Human Resource Management: Summary

Workers satisfaction

Can be assessed through surveys, polls, suggestion boxes can help to develop plans for the future

Indicators

HR indicators are used by many businesses to evaluate the effectiveness of the business, team or individual.

Global - costs, skills, supply

Location will impact heavily on labour costs, where to produce is a decision that needs to be made, skill of workers in that country is also important -labour force is declining in advanced industrial areas = encouragement of movement of production to other places.

Benchmarking key variables

Setting standards for measurement e.g. output per worker can be internally set or recognized standards -allows the bus. To pinpoint areas they are not performing well in = motivation.

Corporate culture

Values, ideas, norms shared by people of the bus. -measured by internal process approach, effectiveness is measured by the internal health + efficiency of the bus

Processes of Human Resource Management

• acquisition • development • maintenance • separation

Effectiveness of human resource management

• indicators • corporate culture • benchmarking key variables • changes in staff turnover • absenteeism • accidents • levels of disputation • worker satisfaction

Recruitment - internal or external, general or specific skills

Recruitment is the process of locating and attracting the right quantity and quality of staff to apply for employment vacancies or anticipated vacancies at the right cost. Recruitment of a diverse workforce is becoming more important in communicating effectively with a wide customer base and in demonstrating corporate social responsibility, which is highly valued by consumers and employees. Most businesses use a mix of internal and external recruitment to maximise opportunities for new ideas and use of existing expertise in the business. Many businesses recruit overseas and poach staff from other businesses to overcome shortages of skilled staff.

Rewards - monetary and non-monetary, individual or group, performance pay

Rewards management is a system of monetary and non-monetary, and intrinsic and extrinsic rewards to attract, motivate and retain employees for their effort and performance. An effective rewards system is equitable, clearly communicated, relevant, cost effective, simple to administer and aligned with the business's goals.

Separation

Separation occurs when an employee either choose to leave an employer voluntarily through resignation, voluntary redundancy or retirement, or involuntarily through retrenchment or dismissal. Dismissals may occur due to serious misconduct, poor performance or redundancy due to organisational restructuring. Employers need to take great care in following all the legal processes involved in dismissing an employee to avoid costly claims of unfair dismissal. Unfair dismissal occurs where an employee is dismissed by their employer and they believe the action is harsh, unreasonable or unjust.

Strategies in human resource management

• leadership style • job design - general or specific tasks • recruitment - internal or external, general or specific skills • training and development - current or future skills • performance management - developmental or administrative • rewards - monetary and non-monetary, individual or group, performance pay • global - costs, skills, supply • workplace disputes • resolution - negotiation, mediation, grievance procedures, involvement of courts and tribunals A range of strategies are used to align the management of staff with the goals of the firm. They include leadership styles, task variety, skills matching, training and development approaches, rewards, performance management and conflict resolution strategies.

Key Influences on Human Resource Management

• stakeholders - employers, employees, employer associations, unions, government organisations, society • legal - the current legal framework • the employment contract - common law (rights and obligations of employers and employees), minimum employment standards, minimum wage rates, awards, enterprise agreements, other employment contracts • work health and safety and workers compensation • antidiscrimination and equal employment opportunity • economic • technological • social - changing work patterns, living standards • ethics and corporate social responsibility

role of human resource management

• strategic role of human resources • interdependence with other key business functions • outsourcing • human resource functions • using contractors - domestic, global

Acquisition

Acquisition is the process of attracting and recruiting the right staff for roles in a business. It involves analysing the internal (business goals and culture) and external environment (economic conditions, competition, technology) of a business. An effective induction program is carefully planned to introduce a new employee to the job, their co-workers, the business and its culture. Recruitment involves locating and attracting the right quantity and quality of staff to apply for employment vacancies. Placement involves locating the employee in a position that best utilises their skills to meet the needs of the business.

Development

Development involves enhancing the skills of employees through training, mentoring, and coaching and performance management so they develop a career within the business. Effective induction and training equips a new employee with the skills to carry out their job and work effectively with co-workers within the business and its culture. Ongoing training should be part of every workplace to keep up with the ever changing markets. Organisational development involves developing strategies such as job rotation to increase employee participation, motivation and retention. Performance appraisal is used to evaluate employee's performance, and identify areas for mentoring, coaching, leadership development or performance management to enable the employee to contribute most effectively to a business's success.

Workplace disputes • resolution - negotiation, mediation, grievance procedures, involvement of courts and tribunals

Disagreement over an issue/s between and employer and its employees resulting in cease of work ->causes negotiation of awards/agreements OR matters outside agreement e.g. health/safety, managerial policy, union issues -> action -strikes, lockouts (employer refuse entry to workplace), pickets (outside workplace, unions stop delivery of goods) -discussions resulting in formal/informal agreement -confidential discussion with a neutral 3rd party -formal procedure usually in an agreement involving the agreed process to resolve a dispute -Conciliation 3rd party is involved to help reach an agreement -arbitration 3rd party make a legally binding decision to resolve the dispute.

