Companies taking part in this year's People Management Awards, a competition jointly launched by the Hong Kong Institute of Human Resource Management (HKIHRM) and the South China Morning Post, will be assessed by a panel of judges consisting of human resources professionals and academics. Competing companies are divided into three groups: small enterprises with 100 employees or below; medium-sized businesses that have up to 500 people; and large enterprises that have more than 500 people. Any Hong Kong-based company is eligible to apply. Shortlisted written entrants will be asked to complete an online multiple-choice self-assessment where they will rate the project's performance and effectiveness of the company's overall human resources function against a list of assessment criteria. Two of the project's stakeholders must also complete a separate online questionnaire for cross-checking and evaluation. The finalists will be invited to give a presentation on the success of their people management strategy and explain the impact for the long term. Judges will take a holistic approach in assessing the company's performance by looking at how the businesses came up with the project idea, and other factors including execution, the internal barometers used in measuring the project's success and the information technology or communication methods used. HKIHRM president Lai Kam-tong said the strong economies of Hong Kong and the mainland meant that companies had to increasingly give people more than just a job. 'We need people to work as a team to achieve a business objective. In Hong Kong, companies are all fighting for middle management, but where are all these people going to come from?'
