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Human Resource Management - Introduction - A Revision Article Human Resource Management Revision Article Series The human resources of an organization consist of all people who perform its activities. Human resource management (HRM) is concerned with the personnel policies and managerial practices and systems that influence the workforce. In broader , all decisions that affect the workforce of the organization concern the HRM function. _________________________________________________ Summary of Chapter 1. Strategic Human Resource Management in a Changing Environment in H John Bernardin, Human Resource Management, Fourth Edition, McGraw Hill, 2007

Introduction

The human resources of an organization consist of all people who perform its activities. Human resource management (HRM) is concerned with the personnel policies and managerial practices and systems that influence the workforce. In broader , all decisions that affect the workforce of the organization concern the HRM function.

The activities involved in HRM function are pervasive throughout the organization. Line managers, typically spend more than 50 percent of their time for human resource activities such hiring, evaluating, disciplining, and scheduling employees. Human resource management specialists in the HRM department help organizations with all activities related to staffing and maintaining an effective workforce. Major HRM responsibilities include work design and job analysis, training and development, recruiting, compensation, team-building, performance management and appraisal, worker health and safety issues, as well as identifying or developing valid methods for selecting staff. HRM department provides the tools, data and processes that are used by line managers in their human resource management component of their job.

What is the focus of HRM department?

“The HRM focus should always be maintaining and, ideally, expanding the customer base while maintaining, and ideally, maximizing profit. HRM has a whole lot to do with this focus

regardless of the size of the business, or the products or services you are trying to sell.” (Dr. James Spina, former head of Executive Development at the Tribune Company). HRM is involved in managing the human resources with a focus on expanding customer base that gives profit to the company. The bottom line of the company is the focus of the HRM department as well as the function.

Contributing to the Bottom-line of the Company through HR Top-line Activities

A growing body research shows that progressive HRM practices have a significant effect on corporate bottom-line and middle-line performance. The positive effect on financial performance, productivity, product and service quality, and cost control are documented by researchers.

High-performance work systems (HPWS) is a term used to describe a collection of HR practices or characteristics of HR systems designed to enhance employees’ competencies so that employees can be a reliable source of competitive advantage. A summary of the research on HPWS indicated that a one standard deviation of improved assessment on a HPWS measurement tool increased sales per employee in excess of $15,000 per employee, an 8 percent gain in labor productivity.

The Activities of Human Resources Management

The activities performed by HRM professionals fall under five major domains:

(1) Organizational design, (2) Staffing, (3) Performance Management and Appraisal, (4) Employee and Organizational Development, and (5) Reward Systems, Benefits and Compliance

Acquiring human resource capability should begin with organizational design and analysis.

Organizational design involves the arrangement of work tasks based on the interaction of people, technology and the tasks to be performed in the context of the objectives, goals and the strategic plan of the organization. HRM activities such as human resources planning, job and work analysis, organizational restructuring, job design, team building, computerization, and workermachine interfaces fall under this domain.

Recruitment, employee orientation, selection, promotion, and termination are among the activities that fit into the staffing domain. The performance management domain includes assessments of individuals and teams to measure, and to improve work performance. Employee training and development programs are concerned with establishing, fostering, and maintaining employee skills base don organizational and employee needs.

Reward systems, benefits and compliance have to do with any type of reward or benefit that may be available to employees. Labor law, health and safety issues and unemployment policy fall under compliance component.

Major Trends Affecting HRM

The following trends have an effect on human resource management function and department. The importance of HRM increases due to some of them and the practices of HRM are affected to some extent due to some of them.

1. Increased globalization of the economy. 2. Technological changes and environmental changes. 3. The need to be flexible in response to business changes. 4. Increase in litigation related to HRM. 5. Changing characteristics of the workforce. The Importance of HRM Measurement

Many HRM systems and activities are not subjected to systematic measurement. Many organizations do not assess either the short- or long-term consequences of their HRM programs or activities. A recurring theme of the book is that measurement and ability are key components to organizational effectiveness and competitive advantage. Good measurement, allied with business strategies, will help organizations select and improve all of their HRM

activities and provide a much stronger connection between HRM activities and organizational effectiveness.

Stanford University professor Jeffrey Pfeffer considers measurement to be one of the keys to competitive advantage. His book Competitive Advantage Through People cites measurement as one of the 16 HRM practices that contribute the most to competitive advantage.

A new book entitled The Workforce Scorecard by Professors Mark Huselid, Brian Becker, and Dick Beatty extends research on the "balanced scorecard" to a comprehensive management and measurement system to maximize workforce potential.

