With over 53 million people employed in the Philippines by 2024, human resource management will continue to play an important role in assisting businesses in attracting, managing, developing, and retaining top talents.
But what does human resource management mean in the modern workplace?
Key Responsibilities of Human Resources
A company’s human resources department is typically in charge of these four primary aspects:
1. Recruiting and Hiring
One of the biggest tasks HR does is to find and bring on skilled people to join the company. Many HR departments have a plan or a set of strategies to do so, such as posting openings on job boards, social media, or employee referral networks. They may also work hand-in-hand with the marketing department to create ads, promote the company, and maintain reviews on sites like LinkedIn and Glassdoor.
In addition, HR organizes the screening of candidates. This may consist of interviews, testing, and background checks. They work with the relevant departments to discuss staff needs and job requirements so they can tailor-fit their screening process and evaluation based on the requirements of the job.
After assessing the candidates skills and behaviors/attitudes relevant to the positions, HR drafts job offers to shortlisted candidates. Upon successfully hiring, HR administers the onboarding process.
2. Compensation and Benefits
The next most important thing HR does is payroll computing the employees’ semi-monthly remuneration. For pay, they design the appropriate salary scales/structures, bonuses, and annual increases, taking into consideration above satisfactory/excellent performance or benchmarking salaries and benefits. For benefits—like health insurance, retirement plans, stock options and paid time-off, among others—HR plays an important role in the formulation of policies and implementation of such and at the same time taking into consideration the company’s viability to sustain such benefits.
While it is important to design a competitive compensation package to attract candidates, it’s worthwhile to mention that non-monetary benefits (such as hybrid work set-up, flexi-schedule, conducive work environment, etc. are just as important to attract and retain good talents.
3. Performance Management
Additionally, HR aids managers in assessing and communicating employees’ performance through goal-setting, giving feedback, and formal evaluations. They provide ways for managers to give timely praise, or correction, such as by establishing the use of KPIs or other objective ways to measure performance. They may also institute ways to accommodate remote talent, such as setting up video conferencing tools, time tracking, and project management. They help managers establish Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) needed for each role and do training needs analysis to further enhance the employees’ skills.
HR offers guidance in decisions about promotions, discipline issues, or termination of employment . In terms of employees’ compliance with company rules and policies, HR is the single source of truth (SSOT) regarding disciplinary action.
4. Labor Compliance
Moreover, HR ensures compliance with all applicable laws about hiring, pay, workplace policies/programs, and more. There are many laws around equal opportunity, non-discrimination, preventing harassment and bullying in the workplace, mental health and workplace health and safety. HR makes internal policies that comply with applicable labor laws and performs required government reporting, such as through the EEO-1 form.
The Evolving Nature of Human Resources
HR wears many hats in the organization and is the important link between management and employees. HR steers the organization through success and uncertainties.
Modern Technologies Reshaping HRM
HR uses technology to gain insights and act accordingly, which would’ve been near impossible a few decades ago. For example, HR practitioners/managers can now use data analytics to estimate things like who may quit, who may be struggling, or who has promotion potential.
Meanwhile, they may also deploy chatbots in appropriate channels, which can handle basic questions so HR staff can focus on big decisions. Additionally, HR departments are currently upgrading to more advanced AI-powered applicant tracking systems (ATS) that can screen and review job applications. These platforms can automatically expedite promising candidates or flag potential bad hires depending on the requirements of the company.
Cultivating Organizational Culture
However, technology alone cannot single-handedly upgrade human capital capabilities. This is why HR is tasked with creating an ethical work culture with input from as many and diverse viewpoints as possible.
HR shapes a respectful organizational culture that promotes diversity and inclusion. Human resources are now, more than ever, required to make all employees—no matter the background—feel welcomed and empowered to contribute. The reasoning is simple: when employees feel valued and part of a “bigger whole,” they tend to innovate and become better team players.
Companies investing seriously in diversity and belonging will likely be employers of choice.
Training and Growth
Furthermore, HR management provides training so employees can keep developing new skills needed for the future, especially regarding the increasing automation of tasks. For example, HR might pick employees and send them to company-paid assignments or additional classes to broaden their skills set (“upskilling”), which can greatly help the employees to perform their tasks more efficiently, thereby contributing to the business goals of the company.
HR consults business leaders on ways to optimize jobs through updates, combinations, or other innovations.
The Bottom Line
While priorities may shift over time, HR’s purpose remains unchanged: empowering people to drive business success. And human resources management is a big driver of the elevated emphasis on human capital and talent in recent years.