Taking HR to great heights

By U. A. C. Obeyesekere

The "Great HR Debate" will be launched next month by the Institute of Personnel Management Sri Lanka in the run up to the National HR Conference 2009 to be held on June 23 and 24.

This inter-organisational debating championship will see a great many organisations participating in their quest towards winning the IPM HR Debate Challenge Trophy. A round-robin will be conducted in the ensuing few months featuring teams from organisations both in the public and private sectors. An organisation can field one team comprising four members plus two reserves. Consequent to the round-robin there will emerge two finalists who will feature in the debating final at the National HR Conference on June 24. This will be the grand finale to the "Great HR Debate".

The main objective of this Inter Organisational Debating Championship is to set up a platform for organisations to actively participate whereby there would be knowledge sharing in a climate of competitive spirit. This undoubtedly would ensure thorough vibrant participation, an upgrading of HR knowledge across organisations and people thereby raising overall standards of HR practices.

There will be a broad list of topics for the debate such as * HR role to manage costs in an economic downturn * Laying off people as an option to reducing people costs compared to pay reductions and salary freezes * Regulatory cap on executive compensation * Can an HR professional be a good CEO * Should the training function be de-linked from HR * Stretch goals are just another way of squeezing the employee * Performance evaluation, the importance of measuring performance * Political affiliations of trade unions - Its impact on business. The list goes on.....

IPM is endeavouring to provide participation and involvement to more HR practitioners and others involved in managing people. Organisations can field teams with a mix of such personnel.

The Inter-Organisational Debating Championship 2009 will be conducted based on a formal set of rules governing the competition. Adjudication through an eminent panel of judges, a moderator to assist and a comprehensive assessment scheme to evaluate overall performance are integral parts of the scheme under which this program will take place. There will also be a code of conduct for participants.

The idea of "The Great HR Debate" was convinced during preparations to hold the National HR Conference in June. It is, therefore, apt to mention that this concept was brought forth by Chandra Hewapattini, Council Member (IPM) who is the convener of this project.

IPM is confident that this innovative idea would be of immense value to organisations, participants in the debate and a great many others who will take part in this year's conference. The passionate belief that Human Resource is an asset with unlimited potential to contribute to organisational excellence and effectiveness will be amply demonstrated when "The Great HR Debate" is unleashed.