Pilgrims to get healthcare facility at Sabarimala during monthly puja period

The Hindu A file picture of Sabarimala pilgrims taking bath at Pampa River.
• Sabarimala pilgrims will get healthcare facility at Pampa and Appachimedu on the Pampa-Sannidhanam trekking path during the five-day monthly puja period from August 17, first day in the Malayalam month of Chingom.
• Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences (AIMS), Kochi, and the Lakshmi Group of Hospitals in Ernakulam has come forward to provide the facility.
• AIMS team headed by Mohanachandran Nair, Liaison Officer, has already reached Pampa on Saturday. Two Brahmacharis attached to Mata Amritanandamayi Mutt, Sivadas and Krishnaprasad, are co-ordinating the AIMS healthcare venture at Pampa.
• Health Minister, Adoor Prakash, will inaugurate the Ayyappa Medical Centre run by AIMS team at Pampa on Wednesday morning. Swami Thuriyamruthananda Puri will preside over the inaugural function and Dr M.Prathapan Nair, AIMS principal, will deliver the keynote address.
The centre will have four doctors specialised in Emergency Medicine, a Cardiac Care Unit, casuality, X-Ray unit, clinical laboratory and pharmacy, says Mr Nair. An ambulance with Intensive Care Unit facility has also been provided at the centre for shifting patients who require advanced medical care to AIMS or any other hospital after stabilising them, he adds.
The centre will be closed on August 21 evening when the five-day monthly rituals come to a close at Lord Ayyappa Temple.
no healthcare facility on the trekking path during the five-day monthly puja period at the Ayyappa shrine. As many as 20 cardiac casualties have been reported from the trekking path during the monthly puja period in the past one year alone.
The Health Minister will inaugurate the centre at a simple function to be held on Wednesday morning.

by-Nikita Singh
PGDM 1st

L&T's Oman arm wins Rs 875 crore worth orders

Moneycontrol Bureau

Engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro 's arm in Oman has won road construction orders worth about Rs 875 crore from Muscat Municipality and Oman’s Ministry of Transport & Communication.

The orders won by L&T (Oman) include construction of the Wadikabir-Darsait Road, scheduled to be completed in 24 months, and the Mahlah-Ghubbrat Al Tam-Ismaiyah Road, to be completed in 41 months.

The projects include design and construction of flyovers, underpasses, bridges and cross drainage works, L&T said Thursday.

It said the orders were won by L&T (Oman) against stiff international competition and augur well for L&T’s expansion plans in the urban infrastructure space in international markets.

L&T shares were trading down 1.3% at Rs 1,372.55 on NSE in morning trade.
deepak kumar jha
pgdm 3rd

KPMG launches ‘immersive’ graduate assessment centre

KPMG has redesigned its graduate recruitment process with a hi-tech assessment centre which it says will create an immersive experience that closely simulates the working environment.

The centrepiece is an hour long ‘virtual office’ exercise which will see applicants, sitting at a computer with headphones, attempt to complete a pre-assigned task while at the same time dealing with incoming e-mails and phone messages. The bespoke software used for the assessment will see animated 3D characters welcome the candidates and also appear during the exercise to give them information or divert them with other tasks.

Elsewhere in the day, candidates have two 15-minute role plays with trained actors playing the part of a manager and a client. They also have a report-writing exercise which closely mirrors the real work a graduate trainee would do.

“We want to take recruitment firmly into the digital media age,” said Michelle Quest, head of people at KPMG. “Presenting tasks through an advanced technology platform means that young tech-savvy applicants will feel more attuned to the process. Our aim is to move recruitment beyond the traditional numerical and reasoning tests to provide an immersive and interactive experience that will tell us more about the applicant, and the applicant more about us.”

Around 2000 hopefuls are expected to attend the centre, which comes after an initial round of numerical, verbal and situational judgement tests and a first interview. After the assessment centre, the final round is an interview from a partner or director at the firm. However, the new process should reduce the time partners need to spend interviewing, saving time and money, said Georgina Kvassay, head of the Graduate Recruitment Review at KPMG.

“One of our aims while redesigning the process was to ensure that fewer people are rejected at a late stage,” said Kvassay. “By the time somebody reaches the final interview we should already be confident that we are looking at a very strong candidate, so the majority should get through it and it becomes more of an opportunity to spend time with the senior member of the firm and for us to answer questions that they have. Partners will spend half the time interviewing that they used to do when they were involved earlier in the process, which should be a considerable saving in chargeable hours.”

Another element that has been ditched from previous assessment centres is the group exercise, which proved of limited use for finding out how candidates would interact in reality, said Kvassay.

KPMG is expecting to take on 850 people in its next graduate recruitment round, as well as 250 students undertaking internships. Around 12 candidates will attend each assessment centre, which are held in offices in London, Birmingham, Bristol, Reading, Leeds, Manchester, Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Prem Paritosh
PGDM - 3rd

Key growth industries seen as ‘boring’ by young people

Some of the most important industries for UK growth have a long way to go to improve their image with young people, a survey of schoolchildren has shown.

Only 2.6 per cent of 14-15 year olds say they would be interested in a career in the environment sector and only 3 per cent expressed an interest in the energy sector, found the survey of 1100 pre-GCSE students by Magnified Learning. These two sectors were also among the most likely to be picked out when youngsters were asked which jobs were the most ‘boring’.

That compared to 36.7 per cent who wanted to work in the media and 34.5 per cent who wanted to work in the creative industries and the arts. The survey reveals the gap between many young people’s aspirations and the reality of the type of jobs likely to be available in the coming years as the UK economy recovers.

“The high levels of youth unemployment are alarming, but even more alarming is that our research shows that the industries in which there are likely to be jobs opening up for young people are not even being considered by them,” said Chris Horton, director of Magnified Learning. “We believe that tackling these negative perceptions is a two-way process, and it is important that industry leaders recognise their responsibility to engage with the next generation in order to foster new talent. It will be impossible for the UK economy to thrive if we can’t convince young Britons that such career paths are worth aspiring to.”

Health and social care (20.8 per cent) and sport and leisure (20.6 per cent) were the third and fourth most popular career destinations for the youngsters, while IT (18.1 per cent) and the uniformed services (15.5 per cent) also scored highly. Manufacturing and engineering (11.6 per cent) also received a moderate level of interest.

The least desired career route was public transport (1.5 per cent), while working in charities (3.2 per cent) was also viewed negatively. Public transport was also most likely to be labelled boring (23.1 per cent) with the civil service (21.7 per cent) seen as another uninteresting option.


