Digital HR – Will it Plug the Attrition?
We always talk about and listen about India’s
demographic advantage as 65% of the population is less than 35 years of age.
But, this demographic advantage can work to the country’s economic benefit if
the talent, aspirations, etc. are put to good use, but at the same time can
pose challenges if not handled or nourished properly. The young India, the
Millennials, GenX, etc., are quite aspirational and therefore nurture dreams
and ambitions because of their high exposure to latest communication
technology. This reflects in their engagement at every level, especially at the
work place. Unlike the baby-boomer generation, they look for work-life balance,
steady career growth, better treatment at the workplace, etc.
Hospitality industry, although known as a people’s industry which
requires high level of service orientation, it does not carry a very good image
when it comes to nurturing talent and providing career growth opportunities.
World over, hospitality industry is known for very high turnover ratio of
employees. In India, this is said to be as high as 30% by many studies.
Considering the high shortage of talent and skilled people in the industry, and
also comparably high attrition rates, it is quite vital for the industry to
re-orient their HR strategies as has been practiced in many other industries.
The sweeping changes in the digital communication technology have opened
numerous avenues which can be customised for the industry needs and
requirements.
The fifth Annual Global Human Capital Trends Report 2017 by global consultancy, Deloitte, in their report has highlighted the need for business and HR leaders to revisit their conventional strategies in line with the digital disruption that is happening in the world. In an age of disruption, HR leaders need to be prepared to “rewrite the rules for how they organise, recruit, develop, manage and engage the 21st century workforce,” the study says.
The fifth Annual Global Human Capital Trends Report 2017 by global consultancy, Deloitte, in their report has highlighted the need for business and HR leaders to revisit their conventional strategies in line with the digital disruption that is happening in the world. In an age of disruption, HR leaders need to be prepared to “rewrite the rules for how they organise, recruit, develop, manage and engage the 21st century workforce,” the study says.
The study has a dedicated section for travel, hospitality & service
sectors of the industry, which points out the unique predicament of the
industry and the imperatives for ‘reorientation’ in its HR strategies. The THS
sector’s too much of emphasis on both strategic activities, i.e., designing the
customer experience, and operations, i.e., delivering that experience consistently
and efficiently in a cost-effective manner are sometimes at odds when it comes
to designing the organisation of the future and developing the next generation
of leaders, the report notes. This sector has “disproportionate number” of
“tenured personnel” who are not ready to change and “embrace Digital HRWill It
Plug the Attrition? There is no industry, business or work which is insulated
from the digital disruption today. Work, workplace and worker are evolving in
the digital world. Therefore, it is important businesses and business leaders
re-orient their focus so that they adopt digital systems, tools, practices and
platforms to create and sustain their human capital. In a service industry like
hospitality, which is fraught with high attrition, it is high time the industry
adopted digital technology in organising their HR professionally. P Krishna
Kumar makes an effort to understand the digital penetration in HR functions in
hotel industry in India. Cover Story the new ways of working”.
“Both cultural and technological transformation will be required to
attract younger digitally-savvy candidates and to meet their expectations for
collaboration, information access and mobile learning. At the very least,
TH&S companies should start integrating digital tools such as social media
and video chat, into their recruitment processes, as traditional job fairs
become less effective in attracting and screening candidates, particularly in a
geographically dispersed work environment. They will also need to rethink the
employee experience, putting it on par with the customer experience in terms of
focus and attention,” the Deloitte report says.
Digital HR
Digital HR
Whole lot of changes are happening in the HR management across industry
on the back of digital technology advancement. As in other functions related to
asset, HR management is also steadily moving to the ‘Cloud’. Digital platforms
are highly used for posting vacancies, analysing applications, selection of
right applicants, interviews, etc., which are even seen as minimal digital
engagement in the HR today. To my utter disgust I learnt, while attending a HR
technology conclave recently that, nowadays software is available which
automatically matches a job aspirant’s resume with his social profile,
interests, activities, etc., automatically. System also compares the profile
with the profile of the best performing employee and alerts the HR leader
accordingly. Analytics and predictive analytics are helping HR managers to take
informed decisions today.
Commenting on the changes that is happening due to digital disruption in
HR management, Janine Fernandez, Director -Human Resources, Renaissance Mumbai
Convention Centre and Lakeside Chalet- Marriott Executive Apartments, said that
technology has had a major impact on recruitment, training, data storage and
performance management. “Earlier for recruitment we had to rely on newspapers,
printing jobs on papers, etc. but, nowadays with technology it has become much
easier and advanced in terms of posting jobs on various social networking sites
like LinkedIn, Facebook where we have an access to posting jobs and
communicating it to a million people. Even the interview processes have simplified
with the help of applications such as Skype, where the person doesn’t have to
be personally present for an interview. In terms of training, earlier only
classroom trainings were possible but nowadays people have access to thousands
of online trainings where they can sit at home and learn,” she observed.
Technology has also reduced the paper work involved as data can be stored
safely and securely on digital platforms. There are software available for
performance assessment as well, she added.
Information & Communication Technology (ICT) are currently utilised
in progressive HR teams include cyber, cloud, data, mobile and social media
platforms, informs Sujata Guin, Vice President – HR, Apeejay Surrendra Park
Hotels. “Big Data combined with other forms of technology such as robust ERP
systems, data mining technology, etc., enables HR in real time analytics, to
plan, predict, innovate, compete and create value. Social media platforms such
as LinkedIn and Facebook help in hiring. We have been on a centralised SAP
Human Resource Information System for the last ten years. Through SAP HRIS, we
have been enabled to integrate disparate HR Systems across units, steamline and
standardise processes and practices, eliminate non-value adding processes and
increase efficiency through process automation, enhance employee engagement
through interactive self-service convenience, etc.”
