Mrs. Hala Omar Unit 1 - 1 Unit One: The Emerging Role of HR Professionals Table of Contents Unit 1 Introduction 2 Basic Characteristics of the business environment Globalization Technological Trends Nature of Work 2 3 3 Strategic Human Resources Management Definition of Strategic management Strategy Formulation Strategy Implementation HR Role in Creating Competitive Advantage Definition of Strategic Human Resources Management Human Resources Strategic Management Process Strategic Human Resources Management Challenges 3 4 7 8 8 9 9 The Role of Human Resources Professionals Strategic Role Role of Managing a Diverse Workforce Innovator Role Change and Knowledge Facilitator Role Measuring Human Resources Management Effectiveness 10 12 12 12 13 Human Resources Professionals Proficiencies 13
This document is posted to help you gain knowledge. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about it! Share it to your friends and learn new things together.
Transcript
Mrs. Hala Omar Unit 1 - 1
Unit One: The Emerging Role of HR Professionals
Table of Contents
Unit 1
Introduction 2
Basic Characteristics of the business environment
Globalization
Technological Trends
Nature of Work
2
3
3
Strategic Human Resources Management
Definition of Strategic management
Strategy Formulation
Strategy Implementation
HR Role in Creating Competitive Advantage
Definition of Strategic Human Resources Management
Human Resources Strategic Management Process
Strategic Human Resources Management Challenges
3
4
7
8
8
9
9
The Role of Human Resources Professionals
Strategic Role
Role of Managing a Diverse Workforce
Innovator Role
Change and Knowledge Facilitator Role
Measuring Human Resources Management Effectiveness
10
12
12
12
13
Human Resources Professionals Proficiencies 13
Mrs. Hala Omar Unit 1 - 2
UNIT ONE
THE EMERGING ROLE OF HR PROFESSIONALS
The role of the human resources management is evolving with the changes in the competitive
market environment and the realization that human resources management must play a more
strategic role in the success of an organization. Consequently, organizations that do not put
their emphasis on attracting and retaining talents may find themselves in dire consequences,
as their competitors may be outplaying them in the strategic employment of their human
resources. This is due to the rapid changes that are increasing in the business environment,
locally as well as globally, which requires organizations to become more adaptable, resilient,
agile, and customer-focused to succeed.
As such, the human resource professional has to evolve to become a strategic partner, an
employee sponsor or advocate, and a change mentor within the organization i.e. An effective
human resource professional must be business driven function with a thorough understanding
of the organization’s big picture in order to be able to influence key decisions and policies.
This unit will highlight the following:
Basic Characteristics of Today's Business Environment
Strategic Human Resources Management
The Roles of Human resources professionals
Proficiencies of Human Resources Professionals
BASIC CHARACTERISITCS OF THE BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT
Globalization:
The tendency to extend sales, ownership, manufacturing to new markets abroad. Firms go
abroad for:
New markets for its services and products
Labor cost reduction
Globalization means:
Higher level of competition which means employees have to be more productive, to
do things better while reducing cost.
Consumer will get better quality at lower cost.
Mrs. Hala Omar Unit 1 - 3
Business will have the opportunity of higher sales volume but at the same time
higher competition in the local market.
Technological trends
The increased reliance on virtual on line communities to improve efficiency. For example,
Zara no longer relies on inventories as it operates a worldwide distribution network linked to
checkout registers at its stores around the world. This helps in:
Monitoring store sales
Computerized manufacturing system swings its action when an item runs out of a
store.
The manufacturing process is done in accordance and the item is directly sent to the
store.
Nature of work:
The technological change had a huge impact on how people impact on how people work, their
skills and training needed. Today, business environment needs:
High tech jobs where knowledge intensive high tech manufacturing systems are
replacing traditional jobs.
Service jobs where globalization will shift production to low labor cost areas added
to it technological changes that increase productivity. For example, Just -in-time
manufacturing will reduce inventory cost and consequently fewer employees will be
required.
Knowledge work and human capital: The jobs that remain require continuous
education and skills enhancement and, thus, growing emphasis on human capital.
STRATEGIC HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT
Definition of strategic management
It is the process of identifying and executing the organization's strategic plan, by
matching the company's capabilities with the demands of its environment.
Systematic analysis of the factors associated with customers and competitors (the
external environment) and the organization itself (the internal environment) to
provide the basis for rethinking the current management practices. Its objective is to
achieve better alignment of corporate policies and strategic priorities.
Human Resources Management Role in Creating Competitive Advantage
In most firms today, it is the employees' skills and commitment, and the management system
that produces them that makes the difference and not the technology in itself. This is simply
because the technology is available to all organizations. Thus operational flexibility is what
counts (plant operators and managers who use the technology) first and then equipment and
computer integration comes second.
Definition of Strategic Human Resources Management
It refers to the specific human resource management courses of action the company
pursues to achieve its strategic aims.
Formulating and executing human resource policies and practices that produce the
employee competencies and behaviors the company needs to achieve its strategic
aims.
Example 1:
FedEx strategic aim: Achieve superior levels of customer service and high profitability
through a highly committed workforce preferably in non-union environment.
FedEx human resource strategy:
Use tools to build two way communication
Look for people-oriented managers
Guarantee greatest extent of fair treatment and employee security
Utilize promotion from within which allows employees to realize their full potential
Example 2:
Southwest Airline strategic aim: To deliver low cost, convenient service on short haul routes
by:
Getting fast, 15 minute turnarounds at gates
Keep plans turned around
Southwest Airline employee competencies:
All employees should do whatever it takes to get planes turned around
Mrs. Hala Omar Unit 1 - 9
Southwest Airline human resource policies and practices:
High compensation
Flexible job assignments
Cross training
Employee stock ownership
Human Resources Strategic Management Process
Strategic Human Resources Management Challenges
Organization Performance Improvement: The need to support corporate productivity
and performance improvement efforts.
