Key Elements of HR Strategy of Disney and How it is Linked With Its Corporate Strategy - Case Study Example

Key Elements of HR Strategy of Disney and How it is Linked With Its Corporate Strategy One of the key elements of the overall HR strategy of Disney is the alignment of its HR strategy with that of the corporate strategy. At the corporate level, Disney focused upon creating great customer experience and as such overall recruitment and training strategies were designed and implemented accordingly. (Inkson, 2008) Mayo’s Framework Analysis Culture and the overall heritage of Walt Disney Co were the two important and core features of the company and the overall effort were made to ensure that employees are well-aware of the culture and company heritage. Training and development of the employees is tailored in a manner which allows the company to train and develop the employees in a manner which delivers consistent value to the customers. However, this has been only possible after the involvement of top management of the company at all levels of management.  (Perkins, Shortland and Perkins, 2006) However, it is clear that reward and recognition system may not have been clearly defined. The overall recognition criteria were not well-defined and it is also evident that the employees were allowed to communicate with each other at designated places and during particular times.  (Miner, 2007) The overall communication and relationship among the employees and the managers were excellent as managers clearly outlined the expectations from the crew members and what was exactly required from them. Learning and development was the key point which was integrated in the overall HR strategy of Disney as employees were specifically trained in various areas of operations while at the same time allowing them to build on their multi-dimensional expertise. The overall general HR policies regarding hiring, training and developing employees were well-defined and most of the tasks were performed through in-house employees hired and developed over the period of time. (Kreitner, 2009) Strengths & Weaknesses Employee More focus on developing employees and their personalities so that they can deliver superior value to customers. A supported environment for employees has been created which fosters responsibility and creativity. Leadership and communication skills, which are vital for working in an environment which is client facing. Employees are trained in a manner which improves therefore skills. HR Strategy is further focused towards empowering employees to face the clients in real time. Company HR Strategy is aligned with the overall corporate strategy as it supports the overall vision of the company. Overall, HR Strategy of Disney was focused upon hiring, training and developing employees who can deliver more value to the customers. As such the overall strategy was driven by aligning employee strengths with that of the company’s culture and heritage. HR Strategy of the firm was focused upon leveraging human capital of the firm and uses it for achieving the overall objectives of Disney Corporation. Overall, the key strength of the HR strategy was its alignment with the overall business strategy of the firm. Guests HR Policy is driven towards creating more value for the customers through a trained and skilled staff. The overall HR Strategy which resulted into an increase user experience as HR Strategy was driven towards achieving leadership skills and mutual collaboration between the employees and the managers. It is driven towards training the staff to a level where most of the complaints and questions of the guests are taken care of on the field. Guests meet clean, pleasant and attentive attendants as it is through a better HR Strategy that crew members are being trained to serve the needs of the guests. Weaknesses Employee HR Strategy is more focused upon fulfilling the needs of the organization rather than working for the interests of the employees. Though the HR Strategy is focused more on aligning the strengths of employees with that of the organization however, it is not clear as to whether the employees are adequately rewarded also. Policy is relatively restrictive for the employees as they are strictly not allowed to complain in front of guests. This suggests that employees may not have sufficient autonomy and freedom to discuss their grievances with each other. From the perspective of empowering employees and allowing them to make decisions on their own, there seems to be less focus on such HR practices. The presence of functional hierarchy within the organization may not allow employees to become more empowered and take decisions on their own while facing different and difficult customer services situations. There exist rigid power structures and organizational hierarchy which may not allow employees to advance their career in effective manner. The presence of functional hierarchy within the organization may be discouraging for the employees as they may consider it as an attempt to actually slow down the growth of the employees. Company Though the strategy is aligned with that of the corporate strategy however, it seems that HR strategy is focused more on achieving business objectives rather than retaining a motivated staff. HR Strategy of the firm is driven towards ensuring diversity and maintaining culture only however, it is lacking emphasis on other areas