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The starting points of the human resources task directed top executives in the front position of corporate development. The purpose was to help them interact with employees more effectively, including socialization within the community and the establishment of the corporate culture. The business entities have to recognize the purpose of the correlation between employees and the company with its mission, vision, objectives and cultural implications of the latter (Becker, Huselid, & Ulrich, 2001).
The function of the human resources is an essential element of the senior management team as it becomes a business affiliation of the companies at all the levels of the business organization. The overall function of human resources management has developed from the process of hiring people and firing them in various cases to a complete reality of business partnership that adds more value to the business processes in a variety of ways. Therefore, the companies perceive having the human resources department as transcended as they add different value not only to the C-Suite, but also to all the management and employees (Lee, 2005).
The operation and value of the human resources function bring great benefits to the companies. Today, the organization of the human resource department has become more sophisticated than ever as it projects the development of skill search, talent management, and employee compliance. However, the acceptance of the human resource as a business partner is also controversial. The top executives believe that they can outsource the function of the human resource management in case it does not have the proper place in the company.
This research explores various points of view regarding the human resource management processes that concern the utilization and value of the human resources function in the organization (Smith & Rupp, 2004).
The review of the relevant literature explores the human resources management practices and their diverse functions in a traditional business. It should be noted that the human resources management department is a Personnel Department that does not fall under the category of the revenue-based corporate departments. Therefore, the human resources management department belongs to the category, such as the Administrative Services or the Selling, General and Administrative Expenses (SG&A) (Breaugh & Starke, 2000).
Such an approach to the human resource personnel has become a mentality that developed over the last twenty years. The Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) and C-Suite executives started to recognize the value of the function that belongs to the human resources management department and its functions. In fact, it addresses the needs of the organization at all the levels of governance that lead to the overall progress of the company in the target market (UK Commission for Employment and Skills, 2012).
The research explores the history of human resources management, as well as the development of its functions since the starting point of the need in any administrative services. Today, the perception of the human resource management function is an integral part of the corporate strength. The business owners consider it as a business partner, especially in the corporate structure that tends to develop the organizational community, take advantage of the talent management and establish a strategic role of recruiting talents in the company (Carlson, Connerley, & Mecham, 2002).
This research discovers the changes in the perceptions of companies regarding the human resource management and its functions. It shows how the top executives today take advantage of the human resources department in order to help their organizations fulfill their corporate mission, vision, objectives, and cultural implications. It also explained how the human resources department fulfill and follow its necessary functions to defend the corporate assets, which are its talented employees (Broughton, Higgins, Hicks & Cox, 2011).
The research outlines the human resources function and how top management executives should use it to create a positive impact on their business processes. In addition, it is important to recognize that the human resources management department does not only recruit employees, but also shapes new corporate experiences of both customers and employees of the company (Deadrick & Stone, 2014).
In fact, the human resource management functions help the companies to shape and maintain their workforce more effectively by retaining the highly qualified personnel. The major orientation of the human resource recruiters is to reveal the hidden talents by evaluating both personal qualities and professional qualifications of the job applicants. As a result, it contributes to the overall success of the company in its target market. Alternatively, it helps the heads of the companies to increase their revenues by providing more value to the target customers in a variety of the business areas (Kluemper & Rosen, 2009).
2. Major Elements and Dimensions of the Human Resources Function
2.1. Purpose and Goals of the Human Resources Functions
In order to address the functions of the human resource department, it is important to define the nature of its goals and purposes. The overall idea is that a company that has an effective human resource management has a business structure and able to manage its business needs. It is also important to take advantage of human resource management as a source for the valuable company resources that are applicable for both employees and top management. By administrating the functions of human resource management properly, the companies can manage their workforce more effectively and achieve greater results. Traditionally, the functions of human resource management address the following purpose and goals: recruitment, safety, relations of employees, benefits and compensations, compliance, training, and development (Singh & Finn, 2003).
2.1.1. Recruitment. Effective recruitment is a key to success for the majority of companies in the target market. The efficiency of recruitment is based on the number of positions that one employee can manage at the same time and at the same payment. However, the staffing services differ drastically since the recruitment specialists develop the employer’s workforce. The process of recruitment includes the following aspects: posting the job positions, searching for the talented candidates, using various screening techniques to find the highly qualified people over the Internet, conducting interviews, and making decisions on hiring top candidates (Breaugh, 2008).
