HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Final Project Report

Class: Fall _ BBA-(5F) Course: Human Resource Management

Analytical Report
COVID-19 & HRM IMPLICATIONS

Submission to: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui.

Submission Date: 29-Dec-2020.

Submitted by: Group Members Name with Enrollment No.: (leader name on first).

Murtaza Soomro__________________; 1811317 ________________________

Sumama Syed __________; 1811339_________________________

Hammad Shakeel_________________; 1811319 ________________________

Syed Muhammad Ali Raza__________; 1811341_________________________

Department: Management Sciences, SZABIST, Karachi.

Class: BBA-Fall

Course: Human Resource Management

Course Code: BBA-225

This page should be attached in your report after your ‘Title Page’ and
before your ‘Table of Contents’.

Instructor: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui

Class: Fall _ BBA-(5F) Course: Human Resource Management

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 4

SITUATION ANALYSIS: 5

IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON MANAGING STAFF: 7

JOB SECURITY: 9

EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE: 10

IMPACT ON HR FUNCTIONS 11

1. Staffing: 11

2. Training and Development: 13

3. Motivation: 14

4. Maintenance: 15

RECOMMENDATIONS 16

Instructor: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui

Class: Fall _ BBA-(5F) Course: Human Resource Management

Executive Summary

World economies halted, lives came to a stop throughout the world, businesses were
devastated due to COVID-19. Dramatic changes occurred since the virus emerged. As
humans were vulnerable to the virus. Therefore, HR departments around the world took
measures with the available sources at hand to fight the virus. These measures
including taking their business to an online platform where customer interaction can be
virtual.

The recruitment, training and development were carried out through online platforms.
Internships were offered online. Training courses were developed to train employees
how to use modern technology and increase their efficiency. Special incentives were
awarded for quality work and workforce was downsized and used more efficiently. To
maintain the morale of the employee’s rewards were given and to reduce their stress
flexibility in work was preferred alongside flexible working hours.

New appraisals were adopted which were based on the new performance measures
such as online work and skills. High maintenance was ensured. Social distancing, mask
wearing, and hand sanitizing were the primary concerns of office employees. Moreover,
they were given the leverage that if they felt sick, they could stay home and work from
home. Those roles that could be done from home were instructed to work from home.
Progress was updated continuously and feedback was collected to enhance the
efficiency of work.

In a nut shell, the Covid-19 drastically changed the way of work by introducing a more
technological aspect and employees had adapt to it very unexpectedly. This also
caused job insecurity as many unneeded staff was fired and employees whose skills
were required were overburdened.

Instructor: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui

Class: Fall _ BBA-(5F) Course: Human Resource Management

Situation Analysis:
The outbreak of Covid-19 forced world governments to place lockdowns in their
countries to curb the virus spread. As the virus was contagious and it was spreading at
an exponential rate many people were caught in its grip. The virus had an imminent risk
to social and economic lives of people as it had to their lives. Many businesses met their
end while others struggled and took measures to face the global pandemic. Many
people lost their jobs as businesses were shut down and employees could not get their
salary due to low inflow of revenue. The economy of Pakistan was hit hard as other
world economies and Unemployment, poverty, negative GDP growth was observed due
to seizure of businesses and organization due to lockdown. The virus effected the
precious asset of HR departments and therefore immediate precautions were
necessary.

Instructor: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui

Class: Fall _ BBA-(5F) Course: Human Resource Management

Covid-19 has bought the importance of Human resource to spotlight. With this the HR
department took measure as the virus effected their recruitment, training &
development, job security, and employee’s performance. A more digital approach was
considered, in which such processes were carried through digital technology.

Blue= traditional Orange= online

Citations:

● https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/pakistan/

Impact of COVID-19 on managing staff:

The impact and different challenges faced by HR department due to COVID-19 on
managing people at work are mentioned below:

Instructor: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui

Class: Fall _ BBA-(5F) Course: Human Resource Management

Adopting Change:

Due to COVID-19 majority of organizations were forced to work remotely through

suitable online platforms. As the work from home was a new concept firstly it took some
time to decide whether how are employees going to work in this situation, then dealing
with employee’s mistakes till they get used to the introduced system. The most
challenging thing was teaching a whole new technological based system to the old aged
employees who weren't much exposed to technology before. Arranging meetings on
daily bases to provide them tutorials of their new system was a challenge for HR
departments but most of the departments did their job smartly and responsibly,
managing each and everything within the limitations created by the situation and
following SOPs.

