Methodological Analysis of Human Resources Strategy - Research Proposal Example

Doctoral Proposal Methodological Analysis of Human Resources Strategy and its Effect on Change process Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 Ph.D. Student Profile 3 Abstract 5 Introduction 7 Analysis of Human Resources Strategy and its Effect on Change process 7 The Matching Model 10 Human Resources Strategy Models 11 Evaluation of the human resource strategy model 13 Hypothesis Formulation 15 Conclusion 18 References 19 Bibliography 21 Ph.D. Student Profile Aamna Mohammad Khamis Al Belooshi is a resident of Abu Dhabi UAE. A Masters of Quality Management from the University of Wollongong is keen to enhance my involvement in creative development of the organization by skillfully exploring and utilizing potential opportunities, and to share the burden and benefits of such an association. I posses strength and am competent in business acumen and have excellent social rapport, team building ability, leadership capability and also am an efficient communicator. I also like to adhere to personal, professional and social values and have the capacity to adjust, adopt and manage requisite changes. I also can be creative in emergent atmospheres and is able to face difficulties. I am able to adapt creative thoughts and proposals and setting goals and achieve them. I have completed Master degree in Business Administration specializing in Human Resource Management. I posses work experience as 1st Lt. Officer in Abu Dhabi Police G.H.Q-(Strategic Department). Also, I had been a Warrant Officer in the ministry of interior- Ras Al Khaimah Police HQ. The work responsibilities included being manager of Women Police (Financial & Administrational Affairs- Personnel), head of revenues, head of audit, manager of aftercare in dept of criminal investigation and dept of drugs, secretary of drugs director. I was part of International Emirates Bank - Ras Al Khaimah as a Dept. Supervisor in personal loans, car loans, credit loans, customer service, secretary, remittance and accounting. I have also completed administrational training courses in planning and performance measurement, financial training courses, and also computer training courses. I have also undergone military training courses in women police basics and a course in chemical precursors. I have also received certificate of appreciation for performing the strategic developing plan for the Abu Dhabi Police Departments in 2009. I have also been a frequent participator in various global and local events. I participated in the conference of latest practices in management of change and organizational development and also been a part of 2nd world conference for organizational talents development program, world latest practices in leadership, and few others. I was also part of the strategic development plan of Abu Dhabi Police Departments. At present, I have submitted a proposal of thesis for doctorate to Birmingham University, United Kingdom titled as “Systematic analysis of the human resources strategy and its role in the process of change”. Abstract The state of consistency between the organization’s HR strategy on one hand, and the state of the desired change through managing employees on the other hand, affect its performance towards achieving its objectives. As the experience and efficient skills in the organization be able to understand the requirements of the HR’s strategy in a way which lead to the process of change, and thus achieve the objectives. The Human Resources Strategy can be regarded as a general approach to the strategic management of human resources in accordance with the intentions of the organization on the future direction it wants to take. It is concerned with longer-term people issues and macro-concerns about change, structure, quality, culture, values, commitment and matching resources to future need. It has been defined as: All those activities affecting the behavior of individuals in their efforts to formulate and implement the strategic needs of business towards change. The pattern of planned human resource deployments and activities intended to enable the forms to achieve its goals. Strategic HRM can encompass a number of HR strategies. There may be strategies to deliver fair and equitable reward, to improve performance or to streamline structure. However, in themselves these strategies are not strategic HRM. Strategic HRM is the overall framework which determines the shape and delivery of the individual strategies. Boxall and Purcell argue that strategic HRM is concerned with explaining how HRM influences organizational performance. They also point out that strategy is not the same as strategic plans. Strategic planning is the formal process that takes place, usually in larger organizations, defining how things will be done. However, strategy exists in all organizations even though it may not be written down and articulated. It defines the organizations behavior and how it tries to cope with its environment. Strategic HRM is based on HRM principles incorporating the concept of strategy. So, if HRM is a coherent approach to the management of people, strategic HRM implies a planned process which integrates organizational goals with policies and action sequences. Therefore, a good HR strategy, one which is likely to succeed, is formed by people factors. One of the driving factors behind the evaluation and reporting of human capital data is the need for better information to feed into the business strategy formulation process toward the vital change and better future in achieving the objectives. In the majority of organizations people are now the biggest asset. The knowledge, skills and abilities have to be deployed and used to the maximum effect if the organization is to create value and make changes. The intangible value of an organization which lies in the people it employs is gaining recognition by accountants and investors, and it is generally now accepted that this has implications for long term sustained performance. It is therefore too simplistic to say that strategic human resource management stems from the business strategy. The two must be mutually informative. The way in which people are managed, motivated and deployed, and the availability of skills and knowledge will all shape the business strategy in general and the targeted change in particular. It is now more common to find business strategies which are inextricably linked with and incorporated into strategic HRM, defining the management of all resources within the organization. Individual HR strategies may then be shaped by the business strategy. Therefore, if the