The Management of Human Resources - Essay Example

? Topic: Lecturer: Presentation: Introduction Various factors have shaped the management of human resources over the years such as; globalization, technological advancements, political and economic factors. Traditional methods of management are thus losing importance paving way for more people friendly management approaches such as human resource management. In the past, craftsmen and journeymen formed welfare associations that protected their interests and provided mutual insurance to members. Trade unions then emerged that catered for the welfare of employees and a link between employees and management. New forms of management practices were adopted hence the emergence of personnel management. Bratton & Gold (14) acknowledge that personnel management was a caring activity aimed at satisfying employee’s work-related needs as well as solving their problems. Traditional organizations were highly bureaucratic hence employee involvement was not essential in ensuring organization success. As the environment continued to change, personnel management could not be able to respond quickly hence the emergence of a more responsive approach; human resource management. However, there is a lot of controversy as to whether HRM evolved from personnel management or it is just a broadening of scope of personnel management. HRM is strategic in nature and commitment-oriented and is concerned with human relation issues. Armstrong (2003, p. 1; 2006, p 3) defines HRM as ‘a strategic and coherent approach to the management of the organizations most valued assets: the people who individually and collectively contribute to achievement of its objectives’. For Heathfield (2011), HRM is ‘a strategic and comprehensive approach to managing people, workplace culture and environment’. Bratton & Gold (14) argue that HRM is the central business concern in an organization while Goss (2) emphasizes on the insignificant difference between HRM and traditional personnel management. Different organizations use different methods of people management; some continue applying personnel management while others have modernized to HRM. FedEx and Syso are examples of companies that have appreciated HRM practices while Blues is an organization that still uses traditional methods. FedEx is a parcel delivery service and among the 100 “best companies to work for” as indicated by the fortune magazine 2003 (Casestudyinc.com). Blues is a garment factory with 800 employees. The paper will compare the past management practices with HRM in light of the above organizations. Personnel Management and Human Resource Management Though some scholars argue that there is no difference between personnel and HRM and that one is an extension of the other, some differences can be observed in how employee relations are handled, the way modern management is linked to business strategy, emphasis on high employee commitment, employee development, outsourcing, increased role of line managers, increased use of technology in HR systems, use of team work among others. One of the most significant differences is treating employees as an asset rather than a cost that needs to be minimised (Armstrong 2003, 4; Armstrong 2006, 10; Aswathappa, 7). The employees are thus very important in an organization as they ensure organization retains its competitive advantage. As an asset, investments are done on the employees through training and development, talent management and ensuring employee retention. In so doing, the organizations recognize that employees are valuable and essential for an organization to be profitable. At FedEx, the employees are encouraged to be innovative and its people-service-profit philosophy ensures employees’ needs are taken care of. The survey –feedback –Action program is used to get data on employees and then it is used by management to detect any problems such as training needs and address them. They also show how effective HR policies are in ensuring high performance and achievement of goals. It also has a training program to ensure employee development. The training is in line with education program offered by management institutes (Casestudyinc). Blues on the other hand is less concerned about employee development; workers are trained on essential tasks that ensure accomplishment of tasks such as machine operations for a particular order. Another major difference is the strategic role of HRM as opposed to personnel management which deals with short term or day-to-day activities of the organization (Armstrong 2006, 364). Personnel managers are concerned with management of employees to ensure the objectives of the organization are met while HRM is directed towards customer satisfaction hence all the activities are customer-oriented hence FedEx encourages innovation by employees to ensure customer satisfaction. The work of the personnel manager at Blues on the other hand is to ensure the employee is achieving the set target or finishing the pieces assigned hence ensure their needs are met. HRM in FedEx is central to the organization as the decisions of HR are incorporated into the plan of the organization and are involved in plan formulation. HR strategies are aligned with business strategy hence inducing high employee commitment (Storey, 37). Traditional management practices involved much emphasis on trade unions as a means of employee relations. The working conditions in traditional industries were not employee friendly hence the existence of trade unions to fight for their interests. There were increased industrial unrests due to lack of trust between employees and management. The union played a central role in designing employee contracts which guided the working behaviour (Bratton & Gold, 14). Blues workers are under a textile workers union which act as bridge between employees and management and ensure minimum wages are adhered to as well as health and safety issues. FedEx on the other hand has a direct communication with employees which include; Survey-Feedback-Action (SFA), open door policy, guaranteed fair treatment procedure to help solve grievances as well as formal communication channels that inform employees of major events in the organization. Syso conducts workplace climate surveys to enhance employment relationships. Aswathappa (547) observes that due to open communication, healthy and safe work environment and improved employer-employee relations, the union influence has declined over the decade. The employees and employer pursue same interests and the unions are also encouraged to build a positive relationship with management to avoid conflict and industrial actions. The organization principles also determine type of management. Bratton & John (15) argue that the organization structure and size as well the management philosophy play an important role in determining HR activities. Traditional organizations were bureaucratic in nature hence complex rules and procedures to be followed. Power is centralized thus low level staff take orders from senior management. Employees do not participate in decision making hence no commitment and low morale. When employees are not involved in management activities, they don’t own the decisions made hence have no sense of belonging to the organization thus lack commitment to accomplish organization goals which is the aim of HRM (Armstrong, 2006, 5). FedEx uses People-service-profit philosophy and involves employees in decision making and employees can freely express their opinion about management