LG Electronics

It is not often that employees are called by their previous employers to go back and work for them. But in my case, I am lucky that I was given another opportunity to return to the electronics company, after a year in handling Philippine subsidiary, I am now orchestrating the Asia Region with 11 countries for a year now as of this writing.

During the heights of pandemic, a rebirth of Asia Region HR in LG Electronics gave an opportunity to recalibrate the capability of Human Resources. We redesign the existing program that suits the current need of the subsidiaries.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about significant, unprecedented changes to the way Human Resources work and learn. As the future of work is becoming ever more uncertain, it is becoming even more necessary that Human Resources are empowered with the right skills through timely and relevant skilling, upskilling and reskilling efforts. This is so HR can become more agile and resilient, and able to cope with the challenges posed not only by the current pandemic but in the future.

In view of the significant interruption to skills development activities due to the pandemic, Asia Region HR have decided to re-launch the HR Capability Development and Management Plan.  This is to ensure that we offer our HR leaders and members a clear view on career development.

Using the existing tool; Global HR Capability Assessment, we were able to identify the gap and create a development interventions based on core work to determine specific career journey that will fit on their career aspiration.

The HR Capability Framework provided 3 development principles; Training, Working and Caring. According to each role and career plan, everyone has an opportunity to grow. We have readily available customized HR Capability Training online and offline. With willingness and readiness to share knowledge, HR leaders and members are encourage to participate on Regional HR Tasks/Projects on a short term or Temporary Global Job Assignment in the future and or simply take the internal job rotation to other function in HR. And as we offer trainings and other development interventions, a proper guidance and couching to ensure we keep the right tract of career journey through regular One-to-one Caring meeting.

In our Region, we define core works that demonstrate a required capability to ensure that we have common understanding that if we do this kind of certain work it’s equate on a specific capability.

We also recognize current capability and identify the support needed in order to prepare our HR leaders and members for the future need of our business.

We want to connect, share and acquire knowledge not only within subsidiary, not only in Asia Region but our ultimate goal is to develop HR key talents globally!

"It is becoming even more necessary that Human Resources are empowered with the right skills through timely and relevant skilling, upskilling and reskilling efforts"

We have introduced two different development track and continuously recruit internal key talents to transmit knowledge and train others – General Track and Key Talent Track. General Track, where you can be a business partner/generalist or could be an expert of specific area within the subsidiary, while  the Key Talent Track where opportunities becomes broader and wider from subsidiary, to region to global opportunity based on certain criteria where level of capability, experience, readiness and personality are measured.

Beyond the COVID-19 pandemic: innovative approaches to skilling, upskilling and reskilling is relevant in the future. These are some of the methods we have introduced to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of skilling and reskilling:

• Increase investment in digital platforms, tools and resources, Global HR side;

• Introducing or intensifying blended training methodologies;

• Building the capacity of HR to design and deliver online training;

• Acquiring equipment and software for online training.

Those methods somehow address the following:

• Strengthen career guidance system and services which increase level of HR career satisfaction;

• Minimize the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on HR development and training which provides greater flexibility into work-based learning programs;

• Support countries in reforming skills and lifelong learning systems and capacity building;

• Promote teamwork and partnerships among all stakeholders in skills development systems;

• Facilitate the engagement of HR leaders and members;

• Enhance the equity of access to training opportunities and leverage digital technologies to ensure continuity in the training provided for HR.

One of the lessons learned from COVID-19 pandemic is to continue reinventing.

It is hoped that this initiative will serve as a knowledge base and impetus for promoting more team collaboration and knowledge sharing to generate innovative solutions for addressing the challenges of HR Professionals and for building effective and resilient skills development systems.