For effective management of any organization, a strong relationship between employers and their employees is required. The first step for every organization to achieve its goals is through developing, procuring and effective workforce maintenance. Since the most valuable resource for any business is its employees, effective human resource management is mandatory. Effective management of matters like employees’ motivation, hiring, administration, compensation and benefits determine the direction of any business.
Human resource management faces a number of challenges in implementing its role. Finding the right candidates for the jobs is not an easy task. For example, the high unemployment rates, and the huge number of educated people means that the HRM has to sort for best candidates from dozens of applicants. In addition, it is hard for HRM to manage labor and benefits costs. Any cause that may lead to company mismanagement may make the company trim employees’ benefits or to reduce staff member. The retained employees are overworked, which then results to productivity reduction.
Planning is the main function of human resource management. The organization has to plan for the type and the number of employees it require to accomplish its goals. The first part of organizational planning involves research. The information is then analyzed, in order to forecast on the supplies of human resources and predict on the needs of future human resources. The planning function is essential to any organization since it acts as the key to all other human resource management functions. In addition, through job analysis, HRM describes the nature of different jobs and the experiences and skills requirements. The design also outlines various activities and work duties of the employees.
The second role of HRM is the recruitment process. It involves evaluating and hiring of the best-suited candidates for the job, using the most cost effective manner. The human resource manager has to first describe and specify the vacancy-requiring filling or replacement. It is the role of HRM to describe the tasks for the job and the qualifications needed. The next process is to source for the candidates through external or internal advertising. Internal sourcing involves promoting, demoting retired employees, transferring, and retrenchment of employees. If the organization requires an increase in the number of its employees, it needs to carry external sourcing through media, newspaper, and internet advertisement. All the contacted applicants are then screened to get the most suited candidates. The process aims at identifying applicants’ education qualifications, experience, behavior, knowledge and skills relevant for the post. Those who qualify are then selected for the job.
The newly selected candidates need to be oriented. The process involves proving the employees with the required information, training, and instructions for the new environment and task. To understand their tasks, the organization mission and vision better, this process may involve meetings, lectures, videos, and monitoring and evaluation. It aims at increasing the employee’s’ skills and experience to perform their delegated jobs. Sometimes, it may take time for the candidates to adjust in their new environment, especially if the candidates were not able to understand the key organization’s policies. If this problem persists, it may lead the company making losses. New employees are encouraged to consult the HR in case of areas not clear to them. In addition, HRM also offers training and development programs to those candidates promoted to other higher position in the organization.
It is the role of human resource management to review the performance of all the organization’s employees regularly. Most organizations use performance management system, whereby they administer a performance appraisal system per year. Each employee should have his or her form for the HR to keep the performance for future reference. The main purpose for this is to measure the trends of the employee’s performance. The whole thing is to maintain and improve the performance of all staff members. To do this, the human resource management must first identify the organization competitive advantage. The next step is to identify the work outcomes and behavior required to maintain the identified organization competitive advantage and integrate recruitment, behavioral change, selection, leadership compensation, motivation systems, and training in order to bridge the gap between the aimed and the current performances. These implementations require a high degree of cooperation between the HRM department and other organs in the organization.
Human resource management also motivates, attracts and maintains its productive employees through compensation and benefits. Through compensation, HRM determines the monetary value it should offer its employees for their services. Compensation maintenance is one of the factors that affect staffing in that, organizations that offer higher salaries generally attract more people to work for them. Some organizations also offer other benefits in addition to compensation. These benefits include insurance, daycare, retirement benefits, sick leave, safety, funding of education, and disability income protection. Health and safety benefits are the most essential benefit program design. The benefits do not only ensure that the employees stay healthy, but they minimize the rate of absenteeism from the workplace.
It is the role of any organization HRM department to protect its employees’ rights and ethics. Every organization has its ethics watchdog organizations that may ruin its reputation if it engages in matters such as sexual harassment, unfair employment policies, and discrimination. To garner long-term employee loyalty and trust, employees’ ethical treatment is mandatory. Loyal employees work well with their employers; gain a lot of experience, and increase in productivity.
