Human Resource Management Practices in

Bangladesh: A Comparative Case Study based on

public and private dairy firm in Bangladesh.

Subject: Human Resource Management

Section: 01

Submitted to
M. Khasro Miah, Ph.D.
Associate professor, North South University

Submitted by
Faisal Nasir Khan ID#102- 0576-060
Raquib Mahmud ID#102- 0708-560
Mahmudul Alam Chowdhury ID#102- 0919-060
1
Acknowledgement

We would like to express our most sincere gratitude and appreciation to our course
instructor Dr. M. Khasro Miah ( Associate Professor, North South University) for
giving us the opportunity to make this project.

To be honest, we were little bit bogged before starting this project. Class lectures
helped us to get rid of this problem. So, we are indebted to our course teacher Dr. M.
Khasro Miah for his outstanding class lectures which made this work much easier.

Our honorable sir also made the class more interesting introducing different kinds of
discussion regarding to various issues which cover HRM. Thats why a major part
credit goes to him.

Also thanks to Milk Vitas Assistant Manager (procurement) Kanti Mondal for
helping us providing information related to human resource management of dairy
farm.

Thanks to Almighty for giving us potential to bring this Project into reality.

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ABSTRACT

Human Resource management has several sections to explore. In this Human

Resource Management Course (BUS-601), we have been given the topic based on
Human Resource Management Practices in Bangladesh: A Comparative Case Study
based on public and private dairy firm in Bangladesh.

To conduct the project, we have selected three dairy farms. Among one is state owned
named as Milk Vita. Others are private dairy farms named as Aarong dairy farm and
Aftab dairy farm. We focused to reveal the Human Resource practices in respective
farms. Effectiveness and efficiency of Human Resource system is also pointed out in
this paper.

Providing the introduction regarding to dairy farms, we started our project. Then we
showed the present scenarios of dairy production all over the Bangladesh. After that,
limelight is given on the Human resource practices in Bangladesh. It includes
recruitment and selection (R&S), training, promotion, employee compensation,
performance appraisal, transfer and posting, grievances, diversity management,
employee testing & selection, establishing strategic pay plans etc.

We introduced the dairy farms giving the very basic introduction about them. We also
plotted the difference between the practice of Human resource system in Bangladeshi
dairy farms and those existing outside. For Bangladeshi dairy farms, we have
developed a research based questionnaire which contains some questions about the
qualification, educations, skills of the employees etc. Taking the help from internet
we plotted the present status of Human Resource practices in the dairy farms outside
Bangladesh. We also took interview of officer level personnel working inside the
dairy farm. Over phone we took interview of private dairy farms personnel.

We developed a questionnaire which was objective type. It focuses the employee

status of the respective farms. These include salary and motivation factors, training
and developments, employee commitment, and employee satisfaction etc.
Surprisingly, we found that most of private dairy farms HR department is busy in
providing only recruitment and selection service. The state owned dairy farm Milk

3
Vita does not have any Human Resource department. Their selection procedure is
done by the higher officials of the organization. The worker level recruitment is done
here mostly by references without any formal and structured interview. Our findings
found that recruitment in state-owned Milk Vita does not have transparency at all.
The turnover rate of officer level is almost zero because of having very relaxed and
securitized job.

Finally, we have proposed a Human Resource model for the concerned dairy farms.
Over there, we put highlight on unbiasedness, responsiveness, activeness and
monitoring. We encouraged them to develop a Strategic Human Resource
Management (SHRM) to meet the existing problems sharply. We also provided them
the HR paradigm in order to attain the organizational goal in a more responsive way.

4
Introduction
Dairying is nearly always a part of mixed farming systems in Bangladesh. It has a
direct impact on income generation, poverty alleviation and availability of animal
protein. Quantification of the contribution of livestock, including poultry, shows that
dairying is the predominant source of income generation. (Miyan 1996)

Bangladesh currently has a high demand for fresh dairy products but imports about 40
percent of the milk it consumes. This presents an opportunity for dairy farmers to
expand their businesses and supply milk within their own country.

The growth of dairy firm was witnessed from time to time. In rural Bangladesh, both
men and women are largely contributing to agricultural and economic productivity
through dairy firm. Specially, the involvement of rural women in dairy firms is highly
appreciating. Milk provided by dairy firms is wide acceptable all over the country.

The major constraints to dairy cattle production are the shortages of quality feeds and
fodder, the breeds of cattle, poor management practices, and limited access to
veterinary care and disorganized marketing systems.

In addition, there is a lack of institutional support, research and training, which would
be beneficial to the farming environment. Proper implementation of Human resource
management can solve this purpose to some extent. (M. Saadullah)

Several private dairy firms have been developed in order to meet the demand of dairy
related facts. But the government of Bangladesh owns only one dairy firm. It is Milk
Vita. This dairy farm is serving on a large scale throughout the country. Lack of
prudent strategies and policies put the government owned Milk-vita into a
troublesome position. But, still a large percentage of consumers rely on this institution
highly. This is because of their variation of products and keeping the low price
compare to the market.

