...High Performance Work System is a name given to a set of management practices that attempt to create an environment within an organization where the employee has greater involvement and responsibility. More specifically, HPWS has been defined by Bohlander et al (2004) as “a specific combination of HR practices, work structures, and processes that maximizes employee knowledge, skill, commitment and flexibility” (Bohlander & Snell, 2004, p. 690). Barnes (2001) writes that the concept and ideas for high performance work systems has existed for quite some time and has its roots in the late twentieth century amid the upheaval in the United States manufacturing environment (Barnes, 2001, p. 2). During this period, the manufacturing industry in America had realized that global competition had arrived and they needed to rethink the ‘tried and true’ manufacturing processes. The concepts that arose out of these turbulent times are items that eventually would become key components of a high performance work system. The first component is the concept of “increased opportunity to participate in decisions” (Barnes, p. 9) for employees. The ability for an employee to participate in the decision making process is considered to be one of the key elements of an HPWS because it allows the employee to make decisions that effect their immediate environment, which in turn effect the entire organization. This participation provides leads to employees feeling more empowered, which leads to a more...
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...[Critical Evaluation of High Performance Work Systems] [Writer’s name] [Institute’s name] [Date] Critical Analysis of the Journal Article Introduction The article relates to a lot of companies gaining success in terms of sales as well as employment growth with the help of High Performance Work Systems (HPWS). The article suggests the enhanced business performance relating to HPWS which is valid but partial. Critical Analysis The article extends to the fact that there are a number of over-conceptual dilemmas relating to methodological problems stemming through High Performance Work Systems. The article does not include the neglected role played by employees as the primary recipients concerned with HPWS. The research does not extend to the notion of the impact on the employee outcome when there is integration of role played by organizational justice in terms of a foreseeable mediator for explanation of the ‘black box’ involving HPWS (Appelbaum 2013, 120). The article does not include the universal agreement for the term HPWS because of the differences existing in the theoretical, empirical as well as practical approaches which have been adopted. Apart from that, there can be description of patterns concerning innovative human resource, practices, work structures as well as procedures which can be reinforced for producing synergistic benefits. The article neglects the HR policy areas like sophisticated training and selection, appraisal and advancement based on behavior...
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...Strategy: High Performance Organization vs. Learning Organizations? Electronic copy available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1839985 2 of 17 Introduction The High Performance Organization and the Learning Organizations are two concepts that have been studied extensively in the organizational change and improvement literature. This paper will compare and contrast these two perspectives on organizational effectiveness. These paradigms then will be related to a real organization with consideration given to practical approaches at improving effectiveness drawn from these paradigms. Survey of High Performance Organization A recent global study defines high performance organizations as ones where the following conditions hold: “people are valued, critical thinking is optimized, and opportunities are seized”(Annunzio, S. pg 3, 2004). The most common characteristics of high performance organizations are the following: “Flatter, horizontal structure instead of vertical hierarchy, work done by teams organized around processes; teams empowered to make decisions so management is decentralized and participative, empowered workers with high skill levels and cross-training; rewards for team performance, collaboration among teams, between labor and management, with supplier, focus on customers, quality, and continuous improvement, and flexible technologies (Kerka, S., 1995). Another study entitled “The High Performance organization: An Assessment of Virtues and Values” defines high performance organization...
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...•Define high-performance work systems, and identify the elements of such a system. A high performance work system is the right combinations of people, technology, and organizational structure that make use of the organizations resources and opportunities in achieving its goals. The elements of a high performance work system are; organizational structure, task design, people (selection, and training, and development), reward systems, and information systems. •Summarize the outcomes of a high-performance work system. The outcomes of a successful high performance work system are high productivity and efficiency which help contribute to higher profits for the organization. Some other outcomes include; high quality, customer satisfaction, and low employee turnover all of which help to keep the overall costs of doing business down. •Discuss the role of HRM technology in high-performance work systems. The use of HRM technology usually involves automation and collaboration which aids in information processing which helps to aid in helping the organization meeting its goals. Some of the technologies that are now being used are transaction processing, decision support systems, and expert systems. All of which help aid the organization in reviewing HRM decisions and practices, help managers solve problems, and help support decision rules used by people who are considered experts. •Identify ways to measure the effectiveness of HRM. There are a few way in which to measure the effectiveness...
