WEEK ONE

LO1
1.1 -1.2


Personnel Management Vs Human
Resource Management
The major difference between personnel
management vs. human resource
management is that personnel management is
the traditional approach and human resource
management represents the modern
approach toward managing people in an
enterprise.

How do you compare personnel management vs
human resource management?

Personnel management is a predominantly
administrative record-keeping function that aims to
establish and maintain equitable terms and conditions
of employment.
Human resource management integrates the
traditional personnel management functions to
corporate goals and strategies, and performs
additional people-centered organizational
developmental activities.
Significant difference exists between personnel
management and human resource management
in terms of scope, approach, and application.

The Scope of Services
Human Resource Management is broader in scope than Personnel
Management.
The scope of personnel management includes functional activities
such as manpower planning, recruitment, job analysis, job
evaluation, payroll administration, performance appraisals, labor
law compliance, training administration, and related tasks. Human
resources management includes all these activities plus
organizational developmental activities such as leadership,
motivation, developing organizational culture, communication of
shared values, and so forth.
The human resource management approach remains integrated to
the companys core strategy and vision. It seeks to optimize the use
of human resource for the fulfillment of organizational goals. This
strategic and philosophical context of human resource management
makes it more purposeful, relevant, and more effective compared
to the personnel management approach.

Difference in Approach
The personnel management approach tends to attach much importance to
norms, customs and established practices, whereas the human resource
approach gives importance to values and mission.
The personnel management approach also concerns itself with
establishing rules, policies, procedures, and contracts, and strives to
monitor and enforce compliance to such regulations, with careful
delineation of written contract. The human resource management
approach remains impatient with rules and regulations. HR managers tend
to relax rules based on business needs and exigencies, and aim to go by
the spirit of the contract rather than the letter of the contract.
An illustration of this difference in approach lies in the treatment of
employee motivation. The personnel management approach holds
employee satisfaction as the key to keeping employees motivated, and
institutes compensation, bonuses, rewards, and work simplification
initiatives as possible motivators. The human resource philosophy holds
improved performance as the driver of employee satisfaction, and devises
strategies such as work challenges, team work, and creativity to improve
motivation.

Difference in Nature
Another dimension of the difference is the proactive nature
of human resource management compared to the reactive
nature of personnel management.
Personnel management remains aloof from core
organizational activities, functions independently, and takes
a reactive approach to changes in corporate goals or
strategy. Human resource management remains integrated
with corporate strategy and takes a proactive approach to
align the workforce toward achievement of corporate goals.
For instance, while the personnel management approach
concerns itself with a reactive performance appraisal
process, human resource management approach has a
more comprehensive and proactive performance
management system that aims to correct performance
rather than make a report card of past performance
Difference in Application
Personnel management is an independent staff function of
an organization, with little involvement from line managers,
and no linkage to the organization's core process. Human
resource management, on the other hand, remains
integrated with the organization's core strategy and
functions. Although a distinct human resource department
carries out much of the human resource management
tasks, human resource initiatives involve the line
management and operations staff heavily.
Personnel management also strives to reconcile the
aspirations and views of the workforce with management
interest by institutional means such as collective
bargaining, trade union-based negotiations and similar
processes. This leads to fixation of work conditions
applicable for all, and not necessarily aligned to overall
corporate goals.

Human Resource management gives greater thrust on
dealing with each employee independently and gives more
importance to customer-focused developmental activities
and facilitating individual employees rather than bargaining
or negotiating with trade unions.
Finally, in any discussion of personnel management vs
human resource management, we must include that
personnel management lays down rigid job description
with many grades and a fixed promotion policy--usually
based on seniority and performance appraisal ratings.
Human resource management, on the other hand, has
relatively fewer grades and ranks, with broadly defined job
responsibilities providing much scope for applying creativity
and initiative, and plenty of career paths, with skills, talent
and commitment the key drivers of career advancement.

Functions of the Human Resource
Department
A typical Human Resource Department is
carries out the following functions:

1. Manpower Planning

This involves the planning for the future and finding
out how many employees will be needed in the future
by the business and what types of skills should they
possess.
Manpower planning depends on the following factors
The number of people leaving the job
The projected growth in sales of the business
Technological changes
Productivity level of the workers
2. Job analysis and Job description

HR Department is also involved in designing the Job
analysis and Job description for the prospective vacancies.
A job analysis is the process used to collect information
about the duties, responsibilities, necessary skills,
outcomes, and work environment of a particular job.
Job descriptions are written statements that describe the:
duties,
responsibilities,
most important contributions and outcomes needed from
a position,
required qualifications of candidates, and
reporting relationship and co-workers of a particular job.

KSAs- Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs), or
Competencies are the attributes required to
perform a job and are generally demonstrated
through qualifying experience, education, or
training.
Knowledge is a body of information applied
directly to the performance of a function.
Skill is an observable competence to perform a
learned psychomotor act.
Ability is competence to perform an observable
behavior or a behavior that results in an
observable product
3. Determining wages and salaries

HR Department is also involved in conducting
market surveys and determining the wages
and salaries for different position in an
organization. These decisions may be taken in
consultation with top management and the
Finance department
4. Recruitment and Selection

One of the most important jobs of the HR
department is to recruit the best people for
the organization. This is of crucial importance
as the success of any organization depends on
the quality of its workforce.