5
Present status and impacts of dairy production on small
holder dairy systems
The majority of dairy farms in Bangladesh are privately owned. Entrepreneurs are
also getting involved in small-scale and commercial dairy farming in urban and
peri-urban areas through micro-credit programs, provided by Grameen Bank and
NGOs, which are aimed at poverty alleviation. On the basis of primary use of cows,
farm size and use of dairy products, dairying may be classified into the following four
categories

(i) Dairying for home consumption,

(ii) production from dual-purpose cows (draft and milk),
(iii) small-scale dairy farming and
(iv) Commercial dairy farming (Table-1). (Saadullah)

Table1: Classification of dairy farms based on primary use of cows, farm size and
use of dairy products.

Farm type
1. Household dairy
Milk produced for home
consumption and surpluses of
milk are converted into market
sales
2. Dual-purpose cows (draft and
milk)
Seasonal surpluses of milk are
converted into market sales
3. Small dairy farms
Milk and milk products are
converted into market sales
4. Medium dairy farms
Milk and milk products are
converted into market sales
5. Large dairy farms
Milk and milk products are
converted into market sales
Number
of
cows/farm Ownership
13 Usually large- and medium-sized
households
26 All types of household as secondary
activities
25 Small- and medium-sized livestock
households (mostly with
government incentive, NGO or co-
operative support)
625 Medium-sized household/private
small commercial dairy farm
(mostly with Government incentive,
NGO or co-operative support)
26 and Private commercial dairy farms
above

6
There are eight government owned dairy farms in Bangladesh. These are mostly used
as breeding farms and for the supply of heifers to small-scale farmers. Moreover,
various NGOs in the country, such as Grameen Bank, BRDB (Bangladesh Rural
Development Board), PROSHIKA and BRAC have very large livestock development
projects. These projects target landless and marginal farmers, particularly women, as
part of their rural development and income-generation activities. Mostly, they provide
credit facilities and some of them provide support services to small-scale dairy farms.
These activities are implemented in collaboration with the Department of Livestock
Services, Government of the Peoples Republic of Bangladesh. (Saadullah)

Human Resource Practices in Bangladesh

Human resource management (HRM) refers to the policies and practices involved in
carrying out the Human resource (HR). Human resource management is a package
including human resource planning, job analysis, recruitment, selection, orientation,
compensation, performance appraisal, training and development, and labor relations
(Dessler, 2007). HRM is also composed of the policies, practices, and systems that
influence employees behavior, attitude, and performance (Noe, Hollenbeck, Gerhart,
and Wright, 2007).

In Bangladesh HR planning is developing gradually.HR planning addresses the

critical issues and develops the way to implement policies, practices and processes.
HR strategies basically define what an organisation wants to do. HR Strategies clarify
the needs of stakeholders. These also ensure the mission & vision of concerned
company.

Human resource planning forms the most important component of modern

organizations. The success of an organization depends highly, on having right persons
in right positions. Thats why human resource management at not only Bangladesh
but also all over the world has acquired significance in current organizations.
Theoretically and practically it is now implementing in Bangladesh. Theorists and
practitioners attach a considerable importance on the need for ensuring an efficient
and effective use of proper Human Resources Planning. In Bangladeshi aspects HRM
planning show the logical relationships between various elements of human resource

7
management and underscore the importance of integrating them with the overall
framework of the organization. (Huda, 2007)

However, in Bangladesh, human resource study focuses more on changing position of

the subsidiaries and their relationship with changes in HRM practices. Further, though
multinationals are focusing on developing and emerging economies, research on HR
practices of those countries still appeared to very little. But findings from their study
could be used by academicians and HRM practitioners of Bangladesh to initiate
further research and policy initiative. (Monowar Mahmood)

HRM planning in Bangladesh as for in general sense providing a common HR

planning some selective techniques, as like following- (Billah, 2009) Recruitment and
Selection (R&S), Training, Promotion, Employee compensation, Performance
appraisal, Transfer and Posting, Grievances, Diversity Management, Employee
testing & selection, Establishing strategic Pay Plans etc.

In Bangladesh, strategic human resource management (SHRM) practices and cultures

have generally adopted on the one hand. The assumption is that organizations develop
a culture of their own that is distinct from the national and industry contexts in which
the organization is embedded. Thus the potential impact of external environmental
factors on organizational culture is ignored. On the other hand, some researchers and
scholars have questioned the validity and reliability of national culture-SHRM
practices research. (Peter KObonyo)

Overall, Human Resource practice in Bangladesh is surely better than the past. In the
past, Human Resource role was concentrated in hiring & firing in Bangladeshi
organizations. Recently it has initiated to perform more than that. So, situation has
been changed. Specific sections of human resource e.g. employee motivation,
employee development, employee retention, facilitating organizational development
initiatives etc. are being focused now. Therefore Human Resource is contributing to
the achievement of organizational goals in Bangladesh. This practice is considering as
a value added services in a country like Bangladesh. Now, almost every organization
in Bangladesh introduced Human Resource department for a brighter future and
welfare of the organization.

