Introduction to Human Resource

Management

Chapter 01
The Management Process/ Functions of
Management
HRM is the 3rd function- STAFFING
 What is HRM?
Human Resource Management (HRM) is an operation
in companies designed to maximize employee
performance in order to meet the employer's
strategic goals and objectives.

HRM focuses on management of people within

companies, emphasizing on policies and systems.

It is the process of acquiring, training, appraising,

and compensating employees, and focusing on labor
relations, health and safety, fairness concerns and
maintaining competent workforce to achieve the
goals of an organization in an effective and
efficient manner.
Functions of HRM
Line and Staff Aspects of HRM
• Authority: It is the right to make decisions, to direct the work of others
and to give orders. Managers usually distinguish between line authority
and staff authority

• Line (Primary) Authority is direct authority. It gives managers the right

to issue orders to other managers or employees, hence creating a
superior ( order giver)-subordinate (order receiver) relationship
• For example : when the vice president of sales tells her sales director
to “ get the sales presentation ready by Monday,” she is exercising her
line authority

• Staff (Secondary) Authority gives the manager the right to advise

other managers or employees, not order. It creates an advisory
relationship.
• For example: When the HR manager suggests that the plant manager
use a particular selection test, he or she is exercising staff authority.
Line vs Staff function of HRM (CONT.)
• HR Managers are usually staff managers, which means they can
advise top management regarding HR issues but they usually cannot
order other line managers.

• For example, HR assists in the hiring, training, evaluating, rewarding,

counselling, promoting, and firing of employees. It also administers the
various benefit programs (health and accident insurance, retirement,
vacation, and so on). It assists line managers in their attempts to
comply with local laws and international standards

• (Except in their own department, remember: HR Managers have line

authority in their own department)

• Also remember, in small companies or firms there may be no separate

HR department and the line manager may be responsible for all the
HR functions.
Cooperative Line and Staff HR Management: An Example

• Because line managers and human resource managers both have

human resource management duties, it is reasonable to ask, Exactly
which HR duties are carried out by line managers and which by staff
managers?

• most important generalization is that the line staff relationship should

be cooperative.

In terms of
• recruiting, hiring and
• Training an employee :
Recruitment
• For example, in recruiting and hiring, the line manager
describes the qualifications employees need to fill specific
positions. Then the human resource team takes over.
They develop sources of qualified applicants, and conduct
initial screening interviews. They administer the
appropriate tests. Then they refer the best applicants to
the line manager, who interviews and selects the ones he
or she wants.
Training
• In training, the line manager again describes what he or
she expects the employee to be able to do. Then the
human resource team devises a training program, which
the line manager then (usually) administers.
Time for you to THINK!
• Do you think line managers have to fulfill HRM
responsibilities?
YES!
• However, line managers do have many human resource
duties. This is because the direct handling of people has
always been part of every line manager’s duties
Line managers HR Duties:
1. Placing Right Person on the Right Job
2. Orientation of the employees
3. Training employees for the job
4. Improving the job performance
5. Gaining creative co-operation and developing smooth work
experiences
6. Interpreting companies policy and procedures
7. Controlling labor costs
8. Developing abilities of each person
9. Creating and maintaining department morale
10. Protecting employees health and physical condition
HR Managers Duties
• Line function : directs the activities of people in his or her own
department

• Coordinative function: HR manager ensures that the line managers

are implementing the firm’s HR policies and practices

• Staff function : Advises the CEO so that CEO can better understand
the personnel aspect of the company’s strategic operation
Typical position for HR personnel:
• Recruiters- Search for qualified job applicants

• Job Analysts- Collect and examine information about jobs to prepare

job descriptions

• Compensation Managers- Develop compensation plans and handle

the employee benefits program

• Training Specialists- Plan, organize and direct training activities

• Labor Relations Specialists- Advise management on all aspects of

union-management relations.

• Employee Welfare officers- Handle welfare activities in factories, as

required by law.
• Discuss the types of position you will see for HR personnel
New Approaches to Organize HR / Groups of HR

• Employers are also offering human resource services in new ways. For
example, some organize their HR services around four groups:
transactional, corporate, embedded, and centers of expertise.

• The transactional/ shared service HR group: provides support for day-

to-day transactional/administrative activities (such as changing benefits
plans and employee assistance and counseling, managing employee
records). These establish centralized HR units whose -employees are shared
by all the companies’ departments to assist the departments’ line managers in
human resource matters. They aim to provide managers and employees with
specialized support in day-to-day HR activities

• The corporate HR group focuses on assisting top management in top

level big picture issues such as developing and explaining the personnel
aspects of the company’s long-term strategic plan.
New Approaches to Organize HR / Groups of
HR

• The embedded HR unit assigns HR generalists (also known as

relationship managers or HR business partners ) assigned to
functional department like sales and production. They provide the
selection and other assistance the departments need.