Prem Paritosh
PGDM-3rd

WHO: Subject matter experts from TALX , provider of Equifax Workforce Solutions and a leader in human resource, payroll and tax-related services

WHAT: Will explain how a tax incentives strategy can help boost employers' bottom line during the American Staffing Association's (ASA) Staffing World 2011. TALX will also help companies better manage growing unemployment expenses during the 2011 HRSouthwest Conference.

WHEN: 'A World of Opportunity With Tax Credits and Incentives' ASA Staffing World 2011 Wednesday, October 12, 2011 4:15 p.m. ' 5:30 p.m. CT

'Unemployment Compensation Briefing: Planning for 2011 and Beyond' 2011 HRSouthwest Conference Tuesday, November 1, 2011 7:00 a.m. ' 8:00 a.m. CT

WHERE: ASA Staffing World 2011 Ernest N. Morial Convention Center New Orleans, La.

HRSouthwest Conference Fort Worth Convention Center Fort Worth, Texas

DETAILS: Understanding today's legislative landscape is critical when leveraging state and federal tax incentive opportunities, especially as new programs become available to help stimulate state and local economies. If a company is not reviewing all available programs, it may be leaving money on the table. During Staffing World 2011 , Angela Lockman, vice president of tax credits and incentives, of TALX will lead an interactive session about monitoring ever-changing tax credit and incentive programs as well as related legislative changes. During 'A World of Opportunity With Tax Credits and Incentives,' participants will learn how to review internal tracking operations to ensure compliance, as well as negotiation strategies for securing the most beneficial state and local governments tax credits and incentive packages. Because effective program tracking and internal compliance is resource-intensive, this session will conclude by looking at how industry partners can take a fresh look at firms' programs, hiring trends, and operational initiatives to enable a best-practices approach. Staffing World 2011 will take place from Tuesday, Oct. 11 through Friday, Oct. 14, 2011.

The recession of 2009-2010 caused employers' unemployment costs to increase from 50 percent to over 100 percent. During the 2011 HRSouthwest Conference session, 'Unemployment Compensation Briefing: Planning for 2011 and Beyond,' TALX director of Employment Tax Services, Scott Bankert, will discuss the recession's impact on unemployment costs. Banker will also detail the long term impact of unemployment expenses on employers. Attendees will learn planning strategies as well as actionable tips to help mitigate risk. Session participants will also gain a clearer understanding of Federal Title XII loan balances, potential Federal Unemployment Tax increases and the long term impact of these costs over the next several years. The 2011 HRSouthwest Conference will take place from Sunday, Oct. 30 through Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2011.

About TALX TALX, provider of Equifax Workforce Solutions, a leader in human resource, tax and payroll-related services, is based in St. Louis. TALX holds a leadership position in automated employment and income verification as well as unemployment cost management. TALX provides over 9,000 clients, including three-fourths of Fortune 500 companies, with Web-based services focused in three employment-related areas: hiring, pay reporting and compliance. Hiring services include talent assessments, onboarding, and tax credits and incentives. Pay reporting services include garnishments, paperless pay and W-2 management. Compliance services include employment and income verifications through The Work Number, unemployment cost management and I-9 management. Equifax is a global leader in information solutions, empowering businesses and consumers with information they can trust. Equifax is a member of Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 Index. Its common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol EFX. For more information about TALX, visit www.talx.com, or www.equifax.com.

About Equifax Equifax is a global leader in consumer and commercial information
PGDM 3 SEM

New York, NY ' October 12, 2011. WANTED Technologies (TSX-V: WAN), the leading source of real-time business intelligence for the talent marketplace, announced the addition of Salary Ranges to the company's industry-leading Analytics platform (www.wantedanalytics.com).

WANTED Analytics has taken the actual salary details from over 70 million online job advertisements and matched it with occupation, skillsets, location, employer and industry. With this information, employers will be able to quickly assess the salary level of any position they are trying to fill, in any location, prior to beginning the recruitment process.

'By adding salary data to WANTED Analytics, we are providing recruiting professionals with incredible competitive intelligence,' said Bruce Murray, President and CEO of WANTED Technologies.

Recruiters and hiring managers can now easily establish salary ranges that align with compensation offered by other employers for similar positions. They can also determine the best location for a position based up on salaries in that local market or what salary ranges potential candidates might expect before trying to relocate candidates.

'We offer tools to recruiters to make them more efficient in attracting and retaining top talent,' said Murray. 'One of the most difficult sets of data to pin down is what other employers are paying for a particular job in a local market.'

PREETI BOHRA
PGDM 3 SEM

GOOD MORNING MAM
HAZLET, N.J. (October 13, 2011) ' iCIMS, a leading provider of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) talent management and acquisition solutions , today announced its official partnership with PayScale, a market leader in online compensation information. This partnership will give iCIMS' over 1,000+ customers access to detailed compensation information for 13,000 job titles in all cities in the US, Canada and 7 other English speaking countries. PayScale solutions allow companies to design and implement a compensation strategy tied to business results and ensure competitiveness in what has been a volatile talent market.

Launched in 2002 and headquartered in Seattle, Washington, PayScale owns the largest database of online employee salary data in the world, providing customers with an immediate and precise snapshot of current market salaries to employees and employers. PayScale's patent-pending, real-time profiling technology collects and indexes employee pay attributes worldwide and makes this compensation data available through its online salary tools and salary benchmarking reports.

Through the partnership, iCIMS, customers will have access to the most well-matched salary information for positions for use within their Talent Platform. PayScale's comprehensive database enables users to generate reports specific to their organization's unique employee and job attributes, such as education, experience, industry, size, and geographic location. Additionally, PayScale promises data transparency by offering detailed data summaries and breakdowns of user generated compensation reports by providing anonymous profiles and employer lists, giving customers the confidence that they are receiving accurate and relevant information.

'We are excited about our partnership with PayScale', expressed Susan Vitale, Chief Strategic Officer at iCIMS. 'Compensation data was a gap we looked to fill for both our applicant tracking clients as well as those who use our performance and compensation solution. Our partnership with PayScale provides clients with best-of-breed technology and data and we look forward to a successful relationship together.'

Dave Smith, Chief Business Officer at PayScale, echoed Susan's sentiments, 'PayScale is the preferred resource for compensation data because of our vast database and ability to provide real-time salary data. We are excited to offer an easy path for iCIMS customers to experience our products in conjunction with their use of iCIMS' leading solutions.'

Offering tools that manage all aspects of the talent lifecycle, iCIMS' Candidate Management and Employee Management Packages are important tools in helping clients attract, hire and retain top talent. Customers who leverage the partnership with PayScale can eliminate the time, risk, and extra costs associated with traditional compensation initiatives. The partnership continues iCIMS' mission of making business easier for the SMB market by delivering configurable on-demand platforms, while providing a customer experience second to none.

