Identify Human Resource Functions

What are Human Resources?

The term 'human resources" came about in the 1960s when people started to recognize the importance of relationships between employers and employees. It involves things like keeping employees motivated, understanding how organisations work, and making sure the right people are chosen for jobs. 

Over the past few decades, the role of human resources (HR) has undergone a significant change. It used to be mainly concerned with tasks like bookkeeping, payroll, and employee benefits, which are now often outsourced to other companies. However, in recent years, the focus of HR has shifted towards broader business strategies, managing talented individuals, and developing effective leaders making HR staff more important than ever for an organisation's success.

Human Resources Careers are varied. Some of the related career titles for HR professionals include:

Human Resources Managers

Human resource managers are responsible for overseeing the human resources department and ensuring that all its functions and tasks are carried out smoothly. They act as a bridge between an organisation's management and its employees. Their role involves a wide range of activities including:

• developing and implementing key policies and procedures for HR management
• providing guidance to top executives on strategic planning
• supporting management with HR functions e.g., handling recruitment, interviews, hiring of new staff 
• managing the workforce and succession planning
• facilitating effective communication between management and employees.

Recruitment Officer

Recruitment Officers are part of the human resources team. Their main role is to create and execute plans and strategies for hiring new employees to meet the staffing needs of a business. They take the lead in finding and selecting qualified individuals to build their organisation's workforce. Their role includes:

• organising and conducting the recruitment and selection of staff

• supporting and participating in the onboarding process for new hires

• assisting with workforce/ resource planning

• serving as a liaison with employment agencies, colleges, and industry associations

• conducting exit interviews on terminating employees.

Employee Relations Officer

An Employee Relations Officer specialises in maintaining positive relationships between employees and the organisation. They handle various employee-related tasks such as counselling, recruitment, background checks, and ensuring compliance with employment laws. Their role includes:

• negotiate terms and conditions of employment
• manage and mediate complaints and conflicts
• conduct exit interviews
• participate in employee relations activities such as wrongful dismissal claims
• organise and update employee files
• oversee employee orientation and training.

Aligning an organisation's human resource strategy to its business strategy.

In order to support the delivery of human resource functions, you must be able to identify the business strategy and the human resource strategy. By identifying and accessing the relevant plans and objectives, you can then identify how the human resources strategy meets the requirements of the organisation in the short and long term.

Every organisation has a vision of where they want to be – now and in the future. The aim of planning in an organisation is to help set out the organisation’s goals and objectives. Planning involves the process of determining what needs to be done and how it should be done. Another major part of the planning process is to determine the resources required and how to effectively manage the resources to ensure that the goals and objectives are achieved. The business strategy is normally outlined in a strategic plan.

Strategic Planning

Strategic planning is the process of setting major organisational objectives and developing comprehensive plans to achieve them. It involves:

• Deciding on the major directions in which the organisation is moving (structure, strategies, policies etc.)
• Establishing the contributions of various resources
• Developing strategies to survive – how can the organisation continue to exist for years to come?
• Developing strategies to prosper – how can the organisation ensure that it continues to improve its financial future and profits?
• Determining improvements that can be made in the organisation

Operational Planning

Operational planning translates the strategic plan and provides detailed information on how to perform day-to-day tasks for running an organisation. It defines:

The purpose of human resources (HR) planning and functions is to:

• Determine the employee competency requirements against current organisational goals and objectives in order to survive and continue to exist for years to come.
• Determine employee competency requirements to ensure that the future outlook is better.
• Ensure adequate human resources are allocated to meet the organisational goals and objectives, resulting in improvements in the organisation.
• Ensure that the human resource return on investment meets organisational needs and requirements.

The various strategies for the delivery of human resource functions are usually outlined in a human resources strategy. The human resources strategies align with the organisational objectives and plans, which helps the organisation achieve its business strategy and plans.

The human resource strategy is the organisation’s plan for managing its human capital and must be aligned to the organisation’s business plans, objectives and activities. The human resource strategy sets the direction for all the key areas of human resources functions and processes, including recruiting and selecting staff, performance appraisal, training and development, conflict management and return to work to name just a few.

Watch the short following video that provides information on human resources strategy titled “What is Human Resource Strategy?” by Gregg Learning.

Overview of Strategy, Goals, Actions

• Strategy - This represents the high-level plan for the business
• Goals - Turns the high-level plan into actionable objectives
• Tasks - Breaks down the goals into actions

In the real world

Due to COVID-19, there has been a surge in demand for Front-End Engineers making it difficult to attract and retain staff. A technology company has determined that it wishes to be recognised as an employer of choice to ensure it is attracting and retaining the best talent available (strategy).

'Employer of choice' is a prestigious recognition that is the ultimate HR strategy for most organisations. A company can certainly guarantee to attract and retain employees if they are regarded as an employer of choice.

