Perspectives in Human Resource Management - Coursework Example

 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page 1 Abstract 3 2 Introduction 4 3 Managing People 4 4 Literature Review 6 4.1 The Theories 6 5 Critique 7 6 Conclusion 8 7 Bibliography 9 1 Abstract Managing People has always been a difficult issue. The concept has been explained in context of most popular theories by Abraham Maslow, Frederick Herzberg and Douglas McGregor. It has been found that no single theory is sufficient to explain the methodologies and each describes a different perspective. In combination they offer both insight and solution to Management of People in the current environment. 2 Introduction Adam Smith, father of modern economics, in his famous book “The Wealth of Nations” defined four kinds of fixed capital that was required for production and they are machines or instruments, buildings, improvements of lands and the human capital meaning labour. He explained the last as being as useful as machines as it was the labour’s skill that was valuable. This capital was calculated as the cost of acquiring those skills through education, apprenticeship, and maintenance during this acquisition period. These represented a fixed cost akin to other fixed costs. This too repays itself by way of profits as does a machine. This productive power of labour is again dependant on the division of labour as different skills are involved and each individual possesses a variety of them. The agility and nimbleness employed by the labour results in improved production and is his contribution towards profitability. Thus human capital was seen as skills, dexterity, and judgment combined. This concept has remained intact over two centuries and it has become central to most organizations as the most important ingredient. The Human Resources division has assumed greater significance in comparison with other areas. In the present day service oriented economies where a large part of GDP consists of services instead of manufacturing Managing People is of paramount importance. The questions now arise are what is People Management about and what are the challenges faced in this connection. 3 Managing People All companies irrespective of their size have Human Relation Departments (HRD). It is the function of this department to hire appropriately qualified people for working n various departments of the company. Qualifications are defined according to their usefulness for the company and often experienced people are preferred over others. A successful HRD exercise just begins with the hiring as it now extends to laying down policies for the individual and groups of employees and periodically evaluating performances. Of late it has been realized that just orientation of the employee in their jobs ror environment is not enough and some training both at the intial stage as well as later for upgrading is equally important for the organization. Organizations keep evolving. In order to survive the continuous onslaught of competition and innovations, a company has to keep changing its strategies to for keeping itself on track in working towards its objectives. It may appear as a contradiction but change is the constant factor that keeps an organization vibrant and alive to changing circumstances. With any and every change there is an effect on the employees. The change may be small requiring adjustments or it may be big requiring change management solutions. In all cases the HRD has to keep itself ready to move with time and arrange training or retraining of employees in tune with requirements. It has also been understood that employees need motivation to perform their tasks. Earlier the compensation was considered to be the sole motive and the pay packet was the barometr of success and status. But now the environment, the ambience and result oriented rewards have become important attributes to hold back the employees. Attrition rates, especially in service oriented companies, are alarmingly high. To stem this flow employees have to be offered surety as well as satisfaction. These are the new requirements of the day. 4 Literature Review People management has always fascinated everyone and various theories have been expounded to explain how people act and react in different situations. The primary image of an organization is akin to family, clan or tribe where relationships, needs, feelings and skills are the characteristics of its members. The objectives are empowerment, liberation, fulfilment and self actualization of both the individual and the group and the challenge is how to develop attitude to achieve this goal. There are three assumptions to all HR theories. Organizations serve human needs. People and organization need each other for this service. It is critical that people and the organization are in complete harmony to fulfil this purpose. Organizations serve human needs as they provide rewards for work and there is an intrinsic satisfaction of being useful. In turn the Organizations need people as they provide them with the human capital required for getting the work done. Besides the skill the workers bring along add on value to the other capital employed by the organizations for producing their goods and service for profit. It follows then that both the Organization and People need each other, 4.1 The Theories Abraham Maslow (1954) described this in a hierarchical manner starting with human psychology, safety and security, belongingness, self esteem and finally self actualization. According Maslow employees have a basic human need and a right to strive for self-actualisation, just as much as the corporate directors and owners do and by this fulfilment the organization becomes stronger, competitive and profitable. Chris Argyris (1957) argued that conflict was an inherent part of the issue and the result of skill was monotony of work. This dehumanizes a person and leads to conflict. Frederick Herzberg (1959) propounds that there are indeed only two factors that motivate a person to work and they are hygiene and motivators like self actualization. Hygiene does not motivate but its absence will reduce motivation and a good hygienic environment enhances motivating factors like achievements, responsibility and advancement. He further states that increase in salary without better hygiene and the motivators will result in disaster. Negative or Positive attitude of the management is explained by Douglas McGregor (1960) in his theory X and theory Y. According to him a negative attitude of the management, theory X, presupposes that workers are lazy, passive, without ambition, willing to be led and resist change. Hence management is through control, coercion, threats and punishment. This results in low productivity, antagonism, unionism and subtle sabotage. In contrast positive management, theory Y, believes that people are motivated, active and interested, ambitious, prefer to lead and are interested in change. Hence management is through open systems, communications, self-managing teams and peer controlled pay systems. The result is high productivity, bonhomie and care for the organization. 5 Critique No single theory can be applied to any one case. All theories reflect a different perspective. HRD is a complex functions and People are complex in nature as well. Therefore a combination of theories is required to explain a situation or to handle a situation, as the case maybe. But there is a distinct pattern on which most companies normally work. This again is an issue of attitudes. Most industries operate on the X theory as propounded by McGregor (1960), as a result of which there is a preconceived mistrust of the employee by the managers. The managers start with an assumption that employees will work the least, are lazy, passive, ambitionless, resist change and prefer to be led. Therefore the managers actively coerce people to work with tight controls and even under threat and punishment. The result is that morale and productivity are low. Following the above attitude the ambience and hygiene factors are neglected and there is little motivation for the employees to raise their levels. The outcome is personal and psychological withdrawal leading to resistance and power struggles and unionisation, all of them leading to disruptions and eventual fall in productivity. This erodes the competitiveness of the organization in the marketplace. 6 Conclusion Of late the latest concepts introduced in HRD management is the introduction of the Family concept in the Organization. Those who have adopted this attitude are reaping the benefits of greater employee participation and enhanced productivity. This is the result of adoption and extension of theory Y and the Hygiene theories. The predominant factor is that since the concept of family has been introduced, a new dimension has been factored in. Family means fun, integrity, teamwork, shared goals and informal but disciplined atmosphere. This is the glue that binds the entire workforce and eliminates power struggles and conflicts. Everyone knows each other’s usefulness and instead of encroaching on someone’s space the attitude is of mutual respect. 6 Bibliography Argyris, C., (1960). Individual actualization in complex organizations. Mental Hygiene, 44(2), 226‑37. Herzberg, F., Mausner, B., & Snyderman, B. B. (1959/1993). The motivation to work. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers Maslow, Abraham., Motivation and Personality, published in 1954 (second edition 1970) McGregor, D. (1960). The human side of organization. New York: McGraw Hill Smith. Adam,. The Wealth of Nations, London 1776 Read More