About iCIMS iCIMS, the second-largest provider of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) talent management solutions, is an Inc. 500 honoree focused on solving corporate business issues through the implementation of easy-to-use web-based software solutions. iCIMS' Talent Platform, the industry's premier candidate and employee management solution, enables organizations of all sizes to manage their entire talent lifecycle from applicant tracking through onboarding and beyond via a single web-based application. With more than 1,000 clients worldwide, iCIMS is one of the largest and fastest-growing talent management system providers in the country. To learn more about how iCIMS can help your organization, visit www.icims.com or view a free online demo of the iCIMS Talent Platform.

Trademarks and registered trademarks contained herein remain the property of their respective owners.

This press release was distributed through PR Web by Human Resources Marketer (HR Marketer: www.HRmarketer.com) on behalf of the company listed abov.
PREETI BOHRA
PGDM 3 SEM

Economic slowdown: IBM cuts contract workforce

BANGALORE: One of the largest private sector employers in India, IT services firm IBM is trimming its contract workforce. At least 600-1,000 contract employees have been asked to leave the company since August.

Sources in the recruitment industry and the company attribute this to both economic uncertainty and cyclical reasons.

These contract employees work for IBM, but are on the payrolls of either a recruitment firm or another IT vendor. Two of the biggest providers of contract staff to IBM, who did not wish to be named, confirm this. One of them told ET that IBM had asked few hundreds of contract staffers to leave in August.

This vendor lost 40 such staffers, but this month placed 20 again. An executive at the contract staffing firm attributed this to two factors - project completion and a reduced demand from service clients because of economic pressure globally. Another executive at one of the biggest providers of contract staff for IBM said that the demand for contract staff was down and even from IBM, the demand has dipped 10-15
By
Nikita
PGDM-1st

Unemployment reaches highest level for 17 years John Eccleston

According to the latest labour market statistics, published today by the ONS, unemployment rose by 114,000 to reach 2.57 million - 8.1% of the population.

Meanwhile, although youth unemployment failed to reach the one million mark as some had predicted, the ONS data recorded a record level of youth unemployment at 991,000. This is a rise of 74,000 on the previous year, and is the highest figure recorded since records began in 199.

Today's findings put further pressure on the Government to stimulate growth in the jobs market. "The BCC's September forecast predicted that total unemployment would rise to 2.62 million by the end of 2012. However, on this basis of these figures, there is a risk that the jobless total will be even higher next year."

Ian Brinkley, centre director at The Work Foundation, said: "The labour market figures released this morning are very troubling. The fall in employment of 180,000 in a single quarter is comparable to the quarterly losses seen during the depths of the last recession

Manali
pgdm 3rd sem

Employers leaving themselves exposed to social media risks

The research, published by law firm DLA Piper, also reveales that just 43% of organisations have developed policies around the use of such sites as part of a broader HR or IT strategy. This is despite the fact that 31% have had to take disciplinary action as a result of information that employees have posted about their employer, and that 21% have done so in response to posts about other members of the company.Only 28% of organisations have put in place restrictive covenants regarding the use of business contacts on social media sites once they have left the business and 34% admit to being worried about confidential information being posted online.

Manali
pgdm 3rdsem

Agency workers ‘must get fair share of tips

Hospitality employers are hurriedly changing their policies on tips after belatedly realising that they could fall foul of the agency workers regulations introduced this month, lawyers say.

Pubs, bars, restaurants and hotels typically pool the tips given to staff, either in cash or as part of a service charge, and distribute them between employees. But many have traditionally excluded temp workers from the arrangement and this will have to change for anybody staying more than 12 weeks with one employer, warned Jim Lister, head of employment at law firm Pannone.

“We have received enquiries from leisure companies who are unclear about the new regulations,” said Lister. “I would urge those that operate a shared tip system to review their policies to include agency workers with more than 12 weeks’ service - or they could find themselves falling foul of the new regulations.”

Under the regulations, the definition of ‘pay’ for agency workers includes any payment or reward for work which is directly attributable to the quality or quantity of their work. Tips come under this definition, whether or not they are discretionary or based on collection of a compulsory service charge, the firm says.

It is common practice for companies to divide up tips between workers based on the number of hours they work. This method could easily be used to share the tips with temporary staff even if they are not undertaking as many hours as permanent workers, says Lister.

Prem Paritosh
PGDM -3rd

Is there a role for HR in creating a BOS?

Mauborgne: Absolutely. First, HR professionals must prepare managers for work in the knowledge economy. As the world moves from a production to a knowledge economy, managers face new rules. Competing for a share of contracting markets, while necessary, is insufficient to sustain performance. Managers need to go beyond competing and create blue oceans. This requires a fundamentally different skill set.

Second, BOS is achieved through the alignment of value, profit and people propositions to break the differentiation/low-cost trade-off. HR is a key interface in aligning the people proposition by building commitment, trust and voluntary co-operation into every level of the organisation. When people have trust, they have more confidence in one another. When they have commitment, they are willing to override personal self-interest. If you ask any firm that has successfully executed a BOS, managers will say how important this intangible capital is to their success. And with your people proposition aligned, execution speed and efficiency will increase, dropping the cost of implementation and assisting with your cost proposition.
Lastly, HR professionals are instrumental in building a culture that is capable of ongoing change. Creating blue oceans is not a static process. Eventually the competition will imitate you and it will be time to create and capture new blue oceans.
Discuss problems openly with your peers around the world without getting into company specifics. Access to years of such problem discussion data business material available to everyone at no cost .
By : chandramala pgdm 1st year

HR’s Role: Communicate About Healthcare Reform

Ed Bray says HR’s two major audiences that need to know how the company is navigating changes in health care are employees and top management. With his background in both law and employee benefits, Bray is now director of compliance for Burnham Benefits in Orange County, . Senior management needs to know that for plan years beginning on California, and a nationally recognized healthcare reform expert.
Cover Year 1 if you didn’t before or after September 23, 2010, carriers raised costs an average of 3 percent to 5 percent. Other major changes were mandated coverage of offspring up to age 26 and removal of lifetime limits in coverage. Whether to keep a plan in grandfathered status, to avoid the nondiscrimination requirement for fully insured plans, was a big issue. In Bray’s view, the majority of organizations opted to give up grandfathered status.
Reassure employees. From well before Year 1, employees have been hearing a lot about healthcare reform, and they continue to do so, especially from the Republican candidates for the presidency. They needed, and continue to need, specific messages about the changes in order to remain confident and feeling fully informed. They needed to understand that they couldn’t enroll their 20-something offspring until the plan’s anniversary date; that if their plan stayed grandfathered, preventive care would not be free; and that the upcoming report on W-2s of the value of their healthcare benefits does not mean the amount is taxable income.
By :-
Nikita
PGDM-1st

U.S. Trade Gap Probably Widened in August as Exports Slowed

Oct. 13 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. trade deficit probably increased in August as a cooling in the global economy prompted American companies to ship fewer goods abroad, economists said before a report today.

