2.02 The importance of staffing
Staffing is one of the five functions of management, along with planning, organizing, directing, and controlling. The staffing function ensures that a business has the right people working in the right job positions at the right times. This aspect of management is absolutely critical because an organization’s success depends on its people! You may have a great product, but without the right people making and selling it, you won’t succeed. You may have the latest technology and the best equipment, but without the right people operating it, you won’t succeed.
Before we go further, let’s quickly review the other four functions of management:
- Planning—Identifying business goals and determining the best ways to achieve them
- Organizing—Identifying and grouping job tasks and mapping out lines of organizational authority (i.e., who reports to whom)
- Directing—Guiding and motivating employees in their work efforts
- Controlling—Monitoring employee performance and ensuring that organizational goals are being met
Get a bit more in depth with the five functions of management by reading the blog post “Functions of Management 101: The Importance of the Top Five Functions.” Links to an external site.
It’s important to note that none of the other managerial functions can be carried out effectively without having the right human resources (people) in place. Businesses need top executives with strength and vision to plan for the future. They need insightful, detail-oriented managers to help give the organization structure. And, they need confident, capable supervisors to direct and control day-to-day operations. Organizations acquire these employees through the staffing function.
Staffing is also important because it takes place across all of an organization’s departments—from manufacturing to customer service to marketing, there is no part of a business that the staffing function doesn’t affect. When performed the right way, staffing ensures that the business runs at maximum efficiency and productivity. Businesses want to avoid being either overstaffed or understaffed. Here’s why:
- When a business is overstaffed (too many employees), it’s wasting money on unnecessary wages, salaries, benefits, training, etc. This inefficiency reduces the organization’s competitiveness.
- When a business is understaffed (not enough employees), essential work tasks may be completed late—or not completed at all. This can result in poor customer service, dissatisfied customers, and, ultimately, lost business. In addition, when a business is understaffed, it often means that the employees it does have are working beyond their normal capacity. This can leave them exhausted and discouraged. They may lose focus, make more mistakes, and have difficulty working together in teams. The loss of morale can have devastating effects on an organization’s productivity levels.
As you probably understand from personal experience, humans are very complex beings! Successful businesses and managers understand that their employees are more than just a “means to an end”—they’re real people with real feelings, real problems, and unique talents and personalities. Human resources are an organization’s most valuable—and yet most fragile—assets. It’s just another reason why the staffing function of management is so essential.