Plan for Human Resource Transformation - Case Study Example

Project 4 – Plan for Human Resource Transformation HRMN 495-6980 __________ Submitted December ___, 2008 A Plan for Transformation at Company XThe HR Department that I am analyzing is a shipping company. It has recently merged another shipping line from Hong Kong. The new entity has undertaken the acquisition two container vessels for transportation of cargo; in the past, this service has been particularly problematic for local exporters, importers and international shipping lines. The group to which the company belongs operates a 20-vessel fleet which include dry cargo, tankers, bulk cement carriers and two containerships. It also has an affiliate with a fleet of 21 tanker barges. As the Chief Human Capital Officer, I would have to ensure that change is managed effectively across all phases of the process. While change is an inevitable component of the business arena, people are inclined to reject or resist it – sometimes even vehemently. Such resistance to change may be explicit in the form of work stoppage, turnover, and striking; or sometimes more implicit, as seen with grievances, requests for transfers, and absenteeism, among others. Some of the reasons mentioned for resistance to change are as follows: fear of the unknown, novel learning, disruptions of stable friendships, distrust of management, fear of failure, and politics (Lakomski, 2001). It is critical to acknowledge that such resistance to change does not only emanate from workers, but may also stem from the organizational structure of the firm itself (Lakomski, 2001). Some stable, unshakable firms may resist change even as it is obvious that the subsistence of the organization depends on the implementation of the change. Resistance to organizational change is attributed to the inertia of organizational change, systems relationships, sunk cost and hidden agendas. The effective communication of changes that may directly influence the fate of employees is crucial to change implementation (Ashmore, 1992). Precise details and peculiarities related to the change must be furnished, together with the rationale for its implementation. By offering accurate information in a timely manner, managers may effectively avoid unecessary fears from developing among subordinates, that come with unfounded rumors related to the change. Moreover, while it may be uneasy to present, managers are obliged to present the negative outcomes of the intended change. Honesty and being straightforward may result in future reduced layoffs or demotions (Ashmore, 1992). The last main strategy for change management includes providing support and empathy to employees who find it difficult to cope with change. Managers who spend time listening to their subordinates’ fears assess it as a potent way of finding out the reasons for change resistance. Considering this, managers are better equipped to draft a response or to develop a system for handling the resistance. Moreover, managers are able to solidify employee morale and goodwill if they realize that management is authentically concerned with employee welfare. Briefly put, open communication, employee engagement, and management empathy all perform a critical role in change implementation and management. Finally, managers must prudently realize that resistance to change is inevitable, and that adequate planning will facilitate the whole change process (Ashmore, 1992; Boles & Sunoo, 1998). The following are the areas for which HR transformation is called for based on my assessment from a previously deployed instrument: Senior Leadership’s Practice of Corporate Values Senior leaders must formally set, communicate and deploy organizational values, performance expectations and focusing of value creation for customer and stakeholders through the annual strategic planning process and translate these into actionable objectives in the company’s day-to-day operations. The Balanced Scorecard is proposed as it integrates both the ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ side of the company’s strategy. The hard side of the strategy describes XXX’s business intent through strategy maps and measures and executing it with processes, systems and procedures. On the other hand, the soft side of the strategy involves leadership, culture, values and teamwork, which are prerequisites of organizational change. On the whole, the expected outcome is a value-driven, value-creating, customer-focused and performance-based culture. Values, across industries and cultures, are relative constructs for which metrics are difficult to construct. However, measures of these may be concretely seen in the outcomes that they purportedly bring forth. For example, in XXX, it is our ardent belief that the committed and sincere practice of the values, exercising these as a way of life, will bring about leadership success in the areas of business, people, quality, process and customer. Organizational Health The Balanced Scorecard, at the corporate level, will be a very effective indicator of organizational performance, comprehensively assessed along the areas of financials, customer, business development, best business practice and learning and growth. The same tool will be used to cascade and measure performance down from the corporate level to SBU, division, department and individual levels. In effect, when the corporate scorecard shows effective outcomes, this implies that strategies and individual objectives down the line have correspondingly been achieved. Strategic Human Resource Planning Human Resource Capabilities and Needs in the Strategic Planning Process Assessing human resource requirements and capabilities ought to be done holistically. Such requirements are related and rooted on the strategies drafted by XXX as a ‘whole’ entity. The HR platform of the company then, is heavily dependent on overall business strategy. The HR planning process is both externally and internally aligned. By external alignment, we mean alignment to overall business strategy – considering the diverse business requirements of each SBU and responsiveness to business needs. On the other hand, internal alignment refers to alignment of the HR functions of acquiring, developing, motivating and retaining to internal HR strategy. In brief, we mean the alignment of functions to HR strategy. Encouraging Inputs in the Development of Strategic HR Plans After the annual Corporate Planning Session, HR should separately conduct its own Planning Session. This ought to involve key managers, supervisors and staff in the formulation of HR