Strategic Human Resource Management in the Contemporary Organizational Environment - Coursework Example

Strategic Human Resource Management Name: Student Number: Course Title: Assignment Number: Strategic Human Resource Management The HRM Concept In the contemporary organizational work environment, company’s competence is greatly correlated with intrinsic talent and the overall human capital management, which consistently cultivate transformation in human resource management (HRM). Kovach (1996) presents HRM as a contemporary approach that directs strategic and sustained management of human capital: at individual and collective levels. Essentially, strategic HRM (SHRM) is an integrated system of intertwined policies built around ideological and philosophical concepts. This is to imply that SHRM is a constellation of diverse beliefs and assumptions, and new strategic approach in formulation and deployment of decisions regarding human capital management. Additionally, successful implementation of transformative SHRM revolves around strategic involvement of line managers and optimal utilization of all talent development concepts that shape competence driven organizational culture (Kovach, 1996). Contemporary human resource management (HRM) continually evolves towards achieving competitive advantage in the market by attracting, retaining, and optimizing talent. To overcome the upheavals associated with globalization and increased competition, organizations persistently seek radical changes and HRM policy and procedure oriented strategies that not only increase personnel efficiency but also harness loyalty. Summarily, Dhar (2008) observes that the focus of current HR management is on creating viable strategies, aligning them with corporate goals, and realizing organizational objectives effectively. Models of SHRM The Matching Model The term matching model in this concept stems fro assertions by Fobrrun, Tichy, and Devanna (1984), who argued that any sustainable and effective HRM system and the prevailing company structure should be controlled in a manner that the practices are in synchrony with organizational strategy. This model supports the human resource cycle (Figure 1) (selection, appraisal, rewards and development), that underscores the lifeline of an effective HRM system. The selection element implies the lean aspect that requires matching of talent with available job, and appraisal supports a continual process of measuring performance. The matching model comprises rearwards as an important SHRM component that ensures tallying of talent assignment with financial benefits. Development is another important component worthy mentioning in that it ensures strategic advancement of employee performance through high quality skill endowment and improvement. Figure 1: Human Resource Cycle The Harvard Framework The Harvard model is another important discourse worth discussing in this context in that it promotes the resilience doctrine within the organization’s SHRM by providing basis for resolving all historical personnel management problems. Sims (2007) argues that in the contemporary organizational environment, the intrinsic external pressures are complex and sophisticated, and demand strategic perspectives especially in the personnel resources. Rowley & Jackson (2010) asserts that SHRM comprises all management decisions and actions that influence relationships within and without the organization particularly the human capital. At the core of the Harvard model is that line managers must accept the nature of their portfolio that entails more responsibilities that matter in SHRM by integrating organizational goal with personnel management policies. Additionally, it emerges from the model that the management must recognize the crucial role of the personnel in formulation of policies and making of decisions that concern how human resource activities are created and implemented. The general aim of SHRM is to facilitate achievement of organizational competitive advantage through the most important company asset: human component. SHRM in the Contemporary Organizational Environment The era of maximal human resource productivity dates back to the Second World War (1939-1945) during which companies were pushed to adopt full-time personnel units that would ensure procedural and more organized synchrony or activities to realize optimal productivity under high efficiency. According to (Price, 2011), organizations during this period heightened their talks with unions to cultivate development of harmonious labour management relations. The force towards stable human resource management departments saw welfare and labour officers being confined into one unit, which was administered directly personnel officers. Since this early twentieth century development, the department of personnel management has evolved into a very critical unit within the organization in which the personnel officers play the dual role: line managers of the HRM unit and staff advisors to other line managers as regards labour related matters. Hotes (2011) argues that the transition towards shift-based working in industries and the increased training requirements for a large number of employees further helped transform and increase the importance of HRM departments. Worthy noting as aforementioned is that the SHRM concept is anchored on scientific human resource management assumptions, ideologies, and philosophies. This fact is reflected by archival revelation that many organizations ushered in HRM practices mainly due to the extrinsic pressures that resulted from the surrounding of such organizations. It is thus imperative that organizations continually adopt contemporary HRM practices because they are forced by developments in the legal, political and environmental situations (Kaufman, 2008). Success of post war companies that adopted the impartial and resilient HRM practices implies that strategy in human capital management is a continual a process rather than a one off thing. A case in point in the history of HR practices evolution