HANDOUTS
ABA 204: HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
TOPIC 3: HUMAN RESOURCE PLANNING
Maseno University
eLearning Programmes
, ABA 204: HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Maseno University
A. THE PURPOSES AND IMPORTANCE OF HUMAN
RESOURCE PLANNING
What is HRP?
Like corporate and strategic managers, human resource professionals have a role to play in the
sustainability of an organization. One way they do this is by ensuring that the Organization is
appropriately staffed and that those staff are able to contribute to corporate success. This is human
resource planning: The right number of the right sorts of people
in the right place at the right time and for the right cost. Human resources are considered by most to
be the organization‟s most valuable (and expensive) asset so they need to be deployed with the
maximum efficiency and effectiveness. HRP supports this by developing a systematic plan for getting,
organizing, developing and retaining people.
What value does HRP add?
HRP makes a number of specific contributions to added value:
To integrate human resource activities into the business (vertical integration)
To integrate human resource activities with each other (horizontal integration)
To strengthen control over staff numbers and costs and to determine whether growth or
reductions are necessary
To profile current levels and attributes of staff
To identify the need for training and development.
How does HRP fit with other strategic activities?
HRP is a vital strategic activity. HR directors are increasingly members of the board and, as such, they
have a specific role to play in the formulation and vertical integration of HR objectives, policies,
procedures, plans and strategy. These highlight the type of plans that contribute to the overall
corporate and strategic plan along with the finance plan, operational plan, marketing plan, etc.
What is the difference between hard and soft HRP?
(a) Soft HRP involves the assessment of four categories or areas:
Defining where the organization is now
defining where it wants to be in the future
Analyzing its external environment, influences and trends (over which it has no
control)
Formulating plans to implement necessary changes.
These four categories are important stages in the strategic planning process. Soft HRP is concerned
with the formulation of the mission, goals, objectives and strategy of the organization and how
variables such as growth, product, life cycle, competitive advantage and HR development will impact
on its human resources.
1
, ABA 204: HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Maseno University
(b) Hard HRP concerns the type of activities the HR department will need to carry out to ascertain the
appropriate level of human resources; whether its current level is sufficient; whether there is a
deficiency in one department over another, etc. Hard HRP activities include:
Forecasting: is the number of employees required, in the future to support the demand for the
organization‟s products and services. It also includes the assessment of the internal and external
supply of human resources.
Analysis: of how current employees are being utilized throughout the organization and how this
impacts on demand.
Monitoring and review: reconciling HR plans with actual practice and facilitating any amendments
needed to plans.
B. THE PROCESSES OF HUMAN RESOURCE PLANNING
How do I assemble a HR plan?
HR planning can be complex but in its simplest form it centers on supply and demand forecasting:
Forecasting (over the period covered by the plan) the numbers and attributes (knowledge,
skills and attitudes) of staff that will be: Responding to the gap between demand and supply:
Demand Needed
Supply – internal Available internally
Supply – external Available externally
Recruitment -Redundancy
Redeployment -Upskilling/Multiskilling
Career development/ -Talent management
Changing contract terms/ -Flexible firm
These activities must be proactive rather than reactive, which means that they must be planned. This
requires extensive information about the:
Corporate plans for the organization – for both numbers and types of people needed
internal labour supply – numbers, capabilities and cost of the people in the organization
External labour supply – numbers, capabilities and cost of the people available from outside
the organization.
Failing to establish a correct balance between the supply of and demand for labour in an
organization can lead to:
Shortage of staff or of skills – If an organization employs fewer staff than it requires, it is
unlikely to be able to meet its production and sales targets, machinery and stock will be under
used and it is likely to fail to meet its targets.
2
ABA 204: HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
TOPIC 3: HUMAN RESOURCE PLANNING
Maseno University
eLearning Programmes
, ABA 204: HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Maseno University
A. THE PURPOSES AND IMPORTANCE OF HUMAN
RESOURCE PLANNING
What is HRP?
Like corporate and strategic managers, human resource professionals have a role to play in the
sustainability of an organization. One way they do this is by ensuring that the Organization is
appropriately staffed and that those staff are able to contribute to corporate success. This is human
resource planning: The right number of the right sorts of people
in the right place at the right time and for the right cost. Human resources are considered by most to
be the organization‟s most valuable (and expensive) asset so they need to be deployed with the
maximum efficiency and effectiveness. HRP supports this by developing a systematic plan for getting,
organizing, developing and retaining people.
What value does HRP add?
HRP makes a number of specific contributions to added value:
To integrate human resource activities into the business (vertical integration)
To integrate human resource activities with each other (horizontal integration)
To strengthen control over staff numbers and costs and to determine whether growth or
reductions are necessary
To profile current levels and attributes of staff
To identify the need for training and development.
How does HRP fit with other strategic activities?
HRP is a vital strategic activity. HR directors are increasingly members of the board and, as such, they
have a specific role to play in the formulation and vertical integration of HR objectives, policies,
procedures, plans and strategy. These highlight the type of plans that contribute to the overall
corporate and strategic plan along with the finance plan, operational plan, marketing plan, etc.
What is the difference between hard and soft HRP?
(a) Soft HRP involves the assessment of four categories or areas:
Defining where the organization is now
defining where it wants to be in the future
Analyzing its external environment, influences and trends (over which it has no
control)
Formulating plans to implement necessary changes.
These four categories are important stages in the strategic planning process. Soft HRP is concerned
with the formulation of the mission, goals, objectives and strategy of the organization and how
variables such as growth, product, life cycle, competitive advantage and HR development will impact
on its human resources.
1
, ABA 204: HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Maseno University
(b) Hard HRP concerns the type of activities the HR department will need to carry out to ascertain the
appropriate level of human resources; whether its current level is sufficient; whether there is a
deficiency in one department over another, etc. Hard HRP activities include:
Forecasting: is the number of employees required, in the future to support the demand for the
organization‟s products and services. It also includes the assessment of the internal and external
supply of human resources.
Analysis: of how current employees are being utilized throughout the organization and how this
impacts on demand.
Monitoring and review: reconciling HR plans with actual practice and facilitating any amendments
needed to plans.
B. THE PROCESSES OF HUMAN RESOURCE PLANNING
How do I assemble a HR plan?
HR planning can be complex but in its simplest form it centers on supply and demand forecasting:
Forecasting (over the period covered by the plan) the numbers and attributes (knowledge,
skills and attitudes) of staff that will be: Responding to the gap between demand and supply:
Demand Needed
Supply – internal Available internally
Supply – external Available externally
Recruitment -Redundancy
Redeployment -Upskilling/Multiskilling
Career development/ -Talent management
Changing contract terms/ -Flexible firm
These activities must be proactive rather than reactive, which means that they must be planned. This
requires extensive information about the:
Corporate plans for the organization – for both numbers and types of people needed
internal labour supply – numbers, capabilities and cost of the people in the organization
External labour supply – numbers, capabilities and cost of the people available from outside
the organization.
Failing to establish a correct balance between the supply of and demand for labour in an
organization can lead to:
Shortage of staff or of skills – If an organization employs fewer staff than it requires, it is
unlikely to be able to meet its production and sales targets, machinery and stock will be under
used and it is likely to fail to meet its targets.
2
