In this paper, we give emphasis on the human resource management process of Autobus Transport System, Inc.

These are what one can glean from Autobus’s mission statement:

Autobus’s business is not just to provide bus transportation service. It aims to provide in a timely and efficient manner the transport as well as other travel-needs (or goods and other service needs) of the traveller.

Autobus, stands for caring. It cares for its customer for its employees, and its managers, not to mention its other stockholders.

Integrity, professionalism, and efficiency are the values to which ATS’s management and employees are committed. Each one’s proprietary concern for the company’s resources as well as the travellers will allow them to care for one another.

These are the major policies that the company shall honour:

• Safety, comfort, cleanliness, and courtesy are what ATS’s management and employees distinctly focus on while taking care of the travellers.
• Sharing with employees the responsibility and the profits of efforts.
• Providing employees the opportunities for success through continuing education career enhancement and personal growth, believing that a highly skilled and motivated staff is the heart of this business.
• Nurturing a lean and keenly caring organization.

ATS’s management and employees believe that with Divine Guidance they shall be inspired to succeed in fulfilling this mission.

CORPORATE VISION

Our milestones and monuments

Chairman Gregorio MA. Araneta III Intimated during ATS’s planning session last February 19, 1996 his vision for the company:

In the next three years (i.e. 1996-1998), Autobus shall have at least one hundred (100) buses with commercial complex-cum-terminals in major endpoints in the routes it is or will be plying from Manila to Cagayan, Ilocos, and other areas in Luzon such as Baguio and San Fernando, La Union.

Its first goal is to break-even by the end of 1996 with its present fleet of fifty (50) bus units plying the Cagayan and Ilocos routes. Subsequently, it shall expand into building terminals and having additional bus units, or routes that would yield profit rates that are above normal business returns.

The company’s commercial complex-cum-terminals shall house not only Autobus’s, but also other business concerns of its Chairman – e.g. LB. courier services, Hertz rent-a-car, consumer goods stores or supermarkets, etc. They shall be positioned as new commercial centers which are one or two kilometres away from the present major town centers that Autobus is plying. Each one shall have an are of at least one-half to two hectares.

The company has to acquire additional franchises covering as well those that would serve the travellers wanting to disembark in Cubao and other new growth centers of Metro Manila. It will be adding to its fleet brand new buses which it will maintain efficiently and systematically using the appropriate and up-to-date equipment.

It shall maintain a lean and keenly caring organization. Those who do not have a collective proprietary concern or those who do not care for the company’s resources and the travellers will have no place in Autobus.

The milestones for Autobus from 1999 to year 2000 may be summarily described for now as a continuation of the growth path to be paved from 1996-1998. In other words, the more precise visualization of the state of the company at the turn of the century will be contingent not only on the performance of the company over the next three years, but also on the opportunities and threats that unfold in the local but increasingly globalized Philippine economy which will be undergoing an enormous pace of change in technology and structure. What would sustain the company, however, is the conviction that Autobus will be headed in the right direction so long as its mission or purpose is being nurtured.

In sum, Autobus seeks to be at the forefront of the transportation and travel industry in the Island of Luzon within the next three years.

