In recent years business environment has become highly competitive. It has forced the manager to develop different strategies to cope with competitiveness. These strategies help organizations to survive in competitive environment. One area that has been important as a means of providing a competitive advantage is the management of the Human Resource function. Over the past decade there has been a dramatic shift in the field of Human Resource Management, with great emphasis being applied to the human resource management function and its significant contribution to organisational performance. However in order to influence organisational performance it is required that there are certain ‘practices’ of human resource management that must be abided by in order for improved performance to be achieved. Unfortunately there has been no authoritative definition of best practice that has been agreed by academics or practitioners. This leads to a lack of conceptual clarity of the HRM best Continue reading
Modern HRM
Psychological Contract – Meaning and Importance
The psychological contract is certainly an important aspect of the employment relationship as it invisibly binds the employer and the employee through a set of expectations. For the individual in an organisation, the psychological contract is mostly relevant as it directly affects the level of motivation, commitment and morale of that person. Moreover, a positive psychological contract helps to boost the productivity and performance of an employee. Thus, to gain the commitment and loyalty of individual employees, it becomes essential that organisations put in place appropriate systems to foster the identification of employee expectations and ways to fulfill them. However, expectations are not easily identified, both on the employers and employees side. These often give rise to breaches on behalf of either one or both parties. The maintaining of a positive psychological contract with all members of an organisation thus becomes a primary focus of the HR practitioner and HR Continue reading
Workplace Diversity – Meaning and Impacts
Today’s workforce is made up of many types of people. Organisations can no longer assume that every employee has similar beliefs or expectations. Organizations exist to serve human needs. An organisation is only effective as the people who operate it. People are considered the most important resource in any organisation. They are the basic foundation of an organization and the basic unit of change within organisation. The human resource approach focuses on the interaction between people and the organization. If communication between employees is poor, organization will suffer. When coordination and interaction within the organization is good, both employees and business will benefit. Workplace diversity refers to the division of the working force into separate categories that have a apparent unity or harmony within a given cultural context and that impact potentially beneficial or harmful outcomes of employments such as job opportunities, workplace treatment prospects of promotion of employees, irrespective Continue reading
Five Domains of Emotional Intelligence
Several studies have demonstrated that individuals with purely high IQs possess a great range of intellectual interests and abilities, they have difficulty dealing with their own emotions and with the emotions of others. Other intangible characteristics and abilities, such as self-motivation, impulse control, the ability to regulate one’s own emotions, and empathizing with others clearly have an effect on a person’s accomplishments in life; these qualities have been collectively termed Emotional Intelligence. People with high emotional intelligence levels excel socially, are outgoing and cheerful, are rarely fearful or worried, and are sympathetic and caring in their relationships. Read More: Four Components of Emotional Intelligence Five Domains of Emotional Intelligence Emotional intelligence can be broken down into five main domains: knowing one’s emotions, managing emotions, motivating oneself, recognizing emotions in others, and handling relationships. 1. Knowing One’s Emotions – Self Awareness People deal with their emotions by either being aware of Continue reading
Conflicts in Workplaces – Definition, Causes, Impacts, and Handling
Organizations comprise people from different cultural, professional, racial, age, and other demographic backgrounds. Where people are segregated along these diversity differences, cultural conflicts arise. This suggests that managers and leaders within organizations encounter immense challenges in seeking effective strategies for recruitment, training, developing, and retaining the most talented personnel in an organization characterized by immense workforce diversities. Conflicts often produce a negative implication on the performance of an organization. Since the principal goal of organizational leadership is to look for mechanisms of resolving challenges, which may hinder the performance of an organization so that it delivers value to its owners (shareholders), conflict avoidance constitutes a risky approach to conflict management. These challenges become even more pronounced as many organizations endeavor to engage in global businesses as a measure of increasing their competitive advantage. The more diverse the workforce is, the higher the risks of workplace conflicts associated with diversity differences. Continue reading
Benefits of Career Management
Career is a general course of action, an individual chooses to pursue, all through his or her employment life. It may be represented as occupational positions a person has hold over so many years. Many people feel satisfied by achieving their career goals. At the same time, others have a strong feeling that, their careers, their lives and their potential has undergone unfulfilled. Employers too have a profound effect on employees’ careers. Some organisations have very formal career management processes, while others are very little concern about it. Career management is defined as ongoing process of preparing, implementing and monitoring career plans. It can be undertaken either by the individual alone or can be a concerted activity along with the organisation’s career systems. Career management is a process that enables the employees to better understand their career skills, develop and give direction to it and to use those skills and Continue reading