BPersonnel ManagementusinessDictionary.com defines Personnel Management as administrative discipline of hiring and developing employees so that they become more valuable to the organization. It includes (1) conducting job analyses, (2) planning personnel needs, and recruitment, (3) selecting the right people for the job, (4) orienting and training, (5) determining and managing wages and salaries, (6) providing benefits and incentives, (7) appraising performance, (8) resolving disputes, (9) communicating with all employees at all levels.

As you can see by the above definition, there may be some confusion due to the drastic similarities between personnel management and HR management. That confusion is well warranted, because early on in the study of this subject it began to be known as personnel management, with an evolution to human resource management.

It is clear…the difference denotes a shift in focus and strategy and is in tune with the needs of the organization,  HRM concentrates on the planning, monitoring and control aspects of resources whereas Personnel Management was largely about mediating between the management and employees.  Many experts view Personnel Management as being workforce centered whereas HRM is resource centered.  In conclusion, the differences between these two terms have to be viewed through the prism of people management through the times and in context of the industry that is being studied. – Taken from Management Study Guide (www.managementstudyguide.com/personnel-management-vs-hrm.htm)

If you read our recent article on Defining HR you may have come to the conclusion that this is an ever-expanding and critical aspect of business management, with regulatory compliance issues and government interaction involved.  Our litigious society has created an environment whereby businesses of all sizes must be cognizant of things such as reasonable accommodation, Fair Labor Standards Act, EEOC, Title VII, OSHA and an entire cacophony of rules and regulations with which to comply.  While businesses with less than fifty employees are not subject to all of the sections the Department of Labor has, you should be aware of the potential restrictions and ways to operate in good faith and above reproach.  The ever-expanding role of the HR management team requires information at their fingertips to be successful.

The Office of Personnel Management, otherwise known as OPR, where recruitment, testing, evaluation and the other people aspects of HR are handled, handles the US Government’s human resources responsibilities. The physical resources pertaining to human resource management is handled by other government agencies such as GAO, the General Accounting Office.  Their system is largely automated, and field personnel may access much of the immediate need information from the Internet.

Today there are tools by which to better manage and administer personnel management, as employees are able to self-access digitized information at the click of a button.  Today businesses are establishing kiosk-style access points for employees to verify vacation time on the books, sick days, policy clarifications, documents, forms and all manner of information the business leader deems appropriate.  These automated systems not only improve communication, but they also improve productivity.  Instead of an employee leaving the work area to speak with HR, they can literally access what they need either from their desktop or nearby kiosk, mobile applications are fast becoming available that provide off-site or on-the-go means to access said information.

In the end, it is all about the people aspects of business, whether it is the human aspects or the resources such as training information, policies, procedures or equipment, Personnel Management and/or Human Resource Management mindsets must work toward a cohesive, positive environment for today’s businesses to succeed.