HRM In Australia: Current State, Trends And Challenges

Evaluation of Current State of HRM in Australian Economy

The report throws light on the different functions along with the role of the Human Resource Managers in various organizations’. Human Resource Management is one of the strategic approaches of the efficient management of the company as this helps the employees in the organisation to gain competitive advantage appropriately.  

The primary motive of the Human Resource Management department is to maximise the performance of the different employees and achieve the different strategic objectives in an efficient manner (Akyüz, Kaya & Özgeldi, 2015). Furthermore, this has been noticed that in the present scenario, this can be identified that HRM mainly focuses on hiring, motivating along with maintaining workforce within the businesses efficiently.

 The main aim and purpose of the report are to mainly focus on the current state of the HRM in Australia wherein the main highlight is required to be provided on the challenges along with trends and the impact of the same on the future role of the HR manager. The entire assignment is needed to be based on Australia, and the different implications of the same on the HR activities is required to be identified. Lastly, the analysis is needed to be done as to analyse the impact of the HRM activities on perceptions and role of HRM in the entire workplace.

 In the last twenty years, this has been noticed that the different companies in Australia are trying to manage the various individuals in much more competitive, deregulated and supportive manner. Additionally, this has been notified that the different practitioners support the development along with the implementation of the human resource development approach with proper integration of the corporate strategy (Howes et al., 2015). One of the main motives of the human resource management approach is to improve the overall organisational performance efficiently, and this allows the organisations in gaining competitive advantage. In the 21^st century, this can be analysed that HRM is one of the accepted managerial positions with the own profession along with training and professional networks as well.

In the present scenario, this can be seen that in different organisations in Australia, this has been recognised that there have been different kinds of HRM practices which are being applied to retain the employees who are the assets of the organisations as well. Additionally, the various human resource managers in the various organisations in Australia are trying to perform their role and functions to become more active (Glendon& Clarke, 2015). According to the Fair Work Act 2009, this has been analysed that the HR department has to satisfy the different demands of the employees appropriately.

However, this can be seen that there are different kinds of challenges in HRM which are being faced by the various organisations in a negative manner and this is affecting the overall efficiency of the firms. There can be different recommendations which can be provided to the managers in the organisations in Australia as this will be beneficial for the overall success of the firm and motivate the employees to improve their morale in performing the different tasks (Albrechtet al., 2015). As per the Fair Work Act 2009, under section 229, the employees in the organizations need to comply with the different rules and regulations which are being adopted by the company in different appropriate circumstances. 

Key Roles and Functions of Human Resource Managers in Australian Organizations

The challenges which are being faced by HR managers are required to be taken into consideration as this will have massive impact on the managers along with the perceptions of the HRM in the workplace as well. The discrimination act has been taken into consideration which helped in managing the effectiveness in the firms. Under the Equality Act 2010, there will be legal protection of the employees in workplace and this will strengthen protection in some situations as well.

Shuck et al. (2014), has commented that there are different kinds of roles and responsibilities of the various HR managers to recruit, train and proper professional development to the different candidates in an efficient manner. The primary purposes of the human resource managers are inclusive of the following aspects:

Recruitment- This is one of the fundamental parts and functions of the human resource managers in different organisations in Australia. Hiring is one of the primary responsibilities of the manager to devise along with strategic plan kind of campaigns along with different guidelines for recruiting the suitable types of candidates in the organisations efficiently (Chelladurai&Kerwin, 2017). The HR managers serve as the mediator between the different employer along with the candidate as they will be the one who will be communicating the company related policies and norms to the candidates.

 This is the first pillar of the human resource manager in the organisation which will be beneficial for the overall success of the firm and gain productivity in the entire market as well. The attracting the different talents in the organisations is the first planning requirement of recruiting workforce in the organisation in an appropriate manner (Bratton& Gold, 2017).

