A critical review of the recent research carried out in the field of Human Resource (HR) management systems employed by the industry across the domains reveals that much still needs to be done. As such, optimization of the processes and practices aimed at enhancing the business value proposition through human value proposition needs to be consolidated much to the advantage of the future of the industry and society as well. To begin with, the process of talent acquisition from the new generation workforce adopted in the services sector in particular needs a makeover. Also, in the post-recruitment phase, redefining the processes of competency mapping and assessment as adopted by many popular firms attains equal significance through scientifically designed performance management systems. The current issue makes a promising attempt in this regard by bringing to light the fascinating research done on these issues of contemporary relevance. This issue also includes papers on promoting regional innovation in the sports goods industry and minimizing role ambiguity and role overload factors in IT industry, and an interesting book review on the secrets of leadership development.

The management of human competency in service industry has, no doubt, been studied extensively for many years and it is time to locate its complementary value in the manufacturing sector as well. An attempt has been made by Anuja Johri, in the paper, “Competency Mapping as a Strategic HR Tool in Manufacturing Industry: An Empirical Study”, to capture the experiences of some select manufacturing companies in Pune in the context of applying competency mapping tools for strategic value making.

The innovation factor in the field of business management has been under-explored and this is more so in the sports goods industry. The concentration of Indian sports goods industry in Jalandhar, India has been taken up for study by Priya Jhamb, in the paper, “Regional Innovation System and Industrial Clusters: A Case of Sports Goods Cluster in Jalandhar, India”. The author uses statistical tools like factor analysis and principal component analysis through orthogonal rotation with varimax method to examine the innovation pattern and the determining factors in this cluster.

The phenomenal value of employee satisfaction derived from the close monitoring of factors like role ambiguity and role overload as identified in Information Technology (IT) industry is widely appreciated by scholarly world and it brings to the fore many neglected aspects of management processes. Vandana Singh Gahlan and Khujan Singh, in their paper, “The Effect of Role Overload and Role Ambiguity on Job Performance of IT Professionals in India”, discuss how role overload and role ambiguity influence the performance of the software professionals in India.

Underscoring the changing profile of job market and its expectations from the new generation workforce both in terms of knowledge and skill sets pertaining to the functional areas, a kind of personality makeover is recommended by GRK Murty, in the paper, “Changed Job Market: The Art of Successfully Navigating Through Job Interviews”, for the contemporary youth.

The book, The Secret of Leadership: Stories to Awaken, Inspire and Unleash the Leader Within, by Prakash Iyer, is a path-breaking work on identifying the core strengths of an individual in order to excel in leadership. A J Sebastian sdb, in his review of the book, has highlighted its salient features.

-- Radha Mohan Chebolu
Consulting Editor