Introduction:

Grameenphone (DSE: GP, CSE: GP), briefly known as GP, is the leading telecommunications
service provider in Bangladesh. With more than 5,00,00,000 users, Grameenphone is the largest
mobile phone operator in the country. It is a joint venture enterprise between Telenor & Grameen
Telecom Corporation, a non-profit sister concern of the internationally acclaimed microfinance
organization & community development bank Grameen Bank. Telenor, the largest
telecommunications company in Norway, owns 55.8% shares of Grameenphone; Grameen
Telecom owns 34.2% & the remaining 10% is publicly held.
Grameenphone was the first company to introduce GSM technology in Bangladesh. It also
established the first 24-hour Call Center to support its subscribers. With the slogan Kache
Thakun, Grameenphone promises its customers to bring the best of communication technologies
so that they can stay close.

History of GP:
The idea of providing universal mobile phone access throughout Bangladesh, including its rural
areas, was originally conceived by Iqbal Quader, who is currently the founder & director of the
Legatum Center for Development & Entrepreneurship at MIT. He was inspired by the Grameen
Bank microcredit model & envisioned a business model where a cell phone can serve as a source
of income. After leaving his job as an investment banker in the United States, Quader traveled
back to Bangladesh, after meeting & successfully raising money from New York based investor
& charity donor Joshua Mailman, & worked for three years gaining support from various
organizations including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus of Grameen Bank & the
Norwegian telephone company, Telenor. He was finally successful in forming a consortium with
Telenor & Grameen Bank to establish Grameenphone. Quader remained a shareholder of
Grameenphone until 2004.
Grameenphone received a license for cellular phone operation in Bangladesh from the Ministry
of Posts & Telecommunications on November 28, 1996. Grameenphone started operations on
March 26, 1997, the Independence Day in Bangladesh.
Grameenphone originally offered a mobile-to-mobile connectivity (widely known as GP-GP
connection), which created a lot of interest among the users. It became the first operator to reach
the million subscriber milestone as well as ten million subscriber milestones in Bangladesh.

Changing Logo:
On the November 16, 2007 GP formally changed its logo to match its parent company Telenor's
logo. According to GP the new logo symbolizes trust, reliability, quality & constant progress.
The name Grameenphone was kept as part of the new identity because the name Grameenphone
carries with it all of the heritage, success & values of the company's past, added the then CEO of
Grameenphone.

To

Numbering Scheme:
+880 is the ISD code for Bangladesh & are needed only in case of dialing from outside
Bangladesh (otherwise, it may be substituted by a 0, making the prefix 017). 17 is the prefix for
Grameenphone as allocated by the government of Bangladesh. The rest eight-digit number
ABCDEFGH is the subscriber number. For Example:
Grameenphone uses the following numbering Scheme for its users: 01741081558

Network:
According to Grameenphone, it has so far invested more than BDT 107 billion (USD 1.6 billion)
to build the network communications since 1997. It has invested over BDT 31 billion (USD 450
million) during the first three quarters of 2007 while BDT 2,100 crore (USD 310 million) was
invested in 2006 alone.
Grameenphone has built the largest cellular network in the country with over 10,000 base
stations in more than 5700 locations. Presently, nearly 98 percent of the country's population is
within the coverage area of the Grameenphone network.
The entire Grameenphone network is also EDGE/GPRS enabled, allowing access to dial-up
quality speed Internet and data services from anywhere within the coverage area. There are
currently nearly 3 million EDGE/GPRS users in the Grameenphone network.

HRM Practices in Grameenphone:

Human Resources (HR) Department, an important of Administration Division plays very vital
role in the total functioning of GP. The traditional management functions Planning, organizing,
staffing, leading, controlling all these are conducted by HR division. The informal structure of
HR according to its functions can be classified into three main categories they are:

Human Resource Management (HRM)

Human Resource Development (HRD)
Human Resource Management Information System (HRMIS)

Here, we will discuss about Human Resource Management (HRM) of Grameenphone limited.
Under the HRM function there is:

Job Analysis
Human Resource Planning (HRP)
Recruitment & Selection process
Training & Development
Compensation
Performance Appraisal
Employee motivation

A) Job Analysis:
Every management job is to have a stated purpose & a list of major responsibilities. These
should be clearly described & agreed between the incumbent and the superior. The job is to be
graded according to its nature & the level of responsibility it carries. Whenever any significant
change in the nature of responsibility takes places, the Job Description & specification should be
improved accordingly. In December every year the Job Description & job specification of all
management position in the Company is to be reviewed & updated at the time when Action Plan
meeting is held. In case the job content of any position is found to have changed significantly, a
job analysis exercise is to be undertaken with the help of HR Department, Head Office. It is
important that the incumbent is given full opportunity to participate freely in the preparation &
periodic revision of the Job Description. His /Her perception & understanding of what is
expected of him/her as the incumbent is most essential for his/her success in the job. The Job
Analysis & Job design is prepared before the recruitment is done. The contract signed before
joining states the job description of the post the employee is joining. By setting the job
description clarifies the tasks he needs to carry on & benefits both the company & the employee
himself.