For instance-In Australian organisations, such as in PwC and Commonwealth Bank, this has been noticed and identified that the Human Resource managers try to put the best tool forward as this helps them in creating recruitment strategies which are detailed in nature in carrying out the hiring process.

  Secondly, the hiring of the resources is the other aspect which is taken care of by the different HR managers in the organisation which comes under recruitment. In the current stage, in Australian organisations, the HR managers run the different possible engines to found the suitable gem in the market in an efficient manner (Knies et al., 2015).

From the different articles of Deloitte Australia. (2018), this can be seen that HR professionals are not prepared for the future as there are no such introduction of HR robotics and digital transformation. Reviewing the article of Deloitte’s 2017, this can be identified that only 9% of the organizations in Australia feel that they have the capability to build HR practices and transform the same for the future growth and development.

On the other hand, the article of Deloitte. (2018), has suggested that the culture and leadership are the major challenges of HR which is being faced by the organizations in a negative manner. In Australian economy, the leadership hierarchies are not being managed and there is no such empowerment of the teams and there are less of the global diverse leaders which affects the overall efficiency of the different firms in a negative manner.

Recruitment

Training- This is the other aspect in which this can be seen that after recruitment, after selection of the suitable candidate, this can be seen that the training is the other aspect which is required to be analysed by the HR manager in the organizations as this will be helpful in making the different employees aware about the different skills of the job which is necessary for them to become successful (Brewster, 2017). The HR managers play a significant role in assessing the results of the training program along with grading the employees as per their performance in the different tasks performed by them.

For instance- This can be seen that in Commonwealth Bank in Australia, the HR departments provide a sophisticated and essential training to the different new joinee and make them aware about the various rules and regulations which are necessary to be followed after their training period in the jobs or the tasks in aneffective manner (Gradaustralia.com.au., 2018).

Professional Development- This is the other role of the HR manager in the different organisations which is closely related to training. This is the kind of professional development is vital for the organisation in improving the employee engagement practices and motivating the organisation and improves their morale (Kramar, 2014).

For instance- In Commonwealth Bank, Australia this has been noticed that there are various kinds of seminars and the conferences which enable the employees in establishing and maintaining the proper level of the efficiency in the different tasks which is beneficial for the organisation along with for the employees working in it as well.

Performance Appraisal- In this aspect, this can be seen that HRM is the body meant for the different employees, and this helps them in gaining a competitive advantage. The performance appraisal process should not restrict to once a year process as there can be application of the 360-degree appraisal system which will be beneficial for the increasing the overall potential of the employees. There can be mentoring and the training problems which can be beneficial for the improving the potential (Kramar, 2012). HR department needs to accelerate the pace of the involvement with the business which will be more impactful in nature.

For example- In PwC, this has been noticed that the HR manager holds the 360-degree appraisal for the different employees wherein the peers, higher level officials along with the outside stakeholders take part in the same and receive proper reports on the same appropriately. There are different kinds of rewards provided to the employees as this motivates them and helps them in performing better (PwC- 360° feedback., 2018).

Duarte, Gomes and Neves (2015), have commented that there are different trends which are being identified in the Australian economy such as innovation in HR along with changes in the sourcing of the talent in an appropriate manner. In different Australian organisations, this has been noticed that there is there is the end of the various static jobs and there are different agile ways of working as the HR in the multiple organisations which makes it useful in appropriately managing the different tasks. Furthermore, this can be seen that there are smarter recruitment techniques which will be beneficial for transforming the various tools in achieving the employees (Brewster & Hegewisch, 2017).

Training

The primary current trends in the Australian economy are being discussed as follows:

Usage of the talent websites is one of the current trends of HR in the Australian economy in which this can be seen that due to the rise in globalism, the different business owners are appointing the various Human Resource Professionals in the organization which will be beneficial for making the use of the international talent websites and forums to search for the different qualified employees in the organization effectively (Sheehan et al., 2014).