Communication:

Creating a system and communicating latest guidelines and methods of work

meanwhile improvising frequently at the same time was a great challenge for HR
professionals. In the beginning people were having technical issues such as
connectivity issues, unviability of network or interrupted network, outdated devices,
unfamiliar with use of software and apps etc. which were gradually minimized through
effective communication which was indeed challenging. Later when the employees were
allowed to visit the office at alternative or important days, managing their attendance
and arranging trainings on SOPs was a stress for HR professionals as some people
weren't even ready to accept the existence of the COVID-19 going against all SOPs and
putting others and their own lives at danger. HR faced challenges managing these kinds
of people and shaping their mindset in a way that they keep themselves and others'
safe.

The Dual Mindset:

Instructor: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui

Class: Fall _ BBA-(5F) Course: Human Resource Management

As the cases started rising government implemented lockdown. Then as the new cases
were decreasing government removed lockdown. This is happening again and again.
Furthermore, the vaccination hasn't been developed, on the other hand different
mutations of corona virus are being discovered it is confusing for employees as well as
HR professionals that what is the new norm.

Organizational Pressure:

Many organizations started downsizing the employees as the COVID-19 cases started
to increase dramatically and due to lockdown and other similar factors they weren't able
to earn a huge profit.

It was the job of HR professionals to communicate with the employees to inform them
that they are being laid off and are no longer part of their organization which was the
most heart-breaking moment for a concerned employee and the HR person as well as
they have worked with these employees and they were aware of employees personal
and financial issues being their HR managers.

Citations:

● https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/businessreview/2020/05/22/the-impact-of-covid-19-on-
human-resource-management-avoiding-generalisations/
● https://www.shrm.org/hr-today/news/all-things-work/pages/cutting-staff-due-to-
coronavirus-fallout.aspx

Job security and employee performance

Instructor: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui

Class: Fall _ BBA-(5F) Course: Human Resource Management

Job Security:
A job with minimum risk of losing is a secure job for an employee. People tend to be
more loyal in jobs that provide job security. When the economy is in expansion phase
job security increases. The opposite happens when the economy contracts. As the
demand decreases in markets, the supply is cut short due to which the labor is not
utilized. If the economy contracts for a period of time then the curve goes into recession
and human resource is cut short as now less labor is required. Thus job security
decreases with recession.

When the COVID-19 emerged, an uncertainty was experienced. Governments were in a

fix if they should impose lockdown to curb the virus or not. As lockdowns were placed
and businesses were forced to shut down. Due to this halt in economic activity the world
economy was pushed into recession with an estimate of 9 trillion dollar loss by the end
of 2020. As revenue inflow decreased in businesses some managed to survive and take
measures, some cut short their human resource, and other had o shut down. Around 3
million people lost jobs in Pakistan due to Covid-19 and 7 million in G7 countries. The
graph below shows the increase in Unemployment in G7 countries due to Covid-19. The
initial unemployment was a few hundred thousand, which grew exponentially:

Instructor: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui

Class: Fall _ BBA-(5F) Course: Human Resource Management

Employee Performance:
Employee Performance is different from performance appraisals. An employee
performance focuses on the following factors:

i. Achieving the goals of a job

ii. Group dynamics of employees
iii. Communication
iv. Employee job satisfaction.

The standards of employee performance were affected when the covid-19 emerged as
the global pandemic. As organization moved toward online technology to continue their
business. The requirements of employee performance were affected due to it.

i. Use of advance technology

ii. Enhance communication over electronic media
iii. Mastering new skills

These factors were considered to measure the employee’s short-term performance.

Instructor: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui

Class: Fall _ BBA-(5F) Course: Human Resource Management

IMPACT ON HR FUNCTIONS
1. Staffing:

Redesigning Recruitment Process

It’s very unlikely that the recruitment process has not been impacted because of
the COVID-19 wave. It was an uncertain situation and no one could have
predicted its impact. Whether you belong to any industrial sector, each has been
affected widely by this pandemic. Companies have been quick to react and take
preventive measures. On the other hand, they are transforming their
functions through digital platforms to continue running their business effectively
and efficiently. This enables organizations to efficiently conduct tasks at every stage
whether it's sourcing the applicants, scheduling interviews, interacting with them, or
onboarding the selected applicants.

