Human resources development (HRD) has acquired a lot of attention lately as the contemporary highly competitive business world requires 100% productivity of the organisation and each member of the staff. There are a number of issues within the area of HRD which should be addressed.
However, it is possible to single out four major issues which need special attention. These issues are concerned with productivity, training, motivation and diversity of the workforce. Notably, these areas are interrelated, which should be taken into account by HR specialists.
Large amount of literature on development of office workers’ skills can be found nowadays. As for development of workers of manufacturing organisations (e.g. textile industry), there is certain lack of consistent surveys and research (Ghazali & Halib 2012). It is possible to consider the major HRD issues in terms of manufacturing companies to outline main areas to research.
Executives, managers and researchers agree that productivity is one of the major issues of HRD (Sims 2007). It has been acknowledged that productivity should become a priority for workers to make a manufacturing company profitable (Ghazali & Halib 2012).
Admittedly, workers of a manufacturing company should be motivated to work harder. Each employee should strive for 100% productivity. York (2009) provides an example of the importance of each employee’s involvement into the development of the company’s productivity. Thus, one of the General Motor’s plants in California experienced various issues concerning productivity. In 1984, the company started:
a joint venture with Toyota… with a focus on teamwork between labor [sic] and management and a collective bargaining agreement that described the workers as professional partners committed to the New United Motors Manufacturing Inc. (York 2009, p. 273)
This incentive proved to be effective as productivity of the new venture was 40 per cent more efficient than a typical productivity of a GM plant (York 2009). The workers were motivated to perform better as they understood that their productivity could be beneficial for them and the overall company. This is only one of many examples that justify the importance of workers’ productivity as well as importance of motivation.
Workers involved in textile industry can also be motivated in the same way. Though, it is necessary to admit that such measures are quite drastic. As has been mentioned above setting proper standards will be beneficial for any manufacturing company.
High quality of products is crucial for textile manufacturing companies. Workers should understand that only specific quality of products can be regarded as acceptable and such characteristics as speed, amount of the products produced cannot be primary.
Notably, there are many strategies to develop productivity. As has been mentioned above, motivation is one of the most important factors to pay attention to. The example of GM plant represents one of ways to develop motivation.
Apart from making workers’ ‘professional partners’, it is possible to exploit a variety of strategies. Ghazali and Halib (2012) consider effectiveness of a specific incentive implemented on one of Malaysian manufacturing companies. The major motivation strategy was financial reward, i.e. additional payment for enhanced productivity.
Reportedly, this incentive had quite controversial effects. On the one hand, workers were motivated to work harder and produce more. However, such commitment was not very cost-effective as it led to various defects, equipment breakdown, etc. Therefore, it is necessary to note that motivation strategies need to be developed and improved to fit specific industries.
It is important to exploit a variety of motivation incentives, which are not confined to extra payment. Workers can obtain extra days off. It is possible to grant permission to work flexible hours. Promotion is a very potent tool to motivate workers of manufacturing companies. Training is also a very effective incentive to motivate workers.
It is important to understand potential of each worker and if there is a worker who is eager to perform other tasks, supervisors and eventually the company’s owners should give this person such an opportunity. When it comes to textile industry, some workers may be interested in developing their skills.
Thus, some may want to develop computer skills and some may have desire to be a designer. All these inclinations and abilities should be taken into account. These workers can become high-skilled professionals, which will be beneficial for the company (and overall industry).
When it comes to a textile manufacturing company, it can be helpful to present products of the company to workers who perform well. This incentive can be regarded as a motivation incentive as workers’ performance is appreciated and they are praised.
At the same time, this can positively affect products’ quality as workers will remember that the products they produce can become their reward. Admittedly, people tend to create better things for themselves than for other people.
Nonetheless, motivation is not the only factor that affects productivity, especially when it comes to manufacturing companies. Training plays a very important role in enhancing productivity. Birdi et al. (2008) claim that extensive training, empowerment and development of teamwork skills positively affect productivity of manufacturing companies.
At that, development of training programs requires quite a lot of precision. In the first place, Bayat (2011) notes that it is important to reconsider performance evaluation as existing standards do not meet needs of the modern business environment. Evaluation of productivity should be thoughtful.
Many executives are eager to set quite high productivity standards which are hardly achievable. This strategy is very tempting but it is ineffective and even harmful for a manufacturing company as it leads to lack of motivation in workers.
It is also important to take into account physical and psychological abilities of employees. Supervisors should understand whether a worker can fulfil this or that task. It is important to train workers who will be able to benefit from the training obtained as sometimes all workers take certain courses but never use the knowledge and skills acquired (Werner & DeSimone 2011). Admittedly, this is not cost-efficient.
When it comes to manufacturing companies, training should address specific group’s needs. Each worker’s performance and potential should be taken into account. It is necessary to add that development of proper training strategies is one of the most serious issues in the contemporary business world.
HRD professionals should work out incentives and programs that could address specific issues existing in a particular company. Productivity depends on effectiveness of these programs. Finally, training will positively affect industrial safety as workers should be aware of all standards, requirements and useful strategies.
Sometimes it is believed that only large companies can benefit from training. However, a number of surveys show that small companies can also benefit from training and other HRD strategies (Grigore 2008). Many people deem that only big companies can afford proper training.
Besides, owners of small companies often think training is costly and will not be repaid. However, many researchers provide data which suggest that small companies benefit from training and HR development.
Owners of small manufacturing companies often fail to understand that training can be regarded as one of strategies aimed at development of motivation. Workers will be motivated to improve their skills and develop new ones to increase their productivity, which, in its turn, will lead to financial reward.
