Читать книгу The Essential HR. - Armstrong Sharon - Страница 4

In 14th-century England, masons, carpenters, leather workers, and other skilled craftsmen organized themselves into guilds, which they used to improve their work conditions.1 These guilds were the beginning of unions.

John Ivancevich, in his book Human Resource Management, tells us that, with the Industrial Revolution of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, however, everything changed: divisions of labor, wages and hours, working conditions, and more. A new character in the workplace replaced the owner: the boss.2 He focused on getting the job done fast and done right.

Conflict grew between bosses and employees, and as businesses expanded they established new departments to deal with issues in the workplace. During the 1930s and 1940s, personnel departments began appearing to address hiring, firing, and the conflicts that occurred in between.

Around this time, personnel managers focused on employees and their well being, sharing their observations and suggestions with management to improve employees’ working lives.

Business guru Peter Drucker, the father of modern management and a prolific author, wrote that the role of personnel staff was “partly a file clerk’s job, partly a housekeeping job, partly a social worker’s job, and partly firefighting, heading off union trouble.”3

Gone are the days (we hope) when managers wanted only that the work be done right and fast – without regard to the “human resources,” the workers. Both good managers and HR professionals need to understand their organizations’ employees and, on their behalf, create a workplace that helps them do their best work.

Some organizations have renamed their personnel/human resources units “People” or “Human Capital” departments to emphasize the importance of their paramount resource. They know that, without good people management, nothing else matters.

Today, leaders of successful organizations understand the importance of good human resources principles and practices for maintaining a healthy business: They expect their managers to integrate good human resources management into their day-to-day work.

In fact, in order to survive in today’s increasingly challenging world of work, managers have to be lifelong learners. They have to be open to not only learning new things, but also to incorporating those things in their everyday approach to work. These two behaviors are among the most critical for honing managerial skills.

That sounds simple, but we know that human resources is a complex field. HR tools and techniques draw on a wide and growing body of knowledge and requirements. The challenge for managers is to stay informed of the field’s best practices.

What does “human resources” mean today? It is the process of acquiring, training, appraising, and compensating employees while attending to their concerns about labor relations, health and safety, and fairness.4

This book covers these critical functions, working conditions, and the management actions – major or minor – that support them. It provides practical information, tools, and techniques to help managers and HR professionals excel.

When Joe Gibbs, former coach of the NFL’s Washington Redskins and three-time NASCAR champion, was asked to describe the differences between professional football and professional car racing, he replied, “There is none; it’s all about the people.”5

Now that’s a worthy mantra for managers and HR professionals: It’s all about the people.6