Developing yourself as an effective human resources

The Human Resources Profession Map is an interactive and living’ online tool developed by the Chartered Institute of Personnel ; Development (CUPID) and comprehensively underlines and explains the specialist functions, the behaviors skills and knowledge required in order for HER personnel to deliver effective and valuable support to an organization across the HER spectrum. It not only describes the highest standards of professional competence for the organization It Is also used to develop products and services but to support and enhance the professional development of Individuals.

It Is a vital resource for anyone working In or connected to the HER profession. Four Bands of Professional Competence Ten Professional areas Eight Behaviors Figure 1: The HER Profession Map source: CUPID 2013. As illustrated by figure 1 the map is circular and consists of three main sections, 10 Behaviors and four (rising) Bands of professional competence with each particular area describing what activities and knowledge you need at each band of competence, as well as defining the predominant behavior required at each activity.

Professional areas Lying at the centre of the map and applicable to all HER professionals regardless of ole, career stage and location are the core activities of Leading HER and Insights, Strategy and solutions and as such, are central tenets of a sound HER capability. Not only does it underpin the direction of the profession as an applied business discipline with a people and organization specialization but it effectively develops leadership across three main areas.

The other eight outlying professional areas are specialist in nature and can often be found in larger companies or organizations although activities may be outsourced or delivered by dedicated departments although smaller businesses, dependent on their needs, may require their HER personnel to be able to understand and deliver across a number of professional areas in order to effectively provide support.

Behaviors This section or outer ring of the HER Map lists those behaviors required in order to carry out each activity and are desirable attributes for a credible and professional HER practitioner. Each behavior is also divided into the four bands of competence and it is worth noting that the map also lists contra-indicators illustrating negative manifestations of each behavior. This section of the map is a useful resource in identifying those behavioral attributes required when transitioning the bands I. E. Promotion.

The Bands Bands 1 to 4 within the map represent the competence framework at which HER practitioners operate and also reflect the professional hierarchy. These four bands of professional competence define the contribution that professionals make at every stage of the HER career progression through a number of areas such as client relationship and service provision. Whether the Profession Map is used for personal development or for your (HER) team or organization, the bands provide clear pathways ND focus to developmental planning and activities.

Activities and Knowledge within Service Delivery and Information (Band 1) Although not directly connected with HER practice on a daily basis, the activities and knowledge most essential to my identified HER role would stem from the Service Delivery and Information professional area, a role fulfilled in my regiment (the organization) by Combat Human Resource specialists (CHRIS) also known as HER delivery across the employee career cycle providing the regiment with effective and cost efficient modes of operation and business execution.

On a daily basis the numerous CHRIS will be involved with stakeholder liaison, advising or promulgating organizational HER policy and generally are considered to be the first point of contact for all general HER issues. Therefore key activities which the author considers essential are the ability to build a customer service culture and measure effectiveness delivering service excellence, displaying a strong customer (care) driven service and ethos, often in demanding circumstances and environments. Coupled with this is the ability to recognize their own accountability and authority level for handling inquiries.

Concurrently they must also seek to identify ways to improve, challenge current practices and suggest methods for improvement. However, in order to successfully provide service excellence by participating in these activities strong HER corporate knowledge is essential. At the CHRIS Band 1 level this will be apparent in the effective use of an HER Information System such as Joint Personnel Administration POP), analyzing and presenting data from in in understandable terms, a thorough knowledge of the employee lifestyle and diverse needs at specific points (particularly promotion and rewards) and the handling, escalating and resolving complaints.

Finally, immunization remains a vital factor in the identified role to ensure consistent and accurate information delivery and enhance individual credibility. ACTIVITY 2 ” If you’re not serving the customer, you’d better be serving someone who is”. Karl Albrecht, German entrepreneur. Understanding Customer Needs Employing the identified HER practitioner (CHRIS) as an example this activity will explore how the organizational HER practitioner, understands the needs of their customers, facilitates passage of information through effective communication and provides effective service delivery.

Within the organizational structure this customer ease would be represented by three distinct customers; the command and control (CA) element (strategic/managing directors), sub unit commanders (management) and finally subordinate personnel (the team’ or staff. Understanding the need is fundamental to effective service provision as each customer will perceive the organization differently; from a CA perspective the needs from the HER practitioner can be wide ranging and span the spectrum of the HER profession map.

For example with current defense restructuring and redundancies the need for data concerning current/future resource and talent levels, capability APS by trade or employment groups and resource criticality will be essential in helping the organization achieve its goals, allocate resources effectively and retain its Sub unit commanders comply with the directives given by their senior managers (CA) to ensure that their personnel are appropriately trained across the organization in the event of an operational deployment and in compliance with corporate directives, health & safety legislation and collective law.

Therefore the need for detailed, accurate and up to date records of personnel training courses and professional competencies remains a primary need. From a personnel perspective the needs from the HER practitioner are simple the provision of clear, consistent and accurate advice and support aligned with rapport and sense of empathy; issues such as pay & allowances can be very emotive. This will ensure that the CHRIS gains a measure of trust and confidence demonstrating to the customer that problems, sometimes sensitive, can be addressed impartially and professionally.

Within any organization conflicts of priority may arise, although within the military context these can often be resolved by use of position and appointment, examples ay be that personnel wish to undertake further training courses but managers want minimal absence. However, successful procrastination of conflicting needs will often be decided by those that are most important at that point in time to achieve the organizations goals or are time sensitive in nature.

However, crucial to effective procrastination when such conflicts occur is good communication skills and time management from the CHRIS. Communication The best communication methods succeed in putting across the right message in a clear, unambiguous way that gets noticed by the target audience, whilst also saving n time and cost. Good HER practitioners succeed in choosing the best medium of communication for the particular purpose in mind. Generally speaking there are three modes of communication, written, verbal and non-verbal each with their own advantages and disadvantages.

Written communication is an accurate, factual and detailed method of recording and delivering information to a wide audience instantaneously. However, dependent on method of conveyance such as mail, it can easily be lost or misplaced whilst other disadvantages are that it can be misinterpreted, less engaging and less personal From a HER perspective verbal communication makes the process of communication easier, faster and remains the most successful form of communication as it allows for direct and personal engagement with the customer and helps resolve any misunderstandings immediately.

However, one primary disadvantage is that if the verbal message is passed through the organizations hierarchy then some distortions can occur during the process which can potentially be extremely damaging, whilst for barriers can include language or culture if operating within a multinational environment. Verbal communication forms only 7% of communication the rest is comprised of there forms of physical behavior commonly referred to as body language or non- verbal communication.

This is significant when correlating to leadership, management and good HER practice as it can reveal much about feelings and meaning to others; for example facial expressions can depict what emotions and mood an individual is experiencing better than by letter or email, direct eye contact with a customer can demonstrate sincerity and foster trust. However, one major disadvantage of this form of communication is that it is less influential and may not be appropriate due to rank, appointment or status within the unit/organization.

Effective Service Delivery In order for any service provision to be effective not only does the identified CHRIS practitioner need to understand the needs and requirements of the customer, they need to recognize who the customer is both internal and external to their organization, listen, understand and act accordingly; a good service will be based and developed on critique from its customers. In order for effective service delivery, products, metrics and deadlines, such as ‘credit to pay or appraisal tracking, need to be met on time to ensure HER integrity and credibility.