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Human resource management
Business Dictionary:
Human Resources Management (HRM)
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Home > Library > Business & Finance > Business Dictionary
Term that is replacing personnel management and implying that personnel managers
should not merely handle recruitment, pay, and discharging, but should maximize
the use of an organization's human resources.
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Small Business Encyclopedia:
Human Resource Management
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Home > Library > Business & Finance > Small Business Encyclopedia
Human Resource Management (HRM) is the term used to describe formal systems devi
sed for the management of people within an organization. These human resources r
esponsibilities are generally divided into three major areas of management: staf
fing, employee compensation, and defining/designing work. Essentially, the purpo
se of HRM is to maximize the productivity of an organization by optimizing the e
ffectiveness of its employees. This mandate is unlikely to change in any fundame
ntal way, despite the ever-increasing pace of change in the business world. As E
dward L. Gubman observed in the Journal of Business Strategy, "the basic mission
of human resources will always be to acquire, develop, and retain talent; align
the workforce with the business; and be an excellent contributor to the busines
s. Those three challenges will never change."
Until fairly recently, an organization's human resources department was often co
nsigned to lower rungs of the corporate hierarchy, despite the fact that its man
date is to replenish and nourish the company's work force, which is often cited le
gitimately as an organization's greatest resource. But in recent years recognition
of the importance of human resources management to a company's overall health h
as grown dramatically. This recognition of the importance of HRM extends to smal
l businesses, for while they do not generally have the same volume of human reso
urces requirements as do larger organizations, they too face personnel managemen
t issues that can have a decisive impact on business health. As Irving Burstiner
commented in The Small Business Handbook, "Hiring the right people and training t
hem well can often mean the difference between scratching out the barest of liveli
hoods and steady business growth . Personnel problems do not discriminate between
small and big business. You find them in all businesses, regardless of size."
Principles of Human Resource Management
Business consultants note that modern human resource management is guided by sev
eral overriding principles. Perhaps the paramount principle is a simple recognit
ion that human resources are the most important assets of an organization; a bus
iness cannot be successful without effectively managing this resource. Another i
mportant principle, articulated by Michael Armstrong in his book A Handbook of H
uman Resource Management, is that business success "is most likely to be achieve
d if the personnel policies and procedures of the enterprise are closely linked
with, and make a major contribution to, the achievement of corporate objectives
and strategic plans." A third guiding principle, similar in scope, holds that it
is HR's responsibility to find, secure, guide, and develop employees whose tale
nts and desires are compatible with the operating needs and future goals of the
company. Other HRM factors that shape corporate culture whether by encouraging int
egration and cooperation across the company, instituting quantitative performanc
e measurements, or taking some other action are also commonly cited as key compone
nts in business success. HRM, summarized Armstrong, "is a strategic approach to
the acquisition, motivation, development and management of the organization's hu
man resources. It is devoted to shaping an appropriate corporate culture, and in
troducing programs which reflect and support the core values of the enterprise a
nd ensure its success."
Position and Structure of Human Resource Management
Human resource management department responsibilities can be broadly classified
by individual, organizational, and career areas. Individual management entails h
elping employees identify their strengths and weaknesses; correct their shortcom
ings; and make their best contribution to the enterprise. These duties are carri
ed out through a variety of activities such as performance reviews, training, an
d testing. Organizational development, meanwhile, focuses on fostering a success
ful system that maximizes human (and other) resources as part of larger business
strategies. This important duty also includes the creation and maintenance of a
change program, which allows the organization to respond to evolving outside an
d internal influences. The third responsibility, career development, entails mat
ching individuals with the most suitable jobs and career paths within the organi
zation.
Human resource management functions are ideally positioned near the theoretic ce
nter of the organization, with access to all areas of the business. Since the HR
M department or manager is charged with managing the productivity and developmen
t of workers at all levels, human resource personnel should have access to and the
support of key decision makers. In addition, the HRM department should be situate
d in such a way that it is able to effectively communicate with all areas of the
company.
