Human Resources Strategies for United Health International - Case Study Example

HR Strategies for United Health International Table of Contents Introduction 3 Features of Human Resource Management 3 Benefits of Merger 4 Overview of United Health International (UHI) 5 HR Issues in UHI 6 HR Strategies 7 Merger with Malaysian NGO 9 Global Human Resource Strategy for UHI 9 Conclusion 11 Reference List 12 Introduction Management is an art of recognizing exactly what the supervisors or managers actually want to do for the progress of organization and then scrutinizing that if it can be attained in the cheapest and best way. It is referred as a multipurpose mechanism that efficiently administers workers, managers and business. Organizations are always known for their pioneering and indigenous management practices which are known from their performance. The achievement of any organization wholly depends on its management (Rudani, 2011). The management of human resources lays emphasis on the people in the organization. It is referred to the sequence of incorporated judgments or decisions which form the payment connection; their quality adds to the potential of the company as well the personnel to attain their objective. Management of human resources is also defined as a collection of function, programmes and activities designed and carried out to maximise the organizational and employee effectiveness (Aswathappa, 2005). The main purpose of the report is to highlight the features and strategies of the human resource management. It also explicates the benefits which the organization gets from mergers as well as led emphasis on the human resource issues facing the organization. Further, global human resource strategy for United Health International is also taken into consideration for their success and development. Features of Human Resource Management It is apprehensive with the workforce both as a group as well as individuals in attaining aims of the organization. It is concerned with social and emotional attributes and behaviour of employees. It brings organization and employee together in order to meet the objectives of one another. It focuses on the human being’s behaviour and is considered as an organizational tool that aids in proficient thinking and rationalization. It goes further than physical contribution in order to incorporate cognitive, creative and emotional aspects of workforce (Alvesson and Berg, 1992). The management of human resources covers all groups and levels. It comprises of both organized and unorganized employees. It is concerned with supervisors, officers, workforce and other categories of personnel. Employees exchange their opinions, feelings, complaints, and suggestions in order to boost production and satisfaction (Robbins and Judge, 2009). It is defined as a continuous process and therefore requires a constant awareness and alertness of people reactions as well as their significance in daily operation. The supervision of human resources is the duty of all the managers in the organization. Managers or supervisors contribute towards the augmentation and success of the organization by directing and operating branch on the personnel matters (Kumar, 2010). It is usually considered as development oriented. It develops workforce potential which helps them to perform in the best way for the growth of the organization. The management of human resources is considered as a challenging duty because of the vibrant personality of the people. Benefits of Merger A merger takes place when two organizations join together in order to form a new organization. The new organization will comprise an augmented share in the market, which in turn reduces competition. This diminution in the competition help the organization gain more revenue (Economicshelp, 2014). There are several better reasons for mounting the business through merger or acquisition. These include: Mergers help in accessing valuable assets or funds for new growth. Better distribution or production facilities are frequently less expensive as well as additional skills and quality staff is also obtained through the acquisition and mergers (Mbda, 2014). It helps to access a wider segment of customer and thus result in increased market share. Mergers result in the better economies of scale. This takes place when a big firm with improved output can lessen average costs. Lesser average costs facilitate lower costs for customers. A bigger organization could receive a discount for the purchase of large amount of raw materials. Merger offers better interest rates for big company. It is also considered that one headquarter is better than two. It can assist organizations compete on a global scale and to deal with the risk of multinationals (Economicshelp, 2014). Mergers may permit better investment in the research & development. This is for the reason that the new organization will encompass more earnings which could be utilised to finance the risky investment. This will result in superior quality of goods. Mergers help to obtain more skills and quality staff which in turn help in reducing the redundancies. Acquisitions and mergers protect an organization from closing. It is favourable in a dwindling industry where organizations are struggling in order to keep on afloat. Conglomerate merger facilitates diversification. In this type of merger two organizations in dissimilar industries merge. Here the advantages could be contributing knowledge which may be suitable for the dissimilar industry (Economicshelp, 2014) Overview of United Health International (UHI) United Health International is