The changing role of human resource function

1. THE CHANGING ROLE OF
HUMAN RESOURCE FUNCTION
by
DR JANEFRANCIS I. DURU
B.A, MPA, Ph.D, MNIM, ACIPM, MNITAD
[email protected]
0803 3210968

2. Course Objectives
By the end of this session, participants will
be able to:
•Define HR management
•List and define the seven categories of HR
activities.
•Describe the new four roles of HR
management.
•Identify three causes of the changing HR
Roles.

3. What is Human Resources?
Human Resources are the
people in the organization

4. What is Human Resources
Management?
Human Resource Management can be
defined as the implementation of the
strategies, plans and programs required to
attract, motivate, develop, reward and
retain the best people to meet the
organizational goals and operational
objectives of the organization.

5. Human Resources
Management Functions
•Strategic HR Management
•Equal Employment Opportunity
•Staffing
•HR Development
•Compensation and Benefits
•Health, Safety, and Security
•Employee and Labor Relations

6. Human Resources Management
Functions
•Source: HR
Department
Benchmarks and
Analysis Survey 2004
(Washington, DC:
Bureau of National
Affairs, 2004), 21.

7. The Changing Human Resources
Role
•The role of the HR professional is
changing. In the past, HR managers were
often viewed as the systematizing, policing
arm of executive management.
•Their role was more closely aligned with
personnel and administration functions
that were viewed by the organization as
paperwork.

8. Changing Roles of HR
Management
Note: Example percentages are based on various surveys.

9. Operational to Strategic
Transformation of HR

10. Role of HR Professionals
The Past
•Operational
•Monitor
•Short term
•Administrative
•Reactive
•Activity focus
The Future
•StrategicStrategic
•PartnerPartner
•Long termLong term
•ConsultativeConsultative
•ProactiveProactive
•Solution Solution
focusfocus

11. Changing Roles of HR
Management (cont)
The new roles of HR management are
classified into four:
•Strategic Partner
•Employee Advocate
•Administrative Expert
•Change Agent

12. The Changing Role of
Human Resource Management
HR Expert
Change Agent
Employee
Advocate
Administrative
Expert
Strategic
Partner

13. The Changing Human Resources
Role (cont)
Strategic Partner
•In this role, the HR person contributes to
the development of and the
accomplishment of the organization-wide
business plan and objectives.

14. The Changing Human Resources
Role (cont)
Strategic Partner
•To be successful business partners, the HR staff
members have to think like business people,
know finance and accounting, and be
accountable and responsible for cost reductions
and the measurement of all HR programs and
processes.
•It's not enough to
ask for a seat at the executive table; HR people
will have to prove they have the business savvy
necessary to sit there.

15. The Changing Human Resources
Role (cont)
HR requires some competencies to become
a strategic partner. These are:
•Leadership competencies
•Knowledge of business
•Strategic Thinking
•Process skills
•Technology

16. The Changing Human Resources
Role (cont)
Leadership competencies
•Understand the nature and styles of leadership, and
display appropriate leadership characteristics in
performance of professional responsibilities.
•Demonstrate leadership at multiple performance levels:
–Individual
–Team
–Unit or Organization

17. The Changing Human Resources
Role (cont
Knowledge of business
•Understand corporate business (structure, vision
and values, goals, strategies, financial, and
performance characteristics).
•Understand the unit’s business, including special
knowledge of competitors, products, technology,
and sources of competitive advantage.

18. The Changing Human Resources
Role (cont
Knowledge of business (cont)
•Understand internal and external customers.
•Understand the environment (external and
internal) of corporation and individual
businesses.
–Understand key business disciplines
–Nature, scope, and HR implications of business
globalization
–Information technology as it affects competitiveness
and business processes

19. The Changing Human Resources
Role (cont
Strategic Thinking
•Understand the strategic business planning
process.
•Understand and be able to apply a systematic
HR planning process.
•Be able to select, design, and integrate HR
systems or practices to build organizational
mindset, capability, and competitive advantage
for the business.
•Be able to develop and integrate business unit
HR strategies within framework of corporate HR
strategies.

20. The Changing Human Resources
Role (cont
Process skills
•All HR professionals should be competent in key
corporate processes and understand
management processes critical to particular
business units.
•Understand key process skills such as
consulting, problem solving,
evaluation/diagnosis, workshop design, and
facilitation.

21. The Changing Human Resources
Role (cont
Process skills (cont)
•Understand the basic principles,
methodologies, and processes or
organizational change and development.
•Facilitate and manage organizational
change.
•Balance, integrate, and manage under
conditions of uncertainty and paradox.

22. The Changing Human Resources
Role (cont
Technology
•Maintain HR documentation using
knowledge management and technology
•Build firm’s capability using info systems
•Provide training in use of technology

23. The Changing Human Resources
Role (cont)
Administrative Expert
HR expert will be working to improve
organizational processes and deliver basic
HR services,

24. The Changing Human Resources
Role (cont)
Employee Advocate
•As an employee advocate, the HR
manager plays an integral role in
organizational success via his knowledge
about and advocacy of people.

25. The Changing Human Resources
Role (cont)
Employee Advocate (cont)
This advocacy includes expertise in how to:
•Builds employee ownership of the organization.
•Establish the organizational culture and climate
in which people have the competency, concern
and commitment to serve customers well.
•Create a work environment in which people will
choose to be motivated, contributing, and happy.

26. The Changing Human Resources
Role (cont)
Change Agent
•HR executives sponsors change in other
departments and in work practices.
•They champion the identification of the
organizational mission, vision, values, goals and
action plans in other to promote the overall
success of his organization.
•They help determine the measures that will tell
the organization how well it is succeeding in all
of this.

27. Reasons for Human Resources
Changing Role
There are various reasons for human
resource changing role, including:
•The acceptance by many large
organizations that people are their most
important asset
•The search for more effective ways in
managing diverse employees.

28. Reasons for Human Resources
Changing Role
•The strategic position of people in
leveraging organization' competitive
advantage based on their skills,
knowledge and personalities
•The fear that the HR Department and HR
professionals will fade into insignificance.

29. Causes of HR Changing Role
Globalization
Technological Advances
Trends in the Nature of Work
Workforce Demographic &
Diversity
Causes of Human
Resource Mgt
Changing Role

30. Causes of HR Changing Role
(cont)
•Globalization:
Tendency of firms to extend their sales
and manufacturing to new markets abroad
•Technological advances:
Technology has been forcing and enabling
firms to become more competitive (skilled
employee, empowerment)

31. Causes of HR Changing Role
(cont)
•The nature of work:
Human capital(knowledge, education,
training, skills and expertise of a firm’s
worker) provides competitive advantage
•The workforce diversity:
Increased diversity provide challenges for
HR management

32. The Implications Changing
Roles Of HR Management
•The changing role of human resources
has tremendous implications not just for
businesses, but for the human resources
function and for all human resources
professionals.

33. The Implications Changing Roles
Of HR Management (cont)
The implications of this are that:
•Administrative skills are no longer enough;
human resources now demands a skill mix
that also includes consulting, coaching
and communication, along with broad
understanding of business issues.

34. The Implications Changing Roles
Of HR Management (cont)
•Human resource professionals will be
expected to demonstrate an enhanced set
of core competencies to effectively handle
their expanded responsibility.

35. The Implications Changing Roles
Of HR Management (cont)
•Organizations will seek human resource
professionals who can align human
resources strategy with business strategy
to make a positive impact on the bottom
line.

36. Thank You