Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Strategic Human Resource Management Contemporary Issues
Strategic Human Resource Management Contemporary Issues
Resource Management
Strategic Human
As people, knowledge and talent become increasingly core to an organisation’s competitive advantage, strategic
approaches to the management of human resources become ever more important.
In this exciting and definitive new guide to managing human resources strategically, the authors have:
• Balanced the academic theory and rhetoric of SHRM with the practicalities of organisational life
• Provided a holistic overview of the strategic HRM territory, explaining how key HR topics can be thought
about strategically
• Critically examined strategic practice in ten key HR disciplines and the complexities surrounding their
strategic implementation
• Offered comprehensive exploration of the concept of strategic integration and how this can be applied in
practice to specific areas of HR activity
• Promoted student understanding through the provision of numerous examples and case studies, key concept
boxes, self-assessment questions, suggestions for follow-up study and a comprehensive glossary.
“This book offers a truly wide choice of case studies from different sectors
Strategic
and countries.”
Human Resource
Management
Mike Millmore is a Visiting Fellow at Gloucestershire Business School,
University of Gloucestershire, and a freelance HRM lecturer and author.
Dr Philip Lewis is a freelance HRM lecturer and author.
Professor Mark Saunders is Assistant Dean: Director of Research and
Doctoral Programmes at Oxford Brookes University Business School.
Dr Adrian Thornhill is Head of Department of Human Resource Management
Contemporary issues
at the Gloucestershire Business School, University of Gloucestershire. ISBN 978-0-273-68163-2
9 780273 681632
www.pearson-books.com
an imprint of
Strategic
Human Resource
Management
Strategic
Human Resource
Management
Contemporary Issues
SHRM_A01.QXD 15/2/07 08:10 Page iv
Edinburgh Gate
Harlow
Essex CM20 2JE
England
ISBN: 978-0-273-68163-2
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
12 11 10 09 08 07
Contents
List of figures x
List of tables xiii
Preface xv
Acknowledgements xix
Guided Tour xxii
About the authors xxiv
Part 1 Overview 1
vi Contents
Contents vii
viii Concents
Contents ix
Glossary 522
References 534
Index 556
Supporting resources
Visit www.pearsoned.co.uk/millmore to find valuable online resources
Companion Website for students
Answers to self-check and reflect questions
For instructors
Instructor’s Manual containing:
teaching and learning suggestions including comment, student preparation, in the classroom and
follow-up work
answer to self-check and reflect questions
references
PowerPoint slides
Online help and support to assist with website usage and troubleshooting
For more information please contact your local Pearson Education sales representative or visit
www.pearsoned.co.uk/millmore
SHRM_A01.QXD 15/2/07 14:43 Page x
List of figures
Figure 1.1 Mapping the strategy and human resource management territory:
a summary diagram of the chapter content 5
Figure 1.2 Strategic continuum from mostly deliberate to mostly emergent 13
Figure 1.3 Strands of strategic integration 24
Figure 1.4 Strands of strategic integration shown in a hierarchical
relationship and related to external variables 25
Figure 1.5 Resource-based approach to strategy 30
Figure 2.1 Mapping the strategic human resource management territory:
a summary diagram of the chapter content 40
Figure 2.2 Three theoretical approaches to strategic HRM 46
Figure 2.3 Pfeffer’s seven practices of successful organisations 48
Figure 2.4 The ‘open’ SHRM model 60
Figure 2.5 Changes in the HRM operating environment of the 1980s and
1990s which are associated with the growth of interest in SHRM 63
Figure 3.1 Mapping the international strategic human resource management
territory: a summary diagram of the chapter content 80
Figure 3.2 Integrative framework of SIHRM in MNCs 90
Figure 4.1 Mapping the evaluating SHRM territory: a summary diagram
of the chapter content 120
Figure 4.2 The purpose and focus of different evaluation approaches 131
Figure 4.3 A typical evaluation 137
Figure 4.4 The action research spiral 140
Case Figure 1 Halcrow Group Limited structure 151
Figure 5.1 Mapping the role of organisational structure in SHRM territory:
a summary diagram of the chapter content 161
Figure 5.2 Structural types related to the interaction between
environmental complexity and stability 177
SHRM_A01.QXD 15/2/07 08:10 Page xi
List of figures xi
List of tables
Table 2.1 HR policy areas and the main characteristics with which they
are associated 48
Table 2.2 HRM links to strategy and structure 53
Table 2.3 Required employee behaviours for each of Porter’s three main
types of organisational strategy and the HR techniques needed
to foster these behaviours. 55
Table 3.1 The world’s top ten non-financial MNCs, ranked by foreign
assets (millions of US dollars and number of employees). 87
Table 3.2 Characteristics of principal organisational structures for
international business 95
Table 3.3 Organisational drivers and obstacles to geocentrism 97
Table 3.4 Factors HR function needs to practise in order to be effective
and the extent to which they are practised 106
Table 4.1 Illustrative examples of different types of evaluation 121
Table 4.2 Levels of evaluation 134
Table 4.3 Choice of evaluator 145
Table 6.1 Relative scores on Hofstede’s dimensions of national culture
for selected countries 210
Table 6.2 Relative positions on Trompenaars’ and Hampden-Turner’s
dimensions for selected countries 213
Table 6.3 Design parameters for cultural change 230
Table 6.4 Relative effectiveness of top-down and bottom-up approaches
to cultural re-alignment across different parameters 231
Table 7.1 Strategic human resource forecasting versus human
resource planning 242
Table 7.2 The elements of HRP 243
SHRM_A01.QXD 15/2/07 08:10 Page xiv
Preface
xvi Preface
away from a collective focus (involving trade unions) towards the establishment of indi-
vidual relationships with employees as a route to securing greater organisational
commitment within a unitary perspective. However, underpinning the growing interest
in HRM was the realisation that employees potentially represented an important, if not
the most important, asset an organisation had at its disposal in its pursuit of strategic
advantage. The feature that epitomises this ideology and underscores all interpretations
of HRM is that of strategic integration where HR activities (or levers) are aligned verti-
cally, with an organisation’s mission and/or strategic objectives, and horizontally with
each other to provide mutually supporting ‘bundles’. In short, the one thing that com-
mentators agree on is that what differentiates HRM from personnel management is its
strategic focus and concern for strategic integration.
Given the overwhelming consensus that HRM is nothing if not strategic, deciding on
the title for this book (Strategic Human Resource Management) provided us with some-
thing of a conundrum. If the essence of HRM, and its key feature for distinguishing it
from personnel management, is its focus on strategic integration then the ‘S’ of ‘SHRM’
is tautological in that it simply adds the strategic element that is already accepted as a
given in HRM! It was therefore with some misgiving that we opted for the SHRM title
because of the possible confusion this may cause among our readership. However, we
justify our decision on two grounds.
First, in our view the term HRM has come to be inappropriately used, such that it has
been increasingly adopted in place of personnel management without due regard for its
differentiating characteristics. In this sense, the term HRM is frequently used in the liter-
ature, too loosely, as a simile for personnel management. This has also been reflected in
practice where organisations have relabelled their personnel function. It is not unusual
to find that Personnel Departments have become HRM Departments, Personnel Man-
agers HR Managers and Personnel Officers HR Officers with no commensurate change
in their underpinning ideology or in the way functional roles are executed. This is akin
to the proverbial case of ‘old wine in new bottles’!
Second, this loose use of the term creates the possibility that some texts masquerade
as HRM when they essentially cover the same ground found in earlier personnel man-
agement texts. An analysis of titles lining the bookshelves in one of our studies illustrates
this point very well. This revealed that of those texts published in the last ten years
(1996–2006): 58 per cent referred to HRM; 18 per cent to SHRM; 8 per cent to HR
Strategies; 5 per cent to Management of Human Resources; 5 per cent to People
Resourcing; and 5 per cent to Personnel Management. In summary, therefore, over 75
per cent used HRM in the title and only 5 per cent Personnel Management. An analysis
of the content of these texts builds on the old wine in new bottles analogy. Many of these
HRM texts and some of the SHRM texts allude to strategic integration but arguably
after a nod in that direction proceed to present the material in a relatively standard way
without maintaining an explicit strategic focus throughout.
We hope that when reading our text you will agree that the strategic component of
HRM underpins the content throughout. We have attempted to build on the personnel
foundations of HR theory and practice by exploring in detail what is meant by strategic
integration, both generally and with specific reference to a selection of HR levers and
issues around its development and delivery in practice. In order to stress this strategic
focus and differentiate our work from those loosely titled HRM texts, we have adopted,
with reservation, the title Strategic Human Resource Management. However, this leads to
a second conundrum.
SHRM_A01.QXD 15/2/07 08:10 Page xvii
Preface xvii
Throughout the period of the book’s conception we found it difficult to reconcile two
conflicting interests. First, we wanted to address our criticism of other HRM texts and
discuss in detail how the various components of HR (or HR levers) such as recruitment
and selection, reward management, employee relations and downsizing, etc., could be
aligned to organisational strategy both conceptually and in practice. Second, it was
recognised that to treat each area of HR in isolation of the other HR levers in this way
would be inconsistent with the horizontal integration dimension of HRM identified
above which anticipates their development as a bundle of practices. In the final analysis
we could not find a way of doing this to our satisfaction and instead adopted a compro-
mise position.
The book is divided into two parts. Part 1, through four chapters (Chapter 1, ‘Strategy
and human resource management’; Chapter 2, ‘Strategic human resource management: a
vital piece in the jigsaw of organisational success?’; Chapter 3, SHRM in a changing and
shrinking world: internationalisation of business and the role of SHRM’; and Chapter 4,
‘Evaluating SHRM: why bother and does it really happen in practice?’), provides an
overview of the SHRM territory. In addressing the substance of their respective chapter
titles, we have endeavoured in this part to present a holistic view of SHRM. A particular
concern has been to surface the complexity lying behind the notion of strategic integra-
tion and to explore how this complexity impacts on the conceptual development and
practical application of SHRM. In support of our attempts in Part 1 to present a holistic
approach to the subject domain, we have used one integrated case study to cover all four
chapters rather than the chapter case studies that are a feature of Part 2. This comprehen-
sive, integrated case – Strategic human resource management at Halcrow Group Limited
– appears at the end of Part 1 and hopefully sets the scene for the exploration of specific
HR levers that follows.
The second part looks in detail at ten selected HRM levers and critically examines
how they too can be conceived strategically and operationalised through organisation
practice. The ten areas selected for Part 2 inevitably reflect our personal views. They are
included because we feel that they all represent critical components of SHRM practice.
Many of these selected levers (strategic human resource planning, strategic recruitment
and selection, performance management, strategic human resource development, strate-
gic reward management and strategic employee relations) will be found in the majority
of HRM texts while others (organisation structures, culture, diversity and downsizing)
are less frequently covered. This is not to say that our selection will find favour with
everybody and we are already considering the possibility of including chapters on
change management, competences and flexibility in any future edition. Hopefully, feed-
back on this first edition will throw up other possibilities for us to consider. However, in
all cases our treatment of the ten selected topics concentrates on their strategic con-
struction and organisational manifestation and consistently adopts a critical perspective
that surfaces the difficulties of putting the rhetoric of SHRM into practice. However, in
disaggregating this HRM ‘bundle’ to examine its constituent parts we have not aban-
doned the central HRM tenet of horizontal integration. Throughout the chapters
making up Part 2, we provide cross-references to other HR levers to emphasise their
interconnectedness and use other devices, selectively, to reinforce the essence of hori-
zontal integration. For example, in Chapter 8 (‘Strategic recruitment and selection’) we
provide a specific example to demonstrate how recruitment and selection can help facil-
itate the horizontal integration of the various HR levers, and in Chapter 7 (‘Strategic
human resource planning, the weakest link?’) frequently use the theme of mergers and
SHRM_A01.QXD 15/2/07 08:10 Page xviii
xviii Preface
acquisitions to illustrate the need for ‘joined-up’ HRM thinking. Also, although each
chapter concludes with its own topic-specific case study, it is possible to use the inte-
grated Halcrow case to explore further the strategic connections of the various HR
levers presented. Nevertheless we accept that our approach remains something of a com-
promise and runs the risk of falling between two stools. We accept that our position
could alternatively be viewed positively as a pragmatic solution to our dilemma or nega-
tively simply as a cop out.
We now leave it to you, our readers, to judge whether or not we have met our aims,
which can be summarised as: to write a SHRM book that
maintains a rigorous and critical focus on the ‘S’ of ‘SHRM’ throughout rather than
resorting to a more traditional, personnel management, treatment of the subject
domain;
through its written style and supporting pedagogic features can be readily under-
stood by its potential readership;
conveys the central importance of vertical and horizontal strategic alignment in a way
that enables the reader to appreciate the holistic nature of the concept and how it can
be applied in practice to recognised specific areas of HR activity; and
grounds the reader in the practicalities of organisational life in a way that enables
them to distinguish between SHRM rhetoric and reality.
Although it could be said that ‘we would say that any way’, we would argue that there
are early signs that we are well on the road to achieving our aims. During the course of
writing this book we have ‘test marketed’ much of its content. Selected chapter drafts
have been used as basic readings to support the teaching of SHRM to level three under-
graduates and master’s stage postgraduates. The majority of feedback has been that our
work does treat the ‘S’ of ‘SHRM’ with more integrity than the majority of texts, through
its rigorous exploration of the strategic alignment of HRM theory and practice, and does
so in a way that can be understood. We are not quite sure how we should have reacted to
the student who said that the readings were ‘exhaustive if not exhausting’ but are grateful
to those students who have confessed that the readings were the inspiration behind their
choice of dissertation or workplace management report topics. It is encouraging to know
that we have budding researchers, currently out in the field, investigating the extent to
which case organisations are practising respectively strategic recruitment and selection,
and strategic human resource development. Indeed, one of these students has adapted
their project to form the basis of the strategic recruitment and selection case study
appearing at the end of Chapter 8! For those seeking ideas to kick-start their own
research projects, each chapter concludes with ‘Follow-up study suggestions’ and ‘Sugges-
tions for research projects’. Hopefully these will not only serve as a vehicle for reinforcing
the book’s content but, for some, also help to maintain a growing interest in SHRM.
SHRM_A01.QXD 15/2/07 08:10 Page xix
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank all those who helped to make the production of this book possible:
those who granted us organisational access and support to produce a range of case
studies that are a strong feature of this book;
staff at Pearson Education who have helped steer us through the whole process, from
the original book proposal right through to its publication; and
friends, colleagues and, particularly, family who have had to put up with us while we
endeavoured to bring the project to fruition.
Case studies are a commonly used vehicle for integrating theory and practice and
help the reader actively engage in the subject material. We are, therefore, particularly
grateful to those who granted access and provided cooperation and help to allow us to
generate the case studies featured in this book.
The case studies in this book are all based on real organisations and examine their
HR practice to explore its strategic credentials. Some of the cases, featuring named
organisations, are based on published or publicly available information. However, the
majority are based on data sourced directly from the organisations concerned and pro-
vided or written up by their staff. We would therefore like to thank the following people
and their organisations who provided access to and supplied the data to generate these
case studies and gave permission to use them.
xx Acknowledgements
Case 6 – Corporate culture and Group values at Dicom Group plc: Kevin Davies,
Managing Director of DICOM Technologies Ltd, for permission to use the case study,
and the considerable assistance of Steve Barker, Operations Manager Dicom Tech-
nologies Ltd, in its preparation.
Case 8 – Recruitment and selection at Southco Europe Ltd: Scott Duncan and Russ
Pender, the outgoing and incoming Managing Directors of Southco Europe Ltd, for
their support and permission to use this case, and Inge Studnik who was, at the time,
Executive Assistant of Southco Europe Ltd, for taking the lead role in its preparation.
In Practice 8.3 – Recruitment and selection at the Dionysos: Ahmet Senol, Manag-
ing Director of the Dionysos Hotel, for permission to use this case and for his
considerable assistance and support in its preparation.
Case 9 – Performance management at Tyco: Thanks are due to Tyco Ltd. for permis-
sion to use this case, and to Joanna Binstead for her support.
Case 12 – Strategic approaches to the employment relationship social partnership:
the example of the Republic of Ireland: Dr Terry Cradden, former Head of School,
University of Ulster, for his support and guidance in developing this case.
Case 13 – Making diversity an issue in leafy Elgarshire: Roger Britton, Development
and Training Manager (Human Resources) of Worcestershire County Council, for
permission to use the case study and for his considerable assistance and support in its
development.
We would also like to thank all of the staff at Pearson Education (both past and pres-
ent) who have supported us through all the stages of writing this book, from its inception
to final production and appearance on the bookshelves, and Professor Denise Skinner of
Coventry Business School, Coventry University, and Dr Savita Kumra of Oxford Brookes
University Business School, for co-authoring Chapters 4 and 13 respectively.
Finally, our thanks go to Alice, Jenny, Jane, Jan, Roisin, Stephen, Jennifer, Jemma, Ben,
Andrew and Katie for being so understanding and tolerant of our lengthy absences
thinking about and writing our contributions to this book, and the pressures we have
inevitably imposed on family life as a consequence.
Publisher’s acknowledgements
We are grateful to the Financial Times Limited for permission to reprint the following
material:
Chapter 1 ‘Strategic “Microsoft concern ad ‘technology lag’”, © Financial Times, 10
November 2005; Chapter 3 ‘The WTO smoothes the path to trade between US and
China’, © Financial Times, 22 April 2004; Chapter 14 ‘MG Rover staff benefit from
speedy payout’, © Financial Times, 3 May 2005; Chapter 14 ‘New employment found by
1,250 ex-Rover workers’, © Financial Times, 22 June 2005; Chapter 14 ‘Waiting game
ended in tears as SAIC deal for Rover failed to materialize’, © Financial Times, 17 Octo-
ber 2005;
We are grateful to the following for permission to use copyright material:
‘Shortage of people to run hot technologies’ from The Financial Times Limited, 9
November 2005, © Ian Limbach; Extract from ‘Capability procedures for teachers’ is
reproduced from Croner’s The Teacher’s Legal Guide and with kind permission of
SHRM_A01.QXD 15/2/07 08:10 Page xxi
Acknowledgements xxi
Wolters Kluwer (UK) Limited (c) 2007. All rights reserved. No part of this documenta-
tion may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by
any means without the prior written permission of Wolters Kluwer (UK) Limited.
Croner is a Trading Division of Wolters Kluwer (UK) Limited (www.croner.co.uk);
Extract from ‘Broadbanded pay: on the right track at EWS’, from IRS Employment
Review 796, 2004, reprinted by kind permission of Reed Business Information; Extract
from ‘Family breakdown: developing an explanatory theory of reward system change’,
from IRS Employment Review 796, 2004, by Lewis, P., Thornhill, A. and Saunders, M.,
from Personnel Review 33.2, 2004, reprinted by kind permission of Emerald Group
Publishing Limited; Table 3.1 from World Investment Report, UNCTAD (Anon., 2003):
the United Nations is the author of the original material; Table 3.4 from Globalizing
Human Resource Management, Routledge (Sparrow, P., Brewster, C. and Harris, H.,
2004); Figure 4.4 from Research Methods for Business Students, 4th Edition, FT Prentice
Hall (Saunders, M., Lewis, P. Millmore, M. and Thornhill, A., 2006); Figure 6.4, Table 6.5
and Figure 6.7 from Managing Change: A Human Resource Strategy Approach, FT Pren-
tice Hall (Thornhill, A., Lewis, P. Millmore, M. and Saunders, M.N.K., 2000); Figure 6.6
from Exploring Corporate Strategy, Text and Cases, 6th Edition (Johnson, G. and Scholes,
K., 2003); Table 7.1 – this material is taken from HR Forecasting and Planning, by Turner,
P. (2002), with the permission of the publisher, the Chartered Institute of Personnel and
Development, London; Figure 8.3 from Just how extensive is the practice of strategic
management and selection? in The Irish Journal of Management, Vol. 24, No. 1, Irish
Academy of Management (Millmore, M., 2003).
In some instances we have been unable to trace the owners of copyright material, and we
would appreciate any information that would enable us to do so.
SHRM_A01.QXD 15/2/07 08:10 Page xxii
In Practice 10.2
Full page chapter openers list Bottom-line benefits of SHRD – a case of business turnaround at
Hindle Power
Hindle Power faced the threat of losing its major contract, representing 75 per cent of its income, if it
did not improve its customer service significantly. It responded by investing heavily in HRD in order to
the learning outcomes that survive and built a platform for future growth.
The pursuit of Investors in People (IiP) was used as a catalyst for business planning and improve-
ment with an emphasis on improving communication between line managers and their staff.
Career planning was aligned to a new system of performance appraisal and led to the internal pro-
motion of over 25 per cent of staff.
A training budget was established for the first time and was sufficient to support up to 26 days’
training per annum for every employee.
HRD interventions focused on business management and IT skills, induction, customer care and,
1 management
should achieve from the chapter.
in conjunction with suppliers, product awareness.
Non-work-related HRD was also supported as an adjunct to career planning because it was recog-
nised that the learning derived would result in unplanned organisational benefits.
Over a four-year period, a loss-making company with a turnover of £6 million was back in profit
with a turnover of £15 million and a transformation in its organisational culture.
Source: Littlefield (2000).
Learning Outcomes
Strategic
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
integration
Figure 10.1 Mapping the SHRD territory: a summary diagram of the chapter content
Classical approach
In Practice 2.1
The classical approach was developed as a theoretical discipline in the 1960s (Chandler,
1962; Sloan, 1963; Ansoff, 1965) and emphasises strategy as being a rational, deliberate, Recognising employee performance at B&Q
linear and top-down process, where conception is separated from implementation
through the creation of strategic plans that are passed down to others to implement.
This process involves a number of strategic planning steps including:
analysing an organisation’s environment and its internal resources;
identifying and evaluating strategic options;
In practice boxes give you an B&Q engaged consultants to measure employee engagement across its 327 stores, reflecting the
company’s strong belief that higher employee commitment and satisfaction translates to better cus-
tomer service, which in turn drives higher profits.
A specific area that was targeted for company-wide improvement was that of ‘recognition’. A
question in the employee survey asked, ‘In the last seven days, have you received recognition or
Corporate strategy
DOWNSTREAM STRATEGIC
Key Concepts 1.4
UPSTREAM STRATEGIC
INTEGRATION
Six strands of strategic integration
INTEGRATION
Responses to first-order strategic decisions Organisational structures
Downstream, external or vertical integration
Organisational culture
Reward management
Employee relations
Job/work design
Recruitment and
Human resource
Human resource
management
management
development
Performance
Figure 1.4 develops this representation of strategic integration by showing its three
involvement
Downsizing
Employee
selection
levels or orders vertically. In relation to the third order, this figure shows horizontal inte-
Diversity
planning
gration between and within functional areas, focusing on HRM. Strategic integration
within HRM is expanded to show links to the areas dealt with in subsequent chapters of
No institutional integration
positioned at strategic points throughout an organisation as well as threats to it, while change shown on the right of the figure
indicates the need to be capable of responding effectively to these variables.
HR function of HR function
Low
Internal integration of Low internal integration Self-Check and Reflect Questions 1.3
HR elements of HR elements
Behavioural integration Low behavioural
Think of an organisational situation with which you are familiar. This may be one in
of employees integration of employees
which you are currently employed or one that you have worked for previously, or
another organisation known to you.
Forward looking
and sensitive to change
Temporal focus
Stasis – insensitive
to change
learning points and understand both the Use the model of the six strands of strategic integration to evaluate, as far as
you are able, the extent of the integration of HRM and human resources within the
organisation.
What practical contribution do you think the studies linking HR and organisational
performance listed in this section have made to the practice of SHRM?
an overview of what each chapter has Search the specialist practitioner HR literature for case studies that illustrate the way
in which clear and cogent organisational philosophies inform HR strategy.
From Pfeffer’s (1998) book, make notes on the rationale for his recommendation of
Summary
covered and are a useful check and
seven practices of successful organisations and assess the extent to which you think
this rationale is valid.
Look up ‘employee competences’ in an internet search engine and, from help offered
on the sites you find, compile a list of desired employee behaviours consistent with
the need to develop employees equipped to deliver high-quality customer service.
The main principles of SHRM include:
a stress on the integration of personnel policies both one with another and with
Compare the research studies by MacDuffie (1995) and Huselid (1995) and assess the
business planning more generally; strengths and weaknesses of both.
the locus of responsibility for personnel management no longer resides with spe- Read the research report by Purcell et al. (2003) as an HR manager and make a list of
cialist managers but is now assumed by senior line management; the lessons that you think you could apply in your organisation or one with which
the focus shifts from management–trade union relations to management– you are familiar.
employee relations, from collectivism to individualism.
there is stress on commitment and the exercise of initiative, with managers now
assuming the role of ‘enabler’, ‘empowerer’ and ‘facilitator’. Suggestions for research topics
The principal theoretical approaches to SHRM are termed: universalist, matching
attends the defining of strategy; the essentially managerialist stance assumed; and
problems concerned with implementation. Problems attending the matching models
(open) are the models’ rather idealised nature and, like the other models, their pre-
scriptive tone.
The growth of interest in SHRM was due to a number of factors including: the crisis
book’s content and help kick-start students’
of under-performance in American industry; the rise of individualism; a decline in
collectivism; the rise of knowledge workers with differing work expectations; and a
search for more status by personnel specialists.
In an attempt to establish the link between SHRM and organisational performance
research projects.
there have been numerous studies conducted since the mid-1990s in the USA and
UK. In general, these have been very positive about the relationship between SHRM
and organisational performance, although most have not offered an explanation as to
why certain HR practices may lead to enhanced organisational performance.
Part 1 ends with a major case study that brings together all the
ideas and issues discussed in chapters 1 to 4, and ends with
case study questions that challenge your understanding.
Part 1 Case Study – Strategic human
resource management at Halcrow Group
Limited
Part 1 Case Study: Strategic Human Resource Management at Halcrow Group Limited 155
Listen to others’ points of view new questions have been added. In 2004 approxi-
Halcrow’s first projects outside the UK were Be honest and open (Halcrow, 2003: 3).
mately 30 questions were used to ascertain
undertaken in the 1890s, such work now accounting employees’ views on ten key areas. These included
for nearly 40 per cent of an annual turnover in excess Two aspects of the code of behaviours are the direction (of the Group), clarity about their job,
of £200 million with the Group currently undertaking important here: the need to help each other and client focus, their competence, resources to do
projects in over 70 countries. Recent projects learn in from experiences and to be professional and their job, empowerment, involvement, cooperation
which Halcrow have been involved include the Chan- ethical at all times. It is felt that HR has an important from others, feedback to them and recognition.
Introduction to Halcrow
nel Tunnel Rail Link, road construction near the part to play in affecting the values of all employees. Supplementary questions to assess employee com-
The HR director’s predecessor did not see promot- mitment were also included. Virtually all questions Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 201
Halcrow Group Limited is a multidisciplinary consul- Stonehenge World Heritage Site, the International
Congress Centre in Rome, Kuala Lumpur Interna- ing the HR role in generating the appropriate code employ five-point Likert-type scales to record
tancy group specialising in the provision of planning,
tional Airport, new and refurbished stands for of behaviours as an important activity, but this is answers. In addition there are spaces for comments The specific measures required to put the new HR policy of DC. This may also be a reflection of
design and management services for infrastructure
now being pursued through the writing of HR poli- and a few open questions to provide further oppor-
development throughout the world. Within this, the Chelsea Football Club, coordination of wetland con- actions into place are expected to be presented a generally rather poor (strategic) HR
cies and disseminating them in the overseas tunity for respondents to highlight key issues.
Group’s main interests are transportation, water, servation and river basin management for the to the Supervisory Board for approval by the end management of DC’s head office.
operations. The HR director is also keen to act as a Locational information such as regional office, busi-
property and consulting. Although Halcrow has a Danube and its tributaries and managing pollution of April. You are therefore also asked to answer the
sounding board for international managers and is ness group and skill group, is included to enable
background in civil engineering and associated spe- risk from the animal mass burial sites arising from the following questions:
generally keen to promote the visibility of HR. Grad- comparisons although, to preserve confidentiality,
cialisms, in recent years the group has extended its UK’s 2001 foot and mouth disease outbreak.
ually, good relations are being built between HR and results for a sub-group are not provided if less than In light of the intentions in the announcement
range of disciplines to cover architecture, project Halcrow was founded in 1868 by Thomas Meik, Case study questions
the international management teams to the extent three people in that group completed the survey. of DC (text above) which HR areas or HR
management, environmental science, transport plan- the company becoming Sir William Halcrow & Part-
that they now see the point of taking HR seriously. Response rates for the survey are high, with over challenges are concerned?
ning and other non-engineering but related skills. ners in 1941. In 1985 a private limited company 1. As the HR-Director of DC (Stuttgart, Germany)
They can appreciate that having a local HR pres- 67 per cent of employees worldwide returning their Name some of these challenges. Then
Unlike many organisations, Halcrow does not have a bearing the same name was formed, the most you are required to develop a ‘suitable HR
ence would provide them with useful support. questionnaire in 2002 and 72 per cent in 2004. establish a plan of action by formulating and
mission statement, arguing that their ‘purpose … to recent change being in 1998, when the various Hal- strategy’ to propose solutions to the problems
Hitherto there have been no policies as there has Through the 2000 employee survey, Halcrow was
sustain and improve the quality of people’s lives’ crow businesses and departments became Halcrow justifying possible solutions to the challenges
been no HR presence. It is felt that it is important to able to identify those areas of strategic human raised by the actual situation of DC and the
describes their approach better (Halcrow, 2003). This Group Limited. The Halcrow Trust owns 90 per cent you have identified.
support the regional offices in achieving the Group’s resource management highlighted by employees as intentions of the CEO described above.
purpose is underpinned by a series of values which of Halcrow, with the remaining 10 per cent by its 3. What type of organisational structure should be
strategy of making Halcrow a first choice employer being most in need of attention. These were: feed- State your understanding of the situation at DC
outline those things that are important to the Group: employees. Halcrow has grown extensively over the created and implemented to support the new HR
for the best people and the place where its employ- back, recognition and involvement of employees. and determine the needs of DC (problems within
‘Skills and innovation; Enjoying what we do; Deliver- past decade and now operates through a network of
ees want to work. Benchmarking the surveys in 2002 and 2004 DC and reasons for the new organisational strategy?
ing within time and budget’, codes of business 29 UK and 32 international offices. As part of this
against the 2000 employee survey, has allowed Hal- structure); also describe some strategic 4. What are possible advantages (and
behaviour and business principles. growth, the number of employees has increased
crow to establish the extent to which these issues elements of the organisational structure. disadvantages) of creating a new organisational
Evaluation of SHRM at Halcrow are being addressed through HR initiatives. Results
2. Whereas German companies such as Deutsche structure?
from the surveys suggest that there have been
Bank AG, Lufthansa AG or Allianz AG are seen 5. In developing and implementing the new
Although Halcrow has had a staff council for nearly improvements in all three areas. However, data from
the survey and other sources suggest that there is by HR specialists and scholars as ‘truly’ global structures, the company will have to recruit new
30 years, and through this has involved employees
still more to be done to improve these and other companies with excellent strategic HRM international managers. How could the company
in the formulation of group policy and direction,
aspects of human resource management such as policies, DaimlerChrysler lacks such a really select and develop a group of experienced
there has until recently been only limited formal
evaluation of HR initiatives including strategic HRM. employee engagement. Halcrow’s senior managers 198 Part 2 Strategic Interventions reputation. There were incredible problems international managers? What instruments would
Training courses were and continue to be evaluated are currently working with Kaisen Consulting Ltd to integrating Chrysler in the DC group. It took you use?
by traditional end of course questionnaires but, explore the precise meaning behind these results years to fix many post-merger problems. There
2. Use Key Concepts 5.2 to try to evaluate the effectiveness of the organisation’s struc-
prior to 2000, only limited attempts had been made and develop clear action plans to improve the man- are many other examples of a poor international
ture, or one part of it, in relation to the four consequences listed.
to link evaluation of HR initiatives to the strategic agerial environment. As part of this they are creating
direction of the Group. a process through which employees are involved in 3. Use Key Concepts 5.3 and the discussion in the section titled ‘Consistency approach
In 2000, Halcrow introduced the Group-wide developing the actions. to organisational structure’ to evaluate the level of consistency between the key ele-
‘employee survey’ to measure staff satisfaction, and Using data from Halcrow’s employee survey the ments of its structure.
provide information to help the organisation improve consulting company calculates an HR Enablement
Index for the Group. This is an average score of
4. Identify the form or forms of structure evident in this organisation. How would you
its leadership, management and skills base. This
questionnaire is administered biennially to employ- responses to all the questions in each of the ten key assess the nature of working relationships in the organisation and how suited are
ees worldwide by an independent company, Kaisen areas. This index provides an overall indication of these to the form or forms of structure that are used in it?
Consulting Ltd, who undertake the data analysis, the extent to which employees are engaged with
provide Halcrow with a report and, in conjunction their work within the Group. Average scores for
with Halcrow, run follow-up workshops. The aims of each of the ten key areas are then be used to high-
the survey are outlined clearly in an accompanying light those aspects where satisfaction is relatively Suggestions for research topics
letter with a clear focus upon identifying strengths as low and where action may need to be taken. Com-
well as areas that require improvement. parison of the 2004 HR Enablement Index score
The core content of the questionnaire has with that for 2002 revealed that there had been no An evaluation of the relative advantages and disadvantages of centralised and decen-
remained substantially the same between years to significant change in employees’ engagement. tralised structures: a case study of ABC.
enable benchmark comparisons, although some Retention rate data for the same period revealed An exploration of the impact of bureaucracy in department WX in company YZ.
Examining the implications of a case study’s organisation for those who work in it.
How do managers/why should managers assess the effectiveness of organisational
structure?
An exploration of the relationship between organisational structure and the manage-
ment of change (in relation to a particular case study organisation).
The relationship between organisational structure and human resource management:
a case study-based investigation.
Each of these suggestions for research projects may be undertaken as a literature-based
examination and discussion, where your institution requires this type of project to be
completed as part of an award, or in relation to a particular case study organisation,
where you are required to collect some primary data and analyse these in relation to
theory for part of your course.
Case Study
DaimlerChrysler AG
end-of-chapter case study again with from versatile vans to trucks and coaches. Daimler- (382,723 at year-end 2005) and a global share-
Chryslers’ passenger car brands include Maybach, holder base. DaimlerChrysler achieved revenues of
Mercedes-Benz, Chrysler, Jeep®, Dodge and €149.7 billion in 2005. The operative result was
Smart. Commercial vehicle brands include Mer- €5.1 billion for 2005 (Mercedes Car Group a loss of
cedes-Benz, Freightliner, Sterling, Western Star, €505 million!).
Mike Millmore, BA, MSc, MA, PGCE, FCIPD, is a Visiting Fellow in Human Resource
Management (HRM) at Gloucestershire Business School, University of Gloucestershire.
As an HR generalist, he has taught a range of HRM subjects to postgraduate, undergrad-
uate and professional students as well as supervising master’s dissertations. Mike’s main
areas of interest and research are strategic human resource management, human
resource development, human resource planning and, particularly, recruitment and
selection, on which he has published several articles. He led the University’s MA Man-
agement of Human Resources course for a number of years and has undertaken
consultancy in both public and private sectors. He is co-author with Philip, Mark and
Adrian of Managing Change: A human resource strategy approach, published by Financial
Times Prentice Hall. Prior to his career in higher education, Mike worked for Hoover
Ltd in both personnel and training roles. For roughly one-third of his career, Mike has
worked in a variety of management roles including as a Training Manager and as a
senior general manger within education. As Head of Department of Management and
Business Studies and Dean of the University’s Business School, Mike oversaw the devel-
opment and implementation of three phases of faculty strategy designed to
accommodate intra- and inter-organisational mergers. During this period the key focus
was on integrating prior knowledge and experience of management and HR theory and
practice to develop strategic HR responses to the changing strategic mosaic.
Philip Lewis, BA, PhD, MSc, MCIPD, PGDipM, Cert Ed, is a freelance lecturer and
author of Human Resource Management. He teaches HRM and research methods to
postgraduate, undergraduate and professional students, and is involved in research
degree supervision. Philip’s research interests are reward management and performance
management, on which he has published several articles. He is co-author with Mark and
Adrian of Research Methods for Business Students and Employee Relations: Understanding
the employment relationship and with Adrian, Mike and Mark of Managing Change: A
human resource strategy approach, all published by Financial Times Prentice Hall. He has
undertaken consultancy in both public and private sectors. Prior to his career in higher
education, Philip was a training advisor with the Distributive Industry Training Board.
SHRM_A01.QXD 15/2/07 08:10 Page xxv
Mark N.K. Saunders, BA, MSc, PGCE, PhD, MCIPD, is Assistant Dean: Director of
Research and Doctoral Programmes at Oxford Brookes University Business School. He
is also visiting professor at Newcastle Business School, University of Northumbria. Prior
to this he was Head of the Human Resource Management Research Centre at Glouces-
tershire Business School. He currently teaches research methods to master’s and doctoral
students as well as supervising master’s dissertations and research degrees in the area of
human resource management. Mark has published a number of articles on trust and
organisational justice perspectives on the management of change, research methods and
service quality. He is co-author with Philip and Adrian of Research Methods for Business
Students and Employee Relations: Understanding the employment relationship, and with
Adrian, Philip and Mike of Managing Change: A human resource strategy approach, all
published by Financial Times Prentice Hall, and has also co-authored a book on busi-
ness statistics. He has undertaken consultancy in public, private and not-for-profit
sectors, prior to which he had a variety of research jobs in local government.
Adrian Thornhill, BA, PhD, PGCE, FCIPD, is Head of the Department of Human
Resource Management at Gloucestershire Business School, University of Gloucestershire.
He teaches HRM and research methods to postgraduate, undergraduate and professional
students, and is involved in research degree supervision. Adrian has published a number
of articles principally associated with employee and justice perspectives related to manag-
ing change and the management of organisational downsizing and redundancy. He is
co-author with Mark and Philip of Research Methods for Business Students and Employee
Relations: Understanding the employment relationship and with Philip, Mike and Mark of
Managing Change: A human resource strategy approach, all published by Financial Times
Prentice Hall and has also co-authored a book on downsizing and redundancy. He has
undertaken consultancy in both public and private sectors.
Trevor Morrow, BA, PGDIP, PGCUT, PhD, MCIPD, is a lecturer in Business Studies at
the University of Ulster’s School of International Business. He currently teaches human
resource management and employee relations to undergraduate and master’s students as
well as supervising master’s dissertations and research degrees in the area of human
resource management. Trevor’s primary research focus is within the field of interna-
tional strategic human resource management. Trevor is the joint editor of the Irish
Journal of Management and is the lead editor of International Business in an Enlarging
Europe (Palgrave Macmillan, 2005). He has chaired three major international confer-
ences and is course director of the University of Ulster’s MSc in International Business.
Trevor has published several articles within the area of SHRM. Trevor spent three years
as a visiting lecturer, teaching on the International Executive MBA at the Michael Smur-
fit Graduate School of Business, University College Dublin. He has undertaken
consultancy in both public and private sectors.
Part 1
Overview
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 2
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 3
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
4 Part 1 Overview
Introduction
Strategic human resource management (SHRM) is concerned with the relationship between
an organisation’s strategic management and the management of its human resources
(Boxall, 1996). Strategic management focuses on the scope and direction of an organisa-
tion, and often involves dealing with uncertainty and complexity. Johnson and Scholes
(2002) define strategic management in terms of the following three main elements.
In Practice 1.1
Restructuring Sony
In autumn 2005 Sony Corp.’s new management team looked set to announce another round of job
cuts and new investment in fast-growing digital electronics as part of its strategy to turn the company
around. The world’s second-largest consumer electronics maker was aiming to strike a delicate bal-
ance between painful restructuring and forward-looking investments to drive growth and win back
consumers and investors.
Sony was likely to accelerate the shift of resources to more promising digital ones, such as next-
generation DVD recorders, high-definition camcorders and flat panel TVs, from analog products.
According to Reuters, analysts said that sizeable job cuts were likely as Sony downsized its cath-
ode ray tube (CRT) TV operations, narrowed its research and development focus, and looked to
eliminate head office staff. Sony had already slashed about 20,000 jobs under its current three-year
restructuring plan that ran through to March 2006, but to no visible effect. Revenues had been shrink-
ing and in 2005 Sony was flirting with an operating loss.
The company had been closing production lines for CRT sets over the past few years, but was still
far behind rivals Matsushita Electric Industrial and Sharp Corp. in making the switch to flat panel TVs.
Some commentators were looking for wide-ranging restructuring across the electronics operations
including its components business, its PC unit and its CD/MD Walkman operations, amid a rapid
switch in the industry to digital music players. The inventor of the Walkman pioneered the portable
music market a quarter-century ago, but has since been outfoxed in the digital era by Apple Com-
puter Inc. and its popular iPod player and iTunes online music store.
Source: Reuters (2005).
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 5
People are a key resource, critically influencing each of these elements of strategic
management. People form a significant component of an organisation’s strategic capa-
bility and the ability to understand the organisation’s strategic position will largely be a
function of the capabilities of the organisation’s people. People’s capabilities also affect
the exercise of strategic choice and the effectiveness of the way in which strategy is
translated into action, as is considered in more depth later in this chapter. People’s
capabilities in an organisation result from the employment and management of its
human resources. The relationship between an organisation’s human resource strategy
(in brief, how it selects, uses, develops, rewards and treats its employees) and its
strategic management is therefore of great importance.
The exact nature of this relationship in practice, however, is likely to be difficult to analyse
and evaluate, not least because strategic management is a far from simple matter. Strategy
and strategy making, as the basis of strategic management, are problematic and contested
areas. As Whittington (2001: 2) notes, ‘there is not much agreement about strategy’. To
develop an understanding of SHRM it is necessary to explore the relationship between
strategic management and HRM. To do this Boxall (1996) maintains that two difficult
questions have to be addressed:
1. what is strategy? (content); and
2. how is strategy formed? (process).
Building from these two questions, the chapter begins with a focus on strategy and,
particularly, strategy making in order to provide a foundation for subsequent chapter
sections that concentrate on developing their links to SHRM. When referring to the links
between strategy and human resource management the term strategic integration is
used and the second part of this chapter is designed to explore what is meant by this
concept. This is initially done by examining how HRM can be linked to the different
approaches to strategy making outlined in the opening section. Different perspectives
on the nature of strategic integration that enable it to be constructed as a multi-
dimensional concept are then considered.
The
What is Concepts and Strategic
Resource-based
Strategy? approaches integration
view
Key approaches:
Defining Key Key
• Classical
strategy concepts concepts
• Evolutionary
• Processural
• Systemic
Resource-based
theory and links
to HRM
Assessment and
evaluation of the
key approaches
Strategic
management
approaches and
the links to HRM
Figure 1.1 Mapping the strategy and human resource management territory: a summary diagram of the chapter content
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 6
6 Part 1 Overview
The concluding section of the chapter explores the more recent recognition of a differ-
ent approach to making strategy that places an organisation’s human resource capabilities
at the centre of this process. This is the resource-based view of the firm or resource-based
theory. Traditional views of strategy see it as a process of analysing the external environ-
ment of an organisation in order to devise a strategic direction that matches the
opportunities that this offers to ensure future success. The resource-based view shifts this
view so that strategy making focuses on the internal capabilities of an organisation includ-
ing its people, particularly those that give it some unique or valuable position, so that these
can be used as the basis of its strategic direction to ensure future success.
Understanding strategy and strategy making is problematic. This leads to a lack of agreed
definitions and explanations about the processes involved. A number of different
approaches to strategy and strategy making are described and discussed in the literature (e.g.
Mintzberg et al., 1998; Whittington, 2001). In this section Whittington’s (2001) framework
will be followed, which outlines the four approaches to strategy and strategy making:
1. classical;
2. evolutionary;
3. processual; and
4. systemic.
These four approaches are supplemented by the more finely graded analysis of
Mintzberg et al. (1998), who outline ten schools of strategy-making theory and practice
(see Key Concepts 1.1). Each of these approaches will be described and discussed, and
their respective links to human resource management will be explored below.
Classical approach
The classical approach was developed as a theoretical discipline in the 1960s (Chandler,
1962; Sloan, 1963; Ansoff, 1965) and emphasises strategy as being a rational, deliberate,
linear and top-down process, where conception is separated from implementation
through the creation of strategic plans that are passed down to others to implement.
This process involves a number of strategic planning steps including:
analysing an organisation’s environment and its internal resources;
identifying and evaluating strategic options;
implementing the strategy chosen.
Integral to this approach to strategic management are a range of techniques and
tools, ranging from a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis
to a variety of diagrammatic and quantitative methods. SWOT analysis has been used
widely to appraise the strengths and weaknesses of the organisation and the opportuni-
ties and threats evident in its external environment. The use of this and other analytical
techniques theoretically leads senior managers to identify a range of strategic options
from which the future strategy of the organisation will be chosen. This strategy will be
intended to produce a match, or fit, between the organisation’s internal resources and
the opportunities available in its external environment. The goal is to achieve competi-
tive advantage over its competitors or to produce a state of organisational effectiveness.
Mintzberg et al. (1998) essentially see this approach to strategy as a process of concep-
tion. Within the classical approach, they differentiate between what they term the design
school, as outlined above, the planning school and the positioning school. Respectively, these
schools of thought were developed in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. The planning school was
different from the design school because it elaborated on and formalised strategic planning
and stressed the importance of strategic planners to inform and advise an organisation’s
chief executive, who, instead of formulating strategy according to the design school, became
responsible for choosing it. The positioning school, in contrast to the two previous schools of
thought, advocated that, instead of an open choice of strategy, organisations should adopt
one of a restricted choice of strategic positions to achieve competitive advantage. Porter’s
work (1980, 1985) is identified as the major focal point and driving force in the develop-
ment of this school of thought. Porter (1985) identified three generic strategies: cost
leadership, differentiation and focus (see Key Concepts 1.2). He believed that it would be
necessary for a firm to choose one of these positions to gain competitive advantage.
Cost leadership
This strategy is designed to achieve competitive advantage through operating as a low-cost pro-
ducer. This can be achieved through large-scale production methods that incorporate economies of
scale, controlling operating costs tightly and being very efficient.
Differentiation
This strategy is based on developing product differentiation, engendering brand recognition and customer
loyalty. This can be achieved by developing high-quality products and/or superior performance, together
with perceptions about quality and superiority, which can be reflected in the pricing position used.
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 8
8 Part 1 Overview
A key element in the classical approach is the process of identifying and choosing strat-
egy, whether from an unrestricted or from a constrained choice. According to this
approach, strategic choice will be determined by the logic of the analysis related to the
appraisals that are undertaken of the organisation itself and the external environment
within which it operates. The classical approach, as indicated above, is rooted in a rational
and objective paradigm. However, the contested nature of these assumptions about the
classical approach suggests that strategic choice will be much more problematic in prac-
tice. The theory of ‘strategy choice’ developed by Child (1972, 1997) will now be explored,
followed by an examination of more general criticisms of the classical approach.
In Practice 1.2
Milking the market: rational analysis of the market for soft cheese
At the first of a series of Milk Development Council meetings covering on-farm processing, farmers
were told that soft cheese, in particular, was a ‘growth market’. Developing new farmhouse cheeses
with a strong local identity is one of the best opportunities for dairy farmers considering on-farm pro-
cessing. With UK cheese consumption now running at about 10 kg a head per year – compared with
18.5 kg in the rest of the EU – the regional cheese market is ripe for expansion.
Farmers were also told that UK consumption of imported soft cheeses is increasing, so there’s
a good opportunity for UK dairy farmers to develop the home-produced market. But, although there’s
potential, farmers must devise a strong concept for any new product launch. They were advised that
as well as actually producing a high-quality food, farmers must ensure that they create the correct
identity and marketing strategy.
Source: Farmers’ Weekly Interactive (2006).
about agency of choice for determinism completely; rather he advocated a potential syn-
thesis between the political process and functionalist perspectives because the power
available to decision-makers was seen to be accountable in terms of the consequences
for organisational performance that was the result of its exercise.
In reality, strategic choice will therefore be informed by political considerations that
reflect the interests and values of the dominant coalition in an organisation. These con-
siderations will affect decisions taken about strategy, as well as other aspects of
organisational design. This will at least be the case when organisational performance is
perceived as successful by key stakeholders such as shareholders. It highlights a subjective
perspective to this process in practice, contrary to the presupposed position of the classi-
cal approach as entirely rational and objective. In this way, the exercise of political
preference may be seen as a constraint on the nature of ‘rational’ strategy making. How-
ever, as Child indicates above, this view should not be used to assume that those in power
will be able to exercise choice about strategy in a way that is entirely self-interested.
Child’s 1997 paper recognises that there will be a wider range of constraints placed on the
way in which decision makers exercise strategic choice in practice. In addition to the exercise
of political considerations, strategic choice will also be likely to be constrained by cultural,
psychological and logistical issues (see In Practice 1.3). Strategic decisions taken by multi-
national organisations, for example, will be taken with a number of considerations in mind,
not the least of which is the attitude of the host country’s government toward its operations.
The development of theory related to national and organisational cultures (e.g. Hofstede,
1980) demonstrates how cultural values and institutionalised norms are likely to be inter-
nalised with the result that these constrain choice through the ways in which individuals
perceive and interpret events and take action. This perspective will be returned to below
when the systemic approach to strategy is considered, and also more fully in Chapter 6.
Points of view or norms about strategic action that are prevalent in an industry or
organisation may also restrict a decision-maker’s choice of strategy. Other psychological
and logistical factors that may limit consideration about choice of strategy include time
pressure and information load and the way in which individuals cope with these (Dutton,
1993; Child, 1997). Child also refers to imperfect information as a further factor that will
constrain the choice of decision-makers in organisations. Information that is available
may be limited in relation to its completeness and/or its ability to inform the decision-
making process, especially where this is characterised by uncertainty.
In Practice 1.3
Throughout the world, the use of motor vehicles is growing. The environmental cost of this is well
known. Throughout their life cycle, vehicles impact the environment in several ways: energy and
resource consumption, waste generation during manufacturing and use, and disposal at the end of their
useful lives. About 75 per cent of end-of-life vehicles, mainly metals, are recyclable in the European
Union (Kanari et al., 2003). The remaining 25 per cent of the vehicle is considered waste and generally
goes to landfills. Environmental legislation of the European Union (EU) requires the reduction of this
waste to a maximum of 5 per cent by 2015.
On the face of it, this is a constraint upon the activity of motor vehicle manufacturers which forms
part of the raft of considerations that need to be taken into account in the strategy-making process.
But it is important that motor vehicle manufacturers keep track of the wider cultural nuances in society
that move governments to take such legislative action.
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 10
10 Part 1 Overview
Child (1997) concludes that these contributions have developed the scope of the original
(1972) theory of strategic choice. The theory of strategic choice therefore encompasses a
range of factors that place limitations on the presupposed rational and objective linkages
implicit in the classical approach to determine strategy.
Evolutionary perspectives
Whereas the classical approach emphasises the role of planning, with senior managers
responsible for ensuring that strategy achieves an effective fit or match between the
organisation’s resource capabilities and the external environment to be able to exploit
evident opportunities, evolutionary perspectives on strategy place much greater emphasis
on the role of environmental forces. Mintzberg et al. (1998) label this approach the envi-
ronmental school. They say that those who advocate this view see an organisation and its
managers as being subordinate to the external environment, with management’s role as
one of reacting to environmental forces. The role of management is to match strategy to
these external forces. Contingency theory or the contingency approach, described in
Chapter 5, identifies a number of broad dimensions including stability, complexity,
diversity and hostility to which managers need to react. For example, environmental
complexity would require the introduction of decentralised decision to facilitate organi-
sational effectiveness. (Chapter 3 details the way in which this may be the response of
some multi-national corporations.) In this way, organisations undergo adaptation to
their environment.
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 11
Processual approach
The processual approach to strategy making commences from radically different
assumptions from those of the classical approach. The classical approach conceives of
strategy making as a rational, deliberate and linear process, resulting in the formulation
of strategic plans that are handed down for implementation. But the processual approach
identifies strategy as an adaptive and emergent process, driven by learning in an organi-
sation. In this way, the formulation and implementation of strategy become, in practice,
a more integrated or fluid process. Consequently, strategies are seen to form through
action. Mintzberg (1987) refers to the approach of ‘crafting strategy’. He sees the devel-
opment of strategy as analogous to the approach of skilled experts, whose knowledge
and skills mean that they conceive of (formulate) as well as execute (implement) their
work in an integral manner. If you ask most skilled workers to distinguish between the
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 12
12 Part 1 Overview
formulation and implementation their work, they may find this difficult. In reality, the
two are integrated. This provides a powerful contrast to the classical approach. Organi-
sational strategies may emerge through opportunities that become apparent from the
work of people employed at different levels in an organisation rather than just being
deliberately planned from the top. Small, incremental steps, related to, say, product
development or service delivery, lead to success and the emergence of a pattern of
action. This then becomes recognised and established in an organisation. Moreover,
recognition leads to this pattern of action becoming an organisational strategy in the
formal sense (Quinn, 1980; Mintzberg, 1987, Mintzberg et al., 1998).
Mintzberg and colleagues have termed this approach to strategy making, the learning
school. Strategy is seen to emerge through a process of collective learning in an organisa-
tion (or outside the organisation, see In Practice 1.4). This is believed to be particularly
important in the context of unstable environments, characterised by uncertainty. In
such a context, advocates of this school believe that learning through time provides an
effective means to develop strategy in circumstances that otherwise make it difficult to
first develop a formal strategic plan prior to implementation.
In Practice 1.4
Napoleon is reported to have said, ‘No battle plan survives contact with the enemy.’ Similarly, no soft-
ware product, no matter how well designed and conceived, survives first customer contact without
requiring changes. As a result, at some point during the development process, product teams decide
their product is far enough along to begin getting external feedback to help validate the features and
architecture. To help get that feedback while there is still enough time to act, most product groups
release alpha versions of their products.
Sometimes these alpha (or preview) releases are given to only select customers who have demon-
strated a willingness to examine pre-release products and are known to give quality feedback. At
other times (as with Microsoft Visual Studio and Windows ‘Longhorn’), they are made available for
download. Customers who are participating in a formal alpha program typically have dedicated
Microsoft support resources available to them. Those in the download program have only public
newsgroups to assist them.
In addition to providing Microsoft with feedback, alpha releases give customers an early look at the
architecture of a product and help them make decisions on how and when to use the product. Cus-
tomers using alpha releases in this fashion, however, must accept that the final product will differ,
sometimes significantly, from the alpha, and any plans will need to be re-evaluated as the product
nears completion.
Finally, an alpha release can serve a marketing purpose for Microsoft, particularly for products that
require significant third-party developer support or which have long lead times for adoption. Publicis-
ing the availability of alpha builds helps Microsoft competitively by slowing the adoption of competing
products and can draw developers and IT managers’ attention towards its own offerings, even if they
are not yet commercially available. Using pre-release builds to draw attention in this manner is by no
means unique to Microsoft.
Source: DeMichillie (2004).
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 13
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14 Part 1 Overview
Mintzberg and Waters (1985) describe what they term an umbrella strategy, which
involves senior management defining strategic targets that others in the organisation use
to develop the details of an operable strategy. The first part of this approach to strategy
development is deliberately set out, while the second part is allowed to emerge. They
also describe a process strategy, which involves senior management controlling processes
such as organisational structures and staffing but allowing those within these structures
to determine the content of strategy (i.e. which products or services to produce and how
to provide them). This approach to strategy formation is again partly deliberate and
partly emergent. Mintzberg (1987) recognises that these approaches to strategy are
important in organisations where expertise and creativity are required, since it will be
those deep down in an organisation’s structure who will have such expertise and who
will understand what is required to achieve strategic success in their market niche or
area of service delivery. An organisation such as Microsoft (see In Practice 1.4) is a good
example of this. Such organisations are likely to be structurally complex, most likely
being structured as multi-divisional structures (see Chapter 5) where the corporate
centre will be likely to develop umbrella and/or process strategies, allowing the operat-
ing divisions to form operable strategies more locally.
Systemic perspectives
Whittington (2001) states that systemic theorists also believe that organisations can plan
strategically; however, they do not believe that the classical approach provides a univer-
sally applicable model of strategic planning because of variations between social
systems. Systemic perspectives are based on the belief that strategy and strategy making
will be affected by the social and cultural system within which this occurs. In this way,
one country’s social and cultural system will differ from another’s due to variations in
class structure, the operation of the market, the role of the state and underpinning
beliefs and values, which will combine to affect the nature of strategy making, producing
different approaches between countries. According to this interpretation, the classical
approach is a reflection of the social and cultural system that prevails in the USA and to
a lesser extent in the UK, where individualism and non-interventionism produce a free-
enterprise approach to strategy and where the pursuit of profit is seen to be of primary
importance. Whittington (2001) contrasts this culturally specific approach to other
approaches that prevail in different types of society. In continental Europe, for example,
countries such as France and Germany developed a much stronger tradition of state
intervention than the USA or UK. This has led to a longer-term approach to strategy,
where emphasis on national interest and social responsibility are also seen to be impor-
tant, as opposed to a narrow emphasis on the shorter-term pursuit of profit (e.g. Price,
2001; Fulbrook, 2002). Whittington (2001) also points to cultures where people believe
that outcomes are predetermined by God or by fate. In such cultures, the western notion
of strategy as an expression of human free-will would not be accepted so easily. These dif-
ferent perspectives indicate an important sociological aspect to strategy and strategy
making, which questions the general applicability of the classical approach in particular.
broad generalisations. Whittington (2001: 36) recognises that, ‘Not all firms within a par-
ticular social system need be the same … Societies are too complex and people too
individualistic to expect bland uniformity.’ Most societies encompass a wide range of
acceptable beliefs and behaviours, making these pluralistic, within which different
approaches to strategy and strategy making will prevail. Various types of organisational
strategy may therefore be promoted and justified by reference to different beliefs and
norms that are accepted within a society. However, just as it is important to recognise that
there will be variations to strategy formation within a particular country, the systemic
approach recognises that there will be differences related to cultural grounds between
societies, thereby invalidating the idea of any universalistic model of strategy formulation.
The above review shows that there are a range of ways in which strategy may be formed.
Like other human systems, practice is likely to vary on a case-by-case basis, informed in
each situation by a particular combination of factors. These different approaches to
strategic management have corresponding implications for the formation of human
resource strategy. Ways in which the SHRM literature attempts to link strategic manage-
ment and HRM will now be discussed.
To be strategic, HRM needs to demonstrate a two-way link to strategy. In this way,
HRM will be informed by organisational strategy as well as helping to shape the nature
of that strategy (Purcell, 2001). This idea of strategic integration is a key concept in defi-
nitions of SHRM (e.g. Guest, 1987; Storey, 1992; Wright and McMahan, 1992). Redman
and Wilkinson (2001) refer to integration as a necessary condition for HRM to be con-
sidered strategic, although they recognise that it is not sufficient to consider it as the
only condition. Other conditions for HRM to be considered strategic are discussed in
Chapter 2. At this stage in the nature of the linkages between organisational strategy and
HRM in relation to the different approaches outlined above to strategic management are
specifically discussed.
16 Part 1 Overview
tiveness and focuses, instead, on using these capabilities through the identification of
‘required role behaviours’ to achieve organisational strategy. Schuler and Jackson iden-
tify 12 types of role behaviour, each of which forms a continuum. For example, one type
of behaviour varies between the requirement for predictability on the one hand and the
need for innovation on the other. Another type varies between the requirement not to
take risks and the need to take risks. A third one varies according to the need to engage
in change. These types of employee role behaviour were used by Schuler and Jackson
(1987) to predict the combinations of employee behaviours required to realise each of
Porter’s (1985) three generic strategies: cost leadership, differentiation and focus, which
we discussed earlier. According to Schuler and Jackson, the identification of a set of
required role behaviours to achieve one of these generic business strategies leads to the
development of a particular human resource strategy to obtain and strengthen these
behaviours. Table 2.3 provides a fuller representation of these theoretical links between
each of Porter’s three generic strategies, the employee role behaviours that are believed
to be required for each and the appropriate HR practices that would make up a human
resource strategy to realise each set of behaviours.
Adopting the behavioural perspective to find a link between organisational strategy
and HRM, developed out of the tradition of contingency theory (Wright and McMahan,
1992). Contingency theory, in this context, is concerned with matching or fitting an
organisation’s HRM to its organisational strategy. A number of other matching models
have been proposed in the literature. Fombrun et al. (1984) attempted to match or fit
HR strategies not only to the nature of organisational strategy but also to the type of
organisational structure associated with a particular type of strategy. Kochan and
Barocci (1985) suggested that HR strategy should be linked to the life cycle stage of an
organisation, related respectively to its start-up, growth, maturity and finally its decline.
Each of these types of theoretical linkage between organisational strategy and HR strat-
egy is discussed further in Chapter 2.
Returning more specifically to the behavioural perspective as a way of linking the
classical approach to HRM, more recent work by Schuler et al. (2001) develops this link-
age further by producing a model that looks at the role of HRM in the strategic
management process. This model follows the assumptions of the classical approach in
separating strategy formulation from its implementation in what appears as a rational,
deliberate, linear and top-down process. Schuler et al. (2001) identify strategy formula-
tion as being composed of three linear elements:
1. Establishing an organisation’s vision, mission, values and general strategy, and then iden-
tifying the human resource management implications that arise from these activities.
2. Identifying a range of strategic business issues and establishing strategic business
objectives, which also then lead to the identification of human resource implications
that arise from these particular activities.
3. ‘Crafting’ specific plans to achieve the vision, mission, values and objectives, etc.,
which also lead to identifying the human resource implications of such business
strategies.
Strategy implementation in their model includes developing and implementing HR
plans that are based around what they call ‘the four-task model of HRM’ (Schuler et al.,
2001: 121). These four tasks require an organisation to:
1. engage in human resource planning;
2. develop required employee competences;
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 17
18 Part 1 Overview
resource strategy would need to be closely matched to the organisational strategy deter-
mined by these factors in order to achieve success.
Of course, this type of analysis may begin to appear theoretical in an unworldly way.
In theory, success would depend on the capability of managers to identify and interpret
key environmental variables, so that organisational and human resource strategies are as
well adapted to environmental circumstances as possible. In practice, of course, the same
criticisms made about strategy making in the classical approach can be applied to use of
an environmental perspective. The same political, cultural and capability constraints
will affect managements’ ability to understand and interpret environmental factors
appropriately, although the imperative to take action will be present. As a result, the
approach developed to human resource strategy and to employee relations in such
organisations is likely to be one that is dominated by the views of senior management.
Opposition from other employee groups would be seen as dysfunctional, producing a
senior managerial conviction for a strongly unitarist position.
The extent to which an organisation is adapted to its environment will affect its
actions. A well-adapted organisation will be able to benefit from its environment, partic-
ularly if it faces limited competition. However, the implications for less well-adapted
organisations, particularly in competitive situations, suggest more negative conse-
quences. It was recognised earlier that this situation is likely to lead to strategic
conservatism, where organisational efforts are focused on the basics of production. In
this way, costs will be minimised, operating efficiencies sought, tight controls imposed
with relatively short-term payback targets and performance monitoring (e.g. Goold and
Campbell, 1987; Schuler and Jackson 1989; Whittington, 2001). This cost-efficiency
strategy (Schuler and Jackson, 1989) or financial economies approach (Purcell, 1995)
will have a number of implications for human resource strategy. These include restraints
on pay budgets, employee discretion and staffing levels, and the use of performance con-
trols, restructuring and downsizing (e.g. Purcell, 1989b; Schuler and Jackson, 1989).
Such an approach may actually prove to be ineffective if it damages employee relations
and leads to disaffection and higher levels of labour wastage (see In Practice 1.5).
In Practice 1.5
The first strike at a UK high street bank in eight years was due to occur in 2006 after talks between trade
union Amicus and HSBC broke down. Amicus said that the one-day action was in protest at a pay deal
which, it alleged, would lead to a wage cut for thousands of workers. Amicus expected 9,500 workers to
take action, on the same day as the bank’s annual meeting. The bank said that it expected cash
machines, telephone and online banking and major branches to be unaffected.
The dispute was over what the union said were inadequate pay arrangements at the bank. According
to Amicus, 55 per cent of British HSBC workers covered by its pay negotiations got no salary rise or an
increase below inflation in 2006. Tensions at HSBC have been on the rise during a wave of austerity,
which has cost 3,500 jobs since the beginning of 2005. Lloyds TSB, a high street rival to HSBC, is also in
the firing line for industrial action: workers there were also due to vote on a strike in the middle of 2006.
Source: BBC News Online (2006).
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 19
Redman and Wilkinson (2001) comment that such an approach can be seen as strate-
gically integrated only in relation to the strategic imperative to control costs. For them,
as for others, strategic human resource management requires a wider remit (see Chapter
2), where emphasis is also placed on developing and integrating the ‘human’ side as
opposed to focusing simply on the ‘resource utilisation’ aspect of HRM (e.g. Guest,
1987; Storey, 1989, 1992). Inefficiencies that result from this broad focus may lead some
organisations to incorporate human resource strategies aimed at developing and involv-
ing their employees rather than seeing them simply as a cost, although the use of these
strategies will still be focused on maximising the interests of the organisation and
achieving its goals.
20 Part 1 Overview
What is the scope for the strategic integration of HRM in relation to each of the
four approaches to strategy making discussed in this section?
of strategy making at the level of the organisation. In reality, strategy may be made at a
number of levels in an organisation. The nature of an organisation’s structure, discussed
in Chapter 5, will thus be an important determinant of strategy making in practice.
Strategy made at one level of an organisation will affect decision-making at other levels,
with decisions taken at a higher level being most likely to affect those taken at a lower
level. In general terms, three levels or ‘orders’ of strategy have been recognised (e.g. Pur-
cell, 1989b).
The highest level is concerned with the overall or corporate strategy of an organisa-
tion. This relates to the way in which strategy was defined and used earlier in this
chapter. Purcell (1989b: 70) refers to the nature of these strategies as ‘“upstream”, first-
order decisions’ to indicate their status in relation to lower-order ones and the likely way
in which other levels of strategy will flow from these higher-order strategies. These are
concerned with the long-term direction and scope of the organisation. A further distinc-
tion may be made at this level between corporate and business strategies, related to the
nature of multi-product and multi-divisional organisations. Purcell (1995: 66) suc-
cinctly summarises this distinction as follows:
Multi-product and multi-divisional firms have to make a distinction between corpor-
ate and business strategies; between those taken at the centre covering the whole
enterprise, and those taken lower down at division or business-unit level and related
to the products made and the markets served.
Retrenchment/ E.g. harvesting a business by using its existing competences and resources but
withdrawal reducing costs, investments and running it down; closing down some existing
locations; relocation to reduce costs; divesting existing businesses
22 Part 1 Overview
decisions. The third level concerns functional strategies, including those related to HRM,
which are developed in the context of the first two levels. All three levels have strategic
significance since they each affect the long-term direction of an organisation and the
attainment of its goals, whether this is recognised and intended or not.
In relation to the second level of strategy, for example, a ‘first-order’ decision to merge
with or take over another organisation would be likely to be followed by a set of decisions
governing the structures and relationships of the ‘new’ organisation. These decisions
might include delayering, increasing accountability to business units and decentralisation
of business decision-making. Changes at this second level would, in turn, impact on
human resource areas such as the roles performed by employees, their reporting relation-
ships, and management style. The third level of strategy is therefore where functional
areas define their strategies in accordance with first- and second-order decisions and the
external environmental factors operating on the organisation (Purcell, 1989b). This direct
strategic linkage of third-order, functional strategies with higher-order ones has also been
referred to as external integration (e.g. Mabey and Iles, 1993: 16).
A limitation of these three types of strategic linkage is that they describe one-way, or
‘downstream’, relationships and as such do not meet the fuller definition of strategic
integration, which incorporates a two-way relationship (i.e. moving ‘upstream’ as well as
‘downstream’). From this perspective, external integration may only be achieved fully
when human resource issues not only serve first- and second-order strategies in a down-
stream relationship but also operate upwards to influence strategic decision-making
(e.g. Liff, 2000, Greer, 2001; Turner, 2002). At one level this upstream relationship could
result in corporate strategy being informed by changes in the labour market and at
another being formulated around the people and skills the organisation has at its dis-
posal (Liff, 2000; Turner, 2002). Mabey and Iles (1993: 16) argue that this two-way
relationship requires what they term ‘institutional integration’. This is where the human
resource function is strategically integrated into the organisation and is more likely to
occur where the head of function is a board-level appointment. This ensures that a
meaningful dialogue about the relationship between people and strategy will take place
(Liff, 2000; Turner, 2002). This dialogue may surface a different perspective on opportu-
nities and threats that might otherwise be overlooked and may also introduce a different
set of values, for example in relation to diversity, that could influence strategy.
This two-way interpretation of strategic integration moves away from treating
human resources as a ‘dependent variable’, where HRM simply reacts to predetermined
organisational strategies (Liff, 2000), and is consistent with a number of themes
explored in this book. It also reflects the resource-based view of the firm where strategy
formation develops from the distinctive qualities inherent in the internal resources of
the organisation that we consider in the next section. This two-way (upstream and
downstream) relationship is central to our interpretation of SHRM and represents the
fourth strand of the multi-dimensional nature of strategic integration. It supports the
contention of Lengnick-Hall and Lengnick-Hall (1988) that organisations that engage in
a process of strategy making that considers the interrelationships between competitive
strategy and human resources will be more likely to improve their performance than
those who simply use human resources to implement strategy. Of course the difficulties
surrounding HRM in practice may reduce such views to no more than empty rhetoric. It
assumes that human resources may operate as an element of first-order strategy forma-
tion whereas the evidence points to it being relegated to third-order status, consistent
with the dominant view of HR as a dependent variable (e.g. Liff, 2000).
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 23
These first four strands of strategic integration all relate to external, or vertical, inte-
gration between the levels in the strategic hierarchy and HRM. The fifth strand relates to
the horizontal integration of all the elements of HRM so that they fit together into a
coherent whole. In this way, human resource activities need to be internally integrated in
order to achieve full strategic integration (Mabey and Iles, 1993: 16–17). This would
mean, for example, that within an organisation competing on the basis of quality, all the
HR levers should be mutually supporting the acquisition, development and retention of
a workforce that can deliver this type of competitive strategy. This means recruiting
quality staff, investing significantly in the development of the organisation’s skills base,
defining and rewarding quality performance, involving employees in continuous
improvement, etc.
Guest’s (1987) interpretation of horizontal integration recognises that human
resource activities not only need to be internally consistent but that they also need to
cohere with other functional areas such as marketing, service provision or production,
etc. Guest also identifies two further aspects of integration. The first of these relates to
the attitudes and behaviours of line managers and the need for them to internalise and
practise HR policies. The second relates to the full integration of employees into the
business, leading to their identification with and commitment to the organisation.
These additional aspects to achieve full integration are discussed further in Chapter 2
and the issue of employee involvement and commitment is evaluated in Chapter 12.
Taken together, this all begins to lead to a richer understanding of the nature of strate-
gic integration but is still in itself insufficient. So far, what can only be seen as a static view
of strategy has been presented which does not explicitly take account of uncertainty and
the impact of unexpected change. Gratton (1999: 170) argues that a key challenge for
organisations today ‘is to continue to deliver sustained competitive advantage in the
short-term whilst at the same time preparing for longer-term success’. This recognises
that, as the future unfolds, changes to the business-operating environment will necessi-
tate strategic shifts, sometimes of a transformational nature. This gives rise to the need
for organisations to develop a pool of human capital that can not only achieve short-term
business goals, derived from current organisational strategies, but also contribute to
organisational transformation, through initiating, implementing and achieving change,
including changes to business strategies (Gratton et al., 1999). This presents an important
temporal dimension to strategic integration that is sensitive to an uncertain future, where
what lies over the horizon is hidden from view. It is this temporal dimension that repre-
sents the sixth and last strand. It also indicates another link to the resource-based view of
the organisation, which is considered next.
For the various strands of integration for HRM to be considered strategic, SHRM
needs to incorporate two-way vertical integration, horizontal integration within its own
policy areas and with other functional areas, institutional integration, line management
integration, the integration of employees with the goals of the organisation and its
capacity to respond to change as the future unfolds. In practice, this may be asking a
great deal for an organisation’s approach to HRM to be classified as fully strategic. It
does, however, provide an analytical framework against which organisational practice
may be evaluated. A particular organisation’s approach to HRM may thus be judged
against these components for SHRM, in terms of whether each is present and also in
terms of effectiveness, where simple presence does not imply this. Key Concepts 1.4 lists
the six strands of strategic integration discussed above and Figure 1.3 represents these in
diagrammatic form.
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 24
24 Part 1 Overview
Alignment of HR policies with themselves and with other functions; of line managers’ practices with
HR policies; and of employees with the organisation’s strategic objectives
Internal or horizontal integration
Figure 1.4 develops this representation of strategic integration by showing its three
levels or orders vertically. In relation to the third order, this figure shows horizontal inte-
gration between and within functional areas, focusing on HRM. Strategic integration
within HRM is expanded to show links to the areas dealt with in subsequent chapters of
Organisational focus
Two-way relationships One-way relationship Lack of intended
between different between different relationship between
orders of strategy orders of strategy different orders
of strategy
Low
Temporal focus
Forward looking Stasis – insensitive
and sensitive to change to change
Corporate strategy
DOWNSTREAM STRATEGIC
UPSTREAM STRATEGIC
INTEGRATION
INTEGRATION
Organisational structures
Functional strategies
Human resourcing
Marketing, etc. Finance, etc.
Organisational culture
Reward management
Employee relations
Job/work design
Recruitment and
Human resource
Human resource
management
management
development
Performance
involvement
Downsizing
Employee
selection
Diversity
planning
Figure 1.4 Strands of strategic integration shown in a hierarchical relationship and related to external variables
this book. This diagram also attempts to show environmental and temporal dimensions.
Surrounding the figure are references to the external environment and change. Using
traditional SWOT analysis, the environment can be seen as providing opportunities for
an organisation as well as threats to it, while change shown on the right of the figure
indicates the need to be capable of responding effectively to these variables.
Think of an organisational situation with which you are familiar. This may be one in
which you are currently employed or one that you have worked for previously, or
another organisation known to you.
Use the model of the six strands of strategic integration to evaluate, as far as
you are able, the extent of the integration of HRM and human resources within the
organisation.
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 26
26 Part 1 Overview
routines and so are able to respond to a situation in a familiar, competent and produc-
tive manner. The establishment of organisational routines, and therefore capability,
helps to demonstrate the link to competitive advantage. An organisation will develop a
competitive advantage if it establishes routines or capabilities that others have yet to
understand or perfect (Barney, 1991; Grant, 1991). Sustaining a competitive advantage
involves an organisation maintaining this lead over others despite their best efforts to
catch up (Barney, 1991).
Expressed more dynamically, an organisation may stay ahead of others and enjoy a
sustained competitive advantage by proving to be more effective in adapting its routines
and capabilities or learning and developing new ones (Grant, 1991) (see In Practice 1.6).
In Practice 1.6
Pret a Manger made its name as an environmentally friendly trader, banning genetically modified
foods and sourcing chickens from humane cages in Seville (The Guardian, 2001). It also spelled the
end of the brilliantly constructed illusion through which Pret seemed to offer a taste of sophistication
for little more than the cost of an ordinary sandwich. In its early days, the chain’s brushed steel stools,
magenta labels and immaculate chrome bars seemed the ultimate in industrial chic. Its French name
and comparatively adventurous menu all helped create an aura of exclusivity – instead of ham and
tomato sandwiches, Pret offered Brie, tomato and basil baguettes.
The origins of Pret’s classy £3 lunches lie in the mid-1980s, when its two creators met at the Uni-
versity of Westminster, where they were studying property law. According to one industry expert, Pret
was in the right place, at the right time. There was a revolution going on in sandwiches – packaged
sandwiches were finally taking off in a big way, mostly thanks to Marks & Spencer.
