The aim of this essay is to demonstrate Human Resource Management (HRM) in a way that is both challenging and rewarding in contemporary organizations. Human Resource Management (HRM) is a new way of thinking about how people should be managed as employees in the workplace. (Ashly Pinnington and George Lafferty 2003, P.4) In much the same way as there are different roads to success, HRM is not one theory but an evolving set of competing theories and strategy contributors. The purpose of this essay will analyse why organisation do not regard H.
R as effective how can change? What role should it play? Why should it play? What are the challenges facing by HR managers?The H.R manager RolePeople management has existed in one form or another since the beginning of time. In recent times how this process has been managed has become more formalised and specialised. Ulrish (1997) gives the following examples of four key roles for the manager:1.
Strategic partner ‘HR professionals ‘play a strategic partner role when they have the ability to translate business strategy into action. (Ulrish, D. 1997, P79)* Know the business- understand the organisation, its finances, its people, its products and services, its customers and its business environment * Speak ‘bottom-line’ language-demonstrate how HRM improves business performance and reduces costs * Add value- Show how HRM can help line managers to better achieve their performance objectives * Provide professional advice- be a competent manager prepared to accept assignments outside of HRM. * Make the line manager job easier- avoid administrative trivia and a bureaucratic ‘police’ role. * Be professional- speak up key issues with an independent voice.
2. Administrative expertRefers to the efficiency of HR managers and how effective they are in managing HR activities (Such as selection) so that they create value. (Stone et al, 2010, P.10) HR must be capable of using technology: i.
e. Human information systems, HRM software, design, implementation and delivery of all organisational work processes at lower costs and higher values. “Research indicates that competency levels of HR managers in high-performing firms are significantly higher than those of HR manager in low-performing firms”. ( Yeung, A. 1998, P4)3. Employee champion Requires the HR manager to be the employee’s voice in management decisions.
The writer believes HR managers should not only actively communicate and listen to what their employees’ have to say before HR managers do any decision as these decisions must be fair and equitable, but also provide assistance to employees to discover new resources that can enable them to perform their jobs more effectively and efficiency.For example, Ulrish (1994) states that managers need to learn how to set priorities, eliminate non-value-added work, clarify goals, simply complex processes, become involved in decision making, increase commitments; share in economic gain. ( Ulrish, D. 1994 P15)However, not all employees desire participation in decision making, because it will add to their work load but not increase their pay.
Employees might say: “We just want to do our job that we were hired to do and we don’t really care what decisions managers make as long as it doesn’t have a negative effect on us.” In other words, they have no real motivation to participate in decision making. Actually, I don’ think it is an appropriate statement that describe contemporary employees’ attitude toward HR manager in organisation. For instance, Panasonic Corporation in Malaysia has always placed special emphasis on personnel development. “Make People Before Making Products” is one of the fundamentals of its management philosophy.This philosophy added with the desire to respond to the Malaysian Government’s policy which stresses human resource development for the growth of the industrial sector fuelled the foundation of Panasonic Human Resources Development Charter (PHRDC).
Panasonic believes that self-motivation and effort are the basis of personnel development and by providing the opportunity and the platform for education and training, Panasonic aspires to develop and produce holistic individuals who can contribute effectively to the Malaysian society. (Panasonic, 2010) If HR managers ignore employee-related outcomes it will result in job dissatisfaction, lower performance, and even industrial strikes which produce negative effects in organisations.4. Change AgentIt’s hard to understand what the actual definition of ‘Change Agent’ means, it is defined by Stone et al (2010) as a person who acts as a catalyst for change. (Stone et al, 2010, P.
11). However, Robins defines in his book titled ‘Management’ that people who act as catalysts and assume the responsibility for managing the change process are indeed ‘Change Agents’. (Robbins, Stephen P, 2006, P.409). Any manager or non-manager can be ‘Change Agents’ Robins gives some examples as; A Change Specialist Department and any outside consultant whose expertise is in change implementation.For major system-wide changes, an organisation will often outsource expertise, because they can provide an objective perspective that maybe lacking inside the organisation.
Some organisations for security purposes refuse to let important information to be known as public knowledge, i.e. The Commonwealth Banking Corporation which is primarily a Government backed banking organisation does not outsource expertise because of security issues that can occur. Furthermore, outside consultants they have extremely limited understanding of organisational background, culture, operating procedure and staff, because they do not live with the repercussions after the change is implemented. (Robbins, Stephen P, 2006, P.
409)The HRM Function:According to information from the text book, ‘Managing Human Resources’ HRM Function should be the same as HRM activities which includes the following:* Human resource HR planning * Job analysis and design * Employee recruitment and selection-find the right person in the right position, at the right time. * Performance management- To determine who do the good job should be promoted, or who did performance not good enough. * Learning and development-Once known concepts and equipment introduction, staff need to be training /coaching in order to do the performance better. * Career planning management * Rewarding human resources * Occupational health and safety * HR information systemsThe HRM Challenge:From the task topic “If HR managers are to be involved in strategic planning and decision making, they need to be- not just wish they were- strategic contributors.
” (Stone et al, 2010, P.36) Many people who are involved in organisations propose that the HR Manager is not very important or even useless. They explain that HR departments cannot produce any goods and services such as manufacturing department and technical department cannot create profit for other departments such as marketing. The HR department staff are just taking benefits from the other departments such as the marketing department, manufacture department, technical department, and financial department. Stone (2010) believes that people who believe HRM is useless are wrong in their beliefs because:* HRM need to tie dollar-and-cents implications to HR issues; * HRM need to show management how to increase profitability through improved employee productivity by means of increased employee commitment, trust and perceptions of fairness; * HRM need to be the employees’ voice at the management table; * HRM need to demonstrate professional competence in HR activities such as remuneration and managing change. (Stone et al, 2010, P.
36)Management is developing high expectations of HRM. Productivity improvement, restructuring and Downsizing, IR issues, the identification and development of talent, performance appraisal and reward system, and change management increasingly occupy the attention of top management. (Stone et al, 2010, P.36) We should recognise the essential role that HRM plays in all aspects of a business requires HR professionals to support their game.
It’s time for HR managers to prove their worth via demonstrating how they can connect between what their do and organisational performance and employee issues in today’s competitive environment.As Davidson states:” strategic HRM demands HR Professionals who have competencies at a general management Level and who are willing to accept responsibility for organisational performance outside HRM; who are skilful at selling HRM within their organisation so that they can achieve the required level of influence and participation at executive and strategic management levels; and who thereby are able to bring their specialist HR functions more closely into alignment with corporate objectives and strategies.
