Organizational Consultation XIII: The Human Resource Bank—Source of Information and Use
Job History
Once the new employee has settled into her job, documents can readily be collected regarding the nature of the work she is doing, as well as any special assignments she has been given. Special assignments are becoming very common in many contemporary organizations. Twenty First Century organizations are bustling with short-term individual and group assignments. Employees are asked to join project teams, problem-solving groups, self-destructing task forces and inter-departmental quality assurance teams. Information regarding the functions being served by employees through these special assignments can be documented and placed in the Human Resource Bank.
An employee might have been asked to prepare a budget, though she had previously been involved only in marketing. The task force to which she has been assigned may be asked to review the current work schedules of a specific production unit, though she herself may have always worked in research and development. The new skills, knowledge and aptitudes acquired through these assignments should be noted, for they might prove to be of value in future assignments. This is especially the case when a blending of two skill-sets or knowledge-sets is desired. In the first example used above, the blending of experiences in budgeting and marketing might be of unique value to the organization in the future. Similarly, the blending of knowledge regarding production work schedules and research-and-development procedures that was illustrated in the second example could prove to be of considerable use to the organization in confronting unanticipated problems associated with the introduction of a new product line.
Training, Education, Certification and Degree Records
It is remarkable to note how rarely the expensive education or training of employees is fully used by contemporary organizations. It is not unusual for an employee to obtain the equivalent of seven masters degrees while working over a lifetime with a single organization; yet, how often does any organization acknowledge and fully use the knowledge an employee has acquired in these seven programs? How often are the aptitudes acquired by an employee directly applied by the organization to its ongoing problems and challenges during the many years of this person’s employment?
It is not only a lost opportunity for the organization. This failure to make use of knowledge, skills and aptitudes acquired through formal education or training programs also tends to be a source of demoralization for the employee who has contributed much of his own time and effort to this training or educational opportunity. The employee may be given time off for the education or training. Tuition for the education or training program may be reimbursed. Nevertheless, the employee must take time away from the job. This time must inevitably be made up in order to complete the education or training program. The employee usually must do homework, which takes time away for family, and must take risks in the application of newly acquired SKAs. What about the certification or degree the employee has earned? How has the organization acknowledged and made use of the SKAs that has been assessed in the awarding of this certificate or degree?
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