2.1.2. Safety. The safety of employees is one of the important aspects of work for the executives of the companies. In fact, the Occupational Safety and Health Act as of 1970 protects the employees by obliging their employers to provide a safety working environment. One of the important functions of the human resource management department is to improve the safety of the workplace by providing the employees with safety training. It helps to prevent injuries in the workplace and helps employees to consider possible risks of hazards at work. In addition, the companies also protect their employees by utilizing various risk management activities and human resources safety. As a result, the employees receive certain benefits in case of any health and safety issues, such as compensation that supports the health and safety expenses (Searle, 2006).
2.1.3. Relations of employees. The relations within the company are also an important aspect of the functions of the human resource department. Therefore, the top executives of the companies should manage the unionized workforce in order to establish an environment that helps deal with the labor relations functions of the human resource managing. Usually, this function of the human resources department belongs to several employees who are in charge of the hiring and retention function. These employees are the professionals in specific spheres of human resource management that altogether create a high level of expertise for the human resource department (Malita, Badescu & Dabu, 2010).
One of the specific tasks of the human resource representatives is to work on the employer-employee relations that can help the companies to strengthen their human resource department. As a result, the company can measure satisfaction of employees more effectively by providing their engagement into the working process. At the same time, it is important to work on the relationships within the human resource department in order to learn how to manage conflicts easily in the workplace (Searle, 2006).
Overall, the function of human relations is one of the most important in the human resource management as it defines the level of success that the company can achieve by serving its target customers. In other words, the employees should work towards the creation of the union-based management relations that will help the employees to communicate with each other. It will also help the executive management to manage the issues with the labor contracts and negotiation specifics (Joos, 2008).
2.1.4. Benefits and compensation. Based on the human resource management function of the human relations, the employers of the company should manage the sufficient level of compensation and benefits for the employees. The level of benefits and compensation reflects the expertise of employees, including their personal qualities. Hence, this function of the human resource management should structure the compensation based on the evaluation the overall working practices and professional experience of employees (Becker, Huselid & Ulrich, 2001).
One of the ways to improve the benefits and compensation is to negotiate the health and safety coverage rates. Such actions will ensure the proper organization of the working activities based on the information in the retirement saving funds. At the same time, the companies can take advantage of the payroll as an element of the human resource management function that is a matter of outsourcing (Breaugh & Starke, 2000).
2.1.5. Compliance. The companies should deeply value their compliance with the laws and regulations related to the workforce and employment, which is an important function of the human resource management practice. A failure to comply with the labor laws and regulations leads to a number of complaints from employees. The major concerns are the unfair working practices, unsafe or unhealthy working environment and poor working conditions that result in the overall dissatisfaction of the employees (UK Commission for Employment and Skills, 2012).
Therefore, the recruiters should manage them properly in order to improve productivity. However, it is possible to manage after the establishment of the favorable working conditions that could help to improve the productivity of employees and result in the increase of the annual revenues of the companies. Hence, in order to establish such changes, the employees should be aware of the state and federal laws and regulations such as the National Labor Relations Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (BIS, 2010).
2.1.6. Training and development. The training and development of employees have become one of the most essential functions of human resource management. The purpose of conducting additional training and establishing personal and professional development programs is to empower employees with all the instruments that they can use to improve their corporate culture. Such instruments are to increase the overall motivation of employees and their willingness to contribute to the company with their talents, skills, experience, and expertise (Deadrick & Stone, 2014).
One of the most important areas of training is the orientation towards leadership that promotes personal growth and professional development of employees in the workplace. As a result, the companies that take advantage of the training and development programs easily improve the effectiveness of employees by increasing their performance at work. Such actions provide the companies with the opportunities to promote people and reward them for their operational activities for the good of the companies in the target market (Smith & Rupp, 2004).
2.2. Internal Communication
The communication is one of the most important elements of work, especially in case the companies are willing to become successful in the target markets. A failure to communicate effectively leads to the loss of profits, as well as violations of laws and regulations in the workplace. The effective communication of employees is a combination of the oral, written and non-verbal skills. The employees should behave accordingly every time they need to communicate the messages of each other. It also refers to the skills of thinking, speaking and listening every time there is a need to act properly. In fact, the sphere of the human resource consists of the actions that bring value to the company as a whole (Broughton, Higgins, Hicks, & Cox, 2011).
