Importance of Workplace Simulation - Essay Example

WORKPLACE SIMULATION Profile This project covers the various techniques that Riordan manufactures will employ to gather information from its customers in the various states and from its employees in the HR department. It also covers the various types of human resource information systems that are applicable to the HR department. That is HRIS, HR intranets and HRMS. As a part of the HR department, it is the job of the author to formulate and employ the simulation. Riordan manufacturing Inc is a successful company that was established in 1991. It has expanded its operations from a research and development company to plastic manufacturing company. The company prides itself on having a large customer base and manufacturing plants in China, San Jose, Georgia and Michigan. This expansion and apparent success may be attributed to the organizations commitment to R&D, customer satisfaction, quality management, employee satisfaction and clear vision of the future. This is clear from the company's mission statements. However, to further enhance and maintain this success Riordan Manufacturing Inc. intends to take advantage of more sophisticated, state of the art information systems technology into its HR department. This is successfully achieved if the right information is gathered to determine what is technology would best enhance the achievement of company's mission. Before Riordan manufacturing embarks on this major project, it has to ensure that enough information is gathered from all stakeholders and beneficiaries of the project in order to make a well thought out and informed decision. Techniques of gathering information include; questionnaire, internet research, surveys, interview and prototyping (experiments) Opportunity Summary and Client Profile For this project to be feasible, I would propose HRIS. An online solution facilitates data entry, data tracking, and information needs of the Human Resource (Susan M. Health field). This is because, Riordan manufacturers Inc. Needs a way that employee needs will meet and HRIS features are designed to enable this. As noted in the company's mission statement Riordan aims to maintain an innovative and team oriented working environment. This it seeks to achieve by ensuring that employees will be well informed and properly supported. So how does HRIS enable this A good HRIS is capable of managing employee's information such as benefits calculation and updating, payroll administration resume processing and management, analyzing employee information and so on. The advantage with this system is that it frees the employee's time of petty destructions and enables them focus on more strategic functions in the company. To the managers it provides them with relevant information regarding the employees, which enable them give legal or ethical support to its employees. This is inline with Riordan Inc mission thus a great asset. (Reh, 2001) HRMS are form of human resource information systems, which facilitate the administration tasks, and processes employees information right from employment to the time they exit the organization companies like spectrum HRS Corporation offers particularly good packages for this systems. The benefit of this state of the Art solution is that it will reduce administrative cost, and increase profitability. Riordan manufacturing future goal is to achieve and maintain reasonable profitability and ensure financial and human capital is available for sustainable growth. I feel that installing a HRMS would greatly contribute to this end. Not only will a HRMS reduce costs it has an automated feature that instantly analyses and provides reports and reduces paper work. In addition a HRMs provides a centralized information source thorough which the organization intranet and extranets provide access to the centralized information server. The benefit of this is that the employees and managers morale boosted and adequate time left for HR managers to focus on more important issues that need hands-on approach. The company also benefits from reaping optimum return on human capital investment in the sense that, employee productivity will be enhanced as they get real time information and communication is enhanced. The best thing about this technology is that it can be customized to fit organization needs. Project Proposal As stated earlier the job would include several mechanisms. The role of the mechanisms is enlisted below. Questionnaire: This information gathering technique would enable the HR department to get information on the areas that the employees feel dissatisfied with and probably get a system that would solve this discontent. Say in the area of reporting, paper work. Interviews This is a good technique especially when detailed complex information needs for example personal impressions, ideas and attitudes (Doyle, J. K.) The interviews may either be one on one or via telephone. In addition, use of structured, semi-structured and unstructured interviews will facilitate information gathering. Riordan would use interview techniques to get feedback from its customers regarding their products or possible ideas that would enhance satisfaction from their products. The benefit of this technique it that record is stored for future reference in either on audio or visual form. Surveys This technique is especially good when dealing with large numbers of people from different locations. As is the case for most of Riordan's products, this technique could be helpful. This technique uses structured short questions which respondents choose answers from multiple choices given. This helps to determine how strongly they feel regarding particular issues. In the case of Riordan manufacturer Inc, this technique would apply for both customers and employee's opinions as regarding implementing IT systems in HR. Advantages include anonymity, low costs and allows for selection of respondents (Babbie, 1973). Internet Research It is a powerful technique of getting recent news on IT solutions available in the market. Riordan would reap great benefits from using search engines to compare available software packages, view opinions of others and site similar organizations that have