For instance- PwC uses the different job portals such as Naukri.com along with other such websites to search the suitable kinds of candidates for the different positions. By searching in such portals, the HR executives and the managers are gaining a proper idea on understanding the actual knowledge which is required for the specific kind of job, and this is beneficial for the overall success of the firm in an effective manner as well (Tung, 2016).

Cloud-Based Systems and technology are the other trends of the HR in the Australian market in which HR departments and the representatives are expressing their interest in different cloud-based systems, and this assists them in performing the tasks within a short period. With the different technological shifts, this can be seen that HR will be able to gain knowledge on recruiting the different employees and providing them with cloud-based on the job training aspects which will be beneficial for the success of the firm (Voegtlin& Greenwood, 2016).

Agile Human Resource Management System is the other aspect which is being used by the different organisations in the Australian economy. The various organisations in the Australian economy are adopting the agile techniques of working as reinventing HR essential and the new methods of recruiting along with the introduction of self-managed teams are essential aspects which play a significant role in the organisations as to attract more customers effectively (Jackson, Schuler & Jiang, 2014).

Outsourcing is the other aspect which is required to be analysed as the trend of HR in which it will be beneficial for the performing of different HR related functions. This helps in streamlining the human resource functions such as payroll, compliance management along with benefit administration. This will help in reducing the workload as all the services are being outsourced and this will be providing proper and efficient benefits (Jackson, Schuler & Jiang, 2014)

The inclusion of Chatbots in the HR domain is proved to be useful in nature wherein this is efficiently entering into the HR domain. The addition of chatbots will help in increasing the service level along with increasing efficiency and speed of HR. Furthermore, in the present scenario, there is enormous inclusion of different recruitment, onboarding along with training programs which are being done to improve the employee and candidate experience while working in the organisation (Marchington, 2015).

For instance- In Commonwealth bank, this has been noticed that the company uses the chatbots in making the experience of the employees effective. With the inclusion of the chatbots, this has been notified that there is enormous inclusion of the representative who is responsible for handling the calls and makes the entire system faster in nature (Gradaustralia.com.au., 2018).

On the other hand, this has been noticed that there are different kinds of problems which are required to be analysed as faced by the Australian firms. The different types of issues are being described as follows:

Firstly, the ageing workforce is the first and foremost challenge in the HR domain wherein this has been noticed that the employees who are working in the organization for a long span of time are the assets of the organization. However, there can be breach of communication between them and the young generation who are working in the organization in the present scenario. Furthermore, this has been noticed they are not so adaptable to the different technological advancements which can be one of the major challenges (Von Bonsdorff et al., 2018).

Secondly, workplace diversity is the other threat which is being faced by the different HR professionals working in the organisation. Furthermore, there will be increased training costs which are being designed to promote diversity in the workplace, and this can be a considerable disadvantage for the HR department in increasing the diversity in the workplace (Reiche et al., 2016).

Furthermore, retention of the employees in the workplace is the other challenge which is being faced by the HR department in different organisations. This has been noticed that there is less motivation provided by the respective department to the various employees working in the organisation and there is enormous resistance to change among the employees as well (Akyüz, Kaya & Özgeldi, 2015).

As per the PwC Surveys (2018), there is lack of talent or shortage of talent in the workplaces in the present scenario as this has been noticed that the needs and demands are not being matched in an effective manner. In the present scenario, this has been seen that the employees are resistant to change as they are not being able to cope up with the changes in an effective manner and this is affecting the overall efficiency of the firm as well (Reiche et al., 2016).

These are the significant challenges which are being faced by the HR managers and the departments in the different kinds of organisations in a negative manner. This has been noticed that due to the enormous competition in the market, there is implementation of technological advancements in the different organizations and this has been fearful for the employees as they due to the progress, there will be a smaller number of employees as every aspect are becoming automatized in nature (VonBonsdorff et al., 2018).

