8.1 AIMS OF THE LECTURE a) To outline the roles of human resources management b) To examine common management structures and the position of human resources c) To explore the duties of human resources unit in a shipyard
8.2 THE ROLES OF HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT
a) What is human resource? Human resource is a term used to describe the individuals who comprise the workforce of an organization, those who staff and operate the organisation.
Human resources can be categorised into two groups i.e. direct human resources and indirect human resource.
Direct human resources are the workforce who belongs to the organisation and work fully for the organisation. Examples of these are:
Production line workforce Administration staff Management staff Office workers such as: designers, computer programmers Financial staff Marketing staff
Indirect human resources are the people who do the complementary or supporting work to the organisation and are not belong to or fully work for the organisation. Examples of these are:
Sub-contractors Suppliers Auditors Surveyors and inspectors Janitors
b) Human resource management Human Resource Management is the organizational function that deals with issues related to people such as recruiting, organisation development, performance management, compensation, safety, welfare, health, employee motivation, communication, administration, and training.
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c) Objectives of the human resource management The main objectives of the human resources management are: To obtain maximum cost effectiveness of employing the human resources in achieving the objectives of the organisation. To achieve the desired results of a certain task by deploying the right quality, and quantity of human resources.
d) The role of the human resource management The role of the human resources management is to recruit, to organise, and to equip the human resources to do the work effectively in the allocated time schedule. And in the same time also provide training and development, and facilitate for legal, ethical, safety and health, and welfare of the workforce. Recruitment
Suitable workforce for the tasks should be recruited, therefore job description should be defined well and appropriate searching and selection methods should be carried out.
Organisation
Organisation should be well arranged to suit the characteristics of the activities. The organisation structure should be as simple as appropriate and each function should be well defined.
Training and updating skills
The existing human resources should be continuously updated with the new skills and knowledge so that they can cope with the development of new technology and approaches. For this purpose training and updating skills programmes should be well planned.
Legal aspects
There are laws and regulations applied with regard to the human resources activities, therefore sufficient information and supports should be provided concerning the legal aspects.
Safety, health and welfare
Human resources are the most valuable asset of the organisation therefore their safety, health and welfare should be put as the first priority, reasonable facilities should be provided in support for the safety, health and welfare of the human resources.
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8.3 POPULAR ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURES a) An organisation
The role of organisation can be regarded as management of people to meet the objectives.
Organisations adopt different management structures depending on the trend in the industry and what they believe to be the most effective way for the operation. Some of the popular type of organisation structures are as follows:
Functional organisation structure The functional structure is also known as hierarchical organisation structure, it groups employees together based upon the functions of specific jobs within the organization.
Advantages and disadvantages of the functional organisation structure are as follows:
No Advantages Disadvantages 1 Each unit focuses on its own work Skills and abilities of employees are narrowed 2 Easier to solve problems Limited interaction between different units 3 People tend to supervise each other Difficult to measure individuals performance 4 Team work is more encouraged Coordination may take too long
Divisional organisation structure
Also called a "product structure", the divisional structure groups each organizational function into a division. Each division within a divisional structure contains all the necessary resources and functions within it.
Figure 8.1 Functional organisation structure BOARD OF DIRECTORS CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER FINANCE DIVISION MARKETING DIVISION PRODUCTION DIVISION HR DIVISION R & D DIVISION
Source: the Business Continuity Plan Generator
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Advantages and disadvantages of divisional organisation structure are as follows:
No Advantages Disadvantages 1 Clear focus on clients needs Duplication of functions 2 Positive competition between divisions Negative effects of competition 3 Better control Lack of central control
Matrix organisation structure
A matrix organizational structure combines two types of organizational structures namely the product organizational structure and the pure functional structure to create a unique blend of work environment. This is most useful for when the assignments are project driven, because several professionals with distinct functioning powers will be allocated to carry forth the functions. Therefore in the matrix organizational structure, information sharing becomes very important for effective and smooth functioning.
