Human Resource Management

The Human Resources Management (HRM) function includes a variety of activities, and key among them is
deciding what staffing needs you have and whether to use independent contractors or hire employees to fill
these needs, recruiting and training the best employees, ensuring they are high performers, dealing with
performance issues, and ensuring your personnel and management practices conform to various regulations.
Activities also include managing your approach to employee benefits and compensation, employee records
and personnel policies. The organisation should always ensure that employees have -- and are aware of --
personnel policies which conform to current regulations. These policies are often in the form of employee
manuals, which all employees have.

Human resources management comprises several processes like –

1. Recruitment
2. Induction and Orientation
3. Training and development
4. Performance appraisal
5. Retention
6. Payroll
7. Employee benefits administration

RECRUITMENT

Recruitment refers to the process of sourcing, screening, and selecting people for a job or vacancy within an
organization. Recruitment is the process of attracting qualified applicants for a specific job. The task of
recruiting new staff is an important but time-consuming process, so companies often prefer to hire a
specialist agency to source suitable candidates. In a nutshell, the objective of a recruitment consultant is to
build relationships with clients, source job vacancies, and find appropriate candidates for each role.

The recruitment industry

The recruitment industry has four main types of agencies:-

• Traditional recruitment agency:

Recruitment agencies have historically had a physical location. A candidate visits a local branch for a short
interview and an assessment before being taken onto the agency’s books. Recruitment Consultants then
endeavour to match their pool of candidates to their clients' open positions. Suitable candidates are with
potential employers.

• Online recruitment websites

Such sites have two main features: job boards and a résumé/Curriculum Vitae (CV) database. Job boards
allow member companies to post job vacancies. Alternatively, candidates can upload a résumé to be
included in searches by member companies. Fees are charged for job postings and access to search resumes.

In recent times the recruitment website has evolved to encompass end to end recruitment. Key players in this
sector provide e-recruitment software and services to organisations of all sizes and within numerous
industry sectors, who want to e-enable entirely or partly their recruitment process in order to improve
business performance.

Online recruitment websites can be very helpful to find candidates that are very actively looking for work
and post their resumes online, but they will not attract the "passive" candidates who might respond
favorably to an opportunity that is presented to them through other means.

• Headhunters
Headhunters are third-party recruiters often retained when normal recruitment efforts have failed.

Headhunters are generally more aggressive than in-house recruiters. They may use advanced sales
techniques, such as initially posing as clients to gather employee contacts, as well as visiting candidate
offices. They may also purchase expensive lists of names and job titles, but more often will generate their
own lists. They may prepare a candidate for the interview, help negotiate the salary, and conduct closure to
the search.

Headhunters are typically small operations that make high margins on candidate placements (sometimes
more than 30% of the candidate’s annual compensation). Due to their higher costs, headhunters are usually
employed to fill senior management and executive level roles, or to find very specialized individuals.

While in-house recruiters tend to attract candidates for specific jobs, headhunters will both attract candidates
and actively seek them out as well. To do so, they may network, cultivate relationships with various
companies, maintain large databases, purchase company directories or candidate lists, and cold call.

• In-house recruitment

Larger employers tend to undertake their own in-house recruitment, using their Human Resources
department. In addition to coordinating with the agencies mentioned above, in-house recruiters may
advertise job vacancies on their own websites, coordinate employee referral schemes, and/or focus on
campus graduate recruitment.). Alternatively a large employer may choose to outsource all or some of their
recruitment process (Recruitment process outsourcing

The Recruitment Process

These are the main recruiting stages:

• Sourcing

It involves advertising, a common part of the recruiting process, often encompassing multiple media,
such as the Internet, general newspapers, job ad newspapers, professional publications, window
advertisements, job centers, and campus graduate recruitment programs; and

• Screening & selection

Suitability for a job is typically assessed by looking for skills, e.g. communication, typing, and computer
skills. Qualifications may be shown through résumés, job applications, interviews, educational or
professional experience, the testimony of references, or in-house testing, such as for software knowledge,
typing skills, and literacy, through psychological tests or employment testing.

• On boarding

A well-planned introduction helps new employees become fully operational quickly and is often
integrated with the recruitment process.

• Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO)

Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) is a form of business process outsourcing (BPO) where an
employer outsources or transfers all or part of its recruitment activities to an external service provider.

• Referral recruitment
It is a process whereby vacancies are promoted and filled by recommendations rather than by traditional
methods such as direct classified job advertisements or by employing a headhunter. Proponents of this
recruitment method claim that since each candidate comes with a personal recommendation behind
them, the applicants are likely to be better suited to the job and the applicant already has a referee.