The gap widened 2.2 percent to $45.8 billion, according to the median of 81 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey. The deficit shrank in July by the most since February 2009, when the economy was in a recession, as exports of cars and capital goods rebounded. Jobless claims rose last week, other data may show.

Companies such as Alcoa Inc. may temper production as the global slowdown and Europe’s debt crisis restrain demand and limit trade flows. With fewer sales overseas and American consumers and companies reluctant to increase spending, the economy may get less of a boost from manufacturing.

“We’ve seen trade flows globally slowing as this recovery has shown signs of rolling over,” said Eric Green, chief market economist at TD Securities Inc. in New York. “Exports have been strong for the last two years, but that momentum is being exhausted.”

The Commerce Department will release the trade figures at 8:30 a.m. in Washington. Estimates ranged from deficits of $48.4 billion to $42 billion.

The number of applications for unemployment insurance payments rose to 405,000 last week from 401,000 in the prior period, according to the median forecast of economists ahead of Labor Department data at the same time. Claims have averaged 415,000 so far this year.

Falling fuel prices may have limited the increase in the trade gap in August. The cost of imported petroleum dropped 2.1 percent during the month, according to figures from the Labor Department.

Japanese Imports

At the same time, Japanese-made goods keep flowing into U.S. ports as the Asian nation recovers from an earthquake and tsunami in March that delayed deliveries of parts and components as well as finished products.

Nissan Motor Co. boosted September sales more than projected and industrywide purchases were the best since April even as Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co., still struggling to deliver enough vehicles to dealers, lost share of the U.S. market.

“The worst is behind us, and we expect to exceed year-ago sales levels beginning in October, with continued growth throughout the fourth quarter,” Bob Carter, group vice president of U.S. sales for Toyota, said last week.

Emerging Markets

Exports are showing signs of waning amid concerns of a European default and slower growth in emerging markets such as China, India and Brazil.

Alcoa, the largest U.S. aluminum producer, this week posted profit that trailed analysts’ estimates, saying European customers “dramatically” cut orders on economic uncertainty. Klaus Kleinfeld, the company’s chief executive officer, said Oct. 11 that European aluminum demand will drop 13 percent in the second half of the year from the first six months.

“Fearful of a slowing economy, our European customers reduced their orders dramatically, even into September,” Chief Financial Officer Charles McLane said on a conference call.

The International Monetary Fund last month cut its forecast for global growth and predicted “severe” repercussions if Europe fails to contain its debt crisis or U.S. policy makers deadlock over a fiscal plan.

IMF Forecast

The IMF lowered its forecast for growth in the euro area to 1.6 percent this year from a prior 2 percent forecast. Its U.S. growth projection was revised to 1.5 percent this year from a previous 2.5 percent. Economic growth in Mexico, the third- largest U.S. trading partner, will be 3.8 percent, down from a prior 4.7 percent estimate.

A strengthening in the U.S. dollar over the last couple months threatens to make American-made goods less competitive in the global marketplace. Since late July, the dollar has strengthened about 6.2 percent against a basket of currencies of major trading partners after falling 9.1 percent in the prior 12 months.

pooja negi 

pgdm 1st 

Brokerages remain muted on Reliance Comm, Idea post draft telecom policy

Ritu Jindal & Kshitij Anand, ECONOMICTIMES.COM Oct 11, 2011, 02.20pm IST

Tags:

• Romal Shetty|
• Reliance Industries Ltd.|
• KPMG

NEW DELHI: Shares on Bharti Airtel and Idea Cellular Ltd rose over 4% in trade on Tuesday after the telecom minister unveiled the draft telecom policy 2011 on Monday.
Under the proposed policy, which is likely to be in place by the end of this year, the government plans to create a "one-nation one-license" rule, indicating operators will have to forgo roaming charges that currently account for nearly 10% of their total revenues.
"In the short-term, removal of roaming charges will be negative for telecom companies," said Romal Shetty, National Head, Telecom, at KPMG.
POOJA NEGI
PGDM 1st

Brokerages remain muted on Reliance Comm, Idea post draft telecom policy

Ritu Jindal & Kshitij Anand, ECONOMICTIMES.COM .

• Romal Shetty|
• Reliance Industries Ltd.|
• KPMG

NEW DELHI: Shares on Bharti Airtel and Idea Cellular Ltd rose over 4% in trade on Tuesday after the telecom minister unveiled the draft telecom policy 2011 on Monday.
Under the proposed policy, which is likely to be in place by the end of this year, the government plans to create a "one-nation one-license" rule, indicating operators will have to forgo roaming charges that currently account for nearly 10% of their total revenues.
"In the short-term, removal of roaming charges will be negative for telecom companies," said Romal Shetty, National Head, Telecom, at KPMG.

“Dubois” first contacted the employment and ethics hotline operated by the large company that owned the subsidiary where she had worked. It investigated, and found the supervisor had acted unprofessisonally but was not guilty of sexual harassment. He was disciplined but not fired. Meanwhile, Dubois began receiving short-term, and subsequently long-term, disability benefits. She claimed that she had felt so threatened by her boss that it had caused her emotional distress, which made her unable to return to that job. And, her employer acknowledged that it was unable to find another suitable position for her.
Next, Dubois lodged a complaint with the state civil rights office. Finally, she sued the parent company, her own former employer, and the supervisor, charging sexual harassment, failure to accommodate her disability, and violation of Massachusetts law. But here was the problem: She had worked for Idearc Media Services, which for most of her tenure was known as Verizon Directory Services, of which it was a wholly owned subsidiary. That led Dubois to believe she worked for Verizon Directories Corp. But that company is a subsidiary of GTE Corp., which is, in turn, a subsidiary of Verizon Communications, Inc.
A judge in federal district court dismissed her suit, reasoning that the supervisor had not sexually harassed her and that Verizon—either the directories division or the communications owner—was not her employer. Dubois appealed to the 1st Circuit, which covers Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island.
What the court said. Dubois appealed only her claim that Verizon was liable for her poor treatment. But appellate judges had to agree with the district judge. They said Dubois didn’t show that Verizon had control over her employment, nor that its code of conduct applied to Idearc. But it’s puzzling that Verizon conducted a thorough investigation of her complaint and disciplined the boss. Had she appealed her claims against Idearc and the boss himself, her case might have gone differently. DeLia v. Verizon Communications, U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit, No. 09-2667 (8/24/11).
Point to remember: The boss had been given a final warning, and he was fired some months after Dubois’s complaint. Again, the boss had made inappropriate comments.

