Search results
1 – 10 of over 183000Looks at the role of education providers in influencing human resourcepractitioner attitudes to and use of information technology. Examinesthe recent trends in IT usage in the…
Abstract
Looks at the role of education providers in influencing human resource practitioner attitudes to and use of information technology. Examines the recent trends in IT usage in the human resource function and argues that the current situation presents education providers with an opportunity to impact on human resource practice and the profession′s apparent complacency to IT and its business potential. IT highlights two key considerations in curriculum delivery; integration and strategic focus and suggests that education centres face a number of constraints on provision not least tutor attitude and expertise. Concludes that the way forward is for tutors to examine their own approach and make a concerted effort to demonstrate the strategic value of IT, thereby acting as a powerful change agent.
Details
Keywords
Roberto Celkevicius and Rosaria F.S.M. Russo
The purpose of this paper is to propose an integrated model for allocation and leveling of human resources in IT projects.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to propose an integrated model for allocation and leveling of human resources in IT projects.
Design/methodology/approach
A single case study was conducted in a large company of IT outsourcing services, which were assessed the management of 14 projects. The survey was conducted through interviews with project managers, and digital files and internal documents of the organization related to these projects.
Findings
In the analysis, it was identified that the critical path is not identified in all projects, and even when this happens, resources are not allocated in the first tasks in that path. A committee controls the allocation of resources with the assessment of skills, but there is no control of all resource constraints.
Research limitations/implications
The main limiting factors for this study are: use of data of one company in the IT industry, making it difficult to generalize the model for other sectors companies; it was noted during interviews that the project managers interviewed do not always know in detail all the company’s processes for allocation and resource leveling, due to the large number of processes and different management activities of these professionals.
Practical implications
A model and actions for this implementation was proposed, such as training for the use of the technique of critical path; allocation and leveling done simultaneously; decisions of the management committee based on information of availability, key skills, holidays, days off of human resources; development of a software tool that integrates this information, generating graphical interfaces that are not provided by project management software with the use of an allocation factor.
Social implications
The characteristics of the proposed model, as well as the use of the allocation factor, can help managers to validate their allocation models and leveling of human resources in an integrated manner.
Originality/value
The study explains that the granularity of analysis of resource allocation increases by decomposition of the duration of each activity in fixed time segments. It is suggested to use the mathematical concept of the allocation factor (Fa).
Details
Keywords
The aim of this study is to develop a reliable and valid scale. At the same time, it is to reveal the perceptions of HR employees towards artificial intelligence (AI). In…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this study is to develop a reliable and valid scale. At the same time, it is to reveal the perceptions of HR employees towards artificial intelligence (AI). In addition, examining the change made by AI in the HR department is another purpose of the study.
Design/methodology/approach
A scale was developed in this study. A total of 821 observation out of the samples from the human resource managers and employees of the Turkey's largest organizations in terms of capital were analyzed by applying all scientific steps of scale development process. Using appropriate statistical criteria, scale was showed to be valid and reliable. General condition was demonstrated in the human resource departments of large companies in Turkey as a result of these tests.
Findings
Human resource employees and managers could have the perception that this technology will save the work done from monotony, reduce the stress experienced to find the suitable candidate and access more candidates with the desired qualifications. It was found that when AI technology was included in training and development process, human resource managers and employees could have a perception that the time spent for training and the lack of attention in training will decrease compared to the traditional method.
Originality/value
The contribution of this study to the literature is the development of a valid and reliable scale. Data collected with the developed scale were evaluated in Turkey.
Details
Keywords
Three decades of academic and professional discourse on HR technologies (HRTs) have produced continued disagreement over construct definitions and research streams that are highly…
Abstract
Three decades of academic and professional discourse on HR technologies (HRTs) have produced continued disagreement over construct definitions and research streams that are highly fragmented. These realities suggest that greater consistency in meanings is sorely needed if we are to integrate and upgrade knowledge in this area. This chapter draws on the findings of a systematic research review to properly define the content domains of human resource information systems (HRIS), virtual human resources (virtual HR), electronic human resource management (e-HRM), and business-to-employee (B2E) systems. An integrative synthesis was performed on 242 system-level writings that appeared in the literature from 1983 to 2017. The weight of the evidence strongly supports treating HRIS, virtual HR, e-HRM, and B2E systems as independent, complimentary constructs. While the first three comprise a firm’s HRT system, the fourth construct is more appropriately positioned in the business-collaborative system. The sample was further evaluated with an analytic framework to detect patterns of practice in research designs. This revealed that much more attention has been focused on system actions and outcomes than on attitudes and system characteristics. Different units of analysis were well represented aside from trans-organizational studies. Finally, a case is made for better contextualizing HRT research by recognizing differences in assimilation stage, functional penetration, and collective proficiency. These factors are rarely mentioned, let alone studied, raising additional concerns about measurement error. Detailed suggestions are offered on ways to incorporate them. Together, these materials should promote more sophisticated and generalizable assessments of technology, improving our ability to understand its impacts.