business strategy is about improving customer service by creating change this may be translated into training plans or performance improvement plans. Introduction Strategic human resources management is the procedure of relating the human resources purpose with the strategic goal of the organization for improving performance. The area of Human Resource Management (HRM) puts its focus on achieving business policy through the successful management of people in various organizations. It looks at the connection between people, productivity and satisfaction. Effective human resource management’s outcome shows in a higher productivity, higher quality of work life, and an enhanced eagerness for change. The human resources manager has a vital role to play within an organizational business environment which has been experiencing a fast paced change. Earlier human resources managers served mainly as administrators, and were responsible maintaining the organizational setup. Conversely the task of the recent human resources manager has turned out to be more ambiguous, and has shifted in the course of business partner, change catalyst, employee champion and has focused on human capital and its strategic leveraging aspect. The human resource managers role is presently changing in the direction of internal consultant to facilitate help upper-level and line managers for better managing their people. Analysis of Human Resources Strategy and its Effect on Change process The utilization of various disciplines containing human resources for adding value and also for organizational change is often called as change management. Change management is generally defined as the set of aptitudes and skills an individual requires for successfully implementing and also initiating change and also the appliance of tools for change like training, process re-design and communication in accumulating value to an organization. HR professionals are gradually more being asked to develop the attitudes and personal skills for the process of implementing change also technical understanding of how the tools for change can be applied. Business related HR managers generally deal with change management problems as a subset for the responsibilities they are given. Most of the chances that put their center of attention nearly exclusively on the process of change management are in consulting (Office of Career Development, “Human Resources/Change Management”). The wide aspect of human resource management consists of benefits, human resources information systems, compensation, organizational or job design, human resources planning, employee relations, career development and training, recruiting individual and organization development. For entry-level professionals there are various scopes, primarily in rotational programs and generalist roles. For graduate level qualified person and experienced-hire positions though, there is more emphasis on higher-level tactical and strategic aspects of these functions. In the earlier times, human resources management positions were mainly held by people with master degrees in human resource management, organizational psychology, and organizational design. But, with the change of approach towards people in organizations, it has turned out to be quite important for HR managers to have a knowledgeable business background, and also clear financial and strategic experience. The companies are now, because of this reason, hiring MBA candidates for HR related positions. Human Resource Strategy Consulting which is known as change management or organizational strategy consulting is a comparatively contemporary and extremely fast growing field. It is focused on helping companies to orchestrate main organizational changes. These qualified persons concentrate on the people part of organizational change that often come because of the changes in strategy. The process related redesign initiatives, merger integrations, and systems implementations are also part of this change. The projects can include efforts like job redesign and organization communications strategy development, training needs assessment, recruitment and selection strategy development and also strategy development performance management, workforce reduction, compensation redesign Restructuring and consulting initiatives. The role generally involves the use of all the human resource tools stated earlier for assisting organizations to manage the change (JERITT Michigan State University, “Organizational change and development”). HR Strategy consulting or change management positions are present within generally larger consulting firms, small boutique consultancies, and also HR niche consulting firms. Companies are progressively realizing the fact that the HR department is the connection between potential and current employees and also the organization’s business strategy. Strategic human resource management practices improve employee efficiency. It also increases the ability of an organization to achieve their mission. Integrating the use of human resources practices into the process of strategic planning enables an organization for better achieving its objective and goals. In the present day scenario, knowledge based organizations are perfect settings for the function of strategic human resources practices. An organization’s human resources management related practices and policies must be compatible with its strategy in the competitive business environment that the company is working. The integration between these affects an organization. The concept of integration is comprised of three aspects: The integration of the employees into the organization for fostering commitment or a characteristic of interest keeping in mind the strategic goals. The linking of HR practices and policies with the strategic management process of the organization. The internalization of the significance of human resource on the element of line managers. This approach to strategic human resource management has been referred to as the ‘matching’ model. The Matching Model The matching model tells about collaborating HR system and also an organizational structure in a certain way keeping in mind the organizational strategy view point. According to the earlier theorists, it was considered that structure is a component of strategy. From the earlier analysis a notion of fit was considered between external aggressive strategy and internal human resources strategy. Human Resources Strategy Models An organization’s business strategy is related with its human resources strategy. From the early 1990’s scholars have proposed three types of model for differentiating between ideal types of