Distinctive HR Policies and Practices - Research Paper Example

? Distinctive HR Policies and Practices Affiliation: Introduction Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit worldwide leader in medical care, research and education for people from all walks of life. There are doctors from every medical specialty that work together to care for patients and this is joined by common systems and a philosophy of “the needs of the patient come first.” Mayo Clinic developed slowly with the help of the medical practice of a pioneer doctor known as Dr. William Worrall Mayo. Overtime, the demand for the medical services increased and other doctors and science researchers were asked to join the world’s first private integrated group practice. As time went on, the practice became more accepted. Doctors and students came from around the world to learn new techniques from the Mayo Doctors, and patients came from around the world for diagnosis and treatment. As of today, Mayo Clinic consists of over 55,000 doctors, nurses, scientists, students, and allied health staff at Mayo Clinic locations in the Midwest, Arizona, and Florida. Their mission is to inspire hope and contribute to health and well-being by providing the best care to every patient through integrated clinical practice, education and research. The primary value of Mayo Clinic is the needs of the patient come first. The factor that makes them so special is their undivided care and concern for their patients. Mayo Clinic uses a set of values, which guide them each and every day. These values consist of respect, compassion, integrity, healing, teamwork, excellence, innovation, and stewardship. This helps Mayo Clinic express their vision and intent of the founders to ensure the companies meaning is never forgotten. Meeting patient needs is Mayo Clinic’s primary value but Mayo Clinic believes that serving patient needs is best accomplished within healthy, welcoming, and thriving communities. Mayo Clinic serves a commitment to the community and wants to make the community and the world a better place. In 2011, Mayo Clinic provided $62 million in charity care worldwide invested $3 million in community programs and reinvested $839 million in research and education programs. Clearly, Mayo Clinic serves not to benefit themselves, but for the people. Every year, more than a million people from all 50 states and nearly 150 countries come to Mayo Clinic for care. With these numbers, it is clear that Mayo Clinic is excelling in the medical practice. Their compassion for patients is very difficult to find and it’s truly inspiring. With their dedication and care to make patients their number one priority, Mayo Clinic will continue to excel and grow in the future years to come. Its human resource policies are in line with the explanations made by Hinkin and Tracey (2010) in his article which explains how the only human resource policies that matter when it comes to rating the fortune 100 companies include: compensation and benefits, training, organizational culture, different innovative methods for attracting and retaining employees and a flexibility in the scheduling and which is mainly what CNN and other organizations use to rank. Compensation and benefits The health benefits provided by Mayo Clinic can be said to be unique in their own nature as they are tailored towards preventive rather than curative direction. These health benefits cover not only the full time but also the part time employees and residents who are in the Mayo School of Graduate Medical Education. This health benefit plan according to the CNN (2012) rating is not 100% as it is a non-profit organization with only an annual $3 billion, but it covers the children (who are under 3 years of age). Among the offered health benefits covers includes a fitness center that is onsite and a gym membership both at a subsidized cost. It has outpatient health services (which are provided by their medical specialists within their clinics which assist in cutting their expenditure on insurance services). There are also other benefits present for those employees and residents affiliated with this company and they include a vacation and a retirement plan all which are added benefits of pay bonuses for the best performing employees and which act as a motivation to the others (Kouhy, Vedd, Yoshikawa and Innes, 2009). The preventive health benefits is what makes it a sought after company. Training Regular training is required for all the employees (whether salaried or not, permanent or temporary, full time or part time). CNN (2012) explains that the training hours for the different categories of employees vary from 25 to 29 hours per year. The most interesting thing to note is that the employees who have medical background are trained in the Mayo School of Graduate Medical Education. The other advantage of the in house training is that the training provided is specialized as the trainers in the school comprises of an assortment of doctors and health care workers and instructors from different referral hospitals all over United States. This form of training is not very common and the fact that it involves professionals from all over the country makes Mayo Clinic an admirable company to work in. Organizational culture Mayo Clinic organizational culture is most notable on its employment diversity. There is gender balance and minority balance where employment and human resource policies are concerned. The organization has around of 70% of its employees as women and 13% of minors who enter as both professionals and volunteers. The other notable culture is their contribution in the internet and social media in terms of providing research, medical information and facts on medical issues which have earned them fame and praise (Doran, 2001). Diversity is a trait that most people look for when seeking jobs and especially the gender aspect of it. As Mayo Clinic has managed to achieve this, most people especially women who are not given higher positions in organizations often find this company the best employer in not only its industry but generally as well (as the above statistics of 70% reflect). Methods for attracting and retaining employees With their limited annual budget, they offer around 800 jobs per year even though the applications run to up to 1600. This however does not prevent it from having innovative methods for attracting and retaining employees (Nicas, 2013). Other than the salaries and benefits there are also beneficial volunteer program which attracts thousands of people to the clinic in the hope of giving back to the community. The other strategy is equality and lack of discrimination in the process of hiring, firing, compensating or even in just any other activity in the workplace for its employees and this attracts even more candidates for employment even from the renowned teaching hospitals all over the country. Even though they may not match up salaries with other companies, they run a non-profit organization and mostly rely on well-wishers and volunteers and this humanitarian aspect of the company attracts many people even if only working part time and as volunteers. Flexibility in the scheduling Finally, there is flexibility in the scheduling for the part time employees and volunteers. This scheduling is a way to ease congestion in the hospitals and to ensure that the staffs present at any one time do not lag in taking care of the sick as they are many of them or neglect their duties hoping the others would perform them (Weber, 2005). The schedule allows a particular staff at particular hours to be on duty in different locations and then leave to allow the next shift with new staff. This flexibility allows for the employees to relax and avoid burnout as well as engage in other activities like education and training. Conclusion Mayo Clinic a non-profit organization with all its different branches all over the country and with its over 55,000 employees and countless volunteers has managed to be among the most sought out employer in its category of industries due to its various human resource policies which are not only distinct when compared to other companies but which are tailored towards humanitarian aspects which match their mission. References CNN. (2012). 100 Best Companies to work for: Starbucks. CNNMoney. Retrieved from: http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/best-companies/2012/snapshots/71.html Doran, A. (2001). E-work Architect: How HR Leads the Way Using the Internet. Minnesota: Rector-Duncan. Hinkin, T. and Tracey, B. (8th March, 2010). “What Makes It So Great: An Analysis of Human Resources Practices among Fortune's Best Companies to Work For.” Cornell Hospitality Quarterly 51: 158-170. DOI: 10.1177/1938965510362487 Kouhy, R., Vedd, R., Yoshikawa, T. and Innes, J. (2009). "Human resource policies, management accounting and organizational performance." Journal of Human Resource Costing & Accounting, Vol. 13(3), pp.245 – 263. Nicas, J. (22nd April, 2013). “Mayo Clinic's Upmarket Move.” The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved from: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324763404578433183837597020.html Weber, G. (February, 2005). “Preserving the Counter Culture,” Workforce Management vol. 84(2), pp. 28–34. Read More