HRM structures vary widely from business to business, shaped by the type, size,
and governing philosophies of the organization that they serve. But most organiz
ations organize HRM functions around the clusters of people to be helped they cond
uct recruiting, administrative, and other duties in a central location. Differen
t employee development groups for each department are necessary to train and dev
elop employees in specialized areas, such as sales, engineering, marketing, or e
xecutive education. In contrast, some HRM departments are completely independent
and are organized purely by function. The same training department, for example
, serves all divisions of the organization.
In recent years, however, observers have cited a decided trend toward fundamenta
l reassessments of human resources structures and positions. "A cascade of chang
ing business conditions, changing organizational structures, and changing leader
ship has been forcing human resource departments to alter their perspectives on
their role and function almost over-night," wrote John Johnston in Business Quar
terly. "Previously, companies structured themselves on a centralized and compart
mentalized basis head office, marketing, manufacturing, shipping, etc. They now se
ek to decentralize and to integrate their operations, developing cross-functiona
l teams . Today, senior management expects HR to move beyond its traditional, comp
artmentalized 'bunker' approach to a more integrated, decentralized support func
tion." Given this change in expectations, Johnston noted that "an increasingly c
ommon trend in human resources is to decentralize the HR function and make it ac
countable to specific line management. This increases the likelihood that HR is
viewed and included as an integral part of the business process, similar to its
marketing, finance, and operations counterparts. However, HR will retain a centr
alized functional relationship in areas where specialized expertise is truly req
uired," such as compensation and recruitment responsibilities.
Human Resource Management key Responsibilities
Human resource management is concerned with the development of both individuals
and the organization in which they operate. HRM, then, is engaged not only in se
curing and developing the talents of individual workers, but also in implementin
g programs that enhance communication and cooperation between those individual w
orkers in order to nurture organizational development.
The primary responsibilities associated with human resource management include:
job analysis and staffing, organization and utilization of work force, measureme
nt and appraisal of work force performance, implementation of reward systems for
employees, professional development of workers, and maintenance of work force.
Job analysis consists of determining often with the help of other company areas the
nature and responsibilities of various employment positions. This can encompass
determination of the skills and experiences necessary to adequately perform in a
position, identification of job and industry trends, and anticipation of future
employment levels and skill requirements. "Job analysis is the cornerstone of H
RM practice because it provides valid information about jobs that is used to hir
e and promote people, establish wages, determine training needs, and make other
important HRM decisions," stated Thomas S. Bateman and Carl P. Zeithaml in Manag
ement: Function and Strategy. Staffing, meanwhile, is the actual process of mana
ging the flow of personnel into, within (through transfers and promotions), and
out of an organization. Once the recruiting part of the staffing process has bee
n completed, selection is accomplished through job postings, interviews, referen
ce checks, testing, and other tools.
Organization, utilization, and maintenance of a company's work force is another
key function of HRM. This involves designing an organizational framework that ma
kes maximum use of an enterprise's human resources and establishing systems of c
ommunication that help the organization operate in a unified manner. Other respo
nsibilities in this area include safety and health and worker-management relatio
ns. Human resource maintenance activities related to safety and health usually e
ntail compliance with federal laws that protect employees from hazards in the wo
rkplace. These regulations are handed down from several federal agencies, includ
ing the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Environment
al Protection Agency (EPA), and various state agencies, which implement laws in
the realms of worker's compensation, employee protection, and other areas. Maint
enance tasks related to worker-management relations primarily entail: working wi
th labor unions; handling grievances related to misconduct, such as theft or sex
ual harassment; and devising communication systems to foster cooperation and a s
hared sense of mission among employees.
Performance appraisal is the practice of assessing employee job performance and
providing feedback to those employees about both positive and negative aspects o
f their performance. Performance measurements are very important both for the or
ganization and the individual, for they are the primary data used in determining
salary increases, promotions, and, in the case of workers who perform unsatisfa
ctorily, dismissal.
Reward systems are typically managed by HR areas as well. This aspect of human r
esource management is very important, for it is the mechanism by which organizat
ions provide their workers with rewards for past achievements and incentives for
high performance in the future. It is also the mechanism by which organizations
address problems within their work force, through institution of disciplinary m
easures. Aligning the work force with company goals, stated Gubman, "requires of
fering workers an employment relationship that motivates them to take ownership
of the business plan."
