Deck 5: Human Resource Planning and Alignment

Question 1

What is human resource planning? How does it relate to other human resource management activities?

Answer 1

Human resource planning is very crucial for the sustainable development of a firm. This is a continuous process and the main objective is to ensure that best fit employees are selected for the jobs and to avoid manpower shortage.
Human resource planning is the process where the current and future human resources needs are identified so that an organization can meet its goals.
Today, businesses are linking organizational and human resource plan with business strategies. HRM is playing important role in strategic planning and organizational change. HRM focus on people, profit and overall effectiveness of the organization. HR department is contributing towards the goals and mission of the organization. HRM is accountable for productivity, downsizing and redesigning of the organization, managing diverse workforce and use the resources effectively to manage the changing needs of business. HRM focus on employing the best talents who can work efficiently and effectively. It provides the organization with well-trained and well-motivated employees.
Staffing is the human resource management activity which include the process of job analysis, human resource planning, recruiting and selection of employees. Staffing plan is process where organization ensure that it has right number of people with right skill that can help the organization in meeting business goals. Thus human resource planning relates to human resource management activities.

Question 2

What is an HRIS? How can an organization use it to increase the efficiency and decrease the costs within the HR Department?

Answer 2

With the advancement in computer technology every department in the firm is making efficient use of computers and its various applications to store data and manage activities in the firm. Technological advancement has allowed firms to work efficiently reaching towards objectives and goals in a simplified and supportive manner.
HRIS stands for the Human Resource Information System which is an intersection of human resource activities and information technology using HR software. Using HRIS, HR department could undertake its activities electronically using computer applications.
Organization could use HRIS to increase the efficiency and decrease the costs within the HR department in the following way :
• Good use of HRIS helps the firm to manage and improve human relations within the organization. Firms could effectively plan its objectives and make employees aware of the same using HRIS. This helps the firm to achieve its goals in a smooth manner.
• Employee benefits could be easily distributed using HRIS in a way that HRIS helps in streamlining the entire employee benefit system among existing and newly hired employees in an electronic manner. This helps the firm to properly distribute benefits among employees in a justified manner, and the firm ensures employee satisfaction by retaining them in the firm.
• Time management is effectively achieved using HRIS wherein all the records, documentation, files etc. of the firm are properly managed and recorded electronically. This helps the firm to retain and use this information whenever required. All the paperwork related to employees' attendance, salary, performance appraisal, training and development schedules etc. could be undertaken effectively using HRIS
• HRIS also offers an interface wherein the firm could not only record the existing number of employees in the firm but also determine the number of potential employees needed by the firm in the future. The resumes the firm receives for various positions could be sorted according the need of various positions in the firm with the help of HRIS. This helps the firm in decreasing its recruitment cost that might take place with immediate need of personnel in the firm.

Question 3

Describe the pros and cons associated with outsourcing most of your organization's HR functions to an independent vendor for a contract period of 10 years.

Answer 3

In any organisation, human resources employees are responsible for various important functions such as hiring, terminating, handling interpersonal issues, and many other significant functions. Though there are many other companies that rely on independent vendors and outsource their HR functions to handle HR matters.
Major advantages of outsourcing the HR functions to an independent vendor are given below :
• This can help the organisation in cost saving, as organisation should not pay for the nonrevenue-generating back-office expenses. Outsourcing costs are considered as variable cost and can be decreased by efficient use of outsourcing.
• It helps the management to focus on the core competencies of business.
• It helps in gaining access to new knowledge sources though new talent from outside. Knowledge exists within every individual of an organisation. Outsourcing HR functions from outside definitely bring new form of conceptual and procedural knowledge in organisation.
• Organisations pay independent vendors to get the high level of quality and value of HR services.
Major disadvantages of outsourcing the HR functions to an independent vendor are given below :
• Outsourced staff would not be knowing organisational culture. Outsourced HR employee might hire employees who do not fit with the organisational culture.
• Outsourcing also results in poor control over staff, as organisational executives might become very much dependent over outsourced human resource employees which can lead to lose the internal control over staff.
• Organisations use bidding process for choosing vendors which can be a very time-consuming process. In case organisation does not get quality staff through outsourcing recruitment, it would be very difficult to cancel or change the vendor.
• Outsourcing HR functions can lead to release of confidential information of company.

Question 4

What factors would affect your choice of an HR planning system? What factors would influence your choice of forecasting methods?

Question 5

Assume that your organization wants to retain senior employees who might otherwise want to retire. What incentives and other retention techniques should you use to keep these valued employees? Explain.

Question 6

Why are skills inventories important to an organization? Explain.

Question 7

Question 8

What kinds of action decisions are available to an organization when there is a surplus of labor? A labor shortage?

Question 9

What is succession planning? How have HRISs helped companies to integrate career planning with effective succession planning?

Question 10

In your opinion, will HR planning become more or less important as we near the time in which the baby boom generation will begin to retire? Explain.

Question 11

How has the emergence of the Internet changed the way that organizations plan and manage their human resource needs?

Question 12

What kinds of future human resource activities might we see developed over the next several years?

Question 13

What are the legal and ethical issues surrounding the use of the Internet by individual employees for human resource activities? Are you concerned about violations of your own privacy because of these kinds of Web applications?

Question 14

What specialized skills will the future HRIS professional need in order to effectively manage an organization's virtual human resource function?