McPhee Andrewartha Active HRM

McPhee Andrewartha, established in 1978, has provided a range of HR specialist services, and in particular audits of HR functions. In doing so we have established an excellent relationship with staff at all levels and an ongoing liaison with human resources departments.

We have a proven track record in effecting significant improvements in organisational HRM performance through identifying gaps and recommending and assisting in the implementation of a range of HR initiatives from fine tuning to major reform.

We have conducted HR audits in a range of public and private sector companies ranging from 50 to 37,000 employees. We have a thorough methodology based on the principles of Biles and Schuler (1968) and adapted to the Australian business environment. This is complemented with the Andrewartha Correll HR Evaluation (ACHRe) targeted employee survey.

Our approach to auditing the HR function is successful in facilitating positive outcomes for organisations and individuals, adopts wide consultation, and encourages self responsibility.

·         We work closely with the CEO and managers in conducting our HR Audit, and speak individually with the majority of line managers, to form an overall, broadly based and detailed picture of HRM in your company.

·         We survey the majority of staff in a brief, unintrusive questionnaire, to gain an accurate picture how HRM is viewed by the employees of your company, and where they believe strengths and weaknesses are.

The HR audit process as we conduct it, is more than an information gathering and analysis process. It is a skilfully managed discussion with managers which is developmental and enhances the culture of the organisation. It spreads the understanding that HR management is everyone's responsibility. It is also an enjoyable process. Our approach is quite down to earth, and has as its basic aim, the need to match the culture so that the HR function is a natural extension of the nature and practice of the organisation.

For example, in working in the meat processing sector around Australia, the words and nature of the audit changed considerably in keeping with the size and the values of each of the different processing plants.

Finally, the real skill lies in the expert analysis, and the integration and effectiveness of the recommendations that flow out of the HR audit process.

The advantages of an HR audit

·         Prepares the foundation for effective HR management.

·         Helps to preserve the culture and values of the organisation.

·         Identifies gaps and potential problem areas.

Methodology

There are three elements to our approach to evaluating HR functions, each one providing specific, critical information in the overall HR Audit process:

1. HR Audit-Manager interviews

The primary audit tool is a series of structured interviews with managers at several levels of your company. The purpose of these interviews is to gather data relating to the understanding and opinion of eleven areas of HR by the managers.

The 11 HR FUNCTIONS are:

1.       HR Planning

2.       Job Design and Job Analysis

3.       Recruitment, Selection and Placement

4.       Employee Induction

5.       Communications

6.       Performance Management

7.       Training and Career Development

8.       Employee Relations

9.       Remuneration

10.   Occupational Health and Safety

11.   Organisational Structure

The outcome of these interviews is a rating of the various HR functions in your company, for each manager interviewed. The ratings provide a measure of the nature of key HR actions in your organisation, and a judgment about whether each of these actions is considered important to the management of the firm. Each interview requires about 60 minutes of the manager's time. It is a flowing discussion that allows the manager to describe their knowledge and opinions in a natural way.

2. Andrewartha Correll HR Evaluation survey

The ACHRe will provide a clear indication of how HRM is viewed by the employees of the organisation, who are the primary internal customers together with some specific indicators of where employees believe it is not functioning.

These results can be compared and cross-referenced with the managers' perceptions, which provides among other things, a sensitive gauge of the effectiveness of organisational communications.

3. HR benchmarking data

The benchmarking of human resource functions is the most recent and most dramatic development in HR to register the actual costs and benefits of the function in clearly quantifiable and financially demonstrable terms.

This analysis is based on the Australian Human Resources Institute/HRM Consulting InfoHRM Benchmarking Program. This is the largest established benchmarking program in Australia, covering in excess of 50,000 employees in a wide variety of industries from a minimum of 500 companies. It is the program that the 13,000 strong Human Resource professional body endorsed and has joined in partnership.

HR Benchmarking is a means by which you can identify and collect data relating to six key areas of HR functions in your organisation in order to provide:

1.       An internal benchmark of the costs and benefits of those services over time.

2.       To externally benchmark your organisation's data against the industry and other industries elsewhere in Asia

The full benchmarking program provides for collection of up to 467 individual data elements, giving great power to analyse HR functions quite specifically and in great detail.

By formally joining the AHRI/InfoHRM Benchmarking Program you can receive direct support in setting up this whole system, collecting the data, as well as receive the comprehensive annual report of all the Australian data for comparison.

The benchmarks are drawn from the InfoHRM Benchmarking Reports, published by HRM Consulting.

6 HR benchmarking areas

1.       Organisational effectiveness

2.       HR effectiveness

3.       Absence and turnover

4.       Recruitment

5.       Training and development

6.       Occupational health, safety and welfare

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