Exploring the Future of HR Management and Its Impact on Unionism

What would you say is the future of HR? Something that I can't answer... a really annoying question. What are your views? Where do you see HRM in say 15-20 years from now? It has changed a lot from personnel management... what's next?

Sunayna

Hi Sunayna,

Quite odd to see this question from you. Well, the first and foremost factor remains that this is the era of Human Resources. As the service industry is growing and gaining more and more importance, it is highly essential that employees, who are the backbone of the service industry, be handled properly. HRM is the key behind the proper management of this very important resource (Human Resources), without which it would be nearly impossible to handle the organization and attain its goals.

Hey, even our finance minister depends so much on service tax as compared to sales tax nowadays, just to show the importance of services in today's context.

Oyeee...
Why why why why????

Hihih,
Good observation.
Could I also add "outsourcing" to the list?

Regards,
Sunayna

Hi Sunayna,

"Oyeee...
y y y y ????"

You are a CiteHR Resident and are unsure about the future of HRM... that was unexpected.

Hello Sunayana! You have brought up a very relevant question. Ten years back, we wouldn't have imagined HR to be a business partner. Today, the talk is of HR becoming a strategic partner or strategic driver.

Well, as I see it, there is going to be a lot of change in the days to come. Look at the manufacturing sector; its importance will decrease with more and more outsourcing, automation, and other improvements. Labor intensity is going to decrease, and so will unskilled operations. All menial tasks will likely go to professional agencies, etc. Consequently, unionism will decline. Hence, the industrial relations part of HR is going to lose much of its sheen. With many HR activities being offloaded, thanks to IT, the number of regulars in the HR department will be far fewer.

There is going to be a boom in the service sector, and more opportunities will be added for employment generation. However, margins will be less, and the real challenge will lie in cutting costs.

Overall, as I see it, the real scope of value addition in HR would lie in integrating employee aspirations with the growth of the enterprise. Those who can do it well will outperform the competition, and the misfits will slowly fade away. So the focus is going to be on the softer aspects of HR like motivation, morale, etc.

Sunayana, thanks a lot for activating the grey cells.

Hi Sunayna,

"Oyeee... y y y y ????" You are a CiteHR resident and are unsure about the future of HRM... that was unexpected...

Apology for the late reply, but here it is: :blink: and :wacko:

Hi kknair, I've got some questions for you because I don't believe that ignorance is bliss :icon6:

"Consequently unionism will decline." How? What's your reasoning for this?

"Those who can do it well will outperform the competition, and the misfits will slowly fade away. So the focus is going to be softer aspects of HR motivation, morale, etc."

Yes, I do agree with this. It will definitely turn into "perform or perish." You thanked me for activating your grey cells. Here's more to thank me for.

Regards,
Sunayna

Dear Sunayana 😂,

I have already replied in detail in response to the topic "Future role of trade unions." Hope you've gone through the same.

Regards,
Nair kk 🙄

Dear Sunayana 😂,

I have already replied in detail in response to the topic "Future role of trade unions." I hope you've gone through the same.

Regards,
Nair kk 🙄

Ya, ok... let me confirm. You said that all menial tasks will go to professionals, and thus unionism will decline. Is that right? Do you think something new will emerge?

Hi Sunayana,

Sorry for being so late. Partly because our server was down and emails up to the 12th remained inaccessible. And of course, your question caught me napping. As I see it, HR will traverse beyond the conventional role of being a man-maintenance group. So, when it sees itself as an integrating agent, a strategizing partner, striving to bring individuals and the organization onto the same growth platform, a lot of factors that become the breeding ground for the unions disappear. It needs no empirical verification to agree with the fact that unionism nourishes on the dissatisfaction of employees. If negative factors (such as the environmental factors in the Achievement Motivation Theory) are absent or rendered ineffective, then unionism is bound to decline. It will not disappear. I am working in a large industrial unit and have seen the gradual erosion in unionism in the last two decades. This trend will increase primarily for two reasons: the absence of negative factors and the effectiveness of HR professionals in grievance management. It is my personal experience that if employees prefer to approach the HR executive directly for their grievances rather than using the unions, then the unions are going towards their irrelevance. This movement is going to be further facilitated by liberalization, globalization, and the outsourcing phenomenon, where jobs are going to be short-tenured. Hence, employee interests in an organization are also going to decline. Sort of capitalism reinvented. The question as to what is going to take the place of unions, well, I have no ready answer, as I feel the unions will be there but will have a lesser impact and bargaining strength will decline. But HR will have to play a conscious role in this process.

Thanks, Sunaina, for provoking my thoughts.

Regards, KK Nair

Hi, hihihi! I didn't know my question had the immense power of waking you up. Over ho gaya na... lol... ok... I didn't know my question was so thought-provoking :wink: and yeah... I got the point this time. I got a silly example as well... earlier movies had unions going on strike... nowadays... such movies have reduced... the last union strike I saw in a movie was, I think, Anil Kapoor's "Beta" :D regds Sunayna

The future of HRM is one of unpredictability, I think, as its primary focus is dealing with people. Based on trends so far, my opinion of a big challenge is still the concept of being taken seriously by higher-level executives. Though there has been more of a shift towards the recognition that HRM can play a strategic role in achieving the goals of a business, there are still many skeptics out there.

However, with the near retirement of many baby boomers in the coming decade, there will be an opportunity for those HR managers part of the Y generation to step in and initiate a new way of strategic thinking. I think this will be an excellent opportunity to encourage and promote strategic HR to be part of those top-level decision-making processes. A new generation and a new way of thinking.