B) Human Resource Planning (HRP):

Grameenphone Ltd provides plenty of opportunities growth. Promotion is based both on
seniority & performance. The performance of each employee is reviewed every 6 months & the
employees worth in the company depends on that. The employees designation in the first two
years is completely time dependant. However, the employees at the same level can be paid more
or less depending on his performance. After the initial two years, the growth of the employee in
the company is mostly dependant on his performance. Grameenphone Ltd believes
in performance rather than age. People with potential should be at the top rather than being stuck
at the bottom because of the lack of seniority. Grameenphone Ltd thinks it is both fair & good
for the company as a whole. Grameenphone Ltd arranges various training programs in job
related subjects for the development of its employees. This is usually arranged when the
employee is not involved in any active project. This helps to utilize the free time& also comes in
the best interest of the company & the employee. Grameenphone Ltd also encourages its
employees to appear invidious professional certification exams, which the company also pays
for. The talent sourcing activities begin with effective human resource planning. This planning is
united with the business need forecast, overall organizational growth matrix, structure &
direction & is done in yearly basis. R& EB (The Resourcing & employee branding) department
coordinates & evaluates people planning process that eventually approved by board considering
the factors:

Potential/Expected workload & expertise requirements.

Optimum & Effective utilization of the HRM for the entire company, both Present &
future requirements.
Possibilities for greater efficiency through reformation & automation (use of tools &
facilities) & making necessary adjustment.
Employee turnover.
New Business initiatives & projects that require new skills & additional resources.

C) Recruitment & Selection Process:

i) Recruitment: The recruitment practice is done mainly on two standard procedure of
recruitment. They usually carry out in-house recruitment or post online job add posting.
They usually hire fresh graduates & allow them to grow in the company. Applications
received are carefully filtered & usually call a handful of candidates for the post.
ii) The selection Process: The selection process has two steps firstly there is a written
test. Candidates are tested basically on job related skills & their analytical ability along
with some open ended questions relating to their psychological behavior. Selected
candidates are called up for an interview within a week. The candidates must appear in
front of an interview panel usually consisting of four members: from the HR department as
overseen by the MD, Chairman, General Manager & Admin Managers. The candidates are
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tested for their basic knowledge about the subject matter, their interpersonal &
communication skills, and their abilities to work in a team environment. Candidates after
final selection are offered jobs along with the contract, which they need to sign before
joining the job.
D) Training & Development:
Grameenphone Provides both local & overseas training on the basis of the need analysis.
i) Local Training: Local training can be both-Inside GP & Outside GP.
Orientation training Program falls under inside GP training category. After joining, it is the
responsibility of the HR to conduct induction/orientation training to the newly recruited
personnel to provide a general introduction of the company. To prepare training plan,
participants list, & training schedule for induction training HR department does all.
Inside GP training will cover Management training. It will cover Department training in
near future.
Outside GP training means to take part in training programs offered by different training
institutions/universities on different subjects.
ii) Overseas Training: After need assessment employees who need overseas training are
sent abroad for overseas training. Expenses of overseas training are generally bear by GP.
The particular employee who has been selected for training has to sign a surety bond for
specific period of time for overseas training.
E) Compensation:
Compensation refers to all kinds payment & benefits or wages/ salary going to the employees
for providing their service & contribution. A job is classified according to the skills & experience
required for satisfactory performance in the job, the degree of problem-solving involved & the
size of the impact of a decision to be taken as an incumbent in the job. The classification is then
linked to a salary grade through which a compensation package is made available to the
incumbent of a job. Each job makes a contribution to the successful conduct of an activity, which
in turn accrues certain benefit to the company. The compensation package, which is an expense
incurred by the company, is linked to the benefit derived by the company from the job. Each
grade has a minimum level of compensation & a maximum. The minimum is related to them
market value of the job & is verified through the availability of suitable candidates who
are prepared to join at that level of compensation. The maximum of the grade is the maximum
cost the company is prepared to incur for the contribution received from the job.

