ARE HUMAN RESOURCES THE MOST VALUED ASSET IN BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS? INTERACTIVE GROUPS BRAINSTORMING APPROACH

The authors explore the statement, "human resources are the most valued asset in every business organization". The interactive focus group approach was adopted, where 35 MBA students were placed into five focus groups to brainstorm the statement. The statement was explored using intra- and inter-group analytical tools. Under the guidance of the researchers, each group discussed the statement to generate their outcomes (intra-group analysis) before the outcomes from the five groups were analyzed (inter-groups analysis) to generate the findings of the study. It emerged that human resources are the most valued asset because without them, other assets will lie idle. However, the ‘most valued asset’ accolade is without criticism, for which suggested solutions are offered. The study contributes to the debate by diving deeper into the meaning of human resources; confirming human resources as an asset; revealing why it is an asset, and offering suggestions to render them more valuable.