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Human Resource Management

by Kelly Fiorini
Human resource management, or HRM, is an organization’s system for hiring and managing personnel. Learn about the functions of HRM and its best practices.

What is human resource management?

Human resource management (HRM), also known as human resources or HR, is a company’s process involving hiring, recruiting, training, compensating, and managing employees.

Human resource management once only served an administrative function, such as filling out paperwork and reading résumés, but now it’s enmeshed in furthering the company’s goals through training programs, policy creation, and strategic hiring. 

Many companies use human resource management systems to provide a unified platform for HR management and reporting. These software systems feature a customizable modular design for each organization’s unique needs.

Human resource management functions

Human resource management takes on different responsibilities depending on the organization’s size and industry. Some of the most common tasks that HRM fulfills include:

  • Staffing. Not only does HRM create job postings outlining roles and responsibilities, but they also recruit and interview candidates. Once they select the candidate they feel best fits the position, they negotiate base pay and benefits.
  • Administering compensation. Human resources management creates compensation packages based on a complex array of factors, including the employee’s education levels, previous experience, and skills. They also track and consider industry-wide averages for similar positions to ensure competitive pay. 
  • Leading performance evaluations. At some companies, HRM also evaluates employees’ job performance and productivity and suggests additional training if needed.
  • Delivering training programs. Human resources management guides employee development by designing or choosing training programs to further their skills. HRM may also contract motivational speakers or team-building specialists to increase productivity and engagement.
  • Ensuring a safe workplace. Human resources professionals keep up on the latest regulations, like workplace discrimination laws. HR also has expertise regarding wages and hours as outlined in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and employee safety from Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards, ensuring company compliance.

Benefits of human resource management

An effective human resources management process improves the organization's overall culture, creating an enjoyable work environment and increasing retention. More specifically, healthy HRM provides:

  • Increased employee engagement. With the right training and development opportunities, employees can participate more fully and productively in their roles. HRM can also offer employees coaching and mentoring to help them realize their full potential.
  • Happier environment. Human resource management values the well-being of each employee and provides opportunities for them to engage in fitness challenges and other accessible social opportunities that boost morale. Plus, they offer guidance about mental health and wellness programs.
  • Conflict reduction. HRM mitigates disputes between teams and individuals or between individuals and the company itself. By investigating and resolving conflicts, human resource management decreases time lost, preserves employees’ productivity, and reduces turnover. 

Human resource management best practices

Human resources management helps a company acquire, nurture, and retain top talent. To do this effectively, HRM should follow these best practices.

  • Build collaborative teams. One of HRM’s goals is to create well-balanced teams that work together to further company objectives. HR teams should use skill and personality assessments to evaluate individual strengths. They can also provide teams with the necessary communication and project management tools to facilitate an efficient and productive working environment.
  • Conduct video interviews. Conducting the first round of interviews over the internet on a video call saves the human resources department time and money, and it’s often more convenient and comfortable for the interviewee. HRM can hold these interviews live or ask the candidate to submit a video that answers specific questions.
  • Provide open communication. Fostering transparency builds a sense of trust between the employees and the company. If employees know the company's strategies and financials, they’ll feel like valued team members.
  • Curate a tech stack. Human resources management is a vast field with wide-ranging roles and functions. Selecting the right software saves time and energy. For example, many companies use an applicant tracking system (ATS) to organize job applicant data, onboarding software for new hires and training management systems to design and manage employee learning.
  • Gather feedback. It’s crucial to get input from employees to develop strong working relationships. For example, current employees can provide insights via surveys about which benefits they value or guest speakers they would like to see. When employees leave the company, HRM should also conduct face-to-face exit interviews to learn ways to boost retention in the future.

Learn five ways your human resources management team can reduce turnover in your organization.

Kelly Fiorini
KF

Kelly Fiorini

Kelly Fiorini is a freelance writer for G2. After ten years as a teacher, Kelly now creates content for mostly B2B SaaS clients. In her free time, she’s usually reading, spilling coffee, walking her dogs, and trying to keep her plants alive. Kelly received her Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Notre Dame and her Master of Arts in Teaching from the University of Louisville.

