MODELS OF HUMAN RESOURCE MANGEMENT
Understanding models in human resource management (HRM) is essential for any human resource practitioner for three reasons. Firstly, it provides a macro perspective of HRM practice in overall organizational set up. Secondly, the unity and diversity of these models serve as vital inputs in drafting tailor made HRM model for organizations. Thirdly, these models offer answers to quite a few dilemmas that practitioners encounter in their mission to pursue an organizationally dovetailed and business aligned human resource function.
With these objectives in view, this chapter deals with 30 different models in HRM practice. Each of these models illustrates HRM strategy from a particular perspective, it focus, and the principle elements, the overall philosophy and ultimate objective. These 30 models together enabled HRM, practice that include soft and hard variants of HRM, quality enabled HRM, models drawn from religious scriptures, strategy, structure, process aligned HRM, oriented, profit motivated and sectorial based HRM, thus giving a comprehensive and holistic approach to the subject.
BALDRIDGE MODEL OF HRM
Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award is regarded as the world’s highest quality award that is given annually to organizations is recognition of its quality standards. HRM practices take a central place in quality movement of organizations. A maximum of 1000 points is allocated to different dimension of quality management for assessment under Baldrige award. Out of these, HRM practices get 150 points. Further, these practices like employee development, involvement and empowerment has potential to influence the other dimensions of the award like customer focus, leadership, and quality planning. Keeping in view its importance, Dr Christopher Hart, president of TQM Group-USA and Prof Leonard Schlesinger of Harvard Business School advocated for application of Baldrige framework to Hr in their paper titled “Total Quality Management and the Human Resource Professional: Applying the Baldrige Framework to Human Resources” published in HRM in 1991. This orientation may help companies to not only strengthen their quality efforts but also give a purposeful shape to HR function.
In quality modeling, HR function needs to develop a new vision for itself as a customer focused service provider, in other words, setting 100 per cent customer satisfaction as HRM’s ultimate goal which means, defining who the customers are and determining their precise needs Baldrige award emphasizes the critical role of five HR practices in this endeavor. These are (i) HR planning, (ii) HR education and training, (iii) HR performance and recognition, (iv) HR involvement, and (v) HR well-being and moral. Again, each of these practices are broken into a number of activities. For example, HR planning practice is sub-divided into redefining job descriptions to increase clarity of job, steps to enrich jobs, lines of authority, organizational structure, etc. Similarly, education and training encompasses activities like leadership training, training in quality, communication, job specific employee training, remedial training for career growth and so on. The quality modeled HRM activities like leadership training in quality, communication, mentoring, job specific employee training for career growth and so on. The quality modeled HRM activities would progress in tandem with quality efforts as illustrated in Table 1.1.
TABLE 1.1
Variables Baldrige HRM
Outcome Customer focus and satisfaction Employee performance, satisfaction, growth and motivation
System Strategic quality planning HR planning
Driver Leadership Employee characteristics
Managerial Implication
Baldrige model of HRM helps organizations in focusing their attention on attaining global standards in quality of products and services. HR managers have to understand quality systems and interlize the philosophy and mechanisms of Malcolm Baldrige award in order to apply the right HR practices. Quality specialists have taken over HR function wherever human resource professionals were not successful in applying quality reinforced HRM model. The lack of basic HRM foundation in quality specialists led to failures in integrating Quality-HRM partnership. Therefore, special attention must be pay to identify an HRM professional with requisites skills who can translate Baldrige HRM Model into practice.
HARVARD MODEL OF HRM
The type of HRM policies and practices an organization prefers should be dependent upon its organizational vision, mission, strategy, goals, and objectives. In quite a few cases, such HR practices shall also be devised and adopted in tune with external environment of organizations. In other words, HR policies and practices are subject to be influenced by internal and external environment of organizations. Harvard model of HRM propounded by Michael Beer, Richard Walton, Quinn Mills, P. Lawrence and Bert Spector highlighted this influence of environment on HRM in their book titled Managing Human Assets published in 1984. This model also know as Soft Model of HRM/Harvard Map of HRM/Multiple Stakeholders Model, argues that human resources policies are to be influenced by two significant considerations:
1. Situational factors. The internal and external environment factors of organizations that include (i) labors market conditions (ii) Social values, (iii) business strategies (iv) technologies, (v) management philosophies, and (vi) market conditions will constrain the formation of HRM polices.
