Strategic HRD

Kaoutar Chennaf

Strategic HRD

Summer 2014

Dr. Moustaghphir

Strategic Human Resource Leader

Part 1

“The two chapters in this part describe where the HR field has been, where it is now, and where it may go and should go in the future.”

Chapter 1            What’s wrong with Traditional HR Management? (Problems, Complaints, History of HR)

 “Chapter 1 lays the foundation for the book, it opens with four situations that may be encountered by HR practitioners and challenges the reader to suggest approaches for handling them.”

Four problematic situations that illustrate the wrong expectations of executives and line managers on HR practices. Five complaints about the HR function that are the most common in the U.S:

1. HR practitioners do not possess a sufficient working knowledge of what business is all about or the strategic goals of the organization they serve.
2. HR practitioners lack leadership ability (lack of management experience).
3. HR practitioners are reactive. They appear unresponsive – and even resistant to line management needs, interests and business pressures.
4. They are seen as unable to take the lead in establishing a vision for change and garnering the support necessary to lead the change.
5. They are fad-chasers who want to find solutions and then drop them in place without taking into account unique business objectives, corporate culture organization-specific politics, and individual personalities of key decision makers found in their own organizational settings.

HR practitioners are sometimes the victims of wrongheaded expectations by top managers, middle managers and even employees. Therefore, HR thrust into problematic or dubious role. (Traffic Cop – Enforcer – Line management gopher -         Scapegoat – Paper – Shuffling bureaucrat)

To understand why the HR function is where it is today, we need to review the past practices and expectations of HR.

• Past: HR management (which once was called “Personnel”) evolution followed the history of business in the U.S. Industrial revolution (19th century) gave birth to three major people-related challenges or drawbacks that were facing rapidly growing organizations.

• Managing sudden and massive increase in the workforce stemming from industrialization.
• Fighting workforce unionization.
• Integrating the huge influx of immigrant workers into U.S workplaces.

Administrative duties were the main focus of personnel department until the 50’s. The Personnel managers held a range of recordkeeping functions that include such activities as disciplinary systems, recruitment, safety programs, time and motion studies, and union relations. They also emphasized their role in meeting employee needs to achieve economic security. Later, in the 60s and 70s, attention to human relations increased; and role playing, sensitivity training, and participative management techniques were included. Training, development, management of reward systems, performance management, and succession planning are all new practices to Personnel department resulting from the huge economic growth the world has seen.

• Present: HR functions focuses more on carrying activities than achieving results. Its role is one of providing people training and isolated HR efforts after others have formulated organizational strategy and have initiated operational implementation. Activities such as downsizing, outplacement, retaining, diversity, employee rights, technology’s effects on people, and recruitment have become part of the new HR functionalities. Moreover, HR has been taking care of health insurances, workers ‘compensations, and pension plans.

The priority of Human Resources is building organizational capability which is defined as being the things organizations need to do as an entity to act on their strategies. Nowadays and more than before, HR function is required to align and integrate its efforts with organizational goals. HR strategy and business strategy should be linked to each other and complementary.  HR has evolved from being a field that is activity-focused to one that is strategy-focused.

“Competition has taken human resources from the backwater to the boardroom”

HR Management, has evolved from focusing on Industrial technologies to finally become what is called Strategic HR planning which is a transition from service and support to consultative and leadership role. Their actions help create competitive advantage, and are presently meeting the demands and expectations of their organizations. Not only the roles of HR managers have changed through the years, their competencies also. HR is a major player in creating organizational capability. Its actions gain importance for creating competitive advantage. Its issues are people-related business issues. The new philosophy of HR is to advice and counsel line managers in people-related business issues.

Rewards and Recognition, Employee Relations, Organizational Effectiveness, Professional development, Resource and Productivity Management, and finally recruitment and Staffing have finally all become part of HR functional areas.

There are three possible future scenarios for HR field to take in the next decade.

Chapter 2:

a new version of HR leadership is needed in order to overcome the drawbacks of the trends

Organizations all over the world nowadays need a new version of HR leader with a role orientation that fits HR strategy to advantages provided by human goods.

HR professionals should be highly assertive and comfortable with high risks with an equal interest in business and HR issues. They are knowledgeable about the organization they serve, self-confident, credible and respectful. They are building the business by building the people in it.

The motto of HR professionals is: “Let’s leverage the organization’s knowledge capital gained from its people to achieve competitive advantage.”

- HR function can strike a strategic leadership stance focused on developing the company’s knowledge capital, its human assets.

-Competitive advantage increasingly resides in “people-embodied know-how” -> the call for a new leadership role from the HR function.

1995-1996: The future needs of the Profession

Predictions: Master global operating skills + Business and financial savvy + strategic, visioning, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills.

-Six general roles of the new HR leader: Partner, Problem solver, Model Manager, Oracle, Conduit, Change Agent.

The HR Leader: Is committed to the success of the organization + acts consistently in a manner that instills trust + Is an effective listener+ exhibits high standards of performance+ can manage conflict effectively+ Works with other managers outside the HR function+ recruits and selects high-quality professionals+ communicates effectively both orally and in writing + understands the overall corporate mission + understands the overall corporate mission+ develops HR plans that are clearly linked to the mission and strategy of business units.

...