8
Bangladeshi national and corporate culture, society and
values of people

Bangladeshi national culture

Bangladesh is the most densely populated nation in the world. With approximately
15.5 million inhabitants living in an area of 55,813 square miles, there are about 2,640
persons per square mile. The majority of the population (98 percent) is Bengali, with
2 percent belonging to tribal or other non-Bengali groups.
Approximately 83 percent of the population is Muslim, 16 percent is Hindu, and 1
percent is Buddhist, Christian, or other. Annual population growth rate is at about 2
percent which is pretty high. (www.everyculture.com)

Bangladeshi Culture & Society

Hierarchy

1. Bangladesh is a hierarchical society

2. People are respected because of their age and position.
3. Older people are naturally viewed as wise and are granted respect.
4. Bangladeshis expect the most senior male, by age or position.
5. Most of the businesses are family oriented business

Meeting & Greeting

1. Greetings usually take place between members of the same sex

2. The hand shake is common fact for literate society.
3. The traditional greeting for Muslims is Assalamu Alaikum
4. In general, age dictates how people are addressed.
(www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/bangladesh)

The national culture of Bangladesh is almost same in everywhere. We prefer

collectivism rather than individualism. The values of people are quite similar with
each other. Society does not allow unethical practices, but a large number of people
are involved doing so. In most of the organizations, same traditional culture has been

9
developed. Only a few organizations are determined to improve their cultural strategy
in Bangladesh.

Corporate culture of Bangladesh

Communication Styles

Bangladeshis are considered as indirect communicators. They tend to communicate in

long, rich and contextualized sentences which only make sense when properly
understood in relation to body language. It is important for people who come from
implicit/direct cultures to understand that their communication styles may be seen as
rude and the information provided inadequate. Personal space is less of an issue in
Bangladesh than many European cultures. Bengalis stand close when speaking to
someone of the same gender and touch is common. However, when speaking with a
woman the space is often increased. (www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-
etiquette/bangladesh)

Meeting & Greeting

Business etiquette in Bangladesh is reasonably formal. Formal behavior is expected.

Men greet each other with a handshake upon arriving and leaving. Foreign men
should nod to a Bangladeshi woman unless she extends her hand. This may be use
with or without the nickname. (www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-
etiquette/bangladesh)

Meetings in Bangladesh are generally the place where decisions are disseminated
rather than made. They will usually be led by the most senior present that sets the
agenda, the content, and the pace of the activities. Meeting structures are not very
linear in Bangladesh. There may be an agenda and a starting time, but they only serve
as guidelines. (www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/bangladesh)

In most of the government organizations, corporate culture has not been developed.
Only a few privately owned organizations like GP, ROBI, and KAFCO etc. are
maintaining the corporate culture in Bangladesh. But things are getting changed day
by day.

10
Objective of the study

1. Identification of the general Human Resource Practices of public and private

dairy firms in Bangladesh to find out whether it is an effective practice or not.
2. Identification of the strategic human resource management that can be
implemented in the public as well as private dairy firm.

Significance of the study

This study is very important to get the idea about the most important dimensions of
the human resource management to understand the practices those are actually
common in public and private dairy firms in Bangladesh. It also identifies the changes
we can recommend after analyzing the Human resource practices. This report will
help us in knowing all the dimensions of HRM and their background and importance
in the respective field. After preparing this report we will be more capable in
explaining the aspects of HRM for the public & private dairy firms in Bangladesh.

11
Background information of respective firms

Milk Vita (public dairy firm)

Milk Vita is Bangladesh's largest dairy company and the leading supplier of fresh
milk and dairy products such as butter and yogurt to Dhaka. Private dairies even
copy some of Milk Vita's business model. For the last 10 years Milk Vita has stood
on its own two feet, without subsidies from either the international community
or the government. In 1998, 40 000 farmers, who pay a nominal fee to join the
cooperative, earned a total of US$9.3 million through the sale of 30 million liters
of milk. Farmers receive crucial animal services such as vacations and artificial
insemination. Dividends decided by the cooperative flow back to producers -- in
2000, US$1.5 million was paid out. The price of milk is set by the cooperative
based on current demand. (www.fao.org)

In most of the villages in Bangladesh, when the people from the Milk Vita dairy
cooperative came to spot, the result is a remarkable 25-year march of progress
in a corner of one of the world's poorest countries. Not only did Milk Vita break
the milk buyers' monopoly but, more importantly, it substantially expanded milk
production in the region. The success shows clearly what is possible when the
right idea, the right economic and physical environment and the right
participants come together under competent management.
(www.milkvitabd.com)

The government started Milk Vita shortly after independence in 1974. In the
early 1990s it withdrew, leaving the cooperative to an independent Board of
Directors, the majority of who are now farmer-elected. The new board replaced
civil servants with professional managers and the cooperative finally became
profitable. (www.milkvitabd.com)

