The relevance of HR personnel in a knowledge-based industry transitioning towards remote working

Abstract

The year 2020 was not an ordinary year. A mysterious flu like virus originating from China spreads like wildfire across the globe at an alarming rate, little did the world know it was the start of the 21st century Pandemic. Corporations being at the forefront of economic drivers, were one of the worst hit sectors. The disruption in workplace caused by the virus pushed Human Resource (HR) personnel into a corner, leaving them with a challenging situation to tackle. The traditional functions of HR such as hiring employees, onboarding, training, performance appraisal, and creating employee engagement had to be redefined and reinvented. As students of management education at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, we were curious and keen to know more about how the HR domain was affected, how it adapted and what future it holds To understand the problem statement better, we conducted in-depth interviews with multiple HR personnel from knowledge-based industries. We were able to understand the challenges faced by the HRs during different stages of the pandemic and how they responded. Also, we were able to gauge their opinions and predictions on how the future of work environment will turn out. We have segmented the HR functions into different verticals, and they are – Recruitment, Training, Performance Appraisal, Employee Benefits, and Employee Engagement. The report contains analysis of the mentioned verticals using primary and secondary research and concluded it with suggestions and recommendations.