Human Resources Management, Step by Step for 2027

Helps you plan, organise and run the people side of a small or medium-sized organisation fairly, lawfully and well, from the people plan to pay, policies, absence and exits.

Who it's for

For managers, founders, team leaders and new HR generalists who look after the people side of a small or medium-sized organisation. It covers the HR function from end to end and gives general guidance on UK practice, not legal advice: it points you to gov.uk, ACAS and the ICO, and to an HR professional or employment lawyer for your own situation.

What you'll learn

• Turn your business plan into three to five people priorities on a single page, and shape an HR model that fits your size, drawing on the model associated with Dave Ulrich.
• Forecast the people and skills you need over 12 to 24 months and close each gap by building, buying, borrowing, redeploying or redesigning.
• Write job descriptions, group jobs into fair grades, build pay bands from market evidence and check for equal pay risks.
• Confirm employment status, issue clear written terms and build a handbook of policies people can find, understand and follow.
• Plan learning with a training needs analysis and the 70-20-10 rule of thumb, and evaluate it with Kirkpatrick's four levels.
• Manage absence fairly, and handle discipline and grievances in line with the ACAS Code of Practice.
• Run restructures with genuine consultation and fair selection, and track a handful of people metrics on a one-page dashboard.

What's inside

• 63 pages, 9 chapters
• Every chapter follows the same pattern: key concepts, a numbered step-by-step method, an illustrative example from a fictional UK organisation, a tool (a table, template or diagram you can copy and use), common mistakes, a recap of the key steps and a short exercise to try on your own work. Tools include a people plan on a page, a workforce plan table, a pay band builder, a handbook contents checklist, a return-to-work conversation form and a people metrics dashboard.
• A 30-60-90 day HR action plan with a checklist for each phase, an annual HR calendar and a glossary
• PDF in A4 format — read on screen or print
• Instant download after purchase

Contents

1. Building a People Plan
2. Planning Your Workforce
3. Designing Jobs, Grades and Pay
4. Contracts, Policies and the Handbook
5. Developing People Through Learning
6. Managing Absence Fairly
7. Handling Discipline and Grievances Fairly
8. Managing Restructures and Exits Well
9. HR Data, Systems and Metrics

Part of The Business Library

This title is one of the 55 ebooks in The Business Library, available together for £109 (worth £1,437 if bought separately: the total of the individual prices of the included titles in our store). It is also included in The Ultimate Business Bundle, which adds 8 checklists and toolkits and 10 workbooks — all 73 products for £147.