The best news of all is that Milk Vita will expand into four new areas of
Bangladesh where traditional small-scale milk production still prevails. It will be
financed not by international charity but by the cooperative's own profits.
(www.fao.org)

12
Existing factories of Milk Vita (www.milkvitabd.com)

Establishment (1989-
2008)
Production
Date of
Capacity
Place Nature of Plants Commissionin
(Liters per
g
day)
Srinagar (Monshigonj) Milk Chilling 15,000 June 1975
15,0008000/
Rangpur Milk Chilling
h
Powder milk
production factory, Baghaba Powder 8000/h
milk Processing
ri
Vanggura (Pabna) Milk Chilling 10,000 lit
Laherimohonpur (Shirajgon
Milk Chilling 10,000 lit
j)
Vhirab (kishorgonj) Milk Chilling 5,000 lit
Raipur (laxmipur) Milk Chilling 10,000 lit
Nator Milk Chilling 5,000 lit
Islampur (Jamalpur) Milk Chilling 5,000 lit
Gabtoli (Bogra) Milk Chilling 5,000 lit
Shibpur, Norshindi Minaral water Plant 60,000 lit/h
Domar (Nilphamary) Milk Chilling 5,000 lit
Shaithkhira Milk Chilling 5,000 lit
Noagon Milk Chilling 5,000 lit
Ramgonj (laxmipur) Milk Chilling 5,000 lit
Shibpur (Narsingdi) Pasteurization 30,000 lit
Candi and Chocolete Plant Coverchar, Chocolot
500 kg/day
Tajgoan, Dhaka e
Moulovibazar Milk Chilling 5,000 lit
Khulna Milk Chilling 5,000 lit
UHT Milk Plant, Mirpur. Flavourd Milk 40,000 lit
Condence Milk Plant,
Condence Milk 96,000 can/h
Mirpur.
Chirirbondor, Dinajpur Milk Chilling 5,000 lit
Ishardi, Pabna Milk Chilling 5,000 lit
Sonagazi. Fani Milk Chilling 5,000 lit
Subornochar, Noyakhali Milk Chilling 5,000 lit

13
Marketing affairs of Milk vita
The ever expanding city of Dhaka used to get 2.00 to 2.50 lakh liters of milk vita
liquid milk per day which was only early 3000-4000 liters the establishment of this
project. This is hoped within the next couple of years the organization will be able to
market its capacity quantity of 4.00 lakh liters per day along with substantial
quantities of milk products. The other milk products are butter, ghee, ice-cream,
flavored milk, powder milk, condensed milk, UHT milk etc. are on regular supply in
Dhaka as well as in some other cities. New avenues of marketing with new products
are also being explored to strengthen the marketing operation.
The milk union has so far marketed 5.50 core liters of liquid milk worth tk.250 core
and substantial quantities of milk products worth an amount of tk. 70 cr. totaling an
amount of tk. 320 core. (www.milkvitabd.com)
Basic Information on Milk vita Bangladesh

1 Total Lands 3.0 acres

2 Used area 2.56 acres

3 Current asset Tk. 5.5 core

4 Director General 1

5 Director 4

6 Others Employees 85

7 Total executives 22 persons

8 Total employees 102

9 Canteen 1

10 Daily production 3 lakh liter

11 Total firms (supplier) 457

(www.milkvitabd.com)

14
Aarong (private dairy firm)
Aarong Milk was first marketed in 1998 by the dairy social enterprise of development
organization BRAC, to help poor rural dairy farmers protect and grow their dairy
enterprises and improve their family's income by facilitating access to urban markets.
Inspired by this purpose, Aarong Milk has worked to build a brand that is as true to its
urban consumers as it is to its rural suppliers, providing dairy products of impeccable
quality that drive its vision of a healthy and strong Bangladesh. (Dr. Soumen Mitra,
2011)

Achievements

Aarong Milk offers a range of dairy products along side liquid milk and competes
with well established global brands in the Bangladeshi powdered milk market. Its
greatest achievement has been in winning the confidence of the consumers in a short
period of time. This is reflected in the rapid increase in market share - Aarong Milk
gained 13% market share during the last 4 years, from 19% in 2006 to 32% in 2010.
The brand has a dedicated consumer base of around 500,000 people who regularly
purchase its products. (Dr. Soumen Mitra, 2011)

Market Affairs of Aarong

Aarong Milk is a well known, highly respected and trusted brand among urban
Bangladeshis. Having entered Bangladesh's dairy market only 12years ago, Aarong
Milk has achieved enormous success with its biggest selling product, liquid milk. It
captured 32% market share - second only to a long-standing national competitor. (Dr.
Soumen Mitra, 2011)

15
 Basic Information on Aarong dairy firm

1 Total Space 11500 square feet

2 Used area 10580 sft

3 Current asset Tk. 2.5 core

4 Managing director 1

5 Director 3

6 Employees 65

7 executives 17 persons

8 Total employees 86

10 Daily production 0.40 lakh liter

11 Total firms (supplier) 69

(Dr. Soumen Mitra, 2011)

