Human resource management (HRM)
Human resource management (HRM) is the practice of
recruiting, hiring, deploying and managing an organization's employees. HRM is
often referred to simply as human resources (HR). A company or organization's
HR department is usually responsible for creating, putting into effect and
overseeing policies governing workers and the relationship of the organization
with its employees. The term human resources was first used in the early 1900s,
and then more widely in the 1960s, to describe the people who work for the
organization, in aggregate.
HRM is employee management with an emphasis on those
employees as assets of the business. In this context, employees are sometimes
referred to as human capital. As with other business assets, the goal is to
make effective use of employees, reducing risk and maximizing return on
investment (ROI).
The modern HR technology term human capital management (HCM)
has been used more frequently compared to the term HRM. The term HCM has had
widespread adoption by large and midsize companies and other organizations of
software to manage many HR functions.
The importance of human resource management
The role of HRM practices are to manage the people within a
workplace to achieve the organization's mission and reinforce the culture. When
done effectively, HR managers can help recruit new professionals who have
skills necessary to further the company's goals as well as aid with the
training and development of current employees to meet objectives.
A company is only as good as its employees, making HRM a
crucial part of maintaining or improving the health of the business.
Additionally, HR managers can monitor the state of the job market to help the
organization stay competitive. This could include making sure compensation and
benefits are fair, events are planned to keep employees from burning out and
job roles are adapted based on the market.
How does HRM work?
Human resources management works through dedicated HR
professionals, who are responsible for the day-to-day execution of HR-related
functions. Typically, human resources will comprise an entire department within
each organization.
HR departments across different organizations can vary in
size, structure and nature of their individual positions. For smaller
organizations, it is not uncommon to have a handful of HR generalists, who each
perform a broad array of HR functions. Larger organizations may have more
specialized roles, with individual employees dedicated to functions such as
recruiting, immigration and visa handling, talent management, benefits,
compensation and more. Though these HR positions are differentiated and
specialized, job functions may still overlap with each other.