HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

Introduction Human resource management always deals with the proper utilization of human resources of the organization. I have studied many theoretical aspects in the classes. To get more knowledge about actual conditions i need to study in practical situation, which is conducted through project works. That is why I have selected Grameenphone Ltd. for my report study in Human Resource Management side. I am covering the HR problems like Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO), change in management, incremental policy change, major update in company strategy, restructure, new approaches which is needed to ensure ongoing competitive advantages like empower, leadership to every level of employee, job evaluation, job matrix etc , and HRM challenges which will face 21st century of Grameenphone Ltd. I gave the priority to Grameenphone Ltd. as I have direct working involvement with this company. I have also considered the significance of Grameenphone Ltd. in the perspective of historical value, market position, diversity of the workforce and some other issues. Grameenphone Before Grameenphone inception, the phone was for a selected urbanized few. The cell phone was a luxury: a flouting accessory for the select elite. The mass could not contemplate mobile telephony as being part of their lives. Since its inception Grameenphone has built the largest cellular network in the country with over 13,000 base stations in more than 7000 locations. Presently, nearly 99 percent of the country's population is within the coverage area of the Grameenphone network. Grameenphone has always been a pioneer in introducing new products and services in the local telecom market. GP was the first company to introduce GSM technology in Bangladesh when it launched its services in March 1997. Today, Grameenphone is the leading and largest telecommunications service provider in Bangladesh with more than 40.1 million subscribers as of October 2012. Grameenphone has about 5000 full and temporary employees.

HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

300,000 people are directly dependent on Grameenphone for their livelihood, working for the Grameenphone dealers, retailers, scratch card outlets, suppliers, vendors, contractors and others.

Grameenphone has so far invested more than BDT 17,800 crore to build the network infrastructure Grameenphone is one of the largest taxpayers in the country, having contributed more than BDT 27,900 crore in direct and indirect taxes to the Government Exchequer over the years.

Recent Update 2G License renewal The renewed 2G license awarded to GP on7th Aug12. VAT rebate mechanism as per the decision of inter ministerial meeting has not been implemented. Hearing on GPs court case related to VAT on renewal fees is pending at the Supreme Court. Draft 3G/4G/LTE guideline GP submitted response on the draft guidelines on23rd Sep12. First consultation meeting with MoPT held on 11th Oct12. Govt. approach to resolve industry concerns on the guideline and regulatory condition through dialog and consultation process appreciated by the telecom operators. New SIM registration process GP implemented new SIM registration and activation process for new connections from 12th Oct12 as per BTRC directives.

HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

Financial Overview

HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

Human Resource and Organization Division at Grameenphone Administration is the one of the key factors in management. This division consists of the staff managers who are responsible for the co-ordination and supervision of 778 employees of Grameenphone. The division requires a high level of efficiency. Staffing is one of the major functions of management. Selecting the right people to get the job done is very important for the effectiveness and efficiency of an organization. The job is performed by the Human Resource Department. Human Resources Department Human Resources (HR) Department plays a vital role in the total functioning of GP. It conducts such activities as employee recruitment, selection, transfer, promotion, training, performance appraisal. . The informal structure of HR according to its functions can be classified into three main categories: Human Resource Management (HRM) Human Resource Development (HRD) Human Resource management Information system (HR- MIS)

Human Resource Management (HRM) Manpower planning is an important function of HR management section. It performs two major activities: 1. Planning and forecasting the organizations short tern and long term human resource requirements. 2. Analyzing the jobs in the organization and determining skills and abilities that are needed. Human Resources Development (HRD) While employee performance must be evaluated in economic terms of efficiency and effectiveness, it can be best achieved through recognizing and enhancing the human dignity of each employee. The quality of the human resources can be effectively increased through education, training, and personal development.

HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

Human Resources Development functions aim to increase the quality of the human resources especially through training. GP training involves the following steps-

Assessing training needs Selection of the participants Conducting training programs.

GP provides both local and overseas training on the basis of the need analysis of the employee.

HR Management Information System (HR-MIS) HR-MIS carry out activities such as: Maintenance & updating employee database Maintenance of employee related statistics Other activities requiring employee data updating.