PREETI BOHRA
PGDM 3 SEM

GOOD MORNING MAM

A press release on the survey from Towers Watson and WorldatWork states that nearly two-thirds (65%) of U.S. respondents report that employees have been working more hours over the past 3 years, and more than half (53%) expect this trend to continue over the next 3 years. Additionally, about one in three (31%) companies said their employees have been using less of their vacation or personal time off over the past 3 years.
The survey also found that more than half (56%) of U.S. companies are concerned about the long-term effects that changes they made during the recession will have on their employees’ ability to maintain a healthy balance between work and their personal lives.
And more U.S. employers are becoming concerned about employee productivity (39%) and their employees’ willingness to take risks (37%). As a result, almost two-thirds (66%) of respondents have made significant changes in the HR area -- reward and talent management strategies, organizational structure, job evaluation process and competencies -- and many expect to continue to do so.
“In the short run, having employees work extra hours can increase productivity, but in the long run, extended hours can negatively affect employee well-being and retention,” said Laurie Bienstock, North America leader of rewards consulting at Towers Watson. “Employees at many organizations are already suffering from change fatigue. As a result, when the labor market does recover, companies can expect a sharp increase in voluntary turnover, especially if they do not address employee concerns, and deliver reward and talent management programs more effectively.”
“Employees generally don't mind doing more with less especially when economic conditions are tough," said Ryan Johnson, CCP, Vice President of Research for WorldatWork. "But when this drags into multiple years, and they start to hear anecdotes of recovery, they become less understanding. At that point, the entire employee value proposition is crucial to retention."
PREETI BOHRA
PGDM 3 SEM

A Common Sense Approach To Human Resources

he concept of staffing your business can be a complicated, stressful situation. Hiring a competent crew who also upholds the principles of the hiring company can be incredibly difficult. While there are never-ending streams of advice, tips and tricks, many of these are overwrought and in some cases, dubious, leaving a potential human resources department with little-to-no answers when it comes to strategy.

With that in mind, it’s helpful to find a consistent, common sense approach to these kinds of tasks. Which advice should you follow? Which consultant is right? If confusion reigns when dealing with these dilemmas, perhaps a streamlined, easy-to-follow approach is in order. With that in mind, a previous set of useful guidelines — the Punk Rock Employee Handbook — has been updated for 2011.
The options, suggestions and hints, courtesy of Laurie Ruettimann, are as universal as ever, especially the “Things I expect from HR” list of tips, which we’ve reprinted for your consumption:
1. Implement a concept called ‘right first time’ in everything. If you can’t get it right the first time, don’t do it until you can get it right. Saying ‘I don’t know’ is allowed.
2. Your job is rooted in ethical behavior. The financial crisis didn’t happen in a bubble. Someone hired, onboarded, and compensated those employees who brought our financial system to the brink of collapse.
3. Speak with a strong voice of reason and know that it may get you fired. Nothing sadder than a scared HR department.
4. Have a willingness to be disliked. You’re not here to make friends.
5. Demonstrate the ability to rise above it. Not every issue is an HR issue.
6. Do whatever the opposite of ‘mission creep’ is. Just because it involves people doesn’t mean it belongs in HR.
7. Have an interest in something other than HR. Nobody likes a one-note-Johnny.
8. Why don’t you smile? It’s really not that bad. You could be in Haiti.
9. Use google. The internet is your friend and ally.
10. Have the desire to teach, to lead, and to work yourself out of a job. We both know that 90% of what you do can be done by managers and administrators. And let’s face it — you don’t want to work in HR forever.
As indicated, this is very much a common sense approach to HR, but apparently, some departments need to be reminded about the keeping it simple concept, something Ruettimann does quite nicely. Comments on the HR expectations list are incredibly supportive, with one user going as far to say:
“That is why your blog should be part of HR education at Universities.”
Granted, this is an example of perhaps excessive praise, but the fact remains, Ruettimann’s HR suggestions resonate throughout the industry. However, did her list miss something? Is there a concept that needs to be addressed more thoroughly, instead of relying on a witty list of tips?
Whatever the case, having a set of guidelines that HR departments follow isn’t the worst idea in the world. In fact, it’s one that could dramatically improve the hiring process on both ends.

SANCHITA GUPTA
3RD SEM

Sustainability Efforts Engage Employees, Increase the Bottom Line

According to an article written by Tim Mohin, a director of corporate responsibility at Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), sustainability is a driving factor in many companies in engaging employees and motivating employees to work harder and be more innovative. What is the correlation?
Mohin explains that perhaps these employees "see their job as their cause." Because sustainability and environmental stewardship is important to many workers, such workers are more engaged because they believe in what their company is doing.
And the results are measurable: organizations with high levels of employee engagement have 3.9 times the earnings per share growth rate compared with organizations with lower engagement scores in the same industry, according to the Gallup organization.
So how does an organization engage employees through sustainability efforts? Mohin's first recommendation? Green teams! Such employee volunteer-programs (such as the BLR Green Team) work to improve the environment within the workplace. The number of these groups has grown rapidly in the last few years, and some groups have taken their message—innovation through engagement—even further by involving customers in company efforts and promoting volunteer opportunities.
Does your organization have a green team? If so, have you noticed an improvement in employee engagement?

Prem Paritosh
PGDM-3rd

Survey: Two-Thirds of Companies Expect Employees to Work More Hours

The Towers Watson Talent Management and Rewards Survey, a study of over 300 North American companies has found that nearly two-thirds of respondents expect their employees to work more hours now than they did prior to the recession, and they see this trend continuing for some time.


A press release on the survey from Towers Watson and WorldatWork states that nearly two-thirds (65%) of U.S. respondents report that employees have been working more hours over the past 3 years, and more than half (53%) expect this trend to continue over the next 3 years. Additionally, about one in three (31%) companies said their employees have been using less of their vacation or personal time off over the past 3 years.
The survey also found that more than half (56%) of U.S. companies are concerned about the long-term effects that changes they made during the recession will have on their employees’ ability to maintain a healthy balance between work and their personal lives.
And more U.S. employers are becoming concerned about employee productivity (39%) and their employees’ willingness to take risks (37%). As a result, almost two-thirds (66%) of respondents have made significant changes in the HR area -- reward and talent management strategies, organizational structure, job evaluation process and competencies -- and many expect to continue to do so.
“In the short run, having employees work extra hours can increase productivity, but in the long run, extended hours can negatively affect employee well-being and retention,” said Laurie Bienstock, North America leader of rewards consulting at Towers Watson. “Employees at many organizations are already suffering from change fatigue. As a result, when the labor market does recover, companies can expect a sharp increase in voluntary turnover, especially if they do not address employee concerns, and deliver reward and talent management programs more effectively.”
“Employees generally don't mind doing more with less especially when economic conditions are tough," said Ryan Johnson, CCP, Vice President of Research for WorldatWork. "But when this drags into multiple years, and they start to hear anecdotes of recovery, they become less understanding. At that point, the entire employee value proposition is crucial to retention." 

