HRM and Personnel Management
as a Specialist Function

Geoff Armstrong ( Director General of the Institute of Personnel and Development) in a review of a recently published compendium of HRM (Storey, 1995) expressed disappointment with HRM's inability to get away from rhetoric. He states:

I find its (op. cit) HRM foundation flawed.....the rhetoric - labelling certain approaches to people management as HRM - can stimulate strategic-level attention (but).......... I cannot accept... that there is a coherent and comprehensive approach to people management under the HRM umbrella, sufficiently distinctive to form the model or benchmark against which managerial performance is judged. It is part of the answer not the whole picture.

The proposition is that the rhetoric of HRM (employee involvement, development of individuals and empowering them to realise their creative contributions to the business) , does not fit well with business realities in a competitive economy where priorities focus on

The place of the staffing/personnel function.

Personnel management, as a specialist, function, concerns itself with the fact that except for the sole proprietor, business employs or needs to employ staff. Employing people carries costs - arising from

Specialised knowledge is needed to employ someone and this reflects

This is the clerk of works, bureaucratic, systems and control, model of personnel practice. Rules and regulations, information, communications and maintenance need to exist on both sides of the work-reward exchange. The exchange must be "serviced" with due regard to the legal and social contexts of employment. The servicing involves costs - employing personnel administrator/advisor to co-ordinate and deliver a servicing operation to management.

The Line Manager as Personnel Manager

Apart for the staff of the personnel department itself and perhaps groups of apprentices/trainees that come under the personnel budget but who are assigned to operating departments, a personnel manager has no direct control over staff. The departmental manager is the line manager of his/her staff. Personnel management therefore forms part of every manager's job.

A specialist personnel manager or section provides expertise to the business as a whole and departmental managers. The latter only want a personnel service if it eases their burden and provides a value based service. They have profit and cost priorities when delivering their products/services. There is a natural resentment of "personnel people" who are seen to contrain local action, who act as social workers, who talk a lot but perhaps are seen to little direct output.

If the personnel person provides service that conforms to the prevailing framework of priorities that senior managers and line managers regard as important then the relationship many be valued. If personnel practictioners are avoided by line managers become marginalised only being called on when the line manager needs to be rescued because of problems arising with a member of staff.

The Conformist-Innovator

At the level of the corporation and within the prevailing value systems of the firm, personnel specialists may contribute policy analysis and recommendations. They contribute programmes and systems that help the organisation to adapt in ways that support its maintenance and innovative (change) objectives. The innovative personnel function is thus manifested by the

policies and policy initiatives, advisory/consultancy services, regulative and adminstrative frameworks that ensure effective and consistent practices and decisions in relation to staff and staffing across the organisation.

Many initiatives can be minimum reactions to events. Others may be more proactive seeking to anticipate events and shape outcomes.

Within a policy framework and with a service co-ordinating the implementation of policy and programmes, managers of other functions (direct operations and others services) can then concentrate on their operational task - knowing that a well-defined personnel system supports their staffing activities, relationships and requirements.

Why a specialism?

Skilled labour is a scarce and complex commodity. People are not machines - they have their own strengths and frailities, ambitions and insecurities. At the level of the firm these become lost. The "firm" is not sensitive to the needs of others only people are. Senior managers may be too removed from the mass of employees. Employees become head count. Individual line managers have the problems of their own personalities to contend with - sometimes; too busy, removed, selfish, blind, uncaring, brash, shy and basically not very good with people.

Doing recruitment, selection and training (arguably) involves specific conceptual and practical understandings. Some of the know-how is general and a good general manager can develop these abilities. But much of the know-how requires detailed understanding and the "quality" service elements involve specific effort, consistency and time.

Which Hat Am I Wearing?

As a member of management, the personnel specialist has a difficult balance to keep. He/she may have access to confidential information about staff, may offer counselling and guidance to a member of line manager's staff in repect of their training, career or even personal affiars. The advice may even relate to the the relationship with the line manager him/herself. The personnel practitioner may sympathise with the employee and feel that the employee has a just case in relation to the organsiation or the line manager. But a personnel practitioner is a manager and a contributor to the management process/team.

Personnel's typical responsibilities

Advising on and implementing good practice activities/systems concerning

The employee focus of the personnel function

This covers e.g.

Can the Promise be Delivered?

Since the 1930's personnel practice progressed from models dominated by administration and systems towards ones based on strategic business needs. Yet

Future Issues?

How might a career as a personnel manager be influenced by

In such situations those running business organisations must still

The strategic HRM aspiration.

In comparison to the clerk of works we have the architect / high level strategic HRM operator who focuses (presumably) on business effectiveness rather than just operational efficiencies. Strategic level personnel professionals face a shift in the concept of the organisation. HRM is predicated on the notion of an ideal, large, corporate organisation yet

Assignment

Hastings (1993) suggests that the following factors are shaping future organisations.

What scope do these provide for strategic HRM contributions?

Developed and maintained by Chris Jarvis