Organizational Performance and HRM Approach

¶ … integrated HRM approach organizational performance

Human Resource Management

HRM consists of managing people in a company, it's all about managing the employees. For the sake of simplicity, we can conclude that it's managing humans / people. HRM is purely a managerial operation in which a company tries to meet the company's goal by skill set of its workforce. Human Resource Management addresses the management of employees within a company. It assists the employees in syncing with the company and their work, rewarding their work and resolving issues as well (Naeem, 2011).

Growing Importance of HRM

An organization basically thrives from skill set of the employees; know how, abilities, knowledge and capabilities of its employees. This pool of talented reservoir entails the core competencies of a company (pooled reserve of knowledge an organization possesses which sets it apart from its rivals and gives value to its clientele). HRM plays a pivotal role in sustaining companies and assisting them in functioning properly. The world is in fact an organizational world where organizations are part of daily life. We are connected to them in the form of clients, customers, employees and members. One's life is spent working in an organization which provides us with the necessary services and good to live on. Organization consists of people and in their absence, they would cease to exist (Naeem, 2011).

Factors Contributing to the Growing Importance of HRM

a. Accommodation to workers' needs

The employees are requesting organizations to become more accommodating and induce programs for instance:

Parental leave

Flexible work schedule

Elder care assistance

Child care

Job sharing

Human resource department is tasked with facilitating such policies which avoid a conflict between work life balance and maintain a winning combination of both (Naeem, 2011).

b. Increased complexity of the Manager's job

Management is now quite a different ball game altogether due to multiple reasons such as:

Rapid change

Foreign competition

New technology

Broadening scientific information

Hence organizations need timely advice from human resource managers for help in taking correct business decisions and aligning the company's mission with human resource's strengths.

Sometimes executive need help from human resource department in case of:

Compensation

Performance evaluation

Recruitment

Discipline (Naeem, 2011)

c. Legislation and litigation

The state laws have worked in favor of facilitation and propagation of human resource operations. The laws are stringent in case of reporting and record keeping, hence human resource department works for numerous hours in a row and often make use of more staff to get work done. Legislation has had a deep impact on four areas such as:

Labor relations

Safety

Compensation

Equal employment

In case, the organizations don't comply with the law, it can result in expensive law suits, penalties and back pay awards (Naeem, 2011).

d. Consistency

With the help of human resource policies, consistency and equity are kept in check. Consistency is important in case of promotion and compensation matters. The managers need to consult human resource department first before handling salaries and promotions. HR department needs to remain in contact with managers on such matters (Naeem, 2011).

e. Expertise

These days, special expertise is needed for complex personnel activities. For instance, the researchers have designed intricate methods for employee selection process, mathematical formulas which consists of interviews, test results and application-blank information. They have substituted the conventional interviews which were the basis of selection. Apart from that, most companies have put in place a compensation system consisting of generous benefits which have substituted the hourly pay (Naeem, 2011).

f. Cost of Human Resource

Since personal problem result in huge costs, human resource activities are all the more important. Organizations suffer from labor cost, which is sometimes higher than expected due to tardiness, absenteeism and discrimination (Naeem, 2011).

Why are we concerned with HRM?

1. Helps you get results -- through others.

There are different managerial techniques assisting the managers in procuring maximum performance from their employees in order to meet the demands of an organization. By using others within an organization, managers are able to get tasks done which need human resource management (Naeem, 2011).

2. Helps you avoid common personnel mistakes

Qualified Human Resource mangers make use of organization assets in a manner that assists in avoiding common personnel mistakes such as the following:

Competent HR managers assist in preventing routine human resource errors for instance:

Incorrect hiring for a position

Facing huge turnover

Employees not able to perform

Preventing company from facing court due to unlawful actions

Preventing company being charged with unsafe practices under federal occupational safety laws

Preventing bigoted labor practices

Ensuring that department isn't left incompetent due to lack of training (Naeem, 2011)

3. Helps you to gain Competitive Advantage

The human resource department among all departments makes the real difference in any company. The reason is that all companies use similar tools and technology, they can have equal monetary resources as well, similar material is used for producing goods and providing services, hence the only difference remains is the workforce of the company. Hence competitive advantage lies within a company in its human resource department. Organizations can drive real competitive advantage by such competent individuals (Naeem, 2011).

a. To Attract People

People are attracted automatically to any company which provides a wonderful working environment, great employment benefits as well as room for growth within the company. Keeping the market in perspective, the first step is to entice competent individuals towards your company (Naeem, 2011).

b. To Develop People

Development is all about providing people with training and development opportunities to meet the job requirements in certain areas. This entails some evaluation for the proper training methods and tools to be employed. After careful selection, rigorous training of the workforce within the company leads in growth of an organization. That's how an organization is nurtured as it blossoms (Naeem, 2011).

