On the Brink of Obsolescence: Why We Hate HR Essay (Article Review)

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Abstract

In the article “Why We Hate HR” by Hammonds (2005), the major problem with human resource management (HRM) is defined as being “on the brink of obsolescence” (p. 43). The author provides the statistics that demonstrate a significant dissatisfaction with various HR-related practices reported by almost half of the employees surveyed in 2005 by Hay Group and insists that there are several reasons for the continuous underperformance of HR (Hammonds, 2005, p. 42). The suggested reasons include the lack of business-geared approach among HR managers (the absence of the focus on customer, competition, and competitive advantage); the investment in activities and not results (since the first one is easier to measure); the tendency to excessive standardization and formalization; the challenge of acting to achieve long-term value that is most often ignored; the communication problems between HR and corner office; and the difficulties of aligning the rapidly changing business strategy and HR strategy that needs to be more stable. Naturally, to improve the performance of HR (and avoid being hated), it is necessary to address these issues and change the focuses to the right aspects. Apart from that, Hammonds (2005) dwells on the controversy that most businesses demonstrate: while they proclaim the “soft” approach to HR management that focuses on people as persons, most of the modern companies do treat the employees as a resource, that is, consider their wellbeing to be less important than the organizational performance. Hammonds (2005) points out that, given this dichotomy of the term “HR,” the logically balanced strategy would incorporate the aspects of the two approaches.

Faith and HR

The study by Kim and Kim (2013) provides evidence to the idea that the “moral competence” and conduct of leaders positively affects their relationship with employees and the performance of the latter (p. 164). Apart from that, it is the HR department that is often held responsible for adapting and integrating ethics systems into the organization (Segon, 2010). In general, ethical conduct is of great importance for HR practices, which stems from the specifics of human resources. This aspect makes the mentioned discrepancy between the public and actual HR policy of most businesses especially illogical and demonstrates its harmful potential of destroying the faith of the employees.

Most Pressing Issues in HR

The article of Hammonds (2005) was written more than a decade ago, but its suggestions can be of use to any individual HR manager as they learn to manage human resources. As for the present-day trends and issues, the article of Gollan (2010) demonstrates that the problems mentioned by Hammonds (2005) have been noticed. In 2010, the International Management Debate proclaimed the priority of long-term value and results over the quantity and activity (Gollan, 2010, p. 2). The approach entailed focusing on skill development and the creation of relevant assessment tools for the value and potential. In other words, the “touchy-feely” strategy that promises the focus on the “human” and not the “resource” is being shifted towards a more economically reasonable approach (Gollan, 2010, p. 2). Also, it follows that while the suggestions of Hammonds (2005) are logical, their achievement is a challenge: for example, the development of tools for the assessment of value is more difficult than the formulation of quantitative criteria that HR was used to in 2005.

Perspectives on HR: A Personal View

While my idea of HR has not significantly changed in the past weeks, I believe that my understanding of it has expanded. In particular, the issue of the controversy between having to manage people and having to manage the resource has become clearer. To be honest, I used to share the views of the “social worker” HR as Hammonds (2005) puts it: I used to believe that people were more important than the business (p. 43). Instead, I suppose, a rational balance must be found, and I will try to avoid judgments about the superior importance of any part of the term “human resource.” It is a complex phenomenon, so it needs to be treated as such.

References

Gollan, P. J. (2010). New trends in international HR management debate, London school of economics and political science, UK, 25 March 2010. Strategic HR Review, 9(5), 2-3. Web.

Hammonds, K. (2005). Fast Company, 97, 40-47. Web.

Kim, T., & Kim, M. (2013). Leaders’ moral competence and employee outcomes: The effects of psychological empowerment and person-supervisor fit. Journal of Business Ethics, 112(1), 155-166. Web.

Segon, M. (2010). Managing Organisational Ethics: Professionalism, Duty and HR Practitioners. Journal Of Business Systems, Governance & Ethics, 5(4), 13-25.

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IvyPanda. (2022, April 19). On the Brink of Obsolescence: Why We Hate HR. https://ivypanda.com/essays/analysis-of-why-we-hate-hr-article-by-hammonds/

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IvyPanda. 2022. "On the Brink of Obsolescence: Why We Hate HR." April 19, 2022. https://ivypanda.com/essays/analysis-of-why-we-hate-hr-article-by-hammonds/.

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