“There is no HR in Asia”

Since I remember, Westerners in China often complained that “there is no HR in Asia”. The statement mostly suggested lack of high caliber human resources talent, weak HR architectures and “me too” HR practices and policies. True, for many years, little investments have been made in China in upgrading HR departments. However, HR has always been of a great consideration, particularly among MNCs and companies set-up by foreigners. Additionally, senior management and company owners have always played a key role within major areas of human resources management like recruitment and selection, retention, development, compensation and staff reduction.

After spending several years in China, the phrase got however a different meaning to me. “There is no HR in Asia” pertains to mediocre managerial skills and almost non-existent support of thereof by HR. Traditionally, line managers are poorly trained in people issues. In addition, Western managers face the intercultural challenge with lack of Chinese language skills and pitiable training in cross-cultural subjects.

Finally, one misconception prevails among Chinese and Westerns executives. In their attempt to improve HR and people management they hire a HR person or a HR team to fix all corporate culture issues and make the company live by first-class people management practices. But delegating people management to human resources specialists does not work. No! No!

HR can merely equip line managers with the necessary skills and competencies to handle people management issues. HR can overtake huge part of paper work, supply tools as well as design and align practices, and only in cooperation with line managers ensure their effectiveness.

Without close relationship between HR and line management, HR cannot bring about results. HR lacks the most immediate and up-to-date information about employees competencies and performance. HR alone also lacks authority in the organizational ladder and hence they may only have little impact on employees` behavior.

In conclusion, there will be no HR in Asia, as long as line and general managers do not fill responsible for the day-to-day 'people-management' activities at their companies.

No respect for Juniors

It is funny how the same characteristics, way of working or attitude is perceived differently depending on the person's rank and seniority in a company in China. What is perceived as a weakness or disadvantage of a Junior employee becomes an asset of a Senior position.

Consider the following reactions to the different employee ranks:
* A junior employee is simply rude; the senior one is straight forward!
* Junior is close-minded, the senior is focused!
* Junior is careless; the senior is focused on the big picture!
* Junior is impatient; the senior is restless for action!
* Junior is hot blooded, the senior is passionate!

Do you know more?

What do Ba Ling Hou have in common with the Millennials

Reading the “Managing the Millennials” by Espinoza, Ukljea, and Rusch (2010, published by John Wiley & Sons) is like finally verbalize everything what presented a challenge when striving to understand, interpret, and manage behaviors of Chinese employees. In particular, those called the Generation 1980’s (Ba Ling Hou), born and raised after Deng Zhao Ping reforms, whose third socialization has been taking place in Multinationals or KMUs in China of European or American origin. I don’t know any book on intercultural communication explaining behaviors of young employees in China more accurately then “Managing the Millenials”. Though, this book refers to Americans only without aspiring to have any cross-border relevance.

No value-added HR without the CEO’s buy-in

With HR practitioners struggling to create value and focusing excessively on internal department efficiency, HR fails to realize respect as a profession. Hence, some people say, “There is no HR in China”. Yet, when you look at the job boards with openings for HR roles, you find out that to be in charge of the HR department, candidates need to bring 10 to 15 + year of HR experience.

So what’s the deal? Why are people with “relevant and continuous” experience unable to change the rules and move HR to a value contributing unit? Why does HR exhibit signs of insanity as memorably defined by Einstein; "Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results"? But more importantly, who can stop this insanity?

The answer to the last question is the CEO. How?

By aligning job requirements and selection criteria for senior HR leaders to strategic deliverables.
CEOs need to look for different type of talent. No matter how many years of experience Candidates bring, it is imprudent to assume that a person skilled in administrative efficiency, employee advocacy, and legal compliance will naturally add-value through problem solving, strategic thinking, and analytics. If CEOs expect HR to be strategic, then they should not look at the number of years of experience as an indicator of performance. Instead, it is about time that CEOs begin testing Candidates on their knowledge, thinking style, enthusiasm and attitudes, creativity, how they go about solving problems on-the-spot.

