Communication in careers, and The Self Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Communication in careers, and The Self - Essay Example I thought he is the right candidate for he is very friendly and open in his views. I was also interested in how hospitals are run; and Paul’s experience in this domain made him the ideal candidate. Paul is 47 years of age and works as a Human Resources Manager in a private hospital and what follows is the interview I had with him. Q. What were the greatest challenges you’ve met in your career so far? A. That’s an interesting question, for there is no straight-forward answer to it. I’ve risen to the current position as a HR Manager through a lot of hard work and perseverance. I began my career as an office assistant in a private hospital. From those humble beginnings I’ve now risen to a position where I am completely responsible for ensuring proper management of Human Resources in the hospital. It has not been an easy ride. There were times when I seriously doubted my compatibility to the profession. There were phases in which the monotony and drudge ry of work got the better of me and I seriously thought of quitting. In this respect, the biggest challenge I faced was finding creative ways of making work interesting. And by successfully managing to do so, I learned to apply creative thinking in other facets of life too, which is again a rewarding experience. Q. How important are communication skills to be a successful HR Manager? A. Very important. Indeed, clear and proper communication is essential in almost all professions, but its role is accentuated in the domain of HR. My responsibility as a HR manager is to communicate the vision and mission statements of the organization to all my subordinates. While textual dispersal of this information in the form of pamphlets and brochures is important, it is equally important to convey such messages in everyday interactions. In my years of experience, I learnt that leading by example is the best way to communicate the core philosophy of the hospital. In the private hospital that I wor k for presently, this philosophy is to put the interests of the patients ahead of profits. So the accounts department is notified of this priority, and thereby they are a bit lenient in billing patients from poor backgrounds. Q. How do you manage to make team members work in unison? A. I understand the importance of team ethic and try to inculcate it into my team members. There is an inherent contradiction here, for employees join the organization for fulfilling their personal needs, wants and aspirations. It would then be necessary that such personal motives do not overpower the needs of the hospital; and that employees try to synchronize their goals with that of organization’s goals. My job as a HR manager is to help them in this process, by suggesting and showcasing common ground between these two seemingly opposing tendencies. Q. What is the biggest change you’ve seen in communication methods and mediums in the last twenty years? A. There has been a tremendous chan ge in the way communication takes place these days. When I started out, telephones were the cutting edge in communications technology. But so much progress has happened since then. Today, we integrate personal medical records of all patients into an online-database, which can be cross accessed by physicians down the line. Technology has affected the diagnostic and prognostic procedures as well, making the quality of healthcare much improved.