Pret has always been clear about who its customers are. Charging £1.20 for a tiny bottle of orange
juice means it is targeting urban professionals with little time on their hands. In 2001 the chain had
just over 100 shops in Britain, and one in New York. In 2000 it sold 25 million sandwiches, baguettes
and wraps and just over 14 million cups of coffee. Pret sandwiches are still made on the premises, at
every store. Shops receive fresh deliveries in the evenings, which are refrigerated every night until
cooks arrive at 6.30am to prepare the day’s sandwiches.
One of the partners holds the purse-strings. The other partner looks after the food, spending
Thursday afternoons with a recipe committee, sampling different ideas. He goes for exotic mixtures,
once remarking: ‘The English respond to strong tastes – look at curry.’ Recent additions include
Scotch beef with crispy onions, ‘more than mozzarella’ sandwiches and Peking duck wraps.
In addition to the distinctive product offering, the company reduced labour turnover to 65 per cent in
the first part of 2005, a difficult task in a sector where turnover normally runs at 100 per cent (People
Management, 2005b). In 2002, Pret’s turnover ran at 95 per cent. The following year it dropped to 86 per
cent, then to 82 per cent in 2004, and then to 65 per cent in 2005. It seems that about 70 per cent of the
turnover is due to staff taking time off to travel or return to their home country. Many of the frontline
employees at Pret are non-UK nationals. The HR manager believes that some of the company’s employ-
ees stay because Pret works hard to continually show its appreciation of its people. Perks include
weekly drinks and an internal magazine that’s allowed to appear uncensored by managers. In the HR
manager’s view, working at Pret is as much about social activities as business matters.
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 28
28 Part 1 Overview
Barney (1991, 1995) identifies the attributes that an organisation’s resources and
capabilities must demonstrate in order to achieve sustained competitive advantage.
These are shown in Key Concepts 1.5.
Inimitable Resources and capabilities that are valuable and rare are likely to lead to
competitive advantage. Such an advantage will be eroded where others imitate
or copy these resources and capabilities. For this advantage to be sustained
these resources and capabilities will therefore need to be inimitable – that is,
they cannot be imitated or copied. Such resources and capabilities are then
labelled imperfectly imitable – they cannot be copied successfully.
and non-substitutable. The literature identifies three possible reasons for resource
inimitability.
1. The history and timing of the organisation. Firms may enjoy the effects of what Wern-
erfelt (1984) describes as a ‘resource position barrier’: they benefit from being a ‘first
mover’ in developing an effective resource base which allows them to produce
superior returns over other firms so long as they maintain this resource advantage.
An example of this may be the UK vacuum cleaner manufacturer Dyson, which pro-
duced the first bagless vacuum cleaner. Valuable and rare resources by definition will
be limited and the argument is made that organisations which set up at the time and
place when these are developed should continue to benefit from the advantages that
accrue, where other potential competitors have to contend with barriers to entry and
resource position barriers (Wernerfelt, 1984; Barney, 1991).
2. Causal ambiguity. Basically, this is where the reasons for an organisation’s competitive
advantage are not understood clearly by it or by its competitors. In such circumstances,
it will be difficult to know which resources and capabilities should be imitated to
achieve similar success. If an organisation enjoying competitive advantage were able to
analyse precisely why it enjoyed this success, competitors would be able to entice away
its best managers to share their knowledge, just as top football teams persuade success-
ful managers from smaller clubs to join them. Situations of complexity may actually
make it difficult for organisations to analyse the reasons for their competitive advan-
tage. In addition, much knowledge in an organisation is likely to remain tacitly in the
heads of many different employees spread throughout the organisation.
3. Social complexity. The resources, capabilities and relationships in an organisation are
very likely to be complex. While according to this reason it is possible to identify how
success is achieved, for example because of good intra-organisational and/or
supplier–customer relationships, the sheer complexity of these and other relevant
factors would make it difficult to replicate them elsewhere. For example, understand-
ing and manipulating a competitor’s organisational culture to replicate that of the
organisation enjoying competitive advantage would be most unlikely in practice. As
Barney (1986) recognised, organisational culture may be a source of competitive
advantage for this reason (see Chapter 6).
The attributes in Key Concepts 1.5 may also be seen as relating to a particular point
in time. Other, exogenous variables, such as a major shift in technology, could shake up
the status quo and lead to a reshaping of what constitutes valuable, rare, inimitable and
non-substitutable resources and capabilities in such altered circumstances. Increasing
use of computer applications and the rise of digitally based technologies provide current
examples of how industrial boundaries and therefore previously enjoyed competitive
advantages are being altered in the early twenty-first century. The major changes occur-
ring at present in the retail industry as a result of the development of online shopping is
just such a case. In Practice 1.7 illustrates the need for companies in the computer appli-
cations industry to revisit their capabilities to ensure future competitive advantage.
In summary, resources and capabilities that demonstrate the attributes shown in Key
Concepts 1.5 are seen by resource-based theorists as the principal source of an organisa-
tion’s competitive advantage. Figure 1.5 shows a simply portrayed causal link between
these elements in the resource-based theory of the organisation.
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 30
30 Part 1 Overview
In Practice 1.7
Leaked internal memos from Microsoft have warned that its business would be under threat if it failed
to respond quickly and decisively to key technologies in which it lagged competitors.
Ray Ozzie, chief technical officer and a newcomer to Microsoft, said in a memo to senior staff that
the company had failed to achieve leadership in key areas of internet technology.
His memo suggested a shift in the technical leadership of the company, with Bill Gates, chairman
and chief software architect, passing on authority for its most significant strategic change in five
years to Mr Ozzie.
In an introduction to Mr Ozzie’s memo, Mr Gates said the ‘next sea change’ was upon the com-
pany. He predicted the Ozzie memo would be as critical as ‘the internet tidal wave’ one he himself
wrote 10 years ago when he issued a rallying cry to the company to embrace the internet.
The memo outlines a similar challenge whereby the growth of broadband, wireless networking and
a new business model around advertising-supported web services and software ‘has the potential to
fundamentally impact how we build, deliver and monetise innovations’.
Mr Ozzie said Microsoft must respond quickly and decisively. ‘It’s clear that if we fail to do so, our
business as we know it is at risk,’ he said. He joined Microsoft in April and is regarded as an industry
visionary.
‘We knew search would be important but through Google’s focus they’ve gained a tremendously
strong position,’ the memo said. And ‘it was Skype, not us, who made VoIP [voice over internet proto-
col] broadly popular.’’
Source: Financial Times (2005b).
Competitive
Resources Capabilities Strategy
advantage
However, not all organisational resources and capabilities will exhibit such attributes,
even within an organisation that enjoys a competitive advantage, and we now consider
in more depth the nature of the capabilities which do and differentiate them from those
that do not.
Leonard-Barton (1992, 1998) lists the various alternative terms used to refer to the concept of core
capability:
Term Source
Distinctive competences Snow and Hrebiniak, 1980
Core competence Prahalad and Hamel, 1990
Firm-specific competence Pavitt, 1991
Resource deployments Hofer and Schendel, 1978
Invisible assets Itami, 1987
32 Part 1 Overview
Leonard-Barton (1992, 1998) develops four dimensions for the concept of core capability:
Managerial systems
This dimension describes the sources that promote, guide and limit knowledge creation in an organis-
ation, and which operate through both formal and informal channels. Knowledge creation related to
desired core capability may be promoted and guided through types of development opportunities,
organisational structures that facilitate this, appropriate rewards systems and internal and external
networking, and so forth. Similarly, these systems can be used to inhibit types of knowledge creation
that are not desired in relation to the strategic intent of the organisation.
implies proactivity related to foresighted strategic intent and indicates the need to avoid
damaging periods of transition or even crisis.
Leonard-Barton (1998) recognises that not all resources within an organisation can
be defined as core capability (i.e. leading to competitive advantage). She identifies two
further categories for these other types of organisational capability, labelled supplemen-
tal capabilities and enabling capabilities. Supplemental capabilities add value to the
activities of an organisation but are not necessary and can be imitated or copied by
others. For example, an organisation’s core capability may be in internet retailing but it
may also have a strong distribution network; this supplements its core capability but is
neither required nor unique when compared to other organisations (see In Practice 1.8).
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 33
In Practice 1.8
Amazon.co.uk’s decision to open a second UK distribution centre was first announced in May 2004
and came following strong international sales growth. A total of 300 employees is expected to be
employed at the centre in 2005 with further temporary staff being recruited to help with the busy
Christmas months. The facility is operating in conjunction with Amazon.co.uk’s existing UK distribu-
tion centre at Marston Gate, near Milton Keynes.
The Gourock distribution centre covers 300,000 sq ft – the size of five football pitches (this com-
pares to Amazon.co.uk’s existing distribution centre at Marston Gate which is 540,000 sq ft) with
almost 3.5 miles of shelving and pallet racks. It handles customer orders from across Amazon.co.uk’s
product range in categories such as Books, Music, DVD, Video, Software, PC & Video Games, Elec-
tronics & Photo, DIY & Tools, Garden & Outdoors, Kitchen & Home, Personal Care and Toys. In
addition to handling UK orders, the facility is dispatching orders to customers across the world.
Source: Scottish Enterprise (2004).
Enabling capabilities will be necessary but not by themselves sufficient to create a situ-
ation of competitive advantage. Leonard-Barton (1998) gives an example of
manufacturing firms that need to establish very high levels of quality in order to com-
pete but this attribute by itself is not sufficient to create competitive advantage since
many such organisations need this just to stay in the industry (i.e. high quality is valu-
able but not rare). In this way, high-quality resources will serve an enabling role but
other resource attributes will need to be developed to make these core capabilities.
A core capability distinguishes itself by its uniqueness, so that it is not easily copied,
or imitated, in other organisations. It offers strategic superiority, leading to sustained
competitive advantage. Core capability within an organisation will become institution-
alised in its ways of operating, linked to the dimensions identified in Key Concepts 1.5.
These dimensions will also contribute to the development and renewal of core capability
if any competitive advantage is to be sustained (Leonard-Barton, 1992, 1998). Leonard-
Barton’s development of the concept of core capability is based, as noted above, on a
‘knowledge-based view’ of the organisation. The management of knowledge, particu-
larly organisation-specific knowledge, is critical in this construction to achieve
competitive advantage. However, as Boxall and Purcell (2003: 83) note: ‘There is really
no point in making a distinction between the resource-based view and the knowledge-
based view of the firm. Whichever of these labels we apply, we end up with the same
argument – that it is a firm’s ability to learn faster than its rivals … that gives it competi-
tive advantage.’ Both the knowledge-based view and the resource-based view focus on
the internal resources of an organisation and in particular the development of core
competence or capability as the principal means to generate the scope for competitive
advantage. The key attribute of these views, as far as this book is concerned, is that they
place organisational resources and, in particular, human resources at the centre of strat-
egy making and it is to the implications for SHRM that we now turn.
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 34
34 Part 1 Overview
In Practice 1.9
If IP [internet protocol] and wireless networks are such hot technologies at the moment, where are the
people who can run them? Europe is facing a damaging shortage of skilled IT workers that could limit
economic growth and international competitiveness in the region.
Three years from now, Europe will need nearly 500,000 more skilled resources than are available
on the job market … Eastern European nations face the widest skills gaps both today and in coming
years, although Hungary and the Czech Republic fare notably better. Russia is expected to have a
shortfall of 60,000 skilled technicians in 2008 ... But even in Europe’s leading economies, demand will
significantly outstrip supply. Although their gaps may be lower in percentage terms, the absolute
number of resources needed will be significant. Germany could lack 88,000 technicians in 2008, while
the UK and France could each face a gap of 40,000 people.
‘There is a perception that ICT [training] is no big deal. But in 2005, no country is really well
positioned. This is a wake up call for all of us,’ warns Yvon Le Roux, a vice president at Cisco. And
there are signs that Europe is already feeling the crunch. Half the organisations that had hired IT staff
in the last 12 months reported difficulty in finding candidates with the right skills. ‘When companies
start stealing employees from each other, there’s a gap,’ says IDC analyst Marianne Kolding ...
The gap is being driven both by the success of new technologies and a failure of training pro-
grammes to keep pace with adoption.
Source: Ian Limbach, Financial Times (2005a).
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 36
36 Part 1 Overview
resource-based competitive advantage. The first of these concerns the scope for human
resource strategies to become a source of competitive advantage, and is related to the
assumptions of resource-based theory (Wright et al., 1994). The second explores the
evolutionary nature of developing resources and capabilities in practice and the implica-
tions of this for the role of human resource strategies (Mueller, 1996). Each of these is
discussed in turn.
The first problem is related to the definition of capability as a source of competitive
advantage that we discussed earlier. Barney (1991) defined resources and capabilities that
lead to sustained competitive advantage as ones that are not only valuable to an organisa-
tion but also rare, inimitable and non-substitutable. Wright et al. (1994) argue that it
would be very difficult for human resource strategies to be rare, inimitable and non-
substitutable, since by their generic nature they can be developed in many different organ-
isations. There is, for example, no shortage of books and articles about HRM, professing
good practice and discussing links to strategy; for this reason, HRM can hardly be thought
of as a mysterious set of practices, known only to those who enjoy competitive advantage
in a particular industry or sphere of operation! However, Wright et al. (1994) argue that,
while human resource practices cannot be a source of competitive advantage in them-
selves, they can nevertheless be linked to the development of core capability and
competitive advantage through their role in developing the human capital pool within an
organisation, and in particular by shaping employee behaviours that lead to effectiveness.
In this way, they argue that human resource practices moderate the relationship between
an organisation’s pool of human capital and its competitive performance. The existence of
a pool of human capital without appropriate human resource strategies, including prac-
tices related to selection, training, involvement, etc. as well as facilitative organisational
structures and culture, may result in reduced organisational performance. Conversely, it is
argued, appropriate human resource strategies will enhance organisational capabilities and
performance, and could lead to competitive advantage where a capability is not only valu-
able but also rare, inimitable and non-substitutable.
Significantly, this position recognises an organisation’s human resources as the source
of competitive advantage, not the human resource strategies that are used to build them.
It makes an important distinction between ‘human resources as a pool of human capital
and human resource practices’ (Wright et al., 1994: 317). Mueller (1996) follows this dis-
tinction by exploring the evolutionary nature of the ways in which resources are
developed and the implications of this for the role of human resource strategies. He
recognises that strategy and its relationship to human resource management have often
been portrayed in an overly rationalistic way. Instead Mueller (1996: 757) ‘proposes an
evolutionary approach to strategic human resources … [where] … truly valuable stra-
tegic assets are unlikely to result directly from senior management policies’. This
effectively returns us to the discussion earlier in this chapter about strategy as an emer-
gent process, where this is formed from a pattern of activities over time. We recognised
earlier that top-down planning approaches often make very simplified assumptions, do
not recognise factors such as social complexity or bounded rationality, and are unlikely
to be realised as intended.
Mueller proposes that strategic human resources are more likely to develop through a
process of evolution rather than as the result of short-term managerial interventions.
Mueller suggests that this can be facilitated by a number of factors. Management can
pursue a state of persistent strategic intent, perhaps underpinned by a unifying theme
such as the pursuit of continuous improvement. This will be important in terms of pro-
SHRM_C01.QXD 14/2/07 15:41 Page 37
viding a focus around which strategy can develop over the longer term. Strategic human
resources can also be promoted by focusing on skills development related to the organisa-
tional routines that underpin organisational capabilities rather than more superficial
training and development programmes. They may also be promoted where there is
organisational recognition of and support for the various forms of spontaneous coopera-
tion and related employee behaviours that develop around organisational routines, linked
to desired capabilities. The role for human resource strategies therefore becomes one of
supporting these spontaneous forms of cooperation and behaviours to embed them into
organisational processes linked to organisational routines and desired capabilities.
Mueller also believes that human resources will be effective if they are integrated with
other strategies or policies aimed at promoting and developing organisational capabili-
ties. He sees this approach as a long-term one and refers to the development of ‘social
architecture’ in an organisation, which ‘results from ongoing skill formation activities,
incidental or informal learning, forms of spontaneous cooperation, the tacit knowledge
that accumulates as the – often unplanned – side-effect of intentional corporate behav-
iour’. Mueller’s view, then, is that human resources may provide a source of competitive
advantage but that the role and contribution of human resource strategies is likely to be a
secondary and supporting one in terms of developing strategic human resources. HRM
may be used to start a process of creating strategic human resources and also to help to
develop them but is not sufficient in terms of their realisation.
How would you relate the resource-based view to the dichotomy between the
planning school and the learning school that we discussed earlier?
Summary
38 Part 1 Overview
the only link to define a strategic approach to HRM. Six possible strands of strategic
integration were identified.
Resource-based theory was analysed because of its recognition of an organisation’s
internal resources as a potential source of competitive advantage. Forms of organisa-
tional capability were analysed and their relationship to human resource
management were evaluated.
What are the key strategy-making processes used in organisation XYZ and what role
does the HR function play in the conduct of these processes?
How does overall organisational strategy influence HR strategy? A survey of private
sector practice.
To what degree are the organisation’s human resources consciously used to develop
strategically important capabilities in the organisation?
SHRM_C02.QXD 14/2/07 15:43 Page 39
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
identify the major principles which underpin the concept of strategic human
resource management (SHRM);
analyse the main theoretical approaches to SHRM;
explain the history and origins of SHRM;
evaluate the studies which aim to establish the link between SHRM and
organisational performance.
SHRM_C02.QXD 14/2/07 15:43 Page 40
40 Part 1 Overview
Introduction
It is now to rather quaint and old-fashioned to hear the work undertaken by HR practition-
ers or HR departments referred to as ‘personnel’. The change which has seen ‘personnel’
re-titled as ‘HR’ has come about in the last few years. It is equally commonplace to hear
HR practitioners talk about the role they play in assisting the direction of the ‘business’ for
which they work (even HR practitioners in the public sector often refer to their organisations
as ‘businesses’). There is obviously an element of fashion in all this. It is clearly leaping
much too far ahead to think that just because a personnel department calls itself ‘HR’
and that it claims to play an important part in contributing to the organisation’s strategic
direction that it is engaging in SHRM. The reality is much more complicated than that.
This chapter takes the two topics of defining SHRM and examining the degree to
which SHRM may be said to be contributing to organisational performance as twin
themes. It is a far from straightforward journey since the process of defining SHRM is
complex and the plotting of a straight path between the conduct of HR practices and
organisational performance is fraught with ambiguities.
The contribution
Theoretical
What is The history and of SHRM to
approaches
Strategic HRM? origins of SHRM organisational
to SHRM
performance
Key models:
The major
Universal Key studies
principles of
Matching (closed) and research
SHRM
Matching (open)
Assessment and
evaluation of
the key models
Figure 2.1 Mapping the strategic human resource management territory: a summary diagram of the chapter content
SHRM is such a complex, multi-faceted phenomenon that is not easy, nor is it particu-
larly helpful, to arrive at a neat all-encompassing definition. Indeed, were one to do so it
would be at best simplistic and at worst misleading. This and the following section of
this chapter clarify some of the major principles fundamental to SHRM and then
explain some of the differing perspectives on SHRM. The intention is not to paint a
black and white portrait of SHRM but to give an overview of the main strands of SHRM
thinking, which set the scene for the remaining chapters in this book.
Sisson (1990: 5) comes as close as any writer in his assessment of the four main prin-
ciples of SHRM, which are:
SHRM_C02.QXD 20/2/07 08:54 Page 41
1. A stress on the integration of personnel policies to form a coherent package, and with
business planning more generally.
2. The locus of responsibility for personnel management no longer resides with specialist
managers but is now assumed by senior line management.
3. The focus shifts from management–trade union relations to management–employee
relations, from collectivism to individualism.
4. There is stress on commitment and the exercise of initiative, with managers now
assuming the role of ‘enabler’, ‘empowerer’ and ‘facilitator’.
The first of Sisson’s principles is perhaps the most fundamental. Indeed, Sisson (1990: 5)
says that ‘the management of people becomes a critical element – some would say the critical
element – in the strategic management of the business’. SHRM derives its ‘strategic’ facet
from the link to wider business strategy and integration between the various HR policies,
procedures and practices: the first termed vertical integration and the second horizontal inte-
gration (Mabey et al., 1998). The second component goes some way to explaining why so
many HR practitioners in the larger organisations are now called ‘HR consultants’. Their
role is to support line managers with advice on the HR aspects of their roles, such as the
disciplining of staff in a way which is consistent with the organisation’s discipline policy
and procedure. The third component of Sisson’s assessment of the main principles of
SHRM relates to a change in the focus of the employment relationship. This has
changed from a concentration upon the relationship between management and trade
unions to that between management and individual employees. This sounds self-evident
in the second half of the first decade of the twenty-first century. The decline of trade
union power and influence is well documented (see Lewis et al., 2003c). Some of this
decline may be attributed to the way in which managers have sought to get ‘closer’ to
their employees through such initiatives as team briefing and other employee involve-
ment techniques (for evidence of the growth employee involvement in the 1990s see
Cully et al., 1999). Another of these employee involvement initiatives is the setting up of
problem-solving groups which are designed to achieve the commitment-seeking and
empowering aims of management noted in the fourth element of Sisson’s assessment.
Similarly Guest (1987) argues that there are four main principles of SHRM:
1. Integration of: relevant employment activities into general organisational strategies
and policies; between HR practices themselves; of line managers in the process of
people management; of all employees into the business.
2. High employee commitment to the goals and practices of the organisation.
3. High-quality staff and internal practices to achieve high-quality products.
4. Flexibility in terms of organisational structure, employee functions and job content
to enable the organisation to respond quickly to change.
There appears to be two similarities with Sisson’s four principles. They agree about
the integration of relevant employment activities into general organisational strategies
and policies and the existence of employee commitment to organisational goals.
It is difficult to argue with Guest’s third principle of high-quality staff and internal
practices producing high-quality products originating from general organisational
strategies and policies which reflect the necessity for such staff and practices. An exam-
ple of a company, the well-known DIY chain B&Q, using the internal HR practice of
giving employees recognition in order to generate commitment and, therefore, quality
customer service, is shown in ‘In Practice’ 2.1.
However, Guest’s fourth element of SHRM – a fluid and adaptive organisational struc-
ture in which flexible employees perform flexible jobs – is less straightforward. On the face
SHRM_C02.QXD 14/2/07 15:43 Page 42
42 Part 1 Overview
In Practice 2.1
B&Q engaged consultants to measure employee engagement across its 327 stores, reflecting the
company’s strong belief that higher employee commitment and satisfaction translates to better cus-
tomer service, which in turn drives higher profits.
A specific area that was targeted for company-wide improvement was that of ‘recognition’. A
question in the employee survey asked, ‘In the last seven days, have you received recognition or
praise for doing good work?’ B&Q’s HR director noted that the response to this question was satis-
factory but that it was an easy one to improve. So in 2002 he introduced what he calls ‘the best
recognition schemes in retail’. These are:
The big B&Q thank you – a monthly award of £50 in Kingfisher Group vouchers for each store and
head office department for an employee with outstanding performance.
The best of the best – an annual award for the highest-performing store staff adviser in each of six
job types, such as cashiers, customer advisers and goods-in staff. Each store nominates its best
performers in each category and they receive a small award, such as a bottle of champagne. The
names go forward to the regional office, which then picks the best out of the region’s stores and
makes more awards. Finally, the six best across all stores each receive a £10,000 home makeover.
B&Q heroes – staff are invited to submit details of a dream they would like to fulfil and the most imag-
inative each year receives a year’s paid sabbatical plus £10,000 to try to pursue their ambition.
The three schemes cost around £500,000 a year and have brought a considerable rise in the
recognition score in the employee survey. The results are part of the store managers’ bonus scheme
which covers managers, deputy managers, assistant managers and team leaders. It is based on store
sales, as well as employee survey scores and customer service scores from 3,000 quarterly customer
interviews conducted by Gallup.
Source: adapted from IRS Employment Review (2003b).
In Practice 2.2
BP work environment
We believe in creating a work environment of mutual trust, respect, inclusion and diversity. Everyone
who works for BP should know what’s expected of them in their jobs and have open and constructive
conversations about their performance.
What to expect
We believe in creating an environment where you can improve your mind, learn more, gain profes-
sional qualifications within your discipline, improve your résumé, and work with and be inspired by
like-minded individuals.
What do we expect?
We expect that you’ll give it your all; that you’ll share our vision for social responsibility and company,
team and individual growth; and that you’ll strive to make a difference every day. One thing is certain.
When you join BP, we want you to be the best you can be. And be yourself.
Open communications
We aim for a radical openness – transparent, questioning, restless and inclusive. A new approach from a
new company. We will be the magnet for people who want to change the world with new ideas, delivering
a performance standard that challenges the world’s best companies. Does that sound like you?
Benefits
Our benefits vary a great deal from country to country, largely because regions vary so much.
Stock options
BP offers most of its employees an opportunity to acquire shares in the company, through savings-
related and matching arrangements. We also use a long-term performance plan and grant share
options as a part of employee remuneration. The exact offerings vary, depending on the country.
Source: BP (2004).
SHRM_C02.QXD 14/2/07 15:43 Page 44
44 Part 1 Overview
It is easy to dismiss such statements as being little more than a series of meaningless clichés
of the ‘people are our most important asset’ type. But such a statement of people manage-
ment philosophy seems to us to be important in a large multi-national corporation such as
BP. In Practice 2.2 portrays to prospective BP employees something of the nature of employ-
ment at BP which should apply to whichever part of the world that person is employed in.
What value would you place in a philosophy statement similar to the BP example
above if you were searching for employment?
employees in many organisations are having for the first time to ask themselves ‘What is
best for the customer?’ not ‘What is best for us?’ It may be true that information technol-
ogy has revolutionised customer service but so has the revolution in organisational
attitudes. Computers have facilitated 24-hour banking but it needs management respon-
siveness to customer needs to have telephone lines staffed for 24 hours.
The second value enshrined in the fourth principle of Hendry and Pettigrew’s is that of
seeing the people of the organisation as a ‘strategic resource’. This strikes at the heart of
some of the earliest writing on HRM. It prompts the question of whether employees are to
be seen as human resources or resourceful humans (Morris, 1974). The former term recalls
Storey’s (1992) oft-quoted phrase that employees, when seen as human resources, are seen
as a ‘headcount resource’ and treated in as rational a way as ‘any other factor of production’
(Storey, 1992: 29). On the other hand, when employees are treated as ‘resourceful humans’,
the emphasis is upon training and development, employee involvement and all the other
HR practices which are designed to optimise the potential of employees. In reality, of
course, it is rarely an either/or situation as both views can co-exist in any organisation at
the same time. A major restructuring programme can, at the same time, involve major
redundancies and initiatives to invest in those employees who are seen as key to the success
of the restructuring programme. Whichever view is adopted, and whether the emphasis is
upon cost reduction or investment in human capital, the human resource is, as Hendry
and Pettigrew note, an important part of the organisation’s strategy
So far all that has been done is discuss a list of major principles underpinning the
concept of SHRM. They do not constitute a theory. It is important to articulate that
theory clearly now. This is that if SHRM is introduced then certain benefits, such as the
acquisition of a customer focused organisational culture, will be the consequence. Such
theories are discussed in the next section.
So far, all that has been done is to outline some of the principles that underpin SHRM. So, if
one wanted to assess the extent to which the organisation’s HRM activities were ‘strategic’,
the best we could do would be to march along with these checklists and tick off those which
we felt were present. This sounds straightforward but unfortunately organisational life is not
as simple as that. The emphasis on integration, in the lists presented above, suggests that
some indication of how the various components of SHRM fit together and interact may be
more helpful. This introduces the idea of SHRM models which dominated the literature in
the early writing on the topic. These models are helpful because they highlight different ways
of thinking about SHRM, but, more importantly, they reinforce, and elaborate, that most
significant of SHRM principles – the link between organisational strategy and HR strategy.
It is not possible to cover all the various SHRM models in this chapter, so some of the
more influential ones in relation to the way in which they portray the link between
organisational strategy and HR strategy are categorised. There are three categories,
labelled: universal models; matching models (closed); and matching models (open) (see
Figure 2.2). The universal approach assumes that there are ‘best HR practices’ which
promise success irrespective of organisational circumstances. The matching models
(closed) approach specifies HR policies and practices which are relevant to specific
organisational situations, whereas the matching models (open) approach defines the
employee behaviours necessitated by the organisation’s overall strategy. These behaviours
are to be delivered through the HR strategy. We now go into more detail on each of these.
SHRM_C02.QXD 14/2/07 15:43 Page 46
46 Part 1 Overview
Universal
models
Matching Matching
models models
(closed) (open)
Universal models
The approach here is, on the face of it, very straightforward. It suggests that there is ‘one
best way’ of achieving HR effectiveness. The link between organisational strategy and
HR strategy is still emphasised but advocates of the universalistic school argue that this
involves top management giving ‘HR practices the profile they deserve in the senior
management process’ (Boxall and Purcell, 2003: 61). Boxall and Purcell go on to say that
the universalists stress the importance of:
top management commitment to key HR practices;
researching the leading edge of best practice;
publicising commitment to specific best practices;
measuring progress towards the best practices;
rewarding line managers for the consistent implementation of the best practices.
Everybody is familiar with the universalist approach. It can be seen in most prescrip-
tive texts, particularly in the many ‘how to be a successful manager’ type of books which
have appeared in recent years. Perhaps the most influential of these is In search of Excel-
lence (Peters and Waterman, 1982). One of the eight key attributes that formed the basis
of Peters and Waterman’s prescription for organisational success was ‘productivity
through people’ – where ‘employees are seen as the key resources of the organisation
and this is emphasised in involvement programmes and through activities designed to
reinforce in employees the importance of their contribution to the success of the organi-
sation and therefore to their own rewards’ (Guest, 1992: 6).
The appeal of these books is their simplicity, but this is also their shortcoming. If the
process of managing is as simple as following a magic number of golden rules then, pre-
sumably, the only unsuccessful managers would be those that never read the books!
There is something a little demeaning in this. There are no books which promise to turn
people into successful doctors, or lawyers or teachers in ten easy steps. Managing is a
complex process underpinned by a wealth of social science theory. If it could be learned
by following a few easy steps then presumably many readers of this book would not be
spending valuable time and money studying the subject.
SHRM_C02.QXD 14/2/07 15:43 Page 47
Before the idea of universalism is dismissed, some of the prescriptions must be exam-
ined. In doing so it must be admitted that there is some sense in the best-practice
approach. Few would deny, for example, that it is better to select employees on the basis
of the demands of the job rather than some vague notion of who may be the ‘best’
person. Similarly, to analyse training needs and set clear training objectives is preferable
to adopting a haphazard approach to training. But we have already demonstrated that an
important aspect of SHRM is that of integration. So immediately there appears to be a
problem with universalism in that often the ‘golden rules’ are discrete; there is no clear
sense of the way in which they interact with one another to produce an effective package.
But before critiquing the universalist approach, an examination of two of the HR-
specific ‘best practice’ prescriptions is conducted. The first, that of Walton (1985), was
extremely influential in early SHRM thinking, and, for that matter, still is. One then goes
on to consider the more recent, and equally well-known, work of Pfeffer (1998).
Walton’s (1985) argument was so influential because he did much to popularise the
idea that certain HR practices implemented in specific ways gave rise to employee com-
mitment; a theme that has subsequently been taken up with great enthusiasm by
academics and managers alike. For Walton this was important because he felt that
American managers (UK managers were little different) had failed to motivate their
employees and realise their latent abilities. Moreover, there had been failure to engage
employees in any sort of partnership, which Walton felt was necessary to serve the inter-
ests of the organisation’s stakeholders. Walton made his theory quite clear. It sounds as
persuasive today as it did 20 years ago.
The strategy of eliciting employee commitment requires that management overhaul a
large number of human resource policy areas. The common theme in the revision of
these policies is the increased mutuality between workers and managers and between
employees and employers. Thus, the new management strategy involves policies that
promote mutuality in order to elicit employee commitment, which in turn can generate
increased economic effectiveness and human development.
(Walton, 1985: 36)
Walton contrasted his commitment model with the traditional model of employee
control which owed much to the scientific management thinking of F.W. Taylor. The sci-
entific management quest was to establish order and control to achieve efficiency. By
contrast, the commitment model is designed to generate high levels of mutual trust
without which ‘management is forced to reinstitute controls to ensure acceptable per-
formance’ (Walton, 1985: 50).
The HR policy areas which Walton highlighted are shown in Table 2.1.
Pfeffer’s (1998) seven practices of successful organisations are shown in Figure 2.3
and have some similarities with Walton’s model, particularly in the policy areas of
teams, reward, employment assurance and employee voice.
The seven practices are:
1. The provision of employment security.
2. Systematic recruitment and selection.
3. Self-managed teams and the decentralisation of decision making as the basic princi-
ples of organisational design.
4. Comparatively high levels of reward based on organisational performance.
5. High investment in staff training.
6. Reduced status differences.
7. Sharing financial and performance information with all the organisation’s employees.
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48 Part 1 Overview
Table 2.1 HR policy areas and the main characteristics with which they are associated
Job design Jobs to be broader and combine planning and implementation; teams to be
emphasised as units of accountability
Performance expectation Emphasis on ‘stretch objectives’; dynamic and based on continuous improvement
Management organisation Flat; emphasises shared goals; based on expertise not position; status differences
minimised
Reward Emphasis upon reinforcing group achievement; emphasis upon contribution not job
evaluation
Employment assurance Great care to be taken to avoid redundancies
Employee voice Mechanisms to be developed for employee involvement; importance placed on
communication of information to employees
Employment relations Less adversarial; develop scope for joint problem solving
Management philosophy Inspiring; legitimate claims of all stakeholders acknowledged; employee needs as
goal not means to end
Sharing
performance
data with
employees
Reduced Systematic
status recruitment
differences and
selection
Provision of
employment
security
High
training Self-managed
investment teams
High
rewards/
performance
related
This chapter will not go into the detail of each of Pfeffer’s seven practices, any more
than it has done with Walton’s, since only these approaches to SHRM are used as exam-
ples of best practice rather than definitive models. More detail on such issues as
recruitment and selection, reward and training are found in later chapters of this book.
However, it is appropriate to give some idea of the main thrust of Pfeffer’s thinking.
Pfeffer argues that employment security is fundamental to the operation of his
seven practices because organisations are unlikely to invest resources in the careful
screening and training of new people if those people are not expected to be with the
organisation long enough for it to recover these investments. He also argues that dele-
gation of operating authority and the sharing of sensitive performance and strategic
information require trust, which is much more likely to emerge in a system of mutual,
long-term commitments.
Central to Pfeffer’s list are the three practices which form the kernel of most HR sys-
tems: recruitment and selection; training; and reward. It is no surprise that Pfeffer
emphasises the importance of systematic recruitment and selection of new employees
with particular attention being paid to a fit between the critical skills, behaviours and
attitudes necessary for successful job performance. Neither is it a surprise that high
investment in staff training is advocated. But Pfeffer bemoans the fact that in the USA
(and, all too often, in the UK) an irrational cycle occurs where training budgets are cut
in times when organisations are not prospering and employees have more time to
undertake training. The same budgets are plentiful in profitable times when employees
have less time to pursue training. The linkage of reward to organisational performance
is central to many high-performance work systems, as explained later in this chapter. It
is also a fundamental component of strategic reward systems, as Chapter 12 illustrates.
There is a logical thread that runs through the remaining three of Pfeffer’s seven
practices of successful organisations: organisational design based on self-managed
teams and the decentralisation of decision making; reduced status differences; and
sharing financial and performance information with all the organisation’s employees.
Pfeffer claims a number of benefits for these practices, all of which have a plausible
ring to them. The general thrust of his argument for all three is that better-quality
decisions will result if those who have to implement the decisions are involved in their
making and possess the necessary information to make those decisions. Moreover, the
process of employee involvement, and the erosion of status differentials (particularly
between white and blue collar employees) will send a symbolic message to employees
that they are trusted and valued with the result that levels of motivation and job satis-
faction will increase.
This chapter may be accused here of suggesting that both Walton and Pfeffer are
oversimplifying their approaches. In fairness, both warn against assuming that imple-
menting the policies they advocate is unproblematic. In addition, Pfeffer points out that
implementing his seven practices piecemeal may be counter-productive. An example of
this may be where organisations are unlikely to derive benefit from their commitment to
training unless changes in work organisation permit these more skilled people to actu-
ally implement their knowledge.
Pfeffer acknowledges the point that the individual practices must be aligned with one
another and be consistent with the overall direction of the organisation if they are to
have a beneficial effect upon organisational performance.
SHRM_C02.QXD 14/2/07 15:43 Page 50
50 Part 1 Overview
such as country, size and product market, are held constant may ‘work’ differently in
another. This is why multi-national corporations, such as McDonald’s, work so hard at
attempting to inculcate a standard culture across countries. More is said about this in
Chapter 3.
52 Part 1 Overview
In what ways do you think the presence of employee voice may be helpful to the
implementation of universalist HR initiatives?
54 Part 1 Overview
Innovation
Developing products or services different from those offered by competitors – the primary focus on
offering something new and different.
Cost reduction
Gaining competitive advantage through being the lowest-cost producer by the use of tight controls,
minimising overheads and pursuit of economies of scale.
Source: developed from Schuler and Jackson (1987).
Schuler and Jackson (1987: 208) define employee behaviours in terms of ‘what is
needed from an employee who works with other employees in a social environment …
rather than thinking about task-specific skills, knowledge and abilities to perform a spe-
cific task’. There are 12 such behaviours which may be assessed by the degree to which
the role demands:
1. creativity;
2. a long/short time focus;
3. independence;
4. concern for quality;
5. concern for quantity;
6. risk taking;
7. concern for process;
8. the assumption of responsibility;
9. flexibility;
10. tolerance of unpredictability;
11. skill application;
12. job (or organisational) involvement.
Table 2.3 shows the required employee behaviours for each of Porter’s three main
types of organisational strategies and the HR techniques that are likely to foster these
different behaviours from employees.
Such matching models are deceptively simple and contain a certain appeal. It must be
of some comfort to the HR director to decide which of the strategies his or her organisa-
tion is pursuing and devise an HR strategy accordingly. But, as ever, life is not as simple
as that. The matching models (closed) are not without their problems.
SHRM_C02.QXD 14/2/07 15:43 Page 55
Table 2.3 Required employee behaviours for each of Porter’s three main types of organisational strategy and the HR
techniques needed to foster these behaviours
Quality Repetitive and predictable behaviours Fixed and explicit job descriptions
enhancement Long to intermediate-term focus Employee participation in job-level
Modest degree of cooperation and decisions
interdependence High emphasis upon empowerment
High concern for quality High emphasis upon teamwork
Modest concern for quantity Concern for giving employees feedback
High concern for process Some emphasis upon job security
Low risk-taking High attention to training and development
High commitment to organisational goals
56 Part 1 Overview
In Practice 2.3
Tesco, the UK’s biggest supermarket chain, is well known for its aggressive pricing policy. This was
the way in which the company built its business from modest beginnings. Yet the company has grown
to its present size pursuing simultaneously strategies of growth through quality, price and innovation.
Tesco operates more than 2,300 stores in 13 countries, including Japan, Poland, Turkey, Hungary,
and a joint venture in China. Tesco said sales at its international operations in Asia and central and
eastern Europe were up 13.1 per cent in 2004. It added that it intended to create 25,000 jobs world-
wide in 2005, including about 11,000 in the UK (BBC News Online, 2005b).
Tesco’s commitment to quality customer service is reflected in its HR policies. The company was
one of the first to sign a partnership deal with its trade union, USDAW. The company reasoned that
delivering the required level of customer service depended on enthusiastic staff who feel they are
valued. The partnership deal allows for communication and consultation at all levels of the organisa-
tion (Thornhill et al., 2000).
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58 Part 1 Overview
The employees of the organisation are seen as a team, unified by a common purpose with all
employees pursuing the same goal.
There is a single source of authority – that source being management.
Since all employees are pursuing the same goal, conflict is irrational; it must be the result of poor
communication or ‘troublemakers’ at work who do not share the common purpose.
The presence of third parties to the employment relationship is intrusive, therefore there is no place
for trade unions.
Source: developed from Fox (1966).
cess’, ignores the host of variables that may conspire to render such an outcome unlikely. In
short, the deterministic perspective is based on assumptions of rationality and unitarism
which disregard the political realities of organisational life (Keenoy, 1990) not the least of
which involve resistance to any threat to existing power bases (see In Practice 2.4).
In Practice 2.4
Lloyds TSB workers threaten to strike in protest over strategic plans to move
call centre jobs to India
Members of finance union Unifi at Lloyds TSB are being balloted over the next few weeks after the
move, which would lead to the loss of 1,000 jobs in Newcastle. The union national officer of Unifi,
said: ‘Staff at the call centre feel completely let down that the bank is putting profits before people.
They want the opportunity to voice their disgust at the way they are being treated.’
A spokeswoman for Lloyds TSB has said the decision to close had been a difficult one and any
staff reductions would hopefully be made through staff turnover and redeployment.
Source: BBC News Online (2003).
60 Part 1 Overview
ENVIRONMENT
Corporate
strategy
Cultural HR Structural
strategies strategies strategies
Desired
employee
behaviours
ENVIRONMENT
Mabey et al.’s model is ambiguous. It could be used in either sense. But what is clear is
the intention of the authors is to convey an impression of strategy driven by wider
organisational purpose which has clear strategy, policy and practice implications for
HRM (see Key Concepts 2.4).
Like all the models explained in this part of the chapter, Mabey et al.’s has a strong
prescriptive ring to it. The authors argue that:
… competitive advantage will accrue to those organisations best able to exploit environ-
mental opportunities and avoid or survive threats; and that the strategic management of
human resources will assist organisations in this by encouraging and generating the
appropriate sets of behaviours, attitudes and competences from employees.
(Mabey et al., 1998: 71)
However, the appeal of the Mabey et al. model is that the nature of the organisational
strategy is not prescribed, neither is the content of the cultural, HR operational and
structural strategies, or, indeed, the desired employee behaviours. It all depends upon
SHRM_C02.QXD 14/2/07 15:43 Page 61
Bookworm was facing competition from a range of alternative suppliers of retail books, principally the
specialist and generalist online suppliers. This meant that the company had to change dramatically
from the way in which it had operated traditionally, which could be characterised as rather staid,
formal, conservative and responding to the demands of the customer. The new retail book environ-
ment needed to be sharper and more entrepreneurial, always thinking up new ideas to anticipate and
meet customer needs.
This meant that Bookworm needed to change the behaviours of its employees, with the emphasis
being upon ‘business-getting’ salespeople rather than ‘librarians’. The newly appointed HR director
went about planning an HR strategy to deliver this change. This involved designing HR activities to
complement the three ‘key levers’ (structural, cultural and personnel strategies) which would have an
impact on employees’ behaviour.
She started by defining the desired employee behaviours. One of these was that she particularly
wanted employees to take responsibility, to think for themselves and not refer every minor decision
(for example, on what specialist books to stock) to central managers. This involved changing the
structure of the organisation with fewer managers and therefore shorter reporting lines.
In terms of personnel strategies, the HR director changed the template of required skills used for
selection, training and appraisal purposes, and devised a new individual performance-related pay
scheme to reflect the importance of employees demonstrating more responsibility in anticipating and
meeting customer needs. She resisted the temptation to implement a major training programme
under the banner of ‘major cultural change’, reasoning that making these changes to structure and
personnel strategies would, by themselves, change the Bookworm culture over time.
the unique organisational context. That said, the Mabey et al. model should be treated
with similar caution to the other models reviewed here. The authors themselves
acknowledge that the model represents a:
… fantastically idealised picture: in reality achieving it is extremely rare, and the risk
in these rarefied discussions of abstract principles of HRS is that people begin to
believe that the world is really like this. It is not.
(Mabey et al., 1998: 70)
Like all the SHRM models in this chapter, the Mabey et al. model is conceptually
simple and, therefore, appealing. However, these authors agree with Mabey et al., that
the operationalisation of the model in order to achieve the desired results is extremely
difficult. Each stage of the process provides its problems, not the least being that, as the
authors themselves admit, the model tends to underestimate the dynamic nature of the
context in which real-life organisations operate. This makes environmental analysis
potentially unreliable for two principal reasons. First, in fast-moving sectors such as
those employing high-technology applications, it is obviously problematic to keep track
of what key actors, such as competitors, are doing in the external environment. Second,
it also ignores the fact that organisational change initiatives, by definition, produce
changing internal (and possibly external) environments.
Such processes as environmental analysis suggest that the Mabey et al. model adopts a
highly rational approach with each step being taken in a cool, detached, systematic
manner. As suggested earlier, this ignores the political dimension of organisational life
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62 Part 1 Overview
and also assumes that employees’ attitudes and behaviours can be changed in a simple
cause–effect manner.
So far it has been shown that SHRM has a distinct identity, which marks it out as dif-
ferent from what has been known as personnel management. It is also more precise than
HRM since it concentrates upon the strategic link between organisational strategy and
HR strategy. Indeed, HRM, certainly in its ‘soft’ orientation, has been associated with a
‘nurturing’ approach to employees; the de-emphasising of conflict; increased communi-
cation; teamwork (Storey, 1992) as well as enhanced employee involvement; investment
in training and development and employment security (Claydon, 2002). Claydon makes
the point that this version of HRM has been portrayed as a ‘win–win’ situation in which
the employer wins the benefit of higher labour productivity with resulting improve-
ments to market share and profitability, and the employee gains a more interesting,
better paid, more secure job with enhanced training and promotion opportunities.
Yet one of the notable aspects of the open approach is that it caters for all types of
strategy, including a combination of the three Porter generic strategies which Schuler
and Jackson used to drive their SHRM model, as analysed earlier. It is perfectly possible
that an organisation (such as Tesco – see In Practice 2.3) may pursue strategies simulta-
neously giving rise to hybrid employee behaviours. For example, a high-tech computer
games design house, which aims to be first in the market with high-quality games at a
competitive price, will need designers who are flexible enough to learn new skills quickly
as a result of a high degree of self-development, work across different projects and pro-
duce high-quality ‘right first time’ results.
What has not been shown is that SHRM, in any of the three orientations we have
explained here, is any more effective in practical terms than any other approach to the
management of employees. There has been increasing interest in providing such evi-
dence in recent years and it is a summary of this which forms the last part of this
chapter. But before we turn to this we describe the history and origins of SHRM.
This chapter has explained that SHRM derives from the 1980s in North America and
was adopted with enthusiasm in the UK in the latter part of the 1980s and 1990s. There-
fore, the temptation is to look at that part of American business history to find the
triggers which prompted such an interest in SHRM. Mabey et al. (1998) argue that this
may be misleading, since SHRM is not that new; it was re-packaged in such a way that it
resonated with other changes which happened in the external environment in that
period. What was new, Mabey et al. (1999: 36) argue, was the ‘combination of old ele-
ments in a new package’. Indeed, as Hendry and Pettigrew (1990) note, one of the
doyens of management writing, Peter Drucker (1954), emphasised the importance of
employees as a key organisational asset over 50 years ago.
Although there is some validity in the argument that SHRM did not arrive unan-
nounced, there is no doubt that many of the changes that occurred in the external
environment in which organisations operate had a profound influence upon the way in
which managers viewed the importance of, and managed, their employees. That which is
the most frequently quoted is the perceived crisis in American business performance
which occurred in the early 1980s. This was due to the fact that American industry, par-
ticularly motor car production, was being outperformed significantly by Japanese
SHRM_C02.QXD 14/2/07 15:43 Page 63
Crisis of under-
performance
in American
industry
Search for
more status The rise of
by personnel individualism
specialists
The growth
of interest
in SHRM
Drive for
quality through Decline in
total quality collectivism
management
The rise of
knowledge
workers with
differing work
expectations
Figure 2.5 Changes in the HRM operating environment of the 1980s and 1990s which are
associated with the growth of interest in SHRM
SHRM_C02.QXD 14/2/07 15:43 Page 64
64 Part 1 Overview
set the tone for changes, replicated throughout Europe, which saw people encouraged to
buy their publicly owned houses and buy shares in newly privatised public utilities such
as gas, telecommunications and rail. Indeed, it may be argued that the decline in invest-
ment in public services for many years was an invitation for individuals to be more
reliant on their own privately financed means and less on services to be provided for the
community at large. The composition of the workforce and the jobs that workers do
have also contributed to the rise in individualism. Jobs in the old ‘smokestack’ industries
often bred a sense of community which grew from many workers doing the same jobs
and often sharing in the hardships imposed by the difficult and physically demanding
nature of these jobs.
The societal shift towards individualism in recent years has been mirrored in HR initia-
tives. SHRM has a distinctly individualist ring to it, as Sisson’s (1990) list of SHRM
principles demonstrates: ‘the focus shifts from management – trade union relations to man-
agement – employee relations, from collectivism to individualism’. The clearest evidence of
this is the growth of performance management (Bach, 2000) in which the individual
employee is set targets and held accountable for their achievement. This approach forces the
employee into a one-to-one relationship with that employee’s manager. Therefore, the treat-
ment that the employee receives from the manager is individualised according to the extent
to which success has been achieved in pursuit of the targets.
Nothing illustrates the notion of individualism at work better than the idea of
‘employability’ where:
SHRM_C02.QXD 14/2/07 15:43 Page 65
… the onus is placed on the individual to ensure accumulation of training and experi-
ence in order to remain attractive in the labour market, whether internal or external.
The employer may provide opportunities for human capital development but it is up
to the individual to take advantage of them. (Boxall and Purcell, 2003: 117–118)
Decline in collectivism
As Sisson’s (1990) quote above notes, the workplace focus has shifted from manage-
ment–trade union relations towards management–employee relations. It would be
misleading to suggest that this has been caused by the rise of individualism. There are
many other contributory factors of which changes in employment structure, particu-
larly the decline of manufacturing industry, is an important one. However, the growing
trend for employees to advance their own cause has been helped by the increasing
amount of employment protection legislation in Europe aimed at the individual, much
of it inspired by the EU. This has led to the membership of trade unions in the UK
declining from approximately 13 million in 1980 to 7.8 million in 2000. At the same
time, the proportion of workplaces without trade union recognition agreements has
increased from approximately one-third to one-half. This decline in the influence of
trade union organisation at the workplace has created a climate where managers can
introduce policies of change, including SHRM initiatives based upon notions of individ-
ualism, such as performance management, without the need for extensive and
time-consuming consultation and negotiation with trade unions. The desire of the UK
Fire Service to introduce more flexible work practices and the resistance to this which
led to a major strike after protracted negotiations, is a case in point. That is not to say
that employers wedded to SHRM principles ride roughshod over employees by intro-
ducing change without consultation. Communication with employees by management
has grown in importance as trade union influence has declined. The 1998 Workplace
Employee Relations Survey (WERS) notes the prevalence of such communication meth-
ods as team briefings, the ‘cascading’ of information via the management chain, regular
newsletters distributed to all employees and regular meetings with the workforce. All of
these bypass the traditional method of communicating with employees in collectively
organised workplaces. This is through the union representatives who sit on various
committees and are charged with twin responsibilities. First, to represent their members’
views at committees and, second, to disseminate the results of the committee meetings.
66 Part 1 Overview
information and, often, labour market power gained through a shortage of key workers,
necessary to pursue their interests.
The role which the proliferation of computer technology has played in increasing the
amount of knowledge workers cannot be underestimated. This has changed the nature
of many jobs and facilitated the emphasis of the workforces of the developed countries
from the production of goods to the processing of information. In the twenty-year
period to 2000 the proportion of manufacturing jobs in the UK declined by one-half
whereas the proportion of financial services jobs doubled (Department for Education
and Employment, 2000). Even many manufacturing jobs have changed in that they
involve workers directing robotised machines by computer.
In general, it is often more of a challenge to employers to attract and retain key mana-
gerial, professional and technical workers than workers whose skills are more easily
replaced. The ways in which this challenge is met are more likely to be individualistic,
e.g. individualised reward packages rather than collective. The repertoire of HR initia-
tives designed to motivate the individual professional and thereby attract and retain that
professional is different from the collective initiatives needed to render compliant the
manual workforce.
manager with an opportunity to raise his or her status through developing HR strategies
in line with organisational strategies. Some evidence that the personnel specialist has
succeeded in this quest to move away from its low-status operational image may be seen
in the latest development of the personnel specialist as ‘internal consultant’; a role in
which, for example, he or she may review the way in which HR activities are carried out
and suggest resolutions to problems (Kenton and Moody, 2004). In addition, the inter-
nal HR consultant often has a key role to play in designing HR initiatives to generate and
complement organisation change programmes.
How influential would you say that the factors noted in Figure 2.4 were in creating
the drive to introduce SHRM in major organisations?
The content of this section is based on the theory that the practice of SHRM will con-
tribute to the overall effectiveness of the organisation. The attempt to demonstrate a link
between personnel management practices and such ‘hard’ outcomes as profit or, even
less remote outputs as employee satisfaction, has been the Holy Grail of people manage-
ment specialists for many years. The complaint has always been that so many other
factors can impinge upon the relationship between the particular practice and the
desired outcome that measurement is at best problematic, at worst pointless. This may
be one explanation for the notorious reluctance of HR specialists to evaluate the effec-
tiveness of HR policies and practices. What a blessing it would be if HR managers could
present chief executive officers (CEOs) and finance directors with irrefutable proof that,
say, an individual performance-related pay scheme produced a 50 per cent increase in
production. The reality, of course, is that many other factors, for example, the general
feel-good atmosphere created by a large order which guarantees future employment,
may account for a significant proportion of the increase.
It follows that the attempt to show that there is a cause–effect link between HR and
organisational effectiveness has been a major concern of researchers in recent years.
Some of the most influential studies in this section are reviewed. All the studies reviewed
have focused on SHRM in the sense that they assume vertical integration, a close
relationship between HR and business strategy rather than simply attempting to meas-
ure the effectiveness of individual HR practices. Some of the studies treat HR practices
as groups or ‘bundles’ of activities, thus emphasising the importance of horizontal inte-
gration between practices.
It is possible to trace a line of development chronologically through the studies cov-
ered here. The earlier studies from the mid-1990s concentrate on statistical
relationships between HR practices and organisational effectiveness, whereas the later
studies, in particular that of Purcell et al. (2003), attempt to explain what it is that
people management practitioners actually ‘do’ that leads to organisational success. Each
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68 Part 1 Overview
of the studies has its strengths and weaknesses but one thread seems to run through
most of them: they are very confident about the effect of HR practices on the ‘bottom
line’. This confidence is shared by the UK’s Chartered Institute of Personnel and Devel-
opment (2001: 4) which states:
More than 30 studies carried out in the UK and the US since the early 1990s leave no
room to doubt that there is a correlation between people management and business
performance, that the relationship is positive, and that it is cumulative: the more and
the more effective the practices, the better the result.
Lack of space here prevents this chapter from giving little more than a taste of the
studies chosen. However, although some thoughts have been offered on the strengths
and weaknesses of each study, it is the intention here to allow readers to judge how justi-
fied the researchers are in their confidence that there is a clear link between HR and
business performance.
One of the early studies by MacDuffie (1995) (Key Concepts 2.5) made a significant
contribution to the HR–organisational performance debate by conceptualising SHRM
as the application of ‘bundles’ of policies and practices rather than treating them as sep-
arate entities.
MacDuffie (1995)
Theoretical background: MacDuffie’s starting position was in the Walton (1985) tradition. He argued
that innovative HR practices are the way to secure employee commitment to the organisation and
such commitment is essential if employees are to apply the amount of discretionary effort required for
high performance. In addition, he was interested in establishing the extent to which a specified
‘bundle’ of HR practices would be more effective than such practices implemented individually.
Research strategy and method: MacDuffie studied flexible production systems in the auto industry.
Flexible production systems are characterised by the reduction of stock inventories and the elimina-
tion of ‘buffer’ areas such as those concerned with product repair space which create ‘slack’ in the
production process. MacDuffie reasoned that these characteristics would have three major conse-
quences: (1) the increase of interdependencies within the production process; (2) the highlighting of
production problems; and (3) searches for improvements to the production process to solve these
problems. His hypothesis was that innovative HR practices have an important role to play in such
flexible production systems. MacDuffie argued that workers in flexible production systems need a
good grasp of the production process and analytical skills to diagnose problems.
The data were collected by questionnaires and interviews with plant managers. The study sought
to assess the effect upon labour productivity and quality of three variables: (1) the use of ‘buffers’; (2)
work systems (e.g. the use of work teams and employee involvement groups); and (3) HR policies,
relating to those involved in the production process, of selection, performance-related reward, status
differences and training and development.
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MacDuffie developed two specific hypotheses: (1) that innovative HR practices affect performance
not individually but as interrelated elements in an internally consistent ‘bundle’ and (2) the HR
‘bundle’ is effective in contributing to manufacturing plant productivity and product quality when they
are integrated with flexible production systems.
Results and conclusions: MacDuffie argues that the evidence from his study supported the hypoth-
esis that assembly plants using flexible production systems which use HR ‘bundles’ that are
integrated with the production strategy outperform plants using traditional mass production systems
on both measures of productivity and quality.
Study strengths: (1) Treats HR practices as integrated ‘bundles’ rather than separate practices. (2)
Uses contextually relevant measures of organisational performance. (3) Study rooted in specialist
knowledge of manufacturing production process.
Study limitations: (1) Employee commitment and competence are theoretical principles which are
important to the study but they are not measured. One would expect the HR ‘bundle’ to promote high
levels of commitment and competence which in turn would yield high productivity and quality meas-
ures. (2) It is not clear how the components of the HR ‘bundle’ were chosen. It seems that important
elements (e.g. job security) may have been omitted (Richardson and Thompson, 1999). (3) The study
is industry specific and may not generalise to other employment contexts. (4) The data are gathered
from plant managers so there is no input from employees or HR specialists.
The research by Huselid (1995) (Key Concepts 2.6) was equally important in that
he emphasised the ‘strategic fit’ aspect of SHRM. Like MacDuffie, Huselid concentrated
on quantitative analysis of large data sets in the attempt to give validity and reliability to
his results.
Huselid (1995)
Theoretical background: Huselid’s position was that HR practices can affect HR performance in
terms of their levels of skill and motivation and through adjustments to organisational structures
which allow better job performance. Increased levels of employee skill and motivation will lead to
lower employee turnover and higher productivity. As long as the expenditure on the HR practices
designed to yield lower employee turnover and higher productivity does not exceed their true costs
then lower employee turnover and higher productivity should lead to enhanced corporate financial
performance. Furthermore, Huselid argued that the concept of strategic fit was important. Enhanced
organisational performance will follow if HR practices complement and support one another. Similarly,
enhanced organisational performance will be the consequence if the system of HR practices is
aligned with the organisation’s competitive business strategy.
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70 Part 1 Overview
Research strategy and method: Huselid sought to test four specific hypotheses: (1) systems of
high-performance work practices will reduce employee turnover and increase productivity and cor-
porate financial performance; (2) employee turnover and productivity will be the link between systems
of high-performance work practices and corporate financial performance; (3) complementarities or
synergies between high-performance work practices will reduce employee turnover and increase pro-
ductivity; (4) alignment of a firm’s high-performance work practices with its competitive strategy will
reduce employee turnover and increase productivity.
Questionnaires were sent to 12,000 US firms which yielded 3,452 replies, a 28 per cent response
rate. The questionnaire was sent to the senior HR manager in each firm. The questionnaire asked about
13 high-performance work practices which Huselid grouped into two main categories, which he called
‘employee skills and organisational structures’ and ‘employee motivation’. The former category included
practices designed to enhance employees’ knowledge and skills and thereafter a structure in which
those knowledge and skills could be applied in job performance. These practices included: job design;
sophisticated employee selection; training and development; employee participation programmes,
including profit-share schemes. The category he called ‘employee motivation’ included practices to
recognise and reinforce the desired employee behaviours developed by practices in the first category.
These included: performance appraisal; individual performance-related pay; and merit-based promo-
tion. In addition, respondent views were sought on the extent to which there was consistency between
the HR practices and between the HR practices and the firm’s competitive strategy.
Employee turnover equated to the firm’s average annual turnover rate and productivity was meas-
ured as sales per employee. Corporate financial performance was assessed in two ways: gross rate
of return on capital and the market value of the firm divided by the costs of its assets.
Results and conclusions: Huselid found broad support for the hypothesis that systems of high-
performance work practices will reduce employee turnover and increase productivity and corporate
financial performance. This applied across industries and firm size. Indeed, the strength of the associ-
ation was substantial. However, he found only modest support for the third and fourth hypotheses:
that higher levels of internal and external fit will lead to better firm performance.
Study strengths: (1) Huselid adopts an explicitly strategic perspective in that he seeks to measure
the effect of both internal and external fit. (2) He attempts to overcome one of the main methodologi-
cal problems with this type of research, the problem of reverse causality. This means that, in this
study, it is a concern that the firms may introduce high-performance work practices because they are
successful rather than such practices causing organisational success. Huselid does this by introduc-
ing the intermediate measure of employee turnover and higher productivity rather than measuring
directly the effect on firm performance of high-performance work practices. (It is difficult to imagine
firms introducing high-performance work practices because they have low employee turnover and
high employee productivity.) (3) Large sample size and breadth of industrial coverage.
Study limitations: (1) The data are gathered from HR specialists with no input from employees.
(2) Data are collected at company level which does not allow for differences in separate workplaces in
multi-workplace organisations (Richardson and Thompson, 1999). (3) The fact that this is a ‘snapshot’
piece of research rather than longitudinal (over a period of time) weakens any claim that high-
performance work practices cause enhanced organisational performance.
The work of both MacDuffie and Huselid was carried out in the USA whereas Patter-
son et al. (1997) (Key Concepts 2.7) were commissioned by the UK’s Institute of
Personnel and Development. Theirs was a longitudinal study, which allowed the
researchers to measure the effect of the introduction of HR practices over time. In addi-
tion it concentrated on single site and single-product workplaces in order to make
comparisons more valid.
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Theoretical background: Patterson et al.’s point of departure was similar to that of other similar
studies. They assumed that: (1) employees are the organisation’s valuable resource; and (2) that the
management of employees makes a difference to company performance. More specifically, they
devised four research questions: (1) Is there any relationship between employee attitudes (i.e. job
satisfaction and employees’ commitment to their organisations) and company performance?
(2) Does organisational culture predict subsequent organisational performance? (3) Do human
resource management practices make a difference to organisational performance and, if so, which
of these practices are the most important? (4) How do other management practices (i.e. competi-
tive strategies, quality emphasis, research and development investment, investment in technology)
compare with human resource management practices in terms of their influence upon organisa-
tional performance?
Research strategy and method: This was part of a ten-year study which began in 1991 aimed at
establishing the factors that affect organisational effectiveness. Organisations’ economic perform-
ance data were collected annually from 1990. Senior managers in the companies were interviewed
every two years from 1991 and 36 of the companies’ employees participated in employee attitude
and organisation culture surveys in the early stages of the research. The companies were predomi-
nantly single-site, single-product operations with less than 1,000 employees.
Interviews were carried out with four or five senior managers in each of the 67 organisations,
organisational documentation was gathered and observational tours of production plants were under-
taken. In 36 of the organisations, employee attitude and culture survey questionnaires were sent to
employees.
Company performance was measured by productivity (sales per employee) and profitability (profit
per employee). For each company, performance data for two time periods were collected: (1) the
average of the company’s performance for the three years prior to the measurement of HRM prac-
tices, culture and employee attitudes; and (2) the average of the company’s performance for the year
following the measurement of HRM practices, culture and employee attitudes.
Job satisfaction was measured by 15 items ranging from relations with fellow team members and
managers; to job autonomy, variety and responsibility; physical work conditions; pay; hours; recogni-
tion; job security; attention paid to suggestions; opportunities to use abilities; and promotion
opportunities. Organisational commitment was measured by three components: identification with,
involvement in and loyalty towards the company.
The HR practices measured were grouped under two headings which reflect the interrelated nature
of the practices which Patterson et al. wished to portray: ‘acquisition and development of employee
skills’ (selection, induction, training and appraisal) and ‘job design’ (skill flexibility, job responsibility,
job variety and use of formal teams).
Two data analysis strategies were employed: (1) the HR practices culture and employee attitude
data were related to the average of the company’s performance for the year following the measure-
ment of HRM practices, culture and employee attitudes; and (2) the researchers investigated
whether higher levels of HRM practices, culture and employee attitudes were positively related to an
increase in organisational performance by controlling for prior performance when predicting subse-
quent performance.
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72 Part 1 Overview
Study strengths: (1) This is a longitudinal study with a before–after measurement and therefore does
allow attempts to measure the effect of the introduction of HR practices over time. (2) The study does
include employee as well as managerial interview data. (3) Mixed data collection methods were used
which added to the validity of the data. (4) The single-site and single-product nature of the sample
makes comparison more valid.
Study limitations: (1) The study was restricted to manufacturing companies, raising the question of
generalisability. (2) Although the study is confident in its assertion that a link exists between HR and
company performance, it does not explain why this link exists, i.e. what it is about the HR practices
which cause enhanced company performance.
Like MacDuffie and Patterson et al., Youndt et al. (1996) concentrated on the manu-
facturing industry. Their study is useful in the light of this chapter because they were
concerned with the difference between what we have called the universal and the contin-
gency (matching) approaches to SHRM. This study is interesting because of the
performance measures the researchers use. Youndt et al. spurned what some may argue
is a rather indefinite relationship between HR and financial performance measures and
used manufacturing outputs such as production lead time. Although this study (like the
others) has its limitations, in the authors’ view it makes a valuable contribution to the
debate (Key Concepts 2.8).
The research by Guest et al. (2000) (Key Concepts 2.9) was also commissioned by the
Chartered (as it had become by then) Institute of Personnel and Development. It is
based on a very clearly articulated model of HR–organisational effectiveness linking and
a large-scale data set.
SHRM_C02.QXD 14/2/07 15:43 Page 73
Theoretical background: Youndt et al.’s starting position was that the value of human capital is par-
ticularly important in manufacturing companies that have invested in advanced manufacturing
technologies since these technologies rely heavily upon employee skills and commitment to achieve
superior performance. They were also particularly interested in drawing a comparison between the
universal HR approach and the contingency (matching) approach. They had three overall research
objectives: (1) determine the extent to which HR systems enhance performance; (2) analyse the mod-
erating effects of manufacturing strategy on the relationship between HR and operational
performance; (3) assess the extent to which particular manufacturing strategies and HR systems are
actually used in conjunction with one another.
Research strategy and method: Youndt et al. calculated operational performance using eight meas-
ures: product quality, employee morale, on-time delivery, inventory management, employee
productivity, equipment utilisation, production lead time and scrap minimisation. HR practices were
grouped into aggregate indexes. One they called administrative HR system (including selection for
manual skills, procedural training, results-based performance appraisal, hourly pay) and, the other,
human capital enhancing system (including selection for technical and problem-solving skills, com-
prehensive training, developmental performance appraisal, skill-based pay). Manufacturing strategy
was grouped into three types: cost reduction, quality enhancement and flexibility.
The research hypotheses developed were: (1) A human-capital enhancing HR system will be posi-
tively associated with operational performance. (2) Manufacturing strategy moderates the relationship
between HR systems and operational performance. (3) A cost manufacturing strategy will positively
moderate the relationship between an administrative HR system and operational performance. (4) A
quality manufacturing strategy will positively moderate the relationship between an administrative HR
system and operational performance. (5) A flexible manufacturing strategy will positively moderate
the relationship between a human-capital enhancing HR system and operational performance.
Questionnaires were sent to plant general managers to ask them about HR activities and plant per-
formance. Questionnaires were also sent to functional managers (operations, quality, production and
HR) in the same plants to ask them about HR practices used in the plants. Eighteen months later a
similar questionnaire was sent to all the managers who responded to the initial survey.
Results and conclusions: The study found general support for the contingency (matching) strategy
particularly as the human-capital enhancing HR system delivered operational performance enhance-
ments when linked to the quality enhancement manufacturing strategy. However, the researchers
point out that administrative HR systems are appropriate in certain strategic contexts. They found
that administrative HR systems interact with the cost manufacturing strategy to enhance employee
productivity and also work in conjunction with a flexible manufacturing strategy to improve customer
satisfaction. Although Youndt et al. hypothesised that flexible manufacturing strategies require high-
skill employees, they point out that it may be that flexible manufacturing strategies may be based on
flexible machines rather than flexible jobs.
Study strengths: (1) Particularly useful for the light it throws upon the distinction between the univer-
sal HR approach and the contingency (matching) approach. (2) Some longitudinal element in data
collection.
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74 Part 1 Overview
Study limitations: (1) Based upon self-report questionnaires with no data collected from public
sources (e.g. financial performance). (2) No data collected from employees. (3) The study was
restricted to manufacturing companies. (3) Little insight into why link exists between HR practices
and operational performance. (4) This study only looked at the moderating effects of manufacturing
strategy on the HR practices–operational performance link. The researches point out that there could
be other variables (e.g. organisational structure or technology) which could have affected the results.
Theoretical background: The study is based on a model developed by Guest (1997). In this model
Guest argues that the financial performance of companies is influenced by four factors: business and
HR strategies; effectiveness of HR departments and HR practices; HR outcomes; and productivity
coupled with product and service quality. Put simply, the model contends that business and HR
strategies will point to the appropriateness of certain HR practices. The extent to which the HR prac-
tices are conducted effectively together with the effectiveness of the HR department will influence the
achievement of the HR outcomes which Guest specifies: employee competence, commitment and
flexibility. These three HR outcomes will in turn affect productivity and product and service quality
which will have a significant influence upon the company’s financial performance.
Research strategy and method: The study concentrated upon the private sector, both manufactur-
ing and service. The respondents were heads of HR and CEOs. The research report is based upon
interviews with 835 companies and over 1,000 managers. In 237 companies there were matched
responses from both the head of HR and the CEO.
Two separate questionnaires were sent: one to CEOs and the other to heads of HR. The head of
HR questionnaire asked questions about: the workforce, HR strategy and practices, HR outcomes
and performance outcomes. The CEO questionnaire covered: HR strategy, a limited amount of HR
practices, HR outcomes and performance outcomes, and additional questions on the business strat-
egy and the state of the market in which the company operated.
Results and conclusions: (1) The most important factor in the defining of business strategies was
responsiveness to customers (74 per cent) and high service quality (59 per cent), whereas beating
competitors on price was rated lowly (10 per cent). (2) Only 10 per cent of managers thought issues
concerning people were more important than finance or marketing. (3) Only one-quarter of organi-
sations had more than 50 per cent of a list of 18 typical HR practices in place. (4) The most highly
rated areas of HR activity were internal labour market practices (promotion from within) and
employment security. (5) Managers rated employee flexibility and performance outputs highly. (6)
Approximately one-half of CEOs rated their company’s productivity and financial performance as
above average for their industry. (7) Overall responses led the researchers to conclude that there
was link between HR practices and HR department effectiveness, employee attitudes and behav-
iour and corporate performance.
SHRM_C02.QXD 14/2/07 15:43 Page 75
Study strengths: (1) The sample size was one of the biggest in all the studies linking HR with cor-
porate performance. (2) There was an attempt to measure the effectiveness, rather than simply the
presence, of HR practices. (3) The clarity with which the research is based upon the variables which
link HR and organisational performance.
Study limitations: (1) Interviews were by telephone, which limited the degree of ‘insight’ which could
be developed by researchers (particularly when contrasted with, for example, the observational tours
of production plants undertaken by Patterson et al.). (2) The absence of employee data. (3) The self-
report nature of the managerial responses which raises questions about respondent objectivity. This
is particularly relevant where questions about such items as organisational performance in relation to
competitors are concerned. (4) Although the study points to the relationship between certain key vari-
ables it is less helpful in explaining the reasons for certain associations between variables.
The work of Purcell et al. (2003) (Key Concepts 2.10), also sponsored by the Chartered
Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), is different from its predecessors. It sets
out to be different in that is attempts to establish not only the extent to which HR is associ-
ated with organisation performance but, more importantly, ‘to unlock the “black box” to
show the way in which HR practices – or what the CIPD terms ‘people management’,
meaning all aspects of how people are managed – impact on performance’ (Purcell et al.,
2003: ix). The UK study is also different in that it does not concentrate on manufacturing
companies. Of the 12 case study organisations featured in the research, only Jaguar Cars
may be said to be a traditional manufacturer. The remaining organisations are in high-
technology production, retail, financial services, health care and management services.
Theoretical background: The theoretical framework which is tested in the study holds that employee
performance is a function of ability + motivation + opportunity. That is that people perform when they
possess the knowledge and skills necessary for the job, are motivated to perform and, finally, are given
sufficient opportunity to deploy the skills and contribute to workgroup and organisational success.
More specifically the theoretical propositions were:
Performance-related HR practices work only if they induce discretionary behaviour.
Discretionary behaviour is more likely to occur if employees have commitment to their organisation
and/or they feel motivated to act in such a way that they exhibit discretionary behaviour and/or
they gain job satisfaction.
Commitment, motivation and job satisfaction are greater when they experience policies imple-
mented to create a more able workforce, including opportunities to participate.
A positive employee experience is improved if the HR policies designed to create ability + motiva-
tion + opportunity are in place and are mutually reinforcing.
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76 Part 1 Overview
Front-line managers have a key role in shaping the employee attitudes necessary to deliver dis-
cretionary behaviour through their implementation of HR policies and enactment of organisational
values and culture.
Success in achieving performance outcomes helps to reinforce positive attitudes.
Research strategy and method: The research was carried out over a two-and-a-half year period
from 1999. In each organisation, interviews were carried out with one unit of analysis (e.g. one depart-
ment). The interviews were with senior decision-makers, first-line managers/team leaders and
front-line employees. Interviews were repeated 12 months later to allow changes to be noted. Ques-
tionnaires were administered face-to-face; there was no self-completion.
The HR practices which the researchers measured were those designed to deliver ability + motiva-
tion + opportunity and interrelate one with another. The list comprised 11 practices not dissimilar from
those listed in the ‘universalist’ lists earlier in this chapter with the notable addition of job
challenge/autonomy and work–life balance. The researchers also sought to measure employee com-
mitment, motivation and job satisfaction as well as employee views of the way in which front-line
managers did their job. The performance measures used for each organisation were unique to that
organisation – those that each organisation felt were most important.
Results and conclusions: One of Purcell et al.’s key findings was that the HR–performance link was
associated with the existence of a ‘big idea’ (e.g. quality at Jaguar), underpinned by similar values
and culture. Another important finding was the centrality of the role played in employee management
by front-line managers. By communicating, problem solving, listening to employee suggestions,
coaching and showing employees fairness and respect, front-line managers brought HR policies to
life. Such employee treatment by front-line managers was found to bring discretionary effort from
employees – the desire to go the ‘extra mile’. The existence of certain HR policies and practices was
found to be less important than the way in which they were implemented.
There were distinct patterns in the association between certain HR policies and practices and
enhanced employee commitment, job satisfaction and motivation, albeit that there were clear differ-
ences between occupational groups. Career opportunities, job influence, job challenge, training,
performance appraisal, team working, involvement in decision-making, and work–life balance were all
associated with enhanced employee commitment, job satisfaction and motivation. On the other hand,
lower employee commitment was associated with poor execution of existing policies rather than the
absence of those policies.
Overall, Purcell et al. found that the highest performing organisations were those that could sustain
their performance over time and linked people management policies and practices with that perform-
ance. This meant that HR policies and practices fitted with business strategy and were flexible
enough to help adapt to new environmental conditions.
Study strengths: (1) The most significant strength of this study is the ‘black box’ dimension. It is the
only study that attempts to go beyond statistical associations and understand ‘what is going on’ in
the key HR processes which lead to organisational performance. (2) Some longitudinal element in
data collection. (3) Different performance measures for each organisation, which are likely to lead to
more meaningful performance data. (4) The varied nature of the markets in which the case study
organisations operate. (5) Employee responses gathered.
Study limitations: (1) The longitudinal element of the study meant that, inevitably, some of the
respondents had left their organisations by the time the second round of interviews took place. (2)
Not using standardised measures to assess organisational performance meant potentially more rele-
vant measures were applied. However, in some organisations there was difficulty in obtaining
performance data. Overall, the team noted difficulty in separating the impact of HR policies and prac-
tices on organisational performance from the impact of variables such as market fluctuations and
technological changes.
