“I am convinced that nothing we do is more important than hiring and developing people. At the end of the day, you bet on people not on strategies.” – Lawrence Bossidy
Human resources – and the effective long-term management of this vital asset – represents a critical operational aspect of modern organizations. Human resource management is a matrix of ideas and practices that enables organizations to marshal human potential and compete in various landscapes. Some observers aver, the idea and practices underlying human resources management “represent a very important function in every organization; absent human resources management, organizations would not be able to effectively recruit and retain employees, improve and enhance the organization, and may not be able to maintain a healthy, accepting workplace culture and environment.” In effect, competent human resource management can elevate the quality of organizational performance, build the potential inherent in associates and employees, and drive a composite and progressive company culture.
- Recruiting Talent
Interviewing and recruiting potential employees remains a key function of human resource management in modern organizations. Users could design sequences of stages inside flowcharts to outline the interviewing and recruitment process. This stance imparts transparency into said process and builds high quality into the institutional practices underlying human resource management. The utility of flowcharts also resides in enhancing the ability of HR professionals to alter or re-calibrate the recruitment process in response to emerging scenarios and imperatives. In addition, flow-based diagrams offer high levels of visibility to management personnel, thereby creating resonance between the strategic objectives espoused by an organization and the tenor of human resources practices and paradigms.
- Benchmarking Employee Performance
Effectively managing human resources includes “devising compensation strategies, performance management systems, compensation structures, as well as negotiating pay and benefit packages with potential employees.” In this context, ideas pertaining to human resource management can find extensive outline within flowcharts and similar diagrams. For instance, an HR manager could utilize connected illustrations to benchmark the structures of performance management, and build the rationale for a variety of compensation packages aimed at different layers of the organization. The very structure (and granular composition) of flow-based diagrams enables clear inputs that build high quality into these initiatives. The use of flowcharts also empowers HR professionals to expand the scope and functionality of structures and processes in response to growth of the organization.
- Driving Training and Development Agenda
In terms of training and development, HR managers contribute significantly by strengthening employees’ ability to perform their job functions. This therefore, is a central aspect of human resource management, also as a key set of initiatives that propels employees to remain relevant in challenging work environments. Some observers note that effective training and development programs – for instance, skills specific training – also boost employee satisfaction and productivity, and reduce attrition during crucial quarters. Bearing these facts in mind, HR professionals could ideate on and design training and development programs within flow-based diagrams, thereby spotlighting utility of flowcharts in human resource management practices. We note these virtual constructs can also empower organizations to replicate versions of successful training modules, and customize these to suit the requirements of various employees.
- The Workplace Safety Perspective
Specialized HR professionals could cater to workplace safety and risk management practices and requirements, as mandated by US Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations. In this context, the idea of human resource management could find articulation through accurate work logs and records developed and maintained by HR professionals. We note this aspect of human resource management is important in contemporary times, and remains central to ensuring safety of workers and reducing the scope for litigation and lawsuits. In addition, HR professionals could engage with workers and associates in a bid to sensitize individuals to the concepts underlying risk management. The use of flowcharts – and their illustrative potential – could promote widespread awareness of risk management practices, and ensure compliance with risk management requirements.
- Promoting Collaboration in Workforces
The mission to promote collaboration and a regular sharing of ideas and thoughts represents a sub-set of human resource management practices. Further, HR professionals could fashion strategies that enable these stances by re-formulating legacy programs and infusing these with new energies. For instance, operatives from different sections of organization could be enrolled in programs and sessions to illustrate their best practices through flow-based diagrams. This stance could promote collective learning, and encourage a higher rhythm in organizational culture. Collaborative stances could also ensure cross-training initiatives etched within the spaces of flow-based diagrams. Additionally, this aspect of human resource management could empower organizations to pursue new methods of grooming employees, and directing their energies to more productive avenues in a bid to drive the growth of organizations.
- Diversity in Incentives
Incentives for employees, and the many choices therein, represent a significant aspect of human resource management practices. Incentives are thus a part of compensation packages offered to workers and employees. However, an optimal selection of incentives remains key to multiplying the outcomes that benefit employees. For instance, an organization may elect to provide “medical and dental coverage, health and fitness centers, and subsidized tuition” as part of non-financial incentives to associates and employees. HR professionals could utilize flowcharts to delineate the benefits that stem from such choice of incentives. These illustrations could help paint granular imagery that convinces senior management personnel of the optimal spread of employee incentives. Additionally, the idea of human resource management could include an evolution (of the nature and quality) of incentives over time, thereby enabling organizations to retain human talent.
- Vitality of Open Channels
Open channels of communication remain a vital aspect of the functioning of organizational structures in modern times. Aligned with this, the idea of human resource management should embrace digital technologies that drive communication. For instance, chat modules and digital communication boards could emerge as instruments that promote open communication between various stakeholders in an organization. This method promotes multilateral communication and empowers the operation of thought at every level of the organization. Such strategies could be explored further, using flow-based diagrams, as these constructs can also enable HR professionals to expand the idea of open channels into cohesive strategy. In addition, such constructs could encourage new sub-sets of human resource management to emerge, thereby expanding the idea of marshaling human capital in service of strategic objectives.
- To Conclude
It would be practical and beneficial to engage with thoughts and ideas outlined above in a bid to break new ground in human resource management. The modern HR professional could consider ideating on evolutionary versions of flowcharts as part of developing new methods and techniques. The senior leadership in modern organizations could work to integrate human resource management into the primary sets of their activities. This stance may enable a timed development of intelligent convergences between human resources and other departments that animate organizations.
In addition, senior leaders may invest efforts to generate new lines of traction in current management theory as part of embellishing their participation in human resources activities. This may entail new lines of research and inquiry into the primary domain and its allied fields. Further, considering inputs from specialists and consultants to expand and enrich this domain would be beneficial. Such participation may spark new direction in the development of human resource management, thereby driving the creation of sub-layers and sub-domains in this sphere of modern organizational activity.