of the management. HR’s strategic role is broader and it encompasses different functional areas which require a broader reflection on different aspects of doing business. As such, maintaining diversity or focusing on maintaining culture of the organization may not be strongest point of a well-developed HR Policy. Compensation structure for the employees may not be aligned with the overall needs of the employees. Though the case study is relatively silent on the compensation structure of the organization however, it seems that the overall compensation structure of the organization may not be aligned with the actual needs or expectations of the employees working at different resorts and parks. Guests It is not clear as to whether the HR Strategy is actually focused upon fulfilling the actual needs of the guests or not. It seems that the strategy is focused more on aligning customer experience with that of the company values rather than aligning company values with customer experience. Disney has an integrated business model wherein overall experience of the guests is linked with other activities also. As such, HR strategy is only focused upon delivering excellent experience in theme parks only. The overall HR Strategy may be costly as it requires employees to be trained in certain tasks and continue to keep themselves updated with frequent dress changes and other requirements to fulfill. The cost of adherence to such codes may be passed on to guests. Advice on how to improve the Policy Business Strategy and the Context Considering the overall information presented in the case study, it is clear that overall HR Strategy is aligned with the business strategy of the firm. It is also evident that it is driven more by the corporate needs of the company and all HR functions are designed and tailored in a manner which support the overall business strategy of the firm.  (Truss, Mankin and Kelliher, 2012) A critical analysis of the overall strategy of Disney clearly indicates that the policy is lacking in certain areas. More specifically, it is relatively silent on how the employee performance will be measured and how the employees will be rewarded. The existing policy is clearly lacking in terms of performance measurement. Business needs and key HR issues It is clear that any HR related policy must be performance related and the performance related matrices must be aligned with the overall business strategy of the firm. The existing HR policy of Disney is focused solely on aligning the strengths of its HR with that of delivering best customer experience however; it is not aligned with how the overall performance of the employees will be related with the overall business outcomes. (CIPD, 2015) Performance measurement has evolved over the period of time and employees are now evaluated from different perspectives. In order to better align the overall HR strategy with that of the business, it is more important if specific performance criteria is set for each crew member and managers. The overall annual performance is to be measured against the specifically identified targets such as low complaint ratio, speed of delivery of services and other identifiable and quantifiable performance measurement targets. (Orpen, 1993) Strategic framework and HR Strategies The overall gaps in the HR strategy and business needs indicate that training and development strategy is broadly defined and may not enable Disney to actually empower their employees to deal with different and varying needs of the customers. The crew members are only trained to deal with the guests at the resorts however, the overall model of Disney suggested that it attempted to diversify the experience of its customers. Consider this business objective, it was clear that training and development program of the company was narrowly focused upon training and development needs of the employees working at the resorts.  (Armstrong, 2006) HR Capabilities and Resources Required To equip employees with more advanced training and skills, it is clear that Disney must extend the scope of its training and development activities and align it with the overall business needs of the organization as a whole and not just one segment of the business. (Human, 1996) References Armstrong, M. (2006). A handbook of human resource management practice. London: Kogan Page. CIPD, (2015). HR Strategy- Creating the framework for Successful People Management. [online] Available at: http://www.cipd.co.uk/NR/rdonlyres/6B6B6A99-FB58-4229-A9AE-ADB82662BA5A/0/tool_01.pdf [Accessed 26 Feb. 2015]. Deadrick, D. and Stone, D. (2014). Human resource management: Past, present, and future. Human Resource Management Review, 24(3), pp.193-195. Human, L. (1996). Managing workforce diversity: a critique and example from South Africa. Int J of Manpower, 17(4/5), pp.46-64. Inkson, K. (2008). Are humans resources?. Career Dev Int, 13(3), pp.270-279. Kreitner, R. (2009). Management. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co. Miner, J. (2007). Organizational behavior 4. Armonk, N.Y.: M.E. Sharpe. Orpen, C. (1993). Managing human resources strategically. Work Study, 42(5), pp.15-17. Perkins, S., Shortland, S. and Perkins, S. (2006). Strategic international human resource management. London: Kogan Page. Truss, C., Mankin, D. and Kelliher, C. (2012). Strategic human resource management. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Read More