Understanding the Functions of HRM

Through this article, you will learn about the important functions of Human resource management.

Table of Contents

• About HRM
• Functions of HRM

About Human Resource Management

Human resource management (HRM) is meant for the smooth functioning of an organisation. It ensures that every employee in the organisation is growing. The goals involve the overall development of the organisation and its employees. This is a part of managing the resources within the organization so that business operations are conducted smoothly without any internal conflicts. In this article, we will focus on the functions of HRM. 

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Functions of HRM

1. Recruitment 

It is a process of recruiting a suitable employee for a job profile within the organisation. The recruitment process involves various stages

Recruitment Planning

It is one of the primary functions of hrm that helps in finding the right employee for a position. Recruitment planning involves preparing for filling in a vacant position after a thorough analysis. 

This involves identifying job specifications, nature of the profile, required experience and skillsets for the job. The HR department analyses the actual number of positions that need to be filled.

Once the analysis is done, they prepare the job description which involves classification and ranking of jobs as well as the probable developments in work standards. In a job description, the HR department includes:

1. Job title 
2. Job location
3. Required experience
4. Roles and responsibilities
5. Skills required
6. Working conditions
7. Salary bracket

Preparing the Job Design 

Another function of HRM is job design. It is a process in which the nature of the job is described. This includes mentioning roles and responsibilities, skills, knowledge and experience required for the job. The process requires researching similar job roles and challenges related to the job role. It is also important to address the responsibilities that were not earlier included in the role. A good job design is important since it helps in selecting the right candidate for that job profile. This will also help the suitable candidates in applying for the position. 

Job Analysis

Once the job design is prepared, it must be analysed with the guidance of the manager of that domain. This will ensure that all the necessary job, qualification, skill and experience related details are covered accurately. This will help in including the actual perspective of the employer and their expectations from the candidate for the role. 

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Job Evaluation

This is the part in which the human resource management evaluates the worth of the profile. It will include comparing the role with other roles in the organisation. The aim is to create a fair pay structure which is consistent with the pay of other job roles. Job evaluation is conducted through internal comparisons and external market benchmarking. 

Internal evaluation methods are both qualitative and quantitative in nature. Through internal methods like point factor, the company assigns points for compensable factors identified during the job analysis. Based on the total points, the pay structure for the job role is established. Through these unique points, the company is able to identify the actual worth of that job role. 

Recruitment Strategy

At this stage, the human resource department starts planning out the recruitment flow. This involves identifying:

• if there is a need for a full time or part-time employee. 
• sources of recruitment.
• locations from which candidates can be shortlisted. 

For this, a team starts collecting the relevant data, filters it and analyses the data. Sources of recruitment may be internal or external depending on the availability of resources. Internal sources may include employee referrals, promotions, transfers and job postings. External resources include placement agencies, campus recruitment and word of mouth. 

Screening

This process involves shortlisting suitable candidates. First of all, resumes and cover letters are screened. If the resume of the candidate matches the job role requirements, then that candidate is shortlisted. While screening a resume, human resource professionals must keep the following points in mind:

• There is a long gap in employment
• The candidate seems to be a job hopper
• Reason for a job change
• Lack of career progression
• If the employee has stayed for the long term in a job role

Conducting Interview With the Candidate

After the screening process is completed. The HR department conducts an interview with the potential candidate. Based on the job profile, this may be a face-to-face interview, telephonic or video interview. This helps in assessing if the candidate is available for the interview and if they are suitable to fit in the work culture. 

They also assess the candidate based on what they have mentioned in their resume. After this, the resume of shortlisted candidates is forwarded to the hiring manager. Once the candidate passes the technical round of interviews, HR proceeds with salary negotiation followed by joining formalities.

2. Training and Development of New Employees

The HR department ensures that the new joiners are comfortably settled in the organization. For this, the department conducts orientation. The HR explains the company culture, organizational goals, salary breakup, and employee benefits such as bonuses and performance appraisal. 

3. Maintaining the Management Discipline

One of the most important functions of HRM is to maintain discipline within the organisation. This can be done by resolving issues between management and employees or between employees. They are also responsible to ensure that everyone in the organisation is abiding by the rules of the organisation. The professionals are responsible for ensuring that the operations are conducted in accordance with business ethics. They also take disciplinary action when required.

3. Resolving Internal Conflicts

One of the human resource management functions involves addressing grievances. HR ensures that employees can approach them and discuss the issues. This ensures that employees performance stays unaffected and the workflow is intact. They can discuss the issues in person or escalate the issue if necessary to upper management. 

4. Ensuring Employee Engagement

This is also one of the functions of human resource department. They conduct team building activities, events, webinars and seminars for employees. This helps in building a healthy and productive work environment for everyone. In stressful professional life, such activities help in improving relations with everyone in the team.

5. Performance Appraisals

One of the most important functions of HRM is related to promotions and appraisals. The HR department assesses the candidate’s performance based on their KRA. In HRM, it is a process of understanding the employee’s contribution to the job. Through this process, they are able to identify the scope of improvement in employee performance. They can also identify the areas that need improvement within the system.

Conclusion

These are the major functions of HRM. They have a number of administrative responsibilities such as preparing salaries, processing visas and completing exit formalities. They have to also ensure employee retention and ensure that the work culture is in accordance with guidelines. If you plan to work in the human resource department, you can learn about the required skillsets and important procedures through hr management courses.