From India, Hyderabad
6Understanding models in human resource management (HRM) is essential for any human resource practitioner for three reasons. Firstly, it provides a macro perspective of HRM practice in overall organizational set up. Secondly, the unity and diversity of these models serve as vital inputs in drafting tailor made HRM model for organizations. Thirdly, these models offer answers to quite a few dilemmas that practitioners encounter in their mission to pursue an organizationally dovetailed and business aligned human resource function.
With these objectives in view, this chapter deals with 30 different models in HRM practice. Each of these models illustrates HRM strategy from a particular perspective, it focus, and the principle elements, the overall philosophy and ultimate objective. These 30 models together enabled HRM, practice that include soft and hard variants of HRM, quality enabled HRM, models drawn from religious scriptures, strategy, structure, process aligned HRM, oriented, profit motivated and sectorial based HRM, thus giving a comprehensive and holistic approach to the subject.
BALDRIDGE MODEL OF HRM
Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award is regarded as the world’s highest quality award that is given annually to organizations is recognition of its quality standards. HRM practices take a central place in quality movement of organizations. A maximum of 1000 points is allocated to different dimension of quality management for assessment under Baldrige award. Out of these, HRM practices get 150 points. Further, these practices like employee development, involvement and empowerment has potential to influence the other dimensions of the award like customer focus, leadership, and quality planning. Keeping in view its importance, Dr Christopher Hart, president of TQM Group-USA and Prof Leonard Schlesinger of Harvard Business School advocated for application of Baldrige framework to Hr in their paper titled “Total Quality Management and the Human Resource Professional: Applying the Baldrige Framework to Human Resources” published in HRM in 1991. This orientation may help companies to not only strengthen their quality efforts but also give a purposeful shape to HR function.
In quality modeling, HR function needs to develop a new vision for itself as a customer focused service provider, in other words, setting 100 per cent customer satisfaction as HRM’s ultimate goal which means, defining who the customers are and determining their precise needs Baldrige award emphasizes the critical role of five HR practices in this endeavor. These are (i) HR planning, (ii) HR education and training, (iii) HR performance and recognition, (iv) HR involvement, and (v) HR well-being and moral. Again, each of these practices are broken into a number of activities. For example, HR planning practice is sub-divided into redefining job descriptions to increase clarity of job, steps to enrich jobs, lines of authority, organizational structure, etc. Similarly, education and training encompasses activities like leadership training, training in quality, communication, job specific employee training, remedial training for career growth and so on. The quality modeled HRM activities like leadership training in quality, communication, mentoring, job specific employee training for career growth and so on. The quality modeled HRM activities would progress in tandem with quality efforts as illustrated in Table 1.1.
TABLE 1.1
Variables Baldrige HRM
Outcome Customer focus and satisfaction Employee performance, satisfaction, growth and motivation
System Strategic quality planning HR planning
Driver Leadership Employee characteristics
Managerial Implication
Baldrige model of HRM helps organizations in focusing their attention on attaining global standards in quality of products and services. HR managers have to understand quality systems and interlize the philosophy and mechanisms of Malcolm Baldrige award in order to apply the right HR practices. Quality specialists have taken over HR function wherever human resource professionals were not successful in applying quality reinforced HRM model. The lack of basic HRM foundation in quality specialists led to failures in integrating Quality-HRM partnership. Therefore, special attention must be pay to identify an HRM professional with requisites skills who can translate Baldrige HRM Model into practice.
HARVARD MODEL OF HRM
The type of HRM policies and practices an organization prefers should be dependent upon its organizational vision, mission, strategy, goals, and objectives. In quite a few cases, such HR practices shall also be devised and adopted in tune with external environment of organizations. In other words, HR policies and practices are subject to be influenced by internal and external environment of organizations. Harvard model of HRM propounded by Michael Beer, Richard Walton, Quinn Mills, P. Lawrence and Bert Spector highlighted this influence of environment on HRM in their book titled Managing Human Assets published in 1984. This model also know as Soft Model of HRM/Harvard Map of HRM/Multiple Stakeholders Model, argues that human resources policies are to be influenced by two significant considerations:
1. Situational factors. The internal and external environment factors of organizations that include (i) labors market conditions (ii) Social values, (iii) business strategies (iv) technologies, (v) management philosophies, and (vi) market conditions will constrain the formation of HRM polices.
From India, Hyderabad
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Models Of Human Resource Mangement.doc
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