is the Ford Motor Company that during the 1910-1920 introduced little known innovative personnel management strategies: above market compensation package and strong workforce diversity policy that considered even the disabled at workplace. This case also chronicles the beginning of HR practices that sought to enhance employee satisfaction at the place of work by developing the work environment to suit the diverse needs of employees (Youndt, Snell, Dean, & Lepak, 1996). Worthwhile noting from the Ford’s exemplary early recognition of HR practices and the working environment is the policy provision and implementation of equal employment and discrimination prohibition, which saw the organization’s personnel department employ not only multi-ethnic people but also across the racial divide. The recruitment of women at various unit-levels in the organization, and the promotion of inclusive company culture by inserting a non-discriminatory clause in the company charter are notable aspects that traverse the overall evolution of the human resource management discipline. Summarily, whilst historical explanations of the evolution of human resource practices, the Ford case scenario underlines the not only the principles of advanced human capital management but also the substance of pursuit by the contemporary SHRM managers. SHRM: Performance Management It is ubiquitously becoming acceptable that that the doctrine of performance management is a natural management process within an organization that revolves around the increasing efficacy in management of individuals and groups to achieve unparalleled organizational performance. According to Wood (1999), performance management promotes the understanding of expected outputs and the strategies cultivating and developing performance synergy in people to realize the results. The main aim of performance management is to support mechanisms for the organization and its people to achieve high performance. Towards this end, it is imperative that specialists in HR practices are extremely valuable in supporting line managers, and energizing the manager’s role in aligning the human component in the organization to actualize stated goals. Additionally, Schuler (1992) supports the common belief that the SHRM ensures high organizational and human capital performance by ensuring that policies are implemented consistently through out the company. Ensuring full adjudication of corporate policies at different performance levels implies that HR practitioners also police over the line management, which often precipitates tension and ambiguity that can derail performance. However, SHRM provides across board solutions in this context by exercising restraint that limits the personnel managers to the purpose of providing advice rather than dictating the line management. However, as argued by Purcell (2003), because the HR department is symbolically conferred with the responsibility of ensuring that things run smoothly and as expected to ensure organizational performance, it not only influences the line manager’s free management of their resources but also curtails their participatory capacity in strategy implementation. This implies that the SHRM can gravely hinder line managers from playing their true roles of participating in crucial decision making such as talent attraction, recruitment, development, and remuneration of their people. HRM and Conflict Resolution Human resource management department is a crucial function within an organization in a diversity of ways. For instance, although line managers routinely interact and direct the organization’s human resource, it is the HRM that can strategically deploy conflict resolution strategies with much more success. For instance, for line managers that have competence in their line of talent, and have not received people management training, they can be jostled by recurrence of disagreements among their staff. According to Kaplan (2010), HRM strategies seek to harmonize the gains by the people from the company while fronting the organization’s desire for success through its talented man power. In this pathway, the HRM is equipped with adequate conflict management skills and experiences. Team management skills shared between line managers and the HRM are an essential conflict resolution instrument within an organization. Role of Line Managers in the Implementation of SHRM Pravin (2011), the actualization and conversion of policies and practices into action is the duty of the line managers. This premise is emphasized by Purcell (2003) who appreciates the front-line managers as the people that make policies a reality. This argument roots from the fact that how line managers discharge their duties: effecting communication, resolving conflicts, and accommodating people’s opinions determines the extent to which a strategy can be actualized for the benefit of the organization. This is to imply that though SHRM officers propose and put down policies and strategies, their actualization pivots on the will of the line managers. Pravin (2011) suggests inclusion of line mangers in the full policy and strategy formulation as a way of making them own the plans and thus potential for full implementation. Although the onus of creating HR policies rests with personnel managers, it is crucial to note that there must be a tangible input by line managers to ensure that the policy provisions and strategies live within the available resources and are manageable. It is therefore crucial that the management maintain a working appraisal mechanism that informs the system about the level of functional articulation between the HRM and the line management. This organizational aspect can be assessed continually by tracking the extent of the participation of line managers in decision making as regards HRM. Furthermore, a functional appraisal system should report any changes in the responsibilities of line managers in articulating HRM functions. According to Houldsworth and Jirasinghe (2006), the organization can measure the line management’s role in its