Many companies offer incentives to the referee, usually a monetary fee. The key advantage of referral
recruitment is that it allows recruiters to reach passive candidates, those who are not actively looking for
a new job but are sometimes amongst the most prized employees.

Induction and Orientation

New employee orientation is the process you use for welcoming a new employee into your organization.
New employee orientation, often spearheaded by a meeting with the Human Resources department,
generally contains information about safety, the work environment, the new job description, benefits and
eligibility, company culture, company history, the organization chart and anything else relevant to
working in the new company.

New employee orientation often includes an introduction to each department in the company and
training on-the-job. New employee orientation frequently includes spending time doing the jobs in each
department to understand the flow of the product or service through the organization. New employee
orientation (NEO) becomes the umbrella program for other programs that include performance reviews
and training. The benefits of orientation are clear and visible to both the new employee and the
organization.

The employee's first day is truly welcoming and helps the employee feel useful and productive. This can
be accomplished by being prepared for a new employee; desk, office, phone, and supplies are ready.
How many times have new employees arrived at your organization and everyone is too busy to direct
their activities or teach them the job? Several successful organizations set up a welcome, introductions
and a tour that ends in the new employee's work area. The new employee is then paired with an
experienced "buddy" to teach a specific task. This way a new employee can perform a simple task that
contributes to the department's production on the first day of employment.

The supervisor's role in NEO is clear and well executed with human resources department's or function's
assistance. Supervisors and the human resources department or function share responsibility for the
successful orientation of the new employee. Supervisors need to identify what is best done by them and
what information is more general and best given by the human resources department or function. The
human resources department or function is usually best equipped to share organization policy, history
and benefits. Supervisors usually prefer to explain safety rules, reporting requirements and job tasks.
The division of tasks must be negotiated between supervisors and the human resources department or
function if tasks are to be successfully shared.

Consider the following items for your New Employee Orientation Checklist:

Personnel file contents

• Job application or resume

• Interview summary
• Reference check information

Complete necessary paperwork

• Employment agreement if you use them
• Receipt for their copy of your employee handbook
• Personal data sheet so you will have the information necessary on emergency contacts, home address
and telephone number, social security number, etc.

Explain the following practices and procedures you use in your organization:

• Hours of work and attendance/tardiness policy

• Payroll periods, when paychecks are delivered and when first check will arrive
• Rates of pay
• Overtime rules
• Training or Probation period
• Employee benefits for which they are or may become eligible:

o Medical insurance
o Sick leave
o Earned Leave
o Casual Leave
o Vacation
o Official holidays
o Life, disability and accident insurance
o Employee activities
o Other benefits you offer and how much the employer will pay
for each

• Appraisal or promotion opportunities and procedures

• Employee suggestion plan
• Parking arrangements

Provide copies to the new employee of the following documents:

• Employee handbook

• Safety plan
• Employee newsletter
• Employee benefit booklet explaining each of the organization's offered benefits

• Show employee any marketing or informational materials which are used with your customers or
clients. Play any video or audio tapes you have prepared for employees or customers that explain
what your organization is all about.

• Explain your organization's mission and its philosophy of doing business.

"The way we do things around here..."

"We believe that our customers are..."

"Nothing is more important than..."

How long should this process take?

That depends on you and your organization. It will likely require an hour of your time at a minimum. It
will be an hour which can clarify important information and avoid misunderstandings that could take
you many hours to correct later on. An hour making people feel welcome, important and giving them the
information they need to succeed in your organization is indeed an hour well spent.

The New Hire Orientation "ToolKit"

Part of HR's job is to educate managers on the importance of making new hires feel welcomed and
important. Managers and employees need to take a larger role in "closing the sale" and owning the
process of assimilating the new hires because their talent will improve the teams chance of meeting it's
goals. Managers should consider using one or more of the following "celebration tools" to raise the
enthusiasm of and for the new hire.

• A phone call from the CEO/ GM/ Manager welcoming them to the organization.
• An invitation mail by the HR Department.
• An invitation mail from the CEO/ GM welcoming them to the organization.
• A new hire meeting on the first day to meet the team.
• Take a Team Picture on the first day and have it signed by all.
• Give them a Tee Shirt signed by all.
• Place a Notice/Ad in the Board welcoming them to let everyone know of your new team member.
• Place a welcome Note/ picture on your corporate Web site.
• Give them a "new hire" reserved parking spot to celebrate their first week.