Employee development and training is another vital responsibility of HR personne
l. HR is responsible for researching an organization's training needs, and for i
nitiating and evaluating employee development programs designed to address those
needs. These training programs can range from orientation programs, which are d
esigned to acclimate new hires to the company, to ambitious education programs i
ntended to familiarize workers with a new software system.
"After getting the right talent into the organization," wrote Gubman, "the secon
d traditional challenge to human resources is to align the workforce with the bu
siness to constantly build the capacity of the workforce to execute the business p
lan." This is done through performance appraisals, training, and other activitie
s. In the realm of performance appraisal, HRM professionals must devise uniform
appraisal standards, develop review techniques, train managers to administer the
appraisals, and then evaluate and follow up on the effectiveness of performance
reviews. They must also tie the appraisal process into compensation and incenti
ve strategies, and work to ensure that federal regulations are observed.
Responsibilities associated with training and development activities, meanwhile,
include the determination, design, execution, and analysis of educational progr
ams. The HRM professional should be aware of the fundamentals of learning and mo
tivation, and must carefully design and monitor training and development program
s that benefit the overall organization as well as the individual. The importanc
e of this aspect of a business's operation can hardly be over-stated. As Roberts
, Seldon, and Roberts indicated in Human Resources Management, "the quality of e
mployees and their development through training and education are major factors
in determining long-term profitability of a small business . Research hasshown spe
cific benefits that a small business receives from training and developing its w
orkers, including: increased productivity; reduced employee turnover; increased
efficiency resulting in financial gains; [and] decreased need for supervision."
Meaningful contributions to business processes are increasingly recognized as wi
thin the purview of active human resource management practices. Of course, human
resource managers have always contributed to overall business processes in cert
ain respects by disseminating guidelines for and monitoring employee behavior, for
instance, or ensuring that the organization is obeying worker-related regulator
y guidelines but increasing numbers of businesses are incorporating human resource
managers into other business processes as well. In the past, human resource man
agers were cast in a support role in which their thoughts on cost/benefit justif
ications and other operational aspects of the business were rarely solicited. Bu
t as Johnston noted, the changing character of business structures and the marke
tplace are making it increasingly necessary for business owners and executives t
o pay greater attention to the human resource aspects of operation: "Tasks that
were once neatly slotted into well-defined and narrow job descriptions have give
n way to broad job descriptions or role definitions. In some cases, completely n
ew work relationships have developed; telecommuting, permanent part-time roles a
nd outsourcing major non-strategic functions are becoming more frequent." All of
these changes, which human resource managers are heavily involved in, are impor
tant factors in shaping business performance.
The Changing Field of Human Resource Management
In recent years, several business trends have had a significant impact on the br
oad field of HRM. Chief among them were new technologies. These new technologies
, particularly in the areas of electronic communication and information dissemin
ation and retrieval, have dramatically altered the business landscape. Satellite
communications, computers and networking systems, fax machines, and other devic
es have all facilitated change in the ways in which businesses interact with eac
h other and their workers. Telecommuting, for instance, has become a very popula
r option for many workers, and HRM professionals have had to develop new guideli
nes for this emerging subset of employees.
Changes in organizational structure have also influenced the changing face of hu
man resource management. Continued erosion in manufacturing industries in the Un
ited States and other nations, coupled with the rise in service industries in th
ose countries, have changed the workplace, as has the decline in union represent
ation in many industries (these two trends, in fact, are commonly viewed as inte
rrelated). In addition, organizational philosophies have undergone change. Many
companies have scrapped or adjusted their traditional, hierarchical organization
s structures in favor of flatter management structures. HRM experts note that th
is shift in responsibility brought with it a need to reassess job descriptions,
appraisal systems, and other elements of personnel management.
