Internal Users of HR Services
There are several users of HR services within an organizational setting. The first users are the managers. They rely on HR services to ensure that they have a team of highly competent employees who can deliver quality work on their assignments. The needs of the manager include finding effective ways of training for his or her employees and making them more efficient in undertaking their duties. The second user is the employee. HR services sharpen the skills of individual employees making them more capable to handle various tasks assigned to them. They need HR services to know how to interact among themselves and how to manage forces of change within their workplace. The third user of HR services is the business owner. As Jabbi (220) says, a business owner would always prefer having a management unit and a team of employees who are highly competent in their respective areas of assignment. HR services also address the need to have a more coordinated workplace environment where managers and junior employees interact with ease.
How HR/L&D Can Ensure the Needs of the Service Users Are Prioritized Effectively
Learning and development strategies can help ensure that the needs of the service users are effectively prioritized. To the manager, learning and development help in understanding the current capacities of the employees. This way, it becomes easy for the manager to compare the core competencies of the employees and what is needed at work. The manager can, therefore, identify areas that need urgent redress. The needs can easily be prioritized based on what is more pressing at every given moment.
The employees also have needs that are meant to ensure that they have a better capacity to undertake duties assigned to them. Learning and Development offer them an opportunity to assess their skills and knowledge in their respective fields. They can also use peers to help them understand areas of weaknesses that may need urgent redress. Using HR services, they can get to address these weaknesses in the most appropriate way possible.
To business owners, HR services are very critical in effectively prioritizing needs. According to Hrubos (232), business owners are always keen to ensure that their employees in management and other junior levels have the knowledge to deal with the emerging market forces. There are always numerous learning needs. However, it may not be financially viable to undertake all the training needs at once. It may be necessary to identify specific areas that need urgent attention because of their relevance at a given period. HR services help these business owners to identify issues of priority based on environmental needs.
Methods of Communication to the Service Users
Different methods of communication can be relied on by the service users. One method of communication that can be used is an internal memo. The main advantage of this method is that it is simple and it reaches a wider audience within a very short time. Once the message reaches a section of the employees, it becomes easy for it to spread among the intended audience. The main weakness of this method of communication is that it is always considered too general. Employees may fail to own the message.
A letter is another way of communication that can be considered, especially when the focus is to pass specific information. The main advantage of this method of communication is that it is very specific and cannot be ignored by the recipients. They have to own it as soon as it reaches them. However, its main disadvantage is that it cannot be appropriate if the intended audience is relatively large. It can also be time-consuming.
Phone calls can also be used as a means of communication among these three users. A phone call is particularly necessary in cases where there is a need for urgent feedback over a given issue. The main advantage of this communication method is that feedback is always received almost immediately. It can be used to find an immediate solution to issues affecting an organization. However, this method cannot be used when the target audience is rather large.
Key Components of Effective Service Delivery
All the stakeholders need to understand the components of effective service delivery. According to Colombo, Cullen, and Lisle (78), effective service delivery can only exist when there is a good relationship among all employees irrespective of their position within the firm. Effective and timely resolution of conflicts and complaints is also very critical in creating a harmonious working environment. The team managers may also need to find ways through which a firm can deal with difficult customers more effectively. At all times, it is always critical to understand the budget implications of the HR activities undertaken such as hiring and recruiting employees. The HR unit also needs to embrace the concept of continuous development. According to Colombo, Cullen, and Lisle (67), various environmental changes bring about different needs that employees should understand. Embracing continuous change means that these changing needs shall be addressed as soon as they are detected.
References
Colombo, Gary, Robert Cullen, and Bonnie Lisle. Rereading America: Cultural Contexts for Critical Thinking and Writing. Boston: St. Martins, 2013. Print.
Hrubos, Ildikó. The Changing Role of Universities in Our Society. Society and Economy, 33.2 (2011): 347-360. Print.
Jabbi, Buakei. The Structure of Symbolism in “A Grain of Wheat”. Research in African Literatures, 16.2 (1985): 210-242. Print.