SHRM_C02.QXD 14/2/07 15:43 Page 77
What practical contribution do you think the studies linking HR and organisational
performance listed in this section have made to the practice of SHRM?
Summary
The main principles of SHRM include:
a stress on the integration of personnel policies both one with another and with
78 Part 1 Overview
Search the specialist practitioner HR literature for case studies that illustrate the way
in which clear and cogent organisational philosophies inform HR strategy.
From Pfeffer’s (1998) book, make notes on the rationale for his recommendation of
seven practices of successful organisations and assess the extent to which you think
this rationale is valid.
Look up ‘employee competences’ in an internet search engine and, from help offered
on the sites you find, compile a list of desired employee behaviours consistent with
the need to develop employees equipped to deliver high-quality customer service.
Compare the research studies by MacDuffie (1995) and Huselid (1995) and assess the
strengths and weaknesses of both.
Read the research report by Purcell et al. (2003) as an HR manager and make a list of
the lessons that you think you could apply in your organisation or one with which
you are familiar.
To what extent may the HRM activity in ABC organisation be termed ‘strategic HRM’?
What have been the effects of the major change programme in ABC organisation on
HR strategy, policies and practices?
Test the appropriateness of Mabey et al.’s open SHRM model in ABC organisation.
Compare the validity of Pfeffer’s list of key HR practices in private sector manufac-
turing and financial services.
Does Purcell et al.’s theory that employee performance is a function of ability + moti-
vation + opportunity apply equally in the public and private sectors of employment?
SHRM_C03.QXD 14/2/07 15:48 Page 79
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
80 Part 1 Overview
Introduction
In any book or article on changes in the business environment in recent years there will
be emphasis upon the growth in international business. The important effect this has
had upon the way organisations conduct their affairs touches upon all aspects of the
organisational life: not the least of which is HRM. This chapter examines the concept of
strategic international HRM (SIHRM). Not surprisingly, this examination tends to con-
centrate upon the role of multi-national corporations (MNCs) in the conduct of SHRM,
since it is in these organisations that SIHRM is more developed and more visible.
The chapter starts with an analysis of the background to international business.
This analysis concentrates upon why organisations want to conduct international
business and some of the main methods by which they pursue their international
goals. It is argued that the time spent on this is worthwhile, in order to gain a greater
understanding of the context in which SIHRM takes place. An example of this is the
statistics which show the enormity of the scale of international trade. The main body
of the chapter is an en examination of the concept of SIHRM. This uses a well-known
conceptual model to structure the examination and examples from across the world.
The chapter ends with a study of SIHRM from two important perspectives: capability
and culture. Capability refers to the ability of those people, including HR profession-
als, responsible for international business. It is an area that is receiving an increased
amount of attention. The importance of national cultures is more well known and no
coverage of SIHRM would be complete without consideration of this key issue.
Key capabilities
Why develop Defining
and Key issues
internationally? SIHRM
competencies
Figure 3.1 Mapping the international strategic human resource management territory: a summary diagram of the
chapter content
SHRM_C03.QXD 14/2/07 15:48 Page 81
In Practice 3.1
Finding Nemo, the film about a clownfish’s attempt to find his lost son, is the first animated movie to
make more than $500 million in sales outside the USA. It has now made $504.2 million (£278.5million)
outside the USA, including $93 million (£51.3 million) in Japan, reports UK industry newspaper Screen
International (BBC News Online, 2004c). The film reached number one in the UK when it was released in
October 2003. In France the film made $63 million (£34.8 million) and looks set to overtake the total
made by the Disney-animated hit The Lion King. Finding Nemo’s records also included an opening
weekend worth $310,000 (£171,000) in Turkey, a record for an animated film there. The film is produced
by the animation studio Pixar, which has also made such hits as Toy Story and Monsters, Inc.
Subsequent DVD sales of the movie helped Pixar’s net income in the first three months of 2005 to
rise to $81.9 million (£43 million) compared with $26.7 million a year earlier. Sales rose to $161.2 million
from $53.8 million a year ago (BBC News Online, 2005a).
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82 Part 1 Overview
In Practice 3.2
German auto giant, Volkswagen AG, reported a sales growth of 32.9 per cent in the booming Chinese
market for the first nine months of 2003, selling nearly half a million vehicles. The growing demand in
the Chinese auto sector contributed to the group’s 26.8 per cent sales growth in the Asia-Pacific
region, which saw 570,000 vehicles sold from January to September, said a statement from Volkswa-
gen Automobile (China) Investment Co., Ltd.
Meanwhile, car sales in the company’s traditional European and North American markets shrank by
3.5 per cent and 6.3 per cent respectively compared with the same period in 2002. Sales in Canada
dropped by 6.4 per cent and in Japan by 7.4 per cent, according to the Volkswagen’s statement.
The company, affected by the slow recovery of the world economy, a strong euro, plus losses in its
Brazilian market, saw a 1.2 per cent drop in global auto sales over last year to 3.71 million in the first
nine months.
Volkswagen, the biggest automaker in China, is ambitious about expanding in the world’s fastest
growing economy. The company announced earlier this year that it planned to increase capacity to
one million units by 2007 and that it would build two more factories by 2008.
Source: China Daily (2003).
up to 200,000 vehicles every year under Hyundai’s Kia brand. Hyundai were thought to be
influenced by Slovakia’s low labour costs and financial incentives offered by the host coun-
try (BBC News Online, 2004g).
84 Part 1 Overview
The WTO smoothes the path to trade between the USA and China
There is no doubting the huge significance of China’s entry to the WTO in 2003. This has led to the
removal of restrictions on trading and distribution that will allow US companies to put their products
directly into Chinese shops (Financial Times, 2004). The USA has been indignant over the practice,
commonplace in China, of illegally copying US movies, software and music. However, China has
mounted an ‘action plan’ that its officials said would lead to a measurable reduction in piracy. Beijing,
for example, will change its laws to allow for criminal penalties against a wider array of violations, and
make it an offence to import or export counterfeited material.
Both the USA and China seemed optimistic that deals like these will help to defuse tensions in the
USA–China trade relationship. US exports to China are growing rapidly. Despite a record $124 billion
trade deficit with China in 2003, US sales to China have grown 76 per cent over three years,
2001–2004, while falling to the rest of the world.
Source: Financial Times (2004).
The reasons that companies pursue a strategy of internationalisation are not new.
Historically, empires have been built on thriving international trade. Yet the rate of
growth of international trade has grown apace in recent years. Why should this be?
take two forms: direct and indirect. Direct exporting, on the one hand, takes the form of
a company producing and selling goods to foreign customers. On the other hand, indi-
rect exporting may be a domestic manufacturer importing goods from a foreign
exporter and incorporating these goods as components in the manufacture of a product,
which may in turn be exported. Some idea of the growth of importing and exporting
can be seen from the fact that during the 30-year period from 1948, annual world
exports grew by 6 per cent against a background of output growing by 3.8 per cent
(Harrison et al., 2000). In the UK alone, exports accounted for approximately £189,000
million and imports £250,000 million in 2002 (uktradeinfo, 2005).
Foreign direct investment (FDI) outflows from the USA reached $252 billion in 2004 – up from $141 billion
in 2003 to hit an all-time record. While this to some extent was reflected in the weakness of the dollar, it
also confirmed continuing strong interest among US companies in acquiring corporate assets abroad.
Of the largest 25 cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in 2004, five had a US-based company
as the acquirer. A recovery of M&A activity in 2004, meanwhile, has carried on into 2005. On present
trends, both inward and outward FDI in OECD (Organisations for Cooperation and Development) countries
could increase by 10–15 per cent in 2005, OECD estimates suggest.
Inward FDI into Germany and France, the two largest economies of the European continent, fell
sharply in 2004. In France, inward investment almost halved, falling from $43 billion to $24 billion. In
the case of Germany, foreign investors actually withdrew about $39 billion from the country, reversing
the inflow of $27 billion recorded in 2003. (Inward FDI figures include transactions, which can involve
both inflows and withdrawals, between foreign-invested enterprises and their foreign mother com-
panies. The downturn in 2004 largely reflected repayments to recipients outside Europe of
inter-company loans and other transactions between related enterprises.)
For the OECD area as a whole, according to OECD figures, FDI inflows continued on a downward
trend, falling to $407 billion in 2004 from $459 billion in 2003. Outflows, on the other hand, rose from
$593 billion in 2003 to $668 billion in 2004. Against this background, net FDI outflows from OECD
countries to the rest of the world reached record high levels in 2004: the OECD area was a net con-
tributor of $261 billion worth of direct investment – most of which went to developing countries. In
2003, OECD countries invested a net $134 billion outside the OECD area.
China continued to receive a large share of the direct investment in developing countries, with
inward FDI into mainland China rising to a record $55 billion in 2004 from $47 billion in 2003.
Source: Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (2005).
In Practice 3.3
The UK’s Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is expanding its push into the USA by spending £5.8 billion on
the US bank Charter One, based in Cleveland, Ohio. The purchase is to take place through Citizens
Financial Group, RBS’s main vehicle in the USA. The acquisition will give RBS access to six Midwestern
states, including the cities of Chicago, Detroit and Cleveland. RBS has been an aggressive acquirer of
US financial services companies, although Charter One is its biggest buy to date. RBS became the
second largest in the UK when it bought NatWest in 2000.
RBS state that merging Charter One into Citizens will make the resulting bank one of the ten biggest
in the USA, with assets of almost $130 billion and 24,000 employees. Charter One has 616 branches in
the Northeast and Midwest.
RBS chief executive Fred Goodwin said ‘this is a highly logical and natural acquisition for Citizens
to make … it consolidates Citizens’ position as one of the leading banks in the US’. RBS hopes to get
one-quarter of its future profits from its US operations.
Source: adapted from BBC News Online (2004e).
SHRM_C03.QXD 14/2/07 15:48 Page 86
86 Part 1 Overview
companies establishing greenfield production sites in foreign countries. Much FDI activity
involves mergers and acquisitions, such as has occurred in international car production, an
example being the 36.8 per cent share in the Japanese manufacturer Nissan acquired by the
French manufacturer Renault (Morrison, 2002). Morrison makes the point that cars are
now truly international products in that the country in which they seemingly originate may
be quite misleading since they may be assembled with products sourced from across the
globe. In 2003, UK companies acquired 243 companies abroad at a total cost of over £21 bil-
lion whereas foreign companies investing in the UK acquired 129 companies at a total cost
of £9.3 billion (Office for National Statistics (2004). Some idea of the scale of FDI growth
may be seen from Key Concepts 3.2 and In Practice 3.3, which show how the top ten FDI
host economies grew in trems of FDI activity in the period 1997–2001.
Table 3.1 The world’s top ten non-financial MNCs, ranked by foreign assets (millions of US dollars and number
of employees)
It is one of the curious contradictions of modern life that while, in general, the image
of MNCs does not enjoy great public acclaim (see Key Concepts 3.3), we all use their
goods and services every day of our lives with little thought of the consequences. The
anti-globalisation movement has done much to promote opposition to the large MNCs.
Most of the movement’s supporters believe that globalisation leads to exploitation of the
world’s poor workers and the environment. The movement’s key mode of protest is
organising mass demonstrations. It first came to the attention of the international media
in 1999 when 100,000 demonstrators marched on the opening ceremony of the WTO’s
third ministerial meeting in Seattle, Washington. Although the majority of protesters
were peaceful, a minority caused major damage in the city. There were 500 arrests and
damage to buildings and business losses was valued at £12.5 million.
88 Part 1 Overview
creating economies of scale, thereby bringing to consumers goods at prices they otherwise may
not be able to afford;
enabling technology transfer throughout the world;
expanding host countries’ economies by earning foreign finance, which can be used to fund eco-
nomic development in the host country.
Global Envision takes the free market system as a starting point for reducing world poverty. Pro-
viding the poor with opportunities to improve their own lives is the catalyst for creating a more fair,
hopeful and stable future. We support economic development and responsible free markets as the
most reliable and sustainable strategies for global poverty alleviation. (Global Envision, 2004)
The case against:
MNCs are owned and controlled by the world’s largest and richest countries (see Table 3.1) which
amounts to a form of ‘economic imperialism’ practised by the rich countries.
MNCs seek to impose their cultural values upon, often, ancient cultures and traditions, thereby
amounting to ‘cultural imperialism’.
MNCs operate in countries with weak employment and environmental legislation, thereby exploit-
ing those countries and their people.
MNCs too often pay little attention to environmental issues in the countries in which they operate.
MNCs often concentrate low-skill operations in developing countries, preserving high-skill activi-
ties, such as research and development, for developed countries.
MNCs are often accused of paying scant attention to employees’ rights in such ways as: paying
very low wages to and expecting long working hours from production employees; offering little
health and safety protection; not granting collective bargaining opportunities and using expatriate
managers rather than developing the management skills of local employees.
So far, this chapter has sketched in a little background in order to convey some of the
growing importance of international business. In view of this it is not surprising that an
increasing amount of attention in the management literature is paid to international
human resource management. However, much of this literature has concerned the man-
agement of expatriate employees. The importance of this topic is undeniable. However,
SHRM_C03.QXD 14/2/07 15:48 Page 89
the scope of the remainder of this chapter is much broader. It is intended to examine a
specifically strategic perspective on IHRM. This section starts by defining SIHRM and
examining a conceptual framework which is useful for considering some of the main
issues that attend SIHRM. Two perspectives on SIHRM are then considered: the organi-
sational capability perspective and the cultural perspective.
Defining SIHRM
Harris et al. (2003: 135) take domestic SHRM as their starting point for defining
SIHRM. In pointing out that strategic HRM is concerned with the linkage of HRM with
the strategic management processes of the organisation and the integration between
various HRM practices, they simply add that SIHRM ‘is used explicitly to link interna-
tional HRM with the strategy of the MNC’. While the essence of this definition cannot
be denied, the richness of the additional issues with which SIHRM is concerned seems
to us to be lost in this simple adaptation of the domestic definition. Schuler et al. (1993)
note that the importance of SIHRM lies in the HRM policies and practices that result
from the strategic activities of MNCs and the impact that SIHRM has on the interna-
tional concerns and goals of those organisations.
Schuler et al. use the term multi-national enterprises as opposed to multi-national
companies quite deliberately. Although the term is not generally used, it may be more
appropriate to refer to multi-national organisations. This term would cover the huge
not-for-profit organisations, such as the United Nations and the International Federa-
tion of the Red Cross, which employ large international workforces. However, Schuler et
al.’s framework (see Figure 3.2) does imply that it is designed with companies in mind,
and it is the term multi-national companies that is used in this chapter.
Close consideration of this definition raises immediate questions: what are the
human resource management issues, functions, and policies and practices?; and what
are the likely international concerns and goals of those enterprises? Schuler et al. provide
the answers to these questions in the useful framework they develop with the intention
of helping us to differentiate between domestic SHRM and SIHRM (see Figure 3.2).
Each of the factors in Schuler et al.’s model are analysed below. In the model, classic
MNC components and factors relevant to the MNC’s external and internal operating
environments influence the SIHRM issues, functions, and policies and practices which
in turn affect the concerns and goals of the MNC.
Inter-unit linkages
MNCs that operate globally have key decisions to make about how best they structure
their organisations in order that they may conduct business effectively. Schuler et al.
argue that the key factor which determines success is the way in which the MNC differ-
entiates its operating units throughout the world and, at the same time, integrates,
controls and coordinates its activities. The key objective seems to be to balance the need
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90 Part 1 Overview
for diversity with the needs of coordination and control to produce an organisation that
is globally competitive, flexible and is capable of organisational learning. Diversity stems
from the need to operate in a responsive way in the variety of environments experienced
throughout the world. This chapter later goes into detail, for example, about different
national cultures which demand operational diversity from MNCs. Coordination and
control are classic organisation design factors which have long dominated the organisa-
tional literature.
Internal operations
There are two key imperatives for the MNC here. First, to fit activities with the local
environment of the host country (see In Practice 3.4) and, second, to play a part in con-
tributing to the competitive strategy of the MNC as a whole and the local unit itself. The
local environment will dictate differential responses in terms of legal, political, cultural,
economic and social issues which have the potential to threaten integration with overall
MNC strategy, thus the need for coordination and control mentioned above.
In addition to the strategic MNC components, Schuler et al. note the importance of
the external and internal factors which affect the SIHRM conditions, issues, functions,
and policies and practices.
SHRM_C03.QXD 14/2/07 15:48 Page 91
In Practice 3.4
One of Pfizer’s values is to play an active role in making the community in which the company oper-
ates a better place to live and work. Throughout the world, Pfizer strives to improve the local
environment and help in worthwhile initiatives. An example of this is Pfizer’s South African Diflucan™
Partnership Programme.
The programme was developed by Pfizer in cooperation with the United Nations and the World
Health Organization (WHO). As of April 2004, 22 developing countries hit hardest by HIV/AIDS are
now receiving Diflucan™ free of charge from Pfizer.
Through the Diflucan™ Partnership, the company is working closely with governments, non-gov-
ernmental organisations, the UN and the WHO to ensure that Diflucan™ reaches all eligible patients
who cannot afford treatment. The partnership offers medically responsible treatment programmes,
which include the education of patients and health-care providers, appropriate dispensing of medica-
tions, ongoing monitoring and support from partner governments. The company’s support has no
time or money limits. The Diflucan™ Partnership has distributed over 4 million free doses of Pfizer’s
antibiotic and trained over 18,000 health-care professionals.
Source: Pfizer (2005)
External factors
The external factors affecting SIHRM may be grouped under seven main headings:
industry type; competitor activity; extent of change facing the MNC; political; eco-
nomic; legal; and socio-cultural.
The type of industry in which the MNC operates is important in determining
SIHRM activity. Schuler et al. distinguish between global and multi-domestic industries.
In the global industry, the MNC’s competitive position in one country will be influenced
by its competitive position in other countries. The major domestic electronic manufac-
turers, such as Sony and Samsung, are examples of MNCs that operate in a global
industry. Such is the strength of their brands, fostered by global distribution and mar-
keting, that they enjoy a competitive position across the world. In a multi-domestic
industry, such as retailing, competition in one country is largely independent of compe-
tition in other countries. The traditionally highly successful UK retailer Marks and
Spencer found, to its cost, that success in one country did not necessarily equal success
overseas. At the beginning of 2001 the company took the decision to sell most of its
stores abroad, including 18 stores in France and ten in Hong Kong, plus 220 Brooks
Brothers sales outlets (men’s apparel) in the USA and Asia and 25 Kings Super Market
(food stores) based in New Jersey (USA). Conversely, the US fashion retailer Gap has
forged a strong international competitive position with over 3,000 stores worldwide.
Schuler et al. propose that MNCs in global industries are likely to have an HR func-
tion which is more internationally oriented than multi-domestic industries.
Coordination and control in global industries will have an international focus, whereas
multi-domestic industries will have a more national orientation to these activities.
The main argument concerning competitor activity is that, unless careful attention is
paid to this the strategy of the MNC may prove ineffective. This attention should be
devoted to the geographical scale of the competitors’ activities (e.g. whether they are
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92 Part 1 Overview
global or multi-national players) and their overall business strategies, including the
degree to which competitors may wish to be market leaders and their position with
regards to merger and acquisitions. Schuler et al. argue that the more global and intense
the activity of the main competition, the more significance is attached to SIHRM issues.
The extent and speed of change which the MNC faces will also affect SIHRM activity.
Such changes may include product innovations, technological change, and entry and
exit of major market competitors. Since this change occurs on a global scale, the more
intense the scope and speed of change the greater necessity for coordination and cooper-
ation (see Key Concepts 3.4). Consequently, the attention that needs to be paid to
SIHRM increases in significance. This may lead to more importance being attached to
such issues as management development, inter-unit communication mechanisms, such
as video-conferencing, and job rotation among key personnel.
Schuler et al. contend that MNCs can face political and economic risk in global oper-
ations. Political risk, for example, may involve a change in the degree of political stability
in a particular country. A good example of the political risk that flows from global oper-
ations is the case of the US-based oil services MNC, Halliburton. This company was one
of the first to win a contract for the post-Iraq war reconstruction following the 2003
war. At the time of writing (summer, 2004) the Iraqi environment is fraught with post-
war difficulties so much so that dangerous conditions exist for parent-country national
employees in Iraq, particularly those that come from western countries, such as the USA
and UK, which were involved in the war. Added to those problems are the vulnerabilities
involved where MNCs expose themselves to sensitive political situations played out on
SHRM_C03.QXD 14/2/07 15:48 Page 93
an international stage. Not the least allegation waged against Halliburton, for example,
was one of favouritism, since the US government awarded the contract to Halliburton
whose CEO from 1995 to 2000 was Dick Cheney, the US vice-president at the time the
contract was awarded (The Guardian, 2004).
Schuler et al. maintain that the level of financial complexity involved in global opera-
tions generates a degree of economic risk that is much greater for the MNC than its
domestic counterpart. Coupled with the heightened political risk attending global oper-
ations, this creates a source of uncertainty that the MNC will seek to control through
monitoring the activities of its units. Part of this control will come from SIHRM policies
and practices such as extra attention to welfare policies to deal with possibly vulnerable
ex-patriate employees and flexible staffing to cope with changes in location consequent
upon decisions to place operations in alternative locations.
The labour laws which apply in the manufacturing sector in India are as follows:
a. The right of association. India’s Constitution gives workers the right of association. Workers may
form and join trade unions of their choice. However, trade unions represent only approximately
2 per cent of the total workforce, and about 25 per cent of industrial and service workers in the
sectors organised by unions.
b. The right to organise and bargain collectively. Indian law recognises the right of workers to organ-
ise and bargain collectively. Procedural mechanisms exist to adjudicate labour disputes that
cannot be resolved through collective bargaining. However, state and local authorities occasionally
use their power to declare strikes ‘illegal’ and force adjudication.
c. Prohibition of forced or compulsory labour. Forced labour is prohibited by the Constitution. A 1976
law specifically prohibits the formerly common practice of ‘bonded labour’. However, the practice
of bonded labour continues in many rural areas. Efforts to eradicate the practice are complicated
by extreme poverty and jurisdictional disputes between the central and state governments; legisla-
tion is a central government function, while enforcement is the responsibility of the states.
d. Minimum age for employment of children. Poor social and economic conditions and lack of com-
pulsory education make child labour a major problem in India. The government’s 1991 census
estimated that 11.3 million Indian children from ages 5 to 15 are working. Non-governmental
organisations estimate that there may be more than 55 million child labourers. A 1986 law bans
employment of children under the age of 14 in hazardous occupations and strictly regulates child
employment in other fields. Nevertheless, hundreds of thousands of children are employed in the
glass, pottery, carpet and fireworks industries, among others. Resource constraints and the sheer
magnitude of the problem limit ability to enforce child-labour legislation.
e. Acceptable conditions of work. India has a maximum eight-hour workday and 48-hour work week.
This maximum is generally observed by employers in the formal sector. Occupational safety and
health measures vary widely from state to state and among industries, as does the minimum wage.
Source: adapted from US Department of State (2004).
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94 Part 1 Overview
Finally, there may be significant legal and socio-cultural differences between coun-
tries in which the MNC operates. The early part of this century saw a notable trend by
western MNCs to outsource much of their routinised work to developing countries such
as India (People Management, 2004). In general, the labour laws in India are similar to
those in the EU and do not pose great constraints upon MNCs planning to, say, set up a
call centre. However, the manufacturing sector is somewhat different in that labour laws
offer protection to, in particular, children who are exploited in a society which is charac-
terised by extreme poverty.
Schuler et al. note that socio-cultural factors are important external factors affecting
SIHRM. The next section of this chapter is devoted to the cultural perspective on SIHRM.
The significance of these differences led UK outsourcing company Vertex to send workers
from their call centre in India to undergo a week-long cultural awareness training
programme in the UK, at which they watched UK TV and listened to soccer commentaries
in an attempt to better understand UK culture (People Management, 2004a).
Internal factors
Schuler et al. list the internal factors affecting SIHRM as: the structure of the MNC’s
international operations; the orientation of the MNC to its international business; the
MNC’s competitive strategy; and the MNC’s experience in dealing with international
operations.
In Practice 3.5
In 2005 Virgin started operation of its new USA low-cost airline (BBC News Online, 2004f). The airline
created 600 jobs in the first five years in New York City, the location of the HQ. In addition, 1,800
workers were hired in two years in San Francisco, the location of the operations. Virgin is the first air-
line to have operations based in California. It is US-owned and operated. Flight attendants, engineers
and workers in related functions are hired in San Francisco.
Virgin USA said a minority stake in the new airline would be held by the Virgin Group, the conglom-
erate that also operates carriers Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Express. The company said it plans to offer
a customer-focused, low-cost airline providing more comfort and entertainment.
Under US law, foreign companies are only allowed to own 25 per cent of the voting rights in a US
airline, and up to 49 per cent of the equity.
SHRM_C03.QXD 14/2/07 15:48 Page 95
Structural MNC adds unit Based on Operates on Establishes Goals are seeking
to domestic geographical global scale to discrete local economies of
structure to deal divisions – very achieve economies units scale; sensitivity
with international decentralised of scale to local needs;
business Strategic global
Responsive to Spreads decisions made competitiveness;
Key decisions still local needs development costs at centre flexibility and
made at centre over larger area organisational
Loss of Local units learning
Knowledge economies of scale Strategic decisions implement
developed at made at centre strategic The goals of the
centre decisions made MNC are more
Local units at centre important than the
implement major structure adopted
strategic decisions which may be a
made at centre hybrid of the
others
96 Part 1 Overview
Increase in technical Desire to use all resources Economic nationalism, in Management inexperience
and managerial (including human) optimally host and parent countries in foreign operations
knowledge globally
Local demand for Evidence of increasing Political sensitivities involved Mutual distrust between
product quality and cost of polycentric approach in host-country operations host-country and parent-
competitive price country senior managers
Growth of world markets Risk diversification Lack of international Potential costs and risks
through global production monetary system
and distribution
arrangements
Advances in global Need for development Host country resentment Immobility of staff
transport and of global information of parent country tendency
telecommunications system to get greater allocation
systems of profits
Earlier it was explained that Schuler et al. (1993) argue that there are two major strategic
components of MNCs that give rise to and influence SIHRM: inter-unit linkages and
internal operations. Here, we note some of the major ways in which they affect SIHRM
issues; functions; policies and practices.
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98 Part 1 Overview
Inter-unit linkages
SIHRM policies and practices most associated with inter-unit linkages are: establishing a
mix of employees in the local operation which is a mix of parent-country nationals
(PCNs), host-country nationals (HCNs) and third-country nationals (TCNs); establish-
ing HR policies and practices that link units but allow local adaptation; and using
management development to ensure organisational coherence.
In what other ways may the expatriate managers at DecoStore have established
tacit knowledge?
In Practice 3.6
IRS carried out case study work covering firms representing a variety of industrial sectors, countries
of ownership and countries of operation. The focus was on the extent of internationalisation within
five key areas of people management:
employee relations and communications;
remuneration and benefits;
working time;
selection and recruitment; and
performance management and career development.
people are rewarded in relation to the relevant market. In both cases the outcome is the same: base
pay levels determined according to the market.
Internal operations
Schuler et al. (1993) note that the main objective of MNCs sums up the explanation of
this important strategic component made earlier. This is being responsive to, and effec-
tive in, the local environment, yet being willing and ready to act in a coordinated fashion
with the rest of the MNC units.
Schuler et al. note a number of ways in which this objective may be achieved. These are:
matching and adapting HR practices with the competitive strategy of the unit and the
local cultural and legislative system;
creating a modus operandi whereby these HR policies can be modified to fit changing
conditions;
developing global HR policies flexible enough to be adapted for local HR practice.
important if the MNC’s global HR policies are to be flexible enough to be adapted for
local HR practice.
It was noted above that management development is a major component of the drive to
achieve inter-unit coordination and control. This section goes further than this and
advocates that the development of key competences and capabilities is an important
aspect of SIHRM. It can be seen as applying at three levels: organisation; line manage-
ment; and HR professional. As can be seen in other chapters of this book, the
development of competences and capabilities is an intrinsic part of domestic SHRM.
This section deals particularly with those which relate to SIHRM.
Organisational capability
Interest in the concept of organisational capability has been evident for several years. It
has its roots in the fields of management of change, organisational design and leadership
(Sparrow et al., 2004). Organisational capability focuses on the organisation’s internal
processes, systems and management practices to meet customer needs and directing the
skills and efforts of the employees to achieving the goals of the organisation. A particu-
larly important strand of organisational capability was explained in Chapter 1: the
so-called ‘resource-based view of the firm’. This emphasises the intangible nature of the
so-called core competence that the organisation may possess. It is the sum of learning
SHRM_C03.QXD 14/2/07 15:48 Page 103
across individual skill sets and organisational units, which result in a bundle of skills and
technologies that enable the organisation to provide particular benefits to customers
(Hamel and Prahalad, 1994). Sparrow et al. (2004: 44) contend that building interna-
tional organisational capability may mean creating many new competences, or applying
existing competences to generate new strengths, for example by:
exploiting core competence globally in a large number of countries and markets;
identifying new resources found in untapped markets or countries and using them to
strengthen an existing core competence; and
reconfiguring value-adding activities across a wider geography and range of opera-
tions in order to enhance an existing competence.
All this sounds rather mysterious and begs the question: ‘how will international HR
managers recognise organisation core competence?’ and ‘when they have recognised the
answer to this first question, how will they exploit, strengthen and enhance core compe-
tence?’ A pointer to the answer to the first of these questions is provided by Ulrich
(2000) who has listed the following as some of the indicators of organisational capabil-
ity. These are the existence of:
organisational structures which enable rapid decision-making by de-emphasising
bureaucratic processes;
strong organisational identity (or ‘brand’) against which employees can align their
efforts;
talented employees;
a culture of innovation and learning;
communication and information sharing across international boundaries;
clear accountability for decision-making.
To a large extent the answer to the second question is to be found in the more concrete
fields of management development and competence development of HR professionals. It
is to these that the chapter now turns.
Much more is said about the need for cultural adaptability in the next section on the
cultural perspective on SIHRM. Meanwhile, taking into account the views of others on
the international stage is possessing what is similar to Schneider and Barsoux’s (2003)
‘global mindset’. This they define as a ‘state of mind’ achieved by managers who are able
to work effectively across organisational, functional and cross-cultural boundaries. They
argue that a global mind-set requires broad scanning, peripheral vision, and keeping in
mind that multiple interpretations of a situation are needed. Moreover, they warn
against the sort of ‘our way is the only way and the best way’ type of thinking to which
adopting stereotyped views of ‘foreign’ operations can lead.
Which of the line manager competences do you think are particularly important
for HR professionals?
knowledge that key employees carry with them, knowledge that is often the key to com-
petitive advantage. The challenge for HR professionals is to develop mechanisms which
can be used to share this knowledge throughout the organisation. Inevitably this means
that the development of information technology solutions facilitates knowledge sharing
through such means as company intranets. Many respondents in the research carried
out by Sparrow et al. reported that they had started this process but that it was in its
early stages at that time. Their general conclusion was that this would have an important
effect upon the role of HR in global organisations.
In Practice 3.7
The success of the 1999 merger of British Aerospace and the defence arm of GEC Marconi to form
BAE Systems depended on whether the two groups were willing to share corporate knowledge and
best practice – in particular, the huge reserves of knowledge stored in BAe’s then newly established
virtual university. BAe management warned that the leverage of knowledge would be a more crucial
factor in the merger than the integration of traditional business factors. Alan Millican, director of the
virtual university, said, ‘ideally, there will be an openness to look at what we can both bring to the
table’. But he admitted that there were many barriers to information sharing. ‘There is a massive prob-
lem in corporations that occurs when employees adopt an ‘over my dead body’ attitude to using
other people’s ideas and expertise. We’re not very good at sharing best practice.’
The virtual university team were already aware of the legacy of BAe’s own corporate past: the fail-
ure of its military and civilian divisions to exchange knowledge. ‘People have been locked into
individual areas and, when we merge with GEC, that will be even more evident,’ Millican said. He
admitted that GEC’s ‘entirely different’ culture would present a challenge for management, but said
the organisation was pinning its hopes on the more open, relationship-focused virtual workplace.
Millican argued that the intranet is a powerful tool to communicate the need to share. His view was
that the new company could start to shape behaviour by disseminating values’. In the four years prior
to the merger with GEC Marconi, BAe had been running a cultural change programme designed to
face the challenge of global competition. The scheme spawned ‘sharing events’ such as a best-
practice forum and employee-run master classes on best practice. The company had put all of this
on its intranet which it was contemplating sharing with GEC. Millican added that ‘mergers like this
don’t have a big success rate. We need to get staff excited about sharing their knowledge, and the
virtual university is a good place to start.’
Source: People Management (1999).
Sparrow et al.’s (2004) study asked organisations questions about the key compe-
tences for global HR professionals. Table 3.4 notes the responses in terms of both those
factors which the respondents thought the HR function needed to practise in order to be
effective and the extent to which they felt that they were being practised.
In addition to the factors noted in Table 3.4, respondents were asked about the degree to
which their organisations positioned the HR function as a strategic partner in global busi-
ness, seen by Sparrow et al. as a crucial determinant of HR effectiveness in global
organisations. This relates to most of the factors listed immediately prior to the chapter
summary, in particular the ability to market HR globally as a source of strategic advantage,
SHRM_C03.QXD 14/2/07 15:48 Page 106
Briscoe and Schuler (2004) argue that the most important issue in the conduct of both
international business and IHRM is culture. To anyone who has read about the cultural
blunders made by MNCs in disregarding the cultural differences between countries this
may seem self-evident. The same HR policies will not produce the same results in differ-
ent cultural contexts. If this is accepted this as a valid statement in terms of domestic
HRM how much more this is the case when the layer of complexity of different national
cultures is added. An example of this occurred when a US company published a new
diary for international distribution. The diary contained a note for Tuesday, April 30,
followed by the detail: ‘Queen’s Birthday (Uruguay)’. In fact, Uruguay has no queen and
no monarchy. The company’s top customer in Uruguay personally called the publisher’s
general manager to ask just what it would take for the company to understand the basic
culture of their market.
SHRM_C03.QXD 14/2/07 15:48 Page 107
In Practice 3.8
The role of the Disney University in presenting a uniform face to the visitor
The secret to Disney’s success isn’t magic; it’s much easier to replicate. It’s a well-trained, enthusias-
tic and motivated workforce: a secret that Walt Disney himself realised a long time ago. ‘You can
dream, create, design and build the most wonderful place in the world but it requires people to make
the dream a reality,’ he said.
All of Walt Disney World’s ‘cast members’ begin their careers with Disney at the casting office. It’s
here that Disney ‘auditions’ prospective cast members. Disney’s casting building was specifically
designed to introduce prospective cast members to the idea that they are not simply doing a job but
performing on stage. Cast members assigned to work in the casting office come from all different
parts of the Disney organisation. They work on 12-month assignments. Disney believes it’s important
to have people who actually work in different parts of the company do the selection. An assignment
to the casting office is a coveted job: one that most don’t want to give up after their assignment ends.
While prospective cast members wait for their initial interviews, they watch a short video that
describes the interview process and outlines Disney’s expectations of its future cast members. Non-
conformists needn’t apply. Once hired, all new cast members go through the same one-and-one-half
day training programme called ‘Traditions’. It’s here that they learn the basics of being good cast
members, from Disney history to direction on how to meet and exceed guest expectations. It’s also
their first taste of something that is a large part of all cast members’ careers: the Disney University.
Disney University
Walt Disney established the Disney University after opening Disneyland, when he realised the need
for a structured learning environment to teach the unique skills that are required of Disney cast mem-
bers. It was the first corporate university and remains one of the largest corporate training facilities in
the world.
Disney University claims that it provides all cast members with world-class training in diverse skills
ranging from computer applications to culinary arts. Cast members are also eligible to participate in
the company’s Educational Reimbursement Plan, which allows cast members to attend courses to
pursue a college education at Disney’s expense.
Disney University utilises a number of advanced training technologies that allow all cast members
to receive training when it’s convenient for them. Mobile Training Units allow cast members to receive
computer training at their work site. In addition, training via satellite from some of America’s top busi-
ness schools is available to front-line supervisors and mid- to upper-level managers. The Disney
University Learning Centre also provides cast members with dozens of self-paced courses in a vari-
ety of subjects that allow cast members to study whenever time allows.
A variety of visiting tutors is available for specialised training at various times.
Source: adapted from Patton (1997).
cultural differences are likely to spread their operations throughout the globe. This
enables them to take advantage of different ideas and insights from wherever they may
come. Earlier in the chapter there were examples of MNCs that had located some of
their specialist functions in different parts of the world, largely for reasons for efficiency.
But Schneider and Barsoux (2003) cite the case of pharmaceutical giant P & G which
gave an element of product development responsibility to its Indian operation with the
result that successful products for the Indian market were developed based on tradi-
tional herbal medicines.
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The P & G example tempts Schneider and Barsoux (2003: 270) to suggest a new form
of MNC where ‘specialised units are co-ordinated into integrated networks’.
Rather than be an assemblage of semi-independent units which contribute individually
to HQ coffers, the MNC becomes a heterarchy with many centres playing a strategic
role in formulating as well as implementing strategy. This fosters a broader range of
strategic thinking, and encourages a global mentality among all employees. These
approaches provide opportunities for organisational innovation and learning from any
direction. They encourage reflecting on which local innovations may have applications in
other national units or might even warrant global diffusion. They force companies to
consider what is the opportunity or incentive for ‘local for global’ organisational learning,
or transfer of ‘best practice’ from the subsidiaries to the headquarters.
Selection
Among the questions, which are interrelated, which need to be asked when selecting in
unfamiliar cultures are:
What emphasis needs to be put upon what people know as opposed to what they can do?
How important is educational background?
How important is social and family background?
How important is it to be a generalist rather than a specialist?
How important are issues of gender, disability, race, religion and age in selection?
Clearly the answers to these questions are important in informing selection decisions
not only in ensuring that the most suitable person for the job is selected but that the
successful candidate can become integrated into the organisation. It is always tempting
to think that selection is a process of rational decision-making where the most compe-
tent person gets the job, irrespective of other considerations. However, we all know that
this is not the case, despite the move to more apparent rationality in selection –
decisions in the West through the development of such techniques as job specifications
and competence frameworks.
Schneider and Barsoux (2003) report the tale from K-Mart, the USA retail giant,
which bought the former state-owned Maj department store in Prague. Part of the selec-
tion criteria for the new company was that sales staff that would smile and greet
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customers in the way we have become used to in the West. However, this contradicted
typical Czech behaviour which is characterised ‘moodiness’ and ‘cynicism’. New
appointees soon found that they could not adapt to the required behaviour and left.
Training
Many of the key issues for HR managers in MNCs in relation to training are similar to
domestic concerns. However, there are two key issues which need to be considered: who
does the training and to what extent do the content and method of the training provi-
sion (including the language used) need to be tailored to the country in which the
training takes place.
There is considerable scope for ethnocentrism in the approach adopted. Of all the HR
practices, training perhaps has the highest potential for delivering a ‘MNC HQ knows
best’ message by adopting the content and method of the HQ country, delivered by
training professionals from that country in (usually) English. Not only is there the spirit
of ethnocentrism evident in the message sent here but the content of the training may
be inappropriate for host-country needs. This strikes a familiar chord with the enduring
claim that business and management education tends to be too American dominated.
The US publisher McGraw-Hill seems to be aware of the dangers of ethnocentrism in
its training provision and is moving towards a more polycentric approach designed to
minimise cultural differences (see In Practice 3.9).
In Practice 3.9
The vice-president at McGraw-Hill in charge of international training often delivers the training to the
company’s 17 locations, which are mainly in Europe and Asia. There are two McGraw-Hill divisions:
USA and International, and training is seen as a way of developing a common corporate culture. His-
torically there was little training carried out in the International division.
The company is conscious of the need not to be too American in its training provision. Trainers
network with other international trainers and host-country managers in order to tailor provision to
host-country needs. In addition, trainers arrive at the location well before the training event in an
attempt to familiarise themselves with the location’s specific culture.
However, McGraw-Hill’s goal is to develop instructors in each of the locations.
Source: adapted from Briscoe and Schuler (2004).
Performance management
Performance management is a particularly complex practice to transfer between cul-
tures without philosophical and practical conflicts. The types of questions that may arise
in considering the extent to which performance management may be transferred across
cultures are: how prepared are individuals to accept individual responsibility as opposed
to identifying their activities as part of a team effort?; how prepared are individuals to
SHRM_C03.QXD 14/2/07 15:48 Page 114
accept personal performance objectives?; how prepared are individuals to accept per-
formance feedback?; and how equipped are managers to give feedback?
Schneider and Barsoux (2003) give two examples of the difficulties, one from Russia
and the other from the USA. They note that Russian managers are often reluctant to set
performance objectives for their employees because this is reminiscent of the regime of
Lenin’s Young Communist League in which individuals had to report on objectives
achieved, such as the number of streets cleaned as part of community service expecta-
tions and the amount of papers by Lenin that had been mastered.
In the USA there is considerable sensitivity over what is being assessed: the individual
or the individual’s job performance. Such is the importance of the distinction that the
US courts will uphold complaints from appraised individuals who can prove that their
evaluation was based on their personal traits rather than their job performance, unless it
can be demonstrated that there is a direct link between personality and performance.
Pay
Some of the issues that relate to performance management also concern pay; a classic
example being the degree to which individual, team or organisational performance may
be linked to pay. There are also cultural differences over the differentials that exist over
the pay of employee groups, for example senior managers and production operatives. A
large gap is expected and tolerated in the West, this will be less so in countries with a
recent socialist history. For example the history of egalitarianism in China is clearly part
of the ‘old’ values which are still influential in Chinese organisations. For example, so-
called ‘red-eye disease’ (jealousy) is evident in many Chinese organisations where there
is resentment over differing levels of pay.
In addition, the resistance to the principle of paying individuals differently according
to their performance also highlights another difficulty in Chinese organisations, partic-
ularly those that are, or have until recently, been state owned. The absence of any real
employee understanding of entrepreneurialism is a problem. Individual performance-
related pay serves as an embodiment of the tension that exists in China between the ‘old’
values and the realisation that economic necessity dictates a set of ‘new’ values, a set in
which old egalitarianism plays little part. Part of this set of ‘new’ values is using job
effectiveness as a pay differentiator. This poses practical barriers for many Chinese
organisations where there is no effective performance management system, in addition
to the cultural barriers.
This section concludes wth a summary list of those HR activities that the authors
consider cultural differences impact upon the most:
strategic planning
organisational structure in reaction to degree of formalisation and hierarchy
management decision-making
recruitment and selection
the socialisation of employees into the organisation
performance management
content and structure of training
career development
employee involvement
SHRM_C03.QXD 14/2/07 15:48 Page 115
Summary
organisation operates?
What strategies are used by the organisation to manage cultural differences and to
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
Introduction
Within all of our lives we are constantly evaluating as part of our normal daily activi-
ties. As this book was being researched the value or worth of many academics’ work
in the field of strategic human resource management (SHRM) was assessed. As this
book is being read its contents will be evaluated, the style in which it is written, the
design and pedagogic features and the ideas and issues that are raised. The rele-
vance of the contents will probably be evaluated to the reader’s context, her or his
ability to understand the material and the suitability of the place and time in which it is
being read. Such ‘personal’ or ‘informal’ evaluations of situations and experiences
affect one’s perception of the world and underpin the choices that are made.
Given that this process is so central to what people do, it is perhaps surprising that
evaluation, as a planned and formal activity, appears to be so problematic in an
organisational context. Effective evaluation and the promotion of HR strategies
requires the systematic collection of data that are subsequently analysed, the find-
ings being presented in a meaningful and useful form. These data may have been
collected through monitoring what is happening within an organisation over time, per-
haps as part of a balanced scorecard approach to performance management or an
HR information system, or specifically to evaluate a particular strategic HR interven-
tion. However, without the ensuing evaluation, the effectiveness of one or a series of
strategic HR interventions may be unclear. The knowledge and understanding gained
through this process of research, the authors would argue, enables organisations to
have a clearer understanding of the impact of different strategies and, of equal impor-
tance, to adjust their HR interventions to help promote these strategies. Yet despite
this, it is widely recognised that the implementation of HR strategies has rarely
included a planned evaluation (Doyle et al., 2000) and, on those occasions that they
do, the findings are rarely utilised at all, let alone strategically.
Toracco (1997) argues that this lack of evaluation is due to difficulties associated
with the long timeframes required for strategic change in organisations. In particular,
it is often difficult to be certain of the precise impact of specific interventions. These
observations are supported by others (for example Randell, 1994; Skinner, 2004) who
emphasise the difficulty of designing evaluation studies and obtaining data of suffi-
cient quality to disentangle the effect of a specific HR intervention from other stimuli.
Even in the context of training and development, where there is a great deal of litera-
ture written about the need to evaluate and a widespread acceptance among
practitioners of its importance, the reality is that evaluation rarely progresses beyond
the end of course ‘happy sheet’, asking participants about the operational practicali-
ties of the training experience. Despite such problems, the need for evaluation is
emphasised by models of strategy formulation and development. These usually incor-
porate an information gathering and analysis stage, which emphasises the
importance of knowing and understanding an organisation’s current situation as part
of developing strategy. For example, as was seen in Chapter 1, top-down develop-
ment of strategy involves a number of steps, including analysing an organisation’s
environment and its internal resources, within which it is recognised that this informa-
tion is likely to be incomplete and therefore imperfect. Similarly, the processual
approach to strategy development involves reflection, evaluation and understanding.
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Chapter 4 Evaluating SHRM: why bother and does it really happen in practice? 119
Such research is likely to include data on the external environment as well as internal
objectives, organisational (including HR) capabilities and the need to communicate
within the organisation (Prahalad and Hamel, 1990).
Typical ‘scientific’ approaches to research often seek to minimise the amount of
involvement between those collecting and analysing the data (the researchers) and
those from whom data are collected on the grounds of maintaining objectivity
(Robson, 2002). Within such a scientific evaluation, evaluators are seen as separate
from, rather than working alongside, an organisation. Findings are disseminated only
to the sponsor of the evaluation rather than all those affected. This conflicts with
much that we discuss in this book in terms of the importance of an employee involve-
ment to develop strategy ownership and understanding (Chapter 12). Such conflict is,
perhaps, not too surprising if the purpose attributed to the evaluation is to under-
stand and explain. We would argue that evaluation can also provide useful insights
about HR issues associated with specific strategies. However, in evaluating and pro-
moting HR strategies, we believe it is often necessary for the person undertaking the
evaluation to be within or to become part of the organisation. Analysis of data col-
lected should not take place in a vacuum and judgements need to be made within the
context of the organisation.
In this chapter we therefore argue that the evaluation of HR strategies needs to
involve those affected within the organisation as fully as possible. This is not to say
that evaluation can only be undertaken by people within the organisation. Rather it
implies that where people external to the organisation are used, their role should be
to help those within to perceive, understand and act to improve the situation; an
approach akin to Schein’s (1999) ‘process consultation’. As part of this it is recog-
nised that, depending upon the purpose of the evaluation, one or a number of
research strategies might be more appropriate. Evaluation may take place over a
range of time horizons. These can range from one-off case studies, perhaps answer-
ing the question ‘Where are we now?’, through cross-sectional studies which
benchmark HR practices, to longitudinal evaluations perhaps using a series of
employee attitude surveys. Similarly, we recognise that to address particular strategic
objectives some data collection techniques are likely to collect more appropriate data
than others. For example, a questionnaire survey of employees is less likely to dis-
cover their in-depth feelings about a recent downsizing than face-to-face interviews
in which an interviewer takes time to gain the employee’s confidence.
Think about the last time you were asked to evaluate a course in which you were
participating. A possible course could be a module on your current programme or
a training course at your workplace.
a. What aspects of the course were you asked to comment about?
b. How do you think your evaluation and that of your fellow students was used
subsequently?
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This chapter begins by considering the nature of evaluation in terms of what it is,
its benefits and why it may not be undertaken (Figure 4.1). The choices that have to
be made about the process once a decision has been made to evaluate are then
explored. Commencing with a discussion of purpose and context, typical and action
research approaches are considered and different evaluation strategies and data
gathering techniques outlined. The implications of different tools and techniques, and
issues relating to the feeding back of findings, are then discussed. However, we
would stress that while this chapter provides an overview of a range of evaluation
strategies and techniques, there is still a need to read far more widely about these
prior to undertaking an evaluation yourself. This is because the space available is
insufficient to enable us to explain the strategies and techniques in sufficient detail.
Importance
Evaluation
Purpose of clear Observation Analysis
and SHRM
purpose
Evaluation Feeding
Benefits Context Interview
strategies back
Reasons
not to Questionnaire
evaluate
Aspects
Choice
that need
of evaluator
evaluating
Figure 4.1 Mapping the evaluating SHRM territory: a summary diagram of the chapter content
SHRM_C04.QXD 14/2/07 15:49 Page 121
Chapter 4 Evaluating SHRM: why bother and does it really happen in practice? 121
If one were to ask a group of people to define evaluation, it would probably be found
that the term meant different things to individuals depending on their background and
experience. As the thinking and practice relating to evaluation have evolved over the last
40 years, a variety of strategies and data collection techniques has developed and there
has been a range of definitions to match. Patton (1997: 192), for example, identifies 57
types of evaluation as ‘illustrative’ of the many types available! Key issues in differentiat-
ing between evaluation types include:
when they occur;
their purpose;
what is being evaluated;
the evaluation strategy adopted;
who undertakes the evaluation.
These issues have been used to differentiate between some examples of the evaluation
types that Patton identifies in Table 4.1.
This process of planned or formal evaluation, as distinct from the personal, informal
evaluation such as ‘gut feeling’, has variously been defined as: an activity for providing
information for decision-making (Alkin, 1969), an activity focused on assessing the
achievement of objectives (Eisner, 1979; Guba and Lincoln, 1981) or an activity focused
on assessing actual effects and outcomes regardless of stated goals (Scriven, 1972).
What is being Effort What are the inputs in terms of the level of
evaluated activity and effort being put into the initiative
or intervention, e.g. resources, ratios?
Process What are strengths of the day-to-day
processes, how can these processes be
improved?
Quality Are acceptable standards being consistently
maintained?
Although different definitions take slightly different views, they all emphasise the need
for evaluation to be conducted as a planned and purposeful activity rather than as an
afterthought (In Practice 4.1). As such, evaluation is concerned with finding things out
in a systematic way. The term ‘systematic’ emphasises that evaluation will be based on
logical relationships and not just beliefs or hunches often associated with informal eval-
uations. The term ‘finding out’ highlights the importance of data as the basis upon
which decisions are made as opposed to a reliance upon assumptions and guesswork.
Patton (2002) highlights the contribution of evaluation to improvement, describing
evaluation as any effort to increase human effectiveness through systematic data-based
inquiry. Drawing these ideas together, Russ-Eft and Preskill (2001) argue that evaluation
should be a systematic process for enhancing knowledge and decision-making which
involves the collection of data.
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Chapter 4 Evaluating SHRM: why bother and does it really happen in practice? 123
In Practice 4.1
Business Boffins Ltd provides mentoring and support to new and young businesses. Working with the
South East England Development Agency and Oxford Brookes University, Business Boffins devel-
oped a business mentoring programme for small businesses. The programme was pilot tested with
147 small businesses in the south east of England. During this first year of operation, participants
were asked to evaluate the programme three times using purpose-designed questionnaires. The data
collected allowed the programme to be further tailored to the needs of the small businesses during
the year. At the end of the first year, over 95 per cent of the small businesses agreed that the pro-
gramme had been helpful. This contrasted with a recent Federation of Small Businesses’ survey
which indicated that, although 70 per cent of small businesses seek help and advice, only 10 per cent
are satisfied with the help they receive (Business Boffins, 2005).
Chapter 4 Evaluating SHRM: why bother and does it really happen in practice? 125
Chapter 9 considers the widely accepted management mantra that what gets measured, gets done.
This highlights the importance of the link between performance and the evaluation or assessment of
that performance. This and the issues discussed in the previous section can be summarised as four
questions to consider in relation to whether SHRM should be evaluated:
1. If you don’t measure outcomes and impact, how can you tell success from failure and explain it to
others?
2. If success isn’t visible, acknowledged and shared how can you reward it and build on it?
3. If you can’t reward success, then how can you be sure that you are not rewarding failure?
4. If you can’t recognise failure, how can you avoid its repetition and how can you improve?
List the arguments you would use to justify the need for an organisation to justify
evaluating SHRM interventions.
Before you read on, based on your own experience make a list of reasons why
you might be reluctant to undertake an evaluation of an HR process.
As you read this section compare the reasons you have listed with those we
identify. To what extent are they the same or similar to those you have identified?
From reading and thinking about the arguments put forward in the previous subsection
and answering Self-Check Question 4.2, you will have identified a range of reasons to
justify the evaluation of SHRM. If asked, most mangers would probably come up with a
similar list. Yet, despite the benefits that evaluation can provide, the reality for many
organisations is that evaluation simply does not happen. Reasons given for this can be
grouped into three overlapping categories:
the difficulties of undertaking evaluation;
the perceived lack of a need to evaluate;
the difficulties associated with dealing with negative outcomes.
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Chapter 4 Evaluating SHRM: why bother and does it really happen in practice? 127
Human capital management reporting is based on the premise that, if an organisation’s human capital
drives its success, human capital should be reflected in the organisation’s annual report. Within the
UK, the government set up a task force ‘Accounting for People’ in January 2003 to:
look at the performance measures used to assess investment in human capital;
consider best practice in human capital reporting, and performance measures most helpful to
stakeholders;
establish and champion the business case for such reports.
The task force published its report in November 2003. In this they recommended that reports on
human capital management should be balanced and objective, following a process which could be
audited. In particular reports should:
be strategic in focus;
communicate the board’s understanding of the links between human capital management policies
and practices and its business strategy and performance;
include information on:
workforce size and composition;
motivation and retention of employees;
competences, necessary skills and training;
remuneration;
fair employment practices;
leadership and succession planning;
provide information that enables comparison over time using commonly accepted definitions
where appropriate.
However, while the requirements published by the Financial Reporting Council state that the oper-
ating financial review should include information about employees, policies and the extent to which
these have been successfully implemented; it does not define the precise content (Accounting Stan-
dards Board, 2005). These major references to employee reporting appear in a separate guide that is
not part of the standard itself.
Sources: adapted from Kingsmill (2003); Scarborough (2003); People Management (2005a).
that ‘gut feelings’ rather than fact and measurement are the basis of too many manage-
ment decisions. Such informal evaluations are made on the basis of unverified
information, experience, instinct or the opinion of the most influential people rather
than on information extracted correctly from reliable data (Conti, 1997). Easterby-Smith
(1994) notes also a preference of managers, particularly at senior levels, for information
received via their own informal information channels and observes that this information
tends to be far more influential than that produced via more formal channels. Clark and
Salaman’s (1998) ideology of management reinforces the belief of managers in the value
of their own judgements, making them unlikely to question their own interpretations or
to acknowledge the limits of their own understanding. These factors serve not only to
SHRM_C04.QXD 14/2/07 15:49 Page 128
undermine a perceived need for a planned evaluation but may also mean that objectives
and expected outcomes of SHRM initiatives are unclear and unarticulated.
Compounding this lack of a perceived need to evaluate formally among senior man-
agement is the focus of senior management on the initiation rather than
implementation stages (Skinner and Mabey, 1997) of strategic human resource initia-
tives. This may also result in a failure to define success criteria or to assign responsibility
for monitoring progress. Russ-Eft and Preskill (2001) note that, in their experience, the
number one reason people give for not undertaking an evaluation is that no-one
requires it. Managers at all levels of organisations struggle constantly with the pressure
to succeed and the pressure of time (Swanson, 1997). Consequently, time for evaluation
may appear an indulgence. Managers have limited resources available and, in the inter-
ests of their own security, satisfaction and longer-term goals are likely to use their
resources in pursuit of outcomes and activities which they perceive to be valued by those
in a position to reward success. They are therefore unlikely to undertake activities that
they consider are not seen as priorities in the minds of their superiors and for which
they have not been given specific responsibility or resources.
Allied to the discussion of the lack of a perceived need to evaluate is the implicit
recognition that, for many, evaluation is an afterthought. You will probably have noticed
that, in many of your HRM textbooks, discussion of evaluation occurs rarely and, if it
does, tends to appear towards the end. The implication is that evaluation of HR strate-
gies and associated interventions is something that is only thought about after the event
has happened and is not central to the implementation process. However, the end of the
In Practice 4.2
Difficulties of measurement
During research relating to the evaluation of HR change initiatives, undertaken by Skinner (2004),
managers in two organisations made the following comments with regard to problems associated
with measurement:
A government agency
… there are no established measuring devices for the less tangible criteria.
There are some people that say it can’t be measured because it’s about people’s views and feel-
ings and that’s not objective data …
… we can’t measure people’s feelings and views.
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Chapter 4 Evaluating SHRM: why bother and does it really happen in practice? 129
implementation is the point at which those who have been involved are likely to be look-
ing towards the next project and evaluation of what is perceived as a past event is not
high on their personal agenda. In addition, if an evaluation process is not included in
implementation plans from the beginning it is unlikely that thought will have been
given to the systems, processes and resources that will be needed to collect information
that will enable the evaluation to take place.
In Practice 4.3
On 5 October 1999 at Ladbroke Grove junction, about two miles west of Paddington Station, London,
there was a head-on crash between two trains travelling at high speed. This crash caused the death
of 31 people and injured over 400 others. The findings of the public inquiry into the Ladbroke Grove
rail crash were reported in 2001. In its consideration of essential elements for the management of
safety on Britain’s railways, the report indicated that a high proportion of accidents, incidents and
near misses followed unsafe actions resulting from underlying deficiencies in the management of
safety. The evaluation report highlighted the existence of a blame culture within the rail industry in
which there was a tendency to attribute blame rather than to seek to understand what had occurred
and the reasons behind it. This, it was argued, inhibited proper investigation of rail accidents and inci-
dents, and the open sharing of information. The blame culture was also said to deter staff from
reporting non-serious accidents.
Lord Cullen, who chaired the inquiry, identified the need for the blame culture to be replaced by
one of continuous learning in which the rail industry should study the lessons from previous acci-
dents, near misses and other incidents in order to prevent them from recurring. In addition, the
industry needed to establish clear and consistent processes to enable that to happen. The lessons
that were learned from accidents, near misses and other incidents should be shared subsequently
with all parts of the industry, and actions taken to prevent them being repeated. Regardless of
whether they were major or minor incidents, the report said that accidents and other failures of proce-
dures and systems provided an opportunity for a company or an industry to learn from its mistakes.
Source: adapted from Cullen (2001).
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tion of new ideas, often selecting, reinterpreting and giving relative emphasis to ideas
according to their own agendas. For these reasons, they become the obvious targets in a
blame culture. Inevitably on this basis, defensive reasoning and routines at both an indi-
vidual and an organisational level (Argyris, 1994) are unlikely to encourage the pursuit
of planned, explicit, evaluation of strategic human resource management. HR managers
are likely to be aware of the risks involved in terms both of personal criticism and of the
activity being unpopular with peers and others who may also feel vulnerable.
In Practice 4.4
Whitbread plc has a workforce of over 40,000 and an annual revenue of £1.8 billion. Although it is the
biggest player in the UK hospitality sector, it also aims to be the UK leisure industry’s employer of
choice. To support this Whitbread’s challenge has been to:
create a single, integrated employee management platform, replacing the multiple systems that
had developed over time across its various brands;
improve the quality of employee information available, thereby allowing HR planning to be aligned
with the organisation’s corporate strategy;
develop online self-service planning and training systems.
The database application Oracle Human Resources had been used to streamline human resource
and payroll management, providing a single repository for all information on employees. The use of
Oracle’s iLearning package allows staff to train at their own pace, while minimising disruption at work.
Through these IT-based systems, Whitbread has been able to meet the challenges outlined above.
Source: developed from Allen (2005).
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Chapter 4 Evaluating SHRM: why bother and does it really happen in practice? 131
likely to be necessary to design evaluation strategies that measure the impact of the
intervention on employees’ performance, rather than whether or not the participants
felt the trainer helped them to learn!
Purpose
Advance
Apply results
knowledge and
to specific
theoretical
problems
understanding
(applied)
(basic)
Formative Summative
evaluation evaluation
Focus on Focus on
improving and assessment of
fine tuning impact or
meeting of goals
tion of new HR policies or procedures. Evaluation where the focus is on improving and
fine tuning is often referred to as formative evaluation (Table 4.1). In such cases data col-
lection is often undertaken as part of regular ongoing measurement of an organisation’s
performance. For example, where a balanced scorecard approach (Kaplan and Norton,
1992; Huselid et al., 2001) is adopted, data are collected on those measures that are consid-
ered to be most critical to that organisation’s vision for success (Key Concepts 4.3). This is
likely to include HR strategies such as learning and development and its ability to enhance
the organisation’s future leadership capabilities, or the extent to which the management of
employee performance enables revenue growth. That which occurs towards the latter
stages, perhaps to assess impact, determine the extent to which goals have been met or
establish whether to continue with the intervention is termed summative evaluation. For
such evaluations, data collection is likely to be less frequent or regular.
Balanced scorecards are an organisation-specific tool designed to monitor the impact of manage-
ment’s actions from four strategic perspectives (Ritter, 2003):
financial – how do shareholders see the organisation?
customer – how do customers see the organisation?
internal processes – what must the organisation excel at?
human resources, learning and innovation – can the organisation continue to improve and create
value?
Devised in the early 1990s, the scorecard aims to provide an integrated view of an organisation’s
performance, including both financial and non-financial indicators, and from both internal and exter-
nal perspectives (Kaplan and Norton, 1992).
Measures included in the scorecard are designed to focus employees and managers on the overall
strategic vision of the organisation. Data overload is prevented by minimising the number of meas-
ures used but, at the same time, managers are forced to consider all the data together (Kaplan and
Norton, 1992).
Within any evaluation, it is important to establish the purpose of both the evaluation
and the strategic HR intervention or process that is being evaluated. Easterby-Smith
(1994) defines four possible purposes of an evaluation but cautions that it is unrealistic
to expect any evaluation to serve more than one. These are:
improving where the need is to identify what should happen next;
controlling is about monitoring for quality and efficiency;
proving involves measuring and making judgements about worth and impact;
learning in which the process of evaluation itself has a positive impact on the learning
experience.
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Chapter 4 Evaluating SHRM: why bother and does it really happen in practice? 133
In terms of approach, as with any evaluation, decisions have to be made regarding the
techniques to be used to collect data. These should reflect the choices that have been
made in relation to the topics covered in the preceding section. In terms of evaluation,
the use of sound method and reliable data are critical (Stern, 2004). The decision about
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Chapter 4 Evaluating SHRM: why bother and does it really happen in practice? 135
purpose will also determine whether the evaluation needs to be formative or summative
in nature. A formative evaluation takes place during the implementation with the inten-
tion of feeding back into the process and improving both the process and the outcomes
of the initiative where appropriate. A summative evaluation usually occurs at the end of
the implementation and is about determining the worth or value of what has been done,
whether success criteria were met, if the results justified the cost. It would therefore be
possible to undertake both a formative and summative evaluation of the same initiative.
Evaluation strategies
Once a clear purpose for evaluation has been established, a variety of evaluation strate-
gies may be adopted. Typically, evaluations are concerned with finding out the extent to
which the objectives of any given action, activity or process, such as the introduction of
a new training intervention, has been achieved. In other words, it is concerned with test-
ing the value or impact of the action, activity or process, usually with the view to making
some form of recommendation for change (Clarke, 1999). As part of the evaluation, it is
necessary to gather data about what is happening or has happened and analyse them.
This can be undertaken either as a snapshot or longitudinally using a variety of data
SHRM_C04.QXD 14/2/07 15:49 Page 136
In Practice 4.5
Barclays Edotech is part of Barclays Technology Services, the division that is responsible for service
delivery, production and marketing of information technology services principally to the Barclays
Group. Each year, employees at the Computer Centre have taken part in the annual staff attitude
survey for the division. The aims of this survey are outlined clearly in the letter that accompanies the
questionnaire, with a strong focus upon identifying strengths and areas that require improvement. The
content of the questionnaire remains substantially the same between years to enable comparisons.
Approximately 80 questions are used to ascertain employees’ views on areas of leadership, policy
and strategy, people management, resources and processes, customer satisfaction, people satisfac-
tion, the impact of the organisation upon society and business results.
In the late 1990s, consideration of the data from the annual staff attitude survey and an additional
local staff survey indicated HR interventions required revision, in particular with regard to production
staff salary grades, people management, leadership, and policy and strategy. Based upon this,
actions were planned. These included:
a review of salary grade bandings so that staff could be rewarded according to their skills and
responsibilities;
walkabouts by management team members;
the introduction of regular question-and-answer sessions at which staff could raise local issues
with a senior site manager.
These interventions were evaluated using a range of techniques including subsequent annual
staff attitude surveys and the business excellence model self-assessment process. Findings indi-
cated improvements of at least 25 per cent in the areas of people management, leadership and
policy strategy and suggested that the interventions introduced were having a positive impact
(Thornhill et al., 2000).
Saunders et al. (2007) emphasise that, when making choices, what matters is not the
label attached to a particular strategy, but whether the strategy is appropriate to the pur-
pose and objectives. In particular, the use of a sound evaluation strategy and the
collection of reliable data are critical (Stern, 2004). Four evaluation strategies tend to be
used in the evaluation of SHRM:
survey;
case study;
experiment;
existing (secondary) data.
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Chapter 4 Evaluating SHRM: why bother and does it really happen in practice? 137
Existing HRM
activity or process
Establish objectives
related to the criteria Collect Analyse Disseminate
for the HRM action, data data findings
activity or process
Recommendation
for action
Each strategy should not be thought of as mutually exclusive, for example a case
study in an organisation may well involve using a survey to collect data and combine
these data with existing (secondary) data from the organisation’s HR information
system. Similarly, an experimental design, such as testing the relative impact of a
number of different HR interventions, will often be undertaken using a number of dif-
ferent case studies. In addition, these strategies can be applied either longitudinally or
cross-sectionally. The main strength of a longitudinal perspective is the ability it offers
to evaluate the impact of SHRM interventions over time. By gathering data over time,
some indication of the impact of interventions upon those variables that are likely to
affect the change can be obtained (Adams and Schvaneveldt, 1991). In contrast a cross-
sectional perspective seeks to describe the incidence of a particular phenomenon or
particular phenomena, such as the information technology skills possessed by managers
and their attitude to training, at one particular time.
Chapter 4 Evaluating SHRM: why bother and does it really happen in practice? 139
lected from other organisations using one or more of numerous evaluation models
available, such as the European Foundation for Quality Management’s (EFQM) Euro-
pean Excellence Model (Chartered Management Institute, 2004; Key Concepts 4.4).
Such process benchmarking is concerned not only with the measure of performance,
but also with the exploration of why there are differences, how comparable the data are
between different contexts and how potential improvements may be transferred (Ben-
dell et al., 1993). However, where limited appropriate secondary data are available within
the organisation, primary data will also need to be collected specifically for the purpose
(Key Concepts 4.3).
The EFQM European Excellence Model (known previously as the Business Excellence Model) argues
that excellent business performance is dependent upon an organisation’s impact on its customers, its
people, and society at large. The model provides a framework for business improvement by identifying
gaps and weaknesses that require addressing as well as strengths for consolidation and improvement
and allows benchmarking against other organisations (Chartered Management Institute, 2004).
The model considers nine criteria:
leadership and best practice in communication, empowerment and how change and improvement
work in the organisation;
policy, strategy and how organisational values, vision and goals are established;
people management and how the organisation energises the full potential of its employees to
improve their own skills and the business;
partnership and resources and how they are managed effectively to contribute to business goals;
processes to deliver products and services to customers;
people’s perceptions of the organisation and how their needs and expectations are met;
customers’ perceptions of the organisation and how their needs and expectations are met;
society’s view of the organisation and what is done to improve this;
how the above feed into financial results and how targets are met and reviewed.
These are divided into 32 sub-criteria about each of which data are gathered through a variety of
possible techniques.
and Brannick, 2005) so that, for example, the evaluation is concerned with the resolu-
tion of organisational issues, such as downsizing, by working with those who experience
the issues directly.
The second emphasises the iterative nature of the process of diagnosing, planning,
taking action and evaluating (Figure 4.4). The action research spiral commences within
a specific context and with a clear purpose. This is likely to be expressed as an objective
(Robson, 2002). Diagnosis, sometimes referred to as fact finding and analysis, is under-
taken to enable action planning and a decision about the actions to be taken. These are
then taken and the actions evaluated (cycle 1). Subsequent cycles involve further diagno-
sis taking into account previous evaluations, planning further actions, taking these
actions and evaluating.
The third theme relates to the involvement of practitioners in the evaluation and in
particular a collaborative democratic partnership between practitioners and evaluators,
be they academics, other practitioners or internal or external consultants. Eden and
Huxham (1996: 75) argue that the findings of action research result from ‘involvement
with members of an organization over a matter which is of genuine concern to them’.
Therefore, the evaluator is part of the organisation within which the evaluation and
change process are taking place (Coghlan and Brannick, 2005) rather than more typical
evaluation where, for example, survivors of downsizing are subjects or objects of study.
Finally, action research should have implications beyond the immediate project; in
other words it must be clear that the results could inform other contexts. For academics
Diagnosing
Evaluating 3 Planning
Taking
action
Diagnosing
Evaluating 2 Planning
Taking
Context
action
and
purpose
Diagnosing
Evaluating 1 Planning
Taking
action
Figure 4.4 The action research spiral
Source: Saunders et al. (2007). Reproduced with permission.
SHRM_C04.QXD 14/2/07 15:49 Page 141
Chapter 4 Evaluating SHRM: why bother and does it really happen in practice? 141
undertaking action research the Eden and Huxham (1996) link this to an explicit con-
cern for the development of theory. However, they emphasise that for both internal and
external consultants this is more likely to focus upon the subsequent transfer of knowl-
edge gained from one specific context to another. Such use of knowledge to inform
other contexts, the authors believe, also applies to others, undertaking action research
such as practitioners.
Thus action research differs from typical evaluation due to:
a focus upon change;
the recognition that it is an iterative process involving diagnosis, planning, action and
evaluation;
the involvement of employees (practitioners) throughout the process.
Schein (1999) emphasises the importance of employee involvement throughout eval-
uation processes, as employees are more likely to implement change they have helped to
create. Once employees have identified a need for changes in HR polices and procedures
and widely shared this need it becomes difficult to ignore and the pressure for change
comes from within the organisation. Action research therefore combines both informa-
tion gathering and facilitation of change. The diagnosis stage is often seen by employees
as recognition of the need to do something (Cunningham, 1995). Planning encourages
people to meet and discuss the most appropriate action steps and can help encourage
group ownership by involving people. These plans are then implemented. Once moni-
toring and evaluation have taken place there is a responsibility to use the findings to
revise the intervention as necessary.
Action research can have two distinct foci (Schein, 1999). The first of these, while
involving those being evaluated in the process, aims to fulfil those undertaking the eval-
uation’s agenda rather than that of the sponsor. This does not, however, preclude the
sponsor from also benefiting from any changes brought about by the evaluation. The
second starts with the needs of the sponsor and involves those undertaking the evalua-
tion in the sponsor’s issues, rather than the sponsor in their issues. Such consultant
activities are termed ‘process consultation’ by Schein (1999). The consultant, he argues,
assists the client to perceive, understand and act upon the process events that occur
within their environment in order to improve the situation as the client sees it. Within
this definition, the term ‘client’ refers to the persons or person, often senior managers,
who sponsor the evaluation. Using Schein’s analogy of a clinician and clinical enquiry,
the consultant (evaluator) is involved by the sponsor in the diagnosis (action research)
which is driven by the sponsor’s needs. It therefore follows that subsequent interven-
tions are jointly owned by the consultant and the sponsor, who is involved at all stages.
The process consultant therefore helps the sponsor to gain the skills of diagnosis and
fixing organisational problems so that he or she can continue to improve the organisa-
tion on his or her own.
Schein (1999) argues that the process consultation approach to action research is
more appropriate because it better fits the realities of organisational life and is more
likely to reveal important organisational dynamics. However, it is still dependent upon
obtaining data which meet the purpose of the change evaluation and are of sufficient
quality to allow causal conclusions to be drawn. Many authors (for example Randell,
1994), have emphasised the difficulties associated with obtaining such data. For exam-
ple, the data collected may well be unreliable, such as where there are low response rates,
or in the case of HR information systems, incomplete or out of date. We now turn to the
SHRM_C04.QXD 14/2/07 15:49 Page 142
need to identifying appropriate techniques for obtaining credible data whichever type pf
evaluation is being undertaken.
Outline the relative advantages of action research and more typical approaches to
evaluation from the perspective of the HR manager sponsoring an evaluation.
The data gathering techniques used need to be related closely to the purpose of the eval-
uation. For all change evaluations, it is important that data appear credible and actually
represent the situation. This issue is summarised by Raimond (1993: 55) as the ‘How do
I know?’ test and can be addressed by paying careful attention to data gathering tech-
niques. This is especially important for longitudinal evaluation as techniques used and
the questions asked at the start of a change process may be inappropriate if transforma-
tional change has occurred (Golembiewski et al., 1976). For cross-sectional evaluations
or evaluations over shorter time periods, the likelihood of techniques and questions no
longer being appropriate is far lower. For example, the impact of a management devel-
opment programme might be evaluated using data gathered by one or a number of
different techniques dependent upon the focus of the analysis. These might be cross-
sectional, such as in-course and post-course questionnaires and observations by trainers
and others, and/or longitudinal attitude surveys and psychometric tests before and after
the event. Secondary data regarding employee performance, already gathered by existing
appraisal systems, might also be used.
However, before considering primary data gathering techniques, it is important to
note that, in practice, evaluators’ choices are likely to be influenced by pragmatic consid-
erations. HR managers are often working within a very quantitatively oriented
environment, where numbers convey accuracy and a sense of precision. In addition,
they may have little experience or training in qualitative methods (Skinner et al., 2000).
Consequently, the use of qualitative data can be problematic as managers may not be
comfortable with judgements based on such evidence.
Using observation
Where evaluation is concerned with what people do, such as how they respond after a
particular training intervention, an obvious way to collect the data is to observe them.
This is essentially what observation involves: the systematic observation, recording
description, analysis and interpretation of people’s behaviour (Saunders et al., 2007).
There are two main types of observation: participant and structured. Participant obser-
vation is qualitative and derives from the work of social anthropologists in the twentieth
century. It has been used widely to study changing social phenomena. As part of this, the
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Chapter 4 Evaluating SHRM: why bother and does it really happen in practice? 143
evaluator attempts to become fully involved in the lives and activities of those being
evaluated and shares their experiences not only by observing but also by feeling those
experiences (Gill and Johnson, 2002).
By contrast structured observation is quantitative and, as its name suggests, has a
high level of predetermined structure. It is concerned with the frequency of actions,
such as in time and motion studies, and tends to be concerned with fact finding. This
may seem a long way from the discussion of evaluating SHRM with which this chapter
began. However, re-examining the typical evaluation and action research processes (Fig-
ures 4.3 and 4.4) emphasises that this is not the case. Both these processes require facts
(data to be collected or diagnosis to take place) before evaluation can occur and, in the
case of action research, action taken.
We would discourage you from thinking of one observational technique, or indeed
any single technique, as your sole method of collecting data to evaluate SHRM. In many
instances, the decision to undertake formal evaluation is based, at least partially, on
informal evaluation drawing upon observation in which the role of complete partici-
pant has been adopted.
However, on its own, participant observation is unlikely to provide insufficient evi-
dence for an organisation’s senior management team. Consequently, it is often necessary
to supplement observation with other methods of data collection, such as interviews
and questionnaires, to triangulate (check) the findings. If findings based on data from
different sources all suggest the same conclusion, then you can be more certain that the
data have captured the reality of the situation rather than your findings being spurious.
Using interviews
Interviews are often described as purposeful conversations, the purpose being to gather
valid and reliable data. They may be unstructured and informal conversations or they
may be highly structured using standard questions for each respondent. In between
these extremes are intermediate positions, often referred to as semi-structured
interviews. Unstructured and semi-structured interviews are non-standardised.
