HR Restructures for Relevance

By: Stacey Muscat

Overview

Organizational restructuring involves eliminating layers of management and changing reporting relationships, as well ac cutting staff through downsizing, layoffs, and early retirement buyout programs (Mathis & Jackson, 2010). In today’s global economy, companies are in an intense competition amongst each other to stay on top, and in recent times, to at least stay afloat. Human Resource Managers have the difficult task of keeping a company’s human capital in line with the organization’s “tone at the top.” Alignment of the organizational culture and HR helps organizational performance (Mathis & Jackson, 2010). When an organization decides to restructure, human resource managers have to get everybody on board with the goal. It is difficult to provide top quality at the lowest price, this principle is true even when it comes to employees. It is also difficult to restructure because of limited resources, how people view the value of HR, employee fear, and reducing “personal touch” (Nadel, 2002). The article I found in BNA’s Human Resource Professional Information Center took tactics from different companies on how to successfully restructure and what restructuring HR means for businesses.

Article Description/Connection to Text

The article, To Avoid Irrelevance, HR Must Restructure, Reduce Costs, Be Strategic, Speakers Say, describes the demands the HR department faces and how to implement changes. The demand for HR restructuring continues to grow as the economy becomes more global, but the cuts sometimes undervalue HR.

The article mentions how HR is being pressured to provide high quality service at lower costs which means that they must develop human capital while cutting costs. Row Henson of Peoplesoft says that at a certain point, trying to cut cost so much is detrimental to employer goals, but that it goes unnoticed because HR may still not be recognized as contributing to the bottom line, but since good human resources involves having the right people at the right time, we know that HR must be at the heart of enhancing organizational culture (Mathis & Jackson, 2010) and should not be looked at as an area to reduce the cost of doing business.

Redesigning work often involves having fewer employees who work longer hours and perform multiple task jobs. It may also involve replacing workers with capital equipment or making them more efficient by use of technology or new processes (Mathis & Jackson, 2010). RR. Donnelly had to reduce its HR staff by 40 percent by seeking to make work more efficient and determining which functions could be offloaded. Changes RR. Donnelly made included a new service center for employees and managers seeking routine HR questions. This was strategic; it made the human capital happy because they had a place to get direct answers, and it made HR more efficient because there was no longer the question of whose job it was to answer these questions. Technology came into play redesigning the work at R.R. Donnelly when a web-based portal for daily transactions reduced two to three days worth of work to two to three hours; the use of Web-based information systems has allowed the HR unit in organizations to become more administratitvely efficient (Mathis & Jackson, 2010).

Because HR is not always considered as meaningful to a business, focuses may be in the wrong place. HR cannot focus on its own needs, but needs to focus on the needs of the business. HR is about quality, speed, and cost (Nadel, 2002). The article mentions that HR restructuring can be a mess, but that when HR shows success in contributing to a business, its vitality to business is recognized.

Take Away Points 

I think the importance of HR is being recognized more and more, especially after the economic recession. The HR department in many companies was responsible for the rebuilding of business. I think it is hard for any company to undergo a restructure in their HR department, because it is like the lifeline of the company, even when people believe it is not. It is important for young professionals, no matter which area of study, to realize the value of a strategic and efficient HR department. HR professionals will want to demonstrate the importance of the field, and a future CFO needs to understand that it will be up to his/her HR department to restructure human capital as well as organizational goals when need be.  HR majors currently in school should really graduate knowing how much potential they have to be leaders for a company, not just as people who sit behind the scenes.

Works Cited

Nadel, S. (2002). To avoid irrelevance, hr must restructure, reduce costs, be strategic, speakers say. BNA, 20(43), Retrieved from http://subscript.bna.com/pic2/hr2pic.nsf/id/BNAP-5FKPGP?OpenDocument&PrintVersion=Yes

Mathis, R. L., & Jackson, J. H. (2010). Human resource management. (13 ed.). Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.

HR Becoming More Difficult for Managers

By: Justin Orow

Overview

Keeping employee turnover rates low is a top priority for most companies since replacing those employees can be very costly.  The tangible rewards that people receive for working come in the form of pay, incentives, and benefits (Mathis & Jackson 2010). There are many drivers to retention, ranging from compensation, career training and development, employee supervisor relationships, management factors, and job and work life.  There are substantial steps that can be taken to retain employees.  People and types of jobs differ so reasons employees leave and steps needed to retain employees will also vary,  Making it ever more difficult to make general assumptions about one age group or work force compared to the other.

