Evaluating an International Human Resource Strategy Adopted by the Coca Cola - Case Study Example

Evaluating An International Human Resource Strategy Table of Contents Table of content………………………………………………………………………..2 Executive summary…………………………………………………………………….3 Introduction…………………………………………………………………..………..4 Company profile………………………………………………………………………..4 Economic drivers………………………………………………………………………..5 PESTEL analysis ………………………………………………………………….……6 Human strategy for joint venture……………………………………………..…………7 Recruitment and selection……………………………………………………..……...…7 Frazer five fold approach……………………………………………………….…...…..9 Training and development……………………………………………………..……..…13 Reward management…………………………………………………..…………..…....14 Performance Management………………………………………………………………15 Employee Involvement………………………………………………………………...17/18 Recommendation…………………………………………………………………..…....19 Conclusion………………………………………………..……………………..……...20 Bibliographies……………………………………………………………………….…..21 1. Executive Summary This paper examines the human resource strategy adopted by the Coca Cola together with Thai NAmthip in Thailand. In this publication, an introduction is stated in so far as the strategy is concerned. A company profile is discussed indicating the strides the company has made over time with the finances of the company for the last five years being put into perspective. The paper goes on to discuss the economic drives using the pestle analysis. Consequently, human strategy for joint venture is discussed together with the recruitment and selection method. Training and development, reward management, performance management and employee management put into perspective. The paper ends by drawing recommendations and a conclusion 2. Introduction The Coca Cola as a company with international appeal enters into partnerships with other companies in order to pursue its agenda. Human resource management has all to do with the affairs of the employees. While the strategies are varied and diverse, others are similar in nature. The Coca-Cola Company has an international human resource strategy that is well spelled out. Being a leading company both local and international, the company has a robust human resource strategy that cuts across the board with respect to the employees in various subsidiaries. The company has an elaborate recruitment and selection strategy that ensures that they get the right people for the job. Consequently, the company considers training and development as critical aspects of employee wellbeing. Among the other things that the company lays emphasis on include employee performance, reward management as well employee involvement. Though the company has an elaborate international human resource strategy, it is critical to note that there are gaps that exist in the system. The Coca Cola Company and Thai NAmthip have a joint human resource strategy and that forms the basis of analysis in this paper. 3. Company profile Coca-Cola – in Thailand The Coca Cola Company is a number of subsidiaries in other countries. It specializes in soft drinks and beverages. The company was started in America in the state of Atlanta and since then the company has continued to grow. Coca Cola in Thailand was started in 1949 and has grown through the years to become a company of choice. The Coca Company works in partnership with Thai NAmthip that helps it in ensuring that the agenda of reaching out to customers with the beverage product is achieved. In the current dispensation, the company in partnership employs about ten thousand people. Consequently, the company supplies the 14 provinces in Thailand with a customer network of about of about three hundred and eighty five (Bell, 2004 p. 23). The Coca Cola Company in Thailand has gone through a number of challenges in the past that include sales of the products. Before, the people did not subscribe to the beverage and this ensured that the company did not make enough sales. This lead to financial constraints and at some point the company almost collapsed. Over the last five years, the company’s financial status has been impressive. The Coca Cola in Thailand has increased in its profit deposits for the past five years (Perkins & Shortland, 2006 p. 34). The company’s first quarter results for 2010 were a bit challenging. The company’s returns on investments were below the projected figures to the extent that the company almost closed shop. In 2011, by the close of the financial year, the company had made about 18% of profit compared to the previous year (The Coca-Cola Company, 2013). 2012 and 2013 were years full of mixed reactions. In 2012, the first six months of being in business saw the company make some loses though by close of business the company had made strides and pulled a 20% shocker of the total profit margin. The same was experienced in 2013 though there were rises in profit margins by about 7% (The Coca-Cola Company, 2013). 4. 