AF_AG01_ Recruitment and Professional DevelopmentUnit 1: Human Resources Department an overviewUnit 1: Human Resources Department an overview

The objective of this unit is to show what a Human Resources Department is and the most importantly why it is necessary.

The unit is divided into three parts.

Part 1: Why is the Human Resources Department important? Part 2: Functions and organizational structure of HR department.Part 3: What does outsourcing mean? When is it justifiable that companies decide to use it?

1.1. Why is the Human Resources Department important?

As you know a Human Resources department is a recent concept in our companies. At the end of XIX century and the beginning on XX century the owners of the companies believed that they did not need a specific department. They used to think that the workers were only a cost that they should keep as low as possible.

It was in the seventies or eighties of twentieth century when the managers of the companies saw the need to create a specific department to deal all matters related to the worker.

However, it was not until the nineties and early twentieth-first century when it was understood that HR department was part of the strategic direction of the company.

Of course, the importance of HR department within the company will depend of the size of it.Not all departments have the same importance or carry out the same functions a Human Resources department of a large company that a SME.

But first of all, let’s see in the following website, the definition of Human Resources Department.

Humana resources definition

Activities

1) This part of the unit shows you the importance of HR department. The article:" Ten Reasons Why the Human Resources Department Is Important" by Ruth Mayhew, Demand Media, explains 10 reasons why HR Department is important.

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The following activity are ten small texts that appear in the article, you must choose the most appropriate title among those proposed..Titles

a) Human Capital Value

b)Employee Satisfaction

c)Conflict Resolution

d)Corporate Image

e)Sustaining Business

f) Cost Saving g)Steadfast Principle

h)Performance Improvement

i) Training and Development

j) Budget Control

1 Workplace conflict is inevitable, given the diversity of personalities, work styles, backgrounds and levels of experience among employees. A human resources manager or a staff person specially trained to handle employee relations matters can identify and resolve conflict between two employees or a manager and employee and restore positive working relationships.

2 Human resources develops performance management systems. Without a human resources staff person to construct a plan that measures performance, employees can wind in jobs that aren't suitable for their skills and expertise. Additionally, employees whose performance falls below the employer's expectations can continue on the payroll, thereby creating wasted money on low-performing employees.

3 The cost to hire new or replacement workers, including training and ramp-up time, can be exorbitant for employers, especially small businesses. With a well-constructed recruitment and selection process, the human resources function can minimize expenses regarding advertising job postings, training new employees and enrolling new employees in benefits plans.

4 Human resources conducts needs assessments for the organization's current workforce to determine the type of skills training and employee development necessary for improving skills and qualifications. Companies in the beginning or growth phases can benefit from identifying training needs for existing staff. It's much less expensive than the cost to hire additional staff or more qualified candidates. In addition, it's a strategy that also can reduce turnover and improve employee retention.

5 Having an in-house human resources function is important. An in-house human resources staff or a human resources expert on staff can increase the understanding of how important human capital is to the company's bottom line. For small businesses, in particular, human capital is critical because so many smaller firms have employees who perform cross-functional duties. With a smaller workforce, if just one person leaves, it leaves the company with a huge gap to fill and a potential threat to the company's profitability.

6 Businesses want to be known as the "employer of choice." Employers of choice are the companies that receive recognition for the way they treat employees; they are the companies for whom people want to work. Becoming an employer of choice means human resources balances recruiting the most qualified applicants, selecting the most suitable candidates and retaining the most talented employees.

7 Human resources specialists usually are charged with the responsibility of determining the level of employee satisfaction -- often an ambiguous measurement at best. With carefully designed employee surveys, focus groups and an exit interview strategy, human resources determines what underlies employee dissatisfaction and addresses those issues to motivate employees.

