People are assets
People are
In an organization the importance of people is paramount. Why?
It is the people who organize and does the activities which result in the output based on which organization survives.
There are primarily three sets of people in an organization:
- Owners
- Managers / Leaders
- Workers
Owners or investors are a class that brings the capital to make the organization from scratch to a certain level after which the second layer of managers are hired for managing different sections of workers and then finally the workers. However, during growing the sequence of hiring can be different based on the nature of growth and management style.
The managers who are responsible for their own respective areas in turn help in deciding the workforce which would be required to get the necessary output.
From the above statement, it is critical to note that any organization’s output depends on people. Though it is pertinent to note that equipment etc. are required but they don’t work on their own.
Therefore people selection and managing them becomes one of the cornerstones of the survivability and growth of any organization.
The first step would be to select the requisite person. To get the right person it starts with the right job description. This should be followed up with the right person specification. Along with these various factors like salary bands, career paths and growth needs to be identified such that the selected applicant is clear about the future the prospective company holds for them provided he/she performs at a desired level.
An argument is normally put forward that people are not assets as they can be replaced with a different set. Sometimes during hardship, an organization looks at people as a liability rather than an asset leading to painful retrenchment.
However, it is to be clearly understood from the organizational point of view if it has to survive and grow people are required. It does not stop there; they have to be motivated, coached and make them productive. They need to be trusted and treated like the first line of customers which when satisfied will, in turn, satisfy the external customers.
People, therefore, can be considered as intangible assets that are difficult to be replaced because each human being is different. So a knowledgeable and effective employee replacement is probably not possible hence it is pertinent that organizations should look at creating an atmosphere where employees feel pampered, growing, competitive, and awarding and being heard. This will bring the best among employees.
The long term plan for any organization for its survival and growth is to consider people as intangible assets that have tremendous intrinsic value which is difficult to estimate and therefore replacement becomes impossible at times and is a costly exercise that is difficult to measure in real terms.
Organization structure:
