Abstract
With the emergence of technology in the business world, there have been many changes both by companies and employees. Over the last few years, technology has taken over many activities that are carried out in organizations. The human resource department is the most affected one, but greatly in a positive way.
Introduction
The human resource department has taken a different turn over the last few years with the emergence and use of technology. Many things and functions of the department are being done in the modern ways. These include recruitment and selection, hiring, training, and development, among others. This project paper will focus on how much technological advancement has had on the human resource departments in many organizations, both positively and negatively Arman and Mishra (2010).
Literature Review
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Transformation in recruitment and selection processes
Way before the internet and the use of social media were introduced, the only means of advertisement for job vacancies were through the posting of letters and word of mouth. That has, however, changed and made the work of human resource managers easier. Job seekers can easily access as well as connect with different companies on phones, emails, social media and many other platforms Beer (1997). This has helped the human resource managers to have a variety of qualified applicants and, therefore, can easily choose the best among the many who have applied for the post. The use of technology has, however, affected the competence of the people employed in some organizations as human resources may fail to have a proper background checkup or have too much reliance on online information.
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Ease of communication
This has been affected by the use of technological gadgets. Human resources can quickly and easily communicate relevant information across all departments. The method of text messages, emails, links, and other communication apps have made this possible. Organizations that have offices in more than one country or different locations have benefited from this advancement.
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Training and development
Many organizations have adopted training and development for their employees. This is mainly done to acquit them with the new changes and keep them up to date with all the technological advances happening in the world of business. Technology has enabled learning in these workshops to be more effective, and employees can take these training online without having to travel to different places Walker (1982). The use of gadgets like iPads, computers, and PowerPoint presentations has made it easier for the human resource department to conduct these training every once in a while. Web-based training can also be undertaken, and it is very beneficial as it covers a substantial number of people at the same time, reducing cost and time. The use of technology in training has, however, been limited to those people who do not have the know-how of these gadgets and is therefore discriminative in some way.
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Data analysis
Analyzing employee performance in the organization has been made more effective. The hr departments can access personal data and assess their performance and other apparent standards. The department can gather enough useful information on their employees to get a perfect picture of all of their employees. However, too much information on a person may be viewed as an invasion of privacy. This could also put the HR department at risk of ending up with too much data that they cannot manage Shawn and Shrivastava (2003). This also leads to HR misreading data or making assumptions that would have been cleared by face-to-face conversations.
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Decision making
Technology has helped HR managers make decisions quickly using the newly introduced IT tools that can analyze and summarize a significant amount of data and information with speed and get useful and relevant results. The general work of the HR managers has been made more accessible and more effective.
Analysis
The case study relating to the impact of technology on human resource management is that of Tata Sky, a satellite television provider operating as a joint venture in India and the UK. Due to its massive expansion policy, the company has been continuously faced with running and maintaining the HR department, which has to control and monitor everything happening in the company. Over the years, they have been struggling to keep professionalism and enhance the smooth running and smooth transitioning of the company with the drastic change in technology.
Tata Sky has used technology in many functions of the HRM departments, which include recruitment, training, and development of recruits and the existing ones, as well as data storage, among others. This has facilitated the functioning of the company and the affairs of the companies, especially with the many offices they have in the two countries.
Conclusion
To conclude, it should be identified that technology has had both positive and negative impacts on human resource management. In this regard, the project paper highlighted some of the major areas of HRM where the use of technology has had a direct impact and their significance in those areas. These technological advancements have changed the face of human resource departments in any organization and have helped them reach greater goals and strategies of effectiveness.
References
Akman, I. and Mishra, A. (2010), “Information Technology (IT) in the field of Human Resource
Management”, Public Personnel Management Volume 39 No. 3 Fall.
Beer, M. (1997), “The transformation of the human resource function: Resolving the Tension Between a Traditional Administrative and a New Strategic Role”, Human Resource Management, 36(1).
Shaw, B. and Srivastava, S. (2003), “Liberating HR through technology”, Human Resource
Management, John Wiley & Sons Ltd., 42 (3).
Walker, J. (1982). HRIS Development. Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York.