A third change factor has been accelerating market globalization. This phenomeno
n has served to increase competition for both customers and jobs. The latter dev
elopment enabled some businesses to demand higher performances from their employ
ees while holding the line on compensation. Other factors that have changed the
nature of HRM in recent years include new management and operational theories li
ke Total Quality Management (TQM); rapidly changing demographics; and changes in
health insurance and federal and state employment legislation.
Small Business and Human Resource Management
A small business's human resource management needs are not of the same size or c
omplexity of those of a large firm. Nonetheless, even a business that carries on
ly two or three employees faces important personnel management issues. Indeed, t
he stakes are very high in the world of small business when it comes to employee
recruitment and management. No business wants an employee who is lazy or incomp
etent or dishonest. But a small business with a work force of half a dozen peopl
e will be hurt far more badly by such an employee than will a company with a wor
k force that numbers in the hundreds (or thousands). Nonetheless, "most small bu
siness employers have no formal training in how to make hiring decisions," noted
Jill A. Rossiter in Human Resources: Mastering Your Small Business. "Most have
no real sense of the time it takes nor the costs involved. All they know is that
they need help in the form of a 'good' sales manager, a 'good' secretary, a 'go
od' welder, or whatever. And they know they need some-one they can work with, wh
o's willing to put in the time to learn the business and do the job. It sounds s
imple, but it isn't."
Before hiring a new employee, the small business owner should weigh several cons
iderations. The first step the small business owner should take when pondering a
n expansion of employee payroll is to honestly assess the status of the organiza
tion itself. Are current employees being utilized appropriately? Are current pro
duction methods effective? Can the needs of the business be met through an arran
gement with an outside contractor or some other means? Are you, as the owner, sp
ending your time appropriately? As Rossiter noted, "any personnel change should
be considered an opportunity for rethinking your organizational structure."
Small businesses also need to match the talents of prospective employees with th
e company's needs. Efforts to manage this can be accomplished in a much more eff
ective fashion if the small business owner devotes energy to defining the job an
d actively taking part in the recruitment process. But the human resource manage
ment task does not end with the creation of a detailed job description and the s
election of a suitable employee. Indeed, the hiring process marks the beginning
of HRM for the small business owner.
Small business consultants strongly urge even the most modest of business enterp
rises to implement and document policies regarding human resource issues. "Few s
mall enterprises can afford even a fledgling personnel department during the fir
st few years of business operation," acknowledged Burstiner. "Nevertheless, a la
rge mass of personnel forms and data generally accumulates rather rapidly from t
he very beginning. To hold problems to a minimum, specific personnel policies sh
ould be established as early as possible. These become useful guides in all area
s: recruitment and selection, compensation plan and employee benefits, training,
promotions and terminations, and the like." Depending on the nature of the busi
ness enterprise (and the owner's own comfort zone), the owner can even involve h
is employees in this endeavor. In any case, a carefully considered employee hand
book or personnel manual can be an invaluable tool in ensuring that the small bu
siness owner and his or her employees are on the same page. Moreover, a written
record can lend a small business some protection in the event that its managemen
t or operating procedures are questioned in the legal arena.
Some small business owners also need to consider training and other development
needs in managing their enterprise's employees. The need for such educational su
pplements can range dramatically. A bakery owner, for instance, may not need to
devote much of his resources to employee training, but a firm that provides elec
trical wiring services to commercial clients may need to implement a system of c
ontinuing education for its workers in order to remain viable.
Finally, the small business owner needs to establish and maintain a productive w
orking atmosphere for his or her work force. Employees are far more likely to be
productive assets to your company if they feel that they are treated fairly. Th
e small business owner who clearly communicates personal expectations and compan
y goals, provides adequate compensation, offers meaningful opportunities for car
eer advancement, anticipates work force training and developmental needs, and pr
ovides meaningful feedback to his or her employees is far more likely to be succ
essful than the owner who is neglectful in any of these areas.
Further Reading:
Armstrong, Michael. A Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice. Kogan Page
Limited, 1999.
Burstiner, Irving. The Small Business Handbook. Prentice Hall, 1988.
Green, Paul C. Building Robust Competencies: Linking Human Resource Systems to O
rganizational Strategies. Jossey-Bass, 1999.
