Development of resources

Development of resources
See also
Importance of knowledge Knowledge management system Management by values Relevant information Innovation culture Organizational culture and project management Marketing research Organization life cycle Change management model

The concept of resource is largely derived from our own society's ceaseless attempt at finding new and more intensive uses for the raw materials of nature (...) is a functional relationship that exists between man's wants, his abilities and his appraisal of his biophysical environment. Consequently, natural resources are not fixed and tangible things only but are dynamic and intangible things and values also, becoming available to man through a combination of increased knowledge and expanding technology, as well as changing individual and societal objectives. (A.Bhargava, 1991, XV).

Resources do not guarantee their own development. It is not enough to be sitting on top of coal; one has to develop the technology and business practices to exploit it. It is not enough to haul back resources or engage in trade with distant regions; one has to ensure the resources are not squandered. (C.White, 2009, 91)

The fusion of disciplines

Development of resources is the fusion of three disciplines:

1. Human Resource Development (HRD)
2. Organizational Development (OD)
3. Strategic Management

Human Resource Development (HRD)

As organizations have restructured and downsized, employees increasingly have been required to work in teams. As a result, they need to develop new skills such as decision-making, problem-solving and personal skills which include listening, resolving conflict, negotiating and leadership. Team effectiveness has therefore become a critical issue for the development of the organization.

Another trend has been learning and knowledge management which has informed the need to understand performance standards in order to deal with complexity. Feedback has therefore become a necessary condition of organizational learning. As the customer, or client, has been placed centre-stage, the demands have increased on employees to become acquainted with the concepts of quality, benchmarking and continuous improvement.

It is therefore the changing nature of work and the political, economic and social pressures upon organizations that are forcing them to develop and communicate new corporate strategies; upwardly to develop new human resource strategies and policies; to involve employees, at all levels, in the change process; to determine the most effective and efficient work processes; to build teams with the capacity to learn and become self-managed; and to develop individuals and encourage management development.

Organizational Development (OD)

Three central issues, or problematics, which emerged in the first three decades of the twentieth century informed the late development of OD (and were still important by the end of the century). There were:

• the problem of control and compliance
• the application of technology
• the increasing sophistication of organizational analysis (J. Grieves, 2003, 1,8-9).

Organizational development was created as a way of applying behavioral science to help organizations improve individuals and systems. OD's goal is to help people function better within an organizational context. OD is supposed to represent purposeful and meaningful change for the better.

Strategic Management

Development of resources is important function of strategic management needed to address possible lack of resources during rapid growth and development of the enterprise. Process of developing resources consists of:

• identifying present and future resource requirements - strategic analysis, strategic planning, environmental consideration
• developing natural resources - searching for new mining opportunities, cheaper suppliers, shorter supply routes
• developing human resources - training, development, performance management, coaching, skills acquisition, motivation, well being
• developing financial resources - looking for new sources of investment
• developing technology - R&D, innovation, quality improvement, reliability improvement
• developing knowledge and information resources - business analytic, knowledge bases, big data, data warehouses

References

• Bhargava A., (1991), Resources and Planning for Economic Development: A Case Study of Sagar ..., New Delhi, XV.
• Grieves J., (2003), Strategic Human Resource Development, Sage Publicationa Ltd, 1,8-9.
• Schuler, R. S. (1987). Personnel and human resource management choices and organizational strategy. Human Resource Planning, 10(1), 1-17.
• Sirmon, D. G., Hitt, M. A., & Ireland, R. D. (2007), Managing firm resources in dynamic environments to create value: Looking inside the black box. Academy of management review, 32(1), 273-292.
• White C., (2009), Understanding Economic Development: A Global Transition from Poverty to ..., Edward Elgar Publishing Limited, 91.

Author: Danuta Korzeniak