An entrepreneur once said that the most important resource in his business ‘takes the elevator’ every night. However, the reality out there in the world of commerce and trade is that few decision makers in business truly and sufficiently value their intellectual capacity. During times of economic hardship, budget cuts are made in areas like training and development.
As a starry-eyed student at the University of Port Elizabeth, I was intrigued by the relevance of Human Resource processes and procedures and how these were supposed to introduce and entrench equity, fairness and human growth into the workplace.
Being a person who values fairness and justice, I decided that this was the area I would like to specialise in.
Upon entering the labour market I was disappointed to discover that a large percentage of these processes are not implemented correctly and, in some instances, not implemented at all.
When presenting Human Resources training courses to employees in large organisations, I often find that these people are very frustrated with the degree of support, training, coaching and mentoring that they receive.
Many of the businesses had secured BEE appointments without empowering people to adequately fulfill these roles. Newly recruited employees did not possess the knowledge, skills or capacity to perform their jobs, let alone empower those people that report to them.
The result of this is that many large corporate and government organisations today sit with a workforce that is de-motivated and display low morale.
About five years ago I ventured into HR consulting in an effort to assist SMMEs with the implementation of Human Resources Policies and Procedures into their businesses. This would enable them to empower their intellectual capital to become motivated, active participants in the process of value generation.
My contract with triVector commenced in February 2009. It took me only a couple of days to establish that the management of this business had a significantly different attitude and approach towards human resources than most of the other businesses I had been exposed to in the past.
I found a genuine interest in the wellbeing of each and every individual, as well as willingness and level of patience to allow employees to find their place in the business (in a period of one year I saw one individual change positions three times in order to find the space where she eventually could add optimum value).
I am of the opinion that the commitment of the triVector team to the welfare and development of their employees is one of the most important reasons why this business has managed to grow during a decline in economic activity, characterised by mass retrenchments and the closure of businesses.
The Business Process Management environment in which triVector delivers its solutions is influenced by- and dependent on strong relationships between engagement managers, consultants and clients. It is also common practice for clients to request the services of triVector for a specific resource to work on a specific project.
This tendency is testimony to the reward the business reaps for the investment they make in the development of their human capital.
This investment is not only made in the acquisition of technological knowledge and skills, but also in attaining those softer skills that make a huge difference in the establishment and maintenance of human relationships.