8 Human resources ensures the workforce embraces the company's philosophy and business principles. From the perspective of a small business, creating a cohesive work environment is imperative. The first opportunity human resources has to accomplish this is through wise hiring decisions that identify desirable professional traits, as well as orientation and on-

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boarding programs.9 Human resources curbs excessive spending through developing methods for trimming

workforce management costs, which includes negotiating better rates for benefits such as health care coverage. In addition, human resources ensures competitive and realistic wage-setting based on studying the labor market, employment trends and salary analysis based on job functions. As some small businesses have budget constraints, this human resources function is especially helpful.

10 Through succession planning that human resources develops, the company identifies employees with the promise and requisite capabilities to eventually transition into leadership roles with the company. This is an important function as it can guarantee the organization's stability and future success.

In pairs, answer the following questions:

a) Do you agree with the article? Why or why not?

b) Do you want to add a new reason?

Share your answer with the rest of the group.

1.2 Functions and organizational structure of HR department.

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Functions

There are a lot of functions that HR Department can develop. It will depend on the size of the company. However, you have to know all the functions and then decide which ones to carry out in a small, medium or large company.

a) Human Resources planning, recruiting and select: the main objective is finding the correct worker for each workplace and in the right moment.

b) Personal administration: Responsible for all administrative procedures with employees.

c) Employee and labour relations: the aim is to achieve good relations between employer and employee.

d) Occupational Health and Safety: this function is related to the security must be guaranteed in the workplace as well as in the diagnosis and prevention of occupational disease

e) Remunerations and compensation: the aim is to achieve a competitive wage policy that is to say, to attract good employees and retain them.

f) The role of social benefits and service to workers: the company should implement some policies to improve the life of its employees.

g) Development of human resources. this is one of the most difficult functions in HR department. The goal is to motivate their employees to get the best of them.

h) Social responsibility. This function is to develop the company's commitment to its employees and the social environment.

Structure.

Not all the HR departments have the same structure as it will depend on the size of the company. Therefore, each company develops its functions according to its size and objectives. For instance: a large company can develop all functions but can also decide to stop doing one of them.

Here you can see the organization in HR department

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Activities

1) First of all, make the organization structure of HR department of a company dedicated to the production of pasteurized egg established in Catalonia.The department is divided into two parts functions:Outsourcing: selection, training and medical service.Performs: planning, administration, remuneration and social responsibility.In pairs, explain two tasks that you think are carry out in each of this functions. Do not include outsourcing functions.

2 ) Do you know what kind of administrative tasks are you going do in HR department? There is an Educational Portal in USA where you can find all the information about the most important administrative tasks not only in HR but in others departments of the company.But, firstly you are going to work the vocabulary related with the information appears in the web. There are 12 words without definition. Please, choose the most appropriate definition for each word:

A Duty 1 a time that you have arranged to see someone

B Resume 2 the activity of organizing and storing all the documents, files, invoices, etc. relating to a company's or organization's activities

C Appointment 3 to plan an event for a particular day or time

D Form 4 something you do as part of your job or because of your position

E Record keeping

5 plans for how something will happen

F Scheduling 6 a related group of things that are offered together as a single unit

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Human Resources

Department

Employee relations

Compensation and benefits

Training and development

Health and safety

Recruiting, planning and

selection

Social responsibility

5

G To file 7 Formal presentation of a job applicant's education, skills, and work experience.

H Arrangement 8 to put documents into an ordered system so that you can easily find them

I Payroll 9 to add new information

J Updating 10 a system that helps you arrange information on a computer screen:

K Package 11 the total amount of money paid to the people employed by a particular company:

L Template 12 a printed document with spaces for you to write information

Compare your answer with your partner. Share them with the rest of the group. Finally make a sentence with the words given.