Details
Keywords
The dynamic environment in which the academic library operates requires explicit links between business strategy and a new management priority including the development of people;…
Abstract
The dynamic environment in which the academic library operates requires explicit links between business strategy and a new management priority including the development of people; this is the focus of human resource development (HRD). It serves the needs of an organization by ensuring that employees’ expertise is state-of-the-art, something that is critical in a period of rapid technological development coinciding with ever-expanding societal needs. HRD can be relied upon to support and shape a wide range of academic library initiatives requiring a competent and engaged workforce by recognizing people as the organization’s most critical asset, one that drives competitive advantage and helps it out-perform the market. Emphasis is placed on developing an organizational context that will attract and develop talented individuals and leaders and keep them engaged. Furthermore, HRD activities must respond to job changes and integrate staff skills sets with the long-term plans and strategies of the organization thus ensuring the efficient and effective use of resources. This chapter explores HRD as a strategic concern of the organization and how it can best serve the organization in the long term. In so doing, it considers how HRD can help the academic library focus resources in those areas where there are strong likelihoods that they can produce substantial improvements in future capacity and performance. This kind of strategic planning helps the organization configure resources within a dynamic competitive environment, thus serving market needs and satisfying stakeholder expectations, helping meet its business purpose and maintain its strategic direction. The case study developed here highlights the need for the effective linkage of HRD and strategic planning for the advancement of the academic library. It suggests the need for developing and implementing both a strategic plan and an HRD plan and developing a culture of strategic human resource development (SHRD) in academic libraries.
Details
Keywords
The importance and value of employees in service industries has been recognised by senior executives for many decades and they are aware that the service provided by human…
Abstract
The importance and value of employees in service industries has been recognised by senior executives for many decades and they are aware that the service provided by human resources is the key to competitive advantage in the market place. This is particularly true of the hotel industry where employees form an integral part of the “hospitality product”. In labour intensive industries human resources are also costly to develop and maintain and increasing global competition in the 1980s followed by a world‐wide recession in the early 1990s has focused attention more acutely on the effectiveness of investments made in human resources. This had led to the rediscovery of human resource costing and accounting as a means by which organisations can monitor the impact of their employment practices on business performance. This article discusses the findings from research on the human resource accounting practices of hotel companies operating in the UK. The research indicates that very few hotel companies studied undertook any systematic analysis of their human resource investments and the economic contribution of employees remains unknown. This raises questions regarding the extent to which human resources are truly “valued” by hotel organisations and how much time and effort is devoted to ensuring that human resource investments and employment practices add value to the business.
This paper was aimed at investigating the impact of knowledge management (KM) procedures on enriching human resources in Water and Waste Water Company in East Azerbaijan, Iran.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper was aimed at investigating the impact of knowledge management (KM) procedures on enriching human resources in Water and Waste Water Company in East Azerbaijan, Iran.
Design/methodology/approach
The samples used in this study included the employees of Water and Waste Water Company in Tabriz, East Azerbaijan, Iran. A questionnaire was used for collecting data from the employees of the abovementioned company. Its reliability and validity were first examined and checked. Then, Smart partial least squares 2.0 was used for analyzing the structural model.
Findings
The results acknowledged the validity of the introduced model for enriching human resources. The findings indicated that five variables, namely, kind of knowledge, top managers, information technology, culture and organization of knowledge, have significant impact on enriching human resources.
