Strategic Human Resource Vs Administrative Human Resource Management

Strategic Human Resource Vs Administrative Human Resource Management
Name
Institution
Strategic Human Resource Vs Administrative Human Resource
Introduction
Human resource management refers to the entire process of acquiring human labor through hiring, development, and maintenance of the labor force while increasing its efficiency in delivering the organization’s objectives. It is, therefore, necessary for an organization to embrace an effective management approach or strategy tailored towards the realization of its set objectives. Traditionally, business organizations focused on the administrative approach for the management of the available human resources. Administrative human resource management focuses employ the principles of management such as monitoring, coordinating, and controlling of the labor force to ensure compliance with the organization’s set functional goals, procedures, policies for the smooth running of business operations. However, withstanding the increased competition in the global economy across the different sectors requires the enhancement of the traditional human resource management practices. A strategic approach in the management of the said resources serves as the best alternative for ensuring the sustainable development of business organizations around the world owing to its flexibility in adapting to the shifting or evolving trends in the market economies. A comprehensive comparative analysis between the traditional administrative management of human resource and the strategic approach provides an excellent platform for understanding valuable inputs of the latter over former in meeting the complex demands of the current global economy.
The evolving changes and emerging trends in the world economy account for the increased competition among business organizations as each tries to maintain its position in the global market through sustainable productivity. The complex market demands arising from the use of advanced technology in the production of goods and services coupled with the globalization of market economies call for the adoption of effective business strategies and practices by any business organization (Welbourne, 1998). Corporate organizations thus face the challenge of implementing effective business strategies to maintain their competitiveness while also increasing their profitability and market relevance or share of the global market. It is without a doubt that the management of human resource in business organizations plays a significant role in facilitating the achievement of the outlined objectives through effective capitalization of human resources.
Comparative Analysis of Strategic Versus Administrative Human Resource Management
The strategic management of the human resource is an enhanced management approach that builds around the achievement of the organization’s long-term goals by aligning the available human resources towards enhancing or improving its competitiveness in the market (Biswajeet, 2018). The strategic approach further seeks to integrate the organization’s growth and development strategies to its set objectives, mission, policies, and procedures of operations. The integrated approach focuses on the development of human resources to meet the required competencies and cultural behavior for achieving the organization’s long-term objectives (Biswajeet, 2018). Additionally, a strategic approach towards human resource management also plays an integral role in the prioritization of objectives while also proposing and developing effective strategies for their achievement. The administrative approach of human resource, on the other hand, is a rather traditional practice employing the principles of management in maintaining the effective performance of the organization’s daily operations (Welbourne, 1998). Some of its primary functions include controlling, budgeting, planning, monitoring, and effective time management of the available human resources for maximum productivity or the achievement of the organization’s short-term targets (Welbourne, 1998). Both the strategic and administrative human resource management also serves the other functions of recruiting, rewarding, and appraising the human resource. However, the development of the recruited human resources falls under the prerogative of strategic human resource management. A comparison of the intricate details of both the strategic and administrative human resource management approach reveals the differences in the roles played by each in achieving the organization’s set objectives.
A strategic approach to the management of human resource focuses on the implementation of strategies to maintain the organization’s competitive edge in the market while the administrative approach focuses on employee relations (Biswajeet, 2018). In developing the organization’s strategies to enhance its competitiveness, the strategic human resource manager puts more emphasis on establishing partnerships with both the internal and external factors of the organization. An administrator, on the other hand, simply serves to maintain good employee relations through communication of the organization’s policies, procedures, mission, and objectives for the smooth running of the business operations (Biswajeet, 2018). Secondly, the role of the strategic human resource manager is to develop or rather transform the organization to meet the core competencies required to withstand the competition (Biswajeet, 2018). The strategic human resource manager initiates and implements development strategies to improve the entity’s competitive edge in the evolving market economies. On the other hand, an administrator only serves to delegate the organization’s strategies to the employees in a more of a transactional approach between the department and higher management. The administrator holds an isolated position in the organization’s management structure with no powers to initiate or implement changes to the organization without the authorization of the top management (Meifert, 2014).
Another distinction between the strategic and administrative approach to human resource management is that the former is fast, more proactive and integrated, while the latter is slow, reactive, and fragmented (Biswajeet, 2018). The strategic approach plans for the unforeseen changes in the economy and thus prepares the organization for instituting the necessary changes or adaptations to meet the shifting demands of the market in a ...