Therefore, every conversation should tend to be better in every possible working scenario. A key to successful communication of employees is to approach every message attentively. The idea is to send a detailed message, interpret it, and provide a feedback. Because of such communication, the employees would be in the position to deliver the products and / or services of the highest quality. Consequently, such communication effectiveness can result in the increase of the annual revenue of the company and higher benefits for the employees of all the departments (Carlson, Connerley, & Mecham, 2002).
2.3. Surveys and Metrics
Today, many surveys and metrics define human resources management and its functions in the workplace. The statistical observations indicate that 80% of the companies all over the world experience difficulties in managing the human resources functions in the workplace. As a result, these companies have difficulties in almost every area of business that are impossible to manage without a favorable human resource monument structure (Lee, 2005).
In order to improve the statistics on the human resource management practices, the companies should take advantage of all the conducted surveys and metrics by creating personalized observations in the workplace. Such procedures will help the executives to determine the weak areas of the workforce and improve them more effectively. It is possible by providing the sufficient training and development programs that will raise the level of proficiency of employees in the workplace. Consequently, they will be able to contribute to the companies with their talents, skills, qualifications, professional experience, and personal qualities (Kluemper & Rosen, 2009).
2.4. Personnel vs. Human Resources
The personnel are a managerial category of a company that consists of the body of employees who work to manage a particular job and organize its cohesion between various departments. In parallel, the human resources are the set of workers that comprise the overall labor force of a company, including its business sector, market and niche in the economy of the country. Overall, the purpose is to take advantage of the human capital as a base for the human resources department that works to contribute to the company with the talents, skills, as well as overall power of employees working within it (Singh & Finn, 2003).
2.4.1. Purpose and objectives. The major purpose and objectives of human resource management are to make the working processes simpler. At the same time, it is important to take advantage of the innovations in order to manage the company based on the digital era. It is also important to benefit from the agile human resource management practices as they add more value to the business processes and guarantee better corporate results. One of the important purposes and objectives is the ability to manage the data and interpret it effectively when searching for new talents (Malita, Badescu & Dabu, 2010).
The idea is to define the top competencies of people and recruit only those employees who can contribute to the company with their skills, talents, experience, professionalism, personal qualities, and overall working experience. In addition, it is important to take advantage of the social media channels and digital networking. The recruiters of the human resource companies should use social recruiting to hire the top people in the market (Searle, 2006).
The final element is leadership that should be present in every company. The idea is not only to find leaders, but also to create them within the company and offer them opportunities to contribute to its good. The major opportunities are the benefits and compensation, as well as the favorable working conditions that are important for the employees to grow both personally and professionally (Joos, 2008).
2.4.2. Transformation and evolution. The contemporary human resources management changed drastically for the last decade. The overall evolution of the human resource management includes the aspects of hiring and firing employees, relations among personnel, welfare, safety and security of employees, staffing, training and development, recruiting processes, compensation and reward system, etc. The overall development of the human resources activities reflects the changes in the scope of the human resource management. The companies have come from managing the behavior or employees towards inspiring and encouraging them for improving personal records, increasing benefits for the companies and raising compensation for the employees, etc. (Searle, 2006).
The most important aspects of the human resource management that were changed overtime are the orientation of the companies, their corporate structure, business philosophy, responsibility and motivation of employees, objectives, aims and outcomes of the vast majority of businesses. In fact, the orientation transformed from maintenance to development. The structure of the human resource companies changed from using the independent sub-functions of the human resource management to using the inter-dependent functions (Breaugh & Starke, 2000).
The philosophy of human resources also changed from reactive responses to events when they happen to proactive approach while the human resources companies try to be ready to various situations with appropriate responses. Responsibility has also changed from the exclusive responsibility of the entire department to the responsibility of each employee. The motivation has changed from monetary rewards to empowering people in the workplace (Becker, Huselid & Ulrich, 2001).
Thus, the outcomes of human resources changed from improving the performance of employees due to the high morale and satisfaction to utilizing the human resources functions more effectively, which leads to the improvement in the morale and overall satisfaction of employees. Finally, the aims of the human resources departments have shifted from improving the efficiency of people to developing the corporate culture and helping the employees to grow both personally and professionally. Thus, the human resource cycle has changed and revolutionized to the approach of the proper use of human resources, appraisal of work, rewards of both short- and long-term achievements, and continues development of employees’ personal qualities and professional qualifications (Smith & Rupp, 2004).