3) Now you can read the following information:

Essential InformationHuman resources (HR) administrative assistants support management-level staff and perform a variety of tasks related to employee record-keeping within organizations. They often handle sensitive employee and company information, which requires that they maintain a high level of professionalism and confidentiality. HR administrative assistants need a high school diploma. Job duties for HR Administrative AssistantsHuman resources administrative assistants often provide both HR-specific and general administrative and secretarial support, depending on the size of their company or HR department. Entry-level positions may require HR administrative assistants to file employee-related documents, answer department telephones, relay messages and distribute information to employees. They provide direct support to executives by scheduling meetings and appointments, making travel arrangements and processing expense reports. HR administrative assistants with i ntermediate office skills may be responsible for editing documents and presentations, entering and updating employee information into company databases, preparing employment packages, handling benefits information and processing termination paperwork. These professionals also assist HR staff with specified projects, such as planning company events. At the advanced level , administrative assistants in HR create forms, templates and other HR-related documents. They explain company policies and companies to employees. Supervised by an HR manager, they may also perform payroll and timekeeping functions. Some HR administrative assistants handle essential recruitment tasks, including posting job openings, reviewing resumes, calling candidates and scheduling interviews.

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Please, answer the following questions:

1. What are the task at entry-level, intermediate and advanced level?2. Would you add any task to entry-level? Why? 3. From your point of view, what is the main difference between intermediate and advance

level?4. After you have read the information, Do you think it is possible to ascend within HR

Department as an administrative? What do you think are the requirements requested?5. Would you like to work in a HR department? Why? Write a short paragraph.

1.3. Outsourcing.

The last point in this unit is outsourcing. The outsourcing involves contracting functions that are typical of the company to be carried out an external companies.The aim of outsourcing is to allow companies to focus on the processes that are key to their business and outsource those who do not add value.A good example of outsourcing the HR department could be payroll. Today there are many companies specializing in payroll that can do this task more efficiently often than ourselves. for this reason many times the company decides to outsource this function and devote resources to other tasks of strategic human resources department

However, the outsourcing process should be well thought out by the managers of the company because there are costs associated with outsourcing. Loss of control Impact on the employer/employee relationship Loss of flexibility Failure to deliver cost benefits Legal or regulatory requirements

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Industrial relations issues

Activities

Today there is much controversy over the term outsourcing. Many small and medium-sized companies use outsourcing the HR Department because they do not have enough resources to do it themselves.

However, there are large companies who decide to outsource specific functions to lower costs.

1) Watch the following video:

This is a video made by the company G & A Partners. This company specializes in the outsourcing of certain functions of the department of human resources in small and medium enterprises . Watch the video carefully and answer the following questions :

Meet the million dollar employee | HR outsourcing | G&A Partners

Answer the following questions:

1. What kind of company do you think is represented in the video?

2. How does the video justify the need to outsource?

3. Do you think this justification can be found in a large company? Explain.

4. Look for more information about this company, what kind of client does it have? Which service it offers, etc.

5. Finally, in pairs, make a list of the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing. Then share your conclusions.

If you have any problem in understanding the video click on this link and you will find the text. www.vidqt.com/id/76NobD3dOIQ?lang=en

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SUMMARY

Having reached the end of the unit you should be able to:

- describe the main reasons why Human Resource department is important in a company.

- identify the functions and organizational structure of HR department.

- consider the importance of outsourcing for the companies and to be able to describe the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing.

TO KNOW MORE

-If you have any questions about the functions of HR department please click on this web.

http://www.dineshbakshi.com/igcse-business-studies/people-at-work/revision-notes/850-functions-of-human-resource-department

-As you know not all HR departments have the same organizational structure. In the following link you will see a video showing a clear, and simple structure of HR department. In addition, you can find the transcript on the website if you have any problem.

http://education-portal.com/academy/lesson/common-structures-of-hr-in-organizations.html

- As a future clerk it is important to know what kind of tasks are being done in the companies. Please click on this link where you can find the administrative tasks not only in HR department but all the company. Moreover, you can find information about the schools where you can study, the qualifications required for studying and the conditions of your future job.

http://education-portal.com/articles/HR_Administrative_Assistant_Job_Duties_and_Requirements.html

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