Addressing the differences
In order to prevent a conflict of interests as seen in the bottom up versus top down ar-
guments, top management could allow a combination of both approaches in establishing
a demand forecast. The approach could allow managers a degree of freedom in contrib-
uting their own views to the combined forecast, but in the end adjusting this forecast to
meet the requirements of the top management. The other option is that some of the fore-
casts submitted by managers are disregarded. However, there are negative aspects to
this approach, which include:
- Destroying the confidence of managers.
- Having insufficient consideration of priorities.
A more positive approach is for the managers to prepare and agree amongst all the key
stakeholders on the criteria (participatory) that will be applied in the budgetary cycle to
make the demand forecast affordable for the organisation. Such criteria should meet the
needs of top management to maintain overall budgetary control while allowing line
managers as much flexibility as possible in meeting the needs of their own management
situations. The examples include:
- A criterion that administrative staff costs do not exceed 20% of the total staff costs.
- Staff costs do not exceed 60% of the total costs.
- Staff costs do not exceed 40% of the value added.
- Flexibility to diverge from the rule will only be reached through consensus.
The participatory approach is useful in many ways such as:
- Increased awareness by lower management of top management needs.
- Increased awareness of top management of lower management needs.
- Greater tendency for self-control.
- Mutual awareness of the limitations of imposed rules.
- Less reliance on imposed rules to control lower management.
- Cooperation in achieving a mutually acceptable outcome even though adjustments
to submitted proposals may be necessary.
It appears that, at face value, organisations cannot do without human resource planning.
However, some critics take the opinion that human resource planning has limited utility
to the organisation.
Human resource planning in Tanzania’s public service
Economic growth is usually the major driver of human resource planning because it
signals demands for human resources and calls for the supply of the same. Similarly, the
Tanzanian economic growth of 6% per annum and the opportunities emerging from the
East African labour market, were addressed by looking at the supply side of human re-
source planning by taking measures to expand and improve the quality of primary, sec-
ondary, tertiary and university education. Following the expansion of the educational
system, the country experienced human resources surpluses in lower levels but acute
shortages remain in the middle and higher level professions. In response to this, the
government stopped the traditional practice of ‘allocating’’ graduates to public institu-
tions. The employment and labour laws (2007) directs all employers to recruit staff by