People & Organization : Introduction to Human Resource Management

ROLE OF HR MANAGER IN 21ST CENTURY ORGANIZATION

In the 21st century organization, there are number of demands on organization which created through globalization, technological changes and tough competition among competitors etc. Most of the organizations which survive on the same industry may generally consist with same materials and facilities -based resources. Therefore it’s quite difficult to create a competitive advantage based on them. 

Human resources considered as one of the key factor of creating competitive advantage. If an organization is capable of having a human resource well equipped with recent techniques and technology and managing them successfully than their competitors do , there is grater chance to being successful than competitors. Therefore in the 21st century organization, HR Manager play a key role as a business partner and strategic thinker, who make the decisions to navigate the organization toward  the success.

Strategic view of HRM

“an approach to the development and implementation of HR strategies that are integrated with business strategies and support their achievement” (Armstrong, 2014)

21st century approach of HRM is to utilize the knowledge and expertise of people efficiently and effectively to meet organizational targets (Wong & Sell ,2003)

David Ulrich’s HR Model

• David Ulrich –The greatest HR Management Guru has identified 04 key HR roles, which makes the organization effective and friendly to employees.
• According to Ulrich (1996) defined new strategic agenda for HR and a strategic role of HR in the organization.
• He proposed to change the Structure of HR functions and build HR around roles.

Figure 1 : Dave Ulrich’s model of HR Roles

Strategic partner – HR build a strategic partnerships with dedicated internal clients .They influences positively the organization design and identified key top talents. Shares business objectives with the internal clients and incorporate HR goals in to daily agenda.

Change agent - HR participates in the change management teams and take the responsibility to communicate changes internally and gain the trust employees.

Administrative expert - HR implements all requirements evolving from the changes in the legislation, regulation, work & safety rules.

Employee advocate – HR represents employees, protects their interest and make sure that strategic initiatives are well balanced Eg; Training & development session to develop skills and competencies of employees.

Recommendation

Role of HR manager has been changed with evolution of the HRM. In the current context they need to be thoroughly expertise and be capable to play the HR role to gain the competitive edge over others (Nasir , 2017).

In order to respond the challenges in the 21st century organization, HR managers have to ;

• Become a strategic partner of the organization by attracting and retaining talented employees and train & develop them to meet the ultimate objectives of the organization.
• Implement modern ways of effective talent acquisition to attract and retain the best people.
• Support changes in the organization by leading and guiding the employees to live in the organization under the changing environment. Eg: Plan training sessions, update job descriptions etc..
• Run the organization as a productivity centre that enhances the profitability of the organization through enhancing productivity of the peoples in the organization.
• Conduct training & development session to develop skills and competencies of employees as this will incur the organization a competitive edge over others.

References

Armstrong , M., 2014. Armstrong’s Handbook of Human Resource Management. 13th ed. London: British Library.

Nasir , S.Z., 2017. Emerging Challenges of HRM in 21st Century:A Theoretical Analysis. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 7(3), pp.216-22.

Ulrich, D., 1996. Human Resource Champion : The next agenda of adding value and delivering results. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.

Wong,Y. L., & Snell, R.S., 2003. Employee workplace effectiveness : implications for performance management practices and research. Journal of General Management, 29(2), pp.53-69.

People & Organisation : The Global Context for HRM (Lecture 8)

Impact of globalization on the Role of HR Manager 

Human Resource professionals typically handle the recruiting, interviewing, hiring, training and developing the employees that business needs to achieve their business goals. In the domestic management of HR, the situation is somewhat simple and easier for managed because all the works and processes are made in one special area in a special culture and specific business environment.

HRM model consists of four roles associated with HR managers such as Strategic partner, Change agent, Administrative expert, Employee champion (Ulrich, 1996).Kapoor (2007) identifies impact of globalization HR managers role under basics of Ulrich's model.

Strategic Partner role

Globalization stimulates the organisation to look for opportunities beyond its national borders. Therefore HRM can contribute to organisational effectiveness by being involved in the merger and acquisition processes. The strategic role of the HR manager is to properly communicate the reason for merge and proper organisational staffing and HR planing after the integration process since HR Planning is one of the strategic activities. HR managers should have the ability to implement the best practices in a way that is acceptable in a local situation and create alignment across different cultures and business environments.

Change Agent Role

Globalization typically results in doing business across different cultures in different languages and different legal environments. The companies do businesses globally should have the ability to respond quickly in a dynamic environment to manage their human resources effectively. As a change agent, the HR manager should have a clear understanding of the competencies required to effectively lead change. Change agents perceived to have high expertise & skills to predict changes ad make an informed decision at the operational and strategic level.