C: To motivate

Motivation is all about driving a high performance from employees and ensuring their efforts are channeled in the proper direction. This entails using different tools for motivation in inspiring an organization. It's important to keep the employees inspired so they maintain their high quality performance (Naeem, 2011).

D. To Keep Talented People

It's also called retention of employees in an organization and ensuring that top performers remain within an organization by using various methods (Naeem, 2011).

Functions of HRM department:

A: Staffing

In order to attain its goals, a company must have competent employees working in particular positions at specific times. Hiring such individuals consists of:

Job analysis

Human resource planning

Recruitment

Planning

Selection

Job analysis consists of deciding upon the necessary skills, duties and experience needed for working at particular positions in an organization. HRP stands for human resource planning which is a method of appraising human resource demands which ensures that given number of workers are available for particular skill set. Recruitment is a method of enticing such talented individuals in great number, urging them to apply for job within an organization (Naeem, 2011).

B. Human Resource Development

HRM not only consists of development and training, it also entails:

Individual career planning

Development activities

Performance appraisal

It's all part of training and development. Training is needed to give employees skills and knowledge to work in their present position. Development on the other hand goes a step further as it's focused on long-term.

Human resource development (HRD) assists in making organization a proficient place by making individuals and groups competent. The reason is that companies, job, technology and people are regularly altering. Career planning is a continuous process where a person outlines his goals based on his career and works to attain them in due time. Career development is a method used by companies to make sure that individuals with necessary skill set and knowledge are present when required. Performance appraisal is a method used by companies to determine their team's and employee's competency in completing their necessary tasks (Naeem, 2011).

C. Compensation and Benefits

The idea of compensation comprises all kinds of rewards that individuals acquire on account of their present employment. The actual reward might be either one or an amalgamation of the subsequent

Compensation consists of rewards a person receives while being employed in a company. The reward can be one of the following or a combination of:

Pay: Cash which an individual receives for doing his job

Benefits: Separate financial rewards apart from salary such as sick leave, paid vacations, medical insurance and holidays

Non-financial rewards: They can include rewards not involving money such as peaceful office environment or pleasure in working (Naeem, 2011).

D. Safety and Health

Safety stipulates the employees being protected from office related accidents. Health is related to employees' being in their natural physical and mental state. Such aspects are necessary to take in consideration because only then, high productivity is attained as the organization benefits in the long run (Naeem, 2011).

E. Employee and Labor Relations

After 1983, union membership has taken a severe hit falling at 8% to 13.9% now. Only during the Great Depression, the percentage was this low. Neglecting the government workforce, unions stand for only 9.5% of the private workforce. But in any case, a business firm has to recognize a union in case the employees want to be a part of union. Looking back, this was quite acceptable most companies. These days, organizations detest unions and promote a union free environment (Naeem, 2011).

F. Human Resource Research

It's not included as a proper function, but it has relevance in HRM functional areas where the researcher's lab is his office (Naeem, 2011).

G. Interrelationships of HRM Functions

Effective and efficient SHRM in South African public sector

In the 21st century, public administration has been under continuous scrutiny by the demands and principles of democratic governance. The main question asked here is that: How should the public servant be trained and made capable in a manner by which public services are able to accomplish its democratic directive? The question arises from the concept of public service expressed as democratic, presenting a human and compassionate view of state and citizens alike (Olaopa, 2011). During the mid-nineteenth century, Rutgers notes that, public administration as part of social reality became a broad concept for shaping the society, to depict, establish and promote communication between society and government, state and citizen and political and civil servant (2003: 4). Apart from that, Pollitt and Bouckaert have narrowed down the realm of public management to just 'activity of public servants and politicians'. It can also entail the procedures and structures of an executive government...'(2004: 13).

Comprehension of public management as an activity along with the structure and processes of the government infers public service is closely linked with society at large and citizens. Hence public service is measured by public servants carrying out their duties diligently ensuring life of people as significant.

