Introduction to Business

Human Resource Management

By
Amna Shafiq Minhas
PhD (scholar), M.phil.
 What Is Human Resource Management?

• Human resource management function of

attracting, developing, and retaining
employees who can perform the activities
necessary to accomplish organizational
objectives.
• Human resource management (HRM) is the
practice of recruiting, hiring, deploying and
managing an organization's employees.
HRM is often referred to simply as human
resources (HR).
• Not every firm is large enough to have an entire human resources department.
But whoever performs this function generally does the following: plan for
staffing needs, recruit and hire workers, provide for training and evaluate
performance, determine compensation and benefits, and oversee employee
separation.
• Human resource managers achieve their objectives of:
• providing qualified, well-trained employees for the organization;
• maximizing employee effectiveness in the organization; and
• satisfying individual employee needs through monetary compensation,
benefits, opportunities to advance, and job satisfaction
Human resource plans must be based on an organization’s overall competitive
strategies.
In conjunction with other managers, human resource managers predict how
many employees a firm or department will need, and what skills those workers
should bring to the job—along with what skills they might learn on the job.
Human resource managers are often consulted when a firm is considering
reducing costs by laying off workers, or increasing costs by hiring new ones.
They may be involved in both long-term and short-term planning
 Recruitment and Selection

• Human resource managers recruit and help select the right workers for a
company.

Finding Qualified Selecting and

Candidates Hiring Employees
 When the economy dips and jobs are lost, many people compete for a
limited number of positions. But even with a large number of job
candidates competing for a small number of openings, companies often
have trouble finding the right person for each position.

In addition to traditional methods of recruiting, such as college job fairs,

Finding Qualified personal referrals, and want ads, most companies now rely on their Web
Candidates sites.
A firm’s Web site might contain a career section with general
employment information and a listing of open positions. Applicants are
often able to submit a résumé and apply for an open position online.

Internet recruiting is such a quick, efficient, and inexpensive way to reach

a large pool of job seekers that the vast majority of companies currently
use the Internet, including social networking sites, to fill job openings.
 Once you have developed your recruitment plan, recruited people, and
now have plenty of people to choose from, you can begin the selection
process.
The selection process refers to the steps involved in choosing people who
have the right qualifications to fill a current or future job opening.

Selecting and Usually, managers and supervisors will be ultimately responsible for the
Hiring Employees hiring of individuals, but the role of human resource management (HRM)
is to define and guide managers in this process.

The selection process consists of five distinct aspects: Criteria

development, Application and résumé review, Interviewing, Test
administration, Making the offer.

Recruitment and selection are expensive. There are costs for advertising, interviewing, administering
employment tests and even medical exams. Once an applicant is hired, there are costs for training and perhaps
equipment such as a computer. But a bad hiring decision is even more expensive, because the firm has to go
through the whole process again to find the right person.
 Orientation, Training, and Evaluation

Companies provide this information through orientation, training, and

evaluation. A new hire may complete an orientation program administered
jointly by the human resource personnel and the department in which the
employee will work. During orientation, employees learn about company
policies regarding their rights and benefits. They might receive an employee
manual that includes the company’s code of ethics and code of conduct. And
they’ll usually receive some form of training.
Training Programs
Training is a good investment for both employers and employees. Training provides
workers with an opportunity to build their skills and knowledge, preparing them for
new job opportunities within the company.
On-the-Job Training : One popular teaching method is on-the-job training, which
prepares employees for job duties by allowing them to perform tasks under the
guidance of experienced employees.
Classroom and Computer-Based Training: Many firms offer some form of classroom
instruction such as lectures, conferences, and workshops or seminars.
Performance Appraisals
Performance appraisal is the evaluation of and feedback on an employee’s job
performance.
Downsizing
Downsizing is the process of reducing the number of employees within a firm by
eliminating jobs. Downsizing can be accomplished through early retirement plans or
voluntary severance programs.
 Motivating Employees
Motivating employees to commit to their company and perform their best on the job is
one of the main goals of a manager. Motivation starts with good employee morale.
High morale generally results from good management, including an understanding of
human needs and an effort to satisfy those needs in ways that move the company
forward. Low employee morale, on the other hand, usually signals a poor relationship
between managers and employees and often results in absenteeism, voluntary turnover,
and a lack of motivation.
There are several theories of motivation, all of which relate back to the basic process of
motivation itself, which involves the recognition of a need, the move toward meeting
that need, and the satisfaction of that need. For instance, if you are hungry you might be
motivated to make yourself a peanut butter sandwich. Once you have eaten the
sandwich, the need is satisfied and you are no longer hungry.
 Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory

is the theory of motivation proposed
by Abraham Maslow.
According to the theory, people have
five levels of needs that they seek to
satisfy: physiological, safety, social,
esteem, and self-actualization.
• The studies of psychologist Abraham H. Maslow suggest how managers can
motivate employees. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs has become a widely
accepted list of human needs based on these important assumptions:
• People’s needs depend on what they already possess.
• A satisfied need is not a motivator; only needs that remain unsatisfied can
influence behavior.

• In his theory, Maslow proposed that all people have basic needs such as
hunger and protection that they must satisfy before they can consider higher-
order needs such as social relationships or self-worth. He identified five types
of needs:
• Physiological needs: These basic human needs include food, shelter, and
clothing. On the job, employers satisfy these needs by paying salaries and
wages and providing a heated or cooled workspace.
• Safety needs: These needs refer to desires for physical and economic
protection. Companies satisfy these needs with benefits like health insurance
and meeting safety standards in the workplace.
• Social (belongingness) needs: People want to be accepted by family, friends
and coworkers. Managers might satisfy these needs through teamwork and
group lunches.
• Esteem needs: People like to feel valued and recognized by others. Managers
can meet these needs through special awards or privileges.
• Self-actualization needs: These needs drive people to seek fulfillment of
their dreams and capabilities. Employers can satisfy these needs by offering
challenging or creative projects, along with opportunities for education and
advancement.
Herzberg’s Two-Factor Model of Motivation

• More than 50 years ago, Frederick Herzberg—a social psychologist and

consultant—came up with a theory of motivation and work that is still
popular today.
• Herzberg surveyed workers to find out when they felt good or bad about their
jobs. He learned that certain factors were important to job satisfaction though
they might not contribute directly to motivation.
• These hygiene factors (or maintenance factors) refer to aspects of work that
are not directly related to a task itself but related to the job environment,
including pay, job security, working conditions, status, interpersonal relations,
technical supervision, and company policies.
 Expectancy Theory and Equity Theory
• Victor Vroom’s expectancy theory of motivation describes the process people
use to evaluate the likelihood that their efforts will yield the results they want,
along with the degree to which they want those results. Expectancy theory
suggests that people use three factors to determine how much effort to put
forth.
• First is a person’s subjective prediction that a certain effort will lead to the
desired result. This is the “can do” component of an employee’s approach to
work.
• Second is the value of the outcome (reward) to the person.
• Third is the person’s assessment of how likely a successful performance will
lead to a desirable reward.
• Equity theory is concerned with an individual’s perception of fair and
equitable treatment. In their work, employees first consider their effort and
then their rewards. Next, employees compare their results against those of
their coworkers.
• The key difference between expectancy theory and equity theory is
that according to expectancy theory, people perform actions in exchange
for rewards based on their conscious expectations, but equity theory
suggests that people derive job satisfaction by comparing their effort and
reward ratio with others.