Human resources departments are becoming increasingly important within companies, being responsible for aligning the performance of each worker with the objectives and mission of the business.
In the past, companies placed their human resources department in the third or fourth level of importance within their organizational structure. Its sole function was thought to have to do with the correct and timely settlement of wages and social benefits. This happened because employees and their conditions were relegated to the background, since it was thought that the most important variables to consider were the behavior of the market and the competitive advantages of the products and services it offered. Such a situation generated discontent in people, with its consequent declines in production and in the sense of belonging to the companies that employed them.
Any company has the sole objective of generating income and profitability. A situation in which employees do not produce at the same level as their abilities goes against that objective. Therefore, the management of the human resource that makes up the organization became a primary task for its performance. The most successful companies are those that consider their human capital as their most important asset, modifying the role paradigm and the importance of the human resources department within the company.
In the knowledge economy, employees are more than just resources at the service of the company. The company's collective intelligence depends on its capacity for innovation, adaptation to the environment and, ultimately, its competitiveness. In this new scenario, the human resources department acquires a more leading and decisive role within the company. It ceases to be an area in charge of carrying out processes to be a department involved with the generation of strategies of wide relevance for the achievement of organizational objectives.
Human resource management, seen from this new paradigm, becomes the strategic management of employees who individually and collectively contribute to achieving the strategic objectives of any organization. In addition, its management assists in creating loyal employees, who are willing to contribute the best of themselves to the achievement of collective objectives.
The human resources department, then in charge of managing the employees that make up the companies, should guide them towards achieving business objectives, maximizing the contribution that each individual makes to the organization. That is why its functions such as selection, hiring and retention of personnel, personal and professional development, improvement of the work environment and increase in productivity, among others, are positioned as fundamental within business activities, positioning the department as a true business partner. from the other areas.
In conclusion, the new business dynamics requires that human resources departments be seen as a strategic area within organizations, positioning themselves as a partner in other areas. Gone is the time when its only function was considered to be to settle and pay salaries and social benefits, since its tasks are not limited to operational tasks but also include strategic tasks for the organization. A good management of human resources will allow each employee to individually provide the best of themselves to achieve the objectives defined by the companies, always in line with its mission and vision.
Notes:
1. The importance of HR management in modern organizations, in losrecursoshumanos.com.
2. Human resources, is it time to change your name ?, by Santi García.