a global NGO (Non Government Organization) functioning in twenty four countries. It was formed through the amalgamation of two different NGOs, one situated in Canada and another in Australia. The Australian Non Government Organization was concerned mainly with health procedures, non-medical staff training, and medical supplies. The Canadian Non Government Organization was concerned principally for conveying front-line services related to health and responding to the health emergencies in difficult environments. United Health International has two head offices, in Montreal and Vienna. The two Non Government Organizations were merged to offer a sustainable facility by joining up long term emergency and developmental response services. Both headquarters offices are maintained to keep prevailing connections with private and public sponsors and also with other Non Government Organizations in the areas concerned. The function related to finance is concerted in the office of Canada and the international policy function is concerted in Vienna. The administration of activities and individual projects is allocated among both head offices according to their relevant specialism, through mutual agreement. The legal and human resources departments are in both the headquarters. The front-line and emergency functions are managed from Montreal whereas the functions of developmental support from Vienna. HR Issues in UHI The two areas of United Health International have dissimilar methods of operation and diverse approaches towards staffing. United Health International Montreal functions in five different languages with an extremely diverse global employee most of whom are on the contracts of short term. The Montreal headquarters is geared towards quick reaction, drawing on a wide group of experts at short notice. They depend on regular contractors and medical volunteers and also have unskilled volunteers on the support roles. There are strains among management and core experts who dislike the broad standards and rules which have been set up to protect the United Health International from the legal challenge. The core experts encompass experience in West Africa and Latin America markets but little in Middle East, East Africa or South East Asia. These are the main regions where the UHI is failing behind other suppliers and also losing its international profile. The Vienna headquarter operates through a narrow group of wholly employed staff. There are comparatively few unqualified assistants working for this office. The Montreal office is facing difficulties in retaining qualified neighbouring employees because most of them have moved to other NGOs or the private sector within a year of appointment. The Vienna offices comprise few volunteers and more number of local staff, but all main roles are occupied by the expatriates. The local staffs are selected for the technical qualifications and all the development and training task is done by means of expatriates. This is because the managers think that the locally employed experts would not encompass the mixture of participatory flexibility and technical proficiency needed for the work. There is a thought that widening employment for main roles would need establishing an uncongenial reporting system and performance management that would not appropriate with the present culture, which underlines methods and shared experts’ values. The administration at Montreal is in support of the system of performance management, even if it is disliked by its qualified agents as well as considered irrelevant or intimidating by volunteers. There exist gender dissimilarities between both headquarters even though both of them are in support of gender fairness; women are inclined to be symbolized at a senior rank in administrative roles rather than main management roles because the latter is likely to be employed from male who have experience in the roles of expatriate over several years. HR Strategies United Health International is facing several issues related to human resources management. In order to solve these issues several HR strategies could be put into practice. The HR strategies are discussed below: Recruitment and hiring the correct people: The companies should look for the people who are interested and intrinsically motivated in growing their skills as well as careers. They should also clearly establish their expectations from the employees at the time of recruitment so that dissatisfaction on both sides could be avoided. It is equally crucial to understand the culture of the organization and how prospective employment fit into it (Careeronestop, 2014). Good system for performance evaluation: Both the employees and the organization gain from knowing precisely where they actually stand relative to the expectations of one another. By sharing and monitoring outcomes, it becomes apparent which staffs are meeting performance expectations. Evaluation provides organizations the opportunity to recognize as well as reward excellence, which is regarded as a main aspect of staff or employee retention. A positive feedback is expected by the employees and they prefer to leave the organization if they are not getting adequate compensation (Leddy, 2014). Good communication skills: There should be good communication skills between employees and managers so that the expectations between them can be frankly established. Employees normally does not give up on the organization, they give up on their supervisors or managers (Leddy, 2014). Offer staff a career growth plan and a career path: This will permit the staffs to have an enhanced vision