In order to achieve the strategy, the following goals were set:

1. Pay 15% higher than the median wage
2. Reduce staff turnover by 20%
3. Be recognised by SEEK as an employer of choice

As part of goal 1, the HR team determined the following tasks were required:

• Conduct a market analysis to determine the average industry pay range by role
• Conduct a benchmarking exercise of current and previous employees salaries against the industry average
• Present findings of industry average salary by role versus the companies current salaries
• Make a recommendation on role priorities based on the difficulty to recruit by role

Through the above strategy, goals, and tasks the company is able to take a high-level strategy and turn it into an actionable plan.

Watch the following video that provides information on human resources planning titled “Strategy and HR Planning” by Gregg Learning.

Important Readings

Read the following article by LucidChart titled “4 steps to strategic human resource planning” about human resources planning. Read the following article titled “Planning and Designing HR Strategies” by AHRI.

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Human resource networking refers to the practice of building and maintaining professional connections with other professionals. It involves establishing relationships with individuals who work in HR-related roles, such as recruiters, hiring managers, HR professionals, and other industry experts.

Just as social networking involves connecting with people on platforms like Facebook or LinkedIn, human resource networking focuses specifically on building connections within the HR community. These connections can be made through attending industry events, joining professional associations, participating in HR forums or online communities, or simply reaching out and engaging with others in the field.

Human resource networking is valuable because it allows professionals to expand their knowledge, exchange ideas, share best practices, and learn about new opportunities in the HR industry. It provides a platform for collaboration, mentorship, and support, where individuals can seek advice, discuss challenges, and stay updated on the latest trends and developments in human resources.

By actively networking with other HR professionals, individuals can enhance their professional growth, build a strong support system, and increase their chances of finding new job opportunities or advancing their careers in the field of human resources.

In the following video Paul Taylor talks about networking, why it matters and how to do it better.

In Australia, there are a number of different human resource networks available. The following are a few examples:

• The Australian HR Institute provides a range of national and local events across Australia for its members. Some of the networking events are part of the ongoing professional development for human resource practitioners. Further information on the Australian HR Institute can be found on their website.

• The human resources management @ work is a human resource network that was established to provide a forum that allows human resources professionals to interact and discuss current and relevant issues. Further information on the human resources management @work can be found on their website.

• Meetup is a program that has a list of different Meetup groups around the world. You can join various groups and choose the human resources meetings near you. There are several meetup groups set up across Australia. Further information on the meetup groups' networks can be found on their website.

There are numerous benefits of joining and participating in the various human resources networks. These include:

• Take up an opportunity to learn new topics
• Meet other human resources professionals
• Gain valuable information
• Provide networking opportunities
• Learn new ideas from others
• Participate in skills training
• Gain ideas on human resources administration efficiencies
• Access human resources software and selection, vendor selection and recommendations
• Learn new ways to improve processes

Think

Think about the type of benefits that you could personally gain by joining a human resources network. Which network would you choose and why?

Important Readings

Read the following article on joining a human resources network titled “Human resources forums every HR professional should join” by Anni Pyhäjoki. Read the following article on joining a human resources network titled “HR networking: Top tips and the benefits.”

 

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Numerous sources of information can assist with the human resources function, including the data and information that the HR department gathers and stores. The workforce data and information that may be available internally may include:

• Vacancy data
• Recruitment data
• Selection of staff processes and metrics
• Personal staff data and information
• Absenteeism rates
• Career progression data
• Training information
• Productivity data
• Personal development
• Performance reviews
• Competency requirements
• Staff competency profiles
• Employee engagement and satisfaction rates data
• Employee dismissals data
• Industrial relations data
• Complaints and grievances

Other human resources data and information may be sourced externally to provide information on:

• Relevant legislation
• Regulations
• Codes of practice
• Awards
• Employment terms and conditions
• Labour market data

Various types of human resources data and information can be used to plan a range of human resources activities such as forecasting and succession planning, career planning and professional development.

In the real world

A local rural council has undertaken an audit of its employees using start date data. The council has many employees that have been with the council since they left school. The human resources department accessed and analysed the data and has discovered that over 35% of their employees will retire in the next five years. This will leave a huge shortage of competent staff and a loss of important organisation knowledge.

Important Readings

Read the following article on human resources data titled “Why HR Data is the Key to Strategic Business Decisions” by Meghan M. Biro. Read the following article on human resources data titled “What Data Should HR Track?” by Ruth Mayhew.

It is important to understand the National Employment Standards when dealing with human resources data, they are explained here 

Check your understanding of the content so far!

Prior to moving on to the next topic, have a conversation with someone that is not in Human Resources or studying this qualification and in your own words:

• Explain the term operational planning.
• Describe the purpose of human resources (HR) planning and functions
• Describe some of the benefits of joining and participating in human resources networks
• Explain, using five examples, workforce data and information that may be available internally
• Explain what is meant by a human resources strategy