Gubman, Edward L. "The Gauntlet is Down." Journal of Business Strategy. November
-December 1996.
Johnston, John. "Time to Rebuild Human Resources." Business Quarterly. Winter 19
96.
Reece, Barry L., and Rhonda Brandt. Effective Human Relations in Organizations.
Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1993.
Roberts, Gary, Gary Seldon, and Carlotta Roberts. Human Resources Management. Wa
shington, D.C.: Small Business Administration, n.a.
Rossiter, Jill A. Human Resources: Mastering Your Small Business. Upstart Publis
hing, 1996.
Solomon, Charlene Marmer. "Working Smarter: How HR Can Help." Personnel Journal.
June 1993.
Ulrich, Dave. Delivering Results: A New Mandate for HR Professionals. Harvard Bu
siness School Press, 1998.
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Wikipedia:
Human resource management
Top
Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
Human resource management (HRM) is the strategic and coherent approach to the ma
nagement of an organization's most valued assets - the people working there who
individually and collectively contribute to the achievement of the objectives of
the business.[1] The terms "human resource management" and "human resources" (H
R) have largely replaced the term "personnel management" as a description of the
processes involved in managing people in organizations.[1] In simple words, HRM
means employing people, developing their capacities, utilizing, maintaining and
compensating their services in tune with the job and organizational requirement
.
Contents [hide]
* 1 Features
* 2 Academic theory
* 3 Business practice
o 3.1 HRM strategy
* 4 Careers and education
* 5 Professional organizations
* 6 Functions
* 7 See also
* 8 References
Features
Its features include:
* Organizational management
* Personnel administration
* Manpower management
* Industrial management[2][3]
But these traditional expressions are becoming less common for the theoretical d
iscipline. Sometimes even employee and industrial relations are confusingly list
ed as synonyms,[4] although these normally refer to the relationship between man
agement and workers and the behavior of workers in companies.
The theoretical discipline is based primarily on the assumption that employees a
re individuals with varying goals and needs, and as such should not be thought o
f as basic business resources, such as trucks and filing cabinets. The field tak
es a positive view of workers, assuming that virtually all wish to contribute to
the enterprise productively, and that the main obstacles to their endeavors are
lack of knowledge, insufficient training, and failures of process.
Human Resource Management(HRM) is seen by practitioners in the field as a more i
nnovative view of workplace management than the traditional approach. Its techni
ques force the managers of an enterprise to express their goals with specificity
so that they can be understood and undertaken by the workforce, and to provide
the resources needed for them to successfully accomplish their assignments. As s
uch, HRM techniques, when properly practiced, are expressive of the goals and op
erating practices of the enterprise overall. HRM is also seen by many to have a
key role in risk reduction within organisations.[5]
Synonyms such as personnel management are often used in a more restricted sense
to describe activities that are necessary in the recruiting of a workforce, prov
iding its members with payroll and benefits, and administrating their work-life
needs. So if we move to actual definitions, Torrington and Hall (1987) define pe
rsonnel management as being:
a series of activities which: first enable working people and their employing org
anisations to agree about the objectives and nature of their working relationshi
p and, secondly, ensures that the agreement is fulfilled" (p. 49).
While Miller (1987) suggests that HRM relates to:
".......those decisions and actions which concern the management of employees at
all levels in the business and which are related to the implementation of strat
egies directed towards creating and sustaining competitive advantage" (p. 352).
Academic theory
The goal of human resource management is to help an organization to meet strateg
ic goals by attracting, and maintaining employees and also to manage them effect
ively. The key word here perhaps is "fit", i.e. a HRM approach seeks to ensure a
fit between the management of an organisation's employees, and the overall stra
tegic direction of the company (Miller, 1989).
The basic premise of the academic theory of HRM is that humans are not machines,
therefore we need to have an interdisciplinary examination of people in the wor
kplace. Fields such as psychology, industrial relations, industrial engineering,
sociology, economics, and critical theories: postmodernism, post-structuralism
play a major role. Many colleges and universities offer bachelor and master degr
ees in Human Resources Management or in Human Resources and Industrial Relations
.