2.4.3. The future of the human resources. The researchers believe that the future of the human resources management is already happening. The overall shift is to the use of the Internet and taking advantage of all its opportunities to recruit people to work both in-house and remotely. The interests of the stakeholders are planning to move drastically towards the needs of the community and groups of employees in a particular workplace. The strategy for the development of the human resources promises to change to improve the characteristics of the workplace, management philosophy will be to deliver the maximum value to people, complete utilization of the contemporary technologies. Overall, the future of the human resource management and its functions is planning to use the value driven and union-based management approaches that altogether will change the human resources as a whole (Deadrick & Stone, 2014).
The existing practices of the strategic human resource management are about to change in terms of the recruiting policies, personal and professional development programs, working practices, and hiring approaches. The purpose of the human resource departments will be to address both internal and external characteristics of people. This would be possible by emphasizing the value of people and their talents that change their behavior almost entirely. As a result, the companies with a strong human resource management base will be more productive and efficient. It means that the products and / or services of the human resources companies will be much higher. Consequently, it will lead to the greater satisfaction of the target customers and higher annual revenues of the human resources companies (BIS, 2010).
The top executives of the successful companies believe that human resource management will be oriented towards the training and development of employees. They consider that in the next century, people will be the major asset of the human resources companies. Additional changes could be in the sphere of corporate culture that will lead to the changes in the overall organization of work. At the same time, the working environment will also improve as people are more inspired to work using the technological progress. For example, the design of the working environment for the vast majority of companies would be close to the design of the existing companies, such as Google (Broughton, Higgins, Hicks & Cox, 2011).
Such changes will lead to the development of new approaches in staffing and selecting employees. It will be close to the research on the personnel based on the information systems. For example, today, the companies today try to take advantage of the social media channels and digital networking. In the future, it will be a standard; though, it will be effective for the human resources companies and their recruiters, as well as the job applicants. The other example of the future changes is in the compensation and benefits programs. For example, not many companies today find it favorable for their employees to purchase the stocks of the companies where they work (Carlson, Connerley, & Mecham, 2002).
Overtime, purchasing the stocks of the companies people work for would be one of the most influential factors that drive them for higher productivity and greater results in the workplace. Finally, there is going to be a special assistance program that exists today but needs to be more developed. The idea is to improve not only the servicing of the target customers but also to improve the education and monitoring of employees. As a result, it will boost their productivity and the results of the human resources companies (Lee, 2005).
2.5. Ethics
The corporate ethics is one of the most important derivatives of success that the companies can achieve in the target markets. It is important to incorporate ethical behavior among all the interactions of employees and top management. A failure to do this leads to the decrease of productivity and efficiency of employees. As a result, the companies cannot increase their sales and achieve their objectives. Therefore, one of the major aspects that the executive management should deal with is to establish an ethical working environment that would strive to develop in every possible direction of work. This is one of the best ways to make people more ethical and guided based on their high morale. In other words, the employees will learn how to treat other people in the same way they wish others would treat them in return (Joos, 2008).
2.5.1. Corporate social responsibility and the human resources function. The corporate social responsibility is about the workplace, society and working environment. “The purpose of corporate social responsibility is to help the companies to deliver more value with risk management, corporate culture, and professional development programs.” It is important to take advantage of all the innovations as to improve the existing business models. At the same time, the companies need to ensure their employees comply with the standards of work. In addition, it is required to provide the employees with sufficient skills to improve their productivity and overall working performance (Searle, 2006).
As a result, such actions will have a strong positive impact on the strategic operations of the human resource management in the contemporary companies. Consequently, these human resource management changes will lead to a number of benefits for the companies. Such benefits include the shared value for employees and companies, competitiveness of the companies on the global markets, development of the sustainable business models, and establishment of a powerful human capital. Such changes will lead to the operational improvements that support both the internal and external relationships of the human resource companies (Kluemper & Rosen, 2009).
Consequently, the proper corporate social responsibility leads to the improvements in the fulfillment of the function of human resources management. The idea is to improve the approaches of the human resources management that deal with planning, measuring of the employee performance, retaining a new personnel, recruiting new talents, and developing the personal qualities and professional qualifications of employees in the company. As a result, the overall performance of employees will improve, which will lead to the changes in the achievements of employees and company as a whole. Finally, it will boost the annual revenues and put the companies in the top position of their target markets (Malita, Badescu & Dabu, 2010).
