Human Resource Development or HRD

Human resource development is the process of developing the human resources of an organization by optimizing and upgrading their skills and knowledge as per the latest trends of the globalized economy to accomplish organizational goals.

Human Resource Development HRD = Human Resources + Development

Human resources here are the life-blood of any organization and they are supposed to channelize their work as per their current and future organizational goals.

While development revolves around the acquisitions of those capabilities that can successfully fulfill the expectations of current and future jobs.

What is Human Resource Development?

The development of the workforce of an organization through various methods such as career development and employee training.

This leads to the enhancement of performance and effectiveness of the employees in the daily work cycle. This process of development of the workforce is popularly known as Human Resource Development.

There are different kinds of employee benefits, opportunities, and activities involved in Human Resource Development that are as follows-

• Organizational Development
• Succession planning
• Employee coaching
• Tuition assistance
• Mentoring
• Performance development and management

Benefits of human resource development HRD is comprised in accomplishing organizational goals via adept-

• Manpower planning, recruitment, and retention
• Succession planning and talent management
• Performance management system
• Policy and procedure
• Job evaluation and grading
• Compensation and benefit program
• Employer brand communication and employee engagement

How Human Resource Development Works?

There are several countless chances for organizations to hold Human Resource Development for their workforce.

This development can be both on the job training or off the job training. They can vary from being formal to be informal. The process can start from the onboarding ceremony or be held for veterans inside the organizations.

The various types of informal training might include the likes of:

• Collaboration with trained professionals
• Top-level manager coaching
• Mentorship by vastly experienced employees

Formal training can be of:

• College courses
• Inside training by internal staff or a hired Facilitator or consultant
• Planned courses inside the organizations
• Classroom training

All of the world’s successful organizations take the assistance of Human Resource Development to improve their efficiency.

For instance, a new sales representative hired for a job. They are given formal training during their onboarding and receive informal training on the job from their managers.

More formal training is included inside the sales representative’s daily schedule to make him more efficient in the job.

They can also be assigned mentors who will solve all the sales representative’s problems during the job. This mentorship helps the employee hone his existing skills and develop a new skill set that will benefit the organization in the long run.

As the development process continues, the sales representative might start a leadership role inside the organization.

Core Functions of Human Resource Development

The various core functions included in Human Resource Development are as follows:

• Staffing
• Development
• Compensation
• Health and Safety
• Employee Labour relation

1. Staffing

The HR department’s job in the case of staffing means hiring new part-time and full-time employees. They also have the job of hiring contractors and firing any employees if the organization demands so. The staffing activities also includes the like of:

• Formation of the employees’ contract and negotiating salary and benefits for them as well.
• The termination of a contract when deemed necessary by the organization.
• The job of identification of filling the gap in the talent pool (by recruitment, mainly)
• To ensure all the hiring practices are ethical under and as per the law. They also ensure that they are aligned with the regulatory environment.
• They make use of numerous recruitment technologies to get the maximum number of applicants. (furthermore, they filter the applications based on experience)

2. Development

In this, the Human Resource Development provides resources for the continuous development of the employees. Investing in the onboarding process of the employees is a crucial area of investment for the organization. The development activities also include the like of:

• Human Resource Development has the job of providing feedback to managers and employees as well as they prepare management prospects.
• The training and preparation of new employees for the role.
• They set up training opportunities for the new employees (like conferences, internal training, educational programs) to keep the employees updated with their job profiles.

3. Compensation

The benefits, along with salary, also falls under the HRD. This includes the identification of ideal compensation based on the legal requirement, roles, and performances. Further, the compensation plans include:

• They ensure to maintain cultural and legal compliance of the expectations in regards to employee compensation.
• The negotiation of insurance rates, benefits provided by the third party, and retirement plans.
• To make sure the compensation plans match up to the heights provided by the market. They make use of industry benchmarks to decide on the amount of compensation for the employees.
• They discuss with the employees within the organization with regards to the compensation plans provided to them.

4. Safety and Health

The HRD of all the organizations ensures that the employees get the absolute best working condition. Safety and health activities include:

• The discussion of compliance of safety measures with the Union.
• The implementation of the new laws when they are introduced in an industry.
• Discussion of compliance with safety measures with relevant officials from the government.
• They ensure every employee follows the safety protocols and uses the appropriate PPE (Personal Protective Equipment).

5. Employee and Labour relations

They continuously stay in touch with the union. They also solve disagreements among the employees and the management. The other activities include:

• HRD does the job of both acting as the voice of the management or the voice of the employees when the need arises. They have the broader welfare of the employees at heart when making a decision.
• They look after the claims of abuse and harassment in the work environment.
• They solve the disagreements between the employees and the management.
• HRD discusses employee rights with management, stakeholders, and unions.

Best practices of Human Resource Development HRD

1. Regular feedback

There should be an active interaction between the employees and the management. The employees will provide feedback on the Human Resource Development process to the management.

2. The information should be manageable

The amount of information given to the employees should be within certain limits. This is to be maintained so that they can implement it right away while being on their job.

3. Weekly meetings

The organizations must hold weekly meets of the employees and the facilitator. This guides the employee so that they are on the right track.

Here is a video by Marketing91 on Human Resource Development or HRD.

Human Resource Development vs Human Resource Management

Human Resource M always focuses on administrative tasks like payroll management, while Human Resource Development focuses on enhancing the performance of the employee

The jurisdiction of Human Resource Development falls under the manager, whereas HRM’s is under the HR department.

Human Resource Management is for the enhancement of employee efficiency, whereas HRD is for the development of the employee.

Summing Up!

Human resource development is involved in helping employees develop new skills via effective career development or training and development HRD program for overall organizational development.

By empowering every individual in an organization, HRD optimizes organization development in a result-driven manner.

How important do you find HRD for an organization? Share your views with us in the comment section below.