Human Resource Development in T&D Space a Key for Digital Makeover of Workforce

The transmission and distribution (T&D) segment of the power sector is highly capital and technology intensive, which calls for specialised skilled and technical manpower on a large scale to carry out multiple functions.The technological advances in the field of T&D demand greater human resource development (HRD) in terms of re-skilling and up-skilling of the existing manpower. To discharge the varied functions more efficiently, including service and maintenance of the T&D system involving field activities, the manpower needs to be equipped with safety and functional skills, for which rigorous training programmes are required to nullify the possibility of accidents.

So, the constant development of in-house HR resources holds paramount importance. This exercise involves overhauling of HR policies and processes so as to adapt to the changing demands of the market with a flexible and constantly evolving work environment.

The HRD strategies in the T&D space are directed towards guiding organisations through these changes,which include workforce skills, digital transformation and investments in latest technologies. The service-enabled model of the T&D vertical is now being driven by advances in information technology and operational technology (IT&OT), smart devices and energy-efficient gadgets.

Investing in technological upgradation needs to be accompanied by a renewed stress on improving managers’ abilities to manage people on one hand and assess their performance on the other through a well thought out and systematic feedback mechanism.In tune with the emerging trends in the T&D industry, upgrading the skills of the workforce through ably guided HR processes is more crucial than ever before. Like in many other fields, HRD plays an important role in helping T&D companies overcome the obstacles of capability and capacity to prepare the workforce for digital transformation.

Moreover, India’s ambitious power generation capacity target under the 13th Plan to fuel the needs of a rapidly growing economy will require capacity additions in the workforce in the T&D space as well, both qualitative and qualitative, so as to effectively connect the additional electricity to the grid through efficient and upgraded power systems that ensure uninterrupted supply with no breakdowns. The processes involving project planning and implementation, financial management and operations and maintenance will have to be accordingly overhauled.

hile large-scale investments are being planned and several projects are already under way, the lack of competent manpower to execute these projects and subsequently operate and maintain them is already being acutely felt. The T&D industry will have to engage lakhs of technical workers and non-technical employees, apart from thousands of highly skilled managers to monitor them, in coming years in diverse areas of expertise ranging from project planning and management and project monitoring to project finance and contract/materials management.

Demand side management, power trading, carbon credits and smart grids will also require manpower with specialised training. Therefore, the planned investments need to be accompanied by matching investments in training the workforce manning these projects. Unless we do this on a war footing, bottlenecks that threaten to derail the growth of the power sector in general and the T&D segment in particular will be inevitable.

Companies catering to the T&D segment should accordingly address these key human resource challenges and formulate strategies to attract fresh talent, retain the existing manpower and constantly upgrade their skills through sustained training and development programmes. However, lack of training infrastructure continues to be a major challenge.

One of the key hindrances in the way of ensuring adequate manpower for the T&D segment is the dearthof training facilities.

The availability of manpower with the right skills and competencies is grossly inadequate. The infrastructure for managerial training is also wanting, which if not improved in a timely manner, will have an adverse impact on decision-making capabilities and productive efficiencies, thus impeding the growth of companies in the T&D segment.

There is an urgent need to create and build upon human capital to bridge these gaps. This can be done by showcasing the promising employment opportunities and transforming the work environment in tune with the emerging needs of the evolving industry. The government, on its part, should complement these efforts by upgrading ITIs and other vocational skill development centres, standardising the curriculum and developing certification standards.

The National Training Policy (NTP) can prove decisive in improving the training practices in the T&D segment. While building upon training facilities and new infrastructure, the government should ensure proper utilisation of training funds through direct reimbursements to power infrastructure companies. To develop specialised manpower equipped with the latest technical knowhow, the focus should be on reorienting graduate engineering programmes and specialised post-graduate programmes accordingly. Though there are many highly qualified engineers in senior roles, the effort to build managerial competenies leaves a lot to be desired. As delineated in the NTP, at least one long-term management development programme should be planned for middle and senior-level officers to ensure their smooth transition from engineering roles to managerial decision-making positions.

Apart from the government, the regulatory authorities and the industry should also press for investments to attract and train high-quality human resources for the sustainable growth of the T&D segment with a long-term perspective. The gradual transition to extra-high-voltage transmission lines of 400 kv and above and the massive capital expenditure it will entail draws attention to the hard fact that we cannot leave all this to chance.

Working overtime to augment the T&D infrastructure in sync with the unprecedented increase in power generation in recent years, the Power Grid Corporation of India Limited is heavily investing in upgrading low and high-voltage substations to extra high-voltage substations so as to ease the pressure on transmission lines caused by rapid surges in electricity flow. With an integrated national grid to channelise the flow of power from energy-surplus regions to energy-deficit areas taking shape, private enterprises should rise to the occasion to meet the human resource deficit by joining hands with discoms and public sector units, which cannot be expected to pump in all the money on their own.

Incentives should be provided to training institutions in both public and private sectors for conductingtailor-made programmes. The private sector should be encouraged to set up training infrastructure and centres of excellence through incentives in the form of grants, easy loans and land at concessional rates.These centres should introduce new applied programmes to meet technical requirements as well as orientation programmes to prepare key decisionmakers for the long haul.

T&D enterprises should go the extra mile to build a globally competent workforce in the long term by establishing strategic alliances with world-class management and technical institutes to enhance competencies in transmission technology and management, covering all areas from concept, design and asset management to construction and operation and maintenance.

The private sector should take the lead by establishing institutes of reckoning on the lines of the Smart Grid Knowledge Centre run by the Power Grid Corporation of India Limited at Manesar. Equipped with the latest equipment and lab infrastructure, these institutes should impart customised training to shape private enterprise in the T&D space on futuristic lines and enable it to realise its full potential.

Eventually, it is the innovation quotient that holds the key to HRD practices in the T&D segment. The thrust on innovation in the form of smart technologies and innovative practices resulting in an even smarter workforce will not only enhance productivity considerably but also contribute to extremely positive business outcomes. An innovative approach to HRD can make all the difference in attaining that competitive edge. In the ultimate analysis, human resource assets far outweigh physical assets. In spite of everything, the best of techniques and technologies cannot deliver the goods unless you have the best of minds to drive them.

- Simarpreet Singh, Director,  Hartek Group