HRD must be a very efficient department, as it performs the functions of staffing in which always has to gather and store current and exact data and information regarding the employees and the organization. Different sub-departments have been identified and assigned according to the nature of the functions of HR Department, but the job is accomplished co-operatively. HRM Problems at Grameenphone Over the years the human resource division and its operations were considered as staff operations. But with the emergence of service industry the importance of knowledge workers increased. These knowledge workers are considered as assets to organizations. So acquisition, development and maintenance of knowledge workers in organizations became critical and to so forth that human resource divisions importance increased. Even, these days some organization is considering their HR division as line division. In performing HR function Grameenphone Human Resource Department faces some problems these are:

HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

At first they did not follow EEO (Equal Employment Opportunity) in Bangladesh and they dont ask the female applicants to place in jobs traditionally held by men. But when they tend to follow EEO rules they selected female employees for such position, in performing such type of jobs their performance result was bellow than the rate. Changing Management Team occurs problem for employees to adapt the new management policy. In recruiting employees from the external resources the orientation and training take longer period of time Management team shared with some major issues under the head of GP Strategy Update. In commercial discussion session Grameenphone former respected CPO Haroon Bhatti shared with GP employees the New Increment Policy. Management saw the reaction/question/expression of GP employee & how they challenged each & every logic of the policy. (on 15, May, 2012) The employees were very demotivated with the answers against their questions & depressed to see the logic behind the new policy & the unexpected behavior of their respected CPO. For this new policy they got only 0% to 5 % as per the PMP rates of individual employee but this year the inflation rate is almost 11%. If the average increment rate is 3%, how will the employee of GP, fight against 11% inflation rate? P&O Division, organizational restructure has been started & a good number of employees will not be able to secure their job. Inhumanity is becoming a culture in Grameenphone where management is offering only a token money to the employee which is very nominal figure to a person who is losing his/her job. (on 4th June, 2012) The employees of Grameenphone Ltd. are not satisfied with the HR policy as they are fully disclosed and neutrally practiced. The policys comprehensiveness and implementation procedure are working as a moral support in this regard.

HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

HRM approaches need to be taken at Grameenphone to ensure ongoing Strategic Competitive Advantage: Background Strengthening & transforming the organization to continue to win and deliver sustainable success in revenue & growth Live Grameenphone vision and values, to establish a transparent trustworthy and real customer centric organization1 Reinforce corporate Governance, give authority to the right level, simplify processes and eliminate slow bureaucracy. Grameenphone believes in the continued improvement of corporate governance. This in turn has led the Company to commit considerable resources and implement internationally accepted Corporate Standards in its day-to-day operations. Being a public limited company, the Board of Directors of Grameenphone have a pivotal role to play in meeting all stakeholders interests. The Board of Directors and the Management Team of Grameenphone are committed to maintaining effective Corporate Governance through a culture of accountability, transparency, well-understood policies and procedures. The Board of Directors and the Management Team also persevere to maintain compliance of all laws of Bangladesh and all internally documented regulations, policies and procedures. Foster a performance based culture of inspiration, openness and trust

Grameenphone vision

We exist to help our customers get the full benefit of communications services in their daily lives. We want to make it easy for customers to get what they want, when they want it. We're here to help Grameenphone Values 1. Make It Easy 2. Keep Promises 3. Be Inspiring 4. Be Respectful

HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

Empower at every level, flatten the org & reduce hierarchy. Establish a new designation and title system accordingly Establish excellent leadership at every level Establish a transparent and performance driven reward and promotion system, adjust benefit schemes, Grameenphone is a truly transparent company that operates at the highest levels of integrity and accountability on a global standard. To be desired destination for the best talents of this country and a company that inspires talents to grow and develop, the greatest strength of Grameenphone is its "People". Establish effective processes and structures in the organization according to best in class KPIs (Key Performance Indicator) There are some HRM Modern approaches which I think to be taken to ensure strategic competitive advantages at Grameenphone: Human Resource Management System approach This application captures Employee related function including self service process and payroll. Advantages: Organizational: 1. Saving materials and human resources 2. Access to staff information from any place of the world HR department: Better visibility, control and tracking of human resource operations To help organizations better develop, manage, reward and retain their employees Identify HR risks and opportunities Assess and report on ongoing education, satisfaction and productivity Solution approach based on the global best practices

Employees: 1. Self service

HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

2. Streamlining HR processes 3. Analysis & planning 4. Establish control 5. End To End tracking of HR services 6. Proper decision making during performance considering employees skill and knowledge Recruitment Approaches The recruitment practice is done mainly on two standard procedure of recruitment. They usually carry out in-house recruitment and/or post online job ad posting. They usually recruit fresh graduates and allow them to grow in the company. Applications received are carefully filtered and usually call a handful of candidates for the post. Recruiting approaches have some sort of characteristics, they are: Goals: Attraction of qualified staff Enhancement of the image of Ministry Increase of efficiency Transparency Objectivity Countable procedure Established quantity, distribution of function of panel members Procedure for conflict of interest Multi target group- graduates, students

