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AP Academic Publishing
MANAGING HUMAN RESOURCES
IN GLOBAL ERA:
PROSPECTS & CHALLENGES
EDITOR
DR RAVI ALUVALA
Disclaimer
Zenon Academic Publishing, 2013
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or

transmitted, in any form or by any means, without permission. Any
person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication
may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.
First Published, 2014
Zenon Academic Publishing

Hyderabad.
ISBN: 9788192681931
This book is meant for educational and learning purposes. The author
of the book has taken reasonable care to ensure that the contents of the
book do not violate any existing copyright or other intellectual property
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corrective action.
PREFACE
The intellect and creativity of people are at the heart of the knowledge
driven revolution with a growth of service sector knowledge intensive
businesses. Within all sectors workers have to be more highly educated
and more must be able to work with customers as part of their daily
work as well as participate in teamwork.
People today are also required to work flexibly across a range of job
roles as organizations become flatter with fewer layers of management.
As the pace of change quickens individuals will have more
independence to manage themselves and their own activities with a
growth of opportunities.
These changing scenarios much impact the People Management in the

context of globalization and will bestow ample issues, prospects and
challenges which need to be explored. The practitioners, academicians
and researchers need to meticulously review these aspects and acquaint
them with knowledge to sustain in such scenarios. Thus, these changing
scenarios emphasize the need of a broad-based research in the field of
human resource management also reflecting in management education.
This book is an attempt in that direction.
I sincerely hope that this book will provide insights into the subject to
faculty members, researchers and students from the management
institutes, consultants, practicing managers from industry and
government officers.
Dr. Ravi Aluvala

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I am very much grateful to Prof. Katta Narasimha Reddy,

Vice-Chancellor of Mahatma Gandhi University for his continuous
support and motivation.
I am grateful to Prof. K. Pochanna, Registrar of Mahatma Gandhi

University for his support and encouragement.
I wholeheartedly express my deep sense of gratitude to

Prof. A. Vidhyadhar Reddy, Osmania University for being my constant
source of inspiration and support.
My sincere thanks are due to Prof. V. Shekhar, Principal, University
College of Commerce & Business Management, Osmania University
for providing encouragement and valuable suggestions.
I would like to thank all the contributors who have enriched this book
with their thoughtful ideas and insights. I acknowledge their scholarly
contribution and timely submission that made it possible to bring out
this work in time.
I take this opportunity to express my thanks to all my colleagues at

Mahatma Gandhi University.
I am thankful to my parents Late Sri Aluvala Janaiah and

Smt. Aluvala Dhanamma for their invaluable support and
encouragement throughout my life.
Dr. Ravi Aluvala

CONTENTS
Preface
Acknowledgements
List of Contributors
Chapter 1. The Global Economic Crises and Pragmatic Shift in
Human Resource Strategies for Business 1
Dr. Ruchi Goyal, Dr. T.K.Jain & Dr. Ram Garg
Chapter 2. Competency Building HRM Strategies for Sustainable
Change and Innovation in SMEs 17
Prof. A. Suryanarayana & Dr Ravi Aluvala
Chapter 3. HRM In the Misty Maze of Ethics 31
Dr. Farida Virani
Chapter 4. Role of Emotional Intelligence in Work Performance
of Artisans in the Handicraft Sector 41
Ms. Shalini Srivastava
Chapter 5. Emotional Intelligence Skills In Education Industry 51
Dr. Surekha Rana & Ms. Bhawna Chahar
Chapter 6. Emotional Intelligence On Employee Performance
And Its Impact 67
Mr. M. Sreeram Raju & Mr. T. Lokeswara Rao
Chapter 7. A Study on Indian Professionals towards their Work
Commitment and Relationship between Gen X and Y 79
connects
Dr. Makarand Upadhyaya
Chapter 8. Employee Engagement: What Exactly Is It?
93
Dr. Gummadi Ravi Kumar
Chapter 9. Retaining Talent in a World of Rising Aspirations 103
Mr. Rajeshwar Rao K
Chapter 10. Key Imperatives of Talent Management - The Indian
IT and ITES Industry Perspective 111
Dr. Naveen Kumar Bandari & Mr. N. Uday Kumar
Chapter 11. Perception Of Training: Voice Of Nonclinical Staff Of
Ruby General Hospital, Kolkata 119
Mr. Soumik Gangopadhyay & Mr.Anirban Sarkar
Chapter 12. Work-Life-Balance: A Novel Strategic Approach of
Retaining and Managing Generation Y Human 132
Force
Dr. Ramesh Kumar Miryala & Yadagiri Ch
Chapter 13. Work-Life Balance (WLB): The Binding For Every
Modern Organization 145
Dr. Chandrashekar M. Mathapati
Chapter 14. Work-Life Balance of Women Entrepreneurs in India
Ms. Uma Rani Bade, Dr J. Varaprasad Reddy & 158
Mr. P. Divakara Rao
Chapter 15. Women-Centric Inclusive HR Policies at Workplace
as an Empowerment Tool 171
Prof. A. Suryanarayana & Roshee Lamichhane
Chapter 16. Practice of Contract Labor: Its Impact on Corporate
Culture 184
Dr. Rana Bandyopadhyay
Chapter 17. Impact of Globalization on Alienating Local Identity -
A Special Reference to Gen Y from India 202
Mr. John Paul Mennakanti
Chapter 18. Demystifying Social Media: Implications for HR
Professionals 215
Prof. A. Suryanarayana & Roshee Lamichhane
Chapter 19. A study on e-HRM: Benefits of its Implementation 228
Dr. Bharath Kumar Porika
Chapter 20. Job Satisfaction of Government Teachers in Nalgonda
- A study 237
Ms. Anuradha V
Chapter 21. The Role of Lecture Method in Management
Education 245
Mr. M. Venkat Ramana Reddy
Chapter 22. Emerging Issues of GHRM and Effective Utilization
Mr. Jaya Prakash Narayana G, Mr. Varadha Raju 252
Komanduru & Mr. Shekhar Neelakantam
Chapter 23. Opportunities and Challenges in Human Resource
Management 262
Ms. Pooja Gandotra & Mr. Anil Bhat
LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS
Dr. Ruchi Goyal Dr. Farida Virani

Associate Professor, MET - Institute Of Management,
Suresh Gyan Vihar University, Mumbai, Maharashtra.
Jaipur (Rajasthan, India).
Ms. Shalini Srivastava

Dr. T.K.Jain Head, Training and Research,
Dean ISBM, SutrapatTM
Suresh Gyan Vihar University, Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh
Dr. Surekha Rana

Dr. Ram Garg Professor
Associate Professor, Dept. of Management,
Suresh Gyan Vihar University, Kanya Gurukul,
Campus of Gurukul Kangri University,
Dehradun, Uttarakhand
Prof. A. Suryanarayana
Dept. of Business Management, Ms. Bhawna Chahar
Assistant Professor,
Osmania University,
IMS UNISON UNIVERSITY,
Hyderabad - India
Dehradun, Uttarakhand
Dr. Ravi Aluvala

Mr. M. Sreeram Raju
Associate Professor,
Dept. of Management Studies, Asst. Professor of MBA,
KITS Engineering College,
Mahatma Gandhi University,
Ramachandrapuram,
Nalgonda AP.
Andhra Pradesh
Mr. T. Lokeswara Rao Mr. N. Uday Kumar
Associate Prof. & HOD of MBA, Associate Professor,
KITS Engineering College, Sree Chaitanya P.G. College,
Ramachandrapuram, Karimnagar,
Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh., India.
Dr. Makarand Upadhyaya Mr. Soumik Gangopadhyay

Associate Professor of Marketing Assistant Professor
College of Business Admin., International Institute of
Management Sciences
Jazan University,
Uluberia, Howrah
Jazan, Saudi Arabia.
Dr. Ravi Kumar Gummadi, Mr. Anirban Sarkar

B.Tech, MBA, PhD (Mgmt.), Assistant Professor
Assistant Executive Engineer, West Bengal State University
I & CAD, LMD Colony, Barasat, Kolkata
Karimnagar, Andhra Pradesh
Dr. Ramesh Kumar Miryala

Mr. Rajeshwar Rao K Assistant Professor,
Sr. Manager Dept. of Management Studies,
Recruitment Mahatma Gandhi University,
Pegasystems, India Nalgonda, India
Dr. Naveen Kumar Bandari Mr. Yadagiri Ch,

Professor, Research Scholar,
Sree Chaitanya P.G. College, Bommidala Department of
Human Resource Management,
Karimnagar, Acharya Nagarjuna University,
Andhra Pradesh., India. Guntur, Andhra Pradesh
Dr. Chandrashekar M. Mathapati Dr. Rana Bandyopadhyay
Faculty, Manager (HR&A)
Dept. of Management Studies, West Bengal State Electricity
Karnataka State Womens University, Transmission Co. Ltd.
Jnanashakti, Torvi, Bijapur. Kolkata.
Ms. Roshee Lamichhane Mr. John Paul Mennakanti

Manager Assistant Professor,
Business Development, Dept. of Management Studies,
CG-Group, CG-Towers, Mahatma Gandhi University,
Kathmandu, Nepal Nalgonda, India
Dr J.Varaprasad Reddy Dr. Bharath Kumar Porika

Director & Professor Assistant Professor(C),
TKR Institute of Management & OU PG College, Vikarabad
Sciences, Andhra Pradesh India
Medbowli, Meerpet, Hyderabad
Ms. Anuradha V
Ms. Uma Rani Bade Assistant Professor,
Associate Professor Dept. of Management Studies,
TKR Institute of Management & Mahatma Gandhi University,
Sciences, Nalgonda, India
Medbowli, Meerpet, Hyderabad
Mr. P.Divakara Rao Mr. M. Venkat Ramana Reddy

Associate Professor, Assistant Professor,
Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Dept. of Management Studies,
JB Institute of Engineering & Mahatma Gandhi University,
Technology, Hyderabad Nalgonda, India
Mr. JayaPrakash Narayana G Ms. Pooja Gandotra
Assistant Professor, Assistant Professor,
Dept. of Management Studies, School of Agribusiness Management
Sher-e-Kashmir University of
Mahatma Gandhi University, Agricultural Sciences and
Nalgonda, India Technology Jammu
Mr. Anil Bhat

Mr.Varadha Raju Komanduru
Assistant Professor, Agricultural Economics
Swami Ramananda Tirtha Sher-e-Kashmir University of
Institute of Science & Technology, Agricultural Sciences and
Nalgonda, India Technology Jammu
Mr. Shekhar Neelakantam

Dept. of Commerce,
Mahatma Gandhi University,
Nalgonda, India
THE GLOBAL ECONOMIC CRISES AND
PRAGMATIC SHIFT IN HUMAN RESOURCE
STRATEGIES FOR BUSINESS
Dr. Ruchi Goyal,
Dr. T.K.Jain
Dr. Ram Garg
Countries need to continue with their reforms in order to sustain
and continue growth, said Hans Timmer.
Abstract: This paper presents a summary of the prevailing economic
conditions round the globe and identifies the current challenges and
presents an alternatives HR solutions available to us. For a sustainable
Business in global economic crises times, a pragmatic shift in the
Human Resource Strategies is a must. Because an employee is the
back bone of any business and if he is happy the business will
definitely grow and prosper. Therefore the HR policies should be
framed in such a manner that it benefits the employee, employer and
the business world at large. This may also provide us a stable world
economy with sustainable business solution.
Key words: Global Economic Crises, Human resource, Strategic HR,
HR policies, Sustainable Business.
Introduction: Global Economic Problems
Today, the global Economy is facing a number of challenges, such as
recession, inequality, unequal economic development, poverty,
financial market problems etc. Recession is a short term problem and
may be self-correcting. Others are longer term global problems may
require a strategic approach for finding solutions. For
example, inequality and unequal economic development, poverty,
the exhaustion of non-renewable resources, environmental
problems and global warming, and systemic problems associated with
inadequate regulation of financial markets. After the global economic
crises, there are signs that growth is picking up in developing
countries, but still the world continues to face a bumpy and uncertain
recovery. The pace of recovery in high-income countries is likely to
remain slow. Developing countries can grow faster in this
1
Managing HR in Global Era: Prospects & Challenges
environment. However, to do so they will need to continue and

reinforce the reform momentum and a longer-term plan for structural
reform should also be adopted. For developing countries the matter is
of great concern because economic reforms and rapid development
are constantly changing both the structure of the economy and the
pace at which productivity grows. Thus the reform agenda must be
constantly monitored and must be changed from time to time as per
the economic requirement.
In the early part of the century there was a concern for improving
efficiency through careful design of work. The emphasis shifted to the
employee's productivity in the middle part of the century. In the
recent decades there is an increased concern for the quality of
working life, total quality management and worker's participation in
management. These three may be termed as welfare, development and
empowerment.
Human Resource Management is a process of bringing people and
organizations together, so that the goals of each other are met. The
job of HR was to bridge the gap between the employer and the
management. 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. Nowadays it is not
possible to show a good financial or operating report unless your
personnel relations are in order because without it one cannot have a
good financial and operating order.
Problem Statement:
The global financial crisis has brought difficult times for
organizations around the world. Faced with sharp decline in revenue,
companies are experiencing financial problems and salary cuts,
projects and purchases put on hold, and wage freezes. Initial signs of
the recessions end had begun to appear, although companies should
remain, cautious about their future strategy. The Indian market today
is reshaping the worlds economy. So far only Multi National
Companies (MNCs) with their vast resources, know-how and the right
connections have been the major beneficiaries of this phenomenal
growth in India. Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and
Entrepreneurs are just becoming aware of the growth story of India.
2
Global Economic Crises and Pragmatic Shift in HR Strategies
Now is a huge opportunity for the SMEs and Entrepreneurs to expand

beyond India.
In between all these problems we need to find a solution for attaining
a stable world economy and a sustainable business. If we want to
move out of this situation, the solution does not lies in wage cuts,
retrenchments or putting our business on hold. Because this will
future reduces the demand in the economy and will make the situation
worse. We must focus on increasing productivity and reducing cost by
following an employee friendly HR policy. It is said that A happy
employee is an efficient employee, thus keeping this in mind, a
possible solution to the above stated problem has been given through
a pragmatic shift in the Human Resource policies of the organization.
Review Literature:
As per The World Bank's twice-yearly Global Economic Prospects:
growth trends for the global economy were analyzed and examined
how they affect the developing countries. Even the Developing
countries, have been affected by the weakness in high-income
countries where growth is 1-2 percentage points below what it was
during the pre-crisis period . To regain pre-crisis growth rates, they
will need to lay emphasis on productivity-enhancing domestic
policies rather than focusing on increasing demand. In an
environment of slow growth and continued volatility, a steady hand is
required in developing countries to avoid pro-cyclical policy and to
rebuild macroeconomic buffers so that authorities can react in the
case of new external or domestic shocks.
3
Source: World Bank

Pekka Martikainen,Netta Mki and Markus Jntti (2006): were
of the view that Unemployment is strongly associated with mortality
of the individual.. The authors study was based on the effects of
unemployment and workplace downsizing on mortality during periods
of low (1989) and high (1994) unemployment in Finland. No excess
mortality was observed among those who, at baseline, were employed
at workplaces that had experienced large reductions in employment.
They also concluded that, the association between unemployment and
mortality was weaker among those working in establishments that had
been strongly downsized. This study provides strong evidence of
unaccounted confounding by showing that, in the context of either a
high level of unemployment or rapid downsizing, the effects of
unemployment on mortality are modest.
Satu Lahteenmaki, John Storey, Sinikka Vanhala(2006): this
study was based on HRM and company performance, the use of
measurement and the influence of economic cycles. The purpose of
the article was to identify the nature of the relationship between
HRM and company performance, and secondly to evaluate the
impact of economic recession on the relationship between HRM and
company performance
Kusum Sahdev, Susan Vinnicombe & Shaun Tyson (2011): This
paper examines the changing role of human resource in the context of
downsizing. It highlights the key dilemmas faced by HR professionals
- on the one hand, the contribution of HRM to the achievement of
4
business results has come under increasing screening and, on the other
hand, most of the challenges of downsizing requiring
HR interventions effective implementations. The paper focuses on the
key findings of a pilot study conducted in sixty organizations in the
UK that were downsized in the last three years. The important
conclusion of the study is that the role of HR has become wide
ranging, covering the strategic as well as execution aspects in
business. The study suggests that, unless there is alignment between
the two aspects, the benefits of downsizing are unlikely to take place.
Key challenges facing HR professionals are managing middle
managers, managing careers and managing employee expectations.
There are indications to suggest that the role of HRs is likely to
become more important in future.
Raymond Caldwell 2003: This study attempts to capture the
changing nature of personnel roles in response to major
transformations in the workplace and the rise of HRM associated
with it. About a decade ago Storey(1992) examined the emerging
impact of workplace change on personnel practice in the UK and
proposed a new fourfold typology of personnel roles: advisors,
handmaidens, regulators and change makers. Storey's work
provides an empirical and analytical benchmark for examining issues
of role change,
Ulrich (1997) work in the USA offers a sweeping prescriptive end
point for the transformation of personnel roles that has already been
widely endorsed by UK practitioners. He argues that HR
professionals must by embracing a new set of roles as champions of
competitiveness in delivering value by overcoming the traditional
marginality of the personnel function. Is this a realistic ambition? The
new survey findings and interview evidence from HR managers in
major UK companies suggests that the role of the personnel
professional has changed in a number of significant respects, and has
become more multifaceted and complex, but the negative counter
images of the past still remain. To partly capture the process of role
change, Storey's original fourfold typology of personnel roles is re
examined and contrasted with Ulrich's prescriptive vision for the
reinvention on the HR function. It is concluded that Storey's typology
has lost much of its empirical and analytical veracity, while Ulrich's
5
model ends in prescriptive over reach by submerging issues of role

conflict within a new style of professional identity. Neither model
can adequately accommodate the emergent tensions between
competing role demands, ever-increasing managerial expectations of
performance and new challenges to professional expertise, all of
which are likely to intensify in the future.
John W. Boudreau, Peter M. Ramstad (2005): in this study two
paradigm shifts were discussed- talent ship and sustainability. First,
the traditional service-oriented HR focus must be extended to a
decision science that enhances decisions about human capital. They
called this decision science talentship. It includes talent
segmentation, or identifying pivotal talent pools where the quality
and/or availability of human capital makes the biggest difference to
strategic planning and its success. Second, HR and business leaders
increasingly define organizational effectiveness beyond traditional
financial outcomes to include sustainabilityachieving success
today, keeping in mind the needs of the future. A common strategic
human capital decision science can reveal pivotal talent under both
traditional and sustainability-based definitions, and thus uncover
important insights about the talent implications of the shifting
definition of strategic success.
Challenges: Needs to be done
A young workforce: As per the Global perceptions, in Indian human
resource is less-costly, averagely skilled, dedicated and
knowledgeable workforce hence, it could be effectively utilized. By
2021, 64% of the country's population will be in the working age (15
59 years), up from 58% in 2011. Between 2011 and 2016, the
working age population will increase by 63.5 million, and a majority
will be in the 20-35 years group. This can pay us dividends only if
this healthy, educated, skilled and young population is utilized in the
right direction. Otherwise, it may also backfire. Therefore, creating
jobs is another big concern and proper utilization of the human
resource is a big challenge in front of us.
While the number of workers dependent on agriculture is falling,
the country is not creating enough new jobs to absorb them. Also,
most jobs being created are informal. These workers are facing the
6
problem of disguised unemployment. They have no written contract

and are not on the company rolls. They are not eligible for employee
benefit. And they are also not covered by social security benefits.
Thus, job security is a major concern for the worker.
Managing globalization: It is important for an HR Manager to study
people management practices before implementing new practices
which are global in nature. It has become a challenge for the HR to
educate its workforce about the effects of globalization. Instead of
thrusting new practices upon them, it is ideal to study the existing
practices which are in place or modify it as per requirement. Due to
globalization the worker working in the organization come from
diverse cultures and it is a big challenge to manage these workers.
Developing leadership skills: It is not just about knowledge,
experience and expertise it is also about developing the right soft
skills to give shape to the future leaders. Since the global economic
and industrial scenario is very volatile and changing fast what is
required now is the skills in the workers which distinguishes them as
team leaders. When we work as a team and develop leadership skills
in the worker, then only we can progress.
Managing change: Change management defines the response of the
business to the changing environment both internal and external. The
industrial growth scenario demands that there should be change
brought about within all factions of the industry. But resistance to
change is scenario which we all have to face. It is a huge challenge to
influence the resisting forces with the organization, manage internal
conflicts, motivate them to embrace change and implement the
changes. Because in todays scenario only the changing organization
can face completion and can survive.
Developing work ethics: With back to back slumps in the global
economy, no economy of the world has remained unscathed.
Employee morals and loyalty are being tested in a businesss every
day. It has become very important to re-instill cultural values, loyalty,
team spirits, ethics and bonding in the workforce. It is only possible
when the management has trust in the worker and takes full care of
worker. The worker must feel that the organization belongs to him
7
and no matter what happens to him the management will take care of
his family.
Retaining Talent: Yes, this is one of the major challenges which
organizations face today. Cut-throat competition has given an impetus
to high remuneration to the deserving. The search for better options
has always been a human tendency. People have gained exposure and
their yearning to rise is sees them changing loyalty and organizations
very frequently. To manage low attrition rates and retain talent has
become a big hurdle which all organizations want to cross in order to
reach their goals. An employee who is working in the organization,
knows about the organization and therefore it is better to retain him
than to train a new employee.
Managing fast changing technological trends: All organizations
today prefer to be technologically advanced. The technological trends
in todays global scenario are fast changing. Educating the human
resource about these changes, upgrading their knowledge and
motivating them to learn, absorb and come out of their comfort zones
is a great challenge faced by many organizations. This new
technology will be time and cost saving, and thus will increase
productivity.
Developing Accountability: With the advent of Six Sigma
methodologies, organizations have lowered their tolerance levels for
mistakes, errors and delays. This puts a lot of stress on the employees.
It is not easy to train people to shoulder responsibility. The system
should be made accountability so that the work is done in the best
possible manner and also in time.
Managing workforce stress and employment relations: HR is the
face of an organization. It hires and fires employees and the HR of an
organization should be emphatic towards its workforce. To maintain a
good employee relationship is a must today. This will help the
employee in reducing stress and work with full energy and
enthusiasm for the growth of the organization. This factor is fast
becoming a challenge for HRM especially in sectors like hospitality,
IT and allied support services, media and entertainment.
Managing inter-functional conflict: Earlier it was the friction
between different levels of an organization and now the new
8
emerging challenge for the HR is to manage inter-functional conflict

within an organization. With organizational restructuring becoming
common in the past few years, disputes and friction between different
functions has been increasing. Therefore a harmonious atmosphere
must be maintained for better work and conflicts must be resolved at
the earliest.
Managing workplace diversity: With globalization, the economies
are changing gears to accelerate growth. Organizations today are
having workforce comprising of people from different countries,
cultures and ethnicity. To manage the diverse workforce who have
fairly diverse physiological and the psychological influences, is also a
huge challenge for the HR in the emerging Indian economy.
Thus, Human Resource Management should be linked with strategic
goals and objectives in order to improve business performance and
develop organizational cultures that foster innovation and flexibility.
The goals and objectives should be based on 3 H's of Heart, Head and
Hand i.e., we should feel by Heart, think by Head and implement by
Hand.
The practice areas covered by HR strategies that impact on
performance are summarized in Tab
1 HR practice area Attracting, developing and retaining high
quality people
2 HR Planning Matches people to the strategic and
operational needs of the organization.
Provides for the acquisition, development
and retention of talented employees who can
deliver superior performance, productivity,
flexibility, innovation and high levels of
personal customer service and who fit the
culture and the strategic requirements of the
organization.
3 management
Talent Wins war for talent by ensuring that the
talented and well-motivated people required
by the organization to meet present and
future needs are available.
9
4 Working core values, leadership, work life balance,

environment managing diversity, secure employment.
Develops the big idea, ie a clear vision and
a set of integrated values. Makes the
organization a great place to work.
5 Job and work Provides individuals with stimulating and
design interesting work and gives them the
autonomy and flexibility to perform their
jobs well. Enhances job satisfaction and
flexibility, which encourages high
performance and productivity.
6 Learning and Enlarges the skill base and develops the
development levels of competence required in the
workforce. Encourages discretionary
learning, which happens when individuals
actively seek to acquire the knowledge and
skills that promote the organizations
objectives. Develops a climate of learning
a growth medium in which self-managed
learning as well as coaching, mentoring and
training flourish.
7 Managing Focuses on both organizational and
knowledge and individual learning and on providing
intellectual capital learning opportunities and opportunities to
share knowledge in a systematic way.
Ensures that vital stocks of knowledge are
retained and deals with improving the flow
of knowledge, information and learning
within the organization.
8 Increasing Encourages people to identify themselves
motivation, with and act upon the core values of the
commitment and organization and willingly to contribute to
role engagement the achievement of organizational goals.
Develops a climate of cooperation and trust,
clarifying the psychological contract
10
9 High-performance Develops a performance culture that

management encourages high performance in such areas
as productivity, quality, levels of customer
service, growth, profits and, ultimately, the
delivery of increased shareholder value.
Empowers employees to exhibit the
discretionary behaviours most closely
associated with higher business performance
such as risk taking, innovation, knowledge
sharing and establishing trust between
managers and subordinates.
10 Reward
management Develops motivation, commitment, job
engagement and discretionary behaviour by
valuing and rewarding people in accordance
with their contribution.
Source: Michael Armstrong (2006). Strategic Human Resource
Management: A Guide to Action. Kogan Page. London. p. 77-78.
Since, it is clearly understood from academic research that good &
satisfied human resources are a source of sustained competitive
advantage. The Impact Of Strategic Human Resource Management
and cost incurred may be taken up as an investment rather than an
expenditure. Because, the benefits of such an investment is more than
the cost.
The way an organization manages its HR has a significant
relationship with the organizations results, where business
competitiveness is related, at least in part, to the investments in
company specific assets. Although the research have proved a
positive statistical relationships between the greater adoption of HR
practices and business performance, it should also be kept in mind
that many other factors besides HR practices could influence
organizational performance. Also, it is possible that there are complex
relationships between HR practices and other resources of the firm.
The causal linkage between HR and organizational performance will
enable the HR managers to design programmes that will bring forth
better operational results to attain higher organizational performance.
The focus of the HR management should be to understand
11
organizational performance, processes and design HR practices that

influence process and outcome variables.
Table 2. Traditional HR versus Strategic HR
Traditional HR Strategic HR
Responsibility for Line managers Focus Employee

HR Staff specialists relations Partnership
with internal and
external customers
Role of HR Transactional change follower, and
respondent
Transformational,
change leader, and
initiator
Initiatives Slow, reactive fragmented Fast
proactive, integrated
Time horizon Short term Short, medium, long (as
necessary)
Control roles, policies, Organic-flexible,
Bureaucratic procedures whatever is necessary to
succeed
Job design Tight division of independence,
labor specialization Broad,
flexible, cross-training,
teams
Key investment Capital, products People
knowledge
Source: (Mello, 2002:102)
Possible Solution for the Problem:
With the growth of globalization and international trade, prosperity in
business could never be achieved without the technological,
operational and financial investments in Business. Industry highly
depends on human skills, strategic, managerial and operational. Not
12
only education and training, but also experiences are highly important
in realizing it. Today the working conditions are tough for professions
and especially for officers if these priorities are not taken into
account. The economic crisis that has started shaking the world since
the fourth quarter of 2009 has brought several problems with it which
has to be handled with great care.
These problems can only be approached through the strategic human
resources management principles and the companies should develop
their organizational culture in such a manner as to solve the problems
in the long term visions. Economic downturn impacts all areas of
business, operations, finance, marketing, sales, legal, and HR, and
appropriate responses are required in every functional area of
organizations. Surviving an economic downturn requires appropriate
integrated and coordinated actions. HR departments in companies
should play an active role to rescue their organizations in the adverse
effects of economic crisis, to support and assist their organization to
adjust to the changes required by the economic downturn. This can be
achieved not only by applying cost reduction strategies but also
applying practices that will increase morale, motivation, job
satisfaction and loyalty of employees. It is concluded that as gaining
and retaining qualified employees is very important in industry and
the employer must try not to reflect the adverse impacts of economic
crisis to the employer working on board in order to retain their key
employees.
Understanding the business and its direction: particularly
strategic plans, priority areas and any planned major changes such
as closures, new markets, new products/services etc. Understand
fully the vision, mission and goals of the employee.
Analyzing the workforce: planning for the future is difficult
without a thorough understanding of the existing workforce,
including entry points, career progression routes, employee turnover
rates, and exit points. We should also understand the needs and
wishes of the employee.
Identifying skills gaps: assessing skills and capabilities of the
existing workforce, especially in key areas, and how these might
change in the future. This will help us in forecasting the future
needs and thus frame policies accordingly.
13
Assessing future requirements: workforce demands and the

demand of the business, which means understanding any existing
shortfalls/surpluses, and any planned changes for the future. This is
where the co-operation of managers will often be needed about
which more lately.
Recruitment and retention: the translation of demand forecasts
into recruitment, training and development, and retention plans.
Adoption of various retention strategies so that the business might
not lose some of its valuable human resource.
Planning Succession: Understanding labour markets and planning
for succession, this involves getting a really good grip on workforce
supply, both now and in the future.
Employee involvement and Feedback: we should have an
increased employee involvement in the organization and take
constant feedback from them about the policy formation. Putting
everything together and then revisiting plans at intervals.
Employee growth and development: the employer in todays
scenario must pay attention to policies related to employee growth
and Development. For eg. Training and development plans,
learning, counseling etc. the workforce plan needs to inform these,
especially in areas where organizations grow their own and
training is lengthy and expensive. This will help in talent
development and retention of the employees who in turn will be
more happy, satisfied and more committed towards the
organization. The organization in turn will be able to increase its
productivity, profitability and efficiency.
Using Green Technology: it means more and more use of
environment friendly technology. This will not only reduced
pollution but will also reduce cost of production and increase
productivity. The use of this green HR technology may also provide
us with a sustainable business model which will survive for
generations to come.
Sustainable Business: in todays scenario what all of us want is
sustainable business. In which both the employer and employee are
happy. At the same time the possible solution will increase the
productivity, profitability and efficiency of the organization.
14
Conclusion:
There are many who wake up each morning with a smile at the
thought of going to work, doing something exciting and new, staying
productive and having fun at work. This thought explains why happy
employees are most productive compared to the unhappy ones.
Organization psychologists across the globe are of the opinion that
employee happiness is critical for an organizations success as happy
employees quantifiably translate into bigger profits. However, we
should also acknowledge the fact that employee happiness may not
always be achieved through rewards. Global research has consistently
proved the direct linkage between employee engagement, customer
satisfaction and revenue growth.
This may be a possible solution with the business world to face the
economic crises by making a pragmatic shift in there HR policy. This
will results in high productivity and heightened engagement level.
The employee and the employer both will gain and will be able to
contribute their best in developing a sustainable business and a stable
economy.
Propositions
Based on the above discussion we present the following proposition
for further studies and discussions:
There is need to debate and discuss the present economic crises which
the world is facing and we need to evolve way and means to
overcome it. We may overcome it by a pragmatic shift in the HR
strategies of the organizations so as to increase production and
efficiency on one hand and increase demand on the other. This shift
will help us in achieving economic stability and will also provide us
with sustainable business solution by the use of environment friendly
technology.
References:
1. Pfeffer, Jeffrey, (1994). Competitive Advantage Through
People: Unleashing The Power of Workforce, Harvard Business
School, USA, p.6.
15
2. Armstrong, Michael, (2008). Strategic Human Resource

Management: A Guide to Action, 4th Edition, Kogan Page,
London, p.11.
3. Porter, Michael E., (1985). Competitive Advantage, Creating
and Sustaining Superior Performance, The Free Press, USA,
p.38.
4. Wernerfelt, Birger, (1984). A Resource-based View of the
Firm, Strategic Management Journal, Vol.5, p.172, pp.171-180.
5. Lado, Augustine A., Wilson, Mary C., (1994). Human
Resource Systems And Sustained Competitive Advantage: A
Competency-Based Perspective, Academy of Management
Review, Vol. 19. No. 4, p.699, pp.699-727.
6. Fitz-enz, Jac, (2000). The ROI of Human Capital: Measuring the
Economic Value of (Robinson D, Hirsh W, Workforce Planning
Guide, IES Report 451, 2008)
16
COMPETENCY BUILDING HRM STRATEGIES FOR
SUSTAINABLE CHANGE AND INNOVATION IN
SMEs
Dr Ravi Aluvala
Abstract:
Innovation, especially for SMEs, is essential today for organizational
development, and possibly for ones own survival as well. For most
SMEs, the ability to learn faster than their competitors alone may
provide them some kind of sustainable competitive advantage. Faced
with the challenge of technological innovation, SMEs are forced to
choose between two major yet contradictory risks: risk of innovating
and the risk of not innovating through adopting a purely defensive
and conservative strategy. This double risk of innovation and
inactivity has to be viewed through the eyes of an entrepreneur of a
small firm. He needs to evaluate the shape and size of these risks
before establishing an SMEs innovation strategy. This Chapter
makes an attempt to show how innovation in SMEs can be managed
through competency building HRM strategies and provides practical
advice on developing and sustaining the process of innovation as a
state of mind.
Keywords: Innovation; Entrepreneurship; Sustainable Development;
Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs); and Competency Building
Competitive HR Strategies.
Introduction
Innovation concerns the search for, and the discovery,
experimentation, development, imitation, and adoption of new
products, new production processes, and new organizational set-ups
(Dosi, 1984). Innovation is the successful application of knowledge or
techniques in new ways or even for new opportunities profitably.
Innovation, especially for small firms is essential today for their
development, and possibly even for their survival. It follows that the
crucial contribution of the small entrepreneur is to link the novel ideas
and the market. Innovation is for all businesses, whether they use
high-technology or not. It involves an attitude of mind that is always
17
seeking to improve, that responds to customer needs, and that aims to

get ahead of the competition and stay there. For most Small and
Medium Enterprises (SMEs), the ability to learn faster than their
competitors may be their only sustainable competitive advantage.
Such SMEs are active in not only learning faster but also in applying
their learning in a systematic and strategic manner. They are neither
simply large-sized business units in miniature nor should it be
assumed that they must learn from and imitate large firms, since the
opposite is increasingly the case as per the available research
evidence. SMEs are the backbone of economic life and, whether
directly or through sub-contracting, are involved in almost every
commercial operation that takes place in most of the developing
economies of the world. However, the whole gamut of activities of
SMEs certainly faces obstacles to business growth and the principal
inhibitors are particularly in three areas. They are (i) being able to
implement change quickly enough; (ii) the availability of skilled
people; and (iii) international competition.
Nine out of every ten innovations are never completed and ninety nine
out of every hundred dont really change anything. But the one which
succeeds makes the other ninety nine worth the effort. This cant be
truer in the case of SMEs trying to compete through innovation.
Developing and sustaining innovation as a state of mind is not an
easy process for SMEs. It is a stimulating examination of the issues
involved in leveraging and managing innovation successfully by
concentrating on the strategic and organizational skills upon which its
sustainability needs to be based. In this backdrop, we need to look at
how small firms can use their strengths to build partnership and
develop innovation as a state of mind and explore the different
forms of innovation support that are available to business.
Background
SMEs play a significant role in contributing to the economic
development of many countries around the world. The growing
indication of any prosperous and emergent economy is the booming
and blooming SME sector (Feeney and Riding, 1997). Hashim (2010)
pointed out the SMEs play a vital role in generating employment,
economic outputs, income generation, export capabilities, training,
18
Competency Building HRM Strategies
fostering competition, innovation and promoting entrepreneurship and

supporting large-scale industry. The numeric importance of SMEs
need not be overstated (Storey, 1994). For instance, SMEs accounts
for 6% of Indias GDP, 40% of national exports and provide
employment to 60 million people. SMEs create 1.3 million jobs every
year and produce little more than 8000 products with an eye on both
national and international market. India is home to 30 million SMEs
and is growing at a fast clip of 8% per year (Deloitte Report, 2009).
The state-wise break-up of Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs)
shows that the number of MSMEs in the state of Tamilnadu is the
largest in the country accounting for 14.95 percent of the national
total (Fourth Census Report, MSME, 2006-2007). However, SME
sector in India is straight-jacketed by challenges of Human Resources
(HR). The growing attention on HRM in SMEs is a relatively recent
phenomenon. Many HR researchers tend to ignore the SMEs though
smaller companies offer a fruitful subject for empirical investigation
because of their numbers, growth rates, and diversity in the qualitative
aspects of management practices (Muhammad Umer, 2012). The
current research that look at smaller companies tend to place
emphasis on issues like determinants of HR in SMEs (De Kok &
Uhlaner, 2001), level of HR formality (TV Nguyen et al., 2004),
informality (Madurapperuma M A Y D, 2001), individual HRM
practices (Hornshy & Kuratko, 2003) etc. But seldom did research
focus on how innovation in SMEs can be managed through
competency building HRM strategies. Nor are there any studies that
provide practical advice on developing and sustaining the process of
innovation as a state of mind. In this context, we badly need studies
that concentrate on the strategic and organizational skills upon which
this success and sustenance need to be based.
Since SMEs place emphasis on running the business on a day-to-day
basis, they find little time for managing HR process, which is
considered to be a non-priority area. (Madhani, Pankaj M, 2012).
From the entrepreneurs perspective, HR is synonymous with
bureaucracy, policies, procedures, and paperwork (Katz et al., 2000).
Small companies do not consider HRM as important compared to
marketing, finance, and operations (Deshpande & Golhar, 1994, p.
49). The HRM has received scant attention by research scholars as
19
well. Heneman and Tansky (2003) observed that Small and Medium
Enterprises have been treated as second class citizens by authors in
the Human Resource Management literature for too long.
This abject neglect can be traced to the implicit notion that findings
relating to HRM in large enterprises have universal resonance than
the smaller ones. HR strategy of SMEs continues to be one of the
least researched areas (Mankelow, 2008). A careful scrutiny of studies
proves that researches in SMEs were focused on individual HR
practices such as performance appraisal, recruitment and selection,
compensation, and Training & Development. A searching perusal of
the available literature suggests that the use of HR practices is
relatively less in small enterprises as against larger ones. Thus, the
review of literature in the context of SMEs reveals a glaring
deficiency of systematic HRM research and the situation is still worse
in the Indian context. The researches in India on SMEs are almost
barren (Madhani, Pankaj M, 2012).
Though HRM relates to effective management of employees, we
know little about how employees, as subjects of HRM, react to its
practice (Grants and Shield, 2002). From its beginning, HRM
reflected management agenda much to the exclusion of employees
concerns. Clark et al. (1998) argued that employees are the primary
recipients and consumers of HRM, yet their voice has been muted.
Studies on HRM hitherto placed managers and human resource
practices centre stage. Until now, HRM effectiveness was examined
through single constituency namely HR managers (Becker & Huselid
1998; Richard & Johnson, 2001).
Special and Distinguishing Features of Innovation in SMEs
What distinguishes SMEs, in so far as the process of innovation is
concerned, from multi-national and multi-product giants? A
fundamental distinction has to be made between the two as a coherent
strategy can only be built upon an understanding of what it is that is
different between one business and another.
The differences between them cannot be understated although all of
them are dependent on the same economies and the same marketing
theories and apply equally to each of them. That is why, in this
context, it is necessary to highlight the structural characteristics of
20
SMEs. It alone would bring out some of their consequences that

involve and advance innovation. The traditional definitions often look
upon large firms as being efficient, and small ones as something that
have not quite worked out. But these views no longer have any
validity, due in part to the changes in the rules on competition in
local, national, and international markets. On account of this, SMEs
have won a significant share in many markets. It is here, any
entrepreneur who is able to identify the internal strengths and
weaknesses of business can have a significant impact. Moreover, the
readjustment that is currently taking place in a number of large
companies as a result of the competitive demands of more open
markets is creating new opportunities for SMEs to exploit. These
include: (i) the ability to respond to changes in customer needs, (ii) a
new division of labor between small and large companies, (iii)
internal/ external flexibility, and (v) flexible specialization.
The entrepreneurs of SMEs are faced with a number of possible
scenarios and appropriate strategies for each of these are to be
designed. In addition, the sources of innovation tend to be more likely
to be unpredictable and external in the case of smaller than for large
organizations. SMEs need to learn how to make innovation both a
state of mind and a habit (and not just a new word for improvement)
and every one of them needs to become a learning organization. It is
only when the environment is discussed that the difference between
SMEs and large firms are seen at their most marked. The large
business or an industrial group is frequently able to have as much
influence on its environment as on its own structures. The SMEs, on
the other hand, are in a situation in which they are highly dependent
upon this same environment. In theory at least, it has no power over
the market. Rather it is the market forces that will determine its
behavior.
For an SME, there is no monopoly, fewer economies of scale, and, in
the majority of sectors, barriers to entry which are easily overcome by
its large competitors. But fortunately, this does not mean that the
SME is entirely dominated by its environment. It can benefit from a
greater freedom of movement than is often imagined to be the case
and has room to maneuver. There are a number of very different
situations depending upon whether the business has secured a niche or
21
whether a large number of competitors exist; upon whether they are of

similar weight or whether a particular group dominates; upon whether
they have offensive strategies or not; or upon whether the sector is
technologically stable or whether it is a fast-moving and very high
tech area. It is all a question of making a comparison between the
different players; a comparison of assets, of order books, of behavior,
and of strategies.
There has certainly been one significant recent development. It is
increasingly in the interests of a dynamic business one has to establish
links with the environmentbut obviously not any links at any price.
Modern form of business is built upon the systematic creation of
flexible relations with different partners: the large company which
provides the order, and a range of SMEs, or the public and private
sector specialist agencies. Establishing these networks does not
eliminate competition, but it certainly changes its nature, and
generates new opportunities to explore and exploit. Much of the
networking that SMEs undertake is involuntary and must not
therefore automatically be seen as a sign of proactive behavior.
Equally, highly proactive managers sometimes have little time to
network because of the demands which their increasingly complex
business makes upon them.
For a long time, innovation was felt to be limited to the period of the
SMEs formation, or to the introduction of a new piece of equipment.
But innovation has now become one of the key elements within a
business, and ranks with marketing, finance, strategic planning, HR
development, or production management. Innovation needs to have an
impact in all these areas. Its influence cuts across the whole business.
Innovation is thus no longer only associated with great technological
change or the success stories reported in the business pages that are
often seen as being out of reach of the typical business. Nor can it be
reduced to the most spectacular successes. On the contrary, it has
become an activity in which every business needs to be permanently
involved, either explicitly or implicitly. There are two distinct sides to
it: (i) a limited number of high-profile major projects, representing
significant opportunities but involving substantial risks for the
business and (ii) a large number of micro-improvements to everyday
22
production which increase the structural competitiveness of the

business that gradually merge with it.
Innovation process is a continuous activity in the life of a business,
but it is characterized by a succession of discontinuities relating to
the introduction of particular projects. For effective innovation to
occur, strategic behavior needs to replace management, pure and
simple. It has to simultaneously fulfill the double criteria of efficiency
(technical and productive) and effectiveness (economic, social, and
image-related). In the pursuit of effectiveness, SMEs have to allocate
resources to those areas of the business likely to produce
extraordinary results to achieve financial, market, and personal goals
injecting entrepreneurship rather than administration with the
belief that the business of tomorrow is going to be qualitatively better
than the business of today.
The Double Risk of Innovation and Inaction
SMEs need to spend much of their time innovating. However, if at the
same time, they do not remain particularly aware of the extent and
diversity of their own innovation potential they become particularly
vulnerable to being pushed aside by the competition. The high level
of birth and death rates of these businesses are proof both of the
multiple opportunities for creation and the threat of premature failure.
The disappearance of a business (bankruptcy or being taken over) can
be attributed as much to the non-introduction of innovation. In other
words, faced with the challenge of technological innovation, the
SMEs are forced to choose between two major yet contradictory risks:
The risk of innovating, which can lead to a success as much as it
can lead to the total destruction of the business, or the benefits
being destroyed by another business altogether. SMEs may be in a
weak market position and inadequately organized or financially
insecure, often end up losing control of the results of their
innovation.
The risk of not innovating through adopting a purely defensive and
conservative strategy. Caution leads over time to an erosion of
competitiveness. The current situation can easily leave a business
in a state of perpetual confusion. Even if it limits its ambitions to
maintaining its position in the market, an SME still has to choose
23
between all the available innovations or better still create new

product-market combinations.
This double risk of innovation and inactivity will have to be
understood by viewing through the eyes of the entrepreneur. He has to
evaluate the shape and size of the risk before establishing her
innovation strategy. It is upon the basis of this initial appraisal of the
risk supplemented by the results of the accompanying diagnosis the
entrepreneur-manager will be able to take innovative decisions.
Whatever the current ambitions of SMEs may be, any plan action
needs to begin with a thorough examination of the current situation.
This diagnosis involves the identification of the strengths and
weaknesses of the business through an analysis of its structure, its
short- and long-term performance, and its financial results as well as
the potential areas where immediate improvement is possible. It is the
inevitable and risky nature of change that restricts the room for
maneuver that is at SME disposal in the never-ending struggle to
sustain and revitalize the competitiveness of SME business.
Competency Building HRM Strategies in Business for SMEs
Though the technological analysis of an SME may have an immediate
impact in management terms, they cannot be seen as a substitute for
setting the strategic direction of the business. Decisions such as a
significant innovation involve major changes and cannot normally be
reversed. A strategy is more than just an automatic extension of recent
trends; it is a structured thought process which involves following a
limited number of clear guiding principles over a probably lengthy
period. We can talk of SME strategy where a business sets itself the
objective of launching a new product onto the market every five
years; or when a decision is taken to diversity into two distinct areas
of activity; or to launch a new product; or to look into a new market
overseas; or to change the nature of the business.
But it is equally a question of strategy when considering the image
that one wants to give to the company, or when a decision is taken
radically to change the nature of working relationships within the
business. In the majority of cases, this decision is, in the last analysis,
that of the entrepreneur-manager. In a few particular situations,
however, this is a joint decision; and the recent trend is for consensus
24
increasingly to be the case. But the process remains the same; it is

necessary, in the end, to take the plunge, and to take the decision
which initiates a major innovative leap. The different stages in the
process of arriving at a decision necessarily include consultation,
calculation, and analysis. Haste is never justified if all that it produces
is an unsound decision, which does not involve the once-and-and-for
all establishment of a detailed project plan. What matters here is the
strategic decision itself; whether or not to go for a new product, new
piece of machinery, or new working system. The decision is strategic
because it commits the organization to a particular course from which
it cannot turn back.
It represents therefore a choice of direction, and requires motivating
the key energies within a business to pursue a precise and ambitious
objective, yet knowing that the other areas of business activity must
not be neglected; and knowing as well that the ways in which
implementation will take place have yet to be established or have
every chance of being substantially modified several times in the
course of the pursuit. The two key elements in any major strategic
decision are organization and technology. The link between them
highlights the fact that a technological system is well designed where
it uses and maximizes both the potential of the organization as it is
now (its flexibility, quality, and productivity) and the capacity of its
human resources (skills, knowledge base, creativity, problem
identifying and solving ability).
Furthermore, an organizational system is well designed when it does
not create obstacles to the use of available technologies, when it
makes use of the most highly developed areas of the business, and
where it leaves a space in which change can mature and creativity can
flourish. It is important, however, not to lose sight of the big picture
in the struggle to resolve points of detail. Any plan to improve the
productivity or efficiency of particular jobs (to reduce machine time,
for instance) needs to fit in with the benefits in quality and flexibility
which apply across the whole organization. In the same way, it is
necessary to work to extract the maximum benefit from every
opportunity for technological integration. Next, it will be necessary to
identify the changes that need to be made to manufacturing processes,
to the ways in which work is organized, and to people and their roles.
25
In particular, it is crucial to consider training needs, and how they will

be met and evaluated. There are two particular reasons for this:
The first, obviously is to ensure that the introduction of change
is related to improved effectiveness, so that the hard part of
innovation (the technology, the machine) fits the soft part (the
human resource base);
The second takes a much wider definition of effectiveness and
involves ensuring that the whole of the organization accepts the
innovation process. With this objective, the innovation process
needs to ensure maximum coherence between the interests of
the company and those of its members.
The next stage can really be described as making it to happen. It is
the beginning of implementing the innovation process that has been
selected. Whereas the decision-making phase draws a mass of thought
and actions towards a single point, this stage involves the reallocation
of tasks.
The first step will be able to create a work program to be followed by
putting in place the materials, carrying out trials, and finally
beginning production. Before choosing a project, it is important to
have come up with a clear estimation of the costs, divided into those
which are certain, those which are probable and those which are
possible, together with the periods in which they will be incurred.
This makes it possible to calculate the cost effectiveness of each
proposed project as well as its capacity to meet the industrial and
commercial objectives that have already been defined. Just as SMEs
need to adopt a methodical and critical approach to the expected
results, the same approach needs to be applied throughout for the
evaluation of the results of a given innovation process. This
evaluation concerns therefore the overall result of activity, from a
financial and marketing point of view to be carried out after the event.
Nothing is new for long in a world where speed of change is all. This
is the price that SMEs pay for open markets, for market economies,
for technology. Technology is increasingly at the centre of this
progress, and increasingly rapidly pushed out of the spotlight by other
technologies, which themselves are replaced at even faster speed.
Innovation breeds innovation. When business is seen as a succession
26
of projects, each having a limited life, innovation becomes imperative

for all businesses including the SMEs where the risk of innovating
must always be set against the risk of not innovating. SMEs often
ignore the potential advantages that their size offers in innovation.
The major obstacle to innovation is often a refusal to ask the really
searching questions that may undermine ones own position, at least
in the short term.
Innovation is cumulative and it takes time and any SME which is
looking for a magic formula needs to look elsewhere. While
efficiency gains are short-term, those from effectiveness are durable
and technology must fit both the needs of a business and its ability to
exploit it. SMEs are not just large businesses in miniature, or the
result of failed attempts to grow. The crucial strengths of SMEs are
their ability to be both flexible and specialized, and to respond rapidly
to changing customer needs. Successful SMEs do not necessarily
want to grow in size or to measure success in terms of numbers
employed. They need to play to their strengths (and to be aware of
their natural weaknesses) in the areas of innovation, human resources,
investment, and marketing. Process improvement and process
innovation are often confused, but are fundamentally different as the
former is incremental, the latter is radical.
SMEs are an inexhaustible source of innovations, but are less
effective when it comes to planning and implementing their
exploitation. They need to learn how to make innovation both a state
of mind and a habit. It is essential to be involved in changing the
nature of competition through systematically creating and sustaining
flexible proximity relations with different partners. A strong
territory (dynamic local economy) displays high levels of partnership
based upon co-operation, rather than on opportunism. Networks for
SME take a variety of forms and have a considerable capacity for
developing and implementing innovation strategies as well. A
business must go on increasing its capital by continuously introducing
innovations into its products, its processes, and its organization. The
best response to this pressure combines searching for internal
solutions and keeping up relations with the outside world, in
particular with the producers of science and technology. This is what
all large firms attempt to do. SMEs are faced with the same need, but
27
only in exceptional cases do they have the means to carry out research
internally. So they must have the recourse to other sources of
innovation. In most situations, the trump card which an SME has is
neither its own potential for technological development nor that of its
partners, but rather its capacity to transfer, adapt, and develop new
ways to move forward.
The key factor is its aptitude to assemble composite solutions that
contain a partial innovation, so as to meet effective demand in a
market place, more rapidly than those around it. According to the
collaboration they call for, the possible ways in which SMEs can get
hold of technological innovation are: (i) to buy or order components
or equipment from a catalogue, (ii) to buy or have made to order, (iii)
to imitate or to acquire a license, (iv) to imitate or to acquire a license,
(v) to adapt or add value to ideas existing in other industrial sectors,
(vi) to be inspired from, to imitate and improve (reverse engineering),
and (vii) to develop with or to commission research under contract
and in collaboration.
Concluding Remarks
A range of potential innovations lie dormant within any SME. SMEs
can no longer afford to ignore technological renewal and all other
forms of innovation. For them, good strategies are unambiguous and
based upon detailed knowledge besides being realistic with regard to
the capabilities of the SMEs. They are always implemented with
energy, perseverance, and commitment. For them, there is no
technological innovation without organizational innovation. The
comparative advantage of costs and prices is no longer sufficient for
SMEs to win a business order. The conquest of markets depends on
offering new products and services, on their being adapted to the even
more diversified and personalized demand, and on the added value
which their use brings.
Speed of reaction can certainly enable SMEs to get the better of a
competitor, and has become a major new source of profit. It is a
buyers market. There is no criterion for choosing the right innovation
at the right moment for SMEs. The history of technology and
technological change is littered with the famous failures of brilliant
discoveries that arrived too soon but without an appropriate
28
technological context or which did not succeed in creating a new

demand. So, the criteria to guide SMEs choice concerning the most
pertinent innovations are at the same time too numerous and of very
limited value. For them, the first condition here is to have a
sufficiently broad understanding of the available options. However,
the decision must be made based upon a limited amount of
knowledge. The first criterion in this context is the cost, notably the
cost of access to innovationcost of the patent, for instance, and of
its subsequent implementation set against the anticipated financial
results. A reasonable and realistic evaluation of the return on
investment is the most basic criterion. This indicator has the
advantage of being simple to apply, fast to establish, relatively
representative for innovations considered in isolation, and centered on
the key variable of return.
References
1. Ansoff, Igor (1965), Corporate Strategy (London: Penguin)
2. Bertrand Bellon and Graham Whittington (2006) Competing
through Innovation (India: PHI)
3. Burns, T. and Stalker G. (1961), The Management of Innovation
(Oxford: Oxford University Press)
4. Carlson, D. S., Upton, N., and Seaman, S. (2006). The Impact of
Human Resource Practices and Compensation Design on
Performance: An Analysis of Family-owned SMEs. Journal of
Small Business Management, 44(4), 531-543
5. Cassell, C, Nadin, S Gray, M and Clegg, C 2002, Exploring
Human Resource Management in the Small and Medium Sized
Enterprises, Personnel Review, Vol. 31, No. 6. pp. 671-692
6. De Kok, J., & Uhlaner, L. M. (2001) Organization Context and
Human Resource Management in the Small Firm. Small
Business Economics, 17(4), pp. 273-291
7. Deshpande, S. P. and D.Y. Golhar, 1994, HRM Practices in
Large and Small Manufacturing Firms: A comparative Study,
Journal of Small Business Management 32 (2), pp. 49-56
8. Davenport, Thomas H. (1993), Process Innovation (Cambridge,
MA: Harvard Business School Press)
29
9. Drucker, Peter F. (1985) Innovation and Entrepreneurship

