Human Resources Management Notes
Human Resource Management
Human Resource Management (HRM) refers to managing people in organizations as valuable assets.
It focuses on recruitment, training, performance, and employee well-being.
Employees are at the core of every operation; without them, no system can function.
HRM vs. Engineering
Engineering focuses on technical skills and problem-solving, involving "hard" sciences.
HRM involves "soft" sciences: psychology, sociology, and anthropology.
Engineers must understand people to lead, motivate, and optimize performance.
Importance of HRM
Human resource is the most unpredictable and complex element in any system.
Despite technical advances, organizations cannot thrive without understanding people.
HRM equips engineers to manage both processes and people effectively.
Evolution of Human Resource Management
Craft System: Skilled individual workers, inconsistent quality.
Scientific Management: Efficiency-focused, dehumanized work.
Human Relations Movement: Psychological well-being matters.
Organizational Management: A holistic, strategic approach to HR.
Human Resource Planning
Definition: Prediction of a company’s future staffing needs.
Purpose: To identify the types of jobs needed and the qualifications required.
Linkage to Budgeting: Costs of recruitment and training are considered under HR Planning and factored into the organization’s operating budget.
Human Resource Forecasting
Definition: Estimation of the number of human resource requirements and the type of employees needed in the future.
Uses past data and current trends to predict future staffing needs.
Covers the forecasting of short-term and long-term needs based on the company's need for labor.
Factors include death, retirements, employee productivity, etc.
Job Description, Specification, and Design
Job Description: A list of what the job involves—tasks and responsibilities.
Job Specification: A list of what the applicant needs to qualify—skills, education, experience.
Job Design: How the job is done, tools/equipment used, and how it relates to other roles.
Example - Job Description: FREELANCE RECRUITMENT CONSULTANT
Job Title: Freelance Recruitment Consultant
Reports to: Managing Director
Job Summary/Purpose: To understand and match the needs of clients and candidates to provide quality tailored recruitment services while continually meeting targets.
*Client Management
*Candidate Management
Work Scheduling
Work hours often depend on the nature of the business (e.g., call centers matching clients' time zones).
Scheduling Schemes/Common Work Schedules
Altered Workweeks: Non-traditional hours or days.
Compressed Workweeks: Normal number of hours packed into fewer days.
Flextime: Employees work during a required core time but have the power to schedule the rest of their work hours.
Employee Recruitment and Selection
The process of finding candidates for job openings.
Types
Internal Labor Market: Promoting or transferring current employees to satisfy a position.
External Labor Market: Company hires new employees from the pool of candidates from outside the company.
Strategies of Hiring Based on Job Level
Low-skill jobs: Use ads on TV, radio, or newspapers.
Skilled Jobs: College campus recruiting.
Top management: Executive search companies.
Employee Training and Development
On-the-Job Training: Done at the actual work site (hands-on).
Off-the-Job Training: Done in classrooms/simulated environments for safety.
New hires undergo orientation to learn about the company.
Performance Management Appraisal Methods
Ranking Method: An employee is compared to other employees and ranked according to their performance.
Grading Method: Employee performance is evaluated through grades.
360-degree Approach: An employee’s performance is evaluated by his or her supervisors, peers, and customers.
Points to Consider (Career Planning & Development)
Companies help employees with career planning and development by providing counseling services and tools for self-assessment.
They identify future managers through assessment centers, where employees’ leadership and managerial potential are tested using case studies, exams, and other evaluation methods.
Leadership and Management
Leadership: Process by which one person influences others to achieve a goal. It has nothing to do with position or titles. But it makes sure to inspire and guide its people.
Management: Defined as getting things done by working together as a team, usually by planning and keeping the team organized and still on track.
Sources of a Leader’s Power
Organizational Power
Legitimate: Right to exercise power.
Reward: Ability to provide incentives for followers.
Coercive Power: Ability to give subordinates a punishment.
Personal Power
Expert: Comes from the leader’s expertise.
Referent: Comes from the leader’s charisma from others.
Styles of Leadership
Authoritarian: People must obey completely, and the leader has full control (e.g., Ferdinand Marcos Sr.).
Democratic: Run by the people, prioritizes open communication, team involvement (e.g., Barack Obama).
Bureaucratic: Follows a hierarchical structure; efficient and rational way that is organized. Example: Emperor Meiji
Benevolent: A people-centered approach that focuses on the development and well-being of employees
Charismatic: The leader‘s charm makes it possible for the members to follow whatever he says. Example: Nelson Mandela, Margaret Thatcher
Consultative: Leader takes the views of the team members into consideration but makes his or her own decision.
Laissez Faire: Leave-alone, emphasizes delegating decision-making to team members, granting them increased autonomy (e.g. Warren Buffet).
Abdicatorial: The leader has almost 0% leadership. Example: King Edward VII
Importance of Communication and Team Dynamics
Enhance Collaboration
Improves Morale
Align Goals
Build Trust
Boost Support
Adaptability Efficiency
Employee Compensation
Internal Factor: Utilizes job evaluation, which compares jobs to determine reasonable pay rates.
External Factor: Looks at the external environment and tries to determine how much rival firms pay their employees.
Fringe Benefits & Employee Services
Fringe Benefits: Insurance, pensions, sick leave, stock options. Some are mandatory (e.g., Social Security), others optional.
Employee Services: Perks like shuttle service, recreational areas, etc.
The Concept of Self
Self-concept.
Self-ideal
Self-esteem
Personality - The Johari Window
Open Area
Blind Area
Hidden Area
Unknown Area
Personality Studies
Cattell 16PF Questionnaire: Assesses personality based on sixteen factors.
Myers-Briggs Test: Personality is assessed according to how one relates to peers.
Big-Five Model: Assesses personality based on traits and degrees.
General Theories of Human Motivation
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Human Needs: Physiological, Safety, Social Needs/Love, Esteem, Self-actualization
Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory: Hygiene Factors & Motivator Factors
HR Challenges and Solutions
Globalization
National Culture
Workforce and Economic Diversity
Legislative Framework
Technological Advances
Conclusion
Key function of HRM
Workforce Planning and Recruitment
Employee Training and Development
Performance Management
Compensation and Benefits
Workplace Motivation and engagement
Workplace Relations & Leadership
Importance of Strategic HR Planning
The Changing Role of HR in the future
HR is all about managing people, and understanding each employee's behavior is key to maintaining harmony in the workplace. Because people are more unpredictable, HR faces complex challenges.