Human Resource Management Software

This list shows the top software that mention human resource management most on G2.

keka is a Modern HR and Payroll software for small and medium sized businesses that manage employee engagement, it has time tracking, attendance management, and leave management system.

Make a successful transition from tracking employee information in spreadsheets to managing it with personalized HR software that frees up time for meaningful work.

Workday Human Capital Management is built as a single system with a single source of data, single security model, and single user experience. Workday offers organizations a cloud-based system that evolves to meet changing business needs today and into the future. The user-friendly, global system also ensures that customers are always on the latest version with up-to-date capabilities, whether they’re using Workday on a browser or mobile device. Workday HCM is part of a single system with other Workday products including Workday Financial Management, Workday Payroll (for the U.S., Canada, France, and the UK), Workday Recruiting, Workday Learning, Workday Planning, and more.

greytHR is a full-suite HRMS platform designed to expedite complex, recurring, and critical HR and payroll functions in a compliant and secure manner.

Personio is a holistic HR and applicant management software designed for companies with 10 - 2000 employees.

Grove HR is a data-driven HR Solution that focuses on “Employee Experience" and drives business outcomes for fast-growing businesses. Since rapidly changing workforce demographics, coupled with imminent talent deficits, has shifted the HR spotlight to the employee experience rather than an enterprise-facing experience. The product was developed to meet the new expectations that companies need to create an end-to-end, interconnected digital platform.Based on both desktop and mobile platforms, Grove HR enables HR professionals and employees to simplify and operate daily tasks 10x more efficiently.

Darwinbox is a cloud based Integrated HR platform that automates HR processes from recruitment, Core transactions (Leaves, Attendance, Directory), Payroll, Employee Movement, Employee Engagement, Talent Management and People Analytics, it engage & empower employees while automating and simplifying all HR processes.

Paycom is an HR technology provider with a single-database, end-to-end product providing solutions for Talent Acquisition, Time and Labor Management, Payroll, Talent Management and HR Management, all in one application.

Podio lets you get work done with your co-workers and clients on a social work platform that you make your own.

A complete HRMS Solution that saves HR efforts by automating tedious tasks and managing entire employee life-cycle.

Our intuitive HR solution gives your teams access to reliable data, automated workflows, and easy self-serve capabilities, driving efficiency across your organisation. Combining core HR functionality with robust reporting and employee self-serve features, OneAdvanced’s cloud-based solution ensures seamless HR management with access from anywhere, at any time. By automating routine tasks, our solution reduces the administrative load on HR teams, freeing up valuable time for strategic initiatives that enhance employee experiences and boost retention. Focusing on what matters most — your people

All information related to personnel management is originated in electronic form as well as managed in electronic form. No need to copy data to spreadsheets, with the risk that they become outdated quickly. All the handling and processing of human resources processes can be done on-line. With HR-Assistant the Human Resources department can free resources and energies from data management tasks and use them to manage people.

Smartsheet is a modern work management platform that helps teams manage projects, automate processes, and scale workflows all in one central platform.

HR for everyone. ZingHR manages employee lifecycle management effortlessly

From basic payroll and helping with Affordable Care Act (ACA) compliance, to managing employees across borders, ADP Workforce Now is a simple, powerful solution that helps companies with 50 or more employees improve their business performance.

WebHR is a social all-in-one HR software that covers everything from "Hire" to "Retire" for the most important asset in your company - your employees. WebHR will make it easy for your HR team to start managing your HR effectively and efficiently. WebHR is an indispensable tool for HR and the entire company. WebHR is based on Software as a Service (SaaS) and Cloud Computing model.

sumHR is a modern, delightful, and extremely easy to use Human Resource Management Software that helps startups and SMEs streamline their HR & payroll processes.

SutiHR is an easy-to-use online HR software solution which allows you to manage the entire range of HRM activities including recruitment, personnel management, performance management, training & development, time & attendance management, payroll management, document management and benefits administration.

PeoplesHR is a cloud based HR solution designed to engage and empower employees to build competitive organisations that are constantly achieving desired goals.