Beyond The Reel: The Truth Behind The Situation Of Businesses In The Philippines Post-Coronavirus

The Philippines is considered as one of the most high-risk countries from the Coronavirus outbreak. And in lieu of that, the government has ordered a lock-down on the entire Metro Manila, Luzon, some areas in Visayas, and is still mulling over more localized lockdowns in the country. The government of the Philippines has declared a state of calamity in the country for six months starting from March 17, 2020. Considering all that, the economy hibernates for the sake of public health and such triggered a chain reaction because ensuring public health comes with a hefty price tag: job closures, loss in business, and a peak in populism.

The Philippines is now battered by a perfect economic storm. The aftermath and the rebuilding process will prove to be even more daunting. This has caused organizations to transition into the “new normal”, and now more than ever, the role that the human resource personnel are playing within the organization has become an integral part especially when it comes to achieving a much stronger comeback.

According to a survey conducted by HR Nation Philippines to more than a hundred HR professionals in the country, there has been a shift in the priorities that the HR professionals are dealing with right now and this plays an important role in monitoring transformation during this unprecedented time. It is significant to gather and document how organizations transcended to ensure business continuity and recovery and from these trailblazers is also where other organizations can benchmark.

At a glance

The pulse survey specifically aims to gather firsthand unbiased responses from HR persons currently working in small, medium, and large organizations in order to determine various initiatives carried out by the HR in response to changes at work due to the COVID19 situation and in transitioning to the new normal. They have come up with a conclusive report as a reference and basis for strategic actions and interventions that could be taken in account of.

A set of clustered, HR relevant and interrelated selection type questions were sent online and digital to identified HR practitioners. Responses were collected and collated and results were processed statistically using the standard deviation-variance method. Results are presented in bar and pie charts-based percentages against response count.

The survey focused on key HR processes most affected by the new working arrangements due to the pandemic. The research was able to gather current raw sentiments and real situations of actively engaged HR professionals. The collated responses arranged from top choices to the least reflect the current state of HR. Let us walk you through some of the findings for each area covered by the survey questions.

The people have spoken

By adopting flexible and alternative work arrangements, the implementation of HR processes became at stake.  The following survey results provide a glimpse as to how HR adapted to the challenging situation from acquisition to improving business performance then to succession planning.

The Top Retention Challenges

The survey shows an absence of a clear career path which is the top current retention concern of organizations these days. It is then followed by low employee morale and lack of feedback and recognition. These responses bring to fore the need to administer career development, employee engagement, and equitable performance management in organizations despite the pandemic.

The Top Learning and Development Needs

Another result that they were able to concentrate on was the top organization’s learning and development needs while transitioning to the New Normal and Post COVID. The results reflect flexibility and adaptability, communication skills, and performing multi roles as the first three choices. The responses affirm that there is a need to conduct relevant training programs on agility and change management, communication skills development, and work ethics considering the flexible work arrangements and most importantly the use of new tools and platforms.

Topmost Significant Changes in HR

The identified significant changes in HR due to COVID19 are remote working arrangements, workers wellbeing, engaging remote workforce, HR policies and procedures, and culture of dispersed workplaces. The answers affirm that there is an increasing concern among those in the HR when managing work from home employees and those in alternative working arrangements. The responses manifest review and revision of HR procedures in order to incorporate health and safety protocols and develop a new organization culture.

Calm after the storm

One of the HR competencies that HR guru Dave Ulrich identified is Technology and Media Integrator. The pandemic forced HR to quickly accept into their systems digital transformation. The best way to continue business despite the lockdown and protocols is to work remotely and be online and virtual. These are the results of the survey regarding digitization in organizations.

 Top Digital Transformation Plans for HR Systems And Procedures

The top digital transformation plans on HR systems and procedures while in transition to the new work arrangements are performance/production, work from home, learning and development, and attendance/payroll. This requires the implementation of a competency-based performance management system, the reskilling and upskilling of employees and upgrading technology for work from home, and adoption of a new learning modalities, learning management system, and online T&A / Payroll.

Given all the hurdles the HR people are facing these days because of the pandemic, we at Salarium were able to come up with a solution, a digital transformation that can help you as you transition into the new normal. So, to significantly reduce physical contact especially for your skeletal workforce arrangements and thus not sacrificing convenience and efficiency, we are bringing FacePass, our touchless time and attendance solution.

Visit https://www.salarium.com/facepass/ for more info and don’t hesitate to contact us to know more about the product and the benefits your company or even your small business can reap by taking the switch to our innovative and sustainable complete payroll service.

SOURCES:

• Duddu, P. (2020, March 31). Coronavirus in Philippines: The COVID-19 risk, impact and measures.
• Pulse Survey Results Prepared By: Mr. Jesse Rebustillo, Human Resources Management Consultant.