Human Resource Management Unit 1

Unit 1 Introduction to Human Resource Management

Structure:
1.1 Introduction to Human Resource Management
Objectives
1.2 Concept of Human Resource Management
1.3 Scope of Human Resource Management
1.4 History of Human Resource Management
1.5 Function of Human Resource Management
1.6 Role of HR Executives
1.7 Summary
1.8 Glossary
1.9 Terminal Questions
1.10 Answers
1.11 Case Study

1.1 Introduction to Human Resource Management

Every organisation is essentially a blend of material and Human Resource
(HR). Material refers to money and machines pre-arranged by organisations
for production or trade. Human Resource, on the other hand, refers to the
knowledge, education, skills, training and ability of the members of the
organisation. Human resources are the most valuable and unique assets of
an organisation.
The successful management of an organisation's human resources is an
exciting, dynamic and challenging task, especially at a time when the world
has become a global village and economies are in a state of change. The
scarcity of talented resources and the growing expectations of the modern
day worker have further increased the complexity of the human resource
function. Even though specific human resource functions/activities are the
responsibility of the human resource department, the actual management of
human resources is the responsibility of all the managers in an organisation.
In this unit, we shall look into the concept of Human Resource Management
(HRM), its functions and roles in detail.

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Objectives:
After studying this unit, you should be able to:
 describe the concept of HRM
 define the scope of HRM
 describe the history of HRM
 explain the functions of human resource
 recognise the role of HR executives

1.2 Concept of Human Resource Management

Today’s organisations constantly mould itself to meet the business
challenges despite economic, political and social patterns in which it exists.
The efforts made by organizations to sustain business metrics like revenue,
profits and growth, market share is possible only through the people in the
organization who work towards making this happen within the enterprise.
One of the most useful definitions of Human Resources Management
(HRM) is provided by Fisher, Schoendfelt and Shaw in their book “Human
Resources Management,“ HRM involves all management decisions and
practices that directly affect or influence the people or Human resources
who work for the organization”.
The concept of human resources entails:
 Total knowledge
 Skills
 Creative abilities
 Talents
 Aptitudes of an organisation’s workforce
 Values
 Attitudes
 Belief of the individuals involved
A human resource manager has to build an effective workforce, handle the
expectations of the employees and ensure that they perform at their best.
He or she also has to take into account the firm’s responsibilities to the
society that it operates in.
It is therefore necessary for all managers to understand and give due
importance to the different human resource policies and activities in the
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organisation. Human resource management outlines the importance of HRM

and its different functions in an organisation. It examines the various HR
processes that are concerned with attracting, managing, motivating and
developing employees for the benefit of the organisation.
Objectives of HRM
The objectives of HRM can be classified into the following:
 To act as a link between the top management and the employees.
 To arrange and maintain adequate manpower inventory, which in turn,
ensures the smooth working of the organisation.
 To offer training as a way of developing skills, enhancing productivity
and most importantly, increasing individual and organisational
performance to achieve the desired results.
 To devise employee benefit schemes for improving employee motivation
and group morale, and enhancing employer-employee cooperation.
 To ensure and enhance the quality of work life, which refers to the
employees’ perception of their physical and psychological well-being at
work.
 To help keep up ethical values and behaviour amongst employees both
within and outside the organisation.

Self Assessment Questions

Fill in the blanks:
1. A HR Manager has to build an effective ____________,
workforce handle the
expectations of the employees and ensure that they perform at their
best.
2. One of the major objectives of HRM is to act as a link between the
top management and __________.
____________ employees
3. HRM examines the various HR processes that are concerned with
developing motivating
attracting, managing, ______ and ______ employees for the benefit of
the organisation.

1.3 Scope of Human Resource Management

In the previous section we discussed the concept and objectives of HRM.
Let us now discuss the scope of HRM in an organisation.