Competitive Advantage and HRM

Competitive Advantage refers to the ability of an organization to formulate strategies that place it at favorable position relative to other companies in the industry. Two major principles, namely customer value and uniqueness, are relevant for gaining competitive advantage.

Competitive advantage occurs if customers perceive that they receive more value form their transaction or relationship with an organization than from its competitors. HRM needs to make efforts to ensure that all employees are focused on understanding customer needs and expectations.

The second principle of competitive advantage derives from offering a product or service that your competitor cannot easily imitate or copy.

The status of HRM is improving relative to other potential sources of competitive advantage for an organization. Professor Pfeffer notes that "traditional sources of success (e.g., speed to market, financial, technological) can still provide competitive leverage, but to a lesser degree now than in the past, leaving organizational culture and capabilities, derived from how people are managed, as comparatively more vital." For success in 21st century, HRM activities must be (1) responsive to a highly competitive marketplace and global business structures, (2) closely linked to business strategic plans, (3) tly conceived and implemented by line and HR managers, and (4) focused on quality, customer service, productivity, employee involvement, teamwork, and workforce flexibility.

Importance of Study of HRM for Students Specializing in Other Functional Areas of Management

Even as line managers in any functional department, management students are likely to manage people at some point in their career. Research shows that the manner in which one conducts the human resource responsibilities of the management job will be the key for effectiveness and growth in one’s career.

Reference H John Bernardin, Human Resource Management, Fourth Edition, McGraw Hill, 2007

Human resource management From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search

Human resource management (HRM, or simply HR) is the management of an organization's workforce, or human resources. It is responsible for the attraction, selection, training, assessment, and rewarding of employees, while also overseeing organizational leadership and culture, and ensuring compliance with employment and labor laws. In circumstances where employees desire and are legally authorized to hold a collective bargaining agreement, HR will typically also serve as the company's primary liaison with the employees' representatives (usually a labor union). HR is a product of the human relations movement of the early 20th century, when researchers began documenting ways of creating business value through the strategic management of the workforce. The function was initially dominated by transactional work such as payroll and benefits istration, but due to globalization, company consolidation, technological advancement, and further research, HR now focuses on strategic initiatives like mergers and acquisitions, talent management, succession planning, industrial and labor relations, and diversity and inclusion. Whereas in startup companies HR's duties may be performed by a handful of trained professionals or even by non-HR personnel, larger companies typically house an entire functional group dedicated to the discipline, with staff specializing in various HR tasks and functional leadership engaging in strategic decision making across the business. To train practitioners for the profession, institutions of higher education, professional associations, and companies themselves have created programs of study dedicated explicitly to the duties of the function. Academic and practitioner organizations likewise seek to engage and further the field of HR, as evidenced by several field-specific publications.

Contents [hide] 

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1 History o 1.1 Antecedent theoretical developments o 1.2 Birth and evolution of the discipline o 1.3 In popular media 2 Practice o 2.1 Business function o 2.2 Careers 3 Education o 3.1 Higher education o 3.2 Professional associations 4 Publications

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5 See also 6 References

[edit] History [edit] Antecedent theoretical developments HR spawned from the human relations movement, which began in the early 20th century due to work by Frederick Taylor in lean manufacturing. Taylor explored what he termed "scientific management" (later referred to by others as "Taylorism"), striving to improve economic efficiency in manufacturing jobs. He eventually keyed in on one of the principal inputs into the manufacturing process—labor—sparking inquiry into workforce productivity.[1] The movement was formalized following the research of Elton Mayo, whose Hawthorne studies serendipitously documented how stimuli unrelated to financial compensation and working conditions—attention and engagement—yielded more productive workers.[2] Contemporaneous work by Abraham Maslow, Kurt Lewin, Max Weber, Frederick Herzberg, and David McClelland formed the basis for studies in organizational behavior and organizational theory, giving room for an applied discipline.

[edit] Birth and evolution of the discipline By the time enough theoretical evidence existed to make a business case for strategic workforce management, changes in the business landscape (a là Andrew Carnegie, John Rockefeller) and in public policy (a là Sidney and Beatrice Webb, Franklin D. Roosevelt and the New Deal) had transformed the employer-employee relationship, and the discipline was formalized as "industrial and labor relations". In 1913, one of the oldest known professional HR associations—the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development—was founded in England as the Welfare Workers' Association, then changed its name a decade later to the Institute of Industrial Welfare Workers, and again the next decade to Institute of Labour Management before settling upon its current name.[3] Likewise in the United States, the world's first institution of higher education dedicated to workplace studies—the School of Industrial and Labor Relations—was formed at Cornell University in 1945.[4] During the latter half of the 20th century, union hip declined significantly, while workforce management continued to expand its influence within organizations. "Industrial and labor relations" began being used to refer specifically to issues concerning collective representation, and many companies began referring to the profession as "personnel istration". In 1948, what would later become the largest professional HR association—the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM)—was founded as the American Society for Personnel istration (ASPA).[5] Nearing the 21st century, advances in transportation and communications greatly facilitated workforce mobility and collaboration. Corporations began viewing employees as assets rather

