A Critique of the Best Practice Models and Their Application in the Organization - Term Paper Example

 Topic: CMI Strategic Management & Leadership Summary Performance management is significant in the accomplishment of organizational goals. Managers need to ensure that they are able to motivate the employees to utilize their potential to the maximum. This reasoning is emphasized in the paper, with particular focus on the British Airways, which is among the modern organizations that have been able to accomplish progress even under the circumstances that arisen as a result of the recession. The essay presents a critique of the best practice models and their application in the organization. It also presents some views in form of recommendations for the purpose of improvement in employee performance management. Introduction A company’s human resources need to be facilitated to realize their potential, which is important in generating the desired competitiveness in the workplace. Satisfaction among employees is significant in retaining a skilled and productive workforce. Companies that experience high employee turnover due to dissatisfaction are unlikely to be competitive in the market especially due to the movement of the inventive workers to competing companies engaging in similar business. Apart from losing the services of experienced employees, their engagement in competing organizations poses a great danger to the organization that they leave since they might expose the organizational strategies to competitors. More over, consumers tend to loose confidence in the products from organizations that are unable to satisfy employees. The workers loose enthusiasm in their activities and may not be encouraging to consumers. Performance management is significant in the effective accomplishment of organizational goals. It helps organizations to motivate employees to remain inventive. Employees tend to own an organization’s operations, thereby making it possible to accomplish organizational goals. There are models of performance management that have been developed to assist managers in maintaining productivity amongst employees. The models comprise of best practices such as; ensuring that new staff in the organization are trained, helping each member of staff to maintain a particular career path, organizational learning, performance measurement and appraisals as well as reward schemes and appreciation for exemplary performance. These are important performance management practices. This essay is a critical reflection of how managers in British Airways ensure that the performance of employees is managed effectively to achieve optimum performance. The essay evaluates evidence from the organization against best practice models. It also provides recommendations for improvement. Management of Employee Performance In the contemporary organizations, managers have come to the realization that to make profits and maintain competitiveness in the market requires efforts from the employees. British Airways is one of the organizations that have in their strategic objectives focused on maintenance of employee satisfaction. In regard to decision making, the organization has been successful in employing an all inclusive process whereby employees and managers have an opportunity to be listened to and their thoughts given a consideration (Colling, 1995 p 21). This is a significant strategy that has made it possible for the organization to generate a sense of ownership among the employees. It helps in generating satisfaction among employees since they tend to feel appreciated for the contributions they make in regard to the accomplishment of organizational goals. Employees who are not involved in the decision making process usually do not work for their own good or that of the organization. Rather, they tend to work to satisfy the requirements of the managers. They do not own the organizational goals (Bruce 2006 p 64). Such a workforce is unlikely to perform effectively. The British Airways operates through the People Department to effectively communicate with the organization’s employees. This department has enabled the organization’s managers to learn how the employees relate with each other as well as their perception towards the management. This is a form of effective leadership communication, which is significant in ensuring that each member of the organization has a channel through which to communicate ideas and opinions. It is a form of open communication in the organization that acts as a motivator towards high commitment. The communication process is open to all members of the organization through the People Department. Organizational objectives and trends in performance are clear to everyone, making it possible for people to make positive criticism for the purpose of maintaining the organization on the right track. High commitment is usually a result of communication and understanding among the personnel that their ideas are applicable to the organization’s operations. When managers are able to generate optimism amongst the employees, they make them even more productive and ready to generate inventive ideas (Robbins et al. 2008 p 36). People usually do not derive enthusiasm from engaging in operations that may not have a positive outcome. Managers need to act as significant change agents who are able to promote self esteem and confidence amongst the workers in regard to their tasks. Such an approach helps in generating enthusiasm and the desire to contribute to the organizational operations. The Peoples Department in the British Airways presents an avenue for promoting optimism amongst employees through communicating the organization’s success and future projections. When employees learn that the organization has accomplished its objectives over a particular period of time, they are motivated to work even harder (Dana, 1998 p 78). Respecting the self-esteem of workers is important in generating a desire in them to remain in the organization. They are also capable of paying attention to the needs of clients and also behaving in a respectful manner towards them. Without respecting employees, it may not be possible for them to respect or satisfy clients (Bruce 2006 p 67). British Airways has strategies to ensure that every member of its staff is respected and listened to. Pfeffer (1998 p 51) observes that British Airways prioritizes on professionalism and promotion of self esteem amongst the workers. The management also works towards generating morale amongst workers for effective performance. This is accomplished through flexible working, which is important in the accomplishment of a work-life balance. Managers who do not put in to consideration the need to have balance between personal issues of workers and workplace requirements are likely to lower the morale of employees. Effective management of employees requires understanding in regard to their needs outside the workplace, which may affect their performance. This helps in the avoidance of exhaustion and workplace related stress (Bate et al. 2000 p 197). British Airways is renowned for its flexible working practices, especially during the recession that has affected many companies, necessitating retrenchment to reduce the cost of operation. The organization has adopted the use of non-monetary based motivation strategies that are aimed at maintaining productivity and avoiding downsizing, which may lead to a great loss of experienced employees. Flexible working practices such as voluntary leave or work, part time working and such flexible practices have been adopted to ensure that even during the difficult times, the organization is capable of maintaining productivity and does not loose its employees who will be significant after overcoming the impact of the recession (Kitson and Campbell, 1996 p 28). Even in the absence of the recession, British Airways helps workers to maintain a work-life balance through flexible working. This has helped it to maintain effective performance. The organizational culture of a company may have a positive or negative impact on the employees’ performance. An organization whereby the managers develop a barrier between employees such that each of them operates independently may adversely affect their performance. People are usually motivated while working as a group, which presents them with an opportunity to share ideas and learn from each other. The transfer of knowledge amongst workers usually makes it possible for them to gain essential skills in the workplace, thereby contributing to the organization’s success (Bruce 2006 p 71). British Airways is among the organizations that have managed to build strong teams. The organization has been capable of developing strong networks among the employees, which has been significant in accomplishing its corporate strategies. Employees are usually more confident when they work in a team. More over, the fact that the organization’s employees are distributed in a number of countries globally, it is important for all of them to realize that they belong to a particular group (Pfeffer 1998 p 56). Enhancement of employee performance through organizational learning is critical to the accomplishment of organizational goals. This is achieved through ensuring that there is effective learning in the workplace. Experience amongst workers is achieved through motivating them to learn from various sources of knowledge. For example, in the formative stages of the British Airways, the organizational operations had not been computerized to the current extent. The organization was capable of adopting modern information technology in all departments, and offering training to the employees for them to be competent in using the new technology (Höpfl, 1993 p 63). Such strategies have been significant in the maintenance of employee satisfaction, especially when they acquire new knowledge that helps them to in their career development goals. When employees learn that an organization is capable of promoting career development, they develop enthusiasm for work and may not want to leave the organization. Organizational learning helps in maintenance of a continuous positive transformation in organizational operations. Employees remain informed regarding new developments, which help in the continuous improvement of skills that are necessary for organizational productivity. It is also important for managers to facilitate organizational learning since when new employees join the organization, they learn quickly from the experienced employees, making their training cost effective (Gabriel, 1991 p 859). British Airways maintains organizational learning among the staff members and training of new staff, which makes it possible for the organization to remain competitive in regard to employee productivity. On the other hand, individuals are taught ways of assessing their own performance to enable them to remain under continuous transformation for improved performance (Höpfl, 1993 p 65). Workers who are capable of analyzing their strengths and weaknesses are able to overcome the hindrances to effective performance. The manager plays a significant role in the workplace by helping the employees to realize their failures, and provide ideas that can help them to improve. After realizing the prevailing hindrances and identifying the particular strengths, workers are capable of capitalizing on the strengths and finding solutions to the weaknesses (Robbins et al. 2008 p 43). The management of British Airways has been successful in helping workers to realize their own performance inhibitors and their strengths. However, some of the problems that inhibit effective performance emanate from outside the workforce, such as problems associated with the recession, which can not be dealt with from the employee perspective. Under such circumstances, the management plays a significant role of setting strategies for them to cope with the changes in the operating environment for the organization to remain profitable. It also helps them to identify better ways of accomplishing tasks for improved performance (Kitson and Campbell, 1996 p 33). Promotion of diversity in the workplace is important in ensuring that all the employees are respected regardless of their cultural background or gender. The management of British Airways has been able to maintain a diverse workforce and to ensure that all the employees