Research has shown that there has been a considerable improvement in Human Resource Management (HRM) practice at HEIs in England, aided by HEFCE funding over the last 8 years.
The research which was commissioned by HEFCE and UCEA showed that £888 million that has been invested in the sector has helped aid HEIs modernise and transform their HR functions.
Of course many HEIs have already invested huge amounts of time and resources in their institutions to improve HRM amongst other functions; however without the large investment from HEFCE they may not have been able to sustain this effort.
HRM is increasingly been viewed as a critical component of institutional planning and strategy. When you consider that over 50% of university income is spent on staff costs, HRM is a vital ‘cog’ in a university machine.
Major developments in the HE sector since 2001, as sited in on the HEFCE website include:
- increasingly effective approaches to performance management for individuals, teams and organisations
- recognition of how critical HR management is, resulting in it becoming a key component of institutional planning
- significantly enhanced institutional HR strategies that are now much more closely aligned with and integral to the overall institutional strategy
- sustained investment in the development of leaders and leadership teams
- establishment of more transparent pay and reward mechanisms
- an increase in the capacity and capability of HR professionals within institutions to effectively support and contribute to the performance and development of their organisation.
Professor Paul Curran, Chair of HEFCE’s HE Workforce Steering Group commented:
‘Universities and colleges spend an average of 56 per cent of their income on staff costs. It is therefore vital for them to ensure that staffing is effective and efficient as possible – even more so when money is tight. That calls for high-quality HR management.’
When there seems so much doom and gloom in the media about redundancies and the economy etc, it’s nice to have some positive news – so well done HR in the HE sector! 
To read more and download your copy of this study you may like to visit the HEFCE site.
