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Human Resource Management
Case Studies
CASE STUDY (20 Marks)
University of Haute Picardie, in
Southern France initiates the Total Quality Management (TQM) program to obtain
– the ISO 9001 certificate for all the schools and departments within the
university. The focus of this case study is the school of management studies where
a part of this programme is being implemented. The initial stage of the
programme encounters both ‘processes and ‘people’ related problems. The case
study looks into the initiatives of the new Dean, Professor Jean Deroo, who
starts the change process – by motivating people to ‘buyin’ the change, and
then bringing in structural changes to the school so that the TQM programme can
be implemented successfully. The case study leads to an interesting debate –
can change programmes be successful in the absence of efficient leadership?
Answer
the following question.
Q1.
Give an overview of the case.
Q2.
Discuss the details of the likely encounters with ‘processes’ and ‘people’ in
the implementation stage.
CASE STUDY (20 Marks)
Many nonprofit organizations face
ongoing challenges when it comes to human resources management (HRM).
Struggling to juggle competing demands of clients and funders, HRM often falls
by the wayside, in spite of its acknowledged importance. In 2002, an innovative
solution was proposed by the Muttart Foundation in the form of an HR Cluster
Program. As a shared services program, the HR Cluster focused specifically on
pooling resources to provide a group of agencies support and access to
expertise in HR management. The six agencies involved in the Edmonton pilot
group, including BBBSE, collectively employed 250 full time and 77 part time
staff. Led by Eldon Emerson, an HR professional who provided support and
counsel, the cluster worked to address various HR needs including the
administration of salaries and benefits, policy and procedure development,
performance management, and best practices with respect to hiring selection and
interviewing. Executive Directors in the cluster met regularly as a group and worked
one on one with Emerson to address their organization’s HR challenges. One of
the projects that grew out of the cluster for BBBSE was an organizational
review process that shifted O’Neill’s focus from dealing with immediate staff
issues to matters related
to organizational structure, the
services they offered and how they were offered, as well as board relations,
roles and responsibilities. As a result of this organizational review process,
the agency was able to reconfigure its programming structure in a way that
allowed them to serve more clients, while not overtaxing staff or requiring
additional staff. In rethinking their service delivery model, they moved away
from programming silos towards a structure that saw staff connected to a
community or geographic region rather than a particular program. By developing
new ways of partnering with other agencies in the communities that it serves,
the organization was better able to meet client needs while creating a new
staffing structure that allowed for better support and increased engagement of
the staff team. Prior to working with the cluster O’Neill reported that much HR
management took place through hallway discussions between herself and the
finance manager with the two of them juggling responsibility for the portfolio.
Through learning that emerged from the cluster, BBBSE decided to hire a manager
of human resources and learning in addition to a manager of mission
effectiveness – two new permanent staff positions – because experience had
taught them unless they created dedicated positions for these priority areas it
was likely that many of the leanings and benefits of the HR cluster would fade
away. These new positions didn’t add to the organization’s budget as they were
resourced from savings resulting from the reworked service delivery model. Many
organizations pay lip service to putting people first. At BBBSE, an effective
people first strategy is essential to making the organization work. The core of
the agency’s human resource capacity is a volunteer workforce of more than
2,000 individuals
who interact directly with its clients.
There are 35 staff who support these volunteers through face to face or phone
meetings. O’Neill credits a great deal of the organization’s success to the
long term involvement by staff and senior volunteers. “When an organization
experiences continuous turnover in key positions a great deal of time is spent
getting everyone onto the same page. We’ve been working together for such a
long time that we have a shared vision of what we’re trying to achieve, and
have a common understanding of what needs to happen for things to get done.”
This type of shared experience contributes not only to a shared vision but also
to a common language, enabling the organization to more easily take advantage
of emerging opportunities and to make significant changes fairly quickly. Time
that other organizations spend training staff and board is available to BBBSE
for reflection and planning, activities that many agencies rarely find the
opportunity to pursue. When people do leave BBBSE they tend to stay
connected to the organization.