AFTAB DAIRY FIRM (private dairy firm)

Modern Danish automatic milk pasteurization plant with the capacity to process and
pack 1,500ltr/hr. moreover; AFTAB MILK & MILK PRODUCTS LIMITED
provides technical support and expertise to the farmers to bring about qualitative
change and improvement in the production of milk. It also ensures and guarantees
marketing of the milk for the farmers, which had so long hindered the progress and
development of the dairy industry. AMMPL product line comprises of Pasteurized
Milk Mango Milk Chocolate Milk, Curd and Ghee etc. (www.aitlbd.net/ig/abfl)

16
Features of Aftab Milk
Aftab Milk is the most hygienic liquid milk available in the market. It is
pasteurized in state-of-the-art processing plants and pouch-packed to make it
conveniently available to consumers. (www.aitlbd.net/ig/abfl)

Brand value
Aftab Milk is dedicated to delivering the highest quality dairy products to its
consumers and in reflection - the brand has become synonymous with quality and
good health in consumers' minds. Aftab Milk's commitment to build a healthy
Bangladesh is double-edged. It is focused on establishing the importance of milk as
an integral part of a healthy diet for its consumers. Aftab Milk is also committed to
ensuring the health and wellbeing of its rural suppliers and their families by
improving their income through provision of market access as well as encouraging
consumption of milk in their own homes. (www.aitlbd.net/ig/abfl)

Basic Information on Aftab dairy firm

1 Total Space 6578 square feet

2 Used area 6258 sft

3 Current asset Tk. 1.5 core

4 Chairperson 1

5 Manager Director 1

6 Employees 42

7 Technical person 08 persons

8 Total employees 51

10 Daily production 5000 liter

11 Total firms (supplier) 36

17
Research Methodology

The total study is covered in the Dhaka City of Bangladesh. In the process of data
analyses various statistical tools like averages, percentages, and tables were applied in
order to make the study worthier, informative, and useful for the purposes.

In this research methodology we have covered five steps-

Step 1: Conducting Primary Survey- A primary survey was conducted to get a clear
conception on the project area in order to develop a valid format

Step 2: Preparing Primary Questionnaire- Based on the primary survey and the
knowledge gathered from the literature, questionnaire was prepared.

Step 3: Verifying and Finalizing the Questionnaire- Through proper modification,

we finalized the questionnaire according the need of study.

Step 4: Data Collection Questionnaire- Based on questionnaire, data on the

variables for 3 dairy firms were collected. These steps also included interviews with
the management level and the workers respectively to gather some other relevant
information regarding pay policies.

Step 5: Data Processing and Implementation-After observing the data we finalized

the points to take in order to develop a enriched Human Resource management for
profit maximization.

Data Analysis represents together the data analyses and outcomes. The chapter
begins by providing a profile of the cases followed by the strategic planning practices.
Specific HRM practices analyzed include recruitment, selection, training and
development, and compensation. This is followed by analyses of costly mistakes by
employees and HRM outcomes such as termination, voluntary turnover, and reasons
why employees would accept alternative employment offers.

18
Analysis of Data Sheet of various dairy firms This study investigated the labor
management practices of Milk Vita, Aarong and Aftab dairy farm in Bangladesh. The
herd size of the Milk Vita ranged from 500 to 8,000. The number of cows milked per
day ranged from 225 to 3,200 cows with an average of 961 cows. The farm had
variations in milking practices. Number of fulltime employees ranged from 5 to 75
employees with an average of 21 employees. The percentage of Part time employees
on each farm varied from 29% to 88%. Overall, part time employees comprised 49%
of the total workforce. Most of the employees were employed year around and
worked between 50 and 78 hours per week. The average number of cows milked per
fulltime employee ranged from 37 to 68 cows and the average was 52 cows per
fulltime employee. But in case of private dairy firms, they are much more systematic
and oriented than Milk vita. They have own strategy. In spite of having small number
of suppliers private dairy firms milk production is so much satisfactory.

Process Description

There are basically two main strategies for the dairy farm, either expansion by
increasing herd size and number of employees or maintaining the current size of the
farm. Managers of state owned Milk Vita wanted to expand their business by
increasing the herd size and overall milk production. For example, the managers
stated that the mission of their farm is to expand by increasing the herd size. Although
this is stated like a long-term goal, the managers and herdsman considered it to be
their mission. Another manager stated that he intended to expand the enterprise by
increasing the herd size. The herdsman perceived that their mission was to surpass the
average milk yield per cow. Milk Vita focused on employees indicating that the
manager regarded his employees as a key resource in remaining competitive. The
manager stated that the mission of his farm is to have the right people with the right
skills and knowledge, and to manage and engage the employees so that they can
continuously improve and create value for the farm. Another manager named Kanti
Mondal (Assistant manager-procurement, milk vita) stated that the written mission
statement of his farm is to get prosperous and profitable by creating a good working
environment for employees, producing high quality milk and feed supplies while
achieving adequate financial rewards for the owners.