Technology is useless without competent and committed employees: Employees play
an expanded role in employer's performance improvement efforts.
How the firm makes money: Human resource units must be more involved in
designing the organization's strategic plan i.e. Human resource managers need to
fully understand the value creating proposition of the firm.
Company's
Competitive environment
"Opportunities and threats"
Company's strategic situation
Company's
Internal environment
"Strengths and weaknesses"
Company's strategic plan
"Expansion, cost cutting,
diversification"
Company's HR Strategies
What are the Basic courses of
action HR will pursue to ensure
that the HR systems will achieve
the company strategic plan.
ORGANIZATIONAL
PERFORMANCE
Mrs. Hala Omar Unit 1 - 10
THE ROLES OF HUMAN RESOURCES PROFESSIONALS
The Strategic Role
They should be part of the company's strategic planning team in order to identify
human issues that are vital to the business strategy.
Human resource managers should work closely with senior management in both
formulating and implementing their firm's strategic plans.
Creation of human resource management policies and practices that support
employer's strategic goals with an assumption that the human resource manager can
measure how well the practices and policies are achieving the strategic goals.
Human resource department plays two roles:
Strategy formulation: With globalization, more competition means more
performance which requires boosting employees' competencies and
commitment, which makes human resource management knowledge and
expertise crucial to strategy formulation process. Strategy formulation
requires external and internal analysis (SWOT analysis) with the resulting
strategic plan capitalizing on opportunities and strengths and minimizing or
neutralizing threats and weaknesses. It is the role of human resources to:
- Provide details regarding incentive plans.
- Analyze how competitors constructed their organization chart and
staffing levels.
- Determine how competitors group their brands into divisions
(who reports to whom). This may reflect how competitors set
their strategic priorities.
- Provide input on company's internal human strengths and
weaknesses.
Strategy implementation (execution): Based on the company's corporate and competitive strategies, the human resource manager designs strategies, policies and practices, as for example:
- Administration of downsizing or restructuring efforts
- Institution of pay-for performance plans
- Reduction of health care costs
Mrs. Hala Omar Unit 1 - 11
High performance work system: Every company tends to build its HR
system that is uniquely appropriate to its needs. With globalization, there is
a growing need for high performance work system that includes:
- Multi-skilled work teams
- Empowered front line workers
- Extensive training
- Labor-management cooperation
- Commitment to quality
- Committed to customer satisfaction
Example: Comparison of HR practices in high performance and low
performance companies Low performance
company HR
system Bottom 10%
High performance
company HR
system Top 10%
Number of qualified applicants per person 8.24 36.5
% hired based on a validated selection test 4.26 29.67
% of jobs filled from within 34.90 61.46
Number of hours of training for new
employees (less than one year)
13.40 72.00
% of employees receiving regular
performance appraisal
41.31 95.17
Employee turnover 34.09 20.87
Sales per employee $158,101 $617,576
Market value to book value 3.64 11.06
Human resource function
Human resource professionals with strategic management competencies
Human resource system
High performance work system consisting of strategically aligned human
resource policies, practices and activities
Employee behavior
Employee competencies, values, motivation and behavior required by the
company's strategic plan
Mrs. Hala Omar Unit 1 - 12
The Role of Managing a Diverse Workforce
The future success of any organizations relies on the ability to manage a diverse
body of talent that can bring innovative ideas, perspectives and views to their work.
Thus:
A diverse workforce can be turned into a strategic organizational asset if an
organization is able to capitalize on this melting pot of diverse talents.
The mixture of talents of diverse cultural backgrounds, genders, ages and
lifestyles, the organization can respond to business opportunities more
rapidly and creatively, especially in the global arena which must be one of
the important organizational goals to be attained.
Organizations failing to accept a diverse workforce within its culture runs
the risk of losing talent to competitors.
The role of the human resources manager becomes one of:
Search for human resources requirements globally and then organize the
pool of diverse talents strategically for the organization.
Harnesses the full potential of workplace diversity by creating a culture that
accept diversity.
The Innovator Role
Today, organizations are asking their HR departments for innovative approaches and
solutions to improve productivity and the quality of work life while complying with the law in
an environment of high uncertainty, energy conservation, and intense international
competition. This means that human resources departments should continually streamline
their operations and redesign the way work gets done.
Change and Knowledge Facilitator Role
It's increasingly necessary for organizations to adapt new technologies, structures, processes,
cultures, and procedures to meet the demands of intense competition. Organizations look to
the human resource department for
The skills to facilitate organizational change and to maintain organizational
flexibility and adaptability.
The need to be more focused on the future.
Mrs. Hala Omar Unit 1 - 13
Guiding the discussion and flow of knowledge, information and learning throughout
the organization.
Measuring Human Resources Management Effectiveness
Human resource managers are expected to show in specific and measurable terms how human
resource activities contribute to the firm's profit i.e. Human resource manager should show in
measurable terms how the human resource system is supporting the employer's strategic aims,
productivity indicators for example.
HUMAN RESOURCES PROFESSIONALS PROFICIENCIES
HR proficiencies: Refers to knowledge and skills in human resources activities as
hiring, training …etc.
Business proficiencies: Refers to the ability to assist top management in formulating
strategies, strategic planning, marketing, production and finance.
Leadership proficiencies: Refers to the ability to work with and lead management
groups and to drive change.
Learning proficiencies: Refers to the ability to learn and apply new technology.