Like many industries and job roles, human resource (HR) is evolving as well. On its part, the Labour Movement is also making sure the voices of workers in the HR industry are being heard.
The recent launch of the HR Industry Manpower Plan (IMP) was a culmination of hard work and extensive consultation by the tripartite partners and industry associations since it was announced by Manpower Minister Lim Swee Say two years ago.
Speaking as a panellist during the launch of the HR Industry Manpower Plan (HRIMP) last week, NTUC Assistant Director-General (ADG) Vivek Kumar said that HR is a “critical profession”.
To play a bigger role going forward, HR practitioners have to understand the change and advantages brought about by evolving technology in areas such as handling a multi-generational workforce and understanding the changing nature of business. With better understanding, ADG Vivek said that HR “can step up to the expectation” of the management and organisation.
Another concern of the Labour Movement brought up by ADG Vivek during the discussion was making sure that workers were not left behind as industries transformed. In line with that, the Labour Movement has been playing a proactive role of partnering HR of organisations to ensure that today’s employed will stay employed tomorrow.
He cited the example of the close partnership with DBS and DBS Staff Union, where union leaders are playing a big part of rallying workers as the bank goes through a digital transformation. In November last year, DBS announced that 5,000 employees were exposed to 1,000 digital experiments as it aspired to be a digital bank. In 2016, DBS was named the World’s Best Digital Bank by finance magazine Euromoney.
Change Management
For HR practitioners to play a bigger role and take part in the change management of a company, ADG Vivek said that they have to see themselves as business leaders – not just HR leaders.
He explained: “If HR doesn't understand the business that it operates in, and the phase that the business is in, it may not have a fundamental role to play in the change management.”
Source: NTUC This Week