In this context of capacity building and professionalism, lies the real of development of African countries. In layman terms, it means that Africa has a challenge to fulfill in case of future capability development for bringing the world on its turf. At the same time, it will have to reshape its socio-economic life, reemerging in the global forum as a force to be reckoned with, while tackling the poverty of the masses dwelling there facing diseases, poverty, arrested developmental state and bad governance (Olaopa, 2011).

The fulcrum in public administration is fixed on managerial ethos apart from other factors, in which the public managers are tasked with attaining high productivity from the employees on a professionalized and responsive manner. Reforms based on NPM style are based on reform pattern in Africa for instance, it's aimed at moving from appraisal to analysis. Introducing performance management systems, public administrators having more responsibility as human resource managers, inducing public sector with market mechanisms and inducing quality management methods as well (Tamekou, 2008: 218). NPM promotes the value of "efficiency, effectiveness and economy," which impacts the public service's personnel management system.

It fuels the reorganization of the expertise and management. In layman terms, the latest managerial ethos is a revised version of professionalism which is concerned with labor responsibilities (Dent et al., 2004: 2). The paradigm shift has switched from 'doing the right things' to 'doing it right' via managing operations and resources. Hence it seems reasonable to assume that for effectively managing resources, human resource issues demand some notice for operating public services (Olaopa, 2011).

According to Kleiman, for progression of excellence and competence, application of HR methods and functions is necessary in public service which in turn is a unique synergy of line manager and HR professional. He indicates that HR professionals are especially tasked with founding HR guidelines and procedures, developing HR methods, assessing and monitoring HR guidelines and procedures while counseling the managers on HR and problems related to HR. meanwhile, the line managers are tasked with assigning daily tasks to employees. In layman terms, it means that HR professionals need their input in order to design effective methods as these practices are put into effect. Their job description consists of:

Facilitating orientation and training

Facilitation and communication work performance assessments

Advising on salary raises

Putting disciplinary procedures in effect

Investigating accidents (Leiman, 2006: 358).

The African Pubic Services and the Capacity Development Effort

The African states had put in place the Africanisation Policy, which is a flexible junction for hypothesizing the African public service's capacity profile. On the day of independence, the African states were tasked with developing a new administrative profile of the new states' independence which consists of:

Scope

Size

Amount of efforts needed to meet the governance and service delivery tasks

The African establishment had a new challenge on its hands with a new public service system and fulfilling desires of the African population. Hence an urgent need for realigning the colonial public service arose keeping the wishes of people (Mutahaba, 2009: 9).

Within the context of human resources, Africanisation Policy challenged the colonial policies of the colonial administration. Most of the colonial administrative policies ensured that such policies would be in place which would avoid more public service individuals, ensuring that administrative resources were scanty, the administrative framework remained feeble, and ensure friction between politicians and bureaucrats (ibid: 7). The structure of colonial administration was quite hierarchical and legalistic while such policies were made which would ensure least involvement of African people in decision making processes and bar them from stepping on hierarchical ladder (Olaopa, 2011).

Public services around the globe are measured by executing their administrative operations by the competency of its high performance management which spearheads the productivity paradigm related to socio economic changes and progression. Nations such as Nigeria still have a long road ahead in case of transition; some nations are heading along such as South Africa, Namibia and Botswana. It shows that all's not lost in Africa yet and there is hope (Olaopa, 2011).

HRM Practices

Planning: The organizations have a plan in mind which outlines its goals for a specific period which entails the workforce's roles in obtaining it and numbers to attain during that period. All of this is attained by outlining business goals that the employees will attain with their competencies, employees having the competencies to accomplish tasks and evaluating the total work productivity and growth (Anon., 2011).

Competencies and Integration

Integration is a method of combining or outlining a region in x-y plane attached to which is a function of psychological process is related to a purchasing decision present in concepts below:

Growth Strategy

The Substitution Rule (Anon., 2011)

Basic Integration Principles

In case of competency-based management, human resource planning is joined with business planning which is achieved by permitting organizations to evaluate the strength of human resource to measure employee's skill set and competency. The skill set and competencies are contrasted against organization's goal, missing statement and vision. In case employees are deemed below competency level, organizations need to nurture them. Hence programs, plans and strategies are designed to fill the gaps in organizations' employees integral for sealing the voids. The programs and plans consist of:

career development specific hiring/staffing employee learning and education succession management (Anon., 2011)

Such programs and strategies are assessed from time to time in order to make sure that organization's efforts are channeled in the right direction which consists of filling the employee competency void. Amendments are made along the way (Anon., 2011).

