HR785_ Human Resource Strategy- Discussion: Strategic Planning and High-Performance Work Systems

Part 1:

Why is it important for Human Resources to have a role in the strategic planning process? (Cite the textbook and the video with David Ulrich in your response)

Part 2:

High-Performance Work Systems (HPWS) are explained in Chapter 1. Conduct research to find information about a company that has a HPWS. Explain key components of the company’s system and key takeaways that may help other organizations.

Part 1:

Why is it important for Human Resources to have a role in the strategic planning process? (Cite the textbook and the video with David Ulrich in your response)

H.R. having a seat at the table is extremely important according to Ulrich. According to the video interview it is an undervalued part of strategic planning. The text states that it is difficult to measure the value of the H.R. department. The text states that Leadership teams express that “people are our most important asset” but they don’t understand the real value of the human resource. In recent years I worked for a company that wanted to hire and hire but did not take care of their teams. In North Georgia it is hard to find staff so the GM that managed the property I was at stated “what are they going to do? They can’t do any better. This was the catalyst that drove me to seek my MSOL and HR Grad degree. The text states that HR’s performance is difficult to measure, in my personal experience it also ties to the fact that executives see employee appreciation and retention as fluff, and it is a department that does not bring in revenue. On page 3 the text mentions how the idea of improvement in an individual employee did not directly impact the operation; and this idea did little to progress the role of HR managers. This has been my experience recently. Recently I interviewed for a role that is in support of new employees moving to the area. The role is not one of law and process but one of providing information to the employees. In the interview I was asked what drew me to the role. That was the easiest question in the interview process. The answer was “my sole reason for forwarding my degree into HR was to support the employee”.

Part 2:

High-Performance Work Systems (HPWS) are explained in Chapter 1. Conduct research to find information about a company that has a HPWS. Explain key components of the company’s system and key takeaways that may help other organizations.

In researching the HPWS an article in Graziadio Business Review states that while it is wise to run as lean as possible to keep overhead down, it is also important to treat your employees like owners. This article also states the expectation for those employees is that they seek to be excellent at their roles and always strive to improve the operation. The company I looked at is Disney, as a CM I wanted to know how we with 77k employees measured up. First, I looked at how does the company ensure employee security, the Disney company has in place a point system. The point system gives employees the opportunity to call out of work for various reasons without penalty until they reach as certain point number. The next aspect I considered was decentralized decision making, the Disney company creates teams within the organization and trust those teams to make decisions that positively impact the day-to-day business. The key to being successful is to treat your employees as your internal guest. Entrepreneur Richard Branson is known for saying that if you take care of your employees, they will take care of your customers.

The key take ways are treat your employees like your internal guest and they will be loyal to your company and then impact the earned revenue of the company.

References:

(n.d.). Brining HR to the Table with David Ulrich. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=om-QOUNeWtM.

Becker, B. E., Huselid, M. A., & Ulrich, D. (2007). The Hr scorecard: Linking people, strategy, and performance. Harvard Business School Press.

Cam Caldwell, P. D., & Floyd, L. (2018, February 16). High performance work systems - a peer-reviewed academic articles: GBR. Graziadio Business Review | Graziadio School of Business and Management | Pepperdine University. Retrieved October 21, 2021, from https://gbr.pepperdine.edu/2014/12/high-performance-work-systems/.

Wilkie, D. (2019, August 16). Disney motto: Treat employees like customers. SHRM. Retrieved October 21, 2021, from https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/employee-relations/pages/disney-employee-engagement.aspx.