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Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences 2 (2010) 1452–1456

WCES-2010

Importance of educated human resources in the information age and view of information society organizations on human Metin Ataka , Ramazan Erturgutb a

b

Air Force Technical School,ø zmir,35410,Turkey NCO Higher Vocational School, øzmir, 35410, Turkey

Received October 13, 2009; revised December 22, 2009; accepted January 7, 2010

Abstract The value attributed to human with respect to both those who govern and those who are governed in the information age stress on the requirement of human for becoming an intellectual. It is assessed that one of the most important values that will bring the biggest momentum to the Humanity in the 21st century will be intellectual workers of organizations based on information. Increasing quantity and quality of intellectual individuals is related to using the active learning techniques of today. Human resource of the information age is to become the human resource which knows how to access and use every kind of information and constantly improves their creativity. In the information society, all organizations which desire to benefit from the human resources effectively and manage the information which has a strategic value and become an information age organization have to build their training and development activities upon the understanding of continuous training. In this case, the view of information society organizations on the human element is a viewpoint which perceives the human resource which creates innovation and information in the center of organizational processes, and feels the need to design the organization humanoriented. © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. Open access under CC BY-NC-ND license. Keywords: Informatic; human Research information society; education; organization; information technology; intellectual.

1. Introduction This age which is named as information age represents a period which has specific characteristics with the impact of rapidly developing information and communication technologies of social and economic conditions of today. The fact that information has become a strategic and indispensable resource is the most significant of these characteristics (Ö÷üt, 2001). Organizations also have had their share of this new value attributed to information. Since Peter Drucker argued that information has now become more important than capital (Drucker, 1993), brought forward a new classification of factors of production. Capitals of production which have been natural resources, labor, capital, technology and enterprise now include information as well. Moreover, according to some scholars, information is the only factor of production for information age organizations. Similarly, Alvin Toffler supported

Metin Atak, Tel.:+90.232.2511600 E-mail address: [email protected]

1877-0428 © 2010 Published by Elsevier Ltd. Open access under CC BY-NC-ND license. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2010.03.217

Metin Atak and Ramazan Erturgut / Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences 2 (2010) 1452–1456

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this by arguing that information has become the center of everything since it decreased the need for raw materials, labor, capital, time, location and other inputs and substitutes everything (Toffler, 1994). Positioning of information for organization in this way has rendered the human which is the only resource which processes, uses, forms and creates innovation important. Organizations attribute a new value to human resource in order to benefit from the opportunities of the information age, to be protected from its threats and thus survive the competition. This reveals a new approach in terms of human element, human resources approach in information age organizations. 2. Human resource in information age organizations Since they have been taken into account as a social system, it is understood that the success of organizations which have to live and survive like all living organisms cannot depend only to material elements such as structure, strategies and technology. Today, when the impacts of globalization are experienced intensely, the success of organizations depends on the quality and efficiency of human resource (Güzelcik, 1999). The most significant effect of the information society which forces the organizations for change is the management of high quality employees, restructuring of information production and distribution for the organization, deployment of employees who collect, produce and use information (Özkara, 1999). In order to benefit more from facility and technology investments, the employed people should also be invested in. Therefore the best investment is the one on human (Muter, 1996). An important dimension of the investment on human in the information age consists of “education of the educators”. Continuous in-service training of teachers who make up the most functional dimension of education as individuals who apply the education programs, use equipments, regulate the education environment and get into direct communication with the student (Orhan & Akkoyunlu, 1999) can be given as an example to be made on human resources. In the organizations, since those who add new values to data and information and transform them into knowledge are employees, or human resources (Davenport & Prusak, 2001), it can be said that the most important assets of organizations are humans. Perpetuation of organization activities in today’s working ecology, increasing their profits and adapting to environments with high competition depends on high quality people (Demirci, 2002). Especially in organizations based on information, human resource plays a role which strongly completes the physical capital (Delong & Lawrence, 2001). Today’s thought on management is now aware of the fact that the ultimate and most important center of gravity in an organization is human. Although organizations may have money, equipment, buildings, materials, technology, etc., nothing will happen unless the human starts to act (Fitzenz and Phillips, 2001). While a successful organization used to be evaluated in terms of effectiveness of work flow, in information age organizations human relations approach is acknowledged as the basic element of success. This is because human covers everything. It is both the one who governs and who governs. Therefore in determining the human resources policy in information age organizations, intellectual human requires adoption and application of a top priority management philosophy. Ability of organizations to produce information and compete with its competitors in the information age depends on the development of human element and actualization of their creative potentials (Gürgen, 1997). Therefore human resources management has to be redefined in the information age. Today, the actual competitive power of organization consists of human resources who improved its own skills and talents, is able to access every kind of information and knows how to use it, and continuously improves its creativity. Organizations which are aware of it and thus both invest in human resources and establish working conditions in accordance with its demands and wills can achieve success (Güzelcik, 1999). 3. View of Information society organizations on human It is indicated that technology and information and communication technologies are the principal indicator in creation of an information society as the basic driving force by bringing information from education institutions to homes (Erturgut, 2008). Following technology in the top level and having the highest technology in its area of activity in organizations depends not only on effective and efficient use of resources, but also becoming an organization which improved its ability to collect and create, process and transfer information, consequently is able to change its actions continuously and manage the information. Two key concepts which are in interaction with each other appear at this point: information management and learning. Organizations which can manage the information