appreciate diversity (Leahey and Kotter, 1990 pp 61). This has been significant in maintaining competence of the organization in the various regions that it operates globally. Without appreciating diversity in the workforce, it easy for some employees, especially those who do not belong to the popular culture to under perform due the problem of inferiority. Many organizations have failed as a result of discriminating against the minority groups, which are equally importance in the maintenance of organizational productivity. The managers should also be ready to accept errors other than engaging in shifting blame amongst the employees. This would help in ensuring that the employees are also ready to deal with the mistakes that they make, which is important for improvement of future performance. Many people learn through experience, whereby they make mistakes and correct them. The penalties for mistakes should not be unrealistic. This may compel the employees from undertaking tasks for fear of reprisals. Each person should be made to understand the meaning of all cases where penalties may be applied. In other words, workers need to be treated in a humane manner even when they are faced with penalty cases (Alldredge et al. 2003 p 45). Rewards are some of the significant motivating factors for effective performance. They are important strategies for showing appreciation for some commendable work. The employees who receive rewards are encouraged to maintain the high standards or even do better for more rewards. In essence, rewards improve the performance of the whole workforce in an organization. When employees realize that every good performance is rewarded, they tend to maintain high commitment to accomplish the standards that have been set for reward schemes. More over, performance appraisals and promotions are necessary to motivate employees to perform as they target higher positions in the organization (Robbins et al. 2008 p 57). Rewards are usually tempting for managers, especially if they are the key factors towards maintaining a competitive workforce. Employees may be motivated to work harder with various reward schemes, especially when they are promised to them before accomplishing tasks. Managers should be keen on implementing the reward schemes once the employees complete the agreed tasks to qualify for rewards. It may adversely affect performance if the managers do not fulfill promises in the workplace. Being trustworthy is one of the significant management principles that build confidence amongst employees regarding their seniors (Alldredge et al. 2003 p 51). On the other hand, the managers need to offer the rewards in line with the organizational objectives. The objectives should be achievable to ensure that workers do not feel deceived by being offered rewards on tasks that they can not accomplish. Conclusion Performance management is significant for the effective performance of employees in organizations. Promotion of employee satisfaction is important in maintaining a skilled workforce. Involvement of employees in the decision making process generates a sense of ownership of organizational goals. Leadership communication is important in the enhancement of information flow within the workplace, which helps in the maintenance of awareness amongst employees. With effective organizational communication, performance amongst employees can be effectively accomplished. The management of British Airways has been successful in maintaining satisfaction amongst employees through applying significant best practice models. It has been capable of generating enthusiasm and high commitment especially through flexible working. It promotes organizational learning whereby employees learn in the workplace regarding application of emerging technologies. Employees are assisted in analyzing their strengths and weaknesses by the management for effective performance. The organization promotes self-esteem and confidence among employees. The management promotes diversity in the workplace, which has been important in maintaining high productivity in the organization’s operations globally. Recommendations for Improvement During the current economic crisis, it is recommendable that managers in British Airways focus on motivating employees through reducing the number of unpaid leaves and voluntary work. This would be important in preserve experienced employees who might be useful in maintaining organizational competitiveness during and after the global economic crisis. The organization has currently reduced employee benefits and rewards, which may lead to loss of skilled workers to competing organizations. Instead of downsizing, it is recommendable for the company to ensure that the employees are utilized to their maximum potential. They need to be provided with funds and equipment to accomplish their tasks instead of the current stand point whereby they are considered to be an extra expenditure for the organization. It is also recommendable for British Airways management to motivate employees to be inventive in establishing solutions to the current economic crisis that have affected the airline industry. A combination of talents and skills will be important in maintaining competitiveness among employees and overall organizational productivity. The company needs to focus on long term goals while solving the current problems. New flexible working practices such as work sharing are recommendable instead of downsizing. This is because fewer employees will eventually be overworked, leading to dissatisfaction and poor performance. Bibliography Alldredge, M., Johnson, C., Stoltzfuz, J., & Vicere, A. Leadership development at 3M: New process, new techniques, new growth. Human Resource Planning, 26, 3 (2003): p 45 Bate, P., Khan, R., & Pye, A. Towards a culturally sensitive approach to organization structuring: Where organization design meets organizational development. 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The Human Equation; Building Profits by Putting People First. Boston, Harvard Business School Press, 1998 Robbins, S. P., Judge, T. A., Millett, B. & Waters-Marsh, T. Organisational Behaviour, Fifth Edition, Pearson Education, 2008 Read More