The Evolution of Human Resources

‍‍Sommaire:
‍

1. Introduction
1.1 Definition
1.2 18th century
1.3 19th century

2. Théories
2.1 Taylor
2.3 Mayo
2.4 Maslow
2.5 Herzberg

3. The shocks that brought about these changes
3.1 Changes in employment law
3.2 The talent shortage
3.3 Start-up culture
3.4 The health crisis
3.5 The rise of social networks
3.6 The arrival of Generation Z on the job market

4. What about later?
4.1 Today
4.2 Skepticism
4.3 In 2050

1. Introduction

"The greatness of a profession lies above all in uniting people; there is only one true luxury, and that is human relations", says Saint Exupéry.

It's clear that since the beginning of time, everything that has been done (both good and bad) by Man has only been possible thanks to human relationships. Whether we're talking about the discovery of fire, the construction of the Library of Alexandria or the International Space Station, it's this combined effort that has made it all possible.  After all, Aristotle tells us that "Man is a social animal".

Without a spirit of togetherness and cooperation, we wouldn't be where we are today. The model of this organization has greatly evolved over time, through theories that have been refuted and reworked. Even more so, with the advent of new technologies, the way it works will change, if not completely transform. So we're going to take a look at the origins of this organization, how it has evolved, and what it could potentially become in 2050.

1.1 The eighteenth century

We'll start by looking at the role of the "human resource" function in the eighteenth century. The organization of men's work - 95% of whom were peasants - was carried out by the nobility in a very simple manner. Each peasant received a wage of around 20 sous tournament (Fourastie) per day, for precise tasks ordered by the Elite. In addition, when an individual belonged to a feudal estate, he or she received an important insurance policy - that of the king's protection. This may seem a far cry from today's HRD, but it's still important to note that over 300 years ago, the concept of organizing men at work already existed - with a fixed salary per task performed.

1.2 19th century

Similarly, during the 19th century, the company boss had his workers' loyalty for life. In exchange, he provided wages, housing allocations, health care and access to education. Over the course of these two centuries, we can see that even if the 'Human Resources Department' is not a pragmatic entity, its function is. As we know today, "the mission of the human resources function is to ensure that the organization has the personnel it needs to function, and that these personnel do their best to improve the organization's performance, while at the same time fulfilling their potential" (French Government). Although the means of achieving this were different, the 'human resources' function functioned in much the same way as it does today, in the sense that the superior was inclined to look after his subordinates well, since this would bring better results.However, the very important difference is that this relationship between superior and inferior, was in reality a power relationship in which the one in charge had full control. Let's take a look at how this power relationship will evolve over time, and the impact it will have on human resources.

‍
2. Theories

As society evolved, many theories were born. Their aim was to analyze systems in order to find the most effective way of managing a group of people. For the first time in history, people were asking the question "How can we optimize a company's potential?" based on people and how they function within a structure.

2.1 Taylor

The first to do this was Fred Taylor, who at the beginning of the 20th century found a way to optimize employees' efforts. Instead of focusing on a certain result to be achieved, he concentrated on finding the most effective way to get the employee to work. Whether it's finding the right tools, offering appropriate training or incentivizing rewards, he's convinced that this is the secret to business success. His theory of motivation is based on the principle that people are naturally motivated by financial rewards.

To take his theory to its logical conclusion, he breaks down each task into individual movements. He analyzes them to determine which are essential, and times the time needed to complete them. With this information, he eliminates the most useless and time-consuming tasks.

2.2 Mayo

Some years later, a Harvard professor named Elton Mayo became convinced that Taylorism was counterproductive. He believed it led to workplace accidents, conflicts and even poor product quality. Mr. Mayo's theory was that working conditions should be the employer's primary concern. He assumes that working conditions are at the root of motivation - he will try to demonstrate this. In the 1930s, Mr. Mayo went to Hawthorne's Western Electricity in Chicago to test his theory. The factor he decided to vary was the brightness in the factory, based on the idea that light levels would be proportional to effort. So, he starts by considerably increasing the light, and finds that employees are indeed more motivated than before.

With half of his hypothesis proving to be true, he decided to do the opposite in order to validate it fully. However, when he dimmed the lights, he realized that the level of effort was the same as before, so he was wrong. His hypothesis was therefore called into question, and he declared that the consequences were indirect. Talking to the employees to find out what had happened, he observed something incredible. What had motivated them to work harder was the fact that they were subjects of an experiment - they existed in the eyes of others, and had a real place (indefinitely). It was then that Mayo concluded that it was experience that increased productivity. It's not the working conditions that are decisive, but rather the psychological and psychosociological factors at work - the human being must be taken into consideration.

2.3 Maslow

In 1943, Abraham Maslow defined his Theory of Human Motivation, which built on Mayo's theory, while qualifying it. Below is the pyramid he created based on the universal, timeless needs of each individual. Here, he takes up Mayo's concepts, saying that the need to be taken into consideration is important - however, man's primary needs remain a priority.This pyramid is a real breakthrough in the human resources sector, since it shows in precise order, people's priorities, and how to motivate them within a structure. Nevertheless, many people feel that this system is too complex and not applicable to all professional structures.

