Introduction to Human

Resource
Management
Infosys Technologies has been adjudged the best employer of the
year by a number of leading human resource (HR) surveys for its
outstanding HR practices. It is one of the few companies that
succeeded in greatly influencing the attitude and behaviour of the
employees and the performance of the organization through
creative HR practices.
The HR policies of infosys include:() focusing on the learn ability of
candidates in recruitment;(i) emphasizing continuous learning
through employee training. For this reason, it has developed a
world-class training centre called the Global Education Center at
Mysore to train fresh recruits and an Infosys Leadership Institute
to develop future leaders of the companies; (iii) evaluating the
performance of employees in a scientific manner through a
competency-mapping system and(iv) using a variable
compensation structure, which considers the collective
performance of the individual, the team and the organization asa
whole for fixing the employee-compensation packages. To sum up,
its HR philosophy, policy practices and management have played a
pivotal role in making Infosys a $2billion company today The
success story of Infosys is a proof that HR management (HRM) can
be a definite competitive advantage for a firm and can make a real
difference not only to the fortune of the organizations but also to
the individuals as well. Keeping this success story in mind, let us
first learn the basics of HRM in this chapter.
 After reading this chapter,
you should be able to

1. Understand the meaning of human resources

2. Define the objectives, scope and functions of human
resource management
3. Differentiate between human resource management
(HRM) and personnel management (PM)
4. Enumerate the qualities of HR managers
5. Discuss the future role of human resource management
 Human Resources- Meaning

Human Resources means the collection of

people and their characteristics at work. These
are distinct and unique to an organization in
several ways
 Objectives of HRM
1. To help the organisation to attain its goals effectively and
efficiently by providing competent and motivated
employees.
2. To utilize the available human resources effectively.
3. To increase to the fullest the employee’s job satisfaction
and self-actualisation.
4. To develop and maintain the quality of work life (QWL)
which makes employment in the organisation a desirable
personal and social situation.
5. To help maintain ethical policies and behaviour inside and
outside the organisation.
6. To establish and maintain cordial relations between
employees and management.
7. To reconcile individual/group goals with organisational
goals.
A Tata company shall provide equal opportunities to all its
employees and all qualified applicants for employment without
regard to their race, caste, religion, colour, ancestry, marital
status, gender, sexual orientation, age, nationality, ethnic origin or
disability, HR policies shall promote diversity and equality, in the
workplace as well as compliance with all local labour laws, while
encouraging the adoption of the best international practices .

Employees of a Tata company shall be treated with dignity and in

accordance with the Tata policy of maintaining a work
environment free of all forms of harassment, whether physical,
verbal or psychological. Employee policies and practices shall be
administered in a manner consistent with the applicable laws and
the other provisions of this code, respect for the right to privacy
and the right to be heard, and that in all matters equal opportunity
is provided to those eligible and that decisions are based on merit.
Why and how Human Resources
(HR) are superior to physical
resources
 HR alone appreciates over a period
 HR achieves in higher performance output
than its actual input
 HR brings value to all other assets
 Operational flexibility is possible with HR
Human Resource Management -
Meaning

Human resource management is concerned

with policies and practices that ensure the best
use of the human resources for fulfilling the
organizational and individual goals
Functions of Human Resource
Management

Functions of HRM

Operative Functions
Managerial Functions
• Procurement
• Planning
• Development
• Organizing
• Compensation
• Staffing
• Maintenance and Motivation
• Directing
• Integration
• Controlling
• Industrial Relations
 Operative Functions of HRM

Operative Functions of
HRM

Procurement Maintenance and

Development Compensation
§Job analysis Motivation
§Workers’ training §Job Integration
and design §Employee
§Executive evaluation well- being §Industrial
§Human resource
development §Performance §Social security relations
planning
§Organizational evaluation §Workers’ participation §Discipline
§Recruitment
development §Wages §Motivation §Grievance redressal
§Selection
§Career administration §Job rotation §Dispute settlement
§Placement §HR records, research,
planning and §Incentives and §Collective bargaining
§Orientation and audit
development benefits
§Socialization §HR information system
 Scope of Human Resource
Management
 Personnel or Labour Aspect deals with HR
planning, recruitment, selection, placement,, training
and development, remuneration, etc
 Welfare Aspect deals with working conditions and
amenities such as canteen, rest-rooms, etc
 Industrial Relations Aspect deals with union–
management relations like collective bargaining,
grievance and disciplinary actions, etc
 Similarities between HRM and PM
The basic elements common to HRM and PM are as follows:
Business Strategy: Both form the basis for the evolution of HR
and PM strategy
Matching People: Choosing the right people for the right job and
developing them to achieve their maximum level of competence
remain the priority of both HRM and PM.
Prominence of Line Authority HRM, similar to PM, recognizes
that the primary responsibility for managing people stays with
line managers.
Identical Core Elements Techniques like selection, training,
development, compensation and performance management are
common to both HRM and PM.
Emphasis on Communication and Participation: HRM and PM
provide equal importance to the communication process and
workers' participation in decision making
 Difference between HRM and PM

 HRM is proactive in nature while PM is reactive

 HRM is a resource-centred activity whereas PM
is a employee-centred activity
 HRM emphasizes on flexible, open-ended
contracts but PM emphasizes the strict
observance of defined rules, procedures and
contracts
Difference between HRM and PM-
continued

 HRM views better performance as a cause of

job satisfaction whereas PM considers job
satisfaction as a source of better performance
 HRM seeks to develop the competencies of the
employees on a sustained basis while PM is a
regular, status quo–based administrative
function
 Qualities of HR Manager

Knowledge

Intelligence

Communication skills

Objectivity and fairness

Leadership and motivational qualities

Emotional maturity

Empathy
 Line V/s Staff Authority
Authority The term refers to the right to influence the activities
of the subordinates or take decisions concerning them and to
issue instructions or orders pertaining to their work.
Line Manager Line managers are those who are empowered to
direct the work of the people assigned to them. Further, line
managers are directly responsible for accomplishing the
departmental goals and corporate objectives. Examples of line
managers are production manager, purchase manager and sales
manager.
Staff Advisor Staff advisors are those who play an important
role in advising and assisting the line managers in accomplishing
the basic goals. Theoretically, the suggestions given by the staff
advisor to the line managers may or may not be accepted by the
latter.
 The Future of HRM
Change in the nature of HRM

Widening scope of HR activities

Greater emphasis on HRIS

Change in labour market conditions

Increasing Importance of High Performance work systems

(HPWS)
 Skill-development Exercise
Situation Mukesh joins as the HR manager of Spike Tyres and
Tubes Limited. When he interacts with the employees of the
company as part of the familiarization process, he finds out to his
dismay that almost all the employees have one grievance against
the organization or another. His subordinates in the department
also inform him that the employees are never satisfied with the
benefits offered to them. Peculiarly when some benefits are given
to one group of employees, the other groups become restive and
demand benefits. For instance, when educational allowances are
provided to the younger employees to pursue higher studies, the
older ones get upset.
The situation turns the other way round when retirement benefits
are significantly increased. Further, the women, who have joined
the company in large numbers in recent years, have a grudge
that the company has no women-specific welfare measures like
child care centre and maternity benefits
 Skill-development Exercise (contd.)

However, when Mukesh scrutinizes the HR policies of the

company, he realizes that the HR policies are the major source
of troubles as they are old-fashioned and do not suit the
diversified and well informed workforce of today. Thus, he
decides to conduct meetings to discuss the alterations and
improvements required to be made in the HR policies and
procedures in tune with the changing nature of the workforce.