Human resources is a term used to describe the individuals who make up the workf

orce of an organization, although it is also applied in labor economics to, for

example, business sectors or even whole nations. Human resources is also the nam
e of the function within an organization charged with the overall responsibility
for implementing strategies and policies relating to the management of individu
als (i.e. the human resources).
Human resources is a relatively modern management term, coined as late as the 19
60s. The origins of the function arose in organizations that introduced 'welfare
management' practices and also in those that adopted the principles of 'scienti
fic management'. From these terms emerged a largely administrative management ac
tivity, coordinating a range of worker related processes and becoming known, in
time, as the 'personnel function'. Human resources progressively became the more
usual name for this function, in the first instance in the United States as wel
l as multinational or international corporations, reflecting the adoption of a m
ore quantitative as well as strategic approach to workforce management, demanded
by corporate management to gain a competitive advantage, utilizing limited skil
led and highly skilled workers.
Human resource planning
A human resource (HR) department carries on a number of different functions, all
of which are related to a company's employees. This can include recruiting tale
nt, hiring workers, finding candidates for promotions and keeping tabs on future
potential hires. The department's role in securing employees for a company is c
alled human resource planning.
â Rigorous HR planning links people management to the organization's mission, vision,
goals and objectives, as well as its strategic plan and budgetary resources. A
key goal of HR planning is to get the right number of people with the right skil
ls, experience and competencies in the right jobs at the right time at the right
cost.â
A bit simpler definition is:
The process by which management ensures that it has the right personnel, who are
capable of completing those tasks that help the organization reach its objectiv
es.
According to R. Wayne Mondy's in "Human Resource Management," human resource pla
nning is the systematic process of matching the internal and external supply of
candidates with job openings that a company anticipates over a certain period of
time. Put simply, human resource planning is keeping an up-to-date compilation
of candidates inside and outside the company for future positions.
Introduction
Planning is very important to our everyday activities. Several definitions have
been given by different writers what planning is all about and its importance to
achieving our objectives. It is amazing that this important part of HR is mostl
y ignored in HR in most organizations because those at the top do not know the v
alue of HR planning. Organizations that do not plan for the future have less opp
ortunities to survive the competition ahead. This article will discuss the impor
tance of HR planning; the six steps of HR planning that is : Forecasting; invent
ory, audit, HR Resource Plan; Actioning of Plan; Monitoring and Control.
Quoting Mondy et (1996) they define it as a systematic analysis of HR needs in
order to ensure that correct number of employees with the necessary skills are a
vailable when they are required.
When we prepare our planning programme, Practitioners should bear in mind that t
heir staff members have their objective they need to achieve. This is the reason
why employees seek employment. Neglecting these needs would result in poor moti
vation that may lead to unnecessary poor performance and even Industrial actions
.
Human Resource Planning Forecasting
o In order to carry out human resources planning effectively, HR managers
and specialists must have the ability to forecast accurately, otherwise they wil
l not know what jobs will open and who will be best to fill them. Obviously not
every qualified candidate can be hired immediately, but HR workers must be able
to organize employees and future job openings to keep tabs on top talent, especi
ally in a competitive marketplace in which their skills will likely be in demand
. There are two main components of human resource planning forecasting: requirem
ents forecast and availability forecast.
Requirements Forecast
o Requirements forecasting is the process of human resource planning in wh
ich an HR specialist determines the number, skill and location of employees a bu
siness will likely need in the future to meet its goals.
Availability Forecast
o Availability forecasting is the process of determining whether a company
will be able to secure the employees with the skills it needs to meet its goals
, and what sources the organization will draw upon for these workers.
Forecasting in Practice
o Once a company knows the number and type of workers it needs, and how li
kely it is to be able to hire them, it can proactively work to secure candidates
for future job openings. If demand is roughly equal to supply, a company does n
ot need to take any action. If supply exceeds demand, an organization may want t
o consider downsizing, restricting hiring or instituting early retirement. (If i
t does not take action, it will spend heavily to retain too much talent, or invo
luntarily lose valuable workers by not compensating them.) Conversely, if there
is a tight supply of talent, a company should step up its recruitment and select
ion process to attract the brightest in the field away from competitors.
Since the market is always in flux and company plans change, HR planning and for
ecasting must be a constant process, keeping up to date with internal changes (p
romotions, retirements) and external forces, such as a surplus of workers due to
high unemployment.
IMPORTANCE OF HUMAN RESOURCES PLANNING IN ORGANIZATIONS:

