The human resource body is the fundamental department in an organization. The efficient management of the human resource department will ensure that the organization will achieve its set objectives. Due to the important nature of the human resource department, it has to be in line with current trends that exist with changing times to achieve the optimum objectives set by an organization. The essay that follows intends to show that indeed change in the human resource department had to be incorporated with the evolution in the business world to ensure that a company meets its set objectives. The essay that follows intends to look at the evolution of the human resource management body and how it has influenced the achievement of set objectives through proper management of the employees (Blyton 14).
Human resource management can be defined as the body within an organization that is solely responsible for the employment, supervision and finally instructing the working body of an institution to achieve the set objectives of an institution. Human resource management is in itself an intricate process. A good understanding of the human resource philosophy needs to be grasped in order to understand how the evolution process of human resource management itself begun with the ancestral background of personnel management (Cotton 13).
The human resource management department forms a vital part of the management of an organization. Its main goal is to ensure that the human capital is put to effective and efficient use. The management of human resources refers to the practices, systems and finally the policies that govern the character, attitudes and performance of the employees which will ultimately affect the overall performance of an organization. The working role of the human resource management body is an extensive process that includes calculated planning of the workforce which entails recruiting potential employees, choosing, preparing them through training and developing their skills. It also involves acknowledging and rewarding the employees, evaluating their performance and establishing a positive and conducive working environment, and also considering their benefits (Schuler and Jackson 29).
The human resource field is evolving through time from strategic and administrative concerns to more strategic issues. The strategic concern implies that the management is more considerate of the human resources to be important assets to the company. Due to this, the role of the human resource body is being redirected from overemphasis on strategizing the merit systems and regulations to a much wider human resource focal point where the managers and leaders collaborate with the government in their quest to achieve the set goals and objectives of the organization. Even though these new policies are being incorporated into businesses the other routine work such as document keeping must also be considered a vital part and not be set aside just because of HRM (human resource management) (Cotton 35).
Some of the key components that determine a good human resource management body consists of the following; human capital and a good strategic plan, the bodies’ ability to determine a good and opportune time to facilitate hiring at a good time and workforce of good quality, development programs that are professional and sophisticated in nature, evaluation and reward frameworks that are meaningful and effective and efficient discipline (Nardley 44).
One of the trends being assimilated in the human resource management department is the decentralization system which has been incorporated in some places like Texas. In this kind of system, the personnel authority lies solely with the state agencies. Consequently, Texas does not possess a central human resource agency and neither does it accord its employees with merit protection. The categorization of jobs is the central function of the office of the state auditor. The office of the state auditor reports its proceedings to the legislature, this system, although it has been appraised by many, the managers say that it is a difficult process to obtain information for comparison and evaluative process. Despite this, there are several elements in these decentralization policies that are appealing. One of these is that the model provides a structure that responds to and meets the needs of different organizations and therefore providing managers the flexibility they require and which will enable them to also adapt to the changing situations (Holton and Trott 73).
The second benefit that comes with the decentralization policy is that it provides a good basic ground for hiring and firing and much more discreet agency accountability to the personnel. It is therefore the responsibility of the agencies to come up with and implement their own methods of selection of personnel and also the termination. Those people agreeing to decentralization say that this system is a bit more reliable because human resources will be put to better use and also correspond to the needs of the agency (Kleiman 63).
The changes in the role of the human resource department have resulted in a modification in the structure of the department. The role of the human resource has adjusted and it now focuses on the establishment and implementation of long standing objectives setting up partnerships and give support to the human capital in line with the organization in order to meet the objectives of the company. Before the changes came about, the human resource department mainly narrowed in on the day-to-day activities of the organization and this was a setback because most of the organization’s time was consumed (Dessler 45).
The core responsibility of the human resource department flows along a certain continuum that suggests the following; that even though the HRM is undergoing different changes and it is becoming more involved in operational and strategic systems of governance, it should not neglect its sole administrative responsibility of addressing problems and requests made and finding new ways of introducing efficient programs (Dessler 58).
Frederic Taylor is also referred to as the founder of scientific management. In the early 1900s, Taylor comes up with thoughts relating to scientific management. He proposes that employees should be selected based on their qualifications and brings about another idea that employees should be given incentive compensations so as to motivate them into doing more work and enjoying it (Hendry 61).
In 1910-1930, the existing companies come up with strategies that require development of departments that will be responsible for catering to the welfare of the employees. This forms the basis of industrial psychology and this coupled with the beginning of world 1 introduces a new method of critically analyzing the capabilities of different employees before employing them (Hendry 63).
During 1930-1945 the analysis of Hawthorn’s studies has an impact on the management activities and ideas and the issue of social and unofficial aspects that affect the productivity of the workers are addressed and this leads managers to think of a way of providing a better environment for the workers to achieve their optimum production (Hendry 64).
In 1965-1985 civil rights acts are passed and the management of the personnel function is greatly affected by the act as it stipulates against discrimination in the workplace that might be caused by gender, race, nationality, or along religious lines. The years that follow the passage of the civil rights acts are characterized by equality in employment opportunities together with confirmation actions which become the sole responsibility of the human resource department (Hendry 67).
