HRM

(1)          “Job enrichment is just an exploitative management technique

 

Job enrichment entails the improvement on the work processeses of  human resources and the creation of a good working environment that would foster sense of satisfaction to the workforce, wherein part of job enrichment aims is to eradicate dysfunctional elements that leads to job dissatisfaction among the employees.  In fact, it is making jobs less Tayloristic means adapting job design to these psychological needs, which raises intrinsic motivation and thus leads to increased productivity (1982).  Moreover, according to  (1987) analyzes anti-Taylorism as a strategy to attain flexibility, by extending workers’ status to obtain “extra-functional” contributions from them.  From the function and intentions of job enrichment, is not at all a very hypocretical approach and exploitative management technique to get the most from human resources.  However, when job enrichment is not properly implemented, unhidden bad intentions grew out from it and when there is no thorough study as to what extent this will impact the workforce, it is likely that the results would adversely have an effect on the workforce, and that would pertain to a devastating job enrichment cost.

            The letter to the editor being send by  was an illustration of the ineffectiveness of the job enrichment in her work.  In the letter, four issues were identified and each would be tackled one at a time.  First, is the assumption of the human resource manager that the issue of job enrichment are consented by the employee at their own freewill and without consideration on the plausible underlying factors that may alter the consensus. The job enrichment technique of ensuring that objectives are being clearly well-defined and understood is not being practiced, thus, contributing to the feeling of no prior consultation and lack of understanding on Stone’s part.

Second issue identified was the feeling of disappointment and unfairness on Stone’s part brought about by the job enrichment.   claimed the inability of managers to show appreciation to the additional efforts being exerted and the lack of encouragement from the management lead to the perception that job enrichment only benefited the company and not the workforce.  The emergence of conflict of interest between employee and employer with regards the distribution of revenues; employer and employee also have a common interest in maintaining continuity of the production process itself (1982).  True to the statement, some of the employees even though they feel dissatisfied in their work, the common interest of continuity in the production process is able to sustain the employees and employers. The human resource department in Stone’s workplace was not able, if able, fail to create a supportive atmosphere for the employees, which in turn lead to the development of mistrust with regards to the true intentions of the job enrichment.   

Third issue that is taken into account is that the employee feels the company and managers are being inconsiderate in her situation being a mother and had add-up stress on her behalf since the company has given her more work as part of the job enrichment.  According to  (1979), job enrichment, leading to the formation of semi-autonomous groups is the mode of organization” corresponding to the flexible integration made possible by automation.  Despite of it had stir autonomy in her work but with no additional motivating factors and reinforcers, it still causes discontentment in her part.  The salaries alone cannot suffice the hard work being exerted; therefore, there is always a need for additional reinforcers to make job enrichment more reinforcing to the workforce.  In classical operant conditioning, the general assumption holds that behavior would likely to increasingly occur again provided that organism are provided with reinforcers that are reinforcing.  Similarly, vague discontent and manifest, visible expressions of conformity do not exclude one another as being remarked by  (1985).

 

The fourth issue to be tackled is the development of bad perception of what job enrichment can adversely bring.  Given all the undesirable experiences Stone felt from the job enrichment and the lack of understanding of the essence of what job enrichment is supposed to be, contributed to the development of bad perception and the change in general.   (1984) notes, management’s role as servants of accumulation means that there is a constant drive to reduce labor costs, to intensify the pressure of work, to render existing workers ‘redundant’.  The flaws of job enrichment planning causes not only misconception but had lead to the perception that job enrichment is not enriching but had been perceived to be deceptive on  part.

 

(2)          “Assessing HR effectiveness places the emphasis on money not people”

 

 

Human resource effectiveness cannot be measured alone on the management of human resources but also on the money being invested can be accounted on the success of human resource department as being able to successfully implement the necessary changes that leads to empowerment of the whole organization.  It has often been a misconception to many that human resources only have limited functions and are perhaps considered to be not as valuable as the other departments of an organization.  From the traditional function of human resource in the staffing, recruiting, compensation, and benefits are slowly losing ground such that human resource had evolved into a new generation of value-added human resource functions that now includes career planning, executive development, training, succession planning, and organization development. In fact, according to  (1994), insurance claims administration, outplacement services, employee assistance programs, 401(k) plan administration, dependent care assistance, and other nonvalue-added functions are being outsourced by many companies to the human resource in an effort to become more competitive.

 

Human resource evolution is moved to issues pertaining to the incorporation of industrial relations into HRM (1991); then the integration of HRM into business strategies, devolvement of HRM to line managers (1997;  1997), and finally seeing HRM as a source of competitive advantage for organizations (1991; 1984; 1994).  Given these increasing demands to the human resource functions, it is evident that HR is already valuable and soon to be an indispensable part in any organization.  Moreover, with these developments the nature of human resource function has changed from being reactive, prescriptive, and administrative to being proactive, descriptive and executive (1994).

 

HR effectiveness in terms of money can be reflected from the surveys on HRM that clearly conveys a field that is promising and have become increasingly responsive to changes in its broad both internal and external environment that is also being brought about by the pervasive technological innovations, new approaches being employed in the private sectors as a response to the rapid changing market trend and the like.  If HR produces ineffective results to the corporations, company, and everyone in the business sector, the business world in general, would not invest in the human resources if they find it wasteful and not of beneficial to them wherein in fact a big part of the principle of business people is to avoid unnecessary expenditure that would be too costly.  Therefore, the effectiveness of HR surmounted to the fact that there is indeed effectiveness in their function.  In a study by  (1995) indicates that in the next five to seven years at least 10 profound changes will alter the course of businesses and the function of HR. They identify these changes as global economic and financial, technological, political, structural (to the business organization), educational, labor-related, social, conflicts due to globalization, environmental, and crime-related.  Perhaps, of the rising researches and study being purported into the evolution of HR functions not being limited contributes to the prevalent effectiveness of HR in terms of money as being worth of every penny.

 

            Currently, the trends in contracting human resource functions are expected to continue.  As the human resource aligns in the emphasis of performance, improvement and enhanced discretion of management, flexibility, training, and so on, it is not surprising to predict that HRM professionals may assume the leadership partner role in the years to come.  The support of these claims may be further confirmed from the survey results lend by the Winter Commission and National Performance Review and to the recommendations of other reformers who call out for a leaner, more responsive government with particular reference to human resource management ( 1997). The observable commonalities yielded from the statement are the increasing discretion of management, rise in the flexibleness and HRM systems as being responsive, enhanced performance efficiency, adoption of techniques from the private-sector and the decentralization of activities in the HRM activities within the walls of public organizations that is characterized as being bureaucratic.

 

The future role of human resource will ever be supportive in the commitment of the company to gain a competitive advantage through the “making” and developing of high competent quality people and through aiding business manager to strategically plan the functions of those people within the organization to evoke efficiency and effectiveness. The shift from functioning as administrative support to being a partner in charting business strategy the future direction of HR would likely evolve from.

 

 

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