1. What is strategic Human Resource Management? To effectively manage your employees is not as daunting as you may think.

. This becomes easier once you equip yourself with the knowledge and skills how to bring out the best out of your people. However, you may want to know that the use of strategies in human resource management is not as widespread as you may expect. This is despite the fact that proponents of the use of strategies in HR had made the proposals more than twenty years ago. Even if this is so, you can draw encouragement from organizations that had successfully implemented some aspect of strategic human resource management. Some of these are large reputable corporate entities. You will journey along that same road. With the additional know-how you can help your organization leverage its success on the workforce or people. You will learn the relationship between strategic management and human resource management. Strategic HR management involves more than just the administration of human resource programs or activities. However, you still need to do these activities. Effective people management is all about application of strategic management to people management. You may prefer to call them employees. It does not really matter. 2. Why is there a need for strategic human resource management? Need basic information about Human Resources' strategic planning and management as a function or department within an organization? What are the appropriate goals, organization, and initiatives for a Human Resources department to pursue? Whether your HR function is a department of one or many, basic Human Resources strategic planning that includes internal organizational needs assessment and external benchmark comparisons is needed. This is how you need to approach and accomplish fundamental Human Resources' strategic planning. Develop a Human Resources Department Business Plan As you interact with your organization, it's important to be able to share the strategic goals of your Human Resources department. Otherwise, how will your organization leaders understand what value your department adds? They're definitely asking and need to see the value that you bring to the total organization. Developing a department business plan, with input from your organization, allows you to understand and communicate the

HR functions contributions. It allows you to shape the expectations that your organization holds for what you will contribute and when. This transparency adds value to the goals and role of the HR department. Find out how to develop an HR business plan. 3. What is dynamic nature of human resource management? Human Resource Management is a process of bringing people and organizations together so that the goals of each are met. The various features of HRM include: It is pervasive in nature as it is present in all enterprises. Its focus is on results rather than on rules. It tries to help employees develop their potential fully. It encourages employees to give their best to the organization. It is all about people at work, both as individuals and groups. It tries to put people on assigned jobs in order to produce good results. It helps an organization meet its goals in the future by providing for competent and well-motivated employees. It tries to build and maintain cordial relations between people working at various levels in the organization. It is a multidisciplinary activity, utilizing knowledge and inputs drawn from psychology, economics, etc. 4. What are the concepts of strategy? Introduction and objectives. The role of strategy of success. A framework for analyzing business strategy A brief history of business strategy. The distinction between corporate and business strategy. Different approaches of strategy: design versus process. The different roles of strategy within the firm. The role of analysis in strategy formulation. 5. Give the characteristics of strategic human resource management. There is some type of an express association between the human resource practices and policies and all the strategic goals of the company and the environment of the company There is some co-ordination outline associating individual HR interferences in order to make them reciprocally corroborative. The majority of the responsibility for handling of human resources is delegated downwards.

6. Origin and nature of strategy. 7. Evaluation of strategic human resource management. Performance evaluation is a strategic human resources management tool that organizations should be using on a regular basis to determine what types of skills, knowledge and characteristics are currently available in the organization. It is a method through which the organization can obtain information that will be needed when making decisions about employee advancement, retention and separation (Pynes, 1997). In making such decisions it is vital that organizations review job performance in a way that benefits both the organization and the employee. Through performance evaluation, an organization can provide the feedback to employees that are necessary if employees are going to improve job performance, strengthen employee-supervisor relationships, and maintain organizationwide morale. As Craig R. Stevens (1996) remarks, How well your organization measures and monitors job performance is crucial not only to the competitiveness of the organization, but also to employee productivity.

Executive directors of nonprofit organizations are usually evaluated by the board of directors or the personnel committee. The purpose of evaluating the executive director should be to improve the way the organization is managed. To this end, executive directors should be told in advance what issues and areas the board will be looking at when it does the evaluation, and they should be given an opportunity to prepare a self-evaluation as well. A performance evaluation of a management executive works strategically and benefits both the organization and the executive when it serves to help the executive become aware of his/her strengths and weaknesses and improve his/her job performance. The performance evaluation of a management executive can take on a hostile tone, full of recriminations and criticisms, especially if the evaluation takes place around the time of contract renewal. Rather than serving as an exercise that increases tension and hostility, the performance evaluation of an executive should be looked at as an opportunity for the board and the executive to strengthen the organization by resolving any differences they might have regarding their roles and responsibilities (Pynes, 1997).

