Let HR Compass Show The Way

Who is in charge of HR? The correct answer is everybody!

This was my epiphany as I read Ronaldo “Ronnie” Turla’s compact but powerful book HR Compass: The 7 Steps for Starting Your HR Department. 

I run two factories and thus my expertise is about operations. Yet at the end of the day, it is still about people. I may have the spiffiest machines and top-notch systems, but I do have my share of recruitment challenges and problematic employees.

That’s why HR Compass is a great primer not just for those who wish to build an HR department from the ground up. It is also invaluable for those who are in other disciplines but need to know the basics. Knowing them can save you a lot of headaches… and lawsuits. And if there are college students taking up HR, consider this as a “field manual” or mini-Bible.

Ronnie speaks from his almost two decades of HR experience. That he was able to distill them into this handy 94-pager is a remarkable feat by itself. He makes the complex simple but not simplistic as he lays down basic principles about compensation and benefits, hiring and firing, training, motivating, and more.

However, there are some unique pearls in this necklace. If you are an entrepreneur, you wouldn’t want to miss Ronnie’s insightful 5 Stages of HR Maturity. He adds useful tips, HR-wise, on what to do when your business is still small and what to do when it’s growing. The overview laid out from pages 6 to 8 alone is well worth the price of admission.

Next we come to Step 1: the Law. I have the 141-page pdf version of the Labor Code of the Philippines, but I must admit that if I needed to know what the Code says about something, I did what any smart boss would do: ask my HR business partner. Think “dial a friend”.

My personal surprise was Ronnie’s caveat that the Code are the minimum conditions. The challenge, I infer, is to be generous beyond what is mandatory.

Part of my job is to know what I can decide about a worker and what would be out of bounds. Ronnie’s book gives us a list of the immediately relevant articles in the Code, such as regularization, subcontracting, and security of tenure. He also gives us an all-in-one-glance checklist of must-haves and benefits in an employment contract.

After the Law comes the Money. How much do I pay my workers? Ronnie goes beyond the numbers in your pay slip. He reminds us that reward shapes relationships. Will it motivate or demoralize? What is fair and unfair?

For Steps 2 and 3, Ronnie gives us quick references as to the relevant Republic Act (6727, mind you), equivalent monthly and daily rates, overtime and night differential rates, leaves and benefits, conversion to cash, and all those other terms we keep hearing but never saw the formulae right on a printed page.

Call me na?ve, but when I started my career as a cadet engineer, the machine operators I supervised, who only finished high school, knew what pay they were entitled to more than I did! (Hint: workers love to work on holidays because they get to double their pay!) If you are a rookie, read HR Compass and never be as na?ve.

At this point, it seemed that HR is a matter of manuals, records, and systems. But after the Science, comes the Art. While Ronnie gives the processes, these are far from a connect-the-dots exercise. The principles are there, but the HR practitioner has to deal with intangibles and subtleties. That is true for operational managers, too.

For example, for Step 4 or recruitment, Ronnie not only gives a useful list where to find new employees, but also explains why we must take time and effort to hire the right people. Pages 41-42 contains useful tips when interviewing a job applicant. In fact, Ronnie shares a “weird” advice about the place a resume plays in the interview. I won’t spoil it for you, but it bears mulling over.

I have a passion for L&D, so Step 5 got the bulk of my interest. Ronnie demystifies the orientation program. He then gives the different vehicles for employee training, along with the triggers you will find in page 47. “Learning culture” seems to be the buzz nowadays; Ronnie gives three steps how to get there.

For those who are into leading and motivating, Step 6 takes us back to the basics of leading and motivating new employees. The highlight of this portion is how to conduct an effective performance appraisal and a development plan. Don’t miss the tips on conducting an appraisal meeting in page 55 and setting performance objectives two pages later. The chapter is also packed with advice about disciplinary action (always a tricky area), including the ultimate action of terminating the employee.

This leads us to Step 7, how to end an employment relationship. It is relatively shorter than the other chapters, but it also gives a useful guide about the 30-day notice, separation pay, and exit interviews. There is also the reality about having an employment contract that stipulates you to stay with the company for a period of time. Nope, no spoilers here, either. Get the book and go to page 66.

Ronnie’s book is not all abstract. I am delighted to see Case Studies, which describe actual HR problems and remedies. The book also concludes with a recap as to why you need an HR department, the 7 steps in a wheel diagram, and a useful appendix which contains sample HR documents such as a 201 file, a job description, a performance evaluation sheet, an employee benefits survey, and a training plan.

All in all, HR Compass is a great resource for both the HR and non-HR professional alike. This field is full of nuances, both legal and relational, that spell the difference between a highly effective workforce and a dysfunctional one. If you wish to be an HR professional, then earn that required college degree and the CHRP. But do yourself a favor and also get 20 years of wisdom at your fingertips. Let Ronnie’s HR Compass show you the way!

For more about Ronaldo Turla: https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/ronaldo-turla-chrp%C2%AE-2548521a/

Order information: Go to https://shop.talentreachconsulting.com/?product=hr-compass

About the reviewer: Nelson T. Dy is an author, speaker and trainer on career, relationship, and spirituality issues. His day job is being an Assistant Vice-President running two factories for a well-known beverage conglomerate. Follow him at Linkedin as he continues to share his insights through articles such as the one you just enjoyed.