RULES AND REGULATIONS

1. REGULATIONS COMMON TO ALL EMPLOYEES

1. Everybody, who is supposed to wear uniforms, must report in proper uniform and properly groomed and ready for work.
2. Even when off duty, if employee s inside terminal or station or office premises, he/she should be in uniform.
3. Always show cooperation to fellow employees. Whenever needed, a helping hand should be extended.
4. Be courteous to everyone especially to passengers. Be ready and willing to give accurate information to all regarding service of Autobus Transport Systems, Incorporated, especially with respect to time schedules of buses, lot and found articles belonging to passengers, etcetera.
5. Consult your superiors regarding matters which you are not aware of or cannot decide upon.
6. Drinking liquor, taking drugs or narcotics and gambling, in any form are strictly prohibited inside or outside company premises.
7. “Womanizing” and immoral acts are strictly prohibited inside the bus and company premises.
8. If you get sick, report immediately in any possible manner to your immediate supervisor who in turn should report the matter to the Medical Unit.
9. If you desire to take a vacation, file your leave of absence at least three (3) days before the intended leave. Do not begin your vacation until the same is duly approved.
10. Do not quarrel with your co-employees.
11. Do not use company time for your own personal convenience. You are being paid for every second of your time schedule.
12. Take care and protect the property of the company as if they were yours.
13. Respect and obey your superiors.
14. Your company is a public utility firm engaged in public service. Your service may be needed beyond your time schedule. You must always be ready to render such service.
15. While Autobus allows you to ride free of charge on its buses, this privilege should not be abused.
16. Always attend to your work diligently and well. Do not complain about your work to your co-employee nor to a non-employee of the company. Of you have any complaint go direct to your immediate supervisor or the Chairman of the Grievance Committee who will help solve the problem or bring the matter to the attention of Management.
17. Do not talk against the company, its officers and its management. O you do not like the policies, the rules and regulation, feel free to resign from your job.
18. Always try to live within your means. Avoid unnecessary expenses and save for the rainy days.

2. RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR ALL AUTOBUS OFFICE PERSONNEL

1. Upon your arrival at the office where you are assigned, report to the timekeeper who ill records your presence and/or attendance.
2. Of you have nothing more to do on your table, find out how you can help your officemates. Do not waste time in idleness.
3. Try to learn the job of your officemates especially the higher paying ones. You maybe called upon someday when the need arises to assume the same. Let your immediate superior share his knowledge of his job with you.
4. Do not accept fund drive ticket without proper letter of transmittal. Do not commit the company by giving the assurance that the tickets will be paid for. Just say that the company will try its best to sell them.
5. All telephone calls should be politely answered especially those inquiring for time schedules and buses on schedule. When person called for is not present, note the call and hand the note to person called when he/she arrives.
6. Before leaving for home, see to it that your table is cleared of papers and other office supplies or equipment which may get list. Lock shelves and cabinets unless you have a reliever who will take over after your tour of duty for the day.

3. RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR ALL AUTOBUS SUPERVISORS

7. Maintain direct control over the personnel assigned to you in the performance of their duties and functions.
8. Set an example in punctuality, temperament, leadership, neatness, initiative, efficiency and tact.
9. Respect the dignity of individuals, particularly your subordinate. Listen to their ideas and suggestions.
10. Develop in each of your staff a feeling of belonging to the team. Let him know how he is doing. Be able to evaluate his performance.
11. Show concern for your subordinates’ interest, needs, and problems. Be their teacher and mentor.
12. Maintain your self-control. Conversely study the temperament f your subordinates in order to be able to handle them according to their individual differences.
13. Strive to provide adequate and favorable working facilities of your subordinates. If necessary, bring the matter to the attention of management.
14. Assign work equitably in accordance it the capacity and skill of your subordinate, taking into consideration their physical condition at the time making the assignment.
15. Explain clearly the duties of your subordinates and give credit to those deserving the same.

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE

The organizational / functional setup of the company must be viewed with this frame of mind:

• Holistic - the organization cannot function effectively and efficiently with only one work unit doing its task, each one must do its part.

• Balance – Distribution of tasks, responsibilities and authorities are balanced and decentralized.

• Focus – Each person in charge of a particular unit must internalize his/ her accountabilities. Each one must be able to equivocally answer this question: “Which particular area of responsibility belongs to me to no one else in the organization and from which I am expected to deliver results?”

THE CORPORATE STRUCTURE

The chart below presents the functional structure of the organization of ATS. The company has nine ( 9 ) internal work units and they are the following:

 

1. Board of Directors as represented by the Chairman
2. General Manager
3. Operations Department
4. Maintenance and Parts Department
5. Administration Department
6. Finance Department
7. Legal Department
8. Business Development Department
9. Internal Audit Department

Two external bodies provide technical assistance and advice to the Chairman: the Corporate Secretary and the External Auditor.

Five ( 5 ) committees whose members are managers or representatives of all or several of the departments assist the General Manager in certain special areas of concern. They are: the Management Committee; the Fact finding Committee; the Grievance Committee; the Bids and Awards Committee; and the Disposal Committee.  

