Unit 21 Human Resource Management

HND IN BUSINESS HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Unit 21Human Resource Management
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HND IN BUSINESS HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
LO-1
Whilst it is confusing to some, the difference between human resource management
and personal management is apparent. Personnel management basically deals with
the employees. Which includes things like their payroll, recruitment and
employment laws. On the other hand, human resource management deals with the
management of the workforce, training and general well being of all employees.
One definition of personnel management is that it functions to maintain fair terms
and conditions of employment, while at the same time efficiently managing personal
activities for individual departments. In the companies I have worked in in the past,
they have attempted to provide justice and efficiency in the personnel management
to achieve organisational success. Human resource management however is more
concerned with the development and implementation of strategies to achieve their
overall goals. It strategises the cultures, values and structure of organisations,
attempting to improve its motivation, commitment and quality of its members.
The reason why many find the difference complicated is because human resource
management carries out the same functional activities traditionally performed by
the personnel functions. These activities include job analysis, recruitment, employee
relations, performance management and compensation management etc. however
you can identify the difference as HRM performs these functions in a qualitatively
distinct way when compared to personnel management.
Personnel management is workforce centered, directed mainly at the organisations
employees. HRM however is resource-centered directed mainly at management, in
terms of developing their responsibilities to line management and is concerned with
management development. Although indisputably a management function,
personnel management has never totally identified with management interests, as it
becomes ineffective when not able to understand and articulate the aspirations and
views of the workforce, just as sales representatives have to understand and
articulate the aspirations of the customers (2). Human resource Management is
more proactive than personnel management. This is as personnel management is
more focused upon the maintenance of administrative systems whereas HRM is
about the forecasting of organisational needs and the continual monitoring and
adjustment of systems to meet goals and objectives.
"Human resource management (HRM) is concerned with the personnel policies and
managerial practices and systems that influence the workforce. In broader terms, all
decisions that affect the workforce of the organization concern the HRM function."
(Bernadin, H.J.2007). Furthermore Armstrong (2006, p.4) defined it as a strategic
and coherent approach of an organisation's most valued assets. - the people working
there, who individually and collectively contribute to the achievements of the
objectives of the business.
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Today’s world is ever changing and requires organisations to be flexible, able to
change and have a competitive edge. Competition has increased with globalization
and therefore having a good HR department is more important. It is often said that
people are the most important part of any organisation. This is truer in the service
industry however it is relevant to all businesses. The human leverage helps them
become more competitive with benefits arising in customer satisfaction and general
organisational performance. The changing characteristics of the workforce through
diversification and globalization have led to the importance increasing. Without it
there would be conflicts and problems arising, making organisations fail to achieve
its objectives and proposes. Effective resource management is said to improve
company profits. This can be from managing the human resources with a focus on
expanding customer bases and increasing profits.
Human resources have an implication upon every department in an organisation. If
the implemented strategies work well and create an effective efficient and
productive workforce, this will bring benefits to al areas of business and the
organisations performance. It takes direct influence of all the people working in an
organisation and therefore it has an indirect influence upon everything. It can
improve employee skills, abilities, motivation and the structure of all work.
These were a lot of things that influenced my role as a line manager within the
human resource department at Tesco PLC. I was the manager to which individuals
and teams directly reported for me to then professionally deal with higher levels of
management.I helped to co-ordinate and monitor the employee management
policies and procedures. This included general day-to-day human resource
management taskssuch as performance appraisal forms, interviewing candidates for
employment and making salary increase recommendations, all used to implement
human resource initiatives. I helped contribute towards the engagement of
employee’s, creating an organisational culture for teams. I focused on employees’
strengths, which essentially encouraged effective communication. One-to-one
interviews were conducted between the employees and myself to review
performance, reduce inefficiencies and reduce conflicts and problems. If
expectations are not met appropriate disciplinary procedures were conducted. My
commitment as a line manager to enforce the rules was vital towards the success of
human resource strategies. Within Tesco, there are performance related pay
structures in place. It was also my role in reports to determine performance results,
which in turn influenced pay increases.
There’s a lot of legislation and regulatory frameworks to which human resource
management is influenced by. One of the most influential pieces of legislature is
Title VII of the Civil Rights act of 1964. This prohibited the discrimination of
employees with regard to race, gender, age, nationality and religion. As a result,
human resource departments must tailor their strategies’ and procedures’ to
comply with the regulation, in order to avoid significant penalties. They must
provide fairness with regard to their pay, hiring, training, benefits’ and all other
activities. National minimum wage levels have been set which give them framework
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