Another main issue to be considered is diversity at workplace. It is believed that diversity is a topic that has already been covered and there is no need in considering it. However, there is significant gap in literature on the mater (Curtis & Dreachslin 2008).
The contemporary workplace is highly diverse in terms of age, gender and ethnicity. All these differences can interfere with productivity of each employee and the overall company. Therefore, it is crucial to pay a lot of attention to this issue. Notably, diversity training has become quite popular lately and many companies resort to a variety of strategies to raise diversity awareness among their employees (Werner & DeSimone 2011).
Sims (2007, p. 245) stresses that now the “diversity challenge centers [sic] not much on employees and customers but on management itself”. The researcher also notes that diversity awareness plays important role in teamwork development.
It is important to note that some people think the best way out to address issues associated with diversity is to diminish it. Of course, this approach is ineffective due to, at least, two factors. First, it is hardly possible to diminish level of diversity in the contemporary world where governments ensure equality and diversity (Idowu 2012).
Secondly, empowerment of women, globalisation, population aging contribute to high level of diversity at workplace. Thus, changing gender roles result in increasing number of women occupying different positions. The number of women in top management and among manufacturing companies workers is steadily increasing. This contributes to high level of gender diversity.
Globalisation is associated with people’s migration, which results in ethnical and cultural diversity at workplace. This is especially true for manufacturing companies where a lot of low-skilled people of different ethnicities are occupied. Population aging leads to quite a significant gap between generations at workplace, which leads to age diversity. Obviously, diversity can hardly be diminished.
It is also necessary to note that researchers still argue about the role diversity plays. Some state that diversity positively affects companies’ productivity as people of different backgrounds have extensive experience they share to develop the company (Henry & Evans 2007).
At the same time, some researchers claim that diversity negatively affects employee’s performance as it leads to miscomprehension, misunderstanding and a variety of conflict situations (Jayne & Dipboye 2004). Both viewpoints have the right to exist as diversity can be beneficial for a company, but it can also lead to numerous issues if no diversity training is provided.
Therefore, it is essential to raise diversity awareness among employees. When it comes to manufacturing companies, each employee should be involved in this training. There are numerous strategies to develop diversity awareness these days (Curtis & Dreachslin 2008).
Though major focus is made on such categories as students, top management, salespeople and healthcare professionals, researchers have developed certain strategies for workers of manufacturing companies as well. First, diversity training should address specific aims.
It is necessary to start with particular issues and conflicts existing at workplace. Team building activities should also be a part of this training, or rather teamwork development and diversity awareness training should be incorporated into a single training strategy (Sims 2007). Sometimes language courses can be beneficial for workers as nowadays many people of different ethnicities work in manufacturing companies.
As far as textile industry is concerned, diversity (especially cultural diversity) is a serious issue which should be addressed. Manufacturing companies often employ low-skilled workers who often have different cultural backgrounds. Apart from different ethnicities, workers of textile manufacturing companies are of different age and gender.
Different ages and genders often lead to certain conflicts among workers. Supervisors as well as workers should have the necessary knowledge and skills to be able to solve various problems and avoid conflict situations. Ability to work in teams depends on workers’ ability to cope with issues associated with diversity.
In conclusion, it is possible to note that companies need to address a variety of issues in the contemporary highly competitive business world. Human resources development should be one of the priorities for any company. HR specialists should pay special attention to the following: productivity, motivation, training and diversity. These fields need special attention as they significantly affect profitability of the company.
It is also important to note that these areas are interconnected and interdependent so they should be treated accordingly. It is important to develop training strategies that could address all of the following aspects: productivity, motivation and diversity.
When it comes to textile manufacturing companies, HR specialists should pay special attention to motivation and diversity as these are key factors for this industry. Notably, there are quite many gaps in research and even such serious issues as productivity, motivation, training and diversity are under-developed.
There is need in specific strategies and techniques which could be applicable in particular industries and settings. Of course, every HR specialist should also be ready to introduce effective techniques to enhance profitability of the company.
Reference List
Bayat, RF 2011, ‘Impact on the productivity of human resources management, performance evaluation’, Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences 5.12, pp. 1629-1635.
Birdi, K, Clegg, C, Patterson, M, Robinson, A, Stride, CB, Wall, TD, Wood, SJ 2008, ‘The impact of human resource and operational management practices on company productivity: a longitudinal study’, Personnel Psychology 61.1, pp. 467-501.
Curtis, EF & Dreachslin, JL 2008, ‘Diversity management interventions and organizational performance: a synthesis of current literature’, Human Resource Development Review 7.1, pp. 107-134.
Ghazali, Z & Halib, M 2012, ‘Productivity-based group incentive scheme: a human resource strategy for competitive advantage in a Malaysian manufacturing company’, European Journal of Social Sciences 28.1, pp. 101-108.
Grigore, AM 2008, ‘The impact of human resources practices upon small companies performances’, Buletinul LX.2/2008, pp. 83-92.
Henry, O & Evans, AJ 2007, ‘Critical review of literature on workforce diversity’, African Journal of Business Management, pp. 72-76.
Idowu, OF 2012, ‘Human resource diversity and organizational outcomes: managing differences or organizational culture’, Australian Journal of Business and Management Research 1.12, pp. 1-6.
Jayne, MEA & Dipboye, RL 2004, ‘Leveraging diversity to improve business performance: research findings and recommendations for organizations’, Human Resource Management 43.4, pp. 409-424.
Sims, RR 2007, Human resource management: contemporary issues, challenges, and opportunities, IAP, USA.
Werner, JM & DeSimone, RL 2011, Human resource development, Cengage Learning, Mason, OH.
York, KM 2009, Applied human resource management: strategic issues and experiential exercises, Sage Publications, Inc., London.