Prem Paritosh
PGDM- 3rd

Interviewing Tips For Startups

Today’s guest post is from Anita Campbell, CEO of BizSugar.
Firing an employee can be the best thing you do for your company. Of course, it’s better to just hire good people in the first place. But sometimes people just don’t catch on, and you spend an inordinate amount of time correcting their work. When one employee is affecting the balance, productivity, and morale in your workplace, and no amount of counseling or encouragement helps, you have no choice but to fire them.
People are usually on their best behavior during a job interview, so you may not get an accurate idea of what they’ll be like in the workplace on a day-to-day basis until it’s too late and the problems have begun. The interview process isn’t perfect, but by using a few techniques and avoiding a few pitfalls, you may be better able to determine early on whether someone will fit your office culture, and avoid a difficult firing later on. Here’s how.

Avoid The Halo/Horn Effect

When interviewing people for a position in your startup, you’re inevitably going to meet a few whom you like more than others simply because sometimes we just meet people we click with. Conversely, you may also interview someone who just rubs you the wrong way. The danger is that your decision to hire them—or not—may be colored by one small facet of your impression, either leading you to hire someone who really shouldn’t be hired, or to turn away someone who could be great.

This is known as the halo/horn effect. It can be difficult to avoid emotional responses during an interview, but the best way to stay unbiased is to be aware of the halo/horn effect so you can recognize it if and when it starts to happen, and not allow those personal feelings to color your decision.

Get a Second Opinion

As a startup, your staff is probably still pretty small, and you’ve all most likely established a certain culture and sense of camaraderie with each other. Bringing a new person into such an intimate environment can easily cause chaos if they’re not a good fit. Ask your staff to prepare a question or two each for the prospect. After you’ve finished your interview, introduce the interviewee to your staff, and allow them to ask their questions.
Doing this gives you the opportunity to see how the potential new hire interacts with your employees, and can give you an indication of whether they’d get along and fit in. This also has the effect of showing your current employees that you not only value their opinions, but that you recognize the balance you’ve built in the office is important, and that you’re making the effort to maintain and protect it.
Your goal is to grow your business, and you need people who share your vision and motivation. When it becomes apparent that someone isn’t quite in line with everyone else for whatever reason, as difficult as it may be, it’s better to let them go and move on. Then they can find a place where they’ll be happier, and you can find someone who really shines.

NARENDRA KR NIRAJ

PGDM3rd

IIMT

 

HR shifts to core as trade partner in cos like HUL, Godrej, Essar Group, MphasiS, LG Electronics and others

A human resources job is no longer about soppy heart-to-hearts with employees, celebrations, compensation charts and appraisals. It's about getting your hands dirty, and talking deliverables.

These days, HR managers at Becton Dickinson (BD) are out in the market with the sales team. With the US-based $7.3-billion medical technology and devices company planning to enter smaller Indian towns, HR managers are keen to understand the work process in such markets and gain first-hand knowledge on closing sales deals.

BD India wants to ensure its policies for smaller markets are employeefriendly and the HR managers are involved in the recruitment process right from the start. The company is also planning to link the KRA of HR managers with the company's fiscal performance and profitability.

"The output of HR is increasingly getting tied with business results," says BD India Director (HR) Manish Sinha. "As the business is entering into newer areas, HR will be involved right from the inception stage so that hiring and retention is measured in terms of profitability," he says.

HR is getting closely linked with business operation, revenue and profitability in a growing number of companies in India, with the belief that it helps increase productivity due to a better understanding of the business and ensuring that hiring is right-sized, reducing cases of skill mismatch. The trend - now picked up by corporates like Hindustan Unilever, Godrej, Essar Group, MphasiS, Hinduja Group and LG Electronics - was a direct fallout of the previous slowdown and is now gaining pace due to fears of a doubledip recession.

In Bangalore, ITeS firm MphasiS's chief of HR Elango R is currently working on a project on business operations, which he says will streamline the company's processes and improve profitability. While Elango refused to elaborate on the project, he said it will help MphasiS better utilise its resources and move a large part of the fixed cost to variable cost. 

NARENDRA KR NIRAJ

PGDM3rd

IIMT

Downtown Milwaukee office auction nixed

he bank-owned Underwriters Exchange office building in downtown Milwaukee was pulled from a planned auction last month and, considering the amount of rehab it will need, remains a tough sell in the current economy. “There are other opportunities out there for investors that is a less risky investment for them,” said Dan Crowe, vice president of property manager Wangard Partners Inc., Milwaukee. Associated Bank NA since April 2010 has owned the 8-story, 57,100-square-foot building, which is partially occupied by tenants on month-to-month leases...


                                                   niraj kumar
                                             pgdm. 3rd.sem

CIMS Announces Record Breaking 1st Quarter With More Than 50 New Customer Signings

HAZLET, N.J. (April 10, 2009) – iCIMS, the third-largest provider of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) talent acquisition solutions, announced today record breaking first quarter numbers with more than 50 new customer signings, adding such organizations as H&R Block (NYSE: HRB), QinetiQ North America, Universal Protection Services, Spectrum Healthcare Resources, Feed the Children and NATCO (NYSE:NTG) to the company's rapidly growing client base.

This first quarter of 2009 proved to be a trying time for many talent acquisition solution vendors; however, while competitors remained stagnant and were even forced to layoff, iCIMS rose to the occasion reflecting the viability of both the software offerings and the company. To date, iCIMS has grown at an unprecedented rate and projects record breaking numbers for the remainder of 2009. iCIMS is currently recognized as one of the top three providers of talent acquisition solutions behind Taleo (NASDAQ: TLEO) and Kenexa (NASDAQ: KNXA) and the leading private provider in the industry. Kicking off the fiscal year with this degree of first quarter momentum puts iCIMS on track to rapidly narrow its gap behind industry runner-up Kenexa.

iCIMS' Talent Platform has differentiated itself from competing vendors this past quarter and ascended as an industry leader; this expedited rise to the top largely attributed to the Talent Platform's cost-effectiveness, overall flexibility and award-winning customer support. In today's economic market organizations are seeking to invest in highly configurable software that is powerful enough to meet their talent management needs today, yet flexible enough to expand and meet their evolving organizational needs in the future, and because of this iCIMS' Talent Platform has stood out above the rest. Furthermore, as the highly configurable Talent Platform became Mac and multi-browser compatible in Q1, clients were afforded even great flexibility with iCIMS' software offerings. Additionally, as opposed to other talent management systems requiring costly modules, add-ons,
and data integrations, the iCIMS Talent Platform operates on one single-source solution. This one-stop Talent Management solution eliminates the mounting expenses associated with maintaining and training users on multiple systems, providing a cost-effective option for customers.