Talking about the benefits of using such digital platforms, KR Sridhar, Corporate Head of Human Resources, The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts, said that they help in saving lot of time, money, and brings with it lot of convenience and flexibility to the HR functions. “A custom-engaged platform saves a lot of money in Application Tracking systems, testing cost, saves time involved in manual assessments, and create flexibility for both interviewer and interviewee. In short, such platforms help to tie several loose ends and also help in tapping talent from a wider pool available in the market,” he observes. For certain frontline positions, pre-viewing of video recorded personality assessments have proved to be highly beneficial for the HR decision making process and also helping in identify the ‘right fit’, he added.
Talking about the benefits of using such digital platforms, KR Sridhar, Corporate Head of Human Resources, The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts, said that they help in saving lot of time, money, and brings with it lot of convenience and flexibility to the HR functions. “A custom-engaged platform saves a lot of money in Application Tracking systems, testing cost, saves time involved in manual assessments, and create flexibility for both interviewer and interviewee. In short, such platforms help to tie several loose ends and also help in tapping talent from a wider pool available in the market,” he observes. For certain frontline positions, pre-viewing of video recorded personality assessments have proved to be highly beneficial for the HR decision making process and also helping in identify the ‘right fit’, he added.
Is Technology Helping Retention?
The primary purpose of technology is to ease the functional hurdles and
improve productivity. In order to enhance productivity staff retention is quite
important. Every organisation targets minimum of 20 to 30% growth in
productivity annually. This kind of target would not be possible without
augmenting the workforce. While ICT has brought in revolutionary changes in the
way business leaders communicate with their associates at different levels, has
it helped in reducing the staff turns over rate? Still, not sure!
“Technology can only be an ‘enabler’. Effectively utilised, technology can support ‘human connect’ and increase retention. Organisations which have traditional Indian hospitality values and have a strong connect with their front-line team members and can relate not only to their work challenges but also lend a shoulder to handle their challenges on personal front, have much higher retention rates,” says Sridhar of The Leela Hotels.
“Technology can only be an ‘enabler’. Effectively utilised, technology can support ‘human connect’ and increase retention. Organisations which have traditional Indian hospitality values and have a strong connect with their front-line team members and can relate not only to their work challenges but also lend a shoulder to handle their challenges on personal front, have much higher retention rates,” says Sridhar of The Leela Hotels.
There are many factors that affect employee retention, but one that is
sometimes overlooked is technology; however it is one of the most contributing
factors, says Janine Fernandez. “A potential candidate or a new hire can learn
more about his career development options and companies’ culture because of
technology. It has helped employees in career development with the help of
E-learning. Technology has made easier for employees to access company data,
share work, transfer files securely. This kind of freedom really aids employee
retention as the staff feels trusted. Technology has also helped in things like
reminders for deadlines, automatic updates sent to them, online trainings and
ease scheduling meetings,” stated Fernandez.
“Technology definitely enhances the employee experience and creates a
sense of freedom and flexibility,” confirms Guin.
Impact on Jobs
Impact on Jobs
Technology is generally perceived as a job destroyer. Too much of
process automation through technology might also eliminate current job roles at
different levels. It is being reported that Indian business conglomerate,
Wipro, as part of downsizing their workforce has replaced productivity worth
12,000 people over 140 customer engagements by deploying 1,800 HOLMES bots in
IT services. There were reports of Robots taking over certain customer facing
jobs in hospitality industry as well in recent months. Therefore, what has to
be construed from this in the long run?
The role of ‘Assistants’ will certainly be eliminated and replaced with
‘e-Assistants’, feels Fernandez. “Soon everyone will have a Siri-like assistant
which will help them with their job. So not only will it be used in their
careers but also in their day-to-day tasks. The role of check-in, check-out and
cashiering are likely to be affected by the advent of technology in the coming
years,” she predicts.
Sridhar has a different take on the same, “Technology will only alter the scope of jobs and also how they are done. Right balance of technology and job skills will ensure that scope of roles change over a period of time, but they will not be done away with.”
The 2017 Global HR Trends study by Deloitte concludes that the future of work will be the augmented workforce. ‘Robotics, AI, sensors, and cognitive computing have gone mainstream, along with the open talent economy. Companies can no longer consider their workforce to be only the employees on their balance sheet, but must include freelancers, “gig economy” workers, and crowds. These on- and off- balance-sheet workers are being augmented with machines and software. Together, these trends will result in the redesign of almost every job, as well as a new way of thinking about workforce planning and the nature of work’, the survey notes.
krishna.kumar@saffronsynergies.in
Sridhar has a different take on the same, “Technology will only alter the scope of jobs and also how they are done. Right balance of technology and job skills will ensure that scope of roles change over a period of time, but they will not be done away with.”
The 2017 Global HR Trends study by Deloitte concludes that the future of work will be the augmented workforce. ‘Robotics, AI, sensors, and cognitive computing have gone mainstream, along with the open talent economy. Companies can no longer consider their workforce to be only the employees on their balance sheet, but must include freelancers, “gig economy” workers, and crowds. These on- and off- balance-sheet workers are being augmented with machines and software. Together, these trends will result in the redesign of almost every job, as well as a new way of thinking about workforce planning and the nature of work’, the survey notes.
krishna.kumar@saffronsynergies.in
Regards
Pralhad Jadhav
Senior Manager @ Knowledge
Repository
Khaitan & Co
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