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The scope of HRM is wide and far-reaching. An understanding of HRM is

important to anyone who is employed in an organisation. HR issues become
important wherever there is a group of workers. Staffing is performed by all
the managers as a managerial function, either directly or indirectly through
HR department. All managers are, in this way, HR managers, since they get
involved in HR activities such as selecting, training, inducting, compensating
and motivating the employees along with industrial relations activities.
We may classify the scope of HRM under the following heads:
 HRM in personnel management – This is typically direct manpower
management that involves manpower planning, hiring (recruitment and
selection), training and development, induction and orientation, transfer,
promotion, compensation, layoff and retrenchment, and employee
productivity. The overall objective is to ascertain individual growth,
development and effectiveness which indirectly contribute to
organisational development.
It also includes performance appraisal, developing new skills,
disbursement of wages, incentives, allowances, travelling policies and
procedures, and other related courses of actions.
 HRM in employee welfare – This particular aspect of HRM deals with
working conditions and amenities at the workplace. This includes a wide
array of responsibilities and services such as safety services, health
services, welfare funds, social security and medical services. It also
covers appointment of safety officers, making the environment
conducive for working, eliminating workplace hazards, support by top
management, job safety, safeguarding machinery, cleanliness, proper
ventilation and lighting, sanitation, medical care, sickness benefits,
employment injury benefits, personal injury benefits, maternity benefits,
unemployment benefits and family benefits.
It also relates to supervision, employee counselling, establishing
harmonious relationships with employees, education and training.
Employee welfare is about determining employees’ real needs and
fulfilling them with active participation of both the management and the
employees. In addition to this, it also takes care of canteen facilities,
crèches, rest and lunch rooms, housing, transport, medical assistance,
education, health and safety, recreation facilities, etc.

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 HRM in industrial relations – Since employment relationship is a highly

sensitive area, it needs careful interactions with labour or employee
unions, address their grievances and effectively settle the disputes in
order to maintain peace and harmony in the organisation. Industrial
relations is the art and science of understanding the employment (union-
management) relations, joint consultations, disciplinary procedures,
solving problems with mutual efforts, understanding human behaviour
and maintaining work relations, collective bargaining and settlement of
disputes.
The main aim is to safeguard the interest of employees by securing the
highest level of understanding to the extent that does not leave a
negative impact on the organisation. It is about establishing, growing
and promoting industrial democracy to safeguard the interests of both
employees and management.

Self Assessment Questions

Match the following:
4. Personnel management (a) working conditions and workplace
amenities
5. Employee welfare (b) promotes industrial democracy
6. Industrial relations (c) Direct manpower management

1.4 History of Human Resource Management

In the previous unit we discussed the scope of HRM and its classification
under different headings. Let us now discuss the history of HRM.
There is a vast difference between modern HRM and the personnel
management that was prevalent decades ago. By the end of the twentieth
century, the managerial philosophy that had defined the personnel function
had undergone radical changes. Over the past several years, scientific
management approach and the human relations approach appeared and
then disappeared too. However, the human resource approach has gained
prominence in recent times.

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Scientific management approach

Fredrick Taylor, who is widely considered to be the father of scientific
management, focused on motions that were required for each job, the tools
used and the time needed to accomplish each task. Fair performance
standards were then determined for each job, on the basis of such scientific
data rather than on the superior’s subjective judgment. Those workers
whose output exceeded the standards were given additional incentive pay.
The base of scientific management was solely motivated by money and led
to many problems.
Human relations approach
The Hawthorne studies conducted during the 1930 and 1940s, forced
organisations to shift their attention from scientific management approach to
human relations approach.
Hawthorne studies suggested that employee productivity was not only
influenced by the way the job was designed and the economic rewards, but
also by certain social and psychological factors. Feelings, emotions and
sentiments of employees were greatly influenced by work conditions such
as group relationships and management support.
It was recognised that treating employees with respect would improve
employee satisfaction and help in achieving higher productivity.
Human resources approach
Human resources approach treats people as resources, rather than factors
of production, or as human beings who act on the basis of emotions alone.
Some of the principles of human resource approach are:
 Employees are assets to an organisation.
 Policies, programmes and practices must cater to the needs of
employees and should help them in their work and in their personal
development.
 The job and tasks are the primary motivators for employees. Individual
employee needs must be catered to maintain motivation.
 It is necessary to create and maintain a supportive work environment, to
encourage the employees to develop and harness their knowledge and
skills for the benefit of the organisation.

