Forecasting
HR Planning requires that we gather data on the Organizational goals objectives. One should understand where the Organization wants to go and how it wants to get to that point. The needs of the employees are derived from the corporate objectives of the Organization. They stern from shorter and medium term objectives and their conversion into action budgets (eg) establishing a new branch in New Dehli by January 2006 and staff it with a Branch Manager (6,000 USD, Secretary 1,550 USD, and two clerical staff 800 USD per month. Therefore, the HR Plan should have a mechanism to express planned Company strategies into planned results and budgets so that these can be converted in terms of numbers and skills required.
Inventory
After knowing what human resources are required in the Organization, the next step is to take stock of the current employees in the Organization. The HR inventory should not only relate to data concerning numbers, ages, and locations, but also an analysis of individuals and skills. Skills inventory provides valid information on professional and technical skills and other qualifications provided in the firm. It reveals what skills are immediately available when compared to the forecasted HR requirements.
Audit
We do not live in a static World and our HR resources can transform dramatically. HR inventory calls for collection of data, the HR audit requires systematic examination and analysis of this data. The Audit looks at what had occured in the past and at present in terms of labor turn over, age and sex groupings, training costs and absence. Based on this information, one can then be able to predict what will happen to HR in the future in the Organization.
HR Resource Plan
Here we look at career Planning and HR plans. People are the greatest asserts in any Organization. The Organization is at liberty to develop its staff at full pace in the way ideally suited to their individual capacities. The main reason is that the Organization’s objectives should be aligned as near as possible, or matched, in order to give optimum scope for the developing potential of its employees. Therefore, career planning may also be referred to as HR Planning or succession planning.
The questions that should concern us are:
a) Are we making use of the available talent we have in the Organization, and have we an enough provision for the future?
b) Are employees satisfied with our care of their growth in terms of advancing their career?
Assignment of individuals to planned future posts enable the administration to ensure that these individuals may be suitably prepared in advance.
Actioning of Plan
There are three fundamentals necessary for this first step.
1) Know where you are going.
2) There must be acceptance and backing from top management for the planning.
3) There must be knowledge of the available resources (i.e) financial, physical and human (Management and technical).
Once in action, the HR Plans become Corporate plans. Having been made and concurred with top management, the plans become a part of the company’s long-range plan. Failure to achieve the HR Plans due to cost, or lack of knowledge, may be a serious constraints on the long-range plan. Below is an illustration of how HR Plan is linked to corporate Plan.
The link between HR Plan and Strategic Management
STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT -> HR PLANNING à STRATEGIC PLAN
Organizational goals Values Organizational goals
Strong and weak parts Mission Strong &weak points
Opportunities and threats Goals and Priorities Opportunities & threats
Sources of Competitive advantage Resource Allocations Source of Competitive advantage
Identify People related matters Define HR strategies, Implement Hr Processes
Goals & plans Policy & Practices
HUMAN RESOURCES PLANNING
Bohlander et as (2001)
Monitoring and Control.
This is the last stage of HR planning in the Organization. Once the programme has been accepted and implementation launched, it has to be controlled. HR department has to make a follow up to see what is happening in terms of the available resources. The idea is to make sure that we make use of all the available talents that are at our disposal failure of which we continue to struggle to get to the top.