Human Resources Management Overview

Human Resources management has three main purposes; providing a skilled workforce, controlling employment costs and reacting effectively toward change.

Providing the right mix of skills
As different jobs require different skill mix, the HR management department has to make ensure that the business has enough employees with the appropriate skills to carry out all its functions. This can be done by determining HR needs of the organization, determining current and future job needs and recruiting and selecting employees with the right skills and experiences.
Controlling employment costs
Employment of people involves costs of salaries, HR functions such as recruitment, employee benefits such as training, clothing, fleet, insurance and other social costs.
Reacting effectively to change
It is a responsibility of an HR department aimed at empowering employees to accept and embrace changes in their current business environment. This change could be strategically, operationally, missionary technologically or behaviorally (we will discuss later organizational Change Management) An HR department can facilitate change among employees by communicating with them, consulting them, involving them, helping them casting their fear about change and gaining their commitment and support about the change.

Human Resources Management has 9 distinct functional areas;

1. Recruitment & Selection
2. Employee Payment
3. Working Conditions
4. Employee Welfare
5. Workforce Planning
6. Motivation
7. Discipline & Grievance Procedures
8. Training & Development
9. Organizing Workforce

Each of these functional areas comprises lots of topics that would be discussed later.