TO UNLEASH POTENTIAL

Regardless of its size, not a single business can be stable and develop if its employees work without enthusiasm. This is an old truth, so old that it was identified as early as the 18th century, in the dawn of the industrial revolution.

However, knowing an old truth doesn't mean that in the times that have past since the dawn of the industrial revolution we have learned everything on the effective management of human resources. The trends, principles and practices in this field of modern business have changed through the years, mirroring the changes in the society, economy and technologies at the particular moment.

Today, in our globalised age, effective management of human resources is more important than ever. Globalisation made easier the movement of talent not only between companies, but also between countries and continents. Modern employees cannot be motivated solely with well known methods as good salary and social benefits. Regardless of the size of the company they work for, they want to feel like individuals whose opinion matters, whose activity has tangible results, and who can develop.

Companies, for their part, need to attract the best employees for them, to motivate them for effective work using the full potential of a team before hiring new staff. They have to be able to identify the leaders among their employees, giving them the opportunity to develop their managerial skills within the company. The companies should also have reliable tools for performance evaluation. The constant changes in technologies also impose the need of trainings that keep the employees adequate. Last, but not least, companies need loyalty.

Bulgaria is not isolated from these trends. In the past years different business fields, from IT to tourist services, have signalled lack of qualified labour.

Big companies are aware that good management of their human resources is a strategic task. But even their large teams of HR experts specialising in different fields have difficulties to follow all the novelties. The new requirements from the management of human resources cause the appearance of innovative solutions. The best people who can offer the right combination of solutions for the problems of a given company, are outside specialists in management of human resources.

IVВ (Sofia, 9B Latinka St, www.ivb.bg) is a consultancy company for strategic management of HR, and its founder Iva Balasheva uses her year-long experience in the field to create a 10 step programme aimed at managers and owners of companies with 20-80 employees. The programme includes analysis, building of systems for quality employees management, selection and motivation, effective delegation from the top management. "Following the programme, besides learning a lot of new things, you will be expected to co-operate in the creation of the policies and to be systematic in their implementation," says Iva Balasheva. "As a result the relations and the internal communication inside and between the teams will improve, the managers will acquire specific skills for working with people, the staff will know better their responsibilities, how to execute them and what can they improve. You will be able to successfully delegate some of your tasks and to free your time for strategic projects and relaxation," explains she. The results of the IVВ programme are individual. "The achieved results depend on the type of business and and how fast you will apply the strategies and policies. Most of our clients see serious results in their company after 4-6 months working with me," says Iva Balasheva. "The method works when you identify the right people to trust with key activities; when are implemented policies that keep, motivate and engage employees who are important for the company; when structure and order are created. All of these lead to effectiveness of your work and the work of your company, and to better financial results."

The approaches for solving of concrete problems in the field of management of human resources are diverse, and sometimes openly exotic. The good specialist will analyse carefully the problem, will offer a solution and will take care for the sustainability of the results. The latter is important – motivating the people in a company is not a one-side, one-part act, but a process that has to be approached carefully and responsibly. Only in this way the company will have employees who put their hearts in the common cause – the success of the business.