Human Resource Management – Individual Paper

In most of the organizations nowadays, people are recognized as the vital assets. Hence, the intangible value of the organization relating to the employees including their knowledge, skills and abilities and its human resource management (HRM) strategies are becoming increasingly crucial. In order to achieve the goal of the company, human resource department should not be overlooked. In this paper, strategic human resource management will be discussed and the role of HRM department in the strategic planning process will be examined through real life examples. Definition of Strategic Human Resource Management

Strategic human resource management (HRM) is a link between HRM and strategic management process of the company. The meaning of strategic could refer to the linkage between the systematically designed HR activities and the analysis of the business and its context (Sondhi, V. & Nirmal, P.S. 2013). For example, when a small enterprise intends to extend its business by opening more stores, more employees will be needed for daily operation. In this case, HRM department will be informed to conduct recruitment. Therefore, it is possible that strategic HRM is useful in gaining or maintaining competitive advantages of an organization (M. Anca-ioana 2013). Discussion of the Role of HRM Department in Strategic Planning Process Strategic planning is a decision-making process about an organization’s business strategies or long-term goals. In a considerable amount of companies especially SMEs, HRM department was usually considered to be responsible with administrative work in this process (Hargis, M.B. & Bradley, D. B. III 2011). However, it is a key element to the success. The role of HRM department in strategic planning process is driver which could be divided into two parts: design and implementation.

Generally, HRM department could help the organization make a more suitable goal and achieve the strategic goal ultimately. The part of design is based on the nature of HRM department. It is suggested that HRM department is able to keep people aligned with the results an organization trying to obtain (Ramona, T. & Anca, S. 2013). Since it manage all of the employees in the organization, the comprehensive arrangement of human capital and profiles of each employee are commanded. Thus, it can assist in examining the practicability of a plan under current situation since most of the plans should involve people. For instance, a retailing company selling cosmetics plans to double the percentage of mainland customers by next month, HRM department could suggest that it may be unworkable due to the poor Mandarin speaking skill of the shop assistants. Decision-maker would probably adjust the goal according to the information provided by HRM department. On top of that, the part of implementation is based on the functions of HRM department. Once the goal is set, HRM department would be involved in the practical implementation of the plan.

Since IKEA was facing strengthening competition from aggressive retailers such as Asda and Tesco, it decided to enhance the efficiency of the whole organization in order to reinforce its competitive advantage by cutting jobs across America (Cabinet Maker, 2007). HRM department helped the company achieve the strategic goal by dismissal; sacking people who fail to meet the requirement or delete the unnecessary positions (Dessler, G. 2007). Fewer layers in management process can be accomplished by cutting redundant jobs and therefore, efficiency can be improved through quicker decision-making. Apart from dismissal, pay and welfare are also commonly seen as strategies to perform the goal. As an acute labour shortage has been experienced in the hospitality industry of U.S, HRM department of the luxury resorts offer competitive salary and generous welfare such as reducing the minimum working hours required to receive full-time benefits to the current employees (Taylor, M. & Finley, D. 2009).

Attractive pay and welfare could possibly create the loyalty of them and decrease the turnover rate. Hence, the functions of HRM department are valuable during the implementation of the strategic plan. In conclusion, the role of HRM department in strategic planning process could be generally regarded as the driver. It drives the organization to complete an appropriate goal through design and implementation. A good business strategy, one that is likely to succeed, is informed by people factors. It is believed that the way how people are managed, motivated and deployed as well as their availability to share their skills and knowledge would heavily influence the business strategy.

References:

Anca-ioana M. 2013, “NEW APPROACHES OF THE CONCEPTS OF HUMAN RESOURCES, HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND STRATEGIC HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT”, Annals of the University of Oradea : Economic Science, vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 1520. Dessler, G., 1942-, Lloyd-Walker, B., 1946- & Griffiths, J.,1943 Jul.6- 2007, Human resource management, 3rd edn, Pearson Education Australia, Frenchs Forest, N.S.W. Hargis, M.B. & Bradley, D. B. III 2011, “Strategic human resource management in small and growing firms: aligning valuable resources”, Academy of Strategic Management Journal, vol. 10, no. 2, pp. 105. “Ikea cuts 300 jobs in efficiency drive”, 2007, Cabinet Maker, , no. 5546, pp. 3-3. Ramona, T. & Anca, S. 2013, “Human Resource Management – from Function to Strategic Partner”, Annals of the University of Oradea, Economic Science Series, vol. 22, no. 1, pp. 1682-1689. Sondhi, V. & Nirmal, P.S. 2013, “Strategic Human Resource Management: A Reality Check”, Review of Management, vol. 3, no. 1, pp. 4-10. Taylor, M. & Finley, D. 2009, Strategic Human Resource Management in U.S. Luxury Resorts–A Case Study.