19
Overview of management of public & private dairy firms

1. Employer & Employees: For effective prosecution of the dairy firm it is necessary
to have a group of skilled employer & employee who are working very hard every
day. In below we will show the importance of them

2. Labor: For producing product a dairy firm must need many skill labors. In Milk
vita, there are several skill workers. Those work in plant permanent & part time basis.
Here is the number of permanent & part time labors who find their wages daily,
weekly, monthly. The minimum & maximum wages rate is 160 & 350. For labor have
no any housing advantage in fact.

3. Cost & Profit of public and private dairy firms on HR perspective

The production procedure of Milk-Vita has been indicating a gradual increase in

toward its operational activities which is resulted by increased input in investment or
labor or through factor productivities or having proper human resources management
(HRM).

However for the overall productivity of this Milk vita, a prolonged approach is
adopted. It introduces new HRM ideas, techniques and strategies for more robust
operations, facilitation and the formation of strategic alliance and networking.

Technical activities of Milk vita should be more focused to become more cost
effective, and it should have more interactions with national and international
organizations. In order to make the best use of the expertise and knowledge, our
public sector to be given proper emphases.

But in case of private dairy firms, cost and profit are highly interrelated. Observing
the Aftab and Aarong dairy firm, we found that they have a Human Resource
Department which works merely. Technical activities of private dairy firms are
focused enough to make the production cost effective. They are also following the
strategies of national and international dairy firms existing all over the world. If we
analyze the cost and production ratio of Aarong, it is quite satisfactory compare to the
Milk Vita. They can also increase the output implementing an efficient Human
Resource department.

20
Human Resource practices of public dairy firm (Milk Vita)

In conversation with Milk Vitas assistant manager (procurement) Kanti Mondal we

were little bit surprised. Because this state owned organization have no Human
Resource Department indeed. Although there is no Human Resource Department
indeed but they are maintaining HRM practices through upper level management
personnel. Some practices are given below-

Recruitment Practices

Most of the recruits of milk vita are people from the villages, so minimum level of
education a simplistic process of recruitment. But it does not lessen the value of
having a structured process for recruiting new hires. A simplistic process but a
process well followed can be of great advantage for the long term benefit of the
organization.

Selection Practices

Managers mostly explained that they selected new non-supervisory employees based
on their kinship or friendship ties with current employees. They perceived that such
employees tend to get along well and achieve high productivity.

Compensation Practices of Milk-Vita

Compensation refers to all forms of direct and indirect, monetary or non-monetary

rewards which are given to employees for working for the company as well as giving
efforts Developing Planning and Staffing Strategy for a Dairy Farm. Wages and
benefits provided to employees varied in Milk Vita and they are as follows: Entry-
level wage rate for non-supervisory employees ranged from BDT 50 to 70 per hour.
The pay varies depending on the experience of an employee, whether the employee
was provided with housing or not, and herd size of a farm. The wage rate for current
non-supervisory employees ranged from BDT 160 to 350 per hour. Non-supervisory
employees were paid on hourly basis. The salary information kept confidential
between the employee and the manager. Herdsman and non-supervisory employees in
all cases could not tell exactly how much each individual on their farms earned. They
only had a general idea of the expected wage range for different positions. The

21
manager of the farm provided incentives to employees for heat detection and
successful insemination. Each employee also received a bonus of BDT 500 every
month end if there was zero calf mortality. Employees of the farm also got incentives
on some occasion for achieving low somatic cell counts in milk production or
increased milk production. One manager provided employees with bonuses of
between 10% and 20% of their annual wages at year-end depending on the financial
performance of the farm. Factors that determined the compensation package included
the herd size of the farm, duties and responsibilities of an employee, an employees
work experience and job tenure, and the year-end financial performance of the farm.

Termination and turnover policies of Milk-vita

The employment at-will doctrine provides that either the employer or employee can
terminate their employment relationship at any time without any reasons or
justification. The study focused on the reasons why managers terminated the services
of employees and whether employees were aware of the factors that might lead to
their termination. The study also focused on the reasons for employees terminating
themselves, i.e., voluntary turnover. Finally, employees were asked to discuss the
reasons that might lead them to accept alternative employment offers. As a state
owned organization, the turn over & termination policies of Milk-Vita are basically
based on government rules and regulations.

Existing problems of Milk Vita

The most remarkable thing is that Milk Vita Bangladesh have not got any kind of
strategic HRM department that could deal with their existing lacking of HR
technique. The most important asset or resources of every organization is its human
resource. It is now globally recognized that managing human resources is the basic
job of management. With the advent of globalization of business, Human Resource
Management (HRM)/Human Resource Development (HRD) have now emerged as
one of the prime aspects of management policies in dairy industries too. Once
recruited, the Human Resource Department helps a new recruit to become a
productive and efficient employee. Milk Vita need to have a Human Resource
Department first of all.