                                         niraj kumar
                                       pgdm. 3rd.sem

BNP, Soc Gen deny reported plan to raise $9.4 bn

PARIS: Top French banks BNP Paribas and Societe Generale denied a report that they could seek to raise a combined 11 billion euros ($14.8 billion) as part of a broader European bank recapitalization plan.

Le Journal du Dimanche newspaper had reported that France's first and second largest banks by market cap would seek about 7 billion euros and 3-4 billion euros, respectively.

A BNP spokeswoman denied the report, reiterating that it planned to reach Basel III capital targets without a capital increase. SocGen also denied the report and also said it would reach Basel III targets without a capital increase.

The Journal du Dimanche report, which did not cite sources, follows one in German daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung saying that the top five French banks had agreed to receive 10 to 15 billion euros in fresh capital from the French state as long as Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE) agreed to a government capital injection as well.

The Journal du Dimanche report said most European banking groups would prefer a European recapitalization mechanism "so as not to be stigmatized," adding that the European Banking Authority could be in charge of such a plan.

A French finance ministry source told Reuters on Friday there was common agreement between Paris and Berlin on the need to recapitalize European banks, adding that injections of public capital would be a "last resort." 

 

                                               niraj kumar 

                                            pgdm.3rd.sem.

China's local debt pileup raising risk of hard landing

CHENGDU/WUHAN (China): When China announced a nearly $600 billion package to ward off the 2008 global financial crisis, city planners across the country happily embarked on a frenzy of infrastructure projects, some of them of arguable need.

Chengdu, the capital of southwestern Sichuan province, answered the call for stimulus action with a bold plan for a railway hub modeled after Waterloo railway station in London.

Except London's Waterloo was not ambitious enough. "I was shocked when I finally got to visit Waterloo. It was so small," said Chen Jun, a director at Chengdu Communications Investment Group, which built the new Chinese terminal. "I realised we would probably need a station a few times bigger to meet the demands of our city."

In a manner typical of many infrastructure projects in China, Chengdu more than doubled the size of its planned transport hub, borrowed 3 billion yuan ($473 million) from a state bank to finance it, then set out on a blistering construction timeline that saw the finishing touches put on the project two years later.

But instead of getting the accolades they expected for helping to stimulate the economy, Chengdu Communications and many of China's 10,000 local government financing vehicles (LGFV) have now come under a harsh spotlight for the grim side-effects of the construction binge.

China's local governments have piled up a mountain of bad debt, some of it to finance bridges to nowhere and other white elephant projects, which now threatens to constrict growth at a time when the global economy is sputtering. It is adding to other systemic risks in China, including a sharp downturn in the property market and a rapid rise in problematic loans.

Local governments had amassed 10.7 trillion yuan in debt at the end of 2010. The government expects 2.5 to 3 trillion yuan of that will turn sour, while Standard and Chartered reckons as much as 8 to 9 trillion yuan will not be repaid -- or about $1.2 trillion to $1.4 trillion. 

                                       niraj kumar
                                       pgdm 3rd.sem

Recent Trends in Recruitment

The following trends are being seen in recruitment:

OUTSOURCING In India, the HR processes are being outsourced from more than a decade now. A company may draw required personnel from outsourcing firms. The outsourcing firms help the organisation by the initial screening of the candidates according to the needs of the organisation and creating a suitable pool of talent for the final selection by the organisation. Outsourcing firms develop their human resource pool by employing people for them and make available personnel to various companies as per their needs. In turn, the outsourcing firms or the intermediaries charge the organisations for their services.

Advantages of outsourcing are:

1. Company need not plan for human resources much in advance.
2. Value creation, operational flexibility and competitive advantage
3. turning the management's focus to strategic level processes of HRM
4. Company is free from salary negotiations, weeding the unsuitable resumes/candidates.
5. Company can save a lot of its resources and time

1. POACHING/RAIDING
   “Buying talent” (rather than developing it) is the latest mantra being followed by the organisations today. Poaching means employing a competent and experienced person already working with another reputed company in the same or different industry; the organisation might be a competitor in the industry. A company can attract talent from another firm by offering attractive pay packages and other terms and conditions, better than the current employer of the candidate. But it is seen as an unethical practice and not openly talked about. Indian software and the retail sector are the sectors facing the most severe brunt of poaching today. It has become a challenge for human resource managers to face and tackle poaching, as it weakens the competitive strength of the firm.
2. E-RECRUITMENT
   Many big organizations use Internet as a source of recruitment. E- recruitment is the use of technology to assist the recruitment process. They advertise job vacancies through worldwide web. The job seekers send their applications or curriculum vitae i.e. CV through e mail using the Internet. Alternatively job seekers place their CV’s in worldwide web, which can be drawn by prospective employees depending upon their requirements.
   
   Advantages of recruitment are:
   
   
   • Low cost.
   • No intermediaries
   • Reduction in time for recruitment.
   • Recruitment of right type of people.
   • Efficiency of recruitment process.
   
   
   Prem Paritosh
   PGDM-3rd
   

Another hatchback as Skoda lines up Citigo

MUMBAI: Czech automaker Skoda is lining up a new compact car Citigo for India, the small car originally planned for Europe. The company has not been able to crack the bigvolume compact car segment in India with the Fabia, and it now plans to launch new products in the lower-end of the market to corner higher numbers and market share.

"The Citigo, which is mainly a small car for Europe, also has a potential in a market like India," Skoda Auto Global chairman Winfried Vahland told TOI here. Vahland, who was in India to oversee the production of the company's soon-to-be-launched entry sedan Rapid (based on parent Volkswagen's Vento), said India is one of the key markets for the company globally, along with China and Russia.

"We are very optimistic on the Indian market and expect growth rates between 10% and 20% in the coming years."
The Citigo is one of the newest and the smallest cars in Skoda's stable and will be launched in the Czech market in late 2011 and in Europe in the beginning of summer 2012. In line with the company's positioning of a value-formoney brand within the Volkswagen (VW) stable, the Citigo will be a cheaper alternative to parent VW's Up!.

Vahland said when the Citigo makes an entry into India, it will be with the support of parent VW. "If it makes sense, we will do it together with the group." Sources said the company will have common strategies and synergies with the VW Up! that is also expected to enter the market next year.

Vahland said the company is looking to give a substantial push to its sales in India. "The Rapid is the first model in this direction and it is the first car from the Skoda brand which has been designed, keeping in mind the special needs of Indian customers. It will be manufactured here."

