HCM City (VNS/VNA) - Enterprises increasingly appreciate the importance of human resource management and have mapped out human resource development strategies methodically, a seminar heard in Ho Chi Minh City on April 9.

Nishant Mahajan, frontier market leader and head of executive remuneration atMercer Singapore, said export manufacturing continued to be main driver of Vietnam’seconomy but the weakening dong and limited labour skills were among thechallenges faced by companies.

They also face challenges caused by technology disruption, according toMahajan.

Employees expect their workplace to “become more flexible in terms of hoursworked and location and more focused on employee health and well-being.”

They also want to better understand how to grow their careers.

According to the Talentnet-Mercer Market Pulse Report released recently, thetop reasons for employees quitting an organisation are lack of a clear careerpath and low pay competitiveness -- 47 percent of respondents each -- whereaslow pay competiveness had been secondary to a career path in past years.

This shows that employee demand is quickly shifting towards a balanced needbetween steady career progression and equitable compensation.

He said to create a strong employer brand in a competitive environment,businesses need to create staying power through a unique proposition, createdifferentiated experience and provide competitive compensation and benefitofferings.

Nguyen Thi Thanh Huong, deputy CEO of Talentnet and head of human capitalsolutions and Mercer salary survey department, said: “In the digital age wherebusinesses are predominantly occupied by millennials, behaviours andexpectations of employees are rapidly diversifying.

“As a result, businesses must centralise their structure based on quantitativeand qualitative data, most importantly in the task of talent retention, wherethere are both tangible and intangible deciding factors.

“Other than career progression, employees feel the need to see the fruits oftheir efforts, and see that effort reciprocated equitably. As such, appropriateremuneration schemes and flexible training and development options arepivotal.”

HR leaders from Saint Gobain, Schneider Electric and Nestle also shared theirexperience at their companies.

According to Nguyen Ha Trang, HR director at Saint Gobain, said usingremuneration data is very important to improve salaries and know howcompetitive their salaries are compared to the market.

Le Thi Khai Minh, head of the salary and benefit division at Nestle, saidpreviously compensation and benefit were confidential, but in the Industry 4.0era employees can easily find out the compensation and benefits that othercompanies pay for similar positions.

"Therefore, Nestle communicates clearly and transparently the compensationand benefits that employees would get and their career path and the way thecompany evaluates employees at each level," she said.

Many delegates at the seminar organised by Talentnet said it was evident thatbusinesses were slowly shifting towards a more methodical and sustainablepeople’s strategy approach.

To make timely and accurate decisions regarding their employees, leaders mustgrasp the overall market picture through reliable data reference points,identify long-term goals for the business and organise business strategies inorder to hire the right people, they added. — VNS/VNA