In Korea the recent focus on ‘human resources development' has been stimulated in
part by the establishment of the Ministry of Education and Human Resource
Development, charged with the responsibilities for developing the skill levels of citizens.
However, the term human resources development not only appears in Government
documents, but is increasingly being examined in academic journals and papers. In this
context, this paper has raised the question about whether or not it is desirable to use
the term without any agreement about its applicability, and whether there is more
appropriate terminology that can be used to describe similar functions. First, this paper
examines the differences between terms like human resources development and human
resources management, and deduces that the term human resources management is best
used as an umbrella term for all staff-related functions including human resources
development. Second, the paper also reviews the use of the term human resources
development in different countries, both by scholars in academic journals, and by experts
in industry. This review reveals that the term is generally used to describe training and
development functions for company employees. Keeping this in mind it suggests that
the term human resources development be confined to describing the activity of
enterprises. The paper also notes that individual enterprises are also engaged in the
management of their employees, that is human resources management. It concludes that
enterprise-based human resources management functions work for companies, as
government-based Human Resources Management functions work for nations.