Sound HRM practices matter-they are a sine qua non of effective governance in democratic government-equally so at the local, regional, state and national levels of government. The NASPAA (Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration) accreditation standards demand critical competencies for public managers that are vital to human resource managers and supervisors at all levels. These competencies include: skills to lead and manage in public governance; to participate in and contribute to the policy process; to analyze, synthesize, think critically, solve problems and make decisions; to articulate and apply a public service perspective; and to communicate and interact productively with a diverse and changing workforce and citizenry. This second edition of Human Resource Management is designed specifically with these competencies in mind to:

• Introduce and explore the fundamental purposes of human resource management in the public service and consider the techniques used to accomplish these purposes
• Provide exercises to give students practice for their skills after being introduced to the theory, foundation, and practices of public and nonprofit sector HRM
• Facilitate instruction of the material by introducing important topics and issues with readings drawn from the professional literature
• Provide information and examples demonstrating the interrelatedness of many of the topics in public sector HRM and the trends shaping public and nonprofit management, especially diversity, ethics, and technology.
• Demonstrate and describe differences among HRM practices in public, for-profit and nonprofit organizations, and between the levels of government.

Human Resource Management is organized to provide a thorough discussion of the subject matter with extensive references to relevant literature and useful teaching tools. Thus, students will consider the issues, purposes, and techniques of HRM and conceptualize how varied their roles are, or will be, whether a personnel specialist in a centralized system or a supervisor managing in one of the increasingly common decentralized systems. Each chapter includes a thorough review of the principles and practices of HRM (including the why and the how), selected readings, important themes, diverse examples, key terms, study questions, applied exercises, case studies, and examples of forms and processes would-be managers will encounter in their roles.

"The authors have done a masterful job in exposing the strategic centrality and impact of HRM in an era of profound disruption. This edition is a must-read for those of us who care deeply about people-management in all its manifestations." - Meredith A. Newman, Vice Provost for Faculty and Global Affairs, Florida International University, USA "I am a longtime fan of Human Resource Management having adopted it as assigned reading in my HR courses for a dozen years. It has served as the basis of HR education for well over 300 students in my HR classes. The second edition of Human Resource Management is eagerly anticipated and much needed! In reviewing the changes to the second edition, I find it has retained all of the outstanding qualities of the first edition, but now reflects on new and very current HR issues such as succession planning and emotional labor. Too many public focused HR books focus solely on the federal level, but Human Resource Management does an excellent job of focusing more broadly, helping students understand HR systems and issues at the state and local level, as well as HR issues in nonprofit organizations. Having taught HR in the United Arab Emirates, I have seen how concepts in Human Resource Management are easily exported into international classroom settings. As evidence of the book's versatility, my former students who have moved into private sector work have told me that Human Resource Management proudly sits on their office shelf as a guide to managing their employees. Human Resource Management should be viewed as essential reading in undergraduate or graduate public administration course of study." - Christopher A. Simon, MPA Program, University of Utah, USA