information per se. Then there's the belief that if one were to share all one's information, what value is left to the individual? A tricky one, but operating from a place of fear is never a good thing. The trick lies in viewing it with different lenses, exploring new avenues and testing your theory out.

The reality is that there are many individuals and organisations that practise information sharing. We need to embrace that mindset if we are to advance and grow. As a community, as a generation, as a nation. We cannot expect to just be on the receiving end, willingly listening to and taking on board new ideas, best practices and other people's failures; it's not balanced and it cannot last. More importantly, the question you need to grapple with is whether you really think you are holding back your competitors or your colleagues when you horde information or are you perhaps, holding yourself back?

Consider it anyway as you gain some of these insights from our second instalment of The HR Matters Front and Centre Survey 2009, which began in March 2009. The genesis of this survey is simple - get to the bottom of what's hurting us right now, what's foremost on our agenda. And certain consistencies cropped up.

Size matters
There seems to be a proliferation of organisations that have small HR teams. Large public listed companies as well as medium sized organisations that one would think would have at least a medium sized HR department tend to have small teams of one to three people, on average.

What does this mean consequently and does size matter? Well, it really depends. Are you handling more than HR? Some organisations have HR departments overseeing or managing finance or administration. In this case, size does matter. Faced with a lot more administrative tasks than others, you will have less face time with the business, less time to understand, help or be a part of the directional strategy. 43% of the survey respondents reported having a more tactical, day to day focus in their work as opposed to 26% asserting a more strategic outlook in their focus. The remaining 31% argued a combination of both in their outlook.

It's the whole Gen Y language and culture that I grapple with...
- Sylvia Kheng, HR Manager

Retention and engagement is No.1
Highest on the priority list of the majority of the HR managers we spoke to, was retention and engagement of their workforce. As Julia Vincent, HR Manager at Equatorial Hotel argued, "Like some of my compatriots, I've had this expectation that people's perception of the current climate will translate into a general reluctance to move positions or look for new opportunities, career wise. But we've found that at least among the rank and file, turnover still remains high enough to cause worry. These employees have, on the face of it, considered the viability of their choice to move positions, look for other opportunities, and for some, consider new business ventures. For us, this poses some concern and it does seem to have a knock-on effect on the morale of those that remain with the organisation. Our main focus right now is therefore to look at continued recruitment, preventative measures we can take to educate our people about the choices they're making and to also consider how we can better equip ourselves to foresee these sorts of developments. Another primary focus during a time like this, is on training to establish a service-oriented culture. We see this as a huge point of differentiation for us, in our industry. Our challenge here is to address the cultural and language issues in establishing this."

Some of us argue that we've been badly hit economically and financially. But we can't be that badly affected by the goings-on, on the world stage, if we still have choices available to us. Julia is not the only one to mention, what appears to be more than just a one-off occurrence. Our talent locally, still have choices, apparently. Some of us are taking our time to decide, to plan, to commit. Some of us, choose not to. And how we in HR, choose to respond or act on this proactively will determine how well-placed we are in dealing with these developments.

Karen Ho, Assistant HR Manager from Mexter Technology Berhad commented that their organisation had come up with a programme on workforce retention. Critical positions were identified, monetary incentives were being offered in return for re-established commitment for a period of time. It clarifies both parties positions well.

Another HR manager in the IT industry argued that some employees are even demanding higher pay at this time. Some threaten to leave if their demands are not met. These employees seem to be concerned with their own welfare and more focused on their requirements for more income than they are with the challenges that their own organisation may be facing. This really depends on the communication channel and the level of openness that exists in talking about the true state of play. The realisation that two can play the same game may not go down well for the enterprise when they find they cannot stomach what they dish out. How committed your people are to you, is ultimately a reflection of how much commitment you have shown your own people through the years. In your approach, your programmes, your communication.

But part of it, the part that involves being able to compensate, educate and train and generally look after your talent involves a greater degree of understanding and identifying with your talent. Sylvia Kheng, Human Resource Manager at AS Online Sdn Bhd argues that with a younger generation moving in the ranks, managers need to address this new generation in a completely different way. "I find it difficult to motivate our people and find out what they really want. It's the whole Gen Y language and culture that I grapple with..., " Sylvia laments. This view seems to echo that of Marie*, a HR Manager from a conglomerate who argued that turnover of young executives remained high. "People are still leaving and you know, the challenge is in understanding and retaining the gen Y crowd who want it all and want it now."

Angela*, a HR Business Partner with a telecommunications organisation says one of their main concerns right now is talent retention. "We're considering all angles, looking at motivation, benefits and preventative measures to avoid having our people leaving us or being headhunted," Angela explains.

Azhar bin Mohamed, HR Manager at Pacific Oleochemicals Sdn Bhd mirrors the same viewpoint. Considering the current economic climate and the fact that business in general has been affected, the workforce numbers may need to be looked at but it's a question of effective strategies to keep everyone on board.

Mindy*, a HR Manager at an IT services firm argues for the need to improve the work environment. "The market may have slowed down but attrition is still a common problem. Our internal survey shows people are not happy and we need to spend time to find out why," Mindy explains.

So, what do managers believe retention and engagement are about? Remuneration in itself is not enough. We need to look at the work environment, non-monetary ways to motivate and incentivise and opening up lines of communication. We also need to see how we can make the job interesting, provide a considered and all-rounded approach to an employee's benefits package, look at your talent's long term goals and considering the fit with what plans you have for them. And more investment in training and development.

