Feeling Lost in HR for Manufacturing: How Do I Evaluate Worker Performance Effectively?

I am working as an HR Manager in a manufacturing company. I joined the company two months ago. Prior to that, I worked in the IT sector. So, this is my first experience in the manufacturing sector. There are different departments like cutting, lining, pattern, spray, and packing.

In the company, I am now very clear about their production and understand their processes, from production in the cutting department to packing. I have also documented the job responsibilities of all the employees. I now want to determine the best way to evaluate the performance of workers in a leather manufacturing company. I am fully responsible for the company's recruitment process. According to my MD, recruitment accounts for only 20% of the HR profile, and there are no other significant HR tasks.

Therefore, I want to explore what initiatives can be implemented and how I can demonstrate to myself that there are numerous aspects of HR that can be addressed. I am feeling very confused about what to do. Kindly assist.

It's really great that you understand the manufacturing process in your organization. This clearly shows your interest in learning and developing the organization. I would like to add one more process as well. Before any production process, there is a key department known as the Sampling Department, which plays a vital role. Additionally, there should be other departments such as Merchandising, Quality, Planning, etc.

As you mentioned, according to your MD, recruitment is only 20% of HR, and I agree. Moreover, it might even be less than 20%. There are many other vital roles such as training and developing employees, managing the Appraisal System, handling Payroll, ensuring Statutory Compliance, providing Counseling, motivating employees, defining policies, and managing Appraisal Systems.

I hope this helps clarify the importance of various HR functions in an organization.

According to my MD, in training, there is no role for HR because he says, "I will provide the training or another senior person in the company will provide the training, so no role for HR is required." For performance appraisal, they do it on their own without following any procedure. The salary process is handled by accounts, and they do not want any policy to be implemented.

So, what should I do?

Understanding HR in Manufacturing vs. IT

Now, you are working in a manufacturing company, a labor-oriented industry. There is a significant difference between IT and manufacturing companies. In manufacturing companies, the HR department plays a crucial role in product and productivity, developing harmonious relationships among the workers and management.

In my previous experience, I implemented various systems to reduce absenteeism and enhance production by adopting new systems like production incentives, both monetary and non-monetary. Welfare, health, and safety are major areas in manufacturing organizations, so we must maintain and implement them according to government statutory acts and legislation without any violations. Otherwise, unrest may occur within the organization.

Therefore, it is essential to focus on labor acts and social security legislation to ensure compliance with workmen. By doing so, you will gain valuable knowledge. I recommend referring to labor law journals; Cite HR is a good website for HR professionals.

Thanks,

Rajesh Kantubhukta

Human Resources

Thank you, Mr. Rajesh. What initiatives can be taken in welfare, health, and safety? I don't have any experience in labor acts, social security legislations, or such knowledge.

No one is an expert without experience. It is the right time to learn all the acts as mentioned above. You should also update yourself on acts such as ESI, PF, PT, etc. There are many books available, and you can also find all the information on Cite-HR.

Thank you.

Dear Kanika, Members have given you a lot of good ideas. Hence, I will ask you a few questions to get an idea of your qualifications and experience. May we know what courses you have done and from where before joining the IT industry? What did you do in the IT industry?

I am glad to note that you took people's advice and studied the workflow, etc., to understand the process in the leather garment industry. Your Director is correct when he says recruitment forms only 20% of an HR manager's job.

Kindly see http://www.women-ww.org/documents/ww...ation_pack.pdf to get an idea of the complexity of the garment value chain.

They do not teach all the laws in colleges/universities; we have to acquire knowledge of those as we start work and face difficulties. Is there an HR Forum in New Delhi? If you have none, why not form one, in which members can interact and learn from each other. CiteHR is a good forum to learn. However, we need to give all the details about self and the scenario, at the outset, to ensure people can give precise advice rather than keep guessing and give solutions to our problems.