Article Description/Connection to Text

The article “for generation y, succeeding at a young age is key” talks about the young workforce ages twenty to thirty.  The article mentions that most people of that age group are worried about their physical appearance and aren’t fit for the structural nine to five job.  “However, findings of a new study by Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) indicate that these do not matter much to the group that is also referred to as the Generation Y.   Instead, they value their jobs and are more interested in career development” (Butunyi 2010).   Only one out of ten who was surveyed cared for neither a gym membership nor a flexible dress code.  Something that people wouldn’t think to see in this generation of workers.   From the feedback the surveys received “clear work related goals, challenging and interesting work, coaching and mentoring as well as right benefits and incentives as key concerns of this group” (Butunyi 2010).  A driver for retention for the group that was surveyed would be Rewards: compensation, benefits, performance, and career training and development.  The article also states that although generation y in Kenya wants to advance their careers, they would also like to do it with less pressure in a less stressful work environment.  This survey helps Human Resources department of firms to have a better understanding of the different workforces to improve performance.  The mix in generations within the workforce is making it harder for HR to fare with employees.

 

Takeaway Points

Since this survey was taken in Nairobi Kenya the workforce will differ in almost any country.  Most young workforces want to get ahead at a young age and advance in their careers, and I think I can agree with most of the people who surveyed in the article that compensation and career advancement would be my top priorities also.  The difference in age groups in the work force is making it harder for Human Resources to satisfy the workforce and be as effective.  HR has to find new ways to retain employees, since different drivers of retention motivate each employee, they have to find a way to cultivate all these drivers of retention for all these different generations of employees to cut cost, and reach maximum effectiveness.   Surveys like the one given by Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) are very significant and should be used very often to help Human Resources with feedback from the different workforces. 

Works cited

Mathis, R. L., & Jackson, J. H. (2010). Human resource management. (13 ed.). Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.

Butunyi, C. (2010, August 02).  East Africa: For Generation Y, Succeeding at an Early Age is Key. The East African

http://allafrica.com/stories/201008020974.html

www.lexisnexis.com

Technology Transforming HR Processes

By: Kelly Barnhard

Overview 

Human resource management ensures that human talent is used effectively and efficiently to accomplish organizational goals (Mathis & Jackson, 2010). Presently, the role of human resource management is undergoing a major transformation driven by changes in technology. As stated in our text,  people and organizations must change and adapt to the advances of technology if they expect to fully benefit from the improvements it offers. In terms of strategic HR, which is adding value by improving the performance of the business, effective businesses in the 21^st century are pairing human capital and technology to enhance their performance levels (Mathis & Jackson, 2010). Even with the known knowledge that technology is altering the practices of business and human resources, one can still be uncertain when answering how technology is changing each HR process specifically. The article I will be referencing not only brings an end to this uncertainty, but provides some unique insights as well. Specifically, through the conducting of interviews with HR executives and archival research, this article was able to develop an in depth comparison of traditional and e-HR practices.  

Article Description/Connection to Text 

The article, Effects of the Internet and Technology on HR Processes, portrays how HR activities are evolving with technology. It guides the reader through specific HR process that are transforming and how these changes effect the organization as a whole. For instance, the article reveals the transformations occurring in recruiting, selection, performance management, compensation and benefits, training and development, and career management. 

The performance management and career management segments of the article explain how advances in technology are linked to greater organizational socialization commitment. This relates to our text in terms of effects technology has on communication. Specifically, how technology has increased employee expectations regarding the speed and frequency of communication from managers and how they connect to customers (Mathis & Jackson, 2010). When looking at the training and development section of the article, we can see how technology and the internet can provide a lower cost solution when utilizing online training or e-learning.  This relates to Chapter 8 of our text, training and development. Particularly, how e-learning consists of advantages such as cost savings and generates a larger access to employees. Additionally, the text describes how e-learning enables scoring of exercise and assessments and provides the appropriate feedback (Mathis & Jackson, 2010).

After providing a descriptive study, the article draws the conclusion of how an organization can effectively implement e-HR. Particularly, it thoroughly pinpoints five overarching trends of technology that effect the overall structure and strategy of an organization. These include: 

1. Substantial reductions in cost and time
2. Transition of administrative activities from HR department to employees themselves
3. Increase in readily available information 
4. Need for integrating HR with information systems
5. Increase emphasis on HR as a strategic business partner whose primary challenge is to recruit, develop, and retain talented employees for the organization.