Recruitment comes a close second
Lee*, an HR and Administration Manager from a chemical manufacturing enterprise argues that the current crop of talent is choosy. "We're finding it a little hard to recruit. What this means for us is that the people we need seem to be harder to find and even then, appear choosy about their options. The smaller local talent pool means a greater reliance on foreign labour which I personally object to; I find it unbalanced."

Cass Lai, HR Manager, Gastrodome Management Services Sdn Bhd comments on these difficulties. "It's hard to get the response we want, in terms of numbers. Getting feedback on advertisement positioning or even alternatives to traditional advertising media would be useful."

The noticeable trend is that in some industries, we are grappling with a smaller pool of talent, talent which appears to be selective and perhaps, rightly so. These are market forces, these are individual decisions, affected by a myriad number of individual factors. It would be to some extent, inaccurate to begin to draw parallels or generalisations from this kind of data. What we know is that there is a greater range of opportunities available now in cities and in different industries which necessarily makes certain industries, profitable as they may, a little unsexy. While this opens up new opportunities for some, it can also create different problems or scenarios. Foreign labour is indispensable now; whether integrated into our society or not, they form part of our fabric as we contend with them in shopping malls, car parks, construction sites and our corner cafe.

Lee, a HR Manager at a golf and country club noted a concern with the government levy in regards to foreign labour. Her concern was that it represents a cost factor for the organisation, one they were keen to pass on. But deductions from the workers would result in an untenable financial position for them and could this really be possible, legally or realistically? "Blue collar work is now so unattractive to local talent, the nature of the job itself so off-putting. We're looking at agriculture, machine operations, cleaning.....how do we go about attracting locals to do this sort of work? Lee asks.

Mano*, a HR Manager at a logistics firm commented, "We're undergoing an aggressive expansion but it's been tough. Getting new applicants and getting good quality". Lily*, an Administration and Finance Manager at a metal recycling firm, said that candidates seem very choosy. "After coming on board, they leave after a day, some after a week. Sometimes, they don't even turn up. It's a mixed bag really; some in this talent pool are not the best quality, some have attitude issues. It's really a question of how to manage through this. Funnily enough, despite the above, some of these candidates are coming in demanding a salary not really commensurate with their position".

Managing performance
It's clear that while performance management has always been a key concern, the realities of the business environment we currently face is putting even more pressure on this. That in itself, may or may not be a good thing. We can see a heightened focus on training for example, being diverted or being solely focused on activities around revenue generation. Any crunch time creates enormous pressures but a holistic view of things is crucial to ensuring we keep the future in mind while we deal with the present.

Too narrow a focus, may seem like a good idea, even obvious, at the time, especially when everyone else seems to be doing the same. But best practice organisations not only look to what are good principles and values to follow but ensure they are cognisant of their own particular strengths and peculiarities, which may not necessarily be mirrored elsewhere.

Jane*, a HR Manager from the higher education industry comments on the need to focus on performance and the cultural issues faced. "Our main issues in HR at this point in time relate largely to the people development side of things. From an institutional strategy point of view, our top three concerns are a transparent performance system, a management development programme and succession planning. Another thing we're looking at is strategic recruitment. My concerns are both a mix of the strategic focus as well as the tactical issues we need to look at. From the point of view of a transparent performance system, what we're trying to do here is open the organisational mindset up, get them to consider the idea of changing the way they look at things. These are people from the medical line and as such, people who are highly educated with the corresponding ego to match. We need to look at a transparent performance system. After all, this is a university establishment. With half the staff population being faculty members, we find that there is a certain way in which they approach things. Our reality is that as a business enterprise, unlike the public university system, there are necessarily competing interests that we need to balance. Shareholder interests for example, versus our overriding desire to uphold the aims of this educational establishment. I believe that some element of self-reflection will aid in this process, in getting the relevant parties ultimately open to different approaches and ideas not only from the medical fraternity but also from the corporate world. When I look at our management development programme, our main issues relates to matching employee competencies against the core competencies we require and doing the pre-requisite gap analysis. In terms of succession planning, we are always open to new ways of doing things here. It would be great to get more on tool kits, checklists, how others are viewing this... We are ultimately looking at succession in terms of talent acquisition and talent management."

Many organisations are choosing not to hire when positions are left empty, choosing instead to consider how the remaining workforce may be reconfigured to pick up the slack. Some are getting their workforce to learn new skills and be more hands-on. Various programmes are put in place, monetary rewards and career path advancement, for example, offered as incentives. Where HR faces a challenge here is in the level of involvement they need to commit to and being able to run these additional assessments as more people take on new roles or assignments.

Gigi*, a HR Manager in the real estate and property industry argues her key concerns right now are right-sizing her team, considering both headcount and benefits. She faces a management team that wants to employ a wait and see approach but is potently aware that the employees are waiting around, some of whom are not being redeployed. "My challenge here is I know we are affecting their livelihood. I can't afford to take a wait and see approach; we need to analyse their work and identify their competencies. The question is how do I deal with this? I might have to cull, I might have to advertise and get new people in. And the thing is, in this downturn, we're faced with a larger candidate pool which may not necessarily be of the quality we seek. We're hiring but I don't want to be pressed by time to fill these positions either ..," Gigi explains.

What's certain, is that this period is a test of our nerve and our value to the organisation.

*Pseudonym. Name withheld.