Recruiting and Retaining

People
Lecture 2 Introduction/Human
Resourcing, Retention and
Planning Overview

Human Resource Management

The main dimensions of HRM [involve] the goal of
integration [i.e. if human resources can be integrated into
strategic plans, if human resource policies cohere, if line
managers have internalized the importance of human
resources & this is reflected in their behaviour & if
employees identify with the company, then the
companys strategic plans are likely to be more
successfully implemented], the goal of employee
commitment, the goal of flexibility / adaptability [i.e.
organic structures, functional flexibility], the goal of
quality [i.e. quality of staff, performance, standards &
public image]. (Guest, 1987)

Human Resource Management

Guests definition suggests HRM is a specific/distinctive approach to
people management
See the TPM/HRM debate of 1990s (not our focus)
From Guests definition, HRM appears to be:
More strategic, integrated, cohesive than TPM
Line management driven
Linked to organisational culture
More flexible, geared to product quality and staff competence
HRM role seems high level, influential, strategic, proactive,
professional
Traditionally in UK, the Personnel Role said to be:
Low status and low influence
Non-strategic and reactive
Poor levels of qualifications; not deemed a true profession like
law / medicine

Human Resource Management

There is also a view that HRM describes all good
people management practice (i.e. is not necessarily a
specific/distinct form)
Redman and Wilkinson (2009: 4) cite Lewins (2007)
broad/generic definition of HRM as the management
of people at work to argue that he sees the HRM
label:
As linking effective people management with successful
organisational performance
In this sense HRM has an aspirational quality.
From this perspective, it seems that HRM can galvanise
thinking and activity towards improved people management
and improved organisational performance i.e. added value

Added Value and the HR Function,

Human Resourcing and Retention
Taylor (2008: 6) argues that added value much
talked about but not necessarily understood &
highlights 3 types of HR contribution:
Delivering business goals
Providing excellent administrative support
Acting as a champion for effective
management of people

Variations of HRM
Hard vs. soft HRM
Scientific management vs. human relations roots
Quantitative, costs vs. motivation, leadership and
communication emphases
Needs of organization vs. needs of individual(s)
Best fit (Miles & Snow, Porter, Schuler & Jackson)
External & internal integration/alignment/planning
I.e. Business strategy fits external business environment/HR strategy
that fits with business strategy & environment

Best practice (Pfeffer 1998)

Identifies 7 best HRM practices: employment security,
selective hiring, self-managed teams or team-working, high pay
contingent on company performance, extensive training,
reduction of status differentials, sharing information

Variations of HRM
Resource Based View/RBV
Considers that strategies might emerge/not planned
Alternative to external environment focus of best fit
strategic thinking or of using generic best practices
RBV focuses on internal environment (e,g. areas of
strength/distinction) including human resources
Valuable, rare, inimitable, non-substitutable (Barney, 1991)

Best practice, not best fit perspective/but using best

practices that suit the particular organisation
Human capital outlook/recognising existing competitive advantage
from your human resource & sustaining/ developing this advantage
e.g. through retention of human resources via your existing or new
good HR practice(s)
Benefits of strong, enduring positive culture also

Human/People Resourcing
Taylor (2008, 2010) explains people resourcing and
talent planning is the broadest CIPD module
covering:
Staffing aspects
Performance aspects
Administration aspects
Change management
In our module, we will thus consider how people are
recruited, selected and managed/retained &
Consider overlaps between the four areas above
and how these are reflected in next slide.....

Human/People Resourcing
Major Resourcing, Planning and Retention Activities
(Taylor, 2008: 5; 2010: 8-9):

Human resource planning

Forecasting employee demand/supply
Job analysis/designing competence frameworks
Preparing job descriptions/person specifications
Recruitment & selection of new employees
Training managers in effective recruitment & selection
Issuing job offers/employment contracts
Inducting and socialising new employees
Advising managers on employment law
Monitoring employee performance
Improving (motivating/rewarding) performance
Managing employee absence and turnover
Managing redundancies and retirements
Conducting dismissals

Human Resourcing, Retention

and Planning
CIPD (cited by Taylor, 2010: 2) define purpose of
people resourcing, retention & planning:
A major and fundamental objective of the HR
function is the mobilisation of a workforce.
Organisations can only function if they are able to
assemble together teams of people with the
necessary skills, attitudes and experience to meet
their objectives. A further objective is then to retain
effective performers for as long as possible. From
time to time it is also necessary to dismiss people
from organisations..

Human Resourcing, Retention

and Planning
Hence we will look at several strategic aspects
of employee/HR resourcing and related HR
activities today and over the next few weeks:

HR broad strategy choices

HR flow/retention/planning overview
HR recruitment and selection including evaluation
Managing retention/turnover
Managing flexibility
Managing equalities and diversity
Redundancy and release

Strategic Choices in Human

Resourcing and Retention
Human resourcing & retention (& turnover/exit)
needs to be considered as part of organisations
wider HR resourcing strategy, HR planning & HR
flow (Beer et al., 1984) processes
Broadly speaking, organisations have a choice as to
whether to emphasise R&S of ready made or
development of home grown talent (Torrington et al.
2008) i.e. to depend largely on:
R&S mainly via the external labour market, or
Limited external R&S, then development of employees for
long-term retention, careers and succession planning in
the organisation via largely internal selection

Ready Made or Home Grown

Talent Choice
Sonnenfeld et al. (1992 cited by Torrington et al.
2008: 119) provide a careers systems typology
that draws from Miles and Snows (1984) best
fit linking of strategic behaviour & HR strategy: Academies (typically pharmaceuticals and
car industries) emphasise differentiation via:
Individual contribution, reward and promotion
Low turnover, long tenure, development
Internal promotion competition, exit barriers

Ready Made or Home Grown

Talent
Clubs (typically public sector) stress defence:
Internal labour market, retention
Promotion on loyalty, service, seniority and equality

Baseball teams (typically professional firms such

as legal and accounting) are prospectors who:
Use external labour market/recruitment for all level
posts to find high contributing professional candidates

Fortresses (typically publishers, retail and hotels)

are reactors who tend to:
Use external labour market/recruitment to find
generalists suited to retrenchment or turnaround

What is HR planning?
the systematic and continuing process of
analysing an organisation's human resource
needs under changing conditions and
integrating this analysis with the development
of personnel policies appropriate to meet those
needs. It goes beyond the development of
policies on an individual basis by embracing as
many aspects of managing people as possible
with a key emphasis on planning to meet the
skill and development needs of the future.
(IPM, 1992)

Analysis and
investigation

Forecasting

External
labour
market

Internal labour
market

Demand

Organisational
assessment

Corporate
strategy

Supply

HR imbalance quantitative/qualitative

Planning and
resourcing

Implementatio
n and control

Working patterns; retention; health and safety; release;

training
and
development;
employment
relations;
organisation structure and development; recruitment and
selection; equality of opportunity; pay and reward;
performance management.
Using HR techniques
Developing policies and reviewing practice
Utilising technology

Source: Leopold, J. (2002) Human Resources in Organisations, Harlow, Pearson Education Ltd, pp. 31. (adapted from
Bramham (1994)

Context of Human Resourcing

and Planning
We will pick up on the context of human
resource management/planning in next
weeks lecture when we look at the
external business environment (and the
historical stages of people management)
We will pick up on the activities involved in
human resource planning in a future
lecture..