One widely used scheme to describe the role of HRM, developed by Dave Ulrich, de
fines 4 fields for the HRM function:[6]
* Strategic business partner
* Change management
* Employee champion
* Administration
However, many HR functions these days struggle to get beyond the roles of admini
stration and employee champion, and are seen as reactive rather than strategical
ly proactive partners for the top management. In addition, HR organisations also
have difficulty in proving how their activities and processes add value to the
company. Only in recent years have HR scholars and professionals focused on deve
loping models that can measure the value added by HR.[7]
Business practice
Human resources management involves several processes. Together they are suppose
d to achieve the above mentioned goal. These processes can be performed in an HR
department, but some tasks can also be outsourced or performed by line-managers
or other departments. When effectively integrated they provide significant econ
omic benefit to the company.[8]
* Workforce planning
* Recruitment (sometimes separated into attraction and selection)
* Induction, Orientation and Onboarding
* Skills management
* Training and development
* Personnel administration
* Compensation in wage or salary
* Time management
* Travel management (sometimes assigned to accounting rather than HRM)
* Payroll (sometimes assigned to accounting rather than HRM)
* Employee benefits administration
* Personnel cost planning
* Performance appraisal
* Labor relations
HRM strategy
An HRM strategy pertains to the means as to how to implement the specific functi
ons of HRM. An organization's HR function may possess recruitment and selection
policies, disciplinary procedures, reward/recognition policies, an HR plan, or l
earning and development policies, however all of these functional areas of HRM n
eed to be aligned and correlated, in order to correspond with the overall busine
ss strategy. An HRM strategy thus is an overall plan, concerning the implementat
ion of specific HRM functional areas.
An HRM strategy typically consists of the following factors:
* "Best fit" and "best practice" - meaning that there is correlation between
the HRM strategy and the overall corporate strategy. As HRM as a field seeks to
manage human resources in order to achieve properly organizational goals, an or
ganization's HRM strategy seeks to accomplish such management by applying a firm
's personnel needs with the goals/objectives of the organisation. As an example,
a firm selling cars could have a corporate strategy of increasing car sales by
10% over a five year period. Accordingly, the HRM strategy would seek to facilit
ate how exactly to manage personnel in order to achieve the 10% figure. Specific
HRM functions, such as recruitment and selection, reward/recognition, an HR pla
n, or learning and development policies, would be tailored to achieve the corpor
ate objectives.
* Close co-operation (at least in theory) between HR and the top/senior mana
gement, in the development of the corporate strategy. Theoretically, a senior HR
representative should be present when an organization's corporate objectives ar
e devised. This is so, since it is a firm's personnel who actually construct a g
ood, or provide a service. The personnel's proper management is vital in the fir
m being successful, or even existing as a going concern. Thus, HR can be seen as
one of the critical departments within the functional area of an organization.
* Continual monitoring of the strategy, via employee feedback, surveys, etc.
The implementation of an HR strategy is not always required, and may depend on a
number of factors, namely the size of the firm, the organizational culture with
in the firm or the industry that the firm operates in and also the people in the
 firm.
An HRM strategy can be divided, in general, into two facets - the people strateg
y and the HR functional strategy. The people strategy pertains to the point list
ed in the first paragraph, namely the careful correlation of HRM policies/action
s to attain the goals laid down in the corporate strategy. The HR functional str
ategy relates to the policies employed within the HR functional area itself, reg
arding the management of persons internal to it, to ensure its own departmental
goals are met.
Careers and education
Further information: Graduate degree programs in human resources management
Cornell University's School of Industrial and Labor Relations was the world's fi
rst school for college-level study in HRM
Several universities offer programs of study pertaining to HRM and broader field
s. Cornell University created the world's first school for college-level study i
n HRM (ILR School).[9] University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign also now has a
school dedicated to the study of HRM, while several business schools also house
a center or department dedicated to such studies; e.g., University of Minnesota
, Michigan State University, Ohio State University, and Purdue University.
There are both generalist and specialist HRM jobs. There are careers involved wi
th employment, recruitment and placement and these are usually conducted by inte
rviewers, EEO (Equal Employment Opportunity) specialists or college recruiters.
