Online Reporter
Employee Relations
Dr Request Machimbira
In the cutthroat world of business, operating costs are the pulse that chief executive officers and finance directors keep a hawk’s eye on.
IT is a justifiable fixation, given the ever-present threat of financial turbulence.
However, when the going gets tough, the knee-jerk reaction is often to reach for the guillotine, slashing HR costs with reckless abandon.
This default response is akin to treating the symptoms, not the disease.
When an organisation’s viability is threatened, HR cost containment becomes the go-to band aid, applied without a second thought.
The result is a professional guillotine — freezing recruitment and training, slashing employee salaries and benefits, leaving a trail of demotivated and demoralised staff in its wake.
But companies must breathe, and cost containment is essential.
The problem lies in the approach — often abrupt, ritualistic and devoid of strategy.
When costs are within budget, it is clear that the company has a revenue challenge, not a cost issue.
Slashing HR costs will not magically increase revenue; it is a futile exercise that requires a fundamental shift in approach. What such an organisation needs is a revenue strategy, not a cost-containment gimmick.
HR practitioners must rise to the challenge, serving CEOs and boards with insightful, data-driven reports that inform empirical decision-making.
Unfortunately, most reports are shallow, lacking the analytics and material data.
Cost containment must never be seen as a strategy.
It is a necessary evil, but one that should be approached with caution.
Organisations are expected to be cost-prudent every day, and accelerated cost management will always be consequential.
Freezing recruitment and training is akin to amputating limbs in the hope of curing a headache.
Who will do the work that brings value to the organisation?
How will human capital capacity be optimised without training?
Business leaders must adopt a scientific, empirical approach to decision-making.
This demands a new wave of managers — those with the eye of an analyst and the mind of a strategist. If you cannot see the real problem, you cannot fix it.
The modern HR practitioner must be a master of strategy, not just a retrenchment or cost-containment technician. Organisations require thinkers and managers who will remodel the business, not settle for tried, tested and failed approaches.
It is time to break the mould and forge a new path, one that prioritises strategic growth, innovation and human capital development.
Sanitising boardrooms
The boardroom, once a bastion of strategic thinking and visionary leadership, has become a breeding ground for mediocrity.
The air is thick with stagnant ideas, stale conversations and a crippling lack of quality. It is time for HR practitioners to roll up their sleeves.
The gauntlet has been thrown and it is time to sanitise the boardroom, ridding it of the malaise that has been suffocating innovation and progress. The rot runs deep, infecting the very fabric of decision-making.
The quality of personnel and the calibre of decisions made in some organisations are woefully lacking.
It is a crisis that demands urgent attention, and HR practitioners are the front-line staff needed to lead the effort.
It is time for board of directors to step up, take a hard look in the mirror and ask tough questions.
If retrenchment has become a revolving door, with three rounds in the past year alone, it is clear that the problem is in the boardroom itself.
Unfortunately, if you cannot see it, you will not fix it.
The solution lies in honest conversations, untainted by the stench of self-interest. We need thinkers, not proxies, in our boardrooms; individuals who can challenge, debate and push the boundaries of what is possible.
Sadly, we are stuck with a chorus of “I concur” and nods of approval, as if the CEO’s every utterance is gospel.
It is a travesty and it is time to call it out. The HR guillotine will continue to wreak havoc, stripping people of their wellness and dignity, unless we change course.
HR practitioners have a sacred duty to safeguard interests of the organisation and its people.
It is time to exercise that function with judiciousness, courage and conviction. Let us create boardrooms where ideas are challenged, creativity is sparked and innovation thrives.
The time for change is now. The time for action is yesterday. Let us get to work and sanitise the boardroom, once and for all.
Dr Request Machimbira is the executive director for Proficiency Consulting Group International. He is a leading, multi-award-winning human resources expert, strategy facilitator, board trainer, team building coach, wellness consultant an independent labour arbitrator, board chairperson and published author. He writes in his personal capacity. For feedback, email request@proficiencyinternational .com or phone +263772693404.