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 HR policies and practices should be in alignment with the goal of

balancing individual and organisation’s needs.
When employees are considered as assets and treated individually, the
level of motivation improves. This leads to more committed and better
employee performance. Overall increase in the performance of employees
leads to an increased organisational performance. When the organisation
reaps benefits out of the increased performance, it is bound to share some
of it to the employees in the form of employee rewards.
Employee rewards may be monetary such as hike in salary or increments or
it may be non-monetary such as change in designation, status, fringe
benefits, etc. When employees realise that they are rewarded and respected
for their efforts they are further motivated. Thus, the human resource
approach helps the employees to achieve through a mutual process where
the organisation and the employees help each other to achieve their goals
as shown in figure 1.1.

Employee
Motivation

Employee Employee
Rewards Performance

Organisational
Performance

Fig. 1.1: Human Resource Approach

[Source: ICFAI Center for Management Research]
8

Self Assessment Questions

Fill in the blanks:
Fredrick Taylor
7. _________ is considered to be the father of scientific management.
Hawthorne suggested that employee productivity was not only
8. __________
influenced by the way the job was designed and the economic rewards
but also by certain social and psychological factors.

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Human resource
9. __________ approach states that HR policies and practices should be
in alignment with the goal of balancing individual and organisation’s
needs.

Activity 1:
Browse the Internet and prepare a report on the implications of
Hawthorne Studies.
(Hint: Refer to:
1. http://www.enotes.com/hawthorne-experiments-
reference/hawthorne-experiments
2. http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/hrd/history/hawthorne.html)
3. http://www.accel-team.com/motivation/hawthorne_02.html

1.5 Function of Human Resource Management

In the previous section we discussed the history of HRM and analysed the
various approaches towards HRM. Let us now describe the functions of
HRM.
Human resource management involves blending the traditional
administrative functions along with the changing concepts of employee
welfare in the organisation. Organisations now regard employees as a
precious resource and spend more efforts to retain them. The retention of
employees is dependent on how they are perceived and treated in the
organisation based on their performance, abilities and skills.
Human resource managers are involved right from identifying potential
candidates for jobs to their separation from the organisation. They
encourage communication amongst the employees and also promote better
employer – employee relationship.
Organisational performance depends directly on how efficiently and
effectively the HR department functions. It is the quality of the human
resources available to the organisation that primarily determines the quality
of the products and services produced by the organisation. The HR
personnel are the key link between the top management and the
employees. Today, HRM operates in tune with other essential organisational
requirements and co-exists with the topmost management cadre. It thrives

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on the strength of the relationship between the management and the

workers of the company.
Figure 1.2 depicts the major functions that an HR manager has to carry out
in any organisation. The extent of activities carried out by the HR is
dependent on the size and scope of the organisation, the nature of
operations and the attitude of management towards the employees.

MISSION OF AN ORGANISATION

P O D C VISION & OBJECTIVES

L R I O
A G R N HRM OBJECTIVES
N A E T
I N C R STRATEGIES AND POLICIES OF HRM
N I T O
G S I L MANAGERIAL FUNCTIONS OF HRM
I N L
N G I OPERATIVE FUNCTIONS OF HRM
G N
G EMPLOYMENT HUMAN CONPENSATION EMPLOYEE
RESOURCES MANAGEMENT RELATIONS
DEVELOPMENT
JOB MOTIVATION
HUMAN EVALUATION
RESOURCES PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL
DEVELOPMENT WAGE AND MORALE
TRAINING SALARY
RECRUITMENT JOB
MANAGEMENT DEVELOPMENT FRINGE SATISFACTION

SELECTION BENEFTS
PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL
COMMUNICATION
INDUCTION ORGANISATION CHANGE AND
ORGANISATION DEVELOPMENT GRIEVANCE AND
PLACEMENT 10
DISCIPLINARY PROCEDURE

Fig. 1.2: Flow Chart of Functions of HRM

[Source: Rao, Subba (2011). Essentials of HRM and Industrial Relations,
3rd Ed. Himalaya Publishing Pvt Ltd.]

