The Indian economy is evolving rapidly, with technology taking over our day-to-day lives. E-commerce ventures are multiplying, and, across sectors, innovation is the mantra.
Often, innovation is confused with technological advances. For innovation, what matters is improving the way we function. And it’s not always about technology. Importantly, finding high-quality human capital is a big challenge that all industries are facing today. For successful businesses or new startups, sustainable growth can only come with “good people”. But, often, such firms are not innovative enough when it comes to hiring and retaining practices.
No thrill
The reverse is also true: qualified persons are often unable to find the right fit for their ambitions and skill-sets. A technology specialist boasting over 15 years of experience is, for instance, frustrated with his high-profile but mundane MNC job. He wants to do something different. Likewise, a Portuguese translator, working with a captive technology centre, is no longer interested in the space as there is no challenge working on the same kinds of domains/products.
Then, there’s the finance guru who finds the processes, compliance and audit-related issues lack excitement and fail to inspire, despite his 20 years of experience and six-figure salary.
Where’s the innovation in the way we hire people?
Innovation in HR is the way we leverage talent to suit our business needs, increase efficiency and profits, and encourage talent progression and personal development.
A niche skill will remain niche whenever talent is acquired, regardless of the employment status — full-time or part-time.
Imagine a scenario where a senior technology architect works with three different organisations on an hourly basis, assignment basis or a deliverables-based model. He/she will have to hire a couple of senior developers to fulfil the demands of five more clients and there are different platforms available for this, outsourcing included, thereby creating opportunities for small-scale entrepreneurs and consultants and multiplying the skilled resources available.
Slice of profits
Such an arrangement will help domain experts who run small consulting practices and don’t wish to be part of a larger corporate set-up, as they also get to enjoy a slice of the profit pie. Deliverables are more important here than the number of hours; big companies, especially those with budget restraints, don’t have to own talent to utilise it.
A highly populated country like India, with well-qualified professionals, still struggles with a high unemployment rate because we lack the imagination to multiply the catchment of skilled professionals in offbeat ways.
The idea is to not poach resources from other companies but rather, to enlarge the talent pool with innovation and training.
Ultimately, hiring expertise doesn’t lie in spotting those few talented people and headhunting them; rather, it lies in designing a revolutionary talent collaboration ecosystem.