No face-to-face Interviews
Companies are operating remotely and allowing their employees to work from
home due to the worldwide pandemic. It is to avoid physical contact and practice
social distancing in order to shun the virus from spreading further. Even in the
case of recruitment, you cannot meet candidates in person as the office is
closed. recruitment interviews are now being arranged through video calls,
resulting in a rapid change in the recruitment funnel.
More and more organizations are opting to integrate with virtual interview apps,
like zoom, skype, google meet, etc., or incorporate an applicant tracking system
that enables them to fluently continue recruitment operations remotely.

Fewer open positions

Many organizations have already found themselves unfortunate to start laying off
employees. Corporations are experiencing a crisis due to this uncertain situation

Instructor: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui

Class: Fall _ BBA-(5F) Course: Human Resource Management

and trying to cut down expenses which will help them bear through these tough
times. Major giants of the industrial sectors have started laying off employees in
order to cope up with the current business draw backs.
Ultimately, these organizations will be less open to hiring a new workforce in the
future and eventually limiting the number of job openings in the organization. On
the other side, the candidates should expect the interviews to be much trickier
than before, as organizations are very keen on finding the right fit for them so
that they could come back on the right track.

Remotely on Boarding
Onboarding as usual is not an option for employees who have already been hired
before lockdown period. Organizations are now organizing for virtual onboarding
programs for the new hired employees as a result of this lockdown.
Right from induction to team introductions, everything is now happening distantly
with the help of various HRMS software or onboarding software that enables you
to carry out the process efficiently. The current pandemic situation has opened
opportunities to a lot of new experimentations for businesses across the world.
Remote onboarding is one such feature.

Reluctance to switch jobs

Sourcing candidates for open positions is going to be more difficult than ever
before, as employees will not be willing to switch between companies as they are
likely to value security more in this time of uncertainty. All this depends on their
existing employer's potential for holding back layoffs within the company. If they
feel that their job is secured, then there are very few possibilities for those
employees to be open to switching.

Instructor: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui

Class: Fall _ BBA-(5F) Course: Human Resource Management

2. Training and Development:

Due to pandemic, the training and development program of organizations have been
disturbed, the employees are not enrolling in physical training programs, they are not
learning new tools and advance technology which is the requirement of job. Therefore,
specific measures have been taken to continue training and development during the
pandemic:

Online Programs:
Due to COVID-19, organizations are conducting online training and development
programs for their employees in which they conduct online meetings through zoom,
google meet, skype and other software, sometimes they provide recorded lectures on
their portals by which an employee is able to get training via online. The COVID-19 has
completely destroyed the future planning of an organizations, many had planned their
structure for number of years but the life has completely changed after COVID-19 , The
meetings containing more number of people are not possible these days so planning
through online meetings , to some extent is useful because it's going to save the time of
an employee and company because for physical meetings , employees have to travel
which takes time while an employee can attend online meeting from anywhere which
saves time and money as well but if we look at another side there are disadvantages as
well , the way an employee can learn and achieve goals through physical meeting he
can't achieve those goals through online meetings so overall companies are redesigning
yearly appraisals. Many employees don't have enough resources to meet the
requirements of online training and development projects but in many places,
organizations are providing appliances to the employees in order to enroll in online
classes. Many organizations are also providing online internship for the fresh graduates.
New courses have been introduced to develop the skill of using modern technology as
most of the work is now online.

Redesigning yearly appraisals:

Instructor: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui

Class: Fall _ BBA-(5F) Course: Human Resource Management

After the pandemic the world has changed dramatically, the developed countries
Economy is facing recession and difficulties so all organizations working right now have
changed their policies and conditions to attain their new goals , their goals are changed
now , they have different plan to follow these days , they are providing different
opportunities and facilities to their employees these days , competition is getting more
tough these days , the employees have to learn quickly regarding their respective jobs
in order to continue their jobs. The new system requires different sort of performance.
The people who have good online skills and knowledge regarding advance software
and technologies are quite successful in recent time, People are enrolling themselves in
online courses from where they are learning nee techniques efficiently and they are
applying them in their jobs which are quite useful for them. The people who are not
aware of using desktops and are not aware of new technologies are suffering now a
days, they are ending in losing their jobs, the employees who are aware of new
technologies are getting success and they are performing quite well.