Take Away Points 

Due to technology continually changing and improving, an organization and the people  comprised of it must learn to adapt and  improve with it in order to compete successfully. Technology is impacting the way an organization performs. New methods for communicating, processing information, and manufacturing are the results of evolving technologies (Mathis & Jackson, 2010). Each specific HR process is being effected by technology. As students who are looking to graduate and dive into the business world, we can use this insightful knowledge to add value to our future organization, increase our performance levels, and even gain a competitive edge. Overall, what should be taken away from this research is that we need to continually expand our knowledge, adapt to changes, and be aware of the challenges presented with those changes. Specifically, know the significance of blending human capital with technology and the impact it has on HR and the overall organization.   

Works Cited

Ensher, E., Nielson, T., Grant-Vallone, E. (2002). Tales from the Hiring Line: Effects of the Internet and Technology on HR Processes. Organizational Dynamics, Vol. 31, 224-244.      

Retrieved from http://ellenensher.com/article-files/Tales%20from%20the.pdf

Mathis, R. L., & Jackson, J. H. (2010). Human resource management. (13 ed.). Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.

Linking Human Resource Management, Strategy and Performance

By: Erin Galloway

Overview

The theory created by Porters in 1985 is that organizations can gain a competitive advantage by internal activities, capabilities, and resources. Over time many studies have been conducted on what organizations should do to have efficient and successful processes. The study that I have decided to focus on is the expansion of the ideas brought forth by Boswell and Colleagues in 2007. Their theory was the Line of Sight (LOS) theory, which is when employees understand the firm’s strategic goals, as well as ways to achieve these goals. This theory only gave very limited insight on the relation between LOS and Individual work outcomes, for example job satisfaction and turnover. This expansion looks into the linkage between human resource management, strategy and performance.

Description of article/Connection to text

The article by Buller and McEvoy has used the Resource Based view (RBV), which states an organization is defined by the resources it controls. In other words all organizations are heterogeneous and they differ based on the resources they possess. Therefore, if an organization has control over a rare or valuable resource that others do not, it clearly gives them a competitive advantage. To Buller and McEvoy human resources and human resource management are strategically important; they can be seen as valuable because they are hard to imitate and are the core to creating the organizations ability to achieve strategic goals. Human resource’s decisions are very critical and can have an impact on all aspects of a business. Human resource practices are vital in producing a firm’s human capital and social capital which when linked to strategy can in turn enhance the organizations performance. Human capital is the employees of an organization and social capital is the relationships built between your firm and other firms or customers. However, it is hard for organizations to acquire human capital that is capable and motivated to carry out their specific strategic objectives. Therefore, this is the time when human resources should concentrate on their recruiting strategies to make certain they have the right human capital. For example, the text suggests many different types of recruiting options from structured interviews to social networking sites online. Picking the right recruiting strategy will allow an organization to recruit capable and motivated human capital to carry out tasks. Therefore, human resources will find candidates that have the LOS parallel to those of the organization, which is critical to finding the right person/organization fit. Finding the right fits between person/job and person/organization can be critical in determining the organizations structure and culture, which have great impact on the performance generated by the employees. The creation of a positive and flexible organizational culture will have positive effects on organizational, group and individual performance. Buller and McEvoy are trying to stress how valuable good human resource management is and how these practices can affect strategy implementation and overall performance

Take Away Points

There are many take away points that I found from the article by Buller and McEvoy. RBV explains that resources are the main thing that differentiates organizations from each other, and to be successful an organization needs to acquire that one thing that gives them that competitive advantage. Either this could be human resource practices or a tangible item that can be acquired at a lower price than other firms. HR employees and managers can use this information to try and improve their human resource practices and management to give them a competitive advantage. Also, HR employees should look into stressing the importance of sustaining human capital and social capital relationships because these aspects will keep costs low (i.e. employee turnover costs, and costs of finding new customers or vendors).

 Works Cited

 

Buller, P. F., & MCEvoy, G. M. (2012). Strategy, human resource management and performance: Sharpening line of sight. Human Resource Management Review, 22(1), 43-56.

Mathis, R. L., & Jackson, J. H. (2010). Human resource management. (13 ed.). Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.