Elijah Litheko, chief executive of Institute of People Management.
(supplied)
The 57th annual Institute of People Management (IPM) convention that ran from November 3 to 6 2013 at Sun City focused on the theme: “Human Resources (HR) Inspiring the New Revolution.”
It was a bold and energetic motif that carried the event to resounding success with more than 800 experts and practitioners attending.
Delegates were given the opportunity to enjoy an exceptional line-up of speakers from both local and international shores as well as the chance to network with their peers and explore new ideas and horizons.
“This theme was created to challenge HR to think about the role it is to play, both today and in the future, and how best to position itself as a strategic partner for business,” says Elijah Litheko, chief executive of IPM.
“Our goal was to ask and answer core questions about how HR is measuring and benchmarking itself, who it is comparing itself to and what measures need to be taken to fit the strategic business agenda.”
The event analysed a number of core trends and sub-themes, which included:
High performance organisations
The changing business landscape and how HR needs to support managers and leaders in a world of volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity.
Sustainable transformation
IPM president, Raj Seepersad, said: “This is about the world that we are living in today. It is about the challenges that people are facing in their daily lives and what coping mechanisms they can use to survive.
“Our world is characterised by uncertainty, changing environments and complexities, and HR has a role to play in ensuring that people can deal with these challenges because we are the custodians and drivers of change.”
Staying globally competitive
To remain globally competitive and increase market share, today’s organisations are under constant pressure to be innovative, exciting and leaders in their chosen markets.
This, in turn, asks of HR to be prepared to provide the right levels of support and to be ready for the challenges that will arise as a result of this new dynamic.
Throughout the event, delegates and thought leaders explored how these issues would impact HR going forward.
Litheko said in his opening speech: “For all our technical astuteness, our more sophisticated lifestyles, our better roads and so forth, life has not become easier for those in the workplace.
“Those who are paid a good deal less than the average have things to wrestle with, which may not affect many here. And then there is the pressure of modern life and people who come to work and cannot leave these issues at home.
“It seems to me that it is clear that executives and managers, whether in the HR sphere or not, need to deal with human capital very carefully.
“These pressures are not automatically impediments to productivity at work, they may complement workplace challenges. People have the capacity to rise to challenges and are often at their most productive and innovative when doing so.”
At the core of this theme are the problems that face South Africa as a country and how the HR community has the power to make a difference.
“This convention coincided with the 20th anniversary of our democracy and the concerns around youth unemployment, revolutionary labour relations disputes and the global economic climate,” said Humaira Moeketsi-Choonara, executive manager for human capital at Transnet and IPM chairperson.
“These require both traditional and unconventional approaches to human capital and this conference worked hard to inspire an evolution within HR that is capable of bringing about large-scale organisational transformation.”
A better place to work in
For Moeketsi-Choonara the IPM convention was an impetus for change in Africa and an opportunity to meet other human resources practitioners from across the African continent and exchange best practices.
Seepersad added: “The convention created an environment where people were able to share information with each other and look to how we can act locally, but think globally.
“South Africa faces a number of serious challenges and managers have to deal with it because it has an impact on human capital and here we were given the opportunity to examine these challenges within the people management field and look at ways in which we can overcome them."
Moeketsi-Choonara said: “Speakers imparted knowledge that equipped participants with new technologies, process breakthroughs and approaches to managing talent that support new business models, new markets and new customers.”
The annual conference offered attendees a superlative experience and allowed for lively debate, networking and analysis.
It was also the scene of the IPM excellence awards that recognised business and people leaders who have contributed significantly to furthering excellence in people management for the benefit of employees, organisations and the country as a whole.
Gill Hofmeyr, chairperson of the IPM awards committee and director of human capital at Deloitte Consulting, said: “The winners of the IPM excellence awards are the leaders of the HR revolution, those pioneers who lead the way with innovative people programmes and practices. The IPM seeks to honour these people because their effort is worthy of recognition in making South Africa a better place to work, and because they can offer insights and act as role models for South African enterprises as a whole.
“There is little doubt that the current environment in which HR delivers value is increasingly complex — stakeholder environments, the challenge of skill shortages and labour surpluses and the impact of new technologies pressure to support businesses as they increase their competitiveness. The IPM Excellence Awards recognises those candidates who have done something innovative in these areas.”
The 57th annual IPM convention achieved many of its overarching goals and met with critical acclaim.
It truly focused on the importance of people to the South African economy and how HR practitioners have the power to drive change and improve the way the game is played.
“IPM has been around for over 67 years and our convention is the flagship of IPM and the HR profession as a whole,” said Seepersad.
“During a recent Boston Consulting Group survey, this convention was rated as one of the best attended and well managed in the world, and is something we are extremely proud of.
“People are assets, and both businesses and HR practitioners must take their roles seriously to ensure their respective successes.”
This article forms part of a supplement paid for by the Institute of People Management. Contents and photographs were supplied and signed off by the institute