Training and Development

It is a learning process that involves the acquisition of knowledge, sharpening of skills, concepts, rules, or
changing of attitudes and behaviors to enhance the performance of employees.

Training is activity leading to skilled behavior. Training is about knowing where you stand (no matter how
good or bad the current situation looks) at present, and where you will be after some point of time.

Training is about the acquisition of knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA) through professional development.

Importance of Training and Development

• Training and Development helps in optimizing the utilization of human resource that further helps
the employee to achieve the organizational goals as well as their individual goals.
• Training and Development helps to provide an opportunity and broad structure for the development
of human resources’ technical and behavioral skills in an organization. It also helps the employees in
attaining personal growth.
• Training and Development helps in increasing the job knowledge and skills of employees at each
level.
• Training and Development helps in increasing the productivity of the employees that helps the
organization further to achieve its long-term goal.
• Training and Development helps to develop and improve the organizational health culture and
effectiveness. It helps in creating the learning culture within the organization.
• Training and Development helps building the positive perception and feeling about the organization.
The employees get these feelings from leaders, subordinates, and peers.

• Training and Development helps in improving upon the quality of work and work-life.

• Training and Development helps in improving the morale of the work force.

• Training and Development helps in developing leadership skills, motivation, loyalty, better attitudes,
and other aspects that successful workers and managers usually display.

The HR functioning is changing with time and with this change, the relationship between the training
function and other management activity is also changing. The training and development activities are now
equally important with that of other HR functions. Gone are the days, when training was considered to be
futile, waste of time, resources, and money. Now-a-days, training is an investment because the departments
such as, marketing & sales, HR, production, finance, etc depends on training for its survival. If training is not
considered as a priority or not seen as a vital part in the organization, then it is difficult to accept that such a
company has effectively carried out HRM. Training actually provides the opportunity to raise the profile
development activities in the organization.

To increase the commitment level of employees and growth in quality movement (concepts of HRM), senior
management team is now increasing the role of training. Such concepts of HRM require careful planning as
well as greater emphasis on employee development and long term education. Training is now the important
tool of Human Resource Management to control the attrition rate because it helps in motivating employees,
achieving their professional and personal goals, increasing the level of job satisfaction, etc. As a result
training is given on a variety of skill development and covers a multitude of courses.

Role of HRD Professionals in Training

This is the era of cut-throat competition and with this changing scenario of business; the role of HR
professionals in training has been widened. HR role now is:
 • Active involvement in employee education
• Rewards for improvement in performance
• Rewards to be associated with self esteem and self worth
• Providing pre-employment market oriented skill development education and post employment
support for advanced education and training
• Flexible access i.e. anytime, anywhere training

There are three model of training are:

• System Model
• Instructional System Development Model
• Transitional model

The system model consists of five phases and should be repeated on a regular basis to make further
improvements. The training should achieve the purpose of helping employee to perform their work to
required standards. The steps involved in System Model of training are as follows:

1. Analyze and identify the training needs i.e. to analyze the department, job, employees requirement, who
needs training, what do they need to learn, estimating training cost, etc The next step is to develop a
performance measure on the basis of which actual performance would be evaluated.

2. Design and provide training to meet identified needs. This step requires developing objectives of training,
identifying the learning steps, sequencing and structuring the contents.

3. Develop- This phase requires listing the activities in the training program that will assist the participants
to learn, selecting delivery method, examining the training material, validating information to be imparted to
make sure it accomplishes all the goals & objectives.

4. Implementing is the hardest part of the system because one wrong step can lead to the failure of whole
training program.

5. Evaluating each phase so as to make sure it has achieved its aim in terms of subsequent work
performance. Making necessary amendments to any of the previous stage in order to remedy or improve
failure practices.

Instructional System Development Model

Instructional System Development model was made to answer the training problems. This model is widely
used now-a-days in the organization because it is concerned with the training need on the job performance.
Training objectives are defined on the basis of job responsibilities and job description and on the basis of the
defined objectives individual progress is measured.

The Instructional System Development model comprises of five stages:

1. Analysis – This phase consist of training need assessment, job analysis, and target audience analysis.

2. Planning – This phase consist of setting goal of the learning outcome, instructional objectives that
measures behavior of a participant after the training, types of training material, media selection, methods of
evaluating the trainee, trainer and the training program, strategies to impart knowledge i.e. selection of
content, sequencing of content, etc.

3. Development – This phase translates design decisions into training material. It consists of developing
course material for the trainer including handouts, workbooks, visual aids, demonstration props, etc, course
material for the trainee including handouts of summary.