Due to the liberalization of the government policies in a number of countries in the 1990s, people started migrating from one country to another in search of better job opportunities. This, therefore, opened doors for the employment of people with different cultures, ethnic backgrounds and races. A system had to be reached by the institutions that would ensure that these different people of different cultures would work together efficiently to reach the set objectives of a particular institution regardless of the different ethnic grounds of the workers. This forced the recruiting body to focus on employing workforce based on talent rather than nationality (Kleiman 103).
Personnel management began evolving in the 19th century when industrialization was booming. Before this period, managers thought that the work of the personnel department was to recruit and those personnel no longer required are dismissed, compensated or retired. With time, managers have come to realize that the appreciation of the value of personnel whether in the blue-collar jobs or white-collar jobs is an important key factor to be considered as a strategic feature for the achievement of an institution’s goal. Personnel management was previously viewed as an operational task same as procurements and marketing but lately, a new approach has been taken and it is now treated as a managerial responsibility (Kraut and Korman 87).
The coming of the 21st century has introduced a whole new approach in the human resource management due to the increased globalization. Those businesses servicing across national boundaries as international businesses or global enterprises are the ones that have been greatly impacted by globalization. One of the characteristics that have been brought about by globalization is that there is increase in human and financial resources that are flowing from one country to another. This has necessitated the managers of these organizations that are receiving human resources from other nations to improve effectiveness of the human resource department so as to optimize their competitiveness and increase their overall proceeds. The organizations therefore need to understand the current trends and practices in human resource management that are effective and will lead to maximum achievement of the organization’s objectives (Holton and Trott 135).
There is a list of three trends that have characteristically affected the human resource department one of them being the amplified diversity in labor force that has been brought by globalization so that companies no longer employ people on the basis of gender, race or ethnicity. Another trend that has been witnessed in the department is the globalization in the business world and the subsequent technological improvement that has seen a change in the human resource department. Lastly, the third trend that has been experienced is related to the above-named trends and it involves the visualization of human resource department as being a strategic function (Mathis and Jackson 159).
The new trends in human resource management are required due to globalization and the fact that different nations have different dimensions that characteristically affect the attractive natures of direct investment of companies in a different country. The differences in cultural practices of different countries make direct investment a problem therefore a good human resource department becomes a vital part of the formation of foreign investment in a different country. Various things affect the human resource department of an investment in a foreign country one of them is the human capital. In this respect human capital means the skills, capabilities or proficiency of the workforce. Because the current global world influences some components of the HRM department then organizations making direct foreign investment must encourage the development of managers who are globally oriented. This means that the managers should be individuals who are conversant with varying languages and cultures. These managers should also be familiar with the changing nature of foreign markets. These firms located in other foreign countries should be able to come to terms with the issues associated with expatriation. Some of these issues include the costs incurred in relocation among other things including training (Mabey, Graeme and Storey 114).
The passing of the federal and state laws has had an impact on the HRM practices and has gone to the extent of nearly changing the department. For instance, the anti-discrimination law that was passed had immense effects on the HRM department. Most organizations had the tendency of offering or refusing people the chance to employment due to reasons that are not job-oriented. They used to discriminate against people on the basis of ethnicity, gender, and race among other things. If an organization uses this as a basis of employment today, it could result in charges of discrimination against the organization. In order for organizations to protect themselves against the occurrence of such changes then the employers must ensure that their basis for selection is in line with the standardized objectives that were set aside by the legislation. A careful determination of the applicant’s qualifications must be considered and the accuracy of these set qualifications must also be in line with the stipulations of the legislation (Storey 27).
Some events of economic, technological and social issues also affect the HRM practices. An example of these events includes; the increased diversity in culture at the place of work, family and work issues, the increased rate of work illiteracy at the workplace and other issues such as mergers and acquisitions not to mention takeovers and layoffs (Storey 52).
In attempt to address some of these issues the organization managers are introducing new practices in the HRM department. Some of the new practices are that some firms are providing benefit options such as maternity leave and job sharing among others as a way of accommodating the various needs of families. Others are training and upgrading old workers on the current techniques of work (Noe 110).
HRM practices are usually affected by unions. Those companies that have been unionized must stick to the written negotiations between them and the unions that they are in agreement with. Many practices of the HRM department for example discipline and overtime procedures are commonly regulated by the unions. Those companies that are not unionized behave as if they are unionized indirectly that is they treat their employers fairly to prevent the likelihood of the employers seeking representation by the union (Noe 120).
The political and social pressures exerted on organizations so that they can have the health considerations of their employers have also had impact on the HRM practices. Organizations have learned to respond to these pressures by integrating programs with the aim of preventing accidents and other programs to ensure that their employees are in the right state of mind and well-being of the employees (Schuler and Jackson 220).
In summary, the human resource department has undergone a lot of changes through time to what it is currently. It has evolved from being personnel management over time to be human resource management. The human resource department of an institution forms an important part because if this department is managed properly then the set objectives of the organizations would be achieved through employee cooperation. Some of the trends that have affected the human resource department include the diverse nature of the labor force where people are employed in institutions without any kind of discrimination what so over regardless of the race or gender among other things. Globalization is another factor that has had an impact on the human resource department and has led to adjustments within the body of the organizations to ensure that the employees have a conducive environment for working. The mentioned trends are just but a few of the trends that are affecting the HR department and indeed it has led to desirable effects that have ensured employees have a good environment for work that has led to optimal achievement of an organization’s objectives.
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