Article 08 : Balancing Soft HRM and Hard HRM that Impacts Talent Management Practices within an organization.

In the modernized business world, talent management has become an essential focus for organizations to recruit top talented employees and develop their talents furthermore. Therefore, modernized Human Resource Management practices plays a vital role following two approaches – Soft HRM and Hard HRM. Managing employees by balancing the mentioned HRM approaches, organizations can thrive for success because they are able to retain a talented workforce.

What is Soft HRM?

Soft HRM practices are more concerning from the human perspective. Therefore, employees are considered as assets to the company and leaders who follow this practice are motivating their subordinates well. This approach helps organizations to retain their existing employees, and the employee turnover could be maintained at a lower level. As previously mentioned, organizations who follow this approach would help employees to develop their career path by providing continues learning opportunities that are suitable for every individual.

Furthermore, Soft HRM practices created a work environment where every employee feels that they are being valued and motivated. As per previous research studies, if organizations adapt to this kind of HRM mode, the existing workforce will be highly motivated, committed to their assigned tasks and because of that the company performance and productivity will be developed (Ali et al., 2024). Soft HRM can also improve innovation skills of employees where companies also get tremendous benefits.

What is Hard HRM?

Moving on to the opposite side of Soft HRM, it cannot be considered as a fully negative practice of HRM. Hard HRM model is more concerned about the performance related to employees, productivity of the company employees and controlling the costs. The mechanisms that are used in this model is more autocratic because employee performance is being monitored in a stricter manner, where the salaries are also being paid based on the employee performance.

Employees are being closely monitored by the superiors to get the job done where employees get discouraged and their job satisfaction may also be reduced. The most negative impact is that the bond between the leader and the employees is not a strong bond. This would create a transactional leadership approach where achieving company objectives are given more priority than employee well-being (Ali et al., 2024).

The Balance Between Soft and Hard HRM in Talent Management

HR professionals and leaders of organizations are having a challenge to balance Soft HRM and Hard HRM practices within the organization. Talent Management mechanisms must not only focus on the strategic objectives of the organization but also must consider the long-term growth and employee well-being. If an organization can balance both mentioned HRM practices in an efficient manner, that company will be able to keep their workforce motivated and also they will be loyal to the organization.

Last but not least, in the modernized work culture, organizations should be able to create feedback loops where employees are encouraged to provide suggestions to develop Soft HRM practices and also the concerns they face at workplace. These kind of initiatives fosters unity in the workplace where there will be no any distance between the leader and his or her subordinates. Therefore, talented employees could be retained within the organization if they balance both Soft HRM an Hard HRM practices.

Conclusion

In conclusion, balancing Soft and Hard HRM within talent management practices is a crucial requirement at the present competitive world. Interacting Soft HRM practices to Hard HRM practices can help to foster and develop a productive and motivated workforce that ensures organizational objectives are being achieved in a meaningful manner. Therefore, organizational talent management professionals must ensure that to manage their workforce using Soft and Hard HRM practices effectively.v

References

• Ali, M.A., Shirazi, S.Z., Arshad, S.A. and Kemal, M.U. (2024) ‘Assessment of Human Resource Management Framework from Islamic Paradigm: Proposition of an Islamic Model of Human Resource Management’, Bulletin of Business and Economics (BBE), 13(1). Available at: https://doi.org/10.61506/01.00267.