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