Unstructured interviews are normally used for exploratory or in-depth evaluations and
are, not surprisingly, also referred to as ‘in-depth’ interviews. There is no predetermined
list of questions, although the person undertaking the interview needs to have a clear
idea of those aspects of the change she or he wishes to explore. These are often noted
down prior to the interview as a checklist. The interviewee is encouraged to talk freely
about events, behaviours and beliefs in relation to the changes and it is their perceptions
which guide the interview (Easterby-Smith et al., 2002).
In semi-structured interviews, the interviewer will have a list of themes and questions
to be covered. In these interviews, questions may vary from interview to interview to
reflect those areas most appropriate to respondents’ knowledge and understanding. This
means that some questions may be inappropriate to particular interviewees. Additional
questions may also be required in some semi-structured interviews to enable the objec-
tives of the evaluation to be explored more fully. The nature of the questions and the
ensuing discussion means that data from semi-structured interviews are usually
recorded by note taking. However, as with in-depth interviews, audio recording may be
used, provided this does not have a negative effect on interaction within the interview
(Easterby-Smith et al., 2002).
SHRM_C04.QXD 14/2/07 15:49 Page 144
Using questionnaires
Saunders et al. (2007) argue that structured interviews are in reality a form of question-
naire. This is because, like other ways of administering questionnaires, the respondent is
asked to respond to the same set of questions in a predetermined order (de Vaus, 2001).
Because each respondent is asked to respond to the same set of questions, a questionnaire
provides an efficient method of gathering data from a large sample prior to analysis.
Responses to questionnaires are easier to record as they are based on a predetermined
and standardised set of questions. In structured interviews, there is face-to-face contact
as the interviewer reads out each question from an interview schedule and records the
response, usually on the same schedule. Answers are often pre-coded in the same way as
those for questionnaires. There is limited social interaction between the interviewer and
the respondent, such as when explanations are provided, and the questions need to be
read out in the same tone of voice so as not to indicate any bias.
Questionnaire data may also be collected over the telephone, by post, by delivering
and collecting the questionnaire personally or, as is increasingly the case in organisa-
tions’ annual staff attitude surveys, by an online questionnaire. Some organisations use
questionnaires developed by external organisations to evaluate SHRM interventions and
benchmark themselves against other organisations, for example Cooper, et al.’s (1994)
Occupational Stress Indicator. Others, either use consultants to develop a bespoke ques-
tionnaire, or develop their own in house. However, before deciding to use a
questionnaire we would like to include a note of caution. Many authors (for example
Oppenheim, 2000; Bell, 2005) argue that it is far harder to produce a questionnaire that
collects the data you need than you might think. Each question will need to be clearly
worded and, for closed questions (Key Concepts 4.5), possible responses identified. Like
other data collection techniques, the questionnaire will need to be pilot tested and
Open questions are used widely in in-depth and semi-structured interviews. In questionnaires they
are useful if you are unsure of the response, or when you wish to find out what is uppermost in the
respondent’s mind. For example:
Please tell me what you like most about your current job?
In contrast, closed questions, sometimes known as forced-choice questions, provide a number of
alternative answers from which the respondent chooses. These are normally quicker and easier to answer
as they require minimal writing. Responses are also easier to compare as they have been predetermined:
For the following statement, please tick the box that matches your view most closely:
Chapter 4 Evaluating SHRM: why bother and does it really happen in practice? 145
Outline the advantages that are likely to accrue to an organisation using a range
of techniques, rather than just one, to obtain data to evaluate SHRM.
Analysis and feedback are important in both typical evaluations and action research.
Typical evaluation ends usually with the report and a presentation to the sponsor of
findings from the analysis. In contrast, an evaluator involved in an action research proj-
ect, perhaps as a process consultant, is likely to be involved also in developing actions
and revising the intervention as necessary.
Analysis
Analysis of data is obviously a precursor to feedback. While a full discussion of the tech-
niques available is outside the scope of this chapter, some key observations can be made.
The most important of these is to ensure that the evaluation is undertaken against the
agreed objectives (see ‘Clarity of purpose and evaluation strategies’ earlier in this chapter).
Analysis of large amounts of data, whether quantitative or qualitative, will inevitably
involve the use of a personal computer. It almost goes without saying that those under-
taking this analysis should be familiar with the analysis software for quantitative data
(e.g. SPSS) or qualitative data (e.g. NVivo) used. However, we believe it is important that
those who are going to analyse the data are also involved in the design stages of the eval-
uation. People who are inexperienced often believe it is a simple linear process in which
they first collect the data and then a person familiar with the computer software shows
them the analysis to carry out. This is not the case and it is extremely easy to end up with
data that can only be analysed partially. If objectives, strategy, data collection techniques
and analysis had been better integrated then data could analysed more easily. Another
pitfall is that readily available software for data analysis means it is much easier to gener-
ate what Robson (2002: 393) describes concisely as ‘elegantly presented rubbish’!
Feeding back
Findings based upon data analysis are fed back to the sponsor, usually in the form of a
report and, perhaps, a presentation. Where the report contains findings that may be
considered critical of the organisation in some way, this may create problems. However,
we would argue that to maximise benefit it is important that these findings are fed back
rather than being filtered so as not to offend. Typically, especially where large groups are
involved, a summary of the feedback is cascaded from the top down the organisation.
This may make use of existing communication structures such as newsletters, notice
boards and team briefings. Alternatively, if rapid feedback is required then additional
newsletters and team briefings might be used. The evaluation sponsor sees the full
report of the findings first. Subsequently, a summary may be provided for circulation to
all employees or posted on the organisation’s intranet. As part of the team briefing
process, each managerial level within the hierarchy is likely to see its own data and is
obliged to feed the findings down to its own subordinates. Managers at each level are
expected subsequently to report about what they are doing about any problems identi-
fied, in other words the actions they intend to take.
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Chapter 4 Evaluating SHRM: why bother and does it really happen in practice? 147
Schein (1999) argues that such a top-down approach may be problematic as it rein-
forces dependency on the organisation’s hierarchy to address issues identified. If some
issues raised by the evaluation are ignored, then employee morale may go down. It also
places managers in a difficult position as they are in effect telling their subordinates
about issues that the subordinates thought were important. Then they tell them what
they (the managers) are going to do about it.
Instead, Schein advocates an alternative of bottom-up feedback that he argues also
helps to promote change from within. In bottom-up feedback, data are shared initially
with each workgroup that generated them. This process concentrates upon under-
standing the data and clarifying any concerns. Consequently the focus is on the
evaluation rather than the whole organisation. Issues arising from the data are divided
into those that can be dealt with by the group and those that need to be fed back to the
organisation. The workgroup is therefore empowered by more senior managers to deal
with problems, rather than being dependent upon the organisation’s hierarchy. Feed-
back continues with each group in an ‘upward cascading’ process. Each organisational
level therefore only receives data that pertain to their own and higher levels. Each level
must think about issues and take responsibility for what they will work on and what
they will feed back up the line. Schein (1999) argues that this helps build ownership,
involvement and commitment, and signals management’s wish to address the issues. In
addition, it emphasises that higher levels of the organisation only need to know about
those things that are uniquely theirs to deal with. While it may take longer to get data to
the top level, Schein believes that this approach is quicker for implementing actions
based upon the evaluation.
Thus, a top-down approach to disseminating evaluation findings can enable relatively
rapid communication. It also allows management to maintain control of the process and
decide the nature of the message, who receives it and any actions that will be taken. By
contrast, a bottom-up approach involves employees thinking about issues, deciding and
taking responsibility for the actions they will take, and selecting those issues they need to
feed back to their line managers. The latter is inevitably more time consuming, but will
only work where an organisation’s culture allows employees to be empowered by man-
agers to take ownership of the evaluation and any forthcoming actions. However, it
would be wrong to think of these two approaches as mutually exclusive. Rather, the
approach to feedback like the rest of the evaluation of SHRM needs to be tailored to the
precise requirements of the organisation.
Summary
1. Choose a large UK quoted company (there are over 1,000, many of which are listed in
the financial pages of quality daily newspapers) and visit that organisation’s web site.
Obtain a copy of that organisation’s annual report. To what extent is the organisa-
tion’s policy towards its employees reported? What quantitative measures are used for
human resources?
2. Working with a colleague obtain copies of the evaluation questionnaires used to eval-
uate two different courses in which you have participated. Examples could be a
module on your current programme of study or a one-day training course. Examine
these questionnaires carefully and make an assessment regarding the levels of each
evaluation. For evaluations that appear to be at the operational level, what would
need to be done to address tactical or strategic issues?
3. Using the information in Key Concepts 4.4 as your starting point, consider how the crite-
ria for the EFQM European Excellence Model support the evaluation of SHRM. (Hint:
you may find it useful to visit the EFQM’s web site http://www.efqm.org/)
4. Use an internet search engine, such as Google, to search for organisations that offer to
undertake evaluations of human resource interventions. To what extent do you con-
sider the evaluations they are offering to undertake to have a strategic, tactical or
operational focus? Note down your reasons for this.
Chapter 4 Evaluating SHRM: why bother and does it really happen in practice? 149
Part 1 Case Study: Strategic Human Resource Management at Halcrow Group Limited 151
from 1,700 to nearly 5,000 worldwide. Approxi- ness groups: Consulting, Property, Transport and
mately 80 per cent of Halcrow’s employees are Water. These operate as a matrix structure across
classified by the Group as professional and techni- the Group’s eight geographical regions, this structure
cal (P&T) staff who have a minimum of an facilitating appropriate employees or teams to be
undergraduate degree in engineering or a related brought together for specific projects throughout the
subject. The majority are engineers who are also world (Figure 1). Each of the four business groups is
members of a relevant professional institution or are led by a management team comprising five people
undergoing training to gain membership. The including a Group board director or managing direc-
remaining 20 per cent of employees, including those tor. Within each business group, P&T staff are
in human resources, are classified by Halcrow as assigned to technical skills groups the leader of
non-P&T and provide corporate support services. whom is responsible for their training and career
development. Employees are also assigned to an
office in one of the regions. These vary in size from
Halcrow Group’s strategy less than ten to more than 500 employees. The busi-
ness groups and regional offices are supported by
As a result of restructuring to meet the future needs Corporate Support Services, comprising all the cor-
of the business environment, Halcrow’s operations porate and business support functions, including
were brought together in 2001 as four main busi- human resources, and located predominantly within
Main board
Business
Regions
groups
UK North
UK South Water Property
and Scotland
Europe and
Middle East Consulting Transport
Central Asia
152 Part 1 Case Study: Strategic Human Resource Management at Halcrow Group Limited
the UK. At the time of writing, the human resource over commercial success. By the very nature of
function had 31 employees divided between three their training, Halcrow people tend to be concerned
teams: Personnel (22), Pensions (3) and Training (6) with ‘detail’ rather than seeing the bigger picture.
with a director at the executive level. This has served the Group well. But a recent client
In 2004, Halcrow launched its change pro- satisfaction survey commissioned by the Group did
gramme, ‘Act now’, which was designed to help the not show Halcrow in a uniformly glowing light. It
Group ‘to continue to develop in a dynamic and reported that Halcrow emerged as technically excel-
sustainable way’. The focus of ‘Act now’ was to lent and a ‘safe pair of hands’ but that clients were
align employees’ behaviours and approaches to looking for much more than technical competence
Halcrow’s purpose, values, codes of behaviour and and a track record. They wanted business partners
business principles thereby improving individual, whose behaviours were aligned to their own needs.
team and overall business performance. This was In addition the Group was also seen as rather ‘grey’.
summarised in Act Now: Your Pocket Guide to Hal- The challenge for Halcrow is to retain the reputation
crow’s Change Programme (Halcrow, 2004b: 8) as: for technical excellence and reliability while becom-
ing increasingly commercially aware, flexible and,
To take Halcrow’s existing personality, strengthen above all, more responsive to customer needs.
all those things that are good about it, for exam- Halcrow has designed several key HRM initia-
ple, our … tives to support the change programme. These are:
technical competence
dependability
the development of core competences. This is
friendliness seen as important because Halcrow employees
reputation for being a safe pair of hands have traditionally emphasised the importance of
commitment professional qualifications above all else. The
pride in one’s profession development of a core competence programme
is designed to move the emphasis from what
… and give it some added extras … people know to what they can do.
passion The introduction of 360-degree appraisal. It is
dynamism envisaged that this will make a significant contri-
fleetness of foot bution the ‘Act now’ culture change initiative. The
better listening skills Group’s culture has always tended to reinforce the
excitement importance of hierarchy in that employees have
innovation been very conscious of their position in the organ-
confidence (with a clear sense of self) isation. In addition, there had been something of
being more celebratory an ‘ignore and deflect culture’ in which people
consistent delivery to expectation sought to evade responsibility for mistakes rather
greater commercial edge than being open enough to learn from them. By
being performance driven. opening up the system of employee appraisal to
people above and below the individual being
This change programme is intended to be con- appraised and by seeking the views of significant
tinuous rather than having a specific end date. It other stakeholders, particularly customers, Hal-
emphasises the need for flexibility and the sharing crow management believe that a far greater
of good practices and learning throughout the degree of openness will be developed.
Group, the centrality of employees to achieving this, The instigation of a profit share bonus scheme.
and the need to monitor and evaluate.
This is particularly designed to create in employ-
ees a greater awareness of the Group’s profit
SHRM at Halcrow performance. In the view of senior Halcrow man-
agement, this has the potential to make a major
The ‘Act now’ change programme is central to contribution to fostering in Halcrow employees
everything that Halcrow plans to do in relation to the more commercially aware values. In view of the
HRM strategy. The overriding concern is to change fact that senior management have set clear tar-
the organisation’s culture. It is often said that the gets for increases in Halcrow’s profit performance,
Group is full of people who are professional engi- greater knowledge of the Group’s profitability is
neers and who take pride in a job well done. In seen as an effective way of focusing the minds of
essence, technical excellence takes precedence employees on profit performance.
SHRM_C04.QXD 14/2/07 15:49 Page 153
Part 1 Case Study: Strategic Human Resource Management at Halcrow Group Limited 153
The development of ‘ideas labs’. This is an impor- The second implication is the problem of retention.
tant part of the Halcrow management of innovation There is a shortage of high-quality consultants
programme which is designed to promote innova- throughout the construction and engineering sectors
tive thinking and enable commercially valuable and competition for consultants is high. Like the
ideas to be implemented. It is designed to: sector in general, staff turnover is high at Halcrow.
add value to the business;
This is an issue that senior management know must
be addressed. The problem is exacerbated by the
encourage cross-fertilisation between disci-
declining number of construction-related graduates
plines; and in the UK, the number of students studying relevant
give staff ownership of the ideas put forward. courses in the UK dropping by 10 per cent in the
late 1990s.
Overall, the key change issue that is driving
A second example of the more demanding nature
SHRM is the need for Halcrow to be more responsive
of clients is the requirement that companies state their
in the light of a more competitive industry. Therefore,
policy and practice on employee diversity and equal
the principal aim of the new HR initiatives is to gener-
opportunities. Again this presents a problem for com-
ate more competitive employee behaviours which, in
panies in this sector, like Halcrow, which has been
turn, is envisaged will generate better all-round
traditionally male dominated and has, until recently,
employee and business performance.
employed considerable numbers of expatriates in its
There are other critical issues facing HR at Hal-
crow. An important one of these is a consequence overseas operations. In the UK construction industry
of customer feedback. Increasingly this shows that as a whole, the proportion of women employed is less
customers are taking technical excellence for than 9 per cent (Egan, 1998).
granted when making decisions about which con- The third example of client demands is the
sultancy group to employ. In view of Halcrow’s requirement that companies offer assurances over
reputation for technical excellence among cus- corporate governance. In the light of corporate
tomers, this is bad news for the Group. As the HR scandals such as Enron and Parmalat, this is under-
director explained the world has moved on. Clients standable. The HR response to this is to ensure that
are now more demanding and want more all the global training of key staff to ensure compliance
time. Among the most demanding clients are the with industry standards takes place. In addition,
public sector. In the UK, Halcrow management feel organisational structure issues, such as the revision
that the UK government’s Private Finance Initiative of reporting relationships to ensure greater trans-
(PFI) has contributed to change in the industry. (The parency, are receiving attention.
PFI is a mechanism developed by the government The level of staff turnover at Halcrow and decline
to raise money to pay for new buildings and serv- in the number of graduates entering the construc-
ices. Under PFI schemes a public authority buys the tion-related industry has shaped another HR priority
services of private-sector companies to design, for the Group. This is to define more clearly a people
build, finance and operate a public facility, such as statement that states more precisely what is meant
a hospital. The private-sector companies borrow by ‘employer of choice’. In particular, Halcrow is con-
the money for the scheme and then the government cerned about losing high-quality graduates to the
pays an annual fee to the companies under a long- financial sector, both at the time of graduation and
term operating contract for the services.) after they have worked with the Group for a short
Three examples of the more demanding nature of period. High-quality graduates can earn more money
clients are evident, each of which demands an HR in financial services. In addition, younger graduates
response. The first is clients asking for an assurance are more concerned with the work–life balance
that the staff commencing work on a project will issues and their own staff development than were
stay with the Group for the duration of the project. their predecessors. A measure of the siginificance
This is a key issue in an industry where the reputa- of this issue to Halcrow is the large number of grad-
tion of the consultancy is such that, in effect, the uates employed each year, this being 133 in 2003.
staff appointed to a project can be a more important There is also worry over an ageing workforce in the
factor in the client’s decision to engage a particular construction industry in general.
consultancy than the consultancy group itself. The It is felt by the HR director that employees and
implications for HR are twofold. First, it must assure employee issues at Halcrow need to be higher on
both external and internal clients that succession the list of Group priorities. Staff turnover is now a
planning is in place. In the past this was not an HR key performance indicator for the HR director. In
strength at Halcrow or other similar consultancies, her view ‘it is no good imposing things upon
but is an issue that is now receiving more attention. people at Halcrow – the Group need to win hearts
SHRM_C04.QXD 14/2/07 15:49 Page 154
154 Part 1 Case Study: Strategic Human Resource Management at Halcrow Group Limited
and minds’. This is typical of companies employing (e.g. Water) have to prepare business plans which
a high proportion of professional staff who tend to include plans for acquisitions. These plans are
define, and act upon, their own standards of pro- reviewed by senior management. Plans with regard
fessional behaviour. to acquisitions have to be coherent with the overall
An HR strategy can be seen to be emerging at business strategy, particularly in relation to the
Halcrow, one that will demand vision and skill from business sectors in which the companies to be
the HR function. According to the HR director these acquired reside.
are not qualities which the function has always dis- The scale of Halcrow’s international business can
played. She feels that HR has a major job to do be seen from the fact that approximately 40 per cent
because it has been perceived by Halcrow managers of the Group’s workforce are engaged overseas. In
as ineffective in the past. Halcrow managers are criti- the past, the Group’s international staffing policy
cal and demanding and expect to receive effective was to send expatriates from the UK to work on
assistance from the service functions. However, the overseas projects. However, in recent years this has
importance accorded to technical excellence within altered. The level of expertise of the available work-
Halcrow had created a culture where service func- force in developing countries such as China and
tions, such as HR, were under-valued. Halcrow has Pakistan, and the relative cost of labour in the devel-
traditionally called its staff ‘professional and techni- oping countries compared with the UK, means that
cal’ and ‘non-professional and technical’ – the this option is now far less attractive. At the time of
language reinforcing the message of P&T staff as writing, only 3 per cent of the international Halcrow
fee-earners being the most important people in the workforce was UK expatriates.
Group. In addition, the HR function has been largely The Halcrow overseas offices operate as sepa-
administrative rather than strategic, a situation that is rate companies within the Group, albeit that the
now changing because of the HR challenges that UK-based Corporate Support Services provide
Halcrow faces. The HR director is very conscious of support to these offices. There has been no HR
developing professionalism in the HR team by devel- function in any of these offices until recently. The
oping team members’ confidence and helping them first overseas HR manager has been appointed in
acquire professional qualifications through the Char- Dubai, UAE, where there are approximately 750
tered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD). employees in the region. In addition to the small
The HR director argues that it is essential to develop number of expatriate employees and the staff
a more customer-focused HR team. The lead pro- employed in the overseas companies there is a
vided by the HR director is important. Both she and group of transnational employees who come form
the training manager have experience in leading Halcrow’s eastern European, Chinese and Asian
change programmes in their previous companies. It operations. The Group has also established a com-
is also a help that the HR director has a close link puter-aided design bureau in Dubai.
with the chief executive officer. This enables her to The fact that there has been no HR function in
ask for the support necessary to drive through the any of the offices until recently suggests that HR
HR initiatives. The HR director has also started giving has experienced a very low profile in Halcrow’s
increasing amounts of ‘professional’ work to her international operations. In fact, the function in all
team members. An example of this was a case but the most basic administrative sense has been
where redundancies flowed from business re- non-existent. However, the HR director is keen for
structuring in one part of the Group. One member of that to change and is pursuing a vigorous pro-
the HR team handled all aspects of this. The HR gramme of visits to the regional offices within the
director is also paying attention to mentoring and Group to promote the advantages of HR. A catalyst
coaching her team. for this drive is the Group’s recently published codes
of behaviour. These stress the need for honesty,
transparency and integrity in all Halcrow’s business
International SHRM at Halcrow operations and state that all employees will:
Treat everyone with respect, trust and dignity
Halcrow has a clear strategic aim in relation to its
international business. It wishes to be a genuinely Help each other – share experiences and lessons
international business rather than a UK business learned
with international operations. It is part of Halcrow’s Be polite
corporate business strategy that the Group wants Never undermine anyone directly or indirectly
to develop the scale of its international business.
The plan is to pursue this growth through acquisi-
Work together to resolve disagreements
tions in countries overseas. Business groups Be professional and ethical at all times
SHRM_C04.QXD 14/2/07 15:49 Page 155
Part 1 Case Study: Strategic Human Resource Management at Halcrow Group Limited 155
Listen to others’ points of view new questions have been added. In 2004 approxi-
Be honest and open (Halcrow, 2003: 3). mately 30 questions were used to ascertain
employees’ views on ten key areas. These included
Two aspects of the code of behaviours are the direction (of the Group), clarity about their job,
important here: the need to help each other and client focus, their competence, resources to do
learn from experiences and to be professional and their job, empowerment, involvement, cooperation
ethical at all times. It is felt that HR has an important from others, feedback to them and recognition.
part to play in affecting the values of all employees. Supplementary questions to assess employee com-
The HR director’s predecessor did not see promot- mitment were also included. Virtually all questions
ing the HR role in generating the appropriate code employ five-point Likert-type scales to record
of behaviours as an important activity, but this is answers. In addition there are spaces for comments
now being pursued through the writing of HR poli- and a few open questions to provide further oppor-
cies and disseminating them in the overseas tunity for respondents to highlight key issues.
operations. The HR director is also keen to act as a Locational information such as regional office, busi-
sounding board for international managers and is ness group and skill group, is included to enable
generally keen to promote the visibility of HR. Grad- comparisons although, to preserve confidentiality,
ually, good relations are being built between HR and results for a sub-group are not provided if less than
the international management teams to the extent three people in that group completed the survey.
that they now see the point of taking HR seriously. Response rates for the survey are high, with over
They can appreciate that having a local HR pres- 67 per cent of employees worldwide returning their
ence would provide them with useful support. questionnaire in 2002 and 72 per cent in 2004.
Hitherto there have been no policies as there has Through the 2000 employee survey, Halcrow was
been no HR presence. It is felt that it is important to able to identify those areas of strategic human
support the regional offices in achieving the Group’s resource management highlighted by employees as
strategy of making Halcrow a first choice employer being most in need of attention. These were: feed-
for the best people and the place where its employ- back, recognition and involvement of employees.
ees want to work. Benchmarking the surveys in 2002 and 2004
against the 2000 employee survey, has allowed Hal-
crow to establish the extent to which these issues
Evaluation of SHRM at Halcrow are being addressed through HR initiatives. Results
from the surveys suggest that there have been
Although Halcrow has had a staff council for nearly improvements in all three areas. However, data from
30 years, and through this has involved employees the survey and other sources suggest that there is
in the formulation of group policy and direction, still more to be done to improve these and other
there has until recently been only limited formal aspects of human resource management such as
evaluation of HR initiatives including strategic HRM. employee engagement. Halcrow’s senior managers
Training courses were and continue to be evaluated are currently working with Kaisen Consulting Ltd to
by traditional end of course questionnaires but, explore the precise meaning behind these results
prior to 2000, only limited attempts had been made and develop clear action plans to improve the man-
to link evaluation of HR initiatives to the strategic agerial environment. As part of this they are creating
direction of the Group. a process through which employees are involved in
In 2000, Halcrow introduced the Group-wide developing the actions.
‘employee survey’ to measure staff satisfaction, and Using data from Halcrow’s employee survey the
provide information to help the organisation improve consulting company calculates an HR Enablement
its leadership, management and skills base. This Index for the Group. This is an average score of
questionnaire is administered biennially to employ- responses to all the questions in each of the ten key
ees worldwide by an independent company, Kaisen areas. This index provides an overall indication of
Consulting Ltd, who undertake the data analysis, the extent to which employees are engaged with
provide Halcrow with a report and, in conjunction their work within the Group. Average scores for
with Halcrow, run follow-up workshops. The aims of each of the ten key areas are then be used to high-
the survey are outlined clearly in an accompanying light those aspects where satisfaction is relatively
letter with a clear focus upon identifying strengths as low and where action may need to be taken. Com-
well as areas that require improvement. parison of the 2004 HR Enablement Index score
The core content of the questionnaire has with that for 2002 revealed that there had been no
remained substantially the same between years to significant change in employees’ engagement.
enable benchmark comparisons, although some Retention rate data for the same period revealed
SHRM_C04.QXD 14/2/07 15:49 Page 156
156 Part 1 Case Study: Strategic Human Resource Management at Halcrow Group Limited
that this was within a context of declining labour evolving and needs to be more closely aligned to
turnover and led the HR director to ask why the future direction of the Group and the centrality
engagement had only remained constant in a labour of the human resources to this.
market characterised by a shortage of suitably
qualified people? The answer to this question is
currently being sought from a range of data includ- Case study questions
ing employee exit interviews, staff workshops
around the world to discuss issues associated with 1. Provide a brief overview of Halcrow Group’s
employee engagement and further analysis of the strategy.
employee survey data. 2. Outline the linkages between Halcrow Group’s
Data from other surveys are also used to evaluate strategy and its strategic human resource
SHRM within Halcrow. These include the use of the management.
Business Excellence Model (BEM) self-assessment
process (British Quality Foundation, 2001) to help 3. What obstacles do you think that Halcrow
illuminate issues raised in employee surveys, staff management will face as it works to change the
workshops focusing upon issues of particular impor- Group’s culture from one dominated by technical
tance, and internal customer satisfaction surveys. In excellence to one that also embraces
addition they argue that an employee ‘feel-good commercial awareness?
factor’ is also important. 4. What measures might Halcrow take to increase
A range of secondary data provides further infor- its retention of young professional graduates?
mation from which to monitor, evaluate, learn and 5. (a) What hurdles do you think that Halcrow will
improve SHRM initiatives. For example, Non Compli- have to overcome in its attempt to ensure
ance Reports from external auditing by the British international employees adopt the Group’s
Standards Institute (BSI) in relation to quality stan- codes of behaviour?
dards and by clients had highlighted a range of
(b) Now visit the Halcrow Group web site
issues. These related to a number of employee induc-
(http:/www.halcrow.com) and read Halcrow’s
tions not having been undertaken properly and in
Statement of Business Principles, paying
some cases records of training being incomplete.
particular attention to the Code of Business
These have now been addressed. Similarly, the new
Practice. Expand your answer in the light of
360-degree feedback and client satisfaction surveys,
what this tells you about the Group’s views
such as those discussed earlier, have emphasised the
regarding business integrity, and what is
importance of initiatives to ensure employees engage
expected of Halcrow staff.
with the company and also understand and
empathise with the client’s needs. 6. To what extent do the data collected by the
Increasingly, Halcrow compares itself with other employee survey allow the HR director to
companies in the sector using a variety of evaluate the extent to which HR initiatives are
approaches. In some instances this benchmarking supporting the Group’s strategic direction?
is undertaken for prospective clients as part of the 7. (a) How does Halcrow currently make use of
tendering for new contracts process. For example, primary and secondary data to evaluate the
the UK Highways Agency uses ‘Capability Assess- extent to which initiatives to engage
ment Testing’ to benchmark potential suppliers and employees within the Group are working?
assess their alignment to what they require. Infor- (b) What other measures do you think they
mal benchmarking is conducted through contacts might adopt?
in joint-venture companies or other industry con-
tacts to share best practice, discuss issues that are
pertinent to the sector such as skills shortages and, Acknowledgements
through surveys, to establish benchmarking data
relating to salaries, benefits and the like.
The considerable assistance and support of Mandy
Halcrow sees monitoring and evaluation as
Clarke, Director of Human Resources at Halcrow
essential to knowing whether or not SHRM initia-
Group Limited, in the preparation of this case is
tives within the ‘Act now’ programme are effective.
gratefully acknowledged.
Within these means of evaluation, the HR director
recognises that the nature of the measures is still
SHRM_C05.QXD 14/2/07 15:49 Page 157
Part 2
Strategic Interventions
SHRM_C05.QXD 14/2/07 15:49 Page 158
SHRM_C05.QXD 14/2/07 15:50 Page 159
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
define the term organisational structure and evaluate its links to strategy;
describe and analyse conceptual approaches to the design of
organisational structures and discuss their strategic implications;
identify principal forms of organisational structure and explore their main
effects on those who work within them at both a theoretical and practical
level;
analyse the relationship between organisational structure and SHRM.
SHRM_C05.QXD 14/2/07 15:50 Page 160
Introduction
In general strategy terms, one of the most important resources an organisation has is
its employees. Within the context of SHRM models and theories a central theme
emerging is that people are the organisation’s most important ‘asset’, so how they are
organised is crucial to the effectiveness of a strategic approach to the management
of human resources. Traditional views about controlling the organisation through
structure can be traced back to the early twentieth-century management scientists,
such as F.W. Taylor and Elton Mayo. These approaches can be directly linked to a
view of strategy making that is essentially top-down. Strategy is developed at the top
of the organisation and the rest of the organisation, including the HR function, is
utilised as a supporting mechanism in the implementation of the strategy. In this
approach to strategic management, the organisational structure becomes a method
for achieving top-down control. Such a principle of control is known as bureaucratic
or mechanistic. This chapter considers organisational structure in the context of
SHRM. The fact that there is a need to regulate the implementation of an HR strategy
is accepted but this needs to take of a wide variety of influences into account. For
example the types and range of issues and problems the organisation faces in devel-
oping and implementing a strategic approach to the management of its human
resources. Key issue to consider include:
The operating environment of the organisation: it may operate in a highly complex or
changing environment or in a relatively stable one.
How diverse the organisation is, for example the needs of a multi-national company
with a wide range of products and services and a globally dispersed customer base
will be dramatically different from those of a small local firm.
How accountable the senior executives of the organisation are to external influences,
for example is the organisation a public body, perhaps reporting to a government
minister or is it a publicly quoted company reporting to a board of directors and a
variety of internal shareholders or is the business privately owned by a family or
group of partners who may be owner managers and have complete control over the
current and future direction of the business?
Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 161
The relationship
What are Concepts Principle
between
organisational and forms of
structures and
structures? approaches structure
SHRM
Rationale for,
Defining Key
and uses of,
structure perspectives
each structure
Assessment
Linkages to and evaluation The effect on
strategy of the key employees
perspectives
SHRM policy
goals
Research on
structures
Figure 5.1 Mapping the role of organisational structure in SHRM: a summary diagram of the
chapter content
those who work within them. The final section summarises the elements of the relation-
ship between organisational structure and SHRM that have emerged through the
discussion in the previous three sections.
Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 163
If an organisation wishes to achieve the four key SHRM policy goals previously men-
tioned it must create, implement and, where necessary, develop and amend an appropriate
organisation structure. Let us consider the role that structure may have to play in achieving
its SHRM outcomes.
Strategic integration refers to the integration of the corporate strategy and HR strategy.
To fully achieve this integration, the most senior HR professional must hold a senior
position within the organisational structure, ideally holding a seat on the board of
directors or equivalent body and being able to play a full role in the development and
implementation of corporate strategy. The corporate strategy should be driven by cur-
rent and future HR capabilities within the organisation. The reverse of this can occur
in many organisations, the most senior HR professional is seen by senior executives as
having a solely operational role, does not contribute to corporate strategy develop-
ment and is faced with a corporate strategy that does not take the organisation’s HR
capabilities into account. The HR decision, taken by the HR function in this example,
can often be reactive and result in very low levels of strategic integration.
High commitment relates to the relationship between employees and their employer,
highly committed employees perform at high levels, are innovative and respond very
well to changes in the internal and external operating environment. To achieve high
levels of commitment, the employer must ensure that their employees remain moti-
vated. A well-established way of doing this is to offer opportunities for career
progression through promotions. The organisational structure chosen by an organisa-
tion should give high-performing employees an opportunity to gain promotions and
establish a wide range of knowledge and skills. If the organisation structure is designed
in such a way that it limits opportunities for progression, employee commitment may
become low and employees may seek opportunities outside the organisation. This is a
problem for the organisation as it may lose high-performing, talented members of
staff. Chief executives and senior managers in organisations constantly highlight the
fact that staff retention is a major issue in achieving an SHRM approach.
High flexibility refers the range of skills and knowledge of an individual employee or
group of employees. Flexibility relates to the context of their current job, their ability
to do other jobs that currently exist in the organisation and, possibly more impor-
tantly, future tasks and jobs that may emerge in the organisation. In strategy terms,
this concept has been covered in the flexible firm literature (see Atkinson, 1984;
Thompson and McHugh, 2002). In SHRM, this flexible approach may create an
organisational structure that focuses on core and periphery workers. The core reflects
the need for the organisation to develop a permanent, highly skilled group of
employees with internal career paths. In SHRM terms, ‘core’ employees experience a
high degree of job security, with resource provided from training in company-specific
skills not readily available in the external labour market. In contrast, peripheral work-
ers have a low position within the organisational structure, perform jobs that are seen
as having little or no strategic importance, are often on fixed-term contracts and
appear to be easy to replace.
High quality refers to the quality of goods or services the organisation creates and
sells or offers to customers and clients. How high quality is defined will be unique to
individual organisations. Quality levels are driven by the needs of the organisation’s
current and future customers, and the policies and procedures of its major competi-
tors. SHRM can be viewed as being of vital importance to ensuring that the
SHRM_C05.QXD 14/2/07 15:50 Page 164
organisation recruits, develops and retains highly talented employees who are the key
element in achieving high quality. Organisational structures can be considered as the
building block required to facilitate integration at the job, team, departmental and
organisational levels. The correct choice of structure can make high quality a true
organisational reality; an inappropriate organisational structure can make it difficult,
if not impossible, to achieve high quality.
There are potentially a number of different ways in which an organisation may be
structured. A number of dimensions or components of organisational structure have
been identified from previous research (e.g. Pugh et al., 1968; Child, 1984, 2005). Key
Concepts 5.1 briefly summarises some of these dimensions to illustrate the underlying
components of organisational structure.
Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 165
in relation to these would be highly structured and regulated, through the extensive use
of specialised roles and high levels of standardisation and formalisation. An example of
this type of structure could the National Health Service (NHS). In the context of the
NHS, individual hospital trusts are expected to follow nationally agreed standards of
practice and the structure of organisations is formalised to support the achievement of
national standards. Within a hospital trust there is also the issue of specialisation: struc-
tures will reflect the fact that the organisations employ staff who have specialised
knowledge and skills. Three broad specialist areas can be identified in hospitals:
clerical and manual staff such as receptionists, cleaners and porters;
As these underlying dimensions are mutually independent, they were seen as helpful
to characterise the nature of organisational structure since each could be applied to
understand the structure of a particular organisation.
Child’s (1984) later summary of the dimensions of organisational structure
reinforces and develops the conclusions from this earlier work. His list of major dimen-
sions includes:
1. The way in which work is allocated to individuals in an organisation. This relates to
specialisation, standardisation and formalisation.
2. The way in which reporting relationships are determined. This relates to configura-
tion, including the number of levels in an organisational hierarchy and resulting
spans of control.
3. The way in which work is grouped together into sections or departments, and then how
these are grouped together into larger operating units and divisions, and finally how
these are grouped in the organisation as a whole. This also relates to configuration.
4. The way in which organisational systems are incorporated to integrate effort, ensure
effective communication and information sharing, and promote necessary participation.
5. The way in which organisational systems are designed to motivate employees, through
appraising performance and structuring rewards, rather than alienating them.
More recent work by Child (2005) recognises that the original emphasis on these
dimensions or components of organisational structure remains just as valid as when it
was first subject to academic research, nearly 40 years before. The context has changed in
varying ways over this period of time, so that the way these components are used in
practice has been subject to some change. For example, some organisational forms now
lay greater stress on reducing levels of management, through delayering the hierarchy
and espousing greater discretion over the carrying out of tasks. They also emphasise
leadership as a relationship-based process rather than the exercise of authority, with
fewer, perhaps more wide-ranging and possibly unclear, management roles (Child,
2005). In general terms, though, the relevance of these dimensions or components of
organisational structure remains unchallenged, which is not at all surprising given that
they rest on the observation of organisational practices.
These dimensions indicate the complex range of factors to be understood by man-
agers in deciding how they should structure an organisation’s activities to meet its
current and future strategic objectives. They also indicate that an organisation’s struc-
ture will involve the exercise of choice, made by those managers able to influence and
control such decisions. A particular structure will be judged as effective if it enables the
objectives and goals of an organisation to be realised. However, even these seemingly
logical points about organisational structure decision-making are unlikely to be as
straightforward in practice. In Chapter 1, Child’s theory of strategic choice was dis-
cussed (1972, 1997). It must be recognised that strategic choice, including decisions
taken about organisational structures, will be constrained by a range of factors, a
number of these factors are presented in Key Concepts 5.2.
Decisions taken about organisational structure will be affected by economic, personal
and political considerations that reflect the interests and values of the dominant coali-
tion in an organisation. Decisions may also be affected by cultural, psychological and
logistical constraints. These may potentially constrain the way managers understand
organisational and environmental contingencies and make decisions about organisa-
tional structures. These types of constraint are therefore likely to affect choice about
SHRM_C05.QXD 14/2/07 15:50 Page 167
Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 167
Ineffective coordination between functions or groups, with the potential for conflict
This may result from inadequate mechanisms for integration between parts of an organisation’s
structure, or because of conflicting objectives between different functions or groups within it,
especially where some functions or groups are highly dependent on others. An example may be a
group of employees whose work is dependent on information provided by another department but
who only receive inadequate information without being able to negotiate any improvement.
Lack of adaptability to changing circumstances.
This may result from lack of roles within a structure to identify the nature and implications of
change, lack of systems and senior management support to recognise and respond to this, and
failure to use adaptive structural mechanisms such as project teams composed of relevant experts
or involvement approaches to help to develop and implement new strategies.
Lawrence and Lorsch (1967) developed the concepts of differentiation and integration, which help us
to understand the functions of organisational design.
Differentiation is the process of subdividing the work of an organisation into different operating
units, such as divisions, departments or business units. Each unit focuses on a particular organisa-
tional objective or area of activity.
Lawrence and Lorsch found that when environments became more uncertain, managers
responded by increasing the degree of differentiation within the organisation to allow it to respond to
each of its areas of activity more effectively. Differentiation is associated with the development of
organisational subcultures and the design of unit-level operating procedures. Differentiated struc-
tures, particularly highly differentiated ones, may lead to conflict between operating units and require
appropriate mechanisms to ensure effective coordination.
Integration is the process of coordinating the respective areas of work and operating units within
an organisation. As the degree of organisational differentiation increases, so too does the need for
greater integration. This may take a number of forms including introducing levels of management,
cross-functional teams, working groups or committee structures, as well as corporate-driven proce-
dures and guidelines and other interventions, such as standard human resource policies.
Consistency will be achieved where the level of differentiation is matched by an appropriate
approach to integration. For example, a differentiated structure that did not include sufficient integrat-
ing mechanisms would be likely to be ineffective. The concept and importance of consistency in
organisational design will be discussed further in the following section.
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Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 169
In Practice 5.1
A company in the financial services sector, which will be called Finco, invested considerable effort in
developing its new organisational structure. This was underpinned by the development of a compe-
tences framework that provided the basis for job evaluation to position individuals within the new
structure. The intention was to use this competences framework not only to determine employees’
grades, and therefore reward, within the new structure but also to link this framework to a range of
other human resource management strategies, including recruitment, training and development and
career management, for example. The use of the competences framework suggested implications for
the way in which work in the new organisational structure should be grouped and for the role of man-
agers. This led to the belief that the new structure in Finco would be more transparent and effective
than the one it replaced. These developments held out the promise of greater consistency between
the components of its new structure, with positive implications for human resource as well as organi-
sational effectiveness.
However, at the same time as Finco was developing this new organisational structure it was also
facing an increasingly tough competitive situation. Finco decided its corporate strategy should be to
maintain its market share in this tough climate by competing more on price while also reducing its
cost base.
The impact of Finco’s strategy now meant that greater emphasis was placed on holding down
labour costs and there was also a sharpened emphasis on relating pay to performance. This had a
negative impact on the use of the competences framework, which was widely seen by many of
SHRM_C05.QXD 14/2/07 15:50 Page 170
Finco’s managers as only likely to produce potential benefits in the longer term, while Finco was plac-
ing its new emphasis on shoring up its market share in the short term, through price- and cost-based
competition. As a result of this altered corporate strategy, the competences framework became a
secondary consideration and the internal, third-level strategies, which had been envisaged to link to
the new organisational structure, became less important in practice, crowded out by the need to
engage in more aggressive price- and cost-based competitive strategies. The new organisational
structure remained but it did not achieve the consistency with other levels of strategy that had origi-
nally been envisaged.
These relationships will be considered more fully below but at this point in the dis-
cussion linkages between organisational structure and human resource strategies, as well
as corporate strategy, may be recognised. Organisational structure will affect a wide
range of human resource strategies, such as human resource planning, recruitment and
selection, training and development, performance management, reward, employee rela-
tions and employee involvement as well as others.
The relationship between organisational structure and human resource strategies
may also be considered in relation to other practices that develop in an organisation. An
organisation’s structure is, of course, composed of people and arguably the managers in
a structure have a strong influence on how it works in practice. In this way, the effective-
ness of an organisational structure and its links to human resource strategy will be
affected by the styles of management that prevail within the organisation. The effective-
ness of organisational structure will similarly be affected by the nature of the culture
and climate that exists within an organisation (see Chapters 13 and 6). The organisa-
tional practices that develop as a result of these influences may, for example, undermine
or support a structure designed to encourage employee involvement in an organisation.
Of course, organisational structure will help to influence the nature of managerial atti-
tudes and styles and the culture and climate in an organisation. Organisational structure
may thus significantly affect levels of employee morale and commitment, the nature of
communication between those in the structure, the development of informal, as well as
formal, relationships, conflict, and resulting motivation (Child, 1984; Francis, 1994;
Fritz, 1994; Mintzberg, 1993).
Drawing on the dimensions of organisational structure outlined above, use the list
of potential organisational consequences from structural deficiencies to evaluate
the structure of an organisation known to you.
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Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 171
In the section above, the dimensions of organisational structure were identified through
previous research and observed organisational practice.
It is important to recognise that organisational structure has strategic and operational
implications for organisational effectiveness and performance, indicating that its design is
an important issue. This raises a key question about how a group of managers should
design the structure of its organisation and what factors it should take into account if the
organisation is well established and requires restructuring. The theory of strategic choice
suggests that managers will exercise choice in determining structure (Child, 1972, 1997).
This approach suggests that organisational structure will be a political process as key man-
agers make a choice based on those factors that reflect their own interests and values where
possible. However, such a suggestion is keenly contested by some theorists. In this way,
other conceptual approaches have been advanced to explain how organisations should be
structured, advocating at least a degree of prescription for the design of structure.
Three other perspectives or schools of thought that offer explanations about the re-
lationship between the design of organisational structure and strategic effectiveness will
now be discussed.
1. The first of these perspectives is clearly prescriptive since it claims that a universal set
of principles should be used to design the structure of any organisation. This is the
classical universal approach to organisational structure, which was promulgated in the
first 60 to 70 years of the twentieth century (e.g. Child, 1984; Francis, 1994). However,
the notion of a set of universal principles to structure organisations was also re-
advanced in the 1980s through the publication of the ‘excellence’ literature (Peters
and Waterman, 1982). Some formulations of universal principles suggest an ideal
form of organisational structure which, if attained, would restrict, if not eliminate,
the need to alter this in response to changing environmental circumstances.
2. The second perspective relates to contingency theory. This theory suggests that an
effective organisational strategy and structure will be contingent on the circumstances
confronting an organisation. Thus, as these circumstances change, there will be a
need to alter both strategy and structure (e.g. Child, 1984; Mintzberg, 1993; Francis,
1994). Donaldson (1996) refers to this as structural contingency theory.
3. A third perspective relates to the need to achieve consistency between the various
facets of organisational design within a particular organisation (e.g. Child, 1984;
Mintzberg, 1991, 1993). This internal consistency approach places greater emphasis on
the fit between the various elements of an organisation’s structure in order to achieve
strategic and operational effectiveness than its fit to the external environment.
there was ‘one best way’ to organise it. This approach was designed to increase managerial
control over organisational work. A similar idea, focusing on universally applicable prin-
ciples, was applied to the design of organisational structure. A number of structural
principles were advanced which were believed to be applicable in all organisations (see,
for example, Francis, 1994).
This classical universal approach, at least as an idea, appears to have been popular for
some time, until it was challenged by contingency theory. The work of early contingency
theorists (Burns and Stalker, 1961; Woodward, 1965), as well as that of subsequent ones,
demonstrated that the notion of universally applicable principles for the design of
organisational structures was incorrect. The notion of ‘one best way’ was in effect substi-
tuted by a recognition that the design of an appropriate structure for an organisation
will depend on a number of characteristics of that organisation and the environmental
factors that confront it. In other words, an appropriate structure will be contingent on
the nature of these characteristics and factors.
A body of literature and research, which is known as the ‘excellence’ literature,
emerged in the 1980s and led to the advancement of yet more universal principles.
These principles were based on a number of attributes of chosen organisations that had
performed successfully, in terms of growth and financial returns, over a number of
years. The belief was that if other organisations applied the principles derived from this
excellence group, they would also benefit. While a number of the attributes derived by
Peters and Waterman (1982) have structural, as well as cultural, characteristics, three of
these attributes have particular relevance to structure as follows:
1. The belief that high-performing organisations were adopting ‘leanness’ in relation to
the design of the organisation and its staffing. This concept of leanness has a major
impact on how organisations develop a strategic approach to human resource man-
agement. It is often associated with a hard approach to SHRM and may require
downsizing of the workforce and will require existing or future workforces to be
multi-skilled and be fully committed to the current and future strategic direction of
the business.
2. A model of accountability based on devolving responsibility through decentralisation
while ensuring centralised control over core values and through financial targets.
3. A third advocates the creation of small, empowered teams on a flexible basis, whose
sole task would be to find a relatively rapid solution to a significant business problem,
rather than working through a bureaucratic or formal route to solve the issue.
Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 173
decentralisation;
autonomy;
team working; and
flexibility.
The widespread practical adoption of these strategies may therefore be taken as evi-
dence of a tendency towards the adoption and implementation of a universal approach
to structuring organisations. However, the use of these strategies may also be explained
by other causes. These include changes in organisations’ operating environments, such
as those related to globalisation, and the subsequent need to increase competitiveness. In
addition, some of these structural strategies may be claimed to exhibit a much longer
history than some current writing suggests, e.g. aspects of flexibility. Widespread adop-
tion of these structural strategies may be explained by a ‘universal’ inclination to adopt
cost reduction strategies, rather than dissemination of a management theory related to
the advocacy of a generally applicable set of principles.
In any case, the universal applicability of these principles or attributes is questionable.
Simple, lean structures may be applicable in some situations but not in others. The
resulting use of delayering and downsizing (see Chapter 14), aimed at producing lean
and efficient organisations which are responsive to their environment, may instead pro-
duce under-resourced ones that are associated with what employees view as being
difficult environments rather than having the strategic underpinning and benefits asso-
ciated with leanness (Kinnie et al., 1998). Devolving responsibility through
decentralisation may also be inappropriate in particular situations (Child, 1984). This
issue will be discussed in more detail later in this subsection. In addition, the reliability
of the universal principles or attributes has been questioned because of both the
methodology used to derive them (e.g. Raimond, 1993) and the subsequent perform-
ance of the ‘excellence’ group of companies. The nature of these organisations’
subsequent performance in changing environmental circumstances has raised questions
about any approach to structure adopted by them that does not take into account key
current and potential future factors evident in the internal and external operating envi-
ronments. Organisations successful in one period cannot guarantee success in future
periods – not without making changes that adapt them to new circumstances. A good
example of this is presented in ‘In Practice’ 5.2.
In Practice 5.2
International Business Machines (IBM) is the world’s top provider of computer products and services. It
is ranked in the world’s top ten companies by Fortune (the leading practitioner business journal); it ranks
among the leaders in almost every market in which it competes. The company makes mainframes and
servers, storage systems, and peripherals. Its service arm is the largest in the world, and IBM is also one
of the largest providers of both software (ranking number 2, behind Microsoft) and semiconductors. The
one sector in which IBM has struggled in recent years is its PC division. IBM was the market leader in
the personal computer (PC) market during the 1970s and 1980s. The organisation was so successful,
SHRM_C05.QXD 14/2/07 15:50 Page 174
generating huge profits, and employing thousands of employees across the globe, that it became
known by its senior managers and industry analysts as ‘big blue’. The perception was that it had such a
large market share that its future operating success would never be in question regardless of the emerg-
ing competition. This may have created a false sense of confidence in the IBM senior executives who
were responsible for the PC division. This confidence appears to have resulted in complacency with
regard to strategic decision-making and necessary changes to the corporate structure required to
respond to the dramatic changes taking place in the global PC market. The essential design and imple-
mentation of new strategies and structures for a series of key management functions did not emerge.
New competitors began to emerge, such as Compaq, Apple, Fujitsu, Siemens and Dell. Dell is now the
world number 1 PC manufacturer. These organisations were offering customers more competitively
priced products and were developing organisational structures that were much more responsive to the
needs of both their customers and employees. The emergence of Microsoft and its new Windows oper-
ating system opened up the home PC market and created a dramatically larger global customer base.
Bill Gates, founder and CEO of Microsoft, offered to sell his Windows operating system to IBM and he
claims they refused point blank and were very dismissive of Microsoft which was at that time only a tiny
company employing a very small number of people. Microsoft is now one of the world’s most successful
corporations and generates billions of dollars in sales every year.
Throughout the 1990s, IBM’s share of the PC market decreased year upon year and many people
reading this book may have heard of IBM but would not know that they made PCs. Students of busi-
ness and management in the 1980s and early 1990s would have all been very familiar with the IBM
Corporation and, in particular, its highly successful PC division. IBM completed the sale of its PC
operations to the Chinese corporation Lenovo for approximately $1.75 billion in 2005. It is possible to
conclude that this was an indication by senior executives that the PC division not longer fitted well
with IBM’s overall organisational structure.
What other criticisms do you think may be made against the classical universal
approach to the design of organisational structure?
A number of contingency factors have been recognised in the literature (e.g. Child, 1984;
Mintzberg, 1993). These include the companies’ growth rate, size, range of products and
services and number of markets in which they operate, including how internationally
diverse they are, the nature and impact of the environmental factors that have an effect
upon them, and the level of difficulty of the technologies that they use. The subsequent
discussion will focus on the organisational and environmental contingencies in order to
explore and evaluate this approach to designing organisational structures. Writers on con-
tingency theory believe that where an organisation’s structure has not been designed to
take account of the demands created by the current and future operating environment and
the characteristics of the organisation this will have an negative effect on its effectiveness
and performance. Where this approach is applied in practice, it may lead to a wide range
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Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 175
of structural solutions. In reality, other factors are likely to make the use of this approach
difficult or unachievable. These factors will be discussed later in this section.
A series of structural changes is likely to become necessary as organisations grow and
employ greater numbers of staff. Small organisations are likely to be characterised by a
simple structure within which there is departmental or role flexibility, and a high level of
direction and control from the manager or chief executive, who may also be the owner
of the business. For example, the owners of a small restaurant may run the kitchen, wait
on tables as well as manage the finance of the business, recruit and train employees. This
type of manager will expect a high level of flexibility from the few staff they employ. In
contrast, large organisations have traditionally developed their structures to incorporate
departmental and task specialisation, delegation of authority, and highly formalised
standard policies and procedures. This approach can create a situation of greater inter-
nal complexity. This latter type of structure, associated with large organisations, is
mechanistic and bureaucratic, as defined by the presence of specialised tasks and jobs,
clearly identified procedures and responsibilities, and hierarchical structures. An exam-
ple of this can be seen in ‘In Practice’ 5.3.
In Practice 5.3
Examples of this type of situation include organisations such as the civil service and central and local
government. The public sector, in general, has been heavily criticised for being mechanistic and bureau-
cratic. Those individuals who are in senior positions within these organisations are aware that the
structures can cause major problems for those who work in them and can make it very difficult to
respond to the changing needs of their customers and clients. Historically, the desire of senior man-
agers to make dramatic changes to these types of organisations may not be as great as it is in the
private sector simply because of the nature of their operating environments. Traditionally, public-sector
organisations have a constant customer or client base, low level of competition, are focused on regional
or national markets and appear to have little difficulty in recruiting employees. But things are changing
for the public sector, the current UK Labour government has set out clear policies for the restructuring of
the public sector. The drive to modernise the UK civil service, and central and local government, has
been part of the Labour Party’s agenda since its election in 1997. At time of writing, the most recent ini-
tiatives are being led by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown. Key elements already
completed include the merger of Customs and Excise with the Inland Revenue and the next phase will
see the downsizing and restructuring of various government departments. The central aim is to respond
to the criticism of the electorate, groups representing the private sector and government ministers who
are keen to see a dramatic reduction in the cost of managing the public sector. Some of the changes
have been widespread and involved significant external consultant processes under the title Review of
Public Administration. The outcome of this review includes the reduction of the number of councils in
local government, reductions in the number of hospital trusts and health authorities, and the reduction in
the number of political forces. The practical implication of these changes can be dramatic and will
require the merger of current organisations to cover a greater geographical area and also provide a
wider range of services. The public in these areas still require these services but the civil service of the
future will undoubtedly have a smaller number of total employees as will local government. The mergers
of hospital trusts and of police forces will create larger and more complex organisations. These changes
to the public sector will require significant change to the existing organisational structures and the cre-
ation of new structures to support the creation and development of the new organisations.
SHRM_C05.QXD 14/2/07 15:50 Page 176
In Practice 5.4
For the purpose of discussion, let us use a Hilton hotel as an example. The restaurant in a Hilton
hotel is likely to be structured as a department of the business (in this context the business is the
hotel rather than the overall Hilton Hotel corporation) with a range of specialist jobs and staff. There
will be a restaurant manager who reports to the overall hotel manager. The restaurant manger will be
responsible for managing the waitresses and waiters, bar staff, customer service, cleaning staff, etc.
Within the context of the restaurant the kitchen is of vital importance; the head chef will have a high
degree of control over what happens in relation to this area and the structure should reflect this. In
the context of a prestige hotel such as a Hilton hotel, the chef running the kitchen will also have sig-
nificant expertise and a high degree of autonomy over how he or she manages the staff in the
kitchen. The staff in the kitchen are likely to report directly to the head chef rather than the restau-
rant manager. In this context, the organisation structure will need to reflect the fact that professional
staff, such as a chef, are as important as a restaurant manager in achieving the strategic goals of the
organisation. To support this type of structure the head chef and the restaurant manager will need to
work in partnership.
In a less prestigious or smaller hotel chain, the skill and expertise required of the head chef will be
lower and his or her role in the hierarchy may be reflected by the fact that the head chef will have to
report to the restaurant manager.
Child (1984: 223) believes that organisational structure will be affected by ‘multiple
elements and factors, such as environment plus size’. Because of the resulting interaction
between these factors and elements, size will not act as the sole determinant in choosing
an appropriate structure, even though it is seen as a very significant factor according to
contingency theory. At this point it is important to consider the impact of environmen-
tal factors on the design of organisational structure.
Mintzberg (1993) identifies four environmental dimensions. These relate to stability,
complexity, diversity and hostility in the environment.
Stability refers to the level of certainty or predictability that is evident, with
a dynamic or variable environment being characterised by uncertainty or low
predictability.
Complexity concerns the number of environmental elements that confront an organ-
isation, with a complex environment being characterised by the presence of
numerous external factors.
Diversity relates to the range of activities of an organisation, so that a business would
be likely to face greater uncertainty where it had diversified into a number of different
markets.
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Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 177
Environmental complexity
Simple Complex
Stable
Figure 5.2 Structural types related to the interaction between environmental complexity and
stability
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Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 179
In Practice 5.5
Inconsistencies in Publicserviceorg
Publicserviceorg had made periodic changes to its organisational structure, related to attempts to
resolve tensions between centralised and decentralised decision-making. It had a long history of cen-
tralised decision-making and control but the nature of its work meant that tensions existed between
the centre of the organisation and its operating divisions, which were seen to impair its performance
and effectiveness. Over a number of years, the central managerial overhead was reduced and
attempts made to devolve greater responsibility to these operating divisions. However, the need for
accountability of the public funds deployed in the organisation and measurement of its performance
in relation to similar organisations, via controls exercised through central government reporting and
accounting procedures, meant that the organisation remained highly formalised and subject to
bureaucratic control. As a result, managers and staff in its operating divisions enjoyed little autonomy
in practice, spending more of their time engaged on formal reporting procedures than interfacing with
their client groups.
SHRM_C05.QXD 14/2/07 15:50 Page 180
How would you summarise the key differences between the classical universal,
contingency and consistency approaches to the design of organisational structure?
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Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 181
In Practice 5.6
Chief Executive
Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 183
Chief Executive
Chief Executive
the multi-divisional form is the dominant type in western European countries, as well as
in other developed countries, such as the USA and Japan.
While Mintzberg (1993) recognises that the use of a divisionalised structure will
involve some decentralisation of decision-making, he points out that this will be
restricted. This will only occur vertically down to the senior managers of each division,
so that these middle-ranking managers in the organisation are permitted to exercise
power along with its corporate managers. From a human resource perspective, this may
help to motivate these divisional managers, providing them with developmental experi-
ence and a clear route for career progression and promotion (Child, 1984). However,
there may be little effective difference for others who work in each product division,
other than the fact that a centralised bureaucratic structure has been replaced by a simi-
lar functional structure for that particular division. In other words, a divisionalised
structure may continue to be characterised by a mechanistic and bureaucratic design
affecting most of the people who work within it, although this does not have to be the
case (Mintzberg, 1993). See In Practice 5.7 for an example of this structure type.
The human costs of working in such mechanistic and bureaucratic structures under
Tayloristic principles of managing people have been recognised for a long time (see, for
example, Mintzberg, 1993; Francis, 1994). Structures that emphasise managerial control
over work are likely to be met by forms of employee resistance and attempts at counter-
control. Employees may develop forms of job control that restrict their work effort and
output. Indeed, Crozier (1964) found that the employees he studied used the bureau-
cratic procedures imposed by their organisations to their own ends in order to prevent
their managers from treating them in an arbitrary way. These types of structure are
therefore associated with a range of potential outcomes that may impact adversely on
human resource strategies aimed at engendering employee involvement and perform-
ance as well as broader strategies related to innovation and change.
As recognised earlier, a bureaucratic structure may also prove to be inappropriate
when an organisation is confronted by variable/dynamic or hostile environmental con-
ditions. Such an organisation would operate according to established rules which
SHRM_C05.QXD 14/2/07 15:50 Page 184
In Practice 5.7
Trad Manufacturing Co. (TMC) has an organisational structure that reflects a highly functional and
mechanistic form. Analysis of its structure using the components reported earlier shows how this
works in practice.
Specialisation Specialised job roles are prevalent among both TMC operatives and office staff
Standardisation There is a high level of standardisation arising from the use of internal operating
procedures and quality management systems in TMC
Formalisation Operations in TMC are highly formalised. This is partly because its parent company
maintains control through issuing formal policy guidelines to direct its operations. TMC
has also adopted various quality management systems to meet the quality standards
required by the organisations to whom it supplies its products
Centralisation Vertical hierarchy is important in TMC, with authority centralised in its senior management
team and ultimately in its parent company, of which it forms one operating division
Configuration In spite of a long period of downsizing and some delayering, TMC remains hierarchical,
with five levels of authority and fairly narrow spans of control, although it has used ad
hoc project teams on particular occasions to capitalise on the expertise embedded in
different parts of the company
Traditionalism In spite of significant change and the introduction of forms of flexibility in TMC, embedded
custom and practice still informs the conduct of work in certain areas of its operations
Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 185
Functional groupings
Human
Production Finance Marketing
resources
Northern
Southern
Market/product/
project groupings
Rest of
Europe
North
America
teams to deal with the problems that face it and in order to utilise effectively the spe-
cialised, and perhaps limited range of, skills that it possesses. Such project teams may be
formed or re-formed according to the needs of the organisation and the environmental
or market problems confronting it. A recent example of this was the use of cross-func-
tional teams by many organisations to ensure Year 2000 compliance in relation to the
operation of their computing systems.
The use of this project-based approach suggests a number of potential advantages,
related to the organisation and its employees. For the organisation, it suggests respon-
siveness to circumstances, the attainment of employee flexibility, as well as, perhaps,
effective employee performance arising from a stream of interesting and challenging
work, concomitant development and a greater acceptance of change. For affected
employees, it suggests scope for development, motivation, involvement and satisfaction.
However, it also suggests scope for role and interpersonal conflict, resulting in stress,
that may have the opposite effect in relation to these work dimensions (e.g. Child, 1984).
A matrix structure will involve the establishment of both project and functional
managers, which will affect the way in which these personnel, as well as others involved,
need to work together. In a negative scenario, there is scope for confusion and interper-
sonal conflict between these different types of manager and for the creation of stress,
with implications for effectiveness and performance. Even in a more positive scenario,
there are implications about the level of communication and nature of decision-making
processes required to realise the potential benefits of this type of organisational struc-
ture in practice. A matrix structure will require intensive communication and the use of
joint decision-making processes. Adopting a permanent form of matrix structure is
likely to have significant repercussions within an organisation. It may well signify a cul-
ture change, or at least the final stage of one, for the organisation (Bartol and Martin,
1994). It will also require great care in relation to the selection and training, as well as
defining the roles, of those who are placed into the management and other key jobs in
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Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 187
this type of structure. The significance of the need to define these roles and to select and
train for them carefully is illustrated by the potential for shifts in power and struggles for
control where this is not considered or achieved effectively.
There are three forms of control in a matrix structure (Knight, 1977). In an ‘absolute’
or ‘pure’ matrix structure, which Knight called the ‘overlay form’, functional managers
and project or product managers jointly share power and exercise authority. These man-
agers still commence their roles within this structure from different perspectives: in
other words, from their functional or project/product perspective; but will need to work
closely together to achieve an outcome. Francis (1994: 68–69) summarised this position
of interdependency:
Every individual in the organisation is responsible to a functional manager for the
technical aspects of the work and to a product or project manager for the way in
which the task in hand is co-ordinated with other tasks relating to the same product
or project.
The requirements of matrix structures indicate the potential for conflict to occur and
to become standard practice. Other employees may be affected adversely where they are
exposed to conflict in situations where they undertake different roles and answer to vari-
ous managers, resulting in stress.
An alternative to the pure or absolute form of matrix structure is for either the func-
tional manager or the project/product manager to hold overall authority. The first
scenario has been called the ‘coordination’ matrix and the second situation the ‘second-
ment’ matrix (Knight, 1977). The authors’ experience suggests a further variation,
whereby overall authority switches between the functional manager and project/product
manager, depending on the particular context or project. This is referred to as the ‘vari-
able control’ matrix (Figure 5.6). Each of these variations suggests that there is still scope
for conflict, even where overall, formal power and control has been established. This
potential for conflict has led Mintzberg (1993) to suggest that this type of structure is
Individual is responsible to …
… a functional … a project
manager manager
Individual is
responsible to …
Va atri
ria x s
m
bl tru
Secondment … a project
e
co ctu
only really suitable for organisations that have achieved operational and interpersonal
‘maturity’. This may be characterised by an organisational culture that emphasises open-
ness, cooperation and learning (see Chapters 6 and 11 in particular). This will be in
addition to other requirements before this type of structure is adopted (e.g. Davis and
Lawrence, 1977; Child, 1984).
Project
team
Project
team
Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 189
teams. It will be reflective of those areas of interdependency that become evident, which
require coordination. When such a structure has emerged fully, it can be formalised in the
organisation. This, they contend, will be a more effective way in which to generate an effi-
cient structure for the future, than imposing one from above at the outset of a purely
‘top-down’ change programme. A project-based organisation may therefore be used as a
means to move from one formal structure to another, and thus it may be seen as a trans-
itional structural state and a facilitator of other types of change.
Project-based structures, according to these two formulations, may be either perma-
nent or transitional structural arrangements. In either case, some of the concerns
expressed above about the involvement of organisational participants in either approach
are relevant here. Such arrangements will need to be based on effective working relation-
ships and genuine forms of employee involvement and participation. There are
undoubtedly risks to using this type of structure as well as potential benefits. This proj-
ect-based approach to organisational design should benefit from the use of a range of
human resource strategies that are designed to foster and support it. These include the
introduction of appropriate recruitment and selection, training and development, per-
formance management and employee involvement strategies and practices.
Project-based structures require the expertise of those who are involved in them and
their commitment to develop solutions and a new direction in order to achieve success.
This will involve human resource strategies including employee involvement and com-
munication that need to be developed in an ‘integrated’ manner rather than imposed
from the top down. Beer et al. (1990) distinguish between approaches to human
resource strategy by seeing top-down, imposed approaches as aimed at changing atti-
tudes and more grounded, emergent and context-specific approaches as being aimed at
altering behaviours. The behavioural approach is seen as being much more effective; the
attitudinal one being likely to become ‘overtaken’ by other organisational events (e.g.
Guest et al., 1993).
particular make of car will also be owned by a range of other organisations, approved by
and contracted to the particular manufacturer. These types of network generally remain
stable over long periods. For the core organisation in such a network, this has the benefit
of spreading the costs of investment, their exposure to risk and controlling their supply
costs. For the organisations that supply parts or distribute the final product, this should
generally ensure a steady flow of work and income. For the core organisation, this type
of organisational arrangement is also known as outsourcing. Other examples of vertical
networks may be found in a range of other industries such as manufacturing, clothing
and retail (e.g. Benetton, Next and Debenhams).
Dynamic or loosely coupled networks differ from the previous form in that they are
less likely to be dependent on a particular organisation and, by definition, are also likely
to be less stable. This type of arrangement is essentially a cooperative one between a
number of organisations to develop and exploit a perceived commercial opportunity,
perhaps where none is large enough or resource capable to achieve this in isolation.
Examples may be found in construction, in order to undertake large projects that bring
together a range of capabilities. Such a network arrangement therefore has the benefit of
allowing a number of specialised organisations to pool their resources to mutual advan-
tage. Larger organisations that cooperate to pool their resources in some way, in relation
to a particular opportunity, may prefer to develop a more permanent organisational
arrangement. This has occurred in manufacturing, where companies have shared the
large investment costs necessary. This may lead to the creation of a strategic alliance or
joint venture. These arrangements indicate the increased importance of interorganisa-
tional relationships and resulting structures.
In general terms, there appears to be a number of human resource implications aris-
ing from these types of network arrangements and structural relationships. These
include issues related to coordination, cooperation, communication, product quality,
training and development, performance management, involvement and commitment.
The use of an internal network will affect the nature of coordination and communica-
tion within the organisation, suggesting the need for the development of cooperative
relations based on internal customer relationships. In turn, this is likely to have implica-
Distribution network
Core organisation
Supply chain
Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 191
tions for the nature of human resource strategies relating to, among others, recruitment
and selection, training and development, and the design and management of appropri-
ate performance standards.
A vertical network adds a further layer of complexity to the effective management of
people engaged in this type of arrangement. Coordination, cooperation and communi-
cation will not only need to be achieved within each constituent organisation in this
type of network but also between them. The core organisation may seek to ensure the
adoption of particular standards in supplying organisations within the network by
requiring them to adopt an approved and verifiable system of quality management. This
in turn will raise human resource implications related to, most obviously, employee
training and selection. The core organisation may also use its supplier network, or part
of it, to hold down costs in this area, with particular implications for the nature of the
treatment of those who work in one of these supplier organisations. When a core organ-
isation decides to develop its strategy of outsourcing, this may lead it to restructure and
reduce its workforce as it downsizes. In effect, this vertical network strategy may allow
the core organisation to become smaller with an altered internal organisational struc-
ture. This outcome may therefore lead to a lower level of internal complexity, but a need
to engage ‘key’ personnel to coordinate effectively its vital external relationships.
The issue of external complexity and coordination is most evident in relation to the
use of a loosely coupled network. This type of network arrangement suggests the need
to generate a high level of shared understanding, communication, trust and coopera-
tion. It seems likely that each core employee of an organisation in such a network will
need to become a ‘key’ member in ensuring the success of this type of arrangement. This
has clear implications for the selection of employees and the management of perform-
ance, as well as the commitment characteristics, of people who work in organisations
that adopt the network approach.
Customer
Organisation
In Practice 5.8
Miles et al. (1997) describe an Australian-based computer graphics company which exemplifies cellu-
lar organisation. This organisation developed a number of information technology capabilities leading
to a range of products and services. The company organised itself into 13 small firms, each acting as
an independent cell with its own purpose and ability to develop and conduct business, specialising in
different aspects or products of the overall organisation. Business is developed through partnerships
that involve one or more cells of the organisation working with an external firm in a joint-venture rela-
tionship and with an important customer, which provide equity capital and an advanced order
respectively. Each cell typically operates with up to 20 professionals.
Virtual organisations
The idea that organisational structures can demonstrate fluidity reaches its height, per-
haps, in relation to descriptions of virtual organisations. The virtual organisation is seen
as a developed form of the network organisation (Child, 2005): a flexible and transient
structure specifically assembled from cells or companies to respond to a particular
opportunity, which will either cease once this goal has been fulfilled or reform in an
appropriate way to pursue another. It lacks its own physical assets and structures, relying
instead on those of its constituents and on the use of electronic communications tech-
nology. In this sense, the organisation may be thought of as virtual because of its
reliance on the internet and the mobility of working that this permits. Its presence as an
organisation may be more evident through the internet than based on the existence of a
particular physical location. It may be truly international, with work being sourced from
anywhere in the world where there is an appropriate capability and access to the inter-
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Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 193
net. Work will be fragmented into tasks, carried out by constituent individuals, cells or
companies and then integrated into a whole elsewhere in this virtual organisation (e.g.
Davidow and Malone, 1992; Warner and Witzel, 2003).
The concept of the virtual organisation appears suited to knowledge-based work that
utilises technologies such as the internet. It epitomises the human resource implications
described above for network and cellular organisations. In particular it may be seen as
epitomising the alternative to hierarchy that was referred to in the introduction to this
section, or at least demonstrating a new approach to hierarchy, where this may shift
according to the particular task or project being undertaken within the virtual organisa-
tion. The relationships implied by this approach suggest the need for high levels of
cooperation and commitment. However, this is not to say that control is absent within
such a virtual organisation, since the scope to change the supply of a particular service
or product exists by using alternative suppliers on a global basis, suggesting that poor
performance would not need to be tolerated by other contributors to the virtual organi-
sation. A summary of structural types is produced in Key Concepts 5.5.
Using the ideas discussed above, how would you summarise ‘organisational fluidity’?
Simple
A centralised structure, where one person or a few people exercise control over the direction and
operation of the organisation.
Matrix
A matrix structure combines a functional hierarchical structure with a lateral, project-based approach.
Project based
In this structure, project-based teams are responsible for undertaking the activities of the organisation.
Network
An organisational form designed to be flexible and responsive to change. There are different types of
network organisation: internal; vertical; and dynamic.
SHRM_C05.QXD 14/2/07 15:50 Page 194
Cellular
Another form of organisation designed to be flexible, based on principles of self-organisation and
entrepreneurship.
Virtual
A highly flexible and transient form, which exists for a given period and purpose.
The relationship between organisational structure and SHRM has emerged through
three strands of our discussion. Firstly, it has emerged in relation to the discussion about
the links between corporate strategy, organisational structure and human resource man-
agement strategies.
The first substantive section of this chapter recognises that there will be links between
strategy and structure as well as between structure and human resource strategies.
This is not an attempt to advocate a rationalist, planned approach by this recognition
or to be prescriptive about the nature of these links. Whether strategy is attempted in
a planned way or achieved through an emergent approach, these linkages will exist. In
this way all aspects of organisation – strategy, structure and human resource strate-
gies in our context – need to be considered in relation to one another. Without this,
incongruence or inconsistency may result in practice. Components of structure need
to be consistent with strategy and between themselves, while these same dimensions
of structure will impact on the nature of work and of working relationships (Key
Concepts 5.2 and 5.3 help to illustrate some of these relationships, as does the discus-
sion in the section within which these are located).
Second, the relationship between organisational structure and SHRM has emerged in
relation to the discussion about conceptual approaches to understand the design of
organisational structures. While these approaches are conceptual and, in practice,
structure may emerge in many organisations through a more pragmatic and intuitive
process of decision-making, each of these approaches nevertheless suggests implica-
tions about the relationship between organisational structure and the management of
human resources. Adopting universal principles appears to suggest a lack of focus on
the outward context of the organisation. Adopting leanness or decentralisation, for
example, because of adherence to some universal set of principles will have particular
consequences for the management of human resources, whether or not this is the
most appropriate course to take. Attempting to achieve a contingency approach
demonstrates an explicit attempt to match strategy to contextual circumstances, with
implications for the nature of both structure and human resource strategies. Of
course an organisation’s ability to comprehend and match all of its contextual cir-
cumstances may be limited for a number of reasons, as was recognised above and in
Chapter 1. Strategic choice and the influence of organisational politics and power
recognise instead the role of individual agency and gain, with consequential implica-
tions for the management of human resources.
SHRM_C05.QXD 14/2/07 15:50 Page 195
Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 195
Third, the relationship between organisational structure and SHRM also emerges in
the discussion about structural forms. Each form of organisational structure will have
different effects on those who work within it, as well as particular implications about
the nature of the capabilities and attributes of the people required to make it effective
in practice. This may be most evident in relation to the more decentralised forms of
structure discussed in the above section. In these decentralised forms, high levels of
competence, communication and cooperation are often required, particularly among
core employees or workers. This has clear implications for the nature of human
resource strategies, both to facilitate these types of structure and working relation-
ships, and to support their maintenance and development. The scope of human
resource strategies in such decentralised organisations may, however, be limited to
particular divisions, constituent companies or cells within a larger organisation, with
implications for consistency and integration across the organisation as a whole.
The consistency approach to structural design recognises that effectiveness will be
linked to congruence between the elements of structure within each organisation, with
clear implications for consistency with SHRM as well.
Some discussion about the scope of human resource strategies in decentralised struc-
tures will be developed below, after seeking to summarise the human resource
implications arising from organisational structures in general terms. As can be seen in
the following list, organisational structure can be seen to influence:
the nature and fulfilment of organisational strategy;
organisational responsiveness to external change and competitiveness;
scope for innovation;
organisational capability to cope with uncertainty;
organisational performance and effectiveness;
product and service quality;
the nature and effectiveness of coordination;
the organisation of work and job design;
the nature of decision-making (accountability and responsibility);
the location and exercise of power and control;
the generation and level of organisational conflict (and cooperation);
organisational culture;
motivation and commitment/alienation;
the scope for and nature of employee involvement and performance;
the nature of and channels for communication;
formal and informal relationships;
group processes, team working and network relationships;
career paths and scope for development;
the nature of employees’ psychological contracts (discussed in Chapter 8);
work-related stress.
