In today's context it has become a prime yardstick in measuring how people-centered an organization is. And hence the HR Manual is once again in the news in the organizational horizon

It is a conscious and focused approach to provide transparent information on Human Resources(HR) policies and procedures to members in an organization. This along with job profiling and competency mapping provide role, job and organizational information clarity to an employee. This amalgam is to ensure employees focus and produce their best performance towards the larger organizational objective. In its earlier avatar HR manual was floated in organizations opportunistically. The movement was shrouded in secrecy and lacked conviction in its inherent utility. Thus this led to the natural decline in its philosophy. Those were the era in which the prerogative and supremacy of organizational information was considered to be the exclusive domain of the management. It was sacrilegious to think of HR information trickle to the employees without the knowledge of HR Director. Even for the management staff, the reading of HR manual was on a limited circulation basis. The document was so sacrosanct that at the end of the day it was placed in the closed confines of the CEO's or the Finance Manager's chamber not even in the HR manager's chamber! The HR manager to his utter surprise found that the same CEO who was shouting from the rooftop about the utter indispensability of developing the HR manual was less than enthusiastic in privately giving more emphasis on bottom line and profitability. In a way the HR manager found that the praise for HR manual was mere window dressing. Every professional kept on praising the need and usefulness of HR manual. But that final commitment to the underlying philosophy of the manual was missing.

In the beginning, HR manual was mostly designed for the use of the management and the covenanted staff. This segment of organization on many occasions did not possess wholesome information on policies applicable to them. Either they were shy in seeking the relevant information or in the name of confidentiality the bureaucracy created an artificial wall. On their part the policy makers or the top management were oblivious or insulated from the pent up frustration of the management staff not being privy to policy information. On the other hand the blue collar or the unionized staff were aware of everything applicable to them, courtesy the collective bargaining document which was a transparent and open document. After all this was at a time when the management staff were the underdog. The lack of emotional commitment to HR manual was inevitably a part of its growing up without which it would not have gained the importance it has acquired today.

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