This paper addresses four core questions in human resource management: why organizations need an HR plan, how HR planning supports operational strategy, the value of a human resources information system (HRIS), and how contemporary workforce trends — including an aging workforce, rising healthcare costs, e-learning, and electronic employee monitoring — reinforce the need for proactive HR planning. Drawing on foundational HR and corporate strategy literature, the paper argues that effective HR planning is not merely an administrative function but a strategic imperative that directly determines an organization's ability to execute its business goals.
According to Michelle Kalra, writing in the online journal ProfitGuide, "People are the greatest competitive advantage any company has; they're the source of new ideas" (2005). In consideration of this fact, it is essential that a company place great emphasis on a sound HR plan — the mechanism through which this competitive advantage is both gained and maintained.
A good HR plan allows an organization to develop a vision concerning its forecasted HR needs for the year and to anticipate the tasks and responsibilities likely to be required. This enables the HR department to make available the manpower necessary to meet those responsibilities. Additionally, a well-constructed HR plan can:
(Kalra, 2005)
A good HR plan therefore includes a description of how the HR goals align positively with the overall business plan, allowing for the elimination of goals that do not serve the organization. It also identifies areas in which effective HR management is most urgently needed — particularly where problems have become ongoing issues, such as high employee turnover. Without addressing points of improvement, risk, cyclical concerns, and a method of assessing overall HR performance, any HR plan remains incomplete.
According to Gerry Johnson and Kevan Scholes, authors of Exploring Corporate Strategy: Text and Cases, operational strategy is the method by which a company organizes itself to deliver its desired direction — especially with regard to resources, people, and key processes (2001).
Human resource planning is critical to overall operational effectiveness because it is ultimately the workforce — both individually and collectively — that determines the extent to which organizational goals are achieved. The presence or absence of the necessary workforce capacity, in terms of number, quality, skills, motivation, and performance, can make or break a business's actual operations. Simply put, even the most well-conceived strategy cannot be implemented without the necessary human resources.
With effective HR planning, it is possible to develop the ideal workforce for a particular strategic purpose. This involves aligning the overall business plan — including the organizational strategy — with the outcomes of a strong HR plan: a workforce possessing the required skill sets, the right roles to bring those skills to fruition, and the sustained maintenance of that workforce to ensure availability at critical business moments. A shortage of human resources at a pivotal point in a product or service cycle, for example, can be severely damaging.
In short, the human resources of any organization are the means by which strategy is implemented. Allowing the HR plan to lapse into ineffectiveness weakens that capacity and undermines the organization's ability to execute its goals. As Johnson and Scholes emphasize, aligning people strategy with business strategy is not optional — it is foundational to operational success.
"HRIS functions and its role in HR decision-making"
"Aging workforce, healthcare costs, e-learning, and monitoring risks"
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