Introduction Human resources are considered by many to be the most important asset of an organization, yet very few employers are able to harness the full potential from their employees (Radcliffe, 2005). Human resource is a productive resource consisting of the talents and skills of human beings that contribute to the production of goods and services (Kelly, 2001). Lado and Wilson (1994) define human resource system as a set of distinct but interrelated activities, functions, and processes that are directed at attracting, developing, and maintaining a firm’s human resources. According to Gomez-Mejia, Luis R., David B. Balkin and Robert L. Cardy, (2008), it is the process of ensuring that the organization has the right kind of people in the right places at the right time. The objective of Human Resources is to maximize the return on investment from the organization’s human capital and minimize financial risk. It is the responsibility Continue reading
Modern HRM
Human Resource Metrics
Human Resources once considered a field focused on soft skills, has undergone an unprecedented change. HR now deals with complex data that can be analyzed to provide valuable information and insight and is swiftly becoming an essential means to add strategic value. The HR world is buzzing with the transformative potential of HR analytics. This field has developed at the intersection of computer science, engineering, decision making, and statistics and assists in organizing, analyzing, and making sense of uncertain situations. It has become evident that integrated and strategic HR practices considerably improve bottom-line performances. Therefore, appropriate Human Resource Metrics must be developed and applied in order to specifically illustrate the value of HR practices and activities, particularly relative to accounting profits and market valuation of the organization. This task has proven to be far more complex than anticipated, given the difficulties of measuring human assets/capital. Because HR largely deals with Continue reading
Deal and Kennedy’s Organizational Culture Model
As a lead up to the discussion on corporate culture in people’s management, it is important to consider Deal and Kennedy’s contribution. Deal and Kennedy suggests that ‘People are a company’s greatest resource, and the way to manage them is not directly by computer reports, but by the subtle cues of a culture’ Deal and Kennedy (2000) examined organisational culture from a different perspective, concluding that there are six interrelated elements which define organisational culture. These are: The history of the organisation, because shared past experiences shape current beliefs and values and the traditions which organisation is built on. For example, firms often draw on their heritage and use this as part of their branding strategy, as well as asserting a belief in traditional values. The values and beliefs of the organisation are critical as these focus on the shared beliefs of employees and the organisation as a whole, including the written and underwritten Continue reading
Perceptions of the Human Resource among Top Management
Human Resource is used to describe individuals in the workforce of an organization, even if it is also applied in labor economics, for instance, industries and even entire nations. Human resources is also the name of the function in a body with overall responsibility for implementing strategies and policies on people management. Human resource management involves the development of a perfect blend between tradition and administrative functions well-being of all employees in an organization. Top management care little about human resource compared to production, marketing, finance, and engineering. There are some reasons. Marketing department is the process by which companies create customer interest in goods or services. It generates the strategy behind the sales techniques, business communication and business developments. It is an integrated process by which organizations build strong customer relationships and create value for their customers and themselves. Marketing is used to identify the customer, to satisfy the Continue reading
Team Based Compensation System
Teams have become a popular way to organize business because they offer companies the flexibility needed to meet the demands of the changing business environment. While many companies have been quick to organize their workforce into teams, they have not been as eager to implement team-based compensation systems. However, if team-based organizations continue to utilize old, individually-oriented pay systems, they will not fully realize the benefit of highly cooperative and motivated work teams. Team compensation is a way of rewarding performance in team settings. That is, individuals are rewarded based on the performance of the team as opposed to individual performance. There are different kinds of compensation such as a portion of base pay, other financial rewards such as gain-sharing, and non-financial rewards such as movie passes and gift certificates. Teams are defined as groups of individuals who work together to develop products or deliver services for which they are Continue reading
Managing Workforce Diversity
How administrators manage workforce diversity greatly depends on the needs of the organization. For example, some companies may want a diversified work force in order to make them more competitive in the global market. Diversity helps them to better understand international markets. While other organizations consider diversity as a means to bring about greater harmony in the workplace and an opportunity to prepare employees and volunteers to deal with the nation’s changing demographics. Regardless of the reasons, managing diversity is here to stay. So, it’s no longer an issue whether to implement diversity training, but how diversity training will be implemented. “Managing for Diversity” pertains to a philosophy that is purely motivated by business purpose and market advantage. It is seen as a strategy for improving organizational competitiveness and efficiency. It is distinctly different from policies grounded in social purposes such as equal employment opportunity or affirmative action. It focuses Continue reading