The Human Resources (HER) function is concerned with the issues of managing people within the organization. It develops, advises on and implements policies relating to the effective use of personnel. Their aim is to ensure that the organization employs the right balance of staff in terms of skills and experience, and that training and development opportunities are available to employees to enhance their performance and achieve the employee’s business aims.
The HER professionals have a clear understanding of the business objectives and are able to devise and implement policies which select, develop and retain the right staff needed to meet these objectives. Not only do the HER professionals deal with staff welfare and administration centered activities, but they also deal with strategy and planning. The HER department add value to the organization by analyzing internal and external factors that threaten the future business to the company.
PESTLE analysis HER professionals are involved in a range of activities required by the organization, these cover areas such as Ensuring employee welfare and employee relations are positive Pay Recruitment – the process of recruiting suitable candidates for the organization Conditions of Employment Negotiating with external work related agencies Equality and Diversity Identifying and meeting the training needs of existing staff Ensure the working environment is safe for employees Raising awareness of current workplace legislation.
Recruitment HER acknowledge that recruitment is a critical activity, and all involved in recruitment activities are equipped with the appropriate knowledge and skills. It is crucial to the organizational performance for the selection of the right person. HER have saved time and money by creating the right job descriptions, notifying existing staff of internal opportunities, advertising, building relationships with recruitment agencies and recruiting the right candidate for future vacancies.
Once the new employee has been selected HER:- check salaries of existing staff to ensure that new recruits salaries are in line with employees in a similar role, thus ensuring fairness and no grievances are raised. HER provide induction information packs to new starters; review company policies such as Health & Safety procedures ensuring employee awareness; gathering payroll information; explaining and obtaining signatures for benefit programs.
Motivating employees is important to keep up performance and enthusiasm for the job involved. HER build relations with employees through internal interviews ND questionnaires to provide a snapshot of current attitudes and practice. By analyzing the data collected, HER can provide incentives to boost low employee morale. The use of the HER department as an intermediated between employees and management has allowed open communication between employee union representatives and reduced the likelihood of industrial action and this can, and has previously saved the company money. HER and Line Managers work together to find a balance that best supports the business and employees. Line managers are dependent on the HER function for assistance in knowledge sharing and facilitation.
HER have a responsibility to ensure they keep up to date with the latest legal implications regarding maternity, fostering, adopting regulations and calculating the correct amount of leave an employee is entitled to. HER keep the employee involved with work, so they feel less isolated by arranging social events for other parents on leave, such as coffee mornings, and playmates for those employee with young families. HER also arrange back to work meetings; keeping the employees updated with their role and company news; employees will return o work thus retaining skilled and experienced staff and no need to invest on training and recruiting.
Working alongside the Line Managers, HER make sure managers have the information they need to manage the performance of employees of all ages, including older workers. HER professionals ensure the Performance review of all employees to prevent the risk of unlawful age discrimination. HER analyses details when employees are approaching the age of retirement, ensuring Line Managers ask all employees where they see themselves in a year or two – this gives older errors an opportunity to talk about retirement planning, avoiding unexpected announcements and loss of productivity due to staffing shortages.
A Safe Working Environment Employees spend a major part of their daily life, at work. It is essential for them to have a safe and friendly working environment. It not only helps the worker to be more committed to their job, but also contributes to the company’s overall productivity. So, HER and Line Managers concentrate on providing the safe environment at the workplace by engaging employee involvement with regular training and updates. This ultimately minimizes legal issues.
To conclude this report highlights the importance of the HER department, its purpose of supporting the organization and how these functions can save a considerable amount of resource and money. Could you efficiently run the organization without the skills and experience of the HER department? Who would the workforce turn to, if they had a grievance? Would Managers be capable of managing their own workload and also have time to keep up to date with new and constantly changing employee legislation, overseeing recruitment and employee relations?
