Human Resource Management: Approaches, Strategies and Best Practices

Module Aims

Module Aims

To critically discuss and reflect on different approaches to the management of human resources and the inter-relationships of such approaches with other aspects of organisational strategy together with their links with organisational success.

To introduce major debates in the specific fields of leadership, engagement and change management.

To develop essential knowledge and subsequent analysis of key people management and development areas and to provide a platform from which the elective modules may be studied.

To analyse the role of the HR function in organisations and generate the specialist knowledge required by people management and development practitioners in order to implement appropriate HR solutions.

To provide students with a framework for the diagnosis, analysis, solution and implementation of human resource issues.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this module you should be able to:

Describe different models of human resource management and evaluate their appropriateness for and contribution to different organisational contexts.

Evaluate the effectiveness of the HR function in relation to organisational goals.

Analyse the range and nature of change impacting on organisations and how HR strategies can contribute to the effective management of change.

Debate and critically evaluate the characteristics of effective leadership and management and assess the methods used to develop leaders.

Analyse and evaluate policies and procedures (including the application of legal and ethical awareness) in recruitment and selection, training and development, reward, performance management, human resource planning and employee relations and in consequence be able to formulate conclusions for personal and professional practice.

Critically evaluate major theories relating to motivation, commitment and engagement at work and how these are put into practice.

Use and interpret data from a wide range of appropriate sources professional and academic and communicate their findings effectively.

Indicative Syllabus Content

The purpose of human resource management and role and function of HRM within organisations. Alternative models of HRM and their relationship to organisational factors. The growth, development and changing nature of HRM.

The relationship between HR managers and other managers. Managers’ responsibilities for HRM. Business partnering. Theories of leadership and leadership development. Ethics and professionalism, moral issues related to HRM activities, links between HRM and corporate social responsibility. Management skills and competencies. Continuing professional development.

Change and the organisation. Different approaches to managing change in organisations. The role of human resource specialists in managing change. Organisational structure and function and the change process.

Learning Outcomes

Theories of motivation. The relationship between motivation, commitment, engagement and individual and organisational performance.

Developing human resource strategy. HR planning and models for assessing supply and demand of staff and utilisation of human resources. Critical examination of tools and techniques. Measuring the contribution of HRM.

The process and techniques of recruitment and selection in meeting organisational objectives. The legislative framework and fair selection. Methods of recruitment and selection, job analysis, selection and assessment techniques. Orientation.

Reward management. Criteria for effective pay structures. Employer and employee expectations of reward systems. Motivation and reward. Different elements in the reward package – job evaluation, performance related pay, benefits. Total reward. Equal pay and equal value.

Performance management systems. The performance management cycle. Appraisal and personal development plans.

Issues in human resource development including how people learn, analysing learning needs, developing using and evaluating different learning methods, organisational use of different development techniques – including blended learning and coaching. The role and concept of learning organisations, human resource development strategy and the link with organisational effectiveness.

Employee relations. Conflict at work in union and non-union environments. Frames of managerial reference. Individualism and collectivism. The impact of HRM. The structure of collective bargaining and third-party intervention. The role of substantive and procedural agreements. Consultation and involvement. The national and European Union laws.

Handling disciplinary and grievance issues. Understanding the necessary policies and procedures and their contribution to managing conflict. The legislative framework. Managerial implications.

Managing diversity. Issues related to managing a multi-cultural workforce and the positive benefits. Trends in managing diversity. Ethical dilemmas. Design, implementation and evaluation of policies.

A literature review is a critical review of the relevant literature, and is a key element of all academic research and has the following purposes. It should:

• Place research into the context of other work on the topic
• Identify questions that need to be examined in the research
• Provide a framework of concepts, theories and analytical models that will be used in the analysis of data

An effective review of the literature will be both ‘relevant’ and ‘critical’:

Relevant. You are expected to do extensive reading around your chosen title, and to focus on what, from your reading, you consider to be the key issues, and you should focus on these rather than writing a general overview of the field.

Critical.  In this context ‘critical’ does not mean censorious, or fault-finding. It means a balanced evaluation of ideas, identifying limitations as well as strengths.

Effective. An effective literature review will end with conclusions that identify, with reasons, the key ideas from your reading. To achieve this, the review of the literature must be analytical rather than descriptive.   

If you are concerned about the approach and style required, read a number of articles in journals such as Human Resource Management Journal, or the Journal of Management Studies, as these will normally begin with a critical review of the relevant literature.

Your literature review will have one of the following titles and, in all cases, your work MUST draw upon appropriate literature.

1. A critical evaluation of the literature exploring the tension between control and development within performance management and appraisal.

2. A critical review of the literature on the antecedents of employee engagement and its “dark side”. 

3. A critical review of the literature on the concepts of employer and employee branding and their advantages and disadvantages within recruitment and retention.