policies through SFA. This ensures high staff commitment such that employees were willing to sell their property to get the company out of the financial crisis and did not complain due to delayed salaries. The organization is thus recognized as employee-friendly. Blues on the other hand, insists on complex procedures and rules. The employees are not involved in making decisions especially when setting targets hence they lack morale to achieve those targets. Some fail to achieve the targets or absent themselves from work to avoid conflict. Contrary, at FedEx the labour turnover is very low compared to industry average. Modern management also emphasizes on the role of line management. HR managers now engage in providing consultancy services to the senior management and advisory services to the line managers whose role is to enact HR policies (Sambrook, 165). Traditionally, personnel managers performed all activities connected with the employees such as performance appraisal, training, motivation, rewarding, remuneration and keeping records. The role of the departmental managers is to carry out business activities. For example, at Blues the personnel managers carry out all employee activities such as; preparing salaries, administering benefits, overtime and keeping records. The managers on the other hand, ensure employees achieve the set targets so as to meet the set customer deadlines and also quality management. At FedEx, the frontline managers are the key to driving commitment to customers and employees. However, there is controversy as to how much authority and responsibility should be given to the line managers’ (Kumar & Mittal, 135). Some argue that delegating to line managers minimises the power of HRM hence may lose their importance in organizations. On the other hand, it allows human resource specialists to concentrate on strategic role. Some line managers don’t have the competencies required for the performance of HRM role hence fear taking the role The tasks in personnel organizations are highly specialised; division of labour is emphasized and there is no movement from job to job or job rotation. The tasks are routine in nature hence boredom and low staff morale (Armstrong 2006, 899). The tasks at Blue company are specialized; the machine operators sew the garments and each part requires different operation hence an operator performs one operation in an assembly line until the garment is finished. Other employees work in the finishing, packing, trimming departments. There is thus little or no exchange of skills thus no skill and career advancement opportunities. This results in high labour turnover and absenteeism due to boredom and lack of job enrichment and satisfaction. FedEx employees are encouraged to learn by variance of tasks and programs aimed at career advancement such as Leadership Evaluation and Awareness Process (LEAP) aimed at encouraging non-managerial staff to move to managerial level. Every organization aims at recruiting and retaining high qualified staff. The recruitment and selection procedures are thus important in an organization to achieve this objective. Traditional organizations used to prepare memos to attract applicants or acquire new staff through the existing staff who would spread the word (Sharma, 5). Some organizations also publish on newspapers and those interested would send a written application personally or through post. Blue company still uses memos stuck at the gate to attract applicants. Those non-skilled employees interested in acquiring skills learn from the machinists during free time and may be considered for promotion. Modern organizations take advantage of technology advancements to attract highly qualified and talented candidates. Use of internet, e-mail is on the increase. People search for jobs on the internet and apply on- line to respective companies. Companies like FedEx attract even hourly employees via a job change applicant tracking system and FedEx.com career sites. The organization also arranges virtual career fairs hence applicants don’t have to travel to be interviewed. Some organizations outsource HR functions such as recruitment and selection to an agency. For example according to Aswathappa (11), 72% of Indian companies outsource their HR function. This minimises costs and reduces the burden for HR specialist so as to concentrate on his/her consulting and advisory role. HRM is also involved in job evaluation and performance management. Employee benefits are calculated on the basis of their performance (Champion-Hughes, 287). Some organizations share their profits with employees at the end of the year. Performance evaluation enhances staff motivation and organization performance. Traditionally, pay was based on the job itself and rewards given to those with good grades. FedEx carries out annual employment surveys and those with exceptional performance are rewarded. Blues rewards employees with overtime bonuses and cash rewards. Conclusion The role of personnel management has evolved tremendously over the years. The personnel role has either been extended, improved by use of technology, and new methods developed. In the past, the recruitment and selection process was manual and involved use of huge amount of paper work. Today, the process is paperless whereby potential recruits apply for jobs on-line and can also have on-line interview without visiting the workplace. There has been mutual relationship between employees and employers thereby minimising the role of unions. Employees no longer stick to one routine task in the organization but engage in multi-skilling and group work for personal and organizational development. Employees are also highly committed to achievement of organization goals due to their involvement in management activities. The HR function in modern organizations has been delegated to line management or outsourced to allow the specialists to engage in strategic HRM. The concept of performance-related pay, profit sharing and gain sharing has also gained momentum. There is thus need to adopt HRM practices in organizations for success. References Armstrong, M. A Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice. London, Kogan Page. 2003. Armstrong, M. A Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice. 10 ed.London, Kogan Page. 2006. Aswathappa, K. Human Resource and Personnel Management. 4ed. New Delhi, Tata McGraw-Hill. 2005. Bratton, J., Gold, J. Human Resource Management: Theory and Practice. 2ed. London, Macmillan Press. 1999. Casestudyinc. 8 Jan, 2010. HR Best Practices at FedEx: A Best Company to Work for. Casestudyinc.com. 11 May 2011. http://www.casestudyinc.com/hr-best-practices-at-fedex-best-company. Champion-Hughes, R. “Totally Integrated Employee Benefits”. Personnel Management, Vol. 30, 3 pp 287. Goss, D. Principles of Human Resource Management. New York, Routledge. 1994. Heathfield, S. (2000) “What is Human Resource Management?” HRM Guide. (2011) http://humanresources.about.com/od/glossaryh/f/hr-management.html. Kumar, N., Mittal, R. Personnel Management and Industrial Relations. New Delhi, Anmol. 2001. Mathis, R., Jackson, J. Human Resource Management. 12ed. USA, Thomson Learning. 2008. Sambrook, S. “Talking of Human Resource Development”. Human Resource Development International, Vol. 3, 2 pp 159-178. Sharma, S. Handbook of HRM Practices: Management Policies and Practices. New Delhi, Global India Publication Pvt, Ltd. 2009. Storey, J. Developments in the Management of Human Resources. Oxford, Blackwell. 1992. Read More