What items can you add to this general list of implications?
SHRM_C05.QXD 14/2/07 15:50 Page 196
The focus now turns towards the way in which decentralised structures may affect the
scope for and nature of human resource strategies in organisations. In the section above,
discussions on divisional structures and their implications for those who work within
them took place. The use of complex and vertically decentralised organisational struc-
tures, characterised by a multi-divisional structure, can lead to a reduction in the scope
for human resource strategies to develop or embed themselves across an organisation.
Business unit managers in such a structure may become more concerned to meet the
financial targets established for them than to focus on corporate human resource issues
and approaches, even where these have been identified and developed (Purcell, 1989b).
This decentralised focus is also likely to depend on the strategic focus of particular
organisations. Some divisionalised organisations may promote a short-term focus on
financial control and returns that reduces their scope to develop organisation-wide
human resource strategies. Conversely, other divisionalised organisations may adopt a
longer-term strategic focus that encourages the development and use of integrative
human resource strategies across the organisation (Goold and Campbell, 1987). The
nature of human resource strategies may also be affected by a combination of a division-
alised organisational structure and the particular strategic focus of the organisation.
In a similar way, other decentralised forms of organisational structure, such as net-
work or cellular structures, may affect the scope for organisation-wide human resource
strategies. Again, this effect is likely to be in combination with the strategic focus of an
organisation. The use of these structures may thus lead some organisations to recognise
the importance of the contribution of their core groups of staff, in particular, and to
adopt a developmental and strategic approach to the management of these people. Con-
versely, other organisations may adopt a more short-term focus based on financial
controls and returns. These organisations may believe that they can ‘poach’ key mem-
bers of staff from an external pool of labour, by rewarding them well. This second
approach is based on pragmatism and opportunism and would not encourage the devel-
opment of a range of integrated and longer-term human resource strategies.
The discussion in this section has considered the impact of decentralised organi-
sational structures on the development of human resource strategies. How do
you think a more centralised and bureaucratic form of organisational structure will
affect the development of human resource strategies?
Summary
Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 197
Either:
Undertake a search of practitioner publications (related to human resource and man-
agement) and identify a number of short articles about case study organisations that
often feature in these and select, say, two or three of them that discuss structural change,
perhaps due to downsizing or a restructuring, and use one or more theories discussed
above to try to evaluate what these organisations did and its likely effectiveness.
Or:
Using an organisation with which you are familiar, which may be one in which you are
currently employed or have worked for, or one known to you:
1. Use the list of dimensions of organisational structure in Key Concepts 5.1 to analyse
the nature of this organisation’s structure.
SHRM_C05.QXD 14/2/07 15:50 Page 198
2. Use Key Concepts 5.2 to try to evaluate the effectiveness of the organisation’s struc-
ture, or one part of it, in relation to the four consequences listed.
3. Use Key Concepts 5.3 and the discussion in the section titled ‘Consistency approach
to organisational structure’ to evaluate the level of consistency between the key ele-
ments of its structure.
4. Identify the form or forms of structure evident in this organisation. How would you
assess the nature of working relationships in the organisation and how suited are
these to the form or forms of structure that are used in it?
Case Study
DaimlerChrysler AG
Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 199
DC has been described as a very traditional billion per year, G&A staff reduced by up to 20
German company. For a long time its culture has per cent over three years
been described as technology- and quality-
Supervisory Board agrees to realignment of
focused: brilliant engineers and craftsmen were
functions within the Board of Management
producing well-designed, reliable, high-quality cars.
Under the shining Mercedes star, managers could Shortly after the board’s announcement the fol-
afford to buy companies all over the world as the lowing text was published on DC’s web site
coffer was full. Unfortunately, too often they paid (http:www.daimlerchrysler.com):
too much for companies which did not fit in their
DaimlerChrysler today introduced a new
organisational structure.
management structure designed to enhance
Meanwhile, the reputation of the Mercedes star
competitiveness and promote further profitable
has dimmed and Mercedes has slid dramatically in
growth. The new structure will further integrate
consumer rankings and loyalty. DC appears to have
the company’s functions, focus the operations
quality problems, manufacturing efficiency has
declined (while costs are relatively high) and there within DaimlerChrysler on core processes, and
has been excess production capacity for years. Also, encourage internal collaboration. Moreover, it
its technological prowess is more and more disputed. will reduce redundancies and remove manage-
The giant head office (HO) in Stuttgart-Möhrin- ment layers.
gen monitors hundreds of national and international ‘Our objective in taking these actions is to
companies in different industries. There are manu- create a lean, agile structure, with streamlined
facturing facilities in 17 countries. Most Group and stable processes that will unleash Daimler-
companies are in fact (economically) more or less Chrysler’s full potential,’ said Dieter Zetsche,
independent as it is very difficult to stir these com- Chairman of the Board of Management (BoM) of
panies ‘virtually’ from the HO. DaimlerChrysler AG. ‘We’re going to build on a
Dieter Zetsche became group chief executive at strong product portfolio.’ In 2005 alone, Daimler-
the start of the year 2006 succeeding Jürgen Chrysler launched 17 new products, giving it one
Schrempp. of the youngest product lines in the automotive
In September 2005 Zetsche warned: ‘We should industry. The company plans to continue its
not let ourselves become overconfident. There is aggressive level of investment.
still a long and difficult road ahead of us before we ‘Over the last several years, we focused on our
can become truly competitive again.’ The company automotive business and started to streamline the
continues to drag around excess production capac- core processes in our divisions,’ said Zetsche.
ity, he wrote, and its costs remain ‘significantly ‘But to safeguard our future in this competitive
higher than those of the best competitors’. To global industry, we need to apply that same equa-
redress the situation, he announced, Daimler- tion across all general and administrative (G&A)
Chrysler’s board was cutting 8,500 Mercedes jobs functions with the added dimension of adapting to
in Germany, or about 9 per cent of the total. the needs of our business.’
The preliminary work for this new structure
began in mid-2005 with a high-level internal team.
New ‘leadership model’ The program focuses on the company organi-
zation and the processes that are used
On 24 January 2006 the board published a new ‘lead- throughout the DaimlerChrysler enterprise.
ership model’, which was focused on making specific Among structural changes is a consolidation
changes to the existing organisational structure. and integration of G&A functions, such as
Within minutes the share prise rose by about 5 per Finance and Controlling, Human Resources and
cent to €45. This model was widely reported in the Strategy. These areas will be centralized to
print media: report to the respective head of that function
throughout the entire company. Redundancies
Integration leads to organization that is faster, between staff functions at the corporate and
more flexible, leaner and more efficient operating levels will be eliminated, thereby
Together with other ongoing efficiency pro- reducing the complexity of the organization. A
grammes, G&A [general and administrative] more integrated G&A organization will result in
costs are expected to be reduced by EUR 1.5 more consistent processes, and reporting and
SHRM_C05.QXD 14/2/07 15:50 Page 200
decision-making will become shorter, faster and Several other organizational changes will also
more efficient. be made. Corporate-wide Research and Tech-
‘We want our divisions to concentrate on the nology will be merged with product development
automotive core processes – development, pro- of Mercedes Car Group under BoM member
duction and sales,’ added Zetsche. Thomas Weber. The new organization – Group
The consolidation of corporate functions will Research & MCG Development – will continue as
occur throughout the company. The earlier deci- the research center of competence for the entire
sion for Dieter Zetsche to serve a dual role as company. Within this realignment, the new func-
Chairman of the Board of Management and con- tion will take on more responsibility for advanced
currently as Head of the Mercedes Car Group, engineering activities of all automotive divisions.
will now be reflected in the organizational struc- This action is expected to reduce the time-to-
ture as well. BoM members Bodo Uebber and market of future technologies, keep research
Ruediger Grube will also continue to have dual focused on customer-relevant innovations, and
roles: Uebber for Finance and Controlling, as eliminate redundancies.
well as DaimlerChrysler Financial Services; The Commercial Vehicles Division, headed by
Grube for Corporate Development (including BoM member Andreas Renschler, will also
Information Technology) and DaimlerChrysler’s undergo changes. It will focus on commercial
participation in EADS (European Aeronautic trucks as its core business and operate under
Defense and Space company). That will effec- the name Truck Group, while the Bus and Van
tively reduce the number of BoM members to business will be reported elsewhere. The follow-
nine (from 12 about one year ago).
ing operations will continue in Truck Group:
The German BoM members currently based in
Trucks Europe/Latin America (Mercedes-Benz),
Stuttgart-Moehringen will relocate in May 2006,
Trucks NAFTA (Freightliner, Sterling, Thomas
along with their staff, to Stuttgart-Untertuerkheim,
Built Buses), Mitsubishi Fuso Bus and Truck Cor-
and therefore closer to production. This means the
poration, and Truck Product Creation. The new
DaimlerChrysler headquarters function will be
structure will create further synergies between
located in Stuttgart-Untertuerkheim and Auburn
the regional truck units and brands, and allow
Hills, Michigan. Several support functions and non-
G&A functions will stay in Stuttgart-Moehringen. the Truck Group to accelerate its profit potential
On the basis of the new structure, the com- initiative called Global Excellence …
pany will standardize the most important In total, the new management model will
processes within and across divisions, according reduce the cost of administrative functions at
to best-practice criteria. DaimlerChrysler, in an effort to reach benchmark
Cooperation between the Mercedes Car levels. Together with other ongoing efficiency
Group and the Chrysler Group will become programs, G&A costs are expected to be
markedly closer, according to Zetsche, but ‘a reduced by EUR 1.5 billion per year. The net
clear priority within this effort will continue to fur- effect of today’s announcement will be EUR 1
ther strengthen brand identity. You can expect to billion per year.
see more examples of collaboration especially Preparation to implement this comprehensive
when we can transfer knowledge between the program will start immediately, and take three
groups, much as Chrysler Group tapped the years to fully implement. It is expected to require
rear-wheel-drive expertise of Mercedes-Benz in an overall expenditure of about EUR 2 billion from
the development of the Chrysler 300C. 2006 to the end of 2008. Due to the elimination of
‘Beyond that,’ added Zetsche, ‘you will also redundancies, consolidation of staffs and opti-
see more examples of clearly defined “project mization of processes, headcount will be reduced
houses” where engineers from different divisions by about 6,000 employees over the three-year
work together for the benefit of the whole com- span. This represents roughly 20 percent of gen-
pany.’ A current example is the joint project to eral and administrative staff (30 percent at
develop hybrids, where Mercedes-Benz and management levels). These reductions will take
Chrysler engineers are working side-by-side place in G&A functions around the world. At a
(with General Motors and BMW specialists). This meeting today, the DaimlerChrysler Supervisory
joint team is creating a new two-mode hybrid Board agreed to the realignment of functions in
system that will power future vehicles from the the Board of Management, which will be imple-
brands of both divisions … mented by March 1st, 2006.
SHRM_C05.QXD 14/2/07 15:50 Page 201
Chapter 5 The role of organisational structure in SHRM: the basis for effectiveness? 201
The specific measures required to put the new HR policy of DC. This may also be a reflection of
actions into place are expected to be presented a generally rather poor (strategic) HR
to the Supervisory Board for approval by the end management of DC’s head office.
of April. You are therefore also asked to answer the
following questions:
In light of the intentions in the announcement
Case study questions
of DC (text above) which HR areas or HR
challenges are concerned?
1. As the HR-Director of DC (Stuttgart, Germany)
Name some of these challenges. Then
you are required to develop a ‘suitable HR
establish a plan of action by formulating and
strategy’ to propose solutions to the problems
justifying possible solutions to the challenges
raised by the actual situation of DC and the
you have identified.
intentions of the CEO described above.
State your understanding of the situation at DC 3. What type of organisational structure should be
and determine the needs of DC (problems within created and implemented to support the new HR
DC and reasons for the new organisational strategy?
structure); also describe some strategic 4. What are possible advantages (and
elements of the organisational structure. disadvantages) of creating a new organisational
2. Whereas German companies such as Deutsche structure?
Bank AG, Lufthansa AG or Allianz AG are seen 5. In developing and implementing the new
by HR specialists and scholars as ‘truly’ global structures, the company will have to recruit new
companies with excellent strategic HRM international managers. How could the company
policies, DaimlerChrysler lacks such a really select and develop a group of experienced
reputation. There were incredible problems international managers? What instruments would
integrating Chrysler in the DC group. It took you use?
years to fix many post-merger problems. There
are many other examples of a poor international
SHRM_C06.QXD 14/2/07 15:51 Page 202
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
Chapter 6 Relationships between culture and SHRM: do values have consequences? 203
Introduction
Over the past 50 years, culture has become one of the most widely written about
concepts in management literature in both the populist and academic press (Cooper
et al., 2001). At the national level, writers such as Hofstede (2001) and Tayeb (1996)
have highlighted the implications for both multi-national organisations and uni-
national organisations employing a multi-cultural workforce, while at the
organisational level, writers such as Handy (1993) and Peters and Waterman (1995)
have highlighted the importance of an effective culture to organisational success.
Messages relating to organisations from a vast range of culture studies have been
summarised by Hendry (1995) as twofold. First, culture matters and, more impor-
tantly, the right organisational culture can lead to improved organisational
performance. Linked to this there is a second implicit message: an organisation’s cul-
ture is a tangible phenomenon, which can be manipulated and altered. The
importance of organisational culture might therefore be considered a result of the
search by organisations for competitive advantage linked to ‘buzz phrases’ of the
1980s, such as ‘competitive advantage’ and ‘models of excellence’ (Legge, 1994:
397). The implication of this is that, through a strong culture, an organisation can
deliver sustained superior performance gaining competitive advantage and corporate
success (Barney, 1986).
An organisation does not, however, exist within a cultural vacuum. Rather, its oper-
ations are affected by what Schneider and Barsoux (2003: 51) term ‘interacting
spheres of culture’. In addition to the organisation’s culture, these spheres include
national and regional cultures, industry cultures, functional or professional cultures.
All of these impact upon each other and the culture of the organisation and, as a con-
sequence, the management of human resources within the organisation. The
implication is that an understanding of these spheres of culture and their interactions
is central to the success of business activities, such as mergers and acquisitions,
joint ventures and the like.
Despite this, research evidence (reviewed by Hendry, 1995) suggests that the link
between an organisation’s culture and its performance is weak. He argues that an
organisation’s culture is unlikely to accentuate positive attributes already possessed
such as competitive advantage, overall performance or success. Rather the way in
which an organisation’s employees behave, and the assumptions upon which they
base their behaviours, are likely to reduce the impact of negative attributes such as
resistance to necessary change. With regard to this, Whipp et al.’s (1989) contention
is that culture is one factor influencing an organisation’s competitiveness over time.
This implies that an understanding of an organisation’s culture, and the other spheres
of culture that influence it, can assist in the selection and application of more effective
SHRM interventions relating to recruitment and selection, performance management,
training and development programmes. At the same time, SHRM interventions can
influence the culture of the organisation.
This chapter starts by considering the different meanings of culture and exploring
different typologies of national cultures (Figure 6.1). Building upon this, frameworks
for understanding organisational cultures and typologies of organisational cultures are
examined. Within this the implications of different cultures for different SHRM inter-
SHRM_C06.QXD 14/2/07 15:51 Page 204
Convergence
or Structural Frameworks
divergence
Competing
Hofstede Alignment
values
Trompenaars
External
and
environs
Hampden-Turner
Cultural web
Figure 6.1 Mapping diagram of the relationships between culture and strategic human resource management: a
summary diagram of the chapter content
Meanings of culture
Within the literature there are numerous definitions of culture. Schneider and Barsoux
(2003) note that anthropologists alone have proposed over 164 different definitions and,
in their discussion, argue that culture is both shared patterns of behaviours and the
meanings that are attributed to these behaviours. They stress that the interrelationship
between meanings and behaviours is crucial to understanding cultures, emphasising not
SHRM_C06.QXD 20/2/07 09:01 Page 205
Chapter 6 Relationships between culture and SHRM: do values have consequences? 205
only that the same shared behaviour can have different meanings but also that different
shared behaviours can have the same meaning. This is illustrated in ‘In Practice’ 6.1.
They also highlight that these meanings may not be readily apparent, suggesting that,
although culture can be observed, like a code it still needs to be deciphered.
In Practice 6.1
A recent television advertisement campaign by the international banking corporation HSBC high-
lighted differences in national cultures and their importance to understanding the bank’s customers.
In the advertisement, the meanings attributed to different gestures and gifts were contrasted between
countries in a humorous manner. For example, while the giving of chrysanthemums is welcomed in
the UK, the same flowers are associated with funerals and death in France. However, the underlying
message put over by the advertisement was serious. Although HSBC is a global company it under-
stands the importance and takes account of local cultural differences in its operations. This was
emphasised by the advertisement’s final comment ‘HSBC The World’s local bank’.
Schein (1997: 12) captures these ideas of shared behaviours and meanings in his defi-
nition of culture. In this he states that culture is:
A pattern of shared basic assumptions that the group learned as it solved its prob-
lems of external adaptation and internal integration, that has worked well enough to
be considered valid and, therefore, to be taught to new members as the correct way
to perceive, think and feel in relation to those problems.
This definition emphasises that culture consists of shared assumptions that not only
belong to a group but, because they have worked, have been internalised and are taken for
granted. Within this a group could be, for example, a nation, region, industry, profession,
organisation or function within an organisation. Consequently, it can be argued that these
assumptions represent why people within a group behave the way they do and why they
hold the values and beliefs they espouse. This definition has additional appeal as it empha-
sises key issues faced by SHRM: finding solutions to problems of adaptation to the
external environment and determining practices that will promote internal integration.
When considering organisational culture specifically, most writers adopt one of two
approaches. Either they view culture as one of a series of metaphors, such as the organi-
sation as a machine, used to help understand the complexity of organisations (for
example Morgan, 1997); or (the majority) see it as an objective entity. Those writers who
view culture as an objective entity use two distinct approaches. The first of these consid-
ers culture in a similar way to anthropologists; that is as something an organisation is
rather than a variable that can be manipulated by managers. The is approach argues that
all of an organisation’s features and behaviours, including its systems, procedures, policies
and processes, are part of its culture. As a consequence, the culture cannot be manipu-
lated as a whole, or turned on or off; although it may be intentionally influenced
(Pacanowsky and O’Donnell-Trujillo, 1982; Meek, 1992). Legge (1994) argues that this
approach is self-defeating. By defining culture as an organisation’s features and behav-
iours, its management becomes equivalent to managing behaviour in organisations,
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All HR interventions are influenced, at least to some extent, by the cultures within which
they are enacted. In particular, the efficacy of differing HR interventions depends upon
the national culture and context within which an organisation operates. Over the last 30
years, large numbers of typologies of culture, particularly within the national and
organisational spheres, have been developed. These provide differing overviews of the
variations that exist between cultures and some indication of the associated dimensions.
Although these typologies are not applicable to all nations or organisations, they can be
used as a series of idealised types through which to begin to understand aspects of cul-
tures and subcultures and explore the implications of these for SHRM. To this end the
section starts by considering national cultures.
Chapter 6 Relationships between culture and SHRM: do values have consequences? 207
increasing. This is known as the convergence–divergence debate. Those favouring the con-
vergence view highlight that, due to advances in telecommunications, the world is
becoming smaller and that we are increasingly buying global brands, such as Levi jeans
and Nike trainers, and eating global food, such as McDonald’s. They argue that the rapidly
increasing use of technology and the growing numbers of multi-national organisations
will result in a convergence of organisational configurations in terms of strategy, structure
and management practice (Ritzer, 1998; Senior, 2002). In 2002 the United Nations esti-
mated that there were more than 65,000 multi-national companies in the world and that
the total sales of these companies accounted for more than one-tenth of the world’s gross
domestic product (GDP) and one-third of the world’s exports (International Labour
Office, 2003). Consequently, it is argued that the impact of national cultures on organisa-
tional cultures appears likely to continue to decline where such organisations have no
national allegiance, only an international common purpose (Ohmae, 1994).
Management education has also been argued to encourage convergence (Schneider
and Barsoux, 2003). For example, training provided in western business schools pro-
vides students with an understanding of basic business disciplines including finance,
marketing, operations and human resource management. This is often underpinned by
a particular ideology based upon the need for businesses to make money and the impor-
tance of shareholders’ rights underpinned by the fundamental of free enterprise. Despite
this, the business norms associated with these ideologies suggest a common culture
management which, it is argued, may not be relevant or useful for some contexts
(Schneider and Barsoux, 2003). Consequently an implicit promotion of convergence
through education may be counter-productive.
Writers like Hofstede (2001) and Tayeb (1996) support the opposing ‘divergence’
view. They argue that, despite the growth in multi-national organisations and the tech-
nical and economic forces for convergence, between-country differences, such as
language, religious beliefs, laws, political systems and education, mean that their cultures
will diverge. Organisations therefore increasingly need to be aware of differences in
national cultures, the influence of these differences upon the organisation’s culture or
subcultures and the implications for the organisation’s policies and procedures and dif-
fering management practices. While advances in telecommunications technology are
increasingly enabling organisations to locate work (for example call centres) anywhere,
thereby taking advantage of economic differences between countries, the management
of the people employed still needs to take account of cultural differences between coun-
tries. These will influence both the culture of organisations operating within these
countries and the human resource interventions utilised within these organisations. In
addition, an increasingly culturally diverse workforce within countries, such as the UK,
further emphasises the need to understand the implications of national cultures within
organisational HR practices, such as training and development (In Practice 6.2).
Produce a table summarising the arguments for convergence and for divergence
of national cultures using the following structure:
In Practice 6.2
According to UK government targets, the proportion of recruits to London’s Metropolitan Police from
ethnic minorities needs to reach 25.9 per cent by 2009. Speaking to the BBC (British Broadcasting
Corporation) in April 2004, the Metropolitan Police Force’s head of human resources said the current
rate of progress meant the force did not ‘stand a prospect of getting anywhere near that target’. In
2002–2003 some 9.8 per cent of recruits to London’s Metropolitan Police were from ethnic minorities.
Despite the need to meet such targets, the 2004 Skills Foresight report for the police sector in
England, Wales and Northern Ireland reveals that nearly a quarter of police recruits from ethnic minor-
ity backgrounds quit before they finish their training programme. Recruits from ethnic minority
backgrounds are twice as likely to drop out of training within the first six months as those from white
backgrounds.
Research conducted by the Commission for Racial Equality (2004: 27) reports that for one group of
police probationers undergoing initial training there was a ‘dominant “bar culture” which reinforced
macho and anti-diversity attitudes and excluded participants from minority groups who abjured alco-
hol or heavy drinking’. Based upon this and other evidence, the report highlighted that ethnic minority
probationers often felt culturally isolated and vulnerable. The report recommended the establishment
of effective pastoral care and a safe complaints process for trainees.
Hofstede’s dimensions
The best-known work on national cultures has been undertaken by the Dutch academic
Geert Hofstede, the most recent version being published in 2001. As outlined briefly in
Chapter 3, this focuses on the differences and similarities between national cultures
across, initially, four dimensions using survey data drawn from a pre-existing bank of
employee attitude surveys undertaken in the 1960s and 1970s within IBM subsidiaries in
66 countries. Based upon analysis of these and some additional data, Hofstede was able
to define four bi-polar dimensions of national culture, giving a comparative score to 40
out of the 66 countries in which the IBM subsidiaries were located for each. These
dimensions were:
power distance;
individualism/collectivism;
masculinity/femininity;
uncertainty avoidance.
Subsequent research in the 1980s (Bond, 1988) resulted in a fifth dimension:
Confucian dynamism.
Power distance relates to the extent to which less powerful employees accept that
power is distributed unequally. Thus, within low power distance countries, such as the
UK, Sweden and Denmark, inequalities between people are more likely to be minimised
and consultative decision-making is more likely to be used. In contrast, in high power
distance countries such as Malaysia and the Philippines, inequalities are considered
desirable and there are greater differentials between employers and senior managers in
terms of pay and privileges.
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Chapter 6 Relationships between culture and SHRM: do values have consequences? 209
Table 6.1 Relative scores on Hofstede’s dimensions of national culture for selected countries
and Germany has been re-unified. Despite this, Hofstede argues that differences between
countries in language, education and laws mean that national cultures are still powerful
forces in shaping the patterns of beliefs, values and learned ways of coping with experi-
ences for employees within organisations.
Although Hofstede’s work has been adopted widely, it has also been subject to criti-
cism, a recent example being that by McSweeney (2002a). As part of this he criticises the
assumptions implicit within Hofstede’s method, namely that:
an individual’s organisational, occupational and national cultural spheres are discrete;
national cultures can actually be identified at the micro or local level;
national cultural differences can be shown by differences in questionnaire responses;
national cultures can be identified by analysing such responses;
national cultures are situationally (in this instance, organisationally) non-specific.
Figure 6.2 Schematic distribution of the Confucian dynamism dimension for the UK and Japan
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Chapter 6 Relationships between culture and SHRM: do values have consequences? 211
McSweeney (2002a) also argues that Hofstede’s research fails to show a causal link
between the dimensions of a particular national culture and specific actions. He states
that, while Hofstede acknowledges the existence of other levels and types of culture, he
appears to suggest that they have little influence. McSweeney argues that other levels and
types of culture and non-cultural influences are likely to also be important. For example,
in one country uncertainty avoidance may be the cause of low labour turnover, while in
another it may be due to high unemployment (Tayeb, 2000). This might be equated, at
least in part, to the importance given by Schneider and Barsoux (2003) to the interaction
between their different spheres of cultural influence and other factors. Hofstede (2002)
responded to McSweeney’s criticisms, arguing that many had been addressed elsewhere
(for example, Hofstede, 1980, 2001). In his response Hofstede emphasised that while
organisational practices could be modified, national cultural values, as measured in his
research, were hardly changeable. It should be noted that in a rejoinder, McSweeney
(2002b) argued that Hofstede had failed to rebut his initial criticisms. However, whether
you agree or disagree with McSweeney’s (2002a) criticisms, they:
provide insights into the methodological assumptions behind Hofstede’s work;
raise awareness of possible interactions between different spheres of culture;
question the extent to which national cultures have preferred management styles;
question the extent to which national cultures have discrete influences on specific
actions such as SHRM interventions.
Your own view on such issues will inevitably influence the way in which you consider
the implications of national cultures for SHRM, an issue which you can explore further
through Self-Check and Reflect Question 6.2.
be made logically, impartially and professionally. In contrast, in societies which are more
particularist, obligations to both friends and family are considered to be important and
morally right. Consequently, specific situations, such as whom to recruit or promote, are
likely to be considered more flexibly.
The individualism versus communitarianism dimension emphasises that societies
can be individualistic or collectivist. It can therefore be considered to be almost identical
to Hofstede’s individualist/collectivist dimension (Tayeb, 2000). Within societies, com-
munitarianism (collectivism) can take many forms such as the importance of the
organisation in Japan, or the family in Italy. However, the relevance of this to managing
human resources strategically relates to the extent to which employees regard themselves
as individuals or as part of a group and has associated implications for policies and
practices, such as performance-related pay and team working (Trompenaars and Hamp-
den-Turner, 2004).
The extent to which it is acceptable to express emotions publicly, such as within inter-
personal communications, is highlighted by the neutral versus emotional dimension.
This can be considered as the extent to which individuals should communicate the full
extent of their personal feelings. Within North America and, to a lesser extent, north
west Europe, Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner (1997) argue that business relation-
ships are typically instrumental and focused upon achieving objectives; personal feelings
being subdued as they only confuse issues. In contrast, they argue that in cultures that
are more open about their emotions (affective), such as Russia and Egypt, more overt
displays such as laughter and anger are typically considered part of business (Table 6.2).
Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner (2004) consider that this dimension is particularly
important when managing employees and, in particular, enabling employees to learn
through honest evaluations of their work performance. They argue that, by establishing
rapport between individuals in a supportive environment, it is possible to ‘make tough
reports and still be credible’ (2004: 120), while if there is no rapport such reports may be
ignored or seen as personal attacks.
The specific versus diffuse dimension highlights the relative importance ascribed by
different cultures to focusing on the specific, for example analysing issues by reducing
them to specific facts, tasks, numbers or bullet points. This is contrasted with a focus
upon analysing issues by integrating and configuring them into relationships, under-
standings and contexts. Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner (2004) illustrate this by
contrasting specific and diffuse approaches to ascribing blame in a workplace where a
trainee has made a serious and costly error. In a more specific culture, such as Australia
or Russia, blame would be more likely to be placed on the individual who made the mis-
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Chapter 6 Relationships between culture and SHRM: do values have consequences? 213
Table 6.2 Relative positions on Trompenaars’ and Hampden-Turner’s dimensions for selected countries
take. In contrast, within a more diffuse culture such a mistake is more likely to be con-
sidered as due to a failure in a wider system, such as the procedures for training,
supervising and developing new employees.
The fifth dimension, concerned with relationships with people, achievement versus
ascription, focuses upon the way in which status is accorded. Cultures that place rela-
tively high values on achievement are more likely to focus on what has been
accomplished with, for example, selection, promotion and reward decisions being more
likely to be based upon this. In contrast, cultures that place a higher value on status than
what has been accomplished are more likely to focus upon kinship, gender, age, connec-
tions and past record, such as the university attended. In ascription cultures, seniority
and promotion are more likely to be linked, for example, to age or time served in the
organisation. Comparing Tables 6.1 and 6.2, it can be seen that this dimension has some
similarities with Hofstede’s power distance. For example, countries that have relatively
low power distance scores, such as the UK and the USA, tend to accord status through
achievement. In contrast, countries that ascribe status, such as Japan, tend to have at
least a moderate power distance score.
The dimension ‘attitudes to time’ (Figure 6.3) focuses particularly on whether time is
viewed as linear and sequential (past, present and future), or circular and synchronic
(seasons and rhythms). These differences are likely to impact on how planning and
organising takes place and can be differentiated by contrasting a focus on the concept of
doing things in sequence as quickly as possible (sequential), often attributed to North
America, with the concept of coordinating processes so that things are done just in time
(synchronic), often attributed to Japan. This is illustrated in ‘In Practice’ 6.3.
SHRM_C06.QXD 14/2/07 15:51 Page 214
In Practice 6.3
In their book Managing People Across Cultures, Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner (2004) recount how
Taichi Ohno, the person who first set up the Toyota motor company’s assembly operation in the 1950s,
used to kick any pile of inventory he saw on the assembly plant floor. Such piles of ‘work in progress
inventory’ highlighted where there was poor synchronisation between different parts of the assembly
operation and so emphasised where improvements were needed to shorten the process. Reflecting on
Toyota’s current vehicle assembly operations, Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner argue that the combi-
nation of this just-in-time philosophy of good synchronisation with rapid sequencing based upon time
and motion studies has enabled Toyota to maintain its lead in automobile manufacturing.
Examine Tables 6.1 and 6.2 and select two countries with contrasting profiles.
Use Hofstede’s dimensions to suggest how SHRM interventions to motivate
employees and appraise employees might differ between these countries. Now
repeat this process using Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner’s dimensions. To
what extent do your suggestions differ?
Chapter 6 Relationships between culture and SHRM: do values have consequences? 215
sised that the relative focus on the individual and differences in the way in which con-
flicts are resolved are also likely to influence an organisation’s culture and subcultures
and, consequently, the way in which human resources are managed. Following a discus-
sion of frameworks for understanding organisational cultures the discussion turns to
the implications of cultures and their management for SHRM.
Among the best-known representations of culture are Hofstede’s (2001: 11) ‘onion dia-
gram’ subtitled ‘manifestations of culture at different levels of depth’ and Schein’s (1997)
‘levels’ of culture. Each emphasises that cultures manifest themselves in many ways.
Some of these are visible and therefore relatively easy to discern, such as when studying
an organisation. However, because of their shallow or superficial nature, the true mean-
ing is difficult to decipher. These manifestations are Hofstede’s ‘symbols’, ‘heroes’ and
‘rituals’ and Schein’s ‘artefacts’ (Figure 6.4). Managers often think that just through
changing these visible practices or artefacts they are able to effect a culture change.
Unfortunately, for real change the process also needs to occur far more deeply, in the less
visible levels.
The deepest levels of culture (Hofstede’s ‘values’ and Schein’s ‘basic underlying
assumptions’) are invisible and, as a consequence, extremely difficult to discover (Figure
6.4). They provide what Argyris (1995: 21) terms the ‘theories in use’ upon which the
more visible ‘practices’ or ‘artefacts’ of organisational culture are built. Hofstede (2001:
10) refers to these ‘values’ as a ‘core element of culture’. Such values are likely to have
become so taken for granted that there will be little variation in them within a culture or
subculture (Schein, 1997). They will be communicated to new employees, thereby trans-
ferring the culture. If these basic underlying assumptions are held strongly, then group
members will find behaviour on any other premise inconceivable. For this reason,
changing these is likely to result in a true culture change, which will also be reflected in
‘practices’ and ‘artefacts’. However, because they are deeply and strongly held in individ-
uals’ subconscious, they are extremely difficult to change.
Between the deepest and shallowest levels, Schein (1997) introduces ‘espoused values’.
These are values connected with moral and ethical codes and determine what people think
Heroes Practices
Rituals
Espoused values
ought to be done, rather than what they necessarily will do. Often, organisations present a
particular view of their culture through formal documents, such as annual reports, mis-
sion statements and speeches by senior managers (In Practice 6.4). While these predict
much of the behaviour that is observed at the ‘practice’ or ‘artefact’ level, especially with
regard to what people say, they may conflict with what people do (Schein, 1997).
In Practice 6.4
Employees at the Disneyland theme parks and, in particular, the practices they adopt while working,
have a major impact on the guests’ (customers’) experiences. While the symbolic resources within the
parks are an important part of the experience, it is the workforce’s eagerness or otherwise in greeting
guests, helping them into rides, delivering food in restaurants, keeping the streets clean and under-
taking many other jobs, that will decide whether or not customer expectations are met.
Disney employees are expected to adopt a prescribed demeanour. This is governed by three rules:
a friendly smile;
using only friendly and courteous phrases; and
not being stuffy.
Language is also important with, for example, customers being referred to as ‘guests’, and rides as
‘attractions’. Employees are expected to be happy and helpful at all times. They are also expected to
conform to park procedures and policies set down in codebooks with which they must be familiar.
Supervisors keep close watch on what is going on and employees know they can lose their jobs by
not conforming to expectations and breaking these rules.
Despite this, it has been suggested that at times during the working day some employees adopt
an emotional numbness during which, although they appear as if they are fully engaged in their work,
they are not. This has been argued to be a passive resistance to the prescribed culture.
Source: Van Maanen (1991).
So there is a problem. The outward manifestations of culture are clearly visible and
relatively easy to discern. Unfortunately, if only these are considered, we cannot be cer-
tain that they are congruent with the less visible underlying values or basic assumptions
of the culture. Yet, in order for SHRM interventions to be aligned with an organisation’s
culture, it is necessary to ensure that not only are the practices or artefacts, such as mes-
sages provided through training sessions, appropriate but that they are also internalised
as values or basic underlying assumptions by individual employees (Mabey and Mallory,
1994/5). Conversely, where SHRM interventions are used to change an organisation’s
culture, it is necessary to ensure that not only can new values be observed through arte-
facts, such as answering the telephone within four rings, but that these new values are
espoused by employees and the relationship between these and the desired culture has
been internalised as part of the employees’ underlying beliefs.
Martin (1992) identified three perspectives for looking at organisations’ cultures.
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Chapter 6 Relationships between culture and SHRM: do values have consequences? 217
Why do you think it is difficult for managers to describe their organisation’s cul-
ture in detail?
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Structural views
Structural views of organisational culture inevitably use structural artefacts or symbols
as outward expressions of an organisation’s culture. Of these, the most widely known
and influential is probably Handy’s (1993) typology. This was developed in the 1970s
from work by Harrison (1972) and is concerned with how authority is exercised within
an organisation and is the basis for power. These artefacts through which power is
expressed can be used to help explore the likely cultural implications for managing the
employment relationship. Handy proposes four main types of organisational culture:
power;
role;
task;
person.
He argues that, although these types do not have a high level of rigour, the differing
power structures they encapsulate impact upon the way the organisation does things; in
other words, the organisation’s ways of coping with experiences that have developed
during the course of its history.
In a power culture, Handy argues that there is a single source of power from which
rays of influence spread out. He likens this to the power radiated by the god Zeus in
Greek mythology, who was believed to be the supreme god, and protector and ruler of
all humankind. The internal organisation of power is highly dependent upon trust,
empathy and personal communication for its effectiveness. Authority comes from the
resources controlled and the leader’s charisma. This means that the strength of the cul-
ture comes from the willingness of employees to defer to the leader and, presumably,
accept his or her power. Within such a culture, Handy argues that employees are unlikely
to be concerned about taking risks or issues of job security. In contrast, within a role
culture, power comes from the bureaucracy (rules and procedures) and the logic and
rationality of the way functions/specialisms are structured (Chapter 5). Position power
and, to a lesser extent, expert power are therefore the main bases for authority and it
seems likely that the organisation’s values will reflect ideals of security and predictability.
Handy likens the role culture to a Greek temple, suggesting that any individual’s power
is determined by the rules and structures of the organisation rather than its leader.
Within a task culture, power is based upon employees’ expertise rather than
charisma. This is likely to necessitate a different approach to managing human
resources, as flexibility and adaptability are valued and authority is based upon the
employee’s ability rather than position or seniority until a crisis occurs. When this hap-
pens, such cultures can, Handy argues, quickly change into a power or role culture with
rules or procedures or internal political influences becoming the dominant way of man-
aging employees. Handy continues with his Greek analogy, suggesting that the goddess
Athene’s emphasis was on task and getting the job done. Like Senior (2002), the authors
find this analogy for a task culture somewhat curious, as Athene was typically allegorised
into a personification of wisdom. Within Handy’s fourth type, the person culture, power
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Chapter 6 Relationships between culture and SHRM: do values have consequences? 219
and authority lie within each of the individual members, rules and procedures being of
minimal importance. The person culture is represented by Dionysos who, as the Greek
god of wine and altered states, was considered the god of the self-oriented individual.
This, Handy argues, occurs in very few organisations and represents a group of people
who decide that it is in their own interests to come together as a cluster of individuals,
for example in a doctors’ or solicitors’ practice. Later work by Pheysey (1993) has linked
task and person cultures, in particular, with processes of support and achievement used
within organisations, thereby emphasising the importance of culture in motivating and
controlling employees.
Competing values
Work by Quinn and McGrath (1985) uses the nature of information exchange within
organisations to distinguish between different organisational cultures. Within their
typology, the focus is on the values that determine how things are done rather than the
status that these processes give to both individuals and groups within the organisation.
As part of their work, they argue that the manner in which these transactions are con-
ducted (the artefact) is governed by a set of values or norms, which reflect the basic
underlying assumptions within the organisation. From this they identified four generic
cultures determined by the dominant values:
rational or ‘market’ culture;
ideological culture or ‘adhocracy’;
consensual or ‘clan’ culture;
the hierarchical culture – ‘hierarchy’.
Although there is a concern about the nature and use of power within these, they also
appear to have some parallel to Hofstede’s individualism/collectivism and mascu-
linity/femininity dimensions.
A market culture is directive and goal oriented, with individuals being judged accord-
ing to their output and achievement. These values are likely to be reflected in artefacts
such as pay and reward systems (Chapter 9). The ‘boss’ is firmly in charge of the organi-
sation and their competence is the basis of authority. Decisions are made decisively and
intuitively, compliance being guaranteed by employees’ contracts. In contrast, within an
adhocracy, individuals are judged according to their intensity of effort, rather than
achievement. Authority in an adhocracy is maintained by charisma, while power comes
from reference to the espoused organisational values.
Within a clan culture, authority is based upon the informal status of organisation
members. Consultation and participation are valued, employees complying with deci-
sions because they have shared in the process by which these were reached. Individuals
are evaluated in terms of the quality of relationships they enjoy with others and are
expected to show loyalty to the organisation. In a hierarchy culture, authority is vested in
the rules, and those with technical knowledge exercise power. Decisions are made on the
basis of factual analysis and leaders are conservative. Compliance of employees is main-
tained by surveillance and control, and they are evaluated against formally agreed
criteria. They are expected to value security. Thus, the artefact of the nature of transac-
tions within an organisation provides a means of helping distinguish the underlying
values of the culture.
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Market-place feedback
takes a short time
Market-place feedback
takes a long time
Chapter 6 Relationships between culture and SHRM: do values have consequences? 221
Symbols
Stories
Power
structures
Paradigm
Rituals and
routines
Organisational
structures
Control
systems
rituals and routines will manifest themselves in particular control systems, as set out
through procedures or policies, such as individual or team-based performance-related
pay (Chapter 9) or an avoidance of redundancy procedure (Chapter 14), but are likely to
be based upon the underlying basic assumptions of that organisation. Organisational
structures will also provide clues as to the real value placed upon SHRM, for example
whether the HR director has a board-level appointment. Similar clues are provided by
informal power structures, such as relationships between senior human resources’ per-
sonnel and other managerial groupings within the organisation. Symbols, such as logos,
offices and reserved car parking spaces, are also likely to reflect the organisation’s culture
while stories and myths are used to reinforce key aspects of the culture (In Practice 6.5).
From these elements, individuals are likely to obtain the information they need to
understand how the organisation operates, and the forms of behaviour that are accept-
able and unacceptable.
In Practice 6.5
Safety has always been, and continues to be, of paramount importance to the global corporation
DuPont. The corporation’s web site states that ‘since its founding, DuPont has held fast to core
values of safety, health, ethics, fair and respectful treatment of people and environmental steward-
ship’ (DuPont, 2004). Although, today, DuPont provides science-based solutions in areas such as
food and nutrition, health care, apparel, safety and security, construction, electronics and transporta-
tion, it was originally an explosives manufacturing company (DuPont, 2004).
A corporation story tells of an accidental explosion in 1818 at the gun-powder plant on the
Brandywine River in Delaware, Massachusetts. Subsequent to this, the du Pont family rebuilt the
plant, including its own house within the plant grounds. E.I. du Pont justified this, arguing that if the
factory was safe for his employees it would be safe for him and his family. The du Pont family also
agreed that one partner should always remain in the yards and that lower-level managers should
reside, as the family did, within the plant grounds (DuPont, 2004).
Today, within DuPont, it is commonly said that if you make an error regarding safety it is ‘a good
career opportunity’, in other words acting safely is a condition of continued employment. The focus
upon safety has wider significance, namely that every employee is responsible for his or her own
actions. Within DuPont, each employee is responsible for creating a safe environment. DuPont
emphasises that, although it is the managers’ responsibility to create a safe environment, it is also
each individual’s responsibility to act safely within it (Thornhill et al., 2000).
Considering an organisation’s culture in the way that has so far been made in this
chapter, suggests that it is as an objective entity and, in particular, ‘something an organi-
sation has’ (Legge, 1994: 405), which manifests itself visibly in the organisation’s features
and behaviours, including its systems, procedures, policies and processes. In doing this,
culture is being considered as one of a number of variables that an organisation has,
such as the set of psychological predispositions that employees possess which lead them
to act in certain ways (Schein, 1997). This implies that culture is a distinct influencing
variable that needs to be understood in managing human resources but also that it can
be managed by organisations through SHRM interventions.
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Chapter 6 Relationships between culture and SHRM: do values have consequences? 223
As outlined earlier (‘Meanings of culture’) there has been considerable debate as to whether
culture can be managed, much of it focusing on whether or not it can be modified. Given
that it can be altered, it therefore follows it can be managed and, where necessary, realigned
to the strategic direction an organisation wishes to take. Bate (1995) argues that, within
organisations, culture is a dynamic continuously developing phenomenon. It therefore fol-
lows that, if managers can manage organisations’ cultures, they can not only realign culture
but also prevent its realignment as well as abandon or destroy it (Ogbonna, 1993). In this
section possible frameworks for realigning an organisation’s culture through both gradual
or incremental changes as well as more radical or transformational changes to a new culture
are explored. In particular, the use of top-down and bottom-up approaches and the role of
SHRM interventions within these are looked at.
Where values and basic underlying assumptions are incompatible with an organisa-
tion’s strategy, successful cultural change may be difficult to achieve.
If an organisation is contemplating change, it first needs to establish whether or not
the strategy necessitates a shift in values and basic underlying assumptions or if
change can be achieved in another way.
Prior to any culture change, senior management must understand the implications of
the new culture for their own practices, artefacts and espoused values, and be
involved in all the main change phases.
Adequate resources need to be allocated to support culture change and maintain it
once it has been achieved.
Culture change programmes must pay careful attention to the organisations’ power
bases and opinion leaders, such as trade unions and employees’ associations.
Culture change programmes must take into account an organisation’s existing prac-
tices or artefacts such as approaches to recruitment, selection and retention, training,
performance management and employee relations.
In order to create a change in culture, organisations need to decide how practices or
artefacts will be amended to support the new espoused values and contradictory
practices removed.
Every opportunity should be taken to reinforce the practices or artefacts and restate
the espoused values of the new culture’s values and basic underlying assumptions.
Source: adapted from Hassard and Sharifi (1989); Beckhard (1992).
In Practice 6.6
In 2002 Hewlett-Packard (HP) merged with Compaq to create the world’s largest consumer IT com-
pany, the world’s largest small and medium-sized business IT company and a leading enterprise IT
company. The merger involved 145,000 employees in 170 countries (Hewlett-Packard, 2004) and,
according to press reports at the time, resulted in a culture clash between the two firms. Two years on
from the merger, Hugo Bagué, vice president HR, stresses that HP is now one company (Edwards,
2004). He states that the attitudes of the company’s employees are aligned to the future of HP, citing
evidence from the employee attitude survey. Much of this success is attributed to HP’s global HR
team. They developed a three-part people strategy (Edwards, 2004):
1. Ensuring a solid foundation in which all employees had access to the latest information on HP’s
strategies and objectives through a company-wide information portal. The portal streamlined
processes into one company-wide approach, while still taking account of cultural and linguistic dif-
ferences as well as legislative differences between countries.
2. Creating a high-performance workplace by linking together performance systems, salary planning,
the performance review process and reward and payroll. This enables employees to see how their
performance impacts upon the rest of the business.
3. Energising people to feel HP is the best place to work by addressing a range of HR issues, such as
diversity and talent management.
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Chapter 6 Relationships between culture and SHRM: do values have consequences? 225
Visit HP’s corporate web site at http://www.hp.com. Use the menus to go to the
pages headed ‘Company information: About us – History and Facts’.
What clues do these give you about the culture of HP?
Which culture do you consider was dominant in the merger between HP and
Compaq?
From earlier discussion it is clear that, prior to utilising SHRM interventions to align
an organisation’s culture, a variety of elements need to be taken into account. Bate
(1995) groups these into five foci. The first is a need to have a clear appreciation of the
existing culture. To enhance appreciation, the current culture needs to be placed within
an historical context so that the ways in which it has developed are clearly understood.
This second focus allows learning from past experience as well as avoiding ‘corporate
amnesia … and the associated problems of repeating the same mistakes or endlessly re-
inventing the wheel’ (Bate, 1995: 141). Understanding of the current organisational
culture needs to be integrated with the nature of the required change. In particular,
whether the existing culture can be further developed or a transformational change to a
new culture is necessary. Bate (1995) refers to this third focus as the life-cycle stage of
the culture in the organisation. Through doing this, the most appropriate SHRM inter-
ventions can start to be identified as well as potential problems.
Typologies of organisational culture reviewed earlier in this chapter (for example,
Deal and Kennedy, 1982) suggest the external environment will also impact upon indi-
viduals’ behaviours and an organisation’s culture. This environmental context provides
Bate’s fourth focus and, taking a broad interpretation, could be considered to emphasise
that other cultural spheres are also influential. Bate’s last focus returns to the organisa-
tion and contrasts what people in an organisation want with that organisation’s needs.
This emphasises the importance of understanding organisational politics, power bases
and opinion leaders (highlighted by the cultural web – Figure 6.6) prior to attempting to
alter culture (Harrison, 1972; Handy, 1978). Changes required for cultural realignment
will therefore occur from and within an existing organisational culture and be influ-
enced by other cultural spheres, such as the professional and national.
Top-down approaches
Cultural alignment initiated by senior managers typically looks towards organisation-wide
consensus, focusing on the artefacts of culture (including employees’ overt behaviour) and
to a lesser extent their espoused values (Legge, 1994). As a consequence, senior managers
often rely on the HR function to manage the associated cultural symbols, such as the
organisational structure, the management of office space, and car parking allocations, as
well as provide educational and training interventions to change them directly. SHRM in-
itiatives, such as organisation-wide human resource development programmes (Chapter
10) to enhance quality, excellence or empowerment, might be introduced as part of top-
down approaches, although the outcome is likely to be representational learning (i.e. in
the way participants talk) rather than behavioural learning (the way they do things).
Often managers will try a succession of HR interventions using only anecdotal evi-
dence to evaluate the impact each is having rather than having a clear strategic focus.
For example, the introduction of performance-related pay (Chapter 9) might force
managers to differentiate between better and poorer performers. However, on its own it
will not help them to internalise the cultural context of the new standards by which per-
formance is to be judged, or the way in which poor performers will be dealt with.
Ultimately it may therefore fail to create the desired realignment of culture resulting in,
perhaps, another HR intervention, such as training to manage poor performance. Con-
sequently, the focus is on the process rather than understanding the organisation’s
problems and the consequent need for strategic integration. In addition the succession
of interventions tends to promote cynicism and scepticism thereby inhibiting real
change. Hendry (1995: 135) summarises these arguments:
Programmatic change does not work because it typically fails to tackle three interre-
lated structural-cum-attitudinal factors – the requirement for co-ordination through
teamwork, the need for commitment, and the need to develop new competencies.
Company-wide change programmes address one only or, at best, two of these. Cul-
ture change programmes in particular dwell on the creation of commitment, but only
at a very superficial level.
Programmes involving top-down culture change also suffer from three interrelated
paradoxes (Legge, 1994). First, messages of initiative, autonomy and innovation are usually
conveyed through highly bureaucratic methods, such as team briefings or company-wide
training initiatives. This can be problematic when, as in the case of the NHS, such public
promises have in some instances only been delivered in part (In Practice 6.7). Second,
transformation to the new culture is often seen as the task of a new leader. This can create
problems if employees believe the new culture conflicts with their existing occupational
culture. Finally, and building upon Legge’s second point, if the values espoused by senior
management are discordant with employees’ sense of reality the new culture may be acted
out cynically and without being internalised into employees’ basic underlying assumptions.
This is not to say that HR interventions, such as those we have mentioned, are inappro-
priate to managing cultural realignment. They can play a valuable role when used
strategically in an integrative manner, ensuring that the implicit and explicit message pro-
vide ‘consistent cues’ to the desired culture (Brown, 1998: 166). Indeed research into
significant factors behind successful interventions at organisations, such as BT (British
Telecom), Royal Dutch Shell, BA (British Airways) and Manchester Airport, emphasise the
importance of deliberately modifying organisation-wide HR practices such as reward sys-
tems (Chapter 11) to reinforce desired cultural changes (Mabey and Mallory, 1994/5).
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Chapter 6 Relationships between culture and SHRM: do values have consequences? 227
In Practice 6.7
Recent research argues that organisations’ HR policies can be seen as a visible manifestation of man-
agement promises. Skinner et al. (2004) considered the Improving Working Lives (IWL) policy within the
UK National Health Service (NHS) as an example of one such ‘promise’ that has been made to staff.
Improving Working Lives publicly acknowledged the centrality of staff in attaining the achievements
and changes required and the reciprocal need for the NHS to invest in its human resources. Using an
anonymous questionnaire, data were collected from employees in five primary care trusts in relation to
their experiences and awareness of what was being done to address working-life issues as part of a
wider culture alignment. Their research found that although the IWL standard makes very public prom-
ises about work–life balance, harassment, equality and the valuing of staff, employees in these five
primary care trusts perceived these promises had been met only in part.
Bottom-up approaches
In contrast to a programmatic or top-down approach, Beer et al. (1990) found that suc-
cessful change usually started in one part of an organisation away from corporate
headquarters. As you would expect, change in these organisations was led by general
rather than senior managers. Rather than creating formal structures and systems, these
managers focused upon solving concrete business problems; a process Beer et al. (1990)
termed ‘task alignment’. The role of senior management in change, such as cultural
realignment, was to specify the general direction and provide a climate for change as
well as to spread lessons from both successes and failures. Task alignment, Beer et al.
argued, could be achieved through a series of overlapping steps (their critical path)
taken at the business unit or site level (Figure 6.7).
As can be seen, there are some similarities between the bottom-up approach and the
general framework for culture re-alignment outlined earlier. Despite these, it can be
argued that bottom-up task alignment offers a different approach for managing culture
re-alignment within organisations. In particular it focuses on the part of the organisa-
tion away from corporate headquarters, emphasising individuals’ shared commitment
and vision as a prerequisite. As in other frameworks, re-alignment is enabled by HR
interventions, such as developing people’s abilities, although now the desire to learn is
enhanced by improved coordination and the need to work differently to solve concrete
problems. Subsequent results generate stronger commitment to change, resulting in a
mutually reinforcing cycle of increasing commitment, coordination and abilities. This
provides a role model for other parts of the organisation. Organisation-wide SHR poli-
cies, procedures and structures provide a framework within which this is allowed to take
place, with strategies, such as those relating to recruitment and selection, or roles and
responsibilities within the hierarchies, only being revised subsequently to reinforce and
support the re-alignment.
Consequently, within a bottom-up approach, HR-related strategies can be used to
support such a process of culture re-alignment. In the early stages of Beer et al.’s (1990)
bottom-up task alignment, this is likely to involve managing or enabling employees
from different levels and functions within that part of the organisation to meet, mobilise
commitment and develop their shared vision. Once the vision has been defined,
employees will need to develop the skills required by the new culture. As part of this
stage (three), HR initiatives, such as training and management development pro-
grammes might be used (Chapter 10). Such programmes can play a very important role
in indoctrinating the desired culture as illustrated by use of employee training at Dis-
neyland (Van Maanan, 1991; In Practice 6.4). However, unlike the Disneyland
experience, training within a bottom-up approach will usually aim to address needs
directly identified by employees. As a consequence, it is more likely to influence their
basic underlying assumptions.
By stage three in the re-alignment process, employees who have not accepted the new
culture are likely to be highly visible. It will be apparent if the total number of employees
is too large or too small for the new vision of the organisation. For both scenarios, HR
interventions can help to foster consensus of the new vision and generate the cohesion
to move it along. Redundancy or early retirement programmes (Chapter 14) perhaps, as
in the case of Abbey National in the mid-1980s, accompanied by the offer of generous
severance terms, can also be used in this situation to encourage those people who hold
onto the original culture to leave (Williams et al., 1993). Considerable care will need to
paid to ensure that the negative impact of these programmes on those who remain is
minimised. Alongside this, recruitment and selection of new staff involving realistic job
previews (Williams et al., 1993) and selection exercises to discover whether interviewees
support the desired culture might be used (Chapter 8). Internal and external promo-
tions, as well as transfers and secondments, can support this.
Transfers or secondments of key people are also likely to be used to spread the new
culture to other parts of the organisation (Figure 6.7, stage four). As with the initial
change, Beer et al. (1990) argue that the change in these other parts must again be man-
aged from within rather than being forced by senior managers.
Beer et al. (1990) argue that strategic alterations to policies, procedures and
structures to support the process (new culture) should only be made once it is
entrenched within part of the organisation, the right people are in place and it is work-
ing (Figure 6.7, stage five). Through working together, employees have already learned
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Chapter 6 Relationships between culture and SHRM: do values have consequences? 229
In Practice 6.8
The UK’s hi-fi retailer Richer Sounds has, for a number of years, been using a variety of HR interven-
tions to enhance the working environment and create a culture of trust. Employees are offered a
range of benefits on top of their basic pay package, including a subsidised health-care plan, a hard-
ship fund and performance-related bonuses. Staff who have been employed by Richer Sounds for
over a year receive short paid holidays in holiday homes owned by the company on top of the normal
leave entitlement. They are encouraged to invite both family and friends to join them on these holi-
days. While some may argue that this is a risky thing to do, as the majority of employees are male and
under 35, it is argued that this helps reinforce a culture of trust. For the same reason, employees who
win performance-related bonuses are allowed to take the cash directly out of the till. The company’s
scheme for employee feedback channels complaints via a named representative. This means that no
individual is held back by fear of repercussions. In addition, the company has formal procedures to
ensure that employees do not work beyond their allocated hours. Consequently, it is as strict about
employees staying late as it is about their arriving at work on time.
Source: Allen (2004).
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Expressiveness Affective component (feelings) The ability of the approach adopted and
associated SHRM interventions to express a
new symbol, which captures employees’
attention, and excites or converts them
Commonality Social component (relationships) The ability of the approach adopted and
associated SHRM interventions to create a
shared common understanding and sense of
common purpose among a group of employees
or the whole organisation
Penetration Demographic component (number/depth) The ability of the approach adopted and
associated SHRM interventions to spread
throughout all levels of an organisation and to
affect employees’ basic underlying assumptions
Adaptability Development component (process) The ability of the approach adopted and
associated SHRM interventions to adjust to
changing organisational and wider
environmental circumstances
Durability Institutional component (structure) The ability of the approach adopted and
associated SHRM interventions to create a
lasting culture
Thus, what might be effective or appropriate in one situation may not be in another.
For example, ‘expressiveness’ is unlikely to be important where culture re-alignment is
concerned with further developing an existing culture, in effect more of the same. Con-
versely, where transformational re-alignment is desired, expressiveness is an essential
component. Requirements of an organisation are also likely to change over time. At the
start of a culture re-alignment process, expressiveness may be considered more impor-
tant, while commonality and penetration are considered less important. However, as the
process continues and the new culture is spread throughout all levels of the organisa-
tion, commonality and penetration may become more important.
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Chapter 6 Relationships between culture and SHRM: do values have consequences? 231
Table 6.4 Relative effectiveness of top-down and bottom-up approaches to cultural re-alignment across
different parameters
Expressiveness High – deal in simple messages and Low in short term – focus on concrete problem
specialise in communicating these generates lots of detail rather than a new
effectively and reasonably quickly at the symbol
practice/artefact level
Commonality Low – promoted unifying feeling often High – operate through shared understanding
ceases after formal programme ends. and create a culture of trust and understanding
Methods often lead to resistance and lack of
common ownership
Penetration Variable – depends on ability of interventions Low in short-term – involve only part of the
to affect more than just practices or artefacts; organisation
– highly structured programmes likely to High in long term – involve discussing proposals
reach all employees and implications with employees
Adaptability Low – tend to be inflexible and imply instant High – concrete-problem-led, willing to
fix; programmed nature implies conformity accommodate new views and find best fit with
and devalues deviance organisational requirements
Durability Low – based on senior management’s desires; High – employees are keen to preserve what
– lack of ownership by employees likely to be they have created;
highest with transformational re-alignment. – especially high when a development of
existing practices which employees own rather
than transformational re-alignment
factors. As part of this process, employees need to be managed. The reality of this chal-
lenge is clearly summarised by Whipp et al. (1989: 583) who state: ‘culture is a Pandora’s
box: both academics and practitioners should not make any easy assumptions about
their control of the contents’.
Summary
Chapter 6 Relationships between culture and SHRM: do values have consequences? 233
1. Working with a colleague from another culture, first describe your national culture as
you see it. Now describe your colleague’s culture. Compare your view with that of
your colleague for the two cultures. What does this suggest to you about stereotypes
of national cultures?
2. Use your understanding of culture to create a cultural web for an organisation or a
department within an organisation that you know well.
3. Re-examine the cultural web you drew in answer to suggestion 2. If you wished to re-
align the organisation’s culture, how would you use HR interventions to support
changes to the rituals, routines, stories and symbols?
4. Choose a large multi-national organisation and visit that organisation’s web site.
Based upon the web site, what do you think are the main features of that organisa-
tion’s corporate culture?
Case Study
Corporate culture and Group values at Dicom Group plc
Dicom Group plc is the global market leader in the To us respect, integrity and loyalty constitute
information capture market, providing document very important values, reflected in a co-opera-
imaging scanning hardware and software, and tive relationship with the society and the
associated support services. Operating through two environment in which we operate.
distinct divisions, the information capture and the
Samsung General Agency Division, the Group has The Group promotes itself to employees in the
wholly owned subsidiaries in Europe and Asia and subsidiary companies as the ‘Dicom Family’. The
over 10,000 customers in more than 60 countries unofficial (although heavily endorsed by senior
(Dicom, 2004). In the financial year ending 30 June management) aim of the Group is ‘to make money
2004, the Group achieved a turnover of £156.2 mil- and have fun doing it’. Announcements regarding
lion, the information capture division accounting for Group performance and other news are communi-
77 per cent of this and 92 per cent of the Group’s cated regularly to all employees via email from the
profits (Dicom, 2004). Chief Executive Officer. These emails always begin
Founded in Switzerland in 1991 by Otto Schmid, ‘Dear Friends,’ and finish by thanking everyone for
Dicom Group grew rapidly during the 1990s via a their hard work and commitment. Within emails,
combination of acquisitions and organic growth and subsidiaries’ newsletters and face-to-face commu-
now employs over 840 people across the subsidiary nications, a Group language has evolved in which
companies. Although the Group headquarters are in some everyday words and phrases have particular
Basingstoke, UK, the senior management team organisational meanings. For example, employees
operate from an international base, due to the throughout Dicom are likely to say ‘Standards!’
Group’s broad global coverage (Dicom, 2004). A when a colleague or the organisation has done well,
visit to the Group’s web site reveals both the vision: thereby offering congratulations for the setting of a
standard which competitors will find difficult to
The Dicom team will be the world leader in
achieve. Group members argue that the use of such
enabling organisations to automate their busi-
language reinforces the feeling of camaraderie, and
ness transactions by accelerating the collection,
their membership of an exclusive club.
transformation and delivery of mission critical
Stories are used to illustrate the Group’s values
documents
to visitors, prospective and new employees. One
and the mission: story concerns the Group’s tenth anniversary cele-
brations. All 800 employees from around the world
We care for our customers better than anyone
and their partners were invited to Switzerland for an
else in our industry.
all expenses paid weekend of celebrations at the
We are a premier business partner of the Lucerne Opera House. This was hired exclusively
world’s leading system integrators, software by the Group for the whole weekend and, according
developers, IT resellers and OEMs [original to Dicom legend, was partly funded by the Chair-
equipment manufacturers]. man out of his own pocket. This and other stories
We only compete with superior products and are used to illustrate the humanity and caring nature
services in fast-growing information technol- of the Board of Directors and how this permeates
ogy sectors in which we can achieve and the entire Group.
maintain a dominant market share. Virtually all Dicom’s employees work in open-plan
We hire the highest calibre employees available offices, symbols and displays of rank or seniority
and continually invest in their development. being discouraged. Employees are introduced as
We constantly aim to achieve attractive returns ‘colleagues’ to visitors by their managers, the
for our shareholders. phrases ‘these people work for me’ and ‘these are
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Chapter 6 Relationships between culture and SHRM: do values have consequences? 235
my staff’ being considered unacceptable. All performance is exceptional, the manager has dis-
employees are given freedom to undertake their jobs cretion to reward him or her in the way that is likely
in their own way, albeit within the confines of com- to be of most value. This might be the granting of
pany procedures and policies. One UK manager extra holiday, a meal for them and their partner, or a
described this approach as ‘We like to steer with public display of gratitude at an award ceremony.
very long reins’. Wherever possible, employees are Every year, at the Group’s Christmas celebration,
quickly given as much responsibility as they can awards and prizes are given out to individuals and to
handle in both their working lives and their own per- work groups that have been voted as exceptional by
sonal development. Dicom Group aims to ‘bring colleagues. Each subsidiary company has a display
people on’, and takes responsibility for the personal cabinet where these shields, trophies and award
development of its employees. Wherever possible, certificates are displayed for all to see.
employees are promoted internally into managerial Alongside performance review, performance
positions as they arise. Where this is not possible, measurement is a continual process. Within each
employees are involved in the writing of the job subsidiary, work groups normally meet on a
specification and the subsequent recruitment monthly basis to discuss problems and progress.
process, including interviews and selection. All work-group members are encouraged to make
Employee training and development is consid- suggestions to improve performance against meas-
ered essential by Dicom. All employees, whatever urable criteria. All subsidiary companies report
their level, are encouraged to take advantage of annually on promotions, hires of people who are
both in-group and external training programmes. If disabled, and donations to charity. This is done with
there is a business advantage to be gained from the the aim of promoting ethical awareness among
training, then the Group will both provide the Dicom Group’s management.
finance and allow individuals time to complete it. At
the time of writing, employees based at the UK sub-
sidiary, Dicom Technologies Ltd, were attending Case study questions
courses including a Certificate in Management
Studies, a Diploma in Personnel Management, 1. Drawing on the information given in this case,
Chartered Institute of Management Accountants construct a cultural web for Dicom Group.
Certification and Microsoft Certification training.
Alongside external courses, Dicom has recently 2. Assess the extent to which Dicom Group’s
launched ‘The Dicom Academy’. This offers all culture is aligned to its vision and mission.
Dicom Group managers and those identified as 3. To what extent do you consider that Dicom
future managers the opportunity to attend a series Group’s culture exhibits characteristics identified
of one-week courses on areas such as marketing by Hofstede (Table 6.1) and by Trompenaars and
and leadership at various venues around the world. Hampden-Turner (Table 6.2) for Switzerland?
These are tutored by Harvard Business School pro- Give reasons for your answer.
fessors alongside Dicom Group board members.
Performance appraisal is carried out at least
annually for all employees, with employees in some Acknowledgements
subsidiaries receiving three-monthly reviews. Each
appraisal focuses upon a joint review of an individ- The support of Kevin Davies, Managing Director of
ual’s own performance using an appraisal schedule. DICOM Technologies Ltd., in granting permission to
This asks a series of questions, for example ‘How use this case, and the assistance of Stephen
do you rate your punctuality on a scale of one to Barker, Operations Manager of DICOM Technolo-
ten?’ If an employee has a different rating from his or gies Ltd., in the preparation of this case are both
her manager, then a discussion is held and a com- acknowledged gratefully.
promise reached. Where an individual employee’s
SHRM_C07.QXD 14/2/07 15:52 Page 236
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
identify and discuss the core principles that underpin the concept of
strategic human resource planning;
critically evaluate the extent to which strategic human resource planning
represents the vital connecting link between organisational strategy and
SHRM practice;
analyse the conceptual and operational difficulties surrounding the practice
of strategic human resource planning;
assess the relevance of strategic human resource planning to organisations
facing an increasingly changing business environment;
review potential avenues for addressing the difficulties associated with
human resource planning in order to enhance its operational viability.
SHRM_C07.QXD 14/2/07 15:52 Page 237
Introduction
Human resource planning is about ensuring that the correct number and mix of
employees is available at the right place at the right time. The success of HRP is
paramount to the survival of the organisation and the complexities associated with
the planning process are enormous.
(Parker and Caine, 1996: 30)
This opening definition captures three important themes that have been used to
help structure the chapter. First, it starts with a beguilingly simple definition of
human resource planning (HRP) that is frequently echoed elsewhere in the literature.
Although this definition can be criticised as being too simplistic, it provides a useful
starting point for getting to grips with the question, ‘What is strategic human resource
planning?’
Second, the claim that HRP is ‘paramount to the survival of the organisation’
reflects its potential strategic significance and critical position within SHRM. Recog-
nising that similar claims might be made for other dimensions of SHRM explored in
this book, it is necessary to subject Parker and Caine’s statement to closer scrutiny.
To do this a case for representing strategic human resource planning (SHRP) as the
vital connecting link between organisational strategies and SHRM practices is devel-
oped. However, it is accepted that viewing SHRP in this way provides no guarantee
that it will be either practised or practised effectively.
The third theme relates to the complexities underpinning the theory and practice of
SHRP referred to in Parker and Caine’s definition. The nature of these complexities is
deconstructed in order to better understand the difficulties that might confront organisa-
tions wishing to practise SHRP. This leads to the conclusion that conceptual and
operational complexities associated with SHRP contribute to its limited take-up by organ-
isations. This presents something of an organisational conundrum, whereby, despite its
potential as a vital connecting link between organisational strategies and SHRM prac-
tices, the difficulties associated with SHRP may preclude its practice by organisations.
This potential dilemma is particularly pronounced when the case for SHRP is set
against the challenges presented by an uncertain future. The paradox that arises here
is captured well by Turner (2002: 19) who argues, ‘There are those who say it is use-
less trying to plan when no one can predict what is going to happen … and there are
those who would claim that it is now more than ever necessary to plan.’ However,
where such dilemmas militate against its practice, SHRP can be viewed as the miss-
ing link between organisational strategies and SHRM practices, or, to borrow the
vernacular of a popular game show, ‘the weakest link’ of SHRM. These apparent
paradoxes are more fully explored as a further chapter theme and can be para-
phrased in the question ‘To plan or not to plan?’
As a final chapter theme, how SHRP practices and processes might be shaped in
order to enable it to fulfil its potential role as a crucial link between organisation strat-
egy and SHRM practice is discussed.
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SHRP: the
What is The problematic The HRP Forging the
vital connecting
SHRP? nature of HRP paradox missing link
link?
Multi-
HRP: definitions The benefits dimensional HRP: the
and key themes of HRP nature of strategic weakest link?
integration
HRP as a
Elements of The Pandoraí s
crucial bridging
HRP box of HRP
mechanism
Hard v. soft
HRP
The HRP
process
Figure 7.1 Mapping the SHRP territory: a summary diagram of the chapter content
In Practice 7.1
From 1980 onwards, the number of mergers and acquisitions increased, largely as a result of the
strategic possibilities they offered (Appelbaum and Gandell, 2003; Schraeder and Self, 2003). For the
organisations involved, they constitute major change at the first-order level of corporate strategy
decisions (Purcell, 1991) and are designed to achieve, through strategic integration, objectives such
as diversification and economies of scale, as well as opportunities for obtaining a speedy global pres-
ence (Schraeder and Self, 2003). In contrast to the relatively slow speed of internal development,
mergers/acquisitions offer unique potential for accelerated organisational transformation and renewal
and have the capacity to contribute to rapid market repositioning (Salama et al., 2003). However, their
track record of success is very poor. Based on research evidence in the USA, the failure rate of merg-
ers/acquisitions to meet their financial and strategic objectives has been variously assessed at 55–70
per cent (Schraeder and Self, 2003) or 60–80 per cent (Appelbaum and Gandell, 2003).
Increasingly it is held that such failures are due to poor HRP throughout the merger/acquisition
process (Greer, 2001; Appelbaum and Gandell, 2003). The argument runs that while financial, legal
and operational aspects, together with strategic synergy, are well planned, HR areas, such as culture,
communication, management style and leadership of change, are neglected. It has been argued that
the success of mergers/acquisitions depends on the extent to which the human resources of the
combining organisations are integrated. The repeated failure to consider these issues demonstrates
that HRP is not integral to the process of strategic planning (Greer, 2001). Somewhat ironically, evi-
dence also exists of cases where planning still fails to sufficiently account for HR issues even where
the prime motivation behind the merger was to acquire another organisation’s human resources
(Greer, 2001). Cultural issues are particularly identified as a cause of merger failures and can be the
factor that makes or breaks the merger success (Salama et al., 2003; Schraeder and Self, 2003).
Importantly, the extent to which HR issues are neglected throughout the planning stages of merg-
ers/acquisitions impacts on employees as well as the success of the venture itself. Buono and
Bowditch (1989) discuss two contrasting strategies for integrating human resources. A ‘love and mar-
riage’ strategy strives for high levels of HR collaboration between the organisations involved in
attempts to secure employee commitment, despite the hard realities that may accompany the merger
(e.g. downsizing). In contrast, an ‘abuse and plunder’ strategy is seen as synonymous with asset
stripping. They conclude that evidence points to the latter being much more common than the former
(Buono and Bowditch, 1989).
Definitions of SHRP
Returning to Parker and Caine’s (1996: 30) definition that ‘Human resource planning is
about ensuring that the correct number and mix of employees is available at the right
place at the right time’, it can be argued that reducing SHRP to one all-encompassing
definition is too simplistic and not particularly helpful. However, by considering a range
of definitions it is possible to surface a number of important features that, as with
SHRM (Chapter 2), reveal SHRP to be a complex and multi-faceted phenomenon.
SHRM_C07.QXD 14/2/07 15:52 Page 240
Definitions
‘Manpower planning may be defined as a strategy for the organisation, utilisation, improvement and
preservation of an enterprise’s human resources’ (Department of Employment and Productivity, 1968: 2).
‘HRP consists of a range of tasks designed to ensure that the appropriate number of the right people
are in the right place at the right time’ (Zeffane and Mayo, 1994: 36).
‘A management process designed to translate strategic objectives into targeted quantitative and
qualitative skill requirements, to identify the human resource strategies and objectives necessary to
fulfil those requirements over both the shorter and longer terms, and to provide necessary feedback
mechanisms to assess progress. Overall the purpose of the planning is to invoke an institutional
learning process and to generate information which can be utilised to support management decision
making in all staffing areas’ (bin Idris and Eldridge, 1998: 346).
‘Human resource planning is the process of systematically forecasting the future demand and supply
for employees and the deployment of their skills within the strategic objectives of the organization’
(Bratton and Gold, 2003: 191).
‘HRP is the process for identifying an organisation’s current and future human resource requirements,
developing and implementing plans to meet these requirements and monitoring their overall effective-
ness’ (Beardwell, 2004: 159).
HRP is viewed as a process (Parker and Caine, 1996; bin Idris and Eldridge, 1998; Bratton and
Gold, 2003; Beardwell, 2004).
There is a temporal perspective such that HRP is directed at meeting both current and future needs
(Zeffane and Mayo, 1994; Parker and Caine, 1996; bin Idris and Eldridge, 1998; Beardwell, 2004).
HRP is seen to progress through distinct phases primarily involving forecasting the demand for
and supply of human resources and then developing plans to address any mismatches arising (bin
Idris and Eldridge, 1998; Bratton and Gold, 2003; Beardwell, 2004).
Monitoring and evaluating outcomes and feeding back results are viewed as integral parts of the
process (bin Idris and Eldridge, 1998; Beardwell, 2004).
The process should be driven by the strategic objectives of the organisation and its purpose is to
help achieve their fulfilment (Parker and Caine, 1996; bin Idris and Eldridge, 1998; Bratton and
Gold, 2003).
SHRM_C07.QXD 14/2/07 15:52 Page 241
Strategic
Human
human Strategy
resource
resource formulation
planning
forecasting
Figure 7.2 Input and output relationships between strategic human resource forecasting,
strategy formulation and HRP
SHRM_C07.QXD 15/2/07 14:57 Page 242
Strategy
formulation
Human
resource
planning
Strategic
human
resource
forecasting
Figure 7.3 Input–output relationships between strategic human resource forecasting, strategy
formulation and HRP – a revised model
Table 7.1 Strategic human resource forecasting versus human resource planning
Strategic human resource forecasting (SHRF) is Human resource planning is defined as:
defined as:
A process by which an organisation looks ahead at the The output that arises from the process of business or
people implications of business and organisational organisational strategy setting as it affects the people
strategy, and facilitates a dialogue within the in an organisation. It contains quantitative analyses of
organisation about these implications. Its objective is HR data ranging from headcount and costs to
to give direction to the people decisions to be made at qualitative analyses about culture, learning and
strategic level that will enable the organisation to knowledge management. The HRP is a dynamic entity
achieve sustained success ... The SHRF deals with the that can be changed if turbulence or unpredicted
quantification of the people implications of business or extraneous factors affect the business strategy.
organisational strategy and the likely qualitative inputs It consists of a range of plans within the key HR
or outputs of the strategy. activities. These can be grouped as follows:
The SHRF comprises a process intended to form an
resourcing through specific organisational design,
intervention into the strategic planning process or the
quantified HR plans and resource allocation
strategy-setting process of the organisation. It consists
employee commitment and relations
of groups of strategic HR activities:
learning, training and development
dialogue with strategy-makers reward and recognition
scenario planning aligned to the business or
organisational strategy
demand-and-supply forecasts for the people
aspects of strategy
gap analysis
input to the HR plan
Taken together, the two elements of Turner’s (2002) model go some way to address-
ing the earlier critique of HRP definitions. He is more explicit about the nature of
process features and his use of the word ‘dialogue’ suggests a continuous process that
incorporates two-way strategic fit. However, the lack of focus on horizontal integration
is again evident.