used the technology and benefited from it. The advantage of this technique is current information is accessed and it is cheaper. Moreover, it gives the research on array of choices. Experiments or prototyping Technique involves implementing a system that resembles the real. This technique aim to get an incline of what the effects of installing a new system would be, by installing a prototype of the real thing. This allows the organization to be in a possible where they can assess the impact / limitations of a project in small scale before they can go full throttle to implementing project overall department. Riordan can use this technique on its R & D by manufacturing mass. HR Intranets This technology uses the same technology of the World Wide Web to access internal applications via corporate networks. The system diverges from the centralized HRMs to a client serves technologies (Walter, 1998) HR intranets will improve service delivery to employees while at the same time enhancing employee's efficiency and improves communication among HR staff with minimal effort form them. In addition, HR intranets will facilitate 24 hours 365 days a year access to the HR department and as such greater productivity from employees. According to John, intranet allows rapid dissemination of info to employees on the various company issues such as company mission and goals, product information, research summaries and so on (Walter, 1998) This system is state of the art and it will eliminate costs associated with printing, paper work and opportunity cost of real time information by employees. Workplace Simulation Project Final Documents Application architecture involves information technology environment, information toolkits, system description and Information architecture. The system used by Riordan manufacturing inc. is described below: Information technology environment Riordan manufacturing has adapted many information processes. The information processes adapted by this company include internet research methods, intranet for various departments. This assists functionalities in allowing exact mapping of applications through equal distribution of information systems application across all levels of functionality (Tanenbaum, 1997). The company has connected the human resources department with the IT department allowing for easier monitoring of flow of information within the departments. The company also has aligned other functions with information technology allowing the business needs to be easily recognized and acted upon. This enables the company to identify essential business needs of each department. Architecture toolkit is used to manage information technology in the organization. It defines standards as a means of harmonizing future development of information technology development (argues Papp, 2001). Riordan manufacturing uses HRIS online solutions for data entry, data tracking and information needs of the human resource department. The system has many benefits as the employee records are well kept and are informed. The software that is used in maintaining employees records and information can create and update employee history reducing the cost of processing the payroll and terminal benefits. The technology, which uses worldwide web like technologies to access internal applications through corporate networks, has decentralized the information technology system. This has improved service delivery to the employees and reduced costs to the company. The company uses HRIS, HR Intranets and HRMS information processing. Information is collected using questionnaires, internet search engines and surveys. PART B: The Company collects information from different sources with interviews, Internet search, library research, experiments and human resource intranets. The information collected is fed into HRMS software, which we call HRIS. The software processes the data to arrive at information usable. HRIS is capable of managing employees' information from the time of entry to the time of exit. It is used in calculating employees' benefits, updating the payroll, entering details of new employees, assisting in processing resumes and analyzing other employees' information. The company has improved its products because of a better human resource management. Human Resource Management in Riordan Manufacturing is on real time. Immediately the information is fed to the computer, it is processed and feedback is given immediately. The employees of Riordan Manufacturing have been subjected to experiments that have assisted the company in improving Human Resource Department. The cost of production has reduced and profitability increased because the processes have been reduced. The method used by the company in information processes of real time where you collect information fed to the computer and get the feedback immediately is good but with some disadvantages. The information that requires research cannot be obtained on real time. However, some information touching on the day-today basis can be obtained on real time system, which is good and can assist in running the Human Resource Department at a lower cost. Part C: The following is a physical data for a chart showing how data is flowing within the organization. The processes have been simplified using the word auto shapes. It shows how data is collected through interviews, Internet research, intranet and experiments and how it is processed using HRIS. After it has been processed by HRIS, the data is accessible to all departments through intranet (supported by Buhr, 1990). This defines the interface of IT Department of this company. It shows that the IT Department is connected with the Art Department. Reflection/evaluation It should also be noted that The Human Resources Management (HRM) practices or policies emphasize the need for consensus and harmony in the relation between the employees and the management of a company for enhancement in production capacity and augmentation in overall output of the company. It suggests for provision of more comfortable and comparatively better working conditions to the employees in order to enhance their working capacity. Individuals are to be trained and socialized by the organization, so