Navigating HR Roles During a Recession: What Activities Should I Focus On Now?

Dear All,

Roopa here. I am working as an HR Executive-Recruitment in a Software-Hardware Development company. Due to the ongoing recession, all recruitment activities have been put on hold. My management has assigned me general responsibilities at this time. I am seeking guidance on what HR activities I should focus on now that would benefit both the employees and the company. Can anyone please provide me with some advice?

Regards,
Roopa

Hi Roopa,

You should be happy that your company is giving you an opportunity to manage a Generalist role. I think any kind of role in generalist is good and also depends on your interest. If you have any particular field that you wish to handle, probably you can discuss it with your HR Head :)

Hi Ramya,

Thank you for your reply. My management is expecting me to come up with a plan for what I can do for my company. If I am not able to engage myself, I will be out of the organization. At this point in time, I am really not understanding what type of activities I have to undertake that will contribute to the company. Please guide me; I hope you will give me some ideas. Our company has a total strength of 75.

Regards,
Roopa

Dear Ramya,

Please work on developing a model of competency-based succession planning. This involves defining job responsibilities and the competencies required to perform those roles. You may need to engage with vendors who can conduct assessment centers to assist in this process. Subsequently, you should create individual development plans for employees.

Simultaneously, focus on employee training and organizational development activities.

Regards,
Neha

Dear Ramya, I would suggest that you try to save your job first, as you have mentioned that you were involved in recruitment and now the company wants to take some HR initiatives. This would also be a chance to prove your standing in the organization. You can develop communication skills, as we have seen that during tight market situations, there is a lot of chaos among employees. Try to build your interpersonal skills, communicate effectively about the company's growth, and most importantly, share the success.

You can also focus more on in-house training to save the organization's costs and outline policies where your organization can save or reduce costs, such as saving on electricity.

Hi Roopa,

You can do a lot of things in your organization nowadays. This is a golden opportunity for you to work on some different thoughts other than recruitment. You can work on the following things:

- KRA
- Competency mapping
- Performance appraisal
- Employee engagement tools
- Training & development (both technical & soft skills)
- Employee welfare
- Exit management and many more

Just think about what will be the easiest job and start with that.

Dear Roopa,

Recruitment is a sort of thing where even consultancies also do very well. Concentrate on the General HR role, where you should take care or involve yourself in all sorts of HR activities like Payroll, Appraisals, Company & Work Induction, Training & Development, Statutory Compliance, Health & Employee Welfare, Motivation of employees, Risk analysis, Public Relations, etc.

This would be a perfect HR role where you can learn a lot and develop yourself as a Future Manager - HR.

All the best...

Venki

Dear Roopa,

Recruitment is a type of activity that even consultancies excel in. It would be beneficial for you to focus on a broader HR role, where you involve yourself in various HR activities such as payroll, appraisals, company and work induction, training and development, statutory compliance, health and employee welfare, employee motivation, risk analysis, public relations, and more.

This comprehensive HR role will provide you with a great learning opportunity and help you develop into a future HR manager.

All the best,

Venki

Dear Roopa,

You can do the following activities:

1. Employee Performance (Individually and Department-Wise).
2. Employee Productivity (Efficiency of Employees).
3. Job Interest of Employees.
4. Training Needs of People.

Please let me know if you need any further information or assistance.

Thank you.

Dear All,

Thank you very much for your valuable comments and thanks for your time. I received an interesting suggestion PDF file and I am implementing a suggestion scheme in my organization. Please find the attachment for more information and kindly provide your comments on this.

Regards,
Roopa