HRM functions can be broadly classified into the following two categories:
1. Managerial functions
2. Operative functions
Managerial functions of HR department
The managerial functions of HR department include the following:
 Planning – Future course of action; it also includes identifying human
resource requirements and forecasting personnel needs.

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 Organising – Division of labour; assignment of responsibility is part of

the organisation’s functions.
 Staffing – It is the process of obtaining and maintaining capable and
competent personnel in various positions at all levels, i.e., manpower
planning, recruitment, selection, placement and induction.
 Directing – It is the process of directing all the available resources
towards the common organisational goals.
 Controlling – It is the measurement and rectification of activities to
ensure that the events conform to plans.
Operative functions of HR department
Operative functions of HR department are those core functions that only the
HR department is assigned to perform. These include functions such as
employment of new personnel, developing their skill sets, compensating
them for their efforts and maintaining employee relations. Figure 1.3 depicts
the operative functions of HRM.

Fig. 1.3: Operative Functions of HRM

Let us now discuss the operative functions of HRM.

 Employment – Employment is the first operative function of HRM. This
involves procuring and employing individuals with suitable knowledge,
skills, experience and aptitude necessary to perform various jobs. It
includes functions such as job analysis, human resource planning,

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recruitment, selection, placement and induction. Figure 1.4 shows the

different functions of employment.

Fig. 1.4: Functions of Employment

The various functions of employment are:

a) Job analysis – To ensure the satisfactory performance of an
employee, his skills, abilities and motives to perform a job must
match the requirements of the job.Job analysis is the process by
which the tasks which comprise the job are determined and the skills
and abilities required to perform it successfully are identified.
b) HR planning – HR planning involves forecasting the human
resource requirements of an organisation and the future supply of
human resources, and making suitable adjustments between the two
in correlation with the organisational plans.
c) Recruitment – Recruitment is the process of seeking and attracting
prospective candidates against a vacancy in the organisation.
d) Selection – The purpose of employment selection is to choose the
right candidate for a job.
e) Placement – After a selected candidate conveys his or her
acceptance of the offer of employment made by an organisation, his
or her placement has to be decided based on the needs of the
organisation.

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f) Induction – Introducing a new employee to the organisation, the

organisation’s business, its culture, values and beliefs, and practices
and procedures is termed as induction.
 HR development – HR development concentrates on developing the
workforce so that both the employees and the organisation in turn can
achieve their goals. It focuses on strengthening the skills, knowledge
and aptitudes of the employees. This includes functions starting with
evaluating the performance of the employees, providing necessary
training and development programmes to fill the gaps between current
performances to the optimum performance of employees.
HR development involves functions such as:
a) Performance appraisal – This is the process of evaluating the
performance of an employee on the job and developing a plan for
the employee’s improvement. This includes an assessment of the
strengths and weaknesses of the employee, and drawing up a
development plan in consultation with him or her to prepare him or
her for future tasks and responsibilities in the organisation.
b) Training – Training is the systematic development of knowledge,
skills and attitudes required to perform a given task or job
successfully, in an individual.
c) Management development – It is the concept of developing the
employees of an organisation to meet future changes and
challenges.
d) Career planning and development – Career planning and
development refers to identifying one’s career goals and formulating
plans forachieving them through various means such as education
and work experience.
 Compensation – Compensation includes all the rewards that an
employee receives during the course of his or her job–for his or her
contributions to the organisation. Compensation encompasses base
salary, incentives, bonus and benefits, and is based on job evaluation.
a) Job evaluation – Job evaluationis a systematic determination of the
value of each job in relation to other jobs in the organisation, in the
industry and in the market.