• The centers of expertise are like specialized HR consulting firms

within the company for instance, they provide specialized assistance
in areas such as organizational change.
HR as a profit center
Scenario One
• A bank installed special software
that made it easier for its customer
service representatives to handle
customers’ inquiries
• However, the bank did not
otherwise change the service
reps’ jobs in any way.
• Here, the new software system did
help the service reps handle more
calls. But otherwise, this bank saw
no big performance gains
Scenario Two
• A second bank installed the same
software.
• But, seeking to capitalize on how the
new software freed up customer reps’
time, this bank also had its human
resource team upgrade the customer
service representatives’ jobs.
• This bank taught them how to sell
more of the bank’s services, gave them
more authority to make decisions, and
raised their wages.
• Here, the new computer system
dramatically improved product sales
and profitability,
• thanks to the newly trained and
empowered customer service reps.
Value-added human resource practices
like these improve employee
performance and company profitability
Time for you to THINK!
• What is the key point of the previously mentioned bank
scenario?

• What did you learn from it?

 •2. Five main types of digital technologies are driving this transfer
of functionality from HR professionals to automation.

How Technology a) Employers increasingly use social media tools such as Twitter,
shaping up Facebook, and LinkedIn to recruit new employees.
today’s HRM
b) Employers use new mobile applications, for instance, to
1. Estimation monitor employee location.
by
Accenture
c) The feedback, fun, and objectives inherent in gaming support
many new training applications, and websites such as -Knack,
consulting firm Gild, and True Office enable employers to inject gaming
Accenture features into training, performance appraisal, and recruiting.
estimates that
social media
d) Cloud computing and more intuitive user interfaces enable
connections via
employers to monitor and report on things like a team’s goal
tools like
attainment and to provide real-time evaluative feedback.
LinkedIn will
soon produce as
many as 80% e) Finally, data analytics basically means using statistical
of new recruits techniques, algorithms, and problem-solving to identify
relationships among data for the purpose of solving particular
problems

• When applied to human resource management, data

analytics is called talent analytics.
HR & Performance : improving employee’s
performance
• Employers also expect their human resource manager/“people experts” to spearhead
employee performance-improvement efforts.

• Here they can apply three levers.

• The first is the HR department lever. The HR manager ensures that the human
resource management function is delivering services efficiently. For example, this
might include outsourcing certain activities such as benefits management, and using
technology to deliver its services more cost-effectively.

• The second is the employee costs lever. For example, the human resource manager
takes a prominent role in advising top management about the company’s staffing
levels, and in setting and controlling the firm’s compensation, incentives, and benefits
policies.

• The third is the strategic results lever. Here the HR manager puts in place the
policies and practices that produce the employee competencies and skills the
company needs to achieve its strategic goals.
HR And evidence-Based Management

• Evidence-based human resource management means using the best-

available evidence in making decisions about the human resource
management practices you are focusing on.
• The evidence may come from
• actual measurements (such as, how did the trainees like this program?).
• It may come from existing data (such as, what happened to company
profits after we installed this training program?).
• Or, it may come from published research studies (such as, what does
the research literature conclude about the best way to ensure that
trainees remember what they learn?).

• Sometimes, companies translate their findings into what management

gurus call high-performance work systems, “sets of human resource
management practices that together produce superior employee
performance.”
HR And Adding value

• YOUR FIRST ASSIGNMENT (article synopsis ) I AM SURE WILL

HELP IN DEVELOPING YOUR KNOWLEDGE ON HRM.

* The bottom line is that today’s employers want their

human resource managers to add value by boosting
profits and performance. Professors Dave Ulrich and
Wayne Brockbank describe this as the “HR Value
Proposition
The new HR manager
• When asked, “Why do you want to be an HR manager?” many people basically say,
“Because I’m a people person.” Being sociable is certainly important, but it takes much more.

• today’s HR manager should be able to exhibit:

1. Leadership & Navigation The ability to direct and contribute to initiatives and processes
within the organization.
2. Ethical Practice The ability to integrate core values, integrity, and accountability
throughout all organizational and business practices.
3. Business Acumen The ability to understand and apply information with which to contribute
to the Organization’s strategic plan.
4. Relationship Management The ability to manage interactions to provide service and to
support the organization.
5. Critical Evaluation The ability to interpret information with which to make business
decisions and recommendations.
6. Global & Cultural Effectiveness The ability to value and consider the perspectives and
backgrounds of all parties.
7. Communication The ability to effectively exchange information with stakeholders.
Time for you to THINK!
• Raihan works in HR department at a multinational
company- “MMY”. Raihan is responsible for looking after
the canteen facility, transportation. He also looks after the
daily attendance sheet and update employees record on a
regular basis.

• As per Ulrich’s HR model and groups of HR, identify

Raihan’s role in the HR department of MMY

• What is your answer?

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