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...1. Define five criteria for measuring the effectiveness of a performance management system. Performance measures should fit with the organization’s strategy by supporting its goals and culture. Performance measures should be valid, so they measure all the relevant aspects of performance. These measures should also provide interrater and test-retest reliability, so that appraisals are consistent among raters and over time. Performance measurement systems should be able acceptable to the people who use them or receive feed-back from them. Finally, a performance measure should specifically tell employees what is expected of them and how they can meet those expectations. 2. Describe the major methods for measuring performance and major source of performance information Methods for measuring performance: * Making comparisons: the performance appraisal method may require the rater to compare one individual's performance with that of others. This method involves some form of ranking, in which some employees are best, some are average, and others are worst. The usual technical for making comparisons are simply ranking, forced distribution, and paired comparison. * Rating individuals: instead of focusing on arranging a group of employees from the best to worst, performance measurement can look each employee's performance relative to a uniform set of standards. The measurement may evaluate employees in terms of attributes (characteristics or traits) believes desirable. Or...
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...MBA (University of Bedfordshire) Unit= “Leading People in Organisations” Code of the Module Unit = SHR601-6 Unit Co-ordinator= Pauline Lowenberger Summative Assignment: A Report Writing based on a Case Study By Tanzina Shomy Student ID: 1322288 Title Page “A Written Report about comparison of the achievement attained by two travel firms named the AET and SA exploiting diverse strategies in an akin sets of HR practice.” Date- 10-1-2016 By- Tanzina-Shomy-Motahar Student ID –‘1322288’ Executive Summary This written report emphasised the constant achievement of about 2 travel businesses in 2 different countries named “Southwest Airlines, Dallas, TX, USA” and “Airport Express Train, Oslo, Norway”. It will also be studied the internal consistency of HR of both firms and how they achieved competitive advantages, success and conclusively touched the highest position through HPWS theory into the practices. Yet, both travel firms were monitored accordingly different methods like age, ownership, range of the company, competitive strategy, labour law and national framework, whereas both travel companies were accomplished success applying theory of HPWS into the practice. Generally, the Airport Express Train (AET) and the Southwest Airlines (SA) travel businesses are suggested to follow ‘the chain of impact framework’ as a recommendation for future success in travel business...
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...Abstract Inside all work systems that exist in different areas all around Latin America companies, the High Performance System teams in many industries have helped leaders to develop a system where workers sometimes tend to be lazy and unorganised, to change the culture in their people to be more responsible, hardworking, and effective in the operational departments. We took an approach on how this work system are handled in the brewery industry, in an specific company as Heineken Mexico: Cerveceria Cuauhtémoc, and it shows how makes workers to take mutual control and responsibility over themselves and their area co-workers taking the working style to another level where there are no supervisors all around just looking for someone who isn’t doing his job. This system is based on teams where each individual has a different role besides his normal job, but this roles makes them watch over the whole group in different aspects so everything work in an effective and in good work atmosphere. Keywords: Work systems, HPST, Teams, control, responsibility. High Performance System Teams: Heineken Mexico, Cerveceria Cuauhtémoc Heineken un poco de historia y como termino con Cerveceria cuahutemoc The brewing industry has been always in a constant development, and in the past ten years it has been a consolidation process where the market share has been attack by the biggest 4 brewing groups in the world, Anheuser-Busch, SAB Miller, Heineken and Carlsberg taking for the...
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...environment, the expected outcomes of the design change will likely not be met. While many design challenges are common among all organizations, each firm must still design and implement design features appropriate to growth strategy (Spector, 2013). High commitment work systems possess design elements that are highly effective for employee engagement, productivity, and overall firm profit. An organization with a high commitment work system has highly engaged, productive employees personally invested in the success of the company and flexible enough to appropriately embrace, and contribute to, change (Lawler, 1986). Common Design Challenges for All Organizations All organizations face common design challenges in functionality, collaboration, and leadership. The degree of specialization in the organization impacts the complexity of the division of labor, level of differentiation, and authority of relationships (Cotton, 1996). Cross-functionality can be difficult to establish in companies with higher divisions of labor and can contribute to decreased interdepartmental communication and negatively impact company goals. The more functions performed, the more knowledge that is needed along with tools and techniques for job performance and the more difficult cross-functionality, which is essential for company growth, is to accomplish. Support functions, production functions, maintenance function, adaptive and managerial...