2.5.2. Compliance vs. business as usual. The compliance strategies are more effective compared to running a business in a conventional way. The compliance of the companies helps them to do their job better by addressing the values of people and targeting towards the improvements in the workforce. The overall idea of the compliance approach by the human resources companies is to prevent any possible negative situations that could have a negative impact on the productivity of employees and corporate results. At the same time, the companies need to manage their employees properly in order to promote their strong points and use them to benefit the companies. Such an approach to the compliance is important for the companies to leverage the working processes more effectively. It helps to take control of all the business processes and ensure that the companies are moving in the right direction based on the corporate goals and objectives (Singh & Finn, 2003).
2.6. Values and Attitudes
The values of employees and the executives of the companies should base their attitudes on their working responsibilities and business as a whole. The most important values to promote are customers, quality, integrity, teamwork, and entertainment. The focus on the customers will bring the companies stability and opportunities to scale their businesses in the target markets. The provision of the high-quality products and / or services will help the companies to attract even more customers and grow more rapidly. The integrity should become an irresistible motivator for all the employees, including the top executives. At the same time, the teamwork is important to get the job done on time and under budget, which attracts even more customers as they deeply value the quality of work and responsibility of people. Finally, it is important to get pleasure in every working process, which leads to the fact that the employment becomes an amusement. As a result, people achieve greater results without considering their actions as work (Breaugh & Starke, 2000).
2.6.1. Variances in attitudes across the management levels. The attitudes of employees, including the top management differ drastically. On the one hand, the employees are not willing to do their job by their personal reasons. On the other hand, they work for their salaries, which is not a good motivator today. At the same time, the top executives are striving to improve the quality of work by improving the processes in every department. Such a strategy is rather promising, but the companies will not be able to achieve success unless they are honest with their employees (Smith & Rupp, 2004).
In other words, the employees would be more interested in their work and eager to contribute to the company if they know the directions of the company and have sufficient compensation and / or alternative benefits. It means that the attitudes of people at all the management levels will be different until there are a common goal and vision for the future changes. In this case, the companies have more chances to become successful in the target market. Moreover, the employees are happy working in the companies and are willing to grow in order to provide move value. In this way, the employees become the major assets of the companies and lead them to the overall success (Becker, Huselid & Ulrich, 2001).
2.6.2. Organizational development. The organizational development consists of the three phases: input, transformation, and output. In other words, the companies need to develop their working processes by planning their ongoing and future actions. This phase should take advantage of collecting the data, analyzing the feedback of employees and customers, and developing the future steps for the implementation of the corporate strategy. The next phase is actions that should be oriented towards the continuous learning process. It will help the employees to action plan their responsibilities and change the overall working environment. Finally, the output phase is oriented towards accomplishing greater results. It means that the top management needs to change the overall behavior of employees in order to step forward. However, it is possible to achieve only in case there are sufficient and accurate data and proven techniques for measuring the performance of employees in the workplace (Deadrick & Stone, 2014).
At the same time, it is important to act based on the three phases of the organizational development mentioned above. The idea is to improve the business processes in every phase of developing a company. It is similar to the chain; in case all the small chains are strong, the chain will be powerful enough to face the resistance. The same relates to the organizational development. In case, the companies are willing to improve the management of their employees, they need to act in accordance with the chain example. In other words, it is required to empower every department by developing the competencies of the employees at all the levels. As a result, the company will not have weak spots and will be able to face the challenges of the target market (Smith & Rupp, 2004).
2.6.3. Community perception of the organization and the human resources function. The perceptions of the community are important as they guide the employees towards the improvements in the working processes. However, these perceptions are possible to change in the way required for the executives of the companies. In this case, the top management will utilize the human resource management function properly, which will lead to positive changes in the perceptions of the community regarding the company. The companies can monitor the changes in the perceptions of the community and guide them in the way needed to achieve their objectives. However, the top management should act in accordance with the key function of human resource management. Otherwise, it will be difficult to improve the perceptions of the community, and this may lead to negative implications for the company in the target market. Finally, the perception of the community is one of the most significant derivatives of success that the heads of the company should monitor in order to reach their goals and objectives in the target market (BIS, 2010).
References
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