8. Benefits of strategic human resource management. Facilitates development of high-quality workforce through focus on types of people and skills needed Facilitates cost-effective utilization of labor, particularly in service industries where labor is generally greatest cost Facilitates planning and assessment of environmental uncertainty, and adaptation of organization to external forces Successful SHRM efforts begin with identification of strategic needs Employee participation is critical to linking strategy and HR practices Strategic HR depends on systematic and analytical mindset Corporate HR departments can have impact on organization's efforts to launch strategic initiatives 9. Types of strategy. Intensive Strategies Market penetration, market development, and product development are sometimes referred to as intensive strategies because they require intensive efforts to improve a firm's competitive position with existing products. Market Penetration A market-penetration strategy seeks to increase market share for present products or services in present markets through greater marketing efforts. This strategy is widely used alone and in combination with other strategies. Market penetration includes increasing the number of salespersons, increasing advertising expenditures, offering extensive sales promotion items, or increasing publicity efforts. Guidelines for Market Penetration Four guidelines when market penetration may be an especially effective strategy are: . Current markets not saturated. . Usage rate of present customers can be increased significantly. . Market shares of competitors declining while total industry sales increasing. . Increased economies of scale provide major competitive advantages.

There are two aspects of market penetration: Market Development Introducing present products or services into new geographic area Market development involves introducing present products or services into new geographic areas. The climate for international market development is becoming more favorable. In many industries, such as airlines, it is going to be hard to maintain a competitive edge by staying close to home.

Guidelines for Market Development Six guidelines when market development may be an especially effective strategy are: . New channels of distribution that are reliable, inexpensive, and good quality. . Firm is very successful at what it does. . Untapped or unsaturated markets. . Capital and human resources necessary to manage expanded operations. . Excess production capacity. . Basic industry rapidly becoming global. Product Development Product development is a strategy that seeks increased sales by improving or modifying present products or services. Product development usually entails large research and development expenditures. The U.S. Postal Service now offers stamps and postage via the Internet, which represents a product development strategy. Called PC Postage, stamps can now be obtained online from various Web sites such as stamps.com and then printed on an ordinary laser or inkjet printer. E-Stamp Corporation, Neopost, and Pitney Bowes, too, are actively pursuing product development by creating their own versions of digital stamps. Guidelines for Product Development Five guidelines when product development may be an especially effective strategy to pursue are: . Products in maturity stage of life cycle. . Competes in industry characterized by rapid technological developments. . Major competitors offer better-quality products at comparable prices

. Compete in high-growth industry. . Strong research and development capabilities

10. Strategy versus Tactics. Strategy is of paramount importance yet apparently difficult for most managers to clearly explain or understand. The common view of strategy, and its counterpoint tactics is that strategy is about the long-term, whilst tactics are about the short-term. Inline with that view comes Tregos and Zimmerman who defined strategy as: A framework within which decisions are made which establish the nature and direction of the business. The nature and direction of the business is quite a top-level and long-termview definition of strategy. But viewing strategy as either top-down, long-term or regarding the nature and direction of the businesses is cumbersome and obsolete. Heres why: My most favored view of strategy and tactics comes from the Theory of Constraints (TOC) which defines:

Strategy as the answer to the question what for (objective, purpose) Tactics as the answer to the question how (process, actions)

11. Basis of policies and strategic human resource management. Straight-forward, clear and concise HR policies and job descriptions are important for a number of reasons. Failing to implement policies and job descriptions leaves your company open to legal challenges, grievances and lawsuits, especially if you inconsistently apply your human resources policies and your pay structure/system. Grievances and lawsuits lead to:

Increased costs that affect your profits Increased turnover Negative morale Your company will avoid these problems if you implement hr policies, procedures and job descriptions and you can easily do this if you download our sample job descriptions and hr policies.

Your company needs human resources policies and procedures and current job descriptions so that your staffs are treated equally across a variety of employment issues. In addition, human resource polices help if legal situations arise. Our products and services are ideally suited for:

Small Business Owners Managers HR Professionals HR Consultants Lawyers

Small businesses often scramble for resources when compiling staffing information, contracts, developing HR policies and procedures and writing job descriptions. In addition, many large companies have dated policies, procedures and job descriptions that no longer reflect the reality of today's business world. Companies looking for fresh ideas and a fresh start to can find what they are looking for with our sample hr policies and sample job descriptions. 12. Developing policy and strategy. What makes for good policies and strategies? Policies set out what a government intends to achieve and how it intends to act. Strategies describe the steps a government will use to implement a policy that is already in place. Getting both rights, therefore, is a key step in improving the governance of a country. Setting clear targets or outcomes SPARC works with Nigerias state governments to develop policies that specify clear targets and reflect the views, experiences, and preferences of the people that they will affect. Basing policies and strategies on data SPARC works with Nigerian decision makers to help them develop targets and strategies that are based on accurate baseline information. Targets based on actual data are more likely to be realistic than those that are not. Research and testing SPARC works with Nigeria's government to ensure that it firmly bases its policies on research, as this will help to ensure that they benefit everyone they are intended to. Disadvantaged groups, such as the poor, can easily miss out if research isn't done to ask them what they need and want, and to find the best ways to target benefits.

Cross-checking SPARC works within Nigeria to encourage the development of policies that conform to national and international guidelines. This means cross-checking to make sure that policies in one sector take into account the effects that they will have in other sectors the structure of a water policy can have major implications for people's health, for example.