The Human Resource Development from Buddhist Perspective

 

Buddha's teachings are reflected in the age-old philosophical philosophy known as Buddhism. The system is an esoteric, meditative practice that frequently functions as a religion. Buddhism places a focus on the development of awareness and promotes a spiritually simple way of life that rejects reliance on and attachment to material things (Waghmare & Mehata, 2014). Buddhism has an intriguing perspective on good management techniques. Buddhism has very little of an impact on managerial practice, according to (Fernando and Jackson, 2006). who discovered that religion, particularly Buddhism, has a big impact on managerial choice-making in Sri Lanka.

 The Buddhist ideals can be considered sufficient to underline the sufficiency of business and management job ethics. Buddhist values are discovered to be incorruptibly alert and alarmed to highlight the profound principles of organizational work ethics, business values, rules and regulations, theory, doctrine, precepts, moral conduct, and behavior of the people, which are few of the critical discussions that modern management practice urges to gauge the success of any firm. Thus, the research has underlined the connection between Buddhist principles and work ethics in human resource management (HRM) practices.

Goals of the research

This study investigates how Buddhist work ethics and ideals affect human resource management techniques.

Buddha's Teachings

In life, cultural, social, moral, and organizational conduct are all governed by Buddhist principles, which are the convictions of good and wrong. The management of individuals for high performance in today's organizations is the focus of organizational behavior. Values promote effective self- and human resource management directly or indirectly, if not explicitly (Luthans,2013). Buddha anticipated that as people aged, they would develop more socially acceptable morals and values. These and other orientations are created as people evolve and are surrounded by higher moral standards (Harvey, 2000). According to the researcher, values are a person's sense of right and wrong or what "ought" to be.

Buddhist Morality

Ethics is a term used to describe moral standards of conduct. Ethics are moral guidelines or convictions regarding what is right and wrong. When deciding how to respond to complicated human problems and situations, it serves as a technique, approach, or point of view. According to (Jayatilleke, 1984) ethics has to do with how people behave and is concerned with issues like what constitutes justice, what is right and wrong, and what are a person's obligations, rights, and duties. The study of moral phenomena is essentially theoretical in nature and is called ethics. Buddhist social philosophy and ethics are closely related.

Buddhist ethics in the workplace

Buddhist work ethics and values are regarded as a special approach and technique that connect stakeholders, management, and human resources. Organizational practices are accurately expressed by people and the precise ethical standards being used. A working environment within an organization is established by values and work ethics, along with a careful appraisal of each individual's character. the connection between Buddhist principles of moral conduct and human resource management strategies, which work together to raise corporate performance to a high standard. In a more considered environment, values and work ethics play a crucial role. This is a crucial priority that calls for growth and marks an important turning point in the development of both individuals and organizations (Flynne, 1994).

Hence, organizational human resource management methods affect how satisfied and committed individuals are to their jobs and how well they uphold Buddhist beliefs and work ethics. It demonstrates a high level of integration between organizational effectiveness and human resource expectations. Moreover, work ethics contains other related components that are in line with its goals and help to shape how people see working in a given setting, which has inspired individuals to put in the effort and accomplish their goals.

Buddhist work ethics, values, and practices on human resource management

It stated almost all acceptable interests required to manage the organizational goals of any organization, including the willingness to share the vision and mission and accept nearly constants within Buddhist ideals and work ethics. Supporting goals encroach on change at a suitable level and aid in dispersing crucial factors required to improve performance at every branch of the firm. That is crucial, especially since the modes level is being developed for analytical forecasts of attitudes. In actuality, the evolving trend enables employees to realize their goals and produce the proper approach to job motivation for their jobs.

In addition, according to (Storey, 1995), Human resource management is a distinctive approach to employment management that seeks to achieve competitive advantage through the strategic deployment of a highly committed and capable workforce, using an integrated array of cultural, structural, and personnel techniques." According to (Boxal, Purcell, and Bacon 2003), different organizations will be excluded if human resource management is only characterized as high commitment management. He believes that the definition provided by (Storey 1995) is exclusive in that it distinguishes human resource management from other types of labor management.

