HRM and Personnel Mgt.

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             Human resource management (HRM) is a general term used to describe a variety of functions aimed at effectively managing an organisation's employees or "human resources. " HRM professionals oversee the "people" side of an organisation including benefits, career development, training, hiring, and many other functions. Though many people know the human resources department as the people who conduct interviews and explain company benefits, the profession has a much greater role in business today. The goal of HRM is to assist organisations to meet their strategic goals by attracting and retaining qualified employees, and managing them effectively while ensuring that the organisation complies with all appropriate labour laws. The field of human resources, formerly known as personnel, is currently in transition. In the past, HR was viewed as primarily an administrative function. That view is changing. The HR professional of today must understand the entire business, not just human resources. Today's HR practitioners are becoming strategic business partners who act as consultants to senior management on the most effective use of an organisations' #1 resource: its employees. .
             Models of personnel management have always been changing, and the title given to the management of people has been modified considerably over the years in response to changes in organisational structure. The metamorphosis of personnel to human resource management is a reflection of the contemporary view of employees as the company's most valuable asset (Dessler, 1997: p. 17). However, there are those who believe that HRM really isn't any different to personnel management. HRM has been described as nothing more than "old wine in new bottles" (Armstrong, 1987: p. 35). But even if the contents are the same, the "new label" may help to give the personnel function a more contemporary image. Though unless there is also a new approach beyond the rhetoric that is concomitant with this updated title, the change of name will have little real effect (Guest, 1989: p.