PUBADM 505 – Introduction to HR in Public Service

Outline

The importance of people for public service
What is human resource management (HRM)?
Basic components of HRM in government and nonprofit organizations
Thinking about HRM in government and nonprofit organizations

Or why we have a separate course on this and do not just send you to the business school.

Running Government and Nonprofit Organizations

Four main types of resources:

Human

Financial

Information

Time

Without motivated people, the rest of these resources will be squandered.

The Importance of People

Human resources are critical to organizational performance in government and nonprofit organizations
In government —
- People are the hands and feet of government, bringing policy to life
In nonprofits —
- People have the opportunity to tailor their public service to different communities of people to try to make a difference
When people work in public service, they have expectations for that employment relationship

HRM is the aspect of management that accentuates and guides the human processes involved in the pursuit of public purposes.

What is Human Resource Management?

The Scope of HRM

It encompasses many different functions:

Job design

Hiring and firing

Compensation and benefits

Training and development

Performance appraisal

Labor-management relations

Work-life balance issues

Human Capital

Effective HRM is about building a strong complement of human capital and using it well
What is human capital?
- Human capital brought to an organization makes the difference between success and failure
Human capital is critical for organizational performance
To harness the power of human capital, HR managers must be part of the strategic direction-setting of the organization

Human Capital, HRM, and Organizational Performance

THE STRATEGIC VIEW: how does managing people connect to organizational performance? Adapted from OPM’s Human Capital Assessment and Accountability Framework (HCAAF). Read as the management cycle: strategic alignment (HR tied to mission) provides direction → leadership & knowledge management, results-oriented performance culture, and talent management deliver outcomes → accountability measures results. Key feature is the feedback loop: performance information flows back into planning — a learning organization. Punchline: HR belongs in the room where strategy is set. Previews next week’s strategic HRM class.

HRM is about aligning human capital with the goals of the organization to achieve them and produce high performance. Also emphasize it is about building a learning organization where results are evaluated and used to make continuous improvements over time.

The System of HRM Functions

THE OPERATIONAL VIEW: sorts HRM’s everyday toolbox by the purpose each function serves. Standardizing = fairness through consistency (same rules for everyone). Humanizing = fairness through responsiveness (employees as individuals). Evaluating = feedback on both. Key tension: standardizing vs. humanizing — a good system holds them in balance. Contrast with the previous figure: that one looks up and out (HRM → organizational performance); this one looks inward (what HRM does day to day). Also a roadmap of the semester — most weeks deep-dive one box.

Emphasize how HRM fits together HR functions in a system that ensures people are treated fairly, but their particular needs and differences are recognized (humanizing). The system also evaluates the functions and uses that information to make continuous improvements. This sets up the manager vs. employee activity on the next slide.

Activity: Manager vs. Employee

Which category matters most — standardizing, humanizing, or evaluating?

Left side of the room: you are the HR manager. Right side: you are the employee.
In groups of 3–4, rank the three categories from your assigned perspective — and be ready to defend your #1. (8 minutes)
Each group reports its ranking; then we debate across the aisle.

Where do the two perspectives collide — and what tensions does that create for how HRM is designed?

The Scope of HRM — Part 2

HRM is governed by laws:
- Some of which have endured for generations
- Some of which are modified by ever-evolving case law
How do we make sense of this complex array of venues, practices, policies, and legal requirements?
We do so by focusing on:
- The people involved
- How these processes work
- The ways in which people and processes combine to achieve the mission

Private Sector and Public Service HRM… What’s the difference?

Public Service HRM

Expectations of the public service workforce are many
- Both performance standards and democratic standards
Beyond job skills, public servants are expected to embody public integrity and to perform their jobs from a position of partisan neutrality
They are expected to be representative of the constituencies served
Their actions are subject to public scrutiny
Processes imposed on these workers are designed to ensure fairness, organizational justice, and equity

Exercise: What does it mean to be a public servant?

What should the expectations be? Obligations?

What does this mean for managing people in public organizations?

Comparing Government and Nonprofit HRM

Government vs. Nonprofit: Similarities

Functions of HRM are mostly the same across government and nonprofit organizations
Both government and nonprofits need to think about values and accountability…
BUT — context matters:
- Laws
- Systems
- Capacity

Government vs. Nonprofit: Differences

Civil service systems: advantages and disadvantages?
Politics: How does partisan politics influence HRM in government?
Capacity: How does capacity influence differences between government and nonprofit organizations?

The Role of Merit in HRM

Merit Principles

Codified in federal law
Merit principles were created for government employment; they attempt to capture principles of effective, equitable, and fair HRM
…so should be applicable to other types of organizations

The Merit Principles

Codified in federal law

1Employee selection is based on knowledge, skills, and ability through fair and open competition.

2Job applicants and employees must be treated equitably with proper regard for their privacy and constitutional rights.

3Employees must receive equal pay for work of equal value.

4High standards of conduct are expected and concern for the public interest is foremost.

5The workforce is to be guided by norms of efficiency and effectiveness.

6Employees are to be retained based on their performance; inadequate performance is to be dealt with fairly and decisively.

7Training of employees should focus on both individual and organizational performance.

8Employees are to be protected from favoritism, political coercion, and arbitrary actions.

9Employees are to be protected against reprisal for whistleblowing.

Activity: Merit Principles in the Wild

Take the nine principles from paper to practice — in groups of 3–4:

Honored: pick one principle you have seen genuinely upheld in a workplace. What made it work?
Violated: pick one you have seen violated (no names needed). What happened, and what did it cost?
Missing: is anything missing from the list? Would you add — or cut — a principle?

(10 minutes in groups, then each group shares one story or proposal.)

These were written for government — how well do they travel to nonprofits, or to the private sector?

Bringing it all together…

People are critical for government and nonprofit organizations in working toward organizational missions
Skillful management maximizes human capital
HRM is a system, involving many functions that promote different values and purposes
HRM is different in public service — government and nonprofit employees hold a public trust and need to be cognizant of what this means

Next week…

Strategic Human Resource Management: How does HRM connect to organizational performance?