The four crucial elements of HRM practices are commitment, flexibility, quality, and integration. The first dimension takes into account how important it is for employees to internalize the organization's aims and act appropriately. Employees should be prepared to adjust to any change within a flexible organizational structure, according to the flexibility dimension. Higher organizational success is correlated with higher personnel quality. Finally, integration refers to consistently aligning corporate strategy with human resources strategies, which calls for various aspects of the human resource management plan to be mutually supportive. (Guest, 1987).

Results

In the history of human resources management, two traditions can be found. One tradition focused on getting the most output possible by employing technical means and considered people to be human capital. The other focused on giving the worker and society the most advantages possible and treated each individual as a whole. The second tradition includes the customs derived from the Indus Valley Civilization. Their management strategies applied to both industry and educational institutions, which supplied the most valuable resource—the human resource of the society—and considered every individual as a member of it. As a result, they provided a person with the care and resources they needed from the time of his birth until his death to help him achieve his potential.

Conclusion

Buddhist ideals, work ethics, and human resource management techniques are found to be positively and significantly related. Moreover, a substantial link between the independent and dependent variables was discovered. It may be said that the eightfold path, the four divine emotions, and the ten perfections of Buddhism have a considerable influence on how human resource management. The five Buddhist precepts have a similar profound influence on human resource management strategies.

The human capital focus tradition is largely where modern human resources management got its start. Up to the turn of the 20th century, attention was primarily focused on the physical aspects of employees and on maximizing output through the application of technical procedures. In the early half of the 20th century, researchers discovered that while someone is being managed, their mental and social wellbeing should also be taken into account. Scholars, however, have only recently begun to recognize the significance of a person's spiritual side (Peiris, 2012).

Reference

Dhammapia, A.(2003). Nabbana in Theravada perspective with special reference to Buddhism in Burma ( Doctiral dissertation, California Institute of Integral Studies), UMI No. 3093559.

Dean, K., C. Fornaciari, and J. McGee. (2003). Research in spirituality, religion, and work: Walking the line between relevance and legitimacy. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 16(4), 378-395.

Fernando, M. and B. Jackson. (2006).The influence of religion-based workplace spirituality on business leader’s decision-making: An inter-faith study. Journal of Management and Organization, 12(1), 23-39.

Flynn, G. (1994). Attitude more valued than ability. Personnel Journal, Vol. 73, p. 16.

Guest, D. E. (1997). Human resource management and performance: A review and research agenda. International Journal of Human Resource Management,8, 263-276.

Harvey P. (2000). An introduction to Buddhist ethics. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press

Jayatilleke, K.N. (1984). Ethics in Buddhism perspectives. The Whell Publication: London.

Luthans, F. (2013). Organizational behavior, New Delhi: McGraw Hill Education Private Limited.

Milkovich, G., & Newman, J. (1993). Compensation (4th edition). Home-Wood: Irwin.

Peiris, N. (2012) BUDDHIST CONCEPT OF HUMAN RECOURSES MANAGEMENT [online]. Available from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/308898754_BUDDHIST_CONCEPT_OF_HUMAN_RECOURSES_MANAGEMENT. [Accessed 2^nd April 2023]

Storey, J. (1995). Human resource management: A critical text. London: Routledge.

 Source

[1. [1] https://journal.getabstract.com/en/2020/07/31/ancient-buddhist-wisdom-for-turbulent-times/. [Accessed on 2nd April 2023].

[2]. [2] https://hbr.org/2018/01/the-best-leaders-are-great-teachers. [Accessed on 2nd April 2023].

[3]. [3] https://blog.salarium.com/best-human-resource-management-practices/. [Accessed on 31st March 2023].

[4]. [4] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKotIf2ejGE. [Accessed on 30th March 2023].