Organisation is nothing without people

Prepared by: Almir Salihović, M.A., 

Head of the Section for Education, Professional Development and Benefits,

Human Resources Department of the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Older football fans will remember the advertisement for Pirelli car tires, in which Ronaldo (the Ronaldo, the one from Brazil) runs across the field like a fury, changing the direction of his movement at impossible angles, finally scoring an effective goal. The ad ends with the slogan "Power is Nothing Without Control."

Professors of management created their version of this brilliant marketing message from the 90s of the last century, offering us the now well-known one: "An organisation is nothing without people". After a number of attempts to define what distinguishes successful organisations from unsuccessful ones, many have finally acknowledged the obvious – the key advantage is people.

In the world of monetary policy and financial stability, central banks often symbolise stability, tradition, and confidence. However, behind the scenes, human resource managers of these institutions face contemporary challenges trying to ensure the most important component of success – people. One of the biggest challenges for central banks HR managers is the increasingly difficult struggle to attract and keep the highest- level experts.

The Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CBBH) is no exception. Its human resource management process also faces many challenges. It is sufficient to say that there is only one central bank in one country – and this is the key difference. Unlike commercial financial institutions, which have a broader "talent base" available, central banks do not have such advantage. Some operations in central banks require very specific skills which cannot simply be "purchased" on the market. The closest available candidates engaged in similar jobs usually work in the neighbouring countries' central banks and are often unavailable for legal, financial or personal reasons (such as family relocation). Instead of looking for those who can immediately do the job, central banks are forced to search for "potentials" that have yet to be formed. One will admit that it is neither easy nor rewarding task, particularly with no guarantees that the effort will pay off.

Besides, central banks are these days competing with agile private and fintech companies offering higher income and also a more flexible working environment. These circumstances have made the CBBH, as well as many other central banks, to change their focus – towards developing and keeping talented staff members and preserving institutional knowledge. Additional complexity is caused by retirement, threatening the loss of knowledge and experience. Succession and development of leadership capacities – which used to be neglected topics – are now the very core of HR strategies.

HR in the CBBH

During almost three decades of its existence, the Central Bank of BH has always had an organisational unit in charge of human resources. Initially, it was the Human Resources Section, with two staff members engaged mainly in tasks related to labour relations.

The evolution of the global HR function has been also reflected in the CBBH – the number of functions was growing, the staff number was increasing, and the Section developed into a Department. Education, career development, employee health care, socially responsible operating – all these are functions which fall in the competence of the HR department today.

There are two Sections operating within the Department:

1. Section for Education, Professional Development and Benefits, and
2. Section for Employment and Labour Relations, giving the Department the central role in analysing, planning and monitoring development of employees.

The Section for Employment and Labour Relations carries out the hard work – from employment contracts, registration and deregistration, to retirement. The aim is to simplify administration procedures and provide "one-stop-shop" support to employees. Everyone who has ever worked in private sector without such support knows how much BH administration can be demanding – from collection to submission of documents at a double-digit number of locations.

On the other hand, the Section for Education, Professional Development and Benefits is focused on the development of knowledge and skills. It identifies needs, plans and follows up with educational programmes, cooperates with other central banks, and manages the processes of adaptation of new employees and the development of benefits that motivate staff.

All these activities are carried out within a complex legal environment and different legal procedures depending on the employee's place of residence.

CHANGE OF CONTEXT AND STRATEGIC COMMITMENT – KEY TO SUCCESS

HR needs to evolve continuously in order to keep up with labour market. Accordingly, the CBBH HR function constantly analyses the environment and changes impacting the Bank's operations. This need has also been recognized by the management, which has included human resource management in the 2025-2027 Strategic Plan as one of the key goals.

The strategic objectives of the CBBH in this segment are focused on the development of key skills and keeping talented staff members, strengthening at the same time the Bank's position as a desirable employer.