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PROCESS

STAFFING

        A critical function of personnel management is that of making decisions about assigning individuals to specific jobs or positions or about training individuals for specific jobs. This function basically is “matching” individuals to jobs, considering on the one hand the actual or potential qualifications of individuals and on the other hand, the requirements of jobs.

        

Personnel selection should be directed toward identifying those individuals who stand the best chance of success in the job in question. In selecting individuals for any given job, Autobus Transport System, Inc., follows some policies on hiring. Although the company doesn’t put up any advertisements on print media, expectant employees apply in the business through word of mouth (oral communication: communication using the spoken word, as distinct from written communication).

 Autobus Transport System, Inc., has to follow certain job qualifications. In hiring personnel or in this case, mostly, drivers, these job qualifications should not be violated because a violation will not ascertain if an employee will stay. The following are the qualifications an applicant should possess in vying to hold the position of being a driver:

• At least High School or College graduate
• Age 25-40 years old
• Has the ability to drive
• At least two (2) years of work experience

Personnel specifications, whether formally written or just in the minds of the personnel decision-makers, essentially are predictors of whatever criterion usually being some measure of job related behaviour such as job performance.  Autobus Transport System, Inc., takes stock of these predictors: Educational Background, Biographical Data, Experience, and Information on various abilities and trainings. Autobus Transport System, Inc., believes that previous experience or training in the field would facilitate ease in learning and adapting to the new working environment.

Selection Process

        In matching individuals and jobs, it is necessary to obtain, for individual candidates, personal data relevant to the specifications of the job. Autobus Transport System, Inc., makes use of the following sources of information:

a.   Submission of basic requirements

• Transcript of College / School Records
• Diploma and / or Certificate of Graduation
• NBI and/ or Police Clearance
• Certification of Previous employment / Clearance
• SSS Individual Membership Number
• Tax Payer’s Identification Number
• 2 Passport Photos 2” x 2”
• 2 I.D. Photo 1” x 1”
• Photocopy of Professional Driver’s and/or Conductor License ( to be presented with the original)
• Medical Certificate and Drug Test

1. Bio-data
2. Initial Interview
3. Written Examination (traffic regulations)
4. Actual driving test
5. Final Interview
6. Seminars

Hiring decisions are not based on single technique, but on a combination of several methods. As mentioned above, the Autobus Transport System, Inc., uses a sequence of steps to determine if an applicant should be offered a position. The applicant must pass each of these steps to determine whether he should be offered a position or not. An applicant may also be rejected in any of the said stages.

• Initial interview

• This is done by a staff member who is trained to detect the intentions of the applicant for applying for a job at Autobus Transport System, Inc. The initial interview serves as a filter to eliminate unlikely candidates. For example, if the interviewer feels that your intentions for applying at Autobus Transport System, Inc. are not genuine, that you are just applying for the sake of having a paying job and not because you really want to work at Autobus Transport System, Inc., they reject you, no matter how qualified you are for the position.

• Written Examination

• Autobus Transport System, Inc., gives a written examination for the applicants who passed the screening in the initial interview. On the average, the scope of the test is all about traffic regulations and defensive driving (situational). Testing is a vital part of the selection process at Autobus Transport System, Inc. because it allows them to measure the knowledge of the applicants regarding the subject matter. It will significantly help them to select the right individual for the job.

• Actual Driving Test

• At this stage the management of Autobus Transport System, Inc., conducts an actual driving test to assess the skill of the applicants in driving. They have certain standards that have to be met in order to pass this stage.

• Final Interview

• The final interviews are done by two to three high-ranking officials in the company. They will then make recommendations about the candidates. Based from these recommendations, they, as a panel make the employment decision.

At present, Autobus Transport System, Inc. has approximately three hundred twenty (320) employees. The major bulk of the said number belongs to the population of drivers (150 employees), whereas, the least number of employees belongs to the group of executives or managers (5 employees).

TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT

        Training and development is a planned effort to facilitate employee learning of job-related behaviors in order to improve employee performance. Training denotes efforts to increase employee skills on present jobs, while development refers to efforts oriented toward improvements relevant to future jobs. The need for training does not diminish when we move from the employee to the supervisor or manager.