0 Economic Drivers 4.1 PESTEL analysis Political The government has kept off deregulation of the market. Unnecessary taxes have not been imposed to push the company out of business Labor laws have been made flexible There are no trade restrictions Economic The countrys economic growth has been impressive enhancing the Company’s growth Exchange rates have been stable Low inflation rate Social factors The company’s products have been received by a cross-section of the population Most of the Consumers are of a younger generation Technological factors As new technological innovations have emerged so has the Company adopted new technological methods for production. Highly sophisticated technological machines Environmental factors Effects of climate change has made the government to put in place tough environmental laws Carbon emissions must be 10% and below. The company must have a comprehensive environmental policy, according the government. Legal factors The rights of consumers emphasized Advertisement laws checked Safety of products emphasized Pestel analysis 1. Political The government has shown willingness to support businesses that venture such as Thai NAmthip and to help in assisting companies with better human resource strategies. In the past, the government did not show any commitments that would suggest that they were in support of the different programs. Consequently, the government promotes establishment of human resource directorates in accordance with the law. The political class, and which the government represents, has indicated good will and this could be the start of a different experience with respect to working with different organizations to better the working relationships in Thailand. Over and above, the government would be a great support through the various incentives it offers to those in business. The business will greatly benefit from such incentives from the government (Bangs, 2002 p. 6). 2. Economic In the recent past, the economy of the Thailand has not been very stable. There have been numerous crises in the economic space. The rate of inflation has been high, forcing some businesses to shut down or reduce the rate at which they carry out transactions. Financial institutions like the banks have kept the interest rates so high to the extent that businesses have a fear of engaging in any credit arrangements. Expansion of the businesses becomes unrealistic when the loans from banks are charged at high interest and the resultant factor is that people are not able to borrow in order to boost their businesses (Bangs, 2002 p. 6). Economic prospects do not seem promising for the business based on the prevailing circumstances. In a real sense, the company would be faced with a lot of challenges, though the financial experts project that the future is bright for beverage companies. 3. Social Focusing on the social trends in the UK, it is difficult to predict what people really are into. The cultural style in Thailand is designed in such a way that people are so much used to the traditional labor standards. The same is experienced when it comes to the consumption of beverage products where people are not so much into the products offered by Thai NAmthip. Consequently, the working class in the Thailand is not susceptible to new things and fresh ideas. 4. Technology There are wide ranges of inventions that continue to dominate the world today. One of the technological inventions is the use of technology to monitor the staffs of the company. In terms of beverage production, the company has sophisticated machines that enhance production to significant levels. The coming few years, the technological space will be full of innovations. There are a number of technologies that are basic to beverage production. The company will bank of a varied range of technological advancement to pursue its agenda of beverage construction that are up to the required standards. The housing facilities that are to be developed will employ massive technology and to this end, it would be critical to have the most appropriate technology (Bangs, 2002 p. 6). The only advantage is that Thailand Coca Cola is not short of having a suitable technology for its operation. There are wide ranges of technology that the company will use with respect to beverage production. 4. Environmental factors Thailand has got a number of laws that aim to protect the environment. In the wake of climate change, the Thailand has established laws that compel companies to proper waste management techniques such that the environment is no depleted. Companies found to be negatively impacting on the environment are slapped with big fines. 5. Legal factors Thailand has got tough labor laws. The laws are meant to protect those in active employment in whatever sector. The laws also prohibit child labor. Consequently, the country’s laws and companies found flouting the laws are fined or even face closure set the minimum wage. 5.0 Human strategies for joint venture 5.1 Recruitment and Selection The process of recruiting and selecting workers at Thailand Coca cola is of essence and critical. The human resource directorate at Thailand Coca cola considers a number of issues during recruitment and selection process. None of the process can be conducted in isolation. The interrelatedness of the different steps make the process a single entity though diversified. Individuals who are to fill the positions in the company are selected based on merit and technical competence (Compton, Morrissey & Nankervis, 2009 p. 9). The individual competencies have to be verified to ensure the company has the best set of workers. Thailand Coca cola’s human resources directorate has the most critical challenge of identifying suitable personalities to fit the positions that are left vacant. These practices that ensue during this process include advertising for positions with an aim of attracting