Human Relations vs. Human Resources

- Resources usually refer to static things, like objects, machines, money or buildings. But humans change and evolve: they are dynamic.
- The way people relate within an organisation determines its results. Successful companies are made up of normal people relating in a special way.

The HR-Department's mission within an Organisation

• Develop and use human potential
• Raise the employees’ commitment and promote social dialogue
• Enhance people’s and thus the organisation’s professionalism
• Foster Corporate Social Responsibility

Components of an adequate HR-Model

Key points for a good HR-model

1. Strategic commitment from the executive team: models only work, if the top team leads by lead them by example.
2. Simple tools are used, complex ones demotivate and overload the organisation with bureaucracy. Many sophisticated and thought-out HR-systems remain unused. (Competence management, elaborate performance appraisal, time-consuming 360º feedback...)
3. Fast implementation: the end-user needs to experience the advantages of the model, before he rejects them as useless or bulky.
4. Flexible: the model needs to adapt to the organisation’s evolution and not the other way round!
5. Transparency: information collected and generated by the HR-systems must be available and supported by active feedback.
6. Determined implementation: the chosen tools apply to everyone to safeguard cultural  coherence in the organisation. “We do what we said we were going to do”
7. Effective training for the proper use of the tools. We favour hands-on approaches and coaching on the job.
8. Balanced: the model should be effective and yet respect people’s and the organisation’s basic values das (Example of an out-of-balance procedure: 360° feedback-system without direct personal communication)