HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PROJECT - Book Report/Review Example

?HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PROJECT The role of human resource management in an organization is immense. Any organization without an effective human resource management cannot thrive in an industry for long term. The effectiveness with which the overall activities of an organization specifically the human resources activities are coordinated and utilized establishes the success human resource management in terms of achieving the organizational goal. Human resource management exerts a profound importance over the organization, employees of the organization and towards the society or economic scenario within which the organization is operating. An effective and efficient and an efficient human resources practice can help in attracting and preserving the best people within the organization. The overall performance of any organization depends upon the effectiveness of the human resource management. It facilitates the organization meeting different challenges by improvising different strategies for different situation. The objective and the mission statement are defined by the human resource management by formulating an accurate business plan for the organization. Issue related to performance management of employees, strategy development for the organization, any enterprise reform as per the industry standards, absenteeism management, conflict management, resource and talent planning, implementation of any innovative measures etc are all strengthened and taken care by the human resource management. According to CIPD it is important for organizations to analyze the environment in which the firm is operating, to help them in making effective strategic decision, as well as to take time to reflect on their performance, to think about their strength and weaknesses, to think about the opportunities and threats that exits in ever competitive and changing environment and use these as part of the strategic planning progress (Kew & Stredwick, 2010). The report deals with a coherent analysis of the role and importance of the human resource management activities within an UK based clothing and textile company and how it is helpful in overcoming the shortcomings of the company through comprehensive strategic reviews of its operations. Contribution toward the Identification and Analyzing Problems: Economic change can lead to enormous adverse effect over the retail sector especially in the clothing and textile industry. UK underwent profound changes in terms of taste and preference of the customers as an after effect of the great recession during 2008-2009. This in turn exerted an adverse effect over the cloth and textile industry in UK. UK’s textile and the clothing industry was a hard hit owing to the reduced customers demand across a range of variety of product. The entire textile and clothing industries output marked a sharp fall in their production. Devaluation in the euro caused a reduced the import capabilities of the entire industry. The recession during 2008-2009 in UK also followed a change in the income pattern of the individuals which directly affected their consumption. This hit the clothing industry in a negative way as they suffered a sharp cut in the demand of their products. This in turn lowered down the revenue of the industry and as an effect hiked their cost of production. The major impact was found over the employment sector. With an inflated cost of production the clothing companies started suffering losses. This forced the companies for a cost cutting to come out of losses. This affected the employment sector to a large scale as the clothing companies started to a sack their employees as a tool for cost cutting (Just-style's review of the apparel industry in 2009: Management briefing: May, 2009). As per reports it was said that, “the UK’s New Look have recently made cases for some ethical practices actually improving a factory's productivity, and arguments from pressure groups have taken a whole new turn in the past month” (The clothing industry and the economic crisis - a just-style review: Management briefing: Is recession rewriting the sourcing rulebook?, 2009). It assures that all the companies operating in UK’s clothing industry took human resources as a solution of their problems. The company operating in UK suffered from the same problems during recession. Identification of Problems: The company in the given case also might feel the need of an appropriate human resource management strategy to dwell with and overcome the problem. The human resource management comes out to be of immense importance in indentifying and analyzing the problems or the challenges the organization was facing then and still facing in present. For addressing the issues the industry and the organization has been suffering from, the company in the given case should deploy their human resource management wing for solving the issues of concern and for suggesting solution for the same. The human resource management team strategically should carry out an SWOT and the PESTLE analysis to identify the issues of concern and for giving suggestion for the same. In such scenario of economical turbulence the human resource management team might observe that the company demand for the all the product has not been suffering a sharp fall. For resolving the issues they should carry out a survey by interviewing a group of customers to arrive at accurate results. Through the survey human resource management team might accurately identify the strength and weaknesses of the company. They might observe that the luxurious product of the company is suffering a steep fall of consumption by consumers, but the sale of clothing items of low to middle ranged price receive a boom. This should contribute towards one of the strength components of the company which they will need to capitalize. In addition to this they might also identify that during recessional times and after, the employees are more focused and come out with better productivity in spite of a low pay compared to their productivity. On the other hand the devaluation in euro may compel the company to cut down their imports which in turn might hike their cost of production. They might also observe that the company has been suffering from