The human resources department is the central pillar of the organisation. That is why it is essential to discuss the main functions of the human resources management department.
An effectively run Hr department provides structure and ability which enables a business to meets its needs.
Even though this department is very vital to the success of an organisation, it has always been underrated.
The human resources department, therefore, handles various functions within the organisation.
Therefore, this department is responsible for:
- Recruitment and selection
- Maintaining a good working environment
- Employee-Employer relationships
- Labour law compliance
- Compensation and benefits
- Training and development
The Main Functions of the human resources management department
Let’s now discuss each of the functions above in details:
Recruitment and selection function of the human resources management
Hiring and selection is the primary role of the human resources management department.
Recruitment is the process of attracting, screening and selecting potential employees to fill an open position.
There are various activities that the Hr department has to carry out to fulfil this function.
This function, however, can be outsourced these days.
These activities are:
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Human resource planning and forecasting
Here the human resource managers have to come up with a detailed plan of the staffing needs of the organisation.
Each department has to present a need for the human resource department.
From here, the Hr department will come up with a job description, candidate qualifications and abilities for the potential best fit.
2. Advertising
After the human resources department has the correct number of people to be hired and the skills needed, it will go ahead and create an advert.
A job advert outlines the duties and responsibilities of the job candidates, qualifications, abilities, and skills.
There are many ways in which the HR department advertises for the company’s open positions.
It might be through:
- Social Media
- The company website
- Recruitment agencies
- Newspapers e.t.c
- Referrals
3. Shortlisting
The third step is to create a recruitment database.
Since most of the human resource functions have now been automated, this is quite simple.
With each applicant received through the system, the database updates itself automatically.
Once in the database, a human resource professional will search for a keyword related to the open position.
He/she will then shortlist the best potential candidates.
4. Interviews
The shortlisted candidates will be invited for an interview by the human resource department.
A panel comprising of at least three members will sit during the interviewing day.
The manager from the department in which the position is being filled has to be present during the interviewing process.
The number of interviews that a candidate has to go through is highly specific to the company itself.
5.Orientation and placing
Once all the interviews are done, the human resource department will ensure that it has selected the right candidate for the right job.
The candidate has to be a culture fit also to make this process a success.
The successful candidate then goes through an orientation process has conducted by human resource department to ensure they settle well.
Maintaining a good working condition
The other primary responsibility of human resources management is providing a safe workplace.
Under the occupational health and safety Act of Kenya, employers should provide a safe working environment free from health hazards.
In addition to this, HR should ensure that the employees are motivated enough to be productive at work.
Human resources managers also ensure they provide essential health and safety training to the employees, such as:
- First aid training
- Fire drill
Employee-Employer relationships
The human resource professionals are also tasked with ensuring harmonious relationships in the organisation.
It is a significant part of the functions of the human resources management department is aimed at strengthening the relationship between employers and employees.
In an unionised organisation, one or more human resource professionals may be tasked with the responsibility of handling this function.
This function includes:
- Negotiating collective bargaining agreements
- Developing management response to union organising campaigns
- Interpretations of labour union contract issues
Labour law compliance
In Kenya, a company must be per the Employment Act.
Noncompliance may land a company on the wrong side of the law, which might bring the false publicity to a company.
Some issues that may result in non-compliance include:
- Unfair employment practices like discrimination
- Offering pay below minimum wage accepted
- unsafe working conditions
Compensation and benefits
The other function of human resources management is compensation and benefits management.
This functions of human resources management department should ensure that equal work receives equal pay for both men and women.
Apart from this, human resource professionals have to come up with compensation structures and evaluation of pay structure.
Under this function, the human resources professional ensures that employees receive their pay on time.
Training and development
Human resource management professionals need to set employees up for success.
To make this possible, the department has to make sure that it has put in place, plans for continuous development.
Apart from giving new employees extensive training to help them settle well in their new jobs.
Most HR departments provide professional and leadership training for their employees.
This human resource management function ensures that the right employees are in place for succession planning and continued success of companies.
This function is, therefore, indispensable.
Conclusion on the main functions of the human resources management department
In the end, the purposes of the human resources management department are indispensable.
No organisation can survive the cutthroat competition in the market today without having a good investment in human capital.
Moreover, the human resource management function ensures that the right employees are in place for succession planning and continued success of companies.