The company also started payment of Festival Bonus to the Management Staff from the
year 2000. There will be payment of an amount equal to one months Basic Salary of the
employee on two chosen festivals. Management Staffs those are in the employment of the
Company for at least three months after their confirmation on the date of the festival will be
qualified for the Festival Bonus. The major festivals recognized are the following:
1. Eid-ul-Fitr
2. Eid-ul-Azha
3. Durga Puja
4. Christmas
5. Buddha Purnima.
All employees of the Company, irrespective of their religion, will draw one Festival Bonus
during the time of Eid-ul-Fitr.
The other Festival Bonus will be given to the Muslim employees during the time of Eid-ul-Azha.
Employees other than Muslim will receive the other bonus according to their festival
mentioned above.
Festival Bonus will be disbursed in cash & will be paid two weeks prior to the festival date.
F) Performance Appraisal:
The performance of each employee is closely monitored by their immediate managers. If
the broad objectives of the job are clearly understood by the Appraiser & the Appraisee & the
Action Plan along with the principle of assessment is clearly agreed between them, appraisal
should be a relatively easy task. If both parties are realistic, pragmatic, fair & objective in
their evaluation of performance, there should be very little variation in their scoring &
completion of the Performance Appraisal Form. The Appraise has to analytically analyze his/her
performance & fill in the form with an attitude of trust & fairness in the judgment of the
superior. In rating the overall performance, the Action Plan achievements will have 50% weight
age. The quality of performance in accomplishing the overall objectives of the job will have the
other 50%weightage. The rating for overall performance will therefore have equal emphasis
between specific tasks & the general objectives of the job. Management Staff Performance
Appraisal Form will be provided in duplicate by the Appraiser to the Appraise. The Appraise
will fill in the requisite places on the form & return one copy to the Appraiser. The Appraiser
will first complete his part of the form & then fix a date for Appraisal Interview. The interview
should be held in a relaxed & congenial atmosphere & the entries on the form should be gone
through together item by item. There will no doubt be difference in perception of achievement &
of performance on the job but the differences should be discussed in constructive manner so that
any misunderstanding is removed & the gap in perception is narrowed down. The Appraiser will
have the right to modify his remarks or to change his rating in the light of the Appraisal
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Interview but his original remarks & rating must remain clear. The Appraiser will then pass on
the form to his superior who, if necessary, will slip back or else send the form to the General
Manager, Corporate Services at Head Office for review by the Managing Director &
consolidation. It is to be kept in mind by the Appraise that the ability to judge his/her own
performance analytically, both with regard to the Action Plan as well as the overall performance,
will be considered as a good managerial quality called objectivity.

G) Employee Motivation:
Employee motivation can be provided by:
i) Profit Sharing: The most significant employee benefit offered by Grameenphone Ltd is
Profit Sharing. The profit sharing takes place once a year: July. Only the senior employees
who are around two or more years get 20% share of the profit earned. Out of this 20%
profit, 75% is distributed in terms of seniority & designation & the rest 25% is distributed
on performance in that period.
ii) Performance Bonuses: Performance bonuses are given on the basis of performance in a
given year. This happens after the yearly appraisal. The reviewer (usually the immediate
boss) notes down the performance of the employee on a given set of characteristics & sends
it to the MD. The MD then takes the decision on the performance bonus. However, all
decisions regarding performance bonuses by the MD needs to be approved by the Board of
Governors.
iii) Reward: This reward system does not have any fixed criteria. This is basically an
additional reward system, which provides financial incentives to employees for extraordinary
performance in any area of their job.
iv) Services Benefits: Soft Option has a number of service benefits which is typically not
found in other companies. Among the benefits are flexible working hour: one can start their
office on 8am in the morning & leave by 4pm. -provide transport or transport bills while
attending a client meeting;
- Provide lunch from the office which is prepared in the office.
- Have provision for the employees to participate in different training programmed as well
fund any professional certification exam from IBM, Sun, Microsoft, Oracle, etc at
companys own cost.
v) Yearly Picnic/Tours: Grameenphone Ltd bears the expense of one tour/picnic per year for
each employee. The company covers all transport, hotel & food expenses. This usually
refreshes the employees a lot and makes room for them to interact & know each other
better.

Conclusion:
Ensuring management or proper utilization of resources is precondition for achieving the
organizational objectives because resources are limited & the proper utilization of the available
resources can help to achieve the top position. In the competitive situation resources are very
much vital because that can provide competitive edge to the companies. The natural participation
of human resource is very essential for increasing the performance. The owner, authority should
remember that neglecting the human resources in the work place a sustainable development is
not possible. They should not disprove the significant roles of Human Resources rather they have
to generate an idea among the human resources that they are important part of the organization
by providing reasonable wages/salary, incentives, compensation, training & development
program, as well as creating morale & maintaining a good relationship with them.