dearth of adequate capital. In addition to that while interviewing the internal employees of the organization they might find that the company has been suffering from horizontal and vertical mismanagement affecting the smooth operations of the company. The human resources management team should identify all these as the weaknesses of the organization which they need to overcome. The human resource management team has been driven by the organizations’ internally referenced focused policy and approaches. The firm might realize that the profit maximization approach of the human resource management practices can exert an adverse influence on the social issues related to the third parties like the interest of the stakeholders, employees welfare etc. Keeping this in mind they should analyze the threats and opportunities of the organization. In this process they should soon realize that in order to hike the production of the low to medium prices ranged clothing items they need an additional cheap labors. In the economic doldrums scenario procurement of cheap labor is not an issue for the company. This will serve as an opportunity for the firm. On the contrary they might realize that the competitors have a cost effective benefit in their operation which they lack. This will assure that they will face a stiffer competition in the market in terms of the pricing of the product where their competitors can launch their product with a lower price. This will thus come out to be the biggest threat which the company needs to strategize. For a better understanding of the company’s opportunities and treats the human resource management can carry out a PESTLE analysis. During an economic unrest situation a company usually suffers through the intervention of government in regards of their operation which effected the smooth functioning of the company. In addition to that the organization can be directly hit by the interest rate and exchange rate fluctuations. As a result of the same the market share of the company comes down. All these might account for the political and the economical factors analysis of the external force affecting the organization and the effect of which is still prevalent in the company. The human resource management team might feel that anxiety amongst the employees of losing their job affecting their productivity and creating disturbances in the internal working environment in such economic turbulence scenario. They could also realize that the company needs latest technological development for upgrading their production but the same cannot be possible due of shortage of capital. As an effect of the financial downturn the company can also suffer from certain external legal constrains. All these will thus account for the social, economical, technological and legal problems which the company can face and the effect of which will continue for long which the human resource management need to address. Solutions: The human resource management team should feel the need of the development of a new business plan in compliance with the present economic scenario and strategize plan to enhance the organization’s performance by effectively addressing the issues of concern. A well defined business plan can help the company in overcoming its weaknesses, strengthening its strength and opportunities, reducing the threats. A business plan will predefine the course of action within which the company needs to operate (Noe, 2006, pp. 63). The human resource management team has to design the plan which in turn will overcome the shortcoming of the company. To overcome the problem of vertical and horizontal integration amongst the employees the human resource management needs to strategize plan to improve the professional support of the line managers and by improving the personnel system. For ensuring a healthy work environment they should address the issues regarding corporate culture by formulating new guidelines as per the social context (Blyton & Turnbull, 1992, pp. 139). They should also develop a strategic planning for addressing the threat of stiffer competition from competitors by employing more human resource and lowering down the technological costs. For enhancing the opportunities the human resource team can give direction to the production department for lowering down their production of luxuries products and enhance the production of the low to medium priced products. They should also formulate a model in compliance of the finance department suggestions which the company should follow to address the inflated cost of production and raise the productivity (Werner, Schuler & Jackson, 2012, pp. 106). Thus by strategizing the business operation the human resource management team can overcome the problems the company has been facing so far. Requirement for Internal Review and Planning Process in Organization For forming an effective business plan of the organization the human resource management team should review the same time to time to evaluate the employees performance activities, which in turn will improve the operation of the company. As per reports from operations of Apple, Steve Jobs has agreed to the fact that human capital is significantly above normal in innovative capacity and the same can be inherent or acquired through training efforts. The same can be enhanced through an effective human resource management process within the organization. As per Laursen and Foss, “management deploys training arrangements, makes decisions on reward structures, sets up teams, allocates decision-rights and so on, and these arrangements have implications for the contribution of human capital to innovation” (Laursen & Foss, 2012). For facilitating the smooth operation of the company in order to come out of the economic unstable situation the human resource management team should make development in the employee’s practices which are fair and reasonable. For achieving the same they can design a guideline for the employees stating the objective of the organization and can mention clear targets that employees can work towards (Gatenby M et. al., n.d. , pp. 4). They should deploy themselves in enhancing the skills of the employees and should arrange for Lean Programmes for them. The company needs to imagine and act in both global and local ways while planning for their international workforces. They