CASE STUDY: HR IN THE PERSONAL ORBIT
Synopsis
“A cat has nine lives”. How many does a man have? Many perceive that a man has two lives, one at home and another at office, the place where he is employed. Now should both the lives be considered while evaluating a person at office? Is his performance at office linked to his personal life? This is a moot point.
Kuldeep works for Glenn India, a multinational, as a manager. He has an excellent track record, but his performance for the present year has been poor; ‘Really Bad’ as the HR head puts it. His job is on the block. Kuldeep is undergoing turmoil in his personal life. His sister with her kids is with him now, after a broken marriage, the reason for his abysmal performance.
Glenn India follows a 360 degree appraisal system. It does not take into consideration Kuldeep’s personal problems at home, for his poor performance at work. The management of the company wants to show Kuldeep, the door, but the HR Head Shardul Tiwari, is more sympathetic. He does not want to lose him and is making an effort to retain him.
Shardul Tiwari consults his friend, Parthiv Nair, HR head of Peacock industries. Parthiv Nair informs him that they too have a 360 degree appraisal system, but much different from the conventional one. They judge their managers by various parameters, one of which is the ability to balance work and family life. The features of their 360 degree appraisal system are as follows.
• In a 360 degree appraisal system the manager is evaluated by his subordinates, peers and seniors. In Peacock industries the manager selects his peers and subordinates to evaluate himself.
Comment:
The manager has the liberty to select only those, who he feels knows him well; his backgrou ...