of long term of their growing role in the organization. It will also let the organization to show their commitment towards developing the talent of the employees, which benefits employees as well as the organization. If employees contain gaps in the experiences or skills, a career growth plan allow the employee to understand that the organization wants to seal that gap as well as prepare them for the subsequent step. In this way, staffs don’t feel trapped and without the prospective of growth in the organization (Leddy, 2014). Recognition program: The organization should include a recognition program which celebrates staffs with exceptional performance. Anyone who performs beyond their assigned task deserves recognition. The companies should reward their employees on the basis of their good conduct and performance. This will help to generate a culture where each one desires to become a part of it. Further, managers should look for the opportunities to appreciate the employees informally. These are the moments remembered by the employees and those who consider valued generally respond through offering their faithfulness to the organization (Armstrong, 2006). Customize work expectations and benefits for each employee: This requires ample time and endeavour to recognize the particular requirement of each employee in a better manner. Different staffs desire dissimilar things, so providing the similar benefits and working situations to all will certainly create dissatisfaction. Therefore the companies should offer benefit package suitable for their performance and efforts (Leddy, 2014). Resolving conflict situation: To manage arguement effectively, the managers must be a skilful communicator. It includes generating an environment of open communication in the business unit thereby encouraging staffs to discuss about their work issues. Listening to staff concerns will promote open environment in the workplace. Multiple alternatives should be provided to the employees to solve their issues (Berkeley, 2014). These strategies will help the United Health International to retain their existing local staff, who moved to other Non Government Organization and private sector. Training programmes will help to develop the skills of unqualified volunteers who are on the support roles. Good communication skills will help to resolve the tensions between core specialists and the management. By offering a career growth plan, the United Health International could retain existing staffs. Recruiting and training programmes will facilitate in developing their skills and to gain more experience. The organization should hire employees on the contracts of long term rather than short term. Before setting the standards and rules it should be well communicated to the core experts so that there doesn’t arise any conflict between the experts and management. The training program will help the employees to carry out the main functions of the organization and then there will be no need of the expatriates. Moreover, United Health International should not do the gender differences because this creates the feeling of inferiority among the employees. So, the management should offer equal responsibilities and roles to both male and female based on their knowledge and skills and not on their gender. Merger with Malaysian NGO The amalgamation of the two Non Government Organizations eight years before was proposed in order to generate synergies and offer the base of global organization. The thought was that restricted of global capability and international recognition, UHI would be unsuccessful to attract the support or sponsorship required to maintain its present operations. However, the amalgamation has only resulted in inadequate integration and also there are contradictory perspectives about how long amalgamation should be followed. On the other hand, there is an emerging accord that the global brand would be improved through a further amalgamation, particularly if this could help reinforce the ability of United Health International to function in Middle East and North Africa and augment its weak silhouette in South East Asia. This led to the merger of United Health International with Malaysian NGO which has extended across the area and the amalgamation provides UHI admittance to a group of volunteers and a basis of skilled full-time employee. The Malaysian head office is eager to endorse as a global hub and expand its global presence, thus enabling its career structure and volunteers to be developed. It is well-built in three different areas such as community/preventive health initiatives, dentistry and health education/learning in rural regions. The view of the United Health International Board is that this new merger/amalgamation will generate the chance to consolidate and clarify how UNI performs as an organization as well as to allow it to turn into, and be considered as, an authentically global player. Global Human Resource Strategy for UHI A global human resource strategy is required for the United Health International in order to make best use of the talents and maximize human resources value on an international basis. The global strategy will enable to promote the utilization and development of human resources globally, including the institution of leadership values for managers. The international human resource strategies include: By cooperating with every division, the United Health International should execute a talent management procedure by organizing individual growth plans for skilled workers who will play main roles and take additional responsibilities in the