The HR department is an integral part of your company's strategy and service delivery. In order to maximize your department's performance, you will need to examine its structure and functions to determine which services you require most. You also need to consider how your budget can be used to the best effect. You can also save money by outsourcing.
Structure
An efficient HR department must be functional. Its structure can improve its efficiency. The functional aspects of an HR department include recruiting, benefits, compensation, employee relations, HR compliance, organizational design, training and development, and human resource information systems. Although the most popular, a hierarchical structure is not the only one. Informal structures are another option that allows for more interaction between functions.
A typical HR department has one HR manager and one HR assistant. The assistant handles the day-today administrative tasks. In some companies, there may be a recruitment specialist to handle recruitment and selection processes.
Functions
The HR department is responsible for many functions. These include motivating, training, and retaining high performing employees. Employee motivation can include monetary and other rewards. Other tasks include developing policies to improve working conditions and handling grievances. They are responsible for managing foreign employees and terminating employees.
The HR manager works with employees to build and maintain healthy relationships. Such healthy relations lead to better morale, team spirit, and unity among employees. The HR manager must also balance individual employees' interests with those of the company. For example, employees might desire more wages, better facilities, or fewer overtime.
Costs
When you run a business, the costs of running an HR department can be significant. These costs can often be hidden. The first step to optimizing your HR costs is to identify where they are coming from and identify where you can reduce them. This is vital if you want save money without compromising employee engagement.
Employee turnover and disengagement are major drivers of HR costs. You can decrease these costs and increase employee productivity by providing training and development. Then, if an employee leaves the company, you can easily fill in the void with another employee who has received similar training. This helps to create an internal succession plan and lowers turnover.
Outsourcing options
Outsourcing HR functions can save you money and be cost-effective. Some companies offer flat fees for employees, while others charge percentages of salaries. Many companies charge a flat monthly fee, based on how much work is done. If you're considering outsourcing your HR department, it's important to know the costs and benefits.
When outsourcing your HR department, you are paying an expert to do the tasks that are too complicated for you to do yourself. This can help you save time and money. However, it is important to avoid making mistakes and snagging the wrong people. These mistakes can result in huge penalties, lost revenue and lawsuits.
Legal implications
As head of HR you must be aware that your work in the department has legal consequences. Whether it is hiring new employees or firing current ones, you have to adhere to the law. There are various federal and state laws that affect the functioning of an HR department. Employers are required to ensure that their workplaces are safe and free from hazards by the Occupational Health and Safety Act. Employers can also be prohibited by the Americans with Disabilities Act from discriminating against employees with disabilities.
The HR department's role is to help companies comply with the law and regulations affecting employee rights and safety. These laws cover everything from equal employment opportunity to discrimination and policies on medical leave. HR professionals are responsible for ensuring the success of any company by ensuring employees are treated fairly.
FAQ
What's the difference between leadership & management?
Leadership is about influence. Management is about controlling others.
A leader inspires his followers while a manager directs the workers.
A leader motivates people to achieve success; a manager keeps workers on task.
A leader develops people; a manager manages people.
What are some common management mistakes?
Managers sometimes make their own job harder than necessary.
They may not delegate enough responsibilities to staff and fail to give them adequate support.
Many managers lack the communication skills to motivate and lead their employees.
Some managers create unrealistic expectations for their teams.
Managers may attempt to solve all problems themselves, rather than delegating it to others.
What's the difference between a program and a project?
A project is temporary; a program is permanent.
A project has usually a specified goal and a time limit.
This is often done by a group of people who report to one another.
A program usually has a set of goals and objectives.
It is often done by one person.
What are the 4 main functions of management?
Management is responsible to plan, organize, direct, and control people and resources. It includes creating policies and procedures, as well setting goals.
Organizations can achieve their goals through management. This includes leadership, coordination, control and motivation.
Management has four primary functions:
Planning - Planning involves determining what needs to be done.
Organizing - Organizing involves deciding how things should be done.
Directing - This refers to getting people follow instructions.