(London: Pan)
10.Disum G. ed. (1984), Technical Change and Industrial
Transformation (London: Macmillan)
11.Hendry, C. et al. (1995), Strategy through People (London:
Routledge)
12.Heneman, R. L., J.W. Tansky and S. M. Camp, 2000, Human
Resource Management Practices in Small and Medium-sized
Enterprises: Unanswered Questions and Future Research
Perspectives, Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 11-26
13.Holliday, R. (1995), Investigating Small Firms: Nice Work?
Routledge, London
14.Hornsby, J. S., and Kuratko, D. F. (2003). Human Resource
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Extension. Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship 8 (1),
73-92.
15. Porter, Michael (1985) Competitive Advantage (New York: The
Free Press)
16. Reilly, P. A., & Williams, T. (2006). Strategic HR: Building the
Capability to Deliver. Gower Technical Press.
17. Schumpeter, J. (1926), Theory of Economic Development
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(London: Routledge)
19.Wilson, David C. (1971), A strategy of Change (London:
Routledge)
30
HRM IN THE MISTY MAZE OF ETHICS
Dr. Farida Virani
Abstract
Many papers and researchers rightly conclude, that HRM holds the
moral stewardship of organizations, standards, values, morals and
ethics (Winstanley and Woodall, 2000) as it plays an important part in
building an ethical and moral climate in organizations. Each day, in the
course of executing and communicating HR decisions, managers have
the potential to change, shape, redirect, and fundamentally alter the
course of other peoples lives. For each HR practice, there are winners
and there are losers. Ironically, management of human capital (HRM)
itself deals with a lot of ethical challenges, both at the senior levels
involving strategic decisions and middle management involving
treatment of individual employees. This paper is exploratory, reviews
various ethical philosophies, and analyzes their deficiencies and related
shortcomings while applying them to HRM as a discipline. These
ethical concerns and questions are raised to evaluate the applications of
ethical philosophies to practical HRM. The paper concludes with
practical recommendations for HR managers.
Key words: Ethics, Ethical Philosophies, HRM.
All HR practices have an ethical foundation. HR deals with the
practical consequences of human behavior.
(Johnson, 2003)
HRM is a hotbed for ethical challenges. Each day, in the course of
executing and communicating HR decisions, managers have the
potential to change, shape, redirect, and fundamentally alter the course
of other peoples lives. For each HR practice, there are winners and
there are losers. Furthermore, HRM is not a consistent and unitary set
of principles and practices. It varies from organization to organization,
from culture to culture, and can be diverse both within and between
industries and sectors. HRM has evolved in multifaceted historical,
economic and social contexts.
The decline of collectivist systems of industrial relations (IR) has left
many employees potentially more vulnerable to opportunistic and
unethical behavior (Watson et al. 2003). The recent shift towards
31
individualism in employment has questionably placed the integrity of

HRM in the hands of business managers and HR managers in
particular. Denhardt (1991: 28) stated; Ethics is not just avoidance of
corruption, responsiveness to elected officials, or not keeping costs to
a minimum while supplying a quality service or product. It is also the
vigorous pursuit of principles such as justice, fairness, individual rights
(for example, privacy and due process), equity, respect for human
dignity and pursuit of the common good. While it is argued (Winstanley
and Woodall, 2000) that HRM holds the moral stewardship of
organizations - interpretations of standards, values, morals and ethics
have become increasingly complex in a postmodern society, where
absolutes have given way to ambiguity. In this current context, it
becomes most relevant to examine the ethical dimensions of HRM
practice.
Ethical philosophies and HRM challenges
There is a perception that ethical decision making is just a matter of
applying ethical principles and theories to situations. In reality,
different ethical theories when applied to the same situation would most
likely result in differing outcomes. This could be quite tricky especially
in relations to HRM. The researcher has therefore tried to discuss the
different ethical philosophies and argued about its application in terms
of Human Capital Management.
Absolutism and Relativism
Ethical absolutism believes in the notion that there are universal truths
in morality that apply at all times and in all circumstances. Ethical
relativism believes, there are no universal or international rights and
wrongs, it all depends on a particular cultures values and beliefs and
the only right and wrong are as specified by the moral code of each
society.
In the world of moral relativism, the role of HR becomes predominantly
challenging. Cultural relativism is the mistaken idea that there are no
objective standards by which our society can be judged because each
culture is entitled to its own beliefs and accepted practices. No one can
object to any societys intolerance that reflects its indigenous
worldview. Because there is no objective moral truth that pertains to all
people and for all times, one moral code is no better or no worse than
32
HRM In the Misty Maze of Ethics
any other. Multiculturalism, racism, post modernism,

deconstructionism, political correctness, and social engineering are
among cultural relativisms intellectual descendants.
For e.g. Many U.S. businesses frown on nepotism in hiring, fearing that
it may lead to favoritism and inequity. However, in many countries,
nepotism in staffing is not considered wrong. Acquiring a position in
an organization based on family relationships is a common norm in
collective cultures. Many ethical scholars reject ethical relativism,
believing it may generate unacceptable consequences. However, in the
light of these varying views the role of HR managers become
particularly complex in international companies, as it is no longer clear
whether local cultural solutions are acceptable or appropriate or
absolute universal truth should prevail.
Consequentialist Approaches (Utilitarianism)
This approach was developed by Jeremy Bentham (17481832) and
John Stuart Mill (18061873). Its main premise suggests that the
morality of an act is determined by its consequences: people should do
that which will bring the greatest utility (which is generally understood
to mean whatever the group sees as good) to the greatest number
affected by a given situation. In terms of means vs. ends, it focuses
exclusively on the ends, not means. However, in practice it is difficult
to measure all the good and all the costs. Some things are
immeasurable. Utilitarianism has been criticized as too numeric
because measuring costs and benefits omits any human element.
Hypothetically, in the case of deception, if the chances are high that the
deception will have a significant net positive effect, individuals will use
utilitarian theory to reason their decision to deceive. This view tends to
dominate business decision making. It is consistent with goals like
efficiency, productivity, and high profits. By maximizing profits, for
instance, a business executive can argue he is securing the greatest good
for the greatest number as he hands out dismissal notices to 15 % of his
employees.
HR practitioners, argue that in practice it is very complex to accurately
determine what the maximal utility would be for all affected by a
situation. Who represents the majority? Can we accept a situation
where the benefits of the majority might mean the exploitation, and
33
suffering, of the minority even resulting in costing lives of people? HR

mangers may not always have all the necessary information. The notion
of utility is also very vague. Is the vision short or long term? These
perspectives may lead to different conclusions and so varied HR
practices.
Non-Consequentialist Approaches (Deontological or Duty Ethics)
This approach, associated with Immanuel Kant (17241804), is
sometimes referred to as duty ethics. A HR manager who accepts
Kantian morality would ask whether the principle on which any given
decision is based passes the test of the categorical imperative. Is the
principle based on good will? Does it treat people as ends in
themselves? And can it be willed universally without contradictions?
Unless the principle of your action can be universalized, it is immoral
to make an exception for yourself (Bowie, 2002). A key notion for
Kant was that of intentionality. It might well be that the outcome of an
act leads to very dire consequences for people for example, the
closure of a mining site to adhere to government compliances and
subsequent job losses and families sufferings as a consequence but
according to this theory , if ones aims and intentions are good, then the
act is a moral one. Its all about motivation and meaning. Kantian
approaches propound a number of rights, usually embracing issues such
as the fundamental right to life and safety, and the human rights of
privacy, freedom of conscience, speech and to hold private property.
Rights-based frameworks continue to be relevant to HRM, particularly
in areas such as selection interviewing (the right to privacy and
confidentiality of personal information, particularly where it is not
relevant to the job e.g. female candidates asked about their marriage
plans or when do they plan to start a family), occupational testing (such
as the right to feedback), equal opportunities and diversity management
(the right to be treated the same e.g. equal employment opportunities
and pay for both genders or to be given special treatment for the
differently able employees), flexible employment contracts and
working time (the right to work- life practices), `whistle blowing (the
right to speak out about wrongdoing) etc. Conversely, this approach
also harvests a lot of questions from the HRM perspectives that requires
answers. First, how (on what parameters) does the organization
34
establish the interests of the employees? Second, why should one

employees interests be the same as another employees interests? Or,
be the same as the employees interest in the future? These questions
are challenging to address because of the rapid change in the mindset,
skill sets and the attitudes of both the employees and employers within
the changing business context and related legal frameworks. Moreover,
the assumption of homogeneity is a perpetual problem faced in the
domains of HRM (Wright and Boswell 2002) areas.
The Ethics of Human Rights
Human rights are the basic rights of each human being, independent of
race, sex, religion, political opinion, social status, or any other
characteristic. John Locke (16321704) was one philosopher who
emphasized and elaborated an ethics based upon human rights. He
argued that it is not so much the application of reason to acts that is
important to morality, but an appreciation of the fair and equal
treatment of all people, enshrined in the recognition of basic human
rights. According to the theory of moral rights, human beings have
certain fundamental rights that should be respected in all decisions: the
right to free consent, privacy, and freedom of conscience, free speech,
and due process (Cavanagh et al., 1981).
Businesses realize the compelling reasons why they should involve
human rights in their policies and practices. Businesses increasingly
need a stable international environment in which to operate, with
sustainable markets and a level playing field of opportunities. Human
rights offer a common framework for businesses to understand
societies expectations and deliver value to stakeholders in a more
sustainable way. Human resources are a key sector where the concerns
of human rights and human diversity meet the practical reality of
workplaces, whether in the public, private or non-profit sector. Hiring,
promotions, and workplace conditions have serious and immediate
implications for whether individuals of diverse backgrounds and
identities enjoy the equality and opportunities that human rights
principles suggest everyone deserves.
However there are a lot of occasions when HRM and Human Rights
have been at cross roads. E.g. how do you operate within international
standards of Human Rights when there are local corrupt financial
35
practices, a lack of laws, and the improper administration of justice,

leading to limited respect for human rights? How do you obtain
protection for personnel and plant when the state security forces are
known to use excessive violence and commit other human rights abuses
against the local population?
Virtue Ethics
Virtue ethics is an approach that is seen to originate with Aristotle
(384322 BC). It has recently regained prominence through the work
of the philosopher Alasdair Macintyre (1981). Aristotle was not
concerned to identify the qualities of good acts, or principles, but of
good people. Acting as a good person, Macintyre suggests, is the
state of being well and doing well . . . a complete human life lived at
its best (pp. 148149). This is not just the simple application of rules.
The virtues include both intellectual and character virtues. Macintyre
includes the need to feel that what one is doing is good and right; to
have an emotional as well as a cognitive appreciation of morality is an
essential component of virtue. A key distinction between this approach
and others is that it focuses on the issue of agency in ethical conduct. It
suggests that neither good intentions nor outcomes, codes and the
recognition of basic rights will necessarily ensure goodness. In the
final analysis, the effectiveness of an ethical system depends on the
nature of the people who employ it. Research shows that a persons
cognitive moral development will influence how they respond to
ethical dilemmas (Kohlberg 1981). A number of factors influence the
mode of individual behaviors to either deontological or teleological
approaches, especially if the teleological way takes the form of self
seeking, rather than communal good type behavior.
Practically even if virtuous behavior is desirable, there is haziness and
ambiguity about which virtues are desirable and functional in the ever
changing dynamic business context. From a HR managerial
perspective, the end of a business enterprise is not a virtuous life but
economic efficiency and profit, where using virtue at work is a means
to good business. But, according to Aristotles virtue ethics, the end is
not economic efficiency and profit, but a virtuous life, using economy
as a means to eudemonistic (living and acting well) happiness. These
conflicting conceptions can cause ambiguity to HR practitioners.
36
The Stakeholder Approach

This approach has emerged from the area of applied business ethics,
and proponents include Freeman (1998) and Weiss (1994). Stakeholder
analysis sees morality as evolving within a community of equals, where
rights and needs are recognized as residing within all individuals and
groups that participate in business life. Organizations consist of many
interwoven webs of relationships, rights and responsibilities. Many
individuals and groups have a stake in how an organization performs,
apart from just the shareholders and members of the board. Employees,
customers, suppliers and the wider community should all be considered
when decisions affecting them are made. Stakeholder theory offers
potential to conceptualize the organization that recognizes employee
relationship as a moral relationship, and the employee as a moral
claimant of the organization.
However, there are a number of realistic problems with this approach.
First, organizations must identify relevant stakeholders and this is not
always an obvious matter. Second, when stakeholders are identified, an
organization has a moral compulsion to ascertain their views. This is
not always easy and incurs cost and time. An organization may, with
the best of objectives, obtain a fractional view of the wishes of its
stakeholders but that does not acknowledge the voices of several
relevant diverse groups. Lest forgotten, even though an important
stakeholder an HR manager, he is still an agent of the firm. Tough
decisions in regards to employee relations would see HR making
decisions aligned with the organizations interest, but not necessarily
in the interests of employees, who may have their rights infringed.
Research shows that there are a number of pressures on HR managers
which influence their ability to act ethically. Consider, for example the
roles of administrative expert, employee champion, change agent,
and strategic business partner (Ulrich 1997). Each of these roles
represent embedded conflicting interests for example, the strategic
business partner and administrative expert, would see the HR
manager act within the interests of the organization, but not necessarily
to promote ethical interests or the rights of employees. In contrast, the
employee champion role would see that HR managers act within the
interests of employees, and be a champion of their rights, which is
37
perhaps more consistent with the rights based ethical justice framework
espoused by Rawls (1971).
From the above analysis and arguments, it is evident that each
philosophy examines ethics from a different perspective, and no one
principle captures the full range of relevant issues. There are major
challenges in the application of any one or all the philosophies to HRM
as a domain and therefore extensive reflection, deliberation and
research on the ethical HRM schema is essential. Ethical analysis of
HRM needs to be developed as an important area of inquiry both in
research and practice of HRM.
Conclusions
HRM holds the moral stewardship of organizations - standards,
values, morals and ethics as it plays an important part in building an
ethical and moral climate in organizations. Paradoxically, management
of Human Capital (HRM) itself deals with a lot of ethical challenges.
It is apparent, that the intersection of organizational, professional and
personal ethics can lead to complex ethical dilemmas and so an
extensive complexity of ethical choices that arise. Ethical HRM is a
complex and multifaceted matter to which there are no easy solutions,
few evidently correct answers and therefore the difficulty of
determining the morally best HRM strategies.HR mangers are advised
to examine challenging ethical dilemma applying all the principles and
philosophies. When all the principles come to the same conclusion
about the ethics of a course of action, then there is no apparent conflict
about what is ethical. However the researcher is also mindful of the
practical relevance of such an advice where time, financial results and
bottom lines are all that matters.
Some business sectors share knowledge and experiences about their
ethical framework processes and procedures which could be valuable
tools for HR managers. A strong commitment from a companys senior
leaders is a prerequisite for embedding an ethical culture into a
companys operations and activities. Open discussions about ethical
dilemmas faced within the organization would help generate frame
works for ethical decision making specific to your organization which
could be documented. Cultivating ethical sensitivity and ethical
reasoning amongst HR managers would go a long way to achieve
38
ethical practices in HRM. Most importantly ethics in HRM should be

encouraged as a rigorous subject in academic institutions. Achieving
an ethical balance in HRM is not a destination, it is a continuous
journey ..
Its an elusive moving target.
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40
ROLE OF EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE IN WORK
PERFORMANCE OF ARTISANS IN THE
HANDICRAFT SECTOR
Shalini Srivastava
Abstract
Emotions play a significant role in affecting or influencing work
performance of an individual. A considerable portion of time in a day
is spent in either expressing or undergoing different emotions at work
place. The affect of emotions at workplace has also been addressed by
researchers who study the sociology of emotions. According to
Affective Events Theory (AET), emotions form a key factor in
determining links between work behavior and attitude, affective traits
and environment. At the same time, individuals may differ in their
perception, expression and management of emotions. The emotional
intelligence framework not only highlights such differences in people
but even their ability to cognitively manage or control their emotional
lives. In this paper the author has tried to explore the emotional
intelligence through its five components (propounded by Daniel
Goleman) of artisans working in the handicraft sector. For the
purpose of study, author had used interview technique under
qualitative research tool. The study reveals that the artisans undergo
various facets of emotional situations while at work and they do
impact their level of performance. Though artisans are high on social
skills and empathy, but they lack considerably on self awareness,
motivation and self regulation.
Keywords: Emotional Intelligence, Work Place, Artisans, Handicraft,
Performance
Introduction
The handicraft sector in India forms a significant component of
informal economy. A large number of artisans are engaged in crafts
like metal ware, carpet, goods made from hand embroidery, wood
ware, and zari products to name few. While for many families such
craft is the only source of livelihood, for some it supplements their
family earning. Artisans mostly perform handicraft activity at their
place of residence. A considerable section of artisans manage the craft
41
as an independent household, engaging members of the family. At the

same time, there are few who engage other artisans for such work.
Some even function under a Self Help Group (SHG). The various
socio economic factors affect the functioning of these artisans. In
fact more than social, it is the economic factors as poverty still
enslaves many of them. Women and small children roll bidis, make
agarbattis, do zari and sequin work for meager wages, Kapila (2010).
With an aspiration to disentangle themselves from the shackles of
poverty and insecurity, these artisans strive for better livelihood. At
times lack of upward mobility, inadequate supply raw material, poor
infrastructure and limited access to markets not only put constraints
on their output but also affects them emotionally.
As expressed by Daniel Goleman, emotion is a feeling and its
distinctive thoughts, psychological and biological states, and range of
propensities to act (1995). Emotions typically arise in response to an
event, either internal or external, that has a positively or negatively
valenced meaning for an individual, Salovey et al (1990). Emotional
intelligence (EI) addresses the emotional, personal and social
dimensions of intelligence. Goleman described it as an ability to
identify as well control emotions within us as well those of others
(1998). The paper is an attempt to explore the five components of
emotional intelligence at work in the artisans engaged in various
crafts under handicraft sector.
Emotional Intelligence
The phrase Emotional Intelligence was first coined by Dr. Peter
Salovey and Dr. John Mayer in 1990. They described it as ability to
monitor ones own and others feelings and emotions, to discriminate
among them and to use this information to guide ones thinking and
actions (1990). The term gained worldwide prominence in 1995 with
the publication of book, Emotional Intelligence, Why it can matter
more than IQ, by Daniel Goleman. He described emotional
intelligence as a capacity for recognizing our own feelings and those
of others, for motivating ourselves, and for managing emotions well
in ourselves and in our relationships (1998b). Self awareness and
empathy forms core components of Emotional Intelligence (EI).
While self awareness demonstrates honest interaction with self as well
42
Role of Emotional Intelligence in Work Performance of Artisans
as control over own emotions, empathy, on the other hand instills

capacity to keep lots of different relationships going over a long
period of time, often despite many life changes, Greenberg et al
(2003). Also EI is a valuable resource that can renew and re-ignite
organizational purpose and inspire people to perform better, Boyatzis
et al (2003).
The Five Components of Emotional intelligence
In 1998, in a book titled, Working with Emotional Intelligence,
Goleman defined a framework of EI incorporating skills of Self
Awareness, Self Management , Social Awareness and Relationship
Management leading to success at work place. In his article What
Makes a Leader? he expressed five components of EI at work place.
While self awareness, self regulation and motivation were aimed at
self management, empathy and social skills were meant to manage
relationships with others. Figure 1 shows the five components, their
meaning and implications.
Figure 1 Five Components of EI at Work
Adapted from the Article, What Makes a Leader, by Daniel Goleman, 2004, HBR,
http://hbr.org/2004/01/what-makes-a-leader
The present study is an endeavor to gauge the impact of above
mentioned five components on work performance and emotions of
artisans.
43
Research Methodology
The study was conducted on 52 respondents (N=52) in the Delhi
region. All the respondents were artisans (including men and women)
engaged in the handicraft sector. Since the sample size was reflective
of the total size of the population, the method of convenience
sampling was used. Keeping in mind the purpose of study and nature
of work of the respondents, the technique employed for study was
interview method under qualitative research tool. The strength of
qualitative interviewing is precisely its capacity to access self
reflexivity among interviews subjects to the telling stories that allow
us to understand and theorize the social world, Miller et al (2011).
The respondents were made to express incidents and narratives on
each component placed under emotional intelligence at work. All the
responses were collected on actual work locations of artisans so that
emotions those expressed by them remain actual and authentic.
Responses, thus generated were analyzed using coding method.
Analyzed responses were also presented by using simple percentage
method.
Findings
Occupation (of Artisans)
As stated earlier, the study was carried out on artisans engaged in the
handicraft sector. As shown in Table 1, maximum number of artisans
were occupied in the craft of hand stitches (mostly women) i.e. 22
followed by those engaged in the art of terracotta (mostly men).
While 7 were involved in wood craft, 6 were engaged in the art of
artificial jewelry and remaining 3 were engaged in craft of crochet.
The hand stitches were usually done on suits, sarees, lenghas, cushion
covers and bed sheets. Terracotta craftsmen were making pots of
different types and sizes, and decorative hangings. Those engaged in
artificial jewelry made necklaces, earrings and bangles usually from
pearls and beads. The wood craftsmen engraved decorative items and
those occupied in art of crochet prepared table covers, coaster sets and
shawls.
44
Table 1 Various crafts of Artisans

Craft Number of Artisans
Hand Stitches 22
Terracotta 14
Wood Craft 07
Artificial Jewelry 06
Crochet 03
Gender
The main purpose to subtitle gender was to highlight the fact that the
low income generated in this sector had gradually made men opting
for other types of occupation, leaving women to carry the craft
forward. Except for crafts like wood wares and terracotta, which were
dominated by men, other crafts had majority of women artisans. As
shown in Table 2, as much as 59.61 per cent were women artisans as
compared to 40.38 per cent of men engaged in such crafts.
Table 2 Gender Segregation of Artisans
Gender
Women
Men
Income
For some families (Total 22 households out of 52) earnings generated
from handicrafts produced was the only source of livelihood. For rest
of the 32 households, one or two members are engaged in the craft;
mostly females and rest have opted for other means of livelihood.
Table 3 shows the income generated from handicrafts items only.
Under hand stitches, only one household fall in the bracket of Rs. 5,
000 -10,000, while rest fall under the bracket of Rs. 10, 000 - 15,
000. Majority of the artisans, in the study were engaged in this
handicraft. In fact under various crafts, most of the artisans were
45
placed under this income bracket. Only 3 artisans from wood craft
and terracotta respectively were able to generate income between Rs.
15,000 20, 0000. All the terracotta craftsmen opined that they
generate maximum sales during festival phase falling between
Octobers Novembers every year. Crochet craftsmen attribute their
low income to lack of new design patterns and skill up gradation.
Though artisans in hand stitches and jewelry making were also in
agreement with the same expression.
Table 3 Monthly Incomes (in Rs.) of Artisans
25
20
15
10
5
0 5,000 10,000
10,000 15,000
15,000 20,000
Emotions
Given to their economic plight and aspirations, there were more
negative emotions being expressed by the artisans than the positive
ones. Due to low income, affecting their quality of life, there was high
degree of anger and resentment in these artisans. Most of them had
loans on interest, mainly from moneylenders and gradually entered
into a debt trap as again due to low income they were unable to clear
principal amount in stipulated time. Good source of income was their
biggest form of motivation which was not an everyday norm. As there
was no fixed income for artisans every month, in some months basic
survival becomes a huge challenge. As shown in Table 4, there
prevails high level of stress mainly due to work insecurity leading to
decrease in income. Some artisans even feel that they do not get
opportunities for skill up gradation hence unable to fetch good market
for their products. Most of them work in poor working conditions
with inadequate infrastructure. Those producing the finished goods, at
times lack of insufficient funds restrict them to buy raw materials
46
hence affecting their performance and income. Due to middlemen

involved in marketing channels (reaching to end users), most of the
artisans do not receive right feedback as well as appreciation for good
work. This high degree of dissatisfaction and resentment at times lead
to poor performance.
Table 4 Negative Emotions of Artisans
Negative Emotions ( Expressed by Artisans)
Poor Working Conditions
High Level of Stress
Work Insecurity
Lack of Recognition for Good Work
Lack of Upgraded Skills
But not all were as pessimistic in orientation as some even expressed
positive emotions. Table 5 demonstrates positive emotions expressed
by artisans. In fact in a work surrounding, there were instances
narrated where motivation became contagious. This gave artisans
hope and vigor to bring a constructive change in their plight by
effective and focused approach towards work. Women demonstrated
high degree of team spirit in order to complete orders on time even if
the work belonged to some other household. Those filled with
positivity attributed their passion for work as reason for efficiency
and high level of performance. Though they too nourished aspirations
of good quality of life but did not blame external circumstances,
rather they had a belief that they have potentials to bring about a
constructive change in their lives.
Table 5 Positive Emotions of Artisans
Positive Emotions ( Expressed by Artisans)
Self Motivated
Team Spirit
Hope
Work Enjoyment
Components of Emotional Intelligence at Work
Though the five components of emotional intelligence at work,
namely, self awareness, self regulation, motivation, empathy and
social skills are primarily used for assessing leadership qualities but
47
author had made attempts to gauge such components in artisans who

are mostly managing their work independently (but as a family unit),
as entrepreneurs or under Self-Help Groups, demonstrating actively
various components of EI at work. As shown in Table 6, while
overall artisans demonstrated strong abilities to manage their
relationship with others empathy and social skills, they showed poor
results on components of self management self realization, self
regulation and motivation.
On self awareness, 42 respondents exhibited lack of confidence; they
had little control over their emotions and blamed external
circumstances for their plight. They were over critical of situations in
life and failed to acknowledge their weaknesses. Their constant anger
at times even affected their performance leading to delay in order or
poor quality of finished products. Only 10 respondents were able to
organize their task well in advance and realize satisfaction at work.
They could even successfully identify their strengths and weaknesses.
The component of self regulation was poorly present in the artisans.
38 respondents were devoid of self regulation. The emotions of
insecurity and frustration restricted them to evaluate reasons of poor
performance rationally. Due to middleman taking major portion of
income (because of indirect marketing channel) there was anger and
frustration in most of the respondents. Most of them (especially men)
felt helpless, some even resorting to excessive intake of liquor and
tobacco.
Self awareness in a way combines with motivation for effective
performance. Since former was absent in majority of artisans, they
ranked low on motivation as well. Out of 52, only 16 respondents felt
internally motivated to bring a turnaround in their existing (poor
quality of life) situations. They took pride in their work and realized
sense of achievement. Bubbling with optimism, they carried a hope
for better future.
At the same time 38 artisans were empathetic especially towards
fellow artisans especially in work crisis. There prevailed an unsaid
understanding between them. Some respondents also extended
support to their coordinators and NGOs in meeting deadlines for
orders as they could sense their benefit is such opportunities. About
48
39 artisans demonstrated high social skills while working in team

(SHG) or in interaction with coordinators or buyers. Some shared a
warm rapport with fellow artisans and agencies providing and
promoting work for them.
Table 6 Components of Emotional Intelligence demonstrated by
Artisans
Components Present(inin%)
Artisans Absent in Artisans
(in %)
SelfAwareness 10 19.23 42 80.76
Self Regulation 14 26.92 38 73.00
Motivation 16 30.76 36 69.23
Empathy 38 73.00 14 26.92
Social Skills 39 75.00 13 25.00
Overall, artisans largely are highly driven by external environment

and their poor economic status only strengthens such feelings in them.
Due to absence of self awareness and motivation in most of them,
there are seldom efforts to enhance productivity or upgrade their skill
sets. At the same time empathy and social skills bonds them
psychologically in the same socio-economic setup.
References
1. Goleman, D (2013), Emotional Intelligence, Why it can matter
more than IQ, Bloomsbury Publishing India Pvt. Ltd.
2. Goleman, D (1998), Working with Emotional Intelligence,
Bloomsbury Publishing, London
3. Greenberg, J., Baron, Robert A. (2003), Behavior in
Organizations, Eight Edition, Pearson Education Inc.
4. Silverman, D. (2011), Qualitative Research (Edited), 3rd Edition,
Sage Publications India Pvt. Ltd.
5. Kapila, Uma (2010). Indian Economy, Performance and
Policies. Academic Foundation.
6. Goleman, D ( 2004), What Makes a Leader? (online)
entLeadership.pdf
http://www.proadvisorcoach.com/articles/3eEmotionallyIntellig
49
7. Salovey P., Mayer, John D. (1990), Emotional Intelligence

http://www.unh.edu/emotional_intelligence/EI%20Assets/Repri
nts...EI%20Proper/EI1990%20Emotional%20Intelligence.pdf
8. Boyatzis, Richard E., Oosten, Ellen Van, (2003) A leadership
imperative: Building the emotionally intelligent organization,
Ivey Business Journal (online)
https://sites.fas.harvard.edu/~soc186/AssignedReadings/Boyatzi
s-EI.pdf
50
EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE SKILLS IN
EDUCATION INDUSTRY
Dr. Surekha Rana
Ms. Bhawna Chahar
Abstract
Emotional Intelligence describes an ability, capacity, skill, or self
perceived ability to identify, assess, and manage the emotions of one's
self, of others, and of people in a group. The concept of Emotional
Intelligence (EI) has now developed and proved its relevance through
continuous adaptation by the business world, and more recently by the
academics. EI skills have been strongly associated with dynamic
leadership, satisfying personal life experiences and success in the
workplace. This has resulted in calls for the incorporation of EI
competencies in university curricula.
This paper highlights the importance of Emotional Intelligence and
demonstrates the recognized need for well-developed EI levels in the
workplace, and in particular for Education Industry. It outlines recent
research studying emotional intelligence in relation to the college
students, and concludes with a call for educators to integrate EI skills
in their courses.
Keywords
Emotional Intelligence, Business Education, Self-Awareness, Self
Management, Relationship Management, Social Awareness.
Introduction
Emotional intelligence (EI) refers to emotional skills involving
accurately perceiving and expressing emotions, integrating emotions
with cognitive processes, understanding emotions and their
implications for various situations, and managing them (Mayer &
Salovey, 1997). Since the term emotional intelligence (EI) was first
coined by Salovey and Mayer in 1990, it has been developed, adapted
and embraced by the business world and also by many educators. EI
has been recognized to be very important for success in the workplace
(Goleman 1998b; Kirch, Tucker and Kirch 2001; Rozell, Pettijohn
and Parker 2002) which has, thus, eventually, called for the
incorporation of EI skills in university curricula (Chia 2005; Holt and
Jones 2005; Low and Nelson 2005).
51
The basic objective of the education system of any society should be

to provide a holistic learning and ensure a child's development in all
facets of life. But, ironically, it seems that the aim of education has
reduced merely to academic learning, and no or negligible focus is
maintained on the teaching and inculcation of emotional intelligence
knowledge. It becomes even more essential to impart emotional
intelligence knowledge at various levels of education, especially, the
higher professional education, so that before the student enters into
the corporate world, he understands and develops a caring attitude, a
relational & socio-emotional empathy towards the people around him.
Thus, it becomes imperative for the educators also to comprehend its
significance and know how day-to-day incidents in the college can be
used to set example or role-plays used to train them in developing
traits essential for an individual to have a tolerant and an empathetic
outlook.
However, the research that has been produced by academics in
relation to EI has focused on its measurement rather than its
incorporation into university and college courses. Thus, the purpose
of this paper is to draw attention to its integration in the education
system by highlighting the importance of EI as recognized by
business, particularly by the education industry. Secondly, it is hoped
that educators, those involved in teaching, will promote EI skills in
their courses and will share it with the wider academic community.
Thirdly, this paper aims to contribute to the limited education
literature available in this area.
Review of Literature
In the 1940s and 1950s, there were several attempts to find a
substantial relationship between achievement and personality, but
these attempts did not meet much success (Barton, Dielman & Cattell,
1972). In 1968, Cattell and Butcher tried to predict both school
achievement and creativity from ability, personality, and motivation.
The authors succeeded in showing the importance of personality in
academic achievement however could not link motivation to it. In
1972, Barton, Dielman and Cattell conducted another study to assess
more fully the relative importance of both ability and personality
variables in the prediction of academic achievement. One of the
conclusions they reached was that IQ together with the personality
52
Emotional Intelligence Skills In Education Industry
factorwhich they called conscientiousnesspredicted achievement

in all areas. In 1983, Howard Gardner introduced his theory of
Multiple Intelligences which opened doors to other theories like
Emotional Intelligence.
Then the term Emotional Intelligence appeared in a series of
academic articles authored by John D. Mayer and Peter Salovey
(1990, 1993, 1995). Their first article presented the first model of
emotional intelligence. However, the term "emotional intelligence"
entered the mainstream only with Daniel Goleman in 1995. He argues
in his book that IQ contributes only about 20% to success in life, and
other forces (emotional intelligence, luck, and social class) contribute
the rest. Emotionally intelligent people are more likely to succeed in
everything they undertake. Teaching emotional and social skills is
very important in academics. Teaching these skills has a long-term
effect on achievement (Elias et al, 1991).
In 1996, Dr. Reuven Bar-On explained Emotional Intelligence saying
that it reflects our ability to deal successfully with other people and
with our feelings. Richardson and Evans (1997) explored some
methods for teaching social and emotional competence within a
culturally diverse society. Their purpose was to help students connect
with each other, in order to assist them in developing interpersonal,
intrapersonal, and emotional intelligences, arguing that these
intelligences are essential for personal accomplishment. The
emotions, feelings, and values are vital for a persons well being and
achievement in life, according to Ediger (1997). At La Salle
Academy, a private school in providence, Rhode Island, students are
given lessons in emotional intelligence across the curriculum. This is
part of an exhaustive program in social and emotional education
called "Success for Life." The schools academic council voted to
approve this program by 20-0 vote (Pasi, 1997). Pool, the senior
editor of Educational Leadership, stated in an article she wrote in
1997 that emotional well-being is a predictor of success in academic
achievement and job success among others. Finnegan (1998) argues
that schools should help students learn the abilities underlying
emotional intelligence. Possession of these abilities or even some of
them by the individuals "can lead to achievement from the formal
education years of the child and adolescent to the adults competency
53
in being effective in the workplace and in society". Students often

experience failure in school, at home, with friends, and on the job
because they have poor communication skills, argue Cangelosi and
Petersen (1998).
In January 2000, Coover & Murphy conducted a study that examined
the relationship between self-identity and academic persistence and
achievement in a counter stereotypical domain. The study revealed
that the higher the self-concept and self-schema, the more positive the
self-descriptions, the better the academic achievement at 18. The
study also showed that self-identity improves through social
interaction and communication with others, which would enhance
achievement. In September 1999, a conference on emotional
intelligence was held in Chicago, IL. The conference mission was to
"provide the most comprehensive learning forum on emotional
intelligence and its impact in the workplace." Linkage Incorporated
claims that "research shows that well-developed EI distinguishes
individual "star performers" and plays an important role in
determining which organizations will outperform the competition, due
in part to higher retention rates, better morale and heightened results."
A study on Emotional Intelligence in Developing Transformational
Leadership in Higher Education Sector of Pakistan validate the
significance of emotional intelligence in shaping transformational
leadership behavior among academic leaders that ultimately leads to
enhanced performance of educational institutes and suggests that
emotionally intelligent leaders are better able to exhibit
transformational leadership. The study has implications for policy
makers and leadership of educational institutes (Mir, Abbasi, 2012).
A New Student Development Model of Emotional Intelligence
confirm the importance and value of emotional intelligence and
personal skills to college and career success, human development
education, and leadership (Low, Lomax, Jackson, 2004).Another
study on Prioritizing the emotional intelligence (EI) needs of
undergraduates in Taiwan assessed self-reported strengths and
weaknesses in EI among tourism students, helping inform the
development of specific intervention programmes in the future, thus
enabling students to enjoy greater achievement in their work and
states that Emotional intelligence is an important factor in
54
determining success in academic, workplace and personal life (Min,

Tang, 2011). In the study of the relationship between Emotional
Intelligence and Academic Achievement in Eleventh Graders,
Abisamra (2000) found a relationship between emotional intelligence
and academic achievement, hence incorporate emotional intelligence
in the schools curricula. The Relationship between Emotional
Intelligence and Effective Leadership among Academic Heads in
Higher Learning Educational Institutions, Ying, Ting found a positive
relationship between transformational leadership and total emotional
intelligence. The Value of Incorporating Emotional Intelligence Skills
in the Education of Accounting Students paper reports on two
independent studies conducted at an Australian university which
suggest that incorporating emotional intelligence skills into the
education of accounting students, by providing a variety of learning
environments and tasks, shall be beneficial to accounting graduates as
they seek employment (Jones, Abraham, 2009).
Emotional intelligence has become a key nowadays in the workplace
and in order to prepare better students for this new century, it will be
better to include emotional intelligence in the school and university
curricula.
Pillars of EI
EI has namely four major elements which elucidate its concept
(Goleman, 1995). These pillars are: Self Awareness, Self
Management, Social Awareness, Relationship Management.
Table 1
(Personal Competence)
SELF OTHER
(Social Competence)
RECOGNITION Self-Awareness
EmotionalSelf-assessment
Accurate
Self-confidence
Self-awareness Social Awareness
Empathy
Service Orientation
Organizational Awareness
Adaptability
REGULATION Self-Management
Initiative
Conscientiousness
Trustworthiness
Self-control
Achievement Drive Relationship Management
Developing Others
Influence
Communication
Conflict Management
Leadership
Change Catalyst
Building Bonds
Teamwork & Collaboration
55
1. Self-Awareness:
Self-awareness is to know ones internal states, preferences,
resources, and intuitions. This is important to psychological insight
and self-understanding.
A confidence and strong sense of self-worth in knowing own
strengths and limitations.
Paying attention to emotions and their effect.
Welcoming feedback, criticism, and assistance when needed.
Optimism about the successful application of capabilities.
2. Self-Management:
Emotional management or self-regulation enables the individual to
manage his own internal states, impulses and controls. It involves
self-monitoring, which allows the individual to adjust his behaviour
according to external, situational factors and includes aspects such as
trustworthiness; self-control; conscientiousness; adaptability and
innovation.
Taking responsibility for controlling and managing both positive
and negative thoughts, feelings and actions in ways that are
authentic and consistent with your intentions.
Holding yourself accountable in a manner that is worthy of other
peoples trust.
3. Social Awareness:
Social Awareness is the understanding of others feelings, needs, and
concerns which stem from the awareness of ones own feelings.
Sensitivity to others is crucial for superior job performance whenever
the focus is on interactions with people.
An ability to read and understand other peoples emotions, and a
heightened sensitivity to others feelings, needs, and concerns
both individuals and groups.
Being adept at supporting others in their development and
increased self-awareness.
4. Relationships Management:
A persons ability to manage relationships with others and involves
the ability to communicate, influence, collaborate, and work with
colleagues. It focuses on essential social skills and includes
competencies: developing others, influence communication, conflict
56
management, leadership, change catalyst, building bonds, and

teamwork and collaboration.
Handling emotions in others in ways that promote positive
interpersonal relationships. Inquiring and listening to other
peoples thoughts and feelings as well as asserting an authentic
message of your own interests and needs.
Resolving differences in ways that are mutually favorable and
strengthens the relationship.
Competencies Required
Education has become an important gate key to employment
everywhere. Intellectual ability, academic achievement, and education
qualifications are known predictors of life success. However,
Emotions of any individual certainly affect and are reflected in their
performance, behavior and decisions. Any corporate success of an
enterprise is shouldered by the performance of its employees; their
behavior with the people they interact; and various decisions taken,
short term or long term in context of the business growth and
development (Fig. 1). Further to this, the Emotions of an individual
depend on seven essentials which if a person is not aware of cannot
manage and balance them. The right quality education can make the
students understand, differentiate and manage these factors of their
persona.
Fig 1: Aspects of Emotional Intelligence
Behavior Decisions
Performanc
Emotions
EAwareness ESelf
Awareness
of others
of others
Emanagement
ESelf Control
ESelf
Ereasoning Management
Eexpression
57
In higher education, it has also been recognized that social and

emotional aspects of human behavior enriches a modern university
agenda for preparation for and repair of student learning experiences
(Liff, 2003). A notion of generic skills underlying lifelong success has
expanded the construct of ability used in universities. It has been
argued that, if short-lived disciplinary knowledge is no longer enough
to guarantee a job at the end of university then generic skills will
enable graduates to function more effectively, flexibly, and adaptively
over a longer time frame in a changing environment. Graduates need
to be able to solve (and frame) problems, communicate effectively,
think critically, creatively & morally, be information literate and be
able to operate ethically as an effective team member in the
workplace.
Academic skills are required in standard or traditional academic
programs and courses: Many building bricks involve clear academic
skills such as "conceptual and analytical skills", "information skills",
"written communication", "problem solving and decision-making
skills" and "skills to differentiate and decide on the moral rights and
wrongs". Other skills in the pyramid implied a more personal element,
such as those characterized by the building blocks of "adaptability and
learning skills", "self-management skills", "interpersonal skills", "oral
communication skills", "empathy" and "teamwork." These skills may
also be acquired in more traditional courses as a secondary result
flowing from the expectations and demands of the learning process. A
few specific courses, moreover, have a primary aim to develop these
specific interpersonal and self-management skills. For example,
courses in counseling and interpersonal psychology are likely to
promote explicit development of such skills in theoretical and
practical course activities.
Need for EI in the Workplace
The most important qualities that characterize effective leaders
include integrity, maturity, business acumen and social skills, which
are also EI traits. It is known that an effective leader of a group is the
emotional guide for the members and has the ability to stir the
emotions in them. Thus, the emotions of a leader are very important
58
to be in the right frame so that others can be guided properly. Similar

fundamental applies to the educators and students in the college.
However, the dilemma in which firms find themselves is that they
spend lots of money on recruitment only to find there is a high
turnover of graduates, resulting in a shortage of seniors and managers.
To overcome this problem, firms need to hire entry-level graduates
who will stay with the firm and move through the internal promotion
process rather than seeking external promotion. This in turn will
lower the employee turnover rate, increase job satisfaction and
improve moral. But, in order to do this, firms need to use recruitment
strategies that go beyond merely assessing IQ measures and technical
skills because even in entry-level positions, IQ cant reliably
distinguish average and star performers (Goleman, 2005).
Development of these skills at the workplace will help counter the
problems arising due to lack of emotional intelligence. It will create
an environment which will be free of the flowing shortcomings:
Stress, Conflicts, Anxiety, Low Productivity, High employee turnover
rate, Low Job satisfaction, Lack of Self-esteem, moral and motivate
Furthermore, the importance of EI skills has been recognized by
various professional bodies. The Institute of Management
Accountants concluded from their research that all corporate
accountants need good communication and interpersonal skills (IMA
1996). It has been asserted that although accounting literature has
given little attention to behavioral issues in the past, today many
organizations and researchers are recognizing that emotional
intelligence skills are critical to success (Akers and Porter 2003).
Akers and Porter also reported that a Harvard Business School study
of its graduates revealed there was little or no significant correlation
between career success and IQ. This is consistent with the contention
that measures such as IQ and grade point averages lack predictive
ability, and that it is EI which provides the missing link between
university results and career success (Chen, Jacobs and Spencer 1998;
Goleman 1995, 1998b).
Thus, published research advocates that EI skills and such
competencies provide an excellent framework for assisting business
graduates to succeed in the workplace. However, counselors working
59
with undergraduates usually focus on career management and job

search skills and neglect the development of EI skills. Similarly, the
need for EI training as a part of university education has been given
only limited attention. Although, it is essential that universities
produce graduates who have the right mix of soft-skill competences
and knowledge needed to perform well in the changing economy.
Goleman (2005) who stated that although EI may be learnt to some
extent through life experience, without sustained effort and attention,
people are unlikely to improve their emotional intelligence.
Therefore, at any workplace, the presence of personnel having well
developed EI skills will contribute towards a workplace which is
supportive of each other, productive and consistent of their
performance. It reduces the stress and anxiety levels in the employees
and keeps the turnover rate almost negligible. Employees with high
moral and self-esteem boost participation and loyalty in the
organization which help them perform with a clear consciousness.
Developmental Education
Social, emotional and academic education is required to lay a strong
foundation of a persona which takes responsibility towards society in
a befitting manner. Being adaptive to the peers, sub-ordinates,
superiors, and the overall organizational climate requires a substantive
integration of emotional competencies develop progressively over a
person's life through a range of life experiences. Mayer and Salovey
(1997) specifically described developmental processes for each of
four branches of emotional intelligence characterized in their model.
Caruso and Wolfe (2001) suggested that "it is possible for a person to
enhance their knowledge about emotions and to bolster their
emotional skills".
In the literature on development of vocational preference, Holland
(1985) has pointed out that people flourish in the environment when
there is a good fit between their personality type and the
characteristics of the environment. A lack of congruence between
personality and environment may lead to dissatisfaction, instability,
and lowered performance. The formal and informal support is needed
for development of emotional competencies through the teacher
education program. Each course potentially can assist the
60
development of emotional competencies. Some early courses, such as

