Major Roles of HRM

Major Roles of HRM

Human resource management is a vital function of management in organizational settings. HRM performs the following roles in an organization.
1. Line Function Role: HR managers perform the line authority role within the human resource management department. They have right to make decision to direct the work of subordinates. And given order to their own department.

2. Staff Function Role: HR managers perform the staff authority role by assisting and advising line managers on HRM matters. HR managers are generally staff managers. They assist and advise line managers in acquisition, development, utilization and maintenance of human resources. They also administer various benefits and services for employees. They also assist line managers to comply with legal provision related to human resources in the organization.

3. Functional Control Role: HR managers perform the functional control role by coordinating all activities related to human resources management. They ensure that human resources objectives, policies, procedures, programmes and laws are being consistently carried out by line managers throughout the organization.

4. Strategies Role: HR managers are concerned with the development and implementation of people strategies to attain organizational goals. Such strategies are integrated with overall organizational strategies.

Responsibilities of HRM

According to the expert, “The direct handling of people is and always has been an integral part of every line manager’s responsibility, from president down to the lowest level supervision.” For example, one major company outlines its line supervisors’ responsibilities for effective human resource management under the following general headings.

• Placing the right person on the right job.
• Starting new employees in the organization (orientation).
• Training employees for job that are new to learn
• Improving job performance of each person.
• Gaining creative cooperation and developing smooth working condition.
• Interpreting the company’s policies and procedures.
• Controlling labor cost.
• Developmental moral
• Protecting employee’s health and physical condition.

In small organizations, line managers may carry out all these personnel duties unassisted. But as the organization grows, they need the assistance specialized knowledge, and advice of a separate human resource staff.

Development of HRM Concept

Development of HRM Concept

The development of human resources management concept is as follows:
1. Industrial revolution stage: Industrial revolution brought the three major developments

• The development of machinery 
• The linkage of human power to machine
• The establishment of factories.

Due to the industrial revolution, people specialized in their job. Workers organized themselves into trade unions to achieve better conditions of employment. Labor laws were enacted to protect the interest of worker. Collective bargaining between labor and management was used to settle industrial disputes.

Robert Owen reduced working hours and built houses and schools for workers. After industrial revolution, problems related to human resources led towards taking care of employees. It can be considered as the first stage of human resources development.

2. Scientific management movement stage: This stage aimed at improving worker efficiency through proper selection, training and compensation. F.W. Taylor suggested the following tips

• Individuals who are selected for the jobs should be physically and mentally ready to demand of jobs. 
• Employees should not be called upon to work at the time that would be detrimental to their health.
• Education and development of the workers, properly trained and developed workers produced best.
• Incentive system to “earn more be performing more” properly paid workers.
• Specialization through division of work to achieve efficiency.

3. Industrial psychology: An employee having positive attitude can faster industrial efficiency. Efficiency can be increased by testing intelligence test of the employee. Thus to increase the efficiency, human psychology should be studied through different test and should developed a good interest, and positive attitude on the work in them.

4. The human relation movement stage: This stage focuses people element in personnel management. Hawthorne studies serve as the beginning of human relation movement. It advocates the following personnel management aspects.

• Participative management and teamwork.
• Importance of social setting and group dynamics in employee productivity.
• Need for improved communication among managers and employees.

5. The period of labor legislation: To control, direct and motivate the labor, there should be strong need of some kinds of legislation. The civil right act was passed in 1964. Discrimination law, pension laws, health and safety laws, federal regulatory agencies and their interpretive, guidelines, and cowed ruling affected virtually every aspect of employment.

6. Organizational development movement stage: The organization development (OD) movement of the 1960s and 1970s was closely associated with the concept of behavioral science. The OD approach concentrates on overall organizational effectiveness, especially with regard to process how people behave in situation where they are constantly interacting with one another. Team development and management of change were often important features of an OD programme. Particular attention was paid to the analysis of group process and OD consultants evolved methods of analyzing organization behavior, especially within and between group, and of solving conflict problems.

Distinction between Personnel Management and HR Management

Distinction between Personnel Management and HR Management

HRM is developed from personnel management. They are similar in some ways but different in may ways. Many people feel that HRM offered nothing new and is just a meaningless and transatlantic level, which has been attached to personnel management. Effective personnel managers have always practiced HRM.

The following points highlights the difference between Personnel Management and Human Resource Management.

