What is HRM?
Human Resource Management is the management of the workforce and organisation. It is responsible for recruitment, training, assessment and recognizing employees while administering organisation surveillance and work culture. HRM also ensures abidance with labour laws. In simple words, Human Resource Management is defined as the organising, planning and governing of the development, procurement of the human resources to the edge that a person, organisation and social goals are supported. HRM pertains to the overall skill, attitude and knowledge that a firm requires to perform. It comprises interest and effort to manage the workforce. The everyday chores of HRM are to select, train employees and develop good relations with them.
Substantial Existence
HRM is a universal component in every organisation. Even small enterprises need a human resource team to evaluate the requirement and recruit people accordingly. The implication of principles remains the same irrespective of the nature, size and purpose of the firm. Human resources can be an individual or a team depending on the expansion and complexity of a firm. Majority of the firms deploy a team of experts that can regulate the entire organisation's workforce and position them as per their capabilities.
A Component of Management Domain
HRM plays a vital role in an organisation's discipline. It is not regarded as a whole discipline but is certainly a field of study. However, HRM lies under the management process; it brings out management strategies, principles and concepts and utilises it to regulate human resources of any firm. An HRM builds a communication channel between the top management and employees to strengthen a firm's financial and professional roots. Companies with efficient HR professionals are more likely to expand than firms with weak HR skills.
An Action-Oriented Sector
The vital role of HRM is to take action according to the company's policy. It means the HR department is not all about record-keeping and written rules. They take action to solve employees' problems as soon as possible. To solve problems that require the involvement of top management authorities, the HR department communicates with them and solves the crisis.
Development-Oriented
HRM looks at the capability of each employee and positions in order to utilise the skills. It changes the compensation structure as per the employee requirements. The HR department also caters to training to enhance the worker's skills to boost productivity. It helps in determining work responsibilities and discover employees' hidden abilities to serve the organisational goal.
Presided Towards the Fulfilment of Goals
Human Resource Management works for fulfilling a company's set of objectives. It empowers an organisation through tools and strategies for effective management.
From hiring to rewarding to resigning, HRM manages and keeps a record of every employee. It helps an organisation to grow exponentially by handling resources efficiently. Mishandling of resources can lead to bankruptcy, mismanaged manpower and violation of company discipline.
People-Centred
HRM is all about people at work as a solo worker and a group. It strives to support employees to develop their potential and be productive. It deals with the people-oriented job and manages functions like training, hiring working performance and more. Human Resources has the capacity of building human capital. Humans are important for achieving organisational goals and the performance is based on the virtue of employees.
Managers in every hierarchy need to manage people in a way or another. From workers to managers, every individual in an organisation has to deal with human resource management.
HR Philosophy
HRM is a philosophy that does not assume a human being as a facet of production like capital or labour. HRM acknowledges employees' qualities and utilises their skills according to the company's requirements.
Every manager should have the necessary social skills to interact and establish a bond with the employees. If an employee has a good relationship with the HR department, s/he is more likely to sustain in the organisation.
Functions Continuously
The process of HRM is steady and has to run all the time without halts. An organisation requires effective workforce management for functioning smoothly.
It requires constant efforts instead of one-shot actions. HRM is a permanent process and managers at every level deal with people. They need to regulate paychecks without any error and calculate incentives for OT and medical reimbursement. Human resources primarily work for managing the workforce to complete a project.
Extensive Range of Activities
HRM involves various processes concerned with the management of the workforce. It comprises HR planning, placement, employment, appraisal, compensation and maintenance of workers.
For performing these activities, an organisation needs an individual or group of people known as HR or Human Resource Department. The HR department tracks the productivity index of each employee and provides appraisal to the employee as per his/her efforts.
The actual abbreviation of HRM or HR is Human resource management. It is the strategic and structured approach to the effective and efficient management of people in an organisation such that they help their business gain a competitive advantage over the others in the market. It is designed to maximise the level of employee performance by serving in a company according to an employer's strategic objectives.
It is the practice of recruiting, hiring, deploying, and managing an organisation's employees. HRM is an art of managing the employees with significant importance treating them as assets of the business.
Features
The 9 most important features of HRM are as follows
An HR should be Decision Oriented and deal with the employees accordingly. Some of the most important decisions an HR might have taken will be with respect to performance improvement through further training programs arranged or a promotion decision based on satisfactory performance by an employee without any bias.
An Hr should always be on the employee side and be Employee Oriented but not foregoing the company policies as well.
They should continuously plan and develop a structure in order to Provide Opportunities from the organisation's end.
Rather than getting stuck in one place, effective management should be an active Continuous Process.
