The Hindu Business Line : `Onus of career growth rests with employee'

Key findings
ORGANISATIONS ARE moving from time-based career development to one based on competencies.
A COMPETENCY assessment process is an essential aspect of all new economy companies.
Internal mobility within the organisation happens not through job rotation, but through open job posting.

Thiruvananthapuram , April 16

WHAT do careers mean to companies in new economy industries such as IT and ITES (information technology-enabled services) and how do these companies manage career development?

To try and find some answers to these questions, Totus Consulting, a Chennai-based human resources consulting firm, launched a research project on careers and career development in these sectors. The nine trends and several best practices identified by the study show that "managements need to look at career management comprehensively and that a piecemeal approach will not sustain in the long run," declares Mr P.S. Srinivasan, Principal Consultant, Totus Consulting. Similarly, the results of the study represent not just the IT and ITES sectors, but all new economy industries, including retail, infrastructure, financial services and so on.

Emerging trends

For instance, a key trend identified by the study — that the onus for career development now rests with the employee and not the organisation — can be applied to all new economy industries. Similarly, organisations are moving from time-based career development to career development processes based on competencies, Mr Srinivasan says. Companies are also "pushing promotion timelines" and pay hikes are accompanying promotions, he adds.

Developed as a qualitative research project, the study covered nine companies, including four business process outsourcing (BPO) firms, three IT firms and also a company each from the fast moving consumer goods and manufacturing sectors. The study also found that a competency assessment process is an essential aspect of all new economy companies. Another trend identified is that competency assessment, if done by managers, is done at the same time as performance appraisal.

Internal mobility within the organisation happens not through job rotation, but through open job posting. However, the study points out that employee selection through open job posting is as rigorous as external hiring.

Another trend identified by the study is that companies are creating opportunities for people to work across different businesses that are part of the larger organisation. For example, in one organisation surveyed, open job posting makes it possible for BPO employees to move to the software business.

Some best practices

Besides the nine trends, the study also identifies some best practices that have met with success and can be "emulated with a good understanding of the organisation context and readiness," says Mr Srinivasan. Best practices highlighted in the study include articulating an employee value proposition, creating multiple career ladders to cater to different expectations of people, tracking top talent, creating the role of career counsellors, providing employees with education opportunities, offering competency-based development programmes to employees and so on. At the same time, the study also identifies a few `problem' practices such as relying only on assessment centres to take decisions on career progression.

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