human development, focus attention on the understanding the
development of social and emotional skills. Some courses focus
attention on training in social competencies such as communication
skills, counseling skills, and interpersonal skills. Some courses,
particularly field studies courses, help students to develop reflective
processes in observing others and self-monitoring and reflecting.
Some specific courses may challenge students to develop self
awareness, particularly related to understanding emotions. Some
courses may examine the nature of behavior and motivation and the
nature of change in behavior. In each course that students undertake,
through the assessment process they receive feedback about their
competencies and about those aspects that need to change.
Importance of EI for Educators
Success in teaching seems to require considerable capacities in
emotional competence. Teaching professionals need social-emotional
competencies to be able to build resilience to adversity in the field, to
self-monitor performance, and to regulate emotions through both
reactive and proactive coping (Frijda, 1999). Teachers need to have
sound organizational skills to be able to recognize, manage and
control the undesirable situations arising in the day-to-day life. They
need to be self-aware of abilities and skills required for the range of
roles, responsibilities, and demands of their work. They need to be
able to seek support from educational leaders and managers when
they self-perceive weaknesses in these abilities and skills. Teachers
also need social-emotional competencies to be able to effectively
manage and develop students' emotional development.
The literature provides evidence of teachers stress (Cooper &
Travers, 1996), often linked with diversification of roles and
increased responsibilities. Teachers need skills to deal with students
behavior problems, such as bullying, possessiveness over material
things, insensitiveness to others problem or requirements. Increasing
organizational expectations, and increasing expectations from parents
and the general community seems to propel these extra demands. The
demands placed on teachers in the current climate would seem to be
increasing in the future. Yet workplace support for teachers, through
61
management practices and other strategies to help teachers to cope

with these demands is often lacking (Cooper & Travers, 1996).
Teachers complete academic courses and programs to become
professionals. A full range of interpersonal skills and competencies
seem to be essential to manage a broad range of professional roles and
responsibilities, and self-management skills seem to be essential to
cope with these demands. Educators, therefore, need to better
understand the development of these intrapersonal (self-management)
and interpersonal skills and apply them in the course of their
discourse. Any student would be liable to compare EI teachings
taught to them with the practical application of those concepts by their
teachers themselves.
The construct of EI has attracted particular attention in business
training and educational reform.
Training programs for EI are escalating in applied psychology and in
managerial training. In some commentators' eyes, EI provides the
medium by which educational reform can and finally will reach its
full potential, across all levels.
Importance of EI for Students
It is appropriate that academic development is the prime goal of
universities. However, a tertiary education should also be providing
graduates with the skills to succeed in the workplace and in their
personal lives. It is only when such skills will be developed on a mass
level, in every educational institution, that people will be more
tolerant and empathetic, will have a better comprehension of the right
and wrong for their peers, organization or society on a broader
perspective. Such disposition helps improve co-operation, resolve
conflicts, helps develop an organization and also help shape and
guarantee the growth of the country. Furthermore, there is a
significant body of research which indicates that EI and other non
traditional measures are just as predictive of success as traditional IQ
tests (Nelson 2000).
A comprehensive search of the academic literature concerning EI and
university students demonstrates the increasing recent interest in the
area. The literature itself fell into two categories. The largest of these
62
consisted of studies which have concerned the measurement of

students EI skills, all of which concluded that EI skills should be
incorporated into university education in order to prepare students for
success in the workplace. The second group of articles, and by far the
smaller, concern the actual assimilation of these skills into courses.
This group can be further sub-divided into two: those proposing how
EI skills can be integrated and those reporting on the actual
integration.
The published studies measuring the EI skills of business students all
concluded that these skills should be incorporated into the university
courses. For example, after evaluating the EI of undergraduate
business majors, Rozell, Pettijohn and Parker (2002) concluded that
emotional intelligence should be included within the core skills
taught in training and development programs at university (Rozell et
al 2002, p. 287). In addition, Vela (2003), who studied the role of EI
in academic achievement for his doctoral dissertation, asserted that it
is imperative that students are provided with early interventions that
involve emotional intelligence skills building.
One of the three studies which reported on the integration of EI skills
was Edmond-Kiger and Kirch (2003). They described the
implementation of the Business Activity Model in their intermediate
course. This involved adopting a problem-based learning approach
which enabled teachers to provide students with rich opportunities to
gain the interpersonal skills currently demanded by their profession.
Another study revealed that when EI skills were introduced in the
assessment component, it was concluded that students in leadership
courses should be more than simply bystanders when studying the
impact of emotions and emotional intelligence on performance but
rather have active personal involvement (Ashkanasyand
Dasborough 2003). Similarly in study on the integration of the
teaching of EI competencies, Brown (2003) found that understanding
their own emotions allowed students to improve their interpersonal
skills and build trust and empathy.
Techniques to Develop EI skills in Educators
Training, Workshops, FDPs on EI
63
Techniques to deal with stress, conflicts, anxiety in day-to-day

life
Training on intra\inter-personal skills on Empathy, Openness &
Sharing
Guidance and Counseling
Training on the understanding, handling and resolution of
students difficulties.
Techniques to develop EI skills in Students
Integrating EI skills in courses such as courses on human
development and human relation management
Special classes on EI
Training, talks, guest lectures, role-plays, games and movies
Training on behavioral modification
Training to enhance intra/inter-personal skills
Conclusion
The research on emotional intelligence has indicated that training in
appropriate skills is essential for preparing people for career success
and fulfillment. Thus it is a prime responsibility of educators to
convert theories and research into practical applications in the
courses. Therefore, as research has determined that university
students need EI skills and ways of achieving this have been
theorized, it is now necessary for educators to actually implement
these changes into their educational programs and provide a complete
social, emotional, ethical and academic education to enable them to
discover and realize their full potential.
Business educators, in particular, have the responsibility to integrate
EI skills in their courses and provide their students with a strong
foundation in both technical and emotional training so that they will
be well-rounded individuals, and hence worthy employees, effective
managers and dynamic leaders.
REFERENCES
1. Akers, M.D. and Porter, G.L. (2003). "Your EQ skills: Got what
it takes?" Journal ofAccountancy 195(3): 65-69.
64
2. Bar-On, R. (2003). How important is it to educate people to be

emotionally and socially intelligent, and can it be done?
Perspectives in Education, 21(4), 313.
3. Bar-On, R. (2004). The Bar-On Emotional Quotient Inventory
(EQ-i): Rationale, description, and summary of psychometric
properties. In G. Geher (Ed.), Measuring emotional intelligence:
Common ground and controversy (pp. 111142). Hauppauge,
NY: Nova Science.
4. Boyatzis, R. E., Goleman, D., & Rhee, K. (2000). Clustering
competence in emotional intelligence: Insights from the
Emotional Competence Inventory (ECI). In R. Bar-On & J. D.
A. Parker (Eds.), The handbook of emotional intelligence:
Theory, development, assessment and application at home,
school and in the workplace (pp. 343362). San Francisco:
Jossey-Bass.
5. Caruso, D. R., & Wolfe, C. J. (2001). Emotional intelligence in
the workplace. In J. Ciarrochi, J. P. Forgas, & J. D. Mayer
(Eds.), Emotional intelligence in everyday life (pp. 150167).
Philadelphia: Psychology Press.
6. Cooper, C. L., & Travers, C. (1996). Teachers under pressure:
Stress in the teaching profession. London: Routledge.
7. Davies, M., Stankov, L., & Roberts, R. D. (1998). Emotional
intelligence: In search of an elusive construct. Journal of
Personality and Social Psychology, 75(4), 9891015.
8. Edmonds, R. (2003). Effective schools for the urban poor.
Educational Leadership, 37, 1523.
9. Frijda, N. H. (1999). Emotions and hedonic experience. In D.
Kahneman, E. Diener, & N. Schwarz (Eds.), Well-being: The
foundations of hedonic psychology (pp. 190210). New York:
Russell Sage.
10. Goleman, D. (1995). Emotional intelligence. New York: Bantam
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11. Goleman, D. (1998). Working with emotional intelligence. New
York: Bantam.
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12. Goleman, D. (2001). Emotional intelligence: Issues in paradigm

building. In C. Cherniss & D.
13. Holland, J. L. (1985). Making vocational choices: A theory of
vocational personalities and work environments. Odessa, FL:
Psychological Assessment Resources.
14. Liff, S. B. (2003). Social and emotional intelligence:
Applications for developmental education. Journal of
Developmental Education, 26(3), 2834.
15. Mayer, J. D., & Salovey, P. (1997). What is emotional
intelligence? In P. Salovey & D. J. Sluyter, Emotional
development and emotional intelligence: Educational
implications (pp. 331). New York: Basic Books.
16. Mayer, J. D., Caruso, R., & Salovey, P. (1999). Emotional
intelligence meets traditional standards for intelligence.
Intelligence, 27, 267298.
17. Nelson, J. R., & Roberts, M. L. (2000). Ongoing reciprocal
teacher-student interactions involving disruptive behaviors in
general education classrooms. Journal of Emotional and
Behavioral Disorders, 8(1), 2737.
18. Ross, M. R., Powell, S. R., & Elias, M. J. (2002). New roles for
school psychologists: Addressing the social and emotional
learning
4352. needs of students. School Psychology Review, ss31(1),
66
EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE ON EMPLOYEE
PERFORMANCE AND ITS IMPACT
Mr. M. Sreeram Raju
Mr. T. Lokeswara Rao
Abstract
Emotional intelligence is a significant topic in the field of
management. In our day-to-day observations and experiences, we
note that, the majority of highly intelligent ones in the academics do
not do well in the teamwork tasks. Whereas, those with less
intellectual endowment are highly successful. This is to a greater
extent attributed to characteristic of high Emotional intelligence of the
individuals. This paper aims to examine the impact of emotional
intelligence on employee performance, job satisfaction, productivity
and reveal the overwhelming economic potential of employees.
Emotional intelligence can be developed through five key skills,
ability to quickly reduce stress, ability to recognize and manage your
emotions, ability to connect with others, ability to use humour and
play to deal with challenges, ability to resolve conflicts positively and
with confidence.
Keywords: Emotional intelligence, job satisfaction and productivity
Introduction
The word emotion comes from the Latin word motere which means to
move. This denotes that all emotions induce desire to act, emotional
intelligence is the capacity for recognizing our own feelings and
those of others, motivating ourselves and managing emotions well in
ourselves and in our relationships. Intelligent quotient refers only to
the individual academic capabilities and intelligence level. The
emotional intelligence has two concepts that are personal competence
and social competence. Personal competence includes awareness and
management of relationship. Social awareness is the ability to
understand feelings of others, while management of relationship is the
ability to work effectively with other persons. Emotional intelligence
increases the organization outcomes including job satisfaction, its
productivity, and performance of employees. The skills of emotional
intelligence can be developed throughout the life. You can boost your
67
own EQ by learning how to rapidly reduce stress, connect to your

emotions, communicate nonverbally, use humour and play to deal
with challenges and defuse conflicts with confidence and self
assurance. Emotional intelligence is the ability to identify, use,
understand, and manage your emotions in positive and constructive
ways. It is about recognizing your own emotional state and the
emotional states of others. Emotional intelligence is also about
engaging with others in way, that draws people to you.
Global challenges had influenced the human behavior and their
life styles and brought transformational shift in them. Each generation
have more stress levels than the one before. This has resulted in
enhanced usage of life skills that provide them comfortable and
successful life in the present scenario. Cut throat competition,
stretched goals, culture differences between the diverse work force
and imbalanced work life have led to decrease in the job satisfaction.
This diversification adversely affects the performance of the
employees and becomes undesirable and escalated the organization
problems. Emotional intelligent employees are more adaptive to the
environment and more productive for organization. Recent researches
have proven that emotional quotient contribution 80% success of the
person as compared to the 50-60% of the intelligent quotient.
Scope of the study
A study is conducted on software companies at Vishakhapatnam to
analyze the effect of emotional intelligence in the software industry.
The study has also collected valuable insight about employee
behavior and relationships in organizations.
Need for the study
As organization experience period of stress, whether related to
downsizing or to major growth-emotional intelligence comes to
occupy a place as critical skill in managing the human emotions. This
is especially true when organizations diversify and internationalize
where consequently they bring together workers with highly desperate
value systems, varied cultural and linguistic heritages, wide-ranging
communication norms and religious and social-economic practices.
Emotions reflect relationships in cognition like sadness, which may
indicate disappointment with self, the organization of this relational
68
Emotional Intelligence on Employee Performance
existence of emotions led towards the progress of contemporary view

of intelligence.
Objectives
To understand the role of emotional intelligence and its effect on
the organizational effectiveness.
To know, how the emotions can influence thoughts, behaviour,
goals, decision-making and relationships.
To identify the impact of emotions on performance.
Research Methodology
This is an Empirical research on how the emotions of the employees
will be influencing on their job performances in software industry
pirating to Vishakhapatnam Andhra Pradesh, India. It is studied in
order to know the impact of emotional intelligence that can help their
career growth.
Data collection
Primary data is collected by preparing and administering the
appropriate questionnaire.
Secondary data is collected from published manuals/ books/ journals/
magazines etc.
Limitations of the study
Time constraint
Limited coverage
Most of the employees are not willing to give the response
Respondents were reluctant to disclose to complete information
Review of literature
Like most of the concepts of social sciences, many researchers in
different words have also defined emotional intelligence. Emotional
intelligence can be considered as conceptualized by salovey & mayer
(1990) the ability to monitor ones own and others feelings and
emotions to discriminate among them and to use information to guide
ones thinking and action to clarify this construct further mayer and
salvey(1997) postulated that emotional intelligence involves the
69
ability to perceive accurately, appraise and express emotion, the

ability to access and generate emotional knowledge, and the ability to
regulate emotions to promote emotional and intellectual growth.
Among other clims, goleman (1995) theorized that emotional
intelligence is equal to, if not more important than intelligence
quotient (IQ) as an important indicator of success in ones
professional and personal life. Elaborating further on this construct,
Goleman (1998) explained that an individuals emotional intelligence
can affect ones work situation. He also applied his conceptual
understanding to organization as whole.
Goeman (1998) says that, the richer the organization in terms of
emotions, the higher the emotional intelligence is likely to be. In order
to enrich emotional intelligence there are certain requirements that are
the desire to change, self reflection, the desire to know the feelings of
others, develop emotional control, desire to learn more listening skills
etc,. The purpose of this study is to know that are there some
differences among the male and female employees in terms of
emotional intelligence and doing the work assigned to the employees.
That ultimately leads to the success of an organization. As women are
joining the workforce more day by day and are contributing to the
economy of the country, the considerable attention has been given to
the differentiating aspects of the male and female workers.
There are many points of views given by the researchers in this issue
of gender having different positions in an organizationthe search
for sex differences in the behavior of leaders have produced results
that is highly equivocal (vecchio, 2002, p.651). one body of research
holds that there are no significant differences in the behavior of the
male and female leaders and as a whole in the overall scenario
emotional intelligence of men and women.
Another body of research reveals that the courage, the view of power
in relational terms, encouraging the conflict resolution, and the
development of teamwork oriented environment etc. have been
identified as the female leadership qualities. Women leaders have
been reported to have better than men in 28 out of 31skill areas,
leading to the conclusion that women behave similarly but more
effectively than their male colleagues. Somewhat same result were
70
also reported by another researcher Sharpe (2000),according to his

study women executives received higher scores on 42 out of 52 skills
measured, and shore(1992),i.e., women were rated significantly
higher than men on six out of seven performance dimensions.
Models of emotional intelligence
There are various models proposed to measure emotional intelligence.
The following are the three popular models that explain how to
measure emotional intelligence.
1. Mayer and saloveys Ability model of Emotional
intelligence.
2. Bar-on Emotional social intelligence model
3. Golemans competence model of emotional intelligence.
1. Mayer and saloveys Ability model of Emotional intelligence:
This model explains emotional intelligence as a multi dimensional
construct and emphasis on the following four steps that are iterative
and each one will contribute for the enhancement of the other.
Emotional awareness
Emotional facilitation
Emotional knowledge
Emotional regulations
Emotional awareness is the ability to be aware of ones own emotions
and express these to others accurately. It also includes being aware of
others emotions too.
Emotional facilitation is the ability of effective usage of emotions by
gathering information from various sensory organs to understand the
feelings. It is the ability to adopt multiple perspectives to assess a
problem.
Emotional knowledge, the third component of this model refers the
ability to understand emotional cycle and complex emotions and also
recognizing likely transition that arises between them.
Finally, an emotional regulation is all about managing them. It is an
individuals ability to connect or disconnect from and emotion
71
depending on its usefulness in any given situation. The individuals

with high EI are aware of their emotions and their sources and try to
regulate them in order to improve their behavior.
Based on this Model, Mayer, Salovey, and Carso Emotional
intelligence test, MSCEIT (pronounced as mess keet) has been
developed to measure a persons actual level of emotional skills. This
test is administered to assess persons ability to perceive identity,
understand and work with emotions.
2. Bar-on has developed this model
Pro.Reuven Bar-on has developed this model which describes
emotional-social intelligence (ESI) as a cross section of interrelated
emotional and social competency skills and facilitators that determine
how effectively we understand and express ourselves understand
others and relate with them, and cope with daily demands.
Emotional social intelligence (EIS) is estimated by using emotional
quotient inventory (EQ-I) which is a self report measuring emotional
and social intelligent behavior.
This model consists of the following five scales and fifteen sub scales.
A. intrapersonal
self Regard
emotional self-Awareness
Assertiveness
Independence
Self Actualization
B. interpersonal
empathy
social responsibility
interpersonal relationship
C. stress management
stress Tolerance
impulse control
72
D. Adaptability
Reality testing
Flexible
Problem solving
E. general mood
optimism
happiness
The test identifies of 133 statements with 5 points response scale
ranging from very seldom (1) to very often true (5).
This test identifies people with better well being on their personal
qualities. By assessing the individuals responses, the scores of the
above 5 scales and subscales and also the total EQ score are obtained.
A high score denotes effectiveness in meeting organizational demands
and pressures and a low score denotes inability to meet organizational
requirements. Existence of emotional, social and/or behavioral
problems may lead to serious difficulties in coping daily activates.
3. Golemans competence Model of Emotional intelligence
According to Daniel Goleman Emotional Competencies are learnt
capabilities that result in outstanding work performance. Goleman in
1955 proposed a five-domain model of Emotional intelligence, which
consists of 25 competencies.
1. self-Awareness (Emotional Awareness, accurate self
assessment, self confidence)
2. self regulation (self-control, Trustworthiness,
Conscientiousness, Adaptability, innovation )
3. motivation (Achievement, commitment ,initiative, optimism)
4. Empathy(Understanding others, Developing others, service
orientation, leveraging diversity, socio-political awareness)
5. Social skills (Influence, communication, conflict management,
leadership, change Catalyst, Building Bonds, collaboration and
cooperation, Team Capabilities ).
73
Later in 2002, in his book primal leadership Goleman has proposed

four-domain model that has 20 competencies. These domains are
further classified into personal and social competencies include self
awareness and self management and social competencies include
social awareness and relationship management.
1. Self awareness
Emotional Awareness
Accurate self assessment
Self confidence
2. Self management
Self control
Trust worthiness
Conscientiousness
Adaptability
Initiation
3. Social awareness
Empathy
Service orientation
Organization Awareness
4. Relationship management
Developing others
Influence
Communication
Conflict management
Leadership
Change Catalyst
Building Blocks
Teamwork &collaboration
74
Emotional competency Inventory (ECI) has been developed by using

this model. ECI is a 360 degree instrument people use this test to
evaluate either individuals within an organization or organization as
whole.
Skills as job specification
Due to various pressures at work place and in personal life, people
experience emotions in every walk of their life. The need of this life
skill is required to lead a successful and happy life. It helps him/her to
understand own emotions and others. The specification of these skills
will appear in the job analysis formats of the following jobs.
High profile people
Teams/Team leaders / Project managers
Exclusive / managers / supervisors
Customer service representatives
Sales professionals
Technical professionals
Administrative staff
Research has shown that emotional intelligent skills will be a
distinguish character which separates star performers from average
peer group.
People with high profile involve in multiple projects and variety of
roles. They may get frustrated when things are moving slowly.
Emotionally intelligent leaders will enable the organization to pool up
with the competent global leaders who may introduce new product
and business.
Teams are under constant pressure to work with people from within
and outside the organization, meet tight deadlines, scare resources,
and technological advancement. They will be able to complete
projects in time within the budget, if only they are highly emotional
intelligent. Responsible project leaders with high emotional
intelligence can motivate their peers/ teams to meet high sustainable
levels of performance and achievements.
75
Executives need to rely in people to achieve results and need to take

right decisions for successful accomplishment of organizational goals.
Enhanced EI skills enable them to lead with courage, grow and retain
talent leaders.
Sales people frequently work with difficult prospects and customers.
They find adversarial situations. Technical professionals work long
hard hours to complete project in less time. They must be creative,
innovation and more interactive with people from various functions.
These situations may cause them anxiety and agitation. EI skills help
them how to manage their own emotions in all the above situations
which leads them to build successful interpersonal relations.
Emotional skills help Administrative staff to meet their targets and
gracefully handle various situations, which cause interruptions and
frustrations in daily work life.
Development of EI skills
Emotional intelligence can be developed and enhanced through
continuous efforts, practice, feedback and reinforcement. Managers
who are derailing themselves because of poor interpersonal
relationships are particularly good candidates to work on emotional
intelligent skills. Some of the better programs to enhance Emotional
intelligence include assessment, feedback, modeling and practicing
new skills. Assessment and feedback instruments are the ways to
being with learning these skills. Mangers should identify and resolve
the obstacles to their goals by practicing new behavior in a supportive
environment.
Data analysis
They
pressure
consistently
under
able tocan
perform an
able to their
Employee
express
emotions
manner
appropriate They
in challenges
with
and
able tocan
criticism
deal positive
have a on
Employees
outlook
career goals
long
short
They
to and
able
effectively
balance
term They do not
become
despondent
when things
go wrong
Strongly 55 67 62 58 65 58
agree
Agree 25 22 25 23 17 25
Disagree 14 9 10 15 13 14
Strongly 6 2 3 4 5 3
disagree
76
Findings
55% of the employees perform under pressure
67% of the employees are expressing their emotions in an
appropriate manner
62% of the employees are able to deal with challenges and
criticism
58% of the employees have positive outlook on their career
65% of the employees are managing short term 7 long term goals
66% of the employees are demonstrating the integrity and honesty
In general it is observed it is observed that the organization
selecting the employees with focus on EI are performing at least
15-20% more and are capable of solving in the employees and thus
enhancing productivity
Suggestions
There should be proper training given to the employees on
enhancing the emotional quotient and developing their emotional
intelligence.
Employees are expecting participative management in the
organization as most of the employees feel that their ideas and
views should be considered.
Companies must focus on team building interventions to promote
superior subordinate relationship.
Employees understood their goals and equally they are trying to
achieve it.
Most of the employees are expecting recognition for their good
work from top management.
The majority of employees are accepting the impact of emotional
intelligence on performance.
Conclusion
The present study suggests that (EI) is a key analyst for employees to
supervise their own emotions. Mostly in private sector, job
satisfaction is more than public sector. It has been commonly noticed
that in software industry job satisfaction factor enhances the employee
social life more and thus productivity of organization.
It is observed that high Emotional intelligence managers can manage
the employee work life effectively nurturing job satisfaction and
77
synergizing the competencies for producing high performance of

employees.
References
1. Daniel Goleman, working with Emotional intelligence, London,
Bloomsbury,1999.
2. Goleman, D., 1988. working with emotional intelligence. new
York: Bantam BOOKS.
3. Jane wharam, Emotional intelligence: Journey to the center of
yourself, UK, O Books, 2009.
4. Btcheldor, m.(2000) The Elusive intangible intelligence:
Conflict management and Emotional intelligence in the
workplace. The western Scholar, fail, 7-9.
5. Daus, C.S. and N.M. Ashkanasy, 2005. the case for the ability
based model of emotional intelligence in organizational
behavior . J. organizational Behavior, 26:453-466.
78
A STUDY ON INDIAN PROFESSIONALS TOWARDS THEIR
WORK COMMITMENT AND RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN
GEN X AND Y CONNECTS
Dr.Makarand Upadhyaya
ABSTRACT
The paper explores the generational diversity inherent in the modern
organizations. It examines the generational differences between
Generation-X (born between 1960-1980) and Generation-Y (born
between 1980-2000) professionals working in the software industry.
The study attempts to explore whether there are generational
differences in work commitment between the two age cohorts or its
only a myth. A total of 250 respondents belonging to Software
industries were administered a questionnaire. 125 respondents were
typically X-Generation and 125 were Y- Generation employees. 50%
of the respondents in both the cases were males and 50% of the
respondents were females. The study examined generational
differences for the five types of work commitment -work
involvement, job involvement, work group commitment,
organizational commitment and professional commitment.
Organizational commitment and professional commitment in turn had
three components each- affective commitment, continuance
commitment and normative commitment. Thus, a total of nine factors
was examined for the study. The data was analyzed using two-tailed t-
tests (pooled variances method). The results reveal that the two
generations differed significantly only on three of the nine factors
examined. Thus, the generations are more homogenous than
heterogeneous in their work values and beliefs. This finding has
serious implications for research and practice. It provides the HR
managers a useful insight that the observed differences are
attributable to other factors (career and stage of life) instead of being
an exclusive and true generational divide.
Keywords: Generation-X, Generation-Y, Software Professionals,

Work commitment, Generational Difference, Age cohort.
79
INTRODUCTION
Background
India has a preponderantly young workforce. A large number of
young professionals are joining the modern organizations. The
organizations are thus increasingly becoming cross generational-with
the older, not so old and the young co-existing under one roof. The
three generations are inherently different-they approach work,
work/life balance, loyalty, authority, accountability, delegation,
motivation and reward systems differently, but yet need to work in
teams to achieve organizational objectives. It is indeed a problem-a
problem of dealing with diversity, based in economics, demographics
and culture.
Introduction
Generation is a group of people who were born during a certain era
and hence defined by age boundaries. A generation is defined as an
identifiable group that shares birth years, age location, and significant
life events at critical developmental stages, divided by fiveseven
years into the first wave, core group, and last wave (Kupperschmidt,
2000). They are contemporaries and tend to be similar based on their
shared experiences during their formative years. They have shared the
same historical, economic, cultural events and landmarks, listened to
the same music and enjoyed the same theatre. Having shared similar
experiences growing up, their values and attitudes, particularly about
work-related topics, tend to be similar and conspicuously different
from those of others that do not share the same cohort. Evidently,
there are marked intra-generational similarity and a striking inter
generational diversity, which is an issue that requires consideration in
workplace diversity management. A generational group, often
referred to as a cohort, includes those who share historical or social
life experiences, the effects of which are relatively stable over the
course of their lives. These life experiences tend to distinguish one
generation from another (Jurkiewicz and Brown, 1998). A cohort
develops a personality that influences a persons feelings toward
authority and organizations, what they desire from work, and how
they plan to satisfy those desires (Kupperschmidt, 2000).
Researchers have identified four generations, which are as follows:
80
Indian Professionals Work Commitment
(i) Matures-They are born between 1920-40 and are 70-90 years
old now.
(ii) Boomers-They are born between 1940-60 and are 50-70 years of
age now.
(iii) The Generation- X- They are born between 1960-80 and hence
are 30-50 years of age now.
(iv) The Generation- Y/ Millennials-They are born between 1980
2000 and are more than 30 years of age now.
Looking at the Indian demographic structure, we observe that India is
a relatively young country, with those from 0-14 years of age
constituting 31.5% of the population, those from 15-64 years of age
constituting 63.3% of the population and those 65 years and over
contributing to a meager 5.2% of the population. (CIA, 2008). The
other organizations reflect this age structure diversity too. The
generations differ in their values and individual characteristics,
attitudes, influences, learning styles and idiosyncrasies, all of which
have a strong bearing on organizational functioning.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Generation- X
Gen X-ers grew up with financial, family, and societal insecurity;
rapid change; great diversity; and a lack of solid traditions. This led to
a sense of individualism over collectivism (Jurkiewicz and Brown,
1998). Influenced greatly by seeing their parents laid off, they are
cynical and untrusting (Kupperschmidt, 2000).They have feelings of
pragmatism, alienation and cynicism (Sirias and Karp, 2007). This
generation is considered poor at networking and somewhat skeptical
of authority (Crumpacker and Crumpacker, 2007). Many of the
viewpoints this generation has towards authority, corporations and
work-life balance have to do with the breakdown of institutions such
as marriage and with the corporate downsizing that most likely
affected one or both of their parents (Patota, Schwartz, and Schwartz,
2007).
Generation- Y
The young group of managers and potential managers in the
workforce today is much different than the previous two generations
they crave for higher salaries and flexible work arrangements
81
(Jennings, 2000).One of the strongest traits or viewpoints of

Generation- X employees is the importance of work-life balance
(Johnson and Lopes, 2008). Also, because these individuals are
assumed to be more independent and disloyal, they are considered
more likely to switch jobs in order to improve skills for the next
opportunity (Johnson and Lopes, 2008). This Millennial generation is
said to be the first to be born into a wired world; they are connected
24 hours a day (Ryan, 2000). Millennials are expected to be the first
generation to be socially active since the 1960s (Ryan, 2000). They
are blatant, vocal and voice their opinion. They are characterized by a
tremendous appetite for work.
S. Gen X Gen Y
No.
1. Accept Diversity Celebrate Diversity
2. Pragmatic/Practical Optimistic/realistic
3. Self Reliant/Individualistic Self-inventive/Individualistic
4. Reject Rules Rewrite the rules
5. Killer Life-Living on the edge Killer Lifestyle-pursuing luxury
6. Mistrust Institutions Irrelevance of institutions
7. PC Internet
8. Use technology Assume technology
9. Multitask Multitask fast
10. Latch-Key Kids Nurtured
11. Friend=Not Family Friends=Family
Generation- Y is most talked about recently. They are branded for
their sense of entitlement, outspokenness, inability to take criticism,
and technological sophistication. Fortune deemed Generation- Y in its
May 28, 2007, issue the most high-maintenance, yet potentially most
high-performing generation in history because its members are
entering the workplace with more information, greater technological
skill and higher expectations of themselves and others than their
predecessors. In addition, Time described members of Generation- Y
in its July 16, 2007, issue as wanting the kind of life balance where
every minute has meaning.
Generational labels are important in the discussion of the changing
workforce. For example, we need to understand who is pushing for
82
change and who is criticizing change in order to understand how to

create workplace bridges. Each generation approaches work
differently and has different needs when learning. Relations among
the generations seem to be at a low point. Gen Y thinks Gen X is a
bunch of whiners. Gen X sees Gen Y as arrogant and entitled. And
everyone thinks the Baby Boomers) are self-absorbed workaholics.
According to Linda Gravett and Robin Throckmorton, authors of
Bridging the Generation Gap, a lot of generational tension hovers
around the use of technology and work ethics. Gravetts research
confirmed that 32 percent of Gen X-ers believe that younger
generation lacks a good work ethic and that this is a problem. 13
percent of Gen Y-ers reiterate that a difference in work ethics across
the generations causes friction. They believe they have as good a
work ethic as the Gen X-ers, and they are alleged unnecessarily.
Technology is another flashpoint. In a survey conducted for job site
CareerBuilder.com in 2007, around 50 percent of the respondents
noted Generation- Ys preference to communicate via blogs, IMs and
text messages, rather than on the phone or face to face, methods
preferred by the Generation- X. Technologically facilitated
communication can feel abrupt and easily be misunderstood Gen Xrs.
The purpose of this writing is to explore possible differences among
the generations by investigating work values and beliefs. This poses a
serious research question: Are there generational differences in work
commitment?
Work Commitment Constructs
Work Commitment describes different facets of employee attitudes
and psychological attachments within the realm of work (Blau, Paul
St-John, 1993; Hackett, Lapierre and& Hausdorf, 2001; Randall and
Cote, 1991). Several constructs have been defined within work
commitments theory, with each construct distinguished by the focus
of commitment, for example, work, job, organization, profession,
supervisor, team (Porter & Steers Methodology, 1982; Reichers,
1985). In this study, we examined generational differences for the five
types of commitment.
Work involvement: Work involvement is a normative belief about
the value of work in one's life. It refers to the degree that employees
regard work, compared with other activities, as a source of fulfillment
83
for their intrinsic needs (Kane, 1977; Kanungo, 1982a; Kanungo,

1982b).
H1: Gen X employees has higher work involvement than Gen Y
employees.
Job Involvement: Job involvement is "the degree to which a job is
central to an individual's self-concept or sense of identity" (Frone and
Major, 1988) It represents a cognitive state of psychological
identification with the job (Lodahl and Kejner, 1965).
H2: Gen X employees has higher job involvement than Generation-Y
employees.
Work Group Commitment: Work group commitment is defined as an
individual's identification and sense of cohesiveness with other
members of their work group (Morrow, 1993; Randall and Cote,
1991).
H3: Gen X employees has higher work group attachment than GenY.
Organizational Commitment: Meyer and Allens three component
view of Organizational Commitment is used in the current study,
these three components are-affective commitment, continuance
commitment and normative commitment. Affective commitment
means an employee's emotional attachment to, identification with, and
involvement in the organization. Employees with a strong affective
commitment continue employment with the organization because they
want to do so. Continuance commitment refers to an awareness of the
costs associated with leaving the organization. Employees whose
primary link to the organization is based on continuance commitment
remain because they need to do so. Finally, normative commitment
reflects a feeling of obligation to continue employment. Employees
with a high level of normative commitment feel that they ought to
remain with the organization (Meyer and Allen, 1991).
H4a: Gen X employees has a higher affective commitment to
organization than GenY.
H4b: Gen X employees has a higher continuance commitment to
H4c: Gen X employees has a higher normative commitment to
Professional Commitment: Professional commitment has the same
dimensions as organizational commitment.
84
H5a: Gen X employees has a higher affective commitment to

profession than GenY.
METHODOLOGY
A total of 250 respondents belonging to Software industry was
administered a questionnaire. 125 respondents were typically X-Gen
and 125 were Y- Gen employees. 50% of the respondents in both the
cases were males and 50% of the respondents were females. The work
commitment constructs were measured using a previously validated
scale. Work involvement (6 items) and job involvement (10 items)
were measured using scales developed by Kanungo (1982). Work
Group Commitment (6-items) was measured using Randall and
Cotes (1991) scale. Organizational Commitment (Affective,
Continuance and Normative) were measured using an 18-item scale
developed by Meyer, Allen and Smith (1993).
FINDINGS
Results of two-tailed t-tests (pooled variances method) are shown in
Table 1.The two generations differed significantly only on three of the
nine factors examined (p < .05). Only H5b was supported, meaning
that Continuance Commitment to the profession is significantly
higher for Gen-X than Gen-Y. For Involvement (H2) and Normative
Commitment to the Organization (H4c), contrary to the hypotheses,
the means were significantly higher for the Gen-Y group of
employees than for the Gen-X group.
Table-1:
Work Commitments T* Value Pr>ltl
H1: Work Involvement -0.214 0.827
{means: Gen-X =20.33; Gen-Y =20.46)
(means:
H2: Job Involvement
Gen-X =32.12; Gen-Y=34.38) -2.488 0.013**
{means:
H3: Group=16.18;
WorkGen-X Commitment
Gen-Y=16.81) -1.774 0.075
H4a:
Organizational)
Affective Commitment -1.124 0.260
85
{means: Gen-X =24.14; Gen-Y=24.99)

H4b:
(Organizational)
Continuance Commitment 1.446 0.147
{means: Gen-X =23.95; Gen-Y=22.89)

H4c:
(Organizational)
Normative Commitment -2.174 0.030**
{means: Gen-X =21.55; Gen-Y=23.27)

H5a:
(Professional)
Affective Commitment 0.242 0.806
{means: Gen-X =33.72; Gen-Y=33.59)

H5b:
(Professional)
Continuance Commitment 2.003 -0.046**
{means: Gen-X =27.97; Gen-Y=26.35)

H5c:
(Professional)
Normative Commitment -0.752 0.451
{means: Gen-X =18.03; Gen-Y=18.58)

**Significant at P<.05 (critical value -1.96<t*<1.96, df=379).
DISCUSSION
The study results suggest that contrary to the popularly held belief
software professionals from Gen-X and Gen-Y generations appear to
be more homogeneous than different in their beliefs about the value of
work and commitment to their organizations and the profession. The
three work commitment differences that were identified in the study
and their possible sources of these differences are as follows:
H2: Gen X employees has higher job involvement than Generation-Y
employees. The hypothesis is rejected. Thereby, implying that
Generation -Y employees have higher job involvement than
Generation- X employees. This makes it safe to interpret that Gen-Y
Software professionals consider their jobs a central aspect of their
self-concept to a greater extent than Gen-Xers. This finding is quite
contrary to expectations based on the typical profiles of these two
generations. However, a possible reason for this could be proposed
using the life-stage perspective. The younger software workers in
Generation- Y may be at a stage in their lives when the job assumes a
higher ranking in his list of priorities versus others like marriage and
children that may occur later in life. Software professionals are known
for delayed marriage and delayed parenthood and hence the job
86
involvement inevitably follows.

organization than GenY. This hypothesis is rejected. This can be
interpreted as Generation- Y employees possess higher normative
commitment to their organizations as compared to X-Geners and feel
that they ought to remain with their organization. Normative
commitment places emphasis on the employee's beliefs concerning
obligations towards their employer. This difference could be due to
differences in career stage and tenure. Gen-Y is newer to the
organization and the organization is spending its resources
magnanimously in recruitment, training, orienting and motivating the
Gen-Y entrant. The Gen-Y employee is cognizant of the
organizations efforts and reciprocates the same by demonstrating
higher normative commitment to the organization. In addition,
because they are in earlier stages of their career, they may have
utilized education benefits for advanced degrees more recently. X
Gener on the other hand feels that his /her reciprocal obligations have
already been fulfilled over his/her long tenure in the organization.
Hence, the psychological contract that is there in the case of
Generation- Y is long over and now void for X-Geners and now its
time to make a move. Research on psychological contracts suggests
that beliefs regarding reciprocal obligations are subject to change over
time as an individual perceives that obligations to have been fulfilled
(Schambach, 2001). Thus, Gen-Xers who may have received these
benefits decades ago may feel a lower sense of indebtedness to their
organizations than Gen-Y who received these same benefits more
recently. Its the recency of benefits and subsequent higher
indebtedness towards the sponsoring organization that creates a bias
towards higher normative commitment to organization for Generation
Y employees. Another issue that may have played a role in
Generation Y employees framing of obligations toward their
organization is salary difference between them and their Generation
X counterparts. Owing to the paucity of good software professionals
in the early 2000's, many organizations, even those in the public
sector offered higher salaries to new hires, creating salary
compression (and sometimes salary inversion) between more senior
employees and new hires (Janairo, 2000). This led to higher
87
organizational commitment by Gen-Y employees and reduced loyalty

by Gen-X employees due to perceived salary inequities.
profession than GenY. The hypothesis is supported. This means that
Continuance Commitment to the profession is significantly higher for
Gen-X as compared to Gen Y. A plausible reason for this could be the
essential difference in values and attitudes between the two groups.
Other explanations can also be put forth to rationalize the
phenomenon. For example, as tenure increases, the costs of leaving
may also escalate. For example, it may involve the
forfeiture/reduction of retirement benefits. The social and financial
costs of relocating can also increase as individuals and their families
become more invested in their communities. During their career
progression, software professionals build, develop and maintain
competencies that are rather difficult to transfer to another career path
(Lee, Yen, Havelka and Koh, 2001). Changing professions can be
hard at any stage of life but the return on investment (ROI) potential
involved in this type of change would probably lesser for Gen-Xers
simply because of their age. Hence, they feel obliged stay in the
software profession and hence having a higher continuance
commitment to the profession as compared to their Gen Y
counterparts. Besides, the Software career accommodates a diversity
of career orientations and hence continuing in the profession may not
be as restrictive in terms of options as some other professions
(Ralston, Egri, Stewart, Terpstra, and Kaicheng, 1999).
CONCLUSION
The study shows that a coherent pattern of differences in the work
commitments of Gen-X and Gen-Y software professionals is missing.
This has implications for both research and practice. Theoretically, it
raises a pertinent question- Is age related to work values? Is there any
relationship between the concepts of age-cohort generation and work
values? The findings of this study suggest that generation is not a
sole and good-factor predictor of work values. There are other
influencers too like historical events and societal changes. If
generation is to be retained as an element in work values theory, it
must be moderated to incorporate the effects of other influencers too.
The current generation bands need to be revised for that they appear
88
to be too broad in span to and thus fail the theoretical models in their
attempt to propose any explanation. We perhaps need to revisit the
concept and propose narrower generation bands. A more appropriate
approach would be to study an important historical event in
conjunction with an individuals career or life stage. This would
incorporate the impact that historical and societal changes cast on an
individuals attitudes, values and learning styles. This would
compensate for the overdue importance given to generation.
The study has serious implications for practicing managers. The study
challenges the traditionally accepted stereotypes on generational
differences, which if accepted would prove to be misleading and
detrimental to the organization, and suggests appropriate human
resource strategies for software professionals. The observations offer
a strong word of caution for HR managers who tend to assume an
overly simplistic view of the generational differences, thanks to the
guidance available in text books and popular press articles.
Software professionals are a critical organizational resource and the
turnover rate in software industry sometimes assumes a dreaded high
leading to an inevitable chaos. It has at many times been the highest
in any profession (Oz, 2001). It therefore becomes important to
extend our existing knowledge and understanding of the factors that
affect the professional and organizational commitments in software
professionals. A committed employee has an enduring association
with the organization and stays with it in times both good and bad
(Meyer and Allen, 1997). Earlier work done in this area has found a
positive relationship between employee values and organizational and
professional commitment (Oz, 2001). Professional commitment does
not only imply retention in the profession but encompasses a vast
array of professional behaviors such as subscription to technical and
popular journals, memberships of professional associations, attending
seminar, conferences, workshops, refresher courses, training
programs etc. that are important in profession (Morrow and
Wirth,1999). A dynamic field like software requires regular updating
and ongoing learning in the face of constant changes in technology. A
key challenge before the firm lies in devising interventions by which
it can develop and sustain the organizational and professional
commitment of their Software professionals. HR managers who hold
89
generation based stereotypes and hence discount the potential

commitment of Gen-Y in their organization may miss opportunities to
build upon these employees' initial predisposition for commitment
through socialization and training (Zemke, Raines and Filipczak,
1999). Such managers at times may adopt human resource
management strategies that are control-based rather than
commitment-based, which may not be effective for this group of
professionals. This would further lead to perceptions of injustice and
create divisiveness in organizations. Literature abounds in evidence of
a link between the perceptions of organizational fairness and affective
commitment (Meyer, Allen and Smith, 1993). Perceived inequities
between Generation-X and Generation -Y could engender a feeling of
inequity and lead to a conflict between members of the two
generational groups. The study draws sample only from the Software
industry and intends to make the HR Managers Generationally
savvy advises them to unlearn the popular stereotypical generational
differences and create a fresh understanding of the two generations in
their workforce. The research illustrates that Gen-X and Generation -
Y may actually have more in common than originally anticipated. Its
safe to infer that the Gen-Y in this study is as committed to their
profession and their organization as their Gen-X counterparts. The
paper adds to the emerging evidence that these differences are
attributable to other factors (career and stage of life) instead of being
an exclusive and true generational divide.
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92
EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT: WHAT EXACTLY IS
IT?
Dr. Gummadi Ravi Kumar
Scarlett Surveys says, Employee Engagement is a measureable
degree of an employee's positive or negative emotional attachment to
their job, colleagues and organisation which profoundly influences
their willingness to learn and perform at work". Thus engagement is
distinctively different from satisfaction, motivation, culture, climate
and opinion and very difficult to measure.
An organisations productivity is measured not in terms of employee
satisfaction but by employee engagement. Employees are said to be
engaged when they show a positive attitude toward the organisation
and express a commitment to remain with the organisation.
For several years now, 'employee engagement' has been a hot topic in
corporate circles. It's a buzz phrase that has captured the attention of
workplace observers and HR managers, as well as the executive suite.
And it's a topic that employers and employees alike think they
understand, yet can't articulate very easily.
No wonder. It turns out that all that employee engagement research
undertaken over the past few years has defined the term differently,
and as a result, came up with different key drivers and implications.
In 2006, The Conference Board published "Employee Engagement, A
Review of Current Research and Its Implications". According to this
report, twelve major studies on employee engagement had been
published over the prior four years by top research firms such as
Gallup, Towers Perrin, Blessing White, the Corporate Leadership
Council and others.
Each of the studies used different definitions and, collectively, came
up with 26 key drivers of engagement. For example, some studies
emphasized the underlying cognitive issues, others on the underlying
emotional issues.
The Conference Board looked across this mass of data and came up
with a blended definition and key themes that crossed all of the
studies. They define employee engagement as "a heightened
emotional connection that an employee feels for his or her
93
organisation, that influences him or her to exert greater

discretionary effort to his or her work".
At least four of the studies agreed on these eight key drivers.
Trust and integrity how well managers communicate and 'walk
the talk'.
Nature of the job Is it mentally stimulating day-to-day?
Line of sight between employee performance and company
performance Does the employee understand how their work
contributes to the company's performance?
Career Growth opportunities Are there future opportunities for
growth?
Pride about the company How much self-esteem does the
employee feel by being associated with their company?
Coworkers/team members significantly influence one's level
of engagement.
Employee development Is the company making an effort to
develop the employee's skills?
Relationship with one's manager Does the employee value his
or her relationship with his or her manager?
Employee engagement is the need of the hour
The current global financial meltdown has done more than just
adversely affect corporate statistics and share prices. The deep rooted
implications of the economic slowdown have crept into the daily lives
of thousands of employees, working (or laid-off) across the major
sectors in India. The trends have worsened in sectors like the aviation
or even the BPO, with pay-cuts and layoffs on the rise.
Quoting Albert Einstein, "Today's problems cannot be solved with
the mindset that created them in the first place." Organisations
should increasingly convert from traditionalism to the contemporary
learning and individualised corporations. With growing opportunity
and greater flow of information, employees today want to be in the
best workplaces handling the best suited responsibilities and enjoy
greater autonomy. Understanding employee needs must, thus, occupy
the centre stage not only for the HR team but also the immediate
bosses. Often, problems emanate from the growing distance between
superiors and subordinates, longer chain of communication and lack
94
Employee Engagement
of sufficient opportunity to be involved in critical work processes and

decision making.
A key attraction for the young generation in today's workplace is
approachability of senior managers. Qualcomm, for example, has
institutionalised breakfast meetings with site heads, "In organisations,
employee commitment suffers if the levels of hierarchy increase.
When employees lose touch with higher managers, they end up
feeling left out and dissatisfied. For example, in a small organisation,
attendance registers are not maintained, everyone knows everyone,
but in larger companies, problems are complex especially in such
insecure times".
Employee commitment and engagement is measured by three primary
behaviours - Say, Stay and Strive. 'Say' is evidently achieved if the
employee consistently speaks positively about the organisation to co
workers and refers potential employees and customers. 'Stay' refers to
the employee's intensive desire to be a member of the organisation,
despite opportunities to work elsewhere. 'Strive' indicates an extra
effort and behaviours that contribute to business success. A red flag in
any of the three behaviours engenders greater employee concerns.
The research findings of Great Place to Work Institute, San
Francisco, it is established that the nature of relationship between the
organisation and its employees is what makes a company a great place
to work. Such a relationship can, in fact, be broken down into three
fundamental questions. Do I trust the people I work for, do I take
pride in what I do and do I enjoy the people I work with? A positive
answer to these questions translates into greater employee
engagement and better results at work.
People are a key component of any company's ability to execute its
strategies and achieve its goals. Companies who are better able to
engage their people also deliver better business performance and
return to shareholders. Thus, employee engagement at all levels must
not only be encouraged but also rewarded.
The role of HR
Employee engagement cannot be fully delegated to the Human
resource department. It needs to be conceived, strategized and driven
collectively by the chief executive and his senior management team.
95
HR is the glue that binds together employees of different business

lines and functions by creating and communicating a common set of
values and culture. The conventional role of the HR Manager
negotiating long term wage settlement with the Union and preparing
administration manuals is a thing of the past. In todays world, where
every employee is wired with high speed broadband and is aware of
market trends for talent, the role of HR is transformed completely.
Engaged employees are ones who:
Revel in their work and celebrate achievements collectively
Are highly committed
Challenge the status quo
Are passionate about what they do
Take ownership of their successes and failures
Are empowered to speak up if they disagree with the strategy
Increasing Employee Engagement
Organisations that believe in increasing employee engagement levels
focus on:
1. Culture: It consists of a foundation of leadership, vision, values,
effective communication, a strategic plan, and HR policies that
are focused on the employee.
2. Continuous Reinforcement of People-Focused Policies:
Continuous reinforcement exists when senior management
provides staff with budgets and resources to accomplish their
work, and empowers them.
3. Meaningful Metrics: They measure the factors that are essential
to the organisations performance. Because so much of the
organisations performance is dependent on people, such metrics
will naturally drive the people-focus of the organisation and lead
to beneficial change.
4. Organisational Performance: It ultimately leads to high levels of
trust, pride, satisfaction, success, and believe it or not, fun.
5. Provide variety: Tedious, repetitive tasks can cause burn out and
boredom over time. If the job requires repetitive tasks, look for
ways to introduce variety by rotating duties, areas of
responsibility, delivery of service etc.
96
Employee Engagement
6. Conduct periodic meetings with employees to communicate

good news, challenges and easy-to-understand company
financial information. Managers and supervisors should be
comfortable communicating with their staff, and able to give
and receive constructive feedback.
7. Indulge in employee deployment if he feels he is not on the right
job. Provide an open environment.
8. Communicate openly and clearly about what's expected of
employees at every level - your vision, priorities, success
measures, etc.
9. Get to know employees' interests, goals, stressors, etc. Show an
interest in their well-being and do what it takes enable them to
feel more fulfilled and better balanced in work and life.
10. Celebrate individual, team and organisational successes. Catch
employees doing something right, and say "Thank you."
11. Be consistent in your support for engagement initiatives. If you
start one and then drop it, your efforts may backfire. There's a
strong connection between employees' commitment to an
initiative and management's commitment to supporting it.
Other key findings include the fact that larger companies are more
challenged to engage employees than are smaller companies, while
employee age drives a clear difference in the importance of certain
drivers. For example, employees under age 44 rank "challenging
environment/career growth opportunities" much higher than do older
employees, who value "recognition and reward for their
contributions". But all studies, all locations and all ages agreed that
the direct relationship with one's manager is the strongest of all
drivers.
In the final analysis, one wonders whether employee engagement is
just another trendy concept, or really a big deal? According to the
studies carried, employee engagement is a very big deal.
Developing a strategy for employee engagement
At senior management levels, surveys have shown that it is the
working environment and recognition accorded to employees which
scores above compensation. At the entry level it is compensation and
hygiene factors which score above all else. For workmen doing
repetitive jobs the challenge is to understand and map out individual
97
needs and aspirations and plan job rotation to upgrade skills and
change job content. A job with offers no career growth a dead end
job can be very demotivating.
The first step in developing an employee engagement strategy is to
map out the needs and aspirations of different profiles and levels in
the company. This becomes the source document on which the
strategy is built. At senior levels independence, professional
recognition and more space to take decisions is what matters most
and compensation and hygiene factors do not figure in the top 3
factors. At the entry level and middle management level the converse
is true. So the engagement strategy has to be tailored accordingly
one size fits all does not work.
Some of the best managed companies have a career plan for different
functions and a Technical or Sales entry level employee is rotated
typically every 3 years through a defined career growth plan which
trains and grooms him for increasing levels of responsibility. The
company offers him a career not just a job - and he has a long term
commitment to the organisation and can look ahead to a career. This
builds a strong bond between the employee and the company and he
imbibes the values and culture.
Ten principles of Employee Engagement
Employee engagement is a human endeavour. Engagement is
depersonalized when we refer to employees as human capital or
human resources. I manage capital or resources, I work with people!
Employee engagement must create results that matter. This
means results that are important to the employee, manager, leaders,
organisation, and customers. There is little point in having engaged
employees if they are not contributing and creating significant results.
In addition, if the results only matter to the organisation and not the
employee or the employee and not the organisation employee
engagement will not be sustained over time.
Employee engagement is connection. Connection is the key.
Authentic employee engagement involves connection to our work,
others, our organisations and us. When we disconnect we disengage.
Employee engagement is fueled by energy. We must pay close
attention to mental, emotional, and spiritual energy at work. In
98
Employee Engagement
addition we need to enhance organisational energy through

meaningful connection and high quality interactions.
Employee engagement is more encompassing than motivation.
Employee engagement embraces our emotions about work, how hard
we work, how much we care about the organisation, etc. I think it is a
richer and more complex concept than simply using motivation to
look at work.
Employee engagement is specific. We cannot sustain
engagement all the time and everywhere. When we talk about
engagement we need to ask: Who is engaged, with what, for how
long, and for what reason?
Employee engagement requires purposeful disengagement. We
need periods of rest, recovery, and rejuvenation to sustain engagement
over the long term. Theoretically we may be able to work 24/7 but
practically we work best when periods of full engagement are
punctuated with periods of disengagement from specific work or
tasks.
Employee engagement makes a difference. Employee
engagement can improve organisational performance while also
contributing to individual performance and satisfaction.
Employee engagement is vital in recruitment, retention, and
satisfaction. The majority of workers want to be engaged and look for
work that will engage them. People will often leave organisations
when they feel disengaged. It may even be worse for all if they
remain when they are disengaged.
Employee engagement is now. Look to the now. Dont wait for
some survey results or diagnosis from a management consultant.
Look at the work you are doing right now and determine how you can
engage with it more fully. Look at who you are working with and
determine how you can help them to be more engaged. In addition,
look at what you are engaged with now and make sure the results
matter!
How do you engage with, retain and motivate employees?
To give their best every day, employees need to feel they have a stake
in the companys success. Employee engagement results in part from
99
understanding the companys direction and the significance of an

employees role in helping the company reach its goals.
Employee engagement is a key driver of organisational effectiveness
and workforce performance. Right Managements Employee
Engagement capabilities identify the levels of engagement present
within a given workforce population and set benchmarks by which to
evaluate the level of engagement. This offering includes an analysis to
enable managers to understand and leverage the drivers of employee
engagement unique to their organisations
Employee Engagement Solutions
Strategic Communications Planning
Employing a four-phase approach, Right Managements Strategic
Communications solution helps organisations improve their ability to
execute on the business strategy by ensuring that every employee
understandsand is engaged inachieving the business goals. By
employing an internal audit of current communications processes,
identifying target audiences, effectively developing and delivering
focused messages with defined performance objectives, organisations
can deliver clear, consistent messages that simplify the organisations
business strategies in practical terms for employees.
Wellness and Productivity Management
Right Managements approach enables organisations to identify the
underlying causes affecting employee performance. We measure
organisational wellness by quantifying the collective wellbeing and
engagement of the employee and correlating the findings to key
indices of productivity in the workplace. This allows leaders to make
accurate and informed decisions about targeted and effective
interventions which are most likely to lead to increases in productivity
and other organisational performance measures.
Workforce Engagement and Retention Strategies
By measuring employee satisfaction, commitment to the organisation,
pride, and advocacy, you will have an accurate assessment of an
employees commitment and contribution to the success of the
organisation. Right Management works with companies to develop
and implement effective strategies for communication and
engagement as a result of actions taken.
100
Employee Engagement
A road map for employee engagement