that they can comprehend team culture and easily adopt it. As unitary ideology is a new human resource management technique, it emphasizes on providing full respect to the employees in the organizations, and appropriate appreciation for their integrity band dignity. The Human Resources Management (HRM) practices or policies provide that the management should integrate hard and soft, social and technical decisions and activities within the company. Non-conforming employees however cannot be easily accommodated using unitary approach. The individuals whose ideas do not integrate with ideas of other employees and who concentrate separately more on their self-interests are the ones due to whom unitary ideology could not succeed to the required extent. (Kar, 2005) In a company there exist employees with varying degrees of commitment, loyalty and willingness to serve with their all or hold back some of themselves from assimilation into the unitary culture. The Human Resources Management (HRM) hypothesis endeavors for team approach or a little friendly group approach within an organization .In a company various employees might have various line of thinking over a single matter, which according to them is the right way to follow. Integrating all these employees into a single team may result in problems like distrust, conflicts etc. Before the advent of The Human Resources Management (HRM), ideology pluralist perspective was followed by the managements of the companies. On arrival of The Human Resources Management (HRM), ideology existing organizational norms and universal directions have been criticized. The business approach of the companies is corporate in nature. Company's interest always lies in large programs of production and in give and take of large amounts of money. In this, race companies generally pay less attention towards the interests of their workers, which causes dissatisfaction among them and thus give rise to revolts and strikes. The unitary also tend to reduce conflicts of interests, which arise generally in employee-employer and manager-stuff situations. Technological positive voices take for granted that, from a technical point of view, the Information Technology potentials for Human Resources Management (HRM) are never ending: in principal, all Human Resources Management (HRM) processes can be shored up by Information Technology. E-HRM is the somewhat new expression for this Information Technology backed up Human Resources Management (HRM) system, more than ever through the utilization of web technology. Christensen's (1997) analysis of disorderly technology is harmonized by an analysis of precise human resource issues associated with disruptive technology. Pertinent transforms were brought about in the field of human resources due to innovation of contemporary technologies, such as, change in job propose, organizational design, conscription, selection, and assignment, rewards, training and improvement, and organizational transform and expansion. In Riordan Manufacturing, as in general circumstances, these unambiguous human resource functions have been premeditated cautiously in order to amplify the probability that disruptive technology will be developed and/or put into operation. Human resource systems also considerably influence disruptive technology. These effects come about through recognizing disruptive technology as an organizational objective, encouraging the growth and operation of disruptive technology, gratifying employees for performance associated to disruptive technology, and endowing with an organizational atmosphere that makes possible progress of disruptive technology. Both the anticipated and unplanned effects of unambiguous human resource policies must be taken into consideration. In addition, organizations must be ready to recognize the development of unproductive new technologies if they desire to encourage the invention of new technologies, some of which may result in disruptive technologies. (Dollard, 2006) Changes in the social structure environment of the organizations influence Human Resources Management (HRM) trends. Industrial relations and human resource management techniques in countries, sub-regions and regions, have been influenced by a range of circumstances and actors such as political philosophies, economic urgencies, the role of the State in determining the direction of economic and social development, the influence of unions and the business community, as well as the legacies of colonial governments. The resent changes in economic and social circumstances have brought about certain changes in Human Resources Management (HRM) and have resulted in alteration of certain provisions in the structure, such as, Staffing policies should be formulated by organizations to unify the efforts of the employees, as well as to inspire and motivate them in their jobs. All the objectives and decisions of the organization should be properly discussed and communicated with the staff. Therefore, it can well be stated that it is always essential to use defined and repeatable processes for accomplishing these activities for the implementation stage in the Riordan Manufacturing. REFERENCES Babbie, E; (1973); Survey Research Methods; Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. Buhr R; 1990; Practical Visual Techniques in Systems Design; Prentice Hall Dollard, John; (2006); Modern Policies of Management: A look into Tomorrow; New Haven and London: Yale University Press Doyle, J. K; 2007; Chapter 11: Introduction to Interviewing Techniques in Handbook for IQP Advisors and Students. Retrieved August 4, 2008 from http://www.wpi.edu/Academics/Depts/IGSD/IQPHbook/ch11.html#11 John, R; (2001); HRIS; Retrieved August, 4, 2008 from:http://www.google.com/searchq=cache:bVnz6EEasJMJ:management.about.com/cs/peoplemanagement/g/HRIS.htm+HRIS&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=2&gl=ke Walter, J. (1998) Virtual HR: Human Resources Management in the Information Age; Thomson Crisp Learning Kar, P; 2005; History of Human Resource and related applications; Kolkata: Dasgupta & Chatterjee Papp R; 2001; Strategic Information Technology; Idea Group Tanenbaum, Andrew; 1997; Operating Systems; Prentice Hall Read More