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b) Wage and salary administration – Wage and salary administration is

the process of formulating and operating a suitable wage and salary
programme.
c) Incentives – Incentives are the rewards that an employee earns in
addition to regular wages or salary based on the performance of the
individual, the team or the organisation.
d) Fringe benefits – Fringe benefits are monetary and non-monetary
benefits given to employees during their employment, and
sometimes, also in the post-employment period. These include
housing facilities, canteen facilities, conveyance facilities,
educational facilities for employees and their children, medical and
welfare facilities, company stores, etc.
 Employee relations – Employee relations deals with the employees, in
the organisational context, as a social group that contributes to the
organisation. It includes:
a) Increasing employee productivity.
b) Keeping the employees satisfied and motivated.
c) Developing team building, team management, leadership skills in
employees.
d) Designing and implementing a fast and suitable grievance
management system.
e) Ensuring discipline among the employees by prompt action to
correct deviations.
f) Supporting employees by counselling and developing them into
complete individuals and responsible citizens.
g) Enhancing the quality of both work and personal life of the
employees.

Self Assessment Questions

10. __________ is the future course of action that includes identifying
human resource requirements and forecasting personnel needs.
11. ___________ are the rewards that an employee earns in addition to
regular wages or salary based on the performance of the individual,
team or the organisation.
12. ____________ are monetary and non-monetary benefits given to
employees during their employment.

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1.6 Role of HR Executives

In the previous section, we discussed the various functions involved in
HRM. Let us now discuss the role of HR executives.
Managing people is one of the biggest challenges for a manager. Few of the
reasons are:
 Individuals differ from each other in terms of their values, attitudes,
beliefs and culture. This leads to a very complex situation.
 The stimulating and motivational factors might not be the same for all
employees.
It is important to understand the individual needs of the employees and
cater to those needs. This involves taking up different roles by the HR. The
specialist role of HR manager includes:
 Services provider
 Administrative expert
 Facilitator
 Consultant
 Auditor
 Change agent
 Employee advocate
Let us now look into each of these roles in detail.
 Service provider – Management needs to gather information such as
market statistics, pay rates and labour laws, and legislations from the
market as well as from their competitors before making decisions on
various employee related issues.
 Administrative expert – The administrative role involves record
keeping and legal compliance. The HR is responsible for maintaining all
records of the employees relating to their employment and also ensuring
the organisation complies to the statutory health and safety, employee
welfare measures.
 Facilitator – They act as a facilitator when training and development
actions are planned and conducted,and when performance appraisals
are done.

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 Consultant – While supervising the employees, managers face many

problems. Their problems may be due to lack of motivation, lack of
training,job misfit and grievances relating to pay.They should know how
to smoothly resolve such problems.
 Auditor – HR specialists are responsible for ensuring that all members
of the management perform their respective roles efficiently and also
ensures that there is effective use of the human resources of the
organization.
 Change agent – It is the HR that helps organisations to implement
changes and help employees adapt to changes. The HR is the first
department that recognises the changes in the external environment and
makes necessary changes within the organisation to help the
organisation adjust to the changes without any hitches. When the
market is not favourable, the HR may be busy with downsizing and
when there are new prospects in future, the HR tries to ensure that the
employees are well trained to take full advantage of it.
 Employee advocate – HR employees are the link between the top
management and the employees. The concerns of the employees are
first reported to the HR personnel. They report these issues to the top
management and try to resolve the issues.
Thus, we have seen that the HR in any organisation has multiple roles to
play. No HR can perform just one role. They may have to perform all the
mentioned roles at different stages in their career as HR personnel.

Self Assessment Questions

13. The administrative role of the HR involves record keeping and
legal compliances
____________.
employee advocate
14. As an ___________ HR employees link the top management and
employees.
AUDITOR
15. As an _______ HR specialists are responsible for ensuring that all
members of the management perform their respective roles concerned
with the effective use of HR.

