Evolution of Human Resource Management

In the past 150 years, the Human Resource Management profession has
undergone significant change. Today’s function, which was first designed to
manage people hiring and compensation, closely reflects a company’s strategic
goal.
HRM has developed through successive industrial revolution periods, trade
unions, scientific management, behaviour science, and human relations.
1. Industrial Revolution (Between 18th-19th century)
Firms first started managing their employees during the Industrial Revolution in
the late eighteenth century. Large companies were prevalent before this time,
but it was difficult to keep them running because of outdated technologies. The
working environment was highly unpleasant at the time, and the employees
used to work long hours for meagre pay.
During this revolution, science and technology began to be used in many
aspects of employment in contemporary businesses.
Discipline, boredom, materialism, job relocation, interdependence at work, and
impersonality were all effects of the Industrial Revolution. Economically
speaking, the revolution greatly accelerated the accumulation of products and
wealth.
2. Trade Unions (close to 19th century)
As a result of the industrial revolution, employees’ conditions under the factory
system were appalling. Their circumstances were even worse during the First
World War. At this time, it was seen necessary for the government to step in and
protect the interests of the workers.
Trade unionism’s fundamental tenet was to protect workers’ interests and
provide solutions to issues like child labor, excessive working hours, and
unfavorable working conditions. These unions employed a variety of tactics to
get their grievances recognized, including strikes, slowdowns, walkouts,
picketing, boycotts, and sabotage.
These labor union actions resulted in the establishment of personnel practices,
including collective bargaining, a grievance system, arbitration, disciplinary
procedures, employee benefit programs, and justifiable salary structures.
3. Scientific Management ( 1900 -1920)
Taylor began utilizing time and motion studies to identify the “one optimal way
of doing things” at the turn of the 20th century. He was able to boost worker
productivity as a result of his studies significantly, and he also wrote a book on
scientific management as well as other papers based on these trials.
The following are the main tenets of scientific management:
Replacing the rule of thumb with science
Promoting harmony over conflict
Encouraging teamwork over individualism
Fostering the growth of every individual
Functional foreman standardization, simplicity of work, and a differential piece
wage system are scientific management practices pertinent to workers’
management.
4. Human Relations (1930-1950)
The Hawthorne experiments, which Elton Mayo and his Harvard colleagues
carried out between the 1930s and 1950s, demonstrated that factors other than
job design and rewards could affect an employee’s productivity. These factors
included social and psychological ones. The human relations movement was
responsible for the widespread adoption of behavioral science approaches.
It entails the use of supervisory training methods, aid to employees, counseling
services, and tactics to improve relations between management and labor. The
employees who participate in these programs can talk to counseling
professionals about both personal and professional issues.
5. Behavioural Science ( 1950 – 1960)
The management of people started to be influenced by behavioral science as we
realized that dealing with various types of people required a more adaptable
strategy. Large organizations recognized the potential of enhancing employee
perks to attract, retain, and motivate workers after the war when the economy
started to rebound.
In a “behavioral approach,” the environment is altered to change the probability
of the intended behavior in a preferred manner. The reinforcing principle is used
to increase that likelihood. The punishment concept is used to lessen such
likelihood. The extinction concept is applied to eradicate behavior.
What Is Human Resource Analytics in 2022?
The study of people and the implementation of analytical methods to the human
capital within a company to enhance staff productivity and improve employee
retention is known as Human Resource analytics.
Human Resource analytics identifies recurring trends and patterns in HR
operations. These are presented through statistics and graphs to make it simple
to spot changes. Your employee turnover rate, absenteeism rate, time to hire,
cost to hire, the proportion of lamented losses, and many other statistics may be
found in these stats.
Human Resource analytics can help firms launch profitable initiatives and
projects. With the help of the analyzed and interpreted data, they even defeat
marketing and competition.
You may learn about the skill gap in your firm via Human Resource analytics.
Employers have trouble filling the skill gap, according to 87% of them. With so
many excellent individuals departing your organization, this issue is
unavoidable. For the current employees that seek job stability, advanced training
is necessary to keep your quality.
Human Resource analytics Example
The following real-world example will help you better understand how analytics
are used in HR functions.
Say, for example, that a certain department within the company is experiencing
a steady increase in employee attrition. Human Resource analytics will assist in
determining the cause by examining historical information about former
employees, their statements, employee profiles, performance, etc. The candidate
may have left the company because of a potential mismatch between the job
role and the one they were employed for. There may be numerous factors that
Human Resource analytics can pinpoint.
Data Analytics and HR
In association with HRM, data analytics is referred to as HR Analytics. HR
managers widely use this branch of Analytics. It is also known as people,
workforce, or talent analytics. You no longer need to rely on gut instinct when
using people analytics. HR workers may make data-driven decisions thanks to
analytics. Furthermore, analytics can be used to measure the efficacy of HR
policies and actions.
Conclusion
Human Resource management has evolved considerably throughout the years.
Modern software and technology have made managing the workforce in every
organization a breeze for human resources. Today, Human Resource
Management is playing a more important role. Aligning personal and
organizational aims and objectives is one of its main achievements. Strategic
HRM focuses on initiatives that set the organization apart from its rivals and
seeks to have a long-term effect on the firm’s success.