The company should be Development-Oriented by drawing and framing various rewards and incentive structures in order to boost the employee to work well. On the other hand, Multidisciplinary in the sense that an HR should practice selecting and drawing the knowledge and inputs from various employees from different disciplines and backgrounds like those of psychology, sociology, anthropology, political science, etc.
Integration of Goals is a policy where the employee's goals and the organisational goals are not different and everyone works towards it in order to attain success.
Dynamic Function where the management is expected to perform necessary changes to the goal and organisation according to the social, economic, technical, and political environment outside.
Challenging, Comprehensive, and Pervasive Function
Performance and of course Future-Oriented
FAQs on Features of Human Resource Management (HRM)
1. What are the primary features of Human Resource Management (HRM)?
Human Resource Management (HRM) is a strategic approach to managing an organisation's employees. Its primary features include:
- Pervasive Function: HRM is present at all levels of management in an organisation.
- Action-Oriented: It focuses on solving problems and taking action, not just on keeping records.
- People-Oriented: It centres on employees as individuals and groups, aiming to develop their potential.
- Future-Oriented: HRM helps an organisation achieve its future goals by providing competent and motivated employees.
- Development-Oriented: It emphasises the training and development of personnel.
- Continuous Process: HRM is an ongoing function, not a one-time task.
- Multidisciplinary: It draws knowledge from various fields like psychology, sociology, and economics to manage people effectively.
2. Why is HRM considered a 'pervasive function' applicable at all levels of management?
HRM is considered a pervasive function because managing people is a responsibility of every manager, not just the HR department. From a top-level CEO setting workforce strategy to a team lead managing their small group, every manager deals with human resources. They are all involved in tasks like assigning work, motivating their team, and appraising performance, which are core aspects of HRM. This makes its principles universally applicable across the entire organisation.
3. How does the 'people-oriented' feature of HRM impact an organisation's work culture?
The people-oriented feature of HRM directly shapes a positive work culture. Instead of treating employees merely as resources like machines or capital, this feature focuses on their well-being, growth, and motivation. By addressing employee grievances, promoting fair treatment, providing growth opportunities, and fostering open communication, HRM builds a culture of trust and respect. This encourages employees to be more engaged, productive, and loyal to the organisation.
4. Explain the 'future-oriented' feature of HRM with a real-world example.
The future-oriented feature means that HRM actively prepares an organisation for upcoming challenges and goals. It involves strategic planning to ensure the right people with the right skills are available when needed. For example, if a company plans to launch a new digital product line in two years, the HRM team will start planning today. They will identify the need for digital marketers and software developers, create a plan for recruitment and training, and establish a succession plan for key roles, ensuring the company is ready for its future ventures.
5. How is HRM a 'multidisciplinary' field, and why is this important?
HRM is multidisciplinary because it integrates concepts and principles from various fields to understand and manage human behaviour at work. For instance:
- From Psychology, it learns about employee motivation, perception, and leadership.
- From Sociology, it understands group dynamics, team building, and organisational culture.
- From Economics, it derives principles for wage, salary, and incentive management.
- From Law, it ensures compliance with labour regulations.
This is important because it allows HR managers to use a holistic approach to solve complex human-related problems, leading to more effective and well-rounded solutions.
6. What is the difference between HRM being 'action-oriented' versus just 'record-keeping'?
The key difference lies in the approach. Simple 'record-keeping' is a passive function focused on maintaining employee files, attendance, and payroll data. In contrast, an action-oriented HRM is proactive. It uses that data to make strategic decisions and solve problems. For example, instead of just recording high employee turnover, an action-oriented HR department analyses the data, identifies the root causes (like poor management or low pay), and then implements corrective actions like management training or revised compensation plans.
7. Why must Human Resource Management be a continuous process for a business to succeed?
HRM must be a continuous process because the organisation and its workforce are constantly changing. Employee needs evolve, new people are hired, others retire or leave, market conditions shift, and new technologies emerge. A business cannot simply set up HR policies once and forget them. It requires constant attention to hiring, training, appraising, and motivating employees to ensure the workforce remains aligned with the organisation's ever-changing goals and can adapt to new challenges effectively.
8. How do the features of HRM apply differently in a large corporation compared to a small startup?
While the fundamental features of HRM are universal, their application varies with scale. In a large corporation, HRM is highly structured with specialised departments for recruitment, payroll, and training. The processes are formal and well-documented. In a small startup, HRM is often informal and handled by the founder or a single manager. The 'people-oriented' feature might be more direct through personal interactions, and the 'continuous process' is more about adapting quickly to rapid growth rather than maintaining complex systems. However, the core principles of hiring the right talent, motivating them, and planning for the future remain critical for both.
