eBusiness Weekly
Dr Keen Mhlanga
When businesses, companies and organisations are formed, they operate as legal entities in the form of artificial persons. It is therefore valid to say that business units need humans to assist them in operations and running of their commercial activities.
A company can only exist but without human capital its rendered invalid. The term human capital refers to the economic value of a worker’s experience and skills. Human capital includes assets like education, training, intelligence, skills, health, and other things employers value such as loyalty and punctuality.
As such, it is an intangible asset or quality that isn’t (and can’t be) listed on a company’s financial statement. Human capital is perceived to increase productivity and thus profitability. The more investment a company makes in its employees, the chances of its productivity and success becomes higher. It is the responsibility of an organisation to retain a good reputable human capital through the human resources department.
An organisation is often said to only be as good as its people from the top down, which is why human capital is so important to a company. It is typically managed by an organisation’s human resources (HR) department, which oversees workforce acquisition, management, and optimisation. Its other directives include workforce planning and strategy, recruitment, employee training and development, and reporting and analytics.
The concept of human capital recognises that not all labour is equal. But employers can improve the quality of that capital by investing in employees. This can be done through the education, experience, and abilities of employees. All of this has great economic value for employers and for the economy as a whole. Hence the responsibility and necessity of a good human resources management board.
Human resource management (HRM) is the practice of recruiting, hiring, deploying and managing an organisation’s employees. HRM is often referred to simply as human resources (HR). A company or organisation’s HR department is usually responsible for creating, putting into effect and overseeing policies governing workers and the relationship of the organisation with its employees.
HRM is employee management with an emphasis on those employees as assets of the business. In this context, employees are sometimes referred to as human capital. As with other business assets, the goal is to make effective use of employees, reducing risk and maximising return on investment.
Human resources management works through dedicated HR professionals, who are responsible for the day-to-day execution of HR-related functions. The objectives of Human Resource Management can be broken down into four broad categories namely, Societal, organisational, functional and personal objectives. Societal objectives include measures put into place that responds to the ethical and social needs or challenges of the company and its employees.
This includes legal issues such as equal opportunity and equal pay for equal work whilst Organisational objectives focuses on actions taken that help to ensure the efficiency of the organisation. This includes providing training, hiring the right number of employees for a given task or maintaining high employee retention rates. Functional objectives are guidelines used to keep HR functioning properly within the organisation as a whole.
This includes making sure that all of HR’s resources are being allocated to their full potential. Lastly Personal objectives are the resources used to support the personal goals of each employee. This includes offering the opportunity for education or career development as well as maintaining employee satisfaction.
Therefore, with such broad functions the human resources management’s role is to manage the people within a workplace to achieve the organisation’s mission and reinforce the culture. When done effectively, HR managers can help recruit new professionals who have skills necessary to further the company’s goals as well as aid with the training and development of current employees to meet objectives.
A company is only as good as its employees, making HRM a crucial part of maintaining or improving the health of the business. Additionally, HR managers can monitor the state of the job market to help the organisation stay competitive. This could include making sure compensation and benefits are fair, events are planned to keep employees from burning out and job roles are adapted based on the market.
Behind production of every product or service there is a human mind, effort and man hours (working hours). No product or service can be produced without help of human being. Human being is fundamental resource for making or construction of anything. Every organisation desire is to have skilled and competent people to make their organisation competent and best.
Among the five Ms of Management, that is, men, money, machines, materials, and methods, HRM deals about the first M, which is men. It is believed that in the five Ms, ‘‘men’’ is not so easy to manage. ‘‘every man is different from other’’ and they are totally different from the other Ms in the sense that men possess the power to manipulate the other Ms Whereas, the other Ms are either lifeless or abstract and as such, do not have the power to think and decide what is good for them.
Therefore, human resource management is meant for proper utilisation of available skilled workforce and also to make efficient use of existing human resource in the organisation. Today many experts claim that machines and technology are replacing human resource and minimising their role or effort.
However, machines and technology are built by the humans only and they need to be operated or at least monitored by humans and this is the reason why companies are always in hunt for talented, skilled and qualified professionals for continuous development of the organisation.
Therefore, humans are crucial assets for any organisation, although today many tasks have been handing over to the artificial intelligence but they lack judgement skills which cannot be matched with human mind.
A few organisations that understand the impact of human resource management have named it the heart and soul of business. However, Human resources is important to organisations in myriad areas, ranging from strategic planning to company image. HRM improves the company’s bottom line with its knowledge of how human capital affects organisational success. Leaders with expertise in HR strategic management participate in corporate decision-making that underlies current staffing assessments and projections for future workforce needs based on business demand.