Importance of Planning
Planning is not as easy as one might think because it requires a concerted effor
t to come out with a programme that would easy your work. Commencing is complica
ted, but once you start and finish it you have a smile because everything moves
smoothly.
Planning is a process that have to be commenced form somewhere and completed for
a purpose. It involves gathering information that would enable managers and sup
ervisors make sound decisions. The information obtained is also utilized to make
better actions for achieving the objectives of the Organization. There are many
factors that you have to look into when deciding for an HR Planning programme.
HR Planning involves gathering of information, making objectives, and making dec
isions to enable the organization achieve its objectives. Surprisingly, this asp
ect of HR is one of the most neglected in the HR field. When HR Planning is appl
ied properly in the field of HR Management, it would assist to address the follo
wing questions:
1. How many staff does the Organization have?
2. What type of employees as far as skills and abilities does the Company h
ave?
3. How should the Organization best utilize the available resources?
4. How can the Company keep its employees?
HR planning makes the organization move and succeed in the 21st Century that w
e are in. Human Resources Practitioners who prepare the HR Planning programme w
ould assist the Organization to manage its staff strategically. The programme a
ssist to direct the actions of HR department.
The programme does not assist the Organization only, but it will also facilitat
e the career planning of the employees and assist them to achieve the objectives
as well. This augment motivation and the Organization would become a good place
to work. HR Planning forms an important part of Management information system.
HR have an enormous task keeping pace with the all the changes and ensuring that
the right people are available to the Organization at the right time. It is cha
nges to the composition of the workforce that force managers to pay attention to
HR planning. The changes in composition of workforce not only influence the app
ointment of staff, but also the methods of selection, training, compensation and
motivation. It becomes very critical when Organizations merge, plants are reloc
ated, and activities are scaled down due to financial problems.

Inadequacy of HR Planning
Poor HR Planning and lack of it in the Organization may result in huge costs and
financial looses. It may result in staff posts taking long to be filled. This a
ugment costs and hampers effective work performance because employees are reques
ted to work unnecessary overtime and may not put more effort due to fatigue. If
given more work this may stretch them beyond their limit and may cause unnecessa
ry disruptions to the production of the Organization. Employees are put on a dis
advantage because their live programmes are disrupted and they are not given the
chance to plan for their career development.
The most important reason why HR Planning should be managed and implemented is t
he costs involved. Because costs forms an important part of the Organizations bu
dget, workforce Planning enable the Organization to provide HR provision costs.
When there is staff shortage, the organization should not just appoint discrimin
ately, because of the costs implications of the other options, such as training
and transferring of staff, have to be considered.
Steps in HR Planning
Forecasting
HR Planning requires that we gather data on the Organizational goals objectives.
One should understand where the Organization wants to go and how it wants to ge
t to that point. The needs of the employees are derived from the corporate objec
tives of the Organization. They stern from shorter and medium term objectives an
d their conversion into action budgets (eg) establishing a new branch in New Deh
li by January 2006 and staff it with a Branch Manager (6,000 USD, Secretary 1,55
0 USD, and two clerical staff 800 USD per month. Therefore, the HR Plan should h
ave a mechanism to express planned Company strategies into planned results and b
udgets so that these can be converted in terms of numbers and skills required.

