“We need to open a discussion to see how best the HR profession is regularised in order to ensure the best practices in people management. If one needs a warrant for financial management and warrants for engineers, then it must be equally important to ensure professionalism in the management of the best resource this country has – human resources,” stated Dr Joseph Muscat, Leader of the Opposition, during a visit to the offices of the Foundation for Human Resources Development (FHRD) at Casa Leone Floriana. He added that FHRD is a unique organisation in Malta that operates independently from the government, and in this respect the Foundation has a strategic role to play in the development of human resources both in the public and private sectors.
Dr Muscat noted the standing that the organisation enjoys with both employers and trade unions and was pleased to note the Foundation’s commitment to good industrial relations and its capability to provide mediation services. He said that he fully supports such an approach by the Foundation, as peaceful industrial relations are vital for the economy and FHRD can play a leading role in avoiding conflict through mediation. In this respect, Dr Muscat sees FHRD working closer with the Department of Industrial and Employment Relations.
Noel Scerri, Vice President of the Foundation, welcomed Dr Muscat and said that this visit was of significance for the Foundation as it gave it the opportunity to explain in some detail the work of the Foundation. He said that the Board of the Foundation took major decisions to ensure that FHRD is not only fit for today’s needs but also for tomorrow’s requirements. Mr Scerri welcomed Dr Muscat’s positive feedback about the professional status of those working in HR. He said that FHRD is already bracing itself for this development and membership in the Foundation, which so far has been open to corporate companies only, will also be open to individuals working in the profession in 2013.
The CEO of the Foundation said that the mission of HR professionals is to increase the success of the organisation by improving decisions that depend on or impact people, while at the same time ensuring the sustainability of the business in the long run. To do this, he said, HR professionals need to have a deep understanding of the business they operate in, be organisational savvy by ensuring skilled leadership and not just management, together with an agile and fluid approach that enable people gain insight and focus on solution and not just processes. In conclusion, he said that HR professionals need to understand the context within which the business is operating and in this respect issues like employment rate, educational achievements and the number of young people going into tertiary education are important.
Mr Gerada said that FHRD has embarked on an ambitious programme of developing a number of vocational training qualifications by providing tailor-made training courses for various industries, extending its academic portfolio of courses, promoting mediation services and by changing its membership base in 2013. He said that while FHRD is a not-for-profit organisation, FHRD strives to achieve its mission of promoting the best practices in human resources management and development and runs its operations like a business. Consequently, every day FHRD lives the same culture of change and challenges like any other business.