Introduction
Planning is very important to our everyday
activities. Several definitions have been given by different writers what
planning is all about and its importance to achieving our objectives. It is
amazing that this important part of HR is mostly ignored in HR in most
organizations because those at the top do not know the value of HR planning.
Organizations that do not plan for the future have less opportunity to survive
the competition ahead. This article will discuss the importance of HR planning;
the six steps of HR planning that is : Forecasting; inventory, audit, HR
Resource Plan; Actioning of Plan; Monitoring and Control.
Definition of HR Planning
Quoting Mondy et (1996) they define it as a
systematic analysis of HR needs in order to ensure that correct number of
employees with the necessary skills are available when they are required.
When we prepare our planning programme,
Practitioners should bear in mind that their staff members have their objective
they need to achieve. This is the reason why employees seek employment.
Neglecting these needs would result in poor motivation that may lead to
unnecessary poor performance and even Industrial actions.
Importance of Planning
Planning is not as easy as one might think because
it requires a concerted effort to come out with a programme that would easy
your work. Commencing is complicated, but once you start and finish it you have
a smile because everything moves smoothly.
Planning is a process that have to be commenced
form somewhere and completed for a purpose. It involves gathering information
that would enable managers and supervisors make sound decisions. The
information obtained is also utilized to make better actions for achieving the
objectives of the Organization. There are many factors that you have to look
into when deciding for an HR Planning programme.
HR Planning involves gathering of information,
making objectives, and making decisions to enable the organization achieve its
objectives. Surprisingly, this aspect of HR is one of the most neglected in the
HR field. When HR Planning is applied properly in the field of HR Management,
it would assist to address the following questions:
1. How many staff does the Organization have?
2. What type of employees as far as skills and abilities does the Company
have?
3. How should the Organization best utilize the available resources?
4. How can the Company keep its employees?
HR planning makes the organization move and succeed
in the 21st Century that we are in. Human Resources Practitioners who prepare
the HR Planning programme would assist the Organization to manage its staff
strategically. The programme assist to direct the actions of HR department.
The programme does not assist the Organization
only, but it will also facilitate the career planning of the employees and
assist them to achieve the objectives as well. This augment motivation and the
Organization would become a good place to work. HR Planning forms an important
part of Management information system.
HR have an enormous task keeping pace with the all
the changes and ensuring that the right people are available to the
Organization at the right time. It is changes to the composition of the
workforce that force managers to pay attention to HR planning. The changes in
composition of workforce not only influence the appointment of staff, but also
the methods of selection, training, compensation and motivation. It becomes
very critical when Organizations merge, plants are relocated, and activities
are scaled down due to financial problems.
Inadequacy of HR Planning
Poor HR Planning and lack of it in the
Organization may result in huge costs and financial looses. It may result in
staff posts taking long to be filled. This augment costs and hampers effective
work performance because employees are requested to work unnecessary overtime
and may not put more effort due to fatigue. If given more work this may stretch
them beyond their limit and may cause unnecessary disruptions to the production
of the Organization. Employees are put on a disadvantage because their live
programmes are disrupted and they are not given the chance to plan for their
career development.
The most important reason why HR Planning should be
managed and implemented is the costs involved. Because costs forms an important
part of the Organizations budget, workforce Planning enable the Organization to
provide HR provision costs. When there is staff shortage, the organization
should not just appoint discriminately, because of the costs implications of
the other options, such as training and transferring of staff, have to be
considered.
Steps in HR Planning
Forecasting
HR Planning requires that we gather data on the
Organizational goals objectives. One should understand where the Organization
wants to go and how it wants to get to that point. The needs of the employees
are derived from the corporate objectives of the Organization. They stern from
shorter and medium term objectives and their conversion into action budgets.
Inventory
Audit
We do not live in a static World and our HR
resources can transform dramatically. HR inventory calls for collection of
data, the HR audit requires systematic examination and analysis of this data.
The Audit looks at what had occured in the past and at present in terms of labor
turn over, age and sex groupings, training costs and absence. Based on this
information, one can then be able to predict what will happen to HR in the
future in the Organization
HR Resource Plan
Here we look at career Planning and HR plans.
People are the greatest asserts in any Organization. The Organization is at
liberty to develop its staff at full pace in the way ideally suited to their
individual capacities. The main reason is that the Organization’s objectives
should be aligned as near as possible, or matched, in order to give optimum
scope for the developing potential of its employees. Therefore, career planning
may also be referred to as HR Planning or succession planning.
The questions that should concern us are:
a)Are we making use of the available talent we have in the Organization, and have
we an enough provision for the future?
b)Are employees satisfied with our care of their growth in terms of advancing
their career?
Assignment of individuals to planned future posts
enables the administration to ensure that these individuals may be suitably
prepared in advance.
Actioning of Plan
There are three fundamentals necessary for this
first step.
1) Know where you are going.
2) There must be acceptance and backing
from top management for the planning.
3) There must be knowledge of the
available resources (i.e)
financial, physical and human (Management and
technical).
Once in action, the HR Plans become Corporate
plans. Having been made and concurred with top management, the plans become a
part of the company’s long-range plan. Failure to achieve the HR Plans due to
cost, or lack of knowledge, may be a serious constraints on the long-range
plan. Below is an illustration of how HR Plan is linked to corporate Plan.