Making HRM curriculum relevant – a hypothetical practitioners’ guide

Abstract

Purpose Despite business schools teaching human resources management (HRM) for several decades, the skill set of graduates today fails to match the requirements of the industry. Although some attempt has been made to make the HRM curricula relevant, in most cases, a large gap exists between the subject, its assessment and the industry demands. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the changing trends in the field of HR and present ideas that will guide modern HRM curriculum development. Design/methodology/approach The paper draws on professional experience of the authors in teaching and developing HR curricula as well as literature illustrations from work-based learning. Findings To achieve relevancy, HR curricula need to focus more on professional work-based skills that are pertinent to the contemporary workplace and re-structure exam formats to be in line with skills required in the HR profession. Research limitations/implications There is an opportunity to test the ideas expressed in this paper empirically; this can normally be done through a triad focus group including employers, students and teachers. Originality/value The paper is predicated on the mismatch between the teaching and assessment of some HR subjects and the needs of the contemporary HR profession.