Chapter 1 - THE Nature OF Human Resource Management PDF

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CHAPTER 1 - THE NATURE OF HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT HRM  basis of all management activity (getting the people of the business to make things happen in a productive way so that the business prospers and the people thrive) To function and achieve their objectives, all organisations need access to: - Capital (finance) - Some form of distribution network (publicise, sell & dispense) - Human resources (know-how, ideas, labour) Before: people required simply to provide manual labour (no skill or experience needed) Now: still the same in some industries and in some parts of the world but in industrialised countries jobs require master, high level skills, attributes New methods to manage the members: acquire a capacity for developing people effectively, together with increasingly sophisticated approaches to recruitment, selection, retention, employee relations and performance management Process more complex for organisations that employ people in ≠ countries Window on practice: 2008  Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport opened its doors total cost = £4.3 billion and supposed to be a success but it turned out to be a big failure Why? Poor management of people (staff not properly trained to use the equipment, unprepared to technical glitches…) Defining HRM Term used in 2 ≠ ways: - Body of management activities, “personnel management” - Management of people distinct from personnel management 1) Generic term HR activity has 4 objectives:  Staffing objectives:  make sure business is appropriately staffed and draw on the HR it needs  developing attractive employment packages  Performance objectives:  ensure that people are well motivated and committed  training and dvp  welfare functions employee involvement initiatives  Change-management objectives  structural change need reorg° of activities or introduction of new people into particular roles / cultural change  employee involvement is crucial  management of conflict and avoidance through careful management of expectations  Administration objectives  facilitate an organisation’s smooth running

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legal aspect required by the law (regarding payments, deduction of taxation, sick pay, maternity pay and leave, monitory of health and safety systems…) excellence in administrative tasks provide a source of competitive advantage

2) A distinctive approach to the management of people Personnel management  workforce centred // HRM  resource centred

The evolution of modern HRM  Social justice Late 19th early 20th: welfare officers to manage a series of new initiatives to make life less harsh for the employees Pay attention to the welfare of employees  improves commitment, higher productivity, longer-serving workforce, bigger pool of applicants for each job, reduces risk of conflicts Ex: employee assistance schemes, childcare facilities, health-screening programmes  Humane bureaucracy Fostering of social relationships in the workplace and employee morale  raise productivity  Negotiated consent After WW2 growth in trade union membership Appointment of personnel officers + specialist courses in universities  Organisation Focus on management itself and integration of managerial activity Dvp of career paths and opportunities within org° for personal growth Personal specialists developed techniques of labour or workforce planning  HRM 1980s: HRM replaced ‘personnel management’ (coincided with the decline of trade union influence) decentralisation of bargaining + rise of non-union firm  managers free to dvp their own local policies and practices: - Macho approach (efficiency & cost saving measures, downsized workplace…) - Enhance profitability & competitiveness by seeking to gain employee commitment and investing in their people New norm: employ HR managers, officers and assistants whose aim was to add value  A “new HR”

New trajectories: - Rise of multi-employer networks (permeable organisations) - Employment relationship views employees and potential employees as individuals or small groups rather than a single group which seeks to engage them emotionnaly Customers are the ultimate employers and staff are empowered to meet their requirements - Managers refer to the staff and line managers whom they serve as their internal customers they aim to satisfy and survey regularly - Strategic business partner - Gratton: categorising job applicants and existing staff into distinct categories summarising their principal aspirations  provide employee value position (attract right candidate, effective performers, motivate, retain them longer…) - Lepak & Snell: HR moved from the management of jobs to the management of people  dvp of employment strategies for ≠ groups - Cardy et al.: HR function focused on internal customers, thinking employment from the perspective of the employee  increase the value employees perceive that they derive from the relationship (value equity), improve the reputation of the organisation as an employer (brand equity), establish and maintain high levels of loyalty with employees (retention equity)  repositioning of HR: same aim (help the organisation to achieve its objectives) BUT ≠ means (increased recognition that an active engagement and support of the people is necessary) Most successful organisations = those who are able to recruit, retain & motivate good people HRM and the achievement of organisational effectiveness 2 main types of research regarding the links between HR practices and organisational effectiveness: - Correlations between superior business performance and the presence of HR practices in thousands of organisations - Establish through interviews in successful organisations what factors have contributed to their growth, profitability, quality of service…  Ccl: organisations that adopt appropriate, sophisticated, good-practice HR practices are more likely to meet their business objectives over the LT Through what processes does HR make this contribution? Several possibilities: - Good management + positive employment relations climate  employees more motivated, committed and performant - Effective HRM allow to dvp and maintain a strong & positive corporate reputation  easy to raise money, desirable place to put their client’s money, strong customer base - In real world HRM is focused on reducing labour costs and extracting greater value for organisations from their HR  intensification of work + more efficient operations - Any HR contribution to the maintenance of superior business performance is limited. Having gained its competitive advantage, an employer has the resources to develop good HR practices. Fleetwood & Hesketh: warn against uncritical acceptances of these studies HR practices and policies can only have an “enabling role” in this process and the average employee’s commitment is linked closely to the formal architecture of HRM.

Purcell et al: HR policies and practices can help but what makes the difference are sufficient numbers of line managers who are both willing and able to give life and meaning to the policies. Purcell & Hutchinson: without communication and support of line managers in implementing the policies, little chance that the desired outcomes will ever materialise

progressive HR practices can play in bringing about these outcomes: - Giving people career dvp opportunities - Giving people influence over their own area of work - Making jobs challenging and interesting - Providing good training - Appraising people regularly on their individual performance - Team working - Involving employees in decision making - Providing a good work-life balance - Employing line managers who are good at leadership and who show respect - Building an organisation’s reputation as an ethically or socially responsible organisation Human capital = knowledge + experience (source of competitive advantage)...