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1.7 Summary
Let us recapitulate the important concepts discussed in this unit:
 Human resource management is one of the most complex and
challenging field of management study. It mainly deals with people
dimension in management.
 Over the past several years various approaches to human resource
management have been adopted by companies. Scientific management
approach gave rise to the human relations approach. The human
resource approach has gained prominence in recent times valuing
employees as the prime asset in any organisation.
 The primary objective of HRM is to take care of the work life of
employees even while ensuring their best possible cooperation for
achieving the organisational goals and objectives.
 The scope of HRM can be divided into HRM in personnel management,
HR in employee welfare, HR in industrial relations.
 Basically, HRM includes the four functions of acquiring, developing,
motivating and managing the human resources. HRM functions are
broadly classified into two categories – managerial and operative
functions.
 Managerial functions include planning, organising, directing and
controlling.
 The operative functions of HRM are related to specific activities of HRM
such as employment, development, compensation and employee
relation.
 The specialist role of the HR professional takes a number of roles, which
is that of an auditor, service provider, administrative expert, facilitator,
consultant, the change agent and employee advocate.

1.8 Glossary
 Manpower inventory: A record of all the employees that lists all
relevant employment related information such as age, sex, educational
qualification, job history, type of employment, years of work experience.
It helps in knowing the number of employees in a department and the
job that they carry out.

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 Employee Retention: Employee retention refers to the various policies

and practices which let the employees stick to an organization for a
longer period of time.
 Hawthorne studies: In the 1920s Harvard Business School professor,
Elton Mayo, and his Fritz J. Roethlisberger led a landmark study of
worker behavior at Western Electric, Chicago. The study began by
examining the physical and environmental influences of the workplace
(e.g. brightness of lights, humidity) and later, moved into the
psychological aspects (e.g. breaks, group pressure, working hours,
managerial leadership). The major finding of the study was that almost
regardless of the experimental manipulation employed, the production of
the workers seemed to improve. The Hawthorne experiments brought to
light ideas concerning motivational influences, job satisfaction;
resistance to change, group norms, worker participation, and effective
leadership.

1.9 Terminal Questions

1. What is human resources management? Discuss the scope of HRM.
2. Explain the functions of HRM.
3. Discuss the main features of human relation approach. How does it
differ from scientific management?
4. Briefly describe the different roles of HR professional in business.

1.10 Answers

Self Assessment Questions

1. Workforce
2. Top management and the employees
3. motivating, developing
4. (c) direct manpower management
5. (a) Working conditions and workplace amenities
6. (b) promotes industrial harmony
7. Fredrick Taylor
8. Hawthorne studies

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9. Human Resource
10. Planning
11. Incentives
12. Fringe benefits
13. Legal compliance
14. Employeee Advocate
15. Auditor

Terminal Questions
1. Human resource refers to total knowledge, skills, creative abilities,
talents and individual aptitudes of an organisation’s workforce, as well
as values, attitudes and beliefs of the individuals involved. A human
resource manager has to build an effective workforce, handle the
expectations of the employees and ensure that they perform at their
best.For more details, refer section 1.2
2. HRM includes the four functions of acquiring, developing, motivating and
managing the human resources. HRM functions are broadly classified
into two categories-managerial and operative functions.For more details,
refer section 1.5
3. The Hawthorne studies conducted during the 1930 and 1940s, forced
organisations to shift their attention from scientific management
approach to human relations approach. Hawthorne studies suggested
that employee productivity was not only by the way the job was
designed and the economic rewards, but also by certain social and
psychological factors. For more details, refer section 1.4
4. HR professional takes a number of forms: the auditor’s role, the
executive’s role, the facilitator’s role, the consultant’s role, and the
service provider’s role. HRM objectives should align with the
organisational objectives, and should balance them with the individual
and social goals. For more details, refer section 1.6