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can learn and produce new information, and with the help of this information create innovations and transform information into a lifestyle (Koçel, 2005). Creativity and organizational learning are also becoming strategic elements in the information society (Düren, 2000:131) Perpetuation of organization activities in information society, increasing their profits and adapting to environments with high competition depends on high quality people (Demirci, 2002). The human mentioned here is qualified, able, skilled and educated person who can use initiative, who is creative and responsible, or shortly high quality. Creation of a good training system in institutions is a critical element in improving human quality (ùerbetçi, 2001). It is also a fact that high quality human element can only be built up with continuous training. It will only be possible for organizations to transform their methods and processes of management as equipped with information can only be possible by perceiving “continuous training” as the most important way to give them this possibility and put the required emphasis on it (øúcan, 2000:231). Taking into consideration all these mentioned above, three increasing trends become evident in the information age. These are: increasing importance of human element and human-oriented understanding of management, increasing importance of information and information management, and learning organization concept. All these three trends are associated with human resources of organizations and consequences of the understanding based on human and that nothing can be accomplished without human, rather than obtaining maximum benefit from human resources. All organizations which desire to benefit from the human resources effectively and manage the information which has a strategic value and become an information age organization have to build their training and development activities upon the understanding of continuous training. 4. The qualities which the information age organizations expect from human resources There are some characteristics that the organizations which want to adapt to the competitive environment of information age expect from the human resource which is the primary resource in achieving this. With the help of these characteristics given below, the organizations can achieve the flexible and dynamic structure required by this age and become learning organizations which can manage information. 4.1. Continuous learning and commitment to learning Organizations require continuous learning in order to achieve their aims and goals and to survive. Today’s organizations place more emphasis on training and development activities in order to become institutions which can access information, evaluate information and transform it into technology and produce new information. Training of employees is one of the most important tools in achieving strategies and institutional mission which is the focus of strategic management. Training and development today is no more the teaching of static information which were previously developed, but has become the development of will, self confidence and skill of the people to find, create, research information and use it for the solution of the problems. These targets can only be achieved by continuously learning employees. In this respect, organizations require continuously learning individuals. Existence of a continuous learning culture in an organization depends on continuously learning individuals, and continuous learning depends on employees with commitment to learning. 4.2. Openness to change and adaptability to flexible structure Employees who can apply change and adapt to new circumstances and applications easily are employees appropriate for flexible structure. In the modern organizational structure, transfer of authority increased and hierarchy is removed. Therefore, decision making in an organization, and putting this decision in application is accelerated. Such an organizational structure attracts attention with its dynamic character. It is observed that such organizations are more flexible, they admit change and they are more changeable. It has already been expressed that flexibility in organizations is a requirement of information age. What provides organizational flexibility is largely the human element of the organization. Unless the structural steps taken for flexibility are supported by a human element, they would not mean anything. In the change-oriented organizations of the information age, the leader needs to leave the status-quo behind, engage in close interaction with employees and help them in problem solving and provide them possibilities to complete the works with their own skills (Erturgut, 2009).


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4.3. Being innovative and creative Today, when the transformation towards information is dense, the demand for innovative people has increased. These people are especially expected to create innovations on ideas towards process and product. Because innovation is the most important factor which provides competitive advantage. Innovative and creative employees who have the ability to transform based on information, to create continuous added value, to work as an entrepreneur and with the group can meet the requirement of organizations for innovation (Demirci, 2002). Therefore, employees which the information age organizations need have to be innovative and creative. Thus it will be possible to obtain the information required for competition and create new values by applying it to organizational processes. 4.4. Ability to work as a team Teamwork is the basis of a totally new working system oriented to gain competitive advantage and satisfy the customer. Teamwork can be defined as cooperation of management and employees in order to continuously develop their working methods (Güzelcik, 1999). Teamwork which became prominent especially with Total Quality Management provides serious possibilities to organizations in this purpose. Ability of leaders to organize employees as a team is the prior agenda item in organizations based on development with information (Erturgut, 2009a). Therefore information age organizations aim to have employees who have the culture and ability to work as a team. 4.5. Openness to information sharing People with knowledge have started to have a distinct importance and place in organizations and societies. What is important here is not the information kept hidden in the brains of people, but its reveal and sharing (ùerbetçi, 2001). Information is a value which increases by sharing, and since “new information” can be created starting from the current information, “information sharing” has a great importance in management of information. However, information sharing can only be possible with the culture of sharing. If the employees working in an organization come and go, and do not share their accumulation of information and turn it into the information of the organization, this will cause the mistake of relearning or reexperiencing the new information again and again. On the other hand, innovation will not be possible since the information required for creation of new values is not shared. Therefore information age organizations require sharing employees who can adapt to the culture of information sharing. 4.6. Organizational loyalty and organizational citizenship Organizational loyalty which is a concept related to psychological unification and identification of an employee with the organization is the driving power behind organizational success. Organizational loyalty increases the feeling and interest of the individual to stay within the organization. Information-centered organizations of today when the relations became virtualized have to give importance to organizational loyalty (øúcan&Naktiyok, 2005). Organizational citizenship is a pattern of behavior which is not directly and completely taken into consideration in a formal awarding system, but helping the accomplishment of organizational functions as a whole, and performed by the employee totally by their own will (Organ, 1988). Organizational citizenship includes every activity where an employee develops the operation of an organization and improves the image of the organization (Graham 1994). In information age organizations, it is a much demanded feature that an employee sees themselves as a citizen of the organization and commits everything to it. Complicated virtual environment in the information age in one sense creates virtual individuals, and affects personal relations in the organization, loyalty of the individual to the organization and becoming a good organizational citizen (øúcan & Naktiyok, 2005). 5. Conclusion Today, the importance that the information has gained result in organizations estimate a different value to it and approach to human resources with a new viewpoint in order to benefit from this value as much as possible. Organizations have to be information organizations in the information age. Human, who is the only creator and