Enhance organisational leadership
Effective organisational leadership is simple:
1. Have a vision of where you want to get to,
2. Clearly and persuasively communicate that vision to employees,
3. Be consistent in your behaviours and strive to achieve that
vision.
Involve people and value their input.
Look after the reputation
If the world believes that an organisation is a poor "corporate citizen"
they will tell to those organisations employees. If those employees
believe what they hear they will increasingly distance them from the
business. And if they don't, they will get increasingly frustrated if they
see that the organisation is doing nothing to correct these
misperceptions. Organisations that proactively manage their
reputations will also enjoy higher levels of employee engagement.
A manifesto for outstanding organisational performance
It is clear, therefore, that employee engagement is a major driver of
organisational performance. And effective organisational
communication is a significant driver of employee engagement. If one
wants to begin the process of breaking down the barriers to
successfully harnessing the Service-Profit Chain for their
organisation, they should sign-up to the following four-point
manifesto:
Education: Every manager in the organisation must understand
how effective communication drives performance
Development: Every manager in the organisation must recognise
the difference between natural and organisational
communication and commit to developing the required skills
Infrastructure: The organisation must invest in the development
and maintenance of appropriate channels of communication
Community: The organisation must actively manage its
reputation as corporate citizen and positively engage employees
and the wider community alike
101
This is a simple plan, but it is not a sequential plan all four areas
can, and should, be tackled simultaneously. This means that it will not
necessarily be an easy plan to deliver, but business leaders must
deliver because with almost nine out of 10 employees currently being
either "disengaged" or just "moderately engaged" at work, the
opportunity to drive outstanding organisational performance is simply
too enormous to ignore.
CONCLUSION
There is clear and mounting evidence that high levels of employee
engagement keenly correlates to individual, group and corporate
performance in areas such as retention, turnover, productivity,
customer service and loyalty. And this is not just by small margins.
While differences varied from study to study, highly engaged
employees outperform their disengaged counterparts by a great
margin.
Employee engagement is now. Look to the now. Dont wait for some
survey results or diagnosis from a management consultant. Look at
the work you are doing right now and determine how you can engage
with it more fully. Look at who you are working with and determine
how you can help them to be more engaged. In addition, look at what
you are engaged with now and make sure the results matter!
Finally, there is some evidence that companies are responding to this
employee engagement challenge - by flattening their chains of
command, providing training for first-line managers and with better
internal communications. Changes won't happen overnight, but with
such significant upside to the bottom line - they might happen more
quickly than one think.
REFERENCES:
1. Employee Engagement, Job Satisfaction, Retention and Stress Kenneth
Nowack, Ph.D:
2. Some Useful Company Engagement Programs -Russell Consulting. Inc:
3. Green Spot: Stonyfeild Farm: A Culture Of Leadership:4. The
Economic Times:
4. Principles of Employee Engagement- David Zinger
5. Twenty-One Ways Leaders Can Energize Themselves For Employee
Engagement- David Zinger.
6. www.hr.com
102
RETAINING TALENT IN A WORLD OF RISING
ASPIRATIONS
Mr. Rajeshwar Rao K
Abstract
This article explores the challenge of retention in the backdrop of
opening up of the Indian economy and the runaway growth of the IT
sector. It looks at the relationship between growth and attrition, and
how these are two sides of the same coin. Organizations have tried to
address the problem primarily through financial rewards and found
themselves caught up in a spiraling whirlwind which only harms the
industry in the long run.
There is a need for softer aspects of retention which may be more
difficult to create but are likely to be more sustainable. Organizations
need to realize that retention is not just an HR agenda and invest in
longer term solutions that create stronger bonds between managers
and their team members. They need to find innovative ways to
connect with people at an emotional level and make them feel happy
so they dont look out.
Introduction
The opening up of the Indian economy and introduction of reforms
has resulted in higher levels of exposure to objects of gratification.
The boom in the IT sector led the wave of consumerism and increased
aspiration levels amongst Gen Y in India. Growth in the industry also
meant that professionals had more options to choose from to
continually satisfy growing aspirations. In a way opportunities and
aspirations fed into each other creating a spiraling demand for the
good things in life. It was only natural for things to be this way.
Impact of Growth
It was natural that India should see high attrition rates in the IT
industry. Shortage of qualified professionals with relevant experience
during the initial growth phase of the industry created huge demand
103
supply gap. Fresh graduates had multiple job offers to choose from
and would switch jobs at the drop of a hat. Those with a couple of
years of experience would be inundated with calls from recruitment
agencies with lucrative offers that were hard to resist. Many agencies
operated on rotation model placing the same candidates at regular
intervals in different organizations.
India enjoyed significant cost arbitrage and business continued to
flow in from USA. Organizations did not particularly seem worried as
business continued to flow in and all they had to do was focus on
expansion and service delivery. It was a win-win situation for all. US
organizations were able to get their job done cheaper, Indian
organizations grew profitably, and India witnessed phenomenal
development in living standards of its middle class.
Retention The New Challenge
It was only some years later that organizations woke up to the fact
that the increasing churn of people had led to considerable costs on
training and retraining and that it wasnt a very cost efficient model.
They needed to retain people for larger periods to recover training
costs and preserve knowledge within the organization for competitive
advantage. It was at this time that organizations started to think of the
personnel function more seriously. It had to do better than just deliver
administrative services. People were critical in the new knowledge
economy and needed to be taken better care of. In keeping with the
times, the personnel function was transformed into the human
resource development function, people were rechristened as talent,
and talent management was billed as a strategic agenda for the HR
function.
The Transformation of the People Function
Changing labels is easy; changing mindsets is another ball game. It
was assumed that the personnel function in its HR avatar would on its
own drive initiatives to find, develop and retain people. Anything to
do with people was now the responsibility of the HR function.
Somewhere along the way, line functions started to look at their role
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Retaining Talent in a World of Rising Aspirations
as primarily operational and left it to the HR function to deal with the

softer people issues. The HR function which did not have a great
reputation for process orientation got caught up in proving a point. In
its endeavor to become operationally efficient softer people issues got
defocussed and fell through the cracks.
Talent management thus came to be synonymous with efficiency -
hiring efficiently, delivering training efficiently, assessing people
efficiently, and developing a cost efficient rewards program to retain
people. Return on Investment became the buzzword in HR. While
the efficiency drive may have made the HR function look good to
colleagues in operations, its effectiveness in retaining talent cannot be
vouched for. It is relatively easier for the HR function to improve
processes and rewards than to bring about transformation among
people in the organization so they better relate to each other at an
emotional level. In the professional world, this translates to managing
aspirations.
Aspiration, Growth, and Attrition
To get a better sense of the situation and what may better address the
challenges facing the industry, we will look at aspirations, growth and
attrition and explore the linkages between them.
Let us first look at aspirations. Salary is the most common. It is also
the most obvious. So organizations have been raising salary levels for
the same job in order to attract and retain people. Consultants are
called in to conduct salary benchmark surveys after which salary
levels are revised to remain competitive. This practice has led to
spiraling salary levels.
Career progression is the next level on the aspirational ladder.
Organizations cant keep paying more for the same job endlessly. You
need to move up the ladder to be eligible for the higher salary band.
Career progression through promotions therefore gets to be the next
aspirational stuff. Organizations often promote people to retain them
and help them tide over the salary band hurdle. This practice leads
105
to people getting into managerial roles that they may not be fully
ready for.
Let us now understand the role of the business environment and
aspects of growth. Europe and US have seen considerably lower rates
of growth in the past several years compared to India. (It is another
matter that India started off at a lower base). These regions also have
much lower levels of attrition. In a low growth business environment
people will tone done aspirations and seek stability. A growth
environment will spawn many new organizations and create demand
pressure for people. Such organizations are good hunting ground for
people with unfulfilled aspirations for better salary and promotion.
The only way for an organization to retain people would be by
growing at levels that match aspiration levels. Unfortunately
competition does not allow that kind of growth. It is logical to say that
growth drives opportunities, which drives aspirations, which in turn
drives attrition. This has been the situation with the Indian IT
industry.
Solving the Retention Problem
Retention, as we have seen, is a challenge in a growth environment. It
may not entirely be possible to solve the retention problem but can we
manage it better? Most organizations attempt to retain people by
luring them financially with schemes like long term bonus plans,
deferred cash incentives, loans, joining bonus with claw back terms,
etc. Such schemes dont seem to be working in a growth environment.
Hiring organizations are willing to buy out expenses that a candidate
would incur on leaving the organization. So where does that leave us?
By engaging in a retention war that is primarily money based,
organizations have driven up their cost of doing business. There are
growing concerns already that the Indian IT sector is losing its
competitive edge. It is imperative that we focus on alternative ways to
retain people.
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Softer Aspects of Retention

It is relatively easier for organizations to compete for talent based on
financial offers. To win the retention war, organizations must create
exit barriers that can only be developed over a long period and are not
easy to replicate. Paradoxically, what is difficult to replicate is also
difficult to create and will require greater investments in time and
effort. We will now explore the softer elements of human aspirations
and needs.
Aspirations arent just limited to desire for physical objects alone
which can be fulfilled through money. Aspirations can also include
need for recognition, respect, belonging, empathy, and caring. While
most exit interviews throw up dissatisfaction with current financial
state as reason for leaving, it is well accepted that people join
organizations but leave their managers. Employees spend more of
their waking hours with their colleagues than at home. A congenial
working relationship between manager and team members fosters a
happy working environment. People look outside for alternatives
when they are not happy in their current situation. A sensitive
manager can play a crucial role in retaining people for longer periods.
Beyond a point money is no longer the driving force. We tend to
overemphasize the importance of money because it seems a simpler
way of retention. Money is only a means to acquiring things that will
make us feel good. The end result that people seek is a feeling. In
the end it may not really be about money, as it might be about simply
changing the way we feel.
Getting to understand each individuals aspirations requires conscious
effort, and a lot of it. Most often managers are too pre-occupied with
target pressures to be able to find time to relate to their team members
at a feeling level. Many parents, who do not spend time with their
children, keep throwing money at them in the belief that they are
taking care of their children well. But do the children think so? The
same children grow up to blame their parents of having neglected
them the emotional bond is missing.
107
The environment in an organization is more complex. There are many

more children to be taken care of. Since each persons need may be
different, money may be perceived to be the means that will help each
child to get his toy. But there lies the dichotomy. Money is
something that the employee can seek from several sources outside
the organization. It is easier to find than an emotional anchor which
develops over time. By overly focusing on financial rewards,
increments, and incentives, we often neglect aspects related to
feelings and emotional bonding factors that create more sustainable
relationships.
Some of our large public sector organizations have done a much
better job of retaining talent by creating sustainable relationships.
Many of these enterprises have factories and plants located in far
flung small towns. In fact, the town itself may owe its existence to the
organization. These organizations built entire townships for their
employees, arranged for school, clubs for entertainment, and created a
more connected society in which employees felt a greater sense of
belonging. Despite lower compensation compared to the private
sector, these organizations did a better job in terms of aspiration
management. Many people would like to stay on in such
organizations for this reason alone.
Losing the Tree for the Woods
However, one must guard against over simplification. It isnt a black
and white situation. People come in all shades and hues.
Managements try and cater to mass needs. They look for cues that
surface as group needs and provision for these. There is comfort in
numbers. But numbers do not necessarily give out the whole story.
Most managers fail to connect with employees because they have set
ideas about treating people and do not have time to adapt to individual
needs. They tend to apply mass production techniques to people. That
model just doesnt work. Each individual is unique in what his or her
aspirations could be. At any point of time the number of different
108
emotions being experienced by team members may be huge and

diverse requiring focused attention.
Mentoring could probably be a better solution to the challenge of
providing focused attention. However, it does not appear to be on the
radars of most companies as a major initiative. One reason for this
could be the need for large numbers of mentors needed to ensure a
healthy one to one relationship. Mentoring is a great skill and if one
does not possess it, the program could actually end up doing more
harm than good. Add to this the fact that the problem of attrition is
most acute in the high tech IT and BPO sectors. These sectors employ
large numbers of the young and restless. There may not be enough
experienced people in the organization with mentoring capabilities to
go around.
Retention and Corporate Social Responsibility
One solution to finding mentors in sufficient numbers could be to
look outside the organization. There could be a lot of professionals
with mentoring skills in the population of retired senior citizens.
Many of them seem to lose their sense of belonging and feel the need
for an anchor in life. Engaging them in mentoring programs has the
potential of creating an effective solution to bridging the mentor
mentee ratio problem; and also serving a social cause.
According to a recent press report, organizations will be required to
spend nearly 8100 core rupees on the Corporate Social Responsibility
(CSR) agenda mandated by the government. It is expected to generate
50,000 new jobs. Engaging qualified and experienced senior citizens
who no longer have family roots as mentors could be a win-win
situation whereby supervisors and managers can learn to better relate
to their team members at an emotional level and improve employee
retention.
Retention More than an HR Agenda
Managing aspirations is a core responsibility of line managers. It
cannot be delegated to the HR function. This is the biggest mind shift
109
that line managers need to bring about. Employees share the closest
relationship with their managers and look upon them as their friend,
philosopher and guide. They seek the fulfillment of their aspirations
through their managers. And it is more than just about seeking
financial rewards. It is about building relationships and an
environment in which they enjoy working. Recognizing this need and
helping create such an environment can be the most cost efficient way
of retaining talent.
Inference
Admittedly, there are no simplistic answers. Many organizations have
tried finding solutions to retaining talent in their own ways. Some
have worked for some of the time. Its natural, for aspirations like
water have their own way of finding their levels only it is a higher
level each time in the current situation. Should we look at rising
aspirations as a problem that has only one solution or an opportunity
to find more creative solutions to the challenge of talent retention.
The intensity of needs drive the quality and intensity of effort. A lot
of learning emerges out of experimentation. Theories need to be
validated through a process of action and observation and analysis of
results. The question is whether we are willing to experiment and
learn? Dealing with aspirations can be an exciting way to retain talent.
It is what leads us to discover new solutions on an ongoing basis. In
that sense, all progress is a result of aspirations. We would do better
to welcome it rather than lament the rising levels of aspirations in the
newer generations. Only, it need not be a zero-sum game that it
currently appears to be.
110
KEY IMPERATIVES OF TALENT MANAGEMENT -
THE INDIAN IT AND ITES INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE
Dr. Naveen Kumar Bandari
Mr. N. Uday Kumar
Abstract
The cultures of work and forms of organization and management that
have emerged with in the software services outsourcing industry are
substantially different from those in old economy companies
although there are also significant continuities. IT and ITES
companies have imported a new age management ideology based on
flat structures, lack of bureaucracy, openness, flexibility, and
employee empowerment. But, due to the requirements of the
outsourcing business, new forms of direct or panoptical control over
the work process have also emerged, which are linked to the
rationalization of the work process through the application of modular
programming techniques and international quality standards as an
integral part of talent management.
The research is conducted with an objective of finding the
interrelationship between transparency of competition, equal
opportunities for international assignments and work culture of the
organization. This research examines the concept of talent
management from the perspective of the organizational climate and
work climate. Structured interviews are conducted on 100 respondents
of executive employees from IT sector and 100 of ITES sectors of
Andhra Pradesh state in India.
Keywords: Talent, Talent management, work culture and
organizational climate
Introduction
In order to soften the routinisation of work and the rigidity of process
driven management, and to build employee loyalty and motivation,
IT and ITES companies employ normative management techniques
such as the inculcation of common values and emphasis on team
111
work. This combination of direct and indirect modes of organizational

control enables companies to maximize the productivity of
employees.
Another distinctive feature of work culture in the software
outsourcing is the deployment of culture itself as a management tool
and as a mechanism of control over labor. This is seen in the
incorporation of employees into a strong corporate culture as a
motivational strategy; in the deployment of cross-cultural
management theories; and in cultural sensitivity training
programmes. Work culture in IT and ITES sector is observed to be
majorly influenced by the following aspects.
i. Competition and support in intra and inter teams
ii. Equal opportunity and support for foreign / international
assignment.
The study presents influence of the above aspects individually in the
organizations and their association/ relationship with work culture of
the organizations in both IT and ITES sector.
i. FAIRNESS AND TRANSPARENCY OF COMPETETION
Situations and circumstances an employee comes across and
experiences he faces in an organization will have impact on the
opinions and perceptions an employee develops. Every employee in
return expects being guarded safe, taken care of him and treated
equally. Foreign assignments will also play an important role in the
organization as every employee wants to gain foreign exposure but
option cannot be provided to every employee. Hence, as sometimes
employees may be discarded on some grounds which may lead to the
difference of opinions and perceptions on the system, policies and on
the organization.
Whenever an employee of organization feels he is treated equally and
when there is no scope for disparities in the organization, he feels
privilege and pride in associating with organization. Employee will
certainly feel competitive in associating with organization and also
112
Key Imperatives of Talent Management
realizes that he attains the best industry exposure and gains mastery of
expertise and experience. The table-1 presents the opinions on
fairness and transparency of competition.
TABLE-1
OPINION ON FAIRNESS AND TRANSPERANCY OF
COMPETETION
Parameters IT ITES IT AND ITES
Respondents
No. Of Respondents
No. Of Respondents
No. Of
%
Strongly Agree 30 26 56 28
Agree 32 34 66 33
Neutral 02 05 07 3.5
Disagree 24 25 49 24.5
Strongly Disagree 12 10 22 11
TOTAL 100 100 200 100
Source: Field Study
From the Table- 1 when asked about the Competition and support in
intra and inter teams was always fair and transparent, 30 per cent of
IT respondents said Strongly Agree, 32 per cent said Agree, 02
per cent said Neutral, 24 per cent said Disagree and 12per cent
opined Strongly Disagree.
From the Table- 1, it is clear that the overall 26 per cent of ITES
respondents opined Strongly Agree, 34 per cent said Agree, 05
per cent said Neutral, 25 per cent said Disagree and 10 per cent
opined Strongly Disagree when they are asked about Competition
and support in intra & inter teams was always fair and transparent.
Overall, 28 per cent of the respondents said Strongly Agree, 33 per
cent said Agree, 3.5 per cent opined Neutral , 24.5 per cent
said Disagree and 11per cent said Strongly Disagree when asked
about Competition and support in intra & inter teams was always fair
and transparent.
Majority of the employees in the IT and ITES sector feel that
Competition and support in intra & inter teams was always fair and
transparent. A considerable proportion of respondents in both IT and
113
ITES sectors feel that the competition and support in intra & inter
teams is not fair and transparent.
ii. EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR INTERNATIONAL
ASSIGNMENTS
International assignments in the IT and ITES organizations will
enable the career growth of every employee in the organization. It will
provide an international exposure where in they can understand the
process to the fullest and gain lot of experience and also sometimes
this opportunity provides more economic benefits to the employees.
While choosing the candidates, there is every possibility of favoritism
and partiality and actual talent of the employees may or may not be
considered. Organization should take care of these issues and identify
the talent to ensure the disparities are not created.
The Table-2 shows the support and equal opportunities for the
international assignments.
TABLE-2
OPINION ON EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR
INTERNATIONAL ASSIGNMENTS
IT ITES IT AND ITES
Parameters Respondents
No. of Respondents
No. of Respondents
No. of Per
Cent
Strongly Agree 29 33 62 31
Agree 46 37 83 41.5
Neutral 02 02 04 02
Disagree 22 25 47 23.5
StronglyDisagree 01 03 04 02
TOTAL 100 100 200 100

Source : Field Study
From the Table- 2, when asked about the Every employee of the
organization gets equal opportunity and support for foreign /
international assignment, 29 per cent of IT respondents said
Strongly Agree, 46 per cent said Agree, 02 per cent said
Neutral, 22 per cent said Disagree and 01per cent opined
Strongly Disagree .
114
From the Table- 2, it is clear that the overall 33 per cent of ITES
respondents opined Strongly Agree, 37 per cent said Agree, 02
per cent said Neutral, 25 per cent said Disagree and 03 per cent
opined Strongly Disagree when they are asked about Every
employee of the organization gets equal opportunity and support for
foreign / international assignment.
Overall, 31 per cent of the respondents said Strongly Agree, 41.5per
cent said Agree, 02 per cent opined Neutral, and 23.5 per cent
said Disagree and 02per cent said Strongly Disagree when asked
about Every employee of the organization gets equal opportunity and
support for foreign / international assignment.
International assignments in the IT and ITES organizations will
enable the career growth of every employee in the organization. It will
provide an International exposure wherein they can understand the
process to the fullest and gain lot of experience and also sometimes
this opportunity provides more economic benefits to the employees.
WORK CULTURE AND ORGANISATIONAL CLIMATE
Work culture of the organization is influenced by the relational
framework among the employees and the atmosphere prevailing in the
organization. Though all efforts are always synchronized towards the
common objectives of organization, in a process of achieving those
every employee will undergo many phases of emotions in dealing
with intra and inter team members. Fairness and transparency of
competition among the employees and equal opportunities are
provided to employees will certainly develop trust on organization.
This will contribute to the cordial work culture and good
organizational climate. The table- 3 illustrates the inter relationship
between the factors of talent management. Factors taken for the study
are:
Transparency of competition in teams (X1)
Equal opportunities and support for international assignment (X2) and
Work culture and organizational climate in the organization (X3).
For the purpose of calculation the above alternatives have expressed
in terms of X1, X2, and X3. Survey data is placed below to find the
115
correlation between factors which can represent the relation between

variables of study.
TABLE- 3
WORK CULTURE AND ORGANISATIONAL CLIMATE
Parameters Transparency
Competition (X1)
Of Assignment (X2)
Equal Opportunity
International
For Work Culture
And
Organizational
Climate (X3)
StronglyDisagree 22 4 5
Disagree 49 47 6
Neutral 7 4 1
Agree 66 83 88
Agree
Strongly
56 62 100
TOTAL 200 200 200
Source: Field Study
CORRELATION COEFFICIENT
r(X1,X2) 0.97
r(X1,X3) 0.78
r(X2,X3) 0.83
PARTIAL CORRELATION COEFFICIENT (PCC) of X1, X2 & X3
r X1X2.X3 0.92
Correlation coefficient of r(X1.X2) is 0.97 that illustrates that there

exists a good relation between the variables, which means there exists
a positive relation between Fairness and transparency of competition
in teams (X1) and equal opportunity and support for foreign /
international assignment (X2).
Correlation coefficient of r(X1.X3) is 0.78 is close to +1, which is that
illustrates that there exists a positive relation between Fairness and
transparency of competition in teams (X1) and Work culture and
organization climate in the organization (X3).
116
Correlation coefficient of r(X2.X3) is 0.83 is close to +1,that

illustrates that there exists a good relation between the variables equal
opportunity and support for foreign / international assignment (X2)
and Work culture and organization climate in the organization (X3).
Partial correlation coefficient (pcc) of X1, X2 and X3 is 0.92 that
illustrates that there exists a good relation between the variables
fairness and transparency of competition in teams (X1), equal
opportunity and support for foreign / international assignment (X2)
and Work culture and organization climate in the organization (X3).
Conclusion:
In ITES sector every employee of the organization gets equal
opportunity for international assignments where as in case of IT sector
this phenomenon is not observed and the opportunities for
international assignments for the employees are not equal and biased.
Fairness and transparency of competition in teams and equal
opportunities for international assignment will foster the healthy
environment in the organization. These factors are instrumental in
building a congenial Work culture and organizational climate in both
IT and ITES industry.
References:
1. Aiken O (1995) in Cranwell-Ward and Aiken When the going
gets tough PeopleManagement 29 June, 22-28.
2. Alderfer, C P (1969) An Empirical Test of a New Theory of
Human Needs Organizational Behavior And Human
Performance, 4, 142-175.
3. Bandura, A (1977a) Social Learning Theory Englewood Cliffs,
New Jersey, Prentice Hall
4. Baron, A (1994) Winning Ways With Culture Personnel
Management, October, 64-68.
5. Baron, A andWalters, M (1994) The Culture Factor London,
IPD
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6. Coopey, J (1994) Managerial Culture And The Stillbirth Of

Organizational Commitment Human Resource Management
Journal, Vol 5, No 3, 56-76
7. Deci, E L (1972) Intrinsic Motivation, Extrinsic
Reinforcement, and Inequity Journal ofPersonality and Social
Psychology, Vol 22, No 11, 13-120
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State Of The Psychological Contract In Employment Issues in
People Management, No 16, London, IPD.
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Performance New York, The Free Press
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conceptual critique of research on role ambiguity and role
conflict in work setting Organizational Behavior and Human
Decision Process, 36, 16-78
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The time squeeze, Demos Quarterly, 5/1995, 2- 11, London,
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Influences the Decisions TopManagers Make in R H Kilmann;
M J Saxton; R Serpa, and Associates [eds] Gaining Control of
the Corporate Culture, Oxford, Jossey-Bass.
13. Schneider, B; Gunnarson, S K and Niles-Jolly, K (1994)
Creating the Climate and Culture of Success Organizational
Dynamics, Vol 23, No 1, Summer, 17-29
118
PERCEPTION OF TRAINING: VOICE OF
NONCLINICAL STAFF OF RUBY GENERAL
HOSPITAL, KOLKATA
Mr. Soumik Gangopadhyay
Mr. Anirban Sarkar
Abstract Training is an essential technique of employee
empowerment that helps to function an organization better in a
competitive environment. Hospital is not an exception to that and the
relative importance of training is felt more in this case as it deals with
life and death situations. Basic objective of this study was to identify
the motivation of training among nonclinical employees of Ruby
General Hospital, Kolkata. 130 employees have been selected through
random sampling and their opinion about the need of training has
been analyzed with the software named STATA. The result emanated
from the study is highlighting versatile need, benefit related to
perception. It also indicates employees motivational disparity of
training which supersedes self-benefit rather than organizational
objective.
Keywords Perception of training, Nonclinical staff, Self-benefit,
Employee objective, Organizational objective
Introduction - Sophisticated instrument and new inventions has
changed the facets of medical treatment which brings new definition
of healthiness to mankind. These skills need to be learned by the
practitioners of the concerned field. Training is a way of learning
eventually more importantly for the medical support activity. Clinical
staffs engaged in day to day application of knowledge do have critical
responsibilities as they deals with human life and death situations. So,
whether clinical or non-clinical, training has an escalating importance
in healthcare like procedures. In contrast, training empowers a
clinician or non-clinician by helping to learn both subjective and
behavioral aspects. However, any training has an objective. Our study
is confined to Ruby Gen. Hospital, Kolkata.
119
This hospital dominates the environment of Kolkata for the last two
decades. In the segment of private hospital, it is a well-recognized
name for its continuity in patient care, rational pricing, modern
treatment etc. Ruby General Hospital has a very well experienced and
accomplished team of medical practitioners, technicians, nurses and
other administrative staff. The hospital has around 175 renowned Sr.
Consultants of different specialties and around 50 In-house Doctors
who are always available. There is also a constant inflow of doctors
from United States who bring the latest advances of treatment to the
patients at Ruby Hospital. The Hospital has 4 Operation Theatres, 1
Cath Lab, CTVS, ITU, ICCU, NICU, Day Care Services, Radiology
Services, Emergency Department, Pathology Services, round the
clock ambulance, pharmacy and other diagnostic services. The
hospital has a bed strength of 302 beds. In a span of around 17 years,
the hospital has performed a variety of major surgeries & Cath Lab
procedures, Cardio Thoracic Surgeries and other surgeries/procedures
with a very high success rate. Every day around 150 to 200 patients
avail the Out Patient Services. The Hospital is equipped with the
latest generation equipment and technology. 24 hours Emergency,
Trauma Care, Ambulance, Pathology, Pharmacy, Dialysis and
Radiology services are available to all. All types of Pathology,
Hematology, Biochemistry and a number of other
Diagnostics/Investigations are done here. Around 40 beds have been
exclusively dedicated for I.C.C.U. and I.T.U. to provide emergency
and critical care to the patients. Maximum number of Trauma care
cases are treated here with a high success rate. There are around 42
multi-specialty departments under which the treatment is available,
like Neurology, Orthopedics, Cardiology, Oncology, Dermatology,
Hematology, Gynecology and Obstetrics, Neonatal Care and
Pediatrics, ENT, General Medicine, General Surgery,
Gastroenterology, Nephrology, Radiology, Dentistry and others.
First hospital in India to introduce the Patients Bill of Rights
First hospital in eastern India to have IS0:9001:2008
First NRI hospital in eastern India
120
Perception of Training
Hospital has a good international patient base.

Training is, an attempt to improve current or future employee
performance by increasing an employees ability to perform through
learning, usually by changing the employees attitude or increasing
his or her skills and knowledge. The need for training is determined
by the employees performance deficiency, computed as follows:
Training need = standard performance actual performance.
NEED FOR TRAINING: The need for training of employees is
universally accepted and practical training in the form of information,
instructions and guidance is given to all categories of employees. It is
a must for raising efficiency of employees. Training is necessary in
present competitive and ever changing industrial world. The
following points (reasons) justify the need for training:
Training at the industry level is practical and is needed for
creating confidence among employees. It is also needed for personal
growth and development of employees.
Training is needed due to continuous changes in the field of
science and technology. Training is the only method by which the
knowledge and skills of workers are updated.
Training is needed in order to introduce modern methods or for
the introduction of rationalization and computer technology in the
industrial units.
Training is needed for raising the efficiency and productivity of
industrial employees.
It is needed for improving the quality of production and also for
avoiding accidents and wastages of all kinds in the industrial units.
Training is needed for personal safety of employees and also for
avoiding damage to machines and property of the company.
Training is needed as it creates highly skilled manpower in an
organization. Such skilled manpower is the real asset of an industrial
unit.
121
Training is needed for preventing manpower obsolescence, for

improving health and safety of workers, for improving organizational
climate and finally for meeting future personnel needs of the
organization.
Fig. 1 Flow Chart of Training at Ruby Hospital
Performance Appraisal Training

PreparingNeed Analysis Plan for
the Training
Training as per requirement Conducting the training process
Training Evaluation Training Feedback Analysis
Source: Organizational policy guidelines

Objective of the study - Training is a continuous process of learning
which starts after joining and prolong till an employee stays in an
organization. The objective here is of two fold. The first one is to
explore the matter in and out so that the managers can take initiatives
to wipe out this impediment standing in the way of achieving the
organization objectives.
1. To know the importance of training and development process
according the viewpoint of the non-clinical employees of Ruby
General Hospital.
2. To reveal the effectiveness of training and development program
from the perspective of non-clinical employees.
3. To identify, study and analyze the training needs of the employees.
4. To understand the involvement of employees in training
programme.
5. To extract the perception of employees regarding training.
122
Review of literature - Once training needs are identified, the experts

should give it so that training can work as an intrinsic value
enhancement tool for the employees, which in turn will increase
productivity and profitability of the organization (Riyaz, 2004).
Moreover, Kaur (2012) have recently concluded training as a tool to
the continuous development of human capital according to the
employees and it helps to increase the quality and magnitude of the
work and to equip the staff with more skills. Result emanated from
study of Richards (1997) highlighted that the real objective of
management training must focus on the individual manager, not the
position in the company. The authors discussion on training needs
analysis i.e., about core competencies, job profiling and identification
of competencies for individuals or against job profiles for generic
roles is worth mentioning. Sishupal and Karunesh (1999), Role of
Training in Developing Human Resources is another work of
relevance in which authors concluded that an organization should
have well-defined training policy as well as training manual and
training should be made an ongoing process. The effectiveness of
training is dependent on the job satisfaction, alignment of individual
goals, career growth prospects, relevant qualification, IQ, and
motivational level of the prospective trainee (Saxena et al., 2012).
But, effectiveness of training depends on the pre training factors
(Cooper et al., 2006). According to Yoder (1994) effectiveness of
training programs can be evaluated by different methods i.e.
motivation of discontinuation, using checklists, attitude & rating
scales, using cost accounting, administering tests & plotting learning
curves. Donald (1997) revealed that evaluation, training and
development is a more logical way of employee evolution.
Kirkpatricks (1959 & 1976) model indicated four different levels by
which effectiveness of training can be assessed. The author
emphasized that while evaluating training, the study could be carried
out in four different levels viz. Reaction (Participants thinking),
Learning (Changes in knowledge, skills or attitude), Behavior
(Changes in behavior on the job, learning being applied),
123
Organizational performance (Output/ result oriented). According to

the American Society for training and Development (ASTD), 77% of
the organization evaluate their training programme on participants
satisfaction & reaction (Level 1), 38% measure learning (Level 2),
14% on behavior change & transfer (Level 3), only 7% measure
results on business impact (Level 4). Training is being viewed as a
self-chosen process of self-development (Gangopadhyay and Sur, 13)
Organizing training and other facilities, deciding the location of
training where training activity is to be arranged and arranging the
schedule of training programme according to the needs of the
employees, will make training effective and offer convenience to
participants and trainers. Conducting training programme as per the
designed prepared, monitoring the process of the training programme
as well as the progress of trainees, it is desirable to have separate
administrative machinery for the execution of training programme to
ensures orderly conduct of training and maintaining records, follow
up, and evaluation. Moreover, the efforts made and money invested
on training will be wasted if the training programme is not
implemented in a disciplined manner.
Methodology - The study is based on a field survey done on non
clinical employees (excluding doctors, nurse & pathologist,
radiologists) of Ruby General Hospital, Kolkata. 130 nonclinical
employees working in different department as auxiliary or ancillary
staff (full time) has been selected as sample of the study. The number
of respondents are been chosen on the basis of distribution of
employees in different departments. They have been interviewed to
collect their opinion on the benefit and need of training with the help
of a structured close ended questionnaire. The survey has been done
during July13 Sep13. Secondary data of the study is sourced from
different articles, newspaper, company web site, articles of reputed
journals etc. The data so collected has been coded, tabulated and
analyzed with the help of software named STATA.
Motivation of an employee towards training (on / off the job training)
can depend on many factors. Hence, it is a challenge of the HR
124
department to extract correct factors that has an influence on

employee perception of training. Therefore, in this case, factor
analysis has been used to derive the main factors from different
variables considered.
Data analysis and interpretation - 80% employee belongs to the age
group of 35-45years whereas the rest 20% represents the age group of
more than 45years among which 63% are female. 83% are non
management cadre and the rest belongs to management cadre. 96% of
the employees have a working tenure of 0-5 years and the rest 4% is
having an experience of more than 5 years but less than 10 years of
working experience in Ruby Hospital. All the employees with
disparity in motivation of training have actually agreed to the need of
organizational training. 86% employee have a monthly pay package
of Rs.5-10000/=, 10% employee belongs to Rs.15001-20000/=
category and rest 4% belongs to Rs.10001-15000/= group. 60%
respondents represents operational area of the hospital whereas 3.33%
represent IT, Marketing, Engineering, Technology, Quality control,
other departments and rest 16.67% represents Human resource
department.
Table 1 Opinion of the respondents regarding training.
Opinion agree
Highly Agree May
be gree
Disa High
ly
agre
e
1. Training is a prolong process of learning 0% 0% 6% 87% 7%
2. organization
Training helps to adopt with the change in an 0% 0% 0% 13% 87%
3. Training solves the problem of a mass 0% 3% 7% 87% 3%

4. Training helps to do job better 0% 3% 0% 81% 16%
5. Training is one to one individual solution 3% 7% 32% 55% 3%
6. Training is a waste of money 0% 0% 7% 64% 29%
7. Training motivates towards work 0% 29% 7% 64% 0%
8 Training is a process of refreshment 0% 0% 10% 52% 38%
9 expectation
Training isanda employer expectation
connection between employee 0% 52% 35% 13% 0%
10 than
Training help to gain company objective rather 0%
own development 3% 42% 52% 3%
11 training
Classroom training is better than on-the -job 3% 35% 23% 39% 0%
125
12 Self-guided training is better than training given by 6%

others 52% 16% 26% 0%
13 Subject matter
designed by the/topic of classroom training must be 8%
employees 13% 26% 52% 1%
14 Subject matter
designed by the/topic of classroom training must be 7%
employees 3% 42% 32% 16%
15 organization
Classroom training must be higher from outside 0% 39% 55% 6% 0%
16 Training helps to work in a competitive market 0% 0% 3% 71% 26%

17 Training facilitate promotion in career 0% 0% 0% 71% 29%
18 Training is a process to upgrade subject knowledge 0% 0% 0% 78% 22%
19 clinical handling
Training helps to learn the technique/path skill of 0% 0% 0% 81% 19%
20 Training builds interpersonal skills 0% 3% 0% 65% 32%

21 Training builds communication/listening skills 0% 16% 3% 61% 20%
22 Training helps to learn time management 0% 0% 23% 52% 25%
23 Training builds presentation skills 0% 0% 0% 71% 29%
24 Training helps to learn team working/problem
solving 0% 0% 3% 61% 36%
25 Training builds leadership development skills 0% 0% 16% 61% 23%

26 Training build general management skills 0% 3% 19% 61% 7%
27 Training helps to learn customer orientation skills 0% 0% 13% 74% 13%
28 Training helps to learn stress management 0% 10% 22% 52% 16%

29 awarenesshelps
Training skills.to learn safety health effectiveness 0% 23% 19% 42% 16%
Source: Primary Data Analysis
Average inter item covariance: 0.0771519 and Scale reliability

coefficients: 0.8434 which proves a high reliability of the
questionnaire
Table 2 Factor analysis/correlation
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Factor | Eigenvalue Difference Proportion Cumulative
-------------+------------------------------------------------------------
Factor1 | 7.42038 3.71049 0.2577 0.2577
Factor2 | 3.70989 0.89188 0.1289 0.3866
Factor3 | 2.81801 0.75140 0.0979 0.4845
Factor4 | 2.06661 0.28690 0.0718 0.5562
Factor5 | 1.77971 0.12699 0.0618 0.6181
Factor6 | 1.65271 0.33968 0.0574 0.6755
Factor7 | 1.31303 0.09844 0.0456 0.7211
Factor8 | 1.21459 0.11906 0.0422 0.7633
Factor9 | 1.09553 0.12816 0.0381 0.8013
126
Factor17
Factor12
Factor11
Factor15
Factor14
Factor19
Factor18
Factor10 | 0.96738
Factor13
Factor16
Factor20 0.15738 0.0336 0.8349
| 0.80999 0.10320 0.0281 0.8630
| 0.70680 0.08953 0.0245 0.8876
| 0.61727 0.05055 0.0214 0.9090
| 0.56672 0.10890 0.0197 0.9287
| 0.45782 0.10366 0.0159 0.9446
| 0.35416 0.05515 0.0123 0.9569
| 0.29901 0.06945 0.0104 0.9673
| 0.22957 0.04611 0.0080 0.9753
| 0.18346 0.02129 0.0064 0.9816
| 0.16217 0.04118 0.0056 0.9873
Factor22 | 0.12099
Factor21 0.03455 0.0042 0.9915
| 0.08644 0.03321 0.0030 0.9945
Factor23 | 0.05324 0.00591 0.0018 0.9963
Factor24 | 0.04733 0.01244 0.0016 0.9980
Factor25 | 0.03489 0.01364 0.0012 0.9992
Factor26 | 0.02125 0.01711 0.0007 0.9999
Factor27 | 0.00414 0.00459 0.0001 1.0001
Factor28 | -0.00046 0.00118 -0.0000 1.0001
Factor29 | -0.00164 . -0.0001 1.0000
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Table 3 Factor loadings (pattern matrix) and unique variances
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Variable | Factor1 Factor2 Factor3 Factor4 Factor5 Factor6 Factor7 Factor8 Factor9 Factor10 Factor11 Factor12 Factor13 Factor14
-------------+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
q2 | 0.1563 0.1543 0.3270 -0.1067 0.7891 0.2453 -0.0050 0.0165 -0.0191 0.1415 0.1144 0.0144 0.0746 0.1460
q3 | -0.2210 0.5319 0.2078 -0.0656 -0.2291 -0.0662 0.0527 0.2855 -0.4486 0.1134 0.2107 -0.1876 0.0657 -0.0442
q4| -0.3399 -0.2104 0.0528 -0.0813 0.6451 -0.2906 -0.2500 0.2535 0.1490 0.2880 0.1126 -0.1466 -0.0410 -0.0624
q5 | 0.2257 -0.2371 -0.0099 0.2889 0.0430 0.5340 0.4266 -0.0137 -0.1285 0.1178 0.4512 0.2231 -0.1184 -0.0165
q6| -0.5683 -0.3038 0.6096 -0.1648 0.0536 -0.0353 0.0656 -0.0577 0.0902 -0.1878 0.0434 0.1839 0.0815 0.0874
q7 | 0.2990 0.2542 -0.6514 -0.3598 0.3483 0.0274 0.1644 -0.1323 0.0622 -0.1324 -0.0883 -0.0968 0.0282 0.0459
q8 | 0.7141 -0.1486 -0.1453 -0.3307 -0.2084 0.1487 -0.0442 -0.0774 0.2870 0.2021 0.0565 -0.0197 0.1381 -0.1468
q9 | 0.3281 0.4879 -0.5526 -0.2942 0.1628 0.1023 0.1859 0.2297 -0.0504 -0.0110 0.1045 -0.0898 0.0730 0.1866
q10| -0.1492 -0.1930 -0.1635 0.2550 -0.2689 0.6519 -0.0398 0.1749 0.1247 0.1835 -0.2283 0.0079 0.3587 0.2236
q11 | 0.3352 -0.4717 0.0230 0.1082 -0.0441 0.0839 -0.6427 -0.0737 -0.1218 0.0398 0.2947 0.0788 0.0579 0.0337
q12 | 0.1953 0.3395 0.2258 -0.6993 -0.2249 0.0879 -0.0065 -0.0430 0.0565 0.0339 0.1364 0.2932 -0.2138 0.2342
q13 | 0.0321 0.2924 0.5868 -0.3662 -0.2303 -0.0184 0.1717 0.2771 0.3901 0.1829 -0.1101 0.0054 -0.0852 -0.1094
q14| -0.0996 0.5895 -0.4568 0.3170 0.0073 -0.1282 0.0888 0.0478 0.2405 0.2861 0.1411 0.1448 -0.0762 -0.0025
q15| -0.3438 0.3312 -0.2481 0.4902 -0.1068 -0.4183 0.1209 -0.0716 0.2110 0.0205 -0.0247 0.2492 0.0402 0.0785
q16 | -0.1431 0.4971 0.4872 -0.0714 0.3205 0.1445 0.0509 -0.2695 -0.2331 0.0843 -0.2652 0.2184 0.2355 -0.0703
q17 | 0.5567 -0.5619 0.1634 0.2379 0.2357 -0.0193 0.3174 0.1435 0.0120 0.1855 -0.1381 0.0030 -0.1053 -0.1089
q18 | 0.6096 -0.5994 0.1591 0.0732 -0.0182 -0.0277 0.4198 0.0757 0.0690 -0.0855 0.0276 -0.0744 -0.0336 -0.0700
q19 | 0.4227 -0.5623 -0.2486 -0.1232 0.1749 -0.3021 0.0432 0.0685 0.0275 0.1235 -0.1879 0.2559 0.0490 0.2358
q20 | 0.6970 0.2334 0.3246 0.0385 0.0765 -0.1115 0.0753 0.0933 0.1744 -0.3174 0.0829 0.0529 0.2294 -0.0913
q21 | 0.5447 0.1786 -0.1770 -0.0140 -0.0077 -0.2058 -0.0434 0.4922 -0.3036 -0.0040 -0.0117 0.3453 0.2175 -0.2593
q22 | 0.2207 0.6227 0.1203 0.3935 0.2192 0.2749 -0.0683 -0.2383 0.3169 -0.1240 0.0557 -0.0589 0.0202 -0.1680
q23 | 0.8032 0.1434 0.0480 -0.0839 -0.1104 0.1193 -0.3107 0.0946 0.2323 0.1697 0.0469 -0.0279 0.0009 -0.0874
q24 | 0.3319 0.4093 0.4641 0.4628 -0.0311 -0.1221 -0.0356 0.1389 -0.0641 0.0911 -0.0214 -0.0574 -0.1548 0.2734
q25 | 0.5402 -0.0078 0.3290 0.0862 -0.1900 -0.4133 0.1410 -0.1995 0.0173 0.3086 0.1363 -0.2220 0.2936 0.2032
q26 | 0.7996 0.0321 0.0444 0.1956 0.0715 -0.0899 -0.2848 0.0413 0.1321 -0.2423 0.0358 0.1880 -0.0745 0.0985
q27 | 0.6824 0.1984 0.0308 0.1121 -0.0224 0.1835 -0.1520 -0.0997 -0.2491 0.2896 -0.3835 0.0343 -0.2747 -0.0583
q28 | 0.7094 0.1237 0.1195 0.1717 0.0407 0.1241 -0.0110 0.3781 -0.0167 -0.3685 -0.1192 -0.1713 -0.0727 0.1757
q29 | 0.8072 0.1077 -0.0086 0.0070 -0.0219 -0.2249 0.1243 -0.4203 -0.1885 0.0138 0.0532 0.0048 0.0241 -0.0131
q30 | 0.9110 0.0067 -0.0645 -0.1407 -0.0548 -0.0341 0.0134 -0.2365 -0.1164 -0.0262 -0.0007 -0.0982 -0.0041 -0.0130
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
127
The Factor analysis (unrotated) of the tabulated perception of the

studied population of nonclinical employees has emanated 6 factors
with Eigen value more than 1 explains different variables with a
loading value equal to and or more than 0.5 has been represented as
follows,
Factor I General perception of functional importance of training
q6 Training is not one-to-one individual solution
q8 Training motivates towards work
q17 Training helps to work in a competitive market
q18 Training is a process to upgrade subject knowledge
q20 Training helps to learn the technique / path skill of clinical handling
q21 Training builds interpersonal skills
q23 Training helps to learn time management
q25 Training helps to learn team working / problem solving
q26 Training builds leadership development skills
q27 Training build general management skills
q28 Training helps to learn customer orientation skills
q29 Training helps to learn stress management
q30 Training helps to learn safe health effectiveness awareness skills
Factor II Perception about need of training related to
organizational objective
q3 Training helps to adopt with the changes in an organization
q14 Self guided training is better than training given by others
q17 Training doesnt helps to work in a competitive market
q18 Training is not a process to upgrade subject knowledge
q19 Training doesnt facilitate promotion in career
q22 Training builds communication / listening skills
Factor III Perception about benefit of training
q6 Training is one-to-one individual solution
q7 Training is not a waste of working hours
q9 Training is not a waste of money
q13 Classroom training is better than on-the-job training
128
Factor IV Perception about disadvantage of training

q12 Training doesnt helps to gain company objective rather than own
development
Factor V Perception about the effect of training
q2 Training is a prolong process of learning
q4 Training solves the problem of a mass
Factor VI Perception about advantage of training
q5 Training helps to do job better
Factor VII Perception about failure of training
q11 Training is not a connection between employee expectation and employer
expectation
As opined by the respondents that, by improving subject knowledge
training helps to work better in competitive environment. Training
helps to handle time management better and thus it motivates towards
work and also helps to learn health effectiveness awareness skills,
which is also a technique of stress management. Moreover, it is a
technique of learning leadership skills.
Training helps to learn the technique / path skill of clinical handling
required for better customer service. Factor I and II are contradicting
each other and thus are indicating a sense of inhibition sustained
among the respondents regarding training.
Table 4 Multiple Correlation between variables
| q6 q8 q17 q18 q20 q21 q23 q25 q26 q27 q28 q29 q30
-------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
q6| 1.0000
q8| -0.4188 1.0000
q17| -0.1146 0.3310 1.0000
q18| -0.0316 0.4586 0.8669 1.0000
q20| -0.1947 0.3513 0.2746 0.4062 1.0000
q21| -0.4476 0.2982 0.2331 0.1921 0.4542 1.0000
q23 | -0.4935 0.7040 0.2633 0.2771 0.5648 0.4296 1.0000
q25| -0.1397 0.3674 0.3398 0.4137 0.4703 0.1387 0.4082 1.0000
q26| -0.3898 0.4803 0.3781 0.3927 0.6086 0.4607 0.6703 0.3287 1.0000
q27| -0.5603 0.3677 0.3520 0.1930 0.3059 0.3603 0.6131 0.2612 0.4687 1.0000
q28 | -0.3979 0.2823 0.3894 0.4197 0.6429 0.4094 0.5483 0.2387 0.7183 0.4609 1.0000
q29 | -0.4867 0.5046 0.3768 0.4497 0.5386 0.3748 0.5109 0.6185 0.5897 0.5693 0.3774 1.0000
q30| -0.5490 0.6846 0.4162 0.5165 0.5570 0.4044 0.7104 0.5296 0.6680 0.6270 0.5648 0.8765 1.0000
Factor II mentioning variable 17 and 18 and their correlation is
successfully explaining the importance of self learning.
129
Conclusion - The studied respondents (nonclinical employees) of