also need to ponder over the impact of environment in which they are operating. If the company is working in regards with socially responsible manner then the human resource management team should frame certain HRM policies. This will enhance the corporate social responsibilities activities of the company regarding how the employees will be trained, how they will be paid and based on what scales they will be evaluated (Werner, Schuler & Jackson, 2012, pp. 6). For enhancing the overall performance of the employees the company can put into effect HRM practices like 360 degree system or walk around monitoring. Survey carried out on several companies for enhancing employees performance by CIPD said, “eighty-seven percent of the respondents operated a formal performance management process” (CIPD, 2005, pp. 2). As per reports it was also observed that the walk around monitoring techniques to employee evaluation and 360 degree appraisal was of immense importance to give a boost on employee’s confidence. In light of this report the company’s human resource management team can adopt such practices for better results. HRM Contribution in Identification and Responding To the Change in Business and External Context to Promote Good Management Practice: As per reports for promoting good management practices Hewlett Packard expanded its SER policy related to supply chain management (Werner, Schuler & Jackson, 2012, pp. 106). For promoting good management practice the company operating in the economic distress should implement policies regarding the resource and talent planning. As per CIPD report, “over a quarter of organizations report they are employing more 16-24 years olds compared with one year ago, a small improvement on previous years’ survey. A quarter of organizations operate a structured graduate recruitment programme, although this was considerably more common in larger organizations” (CIPD, 2013, pp. 5). Thus, the company should focus over employing young worker in the production department for a better productivity and for strengthening their resource talent planning. They should also set policies regarding resourcing and talent management in turbulence times. In such economic turbulence scenario the company should also focus in managing the labor turnover. As per reports, “The median rate of labor turnover has declined steadily since the 2008 financial crisis, although the overall figure masks differences across sectors. Median turnover rates have actually increased slightly in the private services and not-for-profit sectors over recent years” (CIPD, 2013, pp. 6). The company thus should focus over retaining the employees in the organization by establishing good relationship with them and should boost their confidence through reward management since in private sector employee value is the key driver for enhancing organization performance (CIPD, 2013). The company should also focus over enhancing employees’ involvement in pretext of the changing external scenario for enhancing good management practices. For achieving such objective the company should outline and execute a performance management system for motivating its employees. As per CIPD research, “performance management would help individuals understand what they should be doing and how they ought to be doing it” (CIPD, 2009, pp. 9). Thus by taking in account the discussed measures and executing the same in action, will help the organization in distress to promote a good management practice. Conclusion: From the above discussion one can understand how the company in distress can find a solution to their problems related to HRM. For safeguarding a business from the peril factors the organization should proceed with a business planning in light of the above analyzed factors. This will thus enable the organization to identify the business opportunities which should be fully exploited and threats from which the business should stay aloof. For achieving its objective, the organization is thus recommended to strategize their business plan in compliance with an effective and efficient human resource management policy. Reference List 1. Blyton P & Turnbull P,(1992), Reassessing Human Resource Management, London, Sage Publications Ltd. 2. CIPD, 2005, Performance Management, CIPD Survey Report 2005, retrieved on 9 August 2013 from: http://www.cipd.co.uk/binaries/perfmansr0905.pdf 3. CIPD, (2009), Performance Management In Action: Current Trends and Practice, CIPD Survey Reports, retrieved on 9 August 2013 from: http://www.cipd.co.uk/binaries/Performance_management_in_action.pdf 4. CIPD, (2013), Resourcing and Talent Planning, Annual survey report 2013 CIPD, retrieved on 9 August 2013 from: http://www.cipd.co.uk/binaries/6226%20RTP%20SR%20WEB.PDF 5. CIPD, (2013), Reward Management Survey, CIPD Home, retrieved on 9 August 2013 from: http://www.cipd.co.uk/research/_reward-management/ 6. Gatenby M et. al., n.d. , Employee Management in Context, CIPD, retrieved on 9 August 2013 from: http://www.cipd.co.uk/NR/rdonlyres/6D7D52C8-6E51-4539-A189-1E2D6EBEF01F/0/employee_engagement_context.pdf 7. Just-style's review of the apparel industry in 2009: Management briefing: May. , (2009), Bromsgrove: Aroq Limited, retrieved on 9 August 2013 from: http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy2.apus.edu/docview/212357644/abstract/13FC76FACF77FAB198C/2?accountid=8289 8. Kew J & Stredwick J, (2010), Human Resource Management in Context, CIPD, retrieved on 9 August 2013 from: http://www.cipd.co.uk/NR/rdonlyres/65D4C3FF-F4FA-4EAD-ACB7-56172E5A97BC/0/9781843982524_sc.pdf 9. Laursen & Foss, (2012), Human Resource Management Practices and Innovation, retrieved on 9 August from: http://www.druid.dk/laursen/files/Handbook_of_Innovation_Management_LaursenFoss.pdf 10. Noe, (2006), Human Resource Management: Gaining a Competitive Advantage, New York, McGraw Hill Companies Inc. 11. The clothing industry and the economic crisis - a just-style review: Management briefing: Is recession rewriting the sourcing rulebook?, ( September 2009), Bromsgrove: Aroq Limited, retrieved on 9 August 2013 from: http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy2.apus.edu/docview/212366804/fulltext/13FC76FACF77FAB198C/3?accountid=8289 12. Werner S, Schuler S R & Jackson E S, (2012), Humane Resource Management, Canada: South Western Cengage Learning Read More