By continuously supporting HR initiatives.
CEOs must show greater buy-in for all HR programs. No matter how much effort HR professionals exert, without the CEO’s support, none of them can really take off. HR programs can not live separately from the C-suite, as it happens more and more with an increasing number of dotted and sometimes direct reporting lines between country and regional and global HR leads. The CEO is the only one that can really fix people issues; the rest of the things like sales, marketing, operations, finance, etc., other pros can do for them.

Some job ads attract letter of rejection instead of cover letter

"Thank you for your job ad in my copy of the Augsburger Allgemeine-newspaper and the confidence you have placed it my person. Unfortunately, due to a large number of other job ads I will not pursue your job opportunity any further and won’t apply for the position offered by your company.” The above quotation was authored by Jürgen Sprenzinger, German satirist. His book „Dear Mr. Hornback, I would apply for this position by a whisker. Refusals to unsolicited job ads” is a compilation of letters of rejection sent to Human Resource Departments as an answer to their print job ads.

Since 2000, Julien Prévieux, a French artist, also writes letters of non-motivation to refuse jobs offered in the newspapers, which have been first published in 2007 in a book called: Letters De Non Motivation.

Essentially, both collection of letters reveals the linguistic monsters in the job ads. Both authors assume different roles allowing for impetuous reasons for turning down the job in question. The companies sometimes replied, automatically or personally. Some Human Resource Departments have been very sad.

In both books, the entire recruitment system is revealed as defective.

Julien Prévieux (2007) "Letters De Non Motivation“, ISBN : 2-355-22009-3

Jürgen Sprenzinger (2008) „Sehr geehrter Herr Hornbach, um ein Haar hätte ich mich bei Ihnen beworben. Absagen auf unverlangte Stellenangebote", ISBN: 978-3-426-78104-3

Start Enlarging Your Talent Pool

In China, the War for Talent is raging with no end in sight. Therefore, instead of fishing in the same talent pool as your feisty competitors, try to concentrate on influencing the size of your pool. Actions that can be taken include:
•Creating a "fun" and frequently updated website that appeals to and inspires students to pursue a career in your industry and with your company.
•Offering observation placements whereupon students spend a full week with in-house people to see what working in the company is like, what people do, and what makes the company tick.
•Having an open-house to introduce the company’s office environment, works, and people (Make it enjoyable like a tour at a "chocolate factory").
•Sharing your people's knowledge and experience with University students by placing one of your brightest stars in front of the class and having them teach a full course.
•Engaging schools to advertise your Internship program.
•Sponsoring scholarships.
•Participating in career fairs.
•Collaborating with University professors to write and publish a white paper and/or case study on your company’s challenges, what solutions were enacted, and the results of the project in question.
•Inviting the news and newspapers to cover your company's accomplishments, any special employees, and report on new and interesting projects.
•Providing alternative work programs that cater to and bring in seasoned people to work on a part-time or interim basis.

Recruiting and retaining talent with Meal Perks

Providing water to employees is employer’s duty in China. Many employers in Shanghai go however beyond this requirement and make coffee and tee available to employees for free. Some companies offer fruits (e.g. JWT) in the afternoon and some other a noodle soup when one is working after 7pm (e.g. TBWA).

The NetCircle offers a full food service program (breakfast, lunch, afternoon snacks and dinner) free for all employees. By providing meal perks, the company’s founders hope to keep its workforce happy, motivated, efficient and productive. The perk also allows for a greater community building among employees. There are little to no incentives to leave company office during lunch hours. Instead, employees can socialize and have a conversation. In addition, an inviting well-designed kitchen serving delicious food from 8.00am to 8pm might lure talent and certainly for some employees is a good argument to stay.

To mention on the micro perspective: The menus are planned by an administrative assistant and the two cooks usually one week in advance. Cooks consult employees daily in terms of food preferences and likability of served dishes. They are especially interested in employees feedback after they’ve cooked something new, particularly a Western meal, prepared based on a recipe from a cook book. The cooks start their day by visiting the market to buy fresh ingredients. Notably, in The NetCircle’s kitchen as much as possible is made from scratch.