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Human resources should be properly grown
by Gayla Sherry, BOL Guru
Growing a backyard garden can be a good model for cultivating human resources.
It’s July, and for the gardeners among us, we are enjoying wonderful vegetables and flowers. We’ve been cultivating, watering, fertilizing and performing other rites to ensure that we have the brightest petunias and the best tomatoes.
As an avid gardener, I enjoy the solitude and peace of gardening, along with reaping the rewards of the flowers’ beauty and the tasty bounty from the produce. However, while gardening recently, I noticed similarities between successful gardening and successful human resources management.
Strategy
Each year, throughout the winter months into early spring, the avid gardener reviews the current status of the garden and makes plans for the upcoming growing season. In these cases, we consider what we want to accomplish, what we want to grow, and where the plants
will grow best.
Developing a strategy for our HR management function and conducting an annual review is also important for the success of our organizations. Factors to consider are: What areas of the bank are experiencing growth? Are we expanding into new markets? Are we
adding new products and services? If so, what are the staffing and training and development needs to help achieve this growth?
Strategic planning begins with identifying where we are as an organization as well as our desired goals. Traditionally,
the strategic planning process includes financial review and analysis of profitability, return on investment, asset and
liability management, etc. However, in this planning process, sometimes we overlook the most important asset – that of
our employees – our human resources. Successful organizations incorporate human resources as an integral part of the
strategic planning process.
Recruiting and selection
The gardener will generally select plants according to the appropriate climate and growing conditions. When shopping
for that “perfect plant,” we consider where the plant will thrive. We select the plant based on its likelihood of successful
growth, according to amounts of sunlight, type of soil, etc.
In HR management, the key to employee satisfaction, performance and retention lies in the selection process. During recruiting and selection, it’s important that we select employees who are likely to succeed in our organizational “climate and growing conditions.” Consider the culture of the bank when recruiting and selecting employees and ensure that the applicant fits with the culture and job responsibilities so that the employee can also thrive.
A key element to determine the fit of an applicant and the organization is asking the right questions during the interview process. At times, we are so overwhelmed and rushed during the interview because of our desire to fill the job quickly. As a result, we may not take the time to interview effectively to determine the employee’s skills and ability to fit in the organization’s culture. In some cases, we may consider the employment laws so onerous that we are afraid to ask questions of the applicant. A good rule of thumb is to focus
on job requirements – when asking questions during an interview, make sure each question is job related. If the interview question is not job related – don’t ask.
Providing an environment for growth and development
In our gardens, we tend to our plants by fertilizing, cultivating, watering as needed. By performing these tasks, we are creating an environment that allows the plants to grow.
Similarly, in our HR management roles, we create an environment to allow our employees to grow. We provide the necessary tools so the
employee can perform the job duties, but we also provide training and development opportunities to “grow” the employee while allowing the employee to successfully perform the job duties.
To help our plants succeed, we remove dead leaves and blossoms which are obstacles to growth. In our HR roles and responsibilities, we must also remove any obstacles to employee growth. These obstacles often include a lack of training, inadequate equipment or inefficient processes. These obstacles may be a cause of employee performance problems as well. In the rush of the hiring process, we may
not have much time to train a new employee. The lack of training and subsequent confusion for the employee can cause performance problems. Similarly, inadequate equipment, inefficient processes can cause poor performance.
To remove obstacles, it’s important that as managers we are visible and accessible to employees. It’s also essential that
we visit employees in their work areas to determine their needs. Ongoing communication and employee involvement in identifying training, equipment or process problems can go a long way toward improving productivity and morale.
Employee motivation
There are many theories regarding motivation, but in my view, it is the employee who is ultimately responsible for motivation and performance. Certainly, as leaders and managers with HR responsibilities, we need to create an environment for growth. However, beyond our creating the proper environment, motivation lies within the employee.
Despite our valiant efforts in the garden, sometimes plants fail and they leave our garden. Likewise, in spite of our creating an environment for our employees to succeed and grow, they may also fail and leave our bank.
One difference between our plants failing and our employees not succeeding is our guilt and associated stress. We often lie awake at night wondering what we did to cause the employee to fail. While sometimes this hindsight is helpful, most of the time the failure of an employee to perform is not our doing. When we focus on creating an environment for success and self-motivation, our guilt and
stress levels are lessened.
For most of us who garden, it’s a hobby, while managing human resources is serious business. Both are hard work and can be quite challenging. However, both yield tremendous rewards for us. As gardeners, we enjoy the bounty of our harvest and the beauty of the flowers that we tend. As managers, there is no greater reward than seeing growth of our employees.
Gayla R. Sherry, SPHR, CMC, is President of Gayla R. Sherry Associates, Inc., an Oklahoma City area-based consulting firm specializing in human resources, organizational development, training, conflict resolution and workplace mediation.
First published on BankersOnline.com 5/10/04
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