suitable persons based on the requirements on the advertisement list. For the company, there have clearly designed programs that ensure that there are no flaws in the process. The Coca-Cola Company takes the recruitment and selection of individuals seriously to the extent that key company operations are measured based on the process. When a vacancy is created or is to be filled, Thailand Coca cola’s human resources directorate analyzes and evaluates the specifications of the job. This means that the job that has to be offered has to be checked with reference to the qualifications. This is important in the sense that it could allow room for adjustment in terms of qualifications or lowering requirements for qualifications. In the recruitment process, Thailand Coca cola’s human resources directorate identifies a suitable individual for the job vacancy. All the requirements that are needed for the individual to qualify must be met and proved beyond reasonable doubt. The human resource department of a respective company has to come up with certain requirements that must be met by a person before going through the process. This is the most crucial stage in the sense the established procedures determine if the person should go to the next stage of the recruitment process. The company takes the aspect of eligibility seriously. If there is an area that the Thai NAmthip Company lays emphasis is academic qualifications. Being a company that deals with sensitive food items, the people coming in as employees are considered based on their ability to perform to the highest of standards. Research has shown that some people get employed with excellent academic grades, but when it comes to practice, they are a big let down. An individual may be good in theory, but fails to impress when the theory is to be put into practice. To this extent, it is critical to note that when recruiting an individual, the person has to be knowledgeable and skilled. This in a sense means that one has to be a master of the job applied for. It is important that the person be aware of the details of the job and what is to be done. Thailand Coca cola’s human resources directorate engages in a thorough vetting exercise to ensure that only the right people proceed to take up positions in the company. Those individuals who have been sourced for the sake of filling different positions have to go through some vetting process. This is to determine everyone’s competence with respect to the job vacancy that is to be filled. For the company, the process of vetting is critical and of essence. It enables the company to do away with individuals that are thought not to have met the selection criteria or the description as stated. Thailand Coca cola’s human resources directorate objective in every endeavor is filling vacancies in the company. At this stage at the Coca-Cola Company, it is considered that the individual’s qualifications are not in question and that merit has been observed in filling the position. This means that the person for the job has successfully passed through the process as appropriate and is found suitable for the job. This is the most crucial stage of the recruitment process because then, the company is considered to have succeeded in filling a vacancy as appropriate. Thailand Coca cola’s human resources directorate has a unique way through which it hires both at the parent company and the subsidiaries. The human resources directorate recruits both internally and externally. He Coca-Cola Company does not send many of the internationals to the subsidiaries. Case being, in the respective subsidiaries, the recruitment of workers is localized. Locals understand best the working environment not to mention the market place. The indigenous employees are able to work with ease and without much pressure in the sense that they are used to the working conditions. 5.2 Selection Process by Fraser’s fivefold grading (1954) Used at Thailand Coca-Cola PROCESS DESCRIPTION 1. Physical make-up                  The employees working at the Coca-Cola Company must be stable in terms of their health. High moral standards must be adhered to Responsible and Disciplined 2. Attainments/Education                                                                                         For the employees working at the company, all should have attained the highest educational standards. Meritocracy is highly adhered to. 3. General intelligence Proper technical skills Minimal supervision Good communication skill Customer service orientation Critical Good decision making skills Personal drive 4. Special aptitudes Giving the employees the freedom to put into practice the different skills learnt from other fields. Encouraging the employees to learn from other companies. 