Page 1 of 9

Journal for Studies in Management and Planning

Available at

http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/

ISSN: 2395-0463

Volume 04 Issue 04

April 2018

Available online: http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/ P a g e | 144

The Role Human Resource Planning and

Development in Repositioning the Nigerian

Economic Growth and Development

Yusuf Sajo

Department of Business Administration and Management, Federal Polytechnic, Mubi,

Adamawa State-Nigeria

Stephen Pembi

Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Social and Management Sciences

Adamawa State University, Mubi-Nigeria

E-mail: stephenpembi@gmail.com

ABSTRACT

This study examines the Role of Human Resource Planning in Repositioning Nigerian

Economic Growth and Development. The paper was carried along two research objectives

were to specifically find out the factors underlying the increased interest in the need for

human resource planning and as well as to highlights the relevance of human resource

planning toward repositioning economic growth and development in Nigeria. Secondary

sources of data were used for this study. Finding from the study reveals that; getting the right

people in the right place at the right time is the basis for rapid organisational growth and

development. It was also found that human resource planning is a vital tool for estimating the

demand and evaluating the size, nature and the sources of supply of labour in Nigeria.

Uncertainty arising from environmental forces, globalization, new technology, economic

conditions and changing workforce were identified, and the factors behind the increased

interest in the needs of human resource planning in Nigeria. It is recommended that:

management of the organisations in Nigeria should endeavour to get the right people at the

right time and place them at the right positions. Effective plan and developmental

programmes should be employed to reduce the impact of uncertainty from internal and

external environment, and that individual interest to learn and develop should not be

neglected when designing plans and developmental programmes in Nigerian organisation.

INTRODUCTION

The increased need for higher performance

of employees to address the challenges of

economic growth and development is

considered as a target of developed and

developing nations. This target cannot be

met without effective human resource plan

and developmental programmes that

geared toward align competent workforce

with the need of organisation

Profit and non-profit organisations need to

know how many people and what type of

skills the people should have to meet

present and future business requirements.

Human resource planning heralded as a

Page 2 of 9

Journal for Studies in Management and Planning

Available at

http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/

ISSN: 2395-0463

Volume 04 Issue 04

April 2018

Available online: http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/ P a g e | 145

critical tool for any organisational success,

as planning to get the right people in the

right place at the right time is seen to be

essential to achieving rapid growth.

Human resource planning is viewed as a

suitable tool for managing downsizing and

redundancy (Torington, Hall & Taylor,

2008). The efficient utilization of

organisational human resources, capital

and technology, does not just occur

without the continual estimation of future

requirements and development of

systematic strategies designed toward goal

accomplishment.

The long run success of any organisation is

completely depends on having the right

people doing the right job at the right time,

and organisational goals have meaning

only when people with the appropriate

talent , skill and desire are available to

carry out the tasks needed to realize goals

(Rao & Rao, 2002). The cotemporary

human resource planning also occurs

within the broad context of organisational

and strategic business planning. It deals

with forecasting the organisation’s future

human resource needs and planning for

how those needs will be met, establishing

objectives and then developing and

implementing programmes to ensure that

people are available with the appropriate

characteristics and skill. Human resource

planning involve developing and

implementing programme to improve

employee’s performance or to increase

employee’s satisfaction and involvement

in order to boost organisational

productivity, quality, or innovation (Mills,

1985 as in Jackson & Schuler, 1990). Thus

human resource planning is seen as the

collection of data to assess the

effectiveness of current organisational

programme in order to communicate

planners when revisions in the forecast and

programmes are needed. Based on the

mention, it evident that a well coordinated

human resource plan is an effective tool

for increasing sustainable organisational

performance.

Human Resource Planning and

Nigerian Economic Growth and

Development

Human resource planning is seen “as the

process for ensuring that human resource

requirements of an organisation are

identified and plans are made for

satisfying those requirements. Workforce

planning is viewed as the “process in

which an organisation’s attempt to

estimates the demand for labour and

evaluate the size, nature and sources of

supply which will be required to meet the

demand (Armstrong, 2009). The nature of

human resource planning centred on

forecasting the human resource

requirements of an organisation and the

future supply of human resource. Making

necessary adjustment between these two

and organisational plans; forecasting the

possibility of developing the supply of

human resource in order to match it with

requirements by introducing necessary

changes in the functions of human

resource management is the prime

responsibility of human resource.

Additionally, human resource planning

means skill, knowledge, value, ability,

commitment, motivation etc. to the

number of employees (Rao & Rao, 2000).

Koltnerova, Chlpekova and Samakova

(2012) asserted that human resource

planning is the process of collecting and

Page 3 of 9

Journal for Studies in Management and Planning

Available at

http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/

ISSN: 2395-0463

Volume 04 Issue 04

April 2018

Available online: http://edupediapublications.org/journals/index.php/JSMaP/ P a g e | 146

using information on the basis of which it

the amount of the resources is spent on the

personnel activities. Furthermore, it is the

achievement of goals for the organisation

development prediction, setting the target

and releasing arrangements leading to

current and future to ensure business tasks

and adequate manpower.

Based on the divergent definitions of

human resource planning by various

studies (Armstrong, 2009; Rao & Rao,

2000; and Koltnerova et al 2012) it can be

said that each definition is a little

difference though they have in common

that organisations must have human

resource planning programme in order to

meet current and future requirements of

workforce.

More studies are needed to better

understand the strength of human resource

planning in organisations, since most of

the studies consider the human resource

planning programmes is vital to

organizational success

Factors Underlying Increased Interest

in Human Resource Planning

Undoubtedly, there are various factors that

accounted for the increased attention

directed to human resource planning but

environmental forces- Globalization, new

technology economic conditions, and

changing workforce seem particularly

potent. These create complexity and

uncertainty for organisation. Uncertainty

could interfere with effective operations.

So organisation typically attempts to

reduce its impact; formal human resource

planning is one common tactics that used

by organisation to buffer them from

environmental uncertainty (Dumain, 1989;

Dyer & Heyer, 1984; Greenhalgh,

Mckersic & Gilkey, 1986 and Tompson,

1967 as in Jackumar (n.d) explained that

human reource plan reduces risks, and

uncertainty with the proper use of

information available to them, help grow

personality and potential and interpersonal

skills to deal with work pleasure.

Furthermore, unexpected shortage,

wastage, blockage in promotion flow and

needless redundancy are avoided. Bradley

(2015) asserted that financial success and

pro-activeness and identifying balance

between effective and efficient service of a

business is intimately tied to its human

resource planning. Jahanian and Modaresi

(2014) considered human resource

planning as factor that study the job

demand and staff ability which is basic for

organisational success. Ulfert, wirtz and

Peterson (2009) pointed that the main idea

behind human resource planning is to;

ensure that organisation has adequate

human resource to meet its goals and

operational plan, allows organisation to

stay apprised and remain flexible to the

dynamic changes in the environment.

The Importance of Human Resource

Planning

A strategic human resource planning help

an organisation grow by setting up

advanced recruitment and training

programmes as well as a detailed time

table and metrics to evaluate progress.

Organisation cannot grow without having

the right staff in place, which indicates that

recruiting top talent is one of the most

importances of human resource planning.

It serve as a tool for evaluating staff