According to O’Neill board members go on to sit on other influential boards and
remain BBBSE champions. Staff and board often return as volunteers. Their
continued engagement means that organizational knowledge is preserved, and
capacity is enhanced. This ability to retain staff and volunteers has occurred
as a direct result of the organization’s focus on its people and the shared
commitment all those involved have to doing the best they can for the children
and families they serve. The BBBSE leadership team meets regularly with their
direct reports, creating opportunities for feedback (in both directions), voicing
of concerns and a forum for ongoing open communication. Most importantly, the
organization listens to its staff. As a result of redesigning the
organization’s service delivery model and processes, which involved delegating
some decision making to front line staff, staff is now involved in more facets
of the organization’s business. While programs and services are developed in
response to client and community needs and through partnerships with other
organizations, staff members are heavily involved in the process. As O’Neill
points out, organizational decisions have to work for the staff as well as for
the clients in order to be effective. Another area that staff are now fully
engaged and involved in is annual work planning and budgeting. The process
starts with a staff group identifying emerging trends, issues, and
opportunities, and initiating a discussion of whether changes are required to
existing programs and services. The resulting discussion paper is shared with
remaining staff for review and input. The amended document is then used by
members of the Leadership Team to craft departmental business plans
incorporating goals, objectives, strategies, desired outcomes, and resources
required. These pieces are fed into an overall organizational business plan. In
this way staff is more engaged and have a vested interest in the final outcome.
Answer
the following question.
Q1.
Discuss the importance of HR Cluster Program proposed by the Muttart
Foundation.
Q2.
Debate on “an effective people first strategy” at BBBSE.
Q3.
“O’Neill credits a great deal of the organization’s success to the long term
involvement by staff and senior volunteers” comment.
Q4.
Explain the necessity of staff involvement in the organizational plan.
CASE STUDY (20 Marks)
Infosys Technologies Ltd. (Infosys),
one of India's leading information technology (IT) companies started the 'Voice
of Youth' (VoY) program in 1994 to harness the creative energy of its young
employees and also develop future leaders. As of 2008, the company was not only
considered one of the most innovative companies globally, but its VoY program
also catapulted it to the league of 'Top Companies for Leaders'. Infosys
Technologies Ltd. (Infosys), one of India's leading information technology (IT)
companies, was founded in 1981. As of early 2008, it had not only established
itself as a technology powerhouse in the global IT arena but had also earned a
lot of kudos for its innovative human resources management (HR) practices...
Answer
the following question.
Q1.
What are the effects of such programs on the motivation level of employees?
CASE STUDY (20 Marks)
Johnson & Johnson embarked on a new
HR transformation journey across the globe and as part of the new HR model,
there would be a recruitment specialist group in each country across three key
sectors. This aim of this new model was to increase and enhance synergies in
the way the company attracts new talent and explore methods of increasing both
the hiring manager and candidate experience as well as building on the employer
brand. The implementation across the UK took six months, harmonizing best
practice and policy across the three sectors and all of the operating
businesses. This process included identifying, attracting and employing externally
a brand new team of seven UK based recruitment professionals to start within
three months. After reaching out to Hudson in Reading Johnson & Johnson
decided to partner with Hudson HR who understood the project requirements,
timelines and desired candidate personality. Even though Johnson & Johnson
were looking for experienced professionals, it was equally important to hire people
who would be a great fit for the company, looking to build careers within the
organization and who would bring fun and new ideas to the table. Hudson took
the time to understand the initiative and how the model was going to work, and
agreed timelines and process up front. By getting to know the hiring manager,
Hudson thoroughly understood what would be important and how the virtual team
should be motivated and work together. Hudson met with all of the candidates
and due diligence was conducted in understanding the organization but taking
into consideration Johnson & Johnson’s values and Credo. The EMEA Director
of Resourcing was amazed at how a complete
team was hired in time for training with the US. For Johnson & Johnson it
was very unusual for any expansion country to ‘go live’ with a full team hired
on the same day. Hudson helped manage all the negotiating around start dates
and training commitments which relieved the hiring manager. After four days
together on training, the team had bonded and settled in well. Five months on,
the team has a lot of challenges; steps which were omitted in the
implementation process or training but the team take it all on board and deal
with it with humor and confidence. The team has had impressive feedback from the
rest of the Johnson & Johnson business on how professional they are and how
the team understands the business and industry. Line managers enjoy recruiting
again because they work with business partners who understand their needs and
want to make it a great experience.
Answer
the following question.
Q1.
Give an overview of the case.
Q2.
What was the Johnson &Johnson’s new HR Model? Discuss its usefulness.
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Project Report and Thesis contact
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