Inventory
After knowing what human resources are required in the Organization, the next s
tep is to take stock of the current employees in the Organization. The HR invent
ory should not only relate to data concerning numbers, ages, and locations, but
also an analysis of individuals and skills. Skills inventory provides valid info
rmation on professional and technical skills and other qualifications provided i
n the firm. It reveals what skills are immediately available when compared to th
e forecasted HR requirements.
Audit
We do not live in a static World and our HR resources can transform dramatically
. HR inventory calls for collection of data, the HR audit requires systematic ex
amination and analysis of this data. The Audit looks at what had occured in the
past and at present in terms of labor turn over, age and sex groupings, training
costs and absence. Based on this information, one can then be able to predict
what will happen to HR in the future in the Organization.
HR Resource Plan
Here we look at career Planning and HR plans. People are the greatest asserts in
any Organization. The Organization is at liberty to develop its staff at full p
ace in the way ideally suited to their individual capacities. The main reason is
that the Organizationâ s objectives should be aligned as near as possible, or matche
d, in order to give optimum scope for the developing potential of its employees.
Therefore, career planning may also be referred to as HR Planning or succession
planning.

The questions that should concern us are:

a) Are we making use of the available talent we have in the Organization, a
nd have we an enough provision for the future?
b) Are employees satisfied with our care of their growth in terms of advanc
ing their career?
Assignment of individuals to planned future posts enable the administration to e
nsure that these individuals may be suitably prepared in advance.

Actioning of Plan
There are three fundamentals necessary for this first step.
1) Know where you are going.
2) There must be acceptance and backing from top management for the plannin
g.
3) There must be knowledge of the available resources (i.e) financial, phys
ical and human (Management and technical).
Once in action, the HR Plans become Corporate plans. Having been made and concur
red with top management, the plans become a part of the companyâ s long-range plan. F
ailure to achieve the HR Plans due to cost, or lack of knowledge, may be a serio
us constraints on the long-range plan. Below is an illustration of how HR Plan i
s linked to corporate Plan.
The link between HR Plan and Strategic Management
STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT -> HR PLANNING ï € STRATEGIC PLAN
Organizational goals Values
Organizational goals
Strong and weak parts Mission
Strong &weak points
Opportunities and threats Goals and P
riorities Opportunities & threats
Sources of Competitive advantage Resource Allocation
s Source of Competitive advantage
Identify People related matters Define HR strategie
s, Implement Hr Processes
Goals & plans Policy & Practices
HUMAN RESOURCES
PLANNING
Bohlander et as (2001)

Monitoring and Control.

This is the last stage of HR planning in the Organization. Once the programme ha
s been accepted and implementation launched, it has to be controlled. HR departm
ent has to make a follow up to see what is happening in terms of the available r
esources. The idea is to make sure that we make use of all the available talent
s that are at our disposal failure of which we continue to struggle to get to th
e top.

Do you have an HR Plan in action?

Let us all check where we are working and see whether there is really a Human Re
source Plan. If its not available, let use try to develop one and you would see
how you will make a difference. It is quite true that HR plan is the basis of Hu
man Resources Management. If we do not know how to develop it, then we are not d
oing an services to our Organizations and our impact will not be felt in the man
agement pool.
Objectives for Human Resources Planning
Human resource planning involves the hiring, development and retention of employ
ees in the achievement of organizational goals. This includes analysis of the cu
rrent workforce and how it aligns with future employment needs. By planning for
the future, human resources creates action plans aimed to satisfy organizational
goals.
Consider Future Workforce
o Organizations use strategic planning to achieve goals. This relates to t
he organization's vision, mission and strategic objectives. An organization must
analyze its future employment needs. If an organization decides it must increas
e productivity by 25 percent, it may need to grow its workforce by 2 percent. If
an organization wants to increase market share by moving offices into new locat
ions, it must consider the human resource requirements.
Analyze Current Workforce
o With future workforce needs considered, human resource planning must ana
lyze the competency of the present workforce. Comparing future needs with curren
t workforce strengths and abilities will identify gaps or surpluses.
Future Preparation
o Considering workforce surpluses and deficits, human resources must prepa
re action plans for the workforce. This includes identifying the type and number
of employees needed, employee competency, budget considerations, recruiting and
retaining measures, and the development and training of employees.
Evaluation Process
o Ensuring objectives are being met by the future workforce requires an ev
aluation process. This will determine if the workforce is adequate to satisfy st
rategic goals. Planning for this process now will more easily and quickly identi
fy future workforce gaps or surpluses.