New approaches: Work with universities- database of students Work with students- information about the ministry Utilization of social network Other sources- local television, radio

HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

The Selection Process: The selection process has two steps firstly there is a written test. Candidates are tested basically on job related skills and their analytical ability along with some open ended questions relating to their psychological behavior. Selected candidates are called up for an interview within a week. The candidates must appear in front of an interview panel usually consisting of four members: from the HR department as overseen by the MD, Chairman, General Manager and Admin Managers. The candidates are tested for their basic knowledge about the subject matter, their interpersonal and communication skills, and their abilities to work in a team environment. Candidates after final selection are offered jobs along with the contract, which they need to sign before joining the job. Affective performance appraisal system The performance of each employee is closely monitored by their immediate managers. If the broad objectives of the job are clearly understood by the Appraiser and the Appraisee and the Action Plan along with the criterion of assessment is clearly agreed between them, appraisal should be a relatively easy task. If both parties are realistic, pragmatic, fair and objective in their evaluation of performance, there should be very little variation in their scoring and completion of the Performance Appraisal Form. The Appraise has to dispassionately analyze his/her performance and fill in the form with an attitude of trust and fairness in the judgment of the superior. In rating the overall performance, the Action Plan achievements will have 50% weight age. The quality of performance in accomplishing the overall objectives of the job will have the other 50%weightage. The Appraiser will then pass on the form to his superior who, if necessary, will revert back or else send the form to the General Manager, Corporate Services at Head Office for review by the Managing Director and consolidation. It is to be borne in mind by the Appraise that the ability to judge his/her own performance fairy land dispassionately, both with regard to the Action Plan as well as the overall performance, will be considered as a good managerial quality called objectivity.

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HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

Appraiser, on the other hand, must make a realistic comparison between standards agreed and those achieved; and keep in view unanticipated constraints which could not have been overcome through other initiatives or innovative actions. Above all, while judging the overall performance both parties must keep in view the performance during the whole year and guard against the fact that recent issues and events may unduly influence their judgment. The Appraisal Rating will determine the quantum of Performance Bonus the Appraise will get and the level of Annual Increment of basic salary that will be applicable at the time of salary review in the following July. So in briefly performance appraisal means the following: Improvement of organizational and individual activity Comparison of expectations and goals between the manager and the employee (interview for assessment) Awarding successful employees professional and career development, salary increase Managing less successful employees

Performance appraisal is another main function of HR Management. Personnel decisions regarding the confirmation, increment, promotion, and transfer of an employee must be done in fixed or variable intervals of time. Performance appraisal is done through: Job analysis Setting up performance standards Appraisal interviews. GP performance appraisal takes place in two stages On completion of probation On completion of one year of service. HR Management also deals with other personnel functions like leave management, show cause, termination, Dismissal, discharge, and resignation. It also issues circulars as and when required and conducts department inquiry among other functions.

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HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

Manage critical human resources of the Organization Availability of right resources favorable for the organization at the right time to achieve contemplated goals Training for future critical positions Retention of successful employees Development substitute resources for the existing critical positions

Training and Development Usually the first three months act as the probationary period for the fresh recruit. This also acts as the training period for the employee. In these 3 months, the employee is usually not allowed to work in any real life projects and based on the level of expertise they are induced to the real life projects. In these 3 months, the employee is tested indirectly and monitored and his/her caliber judged and hence the management takes the decision of where to place him. Grameenphone Ltd arranges various training programs in job related subjects for the development of its employees. This is usually arranged when the employee is not involved in any active project. This helps to utilize the free time and also comes in the best interest of the company and the employee. Grameenphone Ltd also encourages its employees to appear invidious professional certification exams, which the company also pays for. The talent sourcing activities begin with effective human resource planning. This planning is aligned with the business need forecast, overall organizational growth matrix, structure and direction and is done in yearly basis. R& EB (The Resourcing & employee branding) department coordinates and evaluates people planning process that eventually approved by board considering the factors: Potential/ expected workload and expertise requirements. Optimum and effective utilization of the HRM for the entire company, both current and future requirements. Possibilities for greater efficiency through reorganization and automation (use of tools &facilities) and making necessary adjustment. Employee turnover/employee mobility.

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HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

New business initiatives and projects that require new competence and additional resources. Government legislation Human resources planning, budgeting and necessary approvals should be taken in the beginning of the year to ensure timely co-ordination and implementation.

