People seldom stay long enough in a particular organisation to see the results of the changes they bring about. This is all the more relevant in the case of concepts such as new market strategy. I am writing out of my own experience. I am sure that many people are afraid of speaking out.

Actual problems, which are increasing day by day, need a solution. Future professionals should equip themselves with the necessary tools that will ensure smooth sailing in a highly competitive world. Hence this analysis.To quote a few instances:

Some time back, I got a call from the president of the company. I rushed to the corporate office. The president asked me to prepare an appointment order. I asked him to give methe back papers. He told, ``No paper is available. The candidate is here. The chairman has already seen him and decided to take him in the `MG' grade. The candidate has the salary details written by the chairman himself.''

It was a ``top to bottom appointment''. The chairman had met the candidate on a flight. He was impressed and agreed to take him on a very high salary. The candidate was in his late 20s, and the chairman had decreed that he was to be paid a higher salary than a senior vice-president aged 65, who had served the company for more than 30 years.

When I talked to the candidate, he wanted everything, including house maintenance allowance, which was not part of the perks in that company. We agreed to pay that also. His appointment upset just about everybody in the company. And then he upped and left in just three months.

In another company, the MD asked us to issue a letter appointing someone as a Legal Officer. The VP (Personnel) wanted me to interview him informally. I asked the candidate:``What is Article 19 of the Constitution of India?'' He told that he did not know English as he had studied in Hindi medium in Bihar. I translated the question to Hindi. He told that he had not studied the Constitution at all. Finally, he was appointed as Legal Officer.

Such instances are far too many. Please do not think that these practices exist only in the private sector. In the public sector, too, such `instructions' come from the top often. There, one has to prepare the background papers to escape from the clutches of courts. Further, these kind of instructions do not come only from owners or ministers. They come from any influential people who may have a hold in the organisation. If the instructions are not obeyed, the concerned person will be sidelined and eased out.

These instructions from the ``top'' are not confined to appointments alone. Interference is equally rampant in promotions, transfers, upgradations, punishments, etc. The personnel man has to cope up with all such ``orders''.Today'slegal system and judicial pronouncements have come a long way from that of yesterday. Domestic inquiry is no more domestic. Both sides are represented through lawyers. A `suspension pending inquiry' seems to be a boon, thanks to the subsistence allowance granted in such cases. In some cases, people ask for it as they can earn as well as do private work.

Since the introduction of Section II(A) in the Industrial Disputes Act, the labour courts and tribunals have been interfering with the disciplinary action system, acting more as a super management. Amidst highly organised unions as well as associations, the management neither has the power to reward meritorious service nor the authority to punish culprits without taking additional risk. Therefore, in the changed legal and judicial system of today, the personnel man has to learn new strategies to handle labour.

Motivating government employees, who have reached almost ``ego level needs'' is yet another challenge for the personnel manager. The management'scontinuous insistence on change keeps the personnel manager on his toes. Recently, a newly recruited personnel manager was asked to take steps to close the industrial canteen on the very first day of his job, as the strength had fallen below the statutory minimum of 250.

The HRD man has to be a trainer, too, instead of merely being an organiser of training programmes. The role of the HRD man has to change. He should develop HR to the optimum level, whatever be the level of the employees. He has to change his dogmas and, instead, be innovative and creative. Sticking to the beaten track is no longer possible; he has to chart a new track for himself, based on his organisation's needs and necessities.

The writer is a former Deputy General Manager, P&A, Wimco Ltd. The opinions contained in this article are his personal views.