Participants call for rebranding of HR departments
Speakers at a conference on Human Resource Management in the public sector have called for the rebranding of human resources management departments in the public service.
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According to them, rebranding the HR departments would enable practitioners to contribute towards the development of strategic solutions in their organisations.
The speakers noted that the current position of HR departments in the public service did not enable them to contribute effectively to the growth of their organisations.
The participants, who included the Chairman of the Public Service Commission (PSC), Mrs Bridget Katsriku and the President of the Institute of Human Resource Management Practitioners, Ghana, Mr John Wilson, were speaking at the 3rd conference on Human Resource Network of the Public Service, Ghana, in Accra. It was on the theme, “Modernising the HR Function for effective and efficient public service delivery in the 21st century.”
The network is made up of Human Resource (HR) personnel in the public sector.
Functions
Mrs Katsriku said in many public service organisations, human resource functions were mostly managed by general administrators which she described as not the best.
She, therefore, called for a clear distinction between the functions of administrators and human resource managers because the two had different and distinctive roles.
According to her, organisations needed to involve human resource managers in developing their operational goals and strategies, “and not be sidelined in the establishments’ development planning.”
"HR practitioners need to be at the forefront of building and strengthening capacity and competences that can give the public service an impetus for innovation, creativity and transformation which is currently lacking in the public service," she added.
Redefine the vision
It is against that background that Mrs Katsriku said the network was formed to provide a platform to exchange information on human resource management practices, as well as develop common standards in the application of HR policies and procedures.
For his part, Mr Wilson said, "the human resource function in the public service is in greatest need of branding, since it is most often viewed as a passive entity".
He indicated that there was the need for redefinition of vision, mission and values for human resources in the public service and modernise its management, while seeking for professional training for all HR practitioners in the service.