| STRATEGIC ANALYSIS |
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| Problems that managers and companies have faced in the last five years (I) |
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Presently, organizations are dealing with a complex market. Competitors keep evolving and appearing from new areas. Growth and development objectives must be related to the reality of a poorly trained work force. Managers’ competence must be developed so as to make them capable of keeping valuable employees inside the company. In addition to this, companies need to juggle with all these challenges and to have a client-oriented attitude.
A Ken Blanchard study carried on at an international level in 2007 underlines the needs and problems organizations are faced with as far as developing the employees’ potential to the maximum is concerned. The results of this study represent the feedback of more than 1091 managers from almost all domains of activity. The respondents were selected at random from the data base of the Ken Blanchard company and sent their answers via e-mail. Besides the answers to the questions linked to the present moment, the respondents were also asked to make predictions about the same key-topics for the year 2010.
Organizational capacity
The competition of local and international companies, their development, providing
good-quality products and services, as well as offering unique customer service skills are factors that contribute to sketching an extremely complicated business climate. Although the problem of competitiveness witnessed a regress for four years, the year 2007 has announced it as being the number one challenge for companies. Exploring this area, the respondents stated that the major challenge included differentiating the products and services, creating efficient methods in regard to customer service and fighting for valuable employees on a labour market that is getting more and more slashed. Companies mention the need to grow on the basis of well-defined strategic objectives, but also taking into consideration developing efficiency, facilitating production processes and offering good-quality products and services while fighting for simplifying and standardizing processes. Respondents pointed out to a growing need for developing the company’s management, especially by carefully implementing succession plans, which can become an engine to develop the organization towards the desired direction.
Developing people
Taking into account the human perspective of the development equation, organizations acknowledge the key-role that employees have in sustaining development and achieving customer-service objectives. Respondents keep placing developing leadership, selecting and keeping valuable employees inside the company, motivating employees and managerial skills as being important areas. They consider that competitive advantage and success are based on well-developed leadership, claiming that this is the engine of evolution for all the other areas. Another reason for which leadership is considered essential is the number of the employees that are close to retirement. From the point of view of the financial cost of human resources, it is also mentioned the high cost of recruiting talented and competent employees on a labour market that keeps diminishing as far as management and execution are concerned.
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Organizational problems
In 2004, 2005 and 2006, an analysis of the respondents’ comments showed that economic development, getting funds and budgets were the key-problems, while efforts were focused on entering new markets, controlling financial flow, financial stability, reestablishing budgets and price rising. All these actions seriously made pressures on price control and balancing investments according to achieving financial objectives.
The respondents who mentioned that poorly-trained employees were the main challenge referred especially to the need of requalifying employees as a principal strategy that helps successfully face customers’ growing demands. Besides this, improving the level of middle and top management training was also considered as being equally important. Respondents mentioned improving management as a key-element together with compensating for lack of training at all levels. They named changes and developing the organization as being the main challenges as regards the following directions: reorganization, technological development, relocation, expansion and adapting to the evolution of the market. The data for 2007 shows that company needs have not changed very much, the pressure of competitiveness still causing problems to the organizations. It is said that this is the reason why keeping valuable employees inside the company and reinventing marketing strategies through differentiation are affected. HR managers mention poorly-trained personnel and competition pressure as urgent needs, while top management concentrates on price strategies and developing the organizations. Looking into the future, respondents appreciate that there will be no major changes, and competition will always be in top. However, people expect the situation to get complicated due to economic consolidation and worldwide competition.
Rares Manolescu
Senior Manager Human Invest Romania |
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Human Invest is a Premier League company in the arena of training and
organizational development consultancy services, present on the Romanian market since 1998.
We are recognized for conceiving and implementing programs which offer managers an authentic experience towards improving their leadership
performances, and thus we support companies in becoming more and more engaged in delivering excellent services for their clients.
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