Your complete guide to human resource management

Human resource management (HRM) can help you attract and retain top talent, boost employee engagement and productivity, and create a positive workplace culture. 

In order to stay ahead of the competition, you need to be aware of current trends in HRM and employee attitudes toward benefits, flexibility, and pay rates across the globe. In this article, we'll explore the key principles and best practices of HRM to help you strategize and implement effective HR practices for your business. 

What is human resource management? 

Human resource management, or HRM, is the process of managing an organization’s human resources, which can include employees and contractors. 

The primary goals of HRM are to ensure that a company has the right people with the right skills and knowledge to help achieve its objectives, while also providing a supportive and lawful work environment. 

Human resource management impacts every aspect of your business’s operations, such as:

1. Recruitment and selection 

Recruitment and selection are crucial processes in HRM that involves attracting, identifying, and selecting the right candidates for job vacancies within your organization. 

These processes are essential in ensuring that the person selected for a position has the proper qualifications, skills, and experience to successfully do the job. 

An important thing to consider during recruitment and selection is to give a fair and equal chance of being hired to every candidate. No person should be discriminated against based on physical, personal, or demographic attributes that aren’t directly related to the job position. 

For instance, if you state or imply that you will only hire a certain sex for a job position, this will be considered as discriminatory behavior. 

In the United States, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) prohibits discrimination based on factors such as race, gender, age, and religion. If an organization is associated with discriminatory processes, it could face serious consequences, such as fines, reputational damage, and legal action. 

The EEOC isn’t the only agency that protects job candidates from facing discrimination in the US. Other laws, acts, and regulations help candidates from all backgrounds get a fair chance at employment, such as: 

• Age Discrimination in Employment Act (1967) 

• Pregnancy Discrimination Act (1978) 

• Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) 

The recruitment and selection process can involve many steps, such as: 

• Job analysis and breakdown

• Sourcing and attracting candidates on job boards

• Screening resumes and skill level 

• Criminal and background checks 

• Interviewing 

• Crafting job offers

In order to stay compliant and avoid legal liabilities, HR professionals need to have a clear recruitment process in place that is fair, transparent, and compliant with legal regulations in every country they operate in.

2. Training and development

When onboarding employees, human resource managers are responsible for ensuring that employees have the necessary skills, knowledge, and training to perform their roles effectively in a company. 

This can involve providing training in hard skills, such as teaching how to use a specific computer program; or soft skills, like effective communication in a remote setting.

Training can impact the way your organization operates and performs. It can also have an impact on employee morale and job satisfaction.

If employees aren’t properly prepared for work in your company, they may fall behind and struggle to meet performance expectations, increasing the likelihood of work-induced burnout and stress. 

Offer development programs for your employees, including one-on-one mentoring or virtual workshops. These programs can be focused on improving specific skills or educating employees with new industry knowledge.

HRM for training and development can include: 

• Needs assessments for post-onboarding training

• Designing different training programs 

• Providing employees with opportunities for career development 

By investing in employee training and development, organizations can build a stronger team that is skillful, engaged, and focused on success.

3. Performance management 

Performance management is the process of setting goals and objectives for employees. For example, you can give your team members actionable feedback to align their performance to company expectations. This can foster employee loyalty and prevent employee engagement from dropping.

Effective performance management can improve employee job satisfaction, motivation, and engagement. When you’re continually letting employees know what they’re doing right and what they can do to improve, you’re helping them be more effective in their roles.

Performance management can also indicate if an employee is struggling with a certain aspect of their job or experiencing stress that is impacting their performance. 

Using performance reviews, human resource managers can come up with ways to help improve employee performance and improve the overall productivity of the team. You can also make sure that team members from all over the globe are equally supported.

This may include implementing techniques for managing remote employees’ performance or offering flexible work arrangements that suit different employees' lifestyles. 

In sum, effective performance management strategies can include: 

• Setting performance goals for individuals and teams

• Offering actionable feedback on employee performance 

• Periodical performance reviews 

4. Compensation and benefits

Compensation and benefits are fundamental aspects of HRM. In fact, pay and compensation are one of the most important factors when determining effective human capital strategies.

Companies are responsible for creating competitive compensation packages that are based on external factors. Factors to consider include cultural norms of a country, standard pay rates, and minimum wage. 

This is especially true for companies that have employees in different countries. Employment laws are constantly changing, and it’s important to stay up-to-date to avoid legal issues and penalties. 

For example, the California labor code was amended in 2022 to state employers should never rely on an employee's past payment history to determine what compensation package they offer. 

Employers need to create customized benefits and expenses plans to satisfy the needs of employees in different countries. This is essential for creating competitive compensation package that attracts and retains top talent. Check if your HRM strategies check off the below points for a competitive compensation plan.

• Employee benefit administration 

• Designing and implementing performance-based compensation incentives

• Ensuring compliance with local and international laws 

Creating competitive benefits and compensation packages can also boost your company's reputation among employees and investors. 