4. Execution – This phase focuses on logistical arrangements, such as arranging speakers, equipments,
benches, podium, food facilities, cooling, lighting, parking, and other training accessories.

5. Evaluation – The purpose of this phase is to make sure that the training program has achieved its aim in
terms of subsequent work performance. This phase consists of identifying strengths and weaknesses and
making necessary amendments to any of the previous stage in order to remedy or improve failure practices.

Transitional Model

Transitional model focuses on the organization as a whole. The outer loop describes the vision, mission and
values of the organization on the basis of which training model i.e. inner loop is executed.
Vision – focuses on the milestones that the organization would like to achieve after the defined point of time.
A vision statement tells that where the organization sees itself few years down the line. A vision may include
setting a role mode, or bringing some internal transformation, or may be promising to meet some other
deadlines.

Mission – explain the reason of organizational existence. It identifies the position in the community. The
reason of developing a mission statement is to motivate, inspire, and inform the employees regarding the
organization. The mission statement tells about the identity that how the organization would like to be
viewed by the customers, employees, and all other stakeholders.

Values – is the translation of vision and mission into communicable ideals. It reflects the deeply held values
of the organization and is independent of current industry environment. For example, values may include
social responsibility, excellent customer service, etc.

The mission, vision, and values precede the objective in the inner loop. This model considers the
organization as a whole. The objective is formulated keeping these three things in mind and then the training
model is further implemented.

Methods of Training

There are various methods of training, which can be divided into cognitive and behavioral methods. Trainers
need to understand the pros and cons of each method, also its impact on trainees keeping their background
and skills in mind before giving training.

Cognitive methods are more of giving theoretical training to the trainees. The various methods under
Cognitive approach provide the rules for how to do something, written or verbal information, demonstrate
relationships among concepts, etc. These methods are associated with changes in knowledge and attitude by
stimulating learning.

 Lectures
 Demonstrations
 Discussions
 Computer Based Training (CBT)
 Behavioral methods are more of giving practical training to the trainees. The various methods under
Behavioral approach allow the trainee to behavior in a real fashion. These methods are best used for skill
development.

Both the methods can be used effectively to change attitudes, but through different means.

Management Development Method

The more future oriented method and more concerned with education of the employees. To become a
better performer by education implies that management development activities attempt to instill sound
reasoning processes.Management development method is further divided into two parts:

On The Job Training

The development of a manager’s abilities can take place on the job. The four techniques for on-the job
development are:

• Coaching - Coaching is one of the training methods, which is considered as a corrective method
for inadequate performance.
• Mentoring - Mentoring is an ongoing relationship that is developed between a senior and junior
employee. Mentoring provides guidance and clear understanding of how the organization goes to
achieve its vision and mission to the junior employee. Executive mentoring is generally done by
someone inside the company. The executive can learn a lot from mentoring.
• Job Rotation - For the executive, job rotation takes on different perspectives. The executive is
usually not simply going to another department.

Off The Job Training –

There are many management development techniques that an employee can take in off the job. The few
popular methods are:

• Sensitivity Training - Sensitivity training is about making people understand about themselves and
others reasonably, which is done by developing in them social sensitivity and behavioral flexibility.

Social sensitivity in one word is empathy. It is ability of an individual to sense what others feel and
think from their own point of view.

Behavioral flexibility is ability to behave suitably in light of understanding.

• Transactional Analysis - Transactional Analysis provides trainees with a realistic and useful method
for analyzing and understanding the behavior of others. In every social interaction, there is a
motivation provided by one person and a reaction to that motivation given by another person. This
motivation-reaction relationship between two persons is a transaction.
Transactional analysis can be done by the ego states of an individual.
An ego state is a system of feelings accompanied by a related set of behaviors.
•
• Straight Lectures/ Lectures - It is one of the oldest methods of training. This method is used to create
understanding of a topic or to influence behavior, attitudes through lecture. A lecture can be in
printed or oral form. Lecture is telling someone about something. Lecture is given to enhance the
knowledge of listener or to give him the theoretical aspect of a topic. Training is basically incomplete
without lecture. When the trainer begins the training session by telling the aim, goal, agenda,
processes, or methods that will be used in training that means the trainer is using the lecture method.
It is difficult to imagine training without lecture format. There are some variations in Lecture method.
The variation here means that some forms of lectures are interactive while some are not.
• Simulation Exercises - Games and Simulations are structured and sometimes unstructured, that are
usually played for enjoyment sometimes are used for training purposes as an educational tool.
Training games and simulations are different from work as they are designed to reproduce or
simulate events, circumstances, processes that take place in trainees’ job.