We have grown enough, and we have people in charge of payroll and contracts. We still need to take on more staff, and employees are causing us problems over their pay, wages or benefits. We are putting more effort into the people on the payroll than into the productivity of the business. It is time to create a human resources department.
How do I do it?
It is true that every company is a different size, has a different activity and different circumstances. A company that gets through the whole year with its usual staff doing their usual work is not the same as one that has several workplaces and has to find some way to cover its employees’ holidays.
Some companies concentrate the department’s functions in a few people, while others have several people devoted to these tasks. Some companies manage by objectives, and human resources has its own objectives to meet, while other organisations limit themselves to carrying out the typical functions of these departments.
The department’s organisation chart
Every company is a world of its own, and each world organises its human resources department differently. We would say that what matters most is to define the functions to be performed, and then group them by content according to their importance. You also need to consider whether to outsource some areas or handle them with the organisation’s own staff.
Below is a basic example, on which we can analyse the different functions performed by the people in charge of each area.
Recruitment and training
This function covers all the activities related to the workforce, its selection and staff training. Some of these tasks would be:
- Overall workforce planning by period, according to short- and medium-term needs.
- Job descriptions.
- Drawing up the professional profiles for the different positions.
- Staff selection and training.
- Welcoming and integrating new staff into the company.
- Processing temporary lay-offs (suspensions of employment).
- Processing dismissals.
Personnel administration
As the name suggests, these are the department’s administrative tasks, defined as:
- Choosing and formalising contracts.
- Managing payroll and social security contributions.
- Managing leave, holidays, overtime, sick leave and transfers.
- Absenteeism.
- Disciplinary rules.
Labour relations
Basically, this is the resolution of workplace problems, including negotiation with union representatives and hiring rules. Labour relations involve pay policy, collective bargaining and the resolution of labour disputes.
Other tasks are added to this area, such as those of the occupational risk prevention (health and safety) department, measures to correct inequalities and even each company’s employee benefits policy, where benefits such as these stand out: nurseries, holiday residences, discounts from other companies, grants and study assistance, medical services and many others.
People development
The role of this area is to create training plans and carry them out, as well as to study the potential of the workforce, assess its motivation, monitor how people perform their tasks and encourage participation. It should also study absenteeism and its causes.
Featured image: Edgar Degas, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
