What is Strategic Human Resource Management?

In Human Resource (HR) and management circles nowadays there is much talk about Strategic Human Resource Management and many expensive books can be seen on the shelves of bookshops. But what exactly is SHRM (Strategic Human Resource Development), what are its key features and how does it differ from traditional human resource management?

SHRM or Strategic human resource management is a branch of Human resource management or HRM. It is a fairly new field, which has emerged out of the parent discipline of human resource management. Much of the early or so called traditional HRM literature treated the notion of strategy superficially, rather as a purely operational matter, the results of which cascade down throughout the organisation. There was a kind of unsaid division of territory between people-centred values of HR and harder business values where corporate strategies really belonged. HR practitioners felt uncomfortable in the war cabinet like atmosphere where corporate strategies were formulated.

Management Concept

Definition of SHRM

Strategic human resource management can be defined as the linking of human resources with strategic goals and objectives in order to improve business performance and develop organizational culture that foster innovation, flexibility and competitive advantage. In an organisation SHRM means accepting and involving the HR function as a strategic partner in the formulation and implementation of the company's strategies through HR activities such as recruiting, selecting, training and rewarding personnel.

How SHRM differs from HRM

In the last two decades there has been an increasing awareness that HR functions were like an island unto itself with softer people-centred values far away from the hard world of real business. In order to justify its own existence HR functions had to be seen as more intimately connected with the strategy and day to day running of the business side of the enterprise. Many writers in the late 1980s, started clamoring for a more strategic approach to the management of people than the standard practices of traditional management of people or industrial relations models. Strategic human resource management focuses on human resource programs with long-term objectives. Instead of focusing on internal human resource issues, the focus is on addressing and solving problems that effect people management programs in the long run and often globally. Therefore the primary goal of strategic human resources is to increase employee productivity by focusing on business obstacles that occur outside of human resources. The primary actions of a strategic human resource manager are to identify key HR areas where strategies can be implemented in the long run to improve the overall employee motivation and productivity. Communication between HR and top management of the company is vital as without active participation no cooperation is possible.

Key Features of Strategic Human Resource Management

The key features of SHRM are

• There is an explicit linkage between HR policy and practices and overall organizational strategic aims and the organizational environment


• There is some organizing schema linking individual HR interventions so that they are mutually supportive


• Much of the responsibility for the management of human resources is devolved down the line

Trends in Strategic Human Resource Management

Human Resource Management professionals are increasingly faced with the issues of employee participation, human resource flow, performance management, reward systems and high commitment work systems in the context of globalization. Older solutions and recipes that worked in a local context do not work in an international context. Cross-cultural issues play a major role here. These are some of the major issues that HR professionals and top management involved in SHRM are grappling with in the first decade of the 21st century:

• Internationalization of market integration.


• Increased competition, which may not be local or even national through free market ideology


• Rapid technological change.


• New concepts of line and general management.


• Constantly changing ownership and resultant corporate climates.


• Cross-cultural issues


• The economic gravity shifting from 'developed' to 'developing' countries

SHRM also reflects some of the main contemporary challenges faced by Human Resource Management: Aligning HR with core business strategy, demographic trends on employment and the labour market, integrating soft skills in HRD and finally Knowledge Management.

References

1. Armstrong, M (ed.) 192a) Strategies for Human Resource Management: A Total Business Approach. London:Kogan Page


2. Beer, M and Spector,B (eds) (1985) Readings in Human Resource Management. New York: Free Press


3. Boxall, P (1992) 'Strategic Human Resource Management: Beginnings of a New Theoretical Sophistication?' Human Resource Management Journal, Vol.2 No.3 Spring.


4. Fombrun, C.J., Tichy, N,M, and Devanna, M.A. (1984) Strategic Human Resource Management. New York:Wiley


5. Mintzberg, H, Quinn, J B, Ghoshal, S (198) The Strategy Process, Prentice Hall.


6. Truss, C and Gratton, L (1994) 'Strategic Human Resource Management: A Conceptual Approach', International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol.5 No.3

What is Strategic Human Resource Management?

