HUMAN RESOURCE

Competency-Based Human Resource Management Traditionally, human resources departments and organizations have existed to fill jobs and manage the people who do jobs. Authors David D. Dubois and William J. Rothwell suggest a different approach: recruiting and managing competencies instead. The distinction is important, the authors say, because thinking of an organization as an aggregation of jobs makes it difficult to change quickly in response to new opportunities and threats. Much of what the authors suggest is plausible; some of it is even persuasive. On the other hand, their guide is as much an academic text as a manual for corporate use. Multiple references to other sources and dense definitions impede the clear path to practical, actionable advice. In that quest, the reader is grateful for the authors??? useful planning tools, checklists, worksheets and other task-related aids, which compensate for the jargon and repetition. While wishing for a slightly less academic approach, getAbstract.com recommends this innovative take on human resources management to those staying abreast of changes in the field.

A Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice Human resources professionals will find Michael Armstrong???s book practical, helpful and relevant. It discusses all facets of current practice, including such relatively new developments as e-learning, and it discusses how you can help your organization implement change. The book would make an excellent college text, since it covers HRM???s evolution, principles, theories, practice, research, job descriptions and more. The author seems to have two goals: to provide comprehensive information about human resource management and to persuade upper level managers to integrate HRM into strategic planning. This would empower HR departments to generate broader organizational results. To get the most from this manual, given its textbook style, practitioners may wish to study it chapter by chapter. Since organizational philosophies, functions and practices differ, it even lends itself to further discussion when HRM professionals gather to share ideas and swap proven practices. getAbstract thinks those in the field will derive a great deal of value from this book.

Human Resource Champions Author Dave Ulrich reflects an awareness that many professionals keenly feel: in these highly competitive times, they must either evolve or stagnate. His book tells human resource (HR) leaders how to assume more vital, strategic roles within their organizations. He makes a convincing argument that successful companies must elevate HR to the role of a strategic partner, to enable it to implement programs that support an organization???s goals. Whether reading any book can put you in the forefront of hands-on transformation remains to be seen, but this volume certainly offers plenty of real-world case studies to back up its premise that HR professionals must step into a new, vital strategic role. Each company and each HR department is so different, however, that it may be challenging to apply some of these broad themes to specific situations. That said, the themes themselves ring true, although the book is now more of a classic than the innovative think piece it was when new. getAbstract.com recommends it especially to HR professionals as a comprehensive look at why you must conquer so much territory to keep your organization competitive.

Human Resource Development Research Handbook If you work in human resources, the manual put together by editors Richard A. Swanson and Elwood F. Holton III will probably find its way onto a shelf close by your desk, where it can be easily reached as a reference tool. The chapters of this book, which were written by different authors but have been organized into a logical whole, help span the gap between theory and practice in the human resources field. You???ll likely find yourself reaching for this dense, informative book every time your start planning a survey, training program or research project. If you???re not in HR, this book is more likely to find its way into cardboard box on a dusty shelf at the back of a dark closet. The content, although quite innovative and detailed, is simply too specialized for a general readership. Therefore, getAbstract recommends this book to human resource professionals at all level, and strongly encourages students of the discipline to study these pages before setting out in the real world of business.

Executive Resource Management Unless you own the company and all your children are born executives, creating an executive team is a deliberate strategic process. To put you on that path, Robert W. Barner offers a comprehensive guidebook for creating an optimum executive team. He examines ways to look at the competencies your firm needs, evaluate current leadership, recruit, build leadership skills, and prepare for succession and other issues. Support materials include a mix of charts, checklists, examples and rating forms. The book, a fairly authoritative, well-organized, in-depth exploration of the topic, is clearly, though somewhat dryly, written. Given the topic, getAbstract recommends it primarily to those involved in executive development and search techniques, including senior-level human resource personnel, organizational development managers and search consultants. It may be particularly enlightening for board members who find themselves involved in executive recruitment.

Dealing with the Boss from Hell An abusive boss can make you miserable. Enter Shaun Belding and his witty little book, which provides practical advice about how to deal with this difficult situation. He weighs the benefits of being confrontational versus those of trying to re-educate your bad boss. If all else fails, he says, a new job is a realistic, positive option. His insightful book looks at the issues of employee relations and general productivity from the employee???s perspective. getAbstract recommends it to boss-bedeviled workers who want to improve their situations either in or out of the company, and to human resource managers who want to correct problems inside their companies.