressure on the HR department to cater to their aspirations on an ongoing basis also increases. Most companies still do not seem to find the importance of an HR department. This is,' may be, due to the fact that employees in organization still view it as a old and conventional PM &. IR department doing only routine and administrative work. Infact, the HRD roles were so structured that they neglected the developmental roles. The consequence of heavy administrative roles was that the HR was unable to meet the needs of several employees especially in a relationship driven model such as ours in India where every employee has unique needs, and wants the HR to cater to them.

This led to a change in the HR moving away from direct training and training administration towards an advisory, consultancy and facilitator role. This change has entailed shifting of traditional HR responsibilities and roles from the HR department to either outsourcing or it being delegated to the functional managers. This move has been made not to free HR of its boring, repetitive operational activities and to thrust them down the line managers throat, but to free the HR profession from the biases & inefficiencies and also to optimize the performance of the HR managers to make them more of facilitators rather than" Agony aunts", "Devils' advocates" or Appendices" in the organization. The perception about HR in its traditional role 'has been either all or one of the above.

With the rise in the array of activities like expansion, divestments, mergers & acquisitions in the face at competition, the HR activities have grown many folds. Perhaps the most Stiking change in the HR's role IS its growing importance in developing and implementing strategy. Traditionally strategy - the company's plans of balancing its internal strengths and weaknesses with its external threats and opportunities - in order to maintain a competitive advantage, was the job primarily of the company's operating (line) managers. Thus the company's top management might decide to enter new markets, drop product lines or embark on a five year cost cutting plan., The personnel implications (such as retrenchment, recruitment, redeployment, transfer of human assets, outplacement) of such strategic moves are to be take care of by the HR department. Since all such activities need to be handled by the HR department of a company it is of importance that the department be given a strategic decision making role instead of remaining silent observer and reacting only when the strategic decisions have been finalized and implemented: This is where comes the role of the line or functional managers to help the HR department by carrying on the administrative task of HR and letting them move into a strategic function in terms of helping the management to take important business decisions. It is now increasingly important to involve the HR in developing and implementing the strategic plans at the earliest. Thus we find a shift in the HR profession from personnel management to strategic human resource management.

Roles like job analysis, recruitment, selection, compensation, rewards, appraisals and training and development are now increasingly being shared between the HR and line managers. In this way the line mangers are more involved with the process of monitoring training and evaluating the people who work under them. It has been seen for sometime now that bad management is the key reason for sickness absence and lack of job satisfaction among staff. The relationships that employees have with their bosses are fundamental to their well being. However traditional bosses either use the carrot or stick model to get their employees to work or ask the HR to clean up after the relationship has been damaged - in terms of transferring the employee or laying him off. HR thus has to work in tandem with line managers if the firms are to retain their best employees.

Like any change, there are teething troubles with the new role that the line managers have been asked to take. For example, their resistance is mainly because they view these issues as "not my part of the job" or "what is the point of having an HR department if we do all these too?" or "1 am a technical person, it's not fair to ask me to monitor my employees". The reactions range from subtle discomfort to more vociferous discontent.

However one needs to recognize the importance and requirement of such an action, considering the fact that there is increased competition and greater expectation from each employee of the organization to deliver. An increase in the required number of competencies and their levels - as the manger moves up the organizational ladder in terms of responsibility and hierarchy - is visible today. Eminent to these roles is being a people oriented leader or a coach/mentor rather than being the head master of the team.

Another face of this issue is the reluctance on the part of the managers who believe that the relationship with their subordinates will suffer if they are solely responsible for their appraisal, rewards and compensation. Apprehensions exist about biases that might be in play in such cases. These worries will take sometime to die down because the focus here is not on components of HR functions being delegated to the line mangers - but on both these entities working in tandem to contribute to the development of the employee and give him and opportunity for growth. The fact remains that no one is appreciated more than a line manager who goes to the HR first for guidance on structuring a particular action such as promotion, hiring, discipline or discharge. It frustrates the HR to carry out fire fighting measures once the problem has reached a crisis level.

CONCLUSION

So, what is in it for the line mangers? Line mangers may often view HR as an unnecessary appendage or as full of bureaucratic red tape, especially when it comes to firing an ineffective employee, This is because the line mangers very often delay the confrontation with under performers, hoping that they will improve. Unfortunately the problem escalates to a breakdown point when the mangers want the employee fired instantly. HR however is unable to do so because of the acceptable performance records of the employee and no progressive discipline reports.

In instances like these the line mangers would be better off with handling appraisal, the hire/ fire decision in consultation with HR that will assume a more consultative role, rather than sitting and seething over the fact that nothing works. HR can not only help the mangers take the desired action in such cases but can also look at the situation from a fresh angle and work out a solution acceptable to both parties. For such a role' the HR needs to be looked upon as an unbiased and neutral player unburdened by past baggage of negative group dynamics.

Line managers and supervisory staff are required to enhance their HRD competencies by seeking answers to the following questions:

1. How much do they understand the             significance of HRD?

2. Are they interested and motivated to develop themselves?

3. Are they willing to spend their time and effort in developing their subordinates?

4. How supportive are they of HRD efforts?

5. Do they have listening and other skills required facilitating development of their juniors?

Like many staff functions, HR department may be conservative, risk averse, afraid to offend the line managers whose support they need to carryon their functions effectively. The responsibilities now bundled in HR departments 'are all extremely important. Of these some can be automated and some outsourced. Some can be unbundled and returned to line managers and to other staff functions (Finance for compensation, IT for HR information systems & employee data base management etc.). Some can lead to the setting up of fully owned subsidiaries that can work as profit centers as opposed to cost centers which the HR departments are made out to be. In some company’s quality & cost issues, empowerment & leadership issues are finding place in the HR agenda. Redefining the role of HRD will get a lot of line manager involved in various HR processes. HR has begun to be owned by the line managers.

Sharika Gupta,
E-Commerce, MCSE, MBA, Phd (Pursuing),
Rai Business School, Rai University
Phone: 26959000 (Extn: 336)
Personal Ph: 9811093921
Personal e-mail: sharika_gupta@hotmail.com