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...HPWS According to Nadler et al (1992 ) the high performance work systems (HPWS ) approach to the design of human work organizations , in its simplest form , is an organizational architecture that brings together work , people , technology , and information in a manner that optimizes the congruence or "fit " among them in to produce high performance in terms of the effective response to customer requirements and other environmental demands and opportunities. The best alternative for companies wanting to acquire and integrate the organizational technology to transform themselves may be the "high-performance work system. HPWS may be the one approach that focuses on both work and people, as well as on problem-solving and opportunity development. It is a business formula that meets employers ' needs for ever-increasing performance and productivity from employees, and employees ' needs for an environment that provides effective performance support and facilitates their on-the-job learning and continuous performance improvement. Among the latest developments in the evolution of management principles and practices, the HPWS concept is an all-encompassing approach that integrates numerous important management innovations capable of improving the performance of today’s companies. It incorporates the latest and best knowledge we have pertaining to the productive management of organizations (Pepitone, 1995) A high-performance work system is composed of three sets of managerial practices...
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...SHRM Foundation’s Effective Practice Guidelines Series Building a High-Performance Culture: A Fresh Look at Performance Management By Elaine D. Pulakos, Rose A. Mueller-Hanson, Ryan S. O’Leary, and Michael M. Meyrowitz Sponsored by Halogen Building a High-Performance Culture: A Fresh Look at Performance Management This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information regarding the subject matter covered. Neither the publisher nor the author is engaged in rendering legal or other professional service. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent, licensed professional should be sought. Any federal and state laws discussed in this book are subject to frequent revision and interpretation by amendments or judicial revisions that may significantly affect employer or employee rights and obligations. Readers are encouraged to seek legal counsel regarding specific policies and practices in their organizations. This book is published by the SHRM Foundation, an affiliate of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM©). The interpretations, conclusions and recommendations in this book are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the SHRM Foundation. ©2012 SHRM Foundation. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. This publication may not be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in whole or in part, in any form or by any means, electronic...
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...either reduce cost on increase sales. • The statement of work that deals with the rational or info on the major tasks or work elements are not clear. P41-46 • The customer requirements are not comprehensive, doesn’t specify specifications on attributes such as % sales uplift or cost reduction. No evaluation criteria. P36 2. Q2.1 what should the order of priority for implementation of the projects in the portfolio be in order to maximize the strategic org benefits? PAGE 36 FIGURE 2.1 Project Evaluation and Selection Form PROJECT EVALUATION AND SELECTION EVALUATION CRITERIA Investment ($) Return on Investment Time to Market Increase in Market Share Risk Chance of Success Notes Priority PROJECT A Drug High High Long High High Medium Risky project that already took some time to get traction. NPV over short period will be negative but might be positive over longer term Option 3 PROJECT B Production line Low High Quick HigH Low High LEAN project that will improve effectiveness and efficiency that will result in cost reduction (Headcount/rework) and improve cash flow and is quick to implement over a short period Option 1 PROJECT C IT System High Low (short term Long Meduim High Low IT project might not work as expected and there is an alternative solution to outsource and reduce headcount Option 3 Joe Sanchen High (overseas sales resource Medium to High Quick High (expand overseas) Low/Medium High Option 4 3. Q2.2 how would you handle Joe Sanchez’s...
