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OSHA Standards for the Construction Industry as of January 2011
This book contains the occupational safety and health standards for the construction industry promulgated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), effective January 2011.
In a time of increased scrutiny on budgets and heightened focus on efficiency, human resource (HR) departments continue turning to strategic outsourcing arrangements to maximize cost-saving opportunities and reduce the burden of noncritical activities. According to the latest in a series of regular studies on HR outsourcing (HRO) from Towers Perrin, cost reduction was the top goal driving HRO for almost three-quarters (73%) of the companies polled in 2009.
More surprising, however, is the emergence of improving service quality (in the form of employees' experience interacting with HR) as a strong driver of companies' decisions to outsource. In 2009, 50% of those polled said improving HR service quality was a top goal of their HRO efforts — a jump from 33% in the 2008 study. Curtailing time-intensive administrative tasks that added minimal value also remained a top reason for outsourcing, with 73% of respondents listing "eliminating the distraction of administrative and transactional work" as a top priority for their HRO strategy.
"Respondents' sharply increased emphasis on HRO as a means to improve overall service delivery and the experience employees have when they interact with HR reflect organizations' renewed focus and attention on employee satisfaction and engagement," said Meg Paschall, a Towers Perrin Principal who specializes in HR function effectiveness. "With the prospect of economic recovery on the horizon, HR professionals are looking to identify and maximize every opportunity that supports employee retention and productivity in 2009 and beyond."
Are HRO promises delivered? This year's survey shows that companies are increasingly seeing positive results from HRO — in terms of many of their top goals — but also that opportunities for improvement remain.
In terms of success on the cost management front, two-thirds of respondents said their HRO arrangements have achieved their desired overall cost savings. Reductions in overall HR department head count contributed to this positive cost outcome. In 2009, 93% of respondents reported a decrease in overall HR head count since implementing outsourcing. Almost four in 10 reported head count decreases from 25% to 49% of HR staff, and nearly a quarter reported HR head count decreases of 50% or more.
"The cost savings companies are realizing through their HRO efforts are a powerful reminder that internal functions can contribute significantly to a company's cost management efforts," Paschall continued.
Still, the survey shows that challenges remain. Of the nearly three-quarters of respondents who want to eliminate the distraction of administrative and transactional work through HRO, only 50% believe they have successfully achieved this goal. And just 55% of those polled have successfully implemented HR service quality improvements as a result of their HRO.
HR executives and staffers themselves acknowledged they share some of the responsibility for failing to maximize the efficiencies from outsourcing. In fact, 57% believe that their fellow HR staffers need to change their roles and skill sets to a very great or great extent in order to leverage the full value of the outsourced HR model. Three new skill sets emerged as particularly critical for HR staff in an outsourced organization:
vendor management and contract governance,
project management, and
change management.
Source: www.towersperrin.com
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