5. Interests List all your abilities related to work Tell why you would like to work with us in those positions in CV. 6. Disposition Certificate of good conduct 7. Circumstances Salary scaling and negotiations Compensation agreed upon 5.4 Training and Development Thailand Coca-Cola Company has grown from one step to another in terms of success. In fact, the global dominance stretching back to the years has been as a result of effective employment of strategies. Training and development are in such area that the company has achieved. Pundits have argued that any company that is destined for success is determined the amount of resources it invests in the employees. In Thailand Coca-Cola, the company has recently trained its employees ranging from the top managers to the lowest person on the ground. The essence of this was to build the capacity of the employees to be more effective and provide services that are of quality (Rendtorff, 2009 p. 44). Thailand Coca cola employees require training on health issues, safety issues and even the right methods of communications. Every year, the Coca-Cola conducts training to its employees in the over two hundred subsidiaries. The aim is to keep the employees abreast with the current transformations in the market. Through the training and development programs, the employees have been motivated and capacitated. This initiative boosts employee’s confidence and ensures motivation. Interestingly, Thailand Coca cola trains the staff based on need. Different groups are trained with respect to their area of operation. An audit is ensured to ensure that the training is based gaps that exist as a result of the emerging market trends (Rendtorff, 2009 p. 44). Through the various training programs that have been instituted before the company has enhanced the development of the employees to a large extent. For the training activities, various methods and procedures are used to make the programs a success. While it has been a successful program both in the parent company in America, a number of subsidiaries are still trying to actualize the training programs. Training and development chat 5.5 Reward management Thailand coca cola uses skill-based approach to reward the workers in the company. This in essence means that skills are the major way through which Thailand coca cola main objective of running a company is to meet the set objectives. The Coca-Cola Company has reward system that is unique. The company came to the realization that employee motivation is critical in ensuring productivity (Armstrong 2012, p. 45). The reward system is unique in the sense that not all the employees are rewarded using the same criteria. The first step in ensuring proper management of the reward system is ensuring that proper job evaluation is done. Ordinarily, not all jobs have the equal significance to the company. There are other jobs that are highly profiled to the extent that they are key in ensuring the productivity of the company. Every employee is rewarded based on the job category and the influence of the job with the company. The management follows a top down approach in the sense that the top management is rewarded followed by middle level managers and the rest of the job group follows. The reward system is designed in such a manner that promotions, salary increase, bonuses and foreign trips form the basis of the rewards. Consequently, Thailand Coca-Cola Company encourages the member of staff to motivate one another as a way of boosting morale as well as production. In addition, special retreats and outings are organized occasionally to break monotony and provide the employees with sessions of reflection. The reward system at the company is elaborate to the extent that it is taken seriously more than any other subject in the company (Armstrong 2012, p. 45). The implementation of programs at Coca-Cola is designed in a way that they are almost similar to the activities that run in the subsidiaries. The essence of this is that other employees coming from another branch may not feel disadvantaged by a new program. 5.6 Performance Management Thailand Coca Cola uses a 360 degrees feedback approach to too ensure that it has the right feedback concerning employees. Thailand Coca Cola ensures performance enhancement in order to ensure that the set objectives are realized. The Coca-Cola Company has a performance management system that categorizes performance in different segments. One area of focus is the performance of the employees in ensuring that the company meets its objectives. A number of programs are put in place to ensure that the employees meet the expectations of the company with respect to the duties they are to perform. In some subsidiaries, the company uses the rank and yank method. The essence of this method is to have the employees ranked based on everyone’s performance. It is critical to note that the ranking is done based on the departments. Based on a given percentage that acts as a benchmark, a decision is derived. The people falling below a given percentage are relieved of their duties. This ensures that the company remains with performers and not any other group. This gives the company an opportunity to employ other people who are equal to the task for the purpose of meeting the goals of the company (Pulakos 2009 p. 12). Thailand coca cola is ever concerned about its performance of employees. The directorate of human resource has a responsibility to constantly evaluate the viability of the employees and their effectiveness based on the skills and competencies. However, the Thailand coca cola ensures that the employees are capacitated to the extent where they are able to deliver to the company. Performance is measured based on the achievement of the company over a given period of time. The review is done on an annual basis. Based on the performance report, adjustments are made and necessary steps taken to ensure productivity where there is none. This has been a critical performance test for the company and continues to be. Though the