Apart from machines and papers, every workplace consists of employees. These employees make or break the brand. They add value to the workplace. They make it the workplace, that it is.And when it comes to numbers, the employee strength of a workplace can vary from company to company. It basically depends on the size of organization. The bigger the organization, higher will be the number of employees.But is it all that easy? 83% employers find it challenging to attract and retain talent in their organization. Why is that so? Well, when you look into it, you can find a few reasons. Lacking a well trained team of HR professionals can be one.One might not realize in the beginning, Human Resource department plays a vital role in keeping an organization running. And that too is an understatement. So, to add to it, here we elaborate the Importance of Human Resource Management.
what exactly does HR mean?
“Human Resources are the people who make the workforce in an organization.”If you are wondering, well that is the wikipedia definition. Not that it doesn’t describe HR enough or is inaccurate. It’s just that there is more to it.The word HR describes not only the people who work for a company, but the department that is responsible for managing resources relating to them.Also, known as Personnel or Talent management, HRM makes sure that the following tasks are carried out smoothly.
- Recruiting and staffing
- Compensation and benefits
- Training and learning
- Labor and employee relations
- Organization development
And when all of it is done, they have to take care of employees’ needs and concerns. A workplace might function without an HR department, it will always cease to succeed without it.
Important Functions of Human Resource Management
As mentioned above there are certain tasks which the HR department needs to take care of. Apart from those, a well trained team of HR professionals will tend to increase productivity among the employees. Also, it would focus on hunting and retaining new talents into the organization. The value that the HR department adds to an organization makes its role crucial. To make it further understandable we are discussing it in details.
1. Hunting and training is what they start with
An employee recently quit the job. A vacancy is created. How to fill this up? The work can’t halt for long, can it? This is where HR people start.Starting from the first step (announcing the jobs vacancy), to the last (till the new employee is connected with the organization), HR has to be there.They hunt new talents. Then they incorporate them into the organization. Be it incubation or be it employee training, its their work to keep it going.The general perception that goes around is that human resources people don’t have to toil. But on a serious note, how many of us can deal with other people’s problems the whole day? Everyday? Ugh! Bummer, right? Well, that’s where they just start.
2. They make paths for others to walk on
Have you ever had a word with a well designated HR professional? Well, if and when you get a chance, you should win on it. The point that I am trying to make here is the level of motivation which they carry.They are generally problem solvers. Implying that, the problem hardly appears visible to them. They look at the solutions and implement it at the earliest.With the same approach they tend to motivate other employees. The aim is to bring the best out of everyone. Also, apart from that the HR department takes care of employee performance appraisals.Keeping a track of the work quality and progress, the HR people accelerate the process of appraisal.
3. ‘That’s why discipline is there’
Every organization works with a set of rules. The difference comes when you take strictness in consideration. Some organizations are more strict than others. But then there needs to be a balance.HR department is there to bring the balance in. Whether it is attendance or noise in the cabin next to you or be it someone not working when he/she should, the HR people can take things in control the moment they choose to.That’s why discipline is there.
4. Work environment is as important as work
Every office in the world has work. That goes without saying. But does every office have a healthy work environment? Does every workplace succeed in encouraging employees to deliver their best?A total of 80% employees overall agreed to feeling stress at the workplace. Nearly half of them agreed they needed mental help on how to deal with stress. And 42% felt that their co-workers needed it.What’s worse is that while hiring new people, most companies claim that they have a healthy work environment. Turns out, they don’t.This again is where the role of an HR comes into play. Along with several other responsibilities, maintaining a healthy work environment is one where the HR plays a vital role. The need for it? Well, the stats above speak for themselves. And at the end of the day, a healthy work environment adds to improving the overall work quality.
5. HR has to censor the workplace for disputes
The world is impatient and so are we. In the age that we live, offense is easy to bite and hard to digest. This general behavior can cause chaos. And when it comes to a workplace, spending the whole day, everyday with other co-workers can result in disputes.In situations like these, the HR people might come down to clear the air. That is why instead of getting into any arguments with a co-worker, it is better to reach out to the HR manager.What they will do is listen to both the sides. Then after analyzing they will come up with a solution that will tend to satisfy both the sides.
6. Public relations matter; and they take care of those
Every organization needs to build and maintain relations. For that reason an organization might hire personnels who would take care of public relations. The responsibility of the same sits under the umbrella of the human resources department.There will be a need of developing these public relations when an interaction with other business sectors has to take place. Starting from there, the HR department can also play a vital role in preparing the business and marketing plans for organizations.This is how they keep the clock ticking for a company.
7. They make sure that the employees get paid on time
It might come to you as a surprise, but HR department does it. They are responsible for taking care and for keeping a record of all the leaves and the bonuses.Everything that has to be credited or debited to or from your name goes through their table, at least once. And then they make sure that everyone gets paid on time.
8. The freedom to celebrate
Be it a goal that your team just achieved or be it a festival that all of you celebrate, the HR department makes sure that you don’t stay away from the celebration.Organizing team activities, indulging in fun outings, keeping the morale of the employees high, all of this wouldn’t happen if HR wasn’t there.
Final words
The work of the HR is usually underestimated. The truth is that they make sure everyone is doing everything that’s needed. Dealing with people, both inside and outside of the organization, keeping up with the records, issuing paychecks and even looking after appraisals. The fundamentals Human resources people have to do it all.And as they have to be answerable for so much, they can’t afford to drop the ball. They need to be extra careful and cautious. That is how they make sure that the organization keeps functioning smoothly.