Introduction
This essay discusses the role and function of Human Resource Management (HRM) within an organisation. The Harvard and Michigan models have been explained within the essay as they support the analysis of “soft” and “hard” HR approach that managers adapt when applying the HR policies to achieve different organisational strategies like diversification, acquisition and cost reductions. Subsequent section of the essay will examine the link between HRM and its strategies with examples taken from organisations like Harrods’ and Disney and institutes like NHS on how they use HR policies and strategies to achieve their organisational goals.
What is HRM?
Human Resource Management can be simply defined as the management of human
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By allocating a team to hire employees it makes the role of HRM much easier and efficient. This allows them to address the policies implemented much effectively. Human Resource Management covers four main areas; employee influence, work systems, human resource flow and reward management. Different roles of the HRM allows to manage the organisation thus fulfilling the assigned areas. One key role of HRM is the executive role, where the managers are viewed as specialists that encompass Human resources or people management. The audit role are concerned with the company’s HR policy thus checks the organisation to ensure all HR policies such as health & safety, staff appraisals are being implemented. The Management Information System in Harrods undertakes the facilitator role of the HRM, which helps or facilitate other departments to achieve the organisational strategy through the HR policies implemented. This in turn allows Harrods to maintain its identity as a Top Employer. Similarly the People Support team could be classed with the consultancy and service roles, allowing the department to act as internal consultants offering expertise, advice and assistance to line managers and other staff in order to achieve the organisational objective. (Brockbank, 2008). This ensures that the HRM values the importance of discretion, compliance and unwavering support.
Different models have been introduced to describe the role of HRM, which categorises the “soft” or the “hard” approach
The career that I have chosen to pursue is Human Resources Management. When I started out on the path of “what I want to be when I grow up” I started in a completely different line of work. I wanted to be a Nurse when I graduated high school. I enrolled in college and I worked at a children’s hospital. After a while I started getting burned out by working long hours and on the weekend and I started to wonder if this was the right career that I wanted to continue with. I was offered a position at a staffing company that tailored to physicians and nurses and I
Wright and McMahan (1994) define strategic HRM as “the pattern of planned Human Resource deployments and activities intended to enable the organisation to achieve its goals.” A HR function should impact the success of an organisation; a policy must remain current and suitable to both the internal and external environment. Ulrich and Lake (1990) affirm, ‘HRM systems can be the source of organisational capabilities that allow organisations to learn and capitalise on new opportunities.’
‘Human Resource Management is a strategic approach to managing employment relations which emphasizes that leveraging people’s capabilities and commitment is critical to achieving sustainable competitive advantage or superior public services.’ (Bratton and Gold, 2012, p.7). Therefore, it is important to understand the concept of human resource management model and how does it work and influence organization. While many model of HRM emerged, soft and hard model are both most widely adopted (Truss, et al., 1997). Both soft and hard HRM model are emphasizing to integrate the HR policies with business strategic, but the main distinction is how organization sees individual, which is as resource in hard model or as human in soft
You are the HR manager of Brambles, your General Manager has asked you to find a replacement for the Finance Manager who has just handed in their resignation. The Finance department has 5 staff, one being the manager and 4 staff that report to him/her. The Finance Manager reports directly to the General Manager & responsible for all things to do w/finance.
There are many factors that can determine the success of any organisation. It is not only limited to the physical assets such as machinery and technology, however it is the people working within the organisation bringing new ideas and special skills that can make a difference. This essay will investigate the influence of Human Resource Management (HRM) on the wider organisational strategy. A short description of HRM will be followed by a summary of its primary roles. Also, this paper will then critically assess these roles using qualitative examples in an attempt to determine the degree to which HRM really helps or hinders the organisation in achieving its strategic goals.
Guest (1987) and Storey (1992) in their definitions of soft and hard models of HRM view the key distinction as being whether the emphasis is placed on the human or the resource. Soft HRM is associated with the human relations movement, the utilization of individual talents, and McGregor's (1960) Theory Y perspective on individuals (developmental humanism). This has been equated with the concept of a 'high commitment work system' (Walton 1985b), 'which is aimed at eliciting a commitment so that behaviour is primarily self-regulated rather than controlled by sanctions and pressures external to the individual and relations within the organization are based on high levels of trust' (Wood 1996: 41). Soft HRM is also associated with the goals of flexibility and adaptability (which themselves are problematic concepts, as we shall see in more detail later), and implies that communication plays a central role in management (Storey and Sisson 1993).
So, the main idea of the strategic model is to perform the operational function between a company and workers. This model sees employees as a factor in the production process. Employees are considered passive and treated as numbers and skills that need to be deployed at the right price (Legge, 1995, p.66-67). Hard HRM is as calculative and tough minded as any other branch of management, communicating through the tough language of business and economics. The hard HRM approach is quite similar to scientific management because employees are reduced to passive objects that are not prized as a whole people but estimated on whether they have the skills or attributes that is needed for company (Legge, 1995; Vaughan, 1994; Storey, 1987; Drucker et al, 1996; Keenoy, 1990).For example, hard HRM employ only those that suit them (e.g. they have appropriate skill or attributes). After hiring process, HRM creates trainings to help the employees adapt to the company. The best example is employees in McDonald’s. McDonald’s does not give any opportunity to develop personality. The idea of working in a McDonald’s is only working and performing out tasks.
