Blog #10 - Human Resource Management Review

Have you ever noticed that when people don’t know what you do they assume you do nothing?  Or, they assume your work is not important.  I reluctantly admit that I am one of those people.  And that is how I felt about the Human Resources Dept.  Why do they need so many people when all they do is listen to complaints and manage our benefits?  This class has taught me exactly what they do and why it is necessary to have an entire department.

We began the course by learning about how workforce globalization, which leads to diversity, and the increase of technological advances lends to a very different human resources environment.  Members of your team can be spread over many different continents and time zones, and the use of e-mail, teleconferencing, videoconferencing, etc. allows this to be possible.  We learned that the costs of human resources aren’t always so obvious, such as employee turnover and lost productivity, but still translate into very real dollars.  Planning and forecasting these resources, when done correctly, can lead to true company profits.  The workforce environment today demands a work-life balance which is very important in the recruiting, staffing, training and retaining valuable employees.  And, knowing the value of performance evaluations, how to compensate based on the these evaluations and market value, and knowing the laws as it pertains to employee rights as well as organized labor are important aspects of Human Resources Management.

What do I take away from this class?  Three important things:  1. A different way of thinking.  I will no longer take the ignorant approach and assume a person’s job isn’t important just because I don’t take the time to find out what they do.  2. Knowledge.  I learned a lot about the functions of Human Resources Management and why they are important.  3. Blogging.  Before this class I had heard of a blog, but never really quite understood what it was.  Today, I am implementing my very own Tax blog at work on our intranet site.  What a great way to convey information to others!

Thank you.  I’ve truly learned a lot and enjoyed it.

Here is an article that sums up what we have learned this semester - The Changing Role of Strategic Human Resource Management in Principles of Management.