Rana Sinha is a cross-cultural trainer and author. He was born in India, studied and lived in many places and traveled in over 80 countries, acquiring cross-cultural knowledge and building an extensive network of professionals. He has spent many years developing and delivering Cross-cultural Training, Professional Communications skills, Personal Development and Management solutions to all types of organizations and businesses in many countries. He now lives in Helsinki, Finland and runs http://www.dot-connect.com, which specializes in human resource development as well as communication and management skills training with cross-cultural emphasis. Read his cross-cultural blog http://originalwavelength.blogspot.com

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What Is Time Management?

To answer this question simply, one could say that time management is a process by which one consciously keeps track of the amount of time they spend on each of their activities, in an effort to increase efficiency when it comes to usage of time. Below, you will find some of the basic concepts that are associated with time management of any kind.

Who needs it?

Management Concept

This is a very subjective question and one will need to analyze their needs very carefully. If you think you are lagging behind in a group of similar work professionals who produce significantly larger outputs than you, you might be in need of time management. You might also need time management if your productivity levels have dipped, when compared to your own productivity levels in the past. You might also need time management if your work causes an extreme amount of stress and anxiety.

For example, some workers might simply be overloaded with too much work. For such workers, no amount of management will help them finish their tasks. Time management is a concept that will allow one to use time more efficiently, not create more time. There will always only be 24 hours in a day, no matter how tediously a work day is planned.

What are some techniques in use today?

Time management, as mentioned earlier, will vary from person to person. Some will simply need to analyze their workday and eliminate some activities while some will need to do an in depth analysis of each of their activities, to see where processes could be improved. Time management may also involve the use of tools and software such as alarms, scheduling software, calendars, to do lists and so on.

You will also be required to analyze your own progress and make further changes to your time management techniques, as necessary. The management of time is a process where perfection can almost never be reached. So, there is always scope for improvement.

What are some quick ways in which these techniques can be quickly applied?

Though the management of time might sound like a sophisticated concept, one can easily reap the benefits of managing time by following some very simple concepts. For starters, one can easily create a lot more time in a work day by eliminating time that is spent on personal tasks. Every employee will have one or two vices such as taking personal calls, checking on their investment portfolio, social networks etc. Such activities must be eliminated or kept to a bare minimum.

Another way in which a simple management of time concept can be applied is that one will have to prepare a priority To Do list before they begin work every morning. The tasks with the most priority will require immediate attention while less important tasks will have to wait until the end of the day. That way, one will at least finish the most important tasks in a day, even if unforeseen circumstances reduced the amount of time they could spend on work.

What Is Time Management?

I have broadly outlined time management concepts I first read at timemanagementclasses.org

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Quantitative Management Theory

The advent of World War II introduced a new set of problems related to the practice of management. Submarine warfare was introduced, as was the massive deployment of airplanes as a means of attack. These developments made the conduct of war more complex and reduced the margin of error that one could afford militarily. With Great Britain confronting the prospect of defeat, the British formed an operations research team consisting of mathematicians, physicists, and other experts to develop methods for countering the German offensive. The team was able to develop sophisticated mathematical models that could simplify scenarios of attack and counterattack and thus reduce tactical errors by military commanders. These models, based on mathematical equations, were credited with assisting the British military in effectively staving off the German attack.

After World War II was over, interest in the application of operations research technology to industry began to emerge. This interest was accelerated by advances in computer technology that increased the speed with which many of the complicated mathematical models could be solved. In particular, operations research models were applied to solve production problems. Mathematical models were used to simulate a production problem, bringing to bear all the relevant factors affecting that problem. The values of these factors could be changed to develop different scenarios in the search for a solution. For example, a manager might be interested in the effect that delays in shipments of raw materials have on the cost of producing a good. By changing this variable in the equation, production costs under different scenarios can be estimated and managers can then make more-informed decisions on how to deal with this problem situation.

Management Concept

While operations research has provided management with a valuable tool in the planning and control of production activities, mathematical models have yet to account effectively for human behaviors. The difficulty, of course, is that the human factor is not as easily quantified as inanimate phenomena.

Quantitative Management Theory

Martin Hahn PhD has received his education and degrees in Europe in organizational/industrial sociology. He grew up in South-East Asia and moved to Europe to get his tertiary education and gain experience in the fields of scientific research, radio journalism, and management consulting. If you would like to know more about Martin Hahn PhD and purchase his e-book, please visit: http://www.martinimhahn.com.

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