Figure 8.2 Divisional organisation structure President Division Z Division Y Division X Purchasing Production Marketing Purchasing Purchasing Production Production Marketing Marketing Finance Human resources Source:Stevenclark.com
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Advantages and disadvantages of the matrix organisation structure are as follows:
No Advantages Disadvantages 1 Reduced bureaucracy Conflict over priorities 2 Better job satisfaction Duplication efforts 3 Stronger problem solving base Increase organisational complexity 4 Better retention of functional specialists Potential conflict of management and project goals 5 Better solution of clients needs Not clear responsibilities
b) Criteria for selection of organisational structure In order to select the right organisation structure for a particular activity the suggestions are as follows: Functional Divisional Matrix Technology Standard New Advanced Internal interdependency Low High
Medium External Interdependency High Low
Medium Size Small Large Medium Importance of completion date Low High Medium Uncertainty Low High High Duration Short Long Medium Resource limitation Low Low
High
8.4 PRINCIPAL DUTIES OF HUMAN RESOURCES UNIT To ensure that the organisation obtains the maximum benefit from its human resources it is important to outline the principal duties of the human resources unit, which can be explained as follows: a) Recruitment Recruitment is the process of attracting, screening, and selecting qualified people for a job at an organisation. The recruitment would pass through the following processes: (1) Job analysis Job analysis is to document the actual or intended requirement of the job to be performed, then structure it as a job description as to provide the recruitment effort with the boundaries and objectives of the search. (2) Sourcing Sourcing is a process of distributing information such as advertising through various media, and recruiting research which is searching potential candidates for the job who may not respond to the advertisement.
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(3) Screening and selection Screening and selection is the process of selecting the most suitable candidates for the job from the applications that have been received, this can be done through several of methods. (4) Onboarding On-boarding is the process of helping new employees become productive members of an organization by giving them opportunity for familiarisation to the new job and its environment. It can take form of mentoring, coaching, and giving guidelines. b) Training and updating skills In order to cope with the development of new methods and technologies the human resources unit should plan and provide training and updating skills programmes to the employees, so that they can improve their knowledge, skills, and competencies. Training and updating skills can take several of form depending on the type of job and the competency it requires. Some examples are: Sending the employees to a specialised course Provide on-the-job training and off-the job training Conducting in-house training
c) Industrial relation Industrial relation is the relationships and interactions between employers and employees. The industrial relations cover all aspects of the employment relationship, including human resource (or personnel) management, employee relations, and union-management (or labour) relations. In the wider extent industrial relation is not only relationship and interaction between people who run the organisation and people who work for the organisation, but there is also government involvement in it. Government is responsible for protecting the rights of individuals and for ensuring certain rights for organizations, and therefore there are laws that regulate the roles of industrial relation. d) Welfare Welfare can be define as the range of services intended to meet people's needs, this include payment of wages and the organisation of payroll including any pension scheme , provision of safe working environment both physical as well as mental, health and spiritual needs, personnel development etc.
In undertaking the welfare responsibility human resources unit has to ensure that there are sufficient facilities provided in meeting the employees need such as: toilets, washing facilities, rest and changing facilities, personal security arrangements and refreshment.
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e) Legal aspects
Legal aspects are the issues with regard to the relationship of human resources that are regulated by local governments as well as international laws. These are mostly concerned with the right and responsibility of both the organisation and the employees. In order to handle the issues properly people in the human resources unit have to have sufficient knowledge of the related laws and regulations, and at a certain extent provide access for the workers to obtain sufficient information. f) Communication Communication is a two-way process of reaching mutual understanding, in which participants not only exchange information but also create and share meaning. Therefore communication requires that all parties have an area of communicative commonality. In the context of human resources communication can be viewed as a means for bridging the organisation and its employees in an open environment. Therefore, effective organizational communication is critical to actively engage employees, foster trust and respect, and promote productivity.
8.5 CONCLUDING REMARKS a) Human resource is the individuals who comprise the workforce of an organization.
b) Human Resource Management is the organizational function that deals with issues related to human resources.
c) The objectives of the human resources management are: To obtain maximum cost effectiveness of employing the human resources in achieving the objectives of the organisation. To achieve the desired results of a certain task by deploying the right quality, and quantity of human resources.
d) The role of the human resources management is to recruit, to organise, and to equip the human resources to do the work effectively in the allocated time schedule. And to care for their welfare.
e) Some of the commonly known organisation structures include: functional, divisional, and matrix organisation structure.
f) Principal duties of human resources unit are: recruitment, training and updating skills, industrial relation, welfare, legal aspects, and communication.