HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT

Human Resources Management

Human Resources Management

Introduction

Nowadays, Strategic Human Resource Management becomes very important for the organizations in the business world environment. The purpose of this assignment is about what the Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) is and why SHRM is so important? How is human resource management (HRM) strategic to a firm's viability and how it might help to lay a basis for sustained competitive advantage? And what are the strategies for the managers to pursue their goals for labor productivity and organizational flexibility in socially acceptable ways.

HRM has existed in one form or another since the beginning of time. Certain HR functions, even though informal in nature, were performed whenever people came together for a common purpose. During this century, the processes of managing people have become more formalized and specialized.

Discussion

SHRM it can help organizations determine the best use of human resources to meet organizational goals and can facilitate the integration of HR policies and practices with each other and with the business strategy.

Understanding of SHRM

Strategic human resource management (SHRM) takes the ideas one step further by emphasizing the need for HR plans and strategies to be formulated within the context of overall organizational strategies and objectives, and to be responsive to the changing nature of the organization's external 'environment' (i.e. its competitors, the national and international arenas). A strong implication of SHRM theory is that HR plans and strategies should be developed on a long-term basis, taking into account likely changes in the society, industrial relations systems, economic conditions, legislation, global and technological issues, as well as new directions in business operations.

Competitive Advantages

People is the source of competitive edge, there are different ways of competing are significant for managing human resources because they help determine needed employee behaviors. That is, for competitive strategies to be successfully implemented, employees have to behave in certain ways. And for employees to behave in certain ways, human resource practices need to be put in place that help ensure that those behaviors are explained, are possible, and are rewarded.

Example of a firm's human resources to gain competitive advantage.

Nordstrom exists in the highly competitive retailing industry. This industry is usually characterized as having relatively low skill requirements and high turnover for sales clerks. Nordstrom has attempted to focus on individual salespersons as the key to its competitive advantage. It invests in attracting and retaining young, college-educated sales clerks who desire a career in retailing. It provides a highly incentive based compensation system that allows Nordstron's salespersons to make as much as twice the industry average in pay. The Nordstrom culture encourages sales clerks to make heroic dfforts to attend to customers' needs, even to the point of changing a customer's tyre in the parking lot . the recruiting process, compensation practices, and culture at Nordstron have helped the organization tomaintain the highest sales per square foot of any retailer in the nation. (Source: Black, J. A., & Boal, K. B. (1994). Traits, Configurations and paths to sustainable competitive ...