Only 48% of HRDs in Southeast Asia report directly to the CEO, CFO, chairperson, general director or managing director, according to the
2015 Global HR Barometer by recruitment consultancy,
Michael Page.
This is much lower than the global average of 63% meaning that HR within the region may still be viewed as having a secondary rather than primary strategic function.
Iain Hopkins, international editor of HRD Australia, Canada and Singapore, expressed this failing as one of the main motivators for the launch of the HRD Singapore magazine.
“I truly believe that HR is the most critical function in the management team, and that HR directors should have the voice that they deserve, reporting directly to the CEO,” he said.
“However we noticed that only a select few HR directors and CHROs report to the CEO. To fill this gap, we wanted to create a magazine especially for very senior HR directors that covers the issues which really matter to elite HR professionals in Singapore.”
The Barometer, which polled over 2,500 respondents from 65 countries around the world, also found that HR in Southeast Asia generally focused on the following priorities. The percentages in parentheses indicate how many businesses listed this factor as a critical focus.
- Talent management (53%)
- Talent acquisition/recruitment (33%)
- Succession planning (32%)
- Employee retention (31%)
- Training and development (29%)
- Performance management (28%)
- Employee branding/marketing/employee value proposition (24%)
- Diversity and inclusion (3%)
Comparing regional and global trends, talent management in Southeast Asia really stood out, as only 33% of HRDs worldwide placed it amongst their top priorities. The report attributed this difference to the rapid economic growth commonly experienced in the region as well as the fact that HR is generally a less established function among local businesses.
The study also looked at how HR measured its success. The following factors are ranked from most popular to least with the percentage of respondents in parentheses:
- Staff turnover (78%)
- Employee engagement (72%)
- Employee performance (72%)
- Recruitment efficiency (54%)
- Employee competencies (41%)
- Managerial performance (35%)
- Employee mobility (9%)
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