Feature

Dealing with dilemmas

Conflicts and dilemmas come to the fore for the HR when business decisions are not in tandem with the human aspect of the role. By Vinita Gupta

The role of HR has evolved over the years from being a policy administrator to being a business partner, and this evolution has not been an easy path. More so, since they are viewed more as a policing team rather than someone who helps the organization get aligned to its goals. This mindset has changed little even today.

HR is all about people and needless to say if there are people, there are emotions. It makes it all the more difficult; when the HR executive has to take a stance between the corporate need vis-à-vis the personal relations he/she has shared over the work period.

“The dynamic changes in an organization keeps HR on their toes all the time, and very often, while the fears of employees are addressed, it is taken for granted that the HR knows how to handle the change. HR avoids conflict within the organization and also externally with other clients of HR,” said Lekha Sishta, VP-HR and Talent Management, SumTotal Systems.

Kavita Rao, Head of Human Resources, Collabera revealed that a typical conflict that arises is because an HR person wears multiple hats—that of a co-worker, a manager, an HR person and an employee. The conflicts arise when the person may not know which hat to wear, when. Handling this comes with professional experience and maturity.

“The dilemma that HR personnel face is the age old one between business requirement and “human” issues. It is more from the fact that the HR is taught to look at the human angle and when tough business decisions result into ‘unpleasant’ decisions that need to be executed by HR, the dilemma occurs. Sometimes the corporate image is diametrically opposite to the personal credo and at such times, the conflict is of a different nature. Then the dilemma is more of a personal nature,” believed Anagha Wankar, Group Manager, HR, Fujitsu Consulting India.

Mamta Wasan, Vice President Human Resources and Training, Fidelity National Information Services (FIS) asserted that HR personnel generally face the dilemma of supporting employee and business needs at every step, especially in difficult times and when faced with certain difficult decisions.

She added, “Another dilemma is what all should HR do themselves, what should they outsource and what they should not do at all keeping the size, current and future needs and the budgets available to the business they support. A third dilemma is retention of talented employees within the HR team itself. Keeping them engaged and motivated in an environment, irrespective of it being steady or in constant change.”

Handling the problem

HR personnel are expected to promote a positive work culture within the organization and to address any grievance arising amongst the employees to ensure a healthy environment. If they are demoralized, it invariably percolates down to the rest of the floor, directly or indirectly, and can have serious repercussions. Low morale, high attrition, reduced productivity are some of the direct hits. HR needs to constantly stay self-motivated and ensure that they bring energy to energize the rest of the organization.

The behavioral type of an HR person may motivate employees to talk to HR just because they need to vent. Many times this is not an escalation and is just a regular conversation between two co-workers. The conflict may arise when the HR person does not know whether to wear the co-worker hat and keep confidentiality or wear the management hat and report the incident to the manager.  

HR needs to be a business partner in the true sense, thinking and working with the business owners from a strategic perspective, looking at data for decisions, and working with policy only as a guideline to help streamline the functioning on equity across people. It is important for HR personnel to clearly understand their role and how it can impact the overall well-being of the organization.

It is important to ensure that one has a sane and logical head on his/her shoulders in HR. For example, while handling employee terminations, emotion can be very discomfiting.

Sishta said, “While it is a double-edged sword, and hard to balance, it is necessary for HR to strictly adhere to process and yet constantly keep a positive approach towards changes happening within the business scenario. It is also necessary to clarify all doubts with the appropriate authorities rather than participate in any kind of speculative discussions with others.”

Wankar pointed out that more often than not, the business decisions overrule the personal credos of HR personnel. Most HR people learn to compartmentalize their personal and professional relationships and this compartmentalization helps in maintaining the balance. For instance, when HR has to hand out the separation letters to associates who have not performed up to the mark during the year, there have been instances when people whom you have befriended have been people who need to be separated. At such times, the letter is handed over by some other HR personnel who is not so involved.

“HR—by virtue of its multiple hats—is one of the key partners in organizational development and strategic planning. HR should persistently promote continuous dialogue, allow two way communication, provide a consultative approach with participative decision making and create a democratic culture. At Collabera we have training sessions for HR personnel indicating what should be and what need not be reported.  We lay special emphasis on topics which can cause huge liabilities to the organization,” said Rao.

Wasan mentioned that it is important to make the distinction between passion and emotion. HR brings passion and compassion to their work but must not bring in their emotions. Major decisions are discussed in a participative and democratic manner. Often despite HR’s best efforts some decisions do leave employees concerned, stressed and upset. Counseling and managing the internal grapevine by HR themselves being available to allow for a forum to talk to and answer questions helps

She added, “Our leadership teams have a close relationship with their teams and take complete employee ownership—they walk the talk and all own all decisions we make and take jointly and in the true sense. HR personnel themselves sometimes need someone to talk to and cannot talk to others, so the HR head should make them available to key members of the team to just talk things through.”

Thus it is time for the HR to sit up, take note of the fact that it needs to now be strategic to the organization, foray into the boardroom, and breathe new air into the business. Also, the HR needs to keep the personal and professional relationships separate. Clarity in expectations being set with your friends and team members is necessary.

Steps to avoid conflicts:

• Communicate: use multiple channels of communication
• Never get emotional: when a decision has to be shared with the organization, first absorb it and have your discussions and voice your personal views if any within HR itself. Then begin the onward communication process
• Bring compassion to the process: carry out all responsibilities but with a human touch. It is after all HR (Human Resources)
• Look for extra steps: to assist all employees and make every effort to help

vinita.gupta@expressindia.com