than as cogs in machine. "Human resources management", consequently, became the dominant term for the function—the ASPA even changing its name to SHRM in 1998.[5] "Human capital management" is sometimes used synonymously with HR, although human capital typically refers to a more narrow view of human resources; i.e., the knowledge the individuals embody and can contribute to an organization. Likewise, other sometimes used to describe the field include "organizational management", "manpower management", "talent management", "personnel management", and simply "people management".

[edit] In popular media HR has been portrayed in several instances of popular media. On the U.S. television series of The Office, HR representative Toby Flenderson is sometimes seen as a nag because he constantly reminds coworkers of company policies and government regulations.[6] Long-running American comic strip Dilbert also frequently portrays sadistic HR policies through character Catbert, the "evil director of human resources".[7] An HR manager is also the title character in the 2010 Israeli film The Human Resources Manager.

[edit] Practice [edit] Business function HR's overarching mission has been compartmentalized by industry expert Dave Ulrich as fourfold: (1) aligning HR and business strategy (strategic partner), (2) re-engineering organization processes (istration expert), (3) listening and responding to employees (employee champion), and (4) managing transformation and change (change agent).[8] In practice, HR is responsible for employee experience during the entire employment lifecycle. It is first charged with attracting the right employees through employer branding. It then must select the right employees through the recruitment process. HR then onboards new hires and oversees their training and development during their tenure with the organization. HR assesses talent through use of performance appraisals and then rewards them accordingly. In fulfillment of the latter, HR may sometimes ister payroll and employee benefits, although such activities are more and more being outsourced, with HR playing a more strategic role. At the macro-level, HR is in charge of overseeing organizational leadership and culture. HR also ensures compliance with employment and labor laws, which differ by geography, and often oversees health, safety, and security. In circumstances where employees desire and are legally authorized to hold a collective bargaining agreement, HR will typically also serve as the company's primary liaison with the employees' representatives (usually a labor union). Consequently, HR, usually through industry representatives, engages in lobbying efforts with governmental agencies (e.g., in the United States, the United States Department of Labor and the National Labor Relations Board) to further its priorities. The discipline may also engage in mobility management, especially pertaining to expatriates; and it is frequently involved in the merger and acquisition process. HR is generally viewed as a function to the business, helping to minimize costs and reduce risk.[9]

[edit] Careers There are almost half a million HR practitioners in the United States and thousands more worldwide.[10] The Chief HR Officer is the highest ranking HR executive in most companies and typically reports directly to the Chief Executive Officer and works with the Board of Directors on CEO succession.[11][12] Within companies, HR positions generally fall into one of two categories: generalist and specialist. Generalists employees directly with their questions, grievances, and projects. They "may handle all aspects of human resources work, and thus require an extensive range of knowledge. The responsibilities of human resources generalists can vary widely, depending on their employer's needs."[13] Specialists, conversely, work in a specific HR function. Some practitioners will spend an entire career as either a generalist or a specialist while others will obtain experiences from each and choose a path later. Being an HR manager consistently ranks as one of the best jobs, with a #4 ranking by CNN Money in 2006 and a #20 ranking by the same organization in 2009, due to its pay, personal satisfaction, job security, future growth, and benefit to society.[14][15] Human resource consulting is a related career path where individuals may work as advisers to companies and complete tasks outsourced from companies. In 2007, there were 950 HR consultancies globally, constituting a USD $18.4 billion market. The top five revenue generating firms were Mercer, Ernst & Young, Deloitte, Watson Wyatt (now part of Towers Watson), Aon (now merged with Hewitt), and PwC consulting.[16] For 2010, HR consulting was ranked the #43 best job in America by CNN Money.[17]

[edit] Education [edit] Higher education Further information: List of human resource management graduate degree programs

The School of Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University was the world's first school for collegelevel study in HR.

Several universities offer programs of study pertaining to HR and related fields. The School of Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University was the world's first school for college-level study in HR.[18] It continues to offer education at the undergraduate, graduate, and professional levels; and it operates a t degree program with the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management, which HR Patriot termed the "crown jewel for aspiring HR professionals".[19] Other universities with entire colleges dedicated to the study of HR include Michigan State University, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and Renmin University of China. Dozens of other universities house departments and institutes related to the field, either within a business school or in another college.