5. Compliance and legal issues 

One of the most important aspects of HRM is ensuring that a company stays up-to-date with the latest laws and regulations involving employment, fair treatment of workers, and workplace safety. 

Keeping track of changes in law is especially important for companies operating on a global scale. HR professionals need to consider international laws and regulations, not just domestic ones.

Keep in mind that each country has its unique employment and human rights laws to create safe workplaces. Cultural norms, local practices, and customs can also impact employment policies and contracts. 

Staying on top of compliance and legal issues is important for organizational success, but it requires significant effort and attention to detail. You would need to consider the below areas:

• Employment laws 

• Data privacy 

• Payroll and tax compliance 

• Health and safety 

• Record keeping 

Examples of compliance regulations include:

• The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the European Union 

• The Employment Rights Act (1996) in the United Kingdom 

• The Fair Work Act (2009) in Australia 

If your organization falls into non-compliance, it can have a major impact on the operation of your business. That’s why it’s so important to get HR management right, no matter how large or distributed your team is.

Three key trends in HRM

Staying on top of global HRM trends will help you keep ahead of competition and build a diverse workforce. Improve employee engagement, productivity, and satisfaction by incorporating the latest findings in human resource.

1. Using a diversity-first global HRM strategy can boost financial performance 

A diverse workplace — with team members from various cultures and walks of life — brings a variety of perspectives, experiences, and skills to the table. A diverse team can offer more innovative ideas, better solutions, and make informed decisions.

A “diversity-first” global HRM strategy also helps boost financial performance.

Doordash is an example of a company embracing diversity to boost financial performance. They offer flexible work arrangements for their diverse team members, using Remote to streamline their global HR management. Doordash encourages employees from different communities to apply for jobs with their company. The food delivery company also supports employee resource groups to maintain an inclusive workforce with people from all backgrounds. To implement a diversity-first global HRM strategy, make sure your organization:

• Does not discriminate against candidates with disabilities or different cultural backgrounds 

• Publicly supports a culture of inclusivity and innovation through social media

• Provides opportunities for professional development for disadvantaged groups

Diversity is no longer just a buzzword — it can have a real impact on the way your business is perceived, how employees collaborate, and your bottom line. 

2. Focus on upskilling your existing workforce before finding new candidates

Employing new candidates can be expensive, which is why focusing on upskilling your existing workforce is a trend in HRM.  

Employees and employers need to keep up with technological advancements including artificial intelligence to succeed in their positions. In fact, the skills required to complete jobs have changed 25% since 2015. What this means is that companies need to invest in upskilling their existing workforce to ensure that they have the skills needed to remain competitive in the marketplace. 

One of the reasons why HR professionals make the mistake of not upskilling their existing workforce is because they aren’t aware of the skills gaps that exist within their organization. Or, they may think it is too costly to offer training for upskilling. However, this leads to more costs in the long run as employees become incompetent to meet client demands. 

To upskill your workforce, try: 

• Educating your workforce through industry conferences and virtual events 

• Providing internal training and development opportunities 

• Identifying skill gaps by conducting a skills assessment or survey 

By investing in upskilling, companies can also improve employee engagement and loyalty, leading to improved financial performance and better return on investment over time.

3. Include hybrid and remote work in your job listing to increase interest

Employees and contractors are increasingly looking for companies that offer hybrid and remote work options.

Offering flexible work arrangements allows companies to expand their operations across borders with ease. This increases their global competitiveness and opens up the talent pool. In fact, 74% of company directors are planning to accelerate their working-from-home policy in the future. 

By explicitly stating that you offer remote and hybrid work options, you can increase job seeker interest in your company and improve employee retention. 

Here’s what you can do to promote remote work at your organization:

• Highlight that you provide employees with all of the technology they need to work remotely. This can include software for video conferencing, direct messaging, and collaboration. 

• Implement a remote-first culture and allow employees to work in a way that best suits them. 

• Clearly highlight ‘hybrid and remote work options’ in your job listings. 

How to transform your HRM strategy 

Understanding HRM trends and how HRM impacts your business operations can help you develop a bulletproof HRM strategy. 

To transform your HRM strategy, you need to be aware of compliance requirements, and ensure that all HR processes are standardized within your organization.

A quick reminder that if you're managing a global remote team, you would need to create a global HRM plan for your international team.

A domestic HRM plan and global HRM plan have the same objective: to manage employees and contractors in an effective and compliant manner to achieve organizational goals. However, a global HRM plan needs to consider additional factors as it manages an international team across multiple countries. 

To achieve success in both domestic and international HRM, businesses must prioritize critical aspects like talent management, ethical hiring and firing policies, compliance with local laws and regulations, and fostering a safe and inclusive work environment. 

For details on global HR, take a look at our notes on implementing a global HRM plan. You can also consider partnering with a global HR partner like Remote to easily stay ahead of your international HR needs. For more insight on how to strategize your HRM plan, download our Global Workforce Report to find out how you can improve your HR functions.