Please also read and digest material on Human Resource and Skill Requirements in the Leather and Leather Goods Industry at http://nsdcindia.org <link fixed>

All links found by searching the web using Google search Engine.

Members have suggested that you should try to:

1. Improve industrial relations.
2. Focus on the welfare and safety of the employees.
3. Ensure compliance with the labor laws applicable to your industry.
4. Implement work/productivity improvement methods.

These suggestions are relevant, but if you need to develop a concrete action plan and seek input from the members, you should provide more specific information on the following points:

1. What is the total number of employees in your factory?
2. What is the ownership structure of the factory?
3. If they believe that there is minimal work in HR, why were you hired?
4. Did you receive a job description when you were recruited, and if so, what did it entail?
5. What are the current expectations of the management – do they want you to perform assigned tasks or to propose your own initiatives?
6. Who is your reporting authority, and what is the organizational hierarchy like?
7. How long has the factory been operational, and what is its profitability status?

Thank you.

The following response is quoted from my own response submitted earlier (on 26th October 2013, 05:51 PM) in the thread:

https://www.citehr.com/470514-perfor...facturing.html

The above thread is a prequel to this thread posted by the member.

Dear Kanika, I have gone through this thread carefully.

Understanding Recruitment's Role in HR

This is your second query on the thread: "So, I want to know what initiatives can be taken and in what way I can prove myself, that there are so many things in HR that can be done. I am very confused about what to do?"

I totally agree with the views of your MD (recruitment is just 20% of the HR profile) on the content part, but differ on the "extent." In my opinion, if it's a running concern, then recruitment is just 5-10% of the HR profile, maybe even less!

Why?

Recruitment has slowed down in the wake of the economic slowdown. How many companies are recruiting? And in what numbers?

Moreover, you will only be recruiting to the extent of your attrition—natural or otherwise. You cannot accommodate more and more people unless there is a requirement.

The only situation where recruitment can be more than 20% is where a new plant or expansion of production capacity is taking place, a greenfield project is being executed, or a new business division/vertical/unit is being planned.

So your MD is right.

You are from the IT sector where the attrition rate is high, and people constitute the asset/working capital/machinery of the company.

Mr. Narayan Murthy once famously said something like - our assets become nil after office hours - implying that employees are their assets and after the employees leave the office, there is almost nothing left.

Moreover, IT being a high-tech field, HR professionals are not aware of the "manufacturing process."

So, in your case, it's OK to assume that recruitment (apart from employee engagement) is what HR is all about.

Evaluating Performance in Manufacturing

Now, coming to your first query, which to me is the root cause of your misery; your first (initial) query was about:

"As there are departments like packing, cutting, lining, pattern, spray... What is the best way to measure their performance?"

The seniors have given you very good inputs. Have you benefited from it by implementing any of their suggestions?

What kind of Time and Motion study did you make?

I agree that the intricacies are best handled by professionals from Production Management, Operation Research, or Industrial Engineering.

However, an HR should be aware of the manufacturing process.

How many hours did you spend on the shop floor?

Do you make it a point to visit the shop floor once every day?

Have you interacted with managers, supervisors, technicians, and workers?

Have you been told about any "bottlenecks" in the process?

What kind of process is employed—whether it's job-shop, batch, or assembly-line?

Can you draw a diagram of your typical Work-Flow Process?

I understand that it's not very comfortable to be on the shop floor, especially with the obnoxious smells that the leather and the chemicals, paints, and adhesives give off.

I have never worked in the leather manufacturing sector, but I have visited the Bata factory, which is highly automated with an assembly-line system of production. The performance of individual workers is easy to monitor, as it's based on work-flow and the capacity of the installed equipment.

In your case, since it is an exclusively garment manufacturing unit, it must be working on JOB SHOP process flow structures. Here, there is a scope for better "line-balancing," having systems like Kanban, 5S to improve productivity and reduce wastages, and improving the logistics of materials.