Due to the different current trends, this can be seen that the Human Resource managers will be beneficial for the success of the firm in an effective manner. Shortly, the market will become more competitive. Therefore, the HR trends such as agile human resource management activities along with proper performance appraisal programs will play a significant role in making the different technological advancements and gaining competitive advantage in the overall market as well. Additionally, this has been noticed that this will become more efficient in the various services which will be beneficial for the success of the firm and the entire productivity (Von Bonsdorff et al., 2018).

 However, on the other hand, there are different kinds of negative impacts of the HR trends on the different aged employees working in the organisation. The new HR trends will not be known to them, and this can affect their morale in ineffectively performing the various activities. As those employees will not be technologically advanced and they are not averse with such kind of technology, this will be difficult for the employees to adjust to certain types of aspects negatively (Shen & Benson, 2016).

 On the other hand, there are different kinds of challenges which can affect the role of HR in different workplaces such as there will be resistance to change among the various employees. Furthermore, when there is resistance among the employees due to the change, this will be affecting the overall efficiency of the tasks performed by them, and this will affect the entire productivity of the organisation negatively as well. In the Australian economy, this can be seen that there will be talent shortages and the diversity will be impacting in a negative way (Shen&Benson, 2016).

This has been noticed that in the present scenario, the employees have the basic knowledge regarding the different aspects and they lack the actual knowledge which is required for the special domain works. The special domain knowledge plays a vital role which will help in technological advancements and this will be helpful in becoming more competitive in nature.

Therefore, this can be recommended that there are different kinds of strategies which can be efficiently adopted by the HR manager. With the proper and strategic organisational change, this is essential to increase the overall quality, productivity and employee satisfaction. To reduce the resistance to change among the different employees, this is essential to provide a proper training program like this will play a significant role in gaining competitive advantage. Employee satisfaction is the primary attribute which is required to be taken care of by the employees and increase more competitiveness in comparison to the other competitors in the entire market.

As the HR will be facing the different kinds of HR challenges negatively, therefore this is necessary to make the employees aware about the change which is going to take place in the organisation as this will be helpful in gaining competitive advantage in the entire market. The succession and career planning programs are required to be taken care to become more efficient in the future, and this will increase the employee diversity aspects as well (Stone et al., 2015).

Lastly, the health and welfare programs are required to be taken care of by the different HR departments in organisations which will be useful in strategic involvement. Furthermore, the HR needs to outsource their employees to various organisations through the usage of the proper and advanced portals as this will be beneficial for the overall success of the firm in an efficient manner (Armstrong & Taylor, 2014).

Conclusion

Therefore, this can be concluded that human resource management plays a significant role in the different organisations in an effective manner. HRM is one of the evolving functions which helps in responding appropriately to the different kinds of internal along with external sorts of changes in an efficient way. There are different kinds of roles and the functions of the HR manager in gaining great competitiveness in the organisation. This has been noticed that the proper recruitment along with training programs are the other aspects which are being taken care by the HR professionals in order to become more competitive in nature.

Additionally, this has been noticed that there are few current trends along with challenges of the HRM practices which is affecting the role of the HR managers in a negative manner. The problems are inclusive of the shortage of talents along with immense competition, and these have an enormous impact on HR in the entire workplace. There are recommendations which can be analysed in which this can be provided to the HR managers to improve their performance effectively.

With the help of the current trends, this can be analysed that there are different kinds of innovations provided to organisations in Australia to become a more competitive advantage in the entire competitive environment. The proper evaluation of the current state of HRM in the Australian economy is consistent since the year 1908 till the 21^st century, and this has helped the company in becoming efficient towards the different HRM functions as well.  

However, the different challenges of HRM can have and create a negative impact on the different HR related practices, and this will impact the entire competitiveness and productivity of the organisation negatively. Due to the ageing workforce and the vast competition, there has been enormous resistance to change among employees as they feel they are not being provided with proper importance by the companies for their effort. Additionally, as there are massive shortages of the talent in the workforce and this has affected the overall efficiency of the firm in a negative manner.

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