Recruitment and selection

Recruitment is an important component of HR, in case if this process is done right, job is done halfway as future issues regarding employees are prevented. In any case otherwise, the organizations suffer a lot regarding costs and resources incurred. Hence it's quite surprising that recruitment is often done with negligence and lack of interest (Anon., 2011). It is common knowledge that it's pricey to hire employees in this present market. Replacing a present employee with a new one costs around twice the salary of the present employee. Hence HR plays an instrumental role in cutting these additional costs. It's imperative to involve HR during the entire interview and selection process. It's necessary to glean information about the job description prior to an interview for a particular position as well as research the job description as well. Here are the important questions to be asked:

Has the job description modified?

Did new technology, new products and work patterns modify the job?

Are there any changes in the current job which would need more skills from the prospective employee?

What new skill set should the applicant possess the previous employee didn't? (Anon., 2011)

The gleaned responses will assist in outlining the real requirements of a job and its applicability in remainder of the organization. It's highly advised that exit interview is employed in case of present job holders for detecting voids, faulty areas and skills needed from the new employee to fill in. whilst using a systematic approach, it will become clear that it's not about the jobs, completing jobs, but its intention, outcome expected from the employee, abilities and skills needed and its applicability in organization's structure and culture (Anon., 2011).

Retention

Employee retention entails devising such policies and strategies which helps retaining the top performers within an organization for extended periods of time. Each organization invests its resources and time into such employees, nurtures him and elevates him into a competent corporate employee. Organizations sometimes suffer a setback when proficient employees resign from their organizations after being full trained and operational. Hence employee retention takes into such consideration such policies and strategies which helps keepings its talented pool with itself. According to research, the top performers resign from organizations as their bosses can't meet eye-to-eye with them. The employee observing no prospects for growth, salary raises and motivation decided to resign from an organization. Hence the organization must act quickly and think on its feet keeping such valuable employees paying heed to their demands. Hence the top management and line managers need to make sure that employees are within their comfort zone with respect to job satisfaction and employee benefits keeping them in their positions intact. Employee retention methods are all the more important in retaining the employees and appreciate their contribution to the organization (Anon., 2013).

Talent Management

In a marketplace where competition is intense, talent management drives an organization towards success. In broad terms, talent management is all about employing such integrated strategies / methods for raising productivity in a work place by a combination of unique techniques such as employee retention, employee enticing, training and developing talented employees to meet future organizational demands and challenges. Another research shows that 85% of the HR specialists deem that the biggest challenge in management is to hold on and maintain firm's competency to acquire talent. No doubt, talent management is today a versatile form of corporate leverage (Lockwood, 2006).

Although it's a bit intricate and altering constantly, talent management has immense potential. It is impacted by certain factors such as the following:

Mergers

Global expansion

Economy

Acquisitions

In order to initiate successful talent management, a triangle of strategic goals, involvement of CEO and HR management is necessary. Talent management is closely related to line leader's participation in developing talent. On the whole, the key elements are:

CEO participation

Management

Culture

Processes

Accountability (Lockwood, 2006).

According to research, organizations concentrate more managing talent. Companies have shifted from reactive paradigm to proactive paradigm to harness talent. SHRM's 2006 Talent Management Survey Report shows that 53% have implemented talent management operations. 76% of them deem talent management as vitally imperative. Apart from that, 85% of HR specialists are tasked with managing talent in these companies (Lockwood, 2006).

Career management

Career management is relatively a new concept in public service. Hence in order to perceive its application in the public service sector, it's essential to understand the term first. Career management entails plans which take in consideration the role of employee with respect to the organizational goals and targets keeping their potential and preferences (integrating the employee into organization's fabric) in mind. The definition materialized after an in-depth examination of application of career management, constituents of career management and key players within career management (Anon., 2011). All types of methods related to HRM have certain goal in mind. The instruments for merit assessment for instance are devised for keep a tab on performance and notice development needs. The career management programs include numerous HRM methods for attaining the following aims:

Raising employee performance level

Outlining career options

Associating employee's ambitions and organizational aims (Anon., 2011).

Succession Planning

Succession planning and management entails such processes which ensure that an organization has the manpower to attain their aims and objectives within a specific time period. Succession planning also connects future manpower needs with staffing and strategic planning. These days succession planning is quite important. As the workforce is aging and baby boomers are nearing retirement, it's useful to handover the experience, judgment and senior leader's expertise. The next step for succession planning is to observe the possible candidates who have the capability of taking over future leadership (Anon., 2011).