HR 101 for Cebu City Hall and Provincial Capitol

Mayor Mike Rama was awarded by the People Management Association of the Philippines or PMAP in 2014 as the Most Outstanding HR Professional in Government, not just for Cebu but for the whole Philippines. I should know this because I was the national president of this association that year. And I handed over to him the most prestigious professional award in people leadership and management. As a matter of fact, his awarding night drew the biggest crowd in the 65-year history of our professional association, unparalleled until now.

Mayor Mike was an outstanding HR manager of COACO, and he won a major case against DOLE and the union, decided by the Supreme Court. He saved the company millions in labor costs as he was able to convince the highest court of the land that DOLE was wrong and he was right. He was the HR Manager and also acted as legal counsel, thereby saving the Aboitiz-owned company a huge amount in attorney's fees. You can google it: GR 82849, COACO versus Sec. Franklin Drilon, decided on August 2, 1989. The counsel for the union was Atty. Armando Alforque, and counsel for management was Atty. Michael L. Rama. I should know, I was his Law professor in the Gullas Law School in 1977, before he transferred to San Beda.

But to become a mayor from being an HR manager is quite a big transition. Of course, having an HR background gives Mayor Mike tremendous advantages over his opponents who have not been in HR at all. Mike knows people by heart, he understands human behavior, he masters human psychology. But taking over from the late mayor Labella, he faces tremendous challenges on how to introduce modern HR techniques among the personnel in City Hall. Just like in many government offices, many of the personnel may be bright but may not have the right combination of competence, character, commitment, and compassionate caring for the people.

I am not prejudging, but if you ask people who transact official business in any of the units in the city government, you may be surprised at the feedback from the clientele. The same is true in the Capitol. The governor is admittedly a dynamic public official, always on the go, always making things happen, always moving around. She is not an armchair governor, much less an ivory tower governor. She is a hands-on manager. But, if we scrutinize the people in the different units in the provincial government, we may find gaps in planning, leading, and organizing things, gaps in delivery of basic services, gaps in adhering to budgets and deadlines, gaps in quality of service and, above all, gaps in people caring and client orientation. The Capitol needs a topnotch HR guru. Just like the city government.

What Mayor Mike and Governor Gwen need is an HR consultant, an honest-to-goodness HR professional, who can professionally, not politically, take a look at the government service delivery system and fill the gaps. The people are already there. Most of them have honest intentions. But many are political appointees with less-professional attitude, and less-positive habits. Mike and Gwen should look at the behavioral patterns of their staff who need enhancement in their sense of proactive anticipation, in their sense of urgency and time-orientation, in their compassion and care for people, in their fidelity in the handling of funds and government properties.

They may have the best PR guys, they may have a very good cordon sanitaire, they may even have the best department heads. But if these people are not properly guided by the experts, all their good intentions may go to waste. Sayang, we have a very good governor and mayor with excellent vision and strategic plans. But the implementation of many provincial projects and plans are far down the loftiness of their intentions.

I know that Governor Gwen and Mayor Mike will win, but if they do not get the expert advice, all their dreams will just lie there, and perhaps die there too. Usik.