Netcare participates in employer surveys, internal surveys gets feedback from patients with patient feedback forms. These results help identify employment issues and are also used to reward and recognise individuals. Managers are even required to wear their name badges, thus enforcing them to lead by example.
After acknowledging the idealised roles of HRM, it is important to understand that what could be the impact of HRM functions on organisational performance. It has been proposed that HR resources efficiently contribute towards profitability of organisation by enhancing or by maintaining company’s competitive advantage (Singh et al., 2012). According to (Wright et al., 2001) and (Beardwell et al., 2004) HRM practices contributes to OP via leveraging the human capital, through discretionary efforts and by behaviors and attitude. According to Ulrich (1993) HRM performs the role of a strategic partner, employee champion, change agent and also administrative expert. In a study which was conducted on 256, mid-to upper level executives of medium to big size organisations, confirmed the presence of three out of Ulrich’s four roles in HR framework (Yusoff, Abdullah, & Baharom, 2010). Studies reveal that HRM performs a strategic role of Knowledge management (KM) which is to develop, share and to apply knowledge in the organisation in order to gain and to maintain a competitive advantage for business (Petersen & Poulfelt, 2002) as viewed in (Edvardsson, 2008). KM is required to develop the employees according to business strategy which is the basic function of HRM. If HRM practices develop knowledge, employee skills and motivation then employees behave in those ways which can be considered supportive for a
HRM functions must be integrated with each other and with strategic issues if they are to make a contribution to HR outcomes or the “bottom line” for the organisation. Discuss this statement, with reference to relevant HRM structure.
The economic environment in nowadays dynamic, it is fairly important for organisations and managers to recognise the curtail of Human Resource Management. It is clear that Human Resource Management (HRM) has become one of the most recommend management strategy in the modern business (Leopold and Harris, 2009). Human Resource Management is a technique process of managing people in the workplace to enable and enhance organization performance (Leopold and Harris, 2009). This theory involved the responsible to attracting, selecting, training and managing people which make employees become more valuable to the organisations. It invests effect in learning and development at work. Also to communicate with all employees at each level to reward successful employee relations (Wilton, 2011). Human Resource Management plays a very important role in the operation strategy and management concerns in work organisations of all kinds (Leopold and Harris, 2009). In aim to justify this statement by evaluate the benefit and importance of Human Resource Management in contemporary work organisations. This essay will focus on analysis the advantages of use Human Resource Management in business also underline by explain more detail about the different HRM strategy brings benefits and give competitive advantages impact to the organisation success. Then summarise by a general conclusion on the importance of HRM in contemporary work organisations.
Human resource management (HRM) is an important strategic and systematic approach that provides each company with the opportunity to create policies and practices, as well as to establish administrative forms (Pfeffer, 2007). According to Armstrong (2009) HRM is an approach that deals with ‘employment, development, and well-being of the people working in organizations’. However HRM has evolved significantly through the years due to the rapid social, economic, political and environmental changes. The HRM has replaced the personal management in terms of managing workforce and sometimes has a similar description in use. It is claimed that HRM differs from personnel management, being a holistic approach and recognizing people as assets and not
Human Resource Management (HR) acts to serve a function which is aimed at maximizing the overall performance of a business and its employees in relation to the employer 's set standards and strategic objectives. The primary focus of HR is concentrated upon the management of employees, and on the policies and systems within and outside the organisation. (Boxall & Purcell, 2011). “Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) aims to align the functions and processes of HR with the strategic aims and objectives and competitive advantage of an organisation.” (Hartel, Fujimoto, Strybosch & Fitzpatrick, 2006). After all, the key characteristic of HR is ‘integration.’ The role of HR and HR Professionals can be linked to four main SHRM theories which will be discussed below:
No matter what the size of a business, it is important to have a Human Resource Management (HRM) plan in place. According to Dessler (2013), small companies employ over half the population working in the United States and many individuals graduating over the next several years will either work for a small business or become an entrepreneur. Many small businesses do not have a dedicated human resource manager, so it is imperative that the business owner has a set of “practices and policies to carry out the personnel aspects” of the organization (Dessler, 2013, p. 2). In this paper, I will look at five areas of HRM necessary for a small business owner to have established policies, in order for the business to succeed and grow, “a company’s human capital is defined as the collective productive capacity of its employees” (Endres, Chowdhury, Camp & Shulze, 2013, p. 64). HRM is the process and function of effectively and fairly managing that human capital. The areas of HRM to be discussed are: recruiting, hiring, training, talent management and compensation, which all have an impact on the bottom and line play a key role in the overall strategy of the business.