These are somewhat beyond the scope of a junior HR and need the involvement of management. If management is serious, they may hire an external consultant to initiate these or have training programs for employees.

To become a successful HR, one needs to engage and immerse oneself with the business process, rather than sit on a chair twiddling one's thumb and lamenting the shortcomings of one's experience and the situation.

There is a lot more in HR than meets the eye. HR can be a true business partner and help in strategic differentiation.

Warm regards.


..............................

Raj Kumar

“Non Nascor Mihi Solum” [Latin; meaning “I was not born for myself alone”]

"Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime."

attribution https://www.citehr.com/470514-perfor...#ixzz2izeMNc9Q

Dear Kanika, Greetings from Ram. I am a freelancer with diversified industrial experience, including apparel manufacturing. Regardless of the industry, HR has only one objective: "creating an environment where people can perform to their full potential." Since every business/company is unique, please assess what is required for your people to perform. As many respondents have mentioned, it could be one or a combination of processes like welfare, safety, morale, etc., which you should identify.

There are several tools available to assess your company's organizational climate. Once you have identified the exact requirements, present them to the management, develop improvement programs with adequate budget allocation, build a task force team, and implement the solutions. Without knowing exactly what the people want, acquiring knowledge will not lead to meaningful changes.

By the way, may I know your role in HR? Are you an Executive, Manager, or part of Senior Management?

All the best,

Regards, Ram

Thank you, bpugazhendhi. You have asked a few questions. The employee strength is around 1,000, out of which 900 are workers and approximately 80 are office staff. The company was incorporated in 1986 as a proprietorship with a turnover of 150 crores. They haven't provided me with any job description. They want to take the initiative because, according to them, there is no need for HR. I report to my MD and work as an HR Manager; I am the only person in HR. That's why I want to know what initiatives can be taken.

That somewhat clarifies the situation. [I still, however, fail to understand why the management has appointed you if they feel that there is no need for HR?!]

Three Aspects of HR

Broadly speaking, there are three aspects of HR. One is the Administrative side. The second is the Development side, and the third is the Industrial Relations (IR) side.

Administrative Side

The administrative side includes payroll and other compensation management, statutory compliance, and general office management as a whole.

Development Side

The Development side includes recruitment, career progression, skill development, performance assessments, productivity improvement (if it is not looked after by a separate department like Industrial Engineering or methods improvement cell, etc.), and the like.

Industrial Relations (IR) Side

The IR side deals with maintaining cordial industrial relations as well as PR with outside agencies. You have to study all these areas to see how they are working now, whether there are any lacunae that need immediate attention, or whether there are areas that need improvement.

If you find that there are gaps that need to be filled immediately, that will have to be given precedence over those linked to improvements that are desirable. You may pay special attention to compliance with legislation regarding minimum wages, contract laborers, EPF, ESI, and Apprentices. In the garment industry, these are likely areas where certain aspects may be lacking in compliance.

There are no thumb rules. You have to look around, study, and analyze to locate the opportunities available for you to prove your usefulness to the organization. There is always scope for improvement. If you can show improvement, you justify your existence.

HR Responsibilities in Manufacturing

Whatever suggestions are okay, still inside the company premises, HR has the main responsibility for all activities, including health and safety precautions taken by HR and Admin. This includes maintaining all HR records and daily attendance, as well as the monthly closing of ESI and EPF challans before the 10th of every month. Additionally, annual returns of the Inspector of Factories, training in fire drill evacuation, first aid training, and organizing medical camps for general and eye checkups are also part of HR duties.

HR has the most work, monitoring all departments, including access at the main gate on a separate monitor for CCTV cameras. This involves handling workers' outpass signatures, staff leave, permissions, and daily biometric management. HR is also responsible for canteen maintenance, bus maintenance, and other safety regulations. In fact, HR should be more alert 24/7.

Thank you,

Regards,
A.S. Komagan
HR and Compliance Manager
Tirupur Garments Manufacturing
[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]