Foreword

We all exist today in a totally transformed world. The process of transformation is still on and is gaining speed every day with new technological developments. With the new technological developments business models are changing and ‘people’ or HR (Human Resources) are the main sources of this change. People are the initiators of this change as well as intended beneficiaries. They invent technologies; use them both for good as well as for purposes that are not that great. As generation after generation keeps passing through this high speed of change, the day is not too far for people to become products of technology way more than being the producers and users of technology.

In this fast transforming world, ‘people’ have always been at the center stage. Organizations managed people with various systems, tools and processes that are largely administered or managed by the Personnel or Human Resources departments. However, in the past people were taken for granted by organizations based on false assumptions of what motivates people and why people work and play productive roles in organizations. Day by day we are discovering the new facets of this human being and to add, we are still discovering new potential of the “Person” or human Being. Recently it is suggested by some mystics like Sadhguru of Isha Foundation that Human beings are not resources and they are “possibilities”. In fact, Sadhguru goes to the extent of saying that it is a crime to call human being as a resource, as the concept of resource is associated with measurement and all that is measured limits itself. This frustration with the term human resources is not new. For several years since the term human resources development was invented and popularized, many have criticized the “Resource” part of HR to say that, treating humans as a resource is demeaning and dehumanizing the human being. Some others took view that the very concept of human resources lifts the limits as HR means exploring the limitless capabilities of the human being. Both schools of thoughts agree that human capabilities are limitless, and they need to be explored. It is this focus on the unlimited capabilities of human beings that make them the drivers of business in the competitive world or VUCA world or for that matter any world.

The Strategic Human Resources Management school of thought is based on the belief that people can make things happen and to get them to make things happen the systems, processes, and activities are need to be focused. Such a focus is provided by the business strategies. Since businesses exist to serve people and to serve them effectively, the business goals must be well understood, articulated, envisioned and clarified. The unlimited human talent that exists in corporations or in organizations should be directed to achieve these goals. In the absence of this alignment, human resources get wasted or HR value addition comes down drastically.

Strategic Human Resources Management is nothing but the constant discovery of ways and means to align and utilize human capabilities or talent to meet business goals and establish a competitive or collaborative advantage for organizations.

SHRM uses various tools and strategies. These need to be understood. In this book, Ekta Sharma has done tremendous good to the HR profession by putting great effort to explain various facets of SHRM.

The coverage in this book on SHRM is very comprehensive. Some of the highlights of the chapters deal with aspects like changing role of HR professionals, traditional and nontraditional ways of investing on people, aligning HR strategy to the organizational strategy, work force planning and optimal utilization of workforce, strategic integration, validity and reliability of selection tools, strategic role of L&D, performance management system, competency mapping, high performance work systems, HR metrics & HR score card, impact of HR practices on organizational performance, strategic alliances & mergers & acquisitions, learning organizations and knowledge management, role of HR in institutionalizing KM, impact of HR practices & policies on the knowledge sharing, and managing change. One can’t expect any better coverage than this in a book of SHRM.

Each chapter of the book is well organized with defining learning outcomes, case studies and real-life experiences apart from conceptual under pinnings.

The book draws heavily from the conceptual contributions of worldwide experts of HR like Dave Ulrich, who defined the role for HR strategist as an agent of continuous transformation and the manager of intellectual capital and knowledge. Dave and others in recent times have talked of different roles of HR as a strategic partner, change agent, administrative expert, and employee relations expert.

Ekta takes the view that SHRM is the creation of linkage or integration between the overall strategic aims of business and the HR strategy and implementation.

The strategy is formulated at three levels: Corporate, business unit and functional and the strategic alignment at all three levels is crucial and critical for the attainment of organizational objectives. The strategy can be formulated on basis of cost, differentiation and focus. Strategic management process has different stages vision and mission, environmental analysis, strategy formulation, strategy implementation, and evaluation. HR’s role needs to be transformed as the ‘Strategic Business Partner’. The book also maintains that the HR strategy differs according to the stage of the business life cycle. The organizational strategy can be achieved by aligning the strategy at all levels.

The key features of the book include: Indian cases—opening case as well as end of the chapter case; Industry Insights—Examples from Indian corporate; Research insight with findings from the research; Interviews of HR professionals (Primarily Indian) with citations of references, Internet sources for reference like suggested readings, videos, tools and instruments, and suggested projects or assignments along with the review questions.

Ekta has done a great job in writing this book which will be of immense use and presents a good and contemporary knowledge bank on Strategic HRM and HRD.

I would strongly recommend this book to be read and used by all management students, faculty, and all managers in organizations. No business strategy is complete without a people strategy and today there can be no business without people.

T. V. Rao
Founder President, National HRD Network and Former Professor at IIMA