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...Chapter 4: Components of Compensation Strategy * The first strategic decision is about the relative proportions of base pay, performance pay, and indirect pay to include in the compensation mix. * Three other choices follow – what method(s) should be used for establishing base pay, what type(s) of performance pay(if any) should be provided, and which elements of indirect pay should be included. Compensation Mix choices: Base pay job evaluation, market pricing, and pay for knowledge Performance pays individual performance, group performance, and organization performance Indirect pay Mandatory benefits, pension plan, health and life insurance, pay for time not worked, employee services, and other benefits. Base pay: * Base pay: is the portion of an individual’s compensation that is based on time worked not on the output produced or results achieved. * Base pay accounts for 75 to 80 percent of the compensation for a typical employee, performance pay about 5 to 10percent, and indirect pay about 15 percent of the total compensation. However these proportions vary across firms. * Base pay is guaranteed by the employer if a person works for a certain amount of time; he or she is paid a prespecified amount of money. In some case, this amount is calculated on a hourly basis, in others daily, in others weekly, or monthly, or annually. * When base pay is calculated on an hourly basis, base pay is known as wage * When base pay is calculated...
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...issues at Global Mining 4 Trade Union intervention on human resource operations 4 Poor Performance Management 6 Strategies for Improvement 8 Introduce performance appraisal system 8 Problems forecasted for short & long term: 9 Pay for Performance 9 Problems forecasted for short & long term: 10 Develop a Human Resource Strategy 11 Problems forecasted for short & long term: 12 Conclusion 12 References 14 Introduction Global Mining (GM) is at a crossroads. They are aware that their Australian mine sites are unproductive and holding the company back in terms of profitability. High costs and low output are diluting the company’s overall financial performance and making them a target for takeover. A decision has been made to focus on improving the productivity of these sites rather than sell them off with the directors committing to providing HR strategy linked in with the organisational goals. It is clear from the information provided in the case study that the Australian issues relate to their human resources. The Production Director has identified that the physical resources are not the issue and with improvements, they could be a highly competitive site. The main issues relating to labour include; high labour costs with low flexibility, excessive penalty rates, absenteeism, unmotivated staff with no financial or promotional incentives to work harder, high trade union intervention, a poor safety record and a lack of leadership within internal...
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...Journal of Management http://jom.sagepub.com/ The Impact of High-Performance Human Resource Practices on Employees' Attitudes and Behaviors Rebecca R. Kehoe and Patrick M. Wright Journal of Management 2013 39: 366 originally published online 8 April 2010 DOI: 10.1177/0149206310365901 The online version of this article can be found at: http://jom.sagepub.com/content/39/2/366 Published by: http://www.sagepublications.com On behalf of: Southern Management Association Additional services and information for Journal of Management can be found at: Email Alerts: http://jom.sagepub.com/cgi/alerts Subscriptions: http://jom.sagepub.com/subscriptions Reprints: http://www.sagepub.com/journalsReprints.nav Permissions: http://www.sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav >> Version of Record - Jan 23, 2013 OnlineFirst Version of Record - Apr 8, 2010 What is This? Downloaded from jom.sagepub.com at HONG KONG POLYTECHNIC UNIV on January 21, 2014 Journal of Management Vol. 39 No. 2, February 2013 366-391 DOI: 10.1177/0149206310365901 © 2010 Southern Management Association. Reprints and permission: http://www. sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav The Impact of High-Performance Human Resource Practices on Employees’ Attitudes and Behaviors Rebecca R. Kehoe Patrick M. Wright Cornell University Although strategic human resource (HR) management research has established a significant relationship between high-performance HR practices and firm-level financial and market outcomes...
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...to foreign investment and subsequently, legal services industry. Foreign law firms are not allowed to set shops in India or practice Indian law. Imminent liberalization of legal service industry which will increase competition. Law firms were prohibited to directly market their services. Legal system was very slow. Economic: High growth market for legal services. Availability of highly skilled capital at competitive prices. Growth of LPO (legal process outsourcing) industry providing a boost to legal services. Huge market for legal services in the US accounting for 49% of the global industry. Arbitration opportunities in India provided a market for legal services. Growth in the IT and infrastructure sector giving a fillip to legal services. Social: Lack of educational and vocational opportunities for the people to develop their career in legal services industry. Inclination of people to make out-of-court settlement due to extended nature of court cases. Technological: Use of efficient and state-of-the art system and processes to increase effectiveness of services to clients. Manual load on the people were reduced with new technological systems. Use of modern technology increased the effectiveness of their people and hence, productivity. Cultural ...
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