HR Practices in Project Management

Abstract

As part of a wider study into human resource management (HRM) practices in project-oriented organizations, we investigated the issue of employee well-being and the management system as a whole. Project-oriented organizations adopt temporary work processes to deliver products and services to clients. This creates a dynamic work environment, where additional pressures can be imposed on the employee as well as on the program from fluctuating work-loads, uncertain requirements, and multiple role demands. These pressures can create issues for employee well-being and ethical treatment, which need to be managed. HRM has traditionally had two roles, a management support role, providing the organization with competent people to undertake the work processes, and an employee support role, caring for the well-being of employees. In this paper we report our results on the HRM practices adopted in project-oriented organizations or individual projects to fulfill the second role. The need for profit and responding to client demands often takes precedence over the social well-being of our people and specially the children. However, some of the organizations we interviewed have adopted HRM practices in projects specially designed for the well-being of society. These include planning educational programs, conducting events, which provides entertainment, attraction and education at the same time, and we report those.