Emerging Trends in Human Resources Management and the Savvy Supervisors in the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry

Abstract

This paper attempts to spotlight human resource management as a fundamental part of the role of any supervisor. In this paper, the human resource manager refers to the supervisor of three or more reports in a business unit not minding the existence of the human resource department in the organization. This view is in line with the emerging trend in the human resources management arena. Thus every attempt is made towards a brief presentation of the various aspects of human resource management, the emerging trends confronting the human resource management practitioner and the features of the emerging human resource management concept with particular reference to the savvy supervisor in the Nigerian oil and gas business environment. Human resource managers are relinquishing responsibilities hitherto domiciled in the confines of the human resources department, by tradition, and pushing them down the line to employees’ direct supervisors. The advantage, many believe, is the likelihood of a better engaged employee pool in the organization. The extent and willingness of human resource practitioners to respond to this paradigm shift is yet to be fully seen in the Nigerian oil and gas industry. The writer presents suggestions for supervisors to consider in improving their human resource management skills and how to leverage the support that is required from the human resource department in implementing the culture change.