Administrative Expert Role

Advocacy includes expertise in how to create a work environment in which people will choose to be motivated, contributing and happy (Ulrich 1996). Motivated employees do their best for the betterment of themselves and the organisation. With the emerge of globalization, workplace flexibility is expected to be enhanced. Interaction through employer and employee through face to face meetings will be replaced by virtual meetings.

Employee Champion Role

Human resource personnel helps to develop a global mindset in its employees.Having a global mindset implies recognition of benefits to the whole organisation from encouraging and valuing cultural diversity in people. Globalization is increasingly adding one more thing to low-cost labour and high power technology. That is highly innovative and creative capabilities (Friedman, 2005)

  

Conclusion

Under proper leadership, companies will be able to attract and retain high performing employees by adapting human resource practices to the changing global labour market conditions. Therefore it is important for companies Not only familiarise with local ways of doing business and but also develop a global mindset among their employees. 

References

Kapoor, , 2007. Impact of Globalization on Human Resource Management. Employee Response Rights , pp.157-71.

Ulrich, D., 1996. Human Resource Champion : The next agenda of adding value and delivering results. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.

People & Organisation : The Ethical Context of HRM

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY (CSR) OF BANKING SECTOR IN SRI LANKA

Today the banking industry is concerned as one of the key contributing sector behind economic stability and growth. Therefore stakeholders have high expectations on the responsible behaviour of banks.

CSR is concerned with treating the stakeholders who are existing both within a firm and ethically or in a socially responsible manner. Social responsibility aims to create a higher and higher standard of living while preserving the profitability of the firm (Hopkins, 2007).

CSR is an evolving business practice that incorporates sustainable development into a company's business model. It has a positive impact on social, economic and environmental factors (Schooley, 2019).

According to Murphy (2019) Companies are increasingly ramping up their focus on Corporate Social Responsibility to get the following benefits.

Engaging Customers

Implement socially responsible policies is important to attract new customers as well as retain existing customers and ultimately it is essential for long term success of the organization. Eg: Banks can disburse the loan to entrepreneurs to enhance their businesses.

Retaining Top Talent

Socially responsible companies tend to attract employees who are eager to make a difference in the world. A pool of top talented employees increase workplace morale and boost productivity and direct the company to achieve substantial results.

 

Brand image

The world’s largest companies spend billions of marketing dollars each year to improve the way customers think about them. There’s no faster way to do that in a memorable and lasting fashion than to be seen as a company with a social conscience.

 

Helping Companies stand out from the Competition

 

Community-oriented companies often gain a competitive advantage over others by attracting customers toward their business with the help of CSR projects. 

 

Serve the Bottom Line

Socially responsible companies cultivate positive brand recognition, increase customer loyalty, and attract top-tier employees. These elements are key to achieving increased profitability and long-term financial success.

Corporate Social Responsibility in the Banking Sector in Sri Lanka

It is important to note that corporate sustainability for banks is much more than mere charity. In this context, banks are encouraged to improve the future of the people in all communities they operate through CSR programs, which in turn will sustain their business in the future.

Today, banks operate in a market including groups who are not yet fully integrated with society, and not dealing with banks such as low-income families and micro-businesses operating in poor areas of the country. Therefore banks need to introduce a new range of products targeting new customer segments. This situation represents banks a challenge in terms of designing suitable products for these distinct segments, and the opportunity to develop a new type of business benefits to all.

As the team at Sampath Bank always strives to ensure that the activities are in concurrence towards the needs of the society and well-being of the country. ‘Sampath Saviya’, is an entrepreneurship development programme, launched by Sampath Bank PLC to empower and uplift the livelihood of Micro, Small and Medium entrepreneurs in Sri Lanka (Sampath Bank PLC, 2019). The programme offers technical and financial assistance for start-ups as well as existing business ventures that lack necessary and vital resources to begin and expand their businesses.

References

Hopkins, , 2007. Corporate Social Responsibility and International Development: Is Business the solution ? London: Earthscan.

Murphy , C.B., 2019. Why Social Responsibility Is Important to Businesses. [Online] Investopedia Available at: https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/041015/why-social-responsibility-important-business.asp [Accessed 01 October 2019].

Sampath Bank PLC, 2019. www.sampath.lk. [Online] Available at: https://www.sampath.lk/en/news/entry/267-sampath-saviya [Accessed 01 October 2019].

Schooley, S., 2019. What Is Corporate Social Responsibility? [Online] Business News Daily Available at: https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/4679-corporate-social-responsibility.html [Accessed 01 October 2019].