‍

2.4 Herzberg

In the late 1950s, Herzberg found Maslow's pyramid not only too complicated, but also wrong. He therefore decided to divide Maslow's entire structure into two distinct factors:The first category are the hygiene factors, which echo Maslow's physiological 'needs' and 'security'. However, he explains that their presence is not motivating.

It's their absence that becomes a problem. Hertzberg explains that these factors cannot appear on the pyramid, since they are an absolute necessity, and make up the pyramid themselves. He explains that, although it's up to the employer to motivate his employees, it's above all up to them to do it for themselves. To do this, they need to be given more autonomy, control and responsibility. Only when employees are able to take decisions and initiatives for themselves will they feel truly fulfilled in their work.

‍

3. The shocks that brought about these changes

‍

In addition to numerous theories, many things accelerated this change in the world of human resources. Below are the main reasons for this evolution, each accompanied by a concrete example.
‍

3.1 The evolution of labor law

As we can see from the Roudy law of July 13 1983, the European directive imposes a principle of equality in all sectors of the professional world. Whether in terms of recruitment, remuneration or even promotion, the way human resources operate has inevitably had to adapt to the demands of the law and the public.

3.2 The talent shortage

In July 2021, almost 48% of companies claim to be experiencing recruitment difficulties. For several years now, Generation Z has been entering the job market, frightening employers with their unprecedented laxity. Indeed, as we saw in this article, young people have very different habits from previous generations. As a result, human resources now have an obligation to change some of the way they operate in order to match new expectations.

‍
3‍.3 startup culture

Startup culture is one of the main factors to explain the change in the way human resources operate. Indeed, during their 'scale up' periods, their strategy will inevitably change. With this comes a change in needs and visions. As a result, the HR department needs to be reactive, something that becomes more complicated in a large company. Whether it's identifying talent, understanding their skills, remunerating them or offering them training, there are too many time-consuming tasks to take into account. However, with the advent of technology, new HR Tech methods are beginning to take shape - making all these processes easier. Watch this video to understand the importance of implementing AI in human resources.

3.4 The health crisis

The health crisis has had a double impact on human resources. On the one hand, it meant that from one day to the next, an employee could fall ill or simply become a "contact case", and so stay at home. Given that between 40% and 50% of the population was infected, human resources had to learn to become much more agile. In addition to having to mark certain employees as 'absent' or 'ill', they also had to find daily or weekly replacements for certain tasks. The other impact is from an ethical point of view: "should antivaxers be forced to stay at home?" Being a highly problematic question, human resources had to learn to stand firm on their choices, while remaining agile - a paradox not easy to apply.

3.5 The rise of social networks

With social networks at the center of life in a developed country, reaching individuals has become something easy. Whether it's Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, or even Tiktok, many companies are using networks to find new talent. The rise of social networks facilitates the search and thus avoids the exorbitant prices that a normal recruitment would cost (€45,000 according to Hays)

3.6 The arrival of Generation Z on the job market

Generation Z, skeptical of the hierarchical model, is asking human resources to be very flexible with their way of working - whether in relation to their timetable or the desire to change tasks too quickly. As this article shows, today's young people have habits that have nothing in common with those of previous generations: how can they cohabit in the same working world?

‍

4. What about later?

4.1 Today

More and more, human resources departments are deciding to implement AI into their operations in order to facilitate or even eliminate time-consuming tasks. In addition, new techniques are being introduced, such as internal mobility, which has unavoidable benefits for a company. These can range from reducing recruitment costs to automating the payment process.

4.2 Skepticism

As we can imagine, the evolution of Artificial Intelligence will continue at exponential speed. As a result, many skeptics are emerging, with a fear of machine evolution. "We will be under the control of machines" "AI calls humanity into question "These fears, all of which are justified, cannot be applied in the human resources sector, which necessarily needs to be under human responsibility. Indeed, one of the roles of HR managers is to understand their teams, empathize with them and act according to their needs. Despite the fact that a machine can help with time-consuming tasks, it will not be able to replace the human skills needed in the sector.Thus, it is important not to be afraid of the implementation of AI in HR sectors, since they will necessarily remain in the hands of Man.

4.3 In 2050

In 2050, the HR function will be at the center of all business activities. Supported by AI software, it will have time to concentrate on non-time-consuming tasks, such as people mapping, people review and people development, three modules that will rapidly grow within the HR function. People Mapping is the ability to instantly identify the skills that each Talent possesses

People Review is the ability to make strategic decisions for each Talent based on the potential to be anticipated for the futurePeople Development is the ability to offer Talents development opportunities tailored to their skills, career paths and HR decisions.So, the aim of HR later on - having automated time-consuming tasks - will be to focus on Talents and their skills. Even if AI helps to do this, only Humans will really be able to understand them, accompany them, and help them train where they want to flourish - that's the job of human resources.

‍