strategies. During the activity, each HR unit will be asked to draft their own SWOT analysis, including challenges and support requirements. This also promotes cooperation across HR functions, with members of other units allowed to critique or encourage another’s output. The strong involvement and open surfacing of issues to the different organizational climate tools deployed by the Organizational Development Department is also a means of encouraging bottom-up input in the development of strategic HR plans. These are neutral media through which employees are free to express their sentiments without fear of reprisal from their superiors. Building a Culture of Performance The LEAP, or the Leading Edge for Accelerated Performance, is the proposed main vehicle through which a performance-based rewards framework shall be implemented across XXX. Under this framework, employees will have shared goals and responsibilities. By ‘shared’, this means the alignment of corporate objectives to division, department down to individual objectives and the allocation of corresponding weights to these objectives across levels. That the system is performance-based suggests that pay-outs are dependent on performance ratings; thus, the actual pay-out rating is determined by the budget, corporate scorecard rating and the individual’s performance rating. The LEAP shall also determine the annual pay-out (i.e. incentives). Communication and Deployment of Strategic Objectives, Action Plans and Performance Measures/Indicators to Achieve Overall Organizational Alignment Strategic objectives, action plans and performance measures / indicators should be communicated and deployed to employees through the Balanced Scorecard cascades conducted all throughout XXX. BSC cascades for frontline managers, supervisors and team leaders are spearheaded by the Organizational Development Department, in coordination with the HR Team of each subsidiary. These cascades shall be venues for team enhancement / work-out activities and SBU Planning. Performance planning for rank and file employees is done through their immediate superiors. The mechanics of the use of the BSC should be explicitly laid down in XXX’s Performance Management Policy. Design, Organization and Management of Work Jobs to Promote Cooperation and Collaboration, Individual Initiative, Innovation and Flexibility From the very nature of carrier services, cross functional collaboration across teams is necessary for XXX to deliver services to suit or even exceed clients’ expectations. A particular unit’s output serves as input to the next team. This chain of functions must be in synchrony to enable XXX to deliver customer satisfaction through faster turnaround times, ergo and on-time service delivery. On the other hand, individual initiative, flexibility and innovation are also encouraged; everyone is enjoined to suggest ideas that will help in increasing the efficiency of work flows / processes. Formal venues for these are XXX Ideas and the Continuous Improvement Teams annual tilt. Encouragement and Motivation of Employees to Develop and Utilize Their Full Potential One way of encouraging employees to develop and utilize their full potential by ensuring their involvement in the drafting of their Individual Development Plans (IDPs). Through this collaborative effort, employees are made aware of their critical skill gaps, which may be addressed through on-the-job interventions or through the XXX Learning Academy course offerings. Another training feature that XXX takes pride in are the immersion trainings accorded to employees. On occasion, high potential employees must be sent abroad for further technical training. Encouragement of Employees to Provide Input on Their Own Work At XXX, a culture of openness, transparency and two-way communication should be highly encouraged. Employees, then, shall not have difficulty expressing their sentiments to their immediate superiors, whether these issues be concerns at the individual, group, SBU or corporate level. For instance, at the individual level, the employee is encouraged to openly give feedback to his superior. At the group or team level, group critiques and focus group discussions are conducted during which anyone may receive and also give feedback about their own output. At the SBU level, project updates, assessment measures, project meetings, project post-mortems, training evaluations and learning sessions are venues where individuals may solicit and give their evaluation of their own work / performance. Reinforcement of High Performance Through Compensation, Recognition and Incentive Practices The company’s compensation and performance management systems must be firmly based on performance / results. Necessarily, high performers and strong potentials are those who are most rewarded. In particular, monthly performance incentives are given to Operations employees. Moreover, compensation is tied with compensable factors critical to the business, including education and premium technical skills. One feature of the XXX rewards system that sets it apart from other companies will be the structure of its rewards system. An employee shall be rewarded at the individual, SBU and corporate or organizational levels.  Identification of Characteristics and Skills Needed by Potential Employees Potential employees are sourced through various conventional and creative sources. Job openings are advertised through print, online recruitment systems, job fairs and campus recruitment. The more creative strategies the company has adopted so far to source for potential employees are the conduct of career talks by our managers and executives with the school heads as our participants, organization of Company and career orientation during campus recruitment, sourcing of partner schools, referral incentives (in cash) for company employees, payment for successful referrals from staffing firms and the creation of a “Recruitment Video”, featuring employee talents, upbeat music and graphics, encouraging them to explore careers at XXX. Key competencies/performance requirements of the position will be included as inputs in the design and formulation of job advertisements, test batteries and questions on the interview guide forms. References Ashmore, G. (1992). Better information means better quality. Journal of Business Quality, 13(1), 57-60. Boles, M. & Sinoo, B. (1998). Three barriers to managing change. Workforce, 77(1), 25. Lakomski, G. (2001). Organizational change, leadership, and learning: culture as cognitive process. International Journal of Educational Management, 15(2), 68. Read More