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs clearly emphasised that employee morale adds up and affects output therefore, there is need for motivation to employees here and there either financially or non- financial. Such benefits require experts in human capital and its behaviour thus HRM who play the benefits specialists role. Benefits specialists can reduce the company’s costs associated with turnover, attrition and hiring replacement workers.
They are important to the organisation because they have the skills and expertise necessary to negotiate group benefit packages for employees, within the organisation’s budget and consistent with economic conditions. They also are familiar with employee benefits most likely to attract and retain workers. This can reduce the company’s costs associated with turnover, attrition and hiring replacement workers. Employers have an obligation to provide safe working conditions.
Workplace safety and risk management specialists from the HR area manage compliance with Zimbabwe’s workforce legal regulations through maintaining accurate work logs and records, and developing programs that reduce the number of workplace injuries and fatalities. Workplace safety specialists also engage employees in promoting awareness and safe handling of dangerous equipment and hazardous chemicals.
Whilst the HRM provides training that supports the company’s fair employment practices and employee development to prepare aspiring leaders for supervisory and management roles, the board also helps the organisation achieve high performance, morale and satisfaction levels throughout the workforce, by creating ways to strengthen the employer-employee relationship.
They administer employee opinion surveys, conduct focus groups and seek employee input regarding job satisfaction and ways the employer can sustain good working relationships. Since the management focus on maintaining a reputable human capital flow, this serves as an advantage to the underlying organisation as minimisation of liabilities related to allegations of unfair employment practices are offered.
The Human Resource Management identifies, investigates and resolves workplace issues that, are left unattended, could spiral out of control and embroil the organisation in legal matters pertaining to federal and state anti-discrimination and harassment laws. HR management helps bridge the gap between employees’ performance and the organisation’s strategic objectives. The department to go to when any kind of professional conflict arises between employees is HR.
They ensure that issues and conflicts are resolved effectively, approaching the problem with an unbiased attitude and encouraging effective communication to reach a solution. In addition, they help employees understand various ways of developing effective work relationships and the importance of not letting personal judgement affect their behaviour.
HR is a key aspect of any organisation from improving employee well-being to risk management. Without proper management, this complex field of work would lack structure and struggle to evolve over time.
Having a strong HR department backed by solid leadership is one of the best ways for a company to ensure employee satisfaction, productivity, and future growth. A satisfied staff is the foundation of a thriving company, and HR management is the cement that holds it together.
It’s why every company needs an experienced, empathetic manager to lead their human resources department. An effective HR management can give firms an edge over the competition, because these HR managers are responsible for everything relating to human beings, and human beings form a huge percentage of a company’s success.
If the best strategies of managing people in an organisation are implemented, it ensures that the organisation reaches its business goals in no time.
Effective human resource management practices will improve the organisational performance by improving the employees’ skills and abilities through training and development. It will increase the productivity level of the workers in an organisation, and increase the efficiency of work output. HR managers are the ones that are most likely to bridge the relationship gap between the executive level management and employees. If there’s a mutual relationship with both parties, there would be an increase in work productivity which leads to business profit.
The culture of an organization stems from its mission, vision, and values. While company leadership typically creates these elements, human resource management is responsible for bringing them to life in the workplace. There are many ways to establish a positive organizational culture, such as offering competitive salaries, tangible benefits like health insurance, and intangible benefits like camaraderie and friendship.
Human resource management is critical to establishing a workplace culture that encourages employees to do their best work and reach their full potential. The importance of human resource management is evident in the role it plays managing employee relationships. In any workplace, there are bound to be conflicts, disagreements, miscommunication, and resentment.
Even if employees get along with each other, it’s natural for tension to occur from time to time. Human resources personnel often take a lead role in advocating for employees to ensure they are heard by management and team members. Their skills in conflict resolution and negotiation help ensure all employees can work together effectively.
Depending on the situation and the company’s needs, HR may play the role of mediator, coach, or advocate. According to Maslow, self- actualization is a need for employees as thy grow up the ladder. When employees get recognition for their merits and contributions, they see meaning and purpose in their job. Moreover, human resource managers must conduct timely appraisals to differentiate between high and low performers.
The onus to make every employee feel important is on human resource managers. They emphasize the importance of teamwork within departments and devise ample strategies that highlight the importance of teamwork. Hence, infusing team spirit is critical to help employees contribute best from their side.
The Human Resource Management Department is a valuable one every organization should invest in for improved performance and effective coordination of activities.
HR Manager contribute almost 100 pc to the work output, which propels business profits and productivity. In a nutshell, human resource management is key when it comes to successfully and strategically managing people in an organization, which is why it’s important to hire the right people for HRM. Human resources must be strategically managed in order for the organization to meet its business goals and maintain its competitive advantage and this can only be done through effective human resource management.
