In order to make sure our human capital meets the needs of the organization, there are main roles key to making this happen. However, keep in mind that many functions of HRM are also tasks other department managers perform, which is what makes this information important, despite the career path taken. Most experts agree on seven main roles that HRM plays in organizations. These are described in the following sections.
Staffing
You need people to perform tasks and get work done in the organization. Even with the most sophisticated machines, humans are still needed. Because of this, one of the major tasks in HRM is staffing. Staffing involves the entire hiring process from posting a job to negotiating a salary package. Within the staffing function, there are four main steps:
1.Development of a staffing plan. This plan allows HRM to see how many people they should hire based on revenue expectations.
2.Development of policies to encourage diversity at work. Multiculturalism in the workplace is becoming more and more important, as we have many more people from a variety of backgrounds in the workforce.
3.Recruitment. This involves finding people to fill the open positions.
4.Selection. In this stage, people will be interviewed and selected, and a proper compensation package will be negotiated. This step is followed by training, retention, and motivation.
Development of Workplace Policies
Every organization has policies to ensure fairness and continuity within the organization. One of the jobs of HRM is to develop the verbiage surrounding these policies. In the development of policies, HRM, management, and executives are involved in the process. For example, the HRM professional will likely recognize the need for a policy or a change of policy, seek opinions on the policy, write the policy, and then communicate that policy to employees. It is key to note here that HR departments do not and cannot work alone. Everything they do needs to involve all other departments in the organization. Some examples of workplace policies might be the following:
• Discipline process policy
• Vacation time policy
• Dress code
• Ethics policy
• Internet usage policy
Compensation and Benefits Administration
HRM professionals need to determine that compensation is fair, meets industry standards, and is high enough to entice people to work for the organization. Compensation includes anything the employee receives for his or her work. In addition, HRM professionals need to make sure the pay is comparable to what other people performing similar jobs are being paid. This involves setting up pay systems that take into consideration the number of years with the organization, years of experience, education, and similar aspects. Examples of employee compensation include the following:
• Pay
• Health benefits
• 401(k) (retirement plans)
• Stock purchase plans
• Vacation time
• Sick leave
• Bonuses
• Tuition reimbursement
Retention
Retention involves keeping and motivating employees to stay with the organization. Compensation is a major factor in employee retention, but there are other factors as well. Ninety percent of employees leave a company for the following reasons:
1.Issues around the job they are performing
2.Challenges with their manager
3.Poor fit with organizational culture
4.Poor workplace environment
Despite this, 90 percent of managers think employees leave as a result of pay. As a result, managers often try to change their compensation packages to keep people from leaving, when compensation isn’t the reason they are leaving at all.
Training and Development
Once we have spent the time to hire new employees, we want to make sure they not only are trained to do the job but also continue to grow and develop new skills in their job—in other words, we want to continue to develop our human capital so we can continually be successful within our organization—resulting in higher productivity for the organization. Training is also a key component in employee motivation. Employees who feel they are developing their skills tend to be happier in their jobs, which results in increased employee retention. Examples of training programs might include the following:
• Job skills training, such as how to run a particular computer program
• Training on communication
• Team-building activities
• Policy and legal training, such as sexual harassment training and ethics training
Dealing with Laws Affecting Employment
Human resource people must be aware of all the laws that affect the workplace. An HRM professional might work with some of these laws:
• Discrimination laws
• Health-care requirements
• Compensation requirements such as the minimum wage
• Worker safety laws
• Labor laws
The legal environment of HRM is always changing, so HRM must always be aware of changes taking place and then communicate those changes to the entire management organization. Rather than presenting a chapter focused on HRM laws, we will address these laws in each relevant chapter.
Worker Protection
Safety is a major consideration in all organizations. Oftentimes new laws are created with the goal of setting federal or state standards to ensure worker safety. Unions and union contracts can also impact the requirements for worker safety in a workplace. It is up to the human resource manager to be aware of worker protection requirements and ensure the workplace is meeting both federal and union standards. Worker protection issues might include the following:
• Chemical hazards
• Heating and ventilation requirements
• Use of “no fragrance” zones
• Protection of private employee information
Knowing the law regarding worker protection is generally the job of human resources. In some industries it is extremely important; in fact, it can mean life or death.
Communication
Besides these major roles, good communication skills and excellent management skills are key to successful human resource management as well as general management.
Awareness of External Factors
In addition to managing internal factors, the HR manager needs to consider the outside forces at play that may affect the organization. Outside forces, or external factors, are those things the company has no direct control over; however, they may be things that could positively or negatively impact human resources. External factors might include the following:
1.Globalization and offshoring
2.Changes to employment law
3.Health-care costs
4.Employee expectations
5.Diversity of the workforce
6.Changing demographics of the workforce
7.A more highly educated workforce
8.Layoffs and downsizing
9.Technology used, such as HR databases
10.Increased use of social networking to distribute information to employees
For example, the recent trend in flexible work schedules (allowing employees to set their own schedules) and telecommuting (allowing employees to work from home or a remote location for a specified period of time, such as one day per week) are external factors that have affected HR. HRM has to be aware of these outside issues, so they can develop policies that meet not only the needs of the company but also the needs of the individuals. Another example is the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, signed into law in 2010. Compliance with this bill has huge implications for HR. For example, a company with more than fifty employees must provide health-care coverage or pay a penalty. Currently, it is estimated that 60 percent of employers offer health-care insurance to their employees.[] Because health-care insurance will be mandatory, cost concerns as well as using health benefits as a recruitment strategy are big external challenges. Any manager operating without considering outside forces will likely alienate employees, resulting in unmotivated, unhappy workers. Not understanding the external factors can also mean breaking the law, which has a concerning set of implications as well.
Figure 1.2 Key External Factors in HRM
An understanding of key external factors is important to the successful HR professional. This allows him or her to be able to make strategic decisions based on changes in the external environment. To develop this understanding, reading various publications is necessary.
One way managers can be aware of the outside forces is to attend conferences and read various articles on the web. For example, the website of the Society for Human Resource Management, SHRM Online, not only has job postings in the field but discusses many contemporary human resource issues that may help the manager make better decisions when it comes to people management.
Figure 1.3 HRM Professionals' Roles
Most professionals agree that there are seven main tasks HRM professionals perform. All these need to be considered in relation to external and outside forces.
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