HRM Practices in Post-bureaucratic Era

The history of human resource management (HRM) dates back in the 19th C, when the then called ?welfare secretaries? came to existence in organizations. These welfare secretaries were women solely concerned with the protection of girls and women. Their establishment was triggered by the harsh industrial conditions that prevailed and pressure that arose from extension of franchise and labor/trade unions that advocated for industrial betterment (Evans & Wurster, 2008).

[...] Similar developments were occurring in other areas of the world. In England and Wales for instance, training and enterprise councils were established to control public funds allocated to youth training programs. Scotland and Northern Ireland had a similar scheme ?Local Enterprise Companies? that was employer based (Evans & Wurster, 2008). All these had a common objective to make training policy an important local need hence expected to cause a real effect on business. By the year 2003, many of the world's governments had already issued skills strategies with a focus to ensure that employers exhibited the capacity and skills necessary to support success of their businesses as well as employee development. [...]

[...] Courses, however, were adapted with focus on postwar reconstructions. It was important to initiate measures for industrial reconstructions (Dutton, Frost, Worldline, Lilius, & Kanov, 2002). Experiences with the war stimulated the desire for formalized training and management of workers within the industries. A common characteristic of the post war period was fulltime employment terms where employers were fully responsible for employee training. In fact, employers were in some cases required to facilitate time-served apprenticeships that were regulated by national agreements between employers and unions. [...]

[...] In fact, HRM practices determine the fate of any organization different from earlier organizations that could even survive and flourish without HRM (Zimbardo, Maslach, & Haney, 2000). Conventionally, HRM practices are categorized depending on their impact on employees' ability, skills, motivation, and how work is structured. HRM has a role to use sophisticated selection and recruitment process when staffing organizations. This step is often followed with efforts to improve skills and competence of the hired as well as existing workers. [...]