Economic

Economic factors have major impact on the demand for labour and the pressure on wage growth. This affects the role of human resource management in planning to acquire or reduce staff, and in negotiating awards and agreements. Globalisation has increased competitive pressures on businesses, with many increasingly recruiting or outsourcing functions offshore.

Absenteeism

Failure of an employee to turn up to work like staff turnover rate seeking the reason can help to eliminate the problem.

Levels of disputation

Frequency/severity of disputes can indicate the effectiveness of grievance procedure.

Ethics and corporate social responsibility

Global organisations are increasingly focused on promoting trade between countries and organisations that support ethical employment practices. Ethical business practices are those that are socially responsible, morally right, honourable and fair. Many businesses are realising the benefits of a more committed workforce and good public reputation achieved through embracing the ethical principles of corporate social responsibility.

Strategic role of human resources

Human resource management's strategic approach that incorporates all aspects of managing the employer-employee relationship in the workplace. It includes functions such as recruitment, equal opportunity, training, development, separation and how they can be aligned to achieve business goals. Over the next decade, the major strategic challenges for human resource management include the challenges of developing and retaining talent staff, improving leadership development, managing the ageing workforce and succession planning.

Job design - general or specific tasks

Jobs can be flexibly grown or shaped to fit the changing needs of the business. Jobs can also be reshaped as staff move on, or their needs change. Common methods of job design include job rotation, job enlargement, job enrichment, semi-autonomous work groups, cross-functional work groups, cross-functional, team-based matrix structures and flexible work structures. Specialisation in job design involves jobs being down into specialised skill areas in order to improve knowledge and skill, to increase output, to reduce errors and labour costs and to control quality.

Leadership style

Leadership styles (classical-scientific approach: planning, organising and has a clear structure, behavioural approach: involving the employees, and contingency approach: depends on the situation and changing circumstances) which are most effective in Australia are more egalitarian and empowering and less directive then in other countries. Australian employees tend to be critical of the quality of Australian leadership and are seeking constructive workplace cultures where employers are supportive and focused on developing the skills and talents of employees in challenging and meaningful tasks and projects.

Performance management - developmental or administrative

Performance management is a systematic process of evaluating and managing employee performance in order to achieve the best outcomes for a business. Feedback from performance appraisal and management provides many benefits to the business and individual.

Accidents

Can implement an accident and safety improvement plan.

Changes in staff turnover

Higher than normal rate indicates lack of job satisfaction -assessing factors behind the rate can help to eliminate the problem.

Outsourcing • human resource functions • using contractors - domestic, global

Globalisation and technology have impacted the outsourcing process of HR. One of the most growing functional areas for outsourcing is HR. It is increasingly common within small and medium sized businesses to outsource the HR process. Outsourcing allows firm to focus on other key business functions by planning for growth, development and management of staff during this phase. Contracting is generally recommended for non-core functions of a business. Outsourcing maintenance to avoid industrial problems led to a loss in competitive advantage. Domestic subcontracting is very common today and avoids the need to employ additional "in-house" staff, along with all the overhead expenses. This allows business to focus on core business functions, leaving some of the detailed support or compliance-related activities to experts, such as a payroll management or order fulfilment. But it does carry risks such as potential loss of direct customer contract, which could impact on sales over the longer term. Global subcontracting: Outsourcing as a first step toward operating in a new market overseas, to get acquainted with market needs before expanding with greater presence in the market. Global outsourcing carries some risks, these include difficulty controlling the quality and reliability of the service, cultural differences, and well-qualified staff may be replaced with less- qualified staff, causing the quality to decline.

Maintenance

Maintenance focuses on the processes needed to retain staff and manage their wellbeing at work. Staff wellbeing is maximising through encouraging staff to participate in decision making and giving employees some control over their work lives. Effective workplace relationships depend heavily on a business's communications systems. Poor communication is often reflected in workplace conflict and high turnover rates. Businesses benefit from employee experience and knowledge on the job, and improvements they suggest are often critical to a business's competitiveness and success. Benefits are an integral element in building workplace culture. They may be monetary in value or non-monetary. Employers are responding to employees' desire for a work-life balance with more flexible working arrangements. An important role of the human resource manager is ensuring the policies comply with legislation including anti-discrimination and sex discrimination legislation, workplace health and safety, taxation, social justice legislation and industrial relations legislation and agreements.