performance ratings and methods have been criticized by a number of people, Coca-Cola has emerged as a successful business entity through the implementation of performance elements (Pulakos 2009 p. 12). The Thailand coca cola been effective and continues to be through effective aligning of employees to the goals of the company. Performance management 5.7 Employee Involvement In Thailand, there are numerous differentials in culture. There are a number of cultural issues that play out in the national scene that potentially ensures challenges in employee management. For instance, in Thailand, men are more valued in the workforce more than women. Consequently, the country power distribution in the society is different to the extent that there are dominant trends that are considered in the national development grid. However, in Thailand, work is considered as a collective instrument as opposed to an individuals show. In The input of every employee is key in determining the direction to which a company takes. To this extent, the Thai NAmthip Company has an elaborate structure that ensures that the employees are involved in every based on the cultural distinction in the society. These programs are to ensure that the employees feel as though they are part of the larger society represented at the work place. When the employees own the programs of the company and conceptualizes them, the end result is profitability (Graham-Moore & Ross, 2001 p. 142). Thailand Coca Cola takes into consideration the input of the employees in so far as their activities are concerned. When the members of staff are involved in the decision-making, they are able to make known to the management some of the things that are beneficial to workers and which can bring about productivity in the company. The essence is not just to involve the staff, but also to consult them in the event that a decision is to be made (Graham-Moore & Ross, 2001 p. 156). Employee Involvement Structure 6.0 Recommendation There are a number of adjustments that are necessary to ensure that the company meets its objectives based on the international human resource strategy is concerned. The human resources directorate has a number of things that need to be put in place in order to ensure a robust international human resource plan. It is recommended as follows: The company should come up with new ways of operations in terms of how the organizations work is set up. There should be a different approach in rewarding or even deploying employees who are expatriates. There should be a proper plan of managing people from diverse cultures be instituted as appropriate. The company in Thailand should develop a management strategy that suits the situation in the local scene. The management should develop a multi-dimensional approach aimed at towards ensuring that the company has a global human resource outlook. Proper management based on international standards should be at the center in order to establish significant change in the company. The workers in the company should be treated as individuals other than a collection of the whole workforce. The employees in the company should be treated as partners other than sought of enemies. 7.0 Conclusion International human resource strategy is a critical component that should be considered by companies that have international subsidiaries. Thailand Coca Cola has tried to modify its operations to meet the international standards (Perkins & Shortland 2006 p. 145). Over the last past five years, the company has thrived based on the human resource strategic plans. Having a focus on the people is a critical aspect as it is one way through which productivity is enhanced with respect to the job attached to all the employees. The company has a reward management system not to mention performance management exercise. All these have made the company to have employees who are all round in so far as offering services is concerned. However, there are adjustments that should be effected to ensure that the company remains robust with respect to human resource. Thailand Coca-Cola Company and Thai NAmthip has an international human resource strategy pertnership that is well spelled out. Bibliographies: Armstrong, M. (2012). Armstrongs handbook of reward management practice: improving performance through reward. London, Kogan Page. Bangs, D. H. (2002). The market planning guide: creating a plan to successfully market your business, product, or service. [Chicago], Dearborn Trade Pub. Bell, L. (2004). The story of Coca-Cola. North Mankato, Minn, A+. Compton, R. L., Morrissey, W. J., & Nankervis, A. R. (2009). Effective recruitment & selection practices. North Ryde, N.S.W., CCH Australia. Graham-Moore & B. E., Ross, T. L. (2001). Gainsharing and employee involvement. Washington, D.C., Bureau of National Affairs. Pulakos, E. D. (2009). Performance Management a New Approach for Driving Business Results. Chichester, John Wiley & Sons. Perkins, S. J. & Shortland, S. M. (2006). Strategic international human resource management: choices and consequences in multinational people management. London, Kogan Page. Rendtorff, J. D. (2009). Responsibility, ethics, and legitimacy of corporations. [Frederiksberg, Denmark], Copenhagen Business School Press. The Coca-Cola Company. (2013). The Coca-Cola Company Reports First Quarter 2013 Results. Press Center April 16, 2013. Retrieved from: Read More