HRM THEORIES AND MODELS ESSAY

HRM THEORIES AND MODELS ESSAY

In today's modern society Human Resource is the most sought profession in the 21st Century. People need to have highly qualified and competent managers that can fully attribute to the success of the company. As we all live my models, we also have concrete models and theories in relation to Human Resource Management. This essay will give a comprehensive discussion on Goal setting and Maslow Hierarchy of needs theory as well Hard and Soft Model as my chosen model in correlation from my own experience .

Let me start with Abraham Maslow Theory of Motivation. He believes that all human beings have five basic needs to meet according to hierarchy to achieve gratification in life regardless of gender, race and nationality. The First one is Physiologic needs it relates food, water, air and comfort without these things man cannot merely survive, these are all essentials that everyone must met, People work harder in order to survive and achieve a state of balance.

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For Example as a father it is my duties and responsibilities to provide food for my family looking after their needs is my top priority. Second is Safety the need to secure and protected, we all want to be safe and nobody wants to be in danger, human instinct tell us if we are safe in danger or not. We need a safe house to live, steady job that gives us freedom from fear and anxiety. For example as a health care professional I personally continue my studies in nursing to give me an edge for job security.

Third Love and Belongingness every human being has emotion we all want to feel loved and comfort and to have interpersonal relationship to everyone. For example having great friends that you can count on is great feeling, happy relationship with your wife and children, volunteering in a care group, welcoming new friends and associates these are all based on emotions that all humans need. Fourth Esteem Needs we all want to respected and give valueB y others, respected for who where what is our nationality or race or what kind of job we are doing, this is a deep emotional hunger feel by humans. Fifth Self-Actualization means you become who you are what the creator intended you to be, in other words you achieve life ultimate purpose, you have found the reason for your existence Maslow, (1943).On the other hand the second theory that I chose was Goal Setting as established by Edwin Locked by the year 1960's. According to Locke and Latham (2002) for us to have achieved one's potential one goal must be Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Time bounded. Setting a clear goal on what needs to be done or having a blueprint in my mind the things needed to accomplish. Goal setting helps employee's improved overall performance, stay focused and motivated. In short success in the company comes easy. Goals sometimes can be challenging and performance is not enough that is why we need models to achieve those goals. Gautam & Jain, 2015; Sinnema& Robinson, 2012) points out the importance of goal setting as a roadmap to employees and to show how much effort and work that needs to be done.In one study conducted by Latham and Piccolo (2012), from a call center company employees improved by 60% by having set goals in mind compare to those employees who didn't set any goals. Another study also conducted by Mohnen & Reinhart, 2015), workers who worked in the factory rose up their job performance @ 12 to 15 % and increased their level of satisfaction by applying the principles of goal setting compare those who do not.Evidence shows that applications of these theories are tantamount to success in every field of organization not just an individual or as a team. Good and satisfactory outcomes and positive motivation can be easily achieved once these theories will be applied. Maslow Hierarchy of needs and Goal Settings have similarities and differences in between in applying the rules of Human Resource Management. For similarities Goal Setting give attributes to the importance of goals achievement the feeling of satisfaction on goals achieved while Maslow points out meeting of one's self esteem needs or self actualization. Maslow, (1943).

The two theories differs in terms of their approach for Maslow is it more on long term for it is like a process of becoming a person as a whole while Locke and Latham (1961) focuses more on short term specific task or what needs to be done, setting a goal one day at time to accomplish the goal.HR Models: According to Truss, Gratton and Hailey (1997) the most widely known and used model for Human Resource Management to apply in their operation are Soft and Hard HRM. In soft HRM they gave more importance to people rather than machines to work for them, in sense success in any organization or company is brought about the people working in them. Druker, et al, (1996). While Hard HRM they gave less value to people and treated people as a form of resource or machines to increase company's profitability. This form of strategy is giving more importance to manpower efficiency, utilizing people with strict supervision. The lesser people the better as long as the company continues its growth and profitability. Crawshaw, Budwar, & Davis, (2014). In correlation to soft HRM, McGregor Theory Y best explains that an individual has high commitment to work, goal service oriented, arrived ahead of time and willing to take an extra mile for work.( Cooke et.al 2013). Companies will always look after the development of human resource to satisfy the needs of its employees. While Hard HRM correlates to Theory X in which an individual has low performance to work, lacks initiative and commitment to work. This is where strategies of HRM will put to work such as strict discipline and tight control.Soft HRM requires Adaptability and the same time being Flexibility. Employee's active participation is required to stay motivated and fosters a good working environment. Hard HRM are solely based on the principles of rigidity strict compliance to rules of the organization. The task must be done and achieve the goals of the company Macky&Johnson, (2003). Personal Experience and relevance to the model:By profession I worked as a Registered Nurse in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in which I gained most of my experience in Hemodialysis. I first worked in a private institution for just 6 months and I decided to quit because of low salary and without any benefits at all. I looked for a better opportunities which I found in one of the government hospital in Saudi Arabia which promise me to have a better pay and good benefits. Being new to the place, I was motivated to work with all the benefits 1. Competitive pay with other professional because of the specialty skills that I have as Hemodialysis 2. Transportation and housing allowance which can afford me to buy my own car. 3. Yearly Increment for 5% plus re-contracting bonus equivalent to one month salary. In relation to Maslow theory my physiologic needs have been obtained. According to McLeod, S. (2007). Once physiologic needs are met it easy to move to forward to the next level. Working in the nursing profession gives me the broader and wider knowledge in caring for my patients that physiologic needs must be addressed first before anything else Poston, B. (2009). Application of the Model:The hospital institution that I worked with is applying the soft model of HRM. They pay importance to the staff addressing every issues and concerns in relation to the job. They provided training and seminars to keep the staff well informed to latest practice in the nursing profession. Aside from that salaries and bonuses are up to date. Uniforms, medical and travel allowance are well provided. Monthly meeting is conducted with the CEO raises issues and concern in every department and employees are encouraged to talk to bring out some concerns. With this, employees are motivated and empowered to work because they knew that they have an institution to rely on. Soft model of HRM has been applied into the workplace and the same time applying the Maslow Hierarchy of needs. The institution understands very well the needs of the employees so they choose to stay rather than leave. One model that I likely to use as a Manager:To become a good manager one has to become a broad understanding between soft and hard HRM. Since a manager is dealing with people, I must master the art in dealing with people. These skills require knowledge, skills, experience and expertise. Every company lays the hand of a good manager;

Managers contribute the success and failure of the company. Given the task as a Manager I will employ both hard and soft HRM depending on the situation. Wu, W.W., & Lee, Y.T. (2007), states that as managers we need to have very competitive ideas in solving business problem, one has to acquire a broad and deep knowledge to meets the demands of the business.For Example being a Head Nurse in the unit is one of the most challenging job I ever experienced, I am not just handling patients, but I do handle cases as well such as issues and concerns in the unit. Deep understanding between soft and hard HRM gives an edge compare to the other nurses. The availability to work with people is far more than important than your ability.Effective HRM leads to success in every organization or company but using proven strategies will deeply enhance and increase productivity Wang, D. S., & Shyu, C. L. (2008).

In conclusion there is no exact science in Human Resource Management; since we are humans and have emotions we can also set standards of the organization. Application between soft and hard HRM creates an opportunity for harmonious relationship between the management and employees Crawshaw, Budwar, & Davis, (2014).

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