Another issue is the job advancement commonly known Roadmap in Grameenphone. Due to poor performance appraisal by many supervisors some potential employees are falling out. As a result, many others are feeling insecure since management is not taking long term decision. As a result training programs are not getting much attention from the employees Four stages of career development Assessment-Annual performance appraisal Analysis-Gap analysis of the required skills for the positions to be occupied and existing ones Development-Developing human resources for higher position Monitoring-Development of leaders

Employee benefits The company maintains both defined contribution plan and defined benefit plan for its eligible permanent employees. a) Defined contribution plan (provident fund) The company contributes 10% of basic salary of all eligible employees to a provident fund (defined contribution plan) constituted under an irrevocable trust, while the employees also contribute an equal amount to the fund as per the rules of the trust deed. The company recognizes contribution to defined contribution plan as an expense when an employee has rendered services in exchange for such contribution. The legal and constructive obligation is limited to the amount it agrees to contribute to the fund. b) Defined benefit plan (gratuity) The company provides retirement benefit in the form of gratuity payments determined by reference to employees' earnings and years of service to each eligible employee at the time of

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HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

retirement/separation. Gratuity obligation at the reporting date is measured on the basis of best estimate of the company from prior experience in its parent company. c) Short-term employee benefits Short-term employee benefits include salary, bonuses, leave encashment. Obligations for such benefits are measured on an undiscounted basis and are expensed as the related service is provided. The 8 Organizational Development Initiatives 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Organizational Structure and Efficiency Aligning GP Governance Model Going Paperless Fortify Codes of Conducts in GP Compensation and Benefits Performance Management Strengthening GPs leadership capabilities CHQ A new way of working in GP (A new way of work e.g. using CHQ as a tool

for transformation: moving mindset from Me & Mine to We & Ours, Self Management and Knowledge Sharing) Key Deliverables Flatter organizational design, guiding principles, levels, span of control, decision-making principles Leadership and expertise roles in the organization New Governance Model and authority matrix as per new organizational design Reengineer processes that generates maximum hard copy and implement document management system and Enterprise achieving center E-learning modules Ongikaar on ethical dilemma, Codes of Conduct overview for CXOs and leaders Compliance training for all and re-signing Codes of Conduct and introduce register of employees and family members business interest with GP

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HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

Simplify Compensation and Benefits System Job Evaluation and Role Matrix Introduce new & efficient performance management Leadership development plans based on the project deliverables, train & prepare the Leaders to uphold the GP Way spirit Moving in CHQ A new way of work e.g. using CHQ as a tool for transformation: moving mindset from Me & Mine to We & Ours, Self Management and Knowledge Sharing HRM challenges in the 21st century at Grameenphone For HR professionals, the new century will take up where the old one left off - with the struggle to recruit and retain a trained, satisfied workforce. Companies should be prepared to handle downsizing, even in today's tight labor market. HR should be prepared to handle the challenge of taking care of those people, because it says something about the organization to the people who stay. A lot of time HR has to be the one to stand up for the people in the face of the entire cost cutting, says Grameenphone HR officials. Either Grameenphone can follow their current processes of recruitment, selection or they can apply some new techniques to foster their total effort. Currently they are doing fine with their own methods of recruitment and selection. If they want to follow a new method, they need to go to a research process for some period. The HR division need to restructure or diverse their current policies regarding appraisal system, performance evaluation and career development which is directly linked with training programs. Otherwise employees will always feel motiveless and insecure. THE GP WAY is how we do business its all about internalizing and reinforcing Grameenphone vision & values, leadership expectations, codes of conduct and governing principles in Grameenphone daily life at work and deliver upon Grameenphone brand promise Stay Close.

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HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

This is a comprehensive transformation Program to develop a customer-centric Organization and Culture in Grameenphone. In the GP Way we will enhance the capability of the people and organization we have in Grameenphone. In this way we will ensure sustainable success in the market place continuing to be the #1 player in Bangladesh for now and for years to come. To actualize the GP Way and to give tangible experience to our internal & external customers, we have the following prioritized initiatives: o Customer First Program: To establish a truly customer centric company and improve every customer service point o Organizational Development Program: To further improve our culture, structures, systems and procedures o Communication & Involvement Plan: To support the GP Way initiatives with comprehensive plan The internal and external challenges are: The HR policies and strategies are comprehensive not much enough to manage the workforce of the company. The policies are not well defined and widely explained to ensure an all encompassing HR management. The HR policies and strategies are not disclosed to the full among the employees and management body for better understanding and practice. The employees have not sufficient access to them in case of any need felt The HR manual of the company is practiced in full and without any bias and deviation but here is some deviation. The policies are not helping the company to get a better managed working environment. The employees of Grameenphone Ltd. are not satisfied with the HR policy as they are fully disclosed and neutrally practiced. The policys comprehensiveness and implementation procedure are working as a moral support in this regard. The HR policies and strategies are not conforming the ILO standards for the employees. The policy also not follows the rules and regulations of the Ministry of Labor and Human Resource of the Govt. of Bangladesh. For example: Inhumanity is becoming a culture in

