ACCMAN holds seminar on HR challenges

This isthe thought by Mr N S Rajan, Partner and Global Leader-HR Advisory, Ernst & Young, while delivering the keynote address at a conference organized on Managing Amid Global Turbulence-The HR Perspective by Greater Noida based Accman Institute of Management.

The conference was addressed by eminent speakers like Mr V K Lal, Head-HR, Moser Baer; Mr S.Y. Siddqui, Head-HR, Maruti Udyog Ltd.

Referring to the recent happenings such as the bankruptcy petition filed by Lehman Brothers, the high flier investment bank, $85 b bailout for AIG by the US Fed, sale of assets of Washington Mutual to JP Morgan Chase, nationalization of Feddie Mac and Fannie Mae, top investment banks like Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley metamorphosing from top notch investment banks into banks regulated by US Fed, and the $700 b package being discussed by the US congress, Mr Rajan said that Indian companies cant remain unaffected from all this, but those companies who turn this threat into an opportunity and use appropriate HR tools for creating the necessary competitive edge will turn into world beater companies once the turmoil calms down. He said that in the knowledge economy companies cant treat the HR function in the same old fashion for cost cutting.

Speaking at the conference, Mr V K Lal, Head-HR, Moser Baer, spoke about the necessity of sensitizing the HR personnel regarding issues that Indian employees hold dear. Prof Devi Saini of MDI, who chaired a technical session, spoke about the importance that corporate culture will have in the present scenario. The conference was attended by a large number of experts drawn from top Indian and multinational companies as well as from academia.

Earlier while inaugurating the conference, Prof. Praveen Sharma, Director, Accman Institute of management, said that HR managers in India are under tremendous pressure to find a way out of the fast spreading financial implosion, which though originating in US is fast becoming a global phenomenon, and to ensure that this doesnt leave a negative image among the global business community about the long term viability of the shining India story. He added that this assumes crucial importance since the global services sector today relies significantly on Indian talent. Giving examples from a few companies, he told the distinguished gathering which included top executives from Industry and reputed management gurus that during past recessionary periods, many organizations, both in India and abroad, have responded with blunt instruments like workforce reduction and cuts in HR spending, and suffered long term negative consequences. While this approach may temporarily boost the bottom line, it can jeopardize an organizations capability to restart the growth engine once turbulence calms down. Ultimately, this global war will be won only by harnessing talent, which is by far the most valuable but vulnerable asset in the knowledge economy.

Others who spoke on the occasion included Prof. Binod Kumar (ex-IIM C, NCTE), Prof. B D Singh (IMT), Mr Vinod Behari (RECL), Dr V P Singh (Jaipuria Group), Mr Asim Talukdar (NIIT), Mr Arunav Banerjee (Man Power Consultants, USA), Prof. Mukesh Chaturvedi (Bimtech), Mr Sumit Choudhary (Third Millennium), Prof. A. Kodwani (IMT), and Mr Virender Verma (TCS).

Mr S.Y. Siddqui, Head-HR, Maruti Udyog Ltd., while delivering the concluding address, congratulated the institute for organizing the conference and expressed the hope that the discussions would prove helpful to the participating HR managers in coming up with appropriate policies and programs for their companies.