Stakeholders - employers, employees, employer associations, unions, government organisations, society

Stakeholders have a common interest in the survival and success of the business. However, not all interests are shared and conflict may arise due to competing interests and differences. Employers and managers handle HRM issues on a daily basis. Employer's responsibilities are increasing due to the recent legislation encourages them to negotiate agreements and resolve disputes at the individual workplace. Under this legislation employers have gained more power to make agreements relevant to the individual workplace or enterprise. Employees are more educated than in past times. The structure of work has changed over time and this has affected employee's access to work. Many unions have responded to employee fears and have addressed employment issues such as job security and limitation on the use of casuals. Employer associations were created by employers as a counter party to unions, to represent employers in the making of awards through conciliation and arbitration systems. Their main role is to act on behalf of employers in collective bargaining sessions before industrial tribunal courts, commissions and committees. These included organisations such as Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), Australian Industry Group (Ai Group). Trade unions are organisations formed by employees in an industry, trade or occupation to represent them in efforts to improve wages and the working conditions of members. Unions play a powerful role in HR. Membership for trade unions has declined dramatically over the last decades at a global level in response to many factors including the shift to less hazardous work in the increasingly dominant service sector. Government: to simplify industrial relations and improve efficiency, a national system of industrial relations has been created since 2007 under the labour government. Government Statutes provide the framework for employment conditions. Since January 2010, Australia has shifted from a dual federal and state industrial relations system to a national industrial relations framework. Industrial tribunals and courts enforce the employment laws. Fair Work Australia is the national industrial tribunal the replaces the Australian Industrial Relations Commission. Its powers have been expanded to allow it to hear and settle disputes, supervise agreement making, and award simplification. Society has a number of expectations regarding employment conditions

Technological

Technological change allows many employees to work from home or offshore and assist businesses in providing 24 hour support.

Interdependence with other key business functions

The HRM's team's function depends on not only the size but the nature of the business, as well as the industrial action and unionisation in the industry or business. In larger businesses the human resource team or manager is responsible for all these functions, where as in a smaller business the general manager and employees may share these responsibilities. HR-> Marketing: In recruitment HR need to specify what employee needs to be found so that marketing can market to find this person. HR-> Finance: paying employees and the amount of employees in the business HR->Operations: Employing employees to operate the business or contractors.

Legal - the current legal framework • the employment contract - common law (rights and obligations of employers and employees), minimum employment standards, minimum wage rates, awards, enterprise agreements, other employment contracts • work health and safety and workers compensation • antidiscrimination and equal employment

The employment contract creates obligations for both employer and employee, and all businesses operate within the legal framework of common law and statute law- that is, law passed by federal and state parliaments in Acts. Common law is developed by courts and tribunals. All employees are covered by the employment contract, even if it is not written. Employers must pay income and work expenses, comply with industrial laws, and provide a safe workplace for employees. Ten National Employment Standards have been developed in consultation with business, unions, and the community. These comprise of 1. Maximum weekly hours of work (38 hours), 2. Requests for flexible working arrangements, 3. Parental leave and related entitlements, 4. Annual leave, 5. Personal/ Carer's leave and compassionate leave, 6. Community service leave, 7. Long service leave, 8. Public holidays, 9. Notice of termination and redundancy pay, 10. Provision of Fair Work Information Statement. Minimum wage rates for ordinary hours worked has been determined by: awards or agreement that covers the employee, the national wage minimum for employees not covered by awards or agreements and reviewed annually by Fair work Australia. Awards are legally binding documents containing the minimum terms and conditions of employment. Enterprise agreements are collective agreements made at the workplace level between employer and a group of employees about terms and conditions of employment. Individuals contractors of service exist when an employer and an individual employee negotiation a contract covering pay and conditions. Independent contractors, often known as consultants or freelancers, undertake work for others but do not have the same legal status as an employee. - WHS is in the process of being made uniform around Australia to improve business productivity. Employers must provide a safe system of work, ensure employees are trained and supervised in their work. All employees must take out works compensation insurance. Employees are also responsible for taking reasonable care for the health and safety of others. Work cover is responsible of administering WHS matters and matters related to workers compensation cases. - Discrimination occurs when a policy or a practice disadvantages a person at work because of a personal characteristic that is irrelevant to the performance of their work. All employers must implement the anti-discrimination legislation, which is supported by government agencies. Equal employment opportunity refers to equitable policies and practices in recruitment, selection, training and promotion. There is a significant gender inequality within Australia. All employers with more than 100 employees, and all higher education authorities, must report annually, unless exempt, on equal employment programs they develop in consultation with employees and progress achievement. Developing a code of practice and making equal opportunity awareness a criterion in promotion and performance appraisal are two of the practical strategies that can be used to improve affirmative action and gender equity.

Social - changing work patterns, living standards

The workforce is increasingly more flexible in working arrangement, with a recent dramatic increase in part-time and casual work. The community is increasingly concerned that this flexibility is leading to difficulties for families in balancing their work and life responsibilities. Major social factors affecting the workforce today include increasing feminisation and ageing of the workforce.

Training and development - current or future skills

Training aims to develop skills, knowledge and attitudes that lead to superior work performance. Development is focused on enhancing the skills of the employee to upgrade their skills in line with the changing and future needs of the business.