¶ … HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES IN THE GHANA WATER COMPANY.
Human resources refer to the knowledge, skills, creative abilities, talents, aptitude, values and beliefs of an organization's workforce. The more important aspects of human resources are aptitude, values, attitudes and beliefs. But, in a given situation, if these vital aspects remain same, the other aspects of human resources like knowledge, skills, creative abilities and talents play an important role in deciding the efficiency and effectiveness of an organization's workforce.
However, enhancement of utilization value of human resources depends on improvement of the human resource aspects like skill, knowledge, creative abilities and talents and molding of other aspects like values, beliefs, aptitude and attitude in accordance with the changing requirements of groups, organization and society at large. This process is the essence of human resource development. It is clear from this interpretation that human resource development improves the utilization value of an organization. RD assumes significance in view of the fast changing organizational
Environments and need of the organization to adopt new techniques in order to respond to the environmental changes. The changing environmental factors include unprecedented increase in competition within and outside the country consequent upon the announcement and implementation of economic liberalizations.
Trends towards market economy are more prevalent in most of the countries including the erstwhile communist countries. These trends towards marketing economy resulting in severe competition not only among the industries in the globe but also industries within the nation. This competition allows only the industries strong in all respects to continue in the market and the other industries are forced to withdraw from the market.
The vitality of human resources to a nation and to industry depends upon the level of its development. Organizations to be dynamic, growth-oriented and fast changing should develop their human resources. It is needless to say that the organization possessing competent human resources grow faster and can be dynamic. HRD is not Training and Development. But many personnel managers and organizations view HRD as synonymous to training and development.
Leonard Nadler formally introduced the concept of HRD in 1969 in a Conference organized by the American Society for Training and Development. Leonard Nadler defines HRD as, "those learning experiences which are organized, for a specific time, and designed to bring about the possibility of behavioral change." i) Acquire or sharpen capabilities required to perform various functions associated with their present or expected future roles.
A ii) Develop their general capabilities as individuals and discover and exploit their own inner potentials for their own and/or organizational development purposes.
The outcomes of HRD are four-fold, viz., to the organization, to the individuals, to the groups and to the society. HRD benefits the organization by developing the employees and make them ready to accept responsibilities, welcome change, adapt to change, enables the implementation of the programmers of total quality management, maintenance of sound human relations, increase in productivity and profitability. The HRD also benefits the individuals in achieving of potentials, increase in performance, fulfilling their needs and enhancing social and psychological status.
The benefits of implementing HRD can be highlighted as follows.
Training makes people more competent. They develop new skills, knowledge and attitudes.
There is greater clarity of norms and standards. People become better aware of the skills required for job performance and the expectations, which other members of their role set have from them.
People become more committed to their jobs because now there is greater objectivity in the administration of rewards. The databased appraisal system reduces subjectivity to the minimum.
People are assessed on the basis of their performance against agreed objectives and their team spirit, risk taking and creative qualities. They become more proactive in their orientation.
People develop great trust and respect for each other. They become more open in their behavior. Thus, new values come to be generated.
There is great collaboration and teamwork, which produces synergy effect.
STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
Ghana Water Company, formerly Ghana Water and Sewerage Corporation was established by an Act of Parliament, Act 310 of 1965 to be responsible for:
The provision, distribution and conservation of the supply of water in Ghana for public, domestic and industrial purposes.
The establishment, operation and control of sewerage system of such purposes
However, in spite of the reforms measures introduced in the Ghana Water Company as part of the Economic Recovery Programme (ERP) and the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) to expand its operations and make quality water accessible to an average Ghanaian at any point time, the GWCL has not been able to deliver and fulfill its obligations to the great majority of Ghanaians....
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