Three-fourth of Indian companies plan to increase HR spend

A significant number of Indian companies are prepared to manage culture and engagement-related issues.

The years 2015–16 could spell great fortunes for all HR service providers. If a global survey by Deloitte gets it accurate, around 74 per cent of Indian companies will increase their investment on HR in the next 12–18 months. The survey indicates that around 18 per cent of Indian companies claim to have a plan to increase their HR budget by more than 5 per cent, while a whopping 57 per cent of Indian companies will augment their HR spend by 1–5 per cent. Around 23 per cent will maintain a status quo and only 3 per cent will reduce their HR budget.

India’s market seems to be on a positive note vis-à-vis other global companies as only 56 per cent of the respondent companies plan to increase their HR budget, and 35 per cent want to maintain a status quo. Around 8 per cent of companies, globally, plan to decrease their budget.

The survey further indicated that around 47 per cent HR leaders were satisfied with their HR solutions, with 7 per cent rating them as excellent and 40 per cent as good. However, more than 50 per cent of respondents felt there was room for improvement for HR.

The major concern for the Indian HR professionals was leadership issues followed by learning and development, culture and engagement, reinvention of HR and performance management.

Approximately 81 per cent of Indian respondents say that companies are struggling to develop leaders at all levels and are investing in new and accelerated leadership models. Leadership is a major concern and action area for businesses in India. However, 42 per cent of respondents claimed that their companies were prepared to take on this problem.

The survey revealed that Indian companies are actively exploring new approaches to learning and development as they confront increasing skill gaps. Besides, organisations are recognising the need to focus on culture and improve employee engagement as they face the looming crises of engagement and retention. The positive aspect is that around 50 per cent of Indian companies have showcased their preparedness to manage culture an engagement issues while only 13 per cent were unprepared.

HR is undergoing an extreme makeover to deliver greater business impact and drive HR and business innovation. Organisations are replacing traditional performance management with innovative performance solutions.

The survey was conducted across 106 countries. While 73 per cent of Indian respondents were from the HR function, 50 per cent were from the technology, media and telecommunication sectors.