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1.11 Case Study

HR, The trendsetter?
No longer is HR just a recruitment function; it is part of the company's
overall strategy to achieve its business goals. With increased competition in
every industry, the challenge for companies is to remain competitive, and
are they doing just that? Industry experts give a bird's-eye view of a few HR
trends in the months to come.
Dayanand Allapur, Head HR, Tesco HSC, feels that in the months to come,
there would be an increased focus on strengthening the employee brand
and creating a ‘workplace of choice' through various initiatives such as
smarter employee policies, increased workplace interaction through new
age social media tools and using technology to optimise systems and
processes. "This would be augmented with greater focus on talent planning
and development, thereby providing better career options to employees.
The trend would also lean more towards the "human side" of companies
such as how "green" are we and also focus on diversity and giving back to
the community," says Allapur.
What is in store?
Ashish Srivastava, Director - HR, Canara HSBC Oriental Bank of
Commerce Life Insurance:
Work-life balance – Organisations will look at ensuring higher flexibility with
enhanced focus on overall productivity rather than mere number of hours.
Employees would be encouraged to constantly up-skill themselves and
learn to work "smarter" and carve time for value-added initiatives with
colleagues and family.
Staffing and Compensation – Staffing will remain lean with higher
demands on individual productivity - beyond specified KRAs, albeit all within
the parameter of core organisational values. The concept of "Total
Rewards" will be earnestly applied as organisations will make compensation
more creative and competitive. Expect deliberate focus on variable pay
plans and a higher ROI on compensation. "Recognition" would be a focal
point to ensure sustained engagement whilst simultaneously encouraging
increased performance differentiation. What the high-performing
organisations will choose to do is to give a staff an overall sense of "a great
total-deal" and not just a good fixed base in compensation.
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Talent Management – What will matter is the "Employment Brand" and

existent talent, just as much as product loyalty will differentiate the top
players in the industry. For instance, propel increase in the breadth of
experience resulting in versatile workforce within the organisation through
means of short-term and cross functional projects and assignments.
Deepak Kaistha, Director, Planman Consulting
Work-life Balance – Work-life balance is just not a simple term but the way
one should maintain/divide their work hours effectively. What will matter in
the months to come is how you work smart and complete a defined task at a
given time frame. Employees who are able to manage the same will be
termed ‘smart' workers.
Staffing and Compensation – Hiring plans for the next quarter is on its
spree and looks optimistic. As per a study, employers in various industry
sectors and all four regions of India report positive hiring plans for the next
three months. Job seekers in the wholesale and retail trade sector (+51 per
cent) and service sector (+48 per cent) can look forward to the most
vigorous hiring in the next three months. Globally, the third quarter hiring
expectations are positive, India being the strongest country, apart from
Brazil, Taiwan, Turkey and Singapore.
Talent Management – Given ample evidence that companies with highly
engaged employees outperform companies with neutrally or negatively
engaged employees, over the next few years we'll see more companies
adopt - not just talk about - best practices such as closer scrutiny of
manager quality, continuous feedback, talent mining and mobility, workforce
segmentation, employee recognition programmes and differentiated pay.
Rajesh Padmanabhan, Head-HR, Capgemini India
Work-life balance – is an important ingredient of driving company culture
and employer of choice value proposition. India Inc. will see more
expectations around this and will need to ready organisations keeping this
important aspect in mind.
Staffing and Compensation – as a recruitment channel is set to increase,
going forward. More structured compensation options in the form of time-off,
remote working, project allowance and performance accelerators would
slowly start coming into play.
Manipal University Jaipur Page No. 20
Human Resource Management Unit 1

Talent Management – Structured capability building models and building

future leaders will be the way forward.
Whatever the route, HR is all set to pull up its sleeves and become the new
trend-setter.
Discussion Questions
1. What are the trends in staffing ?
2. What are the ways of ensuring talent management ?
(Source: http://www.itsmyascent.com/web/itsmyascent/hr-zone/-/
asset_publisher/4htH/content/hr-the-trendsetter

(Retrieved on 27th February, 2012)

References:
 Bearwell, I, & Holden, L. (1995). Human Resource Management: A
Contemporary Perspective. New Delhi: Macmillan India Limited.
 Dessler, G, & Verkkey, B. (2011). Human Resource Management. New
Delhi: Pearson Prentice Hall.
 Durai, P. (2010). Human Resource Management. New Delhi: Pearson
Publication.
E-Reference:
 http://www.managementstudyguide.com/scope-of-human-resource-
management.htm (Retrieved on 20 December 2011 )
 http://www.slideshare.net/hemanthcrpatna/procedures-for-handling-
disciplinary-matters-in-ktms (Retrieved on 20 December 2011 )

Manipal University Jaipur Page No. 21