Ruby General Hospital are having awareness regarding the need,
benefit, self-benefit and organizational benefit of training provided to
them. The analysis has further explored that the employees are
conscious about the overall importance of job-training and being
exposed to an environment that deals with life and threat they are not
reluctant to gain job knowledge through training. It is being identified
as a self-benefit rather than organizational benefit. They have also
expressed the need of identification of employee requirement prior to
design of training. It can be concluded that respondents have a
mismatch of expectation which differ from organizational objective.
Thus, they want to learn according to their desire that signals a great
amount of dissatisfaction among employees. However, the concerned
hospital must design their planning of training which is mutually
satisfying the need of both employee and employer.
Recommendations
Ruby hospital should match the organizational objective with
the employee objective prior to design their training
Ruby hospital should identify the individual employee need of
training to achieve best result.Every training objective must be
explained to the trainee employees before the training process
and with their free consent training should be started.
The hospital should encourage their employees to explain their
training need and should allow them to attend the training on
their free will to impart better learning.
Every individual must be monitored on their post training
performance and reward must be designed on the basis of that.
References
1. Cooper, Donald, R., Schindler, Pamela, S. (2006), Business Research
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131
WORK-LIFE-BALANCE: A NOVEL STRATEGIC
APPROACH OF RETAINING AND MANAGING
GENERATION Y HUMAN FORCE
Dr Ramesh Kumar Miryala
Yadagiri Ch
ABSTRACT
Generation Y's characteristics put them in high demand in today's job
market, but managers and employers are having an extreme difficulty
in understanding how they can be effectively utilized in the work
environment. It has been shown through various studies that the
work/life balance programs go a long way in helping firms of all sizes
attract and retain high-quality professionals and are a key factor in
employee satisfaction especially among Generation Y. Retaining the
efficient Human Force is always been a challenge to the modern
corporate. More than a decade has passed since the corporate started to
implement work/life-balance-friendly policies, but only a few firms
are claiming the success.
Work and family balance has highlighted the benefits as the key factor
in generating employee satisfaction among Generation Y. Through
qualitative and appropriate work-life balance activities and HR metrics
the organizations are able to improve employee morale, retain
employees with valuable company knowledge, and keep pace with
workplace trends.
This article depicts the strategies for human resource management
professionals to assist their companies to capitalize on these factors by
using work/life initiatives on Generation Y human force.
KEYWORDS
Work-life balance, W-L benefits, employee retention, Human force,
Generation Y
INTRODUCTION
For the organizations the challenge of work-life balance has emerged
to the concern of top of many employers' and employees'
132
Work-Life-Balance: A Novel Strategic Approach
consciousness. In today's rapidly changing society in all aspects of

economy, culture, education, social stratification, political changes etc,
the human resource professionals seek options of how to positively
influence the Generation Y human force of their companies. Ideally,
work-life balance programs are effective retention tools for the
organizations but still it is an irony that many companies don't deliver
it and expect the retention of the Generation Y work-force.
Generation Y (known to many as echo-boomers, boomer babies,
millennials, the entitlement generation, or the digital generation), by
the broadest definition, numbers more than 70 million Indians born
between 1977 and 2000 and accounts for approximately 21 percent of
the overall workforce. They are the fastest-growing segment of the
workforce. Known for their optimism, education, collaborative ability,
open-mindedness, and drive, Generation Y are the hottest commodities
on the job market.
Generation Y'ers have always felt sought after, needed, and
indispensable, and they are arriving at the workplace with higher
expectations than any other generation before them. When Generation
Y made their initial foray in the workforce, their positive reputation
was built early because employers loved their energy, drive, and skills.
However, many managers were a little taken aback by what they
perceived as a short attention span and reluctance to perform tasks that
lacked depth.
It's not been too long since the leading corporations installed certain
work-life programs designed aiming at drawing more talent into the
workplace and helped employees more focused. Workplace surveys in
recent studies still register high levels of employee stress stemming
from work-life conflicts. And surprisingly in many cases, the work-life
programs and benefits have reached only the employees who need
them least.
WORK-LIFE BALANCE- THE CHALLENGES AHEAD
The complex society of ours makes the individuals with conflicting
responsibilities and commitments; hence the work-life balance has
133
become a predominant issue at the workplace. The major factors such

as the global competition, the renewed interest in personal lives/ family
values; and managing the workforce etc. have made it more
significant. Studies have revealed that human resource professionals
seek innovative ways to attain their organization's competitive
advantage in the marketplace and it is found that work-life balance
activities offer a win-win solution in this regard.
THE ORIGIN OF WORK/LIFE BALANCE: It is a state of
equilibrium in which the demands of a person's job and that of his
personal life are equal.1The term "work-life balance" was coined in
1986, although its usage in everyday language was being made for a
number of years. Interestingly, work/life programs existed as early as
the 1930s. The policies and procedures established by an organization
with the goal to enable employees to efficiently do their jobs and at the
same time provide flexibility to handle personal concerns or problems
at their family front In fact; dual-wage-earning families in general are
working longer hours. Catalyst, a nonprofit research and advisory
organization in New York, found the combined weekly work hours of
wage-earning couples rose to 91 hours in 2002-- up more than 8% in
just 10 years. Writing for the New York Times, Judith Shulevitz cited a
Families and Work Institute study, that found younger college
educated workers were less willing "to sacrifice everything to advance
their careers" than baby boomers were. People entering the workforce
today are more likely to turn down promotions if the new job means
longer days and having to bring more work home.
2Fiona Moore study presents that flexible working practices are good
for work-life balance, that managers are better able to maintain a good
work-life balance than workers, and that the development of an
1 Work-life Balance, (2002): The Word Spy. Retrieved January 30, 2003,
http://www.worc1spy.com/words/work-lifebalance.asp
2 Fiona Moore, Work-life balance: contrasting managers and workers in an
MNC, Employee Relations, Vol. 29 No. 4, 2007, pp. 385-399
134
appropriate work-life balance policy assists in ensuring company

loyalty and positive attitudes to work.
ORGANIZATIONAL ENVIRONMENT AND CULTURE: It is an
organization's culture, work-climate, and how it acknowledges and
respects the family responsibilities and obligations of its employees
and encourages management and employees to work together to meet
their personal and work needs. Before establishing any kind of
work-life initiatives, it is foremost to know if the organization's culture
is open and ready to support work-life balance programs. It is
important to determine culture readiness inside the organization. As
with most change initiatives, work-life programs require support from
senior management. In addition, for the work environment to be ready
for work/life benefits, it is helpful to have a "corporate culture that
encourages employees to look at business in an entirely different way
and supports and accepts employees as individuals with priorities
beyond the workplace." 3Following are a few changed dimensions of
the personal, family and social forefront that compels the corporate to
draft the HR policies in altogether different stride.
a. Personal Lives and Family Values to the Forefront: In recent
years personal and family lives have become critical values that
Americans are less willing to ignore, for the sake of work. Over time,
the American workforce has begun to change course from being
willing to spend every hour working to learning to manage the
complexities of modern living. In addition, the impact of the terrorist
attacks of September 11 has led many people to re-evaluate their lives
and consider the meaning of work. Consequently, Americans are
looking for options that allow for both a personal and family life, and
many seek ways to have a balance between the two. As a result, the
U.S. management philosophy that expects employees to put work first,
ahead of personal lives and family commitments, is becoming
accepted.
3 Reynolds, H. B, (1999): Work-life Initiatives require cultural readiness.

Employee Benefit Plan Review, 54, 6, pp. 25-26.
135
b. The Changing Modes of Family Structure: With the inevitable

growing diversity of family structures, day by day represented in the
workforce in the new millennium, it is important that human resource
professionals do understand the interface of work and family
relationships better and the resulting impact in the workplace.
Research by Parasuraman and Greenhaus documented that segments
of the workforce may be subject to unique work/family pressures, yet
often has few sources of support. 4The under-representation of these
groups of individuals with potentially difficult types of work/family
pressures represents a major gap in work/family research and
employers' understanding of their needs. Typically, studies have
focused on employed men and women who are married or living with a
partner or those with children. From the employer and employee
viewpoint, the changing nature of family is one of the biggest
complications of today's society. In a popular book, Work and
Family-Allies or Enemies, Friedman and Greenhaus, two leaders in
work/life balance, bring forth new evidence to help us understand
choices we make as employers and individuals regarding work and
family. 5This pioneering study of more than 800 business professionals
considered values, work, and family lives and found that "work and
family, the dominant life roles for most employed women and men in
contemporary society, can either help or hurt each other." 6Conflict
between work environment and expected roles in the job as well as
family responsibilities, obligations etc have real consequences and
significantly affect the quality of family life and career attainment. The
studies have revealed a compensatory effect between these two forms
of psychological interference i.e., work-to-family and family-to-work.
4 Parasuraman, S., & Greenhaus, J. H, (2002): Toward reducing some critical

gaps in work- family research. Human Resource Management Review, 12, 3, pp.
299-312
5 Friedman, S. D., & Greenhaus, J. H, (2000): Work and family--A/lies or
enemies? What happens when business professionals confront life choices?New
York: Oxford Univ, Press.
6 --Ibid.
136
c. Work-Life balance: As a stress remover: The

employee-driven solutions help reduce overtime, stress, and
workloads, and increase flexibility and family and leisure time. The
increasing levels of stress could definitely lead to low employee
morale, poor productivity, and decreasing job satisfaction. Some of the
specific symptoms that relate directly to productivity in the work
environment are abuse of sick time, cheating, chronic absenteeism,
distrust, embezzlement, organizational sabotage, tardiness, task
avoidance, and violence in the workplace.
d. Life Cycle Stage of Employees for the Work-Life Facilities:
7Demographics of employee are prime factors that vary the need of
Work Life Balance. Now days the employers have started realizing
that work should be intrinsically interesting and satisfying to the
employees, and this is the workforce that produces the best work if
treated in a desired way. One of the challenges of work-life
initiatives--from both the employer and the employee viewpoints is
equitability, which has been cited as a major concern regarding
work-life initiatives. 8At the time of establishing work-life programs, it
is important to consider the objectives of the programs and whom they
would serve and in what ways. Also organizational readiness for
work/life programs from the employees' point of view is being judged.
Thus the studies too, confirmed that a supportive work-family culture
is directly related to positive work attitudes and less turnover of the
employees in the organization.
WORK-LIFE BALANCE AND RETENTION OF HUMAN
FORCE: AN INDIAN CONTEXT
President Kalam has highlighted five factors i.e., agriculture,
education, healthcare, and information technology and infrastructure
development which would help in uplifting the 260 million people
7 Miryala RK., et al (2012) : Work Life Balance amongst Teachers, IUP Journal
of Organizational Behavior,
Vol. X1, Issue 1, 2012
8 Parus, B, (2000): Measuring the ROI of work/life programs. Works pan, 43, 9,
pp. 50-54.
137
living below the poverty line while simultaneously sustaining the 7%

growth in GDP. In India 540 million people below the age of 25 years
ie. Generation Y; no other country has such a big bank of workable
people who can work wonders. India has the greatest advantage of its
talented workable force.
Indian companies are giving due response to their human force and are
exploring ways to keep their employees happy. "I always focus on
growing talent within the company and I think it is important to share
the credit for good work. We may not have too many heroes in our
company but we certainly have people who work very well together.
My mantra is to focus on the people who have the ability to learn, says
Shanghvi. Auto-manufacturer Mahindra and Mahindra has introduced
two new schemes which are in pipeline for its top level managers in
order to bring balance in their work and personal life. Company has
changed its leave policy wherein it has introduced a compulsory
15-days leave for its middle and top-level officials. We want our
employees to spend value time with their family at home''. The
company is also focusing on training and development programme for
the career mapping of the employees and provides them with a
meaning professional career ahead.
TACTICS IN RETENTION OF GENERATION Y HUMAN
FORCE: Employee retention is critical to the long term health and
success of an organization. Top Management agree that retaining
talented employees ensures customer satisfaction, product sales,
satisfied co-workers and reporting staff, effective succession planning
and deeply imbedded organizational knowledge and learning.
(a) A satisfied employee knows clearly what is expected from
him every day at work. Changing expectations keep people on edge
and create unhealthy stress.
(b) The quality of the supervision an employee receives is critical
to employee retention. Frequent employee complaints center on these
areas:
i.Lack of clarity about expectations
138
ii.Lack of feedback about performance

iii.Failure to hold scheduled meetings
iv.Failure to provide a framework within which the employee
perceives that he can succeed.
(c) The ability of the employee to speak his or her mind freely
within the organization is another key factor in employee
retention.
(d) Talent and skill utilization is another environmental factor
the key employees seek in the workplace.
ADVANTAGES OF WORK-LIFE INITIATIVES: Work-life
initiatives create positive employer branding, and support diversity
initiatives. There are various factors which determine the effectiveness
of these programs as follows:
(i) Saving employee's time: One of the most direct and measurable
financial benefits of work/life initiatives is that these work life
initiatives are able to save the amount of time of the employees by
assisting, them in solving their personal problems. WFD conducted
research with clients across industries with 300 employees and
documented that an average of 17 hours per year were saved when
employees used a consulting service that provided counseling,
referrals, and research in areas such as parenting, education, childcare,
adoption, and eldercare.
(ii) Enhanced Employee Retention: The cost of employee turnover
and accompanying loss of valuable company knowledge can be
significant. Work-life programs enhanced the qualitative employee
retention. A prime example is IBM'S 1992 workforce survey that
documented "the highest performers are the most likely to consider
their ability to balance work and personal responsibilities in a decision
to stay with the company."9
9 Landauer, J, (1997): Bottom-line benefits of work/life programs HR FOCUS,

74, 7, 3- 4.
139
(iii) Increased Motivation and Productivity: Research indicates

that company commitment to work/life initiatives is closely aligned
with employee motivation and productivity. A study focusing on work,
well-being and stress illustrates this link, finding that "45% of men and
50% of women would turn down a promotion if the new position
would leave them with less time for their personal or family life."10
(iv) Reduced Absenteeism: It is revealed from various studies that
the sound work-life programs reduce absenteeism and too many
leaves. Johnson & Johnson "found that there was a 50% decline in
absenteeism among employees who used flexible work options and
family leave policies."11
(v) Decline in Stress-Related problems among the employees:
Work/life programs are becoming an intelligent choice of todays
globalized corporate to help lower the stress among the employees.
According to the American Institute on Stress, 1 million workers are
absent due to stress-related complaints, and American firms lose more
than 5 million workdays annually due to illness, more than half
stress-related. A 1992 study by Northwestern National Life Insurance
Co. found that "72% of all workers surveyed experienced three or more
stress-related illnesses 'somewhat or very often.12
PRODUCING TALENT-BIGGEST CHALLENGE FOR
INDIAN INSTITUTES
It is another big challenge to first produce the talent in the country,
before actually formulating the strategies to manage and retain them
in the same organizational periphery. As per the QS world University
Ranking India is not able to make its place in the top 10, rather it has
212th rank bagged by IIT Delhi. The following are the details as per
the latest study made:
10 Gottlieg, B. H., Kelloway, E. K., & Barham, E, (1998): Flexible work

arrangements: 4 Managing the work-family boundary. New York: John Wiley &
Sons.
11 Landauer, J,(1997): Op.cit.
12 Friedman, S. D., & Greenhaus, J. H, (2000): Op.cit.
140
Top Ten Educational Institutes As Per QS Rankings Of 2012/13

Qs Rankings World University Country
(2012-13) Rankings (2013) Institute Name
Massachusetts Institute of
1 5 Technology (MIT) United States
10
23456789 7 University of Cambridge United Kingdom
11
4 Harvard University United States
10
UCL (University College
17
286 London) United Kingdom
University of Oxford United Kingdom
Imperial College London United Kingdom
Yale University United States
University of Chicago United States
Princeton University United States
California Institute of
1 United States
Technology (Caltech)
Source: http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk &
http://www.topuniversities.com/
Parameters of Evaluation of Educational Institutes As Per QS Rankings
2012/13
Ranking
University
from
10 India)
World(Top
QSInstitutes World
Rank Reputa
tion
Acade
Rank
mic Employer
Reputatio
n Rank ty
Stude Faculty
Facul
nt
Rank ns per Faculty
Citatio
Rank Rank
Internati
onal Internati
onal
Students
Rank
IIT Delhi 212 187 68 301 195 301 301

IIT Mumbai 227 158 55 301 293 301 301
IIT Kanpur 278 247 194 301 172 301 301
IIT Madras 312 283 94 301 279 301 301
Kharagpur
IIT 349 301 247 301 238 - 301
IIT Roorkee 401-450 - 288 301 276 - -

University of 401-450
Delhi 211 115 301 301 301 -
IIT Guwahati 551-600 - - - - - -

University of 551-600
Mumbai - 207 - 283 - -
141
University of
Pune 601+ - 283 - - - -
University of
Calcutta 601+ - - - - - -
Source: http://www.topuniversities.com/
To obtain the quality professionals or employees we need to focus on
imparting quality education, research and knowledge transfer to the
students to cultivate into a strong Human Capital for the country. It is
believed that the employability component, unique to the QS system
introduces a particular relevance for prospective students, who would
regulate the industrial performance and ultimately the economic up
gradation of the nation.
WORK-LIFE BALANCE-THE TRENDS AHEAD
The challenge of work-life balance in our society is unlikely to
disappear. The concept of work/life balance is gaining a great deal of
attention in both the academic and corporate worlds. A 2003 study
reveals that employees are often preoccupied with work when not
working, and when in the company of family and loved ones,
experience an inability to be meaningfully engaged in no work
spheres. 13 As researcher Ezzedeen explains, "modern work has
become more knowledge based, fluid, and intellectual; overworked
people think about work all of the time. For many people, work has
become cognitively intrusive." To understand work/life balance,
Professor Swiercz and Doctoral Candidate Ezzedeen of The George
Washington University developed and tested a cognitive approach,
the "Cognitive Intrusion of Work." In simple terms, this means that
work/life balance is not just about finding "physical time" to do all
that needs to be done. Instead, and more importantly, it is about the
13 Ezzedeen, S. R., & Swiercz, P.M, (2002): Re thinking work-life balance:

Development and validation of the cognitive intrusion of work scale (CIWS)-A
dissertation research proposal, Proceedings of the 2002 Eastern Academy of
Management Meeting.
142
"cognitive space" necessary to process, organize, and respond to the

thinking demands of life within a complex society. Commenting on
the potential impact of this research on organization policies and
practices, Professor Swiercz states, "this research not only gives
employers a new benchmarking tool, it also provides a new
theoretical basis for understanding this important social issue from a
research perspective."
TOTAL LIFE PLANNING- A NEW APPROACH TOWARDS
WORK-LIFE BALANCE: Total life planning is latest and
innovative approach to work/life benefits that helps employees
understand the important aspects of their professional life, personal
lives and their relativity. Their goal is "to encourage employees to
look at their lives as a whole and assess relationships, emotional and
physical wellbeing, careers, spirituality, and their personal financial
situation. From these programs, employees can assess their available
choices to improve balance in their lives and develop an
individualized life plan the most successful programs set a goal
oriented environment with a meaningful and transformational
component for each individual." 14The concept of total life has the
major benefits such as renewed employee energy, enthusiasm and
attachment for work, and enhanced productivity. Total life planning
programs may be offered in conjunction with benefits such as health,
life, and disability insurance, or on a standalone basis.
THE FOCUS OF INDIAN COMPANIES: While opting to join a
company the Generation Y will always check the advantage of the
company with the present working one. And he may decline the offer
with the new one if he doesnt find the Work-Life-Balance a reason to
join it, may like flexi hours. These things are what exactly Generation
Y employees are looking for. The policy makers think they know, but
14 Traynor, J. B, (1999): A new frontier in work-life benefits, Employee Benefits

Journal, 24, 4, pp. 29-32.
143
until actually talked to employees, it is mere guess. The WLB tool,

instead of guessing, brings some empirical evidence to the company's
decision-making on rewards. Important considerations from Indian
perspective are:
Think out of the-Box i.e., something very different and appealing
compared to the competitors and this would definitely be able to
scoop the best talent.
Employee prefers and would be pleased more with a bunch of
smaller rewards, than one big benefit. Companies need to mix and
match before deciding over the benefits to be offered.
CONCLUSION
It can thus be concluded that a sound work-life program has the
potential to significantly improve Generation Y morale, motivate
them constantly, reduce absenteeism and turnover, and retain
organizational knowledge, particularly during difficult economic
times. In today's global marketplace, as companies aim to reduce costs,
it falls to the human resource professional to understand the critical yet
significant issues of work-life balance programs. The companies
losing critical knowledge when employees leave for other
opportunities, work-life programs offer a win-win situation for
employers and employees. It is always to review and reformulate the
human resources strategy to check whether it is in accordance to the
company's mission. Through questionnaires, focus groups, or any
other mode of feedback the Generation Y employers should find out
what employees feel about work-life balance. Alignment of work-life
initiatives with HR strategy ensures the retention of a smart,
qualitative, internal customer or the employees.
144
WORK-LIFE BALANCE (WLB): THE BINDING FOR EVERY
MODERN ORGANISATION
Dr. Chandrashekar M. Mathapati
You will never feel truly satisfied by work until you are satisfied by
life.
Heather Schuck, The Working Mom Manifesto
Abstract:
As India continues to emerge as a global economic power,
understanding the dynamics between work and personal lives specific
to this culture is increasingly important. In India, the work-life agenda
is very much aligned with social and institutional context of the
country.
In the pursuit of improving performance, increasing productivity,
reducing costs and enhancing profitability in the workplace,
organizations are evolving new ways and means to build
psychological relationships with employees. Work-life balance
(WLB) is a common challenge throughout the industrialized world.
Employees all over the world are facing challenges how to balance
work and their family lives. This article provides background for
understanding how work-life issues are perceived and
researched in India, and tries to throws a light on how Work-Life
Balance can be made part of tilt comprehensive HR strategy aimed at
both employee satisfactions as well as achieving organizational
results, how WLB as a win-win strategy benefits employees,
employers and shareholders and also how the concept of Work-Life
Balance builds overall personality of an Individual.
Take care of yourself: When you dont sleep, eat crap, dont
exercise, and are living off adrenaline for too long, your performance
suffers. Your decisions suffer. Your company suffers. Love those close
to you: Failure ofyour company is notfailure in life. Failure in your
relationship is.
Ev Williams, Co-founder of Medium and Twitter
145
More than ever before, the employees play many different roles in
their lives. They are workers, parents, spouses, friends, caregivers of
elderly relatives and volunteers in their communities. They must also
make room in their lives for taking care of their own physical and
mental well-being. Not surprisingly, achieving balance among all
these competing priorities can be difficult.
Work-life balance is about effectively managing the juggling act
between paid work and other activities that are important to us -
including spending time with family, taking part in sport and
recreation, volunteering or undertaking further study.
Research suggests that improving the balance between our working
lives and our lives outside work can bring real benefits for employers
and employees. It can help build strong communities and productive
businesses.
In today's busy world, prioritizing between your work and your
personal life can be a huge challenge. But studies show that a poor
work-life balance can result in unhealthy levels of stress, unhappiness,
and even reduced productivity.
Finding a suitable balance between work and daily living is a
challenge that all workers face. Families are particularly affected.
Some couples would like to have (more) children, but do not see how
they could afford to stop working. Other parents are happy with the
number of children in their family, but would like to work more. This
is a challenge to governments because if parents cannot achieve their
desired work/life balance, not only is their welfare lowered but so is
development in the country. If parents have to choose between
earning money and looking after their children, the result is that there
will be too few babies and too little employment.
The fact that employees in huge buildings of prospering organizations
firms take home huge pay every month, can paint a rosy picture of
their lives in anyones mind.
However, when we take a closer look, we see another reality that is
not so bright. In reality, the lives of these individuals are marked by
146
Work-Life Balance (WLB): The Binding for Every Modern Organisation
pressures, hectic schedules, and extremely long hours at work which

takes a toll on their health, and also relationships at home and social
engagements.
It is true that there is no substitute for hard work, especially for the
professionals who are beginning to make a mark in the global
business world. But, striking a balance between work and personal
life is equally imperative. After all, one cannot be expected to make a
living at the expense the quality of life that all humans deserve.
People spend one-tenth to one-fifth of their time on unpaid work. The
distribution of tasks within the family is still influenced by gender
roles: men are more likely to spend more hours in paid work, while
women spend longer hours in unpaid domestic work.
Employees Working Long Hours:
An important aspect of work-life balance is the amount of time a
person spends at work. Evidence suggests that long work hours may
impair personal health, jeopardize safety and increase stress.
Time devoted to Leisure and Personal Care:
Furthermore, the more people work, the less time they have to spend
on other activities, such as personal care or leisure. The amount and
quality of leisure time is important for peoples overall well-being,
and can bring additional physical and mental health benefits.
Work pressure - the root of the problem:
If you were a traditional employee, the work clearly begins and ends
during the office hours. The new age knowledge work demands
stretch of work beyond the normal office hours. Putting forth the
normal issues related to work overload, David Posen suggests that
external demands from bosses/clients/co-workers, corporate culture,
deadlines, internal drive to do more and fear of negative effects like bad
performance review demands employees to do more than what is
normally expected.
Mostly professionals blame the external factors like client
requirements and deadlines for extended office hours. Increasing
competition in various sectors especially service demands more
147
outputs in lesser time. .Essentially it boils down to increased working

hours for the employees. The inability of professionals to say no
while approached for taking up more responsibilities also leads to
increased workload. Many perceive that showing reluctance to take
up responsibilities not staying late in the office may lead to negative
impact in performance appraisal and career progress. Adding to this
self driven individuals who are highly career oriented spend most of
the time worrying about work quality or quantity.
In a modern work environment, the technology related factors
like time spend on responding to emails, bombardment of
information and lack of physical activity as much of the time is
spend on a computer work station also leads to work pressure and
associated stress. Poor culture of the organization that is reflected
through internal politics, lack of support, lack of competence of
superiors/senior management and too much time spend on non core
activities also lead to lack of time and work stress.
Impact of increased work pressure - work-life balance:
One of the direct impacts of the work pressure would be the negative
effect on the work-life balance. Work life balance is generally
understood by experts as the satisfaction and happiness both at home
and work life without much conflict between each other. Apart from
the home or family factor, research also looks at the time spend on
non work activities in general. Clearly the increased work pressure
might cause spending less time at home or non work related activities
causing personal and social sufferings at those fronts. Research
studies have found that most of the new age professionals especially
knowledge workers spend more time at work and it directly impacts on
the health of individuals and family life. Lesser time is devoted to
personal health and leisurely activities. On the family front the time
spent with family is also decreasing.
The reasons for work-life imbalance apart from the external factor
of work pressure may be due to the workaholic behavior or
inability to compartmentalize work and non work activities.
148
Individual may build up characteristics that make them not to free

themselves from putting more and more at work causing sufferings at
other fronts. Apart from this the work life and family life boundary
gets blurred as individuals do not stop thinking about work at home.
Many bring office issues at home and remain stressed. Sleep and time spent
with family members/friends are compromised for spending time on doing
extra work. Professionals may take time to finish pending work at
home even when the time spent at home is less. The growing
influence of technology in life has resulted in fact that people no
longer remain disconnected. A week-end or evening after work is not
left alone by emails/official communications.
Costs of work-life imbalance:
The effect of work-life imbalance covers three major spheres -
individual, family and the social circle. Clearly the increasing work load takes
its toll on the health of the individual. Less time is spent on physical
exercise and leisurely activities causing health related issues like
obesity, increasing blood pressure and associated detrimental effects.
Lack of sleep due to work stress can have a negative impact on
productivity. Research has shown that work-life imbalance can cause
lesser job satisfaction, organizational commitment and intention to
remain. At an individual level the thoughts of spending less time with
family/friends and lack of involvement in family/ social activities can
also lead to tension and symptoms of withdrawal from work. At the
family level, the guilt of less time spent with family related
issues can add to the work stress. The problem is doubled if both the
husband and wife are working. Making compromise usually falls with
the woman ofthe house. Many new age professionals feel that
extended work hours is taking a toll on the social network. Lack of
time leads to missing key social functions and leisurely time spent
with friends and relatives.
"Managers who think that work is work and home is home, and that
employees must leave family issues at home when they come to
work," are the ones most likely to put employees at risk, Dr. Buxton
said. "We think that inflexible managers are causing them [the
149
employees]to sleep less, and that also increases their cardiovascular

risk."
Workers who were supervised by inflexible managers were twice as
likely to accumulate multiple risk factors as other employees, and the
odds increased to six times the risk for those working directly with
patients. The manager and employees worked in nursing homes,
which Dr. Buxton calls a "boom industry" that is sure to grow in size
and in the range of demands placed on staff in coming years.
Consequences of an Imbalance:
Mental health is a balancing act that may be affected by four factors:
the influence of unfavourable genes, by wounding trauma, by private
pressures and most recently by the stress of working. Many people
expose themselves unsolicited to the so-called job stress, because the
"hard worker" enjoys a very high social recognition. These aspects
can be the cause of an imbalance in the areas of life. But there are also
other reasons which can lead to such an imbalance.
Remarkable is, for example, the increase in non-occupational
activities with obligation character, which include mainly house and
garden work, maintenance and support of family members or
volunteer activities. All this can contribute to the perception of a
chronic lack of time. This time pressure is, amongst others, influenced
by their own age, the age and number of children in the household,
marital status, the profession and level of employment as well as the
income level. The psychological strain, which in turn affects the
health, increases due to the strong pressure of time, but also by the
complexity of work, growing responsibilities, concern for long-term
existential protection and more. The mentioned stresses and strains
could lead in the long term to irreversible, physical signs of wear as
well as to negative effects on the human cardiovascular and immune
systems.
Prominent cultural beliefs that parenthood is the best avenue for a
happy fulfilling life may not be justified. In, The Joys of Parenthood
Reconsidered, what was found is the opposite, that parents actually
150
suffer worse mental and physical health than childless adults. This is
associated with the high costs of parenthood described in the article.
Simon states that, In America we lack institutional supports that
would help ease the social and economic burdens associated with
parenthood.
Psychoanalysts diagnose uncertainty as the dominant attitude to life in
the postmodern society. This uncertainty can be caused by the
pressure which is executed from the society to the humans. It is the
uncertainty to fail, but also the fear of their own limits, not to achieve
something what the society expects, and especially the desire for
recognition in all areas of life. In today's society we are in a
permanent competition. Appearance, occupation, education of the
children - everything is compared to a media staged ideal. Everything
should be perfect, because this deep-rooted aversion to all average,
the pathological pursuit to excellence - these are old
traditions. Whoever wants more - on the job, from the partner, from
the children, from themselves - will one day be burned out and empty
inside. He is then faced with the realization that perfection does not
exist. Who is nowadays empty inside and burned out, is in the
common language a Burnout. But due to the definitional problems
Burnout is till this date not a recognized illness. An attempt to define
this concept more closely, can be: a condition that gets only the
passionate, that is certainly not a mental illness but only a grave
exhaustion (but can lead to numerous sick days). It can benefit the
term that it is a disease model which is socially acceptable and also, to
some extent, the individual self-esteem stabilizing. This finding in
turn facilitates many undetected depressed people, the way to a
qualified treatment. According to experts in the field are, in addition
to the ultra hard-working and the idealists mainly the perfectionist,
the loner, the grim and the thin-skinned, especially endangered of a
burnout. All together they usually have a lack of a healthy distance to
work.
Another factor is also, that for example decision-makers in
government offices and upper echelons are not allowed to show
151
weaknesses or signs of disease etc., because this would immediately

lead to doubts of the ability for further responsibility. Only 20% of
managers (e.g. in Germany) do sports regularly and also only 2%
keep regularly preventive medical check-up. In such a position other
priorities seem to be set and the time is lacking for regular sports.
Frightening is that the job has such a high priority, that people waive
screening as a sign of weakness. In contrast to that, the burnout
syndrome seems to be gaining popularity. There seems nothing to be
ashamed to show weaknesses, but quite the opposite: The burnout is
part of a successful career like a home for the role model
family. Besides that the statement which describes the burnout as a
"socially recognized precious version of the depression and despair
that lets also at the moment of failure the self-image intact" fits and
therefore concludes "Only losers become depressed, burnout against it
is a diagnosis for winners, more precisely, for former winners."
However, it is fact that four out of five Germans complain about too
much stress. One in six under 60 swallows at least once a week, a pill
for the soul, whether it is against insomnia, depression or just for a bit
more drive in the stressful everyday life. The phases of burnout can be
described, among other things, first by great ambition, then follows
the suppression of failure, isolation and finally, the cynical attitude
towards the employer or supervisor. Concerned persons have very
often also anxiety disorders and depressions, which are serious mental
diseases. Depressions are the predominant causes of the nearly 10,000
suicides that occur alone each year in Germany.] The implications of
such imbalances can be further measured in figures: In 1993,
early retirement due to mental illness still made 15.4 percent of all
cases. In 2008, there were already 35.6 percent. Even in the days of
illness, the proportion of failures due to mental disorders increased.
Statisticians calculated that 41 million absent days in 2008 went to the
account of these crises, which led to 3.9 billion euros in lost
production costs.
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Responsibility of Employers:
Companies have begun to realize how important the work-life balance
is to the productivity and creativity of their employees. Research by
Kenexa Research Institute in 2007 shows that those employees who
were more favourable toward their organizations efforts to support
work-life balance also indicated a much lower intent to leave the
organization, greater pride in their organization, a willingness to
recommend it as a place to work and higher overall job satisfaction.
Employers can offer a range of different programs and initiatives,
such as flexible working arrangements in the form of part-time, casual
and telecommuting work. More proactive employers can provide
compulsory leave, strict maximum hours and foster an environment
that encourages employees not to continue working after hours.
It is generally only highly skilled workers that can enjoy such benefits
as written in their contracts, although many professional fields would
not go so far as to discourage workaholic behaviour. Unskilled
workers will almost always have to rely on bare minimum legal
requirements. The legal requirements are low in many countries, in
particular, the United States. In contrast, the European Union has
gone quite far in assuring a legal work-life balance framework, for
example pertaining to parental leave and the non-discrimination of
part-time workers.
According to Stewart Friedmanprofessor of Management and
founding director of the Wharton Schools Leadership Program and of
its Work/Life Integration Projecta "one size fits all" mentality in
human resources management often perpetuates frustration among
employees. "[Its not an] uncommon problem in many HR areas
where, for the sake of equality, there's a standard policy that is
implemented in a way that's universally applicable -- [even though]
everyone's life is different and everyone needs different things in
terms of how to integrate the different pieces. It's got to be
customized."
153
Friedmans research indicates that the solution lies in approaching the

components of work, home, community, and self as a comprehensive
system. Instead of taking a zero-sum approach, Friedmans Total
Leadership program teaches professionals how to successfully pursue
"four-way wins"improved performance across all parts of life.
Although employers are offering many opportunities to help their
employees balance work and life, these opportunities may be a catch
twenty-two for some female employees. Even if the organization
offers part-time options, many women will not take advantage of it as
this type of arrangement is often seen as "occupational dead end".
Even with the more flexible schedule, working mothers opt not to
work part-time because these positions typically receive less
interesting and challenging assignments; taking these assignments and
working part-time may hinder advancement and growth. Even when
the option to work part-time is available, some may not take
advantage of it because they do not want to be marginalized. This
feeling of marginalization could be a result of not fitting into the
"ideal worker" framework (see: Formation of the "ideal worker" and
gender differences).
Additionally, some mothers, after returning to work, experience what
is called the maternal wall. The maternal wall is experienced in the
less desirable assignments given to the returning mothers. It is also a
sense that because these women are mothers, they cannot perform as
"ideal workers". If an organization is providing means for working
mothers and fathers to better balance their work-life commitments,
the general organizational norm needs to shift so the "ideal worker"
includes those who must manage a home, children, elderly parents,
etc.
Work-life balance: Tips to reclaim control
Bash a better work-life balance
Though lot of external factors can contribute to the work-life
imbalance, clearly defined work scheduling and ability to
compartmentalize work and non work related activities can help an
154
individual. The first thing to do is to become aware of the problem.

Then the employee has to take a decision himself what is enough for
him in terms of money, success and satisfaction. Then one has to fix
boundaries and limits and adopt a pattern that is justifiable based on
each ones energy level.
As long as you're working, juggling the demands of career and
personal life will probably be an ongoing challenge. Consider these
ideas to find the work-life balance that's best for you:
Track your time: Pay attention to your daily tasks, including
work-related and personal activities. Decide what's necessary and
what satisfies you the most. Cut or delegate activities you don't
enjoy or can't handle or share your concerns and possible
solutions with your employer or others.
Take advantage of your options: Ask your employer about
flex hours, a compressed workweek, job sharing, telecommuting or
other scheduling flexibility. The more control you have over your
hours, the less stressed you're likely to be.
Learn to say no: Whether it's a co-worker asking you to
spearhead an extra project or your child's teacher asking you to
organize a class party, remember that it's OK to respectfully say no.
When you quit accepting tasks out of guilt or a false sense of
obligation, you'll have more time for the activities that are
meaningful to you.
Leave work at work: With the technology to connect to anyone
at any time from virtually anywhere, there might be no boundary
between work and home unless you create it. Make a conscious
decision to separate work time from personal time. When you're
with your family, for instance, keep your laptop in your briefcase.
Manage your time: Organize household tasks efficiently, such
as running errands in batches or doing a load of laundry every day,
rather than saving it all for your day off. Put family events on a
weekly family calendar and keep a daily to-do list. Do what needs
to be done and let the rest go.
155
Bolster your support system: At work, join forces with co

workers who can cover for you and vice versa when family
conflicts arise. At home, enlist trusted friends and loved ones to
pitch in with child care or household responsibilities when you need
to work overtime or travel.
Nurture yourself: Eat a healthy diet, include physical activity
in your daily routine and get enough sleep. Set aside time each day
for an activity that you enjoy, such as practicing yoga or reading.
Better yet, discover activities you can do with your partner, family
or friends such as hiking, dancing or taking cooking classes.
Know when to seek professional help
Everyone needs help from time to time. If your life feels too chaotic
to manage and you're spinning your wheels worrying about it, talk
with a professional such as a counsellor or other mental health
provider. If your employer offers an employee assistance program
(EAP), take advantage of available services.
Remember, striking a healthy work-life balance isn't a one-shot deal.
Creating work-life balance is a continuous process as your family,
interests and work life change. Periodically examine your priorities
and make changes, if necessary to make sure you're keeping on
track.
Conclusion:
While existing paper provided a brief review of the costs and
consequences of work-life balance employment policies for
individuals, organisations and society. The evidence that supports the
organisational benefits of work-life policies is mixed, primarily due to
methodological issues (e.g., a focus on individual organisational case
studies and non-random samples). The few cost-benefit analyses that
have been conducted examining organisational work-life balance
policies are predominately focused on the short-term consequences.
While the real benefits of family-friendly/work-life balance policies
are often long-term and can be difficult to disentangle.
156
Research demonstrating that societal issues, such as declining fertility

rates can be improved through effective work-life balance policies is
only now emerging and is considered to be an important area for
future research. This review provides evidence for why work-life
balance should certainly not simply be considered to be an individual
concern. Instead we urge research to address the organisational and
societal concerns we have raised in this paper.
Only with a comprehensive multilevel approach will some of the
entrenched employment practices that currently facilitate work-life
imbalance be acknowledged and actually addressed.
Reference:
1. Industrial / Organisational Psychology Michael Aamodt,
CENGAGE Learning
2. Linda J Kristjanson(2004) work-life balance-creating &
sustaining connections in a complex world Journal of applied
psychology
3. Chermiss C (1980) "Staff burnout: "Job stress in human
service." Beverly Hills: Sage.
4. "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Work%E2%80% 93life_balance
5. http:// www.cio.com/archive/041501/hs _fird.html.
157
WORK-LIFE BALANCE
OF WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS IN INDIA
Ms. Uma Rani Bade
Dr J. Varaprasad Reddy
Mr. P. Divakara Rao
Abstract - In India, women entrepreneurs have increased because of
changing socio-cultural environment and an increase in educational
opportunities. Women started their own business in order to improve
their work-life balance, which is defined as satisfaction with
fulfilling the personal goals in both the work and life domains, by
being able to use appropriate means (Campbell Clark, 2000:751).
However, in the existing societal setup, entrepreneurial women are
overburdened and find it increasingly difficult to balance their work
and life roles. The study is purely based on a secondary source of
information on literature review and Internet resource review. The
study also deals with understanding the important factors influencing
the Work life Balance of these women entrepreneurs. To achieve this
end, mostly secondary data was collected. Overall, Indian women
entrepreneurs are satisfied with their work-life balance, but are also
struggling with it over time. Women who were aware of their personal
goals in the work, family, social, and personal domain were better
able to balance and act in accordance to their values during the day.
The study revealed that the major factors influencing the work life
balance of women entrepreneurs in India are role ambiguity, Stress
Management, lack of time management and proper social support.
Keywords: women entrepreneurs, work-life balance, issues, roles,
social support
INTRODUCTION
Entrepreneurship is the act of setting up a new business or stimulating
an existing business in order to take advantages from new
opportunities. Entrepreneurs perceive advantage of opportunities, take
risk and see themselves as well-positioned. They observe a problem
and see themselves that they are able to solve it. Thus, entrepreneurs
158
Work-Life Balance of Women Entrepreneurs in India
shape the economy by creating wealth and new jobs and by inventing
new products and services. Entrepreneurship is indeed an attitude to
create something new and creates value in the entire social eco
system. It is a state of mind, which develops naturally, based on his/
her surrounding and experiences, which makes him/ her think about
life and career in a given way.
Women have achieved an immense development in their state of
mind. Women want to be independent and do well in creating
entrepreneurial opportunities where they can excel their skills by
balancing both their personal and professional life. Accordingly,
during the last two decades, there is an increase in number of Indian
women entrepreneurs and they are gradually changing the face of
business today, both literally and figuratively. But still there are
certain factors which are affecting them to capitalize their potential in
India. The Change dynamics of both the workplace and the home are
certain issues which are significantly different when compared to
men. Especially Women has to play multidimensional roles in Indian
society as a primary care taker of family.
Women to be independent strived for personal growth, development
and attained financial freedom by managing their businesses. The
evolution of women in the workplace has made them to realize that
they have immense power of leadership and entrepreneurial skills for
upward mobility within the corporate structure. This created a new set
of challenges; women faced issues of pay equity, the glass ceiling
effect and other gender-related work issues, such as lack of flexibility
to handle childcare and family responsibilities (Greenhaus & Beutell,
1985; Greenhaus & Powell, 2003; Hobson, Delunas, &Kesic, 2001;
Kephart, 2005; Mattis, 2004; Reynolds, 2005).
OBJECTIVES
1 .To identify the factors responsible for the work life balance.
2. To study the issues faced by women entrepreneurs in Work-Life
balance
159
3. To explore the strategies of women entrepreneurs who have been

challenged with work-life balance issues.
4. To develop a work-life balance model that can be used as a tool for
future women entrepreneurs.
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
According to Singh, (2008), identifies the reasons & influencing
factors behind entry of women in entrepreneurship. He explained the
characteristics of their businesses in Indian context and also obstacles
& challenges. He mentioned the obstacles in the growth of women
entrepreneurship are mainly because of lack of interaction with
successful entrepreneurs, social un-acceptance as women
entrepreneurs, family responsibility, gender discrimination, missing
network, low priority given by bankers to provide loan to women
entrepreneurs.
Lall & Sahai, (2008), in his study revealed that there is a comparative
assessment of multi-dimensional issues & challenges of women
entrepreneurship & family business. The study identified
Psychographic variables and business owners characteristics for
future plans for growth & expansion. The study also suggested that
though, there has been considerable growth in number of women
opting to work in family owned business but they still have lower
status and face more operational challenges in running business.
The study conducted by Darrene, Harpel and Mayer, (2008), showed
that self-employed women differ on most human capital variable as
compared to the salary and wage earning women. The study also
revealed the fact that the education attainment level is faster for self
employed women than that for other managerial job. According to a
study women had to find creative ways to ensure that they can
financially support their families during crisis thus started entering
into entrepreneurial activities (Mallon & Cohen, 2001; Mattis, 2004;
Reynolds, 2005; Vera & Dean, 2005; Ward, 2007; Woodward,2007).
To gain more flexibility and control over their work and personal
lives, many women have started their own businesses in an effort to
160
increase work-life balance (Baber & Monaghan, 1988; Machung,