Controlling – Controlling is the process of ensuring that tasks are completed according to plan.
What is the main difference between Six Sigma Six Sigma TQM and Six Sigma Six Sigma?
The main difference between these two quality-management tools is that six-sigma concentrates on eliminating defects while total QM (TQM), focuses upon improving processes and reducing expenses.
Six Sigma stands for continuous improvement. It emphasizes the elimination of defects by using statistical methods such as control charts, p-charts, and Pareto analysis.
This method seeks to decrease variation in product output. This is accomplished through identifying and correcting root causes.
Total quality management includes monitoring and measuring all aspects of an organization's performance. It also includes training employees to improve performance.
It is commonly used as a strategy for increasing productivity.
What is a simple management tool that aids in decision-making and decision making?
A decision matrix can be a simple, but effective tool to assist managers in making decisions. It allows them to think through all possible options.
A decision matrix represents alternatives in rows and columns. This allows one to see how each alternative impacts other options.
We have four options in this example. They are represented by the boxes to the left of the matrix. Each box represents one option. The top row displays the current situation, and the bottom row shows what might happen if nothing is done.
The middle column displays the impact of selecting Option 1. It would increase sales by $2 million to 3 million in this instance.
The effects of options 2 and 3 are shown in the next columns. These are positive changes - they increase sales by $1 million and $500 thousand respectively. However, these also involve negative consequences. Option 2 increases costs by $100 thousand, while Option 3 decreases profits to $200 thousand.
Finally, the last column shows the results of choosing Option 4. This results in a decrease of sales by $1,000,000
A decision matrix has the advantage that you don’t have to remember where numbers belong. Simply look at the cells to instantly determine if one choice is better than the other.
The matrix has already done all of the work. It's simply a matter of comparing the numbers in the relevant cells.
Here is an example of how a decision matrix might be used in your business.
You want to decide whether or not to invest more money into advertising. If you do, you'll be able to increase your revenue by $5 thousand per month. However, additional expenses of $10 000 per month will be incurred.
If you look at the cell that says "Advertising", you can see the number $15,000. Advertising is worth much more than the investment cost.
Statistics
- Hire the top business lawyers and save up to 60% on legal fees (upcounsel.com)
- As of 2020, personal bankers or tellers make an average of $32,620 per year, according to the BLS. (wgu.edu)
- Your choice in Step 5 may very likely be the same or similar to the alternative you placed at the top of your list at the end of Step 4. (umassd.edu)
- UpCounsel accepts only the top 5 percent of lawyers on its site. (upcounsel.com)
- This field is expected to grow about 7% by 2028, a bit faster than the national average for job growth. (wgu.edu)
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How To
How can you use the Kaizen method?
Kaizen means continuous improvement. Kaizen is a Japanese concept that encourages constant improvement by small incremental changes. It is a process where people come together to improve their processes.
Kaizen is one the most important methods of Lean Manufacturing. Employees responsible for the production line should identify potential problems in the manufacturing process and work together to resolve them. This will increase the quality and decrease the cost of the products.
Kaizen is an approach to making every worker aware and alert to what is happening around them. It is important to correct any problems immediately if they are discovered. It is important that employees report any problems they see while on the job to their managers.
Kaizen is based on a few principles. The end product is always our starting point and we work toward the beginning. We can improve the factory by first fixing the machines that make it. Next, we repair the machines that make components. Then, the machines that make raw materials. We then fix the workers that work with those machines.
This method is known as kaizen because it focuses upon improving every aspect of the process step by step. We finish fixing the factory and then go back to the beginning. This continues until we achieve perfection.
Before you can implement kaizen into your business, it is necessary to learn how to measure its effectiveness. There are several ways to determine whether kaizen is working well. One way is to examine the amount of defects on the final products. Another method is to determine how much productivity has improved since the implementation of kaizen.
Another way to know whether kaizen is working is to ask yourself why did you decide to implement kaizen. Was it just because it was the law or because you wanted to save money? Did you really believe it would lead to success?
Congratulations! Now you're ready for kaizen.