        

The training process of Autobus Transport System Inc. starts with the assessment phase, involves identifying training needs, setting training objectives, and developing criteria.

        

At Autobus Transport System, Inc., it is the Department Manager who determines what kind of training an employee gets. The Personnel Department gives questionnaire to the Department Manager since he is in the best position to determine the weaknesses and strong points of a worker.

Training programs of Autobus Transport System, Inc. take on many forms, but in broad terms they fall into the following classes:

1. Orientation training
2. On-the-job training
3. Off-the-job training
4. Outside training

Orientation Training

• Autobus Transport System, Inc.’s training for non-supervisory personnel and all new employees consists of an orientation training which is usually for 2-3 days. During this period, a new employee is given information about the organization, its history, services, and policies. It is also informs them of the benefits that they are entitled to, their salaries and their chances for promotion. It  is also during this period that an employee is introduced to the different departments, the staff, and the different functions of each department.

On-the-job Training

• Autobus Transport System, Inc.’s next stage of a new employee training is by observing the new employee or remaining under strict supervision by his supervisor. It is during this stage that the employee learns his new job by being placed directly on the job.

Off-the-job Training

• At this stage of the training process at Autobus Transport System, Inc., the employee is left on his own. He is now responsible for all his actions and willing and able to face its consequences. At this point, he has to perform the job assigned to him on his own. Whenever he has a problem, he can approach the supervisor but only after studying his options at solving the problem.

Outside Training

• The company conducts classroom seminars every year with regards to the following subjects:

• Traffic rules and regulation
• Reprisal courses
• Passenger service
• Defensive driving techniques
• Bus maintenance

PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL

        Performance Appraisal is the process of defining expectations for employee performance; measuring, evaluating, and recording employee performance relative to those expectations; and providing feedback to employee. A major purpose of performance appraisal is to influence, in a positive way, employee performance and development. In addition, the process is used for a variety of other organizational purposes, such as determining merit pay increases, planning future performance goals, determining training and development needs, and assessing the promotional potential of employees.

Autobus Transport System, Inc. assesses the performance of its employees through the use of a performance appraisal form. This form is filled-up by the manager or supervisor. Figure 1 shows an example of a performance appraisal form.

COMPENSATION

        

        Compensation consists of wages paid directly for time worked, as well as the indirect benefits that employees receive as part of their employment relationship with an organization. Wages paid for time worked are typically payment made in cashable form that reflect direct work-related remuneration such as base pay, merit increases, or bonuses. Benefits, on the other hand, are form of compensation beyond wages for time worked, including various protection plans (such as health insurance or life insurance), services (such as on organizational cafeteria of drug counselling), pay for time not worked (such as vacations or sick leave), and income supplements (such as stock ownership plans). Benefits are considered a more indirect form of compensation because they are generally not as closely tied to job performance issues as other form of remuneration.

Compensation of drivers is based on commission (commission basis), or a certain percentage of their gross revenue will be their salary. In this case, Autobus Transport System, Inc., allows 7% of the gross revenue of their drivers to serve as their salary. Other employees receive salaries in accordance to their designation or position in the company. See the following diagram below:

Aside from their monthly compensation, the employees of Autobus Transport System Inc., also receives benefits from the company. These are the following:

Employee Benefits

• Retirement benefits
• Vacation Leave
• Sick Leave
• Thirteenth (13th)-month pay
• Free family pass (free fare for family members)

MANAGING WORK ISSUES

        Working relationships are an important part of a person’s life. Motivation and commitment to work and the satisfaction from it are mutual concerns of the organization and the individual. In order to achieve this goal, the management should keep abreast of and make appropriate decisions to issues affecting employees.

        At Autobus Transport System, Inc., the management follows a certain code of conduct for employees. Disobedience of violations of the rules in the code corresponds to certain penalties or suspensions. The management adapted this in order to manage work issues that can significantly affect the job performance of an employee. The following diagram represents Autobus Transport System, Inc. code of conduct for all its employees:

AUTOBUS TRANSPORT SYSTEM (ATS), INCORPORATED

Employee Code of Conduct