Elements of HRP
From Turner’s (2002) definitions of SHRF and planning, it is possible to identify the key
elements involved in the two processes. Table 7.2 summarises the key elements of HRP
identified elsewhere in the literature, which can be compared with Turner’s framework
(Table 7.1).
Table 7.3 Distinguishing features of manpower planning and human resource planning
Tactical Dynamic
Ulrich (1987: 42) went further in differentiating three phases in the development of
SHRP: ‘regulation’; ‘control’; and ‘shape’. These phases in the transition to SHRP are
described in Table 7.4.
Phase Guiding principle Objective of HRP HRP metaphor Responsibility for HRP
Sources: Mabey et al. (1998); Tansley (1999); Liff (2000); Bratton and Gold (2003); Beardwell (2004).
To what extent can the hard and soft variants of HRP be regarded as mutually
exclusive?
SHRM_C07.QXD 20/2/07 09:04 Page 247
Taken together with manpower planning, the hard variant can be criticised for reduc-
ing HRP to little more than a numbers game. Here HRP can be likened to a form of
stock control with a concentration on headcount, staff inventories and the movement of
staff within the organisation. This perspective has little regard for the qualitative skills
possessed by staff, such as their knowledge, motivation and values, or their relevance to
job performance (Hendry, 1995). Criticisms of the hard variant are brought together
well by Liff (2000: 94) who reminds us of ‘the need to remember the humanness of
human resources’. However, these criticisms do not mean the hard variant cannot be
strategic. It is highly relevant to organisational strategies directed at cost minimisation
and as such is arguably more likely to be found in practice than soft HRP. Moreover, the
harsh realities of business life may lead to organisations having to take hard HRP de-
cisions irrespective of their business ethos. This is evidenced below in ‘In Practice’ 7.2
which reports on the case of the Co-operative Financial Services Group, recognised as
one of Britain’s leading proponents of ethical business behaviour, which in 2004 was
undertaking large-scale job cuts in one of its business divisions.
In Practice 7.2
In July 2004 the Co-operative Insurance Society (CIS), part of the Co-operative Financial Services
Group, announced it was cutting its headcount from 9,000 to 6,500 over the next two years. In
response to the increasingly competitive nature of the market, the move was designed to reduce
costs and increase CIS’s competitiveness in the financial services sector.
The job losses were to be part of a re-organisation programme and might involve compulsory
redundancies. Union officials of Amicus said that while they recognise the need for change and mod-
ernisation, such a drastic reduction in headcount was to be regretted and that any compulsory
redundancies would be vigorously opposed.
The chief executive of the Co-operative Financial Services Group maintained that the job losses
would help to ensure the future viability of CIS so that it would be well placed to fulfil its mandate of
meeting the needs of millions of ordinary households in the UK.
Source: Griffiths (2004).
To reinforce the strategic relevance of the hard variant you might like to return to
Table 2.3 in Chapter 2 and reflect on the employee behaviours and HR techniques that
Schuler and Jackson (1987) associate with a cost reduction strategy. Similarly you could
usefully reflect on the appropriateness of hard HRP to Miles and Snow’s (1984b)
defender strategy. In contrast, the report on Pret a Manger summarised in ‘In Practice’
7.3 reveals evidence of the softer side of HRP in operation. Its business revolves around
the quality of its product and the passion and service quality displayed by its staff. Here
HRP needs to translate this into HRM strategies and practices that will provide the nec-
essary staffing base to deliver these prerequisites.
SHRM_C07.QXD 20/2/07 09:04 Page 248
In Practice 7.3
Pret a Manger has established in the UK, and increasingly internationally, a niche business with a dis-
tinctive culture. Its success is based around the quality of its product – high-quality sandwiches – and
the passion for the business demonstrated by the people who serve them.
According to the chief executive, Andrew Rolfe, passion for the product, the staff and the whole
business is the driving force behind Pret. Part of the business philosophy is to obtain consistency of
purpose throughout the business so that customers will recognise the Pret experience within minutes
of walking into one of its shops. This is achieved through attention to customer and supplier relations
and new product development. It requires clear specification of personal responsibilities and staffing
the organisation with people with the talent to carry out those responsibilities.
Pret deploys an integrated set of HR practices to ensure that its shops are staffed with people who
display the necessary passion, including:
1. Unorthodox selection procedures where candidates attend a general interview and are sent to their
closest shop for a further interview with the general manager before working a paid day in the
shop. The whole shop team then vote on which applicants to accept. Successful candidates
receive ten days training in the shop and kitchen working side-by-side with a personal trainer who
takes them through all aspects of the company. Recruits are formally appraised after working four
weeks and successfully completing their training, with subsequent promotion into a team member
after three months. Only 5 per cent of applicants are selected.
2. Use of extrinsic and intrinsic reward strategies including: visits by managers to pass on congratu-
lations to team members specifically singled out by customers through their feedback; giving
praise consistently for effective job performance; taking over a pub every Friday night and inviting
all team members; a weekly bonus every time a shop hits its performance target; surprise rewards
– in 2001 the company granted an across-the-board pay increase that had not previously been
budgeted or planned for (after its introduction, sales and profits went up); and cash vouchers
awarded to employers at various ‘graduation’ stages that can be distributed to colleagues who
have been instrumental in their progress.
3. Keeping employees close to the business through ensuring that: every new employee, including
senior managers, works for two weeks in one of the Pret shops without the team members know-
ing their position; all head-office staff are sent out five times a year to work in their adopted
‘buddy’ shop.
4. Open communication through 15-minute team briefings held every morning in every shop.
In contrast to hard HRP, soft HRP has been criticised for being too broad and telling
us little about how it might be applied in practice. It lacks the methodological precision
associated with the hard variant and, if seen to embrace all dimensions of human
resourcing, becomes difficult to differentiate from SHRM (Marchington and Wilkinson,
1996; Tansley, 1999). However, despite the difficulties associated with translating it into
practice the soft variant of HRP may be critical to organisational success as exemplified
in the cases cited in ‘In Practice’ 7.4.
SHRM_C07.QXD 14/2/07 15:52 Page 249
In Practice 7.4
Williams (2002) identifies that the failure of organisational mission statements to impact on employee
behaviour and the implementation failures of business initiatives designed to provide competitive
edge (e.g. business process re-engineering) can arise from a lack of commitment to long-term plan-
ning and core organisational values. She argues that an organisation’s core values need to be
articulated at all levels of the organisation and translated into strategic human resource plans and
practice. She concludes that where shared values and their cultural context cannot be easily repli-
cated they assume the status of an important source of sustained competitive advantage.
A study by Deutsche Bank (Steffens-Duch, 2001, cited in Turner, 2002: 58–59) concluded that
employee commitment embedded in organisation culture was a significant differentiating factor
between successful and less successful businesses operating in the service sector. Employee com-
mitment was therefore held to be a pre-condition for business success.
The global telecommunications giant Ericsson established clear linkages between values, behav-
iour and culture. The values of professionalism, respect and perseverance were ultimately converted
into the behaviours of passion to win, dedication to customer success, fast urgent creativity and
value-adding teamwork. In recognition of the criticality of these ‘soft’ HR dimensions Ericsson
appointed a senior vice-president to be responsible for people and culture (Reigo, 2001, cited in
Turner, 2002: 59).
To what extent can the view that HRP is all about ensuring that the right person is
in the right place at the right time be interpreted as a soft, as well as a hard,
approach to HRP?
Implementation
Strategy
HR planning of HR action
formulation
plans
This systems perspective is synonymous with the hard, manpower planning dimen-
sions of HRP illustrated respectively in Tables 7.5 and 7.3. Although criticised for its
narrow, rationalist and prescriptive foundations (Mintzberg, 1994; Liff, 2000) this
should not lead to its wholesale rejection particularly when viewed as an integral com-
ponent of HRP practice. In Table 7.3 it was argued that HRP ‘adopts a quantitative and
qualitative approach by building on hard elements to incorporate soft elements such as
culture, management and development, and retention of talent’. Therefore the inherent
limitations of this perspective become particularly dangerous to organisations only
when it is used in isolation.
In contrast, the processual approach to strategy and strategy making, again discussed in
detail in Chapter 1, reverses the basic premise such that organisations are viewed as cre-
ations arising from the social interactions of their stakeholders. This chimes with the
emergent view of strategy to create a dynamic where organisations and their patterns of
beliefs and behaviours are forged over time as a result of a continuous process of social
exchange and negotiation (Tansley, 1999). From this perspective, the HRP process can be
viewed as being based on continual interactions between those responsible for HR strategy
and those responsible for business strategy (Liff, 2000). Compared with a systems perspec-
tive, the processual perspective is arguably more able to accommodate unforeseen events
arising from an uncertain future and the ‘humanness’ of people with their idiosyncrasies
and is also better equipped to support the types of behaviours necessary to survive in an
increasingly turbulent, global economy (Tansley, 1999). In HRP terms, adopting a proces-
sual perspective means that it becomes a continuous process where action can precede
planning as well as planning precede action, as illustrated in Figure 7.5.
Of the definitions of HRP reviewed earlier, arguably that of bin Idris and Eldridge
(1998) comes closest to reflecting this processual perspective. They view HRP as a con-
tinual learning process brought about through the interactions of stakeholders affected
by the HRP process, with managers being particularly identified as crucial participants.
Their construction of HRP also incorporates a systems approach to formalise the con-
tinuous process and thereby draws on the strengths of both the systems and processual
perspectives. They maintain that:
Human Human
Strategy
resource resource
formulation
planning actions
The operation of such a continuous process carries with it the possibility for HRP to
provide the crucial link between corporate strategies (prescribed or emergent) and
SHRM practices (short or long term).
Reflecting Parker and Caine’s (1996: 30) view that ‘The success of HRP is paramount to
the survival of the organisation’, Mills (1985) argues that HRP helps organisations to
ascertain that strategic plans may be unrealisable because of HR factors before rather
than after they have been implemented. However, he goes on to argue that, despite the
compelling nature of this benefit, many organisations do not practise HRP, thereby run-
ning the risk of costly strategic implementation failures.
His argument provides a powerful rationale for HRP and illustrates the importance
of the potential two-way (upstream and downstream) relationship that exists between
organisational and HR strategies. It also throws up the possibility that the evident lack of
formal HRP practice is inconsistent with its importance. This possibility is considered
further in a later section examining the HRP paradox. Mills’ analysis also accords with
the introductory discussion on the role of HRP in mergers and acquisitions (see In Prac-
tice 7.1). Here it was revealed that a failure to plan for the HR dimension of mergers and
acquisitions was a key reason for their subsequent failure. It might have been thought
that those planning mergers would have had a vested interest in identifying and attend-
ing to the human factors that could threaten their success! Building on this initial
position, the chapter now goes on to focus on the perceived benefits of HRP and how
these can be used as a platform for constructing an argument in support of the role of
HRP as the crucial link between organisational strategies and SHRM.
Benefits of HRP
1. Ensures that the HR dimension receives due attention in the strategy-making process.
2. Enables HR strategies to be linked to and integrated with organisational strategies.
3. Surfaces and recognises the potentially unique contribution an organisation’s human capital can
make to long-term strategic direction.
4. Provides a formalised process that encourages organisations to take account of HR issues early
on in strategy making thereby reducing the risk of implementation failures due to a lack of HR
capability.
5. Provides a formalised process for generating plans to tackle the HR issues arising from strategic
planning.
6. Generates a detailed audit of an organisation’s human capital.
7. Enables the appropriateness of the organisation’s current skills, knowledge and attitudes mix to
be analysed.
8. Provides a mechanism for forecasting labour demand against internal and external supply in
terms of numbers, knowledge, skills and attitudes.
9. Matches labour demand and supply and through gap analysis surfaces mismatches between the
two that need to be addressed.
10. Generates a variety of HR solutions for tackling the complexity of problems arising from strategy
making.
11. Enables HR strategies, policies, procedures and practice to be developed as a coherent bundle
of activities.
12. Provides detailed information that enables tighter control over staffing numbers and costs.
Sources: Greer (2001); Marchington and Wilkinson (2002); Turner (2002).
where a reciprocal relationship means that HR issues can represent an important input
into the strategy formulation process from the outset in an upstream relationship.
The operation of these three levels of strategic linkage is consistent with those who
advocate that two-way external or vertical integration is a core dimension of SHRM.
Where HRP successfully contributes to these three types of linkage it is difficult to
deny its utility as a linking mechanism between organisational strategy and HR strate-
gies and practices.
In contrast, identified benefits provide little emphasis on the potential contribution
HRP can make to integrating HR strategies horizontally despite the centrality of this
dimension to the concept of SHRM. This is addressed to an extent by Marchington and
Wilkinson (2002: 280) who argue that ‘It enables employers to make more informed
judgements about the skills and attitude mix in the organisation, and prepare inte-
grated HR strategies.’ Their view is reinforced by Beardwell (2004: 181) who argues that
HRP can contribute to organisational performance through ‘the integration of HR
policies and practices with each other and with the business strategy, i.e. horizontal and
vertical integration’.
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The notion that the route to competitive advantage lies through an organisation’s
human resources and the way they are managed is an increasingly recurrent theme in
the SHRM literature. HRP as a specific contributor to business performance is sup-
ported by Marchington and Wilkinson (2002: 280) who argue that irrespective of
whether HRP is operating in a downstream or upstream relationship with corporate
strategy it ‘is perceived as a major facilitator of competitive advantage’. Using HRP as a
vehicle for managing people as strategic assets can also facilitate the pursuit of the high-
performance organisations commonly associated with SHRM by focusing on a high
commitment, productivity and trust agenda (Godard and Delaney, 2000).
The claimed contribution of HRP to organisational performance may, however, be
more difficult to establish in practice. In Chapter 2, following an examination and cri-
tique of a number of studies investigating the link between SHRM and organisational
performance, it was concluded that the studies were generally positive about this rela-
tionship. However, as was pointed out, all of the studies reviewed focused on SHRM
rather than the effectiveness of individual HR practices such as HRP. In comparison
there has been little empirical research on the extent of HRP practice or its link to
organisational performance. One notable exception is the work of Nkomo (1986, 1987)
who found evidence two decades ago that the introduction of formalised, strategically
linked HRP was frequently followed by improvements in organisational performance
and that inferior organisational performance was linked to its absence. Her last point
accords with earlier arguments that the failure of mergers and acquisitions frequently
arise from deficiencies in formal HRP. More recently, evidence has established links
between HRP and labour productivity (Kock and McGrath, 1996) and sustained organi-
sational profitability (Caulkin, 2001). What limited evidence there is of the link between
HRP and organisational performance seems, at least, to mirror that found for HRM
more generally and lends weight to the argument that HRP can operate as the vital con-
necting link between organisational and HR strategies.
For Zeffane and Mayo (1994) the process of HRP contains within it an important
boundary-spanning role that is crucial in helping organisations to adapt the workforce to
meet changing demands arriving from a dynamic socio-economic climate. It can be
argued that human resources are the key factor in managing change because they are far
more adaptable than other sources of production, such as capital investment. As a conse-
quence, HRP may help manage the unpredictability of business life by exercising a degree
of control over medium-term and incremental change through exploiting the flexibility
and adaptability of the workforce to meet new contingencies as they arise (Beardwell,
2004). However, this claim is open to question as it can be argued that a lack of flexibility
and adaptability in the workforce can potentially frustrate using human resources in this
way. Elsewhere in this book the difficulties of culture change and the political realities of
organisational life that can, for a variety of reasons, fuel employee resistance and intransi-
gence have been discussed. Also, the pace at which it is possible to adapt and shape the
workforce is debatable. As Gratton (1999: 173) graphically points out:
It takes ten to fifteen years to select and develop an international senior executive
cadre.
It takes a minimum of three years to pilot and implement a reward system refocused
on supporting a new set of competences.
It takes at least five years to reshape the technological skill base of employees.
SHRM_C07.QXD 14/2/07 15:52 Page 254
These facets of an organisation’s human resources remind us of Liff ’s (2000: 94) clar-
ion call ‘to remember the humanness of human resources’ and it is surprising how little
of the discussion in the literature on the benefits of HRP focuses on workforce consider-
ations. However, at least Bratton and Gold (2003) go some way towards this by pointing
out that HRP has an important role to play in reconciling the needs of individual
employees and the needs of the organisation. This has echoes of the employee-centred
HR practices associated with soft HRP.
How would you map out the benefits of HRP identified in the above analysis
against the ‘regulation’, ‘control’ and ‘shape’ phases of Ulrich’s (1987) model of
transitions in SHRP (see Table 7.4)? You might find it helpful to structure your
answer in tabular format. To get you started one example under each of the three
phases identified by Ulrich has been provided below.
the easy part. Turning the HRP rhetoric into reality is an altogether more difficult
proposition. As explored in the next section, there are many difficulties confronting the
effective practice of HRP. These may well be sufficient to put many organisations off
from even entertaining the prospect of introducing HRP such that it is cast aside to a
different destiny altogether as the missing or weakest link.
While not disagreeing with Parker and Caine’s (1996: 30) view that ‘The complexities
associated with the planning process are enormous’, there is a need to get to grips with
what this means in practice if effective HRP is to become a reality. This section begins by
briefly revisiting the discussion on the multi-dimensional nature of strategic integration
in Chapter 1 in order to explore the problematic nature of establishing strategic linkage
between organisational goals and HR practices. It then goes on to range more widely
over a number of potential pitfalls, posers and problems associated with HRP which
have been characterised here as ‘the Pandora’s box of HRP’.
In Chapter 1, at least six strands to strategic integration were delineated, each one
of which could be said to carry with it potentially different implications for HR plan-
ners. Within the context of HRP, these six strands of strategic integration can be
summarised as:
HRP responses to first-order strategic decisions, i.e. those concerned with the long-
term direction of the enterprise or the scope of its activities;
HRP responses to second-order strategic decisions, i.e. organisation structures and
operating procedures put into place to support first-order decisions;
HRP responses to third-order strategic decisions, i.e. where functional areas define
their strategies in accordance with the first- and second-order decisions;
two-way strategic integration where HRP operates both upstream to help shape
future strategic direction as well as downstream to support organisational goals in a
reciprocal relationship;
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In Practice 7.5
Strategic HRP was introduced by a Chilean information organisation in the library system of the Pon-
tifical Catholic University of Chile (SIBUC) in order to achieve the organisation’s strategic objectives.
The HRP process adopted starts from the premise that the management of human resources needs
to be coherent with the library system’s strategic plan.
The starting point is SIBUC’s mission ‘to contribute to the attainment of academic excellence by
the university community of the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile’ (Franco and Diaz, 1995: 15). To
achieve the mission, strategic objectives were developed for each of the organisation’s nine key man-
agement areas: human resources; users; management; image; financial resources; information and
bibliographic resources; technological support; physical resources; and suppliers. For example:
Human resources. To have human resources with a service vocation, who are achievement ori-
ented, innovative, competent, informed and satisfied with their work in professional and financial
terms, interacting effectively in a disciplined working environment.
Management. To attain an organization oriented to the user, which is innovative, rapid in response,
efficient, integrated, co-ordinated and austere, tending to the autonomy of its members, using a
participative management system with working groups and consultations.
Suppliers. To have a close collaboration with suppliers, by means of a mutually beneficial commer-
cial relationship that ensures the efficient and timely provision of our services at the lowest
possible cost (Franco and Diaz, 1995: 19–20).
Using a SWOT analysis, current human resources were analysed in relation to the organisation’s
operating environment and its nine strategic objectives. The findings of the SWOT analysis were then
used to develop a suite of (six) human resource objectives and strategies designed ‘to improve on the
weaknesses, to take advantage of the opportunities, to diminish the threats and to maintain the
strengths’ of current human resources (Franco and Diaz, 1995: 21). The six HR objectives were:
To have supervisors who are leaders who will permit the efficient attainment of strategic objectives.
Staff who interact assertively and effectively with the user community, anticipating information
needs.
To have a staff selection system that will permit the incorporation of achievement-oriented people
with innovative capabilities.
SHRM_C07.QXD 14/2/07 15:52 Page 258
Decrease rotation of librarians in the high rotation levels without deteriorating the relative positions
of the jobs.
Promote self-instruction for professional development.
Knowledge of the contribution of the present performance evaluation system to staff productivity
and job well-being’ (Franco and Diaz, 1995: 21–22).
Against each HR objective the following were developed: a strategy; a plan to achieve that strat-
egy; and a series of controls against which achievement of the strategy could be evaluated.
Source: Franco and Diaz (1995).
In Practice 7.6
The man who moved east to make rooms: a case of hard HRP?
When one of Silicon Glen’s biggest electronics manufacturers decided in 2001 to shut up shop in
Scotland and relocate to low-cost eastern Europe, it started another local company thinking. Michael
Shand, managing director of R.B. Farquhar, an Aberdeenshire-based maker of portable cabins and
prefabricated rooms for construction projects, did some swift sums. ‘I went on the internet, found
some figures for labour costs in the Czech Republic and calculated on the back of a fag packet
whether we could also produce there more cheaply,’ he says. ‘It looked very encouraging.’
He concluded then that labour costs for the manufacture of prefabricated bathroom pods, of the
type Farquhar supplies to hotel chains, would be about 75 per cent lower. In the event, the saving has
proved to be closer to 80 per cent. Three years after Mr Shand reached for the cigarette packet, Far-
quhar is winning significant orders from a new £3 million plant in the Czech Republic. Since coming
on stream last November, the plant has won orders worth about £12 million, including a £10 million
order from Travelodge, the budget hotel chain, for 3,000 pods.
Farquhar’s pods business, which is also served by a plant at Huntly in Aberdeenshire, is now grow-
ing at more than 25 per cent a year thanks to the new plant, which is already in profit – six months
earlier than Mr Shand had estimated. ‘It’s way ahead of our expectations,’ he says. ‘We can compete
now with any producer of prefabs anywhere in Europe.’
The board had considered acquiring a local company, entering a joint venture or building a green-
field plant, but after due analysis opted for the latter. A site for the plant was found in a region of
relatively high unemployment close to the German border. Mr Shand then went to the local labour
office and won support for a training scheme for 90 potential workers. Farquhar provided the materi-
als for the training scheme and the local authority paid the workers while they were being trained.
About half the trainees were taken on as the first batch of workers at the factory, which now employs
60 staff and is hiring five to ten new people each month. The company also benefits from the fact that
the Czech authorities pay half the wages of anyone joining the company from the unemployment list
for the first two years of their work.
But, rather than their cost, it is the quality of the Czech workforce that has most impressed Mr Shand
since the plant was completed last August. ‘We found the workers absolutely excellent. They’re respon-
sive, they have good skills, a good work ethic,’ he says. ‘We were very surprised and very pleased at
what we found. With no disrespect to our staff at home, they’re as good as anything in the UK.’ He also
points out that the Czech facility was never designed to replace Farquhar’s UK plant. ‘This was firmly
not about relocation. This was about opportunity and being more profitable,’ he says.
SHRM_C07.QXD 14/2/07 15:52 Page 259
Nonetheless, he suggests that opening the Czech plant may have provided ‘a little bit of a wake-
up call’ to staff in the UK. Indeed, one unexpected result of opening an overseas plant has been the
effect on production at Huntly. In the UK plant, for instance, workers move around the steel-framed
pods as they are manufactured. In Chomutov, where it was easier to experiment with production
methods, the company tried putting the pods on wheels and moving them among teams of workers.
This cut working time per unit in the Czech plant by a fifth, so the practice is now being adopted in
the UK operation.
Source: Nicholson (2004: 11).
For each of the above In Practice Cases answer the following question and justify
your answer with reference to case evidence:
Which of the six strands of strategic integration are evident in the case company?
Table 7.6 The Pandora’s box of HRP: four different perspectives on the problems associated with HRP
Despite the daunting range of complexities summarised in Table 7.6, the Pandora’s
box of HRP has not yet been emptied of all but hope as there are at least two further dif-
ficulties particularly relevant to HRP practitioners left in the box that need to be
considered. First, there are limitations associated with techniques for forecasting labour
supply and demand. This element of HRP has been previously identified as being essen-
tial to gap analysis and the subsequent development and implementation of HR plans to
address mismatches between labour supply and demand. Despite the wide range of fore-
casting techniques available, they can often lack the precision necessary to be able to HR
plan with certainty. Further, some of the statistical techniques employed are well beyond
the capabilities and comprehension of many HR professionals.
Forecasting labour supply and demand has been identified as a central component of
manpower planning. The difficulties associated with some forecasting methods and the
questionable accuracy of the predictions generated contributed to the decline in interest
in manpower planning before the advent of HRP. A particular difficulty is that HRP
involves long-range planning, and reliability of forecasting generally diminishes as the
time horizon increases, so, whereas projections several months ahead may be reasonably
accurate, those over a three- to five-year timescale are likely to be less reliable (Mintzberg,
1994). Another difficulty with HRP, and a reason why it is sometimes shunned, is trying
to forecast the future in an increasingly changing world. In Practice 7.7 provides a flavour
of the forecasting headaches that can arise from the unplanned and unexpected, and
illustrate well the difficulties that can confront HRP in a dynamic environment. All the
examples are taken from events reported while writing this chapter.
In Practice 7.7
In a deal between leadership of the Labour Party and trade unions, workplace rights will be extended
for millions of workers. A European Union directive designed to provide agency and temporary work-
ers with similar rights to those enjoyed by permanent employees had been opposed by the
government. The government’s decision to reverse its stance and withdraw its opposition will result in
a guarantee of an extra eight days’ holiday a year for millions of employees because under the direc-
tive employers will no longer be able to count Bank Holidays as part of the minimum entitlement to 20
days holiday per year (Grice and Clement, 2004).
Many companies are in danger of being ‘burnt by soaring oil prices’. The managing director of a
specialist glassmaker, where energy is the second highest cost after the wage bill, reported that the
best quotes obtained for new contracts for electricity and gas were up 51 per cent and 34 per cent
respectively. He said, ‘This equates to a cost increase of £600,000, which is over half our annual profit
prior to interest and tax.’ According to the Energy Intensive Users’ Group, manufacturers up and
down the country are telling similar stories (Koenig and Kemeny, 2004: 7).
Spain’s biggest bank, Santander Central Hispano, is set to announce a bid to take over Abbey
National, Britain’s sixth-largest bank, to create the world’s eighth-largest bank (Cave, 2004a). The
business analysts at Citigroup estimated that Santander would need to lay off 8,000 Abbey National
employees to achieve its £300 million synergy targets. However, they predict that 6,000 jobs will actu-
ally be cut in measures to bring processing staff, as a percentage of the total workforce, in line with
the ratio operating at Santander (Cave, 2004b).
SHRM_C07.QXD 14/2/07 15:52 Page 262
There has also been a tendency to equate forecasting with the quantitative dimension
of labour supply and demand to the neglect of the qualitative dimension. Forecasting
the qualitative dimension of labour is arguably even more difficult than quantitative
extrapolation. Consider for a moment the difficulties of pinning down the skills
involved in performing a task. Employees may perform jobs in subtly different ways and,
through exercising job control, may obscure relationships between skills and effective
job performance. There may also be mismatches between an employee’s actual skill base
and their willingness to exercise their skills in practice. Further, if employees are
involved in analysing the skills used in the performance of their job, they may conspire
to exaggerate their prowess, particularly if the exercise is related to pay determination.
This illustrates well the problematic and messy reality of organisational life as identified
in Table 7.6 (Liff, 2000).
A second set of further difficulties emerge around the ability of HR specialists to per-
form as business partners (Lawler and Mohrman, 2003). Two important related points
raised earlier are relevant here. An argument running throughout the chapter is that for
HRP to become a reality the centrality of HR issues to organisational strategy needs to
be recognised and acted on (Liff, 2000; Newell, 2002). However, as Liff (2000: 108) con-
cludes, ‘this is not normally the case’. The second point relates to the status and role of
the HR function within organisations. In order for HR issues to take centre stage and be
an integral component of organisational planning it has been argued that the head of
the HR function must have equal status with other heads of function and sit at top table
(Mabey and Iles, 1993; Greer, 2001; Turner, 2002). These two points are brought
together eloquently by Liff (2000: 108) who posits that ‘A factor which is arguably both a
symptom and cause of the lack of importance given to human resource issues is the tra-
ditionally low status of HR specialists.’ The development and successful implementation
of HRP is highly unlikely in an organisational context where HR issues are not regarded
as being of paramount importance.
This bleak scenario is consistent with the downstream HR role discussed earlier
which anticipates that, once strategy has been formulated, HR activities will at best be
directed to support its implementation. This creates a danger that HR practice will be
piecemeal and lack horizontal integration and effectiveness (Galpin, 1999). Despite
these dangers, recent research surveying how HR functionaries spend their time con-
firmed that their orientation and competence meant that traditional HR roles still
predominate, with little evidence of the role of business partner emerging (Lawler and
Mohrman, 2003). Of course, it may be the very competence of HR specialists and their
lack of strategic acumen that militates against their achievement of business partner
status (Greer, 2001; Beardwell, 2004). The devolvement of HR functions to line man-
agers anticipated by SHRM may compensate in part for this deficiency but this
presupposes the competence of those managers to perform strategically. The difficulty
here is that managerial orientation tends to be towards more immediate concerns rather
than longer-term planning, an orientation that may well be reinforced by reward man-
agement systems. The skill base of managers arguably reflects the needs of day-to-day
problem solving rather than strategic planning and encourages a focus on operational
issues (Greer, 2001). This leads to a somewhat circular argument where a strategically
oriented, interventionary HR presence is necessary to support line managers in their
planning roles but may well be absent, with the consequence that managers lack help in
moving from their short-term orientation.
The above analysis presents a formidable set of barriers and difficulties confronting
the effective practice of HRP and could well be sufficient to prevent HRP ever being
SHRM_C07.QXD 14/2/07 15:52 Page 263
entertained by organisations. This is a possibility that is considered next but not before a
quick reminder that, according to Greek mythology, it should still be possible to find
hope residing at the bottom of Pandora’s box.
In one sense, a paradox arises from juxtaposing the benefits of HRP against the problem-
atic nature of its practice. On the one hand, claims that ‘the success of HRP is paramount
to the survival of the organisation’ (Parker and Caine, 1996: 30) have been examined.
Here it could be argued that the numerous benefits associated with HRP and its potential
role as the vital link between organisational strategy and HR strategy and practice sup-
port such claims. On the other hand, Parker and Caine’s (1996: 30) contention that ‘the
complexities associated with the planning process are enormous’ has also been consid-
ered. The problematic nature of strategic integration and the potential pitfalls, posers and
problems associated with HRP certainly give credence to their viewpoint and may con-
spire to inhibit its practice. This leads us to a position where it is difficult to establish
HRP as a vital connecting link because the strategic linkage is difficult to forge, i.e. the
reasons that argue for its adoption conspire to thwart its effective execution.
A more commonly identified paradox, however, arises specifically from the relation-
ship between HRP and the unpredictability of the future. This generates a dilemma that
has been captured by a number of commentators in Key Concepts 7.4.
‘Is it realistic even to consider strategy, planning and forecasting in a dynamic and unpredictable
world?’ (Turner, 2002: 13).
‘It is sometimes implied that planning is irrelevant or misguided in a turbulent and increasingly
insecure environment’ (Marchington and Wilkinson, 2002: 278).
‘It is of course a paradox that as it becomes more difficult to predict and select, so it becomes
more necessary to do so’ (Bramham, 1988: 7).
majority of organisations and HR/personnel managers are involved with HRP (Tyson
and Doherty, 1999; Millward et al., 2000), whereas other studies demonstrate little evi-
dence of HRP being practised (Lam and Schaubroeck, 1998; Wagner et al., 2000).
In Practice 7.8 provides a recent and costly example where operational inadequacies in
HRP appear to be evident in one of the UK’s most prominent businesses. The HRP diffi-
culties faced by British Airways also demonstrate internal (or horizontal) integration in
operation, albeit negatively, as issues around absenteeism, employee commitment,
employee development, employee relations, labour retention and turnover, recruitment
and selection, and reward management come together in a dangerous cocktail to thwart
day-to-day operational management.
Second, the survey methodology frequently adopted may lead to an exaggeration of
the incidence of HRP practice. Here, surveys sometimes reveal an organisational intent
to conduct HRP that, when subjected to more detailed case analysis, is found not to be
converted into practice (Liff, 2000; Beardwell, 2004). Third, building on this apparent
mismatch between organisational rhetoric and reality, HRP practice uncovered by
In Practice 7.8
On Tuesday, normally the quietest day of the week, and for the second day running, British Airways
was forced to cancel more than 30 flights out of Heathrow airport. ‘BA bosses were forced to deploy
the lamest excuse in travel: staff shortage’ (Calder, 2004: 1). According to Calder (2004: 1) ‘the origin
of the chaotic scenes at Heathrow yesterday lies in a combination of low staff morale, absenteeism
and technical resources’, all of which represent dimensions of HRP.
On the day in question, 11 per cent of staff rostered on the morning shift failed to turn up for work.
This may have been partly the result of a deal to pay bonuses to baggage handlers, check-in and
ground staff who take less than the average annual sickness absence of 17 days. The deal, due to
take effect in October, was agreed the previous week to avert a threatened strike and, according to
one source, staff were ‘getting their retaliation in early, racking up the days off while they can’ (Calder,
2004: 1). It was also held that low staff morale was contributing to staff turnover as well as high levels
of absenteeism. According to Calder (2004: 1) efforts to tackle staff shortages will be too late, ‘BA is
recruiting and training replacement workers who start work next month after the summer peak, a
piece of timing described by the talk-radio host Mike Dickin as “like training Father Christmases in
January’’.’ One stranded passenger commented: ‘It’s a world-renowned company. They should have
the infrastructure in place to ensure they have adequate staff’ (Demetriou, 2004: 4).
Rod Eddington, BA’s chief executive, admitted ‘that staffing levels were inadequate to cope with
the number of travellers and that appropriate decisions were not taken at the right time’ (Simpkins,
2004: 3). BA has cut its workforce by 13,000 to 52,000 as part of his ‘Future Size and Shape’ strategy,
‘but the big fear is that BA has cut too much’ and that its ‘obsession with costs is starting to hit the
quality of service’ (Simpkins, 2004: 3).
BA is reportedly going ‘to give 17,500 staff two free tickets each to compensate them for stress
and inconvenience suffered during last week’s cancellations debacle at Heathrow’ at an estimated
cost of £4 million (O’Connell, 2004: 1). The full extent of the cost to BA will, however, only become
clearer when the impact of its troubles on future revenue can be gauged. ‘As Ms Baaske stated: “The
next time I will fly Lufthansa”’ (Demetriou, 2004: 4).
Sources: Calder (2004: 1, 4); Demetriou (2004: 4); O’Connell (2004: 1); Simpkins (2004: 3).
SHRM_C07.QXD 14/2/07 15:52 Page 265
research evidence tends to be more focused at the operational rather than the strategic
level (Nkomo, 1988; Lam and Schaubroeck, 1998; Wagner et al., 2000; Beardwell, 2004).
Last, the research may be too constrained by rational prescriptions of HRP and in
searching for this may overlook evidence of HRP emerging from ad hoc, incremental
and more tentative efforts (Hendry, 1995; Beardwell, 2004) that are more associated
with a processual viewpoint.
This perspective is also consistent with the earlier review of the work of Brews and
Hunt (1999) in Chapter 1 with respect to the processual approach to strategy and strat-
egy making. There it was argued that in a reversal of received wisdom they advocate
that more strategic planning is required in unstable environments and possibly less in
stable ones.
Such a proactive stance may not come naturally hence the need to HR plan the HR
function to ensure that, longer term, it can achieve its own strategic objectives. Indeed,
success for HRP at this micro, functional level might in itself go a long way to enhancing
the credibility and elevating the status of HR in the organisation and the profile of HRP
itself. It is also likely to help HR specialists hone their HRP skills, possibly to the subse-
quent wider benefit of the organisation. Without such a stance it is difficult to see how
two-way strategic integration will be achieved, a situation that leaves organisations vul-
nerable to strategic and operational failure because of its lack of attention to the people
dimension (Appelbaum and Gandell, 2003; Greer, 2001).
Flexible forecasting
The second potential avenue focuses on confronting the problematic nature of forecast-
ing in an increasingly uncertain and unpredictable world through contingency and
scenario planning. These approaches are ‘predicated on the assumption that if you
cannot predict the future, then by speculating on a variety of them, you might just hit
upon the right one’ (Mintzberg, 1994: 248). The two approaches are broadly similar,
although it could be argued that scenario planning is about identifying a number of
possible hypothetical positions and contingency planning is about producing HR plans
to match the different scenarios identified and their possible outcomes (Turner, 2002;
Beardwell, 2004). In Practice 7.9 provides some examples to illustrate these approaches.
In Practice 7.9
However, despite their potential, scenario and contingency planning are not without
their problems. It is possible that, as the future unfolds, unplanned scenarios may still
emerge and such approaches demand an HRP sophistication or resource base likely to
be lacking in many organisations (Mintzberg, 1994). This places a stress on the need for
HRP to be a continuous process so that deviations from forecasts and plans can be rap-
idly identified and tackled.
ning is necessary to ensure that the necessary HR practices, employee skills and
employee behaviours are in place to achieve both planned strategies and future flexibil-
ity in order to achieve effective organisation performance.
The three dimensions of her strategic linkage are the, by now, familiar ones of vertical,
horizontal and temporal linkage, with the latter ensuring that both short- and long-term
strategic considerations receive due attention. Interestingly, she identifies different clusters
of people processes as being relevant to the achievement of short- and long-term strate-
gies. For short-term strategic linkage, objective setting, performance metrics, rewards and
short-term training are identified as being particularly relevant, whereas for long-term
linkage, leadership development, workforce development and organisational development
are identified. The strength of the linkage between organisational strategies and people
processes are assessed along a continuum. At one end, changes in people processes mirror
changes to organisational strategies, while at the other end there is, at worst, no relation-
ship between the two and, at best, ad hoc linkage. Through continual monitoring and
feedback, gaps between strategies and HR capability can be identified and people strate-
gies developed to redirect the people processes as necessary to address both short- and
long-term requirements. Taken together these relationships are captured below in an
adaptation of Gratton’s (1999: 185) ‘people process map’, as depicted in Figure 7.6.
SHRM_C07.QXD 14/2/07 15:52 Page 270
Short-term cycle
Organisational strategies
People strategies
People processes
Stakeholder
• Objective setting Scanning current (HR)
feedback and
• Performance metrics people capability
evaluation
• Short-term training
Organisational
Performance
strategies Gap analysis
People processes
• Leadership
development Stakeholder Scanning long-term
• Workforce feedback and people trends and
development evaluation capability
• Organisational
development
Organisational strategies
People strategies
Long-term cycle
Figure 7.6 The ‘people process map’
Source: after Gratton (1999).
Within the case companies studied, people process–strategy linkages were found to
be stronger within the short-term cycle and significantly weaker within the long-term
cycle. The main reasons put forward for this lack of long-term strategic linkage were ‘the
complexity of embedding these processes and the general short-term view of the com-
panies’ (Gratton, 1999: 195). Given the previous discussion this does not come as any
surprise but once again reinforces the difficulties associated with HRP.
In Practice 7.10 summarises an alternative HRP process developed by Zeneca Phar-
maceuticals. However, like Gratton’s (1999) ‘people process map’, it places heavy
emphasis on continual feedback and evaluation and also stresses the importance of
multi-stakeholder participation in an open and collaborative process.
It is now left to you, the reader, to reach your own conclusion on the extent to which
HRP can be viewed as either the vital link or the missing/weakest link between organisa-
tional strategies and SHRM.
SHRM_C07.QXD 14/2/07 15:52 Page 271
In Practice 7.10
The strategic HRP process developed at Zeneca Pharmaceuticals was in response to a need to move
the business from a relatively stable and centralised operation to one that could address the realities
of a rapidly changing business environment. Creative and innovative science, speed to market and
effective marketing were identified as the organisation’s critical success factors and it was accepted
that all three were dependent on HR excellence. At this time, however, although accountability for HR
had been increasingly devolved to line managers, the HR function had little previous strategic involve-
ment. In response to these contextual factors a rolling six-stage framework for devising strategic HR
plans with senior line management teams was developed and implemented.
Stage 2 – sharing the analysis with function head and agreeing key themes
The HR team present the function head with their analysis and its relationship to the business (not
function) strategy with a view to producing an HR plan for the function. During this process the func-
tion head may rework the core team’s analysis and conclusions.
Stage 3 – function head engages with (their) management team through existing business
processes to confirm key themes
The outcome of stage 2 is shared with the functional management team through one of their normal
business planning processes. Where possible, a current area of HR interest is used as a hook to facil-
itate line management involvement.
Summary
HRP is the name given to formal processes designed to ensure that an organisation’s
human resource capability can support the achievement of its strategic objectives. It
involves forecasting the future demand for and supply of labour and drawing up HR
plans to reconcile mismatches between the two.
When viewed as the vital link between organisation and HR strategies, HRP can be
regarded as a bridging mechanism fulfilling three vital roles: aligning HR plans to
organisational strategies to further their achievement; uncovering HR issues that can
threaten the viability of organisational strategies and thereby lead to their reformula-
tion; and acting in a reciprocal relationship with organisational strategies such that
HR issues become a central input into the strategy formation process.
Numerous difficulties surrounding the practice of HRP may thwart its potential to
serve as the link between organisational strategy and SHRM practice. These difficul-
ties may be sufficient to lead organisations to abandon any thoughts of practising
HRP, may conspire to reduce the effectiveness of HRP practice, or may limit its appli-
cation to short-term, operational matters.
Patchy and limited data on HRP practice points to its low level of take-up by organi-
sations leading to an alternative perspective of HRP as the missing or weakest link
between organisational and HR strategies. This leads to a paradox where the more the
complexities of organisational life warrant the establishment of HRP as the vital link
the more these complexities are likely to cause HRP to be cast aside to become the
missing/weakest link.
Avenues for confronting operational difficulties and forging HRP as the pivotal
bridging mechanism between organisational strategy and SHRM practice focused on:
raising the profile of HR issues generally and the status and credibility of HR practi-
tioners particularly; using contingency and scenario planning to introduce flexibility
into the HRP process; building towards a flexible workforce that can manage the
vagaries arising from unplanned developments and an uncertain future; and develop-
ing an HRP process centred on continual review, evaluation and adaptation and
adopting a multi-stakeholder approach to make this a realistic possibility.
Access and read the cited articles of Miles and Snow (1984b) and Schuler and Jackson
(1987). Analyse the extent to which you believe their approaches to human resourcing
can be construed as HRP using the conceptual frameworks discussed in this chapter.
Review Chapter 7 and determine what you believe are the key features of an effective
HRP process. Then, access and read the frameworks, maps and models developed
respectively by Ainsworth (1995), Gratton et al. (1999), Turner (2002) and Wright and
Snell (1999) and analyse these against the evaluative framework you have just created.
Drawing on research methods literature, design a research project to test the extent to
which HRP is practised in UK organisations. Critique your research design to identify
its strengths and weaknesses.
SHRM_C07.QXD 14/2/07 15:52 Page 273
Access the international SHRM literature and identify and explore the key HRP issues
arising. Those wishing to conduct a deeper level of analysis can go on to complete
this task against the different organisation forms adopted by businesses operating
across national boundaries, i.e. multi-national; global; international; and trans-
national companies.
Use the internet to explore the HRP practices of different ‘case’ organisations and develop
explanations that account for similarities and differences between their practices.
How do the processes and practices of HRP vary between SMEs and large organisations?
To what extent and how do organisations conduct longer-term HRP?
How do HR professionals perceive their role in HRP? An exploration of the differ-
ences between their aspirations and perceptions of reality.
How extensive is HRP in organisations? A survey of current HRP practice in the UK.
Vive la difference! How do organisations based in different countries view the utility
of HRP? A comparative study of European HR practice.
Case Study
Human resource planning in mergers and acquisitions
The three cases outlined briefly below are drawn value-added outcomes arising from M&A are only
from the work of Salama et al. (2003) who are inves- likely to be realised if people from both organisations,
tigating changes and opportunities presented by and particularly their managers, have both the will and
mergers and acquisitions (M&A) involving compa- the ability to work collaboratively. They argue that ‘The
nies within related industries but which cross key to integration is to obtain the participation of the
national boundaries. Such M&A frequently bring people involved without compromising the strategic
together people of diverse cultural backgrounds task’ (Salama et al., 2003: 313). This represents a criti-
which create the potential either to enhance com- cal agenda for HRP. One approach here would be to
petitive advantage or to derail the M&A process and minimise the difficulties by establishing cultural com-
lead to its subsequent failure. patibility as one important criterion for selecting
Their research provides an interesting counterpoint possible M&A candidates. However, as exemplified in
to the literature that emphasises how inappropriate Chapter 6, a more realistic scenario is that cultural dif-
integration strategies contribute to the high failure rate ferences will exist and need to be managed. This
of M&A (see In Practice 7.1). In contrast, they report scenario is a feature of all three cases and underpins
on three M&A success stories and have focused on their interest in integration strategies designed to
researching the integration processes adopted to encourage: tolerance of diversity; organisational learn-
maximise potential synergies and minimise the poten- ing; knowledge transfer; and acculturation (culture
tial negative effects of cultural differences between the change resulting from the interaction of different
organisations involved. Their central argument is that organisational cultures).
SHRM_C07.QXD 14/2/07 15:52 Page 274
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 277
Introduction
The focus of this chapter is on how recruitment and selection practice can be devel-
oped in support of SHRM to apply strategic leverage in organisations. The chapter
begins by developing a rationale for the adoption of a strategic approach to recruit-
ment and selection by organisations. However, irrespective of how persuasive this
rationale might be, there is limited evidence of the adoption of strategic recruitment
and selection by organisations. This lack of organisational take-up and the problem-
atic nature of the concept and how it can be put into practice are important
challenges confronting the development of strategic recruitment and selection.
Unfortunately, despite passing reference to strategic recruitment and selection in
mainstream texts, there is little detailed development of the concept or reported evi-
dence of its practice in academic journals, as illustrated in Key Concepts 8.1.
In the 1980s and 1990s the occasional chapter dedicated to strategic recruitment and selection could
be found in mainstream HR texts (see, for example, Borucki and Lafley, 1984; Miller, 1984; Evenden,
1993; Lundy and Cowling, 1996; Williams and Dobson, 1997). Now, most chapters on recruitment and
selection in mainline HR texts make some reference to strategic perspectives (see, for example, Iles,
2001; Bratton and Gold, 2003; Beardwell and Wright, 2004). However, such references tend to be cur-
sory in nature and this, together with the lack of coverage of strategic recruitment and selection in
academic journals, suggests that research into the subject is somewhat sparse. When strategic recruit-
ment and selection does get a mention it tends to be buried in a wider management or HR investigation.
In April 2004 a search of the Emerald Fulltext database using strategic recruitment and selection
as the search words was conducted. One thousand and forty-nine hits were scored but only one
bull’s-eye. Only one article title directly referred to the subject domain (Petrovic and Kakabadse,
2003). Further searches of four management and social sciences databases provided one further hit
(Millmore, 2003) which is reported on in ‘In Practice’ 8.11, later in this chapter.
In order to address these issues, the chapter goes on to discuss the nature of strategic
recruitment and selection and develops its principal characteristics into a conceptual
framework and associated model. This is followed by a discussion on how the principles
of strategic recruitment and selection might be applied to a multi-dimensional interpre-
tation of strategic fit. This includes, as a further section, how strategic recruitment and
selection can be applied to support strategic change specifically and to managing change
more generally.
The final two sections review the extent of strategic recruitment and selection prac-
tice and analyse why evidence points to its low level of take-up by organisations.
The chapter themes identified above have been captured in a series of questions and
correspondingly mapped in Figure 8.1:
1. What is the rationale for strategic recruitment and selection?
2. What is strategic recruitment and selection?
SHRM_C08.QXD 14/2/07 15:53 Page 278
Figure 8.1 Mapping the strategic recruitment and selection (SR&S) territory: a summary diagram of the chapter content
Imagine that you work as an HR officer for a company that is unhappy with the
effectiveness of its current recruitment and selection practice. You have been
asked to write a paper presenting a rationale for the development and subse-
quent implementation of strategic recruitment and selection.
Before you read on, take five minutes to think through the main arguments that
you would use to structure such a paper. Write them down in note form. If you
have already read Chapters 1, 2 and 7 you should find these helpful in developing
your ideas.
SHRM_C08.QXD 14/2/07 15:53 Page 279
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 279
Advance warning!
At the end of this section the following Self-Check and Reflect Question is posed:
What potential features emerge from your reading of the section ‘What is the
rationale for strategic recruitment and selection?’ that you would expect to be
incorporated into the development of a conceptual framework of strategic recruit-
ment and selection?
You might therefore find it helpful to bear this question in mind as you read and
try to identify emergent themes as you go along.
2001: 24). This traditional approach has its roots in a psychometric model where organ-
isational effort is directed at matching the different attributes of individuals to the
different demands of specific jobs in order to establish a person–job fit (Newell, 2005).
The psychometric tradition of recruitment and selection translates the process into a
systematic sequence of activities as outlined in Key Concepts 8.2.
The limitations of this approach are that the stages of recruitment and selection and
any subsequent evaluation of its effectiveness are prescribed by the demands of specific
jobs rather than the strategic imperatives of the organisation. To shift recruitment and
selection practice towards a strategic focus arguably requires the features of the psycho-
metric tradition to be adapted to meet broader organisational concerns. How this might
be achieved, both conceptually and in practice, are discussed in the next three sections.
The interrelated nature of the arguments presented immediately above has been illus-
trated in Figure 8.2.
Drawing on the above analysis it is possible to summarise the rationale for strategic
recruitment and selection by reference to a series of propositions contained within the
strategic management and human resource literature (Key Concepts 8.3).
1. Jobs are analysed and defined in terms of their tasks and responsibilities (job description).
2. Human attributes associated with effective job performance are identified and assembled into a
profile of the ideal candidate (person specification).
3. Jobs are marketed to attract applicants who fit the person specification (recruitment).
4. Applicants are assessed and profiled against the person specification using a variety of measures
(selection).
5. Candidates are selected on the basis of the match between their personal profile and the person
specification (offer/rejection decision).
6. Job performance of appointed candidates is measured to establish effectiveness of the recruit-
ment and selection process (evaluation).
Source: adapted from Newell (2005: 142).
Organisation behaviour should be increasingly directed towards the strategic pursuit of competi-
tive advantage (Porter, 1985).
The strategic pursuit of competitive advantage involves matching resources to the long-term direc-
tion of the organisation (Johnson and Scholes, 2002).
Human resource competence represents an important element of resource capability (Thornhill
et al., 2000) and is regarded by many as an organisation’s most important asset (e.g. Bratton and
Gold, 2003).
SHRM_C08.QXD 14/2/07 15:53 Page 281
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 281
Human resource management incorporates, as its principal feature, the alignment of HR practice
with corporate strategy (e.g. Bratton and Gold, 2003).
Recruitment and selection lies at the centre of human resourcing within organisations (Newell, 2005).
Traditional approaches to recruitment and selection are ill-equipped to contribute to the strategic
pursuit of competitive advantage (Thornhill et al., 2000).
Strategically directed recruitment and selection has the potential to make a significant contribution to
organisational performance and the pursuit of competitive advantage (Williams and Dobson, 1997).
STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT
HR capability as
core competence
People as an organisationí s
EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT
CHANGE
STRATEGIC HUMAN
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Strategically integrated
recruitment and selection
LIMITATIONS OF TRADITIONAL
RECRUITMENT AND PRACTICE
Figure 8.2 Why bother with strategic recruitment and selection? An interrelated rationale
SHRM_C08.QXD 14/2/07 15:53 Page 282
What potential features emerge from your reading of the section ‘What is the
rationale for strategic recruitment and selection?’ that you would expect to be
incorporated into the development of a conceptual framework of strategic recruit-
ment and selection?
This section commences with a brief discussion of the seemingly straightforward rela-
tionship between strategy and recruitment and selection in order to generate an initial
understanding of the concept of strategic recruitment and selection. The shortcomings
of this opening position will then be exposed through reference back to Chapters 1 and
7 where a more detailed examination of the notion of strategic integration (or fit)
revealed its true complexity. This will lead into a more in-depth exploration of how to
develop strategic recruitment and selection practice from which a conceptual frame-
work and model of the process is developed. What will become apparent is that the
movement of recruitment and selection from its psychometric traditions to a strategic
approach does not involve the proverbial ‘throwing out the baby with the bath water’. It
will be seen that while some fundamental differences exist, in other respects strategic
recruitment and selection builds on many of the features of the psychometric approach.
Their definition not only emphasises strategic integration but also points to other cri-
teria that might need to be incorporated into a more demanding interpretation of the
concept of strategic recruitment and selection. However, before examining such criteria
in more depth the fact that this opening position throws little light on the nature of
strategic integration, thereby masking its inherent complexity, is addressed. To do this,
the multi-dimensional nature of strategic integration is reviewed briefly. This is neces-
sary in order to understand the different types of strategic fit that need to be
incorporated into strategically driven recruitment and selection.
SHRM_C08.QXD 14/2/07 15:53 Page 283
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 283
PRIMARY FEATURES
HR IMPLICATIONS Strategic integration
Human resource planning
2ND-ORDER: 3RD-ORDER: Long-term perspective
ORGANISATION FUNCTIONAL
STRUCTURES AND DECISIONS
PROCESSES
DECISIONS
ROLES PEOPLE
tion of the recruitment and selection process. The concern to meet current and future
strategic requirements as well as facilitating organisational adaptation to cope with
future uncertainties represents the starting point for a model of strategic recruitment
and selection.
Millmore and Baker (1996) not only reinforce the links between recruitment and
selection and corporate strategy but also begin to suggest how organisational strategies
can be translated into recruitment and selection practice. For them strategic recruitment
and selection occurs when practice is aligned with and integrated into the strategic plan-
ning process of organisations and involves the translation of mission statements and/or
strategic plans into those employee attributes which are seen to be critical to their suc-
cessful attainment. This provides a long-term focus where the intention is to develop
recruitment and selection practice to source an organisation with those attributes
deemed critical to its future success.
The emerging themes of strategic integration, identification of employee attributes
necessary to service strategic goals and the adoption of a long-term focus are embedded
in Miller’s (1984) discussion of strategic staffing. He argues that it is essential to inte-
grate recruitment and selection practice with business planning in order to staff the
organisation with people who can best deliver its corporate strategy over the long run.
This involves forecasting the human resource requirements necessary to ensure the suc-
cessful implementation of an organisation’s strategic plans and developing a range of
staffing programmes and activities to find such people.
SHRM_C08.QXD 20/2/07 09:15 Page 285
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 285
When compared to the ‘traditional, systematic approach’ (Wright and Storey, 1997:
211) the strategic variant has: a different starting point; is geared to longer-term consider-
ations; and requires a bridging mechanism between strategy and recruitment and
selection practice. Here, consistent with the concept of internal integration (Mabey and
Iles, 1993), recruitment and selection is one of a number of integrated HR activities
designed to deliver an organisation’s strategic objectives rather than an isolated activity
conducted in a vacuum (Millmore and Baker, 1996). For strategic recruitment and selec-
tion the starting point is not a job vacancy but the strategic objectives of the organisation
which must be translated into the personal attributes required to achieve this strategy.
This shifts the focus of recruitment and selection away from fitting the person to the job
to fitting the person to the organisation or fitting the job to the person once recruited
(see, for example, Bowen et al., 1991; Beaumont and Hunter, 1992; Lawler, 1994). Here
the HR requirements of an organisation are sometimes expressed as a common set of
core values and/or competencies which are used to drive recruitment and selection and
other related human resource practices (e.g. Cockerill, 1989; Sparrow, 1994). This is not
dissimilar to the approach adopted by TGI Fridays as described in ‘In Practice’ 8.1.
In Practice 8.1
TGI Fridays is based on the American bar and diner concept, portrayed humorously in the US sitcom
Cheers. It occupies a lead position in the themed dining market and actively pursues premium brand
status. Within its niche market it aims for higher than average repeat business and customer spend.
Central to this is the service performance of staff who are expected to achieve successful encounters
with customers through offering a personal service within the context of a highly standardised busi-
ness operation. This creates a tension between standardisation and customisation that has to be
addressed through all business areas, including SHRM strategies.
Operating within tightly specified performance standards, employees are expected to take respon-
sibility for customer satisfaction through:
meeting unusual service requests;
resolving customer complaints; and
delighting customers.
This requires the interpersonal competence to adjust to varying clientele needs ranging from enter-
tainment through showmanship to respecting customer space and managing conflict.
When researching employee empowerment at TGI Fridays, Lashley (2000) witnessed first-hand
spontaneous examples of its service ethic performed by employees without management direction.
On one occasion, during dinner, a succession of ‘Dub-Dubs’ (TGI Fridays speak for waiting staff)
came and tied balloons to the chair of a highly amused young woman celebrating her birthday. On
another, at a hen party, eight front of house and kitchen staff gathered around to sing ‘I’m getting
married in the morning’.
Recruiting and selecting against these role demands is arguably complicated in the UK by the lack
of service ethic where, according to one TGI Fridays executive, too often service means servile. Not
surprisingly, the organisation invests heavily in recruitment and selection procedures. These can
include multiple interviews, psychometric testing and something tantamount to auditioning where
candidates have to perform or act out role-play situations. The emphasis is primarily on recruiting
staff with the right personality and is supported by front-loaded investment in training to develop
operational skills.
Source: Lashley (2000).
SHRM_C08.QXD 14/2/07 15:53 Page 286
To achieve the degree of integration between SHRM practice and strategy discussed
above requires a bridging mechanism. As discussed in Chapter 7, the translation of cor-
porate plans into human resource requirements and planned actions to deliver those
requirements is the province of formalised human resource planning (HRP) (Rothwell,
1995; Iles, 2001). For Miller (1984) HRP is central to the HR function’s development
and implementation of recruitment and selection strategy.
It is not the intention to repeat the HRP content of Chapter 7 here but simply to
remind you of its bridging potential. In a discussion that centred on HRP as the vital
link between HR practice and organisational strategy, a two-way relationship was estab-
lished. It was explained how HRP has both the potential to act as a downstream support
mechanism geared to ensure that the necessary HR capabilities are in place to help
realise organisational strategy and a shaping role where it operates as part of the strategy
formulation process.
Based on the foregoing discussion of strategic recruitment and selection, it is possible
to delineate three primary features of the concept:
strategic integration;
a long-term perspective; and
the use of HRP as the bridging mechanism between organisation strategies and
recruitment and selection practice.
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 287
tion recruitment and selection makes to the attainment of strategic objectives (Lawler,
1994). Third, heavy investment in the process, the consequential emphasis on getting ‘it’
right and the demands of a more complex and diverse person specification will necessi-
tate the use of a greater array of selection methods to assess potential recruits (Evenden,
1993; Bratton and Gold, 2003) in order to deliver acceptable levels of reliability and
validity. Fourth, the complex and critical nature of strategic recruitment and selection
makes untenable the limited stakeholder involvement associated with the traditional
variant and arguably demands a multi-stakeholder approach. Consistent with the social
exchange view of recruitment and selection, the strategic model places much more
emphasis on securing the active participation of relevant stakeholders within a more
open decision-making framework. There is a concern throughout to provide a realistic
preview of the job, role and organisation context to enable candidates to match their
aptitudes and interests, etc. against any vacancy and thereby enable self-selection
(Lawler, 1994). In addition the selection process itself will also be constructed with due
regard to the impact it, and the decisions emanating from it, can have on the future lives
of candidates and other organisation members. This leads naturally to the involvement
of those who have a direct investment in any appointment, for example subordinates,
peers and service providers as exemplified in ‘In Practice’ 8.2.
This analysis clearly positions these features as a natural corollary of strategically
integrated recruitment and selection. As such they may be regarded as a set of secondary
features that are needed to support the three primary features in order to achieve strate-
gic recruitment and selection. However, it has to be accepted that they could just as
easily be present as elements of good, professional practice within the psychometric tra-
dition of recruitment and selection. Therefore on their own these features are not
sufficient to evidence strategic recruitment and selection because they might be operat-
ing in a strategic vacuum. It is only when they are allied to the three, necessary, primary
features that their strategic significance becomes apparent. Despite their centrality to
strategic recruitment and selection, on their own the three primary features do not actu-
ally staff the organisation with effective recruits. To do this requires, in addition, the
operation of the secondary features.
In Practice 8.2
Pret a Manger is in the business of making and serving coffee and sandwiches through its shops, and
involves hard, physical teamwork. Staff are recruited to shops against a set of core competences,
such as enthusiasm, which are assessed via a two-stage selection process. First, there is a compe-
tence-based interview from which only a minority of candidates progress to the second stage:
working one day in a shop where there is a vacancy. During the day candidates are exposed to as
many different tasks and team members as possible, and are also interviewed by the shop manager.
At the end of the day the candidate is assessed by team members against the core competences,
who then vote on whether to appoint or not. The shop manger actively participates in the assessment
discussion but cannot vote.
Source: Carrington (2002a).
SHRM_C08.QXD 14/2/07 15:53 Page 288
It is now possible to assemble these primary and secondary features into a conceptual
framework (Key Concepts 8.4) of strategic recruitment and selection. Taken together,
the conceptual framework and model of strategic recruitment and selection depicted in
Figure 8.3 provide a detailed specification against which the strategic pedigree of an
organisation’s recruitment and selection practice can be assessed.
Primary features
To be classified as strategic, recruitment and selection must exhibit three interdependent primary fea-
tures: strategic integration; a long-term focus; and a mechanism for translating strategic demands
into an appropriate recruitment and selection specification.
Strategic integration occurs when recruitment and selection practice is aligned with an organisa-
tion’s hierarchy of strategies and results in sourcing the organisation with employees who possess
the necessary attributes to achieve those strategies.
This represents a long-term perspective and anticipates recruitment and selection contributing to:
the achievement of current strategies; planned changes in strategic direction; and emergent strate-
gies and, in part, involves equipping organisations with a human resource capability that can cope
successfully with future uncertainties.
This requires a capacity to identify the HR attributes necessary to deliver the organisation’s strate-
gic plans over the long term and to develop staffing practices and activities to obtain such people.
The translation of strategic plans into HR requirements and plans to deliver those requirements is
the province of formalised HRP.
Secondary features
When recruitment and selection is strategically driven there are two consequential outcomes: it acquires
greater organisational importance; and it becomes more sophisticated and complex. These outcomes
lead to four interrelated secondary features that support the three, necessary, primary features:
Substantial, front-loaded investment in the process.
Rigorous evaluation of its effectiveness including its strategic contribution.
The adoption of a greater array of more sophisticated selection methods.
A multi-stakeholder approach.
Source: Millmore (2003).
SHRM_C08.QXD 20/2/07 09:15 Page 289
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 289
tion on the current demands of specific tasks to a future-oriented process that also takes
into account the wider demands of units or teams as well as the whole organisation itself
(Bowen et al., 1991). This changing requirement is encapsulated in the strategic job
analysis technique developed by Schneider and Konz (1989). This sets out to specify the
knowledge, skills and abilities that will be relevant to anticipated future job roles and
tasks to ensure their effective performance as well as providing a procedure that can be
applied to job roles and tasks that have not yet been anticipated. There is a similar
change in emphasis in the generation of a personnel specification. The focus is no longer
on identifying attributes associated with effective performance among current job
incumbents but on those that are seen to be relevant to changing strategies and future
uncertainties. The person specification could therefore reflect changing patterns of
work, the consequences of organisational restructuring, different strategic priorities as
well as be responsive to specific change programmes (e.g. culture change) and future
uncertainties. It is critical that the specification provides sufficient detail for recruitment
and selection processes to be targeted specifically at locating, attracting and assessing the
desired attributes whatever they are.
The strategic variant does not therefore reject traditional recruitment and selection
methods, but develops and deploys them in ways consistent with overriding strategic
concerns. For recruitment more thought will be given to likely sources of potential
recruits and how to reach them. For selection, the common reliance on shortlisting,
interviews and references is likely to be put aside in favour of more reliable and valid
selection methods. This may involve the use of purpose-built selection methods, such
as work sampling exercises, as well as the use of a greater array of off-the-shelf assess-
ment tools, such as psychometric tests. There will be concern to increase the reliability
and validity of interviews and a more realistic appreciation of what they can and
cannot measure as well as frequent adaptations to application forms and reference
requests to reflect the explicit demands of different roles or jobs, for example based
around core competences.
Overall there is an implicit assumption that it will be insufficient to simply update
existing job descriptions, interpret the personnel specification narrowly in terms of
immediate job requirements, use the same array of recruitment media, produce stan-
dardised application forms and select by interview in a relatively arbitrary and cavalier
way. The focus switches from role to organisational requirements and in essence strate-
gic recruitment and selection is interpreted as a tailor-made activity designed to relate
specifically to many emerging demands. This construction makes redundant any pre-
tence to a prescriptive model. Each recruitment and selection activity is therefore viewed
through a contingency framework that recognises that it will need to be adapted to each
changing scenario.
Based on the above discussion it is possible to distil a number of core practices that
underpin the primary and secondary features of strategic recruitment and selection.
These are captured in Figure 8.4.
These explanatory devices enable a more detailed exploration as to how the six types
of strategic fit identified earlier might be realised through strategic recruitment and selec-
tion practice. However, before doing this a case example of recruitment and selection
practice is presented in ‘In Practice’ 8.3 and you are invited to analyse this against the
conceptual framework and model of strategic recruitment and selection outlined above.
SHRM_C08.QXD 14/2/07 15:53 Page 290
• Two-way strategic
integration
• Internally integrated with
other HR strategies
Strategic
recruitment
• Continuous improvement • Human resource planning
and selection
model as a vehicle for strategic
process
• Evaluation of process integration
and outcomes • Focus on organisation fit as
• Evaluation includes well as job fit
contribution to achievement • Incorporation of core
of strategic objectives values/competences
In Practice 8.3
The Dionysos is a luxury hotel located on the Turkish coast overlooking Kumlubuk on the Bozburun
peninsular. It accommodates 85 guests and employs over 50 full-time equivalent staff. In Greek
mythology Dionysos was the son of Zeus, and god of vegetation, fertility, wine and ecstasy.
The business goal of the owners, Rim and Ahmet Senol, is ‘to create a special and unique environ-
ment, completely removed from the orthodox tourist experience – where service comes first and guests
can relax in a truly stunning setting’ (Exclusive Escapes, 2005: 55). The achievement of this business
goal is based on two overriding principles. First, that the business represents a family where all staff and
guests are members during their stay. Ahmet likens this to the traditional, matriarchal, Mediterranean,
SHRM_C08.QXD 14/2/07 15:53 Page 291
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 291
family business and this sets the pattern for how the hotel is managed. Second is a concern to deliver a
quality of service that exceeds guests’ expectations. Business performance is evaluated against three
interrelated performance indicators: customer satisfaction; complaints; and repeat business. Another
measure of success is where annual staff bonuses exceed their expectations.
Recruitment is largely through word of mouth and personal recommendation. Selection is based
on two principal methods: a ‘conversation’; and a probationary period. The ‘conversation’ has two
main purposes. First, to assess candidates’ ability to deliver the quality of service demanded as
measured by the rather unconventional criterion of their ability to ‘smile from the heart’. Second, is to
establish what candidates are good at and what they want from their life. A major concern of Ahmet’s
is how working at the hotel can be used to support the aspirations of staff. The other key selection
criterion is family fit, where staff exhibit the family values such as trust and mutual respect. Although
assessed during the ‘conversation’, family fit is largely determined via the second selection method:
the probation period.
Candidates progressing from the ‘conversation’ stage are provided with one month’s paid employ-
ment. Candidates are allocated to job groups on the basis of their interests and assessment of their
aptitudes. At month end, group members report on the suitability of candidates against the criteria of
service performance and family fit. Successful candidates are offered employment and, once
appointed, are encouraged to have further ‘conversations’ with Ahmet to track their interests and
aspirations. Changes in role responsibilities and group membership are determined largely by these
conversations.
Workgroups also play a key role in managing ‘family relationships’. As well as providing inputs into
the staff development process they are also largely responsible for dealing with performance prob-
lems, including discipline. Staff training and development is ongoing and based on issues arising out
of day-to-day job performance. In addition financial support is provided to help staff realise their aspi-
rations. This most frequently involves support for education to enhance the career opportunities of
staff. Rim and Ahmet expect members of the Dionysos family to move on and believe that they
should help provide additional life skills to enable this to happen. They also provide support to staff
who encounter problems in their domestic lives.
Most recruitment takes place ahead of the new season so that there is time to weed out unsuc-
cessful candidates. At the end of each season customer feedback is shared throughout the family
and used to set group and corporate goals for the next season, in a kind of rolling performance-
management cycle.
Based on participant observation over a two-week period, the level of customer satisfaction with
service quality was exceptionally high. The only evident criticism was that because it was so good it
might make guests reluctant to venture outside the hotel! The vast majority of guests vowed to return
at the earliest opportunity with many making bookings for the following year while they were there.
This section discusses how recruitment and selection practice can be aligned to support
different strategic scenarios. These strategic scenarios represent the six strands of strate-
gic integration identified in Chapter 1 (as summarised in Key Concepts 1.4 and depicted
in Figure 1.3) and developed through the discussion of the multi-dimensional nature of
strategic integration. These six strands were further elaborated in Chapter 7 by applying
them to HRP where, looking ahead, it was indicated that they would be used in the
recruitment and selection chapter of this book as a vehicle for showing how SHRM
practice could be related to these six different strategic scenarios.
How these six strands of strategic integration could be related to strategic recruit-
ment and selection was identified earlier in this chapter. Converting these into
questions, it is now possible to go on to explore in turn how recruitment and selection
can support these different kinds of strategic relationships. In this section, the four dif-
ferent types of vertical (or external) integration identified are illustrated as well as
exploring how recruitment and selection can be integrated horizontally (or internally)
with other HR levers. In the following section the last strand of strategic fit is addressed
through an examination of how recruitment and selection can contribute to strategic
change and the vagaries of an uncertain future.
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 293
In Practice 8.4
Like many high street retailers, Signet, owners of the H. Samuel and Ernest Jones chains of jewellers,
is recruiting constantly. The organisation employs 6,000 staff but annually recruits 3,000 staff to cover
labour turnover and 2,000 to provide Christmas cover.
Concerns about sales led to the development of a business goal to grow sales without increasing
retail space. This placed a heavy emphasis on the recruitment of staff who would perform well in a
sales environment. This led to proposals to overhaul Signet’s whole HR strategy rather than to simply
invest heavily in training. The rationale, successfully sold to the board, was that HR strategies were
needed to avoid wasting resources on recruits who were likely to leave within a few months.
A business psychologist was employed to determine the key motivational factors associated with
high-performing sales staff and all candidates for such roles now have to complete a motivational ques-
tionnaire prior to interview. Feedback from Signet’s performance management system has already
provided evidence that staff selected through this approach are delivering higher levels of performance.
Source: Carrington (2004).
SHRM_C08.QXD 20/2/07 09:17 Page 294
In Practice 8.5
Strategic recruitment and selection at the Pontifical Catholic University of
Chile
In ‘In Practice’ 7.5 the work of Franco and Diaz (1995) was used to provide an example of the rational
approach to HRP where the library system of the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile (SIBUC) set
out to integrate its human resource objectives and strategies with corporate strategy. As part of the
HRP process, six HR objectives were formulated to enable this strategic integration, one of which
reflects downstream strategic recruitment and selection in action. This objective was to develop a
staff selection system that would source the organisation with achievement-oriented people with
innovative capabilities.
The ‘strategy’ for achieving this objective centred on employing a specialist consultant to work in
partnership with SIBUC staff. The action plan formulated by this partnership to create the strategically
integrated recruitment and selection system involved:
identifying and formalising the core values and competences of the organisation emerging from its
corporate strategy;
determine job profiles based on these core values and competences;
employ an expert psychologist in personnel selection to work with the partnership to evaluate the
validity of the job profiles, and prepare a preliminary recruitment and selection policy to meet
organisational requirements;
communicate the policy to line managers and obtain their feedback;
finalise the policy and develop related recruitment and selection procedures; and
implement the action plan.
The effectiveness of the recruitment and selection process was to be monitored and controlled by
three measures: specifying policies and procedures in a written document; the use of performance
evaluation to assess the extent to which the policy was being achieved; and following up staff
recruited through the new system to assess their degree of job satisfaction.
Source: developed from Franco and Diaz (1995).
Taken at face value it seems highly plausible that different employee role behaviours
will underpin different competitive strategies. However, such frameworks may be overly
prescriptive and should therefore be used cautiously. While such frameworks provide
useful guidance, organisations will still need to identify and validate those role behav-
iours that support their own particular context in order to fully exploit the potential
contribution that recruitment and selection can make to first-order strategic decisions.
The identification and validation of employee role behaviours is then a core dimen-
sion of strategic recruitment and selection. However, as discussed earlier, ‘the big
decisions taken in the corporate office’ (Purcell, 1995: 63) extend beyond competitive
strategies to include, for example, the demands of joint ventures, mergers, inward invest-
ment, and change to a service culture, etc. The same logic can be applied to shaping
recruitment and selection to meet these first-order strategic demands. It is about identi-
fying the key employee behaviours, values, etc. that are necessary to support these big
decisions and then using recruitment and selection to actively acquire them whenever
the opportunity presents itself.
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Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 295
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 297
In Practice 8.6
Rejection of HR’s upstream strategic proposals contributes to
business collapse
A large manufacturing company developed an aggressive growth strategy to defend its dominant
market position. This involved both planned expansion of its product markets and increasing the
company’s share of those markets, thereby providing growth of sales on two counts. This required
significant financial investment to fund increased production capacity through the installation of addi-
tional traditional production lines based on scientific management principles and to enhance the
production support infrastructure. In order to service this strategy in a downstream relationship, the
HR department was tasked to recruit employees to staff the new production lines and related growth
in service departments in order to meet the increased production targets.
The HR department was aware that prevailing labour market conditions (virtually full employment
leading to both general labour and specific skill shortages) precluded any large-scale recruitment. They
argued that this would make the production and marketing plans untenable, thereby threatening the via-
bility of the corporate strategy itself. As an alternative the HR department proposed a strategy based
around the capital intensification of production work and associated business re-engineering as the
mainstay of the organisation’s growth and defender strategy. The rationale was that this would allow the
increased sales and production demands to be met through greater utilisation of existing staff using
extensive automation coupled with computerisation to generate the additional production capacity.
The department was basically instructed to stop messing up and get on with the recruitment cam-
paign. Despite exhaustive recruitment efforts the increased demand for labour could not be met. This
led in time to a staffing crisis where production lines could not be staffed. Consequently output fell
well short of the increased demand generated by the successfully implemented marketing strategies
and potential customers went elsewhere. The staffing crisis fuelled the collapse of the business strat-
egy and, coupled with the inflow of cheaper foreign imports, contributed significantly to the eventual
demise of the organisation.
As such, using Evenden’s (1993: 223) analysis, the push for a diversity strategy could be
construed as representing both a ‘business’ and ‘social responsibility’ case for upstream
strategic integration. However, the likelihood is that its adoption is more likely to be
driven by business arguments as the following examples of managing diversity sum-
marised in ‘In Practice’ 8.7 illustrate.
SHRM_C08.QXD 14/2/07 15:53 Page 298
In Practice 8.7
The search for diversity through the strategic integration of
recruitment and selection
A range of companies, for example Burger King and Sainsbury’s, have developed recruitment and
selection strategies to increase the number of employees from certain ethnic groups in order to
exploit these groups’ significant and growing importance as consumers (Evenden, 1993).
L’Oréal in France found that recruiting a diverse workforce enhanced the creative capacity of the
workforce on which it depended (Sadler and Milmer, 1993).
Iles and Hayers (1997) point to how a number of organisations are selecting diverse, multi-national
project teams to increase their flexibility and responsiveness in globally competitive markets.