The Bank's first strategic objective includes the implementation of various education and training programmes aimed at the development of key and specialist skills of employees. Special emphasis has been placed on improving competencies needed for effecient management of business processes, preparation for European integration and development of leadership skills through specialized trainings. Improving soft skills such as communication and team work is also a priority, while efforts are made to increase employees' satisfaction through motivation programmes and better working conditions as well as benefits. Additionally, it is planned to develop a mentoring program to transfer knowledge between experienced and new staff members, thus enabling business continuity and preparation of future leaders.

The other strategic objective is to strengthen the perception of the CBBH as an attractive employer. The employment process is improved and new talented staff members are attracted through partnerships with faculties, in order to create a better synergy between education system and the needs of the institution. Creating a modern working environment and competitive work conditions, with the development of training programs and internships for students, are important elements of the strategy. By introducing formal mentoring for new employees, the Bank strives to ensure the rapid integration of new staff members and support their professional development.

HOW TO IMPLEMENT THE PLAN?

A number of external factors impacting human resources management in the CBBH will affect the implementation of the planned activities. This includes an unavoidable legal framework, standards and practices of other central banks which we use as a benchmark, the European integration process, the economic framework, conditions from business environment that affect the CBBH operations, and, finally, labour market itself.

The present-day labour market is subject to constant changes shaped by various megatrends having far-reaching effects on the future. So, it will be very important for the CBBH to adequately recognize these trends and adapt to them, in order to successfully respond to the challenges of the modern labour market. One of the most important megatrends is digitalisation, i.e. digital transformation. The current technological development already has a strong impact on processes and methods of work. Artificial intelligence, automation and digital platforms affect the changing of the way work tasks are performed and appearance of new job profiles, requiring new skills. Thus, they also affect the HR activities themselves, as exactly these departments are in charge of finding ways to close the increasing gaps in the required skills.

The next, highly important megatrend is ecological transformation. This trend shows that environmental awareness, sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR) are becoming important factors for attracting and keeping employees, especially young talented staff members.

The third megatrend includes demographic changes. The ageing of the working population, which we have already mentioned, the low birth rate and the intensive migrations of especially young people with university education to developed countries are making the employment and keeping of staff increasingly challenging. The mismatch of the educational offer with contemporary job requirements is a challenge for employers as additional training and a longer adjustment period are needed. As in previous years, the trend of demand for IT experts has been seen.

This has been additionally increased by the growing digitalisation of business processes and the distance work possibilities. A strong demand will certainly impact the greater negotiating power of potential candidates when hiring, i.e. demands for higher wages.

An additional challenge for employers is the motivation and keeping of this category of experts. Taking into account the labour market trends, increasingly intense competition, i.e. the increasingly intense "struggle for talents" of all profiles, changes in working conditions, redesign of the workplace and working hours, process optimisation and organisational development, mandatory support for lifelong learning, leaders development, employer branding, and inclusive corporate culture, are becoming a necessity, not a bonus option.

It is already certain that employees choose the most attractive workplace from many available options. For new generations arriving in the labour market, the essence of employment is not only earnings and security (the traditional "advantage" of central banks when making job offers), but work should be meaningful and satisfying. Only organisations that can offer attractive conditions have good chances to attract new employees and limit the circulation of employees.

TO BECOME "RESISTANT TO FUTURE"

The key of future success for the CBBH and all other central banks is making the process of human resource management transformation not a lonely island, but a part of a comprehensive transformation of the institution.

This transformation remains the biggest challenge that HR teams in central banks are facing. Most of these institutions still operate within rigid bureaucratic structures. These structures support responsibility and stability, but often slow down the processes of adaptation to change.

Resistance to change is a common obstacle. Employees who have been a part of a system for decades sometimes find it difficult to adapt to new technologies, hybrid work models, or agile project management methods. The key to successfully addressing the challenges of the future is not just new employment – it is successful transformation of the employees we already have.

For the HR department, this is a challenge of achieving a balance between implementing changes without decreasing the confidence of long-time employees.

In the complex world, the HR experts become unexpected drivers of change – by transforming institutions developed for stability in order to survive in a world that seeks agility.