The Fundamentals of Human Resource Management

Human Resource Management is one of the core functions in any organization. It forms the backbone of the firm because in today’s world, all companies are realizing that the talent or people are their biggest assets. A good human resource management courses is important for knowing the basics of this area, as well as to get a deeper insight into how it operates. 

Below are the Fundamental Principles of Human Resource Management:

1.       Processes – All processes related to people, directly or indirectly, are part of human resource management. Some of these are managed entirely by HR, while a few will need involvement from other business areas as well. For example, while compensation process is owned by HR, the Finance team also has to share inputs on the impact on overall bottom line, due to total employee compensation. 

2.       Programs – HRM also involves designing and implementing short, medium and long term programs. These can be programs from any people areas such as a developmental program, or a recognition program. Usually programs are for a particular duration and to meet a very specific need. For example, a recognition program might be created by HR based on the inputs from the business leaders, to recognize the high-performers in Sales only. 

3.       Practices – Practices are related to what actually happens across the organization. So while the processes and policies are in place, practices are what determine the culture. The application of the values of the organization in real-life at the workplace is a part of practices. HR has an important role in terms of tracking if the practices are in line with what the organization believes in, and to take necessary action if they are not.  

4.       Policies – This is an area that HR works on, in order to provide a framework and structure within which all policies need to function. Without employee policies, all employees will tend to do as they please. That might not be aligned to the goals of the organization. Also, to remain fair and objective in its treatment of employees, HR ensures that policies are created for each one to follow. 

The above are the four fundamentals of HRM and they are used in all organizations, for effectively manage the talent, and nurturing it as well. All areas related to people such as performance management, learning, compensation, leadership and so on, are covered through all the four elements above.