HRM concerns by auditing its development capacity level in terms of line managers trained in people management. Case Scenario: A BAE Systems Line Manager The purpose of this section is to corroborate literature connotations of HRM in terms of performance management and creation and maintenance of harmony in the organization’s labor force. The critical review of HRM literature has demonstrated the crucial role played by line managers in the implementation of organizational policy and practices. This premise is corroborated by the real life experience revealed by a BAE Systems line manager: Martin Craven. Mr Martin is a superintendant in charge of mechanical shops in his organization. The interview evinced the multi-faceted nature of line managers in that his primary duties include coordination of the safety, health and environment areas, and acts as the go between the Royal Saudi Air Force and the BAE management, a ground supported by Purcell (2003) and Armstrong (2008) who concede the responsibility load on the line managers. As has been revealed by the HRM literature (Armstrong & Baron, 2005), importance of training for line managers in people management was reflected by the supervisory task in which Martin cited forty as the number of employees he supervises. Although he did not say much about conflict resolution, his role of maintaining an annual employee performance development review (EPDR) chronicled his participation in performance management, which greatly influences the competitive advantage of his employer. As aforementioned, lack of systematic devolvement of HRM functions to the line managers can precipitate tension with the HRM (Armstrong& Murlis, 2007). Martin implies that although not fully satisfactory, his working relation with the HR department was reasonably good. Some of the challenges line managers like Martin confront include cultural diversity and policing over other managers. As a line manager, opportunities of development reflect from seeing employees solving work issues, a culture developed through strategic rewards. For instance, performance appraisals are essential for non-pecuniary rewards as implied by Martin that the EPDR helps him give staff support. In addition, employee centered performance assessment programs maintain talent within the company because they consistently appraise the performance of the workforce. As argued by Cloke and Goldsmith (2011), although the contemporary workplace appears to have been transformed by the SHRM concepts and practices line managers continue to express mixed feelings about their worth in key decision making. Martin in this context contends that senior managers still harbor the suppressive tendencies of belittling their subordinates even when their competence in suitable. However, he was categorical that sensitive organizations like BAE should foster diversity management concepts: appreciate and respect the value of differences in race to sustain integrity. Although HRM has recognized the critical role of line managers in strategy implementation, the disguised conflict of interest between them and HR officers prevent the managers from optimizing their capabilities (Cloke &Goldsmith, 2011). This premise surfaced when the interviewee consented that he felt underutilized, which he attributed to the limitation of powers such as control over budgets. Additionally, although Martin appeared satisfied with communication from senior management, there was a glitch in the one way information flow adopted by BAE bosses who hold subordinate feedbacks with low regard. According to Regis (2009), HRM performance management is sophisticated and complex such that if the top management does not engage fully the HR systems may be ineffective. Martin argued that though he had the big resources characterized with top managers like mobile phones and cars, there were problems in finding small but crucial expendables like stationary. Line managers are the stewards of not only HR performance but also the ambassadors of goodwill and loyalty (Armstrong, 2008). Asked how he confronts subordinates inn case of unsatisfactory works, Martin pointed the face to face approach through which the line manager sis able to act in resolving the problem while at the same time identifying areas needing more training. Additionally, the line manager tactically deploys their talent of opportunism to integrate stray colleagues into the system. Seeing the opportunity and not the problem in the colleague is the way of winning difficulty mates at work. Being in charge of a function requires the manager to be deploy effective team building approaches such as mentoring employees about work related matters, and helping them at points of need. The interview revealed that a line manager’s efficacy can be maintained through clear terms of reference, which not only help them deliver but also feel encouraged to be innovative. Finally, like implied in the reviewed literature, HRM is under constant change and required continual employee training and development. Conclusion This critical review explores and detailed the subject of strategic human resource management particularly in the context of performance management and conflict resolution. Although the HR department is in charge of policy and strategy formulation in matters regarding labor force, it is the line managers that actualize that and implements the intended performance actions. The line manager should consistently be consulted during the strategy formulation process to pave way for acceptance and unconditional implementation of a proposed strategy. The HRM and the line management are interconnected in that they need each other for policy formulation and implementation, and importantly in conflict resolution. References Armstrong, M. (2008). Strategic human resource management: A guide to action. New York, NY: Kogan Page Publishers. Armstrong, M., & Baron, A. (2005). Managing performance: Performance management in action. (2nd ed.). New York, NY: CIPD Publishing. 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