Introduction

People are at the core of every organization. Without staff, organizations cannot exist. It is therefore vital that organizations do not take their staff for granted. This book aims to help professionals in the HR field and organizations consider and improve how they recruit, develop and look after their staff. The term that is often used for this is human resource management:

Human(s) – people with their experience, skills, knowledge and personal qualities. Human resource – the people, and the policies and practices that affect them in the workplace.
Human resource management – the management of the people and the staff policies and practice that enable an organization to carry out its work. This affects staff from the moment an individual contacts the organization in response to a job advertisement, to the time they leave the organization. Human resource management is about enabling staff to use their qualities in order to fulfill their role and contribute to the organization’s mission and purpose.

Good human resource management is essential if organizations want to attract and retain good staff. If people see that an organization values its staff, they are more likely to apply for a job with the organization and more likely to stay once they are recruited. Good human resource management means that an organization reduces risk to its staff and reputation. It can do this by considering issues such as employment law, child protection and health and safety. Good human resource management can also reduce costs for an organization. For example, good recruitment policies and processes mean that organizations can efficiently recruit people who will carry out their jobs effectively. Good systems for performance management mean that organizations can ensure that they are getting the best from their staff. It should be noted that volunteers are an important resource for many organizations. Some sections of this book, such as salaries and employment contracts, are not relevant to volunteers. However, sections such as benefits, performance management and staff development are relevant to volunteers. Development organizations should consider carefully which policies and practices should also be used with volunteers.

This book is for people who manage staff and those who are specifically involved in aspects of human resource management. In some organizations, line managers may be the only people who consider human resource management. Other organizations may employ one or more people to oversee human resource management. The policy and guidelines for human resource practice which such people provide are used by the line managers. Line managers are therefore as responsible for human resource management as any team devoted to it.

This book provides tools that professionals in the HR field and organizations can use to develop good human resource management. Many of the tools can be used to make improvements at low cost, with enormous benefits. Some of the tools help organizations to employ the right people, while others enable organizations to develop good systems. The combination of good people and good systems leads to an effective organization – one that achieves its mission and purpose.