growth of profits and revenues overseas. Through these proposals, the organization can reinforce the recruitment, growth, and exploitation of staffs who will add to international business development (Shukla, 2009). The organization can invite talents from all over the world to add in their success. The employees who would be recruited will be provided with the chance to learn the business functions, gain an organization understanding of their corporate culture, and create interpersonal network. The global strategy will encourage the organization to turn out to be more global in their viewpoint (Aycan, Kanungo and Mendonca, 2014). The organization can assign, encourage, and expand human resources on an international basis irrespective of their nationality. To become successful, human resources should be completely engaged in the business operations and should have good connections with the development of business. Human resources have consent to manage and set expectations at each levels such as business development, country managers, and corporate level. The benefits of appointing expatriates are that they know the culture and products of the organization and possess the business and technical skills that are not accessible locally. They relate efficiently and easily to corporate head offices. The expatriates may have extraordinary transferrable potentials such as opening business operations in the emerging markets. They may also promote and protect the headquarters’ interests in global acquisitions and joint ventures and other circumstances necessitating tight financial management. The expatriates fit the needs of the organization to develop general managers and future leaders with global experience (Alkhafaji, 1994). Besides appointing expatriates, the organization can also appoint local nationals as they are cheaper and they have knowledge about the local market norms. They know how to inspire other local staff to contribute their efforts towards the organizational success. The local employees enable the global organization to develop a local image. They are increasingly more qualified as well as available due to the advances in overseas study programs, and management education (Alkhafaji, 1994). The global strategy also include conducting the cross cultural education/training programme which aims at providing education or training with the purpose of increasing organizational and staff knowledge, skills, and performances towards cultural responsiveness and cultural competency. It is essential for the organization because it assists to develop effectual communication between the staffs. By giving education to staffs through intellectual training courses, for example international communications programmes and team building, the organization will be considered as more competitive and proficient in the international market because the intellectual synergy in the headquarters and workplace grows (Qld, 2010). Conclusion The main purpose of the human resource strategies is to direct the development of human resources and implementing programmes. They present the base for tactical plans and help the companies to evaluate progress and measure results against objectives. The report includes the significance of human resource management in the company through describing its key features. It also led emphasis on the importance of mergers which help to obtain more talents which in turn help in reducing the redundancies. The United Health International is facing many human resource issues related to its operation. Therefore, various global human resource strategies have been suggested in order to maximize human resources value on an international basis. Reference List Alkhafaji, A.F., 1994. Competitive Global Management – Principles and Strategies. Florida: CRC Press. Alvesson, M. and Berg, P.O., 1992. Corporate Culture and Organizational Symbolism. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. Armstrong, M., 2006. A Handbook of human resources management practice. United Kingdom: Kogan Page Publisher. Aswathappa, K., 2005. Human Resource and Personnel Management. New Delhi: Tata McGraw Hill Education. Aycan, Z., Kanungo, R.N. and Mendonca, M., 2014. Organizations and Management in Cross-Cultural Context. California: Sage Publications. Berkeley, 2014. Resolving Conflict Situations. [online] Available at: < http://hrweb.berkeley.edu/guides/managing-hr/interaction/conflict/resolving> [Accessed 8 Jan 2015]. Careeronestop, 2014. Retention strategies. [online] Available at: [Accessed 8 Jan 2015]. Economicshelp, 2014. Benefits of Merger. [online] Available at: [Accessed 8 Jan 2015]. Kumar, R., 2010. Human resource Management: Strategic Analysis Text and Cases. New Delhi: I.K. International Publishing House Pvt. Ltd. Leddy, C., 2014. 7 Employee Retention Strategies for Keeping Your Talent. [online] Available at: < http://www.middlemarketcenter.org/expert-perspectives/7-employee-retention-strategies-for-keeping-your-talent> [Accessed 8 Jan 2015]. Mbda., 2014. Benefits of Merger or Acquisition. [online] Available at: http://www.mbda.gov/node/1394. > [Accessed 8 Jan 2015]. Qld, 2010. Cross Cultural Learning and Development Strategy: 2009-2012. [pdf] Available at: [Accessed 8 Jan 2015]. Robbins, P. and Judge, A., 2009. Organizational Behaviour. New Jersey: Pearson Education. Rudani, R.B., 2011. Management and Organisational Behaviour. New Delhi: Tata McGraw Hill Education. Shukla, R., 2009. Talent Management: Process of developing and integrating skilled workers. New Delhi: Global India Publication. 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