3. Motivation:
Employees have to adjust to the requirement of their jobs and when COVID-19
emerged the requirement of jobs increased. This included achieving the desired goals in
the COVID stricken environment. It was really hard for employees to maintain that level
of motivation to do their jobs as they would have done before COVID. Now a work from
home style was adopted due which employees had to do work online without any
physical interaction. Many employees were not that familiar with using online technology
and thus it was hard to keep up that motivation to work. In this kind of situation HR
departments came up with certain strategies.

Freedom of ideas:
Instead of giving rigid instruction to employees to achieve a certain goal. The ideas and
suggestions of employees were taken on the matter as the employees were to perform

Instructor: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui

Class: Fall _ BBA-(5F) Course: Human Resource Management

the task and a suitable way for them would be to do it their way. Feedback was taken
from employees put to proper use for future goals.

Rewards:
Quality work was recognized and appreciated as it encouraged employees to effectively
to their work. They were appreciated as this worked as a positive reinforcer in
motivating employees. Monetary rewards were awarded for extraordinary work. The
employees were given a feeling that their work was meaningful. There success was
shared on online platform due to which employee’s confidence and motivation boost up
and other employees benefited from their hard work.

Flexibility:
Employees were given flexibility in their work. Flexible working hours if working from
home. Flexibility in work goals. As this reduces the stress on the mind of employee.
Online work requires more time and input then physically doing a task. Therefore, it is
necessary to minimize the stress on the employee and provide flexibility in work.

4. Maintenance:
Administrative responsibilities

The administrative responsibilities increased from managing staff at organization to

managing staff which is now working from home. Before this pandemic, every employee
and their records were present under same workplace. Now HR professionals have to
fix an appointment with their staff. Nonverbal communication helps you understand the
person but due to online system you cannot easily understand your
employee/candidate.

Providing clear updates on operations

Instructor: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui

Class: Fall _ BBA-(5F) Course: Human Resource Management

Updating responsibilities of employees and their place or department of posting is

selected according to HR mangers, who is placed where most needed. They try to
utilize their human capita up to maximum capacity.

Optimum utilization of resources

Due to lockdown organizations had limited resources, on the other hand employees with
even slightly raised temperature were given leave to stay in quarantine till they were
completely normal. Things were away from the normal in this situation. HR managers
efficiently utilized these resources for the best advantage of the organization.

Health, safety and personal wellbeing

To make sure to follow SOPs within the institution given by the federal and provincial
government, and take necessary action against anyone who doesn't follow SOPs. To
arrange the necessary equipment for safety and reduction of spread of the pandemic
disease within the institution. To communicate with the employees and motivate them
and provide them support when they are feeling mentally down was a great challenge
for the HR department.

Citations:

● https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3990.pdf
● https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/organization/our-insights/the-
organization-blog/individual-performance-management-in-the-covid-19-world#
● https://www.digitalhrtech.com/human-resources-functions/
● https://www.google.com.pk/amp/s/elearningindustry.com/covid-19-impact-
recruitment-operations/amp

Instructor: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui

Class: Fall _ BBA-(5F) Course: Human Resource Management

Recommendations
Pakistan Society for Human Resources Management (PSHRM) is a society to enhance
the quality of work of HR professionals. Unfortunately, it isn't that much active as it
should. Their website is outdated and there isn't any recent event arranged by them.
There should be more frequent events and meetings where they can discuss the
evolving HRM in the pandemic situation. Online meetings would be preferred in this
scenario. The advanced countries are using AI technology to collect data online and
receive detailed analytics within their organizations for research purposes. Which can
help improve HR decisions and methods to utilize their resources more effectively.
Unfortunately, many organizations or the government aren't using this in Pakistan,
which could've been quite helpful for not only an organization but the whole sector.

Citations:

● https://frontiertechnologyinstitute.com/insights/f/the-need-for-data-science-
education-in-pakistan

Instructor: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui

Class: Fall _ BBA-(5F) Course: Human Resource Management

END

Instructor: Ms. Faiza Siddiqui