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Human Resource practices of private dairy firms in BD

Most of the private owned dairy firms in BD have Human Resource Department. But
these are not as effective as they should be. Although there is Human Resource
Department but the HRM practices are always neglected.

We took interview of Aarong dairy farm personnel Nurul Kayes (executive officer,
marketing). He co-operated us highly proving the information regarding to this fact.
Some practices of Aarong dairy farm are given below-

Programs for training and developing employees

The authority makes sure that the employee has a clear understanding of the job
requirements before making the job offer. An employee who comes into a job
with an unclear or incorrect understanding of his role will be difficult to train---if
he even stays around long enough without the training process.

Compensation policies for employees

For legal protection and good business sense, Aarong dairy farm has developed
an up-to-date employee compensation policy. It is an organization which does
not wait for dire circumstances, such as a pay inequity lawsuit, to write down or
update their employee compensation policy. A written policy document also
ensures the employees for legal protection as a guideline of company policy.

Financial incentives

Aarong provide financial incentives to the employees. So, the employees are inspired
enough to put more extra effort in their respective assignment.

Fair recruitment system

The recruitment system of Aarong is fair and unbiased. All worker and employee go
through an interview board. The interview board is also free from the influence of the
higher officials for recruiting employee.

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RECOMMENDATION

For the public dairy farm Milk Vita first of all they need to have a Human Resource
Department. The recruitment and selection process is also very important part of HR
planning. The company may hire employees when there will be shortage of skills or
new position will be created in the organization.

Forecasting the supply of inside candidates will be done by the company. If the
demand wont be fulfilled from the inside of the organization then the company will
hire from the outside sources. Thats why Milk Vita needs to have a very good and
organized recruitment & selection process, if they will follow the below process

Strategic Planning

Strategic planning involves setting goals for the farm and working out a systematic
process or set of actions to achieve those goals. Terms such as purpose, vision,
mission, strategy, goals, and tasks are usually associated with strategic planning. The
researcher investigated whether dairy farm managers engaged in strategic planning.

Set up a specific goal for lower level employees

Milk Vita should set up specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and timely goals for
both mid level and lower level employees. Powerful monitoring cell should be
implemented so that the management can be informed of the performance of the
employee.

Resource-Based View

Resource based view of the firm can be a helpful scenario in creating a long term
strategy for Milk Vita as it focuses on the quality of the skills of a companys
workforce at various levels, and on the quality of the motivational climate created by
management. Human resource management is valued not only for its role in
implementing a given competitive scenario but also for its role in generating strategic
capability. With increasing competition in the market Milk Vitas resource based
view for its strategy implementation can give them a definite competitive advantage
in the milk industry. (Saadullah)

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Fig- Implementation of Three steps fundamental process resource-Based view (Gully)

Job Analysis

Milk Vita, Aarong and Aftab dairy farm should do job analysis to enhance the execution
of strategy. Job analysis involves determining a jobs entry requirements, developing a
strategic recruiting plan for the firm, selecting individuals for employment, developing
training plans and compensation systems, lastly helps to develop performance evaluation
measures. There are legal and practical reasons for doing a job analysis.

Forecasting and Planning

Milk vita, Aarong and Aftab dairy farm should do the workforce planning process,
because this is the foundation of strategic staffing as it identifies and addresses future
challenges to a firms ability to get the right talent to the right place at the right time. The
workforce planning process involves:

1. Dairy farms should identify the firms strategic vision, mission, and strategy
affect its current and future staffing requirements by influencing the types and numbers of
employees needed.
2. Dairy farms should articulate the firms talent philosophy and strategic staffing
decisions.
3. Dairy farms should conduct a workforce analysis to identify the gaps between the
labor market demand and supply.

After doing workforce analysis, dairy farms should develop and implement actions plans
to address any gaps between labor demand and labor supply forecasts. (Saadullah)

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Innovative Sourcing Plan

Identification of the desired talent and successful current employees in targeted jobs like
to do and how they might reach them if they were to try to recruit them. Perform ongoing
recruiting source effectiveness analyses by tracking .Without taking the innovative plan it
is almost impossible for the dairy farms to eliminate the existing barriers.

Improved Recruitment Practices

Managers accepted walk-in applicants. The potential employees visited the farms,
filled out job application forms and waited to be contacted when a position was
vacant. This suggests that the farms have a database of potential candidates to recruit
when employee referrals do not yield qualified candidates. A non-supervisory
employee reported to have secured his current employment by visiting the farm,
filling out the application form and visiting the farm twice a week until when he was
hired.

Fig- recruitment-process. (www.mwrecruitment.com.au/recruitmentprocess)

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Knowledge-Skills-Abilities and others (KSAOs)
To find out the job related worker characteristics that need to be present for recruits, the
KSAOs model can come in useful. The KSAOs stands for Knowledge, Skills, Ability and
Other characteristics. Based on KSAOs the effective competencies that Milk Vita needs
for its recruits can be indicated accurately. As there are varied level of recruits the level of
competencies will also vary.