1989; Slate, 2007; Ward, 2007). Schapira, 2005 studied that Women
business owners are well known to experience economic success,
employing 19.1 million people and generating $2.5 trillion in sales
(Bizwomen.com, 2007). However, these women continue to face the
challenge of achieving work-life balance which entails balancing
multiple roles such as business owners, mothers, and/or spouses in an
effort to achieve flexibility and balance.
According to Center for Womens Business Research, 2007a; Slate,
2007; Ward, 2007The problem of work-life balance challenges for
women entrepreneur will continue to increase as the number of
women-owned businesses continues to grow at twice the rate of other
U.S. firms. Over 200 million women are employed across all industry
sectors, with half of this number is in developing countries,Gem
report,(2007).
According to Roche and Baskerville (2007), the issues of work-life
balance are not likely to be examined until some crisis or event
occurs. This would suggest that as a proactive approach, business
owners and leaders should identify strategies that could be
implemented to minimize conflict and increase the likelihood of
work-life balance. Women entrepreneurs would benefit from
employing success strategies that will assist them in achieving
balance in their personal and professional lives. Boyum-Breen, 2006;
Daniel, 2004 revealed that during the early 1970s, women entered the
workforce in large numbers and experienced the challenge of
managing work and life responsibilities. This phenomenon drastically
changed the traditional family structure as our society once knew it.
According to Jalbert and Susanne, (2000) Women entrepreneurs share
the characteristics like Sharp communication skills, Intuitive people
skills, Consensus building competencies, and Nurturing, integrating
abilities. Women need to use all these skills as they strive to make
appropriate decisions for their families and for themselves. The study
also revealed that the gap between men and women business owners
has narrowed significantly. Das, 2000 performed a study on women
161
entrepreneurs of SMEs in two states of India, viz, Tamilnadu and

Kerala. The initial problems faced by women entrepreneurs are quite
similar to those faced by women in western countries. However,
Indian women entrepreneurs faced lower level of work-family
conflict in comparison with western countries.
Bowen &Hisrich, (1986), compared & evaluated various research
studies done on entrepreneurship including women entrepreneurship.
It summaries various studies in this way that female entrepreneurs are
relatively well educated in general but perhaps not in management
skills, high in internal locus of control, more masculine, or
instrumental than other women in their values likely to have had
entrepreneurial fathers, relatively likely to have first born or only
children, unlikely to start business in traditionally male dominated
industries & experiencing a need of additional managerial training.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
The present study was conducted mainly through secondary data.
Secondary data was collected from books, journals, newspapers,
periodicals, reports, internet, unpublished thesis. The relevant
literature published and accessed online through websites was also
considered.
DATA ANALYSIS
Recently a study conducted by CIBC Canadian Imperial Bank of
Commerce revealed that women entrepreneurs in developed countries
as Canada are able to better balance their family life with work than
those employed by someone else. The demands originating from the
work and personal life of women are quite often mutually exclusive,
rendering it very difficult to strike a balance between the role
demands. Presently, even though the topic of WLB issues among
female entrepreneurs commands urgent attention, studies pertaining to
the WLB of entrepreneurial women in India are extremely scarce
(Mathew & Panchanatham, 2009a).
162
Figure 1 Gender Related Development Index and Its Component

Rank Country development
Gender related
index per % of
As a HDI GDP
per
Capital
(US$)
1 Australia 0.966 98.9 34923
2 Norway 0.961 99.6 53433
3 Iceland 0.959 99.0 44613
4 Canada 0.959 99.2 35812
5 Sweden 0.956 99.3 36712
6 France 0.956 99.4 33674
7 Netherland 0.954 98.9 38694
8 Finland 0.954 99.5 34526
9 Spain 0.949 99.4 31560
10 Ireland 0.948 98.2 44613
11 India 0.594 97.1 4102
Sources: Human Development Report 2010
From a womans perspective, the work-life balance issues
become significant as more women are starting their own businesses
to achieve balance and flexibility. As this trend continues, an
increasing number of women face the challenge of finding the right
balance between managing personal responsibilities and attaining
professional goals (Cooper &Dunelberg, 1986; DeMartino, Barbato,
& Jacques, 2006; Hughes, 2006).
A. FACTORS INFLUENCING WORK-LIFE BALANCE
1. Multi-dimensional role:
Woman plays a multitude of roles in Indian society such as spouse,
parent, housekeeper, employee and entrepreneur. These roles come
with their own set of expectations and commitments. Women
entrepreneurs need to balance different roles and are required to
perform an accumulation of disparate roles simultaneously, each one
with its unique pressures. These Multi-dimensional roles can lead to
role overload, work-life imbalance, and overall stress. And hence
women entrepreneurs should balance both work & life to have
163
positive effects which include motivational stimulation, self-esteem,

and a sense of control, physical stamina, and bursts of energy.
Innovator
Daughter Care taker
Spouse Entreprene Manager

Women
urs
Entrepren
Mother
eur
Social
Employer being
Figure 2 Women Entrepreneur and Her Multi-Dimensional Roles

2. Social support:
Social network is considered to be a key factor for achieving work
life balance. Women in India are still the primary caregivers in
households. In this type of structure makinga supportive social
network can be a serious disadvantage to a woman entrepreneur in
order to perform effectively.
3. Stress Management:
Work stress usually affects Work -life Balance and leads to work-role
conflict, role overload and work-role ambiguity. Work-role conflict
increases the stress and cause negative behaviors that interfere with
fulfilling family roles. Role overload constraints time such that many
tasks to accomplish at work will be narrowed and Work-role
ambiguity may drain mental energy and attention needed for the
multiple roles. And hence to balance the work-life women
entrepreneurs should adapt certain stress coping strategies to
overcome work stress.
164
4. Time Management
Effective time management is one of many factors influencing Work
life balance. It helps in identifying priorities in the way the time is
utilized. Multidimensional roles if not fulfilled successfully within a
limited time can lead to problems in their work and life
domains. Each role requires time and energy - once a woman spends
this on one role, she has that much less for the other roles. Juggling
time between family and work commitments is a major factor for
women entrepreneurs leaving them feeling that they were not
performing any of their roles efficiently. Long working hours often
leave women entrepreneurs mentally and physically exhausted
hampering their ability to successfully take care of their dependents at
home. This may lead to anxiety and work-home conflicts.
5. Organization culture and work Dynamics:
Organizational values supporting worklife balance have positive
work and personal well-being consequences.
6. Individual factors:
Individual factors like personality, gender, age, life and career stage,
work orientation, energy of an individual has an overall effect on
work life balance of women entrepreneurs.
B. WORK-LIFE BALANCE (WLB) ISSUES OF WOMEN
ENTREPRENEURS
Women entrepreneurs in addition to their challenging entrepreneurial
work, also perform several roles in their families .These roles include
being a spouse, parent, managing daily household tasks and providing
services to the society. Women also must take care of their own health
and other personal activities, which are often neglected because of
role overload. In order to manage enterprise successfully, they have to
strive hard to strike a balance between managing the family and the
enterprise. Sometimes she has to sacrifice her entrepreneurial urge in
order to strike a balance between the two.
The basic issues faced by women entrepreneurs are as follows:
165
1. Gender Discrimination &Stereotyping

Entrepreneurship has traditionally been seen as a male defend.
Women are not treated equal to men. Their entry to business requires
the approval of the head of the family. Instead of that situation more
women are starting businesses than men, more women are in the
workforce than men, and the majority of degree-holders are now
women. Yet, according to the Department of Labor statistics, women
are still only dominating fields and industries that are often seen as
female. According to CNN Money, there were only 10 women
running Fortune 500 companies, and only 20 in the top 1,000.
2. Work & Career
The number of female entrepreneurs may be on the rise, but many
women are still struggling to find the right work/life balance. In
research by Crunch, the online accountancy firms, over 50% of
female entrepreneurs are taking responsibility for 75% of childcare
duties, whilst a third of male entrepreneurs take less than 25% of the
responsibility.
3. Family responsibilities
Women in India are very emotionally attached to their families. They
are supposed to attend to all the domestic work, to look after the
children and other members of the family. They are overburdened
with family responsibilities like extra attention to husband, children
and in laws which take away a lot of their time and energy. In such
situation, it will be very difficult to concentrate and run the enterprise
successfully.
4. Financial challenges
Women businesses are still perceived as risky. Banks consider in
priority personal profiles and past experiences. Bankers, creditors and
financial institutes are not coming forward to provide financial
assistance to women borrowers on the ground of their less credit
worthiness and more chances of business failure. They also face
financial problem due to blockage of funds in raw materials, work-in
166
progress, finished goods and non-receipt of payments from customers

in time.
5. Managerial ability
Managerial ability of women has become a problem for them to run
the enterprise successfully. Due to lack of proper education, women
entrepreneurs remain in dark about the development of new
technology, new methods of production, marketing and other
governmental support which will encourage them to flourish. They
are not efficient in managerial functions like planning, organizing,
controlling, coordinating, staffing, directing, motivating etc. of an
enterprise.
6. Social barriers
Women are always seen with suspicious eyes. Traditions and
Customs prevailed in Indian societies towards women sometimes
stand as an obstacle before them to grow and prosper. In rural areas,
they face more social barriers.
7. Tough competition
Usually women entrepreneurs face technology obsolescence due to
non-adoption or slow adoption to changing technology in the process
of production. In market where the competition is too high, they have
to fight hard to survive in the market against the organized sector and
their male counterpart who have vast experience and capacity to adopt
advanced technology in managing enterprises.
8. Exploitation by middle men
Since women entrepreneurs cannot run around for marketing,
distribution and money collection, they have to depend on middle
men for all the above activities. Middle men tend to exploit them in
the pretext of helping. They add their own profit margin, which result
in less sales and lesser profit.
9. Mentoring to develop professional network
Mentoring is very important to women, which provides
encouragement & financial support of business partners, experiences
167
& well developed professional network. To attain Self-development

Building contacts is vital.
C.STRATEGIES FOR WORK -LIFE BALANCE
Strategies of successful and balanced women entrepreneurs are as
follows
Practical Strategies Stress Reduction

Strategies
Right attitude Maintain fitness and Health.
Prioritizing work elements
Inculcate Optimism.
Imbibe Leadership qualities
Make life stressfree.
Balancing outlook
Working close to home in Focus on important events.
order to minimize commuting
time. Use relaxtherapy measures
Maintaining good Network Avoid the feeling of emotions
support
Figure 3. Strategies for Work Life Balance

D. MODEL RELATING TO WORK-LIFE BALANCE OF
WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS
WORK Financial
Work Challenges
Culture
Career Opportunities
Professional Network
Technological Knowledge
BALANCE Time Management

Stress Management
Role Conflict Management
Family
Social Support
Support
Fitness & Health

LIFE Optimism
Emotional Stability
Figure 4. Model of Work Life Balance of Women Entrepreneurs
168
E. CONSEQUENCES AS RESULT OF WORK LIFE BALANCE:

The outcomes of work-life balance have various positive changes in
women entrepreneurs. The result of work life balance leads to Work
satisfaction, Life satisfaction, mental health well-being, out of stress,
good performance at home/ work and Goal attainment.
CONCLUSIONS
Women entrepreneurs struggle to manage between highly demanding
familial and Personal needs on one side and entrepreneurial and
societal duties on the other side. The prominent Work life balance
issues that they face are role ambiguity, health problems, poor time
management, family issues, lack of sufficient financial support and
lack of support networks. The complexity of these issues affect
individual's role system. Even though women entrepreneurs struggle
with Work Life Balance issues, there exist significant variations in the
perception of Work Life Balance among the various categories of
women entrepreneurs, depending on age group, education level,
income and marital status. As the work roles of women entrepreneurs
and their personal and familial roles quite often contradict each other,
these women struggle to strike a balance between work and personal
life. As a result, work-life imbalances and conflict has become a
common feature. As the number of women-owned business continue
to grow at a faster pace, women entrepreneurs will need to develop
successful strategies that will help them balance personal and
professional responsibilities.
REFERENCES
1. Amanda Williamson, Kate Lewis and Claire Massey, Work-Life Balance
in Small Business: The Impact ofFirm and Family Milestones
2. Amha, W., & Ademassie, A. (2004). Rural financial intermediation
program
3. Das, M. (2001). Women entrepreneurs from India: Problems,
motivations and success factors, Journal of Small Business and
Entrepreneurship, 15(4), 67.
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4. Hisrich and Ozturk (1999). Women Entrepreneurs in a Developing

Economy. The journal of management development, 18(2): 114-25.
5. http://www.oecd.org/regional/leedprogrammelocaleconomicandemploym
entdevelopment/7349273.pdf
6. Jalbert, Susanne, ph.d. (2000). Women Entrepreneurs in the Global
Economy Women: The Emerging Economic Force.
7. Leigh-Ann Harris & Barry Foster: The Drivers of Work-Life Balance: A
Critical Review
8. Littunen, h. (2000). Entrepreneurship and the Characteristics of the
Entrepreneurial Personality, International Journal Of Entrepreneurial
Behavior And Research 6(6), 295-310.
9. Mitra, r. (2002). The Growth Pattern Of Women Run Enterprises: An
Empirical Study In India, Journal Of Developmental Entrepreneurship
7(2), 217-237.
10. Moore, D. P. & Buttner, E. H. (1997). Women entrepreneurs: Moving
beyond New Generation of Women Entrepreneurs Achieving Business
Success.
11. Orhan M. & Scott D. (2001), Why women enter into entrepreneurship:
an explanatory model, Women in Management Review, 16(5): 232-243.
12. Rincy V. Mathew and N. Panchanatham, An Exploratory Study On The
Work-Life Balance Of Women Entrepreneurs In South India, Asian
Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 16, No. 2, 77105, July 2011
13. Rizvi, A. F., & Gupta, K. L. (2009). Women Entrepreneurship in India
Problems And Prospects. OORJA Journal of Management and I.T.,
7(2), 3541.
14. Sanjay Tiwari and Anshuja Tiwari, (2007), Women entrepreneurship
and economic Development 1st Edition published by Swarup and Sons,
New Delhi
15. Sarah Gurney, Gender, work-life balance and health amongst women
and men in administrative, manual and technical jobs in a single
organization: a qualitative study, Thesis submitted for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy at the University of Glasgow, December 2009.
16. Soundarapandian. M. (2008), Women Entrepreneurship-Issues and
Strategies published by Kanishka Publishers distributors, ISBN 978-81
7391-314-5.
170
WOMEN-CENTRIC INCLUSIVE HR POLICIES AT
WORKPLACE AS AN EMPOWERMENT TOOL
Roshee Lamichhane
ABSTRACT
Women Managers, by their sheer achievements so far, have proven that
they bring in excellence towards work place and society besides being
a major source of contribution towards economic growth. What they
expect from the society and at workplace is a mentoring, coaching, and
networking opportunity. It is important to distinguish and address
individually the more tangible barriers to participation of women in the
field, (such as Work-Life Balance) and the problems of perceived
competence in doing the job, or the unwritten gendered work cultures.
Initiatives need to address the issues that appear to disadvantaged
women at a practical level (for example, childcare, better access to
finance, entrepreneurial opportunities), whilst not neglecting the
importance of building confidence, providing inspiration and building
female-friendly networks and spaces. Networks, visibility, and learning
are all critical to achieving gender inclusion and are all forms of
empowerment. Women empowerment is a global theme now. Indian
challenges are not far away. Empowerment strategies offer a good way
to address the tensions emerging from gender inclusion through the
judicious use of women-friendly spaces open also to men. These
empowerment strategies also need to be informed about the wants and
needs of target users. The flagging of these strategies also often touches
upon their ability to listen to and talk to various gendered users in an
original and effective manner. Empowerment and other inclusion
strategies, by increasing the proportion of women, may promote further
changes in gendered cultures and practices and create a more
welcoming space for women. The empowerment of women needs to be
endorsed at industry and company levels as well as by individuals
171
themselves leading to higher productivity, organizational effectiveness,

and harmony.
An attempt is made in this Paper to knit together and summarize some
of the conceptual ideas, thoughts, reflections, and points that are
available already on the theme of rediscovering Indian womens
leadership potential and to come up with HR Policies at workplace that
are at once women-centric, empowering, and inclusive.
INTRODUCTION
The role of women in economic value creation has not been recognized
and given as much attention as it deserves. Whether it is providing
moral support to the male partners to pursue their careers and
professions, supplementing family income due to dire necessities or
pursuing careersin every scenario that leads to economic value
creation, woman has been playing an invaluable role. While until
recently, women were predominantly contended with playing the
supportive role in economic value creation, over the recent years, there
has been a dramatic change in the number of women who have entered
into the Indian corporate world. According to NASSCOM the ratio of
men to women in the IT/BPO sector alone was 65:35 in the year 2010.
Now we find more and more women with rich experiences in various
walks of lifean institutional builder, a business entrepreneur, a
corporate manager/leader, an educationist, a bureaucrat, and a social
entrepreneur with a challenge to excel in each role. They have been
successfully balancing their roles in an environment with multiple
pressures and effectively navigating their way through with the
concomitant pleasures and pains.
A study done by Watson Wyatt predicts that the younger generation of
women in India is expected to achieve educational parity with men by
2016. With everything being equal, increasingly corporate recruiters
are keen to hire more women graduates from Business Schools
recognizing the unique characteristics ofwomenempathy, flexibility,
and persistence that are enablers for successful management practices.
An increasing number of women are now entering into the corporate
portals and many of them, unlike in the past, do not consider the
opportunity to work as a short-term phenomenon but are focused on
building long-term careers. As a result of this, a new corporate culture
is evolving that calls for new approaches to management, development,
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Women-Centric Inclusive HR Policies At Workplace - An Empowerment Tool
and retention. Fundamentally, there is now a need for corporate

leadership to understand the new identity of the corporate women,
their aspirations, and put in place new management practices to keep
pace with the change in gender ratio and the resultant work
environment. Women have definitely learned to adapt with evolving
times. For every successful woman leader, there are, of course, many
who do not make it to the top. The fundamental reason for this lies in
the fact that a significant number of women are unable to balance work
and family requirements and are forced to abandon corporate careers in
preference to home needs. In this backdrop, we need to attempt and
gain an insight into various dimensions that have an influence on the
careers of women in the corporate sector with special focus on their
leadership roles and issues.
MENTORING WOMEN MANAGERS THROUGH ROLE
MODELS
In the area of mentoring, companies have a big role to play. An
effective mentoring program has to be a complex and multidirectional
one with internal and external programs. Through a wider community
of women managers, we need to design mentoring programs that are
formal, informal, or facilitated ones. It may be one-to-one matching of
mentors and mentees or an informal facilitation where a mentee
identifies one or more mentors and builds a relationship. In either case,
it is imperative that the company support it through policies, systems,
and processes. The program must be rewarding for both mentors and
mentees. While they give mentors recognition as well as visibility as
leaders and diversity champions, mentees get career growth.
What has been found to be most helpful is to have Role Models around
who could inspire them and especially during difficult times, help them
remain steadfast with their goals. At times, Role Models may not exist
in their own organizations and may not be approachable. Therefore, the
role of mentors in nurturing women talent becomes important.
Mentoring has been of late a much sought after tool to groom leaders
and the same tool could be used in the context of women effectively.
Listening, counseling, and coaching have found to be helping women
specially when they have to battle on their own in unchartered
territories and with wise and timely counsel they can definitely manage
to get past the hurdles in their careers. Even today, choice for education
173
streams is made in India more by peer pressure and societal pressures

than by recognizing ones true potential and talent. Very often, women
tend to wander into the corporate world as Alice in Wonderland not
fully equipped to deal with the expectations and the realities of the
corporate world. In this context, we need to examine the challenges
involved in making the right career decision and the attention to self
development in pursuit of career goals. Mentoring is now widely
recognized in the West for its impact in leveraging personal and as a
highly effective way to quickly ramp up an employees performance.
Some of the reasons for mentorship programs are global competition,
work-life balance, and changing economic status of the country.
In the age of globalization, organizations need talented people and
should also know how to retain their manpower. A mentor aims at
helping others by improving the quality of talented people in his
organization. Mentor programs can be personalized into formal or
informal; age restricted or designation specific. While there can be
male or female mentors, the latter are more successful as women in
general are intuitive, sensitive, and emotional, which is the key to the
success of women. The booming economy demands manningand
suddenly, despite our amazing advantageous demographics, we are
facing an acute shortage of talent. The new refrain is Talent Hunt.
Someone whose prime motivation is the protgs success, someone
immune from but aware of company dynamics and politics, someone
who takes time to listen and to guide the mentee without any personal
or political agenda, someone who is unbiased and non-threatening.
Mentoring is a relationship in which latent competencies are unfolded,
potential skills are honed and both partiesthe mentor and the
menteeexperience mutual learning. The West has numerous
examples of successful women mentors. The same will apply in India
as the mentoring space opens up.
Effective mentoring requires a lot more than common sense and
enthusiasm. As in sport, companies too can reclaim their glory or
market position if leaders were to let the spotlight shine on the team
members instead of hogging the limelight themselves. After all, we all
know that Gandhiji became a Mahatma by serving, not by seeking.
There is a need to also expand the role of successful women to be
mentors to other aspiring women in the organization. A process of well
174
established mentorship will enable women to build their competencies,

enhance their visibility and develop the leadership competencies to
become effective leaders in their organizations. Mentorship can be a
very effective tool for leadership development. Successful women in
the organizations who could be the mentors need to be trained in how
to mentor younger women. Organizations can do a lot of things to
ensure that they have a good representation of women at all levels of
leadership in the organization. Women too need to look at their own
career growth in the organization with equal interest and passion.
STERREOTYPES IN SOCIETY ABOUT WOMEN MANAGERS
If we need to understand the profile of the modern woman, we need to
first of all understand the stereotypes that society has created and also
about the deep-rooted myths about working women. Women achievers
in the corporate domain differ from those who have chosen to be
entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship brings in its wake associated risks and
joys. We need to understand how women embrace risks with boldness
and surmount the challenges with dedication to cause and achievement
orientation.
Several leading women in corporate roles faced prejudices based on
their sex/gender during the early years of their corporate career. But
today, the scenario is changing. Corporate have started welcoming
women and also encourage them to move up the ladder because todays
work environment needs some of the traits that women are born with
like sensitivity and adaptability and not the male aggression. However,
managing the home, children, and work is still a challenge for most
women which they manage through their skill of multitasking. This is
the right time for women to make a mark for themselves and also for
organizations to understand that ignoring the potential of women today
is a fatal mistake.
WOMEN MANAGERS AND GENDER DIVERSITY
What do Indra Nooyi, Kalpana Moraparia, and Naina Lal Kidwai have
in common? They are all women leaders who have broken through the
proverbial, yet a very real glass ceiling in the corporate world to reach
the top. However, it would be premature to celebrate the end of male
domination in our society in general, and in the corporate world, in
particular. Survey after survey has shown that despite an increasing
participation of women in organized sector, they still represent only
175
around a third of the work force. Clearly, it is not a matter of breaking

the glass ceilingthe barriers of entry and subsequent retention exist
at all levels. And this is what needs to be addressed through appropriate
HR policies. It is important that an increasing participation of women
in the corporate sector is a goal worth striving for.
The fact that this goal is desirable from a societal point of view is
obvious, but, there is another aspect which is being increasingly
recognized in corporate boardroomshaving a more gender-diverse
workforce and leadership makes eminent business sense. It is now clear
that diversity of ideas in a corporate environment leads to better
business decisions and hence business performance. With women
increasing in the workforce, managing the gender diversity is a new
challenge for business leaders. This calls for new policies, new
mindsets, and new work ethics. Several organizations now have in
developed women-friendly policies with the objective of attracting and
retaining women in large numbers. We need to examine the issues in
an effort to facilitate gender diversity and get the interesting insights
from the case studies of successful organizations that have been
sensitive and responsive towards womens needs. Ability to traverse
and manage diversity within and outside the organization is a necessary
competence for effective leaders, more so in the current context of
boundaryless organizations and increased engagement with society and
the environment.
What can be done both at the societal and the corporate level to bring a
more balanced gender ratio in the workforce at all levels? For this, it is
important to be sensitive to the problems faced by women, not only as
employees, but women qua womenthe problems are real, though
frequently invisible. We need to create a homely environment at the
workplace. One of the characteristics of our urban society is that it is a
society in transition. At the family level, joint families are no longer the
norm. However, at a societal level, we are far from providing the
support structures needed for nuclear families. Crches, day boarding
and child care facilities are all sadly lacking in our cities. In the absence
of an extended family to take care of the children, women frequently
leave their jobs when they start their families. Companies could provide
the physical infrastructure to enable women to continue with their
careers.
176
In addition, it is also critical for women to feel safe and secure in their
workplace. Apart from the physical infrastructure, it is also important
to provide more flexible and gender-inclusive policies to foster growth
of women workforce. Strict policies for dealing with sexual harassment
in all its forms are fast becoming the norm in most companies. These
need to be strengthened, and well publicized. It is not just enough to
have policies but also to ensure that women have the comfort level and
confidence to speak out against any harassment they face. Companies
need to evolve mechanisms to engender this feeling with support
groups, counselors, and other semi-formal structures. Long leaves of
absence without detriment to their career growth, sensitive and flexible
transfer policies, counseling services, are some of the features that will
make women comfortable in the workplace and hence more productive.
Of course, being sensitive to these issues should not mean that women
should be placed at a disadvantage when it comes to making decisions
about their suitability for certain positions.
FOSTERING AN ENVIRONMENT TO ENALBE ORGANIC
WOMEN LEADERSHIP
Focus, vision, planning, and persistence are essential in order to build
a successful career. While these are important ingredients for career
planning for anyone, this process assumes significance for women as
many women would be treading on the paths where their mothers and
peers may not have done so and therefore would not be able to rely on
experience of others. The rise of global leaders like Nooyi, Kalpana,
and Kidwai is of course laudable. Every such achievement by women
is in itself worthy of praise since they provide role models for others.
However, it is important to realize that companies need to foster an
environment to enable organic leadership from amongst their women
employees. Organically grown leadership, not just at the top levels, but
at all levels, will lead to more diversity in thought and organization,
which will ultimately add to the growth in quantitative and qualitative
terms while also fulfilling an important societal responsibility.
According to one of the Catalyst Bottom Line Reports, Fortune 500
Companies with more Women Board Directors experienced
significantly higher financial performance, on average, than those with
the lowest representation of women board directors. It also says
177
companies with three or more women directors showed charmingly

stronger-than-average performance.
From practical viewpoints that are available as to what is happening in
corporate today, we can safely conclude that though women leaders
find it difficult to move up the corporate ladder, the good news is that
the numbers are much higher than what it used to be in the past. It is
difficult for a woman to balance work and her personal life especially
during the difficult years of childbearing and early years of parenting.
Yet, there are women who are ready to fight the battle and work extra
hard to go to the top. Women as leaders are very different when
compared to men but still the difference in the way they think, the way
they act and their approach to work can be an advantage to them. So it
is high time that organizations utilize the woman workforce that is so
versatile, equally qualified, and efficient like a man. Action has to be
taken before the Glass Ceiling turns to Metallic walls.
WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP ROLES
Research evidence shows that presence of women in top leadership
roles is accompanied by superior organizational performance. It is a sad
commentary that we still find women in small numbers in senior and
top positions. We need to examine the attitudinal and systematic
barriers to womens advancement and be able to suggest some ways to
overcome them. While women need to become more proactive, for any
meaningful organizational change to occur, top management and HR
professionals need to work together. Women need to be supported in
their career development efforts. Through focus group discussions
including men and women ideas can be generated about new
organizational initiatives. Access of women to leadership development
experiences and training programs should be enhanced and womens
participation should be actively facilitated and encouraged. If the low
participation rate of women managers in the Management
Development Programs offered at IIMs is any indicator, HR
professionals can do a lot by creating development budgets and
leadership development opportunities for women managers. HR can
encourage mentoring through formal and informal mechanisms.
Women can be encouraged to create and join powerful networks.
Initiatives can be undertaken to celebrate successful women in
leadership roles, so they can become role models for other women.
178
While family support, education, investing in building mentors, and

training, helping to build mentoring and peer group networks,
strengthening systems and processes are essential, firms have to ensure
that the talent pool they fish in is wider and deeper than it is today, so
that the organization of tomorrow has the best of authentic and
communal styles of leadership to tap into. Women employees need to
be told about the importance of building relationships, networking
within and outside the organization, and the need to develop a personal
leadership style. Companies need to recognize their successes and
publicize them, so there are more and more role models available to
young, ambitious women joining the workforce, willing and eager to
fight their way to the heart of labyrinth.
Today organizations are willing to hire women and we can see a sea
change in the earlier male- dominated corporate world. Education has
helped provide equal opportunities for women. Retention policies in
organizations have also changed. Women employees are getting equal
benefits like their male counterparts. Women are also reaching the top
management levels but again the numbers are few. Women have
challenges throughout their career especially after marriage like
parenting and other domestic responsibilities. It is time progressive
companies take up positive initiatives to create gender diverse work
environments and also provide facilitate to support women. After all, a
woman who has a good support system from the organization where
she works, her family, and her spouse can definitely be a good leader.
GENDER FRIENDLY HR POLICIES
In order to ensure that more women transition to senior leadership
positions, organizations need to have gender friendly HR practices,
focus on competency development of women, have forums for women
to express, etc. There is a need to increase the participation of women
in the corporate workforce in India. Currently, the participation is a
little above 6% of the total workforce. There are many reasons that
explain the low numbers of women in key leadership positions: some
of them being lack of role models, lack of management experience,
commitment to family, etc.
Unfair treatment including salary differentials between men and
women of comparable profiles need to be examined and corrected.
Though this is only a suggestive list of ideas for promoting the
179
advancement of talented and deserving women to leadership roles, it

can be expanded by enthusiastic and dedicated HR professionals. The
most important task is enlisting the support of the top management. If
unleashing the untapped leadership potential of talented women and
harnessing it for organizational good becomes their shared agenda, a
supportive top management and committed HR can do wonders
together. Organizations have a big role to play in the area of
stereotyping of womens leadership styles. They have to build effective
processes and systems. HR professionals and leaders in the company
can be change agents by understanding if and how the informal aspects
of the company culture and environment discourage women from
seeking and achieving leadership positions. An effort to keep the
following practices in place would be very much ideal.
Building a partnership of HR and line managers to sensitize
managers, both men and women, through training and
communication programs that deal with subjects of diversity and
gender.
Ensuring the systems and processes of the company are robust
and can detect inappropriate behaviors
Helping to build a womens network to encourage mentoring
Celebrating women achievers at all levels.
Technology can play a major role in providing a more conducive
environment for women. With the growth of telecommunications and
connectivity, working from home or having flexible working hours is
a real possibility. These can provide women with an opportunity to
contribute while not feeling pressured about the situation at home.
Introducing some of these initiatives would definitely result in
retention, high motivation, and improved productivity besides a much
larger employee base than just women. Child-care facilities,
counseling, mentoring, specialized training interventions, flexible work
practices can be used by both men and women employees in equal
measure thereby doubling business benefits.
THE JOURNEY AHEAD FOR WOMEN MANAGERS
A time has come for women to introspect their hidden strengths. Of
course, the journey of women is a sojourn steeped with pitfalls of
biased tendencies and discouraging attitudes, certainly not an easy
journey, but for the inner strength, grit, and determination, women can
180
walk to the finish line with her head held high. The power of the fairer
mind has crossed boundaries and chartered a path of unprecedented
growth paving opportunities galore. For women, discovering self
potential is a continuous process of evaluation of their own capabilities,
analyzing their reactions under varying circumstances, understanding
the effect and changes they thus bring about in their environment, and
assessing the cumulative impact it has on their future prospects of
growth.
When a woman is operating at her most authentic self, she
simultaneously feels and is viewed as being a more effective leader. A
successful woman leader also has a complex set of systems support
created by both her and the organizationher interpersonal resources.
Successful executive women authentically lead big and bold changes,
pushing the envelope of institutional norms with power and
creditability. They not only shape the culture, but broaden the strength
and capability of the organization itself by creating a diversity of
leadership. Many women tend to experience robust careers as their
personal lives and external commitments become more robust. Often
these forces play off each other in a positive and fruitful way.
Stakeholder engagement by creating a win-win proposition where each
stakeholder can see a mutuality of interest is emerging as a distinctive
feature of living organizations.
Studies all over world say that women are dramatically
underrepresented in formal leadership positions across organizations.
The women in the new millennium still need to establish their positions
in the corporate world. Their strengths have often been undervalued
and less rewarded especially when compared to their male counterparts.
Some of the barriers that are preventing them from making it to the top
positions in corporations as they aspire to reinvent themselves in
leadership positions include being stereotyped, being confronted by
the glass ceiling and measuring womens leadership effectiveness on
traditional masculine measures. It also has been seen that women tend
to put profession as second-in-line to their personal lives when it comes
to commitment. In such a scenario, it is family challenges that act as an
impediment as opposed to barriers within the organization or those set
up by top management. The concluding argument is that todays
generation is not complaining about discrimination and unfair
181
treatment. Policies on diversity, affirmative action, inclusion have

created frameworks where the overt rules of engagement have to be
rewritten.
CONCLUDING COMMENTS
Despite a 55-year history of women in the corporate world, there are
still only a very few women that occupy those coveted top roles. It is
because industry is still un-accepting of women leaders and not because
women do not have the capability for the top jobs. We need to explore
the obstacles that women managers face and attempt to set out
recommendations for the individual, the organization, and industry
bodies, to help widen and deepen the pool of talent available to
companies and Boards. Of course, some of the obstructions that women
face include (i) lack of significant line experience, (ii) stereotyping of
womens abilities, aspirations, and leadership styles, and (iii) lack of
mentoring and/or role models. Some of these reasons are so closely
inter-related that the hitherto used metaphor of a glass-ceiling be
replaced by that of a labyrinth. Successfully negotiating a labyrinth
requires perseverance, an awareness of progress made and
opportunities lost, and a careful analysis of the twists and turns that are
yet to appear.
Are women leaders in the East very different from those in the West?
Women from both these worlds have had opportunities to interact with
women in different parts of the globe and also work in geographies that
are not native to them. In such cross border scenarios how successful
women have been in adapting to different cultures and their about their
work ethics are some of the questions that we need to address and seek
meaning answers. In order to be successful as a leader, women
executives have to be knowledge-driven and they should lead from
the front. Organizations cannot compete in a global environment
without using women power. Reporting to a lady is not being seen as
the ultimate insult any longer. Organizations are looking more for
empathy, understanding, and communication skills, attributes that are
more feminine in nature. However, looking around the positive
environment that is emerging all around business houses makes one
confident that we shall soon see a new Corporate India brimming with
the confidence of greater balance and perspectives in its leadership.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Aburdene, P and Naisbitt, J (1992), Megatrends for Women,
Villard Books, New York, NY.
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Organizations, Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA.
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of Leadership, Houghton Mifflin, Boston, MA.
4. Heglesen, S (1990) The Female Advantage: Womens Ways of
Leadership, New York, Doubleday
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Women, Women in Management Review, Volume 10, Number 7.
6. Powell, G.N. (1988), Women and Men in Management, Newbury
Park, Calif, Sage Publications.
7. Solomon, C.M (1998), Women are still Undervalued: Bridge the
Parity Gap, Workforce, Vol. 77, No. 5.
8. Rosener J (1995), Americas Competitive Secret: Women
Managers, Oxford University Press, NY.
9. Wah, L. (1998), Why there are so few Women CEOs,
Management Review, Vol. 87 No. 7.
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Top Management, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ.
183
PRACTICE OF CONTRACT LABOUR: ITS IMPACT
ON CORPORATE CULTURE A CASE STUDY ON A
SELECTED DAIRY INDUSTRY.
Dr. Rana Bandyopadhyay
Abstract:
In this age of globalization, the employment structure across the
globe has been undergoing changes in all nation. Dependency is
developing on the contractual mode of employment for more or less
for all type of employment. In India too, to regulate the employment
of Contract Labour,Contract Labour (Regulation & Abolition) Act,
1970 is in vogue which advocates for gradual phasing out of
old
contractual
conception of abolition
employment. But of
time
contract
has come
labour
to think if possible
is at all the decades
now
a days or it has to be properly regulated? If regulated, whether it

can develop a harmonious industrial relation. Therefore, if the law
may be amended to that extend. Side by side the, entrepreneurs may
develop a culture which cauld accommodate the contractual employee
with equal dignity and importance with the regular employee. A good
and ideal organizational culture tween cauld bridge the gap between
abolition and regulation. This study is conducted on a selected
dairy industry which reflects such a situation for deriving the above
conclusion.
Keywords: Contractual Worker, Organizational Culture, Regulation,
Abolition, Perception.
184
Practice of Contract Labor: Its Impact on Corporate Culture
INTRODUCTION:
Contract Labour system has attracted the attention and appealed to the
conscience of the society since very beginning. The Whitely
Commission, Bombay and Bihar Labour enquiry committees, Rege.
Committee and Planning commission etc. have shown grave concern
towards Contract labour system. In its judgment, in Standard Vaccum
Refining Case (1960), the Apex Court has gone to the extent of telling
it to be primitive, archaic and baneful and an improved version of
bonded labour and sought to be abolished. N.L.C. also called for
stricter regulations and in exceptional circumstances to bring them on
par with regular employees.
Contract labours are generally employed on the jobs, which are
casual, seasonal and intermittent. But the contract labours have been
employed even on the jobs which are perennial and permanent nature.
More and more dependency on contractual workers are mainly due to
low output, high employee cost, over protectionism by the statute,
judiciary and their unions of the regular employees resulting a
difficult task for the employer to take work out of them (Singh, 1999).
For protecting the interest of the contract labour, Contract (Regulation
& Abolition) Act, 1970 was enforced with twin objectives of
Regulating and abolishing. The Act has its own limitations. It has
made the provisions for regulating the contract labour system, but
measures for implementation are not that stringent. The Act gives the
power to appropriate Government and not to judiciary to decide the
issue of abolition. But neither the appropriate Government nor the
185
judiciary has been given powers to regularize the contract labour on

the jobs on which they have been working.
The enforcement of the Act not enough. Supreme Court of India in
its a landmark judgment on March 30, 1999 in the matter Haryana
Electricity Board vs Suresh (AIR S.C. 1999) had expressed the
anguish and anxiety of the judiciary to provide justice to contract
labour who have been subjected to exploitation by the employer.
In fact, there are two fold pressure on the contract labours - one from
the legal and social security aspect and the other from the perception
of regular cadre employees who fears in contraction of employment
opportunity due to over dependence on contract labours. An
organization, for its constant betterment, has to equate this curve in an
ideal condition so that both the contract and regular cadre employee
can be done only by developing a perfect sense of belongingness,
inter dependence, equal entity, opportunity and benefits in order to
develop a strong organizational culture. The concept of Turn Key
and Franchise is also extension of Contract Labour System.
REVIEW OF LITERATURE:
Contract labour problem is very complex socio economic problem
and it cannot have a straight and simple solution. Increasing
dependency on the contract labour is a pertinent fact all over the
world. Over the last two decades, a number of countries have
attempted to liberalize their respective labour markets and have also
amended their labour laws so as to make them more investment- and
employment-friendly a process that has weakened job security and
186
collective bargaining (Agarwal, 2001). In Bangaladesh, for example,

globalization is found to reduce the number of employees working
under permanent contracts and to create non- traditional employment
structures including part time , casual and contract labour (Khan,
2005). In the context of the Philippines, McGovern (2005) mentions
that labour flexibilization is used synonymously with
contractualization or casualization of labour. In India too we observe
an increasing use of casual /contract or other such non informal labour
over time (Deshpande et al 2004). A balance approach is required,
keeping the interest of the labour and business imperatives in view.
The management of the contract labour is a managerial problem and it
requires basically managerial solutions. Of course if legislatures and
judiciary adopt helpful gesture, that should be welcome. But
managers cannot pass on their problem to others to solve them. It is
prima facie their job to manage the business operation with such
paradox so that it can pull the individuals effort to drive the best
harmony towards the organizational goal. The culture would research
that it could accommodate all sections of employee be it regular or
contractual cadre to a single chord.
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY:
Without denying the fact of growing importance of contractual
workers, this study will try to access the impact of a cordial corporate
culture on the growth and development of the contractual workers as
well as the regular workers towards maintaining a healthy working
atmosphere.
187
HYPOTHESIS:
The alternative hypothesis of the study are:
a) We may continue with the problem as it exists and may allow it to
take its own shape in future. OR
b) Contract labour may be brought at par with their regular
counterpart minus the commission to the contractor. OR
c) Most of the jobs in the regular employment be converted into
short term contract. OR
d) A balance approach were in employers to be given the right to go
for contracting without restrictions in order to remain in
competition shifting a little from the term Abolition as define in
the contract labour (R & A) Act, 1970. At the same time let there
be a scheme that ensure wages if not equal to their regular
counterpart should be sufficiently higher than the minimum wages,
let the safety security and welfare be the direct responsibility of the
principle employer and let the contract labour have the status of the
secondary employee and find a place even in the organizations
standing order. Let there be a Agreed Wage which is higher than
the minimum wage, and assured wage enhancement per year,
bonus, a share of profit by the organization in recognition to their
contribution towards corporate goal, Provident Fund Facilities and
medical benefits and other welfare amenities.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY:
For the purpose of the study, a leading diary industry, having its
factory premises at West Bengal was selected. The company is
188
making profit for last couple of years continuously. The survey was
conducted for a sample seize of 59 numbers which includes 22
contractual workers, 22 regular workers and 15 managerial staff
covering from different department and job locations. The secondary
data were collected from the past records of the office.
Three sets of questionnaires were developed one for the use of the
contractual workers, another for the use of the regular workers and the
last one for the use of the management cadre. Questionnaires were
prepared drawing references from the followings-:
1) Feedback Schedules
2) Overall companys policy
3) Contract Labour (Regulation & Abolition ) Act., 1970
The questionnaires will try to access Present status of contract labou,
benefits and other perks to regular employee, performance level of the
regular employee, performance level of the contract labour,
perception of general employee about contract labour, management
attitude towards contract labour, impact of contract labourers on
corporate culture.
Collection of data The primary were collected by administering
respective questionnaire from the sample groups of contract labour
covering all the contracts of different departments with a selected
span of age bar which is in between 25 to 40 years of age and general
employee(of same age bar) who are posted at different departments of
the company. Further all the samples have worked for the company
for at least 3 years of service. The management cadre also provided
189
data based on their own logical interpretation and perception over the
issue.
The secondary data were collected from the record kept at the
different departments of the office for the purpose.
Statistical tools The data were analyzed statistically with the help
of frequency distribution & model analysis to fulfill the objective of
the study.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS:
190
The study reveals 55% of the labourers are between 20 to 30 years of

age and 64% are graduates or above with rest 36% passed
Madhyamik examination. In general company provide them earned
leave, bonus @ of above 8.33%, benefits under ESI Act, 1956 and
Life Insurance Corporation of India. All of them have provident fund
code number another striking feature is that they gets their daily
wages fixed at a rate higher than minimum wages rate as fixed by the
appropriate government time to time. Figure 1.1 will prove that 72%
of the contract labours are happy about their wage. Figure 1.2 will
191
show that 82% of them thinks that the Management is very cordial to
them with good behaviour and gesture. At the same time figure 1.3
will show that another 82% of the contract labour thinks that the
regular employees too behaves with good gesture. Again from figure
1.4 it is noted that the working condition of the company is very good
to 18%, good to 55% and fair to balance 27%.
The study was conducted on a sample number of regular employee
selected at random from different departments working in positions to
access the end results. It reveals that 60% of them are well qualified
with graduation or above and 40% passed Madhyamik examination.
They are in general of young age working for 8 hours a day with
overtime for any extra hours of work, enjoy a weekly day off, 25 days
per annum as earned leave and 7 days as Medical leave in addition to
12 days as casual leave. All of them gets bonus in from of ex-gratia
over 8.33% house rent allowance, leave travel concession, medical
allowance as per norms.
Figure 2.1 shows that 80% of them are happy about their financial
benefits while rest 20% prefers to keep their comments reserved.
Attitude of the management towards them is very good to 60% (Fig.
2.2) and good for rest 40% while 80% of them commented that the
working conditions (Fig. 2.3) is good and rest 20% as fair.
The regular employee seems to be very careful while commenting on
the issue like the contract labour is reducing the scope of regular
employee. 80% of them kept their comments reserved while 20%
opined that it is not a matter of fact.
192
The response was again observed as same to the issue that they will
welcome engagement of more and more contract labour (fig 2.5)
However from figure 2.7 it is observed that 55% of the regular
employee stated to have a fair relationship with their contractual
counterparts while 45% preferred to keep their comment reserve.
Therefore, though the attitude of the regular employee towards the
organization is very good and they are fully satisfied at their place of
work, they are not that much liberal for more and more deployment of
contract labour as there is somewhere a little sense of getting their
employment scope contracted. But it is not al all affecting the
performance level of the organization as the culture itself as the
ability to encompasses such little reservations.
Perception of the managerial workers towards contractual
employees:
It is indeed a matter of fact the Managers own perception shapes the
organizations culture a lot. A study was conducted among the
managerial staff through interviewing method to find out their
assessment about the contract labour.
It is observed that the management is abiding by the rules and
regulation as per statute. They have obtain certificate of Registration
(Form II U/s 18(i) Cettificate by the Principal Employer (Form V U/s
21 (2) maintains Register of Contractors (Form XII U/s 74) ensured
issuance of Employment Card (Form XIV U/s 76) as per the contract
Labour (R & A ) Act, 1970.
193
The company is engaging contract labour since 1998 and presently

there is 310 numbers of such workers working in the areas of
Gardening, Packaging, and Security etc and never observed any
hostile attitude from the regular employee as the area of operation are
complete separate. The company offered welfare amenities like rest
room sufficient supply of wholesome drinking water latrines &
urinals spittoon, washing facilities and first air facilities.
There are three major contractors through whom contract labours are
recruited. In general a labour gets work throughout the year. Only in
case of any absenteeism a Badli Puli of 40 workers are maintained
to fill up the vacancy. Only these Badli workers are not assured of
work throughout the year.
Every workers is paid at the government notified minimum rate of
pay plus 5% HRA on basic. There is a fixed annual increment as per
their own Wage increment. In addition to these the company also
provide Leave Travel Allowance to all of its contract labour who had
worked for atleast 240 days in a year @ 8.33% of annual basic
earned. Further if a labour died within one year is family/nominee will
get one lac from Life Insurance Corporation of India Ltd. The
Company is also paying an ex-gratia every year also payable as per
agreement plus a fixed amount of pay to be paid annually against 1
crore profit earned. This observation is quite striking enough as the
company acknowledges the contribution of the contract labour by
giving them a share of the profit earned. It is possibly for this attitude
100% of the contract labour had opined that they have an active role
194
in the company. It helps to develop a unique culture within the

organization rather than any isolation of any contractual worker. For
this humanitarian approach the company is making a constant success
in its production volume vis-a-vis sales volume pulling up the overall
performance level upward.
There is an application of the Doctrine of Human Based Management
System where in every individual workers be it a regular or a
contractual worker are treated with the values of basic human dignity.
That is why even a contractual labour is getting a portion of increased
profit earned by the company. Medical facilities by running a Day
Care Unit twice a week under the supervision of qualified doctors are
extended to all workers either regular or contract labour. The
companies have full faith on their performance level and successfully
identified the areas of work that could be handed over to the contract
labours.
Thus it is proved that there may not be any major difference in terms
of performance commitment to the organization of a contract labour
in compared with the regular employees if nurtured properly it is now
the management perceives the attainment of the organizational goal.
Analyzing the response as furnished by the contract labours and
Regular Employee it reveals that 72% of the contract labours are
happy with their present wages and 28% preferred to reserve their
comments. On the other hand 80% of the Regular Employees are
happy with their present salary and 20% commented to be unsatisfied.
On an average this is indeed a good sign for an organization to run its
195
business smoothly.82% of the contract labour stated that the Regular