Research limitations/implications
It is undoubtable that research studies might have specific limitations which should be pointed out and addressed in future studies. The followings are the major limitations of the study: because the present study was carried out in Water and Wastewater Company in Tabriz, East Azerbaijan, hence, generalizing the findings of this study to other professional contexts and organizations should be made with caution. In fact, the present study need to be replicated in other context to find whether the same or different results are obtained. In other words, different cultural, contextual and professional conditions might result differently from the ones reported here. Inasmuch as the present study was a cross-sectional study and the data were collected via questionnaire, a longitudinal study with a longer observation and investigation might shed more light on the efficacy of KMS in organizations. The present study focused on a specific dependent variable (human resource empowerment) which was explained by different dimensions of an independent variable, i.e. KM. However, the impact and efficacy of KMS can be investigated on other organizational variables and parameters. In this study, due to certain logistic and real-life limitations such as the limited time of the staff members of the target organization, we had to use only one data-collection instrument. Nevertheless, future studies can use data triangulation so as to better capture professional contexts of the study. Furthermore, another limitation of the study is related to the individual variables of the employees which remained untouched. That is, whether employees’ personal, emotional and cognitive variables can modify the impact of KM on human resource empowerment was not investigated in the present study.
Practical implications
Organizational managers are recommended to provide the background for employees to share their experiences. Organizations should invest on designing and developing patterns and strategic perspectives in human resource empowerment as a key factor toward becoming knowledge-based organizations.
Originality/value
This paper is one of the few applied studies which acknowledged the relationship between knowledge management initiatives and empowering human resources. It addresses the gap between knowledge management and human resource empowerment.
Details
Keywords
Hamid Nayebpour and Saied Sehhat
The main goal of any organization is to achieve the best quality of work through employees, and managers play a very important role in this field. Managers and leaders of…
Abstract
Purpose
The main goal of any organization is to achieve the best quality of work through employees, and managers play a very important role in this field. Managers and leaders of organizations often face with paradoxes that make decision-making difficult. The purpose of this paper is to develop a competency model for human resource managers considering the importance of the role of paradoxes for organizations.
Design/methodology/approach
The research methodology is of a mixed type and with an approach based on paradox theory and using theme analysis and fuzzy Delphi, it seeks to provide a model of paradoxical managers’ competence. The statistical sample included 11 experts working in the information and communication technology industry, who were selected using the snowball and judgmental sampling method.
Findings
The results of this research show that the competency model of human resource managers has three managerial, organizational and individual levels and has 15 themes including strategic partner, organizational knowledge, awareness of the industry environment, awareness of the external environment, paradoxical thinking, managerial knowledge, relationship management, resource management , leadership, human resources analyzer, information technology (IT) knowledge, personality traits, development, multitasking and cognitive competence. The most important theme identified is paradoxical thinking and familiarity with IT knowledge, and it is suggested that human resource managers working in this field should preferably study technical and engineering fields at the undergraduate level and shift to human resource management fields at the graduate level.
Originality/value
The distinguishing feature of this paper is the presentation of a competency model based on paradox theory. Paradoxes are part of organizational life. Therefore, there should be a paradoxical view in all organizational analysis.
Details
Keywords
The paper sets out to identify the key role that Jan‐Erik Grojer's work on human resource costing and accounting played in linking initial developments in accounting for people…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper sets out to identify the key role that Jan‐Erik Grojer's work on human resource costing and accounting played in linking initial developments in accounting for people with the more recent advances associated with the emergence of the intellectual capital concept.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is in the form of an essay that briefly considers the history of approaches to the challenge of accounting for people.
Findings
The recent developments associated with intellectual capital highlight the importance and value of adopting a rather wider conception of accounting for people.
Originality/value
The paper provides a provocative introduction to the topic of accounting for people and as such may be of value to both newcomers to the field and those who are simply intrigued by the idea itself.
Details
Keywords
Steven H. Appelbaum and Jamie Hood
Points out that, in conventional accounting, the costs associatedwith human resources have always been treated as expenses and, as such,have been written off annually in the…
Abstract
Points out that, in conventional accounting, the costs associated with human resources have always been treated as expenses and, as such, have been written off annually in the financial statement. Suggests that many practitioners were concerned that an organization′s employees were not properly accounted for on the balance sheet, preventing a true reflection or assessment of the state of the business. Also explores the value of human resources as measured by the present worth of potential services that could be rendered to the firm if the individual maintained membership throughout his or her expected service life. But this method presents problems of measurement in determining worth or value. Finally, examines the firm′s responsibility to shareholders with regard to reporting human resource investments objectively in financial statements in light of CICA standards, as well as capitalization and amortization decisions to be taken.
Details