Training and development specialism is often conducted by trainers and orientati
on specialists. Compensation and benefits tasks are handled by compensation anal
ysts, salary administrators, and benefits administrators.
Professional organizations
Professional organizations in HRM include the Society for Human Resource Managem
ent, the Australian Human Resources Institute (AHRI), the Chartered Institute of
Personnel and Development (CIPD), the International Public Management Associati
on for HR (IPMA-HR), Management Association of Nepal (MAN) and the International
Personnel Management Association of Canada (IPMA-Canada), Human Capital Institu
te. National Human Resource Development Network in India.
Functions
The Human Resources Management (HRM) function includes a variety of activities,
and key among them is deciding what staffing needs you have and whether to use i
ndependent contractors or hire employees to fill these needs, recruiting and tra
ining the best employees, ensuring they are high performers, dealing with perfor
mance issues, and ensuring your personnel and management practices conform to va
rious regulations. Activities also include managing your approach to employee be
nefits and compensation, employee records and personnel policies. Usually small
businesses (for-profit or nonprofit) have to carry out these activities themselv
es because they can't yet afford part- or full-time help. However, they should a
lways ensure that employees have and are aware of personnel policies which conform t
o current regulations. These policies are often in the form of employee manuals,
which all employees have.
Note that some people distinguish a difference between HRM (a major management a
ctivity) and HRD (Human Resource Development, a profession). Those people might
include HRM in HRD, explaining that HRD includes the broader range of activities
to develop personnel inside of organizations, including, e.g., career developme
nt, training, organization development, etc.
There is a long-standing argument about where HR-related functions should be org
anized into large organizations, e.g., "should HR be in the Organization Develop
ment department or the other way around?"
The HRM function and HRD profession have undergone major changes over the past 2
0 30 years. Many years ago, large organizations looked to the "Personnel Departmen
t," mostly to manage the paperwork around hiring and paying people. More recentl
y, organizations consider the "HR Department" as playing an important role in st
affing, training and helping to manage people so that people and the organizatio
n are performing at maximum capability in a highly fulfilling manner.
See also
* Nomenclature
* Human resources
* Enterprise Feedback Management (EFM)
* E-HRM
References
1. ^ a b Armstrong, Michael (2006). A Handbook of Human Resource Management P
ractice (10th ed.). London: Kogan Page. ISBN 0-7494-4631-5. OCLC 62282248.
2. ^ "personnel management". The Columbia Encyclopedia (Sixth Edition ed.). C
olumbia University Press. 2005. http://www.bartleby.com/65/x-/X-personne.html. R
etrieved 2007-10-17. "personnel management - see industrial management".
3. ^ Encyclopædia Britannica (kl ed.). "Personnel administration is also freque
ntly called personnel management, industrial relations, employee relations".
4. ^ Encyclopædia Britannica.
5. ^ Towers, David. "Human Resource Management essays". http://www.towers.fr/
essays/hrm.html. Retrieved 2007-10-17.
6. ^ Ulrich, Dave (1996). Human Resource Champions. The next agenda for addin
g value and delivering results. Boston, Mass.: Harvard Business School Press. IS
BN 0-87584-719-6. OCLC 34704904.
7. ^ Smit, Martin E.J.H. (2006). HR, Show me the money; Presenting an explora
tory model that can measure if HR adds value.
8. ^ The Strategic Impact of High Performance Work Systems
9. ^ "About Cornell ILR". Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor R
elations. http://www.ilr.cornell.edu/about/. Retrieved 23 August 2009.
* Wilkinson, A. (1988). "Empowerment: theory and practice". Personnel Review
27 (1): 40 56. doi:10.1108/00483489810368549. http://hermia.emeraldinsight.com/vl
=2601464/cl=84/nw=1/fm=docpdf/rpsv/cw/mcb/00483486/v27n1/s3/p40. Retrieved 2007-
10-17.
* Legge, Karen (2004). Human Resource Management: Rhetorics and Realities (A
nniversary ed.). Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 1-403-93600-5. OCLC 56730
524.

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