Employees behavior is good of them and only 18% preferred to keep
their comment reserved. On the other hand 40% of the regular
Employee stated to have a very good relationship with their
contractual counter parts and it is good for 40% and fair for the rest
20%. This is indeed another healthy sign which draws our attention.
Absolutely a majority of the contract labour to the tune to 82% stated
that the officers of the company shows a good behaviour to them
while it is very good to 9% and the rest 9% reserved their comments.
Interestingly when the same questions was asked to the Regular
Employee 60% opined to be very good and rest 40% as good. This
gives another positive indication towards the existence of a healthy
corporate culture.
When the question of Working Environment was raised to the
Contract Labour 55% commented it to be so where as it is good to
27% and very good to rest 18%. Obviously it is good to 80% of
Regular Employee and fair for the rest 20% of them. It is a very
practical outcome as the Regular Employees are getting much more
benefits which shift their satisfaction curve a bit upward direction.
But it is not at all disgraceful for the contract employees. There is
positive scope for the company to extend more benefits which may
include non-monetary benefits like computer training etc to the
contract labour as 100% of them express their desire to undergo such
effort will definitely push the satisfaction curve of contract labour
196
more upward direction as there is an overall positive trend in the

diagram.
Another interesting aspect of the survey was the level of education
among the contract labour and regular employee. There is no case of
illetracy or even below Madhyamik i.r.o. the contract labour. 64% of
them stated to read upto the level graduation and above and 36% upto
Madhyamik and above. In case of Regular Employee the case is to be
60% i.r.o. graduation and above level and 40% i.r.o. Madhyamik and
above level. Provably the average level of education contributed
positively towards development a good corporate culture though
better understanding good communications etc. That is why 100% of
the contract labour feels that they have an active role in attaining the
goals of the company. Surprisingly this feature is more brighter than
the Regular Employee who about 60% of them consider to have an
active role and the rest 40% preferred to keep their comments reserve.
This shows that employees in general are the assets to a company
contract labour who are mainly engaged on the doctrine of Hire &
Fire basis are real assets too if nurtured properly.
There are some question general in nature designed for the Regular
Employee & Contract Labour regarding the financial and non
financial benefits leave safety etc. But there are some specific
questions specially designed for the Regular Employee i.r.o. their
perception about their contractual counter parts. 80% of them
preferred to avoid the issues like the contract labour practice is
reducing the scope of permanent employee. They also tried to avoid
197
issues like more or more contract labours are to be engaged against

vacancies or contract labours are more dedicated to work 60% of
them preferred to reserve their comments permanent employee have
fear of losing their job while 40% opined negative about existence of
any such treat. Another 40% will not prefer to welcome more contract
labour and rest reserved their comments. Only 20% commented that
the contract labours are ill paid and the 20% have a negative view
while the rest 60% again preferred to reserve their views. This shows
that the Regular Employee were very much extra careful while
commenting on such issues and tried to avoid the issues as much as
possible including respective unions also which may lead to an
unnecessary controversy. But the questions were so set out to have an
inside look towards individuals perception in order to derive a
conclusion. Moreover the interview method also work in such areas.
Management Cadre was mainly interviewed on the basis of a presets
of questions. It appears that they are extending facilities like rest room
wholesome drinking water latrine & urinals spittoons washing
facilities etc both to contract labour and Regular Employee. They
offered a definite pay structure.
FINDINGS, LIMITATIONS AND SUGGESTIONS:
The findings of this study indicate the positive outcomes of our 4th
Module of Approach as indicated in review of Literature where in it

was stated that where the employers be given the right to go for
contracting without restrictions in order the remain in competition
shifting a little from the term "Abolition as defined in the Contract
198
Labour (R & A) Act 1970 with a scheme that ensures wages if not
equal to the regular employee should be sufficiently higher than the
minimum wages within a given span of time. The company
experienced such an situation where it is paying the contract labour
much over the minimum wages, rent and allowance like medical
benefits leave ex-gratia at a fixed rate per year a agreed share of profit
earned every financial year leave travel allowance etc. in addition
amenities for the contract labour. This has indeed helped the company
to reach is production vis--vis sales target.
But an in depth study of the data information questionnaires and the
organizational structure and process some probable suggestions like
night shift allowance, loan at an agreed amount, family co-operatives
and time bound training of the contractual workers may be considered
for further developments.
CONCLUSION:
Initially the study was conducted to find out the Practice of contract
Labour and its impact on Corporate Culture- a case study on a Dairy
Industry. Indeed the management proved the existence of its own
healthy corporate culture with an ideal mix of regular employee and
contract labour to equilibrium by adopting a balance approach theory
of labour practice towards them. The study observations are a sort of
eye openers. The contract labours are very parts and parcel of the
company as the regular employees are. They have successfully proved
that the statutory minimum requirements. But accepting the ground
reality of the engagement of the contract labour if those obligations
199
can be extended to the benefit of contract labour it can show a

remarkable result by developing a rich corporate culture which is
extremely essential to be in the market by any organization in the era
of globalization liberalization and privatization. This Balance
Approach Theory is nothing but to extend the benefits as much as
possible over the statutory warm affection of the company towards
them and take an active part in accomplishment of the desired goals in
spite of being isolated. This may be act as a pin pointer in labour
Management Relationship Practice in every organization.
Another aspect which is coming out from the study emphasis the need
of review of the existing legislation of The Contract Labour
(Regulation & Abolishment) Act 1970. The legislation is a petty old
one and was enforced prior to the adoption of new economic polity of
1991, which enlarged the scope of business outsourcing. The existing
act also makes provisions in perennial and permanent jobs for
abolition of Contract labour. The act gives power to the appropriate
government to decide on the issue of Abolition. But in reality the
term abolition has lost all its validity. Engagement of Contract
Labour is an accepted phenomenon. Therefore abolishment is an old
concept. After abolition the contract labour virtually will become job,
less which will added to the problem of unemployment the country
already facing. Hence, the efforts should be given to regularize the
contract labour on the jobs on which they are working, with all the
facilities they are entitled and even beyond that so that they can fell
that they have the same stake of the company for which they are
200
working like their regular counterpart. It is the legislation one hand

and the culture on the other hand that can nurture the growth of the
contractual labour. If they cant be denied, let their presence be
accepted with true spirit as it is in this case study and with this
balanced approach the contractual as well as the regular workers can
bring an overall improvement of the company, industry and the
economic scenario of the country as a whole.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Agarwal, Rashmi (2001): Labour Laws and Contemporary Issues,
Manpower Journal, XXXVII, 4,39-47.
2. B.D. Singh (April-June, 1999), Articles on contract Labour IssueA
Balanced Approach, Personnel Today, NIPM Vol XX No.
3. Deshpande, L et al, 2004, Liberalization and Labour, Labour Flexibility
in Indian Manufacturing, Institute for Human Development, New Delhi.
4. Khan, Akhter Sobhan, 2005, Impact of Globalization on Labour Market
and Workers, Challenges and Opportunities: Trade Union Action,
Bangladesh Institute of Lbaour Studies, www.globalnetwork-asia.org
5. Khan, A. S. (2005): Impact of Globalization on Labour Market and
Workers, Challenges and Opportunities: Trade Union Action,
www.globalnetwork-asia.org.
6. Labour in West Bengal 2002 Department of Labour Government of West
Bengal
7. Contract Labour (Regulation & Abolishment) Act. 1970
8. McGovern L. L. , (2005), Neo-liberal globalization in the Philippines: Its
impact on Filipino women and their forms of resistance, 2005 Women
and Globalization Conference Paper,
www.globaljusticecentre.org/papers2005.
201
IMPACT OF GLOBALIZATION ON ALIENATING
LOCAL IDENTITY - A SPECIAL REFERENCE TO
GEN Y FROM INDIA
John Paul Mennakanti
Abstract
Globalization means intensification or integration of the whole world
to make a global village with global issues likely to be solved with
global efforts due to unhindered flow of technology, trade,
communication, finance, employment and capital, goods, increasing
economic integration, economic openness and interdependence. It is a
death of distance and a step towards one world, one state and one
country. It is believed that the achievements of globalization would
make people all over the globe happy, prosperous and contended and
there would be no conflicts, no poverty and inequality, no violation of
human rights, no malnutrition and no literacy because the integrated
benefits would flow both laterally and vertically to prosper everyone
on the globe but due to wrong planning, corruption, individualism and
accumulation of private property, it has become a sinister process and
depends upon which side of debate one stands.
Globalization has taken the culture of every society into its clutches
especially the youth culture of third world countries posing a serious
threat for local cultures to sustain. Ideologies or mental structures of
youth have taken a new shift and they think in terms of growing
economy. Television/media is arguably the most dominant gateway of
globalization affecting India today and bringing with it far reaching
consumerism besides growing tourist activities and MNCs. Mac
Donalds have spread its wings to each and every corner of the world.
There are four major issues related to identity which develop due to
globalization like development of a bicultural identity, identity
confusion, growth of self selected culture and spread of emerging
adulthood. Western societies do not bother about the deterioration of
norms or identity crisis. They think only in terms of economic gains
202
Impact of Globalization on Alienating Local Identity
and are in search of more and more market. Above all, globalization
gave rise to marginalization or polarization of classes.
Objective of the Paper
The main objective of this paper is
To understand globalizations impact on young generation
especially in developing countries like India.
To explore various adverse effects resulting in extinction
in traditional family life system, work life, fashions and
further economic inequalities caused.
And as a whole crisis of personal identity of ethnicity in developing
countries in the transition process of Globalization are discussed.
Need for the study
Various incidents like suicide attempted by the youth working in
MNCs, family break ups, change in food habits and imbalances in
personal life and annihilation of local traditions and customs made me
to ponder on this topic.
Methodology
The paper is purely a conceptual work. Data is generated from
secondary data sources which include Books, articles, magazines,
internet portals and News paper, personal observations etc.
Introduction
The globalization of culture the effect upon culture of the
increasing connection of the world and its people is perhaps
nowhere more visible than in the changing nature of the relationship
between the worlds youth and their sense of identity (Solomon &
Scuderi 2002:13). It has become commonplace to think of the worlds
youth as that part of the community who are most receptive, or,
alternatively, susceptible to, foreign cultural practices. If childhood
means acceptance, and adulthood means conservatism, youth means
rebelliousness. Youth are seen as the part of society that is most likely
to engage in a process of cultural borrowing that is disruptive of the
reproduction of traditional cultural practices, from modes of dress to
203
language, aesthetics and ideologies. From Japanese punk to

Australian hip hop, youth subcultures are seen as being implicitly
rebellious, born as much from a desire to reject the generation that
went before them, as from identification with what they have become.
Exactly how accurate this widespread impression may be is difficult
to assess. What is certain; however, is that the age of globalization,
more than any other age before it, is an age that has both exerted great
effects upon, and been greatly affected by, young people.
An Overview of Social and Cultural Impacts of Globalization on
Families System in India
India is a culturally diverse country. Sixteen per cent of the worlds
population lives in the country. There are over 826 languages and
thousands of dialects spoken. The difference in regions, topography
and climate allow for different types of lifestyles and culture.
Although about 70 per cent of the populations live in rural areas, India
is rapidly urbanizing with more than 225 cities with over 100,000
population, and at least ten cities alone with over a million people.
By United Nations standards, Indian has begun to age. Over 7.7% of
the population is above 60 years and this number is expected to reach
12.6% by the year 2025. . Improved sanitation, increased attention to
maternal health and better childcare facilities greatly reduced infant
mortality rates. Globalization is hardly a new force affecting India. To
think so is to ignore a diverse and pluralistic long-standing
civilization that was shaped by a long list of "invading" (globalizing)
cultures that became what we now know as India. The previous
globalizes of India include the Aryans, Greeks, Turks, Afghans,
Muslims and most recently, the Europeans, Portuguese, French,
Dutch and finally the English. The former globalizers that came with
invading armies have increasingly been replaced by less violent but
equally powerful globalizers. Television is arguably the most
dominant gateway of globalization affecting India today. While TV
was launched in India in the late 1950s it only became widespread in
the 1980s, after the governments ended their monopoly as the only
204
broadcaster. Satellite TV arrived in 1991, bringing with it far reaching

consumerism.
In terms of people, India faces some resource and infrastructure
constraints. Increased longevity has led to the emergence of many
health and social issues. Fragmentation of the traditional family
network is leading to an erosion of the available support within the
immediate and extended family. Migration of younger generations
from rural to urban areas and from one urban center to another as well
as transnational migration has resulted results in the elderly being left
to fend for themselves at a time when family support becomes more
crucial. With more women joining the workforce system, the care of
aged within families has declined. For those who live within extended
families the elderly have to live in harmony with the younger
generation that has to face a highly competitive world of
globalization. While the nuclear family system is increasingly
becoming the norm, modern life-styles, changing professional and
personal expectations are impacting relationships of marriage and
commitment. In cities young people are starting to choose their own
partners. Arranged marriages, however, continue. Meanwhile, as
divorce rates increase especially in cities, the concept of single
parenthood has not caught on in the Indian culture. According to the
Indias Ministry of Health reports (1997), teenage pregnancies are
reaching an all-time high. In the southern state of Kerala, teenage
abortions rose by 20 per cent in a year, while the western state of
Maharashtra, one-fifth of all abortion were with girls less than 15.
Consumerism has permeated and changed the fabric of contemporary
Indian society. Western fashions are coming to India: the traditional
Indian dress is increasingly being displaced by western dresses
especially in urban areas. Indian MTV, soap television, and films set a
stage for patterns of behavior, dress codes and jargon.
Despite prohibition of child labor by the Indian constitution, over 60
to a 115 million children in India work. While most rural child
workers are agricultural laborers, urban children work in
manufacturing, processing, servicing and repairs. Globalization most
205
directly exploits an estimated 300,000 Indian children who work in

India's hand-knotted carpet industry, which exports over $300 million
worth of goods a year. Uncounted other children work in less formal
sectors, such as the incense industry, used both domestically and
exported. Reports indicate that urban Indian children and youth face
significant competition and pressure to succeed. Yet, as the joint
family system weakens and there is less parental supervision and
support (with both parents working), the youth seem more restless and
insecure. There are also reports of increases in violent behavior and
aggression especially in urban areas and cities.
As for women, the impact of globalization has been interesting. On
one hand, it has allowed women to become a larger part of the
workforce, with opportunities for higher pay raising their self
confidence and independence. Globalization has provided a power to
uproot the traditional views about women that have kept women
economically poor and socially exploited. The growth of the
computer and technology sector has provided middle class educated
women with better wages, flex-timings, and the capacity to women
continue to work in poorly paid, mentally and physically unhealthy,
and insecure situations. For most women, their domestic
responsibilities are not alleviated. Wage gaps have not showed any
significant changes in most employment sectors other than
information technology. Additionally, prostitution, abuse and dowry
related suicides are on the increase despite globalization and some say
that the materialistic greed is one of the main causes.
Globalization and marginalization go hand in hand in India. With
millions of poor farmers, rural laborers, urban unemployed, slum
dwellers, 3 million refugees, 100 million street children, and the
millions displaced by the development projects, poverty in this era
of globalization has assumed new dimensions. The question of are
the poor getting poorer? related to inequality both nationally and
internationally. It is apparent that in order to ensure that the potential
gains from globalization are shared among all groups (rich and poor
countries and between groups within a country) major reforms may be
206
needed. As Amartya Sen states, Even if the poor were to get just a
little richer, this would not necessarily imply that the poor were
getting a fair share of the potentially vast benefits of global economic
interrelations.
Identity confusion
As local cultures change in response to globalization, most youth
manage to adapt to the changes and develop a bicultural or hybrid
identity that provides the basis for living in their local culture and also
participating in the global culture.
However, for some youth adapting to the rapid changes taking place
in their cultures is more difficult. The images, values, and
opportunities they perceive as being part of the global culture
undermine their belief in the value of local cultural practices. At the
same time, the ways of the global culture seem out of reach to them,
too foreign to everything they know from their direct experience.
Rather than becoming bicultural, they may experience themselves as
excluded from both their local culture and the global culture, truly
belonging to neither. In terms of Eriksons (1950, 1968) theory of
identity formation, we could say that in facing the issue of identity vs.
identity confusion in adolescence, globalization increases the
proportion of young people in non-Western cultures who experience a
state of identity confusion rather than successfully forming an
identity. Eriksons idea of identity confusion has been mostly ignored
in identity research in favor of Marcias (1994) identity status
paradigm, but it is worth reviving for application to the psychology of
globalization.
In rapidly changing cultures, youth may conclude that the worldview
that was part of their cultural tradition is irrelevant to the new global
society they are entering. Worldviews are based on ways of life; as
traditional ways of life change in response to globalization, traditional
worldviews may lack compelling emotional and ideological power for
young people. The decline in the power of collectivism for young
Indians, Japanese and Chinese is a good example of this. At the same
207
time, some youth may have trouble finding meaning in the worldview
that is the basis of the global culture, with its values of individualism
and consumerism. This new worldview is not indigenous to their
culture, and in fact may directly contradict their cultural traditions.
Identity confusion among young people may be reflected in problems
such as depression, suicide, and substance use. A variety of cultures
have experienced a sharp increase in suicide and substance use among
their young people since their rapid move toward joining the global
culture. For example, considering the global impact on third world
countries three investigators in Ivory Coast studied changes in
problems among young people aged 16-20 during the period 1980-91
(Delafosse, Fouraste & Gbobouo, 1993). Using clinical interviews
and data from police and social workers, they reported an increase
over this period in suicide, drug abuse, armed aggression, and male
and female prostitution. The authors of the study attributed the
increase in problems to the conflict young people experienced
between the values of their traditional cultures and the values of the
West. Similar behavior is exhibited in all other developing countries.
Youth and the future of globalization
What will be the future of globalization for todays youth? Although I
have argued that most youth now develop a bicultural identity that
includes both a global identity and a local identity, globalization is
clearly intensifying and the pressure on local cultures to move toward
the global norm is growing (Friedman; Giddens,). Will the entire
world ultimately be integrated into a single global culture, offering
youth only one possible solution to the problem of being
(Latouche), except for those who choose to join a self-selected
culture? None of us can say for sure. Certainly, the pace of
globalization in recent decades has been striking and remarkable;
there is not a single corner of the world that remains untouched and
unaltered by it.
Even if cultures continue to maintain their diversity, it seems
indisputable that the diversity will not be as great as it was prior to
208
globalization. All cultures are moving toward certain common

characteristics that they did not have in common in the past: a market
economy based mainly on technology and information; representative
democracy; formal education for all youth through secondary school,
at minimum; diverse media, from all over the world; and an ethic of
tolerance for differences in behavior and belief. However, this does
not mean that globalization will continue unabated until it succeeds in
grinding the tremendous diversity of the worlds cultures into a
global mush, as Thomas Friedman puts it. Despite the
homogenizing tendencies of globalization, cultures will continue to
vary even as they share this common base. One of the key reasons for
continued cultural variety will be psychological, in the different
psychological satisfactions offered by individualism and collectivism.
All cultures have elements of both individualism and collectivism, but
the balance between them, and the relative importance of them, varies
widely (Triandis). Youth growing up today among the Inuit or the
Australian Aborigines learn a different balance of individualism and
collectivism than children and adolescents in the United States. The
balance is different yet again in Tokyo, Lagos, or Buenos Aires, and
still different in the rural areas of these countries. Currently,
differences between cultures in the balance of individualism and
collectivism are based to a large extent on economics. Collectivist
values tend to be characteristic of cultures that possess little
technology, in part because without technology survival is often
precarious and everyone benefits from an ethic of mutual assistance
when the necessities for survival are scarce (Schlegel & Barry).
Individualistic values tend to be characteristic of cultures in
industrialized countries with free-market economies, because such
economies reward individual initiative and individual striving.
As globalization proceeds and cultures worldwide are integrated
further into the global economy, previously collectivistic cultures are
likely to become more individualistic because the global economy is
to a large extent a free-market economy. Also, as cultures with little
or no technology develop economically and gain access to current
209
technologies, survival becomes less of a daily struggle and there is

less need for the collectivistic values that were necessary when
survival was more problematic. However, this does not mean that all
cultures will eventually adopt the same balance of individualism and
collectivism. What it means is that with increased economic
development, the basis for the balance of individualism and
collectivism that is chosen in any culture becomes less economic and
more psychological.
Individualism and collectivism offer different psychological goods.
Individualism offers self-esteem, self-expression, and the freedom to
express ones individual uniqueness rather than suppressing it in order
to comply with cultural norms. Collectivism offers the stability of
mutual obligation, and the security of being part of a network of
persons who have enduring obligations to one another. Individualism
and collectivism also carry different psychological liabilities.
Individualism can result in loneliness, nihilism, and anomie.
Collectivism can be stifling, oppressive, and intolerant of individual
needs and desires. There is an inherent tension between individualism
and collectivism; more of one usually means less of the other. Youth
may possess both individualistic and collectivistic values i.e., they
may desire the psychological goods offered by both ideologies but
in practice the two are difficult to reconcile. It is impossible for youth
to be independent and do as they like, and simultaneously place duty
to others as their first priority. Each ideological system has
psychological goods to offer, but the psychological goods they offer
are competing. Consequently, cultural groups must choose their
balance between individualism and collectivism with an awareness
that to the extent they pursue the goods of individualism they lose the
goods of collectivism, and to the extent they pursue the goods of
collectivism they lose the goods of individualism. Likewise, to the
extent they avoid the psychological liabilities of individualism they
lose the psychological goods of individualism, and to the extent they
avoid the psychological liabilities of collectivism they also lose its
goods. Choosing any balance between individualism and collectivism
210
offers both benefits and costs, and this means that no single answer to
balancing them will ever persuade all youth in all cultures.
Different balances of individualism and collectivism are reflected in
the practices of the worlds most highly developed economies: the
United States, Canada, the countries of Western Europe, and Japan.
The United States has chosen the balance with the strongest tilt
toward individualism. Americans support individual initiative through
a system of relatively low taxation, a relatively weak regulatory
system, and a relatively weak system of social services, even at the
cost of having a high rate of poverty
Developing countries will likewise choose different balances of
individualism and collectivism as they industrialize and become more
integrated into the global economy. All of them will become more
individualistic as a consequence of globalization, but that does not
mean that their youth will become as individualistic as the United
States or even Western Europe.
Conclusion:
It is perhaps impossible to make any valid generalizations about
young peoples experiences with globalization. The cultural impact of
global economics will be very different in Western Europe, Eastern
Europe and Africa, and indeed within individual countries. As Goran
Therborn states, Globalization takes place in different spatial
historical contexts, providing it with very different meaning and
implications in different parts of the world. The impact of
globalization is still evolving and uncertain, as the transformations
that many countries are undergoing remain incomplete. The only
certainty is that globalization is characterized by increasing market
power, and there is always the danger that such power will be abused.
Overly hasty privatization, unaccountable corporations and
companies, a weakened public sector, and an imbalance between
individual private interests and collective public interests are all
symptoms of globalization that may have a direct or indirect impact
on young peoples lives
211
Globalization is ultimately as complex as young peoples lives are

multidimensional. The combination of the two inevitably creates an
explosive and heady mix. Young peoples transitions are to varying
degrees becoming increasingly open-ended, but that open-endedness
is introducing an enormous assortment of complications that are
making young peoples lives more difficult than ever. As former
World Bank President James D. Wolfensohn(1995-2005) states, We
are convinced that globalization can and does contribute to
development, but we cannot ignore those who are left out. Nor can we
fail to recognize how much better development progress could be.
Young peoples current experience of globalization is largely and
inevitably negative. Globalization does offer opportunities, but one
young persons opportunity will inevitably be anothers loss. The key
question is whether this represents a price worth paying. In the years
to come the relative achievements of globalization will be judged, in
part, by how far young people have been successfully assimilated into
the global processes of social, economic and cultural change.
Suggestions:
Governments shall have the responsibility for developing, with
the participation of the peoples concerned, action to protect the
rights of Indigenous people and to guarantee respect for their
integrity.
There is a need to sustain a basic level of shared identity, social
cohesion and national solidarity in global environment
initiatives that work from the grass-roots level up. Policies must
involve the people whom they want to empower, and
incorporate their ideas. Otherwise it just becomes an imposition
of power upon the weak;
Need for recognition and to link the culture of past and future.
Intimate links between tangible and intangible heritage.
To ensure diversity and cultural pride through education. The
potential for maintaining diversity, awareness and cultural pride
212
through education is vast, and it is an important policy area

where the government can play a key role.
To ensure young people understand the culture of consumerism.
It is also imperative that young people become literate in their
readings of advertisements. This can be achieved by developing
literacy skills in decoding and encoding cultural texts like
images and signs portrayed by the media and advertisers. This
will enable youth to make well-informed decisions about their
role.
Promote social integration by fostering societies that are based
on respect for diversity and on participation of all people.
Motivating and ensuring the free flow of ideas by word and
image, care should be exercised that all youth can express
themselves and make themselves known and identified.
References
1. Baeker, G. (2000) International Network on Cultural Policy
(INCP), Inventory, Cultural Diversity Challenges and
Opportunities, Quebec,
http://80_web7.infotrac.galegroup.com.e1&dyn=85!xrn_61_0
_CA86549471?sw_aep=uow, accessed February 2003.
2. International Network on Cultural Policy (INCPa), (2002),
Cultural Diversity in Developing Countries: The Challenges of
Globalisation, Quebec, INCP,
http:206.191.7.19/meetings/2002/summary_e.shtml, accessed
February 2003.
3. Wyn, J. & White, R. (1997) Rethinking Youth. Sydney: Allen &
Unwin.
4. Aggarwal Vir Bala.2002. Media and Society, Challenges and
Opportunities. New Delhi: Concept Publishing Company.
5. Coppa Frank J. 1979. Screen and Society-Impact of T.V upon
aspects of contemporary Civilization. Chicago: Nelson Hall.
6. Doshi S L.2003. Modernity, Post-modernity and Neo
Sociological Theories. Jaipur: Rawat Publications.
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7. Hartmann Paul; Patil B R and Dighe Anita.1989. The mass

media and Village Life-An Indian Society. New Delhi: Sage
Publications.
8. IGNOU. 2001. Social Problems in India. Delhi: Ravindra Offset
Press.
9. Kumar Ravi Bhushan.1995. Coastal Tourism and Environment.
New Delhi: A.P.H Publishing Corporation.
10. Lechner Frank J and Boli John.2004. The Globalization Reader.
U.K: Blackwell publishing.
11. Mishra Anil Dutta and Govind Prasad.2002. Globalization-Myth
and Reality. New Delhi: Concept Publishing Company.
12. Mohammad Noor and Matin Abdul.1995. Indian Youth
Problems and Prospects. New Delhi: Ashish Publishing House.
13. Schaefer Richard T. 2002. Sociology- a brief Introduction. New
York: Mc Graw Hill Company.
14. Urry John.1990. The Tourist Gaze-Leisure and Travel in
Contemporary Societies. New Delhi: Sage Publications.
15. Young people in a globalizing world ,:world youth report.2003
16. Globalization and its impact on families.by shobha pais.may
5, 2006, 4th Viennese conference on mediation, Vienna,
Austria.
214
DEMYSTIFYING SOCIAL MEDIA: IMPLICATIONS
FOR HR PROFESSIONALS
Roshee Lamichhane
ABSTRACT
There is no arguing that Social Media has changed the way people
interact with each other in their personal lives. Today, it is a moot
point to even debate the benefits of social media and social
networking in organizationsenhanced brand reputation, connections
with customers, improved collaboration, spurt in innovation, a boost
to the marketing, and the list can go on. Any business worth the salt
recognizes that social media has strategic value. Deloitte predicts that
by the end of 2013, over 90% of Fortune 500 companies would have
partially or fully implemented an enterprise social network.
Organizations have woken up to the fact that these interactions trigger
new information and insights. Only those entities that are able to
harness this energy to drive business processes and decisions will be
able to transform their organizations. The aim of these new tools is to
enable firms to tap into the collective intelligence of their workforce,
in new and faster ways. We need to remember that the shift to social
media will soon become a practical necessity. For this, companies
need to approach their roll out plans deliberately and involve all
stakeholders. The only surest way to protect business organizations is
to formulate and use a set of highly informed, clearly articulated,
well-communicated, and most acceptable Social Media policies. An
attempt is made in this conceptually rich Paper to demystify Social
Media and throw open the portals to a connected universe that is just
waiting to be tapped. For this purpose, we have chosen to use four
themes and each of them would be discussed in four parts. First part
focuses on the insights and learning that are available from the
success stories of organizations that have implemented their hiring
practices in the new way as a part of their talent acquisition efforts.
Second part tries to showcase the best practices of firms that have
used social media as a new pedagogy of learning and projects the
future of social learning in its evolution. The third part delves into the
essentials of personal branding and communication to make ourselves
relevant to others, in a manner that does justice to our purpose and
215
their need. In the fourth and final part, the Paper shows the road that
lies ahead for the adoption, introduction, and scaling up of Social
Media.
Keywords: Social Media, Talent Management, Social HR,
Crowdsourcing, Gamification, Social Learning, and Personal
Branding.
INTRODUCTION
Social Media comprises of social networks like Facebook,
professional networks like LinkedIn, and information networks like
Twitter that are highly people-centric. All these emerged at a time
when internet penetration is growing exponentially in India. With 67
million users in India and growing at the rate of 52% YoY, smart
phones are now a ubiquitous part of our day, and often the cause of
panic attacks when they run out of battery. We are witness to and are
experiencing things that would have sounded unimaginable and
futuristic, much like a sci-fi movie with unrealistic stunts. There is
already a buzz around Social Media and weve merely seen the tip of
the iceberg. We are indeed in the midst of remarkable times and the
possibilities are limitless. We stand at an interesting juncture where
technology is evolving at a speed that makes it impossible to predict
which mode of interaction would be in two years from now.
Web 2.0 is expected to have enormous potential to change the way
people interact and work, offering HR bountiful opportunities to ride
this wave and actively participate in this revolution. For HR
professionals, the implications are tremendouswe get to impact
culture and engagement at unimaginable speeds and levels of
influence that we never imagined, but always wished for.
Organizations now have access to direct 1-0-1 connect with every
single employee, irrespective of how geographically dispersed they
are or disparate their roles are. This is tailor-made for us to re-invent
our roles and take that much desired seat at the business table. We just
need to figure out how to harness this beast or beauty!
Just a bit of party pooperwhile the opportunity is real, the hype and
mystification is unwarranted. As we delve deeper, we would realize
that at its core, Social Media is about conversations and connections
happening at an infinitely unimaginable scale and speed. Even by
keeping it very simple, we can harness it for terrific business and
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Demystifying Social Media: Implications for HR Professionals
personal success as HR professionals. Some of the pioneering

organizations had already realized the potential of the web for HR
professionals, as early as the dial-up days of the Internet. From the
collective expertise of early adopters, we get rich perspectives as to
what it takes to tap Social Medias full potential to have a good
measure and balance. Though crystal ball gazing in isolation can be
delusional, but with the help of insights that are jargon-free and
practical, simplistic yet rich, we can make our forays into this Social
Media journey and make it really enjoyable. The transition calls for a
shift, and it will take time but it is sure to happen. To get the most, we
need to experiment, not by just dipping our toes in the water but by
diving in and swim to new shores, tweeting, and thinking all the way.
Though people are more aware of Facebook and LinkdIn, other
communities and sites such as Google Plus, Slideshare, and Quora
would be useful. Content is shaping how people find and connect with
each other. Organizations now have to become content creators
themselves to remain relevant. They cant rely on paid external media
but have to invest in creating owned media to showcase the
organizations culture in the form of articles, presentations, and
videos. It also means that HR needs to listen to conversations on the
social web about what people are talking about it, its leadership, and
even its competitors. To do all this, HR people have to not only
embrace but experiment and grow comfortable with it as well. Time
has already come to stop talking about it, and to start doing it. In this
context, the time is ripe and the need is more than obvious to
demystify HR communities social aspirations as well as Social
Media and throw open the portals to a connected universe that is just
waiting to be tapped. For this purpose, we have chosen four themes
and each of them would be discussed in four parts in this Paper.
First part focuses on the insights and learnings that are available from
the success stories of organizations that have implemented their hiring
practices in the new way as a part of their talent acquisition efforts.
Second part tries to showcase the best practices of firms that have
used social media as a new pedagogy of learning and projects the
future of social learning in its evolution. The third part delves into the
essentials of personal branding and communication to make ourselves
relevant to others, in a manner that does justice to our purpose and
217
their need. Finally, the fourth part shows the road that lies ahead for
the adoption, introduction, and scaling up of Social Media.
PART-1: TALENT MANAGEMENT (TM) THROUGH SOCIAL
MEDIA
We have entered a new erawhere markets and economies are
volatile and unpredictable, governments and policy unstable, new
businesses emerging and older ones moving into oblivion, business
plans and forecasts going haywire. HR people often find themselves
with questions that have no right answers and they would soon be
realizing that what got them there is not going to get them ahead. The
era they live and operate in has the ability to change, very rapidly, the
way people and organizations are perceived and valued, which can
result in growth or decline, depending on the choices and decisions
they make. Jobsites and recruitment agencies were yesterdays
headlines. Today, hiring through the power of social media and the
key to success for both recruiters and the recruitees lies in their
readiness to adopt Social Media and their Social Media Quotient. We
can draw on and gain from the success stories and learnings of
organizations that have implemented the new way of hiring.
The recruitment landscape in India has evolved immensely in recent
times. Traditionally, the core competency of talent acquisition was
either outsourced or left to chance but the recent foray into online
social communication has created new frontiers. Employers are
moving towards online social and professional networks, not only
look for talent but also to build their employer brand among passive
talent or employees that are the right fit, employees have to be equally
savvy in their ability to communicate online. This section
encapsulates the rise of social media as an effective tool in talent
acquisition across industries.
However, one should remember that new trends are not a replacement
but a useful and additional resource to traditional methods. Building,
aligning, and infusing attractive incentives into new strategies will
ensure a win-win situation. At the end of the day, the challenge lies in
devising and implementing well-thought out TM methods that have
the ability to go viral and yet, from a recruiters standpoint, provide
the ability to measure cognitive abilities of potential candidates. The
art of hiring heavily depends on a clear understanding of new trends,
218
and decoding what exactly these buzz words mean and how they can
be leveraged on a day-to-day basis for hiring needs globally.
If a company is in the leadership quadrant in India and is able to see
great opportunity to grow its presence in the international markets,
with overseas acquisitions, manufacturing outfits and warehouses in
several countries, they can always leverage the power of social
networking to the hilt. In this context, it needs to understand the
challenge as one of finding talent in these countries. For this, it has to
be understood well by local talent. It has to build a framework that
would target specific people with specific information and create a
forum that will help communicate with it well. Business-oriented
social networking sites as the platform are the only solutions that have
the potential to change the game from conservative to viral.
By getting Career Page, a recruitment advert, global seats, and global
job slots, it would be able to put up testimonials, videos, banners, and
updates. This in turn, would help its brand to create a buzz in the
market place, both within and outside India.
For example, Dell approaches talent directly on social media ever
since the advent of the digital age, and has reinforced the emergence
of social media as a critical part of the recruitment and employee
engagement tool kit. When talent acquisition goes the social way,
there is a case for organizations to smartly combine conventional
hiring practices with social recruiting. A time has come to integrate
social media into the broader talent management agenda, beyond just
acquisition and attraction. In the backdrop of growing war for talent at
the marketplace, organizations moving online, attracting todays
Generation Y employee force becomes an imperative and poses a
greater challenge. Keeping in mind the volatile and unpredictable
markets and the economies firms need to re-invent the conservative
hiring strategy of the company. Concepts like crowdsourcing talent to
building an impactful employer brand are engaging the HR
professionals who need to have rich insights on the war for talent to
keep pace with talent pools in unpredictable markets all the more
now.
When firms begin to break the traditional mindset and start looking
beyond, they would be creating talent pipelines that will allow them
to map and stay connected with critical talent, with specific plans to
219
engage their followers more evocatively. Once success starts

unfolding before them, they start working on leveraging their
respective brands on other relevant platforms, as part of global
networking and branding strategy through online media. When they
continue to network, next in line will be to plot returns on investment
in all those avenues. While new age talent management is inundated
with buzzwords like crowdsourcing and building talent communities
online. Gamification is another trend that is quickly gaining attention.
It is the integration of game mechanics and theory into non-game
applications and processes in the workplace. This tool is garnering a
lot of attention these days with a yearning among hiring leaders
globally, to increase engagement rates with their potential talent
communities. Through online media, firms are able to leverage their
brands on other relevant platforms as part of global networking and
branding strategies.
PART-2: SOCIAL TECHNOLOGIES AS THE NEW
PEDAGOGY OF LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT (L&D)
It has become increasingly clear that employees are hooked onto the
virtual world. Social networking, micro blogging, and YouTube
videos for learning are realities that employees embrace in their
personal learning space. We can leverage on this idea and use the
same engagement principles and support employees if they are keen
on improving their professional qualifications. Social learning
involves participating with others to make sense of new ideas, using
technology platforms. Supported by social learning, teams of
employees from a given company can be made to prepare for
improving their professional qualifications. In this direction, to meet
this learning goal, one can use chatter, i.e., a kind of internal
collaboration platform to provide these engagement opportunities to
all the learners. This calls for creating a Professional Qualification
Examination Community on the companys internal social platform.
That should become the epicenter of all discussions pertaining to the
examinations. Participants must be encouraged to share content, tips,
answer questions, and post updates on their own progress. The
training room can do the job of watching from the side-lines and
moderate wherever and whenever required.
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This peer to peer information sharing and learning has amazing

capacity to add speed to the knowledge sharing process. This has the
advantage of groups learning at will while getting questions answered
at their workstations. It is no wonder if a strong sense of ownership
leads to offline meets of the participants once in a week for an hour or
so to discuss key updates and share tips. Any key point made on the
online forum involving further deliberation can be brought up in the
offline meets. This has one potential opportunity for senior managers
to address the participants that can further encourage them to succeed
at the examinations.
Similarly, we can use widely popular tweetthons concept used in
Twitter and launch it for the benefit of employees social learning. As
against offline classroom environment, to enable companies to drive
engagement within the community and making the learners to respond
well, each week, a topic of importance can be picked up and chat
sessions can be arranged within the online community. Yet another
key mechanics of social learning could be Gamification through
Fastest Finger. Contests can be launched within these communities
that focus on the ability of learners to provide correct answers with
speeda skill that becomes an imperative during examination times
as well. A list of questions can be prepared and all the participants
may be invited to be part of these events. As the activity gets kicked
off, we can expect the response to be absolutely overwhelming. It
would be an exhilarating experience for anyone to see the participants
answering questions in the spirit of competition. Not only the winners
of the competitions but the learners who are the quickest to provide
the correct answer have to be rewarded with goodies and incentives.
We can expect evident changes in the way learning gets delivered.
Social learning is clearly the most pragmatic and effective way to
ensure that participants take ownership and engage in peer learning.
With social media available as a new pedagogy of learning, the role of
a Training Professional is set to evolve from being a creator of
content to a curator of content. Thus, the entire spectrum of brick-and
mortar learning as well as social learning, and the progressive manner
in which learning is experienced is undergoing a sea change. An
exciting period is awaiting the L&D function, as it moves from event
based focus to continuous learning focus, finally impacting the 70%
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and 20% of the 70-20-10 model. Top-notch HR and Learning

professionals, passionately engaged in transforming learning in their
organizations can now call themselves as students of the subject as it
provides continuous learning opportunities to one and all. Companies
engaging in social learning are able to witness an evident change in
the way learning gets delivered. Social learning is clearly the most
pragmatic and effective way to ensure that participants take
ownership and engage in peer to peer learning. The key benefits of it
are: improved sharing of knowledge, fostered collaboration, provision
for informal learning opportunities, ease of finding resources, and
relationship building.
Learning is a complex subject as it concerns human beings and every
human being is unique and different. Research in neurosciences has
thrown a lot of light on how the human brain works and learns. With
more to learn than ever, faster innovation cycles, and reduced training
budgets, organizations everywhere are trying to get more from their
learning programs. However, to increase the effectiveness of learning,
some of our intuitive understanding about learning may need
updating. For example, while people generally predict that
concentrated learning in one block of time is more effective,
neuroscience research is clearly showing that it is far better to break
up learning interventions to facilitate successful log-term learning.
Social learning in itself may not yet be a mainstay of corporate
training departments, at least not as yetalthough it has great
potential.
In addition to including social media in their service portfolio,
managers are now using social media to position themselves
strategically as subject matter experts. Social technologies can help
learning in a number of ways. They can help create community of
fellow learners before they attend training and help them learn from
each others experiences. This would be shifting the focus from
competencies needed to people sharing their expertise and strengths.
By sharing the content and the theory before the training, face to face
time with the facilitators could be used for practice and feedback. The
community of learners could form support and ideation groups when
they go back to the workplace and implement their learning. This
would help reinforce concepts and practical application in the context
222
of the workplace. Managers could also become a part of the

community to understand and support their teams learning in the best
possible manner and translate it to the workplace. If learning
professionals have to leverage social technologies, they must get
comfortable with new skills to become online facilitators and move
from we will build content mindset to we will find the best content
and curate it along with facilitation mindset. Understanding why
people share content online and how to design interactions that help
them connect and learn as a community, is the key skill known as
community management skills in the digital realm, and L&D
professionals need to transfer this offline skill to an online skill.
PART-3: MAKING ONESELF RELEVANT TO OTHERS
THROUGH PERSONAL BRANDING
Every interaction that one experiences is an excellent opportunity to
create, build, and maintain his or her personal brand. In todays
competitive market, building a personal brand is critical to any
individual, particularly HR professionals. The world we live in
presents everything as an equalizer; the one and the only differentiator
is YOU. Creating a personal brand involves showing genuine interest,
which radiates outward and engages others. God has made each of us
as a first class original and we should not die as a second grade copy.
Every individual brings a unique combination of strengths, passions,
gifts, and purpose to the workplace, a combination that coalesces into
a unique brand. It is this brand that exemplifies the unique him/her,
inside as well as outside the organization. We need to underscore the
importance and value of having a personal and professional brand in
capturing the attention of relevant others. Similarly, as HR
professionals acquire new knowledge and competencies, they may
find themselves in roles that may not have existed a few years ago.
Reinventing ones career in a manner that enables success in the
information age depends on creating great content, taking on
leadership roles and having the ability to embrace the quantitative.
Indeed, this act is related to the idea of creating a powerful personal
brand. An issue that is close to the heart of all HR professionals is to
identify and develop the factors that go into creating and making
employee brands that attract and resonate with the talent they are
trying to attract.
223
For branding to take place, one has to discover him and allowing the
world at large to discover it. The seven steps of building and
leveraging ones personal brand are: (i) believe in yourself, (ii)
discover yourself, (iii) re-invent yourself, (iv) build yourself, (v) let
go of yourself, (vi) renew yourself, and (vii) be yourself. Making
ourselves relevant to others, in a manner that does justice to our
purpose and need is a real tough challenge indeed. Personal branding
is a personal choice, brought alive by many aspects of our behavior,
including how we show up online.
With no effort at all, our connections, comments, engagements, or
lack thereof, matched with our experience, expertise, and skills,
creates a perception that may not represent the true self. To say that
we are living in the age of information overload is to grossly
understate the issue at hand. The rise in the volume of data, while in
and of itself is overwhelming, it is not the core issue. The real
challenge arises from our ability to personally and professionally cope
with living in this information rich and insights poor environment. In
this diverse and overloaded environment, capturing the attention of
relevant other stakeholders powerfully is the real challenge. Creating
organizations that cut through the noise to resonate with the best
talent out there is another such challenge. There is no one or universal
answer to these questions centering on employee engagement, cross
cultural teams, and corporate storytelling and much depends on the
frameworks we adopt to find and define our solutions. We need to
approach these questions from the lens or branding and
communication. And most of the solutions we come across tend to
lean towards creating of personal and professional brands and
challenges of communication in a global and diverse world.
The single best strategy for demonstrating ones value to others is
creating online contentwhether its in the form of blogs, podcasts,
videos, or even a smart Twitter feedit shows he/she is engagedit
shows you are engaged in key discussions and you know what you are
talking about. The new frontier for HR is undoubtedly Big Data
embracing the quantitative and adapting its insights into measurable
performance gains for ones organization. Many HR professionals are
not trained in analytics, but given its growing importance, diving in
now and establishing ones expertise may be a smarter way to stay
224
ahead of the curve. As HR, like much of the business world, is rapidly
changing, every HR professional has to reinvent himself and his
career by projecting the way he wants to be perceived by others. For
this, they need to develop insightful content, take on leadership roles,
and mastering Big Data. That is the best and the only ticket for his
advancement and future professional success.
Part-4: INTRODUCING AND SCALING SOCIAL MEDIA:
THE ROAD AHEAD
For the HR professionals, the challenges are tougher than ever before
and understanding and developing human capital effectively is an area
ripe for research and experimentation. Social Media survives on the
premise of connecting people, ideas, and thoughts and if a
product/solution maintains and builds on the same principle, firms
coming up with them in social media space will definitely find it very
easy to adapt to changing times and technology. If we can showcase
social media products and solutions in this crowded space, we find
virtually a deluge of options centering on employee referrals, staffing,
rewards and recognition, or performance management work streams,
with generous helpings of gamification thrown in. However, HR
professionals need to make some sense of the clutter by evaluating
them on the three principal parameters viz., robustness of the
solutions/products, customer base based on clear value proposition,
and sustainability.
They should also be in a position to change their world while
dabbling with these technologies and ideas. This is still a very
nascent space and the challenge lies not in the tools available in the
market place, but in the willingness of HR people to change and their
mindset. Social Media will not for sure remain a buzz for longit
will be a way companies do business and interact, and should they
continue to do what they did in the email era, they will not be able to
harness the full power and potential of Social Media. There is no
arguing that social networking has changed the way people interact
with each other in their personal lives.
CONCLUDING COMMENTS
There is no arguing that Social Media has changed the way people
interact with each other in their personal lives. It is essential to seek
synergies between the social media strategy and the fabric of daily
225
work. If not, employees will see the engagement as an additional task

or chore demanded by the Management. This implies two risks
either employees wont use it at all or they will rebel against it and
use it inappropriately. Both the results are damaging. A clear set of
goals and expectations such as marketing and customer service is an
absolute must in this context. Even if its a simple goal to develop a
brand of a young organization, the goals need to be strategic.
Awareness on issues such as being a responsible corporate netizen,
accountability to customer interests and privacy, fellow-employee
sensitivity can be achieved through campaigns and training. This
helps create an evolving culture of Enterprise Social Media
Acceptance rather than being driven down as a set of rules. Social
Media is still a very nascent space and the challenge lies not in the
tools available, but in our willingness to bring about a change in our
thinking. It will not remain a buzz for longit will be a way we do
business and interact, and if we continue to do what we did in the
email era, we will not be able to harness the full potential of social
media.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Barab, S. A., & Duffy, T. M. (2000). From practice fields to
communities of practice. In D. H. Jonassen, S. M. Land, D. H.
Jonassen & S. M. Land (Eds.), Theoretical foundations of
learning environments, (pp. 25-55). Mahwah, NJ US: Lawrence
Erlbaum Associates Publishers.
2. Comas-Quinn, A., Mardomingo, R., & Valentine, C.
(2009). Mobile blogs in language learning: Making the most of
informal and situated learning opportunities. ReCALL, 21(1),
96-112.
3. Cousin, G. & Deepwell, F. (2005). Designs for network
learning: A communities of practice perspective. Studies in
Higher Education, 30(1), 57-66.
4. Dunlap, J., & Lowenthal, P. (2009). Tweeting the night away:
Using Twitter to enhance social presence. Journal of
Information Systems Education, 20(2)
5. Gunawardena, C. N., Hermans, M. B., Sanchez, D.,
Richmond, C., Bohley, M., & Tuttle, R. (2009). A Theoretical
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framework for building online communities of practice with

social networking tools. Educational Media International,
46(1), 3-16.
6. Hodgkinson-Williams, C., Slay H., & Siebrger, I.
(2008). Developing communities of practice within and outside
higher education institutions. British Journal of Educational
Technology, 39(3), 433-442.
7. Honeycutt, C., & Herring, S. (2009). Beyond micro-blogging:
Conversation and collaboration via Twitter.
8. Hung, D., & Nichani, M. (2002). Differentiating between
communities of practice (CoPs) and quasi-communities: Can
CoPs exist online? International Journal on E-Learning, 1(3),
23-29.
227
A STUDY ON e-HRM: BENEFITS OF ITS
IMPLEMENTATION
Dr. Bharath Kumar Porika
Abstract
This article aims to review current research on electronic Human
Resource Management (e-HRM) and discusses some implications for
future research, which will be focused on comparative analysis of
how social and cultural factors might influence the implementation
and development of e-HRM systems in different countries. Based on a
definition and an initial framework, we analyzed the surveys
conducted in this field as well as the case studies focused on practical
e-HRM applications, the examined topics and the relevant findings.
Another goal of this study is to highlight the gaps between e-HRM
and HRIS (Human resource information system), which refers to ICT
systems used within HR departments We are also interested in
assessing the opportunities provided by Web 2.0 technologies for e-
recruitment, the first field of human resource management to make
extensive use of web-based technology.
Keywords: e-HRM, e-recruitment, web-based technology, Benefits
and Implementation.
INTRODUCTION
In all activities men and resources are involved. For a long time men
or workers were taken for granted. Greater accent was given to
resources, production machinery and top managers. But at present in
the modern large scale production of innumerable products with a
wide market, in the last few decades the importance of human
resources and their development has come to the fore. The importance
of human resources to any organization need not be over-emphasized.
Human resource is the wealth of a nation and an organization. The
development process is wide and varied. In this lesson, let us
understand the importance and concept of Human Resources
Management (HRM). Human resource management, in the sense of
getting things done through people. It's an essential part of every
228
A Study on e-HRM: Benefits of its Implementation
manager's responsibilities, but many organizations find it

advantageous to establish a specialist division to provide an expert
service dedicated to ensuring that the human resource function is
performed efficiently."People are our most valuable asset" is a clich
which no member of any senior management team would disagree
with. Yet, the reality for many organizations is that their people
remain under valued, under trained, under utilized ,poorly motivated,
and consequently , perform well below their true capability. The rate
of change facing organizations has never been greater and
organizations must absorb and manage change at a much faster rate
than in the past. In order to implement a successful business strategy
to face this challenge, organizations, large or small, must ensure that
they have the right people capable of delivering the strategy.
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
1. To enable faster response to employee related services and faster
HR related decisions and determine the effectiveness of the various
stages of resource management using e-HRM technology.
2. To as certain the usage of compensation strategies through e-HRM
solutions and study the performance strategies used by the e-HRM
technology
SCOPE OF THE E-HRM
1. Increased access to HR data and ease in classifying and
reclassifying data and Collection of information as the basis for
improving the strategic orientation of HRM.
2. More consistent and higher accuracy of information/report
generated and fast response to answer queries.
3. A higher internal profile for HR leading to better work culture
and Establishing of streamlined, standardized and systematic
procedures.
LIMITATIONS OF THE E-HRM
1. It can be expensive in terms of finance and manpower
requirements and it can be threatening and inconvenient to those
who are not comfortable with computers. For computerized
229
information to be useful at all levels there is an urgent need for

