Resumen de Towards the Use of Employees as a Resource, Not a Cost
This article has as its underlying theme the evolving demographic shortfall. This is discussed in relation to the ‘ingredients’ that are necessary for the internal functioning of an organisation ‐people. The implications for both people and strategy and how they are affected by the major internal avenues of influence, eg training, recruitment and retention, that form part of an organization's working environment are discussed. The article moves on to view these in relation to the organizational constraints created by thinking only in terms of labour equalling a cost, and places emphasis on the benefits employees can bring. Within this the author attempts to move outside the traditional cost restraint perspective, to view the use of employees as a dynamic process in which, in the light of the reducing numbers of young people, the utilization of new forms of work practice (the core‐periphery debate) and forms of motivation (commitment) have a large part. The utilization of all forms of labour and an emphasis on responsibility is seen to be the major avenue through which an organization can continue to grow in relation to the shortfall of young entrants to the labour market.