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applier of information is the most valuable resource of information age organizations. Therefore, organizations have to continuously educate their human resource and thus strengthen them and create learning organizations. It is assessed that the basic parameters which will form information age organization and information society in general are continuous training, creation of an organizational environment based on information, virtual teams and adaptation to change. Therefore view of information age organizations on the human element is a view which perceives the human resources which create innovation and information in the center of organizational procedures and feels the need to design the organization human-oriented. Teachers of the information age have to be continuously trained in order to create learning environments appropriate to modern developments in teaching and apply modern methods and techniques in their classes. References Davenport, TH. & Prusak, L. (2001). Information management in business world: how do establishments manage information at hang?, Trans: G. Günay, Rota Publications Productions, østanbul. p.155 Delong, JB. & Lawrence, HS. (2001). The new economy: background, question and speculations”, Economic Policy for The Information Economy Symposium, August 30-September 1., pp.39-60 Demirci, MK. (2002). Organization design for paradigmatic transformations, DumlupÕnar University, Journal of Social Sciences, 5 (6)., p.199 Düren, Z. (2000). Management in 2000s, Alfa Yay., 1st Print, østanbul. Drucker, P.F. (1993). Management for the future: 1990s and beyond, Trans: F.Üçcan, Turkey Work Bank Publications., Ankara. p.33 Dyne, LW. & Graham, JV. (1994). Organizational citizenship behavior: construct, redefinition, measurement and validation, Academy of Management Journal, vol:37. Erturgut, R. (2008). Organizational, social, pedagogic components of the internet basic distance education, Gazi University, Journal of Information Technology, 1(2), pp.79-85 Erturgut, R. (2009a). The increase of performance in world armed forces and a model proposal for the establishment of corporate quality culture : the efqm based transformational leadership model, NATO, RTO-MP-SAS-073, Symposium on Analysis and Modeling for Human Resource Management in Defense, (17) Belgium. Erturgut, R. (2009b). Comparison of transformational and transactional leadership levels of educational managers in educational organizations that tend total quality management: the empirical survey in ministry of national educations’ provinces and main organizations, Electronic Journal of Social Sciences, C.8 S.30 pp.182-200 Fitzenz, J. & PhÕllÕps J.J. (2001). A new vision for human resources, Trans: PÕnar Alp Dinç, System Publications, østanbul. Gürgen, H. (1997). Quality of Communicaitons in Organizations, Der publications, østanbul. p.1 Güzelcik, E. (1999). Globalization and changed institute image, 1st Print, System Publications, østanbul. pp.118-119 øúcan, ÖF. (2000). Strategic management and employee training, Atatürk Unv. Journal of faculty of economics and administrative sciences, volume:1, issue:1. øúcan, ÖF. & Naktiyok, A. (2005). Organizations of Digital Age, Beta Pub., østanbul. pp.105-108 Koçel, T. (2005). Operation management, Beta Publications, 9th Print, østanbul. p.381, 436 Muter, ù. (1996). Organizational change in Turkey’s process of foreign expansion, V. National Quality Congress Book Of Manifests, Kalder Pub., østanbul Organ, DW. (1998). Organizational citizenship behavior: the good soldier syndrome, Lexington Books. p.44 Orhan, F.&Akkoyunlu, B. (1999). Basic training for remote education approach, video supported in-service training of 1st stage teachers., Hacettepe University, Journal of educational Faculty, 16 (17). pp.134-141. Ö÷üt, A. (2001). Management in the information age, Nobel Publications Distributions, Ankara. p.46 Özkara, B. (1999). Evolutionist and revolutionist organizational change, Afyon Kocatepe University Publications, Afyon. p.40 ùerbetçi, ND. (2001). Effects of process of transition to information society to operation management, DumlupÕnar Universiyi Journal of Social Sceices, 3. (5). p.330 Toffler, A. (1994). New powers New Shocks, Golden Books, østanbul. p.40