Ford has targeted the distribution of more that 250,000 recruitment leaflets at London boroughs
with large ethnic minority populations in an effort to attract more young Asian and black people to
become apprentices. This appears to be part of a growing appreciation of the business case for
diversity where large companies ‘want to get the best talent from the widest possible pool, to under-
stand fresh markets by having them represented in their workforce, and to drive innovation through
diverse teams’ (Maitland, 2004: 1).
The frequently cited positive policies on age diversity operated by B&Q are held to make good busi-
ness sense. B&Q found ‘that having older workers on its staff has enhanced sales and customer
loyalty’. Similar arguments are held to apply to the financial services sector where increasing the aver-
age age of sales teams provides a better fit with the age profile of the customer base (Murray, 2004a: 6).
Barclays Bank found that many customers preferred to do business with older, more experienced
staff, the very sort of employee who had been lost to the bank in successive rounds of redundancies
in the 1990s. To address this and the future demographics of the labour pool they have been review-
ing all policies and practices to ensure that they are as inclusive as possible. This has led to changes
in advertising copy, recruitment media and the design of application forms (Murray, 2004b: 6).
It can also be argued that the recruitment of a diverse workforce adds generally to an
organisation’s ability to meet the challenges presented by an uncertain future through
the creation of a more flexible and adaptable workforce (Sparrow, 1994). Recruitment
and selection processes have a key role to play in securing a diverse workforce and may
require innovative practices to identify and attract suitable candidates from target
groups (Paddison, 1990). This use of recruitment and selection to help confront the
challenge of change is explored in greater depth in the next section. This section con-
cludes by examining recruitment and selection against the fifth strand of strategic fit:
horizontal integration.
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 299
There was also a heavy emphasis throughout on providing candidates with a realis-
tic job preview, making selection genuinely a two-way process, and involving team
members in the final selection decisions. Both the Bowen et al. (1991) and McCombs
et al. (1994) studies also reported on methods used to evaluate the recruitment and
selection process which were found to have promoted the formation of teams charac-
terised by high productivity, high job satisfaction scores and low levels of absenteeism
and labour turnover.
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 301
unpredictable change. In Practice 8.8 illustrates how recruitment and selection help
planned change at Axa, the insurance conglomerate.
Status quo Provision of human Select for short-term proficiency Operational criteria: attributes
resources for and accept the possibility of high required for successful current job
existing jobs levels of turnover if employees performance, such as the abilities,
cannot cope with change knowledge, interpersonal skills
and the beliefs and values required
to meet current job demands
Planned/ Provision of Select for longer-term adaptability Visionary criteria: attributes that
predictable human resources to change, but accept that there are hypothesised as necessary for
change for envisaged will be limited knowledge of future successful future job performance
future jobs changes and therefore some
difficulties in assessing adaptability
Sources: adapted from Snow and Snell (1993), Sparrow (1994: 15); Williams and Dobson (1997: 235).
In Practice 8.8
With increasing globalisation of its business and a desire to create a unifying employer brand, Axa
found it necessary to undertake culture change. It sought to establish a new culture that could cross
the diversity of culture, language and social barriers reflected in its international workforce. This led
over time to the creation of a global set of five core values: innovation; integrity; pragmatism; profes-
sionalism; and team spirit.
To make these values accessible to HR practice they were deconstructed into the behavioural
traits necessary to secure their delivery. These behaviours form the basis of recruitment and selection
practice and are used to underpin induction, staff development and performance management sys-
tems. Over time, staff who could not operate within the changed value system have been replaced
through recruitment and selection by staff who exhibit the necessary behavioural traits and share the
organisation’s core values.
Source: Higginbottom (2003).
SHRM_C08.QXD 14/2/07 15:53 Page 302
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 303
change, whereas Williams and Dobson (1997) point to the key role newly appointed
chief executives might play in the process of strategic change. However, it is important to
stress that change agents are not necessarily managers and may operate at various levels
within the organisation. Therefore, it is arguably the characteristics of transformational
leaders that are needed for organisations to manage change effectively. Bass (1990)
stresses the increasing relevance of transformational leadership to future uncertainties
in the business environment and suggests that research evidence identifies four key
characteristics of such leaders:
charisma – where the leader provides vision and is able to generate respect, trust and
pride;
inspiration – where high expectations are set and communicated;
intellectual stimulation – where rational, intelligent approaches to problem solving
are promoted; and
individualised consideration – where the needs of individual employees are identified
and supported through personalised approaches to their development needs.
Alternatively, Legge’s (1978) ‘deviant innovators’ might be viewed as high-ranking
HR change agents with the mission of challenging the criteria by which organisational
success is evaluated and promoting change towards a different set of beliefs and values.
This perhaps represents another perspective on diversity and will be particularly valu-
able as an antidote to organisations that, for whatever reason, find they have assembled a
management team that is too homogeneous (Sparrow, 1994).
The potential for creating novel solutions to the problems that change can visit on
organisations can also be enhanced by taking a team approach to recruitment and selec-
tion. Unfortunately the demanding lists of competences sought in change environments
(see, for example, Cockerill, 1989) may only be found in individuals who can walk on
water! It may, therefore be more appropriate to apply the competence template to teams
so that members collectively have the capacity to initiate and manage change and cope
with an uncertain future. This, however, implies that personnel specifications and appro-
priate recruitment and selection strategies need to be constantly recast as each team
member is appointed in order to focus on the competence gaps that remain following
each appointment. This would be important, for example, where new teams are being
formed, perhaps along the lines of autonomous work groups described earlier. The iden-
tification of competences is not therefore a one-off exercise but a dynamic process in
which refinement to and development of competency profiles is the order of the day.
Each recruitment and selection activity is therefore viewed through a contingency frame-
work that recognises that it will need to be adapted to each changing scenario.
the rhetoric of SHRM runs well ahead of its practice (e.g. Legge, 2005). This section
examines evidence of strategic recruitment and selection practice in order to address its
opening question. It starts by considering the evidence of strategic recruitment and
selection practice that emerges from four distinct fields of HR research investigating
respectively: the use of HR systems to support the pursuit of different competitive
strategies; general developments in HR practice; individual case companies (in search of
SHRM); and specific developments in recruitment and selection practice. It then goes
on to challenge the optimistic picture painted by this initial review using counter-
evidence while at the same time developing a rationale to explain the apparent exaggera-
tion of strategic recruitment and selection practice. Lastly it reports on recent survey
evidence that provides a stark picture of the current state of play.
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 305
189). They concluded that prevailing evidence supported Keep’s (1992: 332) observation
that, despite the importance attached to selection ‘in many organisations, recruitment
and selection are apparently conducted in a haphazard and informal fashion’. The survey
results of recruitment and selection practice in the hotel industry summarised in ‘In
Practice’ 8.9 appear to bear out these perspectives.
Second, it is possible that the validity of reported strategic recruitment and selection
is in itself open to question. This suggestion can be explored by closer scrutiny of the
evidence of strategic recruitment and selection practice. If, for example, Storey’s (1992)
case study analysis is reconsidered, it will be recalled that he identified recruitment and
selection as an ‘integrated key task’ representing one of 27 dimensions used to construct
his template of SHRM practice. This juxtaposition of ‘integrated’ recruitment and selec-
tion with SHRM might suggest that evidence of such practice in his case companies may
be construed as strategic recruitment and selection. However, with respect to Storey’s
(1992) terminology, this may be an assumption too far and it is worth asking the ques-
tion ‘integrated to what?’
Storey’s (1992) conclusions concerning integrated selection were based on evidence
from the major case companies that they were responding to labour shortages by:
attaching greater importance to recruitment and selection; developing innovative prac-
tices to appeal to a wider spectrum of potential applicants; using training and career
development initiatives to aid retention; making greater use of testing and assessment
centres to assess personal attributes; and attempting to improve the reliability and valid-
ity of interviewing practice through training line managers. Although these responses
may be consistent with strategic recruitment and selection, and certainly seem to pro-
vide evidence of the secondary features of strategic recruitment and selection in action
In Practice 8.9
Does size matter? Research findings on recruitment and
selection practice in the hotel industry
Hotels operate in the service sector where organisational success is largely determined by the quality
of service provided by front-line (or customer facing) staff who engage with the clientele directly.
However, within the industry there is little evidence of strategically focused recruitment and selection
designed to identify the personal characteristics associated with quality service or of sophisticated
selection practice to assess such qualities. The use of psychometric testing, structured interviews,
biographical data, etc., is generally rare and where it is evident is limited to larger hotels and hotel
chains. This suggests that the absence of a strategic connection in the recruitment and selection
practices of small hotels is particularly marked.
This conclusion arises from a survey of recruitment and selection practice in Scottish hotels, using
data from 81 questionnaire returns and nine interviews. Relative to larger hotels and hotel chains, it
was found that recruitment and selection practice in smaller hotels:
is less likely to be supported by professional personnel input;
is more likely to be conducted by the manager/owner who is less likely to have received any train-
ing for the role;
uses fewer and less valid methods of selection;
relies more on informal methods bearing little relation to ‘good practice’ models.
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 307
(see Figures 8.3 and 8.4), they do not necessarily provide evidence of vertical strategic
integration. It could be argued, for example, that these responses were not strategically
driven but represented no more than rational responses to changing labour-market con-
ditions and as such are part of the normal diet of everyday recruitment and selection
practice. As such they are clearly integrated to something but not necessarily to the
organisation’s corporate strategy.
Third, reported evidence of strategic recruitment and selection may be drawn from
case companies which are not representative of organisations generally. For example,
Kydd and Oppenheim (1990) based their work on what they termed excellent compa-
nies, Storey (1992) used 15 leading organisations while Sparrow and Pettigrew’s (1988)
work was positioned within the highly turbulent world of the computer supply industry.
This potential lack of representativeness is highlighted by Scholarios and Lockyer (1996:
189) when they concluded that what limited evidence of more sophisticated recruitment
and selection there was appeared ‘to be restricted to relatively few companies, usually the
largest’. To this list it is possible to add foreign owned, inward investment companies, as
exemplified by Nissan (Garrahan and Stewart, 1992), those experiencing transforma-
tional change (van de Vliet, 1995) and those practising SHRM (Storey, 1992).
Fourth, evidence of strategic recruitment and selection has, arguably, been advanced
on narrow foundations and against a concept that has not been fully explained. It is pos-
sible that all that is required for the existence of the strategic variant to be claimed is
evidence that recruitment and selection policies and practice are clearly consistent with
an organisation’s corporate strategy. While this is clearly necessary it may not be sufficient
and may mask the fact that any relationship between the two variables is more accidental
than deliberate. This raises the not implausible suggestion that evidence of strategic
recruitment and selection relates directly to how the concept is defined by the researcher.
In Practice 8.10
Breaking news, November 2003 – Ryan Parry, a Daily Mirror undercover reporter, worked undetected
for two months as a trainee footman in Buckingham Palace. His role gave him unprecedented access
to the Palace and compromised the Queen’s personal security. His duties included attending at the
Queen’s breakfast table which he claimed gave him ample opportunity to poison her.
Ryan Parry had applied for the job under his real name but submitted a fake CV and one of his
listed references was false. He attended a 30-minute interview and shortly afterwards was advised
that he had been accepted for the job subject to security clearance. The personnel department
handles the Palace’s vetting procedure. One of the checks they made was a telephone reference
request to a pub in North Wales where he had previously worked. The landlord had moved on but a
barmaid taking the call shouted out Mr Parry’s name to see if he was known by any of the regulars. A
regular took the call, said he recognised the name and this was accepted by the caller.
Whitehall officials emphasised the need for careful selection of staff who would be working along-
side members of the Royal Family, particularly as the country was on a heightened terrorist alert. The
Palace accepted that its vetting procedures were insufficient. A simple internet search would have
revealed Ryan Parry’s true identity and highlighted that he had previously infiltrated security at the
Wimbledon tennis tournament after posing as a security guard.
Sources: Pierce et al. (2003); Seamark (2003); Seamark and Greenhill (2003).
SHRM_C08.QXD 14/2/07 15:53 Page 308
To what extent does the process used to recruit Ryan Parry reflect a strategic
approach to recruitment and selection? It is recommended that you conduct your
analysis against the conceptual framework and model of strategic recruitment
and selection presented earlier in the chapter (Key Concepts 8.4 and Figures 8.3
and 8.4).
In Practice 8.11
Is the strategic recruitment and selection glass half full or half empty?
A summary of recent findings from survey data
Literature review:
Research reported in the literature painted a contradictory picture. It was possible to construct
both an optimistic view that strategic recruitment and selection was alive and well, and a pes-
simistic view that its practice was much exaggerated.
A difficulty in resolving this contradictory position arose because the explicit criteria against which
recruitment and selection practice was being evaluated to establish its strategic credentials were
seldom made explicit.
A conceptual framework of strategic recruitment and selection comprising three primary and four
secondary features was developed as an evaluative tool (see Key Concepts 8.4).
The study:
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 309
180 flow charts depicting recruitment and selection exercises conducted by 108 organisations
over a four-year period were generated and analysed.
Flow charts were analysed against the evaluative frameworks depicted in Key Concepts 8.4 and
Figure 8.4 to establish evidence of strategic recruitment and selection practice.
Selected findings:
Not one recruitment and selection exercise satisfied all the primary features.
Only 2 per cent of exercises demonstrated any direct connection with strategy.
If HRP was interpreted implicitly as fulfilling all three primary features, then evidence of strategi-
cally driven recruitment and selection rose to 8 per cent.
In these 8 per cent of cases, evidence of secondary features was far more prevalent than in the
remainder which reflected the traditional, systematic approach to recruitment and selection.
There was no evidence of the strategic contribution of recruitment and selection practice being
evaluated.
Conclusion:
On the basis of this evidence the strategic recruitment and selection glass is virtually empty, albeit
with a little froth in the bottom.
Source: Millmore (2003).
What might account for the mismatch between the rhetoric and
the reality of strategic recruitment and selection?
process, there is still a requirement to translate it into ‘people’ terms, and, on this basis,
where there is no evident strategy it can be held that one should be assumed, for only
then is it possible to ‘develop human resource policies and plans related to the organisa-
tion’s future’ (Evenden, 1993: 222).
There may also be insufficient integration between SHRM and strategic planning, a
factor that has been identified as a common reason for SHRM policy implementation
failures (Golden and Ramanujam, 1985). Another difficulty is that the central tenet of
strategic fit is open to challenge. It may be simply that organisations fail to undertake
strategic planning or that personnel managers cannot develop strategic approaches to
human resourcing because they cannot gain access to the strategic plan even if it exists
(Storey and Sisson, 1993). Alternatively, there may be more than one strategy operating at
the same time. This is only to be expected in multi-divisional organisations, and when
combined with decentralised decision-making it should be self-evident that the develop-
ment of coherent, long-term, integrated human resource strategies will be problematic
(Storey, 1992). Another difficulty is that strategic contradictions may be evident. For
example, following Guest’s (1987) construction of SHRM, an organisation may adopt
core–periphery strategies to deliver ‘flexibility/adaptability’ but it is questionable whether
‘quality’ can be sustained solely on the backs of core employees and within a climate of
cost-cutting and the casualisation of labour (Storey and Sisson, 1993).
Short-termism
Another practical difficulty is the short-term perspective, rooted in accountancy tradi-
tions and traditional patterns of corporate ownership, said to characterise UK
businesses. This outlook encourages managers to adopt quick-fix solutions (Storey and
Sisson, 1993). A scenario, familiar to many managers, ‘is that they may be under too
much pressure to develop a strategic response of any kind – they may simply seek to
muddle through’ (Sisson, 1994a: 12). This is reminiscent of Legge’s analysis (1978) of
personnel managers who are caught in a vicious circle, where problem prevention is pre-
cluded by a focus on problem solving and fire fighting.
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 311
between predictions from selection methods and subsequent measures of job perform-
ance are correlated (Lundy and Cowling, 1996). However, the utility of this approach
which is based essentially on current job performance, is questionable where selection is
being directed towards organisation fit and the future capabilities of employees to
manage change (Lawler, 1994). Organisations may therefore find it difficult to justify
resource-intensive staffing processes without also investing in alternative concepts of
validation (Lawler, 1994).
Issues of competence?
Another set of difficulties relate to the very competence of those responsible for recruit-
ment and selection. Whatever strategic recruitment and selection is, it is not
straightforward. HRP, strategic job analysis, sophisticated selection, evaluation, etc. are
not exactly as easy to execute as falling off the proverbial log. They arguably demand a
high degree of commitment and competence and these attributes may simply not be
within the compass of those managers and HR specialists responsible for recruitment
and selection. Here it can be questioned whether managers are psychologically fit to
carry out their HR responsibilities effectively (Beer and Eisenstat, 1996). Consider, for
example, the following questions:
Have managers been selected with the necessary attributes and values to deliver their
HR responsibilities successfully?
Have managers been trained adequately to fulfil these responsibilities?
Are overall managerial roles structured to provide sufficient prominence to and space
for the effective delivery of their HR responsibilities?
Do short-term performance demands preclude the longer-term perspective
demanded by strategic recruitment and selection?
Are managers assessed and rewarded for their ability to staff their section with either
employees who can demonstrably contribute to the achievement of the longer-term
strategic imperatives of the organisation or, who in terms of immediate job perform-
ance, can hit the ground running?
Of course it is unfair to single out managers in this way as it is equally legitimate to
question the capability of the HR specialists who support these managers in their
recruitment and selection role responsibilities. This presents an interesting catch-22
where organisations may need to practise strategic recruitment and selection in order to
staff their organisation with managers and HR specialists with the necessary compe-
tences to develop strategic recruitment and selection practice!
Am I bothered?
These potential obstacles represent formidable barriers to the successful implementation of
strategic recruitment and selection processes. However, as reported earlier, there are exam-
ples of organisations that are moving in this direction, perhaps reflecting the adage ‘to fail to
plan is to plan to fail’. There are also, inherent within the strategic model, concepts whose
careful application may serve to address and ameliorate these difficulties. Particular atten-
tion is drawn to recruitment and selection geared around managing diversity, the learning
organisation, competences associated with change management, managerial and key
change agent appointments and using team selection as the basis for assembling the many
disparate qualities likely to be demanded in the workforce of the future.
SHRM_C08.QXD 14/2/07 15:53 Page 312
Summary
The pursuit of competitive advantage, interest in SHRM and the role of recruitment
and selection in securing one of an organisation’s most valuable assets provide a pow-
erful rationale for the development of strategic recruitment and selection.
It is possible to construct a model of strategic recruitment and selection around three
primary features: strategic integration; a long-term perspective; and the use of HRP
as a bridging mechanism between strategy and HR practice. The strategic variant ele-
vates the organisational importance of recruitment and selection, and leads to the
generation of a more demanding person specification. These two outcomes generate
four consequential interrelated, secondary features that are likely to shape strategic
recruitment and selection practice: the adoption of a front-loaded investment model;
rigorous evaluation of outcomes; the use of high validity, sophisticated selection
methods; and multi-stakeholder involvement.
Far from being a simple notion, strategic fit has been revealed as a multi-dimensional
concept where it is possible to identify at least six different strands. This means that
strategic recruitment and selection has potentially to be aligned with multiple inter-
pretations of strategy if it is to satisfy its strategic credentials.
Despite uncertainties surrounding strategy implementation and the business envi-
ronment as it unfolds over time, recruitment and selection practice can be shaped to
support long-term changes in strategic direction.
On balance, and despite a powerful rationale to the contrary, organisational
approaches to recruitment and selection practice appear to be dominated by tradi-
tional and not strategic approaches.
The overall conclusion is that although the case for adopting strategic recruitment
and selection may be seductively persuasive it is arguably another case in the HR
arena where the rhetoric runs ahead of the reality.
Search the literature for material that explicitly addresses strategic recruitment and
selection. From this, develop your own definition and conceptual framework of
strategic recruitment and selection against which organisation practice could be
tested to establish its strategic credentials.
Compare and contrast your conceptual framework of strategic recruitment and selec-
tion with the constructions of strategic recruitment and selection presented in this
chapter in Key Concepts 8.4 and Figures 8.3 and 8.4. Develop the arguments that you
would present in defence of the similarities and differences identified.
Drawing on research methods literature, design a research project to test the extent to
which strategic recruitment and selection is practised in UK organisations. Critique
your research design to identify its strengths and weaknesses.
Access the international SHRM literature to establish whether discussion of strategic
recruitment and selection theory and evidence of its practice is more or less prevalent
in other countries.
SHRM_C08.QXD 14/2/07 15:53 Page 313
Chapter 8 Strategic recruitment and selection: Much ado about nothing? 313
Use the internet and SHRM/recruitment and selection literature to determine those
competences that you believe are positively associated with the effective manage-
ment of change. Develop these into a person specification and think through how
selection methods could be devised to provide valid assessments of candidates
against these competences.
How will we know it when we see it? The development of a conceptual and evaluative
framework against which organisational recruitment and selection practice can be
analysed to determine its strategic credentials.
To what extent can recruitment and selection in XYZ organisation be termed ‘strate-
gic recruitment and selection’?
How extensive is strategic recruitment and selection practice in UK organisations?
Why is the apparent gap between the rhetoric and reality of strategic recruitment and
selection so large?
Does size matter? An examination of the feasibility of practising strategic recruitment
and selection in SMEs.
Case Study
Recruitment and selection at Southco Europe Ltd
Southco is a medium-sized American-owned global The organisation’s vision is to be the ‘leading global
manufacturer of access hardware solutions, such as source of engineered access control hardware, ser-
latches and hinges, used for applications in the air- vices and solutions’ (Southco, 2004: 1). This is
craft, railway, computer and automotive industry. translated into the following mission statements,
Operating out of its headquarters in Philadelphia, by which are communicated throughout the organisation:
2003 the company had manufacturing sites and
to create continuous growth opportunities
sales offices in Connecticut and Florida and similar
through strong customer connectivity and
European operations with a head office in the UK. At
engineering excellence
this time, the company employed a global workforce
of more than 1,479 employees referred to as ‘associ- to seize these opportunities through seamless
ates’. This case is centred on the European head teamwork and by leveraging operational excel-
office of the business and details how recruitment lence and supply chain management
and selection is being used to support the organisa- to drive leadership, growth and extraordinary
tion’s strategic goal of accelerated global expansion value for customers, associates and shareholders.
while serving local markets with local production. (Southco, 2004: 1)
SHRM_C08.QXD 14/2/07 15:53 Page 314
The organisation’s vision, mission statements and and it is company policy that every position is first
related annual key objectives are captured on a advertised internally. The company regards people as
plastic card carried by every Southco associate: its key success factor and places great emphasis on
their development and training. The HR department
to drive profitable top line growth
seeks to continuously assess and develop the skills
to drive and leverage process excellence and talents of its associates in order to ensure that
to expand global reach and capabilities these match its strategic requirements.
to strengthen and leverage financial position With a strong focus on the rapid global expan-
sion of the organisation, the pressure is on the HR
to strengthen people and performance man-
function for timely and effective delivery. A critical
agement systems.
success factor for achieving this is the coherent
(Southco, 2004: 1)
alignment of the HR function with corporate strat-
Exposed to environmental factors, such as egy and objectives. This is particularly evidenced
increasing political and economic insecurity and ever through the corporate scorecard, where the HR
more aggressive competitors, Southco reflects a cli- function represents one of the key measurables
mate of constant change. An appreciation of cultural relating to performance delivery against corporate
diversity is characteristic of the organisation as sum- goals, including internal and external customer sat-
marised by one of its cultural belief statements: ‘Act isfaction. Here, in short, Southco’s HR function
Global/Think Local.’ The company’s continuing com- positions people processes as the link between cor-
mitment to this objective has recently been porate objectives and performance management.
demonstrated by its establishment of a direct sales The strategic fit between Southco’s corporate and
presence in eastern Europe and a new Automotive HR strategies is also evidenced by the fact that the
Office in Germany to better serve local customers. European Human Resource Development (HRD)
Manager is regarded as an indispensable member
of the senior management team.
Case study question 1 – to be answered
before reading on
Case study question 2 – to be answered
1. Based on the information provided with respect before reading on
to organisation context, strategy, vision, mission
statements and annual key objectives, what core 2. What do you think would be an appropriate
competences do you feel will underpin Southco’s recruitment and selection procedure for Southco
recruitment and selection processes? to follow? Map out your answer providing as
much detail as possible on the recruitment and
Southco values its associates highly and its selection methods you would use.
approach to human resource management could
best be described as soft. This is reflected in its The organisation’s recruitment policy could be
annual key objectives and evidenced by: generous summarised as ‘right person, right job’, a philoso-
health and benefits schemes; considerable invest- phy backed up by the argument that hiring the
ment in employee training and development; and ‘wrong’ person will cause the company to incur
initiatives that seek to improve employee relations substantial indirect (e.g. the impact on business effi-
such as interdepartmental or cultural training, where ciency of poor performers) and direct (e.g. training)
the associates are prepared for the challenges of a costs. On the one hand, the match between the
multi-cultural environment. person and the skills and competence requirements
Despite being exposed to a rapidly and continu- of the job specification should be as accurate as
ously changing business environment, the possible. However, on the other hand, Southco also
organisation regards itself as being extremely stresses the importance of the candidate’s fit with
people-focused and is particularly committed to its organisational culture. Information material received
internal labour market and proud of its many long- by potential applicants clearly states the organisa-
serving employees. When sourcing for the right pool tion’s vision, mission statements and corporate
of talent, Southco recruits from both the internal goals, which are also included on Southco’s web
and external labour markets. site. Therefore, prior to any application, interested
However, it will first strive to fill vacancies via the parties are given the opportunity to assess for
internal labour market rather than recruiting externally themselves whether they can identify with ‘what
SHRM_C08.QXD 14/2/07 15:53 Page 315
Southco is about’, and decide whether or not to manager which, taken together, are designed to
apply for a position. In addition, any candidate must establish both behavioural fit and technical compe-
also be able to adapt to the fast-paced business tence. Following these standard arrangements, the
environment that characterises Southco. procedure then varies according to the position.
In an organisation such as Southco, with a grow- However, the focus remains on skill and competence
ing demand for globally mobile talent, and an ever testing supplemented by further introductions to the
increasing awareness of both internal and external organisational context. An applicant for, say, a po-
customer service, the HR function views its core sition in European Customer Services, will undergo
responsibility as ‘identifying the right pool of talent various written and oral foreign language tests, and
for establishing the right candidate’. Applicants are an applicant for a secretarial position will be tested
shortlisted by the HR Advisor based on a compe- on their IT skills. Having concluded the technical
tence-based approach. This means that there must skills and competence testing procedures, all candi-
be a very close match between the skills and com- dates meet with the person who currently holds the
petences detailed in the job and person position of interest to them, in order to gain an
specification and what is described in the written insight into the daily working environment and to
application. Therefore the match between the tech- learn first-hand about the nature of the job. Candi-
nical skills and work experience of the applicant and dates for managerial positions may be required to
specific requirements of the job and person specifi- return to deliver presentations to their potential
cation are important considerations. However, there teams and, in some cases, particularly for senior
is also a number of organisationally driven require- managers, are sent to the corporate office in the US
ments that inform shortlisting decisions. These for further interviews and presentations.
particularly focus on organisation fit, where an Finally, the recruitment and selection team meet
applicant should come across as a ‘well-suited for discussion and ideally come to joint decisions on
family member’, but also correspond to the interna- candidates based on their findings with respect to
tional nature of the business, assessed in terms of skill and competence and cultural fit assessments.
speaking at least another European language
and/or demonstrating a ‘global outlook’, revealed Case study questions 3 and 4
ideally through work experience abroad or at least
an expressed interest in travelling. 3. To what extent could Southco’s approach to
Not surprisingly, the selection processes are recruitment and selection be classified as strate-
lengthy and complex. Dependent on the position, gic? Justify your answer with evidence drawn
the selection procedure may last anywhere between from case material.
2 and 7 days. During the selection process candi- 4. What changes would you make to Southco’s
dates attend a series of interviews, skill and recruitment and selection processes in order to
competence assessments, and are psychometri- more fully meet the model, core dimensions and
cally tested to identify whether or not they would be conceptual framework of strategic recruitment
suitable for the Southco environment. Consistent and selection captured respectively in Figures 8.3
with the mission statement, particular emphasis is and 8.4 and Key Concepts 8.4.
also placed on establishing whether a person inter-
acts well within a team. The key recruitment and
selection decision-makers include the HRD man- Acknowledgement
ager, the line manager and in some cases, for top
management, the next-level manager. The support of Scott Duncan and Russ Pender, the
On the first day, candidates are welcomed by the outgoing and incoming Managing Director of
HRD manager and attend an informal introductory Southco Europe Ltd., in granting permission to use
interview, followed by a two-hour psychometric test- this case and the lead role played by Inge Studnik,
ing procedure. On the second day, candidates formerly Executive Assistant of Southco Europe
attend a behaviourally based interview with the HRD Ltd., in its preparation are gratefully acknowledged.
manager, followed by an interview with the direct line
SHRM_C09.QXD 14/2/07 15:54 Page 316
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
Introduction
What is performance management?
Rather like many other titles, the term ‘performance management’ originated in the USA.
But in reality there is nothing new about performance management. It is an umbrella term to
describe not a single activity but a range of activities that may be gathered together to
enhance organisational performance. So, before defining what performance management
is, it may be useful to clarify what it is not. First, it is not performance appraisal. It is easy to
go through the annual ritual of performance appraisal, from which little action follows, and
call this performance management. Performance appraisal is an important component of
performance management, but the action that emanates from performance appraisal is cru-
cial if organisational performance is to be enhanced. Second, performance management is
not just defining performance indicators and setting these as targets to be achieved, either
by individual employees, a department or organisation. This is much too narrow an
approach, as is argued later in this part of the chapter. Third, performance management is
not only performance-related pay. This may be an important consequence of the perform-
ance appraisal process, but it is only one consequence. Indeed, performance-related pay
may be awarded to individuals without any formal attempt at appraising performance.
Given the wide-ranging nature of performance management, it is not surprising that
defining the topic is not straightforward and many conventional HRM texts do not attempt a
definition. However, Armstrong and Baron (1998: 7) address the issue of defining perform-
ance management by framing a short overall definition and then embellishing this with a
further explanation of what performance management is about. This seems an effective
way of capturing the complexity of a subject that is so all-embracing that a simple catch-all
definition is unsatisfactory. Armstrong and Baron define performance management as:
A strategic and integrated approach to delivering sustained success to organisations
by improving the performance of people who work in them and by developing the
capabilities of teams and individual contributors.
For the purposes of this book, the emphasis that Armstrong and Baron put upon the
aspect of strategy and integration is highly appropriate. Performance management has
the capacity to match the organisation’s overall strategy, indeed these authors argue that
performance management will not reach its full potential if that is not the case. In addition,
Armstrong and Baron stress the aspect of integration. Ideally, performance management
is integrated vertically with the strategic goals of the organisation and horizontally with the
other aspects of HRM. Particular attention is paid to these two aspects of integration later
in the chapter. The word ‘ideally’ is chosen deliberately to highlight the fact that perform-
ance management is often not strategic or integrated (IRS, 2003).
However, there are important additions to this definition that need to be made. In making
these additions the scene is set for the content of this chapter. The terms ‘development’
and ‘improvement’ suggest a forward-looking element to performance management, which
is captured in this chapter. Development in terms of both capability and longer-term career
planning has long been an important element of effective performance appraisal systems –
improvement less so. However, the role that performance management plays in seeking to
improve the performance of under-performing employees is given due attention in this
chapter. The aspect of team performance management is given much less attention, both
in the literature and in practice. This is surprising given the current attention that is paid to
teamwork in organisations. This is examined briefly in this chapter. All these aspects are
important if a strategic and integrated approach to achieving success in organisations by
SHRM_C09.QXD 14/2/07 15:54 Page 318
improving the performance of people who work in them and by developing the capabilities
of teams and individual contributors is to be realised.
As noted earlier, a major component of performance management in many organi-
sations is that of individual performance-related pay. Although this topic is covered
briefly in this chapter, it is dealt with in more detail in Chapter 11.
The
What is Performance A critical look
performance
Performance management at performance
management
Management? and SHRM management
systems model
Vertical and
Definition horizontal Key contexts
integration
Performance
Key concepts management and Processes
organisational
structure
Performance HR outputs
management
and employees
The growing
importance of
performance
management
Figure 9.1 Mapping the performance management territory: a summary diagram of the chapter content
satisfaction, customer satisfaction and, through these, business results. (For more details
on the European Excellence Model see Key Concepts 4.4).
Kaplan and Norton’s approach assumes that for an organisation to be successful it must satisfy the
demands of its key stakeholders: investors, customers and employees. Therefore, they suggest four key
perspectives on business performance. These perspectives generate the following four questions:
1. Financial: ‘to succeed financially how should we appear to our shareholders?’;
2. Customer: ‘to be successful how should we appear to our customers?’;
3. Internal business processes: ‘to meet the expectations of our shareholders and customers at what
business processes should we excel?’;
4. Learning and growth: ‘to achieve our vision and strategy how will we sustain our ability to change
and improve?’
Kaplan and Norton argue that the balanced scorecard strategy should have vision, not control, at
the forefront. It establishes goals but assumes that people will adopt whatever behaviours and take
whatever actions are necessary to arrive at those goals. The measures are designed to drive people
towards the overall vision. Managers may know what the end result should be but they cannot tell
employees exactly how to achieve that result, if only because the conditions in which employees
operate are constantly changing.
Kaplan and Norton’s view is that by combining the financial, customer, internal process and inno-
vation, and organisational learning perspectives, the balanced scorecard helps managers to
understand, at least implicitly, many interrelationships between different organisational functions. This
understanding can help managers transcend traditional notions about functional barriers and ulti-
mately lead to improved decision-making and problem solving. The balanced scorecard keeps
organisations focused on the future not simply the past.
The issue of quantitative measures in HR, and the problems that flow from using this
approach, are touched on in Chapters 2 and 4, where the subject of the contribution that HR
makes to organisational performance is examined. Gratton (2004) echoes the authors’ view
that placing too much reliance in HR metrics is a dangerous path to tread. Yet it is tempting
to pursue this approach to performance evaluation because it is the language that so many
managers understand. For HR specialists to hide behind the sort of argument that runs –
‘you can’t measure soft HR process factors like the quality of interaction between colleagues’
– is likely to be seen as, at best, an excuse and at worst an attempt to evade accountability. In
either case it does little to enhance non-HR managers’ view of the HR profession.
The main problem behind the performance indicators approach to performance
management is that of validity. Put simply, can those who define the performance indi-
cators be sure that the indicators are measuring what they want measured? Gratton
(2004) gives the well-known metric of retention to illustrate the case. This is often used
as a supposed indicator of such phenomena as employee commitment to the employing
organisation. The theoretical assumption is that ‘committed’ employees will stay longer
in the organisation than those who are not committed. Gratton draws on research which
suggests that those employees who are highly mobile did form attachments and com-
mitment during their relatively short stays in organisations and were just as committed
as workers who stayed in a single company.
SHRM_C09.QXD 14/2/07 15:54 Page 320
The other main problem with the concentration upon performance measurement is
that it can see measurement as an end in itself whereas the performance management
emphasis is upon following up the results and promoting action consequent upon those
results. This is similar to the action research approach to evaluation outlined in Chapter 4.
The performance measurement approach has been particularly prevalent in the UK
public sector, where it has been introduced as part of the drive to improve public services,
through more effective use of resources, and to reinforce accountability so that organisa-
tions are accountable for resource usage and achievement of outcomes. The role that
performance management plays in meeting these goals is explained in Key Concepts 9.2.
Effective performance management is essential for any organisation. Without the rigour that perform-
ance management provides, public services can (and do) lose sight of their objectives, accept
mediocrity and fail to serve the customer.
The concept of performance management is well understood in the public sector and most
organisations have some form of performance management system in place. But successful implementa-
tion of such systems is difficult and the quality is currently very mixed. We therefore regard performance
management as very important and in October 1999 the Civil Service Management Board adopted the
key elements of our framework as the new business planning structure for central government.
ASPIRATIONS
To stretch and motivate the organisation
REINFORCEMENT
To motivate individuals to deliver the targeted performance
SHRM_C09.QXD 14/2/07 15:54 Page 321
1. Bold aspirations to ensure that organisations have a clear and shared sense of direction that are
derived from the needs and preferences of stakeholders, whether internal or external.
2. A coherent set of measures and targets that must be both demanding and manageable, with a
mixture of targets that are cascaded throughout the organisation and are continually reviewed.
3. Ownership and accountability for targets, which may be at team or individual level, but specific
responsibilities and accountabilities must be recognised.
4. Rigorous performance monitoring and review, when accountabilities have been defined.
5. Reinforcement so that success in delivering targeted performance should result in real conse-
quences at an individual level, involving a mix of incentives such as financial rewards, career
opportunities and non-pay incentives.
Source: Public Services Productivity Panel (2000).
The fear that performance measurement becomes an end in itself was borne out in case
study research carried out by Radnor and McGuire (2004) in two UK public sector organ-
isations: a health authority and a central government department. These researchers
found four main weaknesses.
1. Performance was about measurement and evaluation, not about management. In
both organisations too much time was spent ‘form filling’ and chasing information.
2. The systems in the two organisations were diagnostic not interactive or about allow-
ing employee improvement.
3. The targets were not considered nor was there evaluation of the foundation upon
which they were based.
4. There was a general lack of ownership of the targets, since those having to manage
them were not responsible for the setting of the targets.
The last two weaknesses point to the observation that staff felt they had no direct
influence over the targets and therefore quickly lost interest in them because they felt
that they had little relevance to their daily work.
What factors do you think would explain the weaknesses Radnor and McGuire
found in their research?
It was noted in Chapter 2 that SHRM derives its ‘strategic’ facet from the link to wider
business strategy and integration between the various HR policies, procedures and prac-
tices: the first-termed vertical integration and the second ‘horizontal integration’
(Mabey et al., 1998). In this section of the chapter the links that performance manage-
ment has with both vertical and horizontal integration are analysed.
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However, it is necessary to make two points here. The first is that managers have taken
this theoretical proposition as an act of faith on the assumption that employees who ‘sign
on’ to the organisation’s goals are more likely to be effective performers than those who
are, at best, apathetic or, at worst, alienated. Notwithstanding the complexity of the topic
masked by its seeming simplicity, it is a compelling argument. The second is that without
the communication of the organisation’s mission, commitment to it is impossible. Per-
formance management offers an excellent opportunity not only to introduce the mission
but to reinforce it consistently through regular reviews of individual performance.
In Practice 9.1
Lever Fabergé manufactures major international toiletry and home-care brands, such as Persil,
Domestos, Dove, Sure and Sunsilk. It employs 2,700 people across four UK sites and introduced a
new performance management system at its Leeds manufacturing plant.
The integrated approach to performance management is based on four related elements: objective
setting; competence development; personal development planning; and reward and remuneration.
Objective setting is based on the balanced scorecard approach. There are six top-level objectives
that are the foundations of the objectives that are then cascaded throughout the organisation. These
are: safety; quality; service productivity; service delivery; cost; and morale. Annually, three work tar-
gets are agreed with relevant employees, which support key performance indicators (KPIs). The KPIs
are based on the top-level objectives and represent work priorities or special tasks that need to be
accomplished. The targets can apply to an individual, a team or a group of teams.
The top-level objectives also provide the basis for competence development. At the same time as
targets are being set, employees agree their personal competence development targets. There is a
list of core competences upon which the targets are based. These include such competences as
influencing others; team working; self-development and creating a safe environment.
The work targets and competence targets form the basis of a personal development plan, which
includes not only the targets but the way it is planned that they should be achieved. There are regular
progress reviews and a final end of year evaluation to assess the extent of achievement.
The work targets and personal competence development targets drive individual performance-
related pay. This takes two forms: a salary increment and a cash bonus.
Source: IDS (2003b).
SHRM_C09.QXD 14/2/07 15:54 Page 324
theory has a long history that has been substantiated over 30 years of research. The com-
ponents of the theory are that:
clear and challenging goals lead to higher performance than easily attainable goals,
goals at which you try your best, or no goals;
goals affect performance by directing employees’ attention and effort, increasing their
determination to succeed and motivating them to develop strategies for achievement;
goal-setting is most likely to improve employees’ task performance when goals are
clear and challenging; employees have sufficient ability to achieve them; supportive
managers give regular feedback on the level of progress being made; tangible rewards,
such as money, are given for goal achievement; and employees accept their goals.
Many performance management schemes involve setting employees challenging
goals. Microsoft UK (IDS, 2003) calls them ‘stretch goals’. An insurance company whose
performance management scheme was studied (Lewis, 1998a) emphasised that rewards
would only be given to those employees who demonstrated improved performance; per-
forming at last year’s level, however good, simply wasn’t good enough. This reveals a
particularly demanding aspect of performance management but what it does imply is
the necessity for managers to ensure that the opportunity is available for individuals to
demonstrate improved performance.
Locke et al.’s inclusion of the notion of employee acceptance by the individual of
assigned goals suggests that mere imposition of goals by managers is unlikely to lead to
goal acceptance and goal pursuit in line with strategic objectives. At Lever Fabergé (see In
Practice 9.1) emphasis is placed upon the principle of joint ownership, with employees
accepting their responsibility for performance development if they are to progress.
There may be two reasons why managers impose rather than negotiate objectives.
The first relates to what Marsden and Richardson (1992) call ‘information asymmetry’.
This occurs when managers control all the information relevant to performance man-
agement. They set objectives, define performance measures, conduct appraisals and
decide rewards. It is easy to see why some managers may prefer to do this: it enables
them to retain the power that they derive from their managerial status and makes them
less accountable for their actions.
The second reason why managers may impose rather than negotiate objectives is
structural. In many large organisations, such as the building society in which the authors
studied performance management, the objective-setting process is a mini-industry
(Lewis, 1998a). Goals are ‘handed down’ to over 700 branch managers through their area
managers. In reality there is little scope to amend the content of these goals which relate
to the outputs (e.g. mortgage sales) the manager is expected to achieve. However, there is
scope for area managers to negotiate process goals, on the way in which the branch man-
ager performs his or her duties (e.g. leadership style of branch staff).
The provision of feedback to show progress in relation to the goal is a powerful indi-
cator of performance management effectiveness. Some organisations have weekly,
monthly or quarterly progress meetings and reviews. This is a very demanding and
time-consuming process for managers. This element of the performance management
cycle needs managers who are not only prepared to spend the time, but also committed
to the style of management that is consistent with emphasis upon, giving feedback. This
‘new style’ managerialism is characterised by less concern for the technical side of indi-
viduals’ jobs and more emphasis on talking to them about what they do to ensure that
everything is right for them to do their jobs. The ‘new style’ manager is supportive, a
SHRM_C09.QXD 14/2/07 15:54 Page 325
team leader, a coach and facilitator. This is a style of management that is concerned with
processes as well as outputs.
What obstacles do you think may stand in the way of an attempt by organisations
to adopt a ‘new style’ of management in which the ‘new style’ manager is sup-
portive, a team leader, a coach and facilitator?
Giving rewards, such as money, for goal attainment raises the contentious question of
individual performance-related pay, which is covered in Chapter 11. Suffice it to say at
this stage, that for some employees the achievement of goals is a reward in itself, without
the existence of financial incentives.
The thinking behind such work systems is that they will create the conditions
whereby employees will be more likely to be enthusiastic and involved with their work,
thus demonstrating higher commitment to the organisation’s goals. It is assumed that
this will lead to enhannced employee and organisational performance. Much of the
research that has been done on high performance work systems concentrates upon their
ability to deliver improved organisational performance, a topic that was dealt with in
some detail in Chapter 2. Boxall and Purcell (2003) point out that much works needs to
be done to establish the conditions for and the components and consequences of high
performance work systems.
The list of characteristics above puts performance management firmly at the centre of
high performance activities. Cully et al. (1999), in the 1998 Workplace Employee Rela-
tions Survey, list performance tests and regular appraisals as part of the battery of high
performance work practices, while Wood and de Menezes (1998) talk of ‘new forms of
assessment’. The contribution that performance management can make to high per-
formance work systems is to act as part of a ‘bundle’ of HR activities, complementing
and reinforcing them in order that the impact of the bundle may be increased.
To go into more detail on high performance work systems is not the concern of this
chapter. Suffice to say that performance management has the facility to change the cul-
ture and therefore the working practices of organisations as part of a concerted effort to
generate change.
This better understanding is achieved in two ways. First, it means that individuals and
teams are likely to be much more responsible for their performance if they can see pre-
cisely the goals they are supposed to achieve, are given guidance on how the goals may
be achieved and are provided with the resources to perform the tasks. This is particularly
the case if they have been instrumental in setting the objectives. Second, performance
management, through its close relationship between individual, unit goals and organisa-
tional goals, is potentially a powerful way of ensuring the optimum use of resources, as it
should lead to a minimum of wasted resources through, for example, duplicated efforts
or the pursuit of inappropriate tasks. The conduct of frequent, regular performance
reviews ensures that tasks pursued by employees are as appropriate at the time of the
review as they were when originally set.
Armstrong and Baron (1998) make the point that performance management is very
much concerned with interrelationships, among the most important people – managers
and individuals, managers and teams, and team members themselves. They note that
contributors to their research often talked of the value of formal and semi-formal dis-
cussions that took place, which clarified many of the structural topics referred to earlier.
Some researchers (e.g. Child, 1991; Glover and Siu, 2000) have noted the absence of interpersonal
communication in Chinese organisations. This is consistent with poor communication of information
in organisations. In Child’s (1994) view, this is because many Chinese employees see information as a
personal rather than as a collective possession. As a consequence, there is often virtually no flow of
information between departments. Child suggests that this is exacerbated by the absence of any
notion of interdependence between departments and the inability of many Chinese employees to see
how their efforts fit into the overall purpose of the organisation. In addition, it may be explained by the
vertical authority chain in many Chinese organisations, where employees accept little responsibility
because all decisions have to be referred to the senior executive at the top of the organisation. Glover
and Siu (2000: 874) noted the ‘low involvement, low initiative nature of employee attitudes to work’,
which accounted for production errors in the food processing plant they studied.
Questionable interpersonal communication skills may be attributed to the cultural value of the wish to
preserve face. Feedback on job performance, if done with genuine intent, will inevitably involve some
personal criticism. As one technician in an electronics plant studied by Lewis (2003a) explained:
There is not a lot of talking between managers and staff in R and D at present, only about the every-
day demands of the job. Individual review meetings would be welcomed if it could be assured that
managers would listen to the views of their staff. They must give specific answers to problems. We
seldom have discussions about personal development. Mr W… does not tell his staff they are prom-
ising but he sends the message in a subtle way by giving them responsible jobs.
assessing individual success. Skills, behaviours and attitudes (the term ‘competences’ has
been deliberately avoided here to steer clear of a debate about the different definitions of
the term) are what are needed for the employee to meet the performance targets (the
‘how’ to deliver the ‘what’). Such skills, behaviours and attitudes may be used to define:
the person specification at the time of recruitment. This specification can be the basis
of the job advertisement;
the job description;
training and development objectives, which can inform both learning objectives and
criteria for assessing training effectiveness;
job performance targets;
criteria for determining performance-related pay awards;
promotion criteria;
capability targets to be achieved by less-effective performers.
In Practice 9.2 contains a good illustration of how skills, behaviours and attitudes are
used in the performance management system by a UK public service employer.
In Practice 9.2
The use of skills, behaviours and attitudes in performance management
at the Scottish Prison Service
The Scottish Prison Service operates 15 prisons in Scotland with 4,500 staff and in 2000 embarked
upon a new vision called ‘correctional excellence’, based on the principle of continuous improvement.
An important part of the new vision was a revised performance management system which has three
main components:
a clear set of expected outputs against which employee performance is measured;
desired skills, behaviours and attitudes that reflect how the outputs are to be attained;
continuous improvement targets.
The desired SBAs’ profile was a new initiative for the Scottish Prison Service. It used the skills
framework that had already been drawn up for the purpose of drafting person specifications and job
descriptions. Five core behaviours were defined.
building and maintaining relationships (working with others, sharing ideas, experiences and effort
to achieve common objectives);
problem solving and decision-making;
planning, implementation and control;
adaptability;
self-motivation.
In order to assist line managers in the measurement of the SBAs, illustrations of ‘effective’ and
‘ineffective’ behaviours were drafted for each of the five core behaviours. Examples for ‘building and
maintaining relationships’ are: ‘effective’ – ensures people have the information they require; ‘ineffec-
tive’ – shows little consideration for the impact of decisions in other areas, gives misinformation.
Source: IDS (2003b).
SHRM_C09.QXD 14/2/07 15:54 Page 329
The initiative by the Scottish Prison Service to measure SBAs is a bold one given the
relative ease with which performance outputs, compared with SBAs, may be measured.
Hard measures lend themselves to quantification, whereas soft measures, such as behav-
iours, do not. This also raises the question of the desirability of paying attention to soft
measures. It is a plausible business argument that what counts is what is achieved, not
the way it was achieved.
In addition, attention to SBAs’ measurement may be challenged on basis of the
underlying theory that prescribed SBAs lead to particular performance outcomes. To
explain the authors’ contention that this may not necessarily be the case, look at Figure
9.2. Scenarios A and B reflect the theoretical position on which the performance man-
agement system, which puts emphasis on the demonstration of SBAs, is based. There is
a certain intuitive logic to this. It is similar to the ‘high commitment work practices
lead to enhanced organisational performance’ theory. After all, it seems like common
sense that the employee who can perform the sort of SBAs enshrined in the Scottish
Prison Service’s five core behaviours is more likely to meet his or her performance tar-
gets than the employee who cannot. Yet scenario C raises the possibility that the SBAs
may be demonstrated, yet the performance outcomes may not be met. There may be a
host of reasons for this. There may be inadequate resources provided by the organisa-
tion or external constraints, for example the economic context, may render target
achievement very difficult. Scenario D is that situation to which many managers may
be tempted to turn a blind eye: targets are achieved in spite of ineffective SBA demon-
stration. Such a situation may be common in sales situations where the salesperson
may demonstrate poor customer relationship skills and behave in a manner that alien-
ates his or her sales team colleagues yet still achieve high sales figures due to a buoyant
product market or simple persistence (although this may, of course, be a relevant SBA).
The manager may be swayed by the argument that long-term success in the job will
only be sustained if there is demonstration of effective SBAs. This would lead to a poor
performance rating for the salesperson. But it would be a brave sales manager who
risked losing someone who produced high sales figures as a result of a poor SBA rating.
That said, there are jobs where the link between SBAs and performance output achieve-
ment may be stronger. An example is a senior manager who is dependent upon others
for the achievement of outputs.
Outcomes
Effective Ineffective
Effective
Scenario A Scenario C
demonstrated
Scenario D Scenario B
Environmental variability requires a
Ineffective
Figure 9.2 Four possible scenarios linking the demonstration of skills, behaviours and attitudes
(SBAs) with performance outcomes
SHRM_C09.QXD 14/2/07 15:54 Page 330
It is not the purpose of Figure 9.2. to undermine the promotion of SBAs in perform-
ance management. Far from it. Emphasis upon SBA achievement enhances the strategic
thrust of performance management through the principle of generic SBAs, such as the
five core behaviours evident in the Scottish Prison Service’s system. The nature of these
five SBAs is that they relate to the majority of jobs in the organisation. The fact that
individual employees may reflect scenarios C and D does not threaten the principle that,
in general, the inclusion of SBAs in performance management may enhance strategic
significance, provided, of course, that the SBAs reflect the organisation’s mission. The
significance of Figure 9.2 is that scenario C points up that the context in which the job is
performed needs to be conducive to effective performance, and scenario D may be seen
as a ‘test of resolve’ for organisations and managers who espouse the value of attention
to job processes as well as performance outcomes.
Any list of the reasons for the growth in importance of performance management in
recent years in many respects mirrors the content of the list of reasons for the growth in
importance of SHRM. This reinforces the claim for the centrality of performance man-
agement in SHRM.
An early survey of performance management by the (then) Institute of Personnel
Management (1992) claims it offers several advantages to organisations. Among
these are:
more effective employees, able to meet increased product market competition;
a greater opportunity for employees to share in the organisation’s vision and the way
to realise that vision;
the pushing of key decisions down the organisational structure to line managers and
supervisors;
a greater acceptance of accountability by line managers of the necessity to make such
decisions; and
reward structures that forge a clear link between individual and/or group performance.
These claims seem as relevant now as they did in the early 1990s. Indeed, with the
growth of global competition in many markets, the rationale that underpins perform-
ance management, which is reflected in the first factor in the list above, is more relevant
now. Therefore, it is no surprise to note that in 2004 the most recent survey by the CIPD
noted that 87 per cent of organisations surveyed had some form of performance man-
agement system (Baron and Armstrong, 2004).
But it is not just in the private sector that attention to cost, which leads to a quest for
optimum contribution from all employees, has been apparent. Earlier, this chapter
explained how performance measurement was a feature of performance management in
the UK public sector. The best value initiative in UK local government is a good example
of this drive for optimum employee contribution. Best value was introduced in 1998
with the aim of ensuring that management and business practices in local government
SHRM_C09.QXD 14/2/07 15:54 Page 331
deliver better and more responsive public services. Best value in local government is
about local authorities:
balancing quality service provision against costs;
achieving sustainable development;
being accountable and transparent, by engaging with the local community;
ensuring equal opportunities;
continuously improving the outcomes of the services they provide (Scottish Execu-
tive, 2004).
Similarly, performance management has been a key component in the campaign to
introduce a performance culture in many organisations. Raising the status of individual
employee performance assessment from an aspect of personnel bureaucracy (these
forms have to be filled in once a year) to a managerial practice that has real meaning is
an important symbol of the desire of the organisation to change. Chapter 6 explains
how one view of culture has it that artefacts are an important visible manifestation of
organisational culture (Schein, 1992a). Performance management is a powerful visible
manifestation of the organisation’s desire to change to a performance culture. This is
particularly so when the outcomes lead to discernible management action, such as per-
formance-related pay, promotion and development decisions or action to improve
individual performance through the capability procedure.
The ability of performance management to differentiate between those employees
whose performance is adequate, or less than adequate, and those who are high perform-
ers has acquired greater importance in these days of downsized, delayered and flexible
organisations. It follows that if there are fewer people doing the same amount of work
then a higher level of performance is required together with practices that generate
higher levels of performance.
The final reason why performance management has grown in importance is the
increasing dissatisfaction with traditional performance appraisal practices (Bach, 2000).
Bach highlights the lack of objectivity of performance appraisal and the over-reliance on
the annual appraisal interview as the most important reasons for general dissatisfaction
with performance appraisal. This had led to a greater interest in so-called 360-degree
appraisal in which performance assessments are secured from a wider range of sources:
for example, the employee him- or herself and other stakeholders, such as customers
and other line managers. This, in turn, generates performance information on a wider
range of topics than if the assessment is done only by the employee’s immediate line
manager. Later in this chapter, 360-degree appraisal is discussed in more detail.
Consideration of the way in which performance management processes are changing
leads us now to the major part of the chapter, which deals with the performance man-
agement system.
To what extent do you think that the lack of objectivity in performance appraisal
may be overcome in performance management?
SHRM_C09.QXD 14/2/07 15:54 Page 332
Stakeholders
The most important stakeholders in the performance management system are apprais-
ers, appraisees, and those upon whom they have most immediate impact, for example
recipients of the services provided by the appraisee.
• Enhanced organisational
performance
Traditionally the system has been driven by the individual employee’s immediate
manager who set objectives and assessed the extent that these were achieved. However,
this is now changing, particularly with the growing popularity of 360-degree appraisal
as is explained in the section on processes. This means that the population of significant
stakeholders expands to include the appraisee’s colleagues or subordinates, other man-
agers and customers.
Internal policies/procedures
The degree of comprehensiveness of internal policies and procedures may also play an
important part in determining performance management system effectiveness. A good
example of this is the way in which the discipline procedure caters for the improvement
of employee capability, as shown in ‘In Practice’ 9.3.
SHRM_C09.QXD 14/2/07 15:54 Page 334
In Practice 9.3
Informal stage
If a teacher is considered to be under-performing, the headteacher or line manager should investi-
gate. Once the facts have been gathered, there are three options: (1) drop the matter because there is
no case to answer; (2) arrange counselling in order to give support without using the formal proce-
dures; (3) arrange a formal interview if the case is serious enough.
The counselling and informal coaching should aim to help and encourage the teacher. The
teacher should be told what is required, how his or her performance will be reviewed and when.
The teacher should also be told that the formal procedure will begin if there is no improvement. At
the appointed time of the review, a clear decision should be taken either to drop the matter or
arrange a formal interview.
Formal stage
The investigations into a teacher’s capability and the various interviews, meetings and decision-
making during the procedure can be carried out either by the head or by a senior colleague who has
responsibility for the teacher’s performance. Throughout the procedures, local education authority
(LEA) advisers, or other advisers with educational and personnel experience, should advise the
school and, if appropriate, assist with the process, including classroom observation and providing
support to the teacher and to the investigators.
Formal interview
A formal interview will initiate the formal stage. At least five working days’ (or if out of term time,
seven consecutive days’) notice of this initial formal interview must be given.
The teacher can be accompanied by a union official or a colleague.
At the end of the interview, there are two options available if new evidence has come to light or fur-
ther investigation has shown that the matter is no longer as serious: either drop the matter or arrange
counselling, unless this has already been done without improvement. Where there is continuing con-
cern, there are two alternatives: oral or written warning, or a final written warning. The decision about
which level of warning is appropriate will depend on the seriousness of the problem. Normally a written
warning will be the next step. It is possible, however, in cases where the education of pupils is in jeop-
ardy because of the lack of competence, that the head might move directly to a final written warning.
A written warning will trigger an assessment period of up to two terms. A final written warning will
trigger an assessment period not exceeding four weeks. During the assessment period, those moni-
toring the performance should always offer periodic feedback and instruction to help the teacher to
improve. Training courses should be arranged as soon as possible if these would be helpful, but they
should not interrupt the timing of the procedure.
Appeal against a formal warning
An appeal could be heard by a senior manager, an LEA adviser or an individual governor. Meanwhile,
the monitoring of the teacher’s progress should continue.
First assessment stage
From week 1 to week 20, regular observation, monitoring and evaluation with guidance, training and
support will be put in place. It would be possible to move to a final warning at any time during this
stage if a more serious problem arose. At week 20 the process could stop if progress has been satis-
factory but, if not, then a final written warning will be issued. The decision and main points must be
recorded and communicated to the teacher in writing.
SHRM_C09.QXD 14/2/07 15:54 Page 335
Psychological contract
The final input to the performance management system considered here is the psycho-
logical contract. This is a term first used by Argyris (1960) to refer to the expectations
of employer and employee which operate in addition to the formal contract of employ-
ment. It has been defined by Rousseau (1994 cited by Hiltrop, 1995: 287) as ‘the
understanding people have regarding the commitments made between themselves and
their organisation’. As the central assertion is that the inputs to the performance man-
agement system are instrumental in creating the outputs through the application of a
series of processes, it follows that performance management activities, which are con-
sistent with the psychological contract, will assist the quest for performance
management effectiveness. Conversely, if the psychological contract is breached, then
the consequence may be that performance management will not achieve the aims
planned by management.
Hiltrop’s (1995) examination of the psychological contract, included contrasting
characteristics of the ‘old’ and ‘new’ types of contract. It is clear from this that perform-
ance management has a central role to play in that it defines what is expected from the
employee in terms of the parameters of performance criteria. He talks, for example, of a
‘fair day’s work for a fair day’s pay’ being replaced by ‘high pay for high job perform-
ance’; ‘making a difference to the organisation’ replacing the ‘old’ contract expectation of
‘good performance in the present job’; ‘knowledge and skills’ superseding ‘time and
effort’ as a dominant aspect of the expectations of management; ‘value added’ being
attributed more importance than loyalty.
Stiles et al. (1997) argue that performance management processes play a key role in
creating a framework in which the psychological contract between employer and
employee is determined. They specify three particular processes as being important: (1)
setting objectives; (2) performance evaluation; and (3) the linkage between (1) and (2)
to generate reward and development outputs in order to reward desired behaviour. They
conducted research at three organisations which used performance management as an
important part of their attempt to move from an ‘old’ type of psychological contract,
emphasising job security and clear career paths, to one that supported the companies’
aims of excellent customer service, commitment to teamwork, continuous improvement
and professionalism. Stiles et al. concluded that the move towards redefining the psycho-
logical contract was hampered by ineffective implementation of performance
management. In particular, they highlighted the presence of mixed messages from man-
agement and employees’ doubts about the fairness and accuracy of ratings. The
particular problems noted by the researchers were:
short-term demands dictated that ‘softer’ targets were ignored;
objectives were imposed by managers rather than negotiated;
SHRM_C09.QXD 14/2/07 15:54 Page 336
performance appraisal was perceived as bureaucratic and did not give rise to action;
inconsistent appraisal ratings;
performance pay in which the link between pay and performance was unclear and/or
perceived as unfair;
training outcomes that were based on the current job rather than the espoused aim of
employability;
insufficient opportunity to practise newly learned skills.
In what ways do you think the psychological contract is threatened by the short-
comings in the implementation of performance management at Stiles et al.’s
organisations?
Performance measurement
The earlier section of this chapter, which dealt with performance measurement, is criti-
cal of too narrow a conception of performance measures – in particular that
demonstrated by the ‘performance indicators’ approach adopted in some public-sector
organisations. Recent research by the CIPD (2004a) confirms the impression that many
organisations may not be broadening the criteria by which they assess employee per-
formance. A survey of over 500 practitioners reported that 84 per cent of respondents
thought that ‘quantifiable measures of performance are essential to successful perform-
ance management’. In terms of the key factors used to determine the effectiveness of
performance management, ‘achievement of objectives’ and ‘achievement of financial tar-
gets’ were rated as the most important by respondents.
80 per cent of UK workplaces conducted appraisals, albeit that they were more likely to
be conducted among ‘white collar’ than manual employees. In an IRS (2003) survey of
49 UK organisations in both public and private sectors, 96 per cent used performance
appraisal with 77 per cent of those organisations thinking that the technique had a ‘lot’
of effect upon employee performance.
All the organisations in the IDS (2003b) study conducted regular performance
reviews with staff. The typical pattern was for there to be a minimum of two formal
reviews: one in the middle of the review year and the other at the end of the year. Organ-
isations such as Microsoft also encourage managers to meet regularly with their
employees to give feedback, and employees are given a guarantee that they will be given
time to talk to their managers about performance and development issues.
The model of the manager as the sole judge of employee progress, given in a top-
down manner, is increasingly becoming outmoded in many organisations. So-called
360-degree appraisal is becoming more prevalent. In the IRS (2003) study of 49 organi-
sations, one-half used 360-degree appraisal. This type of appraisal is so called simply
because it does not rely on assessment from the line manager only but from a number of
sources. These may include, in addition to the line manager: other managers such as
those responsible for projects; peers (e.g. fellow team members); employees for whom
the individual may be responsible; internal and external customers; and self-assessment.
Since those sources, other than the immediate line manager, may not be familiar with
the individual’s performance objectives, skills and behaviours are usually the focus of
the feedback. Therefore, the information gained from multiple sources is more likely to
be used for developmental reasons than for the purpose of ‘rating’ the individual for the
purposes of pay or promotion.
In Practice 9.4
At Microsoft UK, upward feedback is provided to line managers in advance of their own development
discussions and formal performance reviews. Every member of the manager’s team has the opportu-
nity to give feedback to the managers through the online feedback tool, which is operational in April
and December of each year. Employees are asked to rate certain areas of the manager’s performance
on a 5-point scale and also answer open-ended questions about the manager.
Although employees are given the opportunity to remain anonymous in giving their feedback,
Microsoft believes that the feedback will be more useful if it comes from a known source.
Source: IDS (2003b).
agreed rather than imposed; realistic (to be perceived as fair by employees); and time-
related (with clear target dates by which achievement may be evident). This last aspect
heralds the final question about performance objectives that was heralds at the begin-
ning of the section: for how long do they last? Clear target dates by which achievement
may be evident suggest a rigidity that may be inconsistent with the organisation’s desire
to be flexible and responsive to external (and internal) pressures. There was a general
pattern in the IDS study (IDS, 2003b) for organisations to have regular performance
reviews during the annual cycle, at which the appropriateness of performance objectives
were reviewed and changed as necessary to reflect changing circumstances.
HR outputs
Enhanced SBAs and performance targets
SBAs and performance targets have already been covered in some detail in this chapter
and it is not our intention to re-visit these topics here. Suffice it to say that in the CIPD
research noted above (CIPD, 2004a), 82 per cent of respondents thought that the focus of
performance management should be developmental, suggesting that the employee SBAs,
that serve as an input to the performance management systems model, should ideally
emerge from the model in enhanced form. This is self-evidently the case where the inten-
tion is to remedy poor performance. But, with the possible exception of the organisation
where the thrust of performance management is overt control (to ensure that employees
are ‘doing what they are paid to do), it seems that a golden opportunity to enhance
employee SBAs is being missed if the system does not have a developmental focus. Perfor-
mance appraisal has long been recognised as an important way of identifying training
needs. However, the growth in popularity of defining SBAs has meant that, in many
organisations, performance management is the precursor to specific activities, such as
shadowing key employees or coaching by a recognised ‘expert’, designed to enhance the
individual’s SBA levels. This may be contrasted with the approach where appraisal is the
annual ritual where managers assign employees to training courses which they think may
be relevant. Often the appropriateness of the content of such courses is checked neither
beforehand nor after attendance. Similarly, there is little effort to give the employee the
opportunity to utilise the skills and knowledge gained on the course.
The model in Figure 9.2 includes performance targets set at the previous review as
inputs, which are the focus of attention for the review, measurement and feedback
processes. These processes lead to the setting of objectives for the coming review period,
which are outputs in our model and feed back into the system as inputs for the next period.
As In Practice 9.5 points out, Acas guidance on the handling of capability issues
(Acas, 2004) makes clear that performance management has a major role to play both in
the prevention of capability problems and in the handling of them when they arise.
In Practice 9.5
Employers are responsible for setting realistic and achievable performance standards and ensuring
that employees understand the standards required of them.
Standards should be capable of being measured in terms of quantity, quality, time and cost.
Any shortfall in performance should be pointed out to the employee and consideration given as to
whether this is due to inadequate instruction, training, supervision or some other failing.
Care in recruitment and selection will minimise the risk of capability problems.
made through the initial investigation which, for example, is detailed in the first princi-
ple of the procedure in ‘In Practice’ 9.3. The EAT went on to say that ‘cases where a
person has not come up to the required standard through his own carelessness, negli-
gence or idleness are much more appropriately dealt with as cases of misconduct rather
than incapability’ (Croners, 1991: 1).
Pay awards
When the CIPD carried out research in 1992 and 1997 on performance management,
one of the conclusions was that there was a dominance of individual performance-
related pay (CIPD, 2004a). Indeed, for many respondents in the 1992 survey (Institute of
Personnel Management, 1992) performance management was synonymous with per-
formance-related pay. There is some evidence that the link with pay is not quite as direct
as it was in the early 1990s. There is still a link between the achievement of individual
performance targets and pay in many organisations but there are other drivers of indi-
vidual pay. A typical example is the financial services organisation studied by the
authors (Lewis et al., 2004) which has introduced a new reward system. Here pay is
determined by market rate, competence acquisition as well as achievement of individual
performance targets. In the Lever Fabergé example cited earlier in this chapter (IDS,
2003b) similar arrangements exist although there are proposals to remove individual
performance targets from pay considerations. At the Scottish Prison Service, employees
move to the next pay point if they are rated as at least effective. However, at AstraZeneca
performance reviews ‘inform’ rather than ‘determine’ employees’ pay awards.
A trend that had developed is the payment of cash bonuses linked to the achievement
of individual performance targets. These bonuses are not consolidated into basic pay.
More consideration is given to variable pay in Chapter 11.
Career/promotion plan
For many employees, performance appraisal has been a traditional vehicle for recognis-
ing potential with a view to planning forthcoming activities so that the employee may
move ‘onwards and upwards’ in the organisation. This may be, for example, in the form
of training course attendance, expanding the current job to encompass new responsibili-
ties, on the job coaching by an experienced employee, or temporary attachment to a
project team. Here the emphasis has tended to be upon the individual’s manager ‘spot-
ting’ the potential of the employee and planning initiatives to develop that potential to
the benefit of the organisation and the individual.
However, as noted earlier, there has been a move from the time-honoured top-down
model of performance management to one where the emphasis has been on the individ-
ual to participate in his or her own objective setting and performance measurement. In
SHRM_C09.QXD 20/2/07 09:22 Page 342
the same vein, the flattening of organisational structures, with the consequent reduction
in vertical promotion opportunities and the end for many employees of the ‘job for life’
psychological contract, has meant that the emphasis for career development has switched
to the employee. Torrington et al. (2002) make the point that the career is the property of
the individual and therefore the responsibility for planning the career rests with the indi-
vidual, who should identify career goals and adopt strategies and plans to realise them.
Clearly this may be within or outside the individual’s current employing organisation.
It seems that the practice of defining employee SBAs in performance management is
particularly helpful to employees in career planning. This approach clarifies the neces-
sary ingredients for success in the current and future roles within the organisation. In
addition, it enables the employee to assess his or her own competence in SBAs that may
be considered generic for his or her chosen speciality which are likely to apply in other
organisations. One aspiration of many organisations, such as that illustrated in ‘In Prac-
tice’ 9.6, is to create a so-called performance culture.
In Practice 9.6
Many companies in the air industry suffered as a result of the very difficult product market following
the events of 11 September 2001 and the consequent reluctance of travellers to use air transport.
UKAir’s profits declined by 60 per cent in the third quarter of 2003. However, despite the decline in
profits, UKAir confirmed it achieved its sales target. As a result, it has overtaken its US rival for the
first time in three decades of fierce competition. A company statement said: ‘Our performance during
the first nine months of 2003 is in line with our plans. We continue to reinforce our position in the
industry’s competitive environment and lay the foundation for future profitable growth through invest-
ments in new products.’
One of the consequences of this tighter financial climate has been the need to generate HR
responses that match the strategic need to be more cost effective. As far as reward is concerned, the
compensation and benefits specialist devised a new reward strategy. This was to replace the old one
that was based on the principle of progress being made through annual increments up a steep hierar-
chical grading structure. The new strategy places much more emphasis upon individual job
performance. The compensation and benefits specialist said we need to breed a performance culture
here. It is not now enough for people to come and work, even for ten hours a day. They have to per-
form, make a difference. It’s not how long you are here, or what qualifications you have: it’s what you
actually do that counts.’
So far, this chapter has struck a rather positive note in that it has sought to demonstrate
that performance management has an important role to play in delivering significant HR
outputs. However, not all commentators have been as encouraging in the performance
management perspective they have adopted. In this final section a few issues are raised
that summarise this less positive stance, with the intention of signalling the possible pit-
falls that may lie in wait for the unwary designer of performance management schemes.
Friedman (1977) called responsible autonomy. This is very much the Theory Y approach
of McGregor (1960), which assumes that human beings welcome the opportunity to
take responsibility for their working lives: to be empowered. This school of thought is
that of the human relations school. The assumptions on which its advocates’ writing is
based are summarised below:
individuals have needs to satisfy in organisations; they do not exist in order to satisfy
the purposes of the organisation;
organisations and individuals both bring needs to the relationship; when they fit then
both prosper;
democratic leadership is the best way to ensure such a fit;
openness and participation is the best way to demonstrate such leadership (Fineman
and Mangham, 1987).
The views of Walton (1985) have also been influential for the past 20 years. He advo-
cates that managerial policies of mutuality (where employers and employees share goals
and agree on the means to achieve these goals) rather than direct control will elicit
employee commitment, which in turn will generate both better economic performance
and greater human development.
But it is misleading to think of ‘hard’ performance management as simply part of the
apparatus of direct control. It may be that ‘soft’ performance management is equally
controlling even if aligned to the principles of responsible autonomy. The performance
management, which applies to UK schoolteachers, is a good example of a scheme which
gives some autonomy to teachers in the controlling performance management
processes; nonetheless it is an attempt by management to impose accountability for
individual job performance upon employees who traditionally have not had to experi-
ence such measures.
What managers practising strategies of direct control and responsible autonomy have
in common is that they both assume that their particular strategy will yield the best results
in terms of organisational performance. When we think about management control we
tend to think about direct control, but if the purpose of responsible autonomy is to elicit
more effective employee performance, as Walton suggests, then it is equally controlling. It
is just that it has a face, which is rather more acceptable in the twenty-first century.
ees, the thought that they will readily commit to the goals of the organisation is simply
fanciful. Their principal interest is their own personal concerns, such as family and
career, and the role of their current employment is simply a means to an end.
The likelihood is that most employees are in favour of policies which recognise good
and bad performance, and see these as intrinsically fair in principle. The problems arise
when the implementation of such policies is perceived by employees as unfair. The prin-
ciple of organisational justice (Greenberg, 1987) puts great emphasis upon procedures
being perceived as fair and the way in which any benefits (e.g. pay and promotion) flow
from management policies as being distributed fairly. Much of the hostility, or more
likely apathy, towards performance management implementation stems from a lack of
organisational justice.
Summary
Performance management is an umbrella term to describe not a single activity but
a range of activities that may be gathered together to enhance organisational
performance.
Although the performance indicators approach to performance management has
proliferated in many organisations, it offers a restricted perspective on performance
management.
Performance management may be linked to the organisation’s strategy through hori-
zontal and vertical integration.
Performance management has the facility to change the culture and therefore the
working practices of organisations as part of a concerted effort to generate change
through its role as part of an organisation’s ‘high performance’ HR strategy.
An important way of integrating the HR practices is to use the skills, behaviours and
attitudes necessary to deliver effective job performance as a way of assessing individ-
ual success.
Among the reasons for the growth in importance of performance management, are
the desire to achieve grater organisational effectiveness and the dissatisfaction with
traditional performance appraisal.
The performance management systems model includes inputs such as external and
internal contexts and employee skills; processes including setting objectives and 360-
degree appraisal; HR outputs such as performance plans and pay awards; and
enhanced organisational performance.
Included in the major conceptual flaws in performance management thinking are the
potential preoccupation with management control, the assumed compliance of
employees and the dangers of prescribing a particular model of performance man-
agement without paying due regard to the organisation’s context.
Using an organisation with which you are familiar, which may be one in which you are
currently employed or have worked for, or one known to you:
Identify the range of activities that may be deemed to be part of what is termed in the
chapter ‘performance management’ and assess the extent to which those activities
may be termed ‘strategic’.
Identify which are the most important skills, behaviours and attitudes to be devel-
oped by employees in the organisation and the degree to which performance
management contributes towards this development.
Using the performance management systems model in Figure 9.2, identify the key inputs,
processes and HR outputs in the organisation’s performance management system.
Define what may be termed ‘effective’ performance management and evaluate the
degree to which performance management in the organisation meets this definition.
SHRM_C09.QXD 14/2/07 15:54 Page 347
Using an organisation with which you are familiar, which may be one in which you are
currently employed or have worked for, or one known to you:
How do managers manage employees’ performance? An investigation of the formal
activities embraced by performance management and the extent to which they play a
secondary role to the informal day-to-day management of employee performance.
What role does performance management play in the management of change?
A study of the skills and behaviours required by managers to obtain the maximum
benefit from 360-degree appraisal.
