Briefly explain Human Resource Management – ensure you explain the various activities that are conducted under HRM. Provide a variety of research in your explanation.
In modern literature two versions of Human resource management have been emphasized these are the rational approach which emphasis on aligning business strategy and Human resources and view people as a resource in the business and as a cost that must be controlled. The other version is the soft approach which emphasis on investment in training and development and employee motivation to ensure that they are loyal and highly skilled to give the business a competitive edge. Pride. Hughes and Kapoor, (2009) state that the activities involved in human resources management are acquiring, maintaining and developing the people resources in the organization. Acquisition involves human resources planning, job analysis, recruiting, selection and orientation. Maintaining employees involve managing the employee relations, compensation and employee benefits. Employee development involves training and performance appraisal (Bratton and Gold, 1999)
Human resources management is defined as a function that includes activities such as staffing needs, recruitment and training, dealing with performance issues and dealing with regulations that relate to personnel. The activities include managing the approach to employee benefits and compensation and employee policies and records (McNamara 2010).Bach (2005) defines human resources management as the activities associated with the management of the employment relationships in the firm.
Chose one HRM activity and explain how this activity can impact on employee performance. Provide a variety of research in your explanation.
According to Jones & Wright (1992) as quoted by Huselid, (1995) the various human resources management activities help to improve the knowledge, skills and abilities of the employees, improve their motivation, reduce shirking and enhance performance of good employees.
In the study by Afaq and Khan (n.d) on the impact of training on employee performance it is concluded that training is essential for employee performance since in the modern business field there is need for efficiency, accuracy and effectiveness. Training is important for continuous improvement in service delivery which translates to better performance for the firm.
In their study Cooney, Terziovski and Samson (2000) state that the adoption of quality management practices also entails increase in employee development trough training so as to improve performance. Training is required to enable employees to handle increased responsibilities which come with the adoption of quality management, to be able to participate in quality improvement responsibilities that require non-technical skills, and to respond to changes in the market. The study by Babaita, (2010) in banks in Nigeria showed that employee productivity which results in firm profitability is a major driving force for investment in training and management development.
Reflect on your own experience as an employee – are HR activities undertaken at your workplace? How would you rate the effectiveness of these HR activities?
Some of the HR activities undertaken at my workplace include employee development through training and team building activities, very strict recruitment procedures, employee compensation, appraisal and handling of employee grievances.
The first activity that has a great impact on the employee productivity and thus firm performance is the strict recruitment procedure. This is applied to all levels of management including the cleaners thus ensuring the firm has the best quality of staff. The recruitment procedure ensures that the final candidates for any job are people who will contribute to the advancement of the firm’s objectives.
Employee appraisal procedures ensure that employees are performing at the required level at all times. This also ensures that high performance is rewarded thus motivating those not performing to do so. The grievance handling mechanism and the compensation mechanisms employed by the HR function are very helpful in ensuring that any hindrances to employee performance are handled so as to ensure that they are performing as required.
The teambuilding activities are essential for employee motivation. These include fun activities such as weekend outings and drink-ups. These enable people to know each other and thus work well together. Training is also a very important part of the organization. Since technology is a major part of the business employees have to remain updated on all developments so as to ensure the firm remains competitive. This is done within the company or by sponsoring employees to attend the relevant corses where they are offered.
References List
Afaq & Khan (n.d) relationship of training with employees performance in hoteling industry; case of pearl continental hotels in Parkistan. Web.
Babaita, 2010, European Journal of Social Scinces, Volume 13, Productivity as a driving force for investment is training and management development in the banking industry.
Bach 2005, Managing human resources: personell management in transition; Blackwell publishing, Australia.
Bratton and Gold 1999 New Jersey Human resources management: theory and practice.
Cooney, Terziovski and Samson, 2000 Employee Training,quality management and the performance of Australian and Newzealand Manufacturers. Monash University.
Huselid 1995,The impact of human resources management practices on turnover, productivity, and corporate finacila performance, Academy of Management Journal, 1995, Rutgers University.
Mcnamara , 2010, Human Resources Management ( and talent Management). Web.
Pride. Hughes and Kapoor, 2009 activities in human resources management, Cengage learning.