Нашi публікації

Human Resources: Protecting Your Key Asset

Since  the  recession  hit  Ukraine  in  last quarter  of  2008  unemployment  figures have  risen  sharply. According  to  the  International  Labour  Organization  the  real unemployment  rate  in  Ukraine  is  in  or around 9.5%, while over the last year more than 500,000 people are thought to have lost their jobs. This difficult economic climate has meant serious  implications  for

employers which can  lead  to  two developments: a decrease in employee morale, and  an  increase  in  the workloads which individual employees are being asked  to take  on. What  steps  can  employers  implement today in order to pull themselves out of the downward spiral and make the negatives less pronounced?

Silence is idle but deadly

Employees  today  are  under  unprecedented stress. They are uncertain about  their  futures and  under  constant  pressure  thinking  about whether  their  jobs  will  be  the  next  to  go  in a  new  possible  round  of  downsizing.  In  this situation where both employees  and employers  find  themselves on edge,  the worst  thing that  employers  can  do  is  to  keep  employees in  the dark.  If companies keep  information  to themselves, this will only aggravate the stress that  is  already  brewing  within  the  company and lead to employee frustration. Instead, they must communicate clearly what  is happening internally,  with  their  suppliers,  partners  and clients,  while  making  sure  everyone  knows what is expected from them as employees. At the  same  time  the messages  that  employers send to their employees must be well thought out,  timely and sincere. This simple step will alleviate employee anxiety and motivate staff by making sure  they know  they are  important members  of  the  team  and  a  valued  resource for the company.

Employers must set clear objectives

Employees today are being tasked with more responsibilities and this means that each employee is not only more overworked. This situation often  leads  to quick employee burn out and makes employees resentful  towards  their employers.  If  employers  want  to  make  sure that their personnel are on-board with them in these tough times, they must remain engaged at all  levels and  take on  the  roles of mentors and partners. One way in which they can help employees  is to set clear objectives. This will help  employees  set  priorities  and make  their jobs that more manageable. If employees think that  every  task  is  equally  important  they will concentrate  on  everything  and  this  will  lead to decreased productivity and performance  in every area of their jobs.

Distribute work load fairly

It  is  a  natural  inclination  on  the  side  of all  people  to  trust work  to  those who  have  a proven  track  record  of  high  performance.  In the  midst  of  this  economic  downturn  wherepeople  have  lost  their  jobs,  employers  tend  to assign  tasks  to  those  employees  they  know will  deliver.  This  is  a mistake.  If  employers  let their natural instincts guide them, their top performers will burn out  and  they will be  left  in  a worse off situation. Employers must assess the strengths and weaknesses and interests of their entire staff and distribute the work load accordingly. This move will have a positive spin-off as the  remaining  employees  will  engage  in  work they  were  previously  not  exposed  to  and  this will motivate them to do their best. They will see that  they are  linchpins  in  their  respective company operations which management trusts. Both parties will  end up winning more  and  your  top performers will continue to do their jobs without losing steam.

Recognize achievement in any way you can

Recent  surveys  carried  out  both  in  Ukraine and  in  Europe  show  a  similar  picture  when  it сomes  to  rewarding  employees  for  their  performance. On average, about 50% of employers questioned  indicated  that  they  will  be  cutting bonuses,  about 3% will be  increasing bonuses for  performance,  30%  will  be  putting  a  freeze on bonuses at already existing  levels, while the remaining  17%  will  be  looking  to  restructure their  bonus  schemes.  These  statistics  indicate that  companies  are  adopting  a  reactionary  approach  to  their  businesses.  They  are  concentrating  on  cutting  their  expenditures  at  the detriment  to  employees  that  are  left  holding  a significant chunk of  the  responsibility  for company performance. Companies that know how to think outside  the box are adopting an opposite approach.  They  are  looking  to  motivate  their employees  and  move  their  business  forward in  these  tough  times. These are  the companies who will survive the storm and find that after the economic  recession  is over  they have a strong company spirit, their retention levels will remain high  all  throughout  the downturn  and  continue to be high, and their losses won't be that severe. Companies should take a long hard look at their balance sheets and see how  they can motivate employees who are doing a good  job and pass on  their profits  to  those who bring  them  in. At the  same  time  employers must  remember  that motivation  is  not  always monetary.  Experience has shown that public recognition for a job well done  can  go  just  as  far.  Every  employer must remember  that  their  most  valuable  assets  are people  and  people  need  to  feel  recognized  for their work whether it be in the form of monetary compensation or a simple "thank-you" or a certificate of appreciation for a job well done.