Human resources, management roles, and leadership styles

Human resource management is the foundation of any organization. It determines the attraction, recruitment, and selection of qualified candidates for the position. Furthermore, it influences the business structure and organizational culture. The paper discusses various areas of human resource management, including leadership styles, management responsibilities and functions, effective recruiting and selection procedures, and the internal and external factors that influence the process.

Management roles are the duties that managers have in their businesses. These are some examples: Interpersonal roles that cover the relationships with others in the organization A manager has to act as a liaison, figurehead, and leader in an organization. It involves bringing together the organizational needs and those of their people under their command as wells as maintaining a network of horizontal relationships.

It is the responsibility of the managers to disseminate information and monitor whatever goes on in the organizations. Their most crucial role involves decision making, resource allocation and initiating change. Managers conduct strategic planning to ensure they lay out strategies to achieve the set goals. Besides, they organize a series of events, resources, and budgets as well as schedules for operations. Managers also have a significant role in coordinating activities and delegating tasks. They control different parts of the business.

Leadership Styles

There are different leadership styles that are applied in organizations to lead and control others. These include;

Autocratic

The style is an authoritarian approach with the exercise of control and power over others. The style focuses on the processes and systems thus criticised to lack creativity.

Democratic/Participative style

In this approach, participation is key as people are involved in problem-solving and decision-making. The managers value and seek the ideas of the employees as they view every situation as a learning opportunity. The approach is also inclusive as it involves shared responsibility.

Paternalistic

The leadership style involves the managers viewing all the people in an organization as a large family. Therefore, the employees are expected to exhibit high levels of loyalty and trust. The managers aim to achieve customer satisfaction while protecting the staff.

Laissez-faire

The leadership style uses a hands-off approach where employees are given free rein to make their decisions. The method is criticised for inefficiency in the workforce and slow productivity. Lack of boundaries and clear job roles sometimes disadvantages the leadership style.

Transactional

The style involves the leaders adapting to personal behaviours that suit specific situations and the skills and abilities of the employees. The managers change their behaviours with circumstance to deal with any gaps.

Transformational

It is the style whereby a leader shows concern for the employees and is focused on developing them to realize the overall goals and the vision of the organization. The investment in employees transforms the business.

Charismatic

The style is utilized by the leaders that engage and motivate people using their attitude to the business. The method is in most cases unpredictable.

Functions of Management

The functions of management include planning, organizing, coordinating, controlling, monitoring and delegating. The management is responsible for the initiation of the plans and strategies to execute activities to achieve the overall goals of the organization. Besides, the gather resources for different projects and coordinate all the operations to ensure efficiency and effectiveness. They monitor behaviour and operation of the employees to enhance their productivity as well as delegate jobs and different responsibilities to subordinates to ensure work is done.

Factors that affect leadership styles

There are several factors that influence the style of leadership in an organization. These include the organizational culture, environment, political and economic factors, demographics and the characteristics of the staff. Besides, the resource allocation affects the leadership styles. The personality of the managers and the diversity of the employees have an impact on the management style adopted.

Importance of effective recruitment and selection procedures

When the process of identification and selection of the staff for a company is effective, it has several benefits. These include a reduction in the cost and high turnover rates. The firms can identify people with the right skills and competencies to improve the overall productivity of the organization. Loyalty and productivity can only be achieved if the procedures of recruitment and selection of employees are productive.

Reliable candidates are hired that can carry out the objectives of the organization. Besides, the reputation of the firm is improving as employees will view the management as wise decision-makers. The firm can, therefore, attract talent in the labour market by building a brand and confidence among the prospective employees. Therefore, the organization stays competitive.

Essential Stages of Recruitment and Selection

There are several essential stages of an effective recruitment and selection process. These include;

Identification of the vacancy and evaluation of the needs

The human resource managers identify the gaps that need to be filled in the organization and evaluate the needs to determine the suitable candidates.

Development of job description

The responsibilities and qualifications of the post are articulated as well as the value for the proposition. The minimum requirements and job functions are highlighted.

Development of a recruitment plan

The plan has the posting period, placement goals, advertising resources and resume banks.

Selection of a search committee

The size of the committee is determined by the hiring manager. They evaluate the candidates and select them for the interviews to reduce personal bias.

Advertising of the position and implementation of the recruitment plan

Career sites are used for posting of the jobs. Outreach and sourcing activities are also used to identify the talent pool using networking and social media channels.

Reviewing the applicants and shortlisting the qualified

Applicants are assessed by the review committee by assessing their qualifications. They ascertain the minimum and position requirements before developing a shortlist guided by the placement goals.

Conducting the interviews to the shortlisted candidates

The employer gets the opportunity to learn more about every shortlisted candidate. They evaluate their skills and competence as provided in the resume used to apply and validate the information.

Selection of the best suited for the job description

The selection committee meets to discuss the results of the interviews and decide on the most qualified candidates. They use evaluation tools and conduct reference checks before arriving at the final decision.

After completing the recruitment process, the selection committee initiates, negotiates and finalizes the offer. The successful candidates are invited for a formal agreement on the position and signing of the appointment.

Comparison of Different Motivation Theories

Motivation inspires employees to produce excellent results. The motivation theories can be need-based or process-based. The need-based motivation theories include Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs and Herzberg’s two factor. The Maslow’s hierarchy of needs ranks the human needs that are satisfied to motivate them. Higher goals drive people to remain motivated.

On the other hand, Herzberg’s two-factor theory outlines the reasons for employees’ motivation that is job satisfaction and the dissatisfaction as demotivating them. The hygiene factors for motivation include interpersonal relations, working conditions, job security, supervision, and company policies. Herzberg’s theory is more concerned with behaviour while Maslow concentrates on attitude.

Taylor’s management theory indicates that employees are motivated by their pay. It is also based on the assumption that a good understanding of the job requirements, get work done, improves productivity and provides a happy working environment.

On the other hand, Mayo’s motivational theory focuses more on control and regulation. It is a process-based theory where workers are motivated by controlling their work patterns and regulating their breaks thus increasing productivity.

Importance of human resources function as part of the overall business structure

Human resource management is the backbone of every organization as it creates the organization. The staff practices and the management of employees determine the success of the organization. Effective human resources management entices as well as holds productive staff to build on the reputation. The activities of recruitment, hiring, training, the satisfaction of staff needs and the management practices shape the business structure. The department matches individuals with suitable roles. The human resource practices are positioned ideally at the theoretic centre. The functions of the human resource management have significant impacts on the bottom-line and the image of a company.

Internal and external factors related to human resource management

The external and internal factors play a significant role in determining the issues of employee retention, staffing and the organizational compliance with the legal requirements.

The external factors include the government regulations and technological advancements that the organization must comply with to remain competitive and relevant. Economic conditions affect both the talent pool and the ability to hire and maintain high performing staff.

The internal factors include the level of growth of the company. The issue of budget determines the utilization of human resources. Besides, the organizational structure has an impact on the human resource management through operations, delegation, and line of command.