strategies for human resources. These models are control based model, resource based model, and integrative model. Control based model tells about the way by which management efforts to monitor and also control employee function performance. The resource based model deals with employer - employee exchange, employee attitudes, their behavior, and also the manager - subordinate relationship. In the integrative model it combines both control based and resource based typologies. The control based model is based upon the characteristic of the workplace control. It generally changes according to the managerial behavior. According to this viewpoint, human resource strategy and management structures are methods for controlling all facets of the work for securing a greater level of productivity and also profitability. The HR strategy varies according to the form of an organization like its size, structure, and also age. The implicit factor behind this strategy is managerial control. The HR strategy has to be in congruence with competitive strategy of an organization. The resource based model is based upon reward effort exchange. This models analyses the managerial point of view and the amount to which the managers observe their human resources as an asset compared to a variable cost. This approach uses the unique competencies of a work based organization, along with its resources and its capabilities. Organizational resources are both tangible and intangible. Tangible resources are human, physical, financial, and technological. On the other hand, intangible resources include reputation, brand name, and know-how. For gaining competitive advantage, the resources of an organization have to be valuable as well as unique. The integrative model comprises of incorporation between the two models of human resources strategy. A part of this model focuses on the managerial control aspect, the other part focuses on reward effort exchange. This strategy is prepared in such a way which focuses on the positive aspect of both control based and resource based approach. It involves two approach named as acquisition and development, locus of control. Acquisition and development comprises of the extent up to which the human resource strategy is capable of developing internal human capital as compared to external recruitment of the human resources or human capitals. This approach tells about investing more on the existing human capital of an organization and how an organization can learn from ‘making’ their workers rather than ‘buying’ them. This can be stated as the make or buy approach of human resource management. The locus of control deals with the level up to which the human resource strategy puts its focus on the monitoring aspect of the employees. This aspect monitors the employee conformity with a process based standard as compared to preparing a psychological bond which cares for social relationship, encourages respect, mutual trust, and also has the ability to focus on the results. This model has four separate ideal types leading human resources strategies like collaborative, commitment, paternalistic, traditional. The commitment approach deals with focusing on the internal development of the employees and their capabilities and also the outcome control. The traditional approach deals with external recruitment of capabilities and also process based and behavioral control. The collaborative strategy involves the organizational delegation work to external autonomous experts like consultants. It also emphasizes on providing widespread autonomy and also evaluating their performance mainly based upon the final outcome. The paternalistic strategy deals with offering learning prospects along with internal promotion for the employees for their congruence with process based control related measures. All of the stated human resource strategies are unique and distinctive in nature. Evaluation of the human resource strategy model The human resource strategy model comprises of certain limitations like the nonexistence of internal strategies, conceptualization of the managerial control, and focus on the strategic level decision making. The present conceptualizations of strategic human resource management are forecasted upon the conventional rational viewpoint of managerial decision making, definable performance of linear choice, planning and action. Organizational theorists have been critical and have challenged these assumptions. They have argued that strategic decisions are not significantly prepared on the outcome of logical calculation. The assumption which tells about a firm’s HR system and business-level strategy comprises of a linear and logical relationship is debatable given the facts that strategy preparation is politically charged, informal, and is subject to intricate contingency factors. Therefore the idea of deliberately lining up business strategy and HR strategy is applicable merely to the classical approach to strategy. The person arguing against the classical approach to strategic management states that the representation of the manager as a strategist and reflective planner is a myth. Managerial activity is expected to be frenetic, uncoordinated, fragmented, and ad hoc. In the case of such management environment, strategies can indicate changes in authority relationships among managers. The supporting perspectives on strategic management make the case such that managerial prudence is restricted by lack of time, information and also the cognitive capacity. Strategic management can be considered a fiercely competitive process in which managers compete against each other for power, status and also resources. Rather than presenting strategic choices as the result of logical decision making many a theorists argues that the strategic decisions are described by the political commotion of organizational life which comprises of a high frequency of bargaining along with a notable lack of precision in terms of environmental objectives and influences. Another limitation of SHRM and HR strategy theory is the focus on the link among the HR function and external market strategies. It is disputed that contingency analysis depends primarily upon external strategies of marketing and it ignores the internal strategies for operating i.e. how the firm is managed. It influences HR practices and performance. In a business which is flexible and of high quality, and has customized product range are the significant factors related to profitability. A firm can implement a manufacturing strategy which allows by using new technology and also self-prepared work teams, for far lesser people but ones functionally flexible, within