What is the Human Resources Management (V)

An HRM strategy pertains to the means as to how to implement the specific functions of HRM. An organisation's HR function may possess recruitment and selection policies, disciplinary procedures, reward/recognition policies, an HR plan, or learning and development policies, however all of these functional areas of HRM need to be aligned and correlated, in order to correspond with the overall business strategy. An HRM strategy thus is an overall plan, concerning the implementation of specific HRM functional areas.

An HRM strategy typically consists of the following factors:

1. "Best fit" and "best practice" - meaning that there is correlation between the HRM strategy and the overall corporate strategy. As HRM as a field seeks to manage human resources in order to achieve properly organisational goals, an organisation's HRM strategy seeks to accomplish such management by applying a firm's personnel needs with the goals or objectives of the organisation. As an example, a firm selling cars could have a corporate strategy of increasing car sales by 10% over a five year period. Accordingly, the HRM strategy would seek to facilitate how exactly to manage personnel in order to achieve the 10% figure. Specific HRM functions, such as: recruitment and selection, reward or recognition, and HR plan, or learning and development policies, would be tailored to achieve the corporate objectives.
2. Close co-operation (at least in theory) between HR and the top or senior management, in the development of the corporate strategy. Theoretically, a senior HR representative should be present when an organisation's corporate objectives are devised. This is so, since it is a firm's personnel who actually construct a good, or provide a service. The personnel's proper management is vital in the firm being successful, or even existing as a going concern. Thus, HR can be seen as one of the critical departments within the functional area of an organisation.
3. Continual monitoring of the strategy, via employee feedback, surveys, etc.

The implementation of an HR strategy is not always required, and may depend on a number of factors, namely the size of the firm, the organisational culture within the firm or the industry that the firm operates in. An HRM strategy can be divided, in general, into two facets - the people strategy and the HR functional strategy. The people strategy pertains to the point listed in the first paragraph, namely the careful correlation of HRM policies/actions to attain the goals laid down in the corporate strategy. The HR functional strategy relates to the policies employed within the HR functional area itself, regarding the management of persons internal to it, to ensure its own departmental goals are met.

Source: Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia

Related Post(s):
1. What is the Human Resources Management (I)
2. What is the Human Resources Management (II)
3. What is the Human Resources Management (III)
4. What is the Human Resources Management (IV)
5. What is the Human Resources Management (V)
6. What is the Human Resources Management (VI)
7. What is the Human Resources Management (VII)