The Rapid will be launched in India in December and will compete with models like Nissan's Sunny, Toyota's Etios, Maruti's Dzire, Ford's Fiesta Classic and Tata's Indigo Manza. It will be priced lower than Volkswagen Vento, whose price starts at Rs 7lakh. The model will be manufactured at Volkswagen's Chakan factory. 


                                                    niraj kumar  
                                                 pgdm. 3rd sem

Global ripples are being felt in Indian markets: JM Financial

I do not think there is a recession because India is a growth story. Looking at the global scenario, one can see that the global ripples are being felt in India, plus there are local problems which are already covering from the political side as well as some policy-related issues are there. If we are able to address the policy-related issues first, that will be a big kick-start.

Also, we have been tackling inflation with interest rate hike. These are the local medicines which are trying to give that food inflation is tackled by interest hike. That is getting too much out of the hand because on that the industry is having big problem because their balance sheets are having big interest burdens. The capex and the borrowings and various other things are coming to bigger problems.

So if there is a policy decision of resting or interest rate hike not going more, at the same time, if we are able to get more inflows, which can come only if we take some policy decisions and kick-start some reforms, get the industry going, then the money will flow in, the rupee will appreciate and we will be slightly better off.

Because on one side, when the crude has come down 10-15%, the rupee has depreciated 10%. So it is getting offsetted. So all these problems can be resolved in a very systematic manner and we need to take those systematic steps in order to 

 reduce our burdens so that the inflation and liquidity do not create any problems.

So the story of how Indian markets have moved in the month of October, what will influence the script -- global factors/commodity prices or local factors like earnings and interest rates?

If you have to look at India, then you will have to look at the Indian companies and when you look at the Indian companies, then you have to look at their earnings. So earnings are governed by the interest component into those particular companies.

So if that interest component goes up, naturally the earnings cannot sustain if there is no growth into those companies. The second point is that when the global flows are flowing and if there are disruption in, say, Greek or Italy or European nature, then those flows do not flow very smoothly and it creates interruptions. So we are in that turbulent time of interruptions.

The moment the European problem is solved/resolved, then the global flow will start flowing back and we will have to watch out for the 23rd of November where the Obama government has asked both the congress, the republicans and the democrats to come with that spend cut deadline date and once that is out, we will be very much clearer how the global flows are flowing. So between now and November that is we are passing Diwali and most of the November we will have a sub-turbulent time and in those turbulent time, we should be picking and choosing the stocks and buying them. 

                                                  niraj kumar 

                                                   3rd.sem 

.

A handful of states have already announced increases in their minimum wage rates. The bumps range between 28 to 37 cents. Several other states are expected to follow suit soon.
Every year, 10 states are required by law to adjust their minimum wage rates to keep pace with inflation: Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, Ohio, Oregon, Vermont and Washington.
So far, five of those states have announced their 2012 minimum wage increases:

• Colorado’s will jump 28 cents to $7.64
• Montana’s will jump 30 cents to $7.65
• Ohio’s will jump 30 cents to $7.70
• Oregon’s will jump 30 cents to $8.80, and
• Washington’s will jump 37 cents to $9.04.

Arizona, Florida and Vermont are expected to announce increases in the coming weeks.
Washington’s wage of $9.04 is the highest in the country, and its 37-cent boost amounts to a $770 raise for those earning the state minimum.
The federal minimum wage stands at $7.25, or just over $15,000 for those full-time workers earning it. Overall, 18 states, plus the District of Columbia, have minimum wage rates higher than the federal rate.
                    PREETI BOHRA
PGDM 3SEM

Emerging Trends in Human Resource Management

NEW TRENDS IN HR

Human resource management is a process of bringing people and organizations together so that the goals of each other are met. The role of HR manager is shifting from that of a protector and screener to the role of a planner and change agent. Personnel directors are the new corporate heroes. The name of the game today in business is personnel . Nowadays it is not possible to show a good financial or operating report unless your personnel relations are in order.
Over the years, highly skilled and knowledge based jobs are increasing while low skilled jobs are decreasing. This calls for future skill mapping through proper HRM initiatives.
Indian organizations are also witnessing a change in systems, management cultures and philosophy due to the global alignment of Indian organizations. There is a need for multi skill development. Role of HRM is becoming all the more important.
Some of the recent trends that are being observed are as follows

• The recent quality management standards ISO 9001 and ISO 9004 of 2000 focus more on people centric organizations. Organizations now need to prepare themselves in order to address people centered issues with commitment from the top management, with renewed thrust on HR issues, more particularly on training.
• Charles Handy also advocated future organizational models like Shamrock, Federal and Triple I. Such organizational models also refocus on people centric issues and call for redefining the future role of HR professionals.
• To leapfrog ahead of competition in this world of uncertainty, organizations have introduced six- sigma practices. Six- sigma uses rigorous analytical tools with leadership from the top and develops a method for sustainable improvement. These practices improve organizational values and helps in creating defect free product or services at minimum cost.
• Human resource outsourcing is a new accession that makes a traditional HR department redundant in an organization. Exult, the international pioneer in HR BPO already roped in Bank of America, international players BP Amoco & over the years plan to spread their business to most of the Fortune 500 companies.
• With the increase of global job mobility, recruiting competent people is also increasingly becoming difficult, especially in India. Therefore by creating an enabling culture, organizations are also required to work out a retention strategy for the existing skilled manpower.

Prem Paritosh
PGDM-3rd

GOOD MORNING MAM
The National Labor Relations Board has pushed back the deadline for compliance with its controversial requirement that employers post a notice explaining workers’ rights to form unions.
According to a NLRB press release, the board postponed the effective date of the requirement from Nov. 14 to Jan. 31 of this year.
Why? “In order to allow for enhanced education and outreach to employers, particularly those who operate small and medium sized businesses,” the NLRB statement said.
“The decision to extend the rollout period followed queries from businesses and trade organizations indicating uncertainty about which businesses fall under the Board’s jurisdiction, and was made in the interest of ensuring broad voluntary compliance. No other changes in the rule, or in the form or content of the notice, will be made,” the statement continued.
The press release doesn’t mention two pending federal lawsuits — both of which claim the NLRB overstepped its jurisdiction by requiring employers to post the notice.
                                                                                                  PREETI BOHRA

                                                                                                    PGDM 3 SSEM

New Ranbaxy HR policy

This webpage enlists the various HR policies which are followed by Ranbaxy, the pharmaceutical giant. Ranbaxy, well known for its sound HR policies, empowers all its employees to identify their own potentials in a professional set up. It is an equal opportunity employer where employees can innovate and find new ideas to work upon. This company takes pain in developing its employees as an attempt to increase their contribution behind their corporate success. It also trains its employees in their latest domains so that they can become a master performer in their particular field. An added advantage here is that you are entitled to be a share holder of your parent.

By:----  Pooja Negi

PGDM-I (CR)