Organizations in this century are facing an environment of constant pressure and change. They need to be dynamic and agile in order to succeed. The old or traditional method of ensuring human resources remains administrative performing operational tasks needs to change. Human resource department can be a source of competitive advantage for the company when it is structured to take a strategic role in the organization.
Human resource specialists are able to influence the culture and motivational levels of employees and solve crucial organizational problems. It should be one of the core competencies of the organization. In the 1970s the department was widely viewed as an administrator of policies and policies and negotiator in pay and compensation. It ensures recruitment for vacant places occurs and payroll and other statutory deductions are carried out. However human resource specialists should take up other roles.
They should be consultants and advisors to the line management (Walker, 1990). They should be present in the strategy formulation meetings to contribute and participate in implementation. They should get involved in change management (Yussof, 2012). Finally, the team can participate in controlling costs to boost up the profits of the company.
There are organizations who have implemented these changes and they have seen significant improvement. A case in point is the Albert Einstein Healthcare Network organization. Ten years ago, the CEO recognized that the company would soon face an industry that is tumultuous and unpredictable therefore he put structures in place to influence the organization to change from a complacent to a dynamic organization.
The CEO and the vice president of human resources embarked on transforming the culture of the organization from comfortable intolerance of unproductive behaviour to a culture that was well-suited to the challenges that lay ahead. There were several challenges the organization faced during that time. There were constant and significant reductions on the Medicare and Medicaid expenditures that put pressure on organizational costs.
There was increased competition from managed care organizations that increased centres in the Philadelphia area. They provided wider range of health services at lower costs. There were also major advancements in science and technology that forced the company to employ the new developments in their processes.
The company came up with five initiatives that would be the basis of the organizational culture. These were forging a common purpose and embedding the core values into the processes. The work carried out by individuals would be enriched, there would be opportunities for personal growth and consummate returns would be given for motivation.
The CEO wanted the employees to demonstrate four agile attributes which were dedication, resilience, accountability and generative. There were workshops and trainings held where the staff were taught survival tactics in the environment. There were assignments created which would be conducted on flexible terms while others were on blended terms where different teams would work together (Shafer, Dyer, Kilty, Amos &Ericksen, 2000). There were team building sessions.
The employees were encouraged to continually self-evaluate their professional competence and strive to be on a path of continuous improvement. There was a training needs assessment carried out for all the employees and training programs structured to address these needs in order for the company to have employees who were skilled and competent.
Gap analysis of the company in terms of meeting the strategies of the company
was carried out and the results cascaded to the employees. The employees were tasked with coming up with the breakthrough objectives that would ensure the success of the company.
There was increased communication which even came to be referred to as surround communication. There was both bottom-down and top-bottom communication ensuring 360 degrees communication. The employees therefore had extrinsic and intrinsic rewards such as self-actualization and achievement which increased loyalty. In the end, the company developed employees who had the zeal to seek out new business opportunities for the company to take up in order to help the organization realize its corporate vision.
It was important for the employees to identify with the common vision of the company and be dedicated to its success. They would also be personally accountable to play their role rather than waiting to be pushed and directed by the human resources staff. The employees would also assist the organization to monitor possible in the external environment. They were to generate new ideas or solutions to deal with the threats.
Resilience was an important quality in the employees as it would help them to bounce back quickly in case they are confronted by certain challenges. Thirdly, the employees would be committed to providing quality healthcare to the people who approached the hospital.
Conclusion
References
Shafer, R. A., Dyer, L., Kilty, J., Amos, J. &Ericksen, G. A. (2000).Crafting a
human resource strategy to fosterorganizational agility: A case study. Retrieved from:http://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1086&context=cahrswp
Walker, J. W. (1990). What's new in HR development? Personnel, 67(7), 1-5.
Yussof, Y.(2012). The Path from an Administrative Expert to a Strategic Partner
Role: A Literature Review. Interdisciplinary Journal of Contemporary Research In Business, 3(9): 141-154.