large scale computer literacy.
2. Often the personnel designing e-HRM do not have a thorough
understanding of what constitutes quality information to the
uses. Thus, the users do not get exactly the reports which they
want. Producing information that is of quality to the users
requires an investment in time, effort and communication on the
part of e-HRM managers.
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
E-PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT: E-Performance, a web
based tool, has been designed to make your performance reviews
easier than ever. E-Performance management places effective
performance management where it belongs in the hands of line
managers. Performance contracting and appraisal have never been
easier.
Benefits for Line Managers: Focused and aligned performance goals
have a direct influence on company performance. On the other hand,
employee performance and focus areas are accessible in an instant.
Also, Performance management is a key part of an organizations
integrated human resources strategy.
E-SALARY REVIEW: This module provides the functionality to
model salary increases taking into account the employees
performance, the budgeted salary increase and the industry
benchmark salary for each job.
Benefits for Line Managers: E-salary applies performance-based
increases, manage salaries within industry range, address overpaid
and underpaid employees and ensure salary budget is met. On the
other hand, E-salary prevent organizational blockage by overpaid
employees.
E- 360 APPRAISALS: E-360 appraisals have never been easier.
Statements are preloaded into the system and the client is then able to
custom build any number of profiles that can be linked to employees.
There are a number of 360 appraisal reports available including
230
individual reports that include and exclude self ratings, organizational

reports that allow individual comparison to group and individual
graphs.
Benefits for Line Managers: That is easy to use online capture
facility. Employee performance and focus areas are accessible in an
instant. 360 appraisals provide unbiased and anonymous ratings.
E-RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION: Recruiting the right
person for the right job is the most critical aspect of human resource
management. Starting with high caliber people is the first step. Only
then can this be followed by effective performance management and
employee development. E-recruitment simplifies this process by
providing a sophisticated web-based solution that manages the
process of recruitment from start to finish.
E-SUCCESSION PLANNING AND CAREER MANAGEMENT:
Who are the high flyers in your organization and when will they be
ready for promotion? Does your organization have a strategy and
process to identify and retain talent? Do you have adequate cover for
the key jobs in your organization?
Succession planning provides tools to effectively manage the
organizations strategic people resources. Through the process of line
driven career discussions, the potential of your employees is captured.
Benefits: E-succession planning identifies your high flyers in the
organization and ensures adequate balance of solid performers and
high potential. It also analyzes your employee base from equity and
gender perspective.
E-SKILL MANAGEMENT: E-skills module allows for the
management of the competency acquisition process & on-the-job
training in compliance with the Skills Development Act
recommendations. To show progress in skills acquisition, each
employee is then assessed against the criteria and learning objectives
are signed off on the software.
Benefits: E-learner ship and skill development enable line managers
to obtain a real time indication of competency acquisition levels in
231
every area of their business, from a departmental level right down to

an individual level. By monitoring and measuring competence
acquisition, organizations are able to effectively identify skill
deficiencies that have a direct impact on productivity. On the other
hand, as competency acquisition levels are raised in an organization,
so too does the organizational culture change towards greater
accountability for HRM by Line and a movement towards a self
management culture.
E-TRAINING MANAGEMENT: E-training management provides
the facility to capture course information, book employees on specific
courses and record individual training history. Included features are
bookings by delegate or course, provision of an open text field for
development plans and the recording of training days planned and
completed. E-training management provides an efficient means of
tracking training courses and employee training records. Course
details are entered with multiple event capability and booking can
then be carried out online. Course reminders can be generated by
email and details of training costs are recorded and can be reported on
by race, gender and category.
Benefits: If organizations use electronic training management,
training cost can be effectively managed and cost breakdowns by
department, race, gender, category and employee will be available.
Also by this method, employee training records are instantly
accessible and training calendar is available by month. It also holds
details of training vendors and venues. Finally, unique report writer
gives user the means to generate customized reports.
E-DISCIPLINE AND GRIEVANCE MANAGEMENT: Line
managers can now record details of their disciplinary hearings and
grievance cases online. History of previous disciplinary cases can be
accessed immediately. Manager can record details of counseling
sessions as well as grievances lodged by employees. Drill down
departmental reports are available to analyze where disciplinary cases
are most prevalent. The system provides the facility to record
232
disciplinary cases by race, gender and occupational grouping and is

used for employment equity returns.
Benefits: In this method, access to check disciplinary records and
online capture of counseling, discipline and grievance records is easy.
Quick view reporting on disciplinary cases and option to look up
labor law and case history are other benefits of this method
E-RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Storage of applicants details and Retrieval and amendment of those
details. Matching CVs to person specifications for short listing
purposes. Link with internet recruiting processes and Letter writing,
acknowledgements, invitations to interview, offers and rejections.
E-TRAINING AND DEVELOMENT
Training and developing employees and Storing e-learning modules
on the database which enables trainers to select an appropriate module
or mix of modules to meet a specified learning need. Analyzing the
training recommendations contained in performance review reports to
identify collective and individual training needs and Identifying
suitable training courses to meet training needs.
BENEFITS OF E-HRM: The main benefits of e-HRM are an
increase of quality and pace, because the existing administrative
processes were slow and inefficient conditional upon mainly paper
based processes.
Standardization: By standardizing the system used within the group
and by providing employees with direct access to records, particularly
leave records, the company can achieve a significant reduction in
employee queries and reduce the need for HR to undertake data entry
of employee records.
Ease of recruitment, selection and assessment: e-Recruitment can
be one of HRs nightmares. With e-recruitment the company gets an
additional possibility besides the normal application by paper to
recruit people over the web in an online-application process.
Although this, and like processes, will always need significant human
233
intervention. E-HR systems can streamline the process and reduce

errors.
Ease of administering employee records: Whether be it leaves,
benefits, personal details, accident and discipline reports, etc., it is
generally accepted that once everyone can overcome the initial it
phobia, HR and employees will experience fewer headaches and
efficiency will rapidly increase.
Reductions to cost, time and labour: Reduced duplication, reduced
time spent fixing errors, reduced labour costs through ESS, reduced or
no hard-copy entry. Not only manpower can be saved, the processing
time can also be shortened. With this e-HRM reaches the prime
objective of cost effectiveness.
Access to ESS training enrolment and self development: e-
Training can enable employees to search for and enroll in training
programmes on-line and validating course availability. This can
streamline the training administration process enabling employees to
access computer based training. Cost and pace can be individualized
as well.
Cost and ESS: ESS reduced the workload of HR department by more
than 50%, for instance in the traditional method the employee has to
type in a formal leave application get approved from his/her direct
boss who will send it to the HR department for further approval which
would consume lot of time to be processed.
Location and timeliness: With ESS, the employee could log in
online anywhere and anytime without being in the office and without
the leave card could be sitting at the boss table for a few days, lost or
buried.
SUGGESTIONS
The e-HR technology should be modified as to increase efficiency of
conducting e-induction meetings via web technology in order to bring
in high efficiency level of employees.
234
E-HRM still has to be responsible to build high level performing

teams. In that case the HR department can conduct more reviews and
training in order to pick out high performing teams.
E-HR can also improve organizational performance through
reframing the HR policies according to the preferences of the
employees.
The HR department has to bring in more options under e-HR
technology for employees to enroll for flexible benefit administration.
CONCLUSION
The transformation of HR has a range of facets which have been
posed out in the study expose the main themes of cost, the relative
capabilities of self-service, shared services, outsourcing and crucially,
the quality of the people in HR function. From the study we can
understand that most of the human resources functions. Has been
automated and the employees are quite comfortable using these
functions through web based technology. It also shows the amount of
interest people within the company show towards the function and the
effort put forth in order to learn how to perform these functions.
REFERENCES
1. Alfred J. Walker, Web-Based Human Resources: The
Technologies and Trends That Are Transforming HR, Published
By Tata Mcgraw Hill [2001].
2. Aswathappa K. Human Resource Management, Published By
Tata Mcgraw Hill, FifthEdition.
3. Biswanth Ghosh, Human Resource Management Published By
Vikas Publishing, [2002].
4. Michael Armstrong, a Handbook of Human Resource
Management Practice, [2003].
5. Martin Reddington, Mark Williamson And Mark Withers,
Transforming HR: Creating Value Through People, Published
By Elsevier, [2005].
235
6. Patricia A.K.Fletcher, The Brave New World Of E-HR: Human

Resources In The Digital Age, Published By Wiley, [2005].
7. Prasad L. M, Human Resource Management, Published By
Sultan Chand and Sons,[2003]
8. Wright, P. M. and Dyer, L., People in E-Business: New
Challenges, New.
9. Solutions. Working Paper 00-11, Center for Advanced Human
Resource Studies, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, 2000.
10. Towers P., HR on the Web: New Realities in Service
Delivery. Towers Perrin.
236
JOB SATISFACTION OF GOVERNMENT TEACHERS
IN NALGONDA - A STUDY
Ms. Anuradha V
ABSTRACT:
Teachers play a very crucial role in society. A teacher, who is happy
with his job, plays a pivotal role in the upliftment of society. Teachers
who are not satisfied with their job could not be committed and
productive and would not be performing at the best of their capabilities.
Job satisfaction describes how content an individual is with his or her
job. The purpose of this study is to evaluate job satisfaction of teachers
in government schools. It focuses on the relative importance of work
environment and their impact on the overall job satisfaction.
A survey was conducted with a sample of 50 teachers. The teachers job
satisfaction was determined by different factors such as working
conditions, salary, promotion policy, and transfer policy, relationship
with co-workers and superiors and fringe benefits. Likert scale is used in
the questionnaire to collect the responses and Analysis is made by using
statistical methods like percentage and mean. The study finds that the
employees satisfaction is poor with salary and high in the human
relations.
Keywords: Job Satisfaction, Job Dissatisfaction.
INTRODUCTION
Teachers are an essential link in the transmission of educational
opportunity to children. Teacher job satisfaction has, in turn, been tied to
teachers work performance, including teachers involvement,
commitment, and motivation on the job. Teacher commitment may also
be an important factor determining the successful implementation of
educational reforms in schools. The current era of educational reforms
aims to bring about a shift toward more student-centered teaching and
learning, a greater emphasis on critical thinking and the application of
237
skills, and the establishment of a more democratic classroom

environment.
At present job satisfaction has been an important issue. Job satisfaction
describes how content an individual is with his or her job.
Teacher job dissatisfaction is closely associated with teacher
absenteeism and a tendency toward attrition from the teaching
profession. Furthermore disgruntled teachers who are not satisfied with
their job could not be committed and productive and would not be
performing at the best of their capabilities. Teaching profession is facing
problems related to teachers job satisfaction.
There are a variety of factors that can influence a persons level of job
satisfaction like school environment, remuneration, school economic
resources and working conditions, workload, opportunities for personal
and professional advancement.
Therefore the present research has focused on the relationships between
teacher job satisfaction and individual and job characteristics.
This empirical study has sought to measure the extent to which teachers
are satisfied with specific aspects of their job. These include
remuneration, physical working conditions, relationship with superiors
and colleagues, workload, teachers social status, opportunities for
personal growth and promotion, transfer policy, degree of decision
making autonomy, other duties like polio duty and election duty e.t.c
and characteristics of the educational system.
Objective of the study
The objective of the study is as follows:
To assess the satisfaction level of teachers in Government
schools
To identify the factors which influence the job satisfaction of
teachers
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Job Satisfaction of Government Teachers
Definitions of Job satisfaction:

According to E. A. Locke a pleasure or positive emotional state
resulting from the appraisal of ones job or job experience.
A Job satisfaction is the amount of pleasure or contentment associated
with a job. If you like your job intensely you will experience high job
satisfaction. If you dislike your job intensely, you will experience job
dissatisfaction. Du Brin.
Job satisfaction is a set of favorable or unfavorable feelings with which
employees view their work. Keith Davis & J. W. Newstrone.
According to Elaine and Marie (1984:31-37) job satisfaction can be
achieved if the individual needs and the job characteristics can go hand
in hand and if the bar of expectation and the reality is decreased.
Job satisfaction and dissatisfaction not only depends on the nature of the
job, it also depend on the expectation whats the job supply to an
employee (Hussami, 2008). Lower convenience costs, higher
organizational and social and intrinsic reward will increase job
satisfaction.
C.R.Reilly (1991) defined job satisfaction as the feeling that a worker
has about his job or a general attitude towards work or a job and it is
influenced by the perception of ones job.
Methodology
A sample of 50 respondents was included in this survey. The
respondents were selected from government schools located in
Nalgonda. The primary data were collected from the questionnaire. The
questionnaire consists of three main parts:
(I) Options table was given to measure the satisfaction level. A 5
point scale has been used which is denoted by 1=SA, 2=A,
3=cant say, 4=D and 5=SD.
(II) Demographic profile of the respondents
(III) 15 statements were included in the Questionnaire based on 5
factors such as working conditions, salary, and promotion and
transfer policy, relationship among colleagues and superiors and
fringe benefits.
239
Questionnaires were distributed in different government schools and

among of them 50 teachers gave their response to given questionnaire by
marking () to their option, which is usable to do further calculations to
measure the level of their job satisfaction.
The collected data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for
Social Science (SPSS) for MS Windows and tabulated descriptively
ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION:
In this section will try to highlight and discuss the results and the
findings based on the analysis done on the data collected from
respondents. In this analysis measures the overall level of job
satisfaction and dissatisfaction of teachers by using of statistical
techniques such as mean standard deviation and percentages.
The descriptive statistics will present the feel of the data that gives
preliminary ideas how good the scales are how well the coding and
entering of data has been done.
Table : 1 showing the overall job satisfaction
S.NO Factors affecting job

satisfaction Mean Standard
deviation
1 Work conditions 3.66 1.54
2 Job is boring 6.28 1.735
3. Access to resource 4.25 1.92
3 Feedback from Seniors 4.0 1.356
4 Relationship with Colleagues 4.05 1.361
5 Organization
Development care for Care 4.11 1.62
6 Appreciation for Achievement 4.11 1.84

7 Satisfaction on Transfer Policy 4.45 1.713
8 Promotion Policy 5.33 1.928
9 Salary 4.38 1.716
10 Fringe benefit 4.38 2.066
11 Additional duties 6.166 2.195
12 Work on interesting projects 5.55 1.925
240
13 Flexibility in working hours 5.61 2.2

14 Suggestion are valued 4.88 2.05
Table : 2 showing the frequency and percentage of level of satisfaction

of government teachers in Nalgonda
S.NO Factors affecting job
satisfaction given
Options Frequency Percentage
1 Working conditions 1 7 14
2 35 70
3 2 4
4 5 10
5 1 2
2 Job is boring 1 1 2
2 7 14
3 4 8
4 28 56
5 10 20
3 Access to resources 1 5 10
2 28 56
3 2 4
4 10 20
5 5 10
4 Feedback from Seniors 1 2 4
2 35 70
3 5 10
4 8 16
5 0 0
5 Relationship
Colleagues with 1 2 4
2 33 66
3 7 14
4 8 16
5 0 0
241
6 Organization
Care Development
care for 1 4 8
2 32 64
3 5 10
4 8 16
5 1 2
7 Appreciation for
Achievement 1 7 14
2 23 46
3 6 12
4 10 20
5 2 4
8 Policy
Satisfaction on Transfer 1 6 12
2 22 44
3 7 14
4 15 30
5 0 0
9 Promotion Policy 1 4 8
2 12 24
3 13 26
4 15 30
5 6 12
10 Salary 1 6 12
2 23 46
3 6 12
4 15 30
5 0 0
11 Fringe benefit 1 7 14
2 22 44
3 4 8
4 13 26
5 4 8
12 Additional duties 1 2 4
2 13 26
3 0 0
4 18 36
242
5 25 50
13 projects
Work on interesting 1 4 8
2 9 18
3 2 4
4 23 46
5 12 24
14 Flexibility in working
hours 1 4 8
2 7 14
3 3 6
4 27 54
5 9 18
15 Suggestion are valued 1 3 6
2 11 22
3 5 10
4 24 48
5 7 14
Graph: 1showing the relationship between factors affecting the job

satisfaction and options given and the response for them from the
government teachers involved in the survey.
40
35
30
25
20
15
Factors affecting
job satisfaction
Options given
10
5
0
12 3 4 5 6 7 8 9101112131415
Conclusion:
243
A teacher, who is happy with his/her job, plays a pivotal role in the
upliftment of society. Teachers who are not satisfied with their job could
not be committed and productive and would not be Performing at the
best of their capabilities.
The study was conducted by using primary data and secondary data. It
was concluded that all the teachers are satisfied with the work
environment, resources, appreciations from their superiors, and
relationship between their colleagues and immediate superiors. But the
teachers are dissatisfied with the remuneration, promotion policies,
additional duties, and flexibility in working hours, suggestions are
valued participation in decision making.
244
THE ROLE OF LECTURE METHOD IN
MANAGEMENT EDUCATION
Mr. M. Venkat Ramana Reddy
Abstract:
Lecture Method is one of the oldest and yet the most prevalent
method. In view of its long tradition and the economy of scale it
introduces, it is likely to continue to be used in the foreseeable future.
All efforts have therefore to be made to improve this method. This
paper tells about the variants of lecture method and what steps in
improving the instructional value of the lecture.
Introduction
Lecture Method depends on the subject matter; Lecturing has been
used largely to build up basic theoretical knowledge which must be
gained before practice or participating training will be of any use. The
main drawback of this method is that the students are all passive.
They are just listeners in the class room, while the management
teacher is the sole active person there. As he speaks out, the students
concentrate, or taking down notes rather than on understanding,
assimilating or reacting to what the teacher says. Any slight
distraction makes the student lose track of the theme of a lecture and
indifference can begin.
Before starting the class the lecturer, then is bound to consider his
communication problems. He must study the nature of his students,
adopting his topic to their interests and level of understanding; must
organize his material in the manner most likely to teach effectively,
using aid where appropriate; must plan for variations in his
presentation, including time for questions and discussion which will
involve the students ad reveals what learning in taking instrumental
value of the lecture.
Objective
To prepare new entrant participants for lecture practice by reviewing
the characteristics, uses and limitations of the lecture method, and
245
giving suggestions on how to make an effective lecture with my

permit experience.
Variants of lecture Method
Lectures to the class of 50-60 students with about 20% of
time reserved for discussions, problem-sessions or
tutorials.
Lectures to a class of 100-200 students which meet, for
tutorials.
In small groups of 15-30students about 30-40% is
reserved for discussions.
Lectures are based on a particular text-book and the
lecturer confines himself to explaining the salient features
of the discussion there. The students are expected to read
the details themselves. Students are also expected to work
out the problems given in the text book and discuss these,
possibly in the class room.
The above supplemented by some notes on special topics
by the lecturer.
The above supplemented by some assignment sheets by
the lecturer and by quizzes at regular intervals to give the
necessary feedback to the lecturer.
The lecturer confines himself to explaining basic and
difficult concepts and proving some complicated results.
For the rest he gives reference to text books and journals
articles which the students read for themselves, discuss
among themselves and later discuss these with the lecturer.
Different variants differ in the proportions of time a student is
expected to spend in the classroom, in lhis own study and in the
library. In one extreme variant the student is expected to spend 80%
of the time in the classroom and 20% of his time in reading of the
notes taken in the classroom. In this variant the lecturers have heavy
teaching loads and not much initiative is expected from the students.
Students do little things of their own and depend heavily on their
memories. Lecturers who give good examinationoriented lecture
246
Role of Lecture Method in Management Education
notes are very popular. Lecturers have great responsibility and have to
prepare their lecture notes with great care.
In other extreme versions a student is expected to spend 20% time in
the lecture hall, 20% time in elective classes, 30% of time library
consulting books and journals and 30% time in his own study. In this
method, Lecturers have smaller teaching loads, students have to their
own text books and the library has to be well stocked with journals
and competitive examination books. The first method is economical,
if the object is just to impart some knowledge to the students. The
second version is much better if, the object is to train the students in
learning how to learn. One important principle is that as the students
proceeds to higher classes, he should be given greater responsibility
for learning himself.
Planning the Lecturer
Before starting to prepare your lecturer, you must be able to answer
four basic questions:
Who is your audience? WHO
What is the purpose of your talk? WHY
What is the time available? HOW LONG
What is the subject matter? WHAT
The audience. Who are they? Students. Is their attitude likely to be
friendly? Curious? Indifferent? Hostile(or skeptical)? Know the
characteristics of your students; their background, like and dislike,
cultural features, level and nature of education. Are they used to
listening to lectures? How fast will they be able to take in what you
say? This may also involve their knowledge of language. What does
your student know about the subject? What can you assume that they
know before you start your lecture? It may be helpful to start with a
general discussion or ask questions to get opinions. This approach
will give you some idea about the knowledge of the group and allow
you to make some last minute adjustments if necessary
Purpose of the talk. What is the end result you wish to achieve?
What do you want the audience to do or understand better as a result
247
of your talk? Your approach will certainly vary depending on whether

you wish to give general information on, or an appreciation of, a
subject; gain acceptance for a new point of view; change basic
attitudes; give detailed information; teach a particular skill. With a
clearly-defined purpose in mind, it will be easier to select appropriate
material and to decide on the most effective way to present it.
Time available. What is the total time available? How much of it
will be taken up by formalities? How much time will you leave for
questions and discussion? A good lecturer respects the clock by
narrowing down or adjusting his lecture to suit the time available. He
knows that it is better to have the students still interested and waiting
to know more after a short and fully-used period, than to have them
tired and uninterested after a talk that has been unnecessarily long.
He also knows that the sag-point in the students interest occurs
about twenty minutes, and passive listeners are reactivated from time
to time, by the use of interesting examples, humour, rhetorical
questions, students participation through discussion or question
period, etc.
Subject matter. Poor choice of subject or lack of sufficient
knowledge about it may mean death for a lecture. It is important to
speak from your own knowledge and experience, but at the same time
your topic and approach must be relevant to the needs and interests of
the students.
Having set yourself a general title, which you can make more precise
later on, and bearing in mind your objective, mark down a few basic
heading under which you can list ideas. Do not worry about order at
this point; the first step is simply to gather material together. Jot down
everything you think you want to cover, consulting reference books
and texts or previous lecture notes if necessary. Note down illustrative
examples, anecdotes and quotes. Look up facts and figures. You may
also think of ideas for discussion or quiz questions, for student
exercises, or for visual aids, and these should be recorded alongside
the points they will support.
248
After you have collected enough raw material, the next step is to sort
it into must say, should say and could say categories. What do
you want the students to remember at the end of the lecture? Put your
emphasis on this and narrow down your subject accordingly, also
bearing in mind the time available. At this point you are ready to
recognize your notes into logical order and work out a more detailed
outline, using basic structure:
a) The Introduction which should be brief and to to the point,
presents the theme and objective of the talk in a manner designed to
arouse the interest and curiosity of the students right from the start.
b) In the body of the talk, the main theme is developed in logical
steps so that the most important points will be remembered.
c) The type of Conclusion you will depend largely upon your
objective, but atleast give a brief recapitulation, in different words of
your main points plus some indication of where do we go from here?
The quality of your conclusion on may determine whether you
achieve your over-all objective or not. For this reason, many speakers
learn their conclusions off by heart.
Preparing the Lecture
Draft the talk. Prepare the notes from which you will speak.
Whatever type you use crds, paper sheets they should be easily
readable and sequentially numbered to avoid possible confusion.
Plan and prepare visual aids. Various teaching aids may be
employed to make the lecture more interesting and more easily
assimilated by the students by engaging their sense of sight. These
training aids are double-edged tools that can cut both ways. They can
gain the attention of the students and help to provide information. But
unless they have been carefully selected and designed to support the
lecture, they can actually distract attention from the points that the
lecturer is trying to make. It might be better to use no aids than to
work with the wrong ones.
Rehearse. Rehearsing the lecture is an essential step, even for most
experienced lecturers. This may reveal points at which he is
249
unintentionally unclear, transitions that are made too abruptly for his
listeners to follow, and other errors that can creep into even the best
planned lecture. Since the lecturer knows clearly what he means to
say, he may be wrost judge of whether or not he has clearly said it.
Try out your visual aids, finilising plans for their arrangement,
ensuring that they are readable and clearly visible in the class room.
The chief value of the rehearsal is in familiarizing the lecturer with
his speech. Even experienced lecturers suffer from stage, fright on
occasions. One or two dry runs through a lecture can build a lecturers
confidence in himself and in his material.
Delivering the Lecture
The written word can only be of limited help when it comes to advice
on speaking technique. What is needed is practice followed by
constructive criticism. Some of the essential points to keep in mind
are set forth below.
Setting the Physical arrangements.
Covering the material
Posture
Appearance
Manner.
Be poised
Be courteous
Be Sincere
Establish eye contact with your audience
Any actions and gestures must be natural and
spontaneous
The tone of the voice can be altered to convey
confidence, emotion, emphasis and indignation.
It is best to use everyday language, avoiding slang,
which could be misunderstood, preferring short
familiar words and keeping sentences short.
250
Concluding Remarks
The teaching methodologies in management education program
should consider the views of the practicing teachers and experienced
resource persons in the conduct of training to the lecturers. It helps the
lecturers how to plan, prepare and deliver the lectures with more
efficiently and effectively.
References
1. NCTE. (1999). Teacher Education in Uttar Pradesh, National
Council for Teacher Education, New Delhi.
2. UGC (2002). Tenth Plan of University Grants Commission,
New Delhi: UGC.
3. Stella Antony ad Ganam, A. (2005). Primacy of Teaching in
Assessing Institutional Quality. University News. Vol.43,
No.08 New Delhi, AIU.
4. P.k. Srivastava(2005), Quality Improvement Measures for
Teacher Education, University News, 43(18), May 02-08
2005.
251
EMERGING ISSUES OF GHRM AND EFFECTIVE
UTILIZATION
JayaPrakashNarayana. G
Varadha Raju Komanduru
Shekhar Neelakantam
ABSTRACT
Economic growth around the world is likely to remain below its
potential for several years to come. The current unstable business
environment has resulted in major challenges to which companies
have responded with changes in strategy and operations. The times
are especially tough for human resource professionals. A volatile
economy is a major obstacle in the way of employee promotions,
rewards and retention. In addition to which there is a looming talent
crunch for the next generation of middle and senior leaders at
domestic and global levels. Historically, Human Resources
Management (HRM) has been described as being responsible for the
attracting, recruiting, selecting, training, assessment and
compensation of employees while ensuring compliance with
employment and labor laws. All the functions of Domestic Human
Resources Management (DHRM) are applicable in Global Human
Resources Management (GHRM). GHRM is the synonymous to
International Human Resources Management (IHRM).
INTRODUCTION
Economic growth around the world is likely to remain below its
potential for several years to come. The current unstable business
environment has resulted in major challenges to which companies
have responded with changes in strategy and operations. The times
are especially tough for human resource professionals. A volatile
economy is a major obstacle in the way of employee promotions,
rewards and retention. In addition to which there is a looming talent
crunch for the next generation of middle and senior leaders at
domestic and global levels.
252
Emerging Issues of GHRM and Effective Utilization
In a borderless world, expanding footprints of organizations in global

markets have sparked newer HR challenges in terms of successful
integration of a diverse workforce, business approaches and cultural
cues. Like never before, HR needs to be efficient in integrating the
dilemmas and defusing the conflicts in the wake of mergers and
acquisitions.
SURVEY OF THE LITERATURE
The survey of the literature has been done in order to assess the extent
and quality of employees in terms of qualifications, skills and
knowledge. There have been a number of studies conducted so far in
this area. However, a few studies of importance have been presented
here.
1. Gerald (2010) conducted a study on the organizational benefits
of investing in work place health and the results show positive
behavior from employees.
2. Ronald C Politnikoff (2009) conducted a research on
relationship between workplace environment and physical
activity and the results show positive relationship.
3. Rao (2003) has studied some aspects of personnel
administration and union management relations in the Indian
Railways in the post-independence period.
4. Saxena (2000) gives socio-economic background of workers in
the five selected units in Meerut district and discussed
promotion policies, training, transfers, welfare measures, bonus,
remuneration and the functioning of the trade unions.
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
To be precise, the study has undertaken the following objectives:
a. To know the impact of modern GHRM in the Corporate
world.
b. To study the economic changes of a nation due to GHRM,
and
253
c. To make appropriate suggestions for effective utilization of

the activities of GHRM.
RECENT TRENDS ISSUES IN GHRM
1. Human Resource in Business Outsourcing Process (BPO) 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.
2. With the increase of global job mobility, recruiting competent
people is also increasingly becoming difficult.
3. Employees are accepting assignments that take them to unsafe
and dangerous work places in the world. These assignments are
often shorter term, but increasing in frequency.
4. On global employment the work life and private life has been
blurred by technology with multi cultured people.
5. On the global employment worldwide governments are
providing incentives for whistleblowers and promoting a
business culture that embraces and working culture.
6. The new face of discrimination like migrant and social origin
globally.
7. Third party is funding of litigation.
8. Global mobility employment contracts are critical and the
working places of expatriates or migrants in the world wide
workforce are difficult.
9. Rise of the contingent workforce worldwide is an economic
certainty and presents multiple employment law compliance
issues ranging from joint employer liability to compliance with
globally different wage and benefit statutes.
10. Global arbitration and the rise of soft law approach to
regulations represents multiple employment law challenges at
254
the same time it promotes greater uniformity of working

conditions and global management.
11. The importance of globalization and integrating markets will
become larger and more global.
12. Talent management is finding and retaining quality talent
continues to be essential to business sustainability.
13. Most industries and countries are to experience a widening
talent gap, notably for highly skilled positions and for next
generation of mid and senior leaders.
14. Working virtually across functions and geographies will
intensify.
15. Human capital protectionism may continue to increase in many
countries in non-tariff, nationalistic forms.
16. Companies that originate in emerging economies will continue
to succeed in the global marketplace.
GLOBAL BUSINESS RESULTS
The Industrial Units have become more globally, in Markets,
Operations, Technology and Investment.
Organizations will experience higher levels of risk and
uncertainty,
The disruptive nature of globalization will increase the need for
organizations to be more flexible and agile,
There will be increased political and social pressures for
ecological and societal responsibility,
Organizations will be facing and challenged by economic and
demographic imbalances.
The use of technology will increase at a rapid pace,
Work will become more complex and interdependent,
Work and thus people will be more mobile and global in
orientation leading to increased workforce migration,
255
There is likely to be a growing mismatch between skills needed

and talent available,
There will be an increased need for demographic and cultural
sensitivity,
More work will be done by diverse work teams often at a
distance from one another,
Declining loyalty between organizations and employees,
b.
The traditional definition of family is undergoing
transformation.
c.
GHRM- CHALLENGES
Due to up and down movements of global economy there are many
changes
d. occurring rapidly that affect following GHRM issues.
a. Change Management Style
e. Leadership Style
HR Performance Appraisal
f. Organizational effectiveness
Remuneration and Compensation
g. Staffing: Hiring and Recruitment of Knowledge Workforce.
Succession and Career planning
j. Learning and Development
h.
i. Staffing: Retention and Termination
m.
k. Benefits costs: Health, Safety and Welfare
Managing diversity of workforce.
n.
l. Managing pressures for more labor rights in third world
countries.
o. Managing Outsourcing of employees.
More part-time and temporary work
p. Managing productivity and Quality
Downsizing the workforce
q. Coping with flexible working hours
256
GLOBAL BUSINESS AND GHRM

1 Political
Increased demands for transparency in government and
organizations
Increasing dispersal of national power
Narrowing of gaps in national power between developed and
developing nations
Increase in the power of non-state actors (businesses,
organizations such as the World Bank)
2 Economical
Increased government involvement in economic growth
Increasing gap between rich and poor individuals
Rapidly increasing national debt to GDP ratios
Growth and increasing instability of sovereign wealth funds
Increase in state capitalism
3 Social
International and internal migrations
Increased interconnectivity of people, organizations and
societies
Changing family structure
Increasing power of women
Aging population
Population growth
Increasing social freedom
Accelerated pace of life
Urbanization
4 Technological
Pace of technological innovation is increasing
Genomics
Digitization of lifestyles and work life
257
Breakthrough or transformative technologies

Social, economic and cultural connectivity.
SUGGESTIONS FOR EFFECTIVE UTILIZATION OF HR ON

GLOBE
1. GHR Manger needs to develop work culture by acquisition and
mergers.
2. Companies are going global due to which the workforce
diversity is increasing. Managing these people with different
religious, cultural, moral background is a challenging task for
the HR Managers in 21st Century. Showing more effort on this
areas.
3. Long working hours, target pressures, high competition etc adds
stress and conflicts, Maintaining a balance between work life
and personal life is also real life problem, due to which stress
and conflicts take place.
4. Information system regarding human resources has not yet fully
been developed due to industries giving low status to HRIS and
less importance given to HRP. Further the reliable data and
information about the economy, other industries, labour market,
trends in human resources are not available.
5. In relation to considering all recruiting options, HR must keep
up with ever-changing technology and trends.
6. Realize that emotions are part of the workplace and that
negative emotions can fuel the conflict.
258
7. Another challenge facing Human Resource Management at

global is bureaucracy, Structure and regulations in place to
control activity.
8. The GHR manager should have compromising style to maintain
and continuing the relationship in the organization.
9. Avoidance is characterized by deliberately ignoring or
withdrawing from a conflict rather than facing it.
10. The main challenge affecting today is leadership development.
Human Resource professionals continue to wrestle with
understanding the best ways to keep people in the pipeline and
develop leaders for future succession planning. They are
required to provide the essential frameworks, processes, tools,
and points of view needed for the selection and development of
future leaders, and that managers they produce in the long run
are equipped to take on leadership roles of the future so that the
organization is viable in the long term.
11. An evaluation of the personal and demographic characteristics
of the candidate and his/her family members.
12. Training and development extends beyond information and
orientation training to include sensitivity training and field
experiences that will enable the manager to understand cultural
differences better. Managers need to be protected from career
development risks, re-entry problems and culture shock.
13. To balance the pros and cons of home country and host country
evaluations, performance evaluations should combine the two
sources of appraisal information.
14. Compensation systems should support the overall strategic
intent of the organization but should be customized for local
conditions.
15. In many European countries - Germany for one, law establishes
representation. Organizations typically negotiate the agreement
with the unions at a national level. In Europe it is more likely for
salaried employees and managers to be unionized.
259
16. Employers also need to be aware of discrimination liability

related to economic adversity and discrimination against the
unemployed. Within the U.S., states are starting to adopt statutes
protective of the unemployed and the EEOC has flagged the
potential link between current civil rights laws and the disparate
impact of unemployment discrimination. Outside of the U.S.,
unemployment discrimination may be considered a form of
social origin discrimination.
SCOPE FOR FURTHER STUDIES
The present study has aimed to know the impact of modern GHRM in
the Corporate world and to study the economic changes of a nation
due to GHRM. There is a scope to study in Service Sector,
manufacturing sector and multinational sector.
SOCIAL RELEVANCE OF THE STUDY
Society comprises of the workers, management, Government and
general public. We are willing in a global village. The present study is
of much relevance to the multinational companies, global placement
agencies, Government and Public.
CONCLUSIONS
The challenges for HR range from adjusting to the demands of a
globalized workforce, through negotiating cost constraints, to taking
advantage of new technologies. At the same time, HRs potential
strategic value is under-appreciated. In order to emerge stronger from
its current struggles - stronger and better able to add value -
executives must recognize and implement three concurrent changes to
the HR function. So here the GHR managers should concentrate on
updated changes trends and they should ready to avoiding the barriers
more than face it. For this they should maintain some standard
qualities then only it is possible.
REFERNCES
1. Aswathappa K and others: International Human Resource
Management, TMH, New Delhi- 2010
260
2. Adler, N.J. (1997) International Dimensions of Organizational

Behavior, 3rd edition. Cincinnati: South-Western College
Publishing.
3. Adler, N.J. and Ghadar, F (1990) Strategic Human Resource
Management: A Global Perspective, in Pieper, R. (ed.) Human
Resource Management in International Comparison. Berlin: de
Gruyter
4. BCG and WFPMA (2010) Creating a New Deal for Middle
Managers Enpowering a Neglected but Critical Group The
Boston Consulting Group and World Federation of People
management Associations, July.
5. Belcourt, Monica and Kenneth McBey, Strategic Human
Resources Planning, Cengage Learning, 2010.
6. Luis R. Gomez-Mejia, David B. Balkin and Robert, Cardy.,
Managing Human Resources, Pearson Education, New Delhi,
2004.
7. Narayana Murty T, Labor Welfare Activities in Indian Industrial
Organizations, Unpublished Thesis, Nagarjuna University,
Nagarjuna Nagar, 2000.
8. Rizwana Anasri, Physical Work Environment and Industrial
Safety of the Employees in Power Sector, Unpublished Thesis,
Vinayaka Mission University, Salem, 2011.
9. Subba Rao P: International Business HPH, Mumbai, 2001.
261
OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES IN HUMAN
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Ms. Pooja Gandotra
Mr. Anil Bhat
Human resource management is the management process of an
association's workers, or human resources. It is accountable for
the magnetism, selection, education, training, appraisal, and pleasing of
employees, while also supervising organizational leadership and
customs and certifying compliance with employment and labour laws. In
situation where employees desire and are legally authorized to hold
a collective bargaining agreement, Human resource will also serve as the
company's primary link with the employees' representatives.
It is a product of the human relations movement of the early 20th
century, when researchers began documenting ways of creating business
value through the strategic management of the workers. The purpose
was initially dominated by transactional work, such as payroll and profit
administration, but due to globalization, company consolidation,
technological advancement, and further research, it now focuses on
strategic initiatives like amalgamation and achievements, talent
management, industrial and labour relations, and diversity and insertion.
In beginning, Human resource duties may be performed by trained
professionals. In larger companies, an entire functional group is
typically dedicated to the regulation with staff specializing in various
Human resource responsibilities and functional leadership engaging in
strategic decision making across the business. To train practitioners for
the profession, institutions of higher education, professional
associations, and companies themselves have created programs of study
dedicated openly to the duties of the function.
In the current global work environment, all global companies are
focused on holding the talent and knowledge held by the workforce. All
companies are focused on lowering the employee turnover and
preserving knowledge. New hiring not only need a high cost but also
262
Opportunities and Challenges in HRM
increases the risk of the newcomer not being able to replace the person
who was working in that position before. Human resource departments
also strive to offer benefits that will appeal to workers, thus reducing the
risk of losing knowledge.
Human Resource Management starts with staffing in the organisation
and it can be defined as:
Staffing:
It is defined as the process of filling the positions in an organization
structure through identifying work-force requirements, inventorying
the people available, recruitment, selection, placement, promotion,
appraisal, compensation and training of needed people to carry out the
business activities very effectively.
Staffing should be based on the need of the enterprise operation and
day to day running of the business with out any sort of hindrance. On
the basis of the need, Managers should determine the number and type
of persons to be staffed in the enterprise.
The manager of the firm should develop a strategic staffing plan in
such a way that the working by all in a collective way without the
feeling of overwork. The staffing plan with specification of the
positions / jobs should always thrive to fulfill the set objectives of the
firm.
Once the staffing plan is prepared, the duty of the manager is to
develop the job description (i.e. the work should be performed by the
specific position) in a constructive way so that the qualified people
should think that they should not leave the opportunity of working
with that enterprise.
Organization and staffing go side by side. Staffing starts with
recruitment of personnel. Recruitment starts with specification or
qualifications of individual who will occupy important positions to
carry out the activities of organization.
There are different ways of recruiting the staff.
1. Advertising in news papers
263
2. Recruiting through persons who are already working in the
organization
3. Recruiting through friends
4. Considering the persons who knock at the doors of organization,
etc.
Selection Process:
1. The performance of chosen person on the job is the best criterion.
2. The application of the firm is usually carries information pertaining
to personal data of applicant and his educational background,
training he has undergone, work experience if any, salary history,
special interest of individual if any etc,.
3. An interview will be conducted through which mental alertness,
sense of values, quickness of judging, general orientation,
communication skills, degree of professionalism etc., of the
applicant will be studied. Besides such mental ability of the
individual, language efficiency of persons is also studied.
4. The applicants academic record usually serves a major indicator for
selection process.
5. In highly specialized jobs, the academic record is the best criteria.
6. In the case of managerial positions along with academic record and
leadership qualities communication skills assume greater
significance.
7. The reference letters submitted by the applicant are of some use,
but some managers do not give much importance to such
reference letters because applicant submits such letters which are
with favourable comment from previous organization.
8. Examination of physical fitness of individual is most common in
any organization because no organization will ready to recruit a sick
person.
9. Good organizer selects the person with fairly above average
academic record with extracurricular activities which give rise to a
264
good leadership.
The world is changing. The world of business is changing. Human
resource management is not what it used to be. Developments of the past
three decades have changed the face and practice of business and these
changes have confronted managers with many opportunities and
challenges. Nowhere are these challenges more pronounced than in the
area of HRM (Kramar, 2012).
The various external pressures are having the greatest impact on human
resources management as explained by David S. Weiss. Organizations
are facing quite a few challenges at the present time. Some of them are:
1. Optional competitive forces. New competitive forces are creating
new stress for companies to respond to service and product delivery in
very different ways. These competitive forces place marvellous demands
on companies to embrace technology and alternative relationships,
sometimes with competitors.
2. Buyer hope and values. Now a days buyers have become very
demanding and they expect awareness, quality, and collection of
services, so that the services they receive are total solutions rather than
just parts of the solution. This is creating major challenges for
companies that see themselves as the delivery agents of only one
service. So they to think on that aspect also.
3. Approach to resources. Companies often have great difficulty
responding effectively to these pressures because of the lack of available
resources. As a result, we are seeing very important mergers and
attainments These are driven by the need for both new competencies and
additional resources to meet these external challenges.
There the Human resource management should focus on following
major areas.
1. People processes. It refers to the employment life cycle that
employees engage ongoing aid and support, to when they finally leave.
Human resource managements role is to make sure that there is
brilliance throughout this series. Many of the people processes,
265
particularly in from when they are brought into the corporation
developed, paid and receive the more administrative ones, are now being
done by external providers. However, Human resource is expected to
make sure excellence will continue even if HR is playing a merchant
management role.
2. Managerial processes. This area covers value-added managerial
processes. For example, Human Resource is expected to contribute to
the organization by creating a learning process where people can share
their experiences of what works and what does not work. It is also
expected to enable employees and managers to be more flexible through
the application of technology and self management processes.
3. Trade Alteration: In this area Human resource works at the planned
level. They help the company deal with issues and gain its competitive
position within the marketplace. There are a number of planned
alternatives that Human resource may focus on, such as, managerial
culture, arrangement between business and Human resource, the cost of
the human capital, etc. Typically, most organizations have the
bandwidth to tackle only one or two of the planned issues that are most
pertinent to the organization. The challenge for today's HR then will be
to determine which of the organization's planned initiatives it will
address.
Academics and practitioners have always been confronted with
theoretical and practical challenges in the field of HRM. The early
writings on HRM (Beer, 1984) were undertaken in a world in which
employers were challenging the traditional roles and influence of trade
unions and the role of other outside parties in the regulation of the
employment relationship (Kochan, 1986). Managers were asserting their
right to manage their employees without interference (Hilmer, 1989).
For many years there had been interest in increasing the productivity of
employees, however, during the early years of HRMs evolution, there
was discussion about the contradiction in the processes of HRM. On one
hand the HRM policies were seeking to develop commitment, while on
the other hand, they were using employees in such a way so they
266
contributed explicitly to the achievement of the organisations strategy
and goals (Legge, 1995).
Opinions differ about the extent to which HRM serves different
stakeholders. However, there is consistent agreement that HRM supports
the interests of the owners of organisations, both profit and not for profit
organisations (Kramar, 2011). This focus on business outcomes has been
strengthened by developments such as the policies of the World Trade
Organisation, the deregulation of many economies, the reduction in the
provision of services provided by the governments in many countries
and the increasing competition between countries in product, service and
labour markets.
In general we can say, the challenges faced by employers, corporations
and organisations in the effective management of Human resource
management varied from time to time about the lack of intellectual and
academic Human resource professionals to deal with the demand for
knowledge-work force and encouraging learning and development in the
place of work. The interior and central challenge is the lack of
intellectual HR professionals in developed firms, and this means that
employers viewed Human resource management as a function secondary
perhaps considered it as being of lesser importance. This implication
could lead to the ineffective implementation of management of human
resource activities and increase vagueness and breakdown in efficiently
managing it. The elderly workforce and their positions within the
company also facade a major challenge in terms of developing older
workers to become knowledge workers, particularly with regard to their
levels of education and learning. However, the issue of how Human
resource practitioners handle with an elderly workforce, to develop
knowledgeable and skilled workers to achieve knowledge-worker
status requires further research.
Furthermore, the lack of dedication and commitment towards the
profession can be seen throughout organisations, from top management
to bottom employees. The persons in the top management and
managerial level employees are found to be non - cooperative towards
267
employees. Actually, the nations capacity to face the challenges of
globalization and industrialization of business depends heavily on the
human resources and their management. Organisations have the assets,
knowledge, technology and human resources but as far as the human
resource is concerned, it is the one who can help facing the challenges of
business globalization. Wealth can be generated by efficient
management and so can technology and skill. But the matter to be taken
up is that the human resources are needed to push the organization,
association, society, institute and the nation through the coming
challenges with encouragement, motivation and support.
References:
1. Beer, M., Spector, B., Lawrence, P.R., Mills, D.Q., and Walton,
R.E., 1984, Managing Human Assets, Free Press, New York.
2. Kochan, T., Katz, R.B. and McKersie, R. B., 1986, The
Transformation of American Labour, Basic Books, New York.
3. Hilmer, F., 1989, New Games/New Rules: work in competitive
enterprises, Angus and Robertson, Sydney.
4. Kramar, R., Trends in Australian human resource management;
what next?, Asia Pacific Journal, 2012
5. Legge, K., 1995, Human Resource Management: Rhetoric and
Realities. MacMillan, Business Press. London.
6. Kramar, R., Bartram, T. and De Cieri, H. 2011. Human Resource
Management in Australia. McGraw-Hill, Sydney
7. Haslinda, Abdullah, 2009. Major challenges to the effective
management of human resource: Training and development
activities. The Journal of International Social Research. Vol. 2/8.
8. Archana Verma, 2012. Future HR Challenges in the Era of
Economic Crises. International Journal of Research and
Development - A Management Review. Vol. 1.
268
About the Editor
Dr Ravi Aluvala is working as Associate Professor in the Department of

Management Studies of Mahatma Gandhi University. He is presently the
Principal of University College of Commerce & Business Management,
Mahatma Gandhi University, Nalgonda.
He obtained his MBA and PhD from Osmania University, Hyderabad and
has an overall experience of eighteen years, of which thirteen years of teaching
and five years of industrial experience.
He has published more than 25 papers in national and international journals.
He has presented 16 papers in national and international conferences.
His teaching, research and consulting interests include Human Resource
Management, Compensation Management, Organizational Behavior, Strategic
Management, Participative Management, Industrial Relations etc.,
Zenon Academic Publishing, ISBN: 978-81-926819-3-1

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These changing scenarios much impact the People Management in the

Dr. Ravi Aluvala

I am very much grateful to Prof. Katta Narasimha Reddy,

I am grateful to Prof. K. Pochanna, Registrar of Mahatma Gandhi

I wholeheartedly express my deep sense of gratitude to

I take this opportunity to express my thanks to all my colleagues at

I am thankful to my parents Late Sri Aluvala Janaiah and

Dr. Ravi Aluvala

Dr. Ruchi Goyal Dr. Farida Virani

Ms. Shalini Srivastava

Dr. Surekha Rana

Dr. Ravi Aluvala

Dr. Makarand Upadhyaya Mr. Soumik Gangopadhyay

Dr. Ravi Kumar Gummadi, Mr. Anirban Sarkar

Dr. Ramesh Kumar Miryala

Dr. Naveen Kumar Bandari Mr. Yadagiri Ch,

Ms. Roshee Lamichhane Mr. John Paul Mennakanti

Dr J.Varaprasad Reddy Dr. Bharath Kumar Porika

Mr. P.Divakara Rao Mr. M. Venkat Ramana Reddy

Mr. Anil Bhat

Mr. Shekhar Neelakantam

environment. However, to do so they will need to continue and

Now is a huge opportunity for the SMEs and Entrepreneurs to expand

Source: World Bank

model ends in prescriptive over reach by submerging issues of role

problem of disguised unemployment. They have no written contract

emerging challenge for the HR is to manage inter-functional conflict

4 Working core values, leadership, work life balance,

9 High-performance Develops a performance culture that

organizational performance, processes and design HR practices that

Responsibility for Line managers Focus Employee

Assessing future requirements: workforce demands and the

2. Armstrong, Michael, (2008). Strategic Human Resource

seeking to improve, that responds to customer needs, and that aims to

fostering competition, innovation and promoting entrepreneurship and

SMEs. It alone would bring out some of their consequences that

whether a large number of competitors exist; upon whether they are of

production which increase the structural competitiveness of the

between all the available innovations or better still create new

increasingly to be the case. But the process remains the same; it is

In particular, it is crucial to consider training needs, and how they will

of projects, each having a limited life, innovation becomes imperative

technological context or which did not succeed in creating a new

9. Drucker, Peter F. (1985) Innovation and Entrepreneurship

individualism in employment has questionably placed the integrity of

any other. Multiculturalism, racism, post modernism,

suffering, of the minority even resulting in costing lives of people? HR

establish the interests of the employees? Second, why should one

practices, a lack of laws, and the improper administration of justice,

The Stakeholder Approach

ethical practices in HRM. Most importantly ethics in HRM should be

12. Payne, S. L. and Wayland, R. F. (1999). Ethical Obligation and

as an independent household, engaging members of the family. At the

as control over own emotions, empathy, on the other hand instills

Table 1 Various crafts of Artisans

hence affecting their performance and income. Due to middlemen

author had made attempts to gauge such components in artisans who

39 artisans demonstrated high social skills while working in team

Overall, artisans largely are highly driven by external environment

7. Salovey P., Mayer, John D. (1990), Emotional Intelligence