a dedicated HR strategy establishment. Another limitation which is observed to occur in most recent studies examining SHRM is considered as conceptualization of the managerial control. The basic foundation of the typologies of HR strategy approach is that a prevailing HR strategy is strongly related to a specific competitive strategy. Therefore, the obligated HR strategy is most probable be adopted when management looks for competing in the marketplace by implementing a generic differentiation strategy. The notion that a dedicated HR strategy follows from a perceived or real or added-value competitive strategy is comparatively more problematic in practice. It is quite misleading to presume that managerial activity is not inclined by the indeterminacy of the contract with the employees. The prevailing gap between an employee potential and performance is also a significant factor which reflects on this problem (Bratton, “Strategic human resource management”). Hypothesis Formulation Hypothesis Better systematization Formulation on Change Process The change aspect which is associated with an organizational structure is mainly initiated by the human resources managers. Human resource strategy in modern business ventures works as a facilitator for bringing in various changes in the way an organization is run. Human resource managers’ work in an organization has changed from activities merely relating to recruitment, selection, training and development to working as a change agent. Global organizations is this era of globalization faces stiff competition from organizations within their country as well as from around the world. To sustain their position companies are always in look out for ways to manage their business venture better then their earlier offering. Human resource as a division in organization and its managers can provide help much required overview and perspective regarding the human resource i.e. manpower of an organization. Human resource have turned out to be one of the main differentiating factor in the present organizational culture and their growth, development and also in the venture of bringing in change in an organization. Human resources can work against a wish for change on the part of the organization if they are not taken into confidence regarding the positive impact the change can bring not only to the organization but also to them as an individual. Therefore human resource strategy in managing people and their needs are one the main issues in bringing in any change in an organization or in any other cases. Human resource managers are increasingly contributing to organizational endeavor of bringing in change by mergers, acquisitions by suggesting them on various aspects. A successful change in terms of organizational perspective in any level is brought about by right strategy. Organizational change can sometimes bring in change of cultures. Therefore, along with it also comes change in people policies, processes, and also in the entire system. Thus the implementation plan regarding change process is aligned with human resource strategy and also its various policies regarding man management (Berkeley Developmental Resources, “What is the Change Agent Role?”). Human resources strategies like personnel, generalist, outsourced, business partner, call centre, self-service, and centre of excellence, e-HR, fact-based decision making, and performance culture are all related to the organizational endeavor of bringing in change in various aspects in an organizational set up. It is quite evident that human resource strategy is changing with time. The organizational point of view is given the maximum priority in selecting a particular strategy over the other. Any strategy has in it both positive and negative aspect and strategy which is put into place for bringing in any kind of change in the way a set up is working is bound to bring in some agitation and obstruction against it. Therefore, the human resource strategy has to be developed keeping in mind the views of the human resources i.e. the man power of an organization. An organization which has its entire growth and developmental endeavor like change process organized with the contribution of its entire hierarchy has more chance of getting a success. A right human resource strategy can bring in with it more profit for the organization and also workforce productivity (Dr. Sullivan, “Selecting an HR strategy”). Conclusion Change process in any set up is initiated because of some drawback in the existing process. A change process can work very effectively in improving an organizational effectiveness (Marsee, “10 steps for implementing change”). In this process, the entire organizational hierarchy plays a vital role in the smooth transition to new process by bringing in the change. Human resource strategy plays of the significant role in facilitating any change. The human resource managers in modern business set up work as a change agent to bring about the desired change. Thus, the human resource managers can work with them in making them a strategic partner of the management of the organization in bringing in the called for change. Therefore human resource strategy and change process go hand in hand in making their contribution towards a successful organizational endeavor. References Bratton, J. “Strategic human resource management”. June 26, 2010. Wordpress, 2009. < http://marino72.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/shrm.pdf> Berkeley Developmental Resources, No Date. “What is the Change Agent Role?” June 26, 2010. Bdrconsultants. Dr. Sullivan, J. “Selecting an HR strategy”. June 26, 2010. Workplace Performance Technologies (Pty) Ltd, 2010. JERITT Michigan State University, No Date. “Organizational change and development”. June 26, 2010. Adult Education Perspectives for Judicial Education. Marsee, J. “10 steps for implementing change”. June 26, 2010. University of Virginia, 2002. Office of Career Development, 2009. “Human Resources/Change Management”. June 26, 2010. Michigan Ross School of Business. Bibliography Armstrong, M. Strategic human resource management: a guide to action Kogan Page Publishers, 2000. Ericksen, J. & Dyer, L. “Toward a Strategic Human Resource Management Model of High Reliability Organization Performance”. June 26, 2010. Cornell University, 2004. Hiatt, J. & Creasey, T. J. Change management: the people side of change Prosci, 2003 Welbourne, T. M. & Cyr, L. A. “Agency Theory Implications for Strategic Human Resource Management: Effects of CEO Ownership, Administrative HRM, and Incentive Alignment on Firm Performance”. June 26, 2010. Cornell University IRL School, 1996. Read More