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HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

Grameenphone where management is offering only a token money to the employee which is very nominal figure to a person who is losing his/her job. But Grameenphone HR and People Management ensure to their employee that they do not cut off salary, cost cutting or sacked any employee till December, 2013 which is a big challenge in 2012-2013. Recommendations Introduction of an Employee Welfare Association In many cases, the need for an employee welfare association is felt. This association can take different constructive efforts for the welfare and benefits of the employees in an organized way. Despite continuous criticism for the Labor Unions for their misleader activities, the need of this kind of association still remains indispensable. Creation of an Employee Welfare Fund An employee welfare fund can be created from the contribution of the employees and donations from the owners and outside sources. This fund would be very handful in time of any emergency of the workers. Such fund can be centrally managed for fair practice.

Training and Development issue More intensive training program should be introduced to increase the employee performance to the optimum level. The HR policy could include certain provisions regarding to a reutilized and modern training.

HR counseling cell An HR counseling cell can be established by the HRD to provide counseling and information to the employees regarding to HR issues. This will certainly increase the motivation and confidence level of the employees.

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HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

Continuous modernization and revision Modernization and revision of the HR policies and strategies are indispensable for any organization as the world is getting more diversified day by day. The HRD of Grameenphone ltd. should continuously monitor the changes happening around and adjust the policies to match the changed scenario.

Recruitment and selection Although Grameenphone uses both the discrete and comprehensive method of selection, they may change their policy and try to adopt some new methods. Some of the preferred methods of selection are discussed below: Talent hunt programs: Grameenphone can launch talent hunt programs in reputed universities of our country and sort out potential candidates from there. This method will help GP to increase its bondage with people and to find suitable candidate for their organization. This type program can be done quarterly or bi-monthly basis depending on work force requirement. Job fair is another type of talent hunt program. Grameenphone can arrange job fair annually or semiannually basis and can select suitable candidates from the event. This type of event can also be arranged in separate parts of Bangladesh. Since Grameenphone has monthly program like Grahok Kotha and Pothe Pothe, they can easily organize this type of event throughout the year. Outsourcing: Grameenphone can also apply outsourcing method for selection purpose. For this, the company can hire a third party to promote their organization and select candidates for them. Grameenphone will have to pay little attention on this effort as all the responsibilities lies with the given outsourcing firm.

Training Training programs not always deliver the ultimate solution to the employees. Most of the employees at call centre feel that their work is monotonous and they have less to contribute for the organization. Many think that they are not getting proper training as they wanted. Sometimes they are feeling frustrated and humiliated due to certain factors. However they are conveying these issues to their respective supervisors.

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HRM PROBLEMS, APPROACHES, AND CHALLENGES AT GRAMEENPHONE

For technical training the current feedback and evaluation system is working well. Since, it is focusing technical aspect the follow-up can be drawn easily from employees. On the other hand, non technical trainings are not always provided as per employees need. It is found that many employees are not asking a particular training and they are receiving a different one. Sometimes their supervisors are not acting wisely. So, it is not the employees who should be blamed for their lacking. We believe that management needs to sort these errors for the betterment of the organization. Another issue is the job advancement commonly known Roadmap in Grameenphone. Due to poor performance appraisal by many supervisors some potential employees are falling out. As a result, many others are feeling insecure since management is not taking long term decision. As a result training programs are not getting much attention from the employees.

Conclusion Ensuring management or proper utilization of resources is prerequisite for achieving the organizational objectives because resources are limited and the proper exploitation of the available resources can help to achieve the top position. In the competitive situation resources are very much vital because that can provide competitive edge to the companies. The spontaneous participation of human resource is very essential for increasing the performance. The owner, authority, and stakeholders should remember that neglecting the human resources in the work place a sustainable development is not possible. They should not refute the significant roles of Human Resources rather they have to generate an idea among the human resources that they are important part of the organization by providing reasonable wages/salary, incentives, compensation, training and development program, as well as creating morale and maintaining a good relationship with them.

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