Strategic Human Resource Management and Organizational Performance - Case Study Example

CASE STUDY: HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT Affiliation Case Study: Human Resource Management The overall reason for Marietta’s perceived lack of enthusiasm and positive attitude for the company is the lack of commitment from the management and failure to follow the work schedule in the training manual. The primary reasons for Marietta’s lack of enthusiasm and positive attitude in the company are the first impression by the two apprentices and the name they gave the company ‘Grunt. The management also did not review their training journals as was expected, and there were no Monday meetings as promised. The last time the apprentices had a Monday meeting was three months before. The other cause was the statement by the apprentices that they never felt that they were learning anything and were preparing to leave. The apprentices did not do any meaningful work apart from chopping and cutting things, sweeping and mopping the floor. The other reason is that Hank, the banquet chef failed to meet with her and discuss her work schedule as had been promised. The action proved the statements from the other apprentices. The leadership and the management of Shady Lane Inn played a big role in the negative perception of Marietta concerning the company in various ways. First, they did not follow the training schedule and did not review the apprentices journals. The management did not supervise the apprentices as seen when Hank left Marietta with the others and arrived very rate. The leaders are not trustworthy from the way they do not review their apprentices work as they promised, which make them stay there longer than anticipated. The management of the company also lacks honesty, a fact displayed when Hank forces Marietta to have a positive attitude towards the company for her to stay longer. The steps that were necessary for Marietta to have a positive attitude are good supervision for instance Hank should have given her work himself instead of leaving her in the hands of the other apprentices. The apprentices should have explained to Marietta on the method to slice the onions instead of waiting until she was half way. Hank should have made an effort to meet Marietta as promised to create a good relationship and a sense of commitment. Shady Lane Company should do a number of things to avoid creating a negative attitude to the future apprentices by employing responsible managers for supervisory work. The top leaders should always make a follow-up ensure that the other managers are doing their work perfectly. The company management should analyse the apprentices views and their feelings about the company and make the necessary amendments. The company should ensure that all apprentices do a variety of chores to enable them acquire different skills. A number of problems from the Shady Lane case study makes the workers and the apprentices uncomfortable with the company. One of them is the lack of leadership development in which the company does do not have competent employees with the right human resource qualities. The human resource manager in the case is not competent as he does not supervise his juniors to see whether they are doing the right thing. For instance, Hank does not handle the apprentices with competence as he leaves them to work unsupervised. He does not guide Marietta in her duties and does not keep his promise of meeting her. The company should introduce training for its employees at all levels to equip them with the necessary knowledge concerning their duties. Training is an investment in a company and Shady Lane, can train its employees, which will encourage them work hard and have a positive attitude and enthusiasm. Another problem with the company is that it lacks the culture of collaboration at all the levels of leadership. When Marietta arrives in the General Manager sends her to the human resources manager where she signs the papers and within no time, the HRM takes her to chef Terrell. The chef immediately takes her to the banquet chef, Hank after explaining a few things. By 10.45 am, she starts work with the other apprentices after just 2hours and 15 minutes. The management and leadership of the company do not take time with one another to discuss on the new apprentice. The management should invest in the culture of collaboration in which all, the leaders should work together, bring up the rest of the employees, and improve the company’s performance. The company also lacks good communication skills, for example, the statement by the Banquet Chef to Marietta on changing her attitude towards the company else, she gets kicked out. The other apprentices also did not use a good name for the company when welcoming Marietta "Welcome to the Grunt Squad". The company can solve the issue by training its stakeholders and employees with good communication skills. The training will help in building a good team as poor communicators lead to uncertainty. Lack of accountability is another issue in the company for some of the employees and the apprentices such as the case when Marietta dices the onions instead of slicing as no one told her the type of onion needed. She was forced to redo the work after the fellow apprentice told her that only thin onion slices were required. Hank does not want to acknowledge that the company has issues and tells Marietta to speak well of the company otherwise she should leave. To solve the issue, the company must encourage all the parties to take responsibilities for their failures and solve any problems that may arise. The case study is very important to me as it teaches me to be a good and effective manager of a big organization. First, the case teaches me to be a good communicator by having the patience to listen to other parties. As a manager, I should listen to my employees and hold meetings to help review the company’s work progress (Villanova University, 2015). Paying full attention to the employees as they give their opinions is one of the best qualities I would like to have. In the case study, the HR is supposed to meet the apprentices to review and discuss their work progress, but he does not honour it. My lesson from this situation is to honour and do my work and try to talk with my juniors in matters relating to the company. The other lesson from the case is to be a good time manager and be self-disciplined according to Villanova University (2015). Time management means doing a task at the specified time without any delays. From the case study, Hank does not honour his time to meet the new apprentice to give her the work instructions. Terrell also does not hold meetings as required by the company showing that he is not self-discipline and not a good time manager. Self-discipline will earn me respect from the junior and senior employees making my work more enjoyable. Being a delegator is another thing that will make me a better manager as I cannot do all the duties in the company (Villanova University, 2015). However delegating means I have to make a follow-up and ensure that the work done is of high quality. The apprentice chef delegates some work to the other apprentices to allocate Marietta some work to do, as he was busy. To be a better manager, I would also be a trusted advisor for all the employees so that they can come for advice whenever they need it (Wright, Gardner & Moynihan, 2003). Employees should have complete trust in me as their manager to share their troubles and issues in the company. Through interaction with the employees and having, a straightforward communication will assist me to be a successful manager. In the case study, the apprentices do not have someone to open up to and share their problems, as communication is not effective in the company. There is a big gap in each level of management. As a manager, I would ensure that horizontal and diagonal communications are applied to enhance the stakeholders trust. Another thing from the case is to be a motivator to enable a company achieves its goals by understanding all the employee and things that motivate them (Danlami, 2012). One way is by taking enough time with the employees and let them air out their views which will help me know what they like and what they do not like. In the case, the General Manager does not take enough time with Marietta to understand her, and a similar thing happens in all the levels she passes through. Within two and quarter hours of her arrival, Marietta begins to work with little information about the company. As a good manager, I would make sure that every new employ undergoes through a thorough orientation before starting work. Being a leader is another thing that will make me a better manager by focusing on the company’s progress (Randall, 2000). The company and employees’ achievements will be one of my major concern as the company cannot progress without proper supervision. Good leadership means coordinating all the levels of management and ensuring that there is good communication and interaction in the company. In the case study, good leadership is lacking as seen by the way they handle the apprentices, in which there is a big gap between the general manager and the others. The general manager does not do a follow-up to find out whether the apprentices receive the right training and evaluation. Management involves coordination of all the activities to ensure that each stakeholder performs their duties with full commitment. References Danlami, A. (2012). Strategic human resource management and Organizational performance in the Nigerian Insurance industry: the impact of organizational Climate. Business Intelligence Journal. (5) 1, 8. Randall S. (2000).The internationalization of human resource management. Journal of International Management (6) 239 -260. Villanova University,. (2015). Human Resource Management Challenges | HR Challenges. Retrieved 20 April 2015, from http://www.villanovau.com/resources/hr/human-resource-management-challenges/#.VTUD91LRsy4 Wright M., Gardner M., Moynihan M. (2003). The Impact of HR Practices on the performance of business units. Human Resource Management Journal, (13) 3, 21-36. Read More