Dr. Randy K. Chiu Head of the Department of Management Hong Kong Baptist University

“The past 10 years have seen a big change in the role of human resources personnel," Dr. Chiu says. Formerly, HR professionals performed mainly housekeeping duties, with responsibility for recruitment, staff downsizing, devising payment systems and so on. Nowadays, HR personnel need to be strategic business partners with top management, change agents as well as creative leaders.

Keeping abreast of change

Hong Kong's fast-changing economic scene calls for greater flexibility in HR management. This requires human resource professionals with strong skills, or practitioners who can upgrade their present qualifications. China's accession to the WTO, for example, presents tough, new challenges for HR managers. One major problem HR chiefs are facing in post-China WTO accession is the cultural differences between Hong Kong and mainland workers. Increasingly, these workers will need to work closer as economic integration between Hong Kong and the mainland steps up.

Creating a pleasant working environment under such conditions is all the more daunting for an HR chief.

Rapid advancements in technology and modes of telecommunication, is another huge problem confronting HR practitioners.

More multinational companies will be moving to China now that the country is a WTO member. Most of these companies adopt effective international HR management systems. But, according to Dr. Chiu, many of these companies still do not fully appreciate the importance of good HR management, and are more preoccupied with short-term solutions like cutting jobs, which create a morale problem in the workplace.

The importance of postgraduate education

Learning institutions and organisations like the Hong Kong Productivity Council, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and The Hong Kong Baptist University offer courses in human resources management.

The programs cater to people with no academic or practical experience in HR who wish to enter the field, as well as to HR undergraduates or those with practical experience.

Courses for HR aspirants usually cover basic techniques such as how to select the right person for the right job at the right pay. For more senior HR practitioners, the Hong Kong Baptist University offers a Master of Science degree in Strategic Human Resource Management to enable them to obtain still higher qualifications.

Both working experience and a formal education in HR are essential for practitioners pursuing a career in human resources management.

On-the-job training enables a practitioner to gain greater experience in managing human relationships and to learn more about how workers normally react to changes in company policies and strategies.

“It is time for human resource professionals to better equip themselves for the challenges ahead by broadening their views and strengthening their ties with their colleagues," Dr. Chiu advises.

Taken from Career Times 2002/03/01