The year 2020 has posed an unprecedented challenge to businesses and the global economy. In the “next normal”, we can anticipate 2021 to be the year where businesses look to recover, rebuild, and realign their business strategies to equip themselves with the required capabilities to deal with an unpredictable future, along with Industrial Revolution 4.0 (IR4.0).
Navinder Singh, a Human Resource Advisor in Shell Malaysia believes that it is important to surround ourselves with positivity in order to create an optimistic outlook in life.
IR4.0 is blurring the lines between people and technology. It has transformed people strategies and Human Resource (HR) practices. The impact of this transformation changes the way people work and how businesses redefine the future of work.
28-year-old Navinder Singh, who pursued the B.A (Hons) in Business Administration degree, a collaboration with University of Hertfordshire at INTI International College Kuala Lumpur said, “Over the last two years, the HR function within Shell Business Operations (Shell) has undergone various digitalization journeys (and this continues). These brought in new scopes to my job description, which required me to adapt quickly in order to accurately move forward with the requirements of my role.”
Navinder, who is working as a Human Resource Advisor for International Mobility and manages transfers and assignments for the expatriate community in Shell, addressed the organization’s notion to march towards embracing the digitalization journey and the programmes introduced in his department. Two digital platforms were implemented to help revitalize and simplify HR processes whilst making it convenient and effective for staff.
“Learning how to effectively use these platforms were crucial and of course my company supported this in every way possible. They provided everyone within the HR operations with relevant training and upskilling opportunities to enable us to synergize and work with the new digital platforms,” added Navinder.
The purpose of these platforms was to ease administrative tasks for HR advisors and allow for a simplistic process when they provided support to staff and employees throughout Shell. This would then translate into better employee experiences.
“I am grateful that I was part of these processes as a candidate to assist with the testing of the digital platforms prior to the GO-LIVE date. The testing phase was crucial as we needed to assess the readiness of the platforms prior to using it in the production environment,” shared Navinder.
Navinder is also thankful to Shell as it is an organization that advocates a learner’s mind-set and provides continuous improvement for all its staff. From time to time, the employees undergo upskilling sessions to refresh their current skillsets besides obtaining newer ones.
“This certainly has helped me remain contemporary and competitive because in today’s business and organizational climate, being adaptable and having the ability to adjust to any requirement and external factors is something that everyone in the workforce must have. Comfort zones are a thing of the past and in today’s fast paced environment, moving forward is key,” admitted Navin.
Sebastian Fu Zhiyi (standing, first from right) from China reads the latest information about employability online to keep himself abreast with the latest trends.
On the other hand, Fu Zhiyi (Sebastian) from Liaoning, China is currently working as a Talent Acquisition Specialist in Webhelp. Having graduated with a Bachelor of Business (Hons) degree in International Business from INTI International University (INTI), Nilai, Sebastian attributes his broad understanding of global economics and business climates to his remarkable academic journey at INTI.
Speaking about the latest ventures in the HR department he is currently working in, Sebastian shared, “Collaborating with a few other departments, we have developed an internal system to automate recruitment processes and maximize the employee experience in the areas of benefits, recognition, learning and development, and performance management.”
“Furthermore, during this unprecedented time, we have redefined our interview procedures. Since our candidates’ safety is our topmost priority, we have adopted technologies like Google Meet, Microsoft Teams and Zoom to coordinate our hiring processes,” shared Sebastian.
According to Sebastian, the future of HR lies in digitalization. The COVID-19 pandemic has rung the bell to remind us how important digital technologies are for business, administration, and society. He also affirmed that digitalization plays a decisive role in employee management as remote work setups have been established, and data analysis seems to be a highly important tool for HR departments to keep track their overall employee experience, and employees’ physical and mental health.
“Who on earth ever thought of the challenges that 2020 would bring? HR professionals certainly did not imagine the challenges that COVID-19 has dawned on them. The uncertainty has crushed the economy, employees are in stressful situations, and HR professionals are trying their best to keep everything in perspective and aligned,” stressed Sebastian when speaking about the realities faced by HR representatives today.
Sebastian concluded, “The sudden shift in work culture has brought new challenges for HR. The top priority for HR professionals is now crisis response and how to keep their employees engaged, provide the right communication channels and tools for remote work, and more.”