Things you didn't know

Fig-model for identifying knowledge skill and abilities for workers (Gully)

Exit interviews

In the dairy farms the voluntary turnover is high, thats why we think when an employee
will be quitting the company he or she will give an exit interview which will reveal the
reason why they are quitting and based on that company will correct the defects. It will
help to explore the problems regarding to turnover. Therefore the companies will be able
to more concern about the reasons behind this. Corrective measure can be taken to settle
down the problem.

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Performance Appraisal

The evolution of the concept of performance management as a new Human Resource

Management model reflects a change of emphasis in organizations away from
command-and-control toward a facilitation model of leadership. This change has been
accompanied by recognition of the importance to the employee and the institution of
relating work performance to the strategic or long-term and overarching mission of
the organization as a whole. The performance management process provides an
opportunity for the employee and performance manager to discuss development goals
and jointly create a plan for achieving those goals. Development plans should
contribute to organizational goals and the professional growth of the employee.

Therefore when we are assessing past performance, we should concentrate on

assessing what the appraisee actually does and says, to demonstrate their knowledge
and skill. This means that we should concentrate on discussing past examples of their
behaviour. This will help us award a fair, honest and objective assessment of their
performance.

Overall recommendation

Human Resource Department is an indispensable tool and a continuous process, so

dairy farms should matches organizational needs for human resources and the
individual needs for a career development which will enables the worker and
employees to gain their best human potential by attaining a total all round
development. Creation of an HRD will promote dignity of employment of every
employee and workers of the dairy farm. It will provide the opportunities for team
work, personal development and career development. Hence, a well-planned HRD
System must be established within the dairy farms for better part of human resource
management.

Counselling, among workers and employees of the dairy farm will lead to improve
career counselling, motivation counselling and technical counselling for trouble-
shooting, facilitates career planning to industry development. Effectively and timely
grievance handling practices of HR system ensure effort for human resource
development that will be able to bear real fruit to the respective dairy farms

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29
During the visit we made detailed discussions with managers of the dairy farm on
various aspects of training ranging from quality judgment of raw production in the
field to marketing of milk products. But ultimately everybody agreed that the present
need is to improve the quality of all the personnel in a dairy farm ranging from
workers to managers from the viewpoint of technical knowledge.

We all had agreed that this is a long-standing issue for the dairy farms and how to
tackle this problem is not known to the personnel in the country yet. However,
everybody opinioned that a beginning must be made sooner than latter and this will
ultimate lead to the availability of a comprehensive course materials for all the level
of personnel in dairy industry .Various training modules shall be standardized within
a short period. People from the dairy industry should feel that the training program
should be short, meaningful and both the theory and practice should be blended at the
proper ratio for easy and better understanding of the people of dairy farms.

Conclusion

Human resource is the most important asset for any farm. More precisely, to put
human resource into action is very important. It is now globally recognized that
managing human resources is the basic job of management. With the advent of
globalization of business, Human Resource Management (HRM)/Human Resource
Development (HRD) has now emerged as one of the prime aspects of management
policies for dairy farm Industry too. The very management philosophy of this
industry should make an HR structure under which to some extent every production
manger and GM, from top to bottom, within the company can be concerned with the
HRM and it is much more how they are just recruiting employees and workers. Once
recruited, the Human Resource Department helps a new recruit to become a
productive and satisfied employee. Such helps are also extended to the existing
employees who are reassigned to new jobs through promotions, transfers etc. and
even for up gradation of their skill.

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Dairy farming has become a great industry in Bangladesh. But there is no pure HR
department to monitor the large man power of this industry. Most of the workers
have not sufficient basic educational knowledge and the average education is below
class Eight. The training policy for procuring skill is very limited. The recruitment
system is totally biased and not under any systematic HR techniques which thus
clearly for lack of organizing HR department.

Most of the top management in public sector is politically biased in case of

recruitment. There is huge demand of dairy products in both domestic & international
market. Every year government earns huge amount of currency by milk related
products. But the government is not serious about the benefit & facilities of dairy
industry workers. The workers want more benefit rather than salary due to lack of
compensation package against their effort. So, basically dairy industry authority
should formulate an HR body to offset the dairy farms overall production and
mismanagement lacking.

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Bibliography
Billah, M. P. (2009). Human resource management practices and employee
turnover: A study on private commercial banks in Bangladesh. Journal of
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Dr. Soumen Mitra, M. (2011). A comprehensive study on private dairy farming in

Bangladesh.

Gully, P. a. Strategic Staffing.

Huda, K. K. (2007). 2007, HRM practices & challenges of non-government

development organizations: An empirical study on Bangladesh. Journal of
Management, Vol. 9, No.1, pp. 35-49 .

Khulna, U. O. (2008). itment and Selection Process in Unilever Bangladesh Ltd.

Saadullah, M. Smallholder dairy production and marketing in Bangladesh.

Department of Animal Science, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh,
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www.aitlbd.net/ig/abfl. (n.d.). from www.aitlbd.net.

www.everyculture.com.

www.fao.org.

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