Q1: The four cycles of HR are: acquisition, development, maintenance, and separation . Acquisition is also one of the relevant functions of HR which directly affects HRM. Acquisition involves recruitment, screening, and placement of applicants for positions that are vacant in the organization. Thus, the ability of HR personnel to locate candidates that perfectly match the needs and requirements of the organization as defined in the job description would determine the level of effectiveness in the HRM system.
Development is also a function of HRM that involves training of personnel and identifying opportunities for promotions and earmarking career paths. This function has a direct relationship to determining the level of effectiveness in HRM through the ability of the organization to meet the needs of the personnel towards attainment of goals.
The maintenance function involves designing policies and procedures in motivating, rewarding, and controlling employees. Thus, this directly and indirectly affects HRM management through the impact that the policies and procedures generate in terms of productivity, satisfaction, and morale. This has indirect relationships to an effective HRM system through the policies and procedures that have been pre-designed by higher management; including any incentive program and sanctions for personnel who violate these rules.
Finally, the last cycle, separation involves severance of ties of the employees with the organization. Directly, it indicates either failure of HRM to undertake the three previously defined functions which led to the employee’s failure to undertake respective roles and responsibilities. Indirectly, it could signal a need for higher management to evaluate policies and procedures which might cause employees to be dissatisfied or fail to accomplish identified goals.
Q2: The Skelly Doctrine accords conditions and procedures for public permanent employees prior to any punitive or disciplinary action could be imposed . It therefore defines a procedural process where conditions must be met prior to pre-removal of public permanent employees from the position assumed in the government.
As noted, there are four pre-removal standards that must be observed, as follows:
“1. A Written "notice of the proposed action,"
2. The “reasons” for such proposed action,
3. “A copy of the charges and the material upon which the action is based,” and
4. “The.right to respond, either orally or in writing, to the authority initially imposing
discipline” .
These conditions are necessary before any public employee could be subject to recommended disciplinary action as proposed by his or her immediate authority.
The Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act of 1883 has clearly stipulated that jobs within the government “must be awarded on the basis of merit” . The significance of this act therefore is seen in terms of avoiding the use of power and influence in appointing people in various positions in the government. Thus, any position or vacant job should be filled on the basis of defined requirements (educational background, skills, qualifications, passing civil service examinations, and other defined criteria) or merits before these positions could aptly be filled. The act would do away with undue interests and influence of politics and power in the selection of government employees or those who would be serving the public. As emphasized, the system was designed to do away with the patronage and spoils
system which provided jobs based on previous political party work .
Q3: Human Resources (HR) management involves designing and implementing policies and procedures that undertake the planning, organizing, directing and controlling of people (or human resources) in an organizational setting. As learned, there are five basic functions of human resources management (HRM) which includes planning, acquisition, development, sanctions, and control or adoption. As emphasized, HRM is the “art and the science of acquiring, motivating, maintaining and developing people in their jobs in light of their personal, professional and technical knowledge, skills, potentials, needs and values, and in synchronization with the achievement of individual, organization, and society’s goals” .
HRM concepts and techniques can be used by all managers and supervisors in their undertaking of their roles and responsibilities as leaders tasked with influencing people. Some of the HRM concepts involve understanding leadership, conflict resolution, change management, culture, motivation, and group behavior . For example, the concepts on leadership would assist supervisors and managers in discerning the types of leadership styles which must be used depending on the situation and the personalities of the subordinates. Likewise, concepts on change management would be helpful in designing strategies to address any resistance to change and in affirming the need for transformations that would benefit the organization in the long run. Concurrently, motivational theories would assist in designing strategies to encourage people to be more productive and achieve defined goals with greater job satisfaction and higher morale. Finally, concepts on recruitment and staffing could be used to identify and discern which are the most appropriate acquisition approaches and technique that the organization could utilize to perfectly match the organization’s human resources requirements with the skills, competencies and
knowledge possessed by potential candidates for positions applied for.
Q4: Five years from today, I would like to be part of the Saudi Foreign Ministry as a HR practitioner in a managerial role. I am currently taking my Master of Public Policy Administration and my undergraduate degree is in International Business. The concepts and skills developed through my educational background and through the course module provided the essential frameworks to be actively involved in the ministry. I was immensely interested to undertake the role and responsibilities of an HR practitioner; particularly one who would assume a managerial role. I was most interested in leadership responsibilities and challenging tasks involving motivation of employees; assisting on conflict resolution; designing policies and procedures that include overseeing performance evaluation that provides rewards and sanctions; as well as supporting the growth and development of people through training. With my academic background, I would be most competent in addressing varied needs and demands of the ministry’s stakeholders, especially in dealing and interacting with people from diverse cultural backgrounds.
With lessons learned on training and development of employees , I affirm my intention to develop personal and professional skills in this particular endeavor. I would like to be an instrumental contributor to the growth and advancement of people in the organizational setting; especially in assessing areas of improvement and aligning their respective personal goals with that of the organization. From acknowledging the importance of training, I have recognized that, in conjunction with other HRM concepts (such as motivation and leadership), employees in the Saudi Foreign Ministry could be accorded with more opportunities for professional growth through making their training more meaningful and rewarding. Thus, I plan to design training methods and approaches that would fit the needs of the organization and achieve both the goals of the people and that of the ministry .
Q5: Strategy is defined as a “method or plan chosen to bring about a desired future, such as achievement of a goal or solution to a problem” . A vision, on the other hand, is a statement of desired outcome or what one wants to ultimately reach, achieve, or become. Finally, a mission is the statement that explicitly details the manner by which one intends to achieve the defined mission . Thus, the strategy stipulates the plan of action or techniques and approaches that would assist in achieving the identified vision through following the organization’s mission statements as directional guides.
HR can be instrumental in helping an organization create its competitive advantage through focusing, believing and utilizing the competencies and skills of its human resources. Since HRM focuses on relevant facets and functions regarding human resources, through HR, an organization could use any of the functions separately; or in conjunction with each other towards the professional growth and development of its people. Likewise, performance evaluation results would enable HR practitioners to address any weaknesses and develop the needed skills and competencies. Through the identified mission and vision statements, leaders are given the directions or goals to achieve. Through strategies, leaders are provided with the techniques and approaches that would be used to achieve the defined goals. Through the use of concepts and theories learned in HR, practitioners are able to steer human resources towards the effective achievement of goals using the strategies that were designed to fulfill them – with minimum cost and which maximizes the potentials of people. As such, when HR has identified the strengths of people, they could use this as the core competence or competitive advantage over other organizations within the same line of endeavor.
References
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