[edit] Professional associations Main article: List of human resource management associations

HR education also comes by way of professional associations, which offer training and certification. The Society for Human Resource Management, which is based in the United States, is the largest professional association dedicated to HR,[10] with over 250,000 in 140 countries.[20] It offers a suite of Professional in Human Resources (PHR) certifications through its HR Certification Institute. The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, based in England, is the oldest professional HR association, with its predecessor institution being founded in 1919. Several associations also serve niches within HR. WorldatWork focuses on "total rewards" (i.e., compensation, benefits, work life, performance, recognition, and career development), offering several certifications and training programs dealing with remuneration and work-life balance. Other niche associations include the American Society for Training & Development and Recognition Professionals International.

[edit] Publications Academic and practitioner publications dealing exclusively with HR:      

Cornell HR Review HR Magazine (SHRM) Human Resource Management (John Wiley & Sons) Human Resource Management Review (Elsevier) International Journal of Human Resource Management (Taylor & Francis) Perspectives on Work (LERA)

Related publications:    

Academy of Management Journal Academy of Management Review istrative Science Quarterly (Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management) Organization Science (INFORMS)

Human resource" and "Manpower" redirect here. For other uses, see Human resource (disambiguation) and Manpower (disambiguation). Human resources is the set of individuals who make up the workforce of an organization, business sector or an economy. "Human capital" is sometimes used synonymously with human resources, although human capital typically refers to a more narrow view; i.e., the knowledge the individuals embody and can contribute to an organization. Likewise, other sometimes used include "manpower", "talent", "labor", and simply "people". The professional discipline and business function that oversees an organization's human resources is called human resource management (HRM, or simply HR).

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1 Overview o 1.1 The term in practice o 1.2 Concerns about the terminology 2 See also 3 References

[edit] Overview [edit] The term in practice In the corporate vision, employees are viewed as assets to the enterprise, whose value is enhanced by development.[1] Hence, companies will engage in a barrage of human resource management practices to capitalize on those assets. In governing human resources, three major trends are typically considered: 1. Demographics: the characteristics of a population/workforce, for example, age, gender or social class. This type of trend may have an effect in relation to pension offerings, insurance packages etc.

2. Diversity: the variation within the population/workplace. Changes in society now mean that a larger proportion of organizations are made up of "baby-boomers" or older employees in comparison to thirty years ago. Advocates of "workplace diversity" advocate an employee base that is a mirror reflection of the make-up of society insofar as race, gender, sexual orientation etc. 3. Skills and qualifications: as industries move from manual to more managerial professions so does the need for more highly skilled graduates. If the market is "tight" (i.e. not enough staff for the jobs), employers must compete for employees by offering financial rewards, community investment, etc. In regard to how individuals respond to the changes in a labor market, the following must be understood: 

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Geographical spread: how far is the job from the individual? The distance to travel to work should be in line with the pay offered, and the transportation and infrastructure of the area also influence who applies for a post. Occupational structure: the norms and values of the different careers within an organization. Mahoney 1989 developed 3 different types of occupational structure, namely, craft (loyalty to the profession), organization career (promotion through the firm) and unstructured (lower/unskilled workers who work when needed). Generational difference: different age categories of employees have certain characteristics, for example, their behavior and their expectations of the organization.

[edit] Concerns about the terminology One major concern about considering people as assets or resources is that they will be commoditized and abused. Modern analysis emphasizes that human beings are not "commodities" or "resources", but are creative and social beings in a productive enterprise. The 2000 revision of ISO 9001, in contrast, requires identifying the processes, their sequence and interaction, and to define and communicate responsibilities and authorities. In general, heavily unionised nations such as and have adopted and encouraged such approaches. Also, in 2001, the International Labour Organization decided to revisit and revise its 1975 Recommendation 150 on Human Resources Development.[2] One view of these trends is that a strong social consensus on political economy and a good social welfare system facilitates labor mobility and tends to make the entire economy more productive, as labor can develop skills and experience in various ways, and move from one enterprise to another with little controversy or difficulty in adapting. Another important controversy regards labor mobility and the broader philosophical issue with usage of the phrase "human resources". Governments of developing nations often regard developed nations that encourage immigration or "guest workers" as appropriating human capital that is more rightfully part of the developing nation and required to further its economic growth. Over time, the United Nations have come to more generally the developing nations' point of view, and have requested significant offsetting "foreign aid" contributions so that a developing nation losing human capital does not lose the capacity to continue to train new people in trades, professions, and the arts.[3]

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Human resource management Chief human resources officer