How long has HRM or HRM been around? We need to be specific about which of these three aspects of the question we want to know.
- How long has the term HRM been used?
- How long have the functions normally covered by HRM today been studied and managed?
- How long has there been a dedicated unit, department or system dealing with human resource management functions?
Definition of HRM
Let’s define HRM first. Essentially, HRM deals with the policies, practices and systems that influence the behavior, attitudes and performance of employees in the workplace. HRM is a human talent / skills management process to achieve the organization’s goals. For HRM, the central objective of all management is fundamental, to increase predictability and achieve better control of events related to people in the organization.
Examples of processes normally handled by HRM are
- Compensation & Benefits
- Industrial relationships
- Performance and evaluation
- Occupational health, safety and security management
- Staffing: Job Analysis, Hiring, Selection, and Retention
How long has the term HRM been used?
- The term HRM evolved in the US from the earlier Personnel Management or PM in the early 1960s.
- The Merriam-Webster dictionary states that the first recorded use of the term Human Resources is from 1961.
- In the mid-1980s, the term HRM or Human Resource Management began to appear and quickly replaced Personnel Management.
How long have the functions normally covered by HRM today been studied and managed?
The functions that HRM typically covers today have a much longer history than you might think. Many writers claim that the term Performance Management or PM was created in organizations first in the US to deal with the paperwork required to hire employees and handle payroll.
Although they did not use modern terms, there are many recorded cases of current HRM functions that are named in ancient texts.
- The ancient Code of Hammurabi of Babylon in 1750 BC. C. establishes minimum wages, obligations for skilled craftsmen to transfer their skills to apprentices, quality standards for builders, and health care obligations for slave owners.
- The Roman philosopher Pliny the Elder in the 1st century AD warned of the health dangers of handling zinc and sulfur and prescribed the use of protective masks made from animal bladder.
- In 1556, the German scientist Georgious Agricola in his De Re Metallica described occupational hazards and methods to improve occupational health.
But modern usage comes from the US, especially after WWII, when Personnel Management professionals wanted to differentiate PM from other managerial roles.
How long has there been a dedicated unit, department or system dealing with human resource management functions?
The first recorded modern dedication of a separate unit or department to HRM is from 1901 in the US The National Cash Register Co. faced a disruptive strike, but won the battle with the unions. Following this, company president John H. Patterson organized a personnel department dedicated to improving employee relations by handling employee complaints, layoffs, safety, and other issues.
Although they were not called that, people dedicated to human resource management functions began to appear in the US in the 1920s when mass production began to spread. Personnel managers were often called social welfare secretaries in the 1920s. Much of the modern theoretical work on HRM began around this period. Studies by George Elton Mayo (1880-1949), especially the Hawthorne Studies, are credited as the foundation of the Human Relations Movement in management.
Only after WWII will we be able to find specially designated units that perform typical HRM functions. In many Western countries, collective bargaining defined labor relations and human resource management gained importance.
Since the 1960s, Japan’s emergence as a trading power also required Japanese corporations to adopt efficient human resource systems.
Globally, HRM’s profile began to be widely recognized in the 1980s. Universities and business schools began teaching different aspects of human resource management in the 1990s. The School of Industrial and Labor Relations of Cornell University was the world’s first business school to undertake college-level studies in HR.
In the first decade of 2000, there was a strong movement to view HR as a strategic partner for the business rather than as a system of supporting functions. The most recent areas in which HR has become involved are corporate social responsibility and sustainable growth, as well as environmental concerns.