chapter 02

PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT: FUNCTIONS, POLICIES AND ROLES

EXCEL BOOKS

2-1

2Chapter

Personnel management: functions, policies and roles

ANNOTATED OUTLINE 2-2

IntroductionPersonnel management may be defined as a set of programmes, functions and activities designed to maximise both personal and organisational goals. Basically, it covers three broad areas:


Three dimensions of Personnel Management

2-3

Personnel

Management

Personnel Aspect

Recruitment, selection, placement, training, appraisal, compensation, productivity.

Welfare Aspect

Working conditions, amenities, facilities, benefits.

Industrial Relations Aspect

Union-management relations, disputes settlement, grievance handing, discipline, collective bargaining.


Features

2-4

deals with employees both as individuals and as a group

concerned with the development of human resources

covers all levels (lower, middle and top)

applies to all types of organisations

aims at attaining the goals of an organisation

aims at securing unreserved cooperation from all employees.


Managerial Functions 2-5

Planning

Organising

Directing

Controlling


Operative Functions 2-6

Procurement Function

Job analysis

Human resource planning

Recruitment

Selection

Placement

Induction and orientation

Internal mobility

Development Function

Training

Executive development

Career planning and development

Human resource development Cont…


2-7

Motivation and Compensation

Job design

Work scheduling

Motivation

Job evaluation

Performance appraisal

Compensation administration

Incentives and benefits

Maintenance Function

Health and safety

Employee welfare

Social security

Operative Functions

Cont…


2-8

Integration FunctionGrievance redressalDisciplineTeams and team workCollective bargainingEmployee participation and empowermentTrade unions and employers associationsIndustrial relations

Emerging IssuesPersonnel recordsHuman resource auditHuman resources researchHuman resource accountingHuman resource information systemStress and counsellingInternational human resource management

Operative Functions


Personnel Policies, Procedures And Programmes

2-9

Personnel policies are guides to action. They serve as roadmaps for managers on a number of issues such as recruitment, selection and promotion. They cover almost all functions of personnel management. A good personnel policy should be easy to understand, based on facts, equitable, reasonably flexible, precise and related to objectives.


Types of personnel policies

2-10

Originated policies

Appealed policies

Imposed policies

General policies

Specific policies

Written or implied policies


Advantages of personnel policies2-11

Delegation

Uniformity

Better control

Standards of efficiency

Confidence

Speedy decisions

Coordinating devices


2-12

Features of a sound personnel policy

Related to objectives

Easy to understand

Precise

Stable as well as flexible

Based on facts

Appropriate number

Just, fair and equitable

Reasonable

Review


Coverage of Personnel policies2-13

social responsibility policies

employment policies

promotion policies

development policies

relations policies


Formulation of Personnel policies

2-14

identifying the need

collecting data

specifying alternatives

communicating the policy

evaluating the policy


Evaluating the impact of personnel policies

2-15

The impact of human resource policies can be measured through their outcomes:

Commitment: how long an employee stays with a firm

Competence: appraised through performance appraisal techniques

Congruence: nature and frequency of grievances, disagreement, discord and conflict

Cost effectiveness: measured through human resource accounting techniques


2-16

Organising The Personnel Function

The personnel function can be organised along traditional as well as modern lines, depending on the nature, scale and complexity of operations in a given organisation. The organisation of the personnel department in divisional and matrix structures differs from that of traditional line and staff organisations.

Line and staff relationships: The relationship existing between two managers due to delegation of authority and responsibility and giving or receiving instructions or orders is called line relationship. Line authority, thus, represents uninterrupted line of authority and responsibility running through the management hierarchy. Staff specialists offer help and advice to line managers, whenever required. “Staffs think and lines do” “Staffs advise, lines work” “Staffs have the authority of ideas and lines have the authority of command”. Viewed broadly, therefore, personnel management is a line manager’s responsibility but a staff function”.


Staff role of the personnel department

2-17

Policy initiation and formulation

Advice

Service

Monitor and control


Personnel department in a line organisation

2-18

Chief Executive

Personnel Manager

Recruiting Officer Training Manager Compensation Manager

Welfare Officer

Assistants AssistantsAssistants

Assistants


Personnel department in a functional organisation

2-19


Chief Executive

Personnel Manager


Welfare Officer

Assistants Assistants Assistants Assistants


Personnel department in a line and staff organisation

2-20

Chief Executive

Personnel Manager


Welfare Officer

Assistants AssistantsAssistants

Assistants

Line relationship

Staff relationship


2-21


Personnel department in a divisionalised structure

M anaging D irector

G eneral M anager

Manager M anager M anager M anager ManagerMarketing F inance Production R & D H uman R esources

Manger Manager ManagerSouthern Region C entral R egion N orthern R egion

D eputy M anager D eputy M anager Deputy ManagerMarketing Production H uman Resources

Branch M anager Branch M anager B ranch M anagerN agpur N ew Delhi Bombay

O ff ice r O ff ice r O f f ice rMarketing Production H uman Resources

D enotes L ine RelationshipsD enotes S taff Relationship


2-22


Personnel department in a matrix structure

Managing Director

General Manager

Manager Manager ManagerAutomobile Machines E lectricals

Supporting Functional Assistance to Projects

Production Marketing Personnel F inance

PersonnelG roup

Heavy Industria lMachines

Personnel

Light G roup

IndustrialMachines

Personnel

AgriculturalG roup

Machines & Tools

Flow of Work Performance


2-23


Roles Played by a Personnel Manager

Administrative roles

Policy maker Administrative expert Advisor Housekeeper Counsellor Welfare officer Legal consultant

Operational roles

Recruiter Trainer, developer, motivator Coordinator/linking pin Mediator

Cont…


Employee champion

Placing people on the right job

Charting a suitable career path

Rewarding good performance

Resolving differences

Adopting family-friendly policies

Ensuring fair and equitable treatment

Striking balance between employee expectations and Organisational requirements

Representing workers' problems and concerns to management

Strategic roles

Change agent

Strategic partner

2-24


Roles Played by a Personnel Manager


2-25


Qualities And Qualifications Of A Personnel Manager

HR professionals must have a thorough knowledge of the organisation and its overall functioning. To deliver effective results, they need considerable amount of knowledge, skills and expertise in tax laws, finance, statistics, social sciences etc apart from the training that they receive from reputed B-schools.

Qualities

Personal attributes

Intelligence

Educational skills

Discriminating skills

Executing skills

Experience and training

Professional knowledge Cont…


2-26


Qualifications

Business mastery

Change mastery

Professionalisation of personnel management in India

Attributes of a profession

Well defined body of knowledge

Formal education and training

Minimum qualifications

Representative body

Service above self

Ethical conduct


Cont…


Over the years, personnel management has emerged as a highly respected profession in India. The reasons are fairly obvious;

Growth of management institutes

A growing body of literature

Professional bodies

Self-regulatory institutions overseeing the operations of personnel people

Code of conduct

2-27



chapter 02

Business

personnel function

impact of personnel

types of personnel policies

coverage of personnel

personnel department

originated policies

implied policies

sound personnel policy