Agony & Ecstasy of an HR Professional
It was 9 years ago that I decided to make a career shift from Software development to HRM, and I have been successful to a certain extent although I have a long way to go. While the ride so far has been challenging yet adventurous and I am learning to go with the flow. Any profession for that matter, has its own pros and cons but in this ever-changing world of HRD, we must be cautious while placing our pawns. For we not only issue reports, certificates, letters and keep track of records be it Compliance or Legal… But also interact with people, learn with people, deal with people and manage the people. For it is strenuous, to convince people be it the applicability & eligibility of a Policy or Rewards & Recognitions.
Unlike any Software or Hardware, HR can’t have versions to articulate mails as it is an art to deal with critical and sensitive issues of the people with a variety of perceptions. As there is a need to implement best practices, it calls for lot of market research and feedback from various sources. We bestow best practices and yet we are at the receiving end, at times, blamed for communication gaps and delayed responses. Thus, the age-old HR Notion still prevails in few Organizations, that “HR doesn’t get a seat at the table”.
As there is an opinion that HR doesn’t bring any valuable inputs to the table w.r.t Business but useful only during an appraisal. Each area is as important as the other and it is challenging to keep up the reputation of the department, always. Be it Operations, Shared Services, Training, Engagement or Business Partnering, as it is nothing less than a Crystal Maze. There is always scope for improvement as most of the work is data driven which in turn is people driven. In today’s fast paced environment of Digital transformation, we may have transformed many of the transactional activities. But there will always be a good amount of administrative/repetitive work be it in Compliance or Operational activities.
Last but not the least, Building the Culture of the Organization thereby building a brand is one among the many other challenges in HR. As India being the most diverse country has people from different cultural background with age no bar. While some may like the culture of being transparent and flexible at work, the others may like the traditional way of working with some set of rules. For, it takes lot of time and efforts to build a positive work culture with engaged workforce and there are no such standard tools. HR is the main thread of the Organization which either binds or breaks all the beads. For we make sure that there are enough filters to retain the fine beads and discard the weeds.
As the most engaged organization are the most productive and hence prove that the HR is more efficient and thus passionate to get a seat at the table indeed. An engaged work force needs to have a synergetic Human Resource Department at the right place and with the right breed. A passionate HR or People practice professional builds trust and maintains confidentiality at the same time. It requires a considerate amount of learning and with experience, one feels like a dime. We not only feel proud to treat people with respect and gratitude but also enable transparency and open feedback at work. All such positive approaches help us exchange ideas and share knowledge thereby help us build great network. In this era of Digital world where IoT, Artificial Intelligence and Big data are rising above, it is a great pleasure to learn the technology thereby impacting the business.
The interactions with various stakeholders gives us a sense of ownership as we feel accountable for the mutual decisions taken on behalf of the organization and it widens our thought process. This way, we get to learn and adapt to the trending technology and do away with the mundane or old practices which will be soon obsolete. At Happiest Minds Technologies – a next-generation Digital Transformation, Infrastructure & Security and Product Engineering Services company, listed as one of the top 100 best companies to work for in India’ by GPTW and The Economic Times; working with the People Practice team is a visual treat. For us, people are our customers and the sole objective of making them happy makes us happy too. As Happiest Minds strongly believes in its tagline “Happiest people make Happiest Customers”. We as HR professionals get to know about the Organization’s vision, mission and values, in depth. Through the continuous learning process, we get to keep ourselves dynamic, visionary and competitive with the ever-changing scenario of business and thus enable ourselves to get that “Seat at the Table”, with a great length and breadth!
Info:
Vijetha is a Software Engineer turned HR Professional having 7 plus years of experience serving IT companies with 6 years in Domain and 1.5 years in Web Designing. She has done her executive MBA in HRM from IIM-C and B.E from MCE Hassan, VTU. She is currently working as “Associate Manager – Corporate” in Happiest Minds Technologies Pvt. Ltd. Prior to Happiest Minds, Vijetha has worked with Causeway Software Technologies, Encora and Indecomm Global Services serving both inhouse and their clients – Google India Pvt. Ltd. and Sony India Software Centre Pvt. Ltd. Vijetha was born in Hassan, brought up in Hassan and Mangalore. She has lived in and explored Ahmedabad, Delhi, Mumbai and now is residing in Bangalore with her family since the last 4 years. She loves travelling, blogging/writing poems & short articles and semi-classical freestyle dance. She also enjoys cooking sea food and Pasta on weekends. Vijetha is a positive person who appreciates small things in life, sense of humor, values relationships and believes in being kind to others. Her dream is to write a book on all the 4 states that she has lived in, someday
