Category: People & Relationships

Continued from previous article “What are Human Resources and Why Should It Matter to You?”
Macro HR is the strategic function of HR in a particular work environment. Macro HR encompasses the understanding of what HR means to a business. That is, how HR fits into the organization’s structure, mission and planning. Macro HR further incorporates policy and practice development and designating who administrates HR. Additionally, collective bargaining and union avoidance campaigns are generally considered macro related concerns. Some of the vernacular related to macro HR is strategic planning and organizational design and development.
Micro HR is the actual execution of duties as delineated at the macro level. These duties include the administration of policies regarding the selection, hiring, compensation, placement, performance management, promotion, conflict resolution, discipline and discharge of employees. Some of the terms commonly associated with micro HR are operations planning, practices, procedures and administration.
How Macro and Micro HR Impact the Bottom Line
As stated above, a business will encounter difficulties when it fails to account for changes to macro and micro HR practices and changes to our labor and employment laws. Such difficulties include an unsafe workplace, attendance issues, conflict, misconduct, union organizing campaigns, high turnover and litigation. Simply stated, when a business encounters HR related problems, money is lost.
Businesses have money coming in through the “front door” via revenue, venture capital, grants, investors, etc. However, much of this money can exit through the “back door” because of poor HR practices. For instance, time and money is lost when a business realizes, after-the-fact, that it hired the wrong employee and may now have to discharge that employee. Consequently, that business now has to spend money and time finding and training a new employee and may even have to defend its treatment and discharge of the former employee.
Recognizing and efficiently resolving these problems often costs a great deal of time, energy and money. However, time and energy spent upfront, proactively, on HR related matters could help to reduce, and in certain instances eliminate, the loss of money out the “back door.” Thus, HR becomes an investment in capital. Time, energy and money is saved and increased productivity and profits result. This ideology is commonly referred to as preventive, positive or proactive HR. Also, this is sometimes referred to as the human capital management philosophy.
Knowing which HR practices to adopt and which HR disciplines to focus on is crucial in resolving macro and micro HR issues. A competent HR professional knows which disciplines and policies to focus on and understands how the legal environment affects HR. A competent HR professional also knows that effective HR helps transform business from just a place to work into an environment which provides employees varied opportunities for meaningful contributions. Meaningful employee contributions lead to decreased operating costs, innovation and increased profits. Implicit in this explanation is the fact that results are measurable via means such as before and after analysis and time and expense audits.
More about Utilizing an HR Attorney as a Consultant will be explained in my article next week. Do look out for it.
As a labor and employment attorney and businessperson, Charles Krugel has represented management in hundreds of negotiations, in-house and 3rd party proceedings. Charles has over 13 years of experience in the field and he has run his own successful management side practice for the past 7 years.

The simplest definition of human resources (HR) that I can offer is that it’s the management of employees as a capital asset. A business acquires and manages employees, in a manner similar to acquiring and managing any other capital asset. Now what exactly does this entail?
Employees are human and they are a business resource. However, in the same way that machinery or equipment is capital that is acquired, utilized, appreciates or depreciates in value, and which can be improved, sold or discarded, HR relates to the management of employees in a similar manner. Although this explanation may seem callous, under closer examination it is evident that HR pays as much attention to the “human” half of its name as it does to the “resources” aspect.
HR concerns the approach and ideology a business adopts for the life cycle of its employees and its company culture. Recruiting, selecting, compensating, motivating, maintaining and promoting employees are all part of HR. HR further includes strategic, budget and succession planning. Consequently, to some extent, all businesses with more than one employee have HR concerns and practice HR. Furthermore, a business’ HR philosophy may be multidisciplinary or singular in approach.
For example, an HR ideology may focus more on labor and employee relations than on organizational culture and development. Yet, an effective HR philosophy has to acknowledge that because employees affect every facet of business, and are the human face of business, employees have the greatest impact on productivity and profits.
HR affects profit and productivity.
Therefore, in order to improve productivity and profits and decrease employment related expenses, management must know how to treat employees in a fashion which enhances their value. Ultimately, effective HR helps to maximize profits and productivity by minimizing employment related expenses and maximizing employee performance.
In U.S. industry, modern HR theories date back to the Industrial Revolution. Moreover, since the Industrial Revolution, HR has evolved along with changes in production, distribution, finance and, perhaps most importantly, legal and civil rights. HR poses problems for a business when it fails to understand how these changes influence macro and micro HR practices.
More about Macro and Micro HR will be explained in my next article. Do look out for it.
As a labor and employment attorney and businessperson, Charles Krugel has represented management in hundreds of negotiations, in-house and 3rd party proceedings. Charles has over 13 years of experience in the field and he has run his own successful management side practice for the past 7 years.

