Comparison between HRM and Personnel Management
importance of acting strategically. One of the elements that is often pointed out as making the difference is the level of involvement of the function in the strategic decision-making of a company. One way of testing this is to ask whether the head of the function carries the title of Director and whether he or she attends board level meetings.
Even if this is taken as an essential difference between HRM and personnel management, it is clear that only a limited number of managers can actually be operating at the strategic level. Most practitioners must be operating at lower levels, contributing their ideas to the formulation of strategy, but in the main implementing the decisions made at the strategic level. These include: Director, Manager, Officer, Administrator. Most directors and many managers, whether they call themselves personnel or human resource mangers, will be able to operate at a strategic level, but most officers or administrators, and line managers performing personnel functions, are unlikely to do so.
In other words, although involvement at the strategic level may be a key distinction between personnel management and HRM, it is still important to examine the functions as they are performed by managers throughout the organisation. We have proceeded from the premise that managers involved in HRM and personnel perform similar functions, such as those listed earlier. The difference between personnel and HRM lies in the overall philosophy that guides them in deciding how to handle these functions.
Levels of involvement in the HRM
Activity 1.2
Consider the following thumbnail sketches of two people's jobs. Which job do you feel reflects the human resource management approach, and which reflects the personnel management approach?
Case 1
Susan works in a knitwear manufacturing company and much of her time is taken up in recruitment, training and development. She has an assistant who helps in these areas and who does much of the actual interviewing along with the line managers for the appropriate sections. Susan is also involved in disciplinary situations. The line manager in the section issues the first warning, but later disciplinary action is handled by Susan in the presence of the line manager and, of course, the shop steward. Susan spends time negotiating with the trade union on a range of issues, but also likes to find time to go around the factory each day to get to know the staff and their problems. She gathers information about absenteeism from the mangers on her daily rounds, and this gives both them and their staff a chance to approach her with any problems. Both she and her assistant often spend time helping individuals who come to see them with problems.
Case 2
Paul works in a building society and has a small department of staff who work with him. The building society is concerned to provide the best possible service for its customers, and this is stated in its mission statement. Paul's boss is a Director and is concerned [next page]