Personnel Management	Human Resource Management
1. It tries to develop individual employee.	1. HRM develops individual's employee through team effort.
2. It is a traditional approach to administration of people.	2. It is a modern system to management of human energy and physical strength.
3. It is concerned with individual satisfaction only.	3. It is concerned with whole team satisfaction.
4. PM dealing is related in negotiating administration and collect agreement.	4. HRM dealing is concerned in wider notion of work i.e. it emphasizes employee participation in decision making.
5. Personnel management used to assist line manager to implement the corporate strategy.	5. HR manager are the line manager who directly contribute to profit.
6. The outcomes of PM is individual satisfaction.	6. The outcomes of HRM is increased productivity, profit and organizational effectiveness.
7. PM has simple rising towards management.	7. HRM has broad vision toward management.
8. PM considers people as variable cost.	8. HRM requires people as social capital and valuable asset.

Concept and Factors Contributed for the Development of HRM

Concept of HRM

Human resource management is concerned with people dimension in organization. It focuses on management of human energy and capabilities to improve productivity. People possessing physical strength and energy alone are not human resource. People become human resource only when they contribute their competencies. Competencies are the combination of knowledge, skill, attitude, experience etc. As we know management is the art of getting things done through other people. Managers perform the function of planning, organizing, staffing, coordinating, directing etc. The staffing function is concerned with human resource management.

According to Decenzo and Robbins, “Human resource management is a process consisting of four functions acquisition, development, motivation and maintenance.”

According to Paul G. Hastings, “Human resource management is that aspect of management having as its goal the effective utilization of the labour resources of an organization.”
Similarly, Oliver Sheldon defines, “Human resource management is a part of the management process, which is primarily concerned with human constituents of an organization.”

Hence, in conclusion human resource management is very crucial for the success of any organization. Human beings are a resource to an organization but it is the living resource which cannot be equated with the other resources which are unanimated. Human resources add to the value while other resources add to the cost. All the firms buy the same material and machines but it is the people in the organization who built it and makes differences in the ultimate product. The human being never reaches an ultimate value throughout his lifetime at work which other resources reach to an ultimate value it starts producing. Thus, the management of human resource is very complicated and challenging task for those who are interested with the successful running of an organization and this implies considerable knowledge by various aspects of human resource management. The human resource management function or personnel function should be lightening rod attracting the tension and human conflict, which are inevitable in an organization and community.

Factors contributed for the Development of HRM

The phrase “human resource management” is not new. It was used as long as 40 years ago, but at that time, it was interchangeable with personnel management. The development of HRM has gone through different stages. Many factors have contributed for the development of human resource management. They are follows:

1. Industrial revolution stage: Industrial revolution brought the three major developments.

• The development of machinery
• The linkage of human power to machine
• The establishment of factories.

Due to the industrial revolution, people specialized in their job. Workers organized themselves into trade unions to achieve better conditions of employment. Labour laws were enacted to protect the interest of worker. Collective bargaining between labour and management was used to settle industrial disputes. Robert Owen reduced working hours and built house and schools for workers. After industrial revolution, problems related to human resources led towards taking care of employees. It can be considered as the first stage of human resources development.

2. Scientific management movement stages: This stage aimed at improving worker efficiency through proper selection, training and compensation. F. W. Taylor suggested the following tips:

• Individuals who are selected for the jobs should be physically and mentally to the demand of jobs.
• Employees should not be called upon to work at the time that would be detrimental to their health.
• Education and development of the workers, properly trained and developed workers produced best.
• Incentive system to “earn more be performing more” properly paid workers.
• Specialization through division of work to achieve efficiency.

3. Industrial psychology: An employee having positive attitude can faster industrial efficiency. Efficiency can be increased by testing intelligence test of the employee. Thus to increase the efficiency, human psychology should be studied through different test and should developed a good interest, and positive attitude on the work in them.

4. The human relation movement stage: This stage focuses people element in personnel management. Hawthorne studies serve as the beginning of human relation movement. It advocates the following personnel management aspects.

• Participative management and teamwork
• Importance of social setting and group dynamics in employee productivity.
• Need for improved communication among managers and employees.

5. The period of labour legislation: To control, direct and motivate the labour, there should be strong need of some kinds of legislation. The civil right act was passed in 1964. Discrimination law, pension laws, health and safety laws, federal regulatory agencies. And their interpretive guidelines and cowed ruling affected virtually every aspect of employment.

6. Organizational development movement stage: The organization development (OD) movement of the 1960s and 1970s was closely associated with the concept of behavioral science. The OD approach concentrates on overall organizational effectiveness, especially with regard to process how people behave in situation where they are constantly interacting with one another. Team development and management of change were often important features of an OD programme. Particular attention was paid to the analysis of group processes and OD consultants evolved methods of analyzing organization behavior, especially within and between group and of solving conflict problems.

In particular, Schein (1969) developed methodologies for process consulting. This involves helping clients to generate information, which they can understand about their projects and problems, and creating conditions for them to won the solutions to their problems by gaining internal commitment to their choice.