I outlined the steps you should take to prepare yourself for ‘The New Work World’. One of the essentials I mentioned was networking. Why is networking so important?
We all know how long it takes to establish a good business relationship. Doing so is an art. Learning to trust, understanding the give and take, setting the terms for mutual support. These things cannot be done in an instant. They take time. Start now. It will put you ahead of the others. Who are you going to have to rely on in your career and business?
Your colleagues, bosses, subordinates are the most important people as far as your career is concerned.
You will network with some of them because you like them. That’s valuable friendship. But your networking at work must go beyond that. You want to know what is going on in the business. Cultivate those of your colleagues who keep their ears to the ground. They can see the storms ahead.
Your customers, of course, come next.
But do we need to network with them? After all, they ARE customers. The answer is that eighty percent of your new business will come from your existing customers if you cultivate them. They are the second most important networking you will do. They must be high on your networking list.
Your suppliers are almost as important as your customers.
However clever and watchful you are you need the trust of your suppliers to be able to have trust in them. Never underestimate the help that a good supplier can give you if he is on your side – or the damage he can do if he isn’t. “You don’t see what the waiter does in the kitchen.” Your suppliers know what is going on in the business beyond your section of it. Their intelligence is invaluable. Make use of it.
Your shareholders – yes, even if you are not a Director it is sensible to know some of the shareholders.
They have a point of view and it’s a pretty important one as it determines the share price. Shareholders are knowledgeable but beyond their knowledge is a certain sense of the market often not observed by those too close to it. Make use of their knowledge. Use the knowledge of stockbrokers, too. Make friends with one or two. They have as close to an inside track as you can get these days. They don’t always get everything right – none of us does – but they are better informed than most.
Your competitors should be on your network list all the time. All business works well because of a mixture of competition and cooperation. Too much of either is bad. Often there is not enough cooperation. Besides, the next job is more likely to be with a competitor than with anyone else. How many of your competitors do you know?
The media are an essential part of your network.
They must be cultivated long before you need to give them a story. Find out which is the reporter dealing with your business – not just in the press but in TV, too, and on the radio; get to know them; socialize with them. You may become firm friends. That will be a great help to you when you have to mobilise their help.
Notice I have said ‘socialize’. Many people prefer to stick to their circle of friends and keep their non-work-time to themselves. In ‘The New Work World’ you can’t do that. You must be prepared to mix business and pleasure. The successful have been doing it for a long time. Now it’s your turn.
John Bittleston blogs at TerrificMentors.com, a site that provides mentoring for those who wish a change in career or job, wanting to start a business or looking to improve their handling of people (including themselves).

Entrepreneur: “Why can’t we all just get along?”
Rodney King’s 1991 plea has become part of our nation’s vernacular. While the dialogue on diversity has led to passionate conversations about what it means to be civil, we still struggle with the essence of the question: Why can’t we all just get along?
At the core of “getting along” are rules, obligations and norms that, when shared, provide the foundation for strong, stable relationships and flourishing communities. Through such conventions of civility, we learn about what polite behavior and manners mean to the community. Some might say these rules provide a sense of order; others would suggest that civility fosters feelings of well-being and positive relationships.
So, what can we do to foster workplaces that are more civil and respectful? First, we can have conversations about what being civil means for different people. This would provide some sense of shared norms, with the ultimate goal of creating respectful, valued relationships, strengthening communication, and fostering interpersonal and team collaboration. Some simple actions that we can all take include:
– noticing your point of view, particularly when you’re holding tight to it, and making a point to seek out and truly listen to perspectives different than yours;
– being curious about and interested in others;
– choosing to speak with someone face-to-face if you think there may be room for miscommunication via e-mail or over the phone; and
– speaking up when others are excluded.
Being civil means being constantly aware of others and weaving restraint, respect and consideration into this awareness. Civility is attending to the community at large in our everyday interactions. The goal is moving beyond politeness, tiptoeing around conversations so as not to offend, or saying what you think you’re supposed to say, to more authentic sharing.
The Unwritten Rules of Civility [Entrepreneur]