Historical Perspectives on Managing Human Resources

7/28/2019 Historical Perspectives on Managing Human Resources

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HISTORICAL

PERSPECTIVES ONMANAGING HUMAN

RESOURCES

Implementing Behavioral Science


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Comparison OB Theory ConstructionDeductive (Mostly)

HR Implementation

Inductive (Mostly)

Difference between theory

prediction & result

Actions taken on

employees

Theoretical

Creativity

Practical Innovation

Theory

Rational

Empirical

Closed Loop of

Scientific Theory


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EMERGENCE OF HR

AS A PROFESSION

Civil Service (Pendleton Act)

Personnel specialists in industry

Emergence of the Personnel Dept.

The Science Base of HR

Inclusion in university curricula

Globalization of management practice


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A BRIEF HISTORY OF

AMERICAN HRM

Scientific Management

Industrial Welfare

Movement

Early Industrial Psych

Human relations

Movement

The Organization as a

Social System

The Labor Movemento The Growth of Unionso Violence in Labor Relationso Government & Labor:

Clayton Act 1914

NLRB 1918 Railway Labor Act 1926 Norris LaGuardia 1932 National Indl Recovery Act

1933 Wagner Act 1935

Fair labor Standards Act1938 Taft-Hartley 1947 Landrum Griffin 1959


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HR and OrganizationalEffectivness

Porter (1985) HR systems can:o Help organizations gain advantage by lowering costs, increasing

sources of differentiation, or some combination of the two

Effective management of human capital is crucialto profitability and ability of the firm to compete(Boxall & Purcell, 2000; Delery & Shaw, 2001)


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Issue Traditional HR Strategic HR

Mind set Transactional

Compliance/enforcement

Transformational

ConsultativeView of Org Micro

Narrow skill application Macro Broad skill

application

Education HR Specialist Limited bus. Acumen

Basic buscompetency

Knowledge ofo Org Theoryo Org Cultureo Org Changeo Strategic Mgmto Job Design

View ofemployees

Heads Costs

Minds; assets Critical resources


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Issue Traditional HR Strategic HR

Time frame Short-term, immediateneeds

Longer term,current & futureneeds

View of Org Micro Narrow skill application

Macro Broad skill

application

Process v.Outcome

Process focused Process controlling

Results oriented Process innovation

Risk

Risk averse Reliance on what is

proven

Risk takers Experimentalism


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HR METRICSTraditional HR Metrics:

Rarely emphasize strategicperformance drivers in the firm

Not embedded within the strategy-implementation process

Result: inability to show how HRdecisions and issues influence firmperformance

The Usual Suspects:

Hours of training Time to fill an open position Number of insurance claims

processed Number of tests administered

Current Metrics:

Cost Control Driving out costs in the HR function Contributing to operational efficiencies

outside of HR

Value Creation How does the overall HR system

intersect with the process ofimplementing the strategy of the

business? How do effective HR systems contribute

to human capital that is valuable, rare,

and difficult to imitate?

AlignmentThe entire HRM system is:

Internally consistentExternally aligned with strategy


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How Does HRM Add

Value? Cost Controlo Finding the HR highest expenses & minimizing them

o Negotiating the best deal in benefits

Value Creation

o Providing human resources that give the competitive edge

Alignment with Strategy

o Ensuring the right people with the right attitude and the right training

to execute the strategy


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HUMAN RESOURCE

INFORMATION SYSTEMS HRIS maintains comprehensive data for all

employees: Instantly available real time data

HRIS allows HR to measure all of HumanResource Management activities fromrecruitment to succession planning

HRIS can also be used for cost planning &reporting


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When it works really well . . . Organizations are productive because they achieve financially,

with customer satisfaction, with process improvement, and withknowledge & learning

HR staffers are internal consultants - - provide help in solvingpeople problems

HR measures results using accepted metrics

HR staffers actually understand the business

Top Management is involved in HR strategy because its part ofthe overall strategy

VP of HR is equal to VP of Finance, etc.

Organizations are managed as if tomorrow really matters

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Historical Perspectives on Managing Human Resources