5. Performance Appraisal

Once the employees are recruited, the HR Department has
to review their performance on a regular basis through
proper performance appraisals.
Performance appraisal is the process of obtaining,
analyzing and recording information about the relative
worth of an employee.
The focus of the performance appraisal is measuring and
improving the actual performance of the employee and
also the future potential of the employee. Its aim is to
measure what an employee does.
On the basis of performance appraisal the HR Department
will set up an action plan for each employee. If the
employees need any training then the department provides
that.

6. Training and Development

HR department is constantly keeping a watch
over the employees of the organisation. In
order to improve the efficiency level of the
employees they have to undergo regular
trainings and development programmes. All
trainings and development needs are carried
out by this department. Training might include
on the job or off the job training.

7. Employee Welfare and Motivation

Happy employees mean a healthy
organization. HR Department conducts various
employee welfare activities which might
include employees get together, annual staff
retreats etc. HR department also reviews
organizational policies and its impact on the
motivation of the employees.


8. Addressing Employees grievances

HR department is the link between the
workers and the management. Employees
grievances in the work environment are
usually entertained and resolved by the HR
Department.

9. Labour Management Relations

For the smooth operation of any organization,
it is crucial to have good labour management
relations. HR department has to ensure that
these relations are cordial. In case of any
labour-management conflict the HR
Department will play a vital role in bringing
both management parties to the negotiation
table and resolving the issue.

10. Implementing organizational policies

HR Department has to coordinate with line
manager and see that the organizational
policies are being implemented in a proper
manner. Disciplinary action can be initiated
against employees who are not following
organizational rules and regulations. All these
actions are conceived and implemented by
the HR department.
11. Dismissal and Redundancy

HR Department has to take firm actions against
employees who are not following the
organizational code of conduct, rules and
regulations. This can result in the dismissal of the
employee. Sometimes, an organization may no
more require the services of an employee. The
employee may be made redundant. HR
Department has to see that organizational and
government regulations are being followed in this
process.

All these functions contribute towards organisational
effectiveness.
Human Resources Department (HRD)
The Human Resource Department deals with
management of people within the organisation. There
are a number of responsibilities that come with this
title. First of all, the Department is responsible for
hiring members of staff; this will involve attracting
employees, keeping them in their positions and
ensuring that they perform to expectation. Besides, the
Human Resource Department also clarifies and sets
day to day goals for the organisation.
HRD is responsible for organisation of people in the
entire Company and plans for future ventures and
objectives involving people in the Company

External & Internal Environmental
Factors Influencing HR Activities

A successful human resources strategy
complements a company's mission and goals -- so
what works for an industry giant won't
necessarily be suitable for a small business.
The factors influencing HR activities aren't static:
To maximize recruitment and retention, and to
minimize employee issues, small business
managers must continually monitor internal and
external environmental factors and adjust HR
strategy accordingly. To do that, it's important to
know what the internal and external factors can
consist of:

Competition

The extent of competition in the industry affects a
company's ability to recruit qualified workers. Industry
giants find that candidates seek them out. Small businesses
typically don't have the same branding power or company
reputation, though, and need to actively seek qualified
candidates for critical positions. In such a scenario, a
human resources department will need to focus on
developing recruitment materials and attending job fairs to
promote the company and attract applicants. Similarly, HR
should develop programs and incentives to retain key
employees.

Compensation

Labor supply drives the amount of compensation a
business must offer to attract employees. In an
oversaturated market, when unemployment is high and
many more qualified candidates exist than job
opportunities, the amount of compensation provided is less
than when a shortage of candidates exists and businesses
are competing against multiple other companies to recruit
employees. HR must continually evaluate the
compensation structure by conducting industry- and
location-specific salary surveys to ensure wages remain
competitive enough to attract and retain key staff members
but low enough that the business remains financially
competitive. HR must also ensure that the internal
compensation structure is fair -- for example, experienced
workers with specialized qualifications should earn more
than recent college graduates performing the same tasks.
Legislation

Legislation impacts all HR activities. National
legislation typically dictates how long a business
must retain personnel records and other
employee data, what can be stored, and how.
This places obligations on employers to safeguard
the confidentiality of employee personal
information and to make sure company managers
operate within the confines of law. HR
professionals must stay abreast of legislation and
train managers on their responsibilities.

Employee Relations

Internal policies and procedures impact HR activities.
For example, if the company is committed to
promoting from within, HR must ensure employees
receive appropriate training and development to be
ready for promotion when the time comes. HR should
monitor the number of employees eligible for
retirement and ensure potential replacements or other
staff members are trained to avoid a sudden departure
of business knowledge. If the company is unionized, HR
must engage in collective bargaining with the union on
matters of representation. External influences, political
factors and organizational culture all influence the
amount of grievances and complaints HR must respond
to