Case Study
Performance management at Tyco
Tyco employs 260,000 people in the USA and in Role and responsibilities of the
more than 100 countries around the world. It is: participants in the performance
a global leader in passive electronic components management process
and major producer of active components;
the number one worldwide company offering fire The handbook which outlines the details of the
and security solutions; scheme makes it clear that employees, managers
and the company have crucial responsibilities if the
one of the largest medical device and dispos-
scheme is to operate effectively.
ables companies in the world;
Employees must:
a leader in niche markets for plastics and adhe-
sives products; work hard to achieve their goals;
the world’s number one producer of sprinklers, take responsibility for their own professional
valves and actuation. development;
Setting goals
Conducting the assessment
Performance goals should flow from the top of the
This third part of the performance management
organisation down through the various layers
process has three steps:
(e.g. departments) to be expressed in individual
employee goals. Advice given to employees in the 1. completing/updating the profile form;
performance management handbook states: ‘if you 2. writing the self-assessment;
cannot state how your performance goals support
3. a collaborative discussion between the individual
the accomplishment of higher level goals, then your
employee and the manager.
goals should be carefully re-examined’. The goal-
setting sequence starts at the commencement of
the fiscal year. At that point there is a meeting Completing/updating the profile form
between the employee (or group of employees) and The profile form is an internal curriculum vitae (cv).
the manager at which departmental goals are dis- It is annually updated by the employee and can be
cussed. The employee then uses these goals to used in internal promotions and job transfers
write his or her individual goals. These are then throughout the company. As with any cv, it contains
submitted to the manager for approval. Employees details of Tyco and general work experience, qualifi-
and managers are reminded of the importance of cations and training undertaken, etc.
reviewing goals throughout the year, as the goals
may need to change to reflect changing business Writing the self-assessment
priorities. The goals are expected to be SMART This step involves the completion of an assessment
(specific, measurable, agreed, realistic and time- form which, like the profile form, should be no more
than one side of paper. The employee is asked to
related). Typically they may relate to factors such
summarise in bullet points his or her performance
as: earnings before interest and taxes, revenue,
for the review year. Also, employees are asked to
operational excellence, cash, growth and safety.
summarise their performance against Tyco’s four
Each employee usually has between two and four
key behaviours: integrity, excellence, teamwork and
performance goals.
accountability. These values are supported by nine
In addition to performance goals, employees
key behaviours:
have development goals. These are individual to the
employee and focus on the skills, knowledge and 1. champions integrity and trust;
behavioural changes necessary to accomplish per- 2. managerial courage;
formance goals or prepare for future assignments.
3. customer focus;
Typically, each employee has one or two develop-
ment goals which may concentrate on developing 4. learning/change agility;
strengths or improving development needs. 5. building effective teams;
SHRM_C09.QXD 14/2/07 15:54 Page 349
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
Introduction
Similar to other HR activities explored in this book, SHRD is not portrayed as some-
thing completely new but as an approach to developing an organisation’s human
resource capability that builds on earlier traditions. The majority of readers will already
be familiar with the term training and development, widely recognised as one of the
fundamental components of HR practice. Training and development can broadly be
represented as a planned process designed to improve the current and future capacity
of an organisation’s human resources to work effectively through modifying their skills,
knowledge and attitudes. The process is frequently portrayed as a cycle of four sys-
tematic stages running through: identifying training needs, planning and designing
training interventions, implementing training and evaluating its outcomes.
More recently, the term training and development has been replaced by human
resource development (HRD). At one level this may simply reflect more general shifts
in HR terminology that mirror more closely the language of HRM. At another level,
HRD reflects a significant development from its training and development traditions.
Whereas training and development is normally driven by top-down, planned interven-
tions, HRD incorporates, in addition, a greater focus on individual and organisational
learning that can give rise to accidental as well as planned changes to the skill,
knowledge and attitude base of employees.
SHRD arguably represents the latest extension of the training and development lin-
eage where training and learning are strategically integrated, vertically to an
organisation’s strategic goals and horizontally to other HR activities. This moves
training and development from a process that is largely directed at solving specific
gaps in HR competences as they are identified to a potentially proactive activity
directed at improving corporate effectiveness.
Although many other terms covering the same or similar territory can be found
within the literature, in this chapter, unless referring directly to the work of others, the
terms HRD and SHRD have been adopted. SHRD is used to cover all those situations
where the focus is clearly strategic, and HRD is used where the various interventions
that make up its approach do not have an explicit strategic focus. However, it is
worth pointing out that although the chapter concentrates on exploring the intricacies
of SHRD, and its potential to contribute to organisational effectiveness, opposing
viewpoints on the worth of even its more basic forerunner HRD exist. You may wish to
reflect on the two viewpoints presented below.
In Practice 10.1
Investment in HRD is viewed as an organisational luxury. In reality it represents little more than an
extension of the benefits package. This viewpoint is exemplified where HRD is drastically cut back
at the outset of economic downturn.
Investment in HRD is systematically wasted. This arises through failures to reinforce off-the-job
learning and skills development in the workplace or to cascade HRD outputs throughout the
organisation.
Investment in HRD reflects an act of faith. There is little attempt to evaluate its organisational bene-
fits and bottom-line contribution or even to establish the criteria against which its organisational
payback could be evaluated.
Investment in HRD is targeted primarily at remedying identified employee deficiencies with little or
no connection to organisation strategy and goals, thereby contributing little to the pursuit of sus-
tained competitive advantage.
The potential for this somewhat depressing portrayal of HRD to become an organi-
sational reality is reflected by Helen Milner, Executive Director of Learndirect (Milner,
2004). She argues that training investment is wasted by:
failures to take up places on courses already paid for because staff are too busy to
be released;
undertaking comprehensive training programmes when only a small part is relevant
to the trainee’s job; and
failures to transfer and evaluate learning as a result of inadequate debriefing.
In Practice 10.2
Bottom-line benefits of SHRD – a case of business turnaround at
Hindle Power
Hindle Power faced the threat of losing its major contract, representing 75 per cent of its income, if it
did not improve its customer service significantly. It responded by investing heavily in HRD in order to
survive and built a platform for future growth.
The pursuit of Investors in People (IiP) was used as a catalyst for business planning and improve-
ment with an emphasis on improving communication between line managers and their staff.
Career planning was aligned to a new system of performance appraisal and led to the internal pro-
motion of over 25 per cent of staff.
A training budget was established for the first time and was sufficient to support up to 26 days’
training per annum for every employee.
HRD interventions focused on business management and IT skills, induction, customer care and,
in conjunction with suppliers, product awareness.
Non-work-related HRD was also supported as an adjunct to career planning because it was recog-
nised that the learning derived would result in unplanned organisational benefits.
Over a four-year period, a loss-making company with a turnover of £6 million was back in profit
with a turnover of £15 million and a transformation in its organisational culture.
Source: Littlefield (2000).
Strategic
integration
Definitions
and emerging
themes
The learning
organisation
SHRD: a Defining
What is
continuum of characteristics
SHRD?
meanings of HRD
Knowledge
management
Systematic
models of
HRD and their
strategic
connection
Managers as
key HRD
stakeholders
Figure 10.1 Mapping the SHRD territory: a summary diagram of the chapter content
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 354
Definitions
The exploration of the HRD/SHRD territory begins, in Key Concepts 10.1, with a review
of a number of definitions of the concepts. From these definitions a number of key
themes that are used to inform later chapter sections are extracted.
‘Human resource development encompasses activities and processes which are intended to have an
impact on organisational and individual learning. The term assumes that organisations can be con-
structively conceived of as learning entities, and that the learning processes of both organisations
and individuals are capable of influence and direction through deliberate and planned interventions.
Thus, HRD is constituted by planned interventions in organisational and individual learning
processes’ (Stewart and McGoldrick, 1996: 1).
‘A strategic approach to training and development can be depicted as one where all those involved
are engaged in a connected, explicit and developmental purpose which helps to simultaneously fulfil
an individual’s learning goals and the organization’s mission’ (Mabey et al., 1998: 158).
‘SHRD could thus be defined as the creation of a learning culture, within which a range of training,
development and learning strategies both respond to corporate strategy and also help to shape and
influence it. It is about meeting the organisation’s existing needs, but it is also about helping the
organisation to change and develop, to thrive and grow. It is the reciprocal, mutually enhancing,
nature of the relationship between HRD and corporate strategy which lies at the heart of SHRD and at
the heart of the development of a learning culture’ (McCracken and Wallace, 2000: 288).
‘Strategic HRD may be considered as a range of culturally sensitive interventions linked vertically to
business goals and strategy, and horizontally to other HR business activities, to actively encourage
and support employee learning, commitment and involvement throughout the organisation’ (Myers
and Kirk, 2005: 359).
Key themes
From the above definitions, a number of key SHRD themes can be identified. Perhaps
not surprisingly the most dominant theme arising is that of external or vertical strategic
integration. However, this tends to be limited to a downstream, vertical strategic rela-
tionship where HRD interventions are designed to support the achievement of an
organisation’s mission and its explicit strategic objectives. In Practice 10.3 provides an
example of this downstream, relationship.
However, what is lacking from this interpretation of strategic fit is the two-way,
mutually supporting relationship that exists when HR activities also operate upstream
of business strategy. This notion of two-way vertical strategic integration surfaces in the
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 355
In Practice 10.3
René Angoujard, general manager of the Novotel London West hotel, challenges the commonly held
view that training is a waste of time and money because it leads to staff leaving once trained. He
presents a stark alternative: ‘What if you don’t train them and they stay?’ (Morrison, 2004: 29). For
him, training was at the heart of a culture change programme prompted by: client dissatisfaction;
poor staff morale; a staff turnover rate of 78 per cent; and the need to profit from a major refurbish-
ment programme and market repositioning of the hotel from a tourist to business customer base. The
hotel had, in his opinion, lost sight of its service ethic and a ‘comprehensive customer service strat-
egy’ was used to forge a service culture (Morrison, 2004: 29).
HRD interventions included formal training around a set of core service behaviours and the use of
selected staff drawn from all levels of the hotel’s hierarchy to act as on-the-job exemplars and
coaches. Initial returns on HRD investment include: a 92 per cent drop in customer complaints; a
10 per cent increase in sales; achievement of a repeat booking level of 70 per cent; winning a number
of training and customer service awards; and reducing staff turnover by over half to 34 per cent.
Source: Morrison (2004: 29).
more recent definitions. The capacity of SHRD to influence and shape corporate strat-
egy in a mutually enhancing relationship is central to McCracken and Wallace’s (2000)
definition. Myers and Kirk (2005) refer to vertical linkage, which in many frameworks of
SHRM assumes a two-way relationship. This fuller interpretation of strategic fit under-
scores much of the contemporary literature on SHRD and receives particular attention
in Chapters 1 and 7. As will be seen a little later, this two-way vertical integration has
been captured in a number of models of SHRD and can be seen reflected in Figures 10.3
and 10.7.
Another dominant theme arising from the above definitions is a focus on learning at
the level of the individual and/or organisation. This finds particular expression when
SHRD is promoted as the vehicle for establishing a learning culture (Stewart and
McGoldrick, 1996; McCracken and Wallace, 2000) which resonates with the notion of
the learning organisation. Learning is also interpreted as the vehicle for promoting the
development of individuals towards their full potential so that there is mutuality
between individual and organisational growth. This begins to surface a third theme, that
to be effective SHRD has to respond to and reconcile the needs of a variety of different
stakeholders. These emergent themes of: strategic integration; learning as an organisa-
tional orientation; and different stakeholder perspectives are central to the concept of
SHRD and are adopted here as the main points of focus for the chapter.
Based on the story so far, what do you think are the essential characteristics of
SHRD?
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 356
Characteristics of SHRD
In the analysis below, it is shown how McCracken and Wallace (2000) develop Garavan’s
(1991) nine characteristics of strategic HRD to arrive at a revised definition and model
of SHRD. They present their construct of SHRD as being very strategically mature and
compare and contrast this with HRD and training where, in their view, strategic matu-
rity progressively decreases. In this sense their ideas on the development of SHRD can
be presented as a continuum, working through training and HRD to the fullest expres-
sion of strategic maturity represented by SHRD (see Figure 10.2).
This section uses the concept of a continuum of HRD strategic maturity as a useful way
of getting to grips with what is meant by SHRD and further develops the three positions
depicted along the continuum presented in Figure 10.2. It starts with a review of the work
of Garavan (1991) and McCracken and Wallace (2000) before going on to explore how the
concept of a continuum can be further developed within the context of SHRD. This will
include going back to the very bedrock of HRD, as represented by the systematic approach
to training. As identified in the chapter introduction, many readers will be familiar with
this systematic approach and its depiction as a cycle of activities or stages and, in the fol-
lowing section, this is further developed to demonstrate its strategic possibilities.
Based on a comprehensive review of the literature, Garavan identified nine key charac-
teristics that for him defined SHRD practice. These are summarised in Key Concepts 10.2.
1. Integration with organisational missions and goals – where HRD is systematically integrated with
wider business planning in a supporting role so that sight is not lost of organisational strategic
objectives when developing HRD interventions.
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 357
2. Top management support – where the strategic integration of HRD requires the active support and
participation of senior management in order to become a reality.
3. Environmental scanning – where the HRD function has the capacity to continuously analyse the
external environment in order to identify both opportunities and threats to business and HRD
strategies and thereby reinforce access to top table planning discussions.
4. HRD plans and policies – where systematic integration requires the formulation of HRD plans and
policies to support wider business needs. For this planning to assume strategic status it must
incorporate environmental scanning and scenario planning which, when used to regularly and sys-
tematically inform strategy formulation, can lead to HRD assuming a proactive, shaping function
rather than simply a reactionary one.
5. Line manager commitment and involvement – consistent with the development of SHRM, the line
manager takes centre stage in identifying and addressing the HRD needs of subordinates. This
requires his or her active commitment and participation, where any relegation of their HRD roles
and responsibilities in their list of managerial priorities will jeopardise its successful delivery.
6. Existence of complementary HRM activities – these cover such areas as improving HRP, recruiting
higher-calibre employees, more exacting performance appraisal and identification of HRD needs,
and individually and organisationally focused career development plans.
7. Expanded trainer role – where to support a strategic orientation HRD specialists need to develop
their roles to become more proactive, interventionist, central and influential. This is likely to be
embodied in the movement from training provider to a consultant, innovator role.
8. Recognition of culture – where the onus is on the HRD function to develop its activities in line not
only with organisational strategy but also with organisation culture. This includes the key role of
shaping HRD activities to maintain and change corporate culture.
9. Emphasis on evaluation – where, in order to develop its strategic relevance, the HRD function must
evaluate its activities so that its strategic contribution and relevance can be assessed.
Source: Garavan (1991).
Before reading on, how would you critique Garavan’s depiction of SHRD as
summarised in Key Concepts 10.2?
Although Garavan’s early work provides a very useful starting point to an exploration
of SHRD, it can be critiqued on a number of grounds. These are summarised below:
a specialist HRD function surfaces as a key SHRD stakeholder when in reality such a
function may be absent from many organisations;
the prominence given to the specialist HRD function downplays the significance of
managers as SHRD stakeholders;
this is at odds with the SHRM construct, which emphasises devolvement of responsi-
bility to line managers;
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 358
the potential for conflict between HRD specialists and managers as SHRD protago-
nists is not addressed;
strategic integration is reduced to a vertical, downstream relationship that overlooks
the importance of horizontal integration and the multi-dimensional, two-way inter-
pretation of vertical strategic alignment;
a very managerialistic standpoint is adopted which relegates the importance of the
employee stakeholder perspective; and
more prosaic areas such as needs analysis and approaches to HRD delivery are
excluded from the analysis suggesting that they have little or no input into the train-
ing/SHRD debate.
McCracken and Wallace (2000) used Garavan’s (1991) strategic portrayal of HRD as
the starting point for their redefinition of SHRD. Following their review of his work,
they concluded that, taken together, his identified characteristics of SHRD portrayed an
approach that is not fully mature in terms of its strategic credentials. They went on to
develop each one of his nine characteristics to reflect what a higher level of strategic
maturity is for them. Their analysis is summarised in Key Concepts 10.3.
In some ways this reworking and redefinition of Garavan’s characteristics of SHRD
goes some way to addressing the earlier critique of his work. There is particularly more
emphasis on the nature and importance of senior and line management involvement
with a commensurate reduction in the emphasis on the role of the HRD function.
McCracken and Wallace’s rhetoric also points to the potential for the development of
closer working relationships between managers and HRD specialists. Their characterisa-
tion of strategic integration also adopts and emphasises the importance of two-way
vertical and horizontal integration. However, their analysis could still be said to reflect
four potential limitations inherent in Garavan’s work:
1. There remains a presumption that a professional HRD function is operating as an
important stakeholder in support of HRD. This is unlikely to be the case in many,
particularly small, organisations.
2. Strategic integration is represented as a single, two-way, vertical construct that does
not reflect the multi-dimensional construct discussed in earlier chapters (particularly
1, 7 and 8).
3. Their ideas appear to be even more managerialist where SHRD is viewed as being less
about addressing employee needs and more about focusing on the strategic impera-
tives of the organisation.
4. Issues around the employee stakeholder role, HRD needs analysis and approaches to
HRD delivery do not feature in their analysis. However, this is not surprising as they
were using Garavan’s initial propositions as the platform for their redefinition of
SHRD and Garavan was silent on these areas.
In one important respect it could be argued that Garavan’s analysis reflects a greater
level of strategic maturity than that offered by McCracken and Wallace. In their treat-
ment of HRD evaluation, McCracken and Wallace emphasise the need for evaluation to
have a harder, quantifiable edge, whereas Garavan places stress on the need for evalua-
tion to focus on the strategic relevance of HRD. On the basis that a harder focus on cost
effectiveness is likely to be a constituent element of evaluating the strategic contribution
of HRD, Garavan’s analysis arguably reflects the greater degree of strategic maturity.
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 359
One important feature of McCracken and Wallace’s work is the emphasis they place
on the relationship between SHRD and the development or existence of a learning cul-
ture within the context of a learning organisation. They argue that ‘the existence of a
learning culture would seem to be crucial to the existence of SHRD and likewise any
organization where HRD has a role in influencing culture probably already has a learn-
ing culture in place’ (McCracken and Wallace, 2000: 285). This they see as reflecting a
two-way relationship between learning and organisational culture. On the one hand a
learning culture is ‘a means of transmitting culture’ and on the other can be ‘a product
of [organisational] culture’ (McCracken and Wallace, 2000: 285). As learning becomes
institutionalised and an integral component of organisation development so, it is
argued, the organisation adopts the characteristics of the learning organisation. This sig-
nificant feature of SHRD is subjected to more detailed scrutiny later in the chapter.
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 360
ENVIRONMENTAL SCANNING
EXTERNAL INTERNAL
ORGANISATION MISSION
ORGANISATION STRATEGY
• 1st-order corporate decisions
• 2nd-order structure/process decisions
• 3rd-order functional decisions
HRD characteristics:
1. Integration with • Little or accidental • Downstream supporting • Two-way, incorporating
organisational integration role shaping role
missions and goals
2. Top management • Very limited support • Active support and • Adopts leadership role of
support involvement HRD
3. Environmental scanning • Limited awareness of and • Continuous monitoring • Senior management role
response to environment by HRD function to scan environment for
HRD implications
4. HRD plans and policies • Ad hoc responses to • Systematically integrated • Developed within HRD
identified problems with organisational strategies
strategy
5. Line manager • Limited involvement and • Line managers exercise • Strategic partnerships with
commitment and commitment pivotal role HRD specialists
involvement
6. Existence of • Little or no horizontal • HRD as one of a bundle • Horizontal integration
complementary HRM integration of HR activities of complementary HRM between complementary
activities activities SHRM activities
7. Expanded trainer role • Limited to a training • Addition of a consultant, • Addition of an organisation
provider role innovator role change consultant role
8. Recognition of culture • Remote from • Interventions shaped by • Operates to influence
organisational cultural organisation culture and/or change
considerations organisational culture
9. Emphasis on evaluation • Little evident evaluation • Cost effectiveness • Strategic contribution and
interventions evaluated relevance of interventions
evaluated
Figure 10.3 Mapping the HRD strategic maturity continuum
Source: adapted from Garavan (1991); McCracken and Wallace (2000).
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 362
TRAINING SHRD
Training of employees
Evaluation of training
interventions
Organisational learning
Figure 10. 4 Problem-directed versus strategically oriented HRD in the introduction of new technology
Source: adapted from Muhlemeyer and Clarke (1997).
failures that pinpoint the gaps in employee capability that are addressed retrospectively
through problem-directed HRD. It is a moot point as to whether the adoption of a
strategically oriented approach to HRD would lead to fewer operational failures and,
perhaps, the saving of millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money.
Perhaps somewhat depressingly for the adherents of SHRD, Muhlemeyer and Clarke
found little evidence of strategically oriented practice. Citing a study by the University of
Chemnitz (1995), they reported that only 18 per cent of organisations ‘strategically plan
their training and development requirements’, with the vast majority of companies
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 363
reporting that ‘planning for training and development occurred only as a result of prob-
lems arising in the workplace’ (Muhlemeyer and Clarke, 1997: 5). This pessimistic
picture of SHRD take-up is echoed in analysis of empirical evidence reported elsewhere
and particularly suggests that few organisations are actively developing a learning cul-
ture or an HRD infrastructure to support such a development (Horwitz, 1999; Ashton
and Felstead, 2001; Harrison and Kessels, 2004). Taken at face value, this suggests that
whatever the rhetoric underpinning the value of SHRD, strategically immature
approaches to HRD dominate practice.
Identify HRD
needs
Implement
HRD
interventions
interventions may then be evaluated in terms of the number of grievances and employ-
ment tribunal cases arising from age discrimination. Second, a move towards SHRM
anticipates the devolvement of much of the responsibility for HR to line managers.
Their performance appraisals may throw up a lack of competence to perform this role,
with HRD needs in, say, employee involvement, giving and receiving feedback, inter-
viewing, etc. emerging. HRD interventions to address these needs will be developed and
implemented and their effectiveness perhaps assessed through the next cycle of per-
formance appraisals.
However, as with so much else in the SHRM literature, the apparent simplicity of this
HRD perspective can conceal a number of underlying complexities. A number of exam-
ples can be used to illustrate this point:
Identification of HRD needs at its most basic level may be simply about identifying
employee deficiencies related to their job performance. In contrast, at its broadest
level of interpretation, the identification of HRD needs may adopt a strategic orienta-
tion. Here business strategies and goals are the starting point for an approach to HRD
needs analysis that then cascades down the organisation to ensure integration
between these needs and those of business units, workgroups and individuals. Indeed
this approach is an important dimension of performance management as discussed
in Chapter 9 and is captured in Holden’s (2004: 318) depiction of the training cycle
with his inclusion of the three sequential stages of ‘organisation strategy’, ‘HRM strat-
egy’ and ‘training development strategy’.
The application of learning theory is needed both to inform the design of HRD inter-
ventions and to ensure that the method of HRD delivery matches (or develops) the
learning styles of participants. Learning is thus critical to the HRD cycle.
The evaluation stage of the cycle may be restricted to the lower levels of evaluation
hierarchies or may alternatively vary across the whole range. Using Reid and Barring-
ton’s (1999) hierarchy, this might mean that the evaluation stage only measures the
reactions of participants to their training or whether trainees have learned what was
intended. Alternatively, the evaluation might range from these lower levels to the ulti-
mate level where it seeks to assess the extent to which HRD interventions generate
organisational benefits.
When practised as a continuous cycle, the systematic HRD model mirrors the charac-
teristics of the action research approach to evaluation as discussed in Chapter 4. This is
also reflected in the HRD loops depicted in Figures 10.6 and 10.7 below, and echoes the
strategic importance of evaluation captured in the models of SHRD discussed earlier.
Therefore, although the systematic HRD model may be thought of as residing at the
less mature end of the continuum, it too can be developed to reflect different levels of
strategic maturity.
that ‘every investment in training, whatever it costs, is a waste of money’ (Muhlemeyer and
Clarke, 1997: 5). They hold that their interpretation of the training cycle (illustrated in
Figure 10.6) encapsulates a strategic orientation. This can be found particularly in their
emphasis on the whole cycle being driven by organisational needs and securing knowledge
transfer, and its exploitation, throughout the whole organisation. Their emphasis on
knowledge transfer prevents HRD outputs being simply locked up in the heads of those
directly involved in the training intervention and makes them available for others to utilise.
Preparation and
Controlling HRD implementation of
HRD interventions
Securing success:
know-how transfer
within the workplace
Environmental scanning
External Internal
Business strategies,
Organisational missions
structures and key HRD implications
and goals
processes
Agreeing responsibilities
Implementing
Evaluating learning for the management
planned learning
outcomes and monitoring of
interventions
learning interventions
1. No systematic training where employee development is likely to be ad hoc and at times accidental.
2. Isolated tactical training (as reflected by Muhlemeyer and Clarke’s (1997) problem-directed
approach).
3. Training integrated with operational management as part of planned structures for skill and career
development.
4. Training as a vehicle for implementing corporate strategy and achieving change in a downstream,
supporting role.
5. Training and learning as a vehicle for shaping strategy through two-way strategic integration.
6. Training and learning as a process through which strategy is formulated.
7. Learning and development processes are strategically directed to building and enhancing the
organisation’s core competences as the source of competitive advantage.
The notion that SHRD can represent the process through which strategy can be for-
mulated is developed by Luoma (2000). In an alternative approach to delineating
different types of strategic integration, he identifies three HRD variants. The first –
HRD driven by needs – adopts the familiar downstream stance where the strategic inte-
gration of HRD is defined by its ability to equip employees with the skills, knowledge
and attitudes necessary to support the achievement of organisation objectives. The role
of HRD here is to identify skill performance gaps that might frustrate the achievement
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 368
of organisational strategy and then to close the gaps through appropriate HRD interven-
tions. The second – HRD driven by opportunities – replaces this internal focus with one
that concentrates on importing HRD strategies from the ‘outer world of employee
development’ to act ‘as catalysts for mental growth in organizations’ (Luoma, 2000:
772–773). Cited examples include HRD associated with business process analysis, team-
work and total quality management (TQM) where their importation is designed not
only to support the implementation of current organisational strategy but also to pro-
vide the capacity to orchestrate strategic and culture change. The third – HRD driven by
capabilities – focuses on developing employee capabilities as the source of and route to
competitive advantage. This is consistent with the resource-based theory of the firm and
core competences discussed in earlier chapters. It is these organisational capabilities that
become ‘the primary object of strategy, and managerial attention should be focused on
factors that support the capabilities’ (Luoma, 2000: 775). These approaches, when oper-
ated in tandem, can, respectively, help support the efficient maintenance of the strategic
status quo, provide the basis for new or revised strategic thinking or form the very basis
of competitive strategy itself.
Taking all these perspectives into account, it is now possible to revise the continuum
of HRD strategic maturity and identify the defining characteristics of points along it
(Figure 10.8).
• Ad hoc • Problem directed • Planned cycle of • Focus on needs • Two-way strategic • The process
• Incidental • Reactive activities arising from integration through which
• Focus on strategy • Contribution to strategy is
employee needs • Downstream strategy formulated
support role formulation • Employee
capabilities as
the route to
competitive
advantage
Lee (1996) Lee (1996) Gibb and Garravan (1991) Harrison (1993) Lee (1996)
Muhlemeyer and Meggison (2001) Muhlemeyer and McCracken and Luoma (2000)
Clarke (1997) El-Sawed (2002) Clarke (1997) Wallace (2000)
Mabey et al. (1998)
Earlier in the chapter, three themes that emerged from an analysis of definitions of
SHRD were identified: strategic integration; the centrality of a learning culture; and dif-
ferent stakeholder perspectives. The subsequent analysis of SHRD against different levels
of strategic maturity and models of systematic HRD cycles not only reinforces these
themes but builds on them to the point where it can be argued that they represent the
defining characteristics of SHRD.
Strategic integration
Starting with strategic integration, it is not surprising that underpinning the concept of
SHRD are the principles of vertical and horizontal strategic fit. Although not capturing
the whole range of the multi-dimensional nature of strategic integration discussed in
Chapter 1, the foregoing analysis embraces:
the importance of two-way strategic integration where SHRD both supports the
achievement of organisational strategies in a downstream relationship and can act to
help shape strategic formulation in an upstream relationship;
the role of SHRD in supporting (and being supported by) other SHRM activities and
strategies in a mutually reinforcing coherent package; and
the contribution of SHRD to strategic change through its emphasis on and exploita-
tion of a learning culture.
Although not yet made explicit in this chapter, earlier coverage of vertical strategic
integration (particularly in Chapters 1, 7 and 8) has established the position that the
concept applies to the three levels (or orders) of strategy identified by Purcell (1991) and
that vertical integration can operate in a two-way relationship. These four strands,
together with horizontal integration and strategic change, delineate the six different
strands of strategic integration discussed in Chapters 1 and 7. In Chapter 8, worked
examples were used to show how these different strands of strategic integration could be
applied to strategic recruitment and selection. This provides a template that can be
applied to all HRM interventions to evaluate their strategic pedigree and you are
encouraged to think through how these six different types of strategic integration can be
applied to SHRD. However, the Self-Check and Reflect Question that follows should
help you to get started.
How can SHRD help support second-order strategy changes designed to pro-
duce a flatter organisational structure through delayering?
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 370
What are new, however, are the attributes of SHRD embedded in the highest level of
strategic maturity depicted in Figure 10.8. This portrays SHRD as the process through
which strategy is formulated (Lee, 1997) and the driver of organisational capabilities
that represent the route to sustainable competitive advantage (Luoma, 2000). These
ideas increasingly find expression through such terms as intellectual capital and knowl-
edge management, which require further exploration as a component part of the second
theme: the centrality of a learning culture. For Walton (1999: 82), ‘The measure of suc-
cessful SHRD is that people development and the supporting learning processes should
be considered to be one of the strategic capabilities and distinctive competences of those
organisations that effectively undertake them’.
A multi-stakeholder perspective
The third theme, concerning different stakeholder perspectives, changes in emphasis as
HRD moves along the continuum of strategic maturity. At the training end of the con-
tinuum the focus is very much on employee needs with the HRD function and
specialists being held largely responsible for addressing them. Here the role of line man-
agers is restricted mainly to identifying HRD needs. At the SHRD end of the continuum
the focus is on organisational needs, senior management leadership, and strategic part-
nerships between line managers committed to HRD and HRD specialists. This positions
senior and line managers as having a pivotal role to play in the effective delivery of
SHRD. For Mabey et al. (1998) the support of senior managers and active involvement
of line managers is an essential component of their model of SHRD because they consti-
tute a dominant coalition of interests and represent and reflect the prevailing
organisational culture.
The first of these defining characteristics of SHRD, strategic integration, is a constant
throughout the book and, as indicated above, you will now be left to explore how the
multi-dimensional nature of strategic integration, particularly developed in Chapters 1,
7 and 8, can be applied to SHRD. The remaining sections of the chapter go on to con-
centrate on important SHRD dimensions related to the two remaining themes identified
above: the centrality of a learning culture; and different stakeholder perspectives. In the
first of these, two distinct perspectives surfaced earlier are explored – the learning
organisation and knowledge management. For the second the concentration on HRD
stakeholders is directed at managers who are regarded by many as playing the pivotal
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 371
role in SHRD (for example, Mabey et al., 1998; McCracken and Wallace, 2000; Harrison
and Kessels, 2004). Critical here is not only the development of managers themselves
towards greater levels of competence to enhance their contribution to organisational
success but also how they execute their personal HRD role responsibilities in support of
the development of their staff.
These characteristics of SHRD, expressed through the three emergent themes, mirror
what Harrison and Kessels (2004) conclude are the four key future challenges facing the
HRD function:
achieving strategic integration and thrust;
facilitating culture change and building a learning culture;
promoting workplace learning processes that build social as well as human capital;
developing managerial and leadership capability to operate in changing organisa-
tional form.
A recurrent theme running through the management literature and reflected in this
book is that organisations will need to learn how to adapt to endemic change if they are
to survive and flourish. There is nothing essentially new in the notion that organisations
learn to interact with their environment to varying degrees of success. Indeed, learning
can be identified at the very foundation of many management change initiatives, such as
TQM, culture change, and business re-engineering. Learning also lies at the heart of
SHRD. Individual and/or organisational learning was a dominant theme arising from
the definitions of SHRD considered at the beginning of the chapter such that the devel-
opment of a learning culture is sometimes seen as being synonymous with SHRD
(Stewart and McGoldrick, 1996; McCracken and Wallace, 2000). Such is the strategic
significance of learning that in some quarters its status has been elevated to become the
modus operandi of organisations finding popular expression in such terms as ‘The
Learning Organisation’ or ‘The Learning Company’.
Organisational learning (the process of learning) The learning organisation (the process of
learning to learn)
Focuses on learning that results in behavioural Focuses on learning that results in changing
changes among employees, either individually the behaviour of the organisation itself as
or in workgroups it anticipates or responds proactively to
changes in its operational environment
Concentrates on how individuals learn. Seeks Concentrates on learning how to learn.
to analyse the process involved in individual Seeks to explore methods for improving
or collective learning in order to better the learning process in a continual quest
understand how it can contribute to to improve the ability of the organisation
formalised HRD to learn
Concerned with knowledge development in Concerned with enabling employee learning
order to gain new insights that have the to generate positively valued outcomes
potential to influence the future behaviour such as innovation, managing change and
of employees the development of core competences
Viewed as a means to an end where Viewed as an end in itself where the
behavioural change is directed at supporting development of a learning organisation can
the achievement of organisational goals become a strategic goal of the organisation
Sources: Garavan (1997); Mabey et al. (1998); Reynolds and Ablett (1998);
Armstrong and Foley (2003); Betts and Holden (2003); Sun and Scott (2003).
The learning organisation has therefore a broader focus that builds on and thereby
incorporates the principles underpinning organisational learning. The section now goes
on to focus on the implications that this broader interpretation of the learning organisa-
tion has for organisational SHRD practice.
Learning can be derived from all experiences – accidental and deliberate/successes and failures –
and used to shape future behaviour.
Learning is valuable in its own right and learning how to learn is a critical part of the process.
Learning from both the external and internal environment takes place at all levels of the organisa-
tion and therefore there is a premium on sharing knowledge across organisational boundaries.
Learning is a continuous process and at its most powerful when it becomes habitual and intern-
alised.
Unlearning and the reconstruction and adaptation of an organisation’s knowledge base is a key
managerial task.
Learning is used intentionally as an enabling mechanism for organisational transformation.
Conscious organisational initiatives are necessary to translate learning, from whatever source, into
a strategic force.
An underpinning organisational philosophy, culture and supportive structure are necessary to
create the right environment for experiential learning and its operational application.
It embraces a multi-stakeholder approach with a reduced emphasis on formal HRD interventions
and greater emphasis on employees accepting responsibility for their own learning and managers
actively facilitating the processes of learning.
Sources: Pettigrew and Whipp (1991); Storey and Sisson (1993); Mabey and Salaman (1995); Lundy and Cowling (1996);
Muhlemeyer and Clarke (1997); Walton (1999); Ashton and Felstead (2001); Sun and Scott (2003).
interaction between learning and outcomes can occur at a number of levels (Argyris and
Schon, 1978, 1996; Walton, 1999; Harrison and Kessels, 2004). The first level, single-loop
learning, focuses on improving current practice (i.e. doing what we currently do better).
Essentially it involves a continual cycle of detecting errors in current practice, identify-
ing potential areas for improvement and making incremental enhancements to work
operations. For example, the manufacturing organisation cited in an earlier chapter (In
Practice 8.6) was not able to meet its growth strategy because it could not fill its staff
vacancies in a virtually full employment labour market. A single-loop response would
anticipate incremental adjustments to recruitment and selection practice in an effort to
match labour supply and demand. This could include, for example, changing recruit-
ment media, redefining the person specification, or sourcing vacancies from abroad.
The second level, double-loop learning, focuses on questioning established practice
(i.e. challenging what we currently do). Essentially it involves challenging existing aims,
established beliefs and values with a view to reconstructing organisational systems and
processes as organisations strive to adapt to changes in their internal and external envi-
ronments. This response may be triggered when evaluation demonstrates that changes
resulting from single-loop learning have not worked and could lead, for example, to
changes to an organisation’s core values, mission or strategy. Building on the above
example, a continuing failure of single-loop adjustments to recruitment and selection
practice to match labour supply and demand could lead to the organisation questioning
SHRM_C10.QXD 20/2/07 09:26 Page 374
its business practice in more fundamental ways. This might lead to outsourcing its
production operations to eastern Europe, a wholesale relocation to another country or
the capital intensification of work where labour is substituted by technology.
The third level, triple-loop learning, focuses on the processes of learning (i.e. learning
what we can from single- and double-loop learning). Essentially it involves ‘reviewing
and reflecting on previous learning experiences and using such experiences as a basis for
the formation of new learning activities and insights’ (Walton, 1999: 389). It is synony-
mous with learning to learn and is directed at improving organisational learning
processes. Double- and triple-loop learning are particularly identified with the concept
of the learning organisation. Although not situated in an organisational context, you
might like to think through the extent to which the no-diet approach to losing weight,
summarised in ‘In Practice’ 10.4, relates to single-, double- or triple-loop learning.
In Practice 10.4
How to lose weight without dieting: the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow?
Clinical trials currently underway may point to an effective but novel way of losing weight. Early
results include:
an average weight loss after four months of more than 10lbs (4.54 kilos);
an average weight loss of a further 2lbs (1 kilo) over the next six months;
only a minority of subjects involved in the trials putting weight back on; and
weight loss over a full year of up to 40lbs for some subjects.
These results have been achieved without any instructions with respect to diet or exercise
regimes. The ‘no-diet diet’ starts from the assumption that most diets fail because people revert back
to deeply ingrained habits. The approach being trialled requires subjects to behave in opposite ways
to their habitual ways of behaving (‘unlearning’), experimenting with behaviour in close relationships
and changing activity patterns. So, for example, the subject might have to act as an introvert if they
were an extrovert and vice versa, or might give up watching television and listen to the radio instead.
Although not an objective of this approach to behavioural modification, the weight loss seems to
follow. The reasons for this are not yet fully understood but it is believed that being forced to change
certain behaviours in this way results in subjects thinking more carefully about their other lifestyle habits.
Source: Persaud (2005).
The final paragraph of In Practice 10.4 probably gives the greatest insight into the
type of learning being displayed. A diet based on changing the patterns of behaviour not
ordinarily related to dieting at least elevates learning to double-loop. However, transfer-
ring this learning, even if subconsciously, to eating habits probably reflects triple-loop
learning, where prior experiences are being used to develop new insights.
become learning organisations. Indeed, the conceptual and practical difficulties sur-
rounding its practical manifestation have led to something akin to the chicken and egg
dilemma – it probably takes a learning organisation to produce a learning organisation!
This has led to the conclusion that the learning organisation is better viewed as an aspi-
rational vision that can at best be pursued as a never-ending journey and at worst will
never be realised (Walton, 1999; Tjepkema et al., 2002). This perspective is echoed well
by Garavan’s (1997: 26) view that ‘It is perhaps more appropriate to suggest that organi-
zations can develop in a progressive manner towards a learning organization but it is an
idealized state which may never be attained’.
It is not surprising, therefore, that much of the literature on learning organisations
tends to concentrate on those organisational practices and support mechanisms that
help build towards a learning organisation (for example, Garavan, 1997; Walton, 1999;
Griego et al., 2000; Armstrong and Foley, 2003). These frequently coalesce around:
the creation of a learning culture where learning and experimentation are actively
promoted, as evidenced through such things as the resources allocated to learning
and development activities and the recognition and reward of risk taking;
structural mechanisms to support organisational learning, such as routines for col-
lecting, analysing, disseminating and applying information, and identifying and
addressing learning and development needs as well as the organisation structure itself
(Chapter 5);
the importance of evaluation as a continuous process that not only underpins the
principles of the learning organisation and knowledge management but informs
organisational investment in HRD/SHRD (Chapter 4); and
the psychological maturity of an organisation’s human resources such that, for exam-
ple, employees at all levels are receptive to the greater levels of accountability, autonomy
and responsibility that underpin the construct of the learning organisation.
Given the above analysis, it is not difficult to subscribe to the view that the learning
organisation is perhaps best regarded as a ‘convenient shorthand term for describing an
overall philosophy for sustaining learning in organisations’ (Walton, 1999: 409). This
leads to the position where it could be argued that, while a learning organisation cannot
exist in its idealised form, some organisations will exhibit some of the characteristics of
learning organisations (Griego et al., 2000). For those committed to the aspirational
vision of the learning organisation this will represent a very pessimistic picture. How-
ever, it is a position largely supported by empirical evidence. Based on an analysis of case
study and survey findings it can be concluded that there is little evidence of either the
existence of learning organisations or, perhaps even more significantly, the support
mechanisms necessary for their creation (Reynolds and Ablett, 1998; Ashton and Fel-
stead, 2001; Tjepkema, 2002; Harrison and Kessels, 2004). In Practice 10.5 provides a
sample of conclusions that can be drawn from the available evidence.
In the context of SHRD the whole philosophy of the learning organisation is disarm-
ingly seductive. The underlying hypothesis is that where learning takes place all the time
throughout the organisation, the organisation will be better able to cope with change and
uncertainty and thereby sustain long-term competitive advantage (Lundy and Cowling,
1996). Where the continuous development of employees is inextricably linked to the
process of strategic management they ‘become a major source of competitive ability,
positioned to take advantage of every opportunity, while taking a positive stance when
confronted with adversity’ (Harrison, 1993: 317). Others have gone further to argue that
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 376
In Practice 10.5
Interest in the concept of the learning organisation far exceeds its practical manifestation. In a
survey of 60 organisations with a good record of investment in HRD, 84 per cent expressed an inter-
est in the concept, 10 per cent claimed to have adopted the concept in practice but only 0.25 per
cent were able to report on progress towards its implementation (Reynolds and Ablett, 1998).
Little progress has been made towards the much heralded move towards a knowledge-based
economy built on lifelong learning because: few employers provide the conditions necessary to
support continuous employee development; apart from some professions, there is little interest
among occupational groups for lifelong learning; and for most employees ‘notions of employee
development never mind continuous learning remain a fantasy’ (Ashton and Felstead, 2001:
184–185).
Even in organisations expected to exhibit high levels of HRD expertise and proactivity, little atten-
tion is being paid to developing learning cultures (Harrison and Kessels, 2004).
The majority of managers lack preparation and training for their HRD role responsibilities (Cunning-
ham and Hyman, 1999; Harrison and Kessels, 2004).
people are the only sustainable source of competitive advantage within a complex envi-
ronment (West, 1994) and that organisational learning may be the only competitive
advantage for firms in the future (Stata, 1989). For example, at the time of writing the
cosmetic company Avon was about to diversify into the financial services sector using its
door-to-door sales techniques to sell financial products. The company had awoken to the
fact that its sales force was something of a sleeping giant with excellent customer access
and sales competence that had hitherto been limited to the sale of cosmetics.
Viewed from these perspectives the learning organisation appears to offer the much
sought after pot of gold at the end of the rainbow and application of its principles has
been associated with the successful management of strategic and operational change (Pet-
tigrew and Whipp, 1991). However, against this, as argued above, the concept may
represent no more than an idealised construct rather than a practical working model
(Storey and Sisson, 1993). One particular difficulty is that, as touched on earlier, the con-
ditions thought to be conducive to learning organisations may not be readily found in
practice. These conditions include: employees who are committed to and capable of man-
aging their own continuous personal development; the presence of mechanisms that
support mutual learning and which capture, disseminate and share learning; an appropri-
ate culture that supports experimentation, risk taking, independent thinking, discord,
authority based on expert knowledge rather than status; and, a pluralist ideology which
accepts the fact that stakeholders within an organisation may have different interests to
pursue. Organisations characterised more by bureaucracy, control and unitarism represent
for many of us the reality of work. Messengers do get shot and even where senior manage-
ment espouse openness and innovation, the reality may be that a blame culture (see
Chapter 6) operates so that employees avoid risks and learn to keep their mouth shut.
Another difficulty is that the very concept of transformation underpinning Pedler et
al.’s (1991) definition of the learning organisation, cited above, is open to criticism. In
reality, organisational transformation is likely to be rare, and anyway, Mumford (1998)
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 377
Knowledge management
In Practice 10.6
Sources: Megginson et al. (1999); Walton (1999); Gibb and Megginson (2001).
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 378
petitive advantage consistent with the ideas of core competences and the resource-based
view of the firm, discussed in Chapter 1. Given this rationale, it is not surprising that
senior management may increasingly look towards HRD to build and help translate the
knowledge and skills of its employees – the organisation’s human capital – into intellec-
tual capital to the benefit of the organisation (Blackler, 1995; Walton, 1999).
Interest in knowledge management would therefore appear to be predicated on at
least two recent interrelated developments: the advent of the knowledge economy; and
the focus on knowledge as the route to competitive advantage. Whereas in traditional
economies added value is achieved through optimising the utilisation of the classic fac-
tors of production (capital, labour, material), in the knowledge economy added value is
achieved through developing and utilising existing and new knowledge to enhance
organisation efficiency, effectiveness and innovation. Where intangible, knowledge-
based assets become the most important currency in the knowledge economy there is a
premium on developing HRD processes strategically to capitalise on these assets (Harri-
son and Kessels, 2004). This position is captured by Skapinker (2002: 1):
People at all levels have accumulated knowledge about what customers want, about
how best to design products and processes, about what has worked in the past and
what hasn’t. A company that can collect all that knowledge and share it between
employees will have a huge advantage over an organisation that never discovers
what its people know.
Despite the attractiveness and plausibility of Skapinker’s conclusion, there are two
important difficulties that impact on its practical application. The first concerns the
number of facets relating to knowledge that have to be managed. The second and related
difficulty concerns the meaning and nature of knowledge itself.
In Practice 10.7
Global knowledge communities network to save millions and
transform learning
Shell International Exploration and Production (SIEP) is a global knowledge-intensive business. This
carries with it the potential that a problem faced in one country has already been encountered and
solved in another. Without a mechanism to share and apply this knowledge a lot of money could be
lost. To address this, SIEP established a series of web-based global knowledge communities focused
on the core elements of its business. As a result, when the Brazil operation needed to retrieve broken
tools from a borehole, local engineers were able to call down help from their international colleagues
specialising in wells in order to help solve the problem. The ideas that poured in enabled the tools to
be retrieved, the well being saved and an estimated monetary saving of US$7 million.
Source: Carrington (2002b).
In Practice 10.8
Thames Water, serving over 50 million customers in more than 46 countries, is using knowledge-sharing
communities that span global boundaries as part of its strategy for meeting one of its organisational
objectives to ‘profit from our knowledge, getting more value from our assets and capabilities’. Examples
of these communities include water preservation experts who pool their ideas on preventing water loss,
and contracting experts who share ways to improve bidding and negotiation processes.
Source: Lank and Windle (2003).
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 380
more specific, on what it knows, how it uses what it knows, and how fast it can know
something new’.
Another way of delineating the various strands of knowledge management has been
to distinguish between human capital, intellectual capital and social capital. Human
capital refers to the knowledge, skills, experience and competence embodied in the
workforce that, as an intangible asset, has value to the organisation. These individual
and collective capabilities (know-how) are acquired through a process of lifelong learn-
ing and represent the focus of organisational HRD practice. However, it is increasingly
recognised that, within the work context, everyday job experiences and professional and
social networks contribute significantly to the accumulation of human capital. It is
when the organisation is able to utilise this human capital to business advantage that it
becomes intellectual capital. From a systems perspective, human capital represents the
key input to knowledge management. When these inputs are converted into the tangible
outputs on which an organisation trades, such as inventions, patents, market brands,
reputation, problem solving, and research and development capability, etc., the outputs
come to represent the intellectual capital of the organisation. Social capital represents
the interpersonal glue that facilitates intra- and inter-group cooperation and comprises
such things as social networks and shared values, norms and understandings. Inter-
preted through the systems construct, social capital is the process that facilitates the
translation of human capital into intellectual capital through being a powerful conduit
for learning and generator of unique and valuable knowledge (Figure 10.9).
Social capital
Human capital (inputs) Intellectual capital (outputs)
(processes)
From this perspective it is social capital that builds and sustains knowledge-produc-
tive relationships within the workforce (Garavan et al., 2001; Storey and Quintas, 2001;
Harrison and Kessels, 2004; Herremans and Isaac, 2004). Therefore, as well as contribut-
ing to the development of human capital, SHRD also has an important role in helping to
create, facilitate and sustain learning communities. However, consistent with the multi-
stakeholder nature of SHRD, delivery of this role requires support from other quarters.
This is particularly true of managers not only through their direct interventions but also
through the work and organisational structures they build (Harrison and Kessels, 2004;
Hedlund, 1994; MacNeil, 2004).
What is knowledge?
The second difficulty emerging from Skapinker’s (2002) conclusion is that knowledge is
a difficult concept to get hold of. There can be little disagreement that it is possible, in
principle, to differentiate between occupations in terms of their knowledge intensity, i.e.
the extent to which knowledge and other cognitive capacities impact on job perform-
ance. For example, jobs such as doctor, lawyer and lecturer can be classified as
knowledge intensive relative to those of cleaner, checkout operator and footballer.
Further, it is not a difficult step to accept that knowledge-intensive jobs can be differen-
tiated according to the extent to which their underpinning knowledge is either relatively
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 381
certain and complete or uncertain and incomplete. For example, the knowledge under-
pinning the job of a pharmacist or lecturer in modern languages is relatively certain
compared with that of an astronomer or ecologist. The extent to which such knowledge
occupations operate in environments prone to endemic change will increase the signifi-
cance of uncertain and incomplete knowledge to their effective performance. However,
such simple distinctions based around knowledge intensity and the certainty of knowl-
edge are relatively crude and do not adequately reflect the many theoretical perspectives
available (see, for example, Blackler, 1995). However, for the purposes of this chapter
they provide a useful template to which can be added the distinction between articulated
and tacit knowledge (Hedlund, 1994).
Articulated knowledge mirrors that which is relatively certain and complete. It is
known and can be expressed through verbal and written communication. Tacit knowl-
edge as a concept, however, is far more amorphous. It represents that knowledge which
it is difficult or impossible to articulate because it comprises intuition, values, etc. that
are highly personal and relate to particular contexts (Hedlund, 1994; Garavan et al.,
2001). Imagine trying to articulate how to ride a bicycle or what it is to be in love and
you will get somewhere close to tacit knowledge and why it is difficult to put it into
words. Not surprisingly, therefore, knowledge management is likely to be largely
directed at articulated knowledge and developing new knowledge. However, Baumard
(1999) argues that, over time, what is currently tacit might become capable of articula-
tion. He terms this implicit knowledge and differentiates it from that tacit knowledge
which remains permanently closed to articulation. From an organisational perspective
this carries with it the potential to bring some tacit knowledge under the umbrella of
knowledge management. It has been argued that small teams have the potential to pro-
vide the forum for creating and sharing tacit knowledge through constant exposure to
and communication between team members (MacNeil, 2004). This reinforces the role
and value of social capital in knowledge management.
If the rhetoric of knowledge management is accepted, it is possible to advance a
number of premises that place it securely within the SHRD arena. These are summarised
in Key Concepts 10.7.
Within the SHRM construct superior human resources, i.e. the know-how embodied in the organi-
sation’s workforce, are a key source of competitive advantage.
Knowledge, as a component of know-how, and social capital, if not the most important dimen-
sions of HR competence are at least major contributors to human capital.
The advent of the knowledge economy, particularly when allied to endemic change, places a pre-
mium on knowledge management where the utilisation of existing knowledge and the generation
and application of new knowledge are used to generate intellectual capital from which organisa-
tions can profit.
In advanced economies, the emphasis is increasingly directed towards ‘developing knowledge
workers capable of making rapid skills transitions and adjustments in response to unforeseen and
unforeseeable contingencies’ (Walton, 1999: 83).
SHRM_C10.QXD 20/2/07 09:26 Page 382
This will necessitate that knowledge workers: possess a high level of job-specific capability;
demonstrate commitment to and engagement in continuous personal development; and exhibit
flexibility and cognitive agility to respond to conflicting demands and the challenge of the unknown.
The HRD infrastructure can make important contributions to enable and support the development
of human and social capital. However, this may well mean the need to transform learning and
development to move it from an over-reliance on structured interventions to an infrastructure that
can support lifelong learning as a route to human and social capital accumulation.
Where such a transformation can take place, it will position HRD at the strategically mature end of
the HRD continuum, depicted in Figures 10.3 and 10.8.
Sources: Lee (1996); Muhlemeyer and Clarke (1997); Walton (1999); Ashton and Felstead (2001); Garavan et al. (2001);
Gibb and Megginson (2001); Harrison and Kessels (2004).
In Practice 10.9
Do knowledge workers routinely exploit external sources to enhance
their job performance?
Travelling home from work, Jo, a university HRM lecturer, is listening to breaking news on her car radio.
There has been an orchestrated series of terrorist attacks on transport systems in capital cities across
the world. Those claiming responsibility say that the attacks are aimed at tourists from developed
economies and will continue until those countries stop exporting capitalism. Not surprisingly the news
story receives wall-to-wall coverage and engenders panic among those planning to travel abroad.
The following day, travelling into university, Jo decides to ditch her plan for the lectures that week
on ‘The virtues of human resource planning in a changing world’. Instead she decides to run each
session as a discussion forum using this latest news as the catalyst for exploring the lecture title.
In relation to externally generated information and knowledge management, a number of points might
be relevant:
the predisposition of knowledge workers to keep their minds switched on when they leave work;
whether the manipulation of non-work-specific knowledge and evaluating its relevance to work
occurs naturally among knowledge workers;
the extent to which this almost spontaneous importation and utilisation of knowledge is dependent
on certain competences, a flexible disposition and the willingness to take risks;
the extent to which Jo’s actions add value, personally, for her students and for the organisation as
a whole; and
how Jo might have responded if this was an organisational expectation rather than a personal ini-
tiative over which she had full control.
Arguably, the chapter to date provides plenty of rhetoric in support of the pivotal role
played by managers in SHRD but it is left to you to work through these in response to
the self-check question below. The focus of the section that follows is on two key inter-
related perspectives: the critical relationship between organisational performance and
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 385
Why might it be argued that managers are the linchpin in the successful introduc-
tion and maintenance of SHRD?
the quality of its managers; and managers’ role responsibilities for developing their staff.
Central to these two perspectives is the management development component of SHRD.
In Practice 10.10
Felicity is a middle manager responsible for 15 technical and professional staff who can be classified
as knowledge workers. She strongly believes that her performance as a manager is dependent upon
the capability of staff who report to her and that their personal development also serves the interests
of her organisation. She is therefore very committed to HRD even if it means that she may be partici-
pating in the development of tomorrow’s managers who may be promoted ahead of her.
Although she is not against formalised off-the-job training, she particularly values using learning
opportunities that present themselves from day-to-day work experiences. This means that she
devotes a lot of her time to discussing work with her subordinates, identifying immediate HRD needs
that arise from this and helping to develop their competence through coaching and mentoring.
Felicity is a strong advocate of learning derived from further education and is currently sponsoring
two of her subordinates on an MBA programme. As part of her commitment to this she regularly
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 386
meets with these staff to discuss: what they are learning on the programme; how it might be related
to and used in their work; how their jobs might be reshaped to enable greater transfer of learning;
how their learning challenges current organisational practice; and the feasibility of experimenting with
practice to reflect their critique.
Felicity applies this same approach to staff undertaking an internal or external off-the-job HRD
course. In addition, before she will approve course attendance, Felicity requires the member of staff
concerned to propose how they will disseminate the outputs from the course, not only within her unit
but more broadly across the organisation, and how they will evaluate its effectiveness. Delivery
against this ‘contract’ is then incorporated into the six-monthly formal performance review she con-
ducts with all her staff.
Although she recognises that this commitment to HRD is very time-consuming Felicity finds that
she is increasingly able to delegate her operational tasks to her subordinates who, in return, seem
increasingly keen for her to do this.
manager assessed on the achievement of six-monthly sales targets by his or her sales
team may be reluctant to release staff to undertake management development or to
commit his or her own time and effort to developing their competence in this direction.
Also, if the cynical view that you only get the behaviour that you either measure or pay
for through performance management systems is accepted, then any failure to incorpo-
rate HRD performance objectives into a manager’s performance criteria will result in
the expenditure of minimum effort in this area. As Storey and Sisson (1993: 171) have
lamented, ‘Rarely is it the case in British companies that the extent to which a manager
develops his or her own immediate staff is regarded as the critical measurement of how
well that manager is doing the job’. Returning to the sales manager example, if the
organisation was serious about managers executing their HRD role responsibilities then
his or her performance-related pay could be made dependent on how well he or she per-
forms in this arena.
At another level, managers may simply lack the necessary competences to execute
their HRD roles effectively. Garavan (1991) cites the inability to appraise performance,
identify HRD needs and empathise with subordinates, together with a lack of listening
and counselling skills as the most commonly identified shortcomings. These compe-
tence deficiencies may reflect the relatively low education and training base of some
managers and/or HRD approaches that rely more on throwing managers in at the deep
end than on their methodical, continuous development (Storey and Sisson, 1993). This
view is consistent with management development being seen as an avoidable cost such
that it receives low priority in organisations (Greer, 2001).
In Practice 10.11
Stanley is a middle manager responsible for 15 technical and professional staff who can be classified
as knowledge workers. He strongly believes that his performance as a manager is down to his own
efforts and that he can get the best out of his subordinates through the force of his own personality.
He has come up the hard way and believes that managers are born and not made. He is therefore
very sceptical about expenditure of time, effort and money on HRD and will actively try to prevent any
of his staff getting one jump ahead of him on the organisational promotion ladder.
Although he sees it largely as a waste of time, his standard response to any identified training
need, if he cannot resolve it through threats and coercion, is to send subordinates on a course. How-
ever, he regards off-the-job courses as more like a holiday and resents the time staff spend away
from their job. Stanley feels that the demands of his job do not allow him the luxury of spending time
on the development of his staff. As far as he is concerned, throwing staff in at the deep end repre-
sents a sensible and efficient approach to HRD.
Stanley is proud of the fact that he has got where he is today without any management qualification
and does not see the value in management education. He is aware that two of his staff are undertaking
an MBA at their own expense. In the early days of their programme they had approached him wanting to
discuss their course and its relevance to their work responsibilities. He had advised them to forget that
theoretical nonsense and to get on with their jobs ‘the way we do things around here’.
Stanley is generally critical of the competence of his staff and resents the fact that he cannot dele-
gate work to them because they cannot be trusted to perform it effectively. His view is that if you
want something doing well, then do it yourself.
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 388
learning can play in drawing the two worlds together. Under this approach, business needs
are increasingly linked to managing change and the requirement for managers to innovate
and take risks. This they argue is more likely to happen in a learning climate where ‘experi-
ences, whether successful or not, are rapidly assimilated by others and form the basis of
learning how to cope with change’ (Twigg and Albon, 1992: 86).
What factors have contributed to the relatively low level of importance attaching
to management development?
Summary
Access and read the work of Luoma (2000), Mabey et al. (1998), McCracken and Wal-
lace (2000) and Muhlemeyer and Clarke (1997) cited in the chapter and compare and
contrast their views on what constitutes SHRD.
Review the components of SHRD discussed in the chapter and produce your
own conceptual model of SHRD. Critique your model in terms of its strengths and
weaknesses.
Select either the learning organisation or knowledge management, read more widely
around the concept and its practise by organisations. Produce a critique of both its
theory and practise.
Revisit either Chapter 3 or 6 and explore how SHRD can contribute to the interna-
tionalisation of business or the strategic alignment of culture.
Use the internet to source four or five examples of organisational SHRD practice
(preferably relating to practise in a number of different countries). Using the con-
tinua of HRD strategic maturity depicted in Figures 10.3 and 10.8, analyse the cases
and locate them on the continua providing justification for your decisions.
Just how extensive is SHRD in practice? A comparative survey of SMEs and large
organisations.
Are you sitting comfortably? Evaluating HRD practice against a continuum of strate-
gic maturity: a survey of organisational practice.
Of what practical relevance is the concept of the learning organisation to organisa-
tions competing in today’s global economy?
What is meant by knowledge management and to what extent is it being practised by
organisations?
To what extent do managers hinder or help the development of SHRD practice?
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 391
Case Study
INA
INA Bearing Company is a medium-sized manufac- supervisors operated as team leaders and man-
turer of high-precision engine components for the agers as supervisors. The grapevine was rife and
automotive industry. Based in Llanelli, South Wales, the works council operated more as a forum for dis-
it is one of a number of manufacturing companies cussing housekeeping issues. Previous attempts to
across Europe owned by the multi-national Schaef- build skills through NVQ (National Vocational Quali-
fler Group. fications) programmes had foundered because of
In 2001 the company was facing a crisis. Its lack of time and commitment among supervisors to
market position had been declining rapidly since undertake the necessary assessments of employee
the late 1990s as a result of orders being switched competences. The workforce was characterised by
to low-cost producers in eastern Europe. This long-serving employees who had received little
period resulted in successive reductions in the task-based HRD. Lastly, employee relations had
workforce from around 860 to 360 jobs. In 2001 deteriorated to the point that some unresolved
prospects looked bleak. INA’s German parent had issues had prompted strike ballots.
plans to switch even more production capacity to In addressing these potential obstacles, INA took
units in eastern Europe which, if implemented, two early important steps towards facilitating the
would have resulted in the loss of a contract desired learning culture where survival was seen to
accounting for around half the plant’s output and depend on learning faster than the rate of change.
further job losses of 120. First, one-to-one meetings were held with every
Faced with this bleak scenario, the personnel employee to explain the company’s vision and signal
manager led a strategy workshop to reformulate the management’s commitment to that vision. The
best way forward. It was accepted that competing emphasis was on communicating the company’s
with its European counterparts on the basis of cost position honestly, whereby if the company failed to
was not a viable option. Instead INA decided to achieve its vision its decision to base its strategy
compete on the basis of quality with a vision to around HRD investment would have at least resulted
become the group’s preferred location for high-tech in employees having been equipped with high-level,
production work. At the same time, it was recog- portable skills that would significantly enhance their
nised that this transformation in production employability. The second was to forge a partnership
orientation could not be achieved without radical agreement with the trade union Amicus. This resulted
realignment of the company’s skill base. This led in the union signing up to the change programme
INA to a commitment to compete on the basis of and securing funding for significant investment in the
workforce capability. Investment in machinery was company’s learning centre.
to be switched to investment in human capital with These two interventions have changed the
the clear intent of building an employee skill base, employee relations climate and opened up a gen-
developing a continuous improvement culture and uine two-way dialogue. The individual meetings
building towards a learning organisation in order to allowed employees to share their perceptions on
realise the company’s vision. obstacles to the development of a learning culture.
In effecting this transformation, INA had to con- They particularly stressed the importance of a uni-
front a number of potential obstacles. The demands fied team. This resulted in the harmonisation of
of continuous production severely limited the time terms and conditions, the introduction of an infla-
available for staff development. The failure of previ- tion-linked pay system and the re-alignment of the
ous turnaround initiatives had left the workforce works council. Shop stewards now report that col-
cynical about management’s intentions. Over time, laboration has replaced confrontation, evidenced
the demands of production had resulted in the HR by the way that the works council now plays a key
roles of managers, supervisors and team leaders role in developing strategy. Also, the council’s sub-
becoming diluted. Team leaders spent too much committees have been charged with leading
time helping out with production, meaning that the important initiatives. These include a review of in-
management hierarchy was becoming distorted as ternal communications and the development of
SHRM_C10.QXD 14/2/07 15:55 Page 392
systems to support company financed individual reported that the grapevine is now regarded as the
learning plans (similar to EDAPs). least reliable information source by employees.
The platform for skills development was the re- Labour turnover has fallen from an already low 8.1
launch of the NVQ programme. This time around, the per cent in 2001 to 2.5 per cent and absence rates
roles of managers, supervisors and team leaders have been reduced by 50 per cent. Cost-reduction
have been redefined to enable them to commit to projects have produced savings in excess of
their HRD responsibilities. This surfaced a number of £324,000, alongside improvements in productivity
management skills gaps among these groups, such and the company’s health and safety record. The
as communication, and led to the introduction of an company’s efforts have also received external
NVQ level 3 in business improvement techniques for recognition, including a number of HR accolades.
supervisors and an NVQ level 3 in management for The company was named ‘Welsh people develop-
team leaders. To reinforce their commitment to HRD, ment company of the year’ in 2003 and shortlisted
senior managers assist in customising training to for CIPD’s annual People Management Award in
meet INA’s context and participate in its delivery to both 2003 and 2004.
those with leadership roles. An NVQ level 2 pro- Despite this progress, and representations made
gramme in performing manufacturing operations is by employees to the German parent, by the end of
being delivered in collaboration with a local college. 2003 INA did not know whether all of this would
This is being taken by all the company’s production turn around its fortunes within the Schaeffler Group.
operators, some of who are now progressing through However, the vision of becoming the Group’s ‘pro-
levels 3 and 4 of the programme. duction location of choice’ took a large step
For some operators, gaining the NVQ award rep- towards becoming reality when in 2004 it was
resents their first ever external qualification. However, announced that the Llanelli plant would not only
NVQs, while addressing identified skills gaps, repre- retain production of the ‘at risk’ component but
sent only one step in the direction of forging a would also be commissioned to produce a new
learning culture. The development of the learning high-tech engine component for a prestigious car
centre represents a significant milestone in this jour- manufacturer.
ney. Computerised learning facilities provide a Sources: Roberts (2003); Evans (2004).
network of HRD possibilities for all staff and so far,
for example, 100 employees have signed up for the
government-initiated Learndirect courses. In-house Case study questions
continuous improvement courses further reinforce
the focus on learning which is increasingly being 1. How is INA trying to build a learning culture and
supported by those already trained becoming how would you assess its success to date?
involved as coaches, mentors and NVQ assessors in 2. In a number of models of SHRD, employees, line
order to help cascade the outputs of the various managers and senior managers are identified as
training programmes throughout the organisation. As having important roles to play in its development
roles are redefined, HRD support is offered to help (for example Mabey et al., 1998; McCracken and
facilitate the changes. For example, programmes to Wallace, 2000). To what extent do these
develop meetings skills have supported the now stakeholders represent obstacles to the
active engagement of employees in the works coun- development of SHRD in INA and how are any
cil and its sub-committees. The trade union, Amicus, such obstacles being addressed?
appoints and sponsors four learning representatives
3. Where would you position INA along the HRD
and uses TUC courses to support their role develop-
strategic maturity continuum (Figure 10.8) and
ment. The company’s investment in individual
how would you justify your placement decision?
learning plans is yet another step along INA’s journey
towards internalising a learning culture throughout 4. Either – what recommendations would you make
the company. Although some of the HRD outcomes to help INA move further towards strategically
of these plans involve employees attending non- mature HRD?
work-related study in their own time, the message Or – what further evidence would be needed to
the company wishes to communicate is that learning justify positioning INA at the SHRD end of the
is valuable for its own sake. HRD strategic maturity continuum (see Figures
This process of transformation has already 10.3 and 10.8)?
yielded substantial benefits. The works council has
SHRM_C11.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 393
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
Introduction
Reward has always enjoyed something of a Cinderella status in the world of person-
nel management. It has traditionally been about the rather dull but necessary
concerns of wage and salary administration than the more exciting arena of strategy.
Indeed, that tradition represents almost the opposite of strategic thinking as the fol-
lowing quote from Smith (1983) illustrates:
Repeated questions to managers and employees about why they pay and accept
certain levels of remuneration usually result in replies which boil down to the same
answer: that is the pay level is as it has always been or, in harsher terms, we don’t
really know. There are very few organisations where the answer is clear and positive.’
(Smith,1983: 12)
This chapter covers evidence which suggests that the situation in many organisa-
tions may not have changed that much in the last 20 years. However, for the more
progressive organisations, times have changed; reward now plays a central part in
HR strategy. According to one senior HR practitioner:
Organisations are realising what a powerful lever reward is and how it needs to com-
plement their other business strategies, whereas historically people have tended to
view it in glorious isolation.
(Arkin, 2005)
It is this change which is the theme of this chapter.
The term ‘reward’ rather than ‘pay’ is used in this chapter. This is an important point
because employees expect more than pay for their efforts, so the definition of reward used
in this chapter includes non-pay benefits, such as recognition and pensions, as well as
wages and salaries. This broad definition of reward is examined in the first part of the chap-
ter. It is followed by a definition of the term ‘strategic reward management’ which serves as
the guiding framework for the rest of the chapter. The chapter continues with an analysis of
the factors in the external environment that have led to the increased interest in strategic
reward management. The main part of the chapter is about the environment internal to the
organisation and the links between intra-organisational factors that impact upon strategic
reward management. The chapter then concludes with a discussion of some of the ethical
concerns which attend new types of reward.
Linkages between
Reward
intra-organisational
Management
factors and
strategic reward
management
Figure 11.1 Mapping the strategic reward management territory: a summary diagram of the chapter content
SHRM_C11.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 395
What is reward?
Armstrong (2002: 3) defines reward as ‘how people are rewarded in accordance with
their value to the organisation. It is concerned with both financial and non-financial
rewards and embraces the philosophies, strategies, policies, plans and processes used by
organisations to develop and maintain reward systems.’
This definition is a useful point of departure for this chapter because it points the
direction that much of the chapter will take. The first part of the definition notes that
‘people are rewarded in accordance with their value to the organisation’. This is a signifi-
cant point because it immediately raises the central concept in new reward thinking that
it is people that are the focus of concern, not jobs. This is reflected, for example, in indi-
vidual performance-related pay schemes. In addition, Armstrong’s (2002) definition
notes the importance of both financial and non-financial rewards. Including both finan-
cial and non-financial rewards in the reward system is recognition by the employer that
non-financial rewards may play an important part in attracting, and, more particularly,
retaining employees. It also represents what seems to us an important principle: that
individuals require more for their efforts than simply monetary reward.
Total reward
Non-financial rewards are the cornerstone of the concept of total reward. This concept
emerged from the USA in the late 1990s. An internet-inspired booming economy gener-
ated a war for talent, and the consequent need to retain the most effective employees (IRS,
2003a) persuaded many organisations to look at their reward packages in new ways.
Total reward combines the traditional pay and benefits elements with the other fac-
tors that employees gain from employment. These may be skills, experience,
opportunity and recognition. Therefore it is more than a flexible benefits package or a
consideration of the combined value of basic pay, incentives and benefits. Total reward
takes into account the less tangible benefits of employment (IRS, 2003c). The total
reward package may differ between organisations, employee groups or individual
employees. It may contain such considerations as a competitive base salary, development
opportunities or flexible working hours. The aim is to construct the total reward pack-
age (see In Practice 11.1) in such a way that it is tailored to the desires of individual
employees with the cost implications for the employer being minimal.
SHRM_C11.QXD 20/2/07 09:29 Page 397
In Practice 11.1
The Forestry Commission awards its 21 senior staff 30 days holiday, while all other managers and
staff (approximately 3,100) receive 25 days annual leave on entry and 30 days after ten years’ service.
However, it also offers a number of options for employees to take a longer break from work. These
are in addition to the statutory rights to unpaid parental leave and fall into four broad categories:
Short breaks with pay. All employees are able to request short periods of time off work, regardless
of their length of service. This allows staff to take time off to deal with life events, such as a family
bereavement or domestic emergencies, or to participate in voluntary public service activities. How-
ever, employees are encouraged to take holiday to cover these and managers will take account of the
person’s untaken annual leave in deciding whether to grant special paid leave. Employees who have
completed their probation – usually a year-long period – may apply for special leave without pay, of
which there are several variations:
Short breaks. Employees are able to take an extended break of up to 40 days a year. ‘This type of
leave accommodates those employees who want to take a longer holiday, for example to visit rela-
tives abroad. But such leave is limited in length and a return date must be agreed prior to the
period of leave starting.
Open-ended. Employees can take an open-ended period of leave. While some organisations grant
such sabbaticals for work-related or learning activities, the Forestry Commission does not place
any restriction on what an employee can do during this time. Typically for no more than one year.
Career breaks. A scheme aimed at those with caring responsibilities provides the opportunity to
take an unpaid employment break of up to five years. Again, employees must have completed their
probationary period. Although not restricted to parents, that is the target group for this type of
break and they are the most frequent takers.
The examples in ‘In Practice’ 11.1 and Key Concepts 11.1 raise the total reward issue
which is currently exercising the minds of many HR specialists: that of work–life balance.
There is growing evidence that flexible working arrangements do help to lower absenteeism,
reduce staff turnover, improve recruitment and widen the labour pool – all of which are tangible
business benefits for companies looking for an edge in competitive and challenging markets. To give
an example, stress-related sick leave costs British industry £370 million a year. It’s a cost that we
cannot afford.
I am therefore delighted that the term work–life balance is slowly but surely becoming a part of the
everyday business vocabulary and that examples of good practice are becoming more widespread.
It’s my belief that it is not simply a matter of political correctness – it is sound business sense.
The argument for work–life balance is compelling. Since the launch of the DTI Work–Life Balance
Campaign in 2000, the government has been committed to raising awareness of the business case
for work–life balance and showing employers how they can implement effective policies.
We are committed to changing workplace culture, which is why we are bringing in new laws –
developed in partnership with employers and employees – to create a new legal standard for flexible
working. For example, from April 2003 parents of young or disabled children will gain the right to
request to work flexibly and their employers will have to consider their requests seriously.
However, there is still work to be done to get more companies to seek and implement change.
There are no off-the-shelf solutions to work–life balance issues. Our job is to enable a dialogue to
take place between employers and employees that allows them to develop solutions that suit their
individual workplace.
Work–life balance is about both empowering employees with control and choice over their working
lives, and helping businesses to operate more efficiently, helping our economy become more produc-
tive. I believe that employers that instigate change will soon reap the bottom-line benefits that result
from a happier workforce.
Source: Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (2002).
What obstacles stand in the way of the more widespread adoption of work–life
balance policies?
The strategic reward model in Figure 11.2 forms the basis of most of the content of this
chapter. At the heart of the model is the theory that the HR strategy plays an important
role in delivering the organisation’s overall business strategy by creating in employees
certain behaviours, the need for which are implied by the business strategy. These
employee behaviours may be produced by an HR strategy, which includes a reward
strategy as well as other HR strategies such as the cultural strategy; the structural strat-
egy and other HR strategies (e.g. recruitment and selection, training, performance
management, diversity).
The business strategy is based on the organisation’s external and internal operating
environments. Armstrong (1993) notes that the internal environment consists of the
organisation’s culture, structure, technology, working arrangements, processes and sys-
tems. In part, the model owes something to the thinking of Lawler (1995) who argues
that the organisation’s reward strategy can make a valuable contribution to the develop-
ment of employee behaviours, although he, like us, concedes that reward is, of course,
only part of the wider HR strategy.
External environment
ORGANISATIONí S BUSINESS
STRATEGY
OVERALL HR STRATEGY
Reward strategy
Cultural strategy
Structural strategy
Other HR strategies
(e.g. recruitment and selection,
training, performance
management, diversity)
EMPLOYEE BEHAVIOURS
Internal environment
Figure 11.2 Reward strategy and its relationship to business and other strategies
Figure 11.2. suggests that reward strategy is increasingly being driven by the overall busi-
ness strategy of the organisation, which is shaped by the external and internal
environment in which the organisation operates. A recurrent them in this book is the
changing nature of the external environment. In Table 11.1 some of the major environ-
mental changes are considered and what they signal for an organisation’s reward strategy.
Table 11.1 External environmental changes and their relationship to reward strategy
More competitive product markets Greater emphasis upon cash bonuses (e.g. in
dictating need for greater cost control team pay or individual performance-related pay
(IPRP) schemes) that are not consolidated into
base pay
The drive for more customer-focused Greater need for reward strategies that emphasise
organisational cultures the demonstration of customer-focused
behaviours as a key performance criterion
More competitive labour markets in Reward strategies that are designed to attract and
key occupations retain key employees (e.g. paying for competence
acquisition, high performance). (See Schuster and
Zingheim, 1999)
Adoption of new technologies Need for reward strategies that are designed to
pay employees for acquiring new competences
The rise of HRM and high-commitment Increase in initiatives, such as employee work
practices involvement and teamwork, leads to search for
reward initiatives that complement these
The fact that most of these external environmental changes have occurred is beyond
dispute, although not all of them (e.g. the decline of collective bargaining) are signifi-
cant in all organisations. To some degree, these environmental changes are reflected in
the objectives for introducing new pay systems explained by organisations in the
research conducted by Corby et al. (2005). Among these objectives were attraction and
retention of staff; encouraging flexibility; and wanting to reward employees financially
for remaining in their current posts rather than seeking higher pay through promotion.
But the evidence suggests that the promotion of ‘leading edge’ reward strategies has not
occurred to the extent that one may have expected. Lowe et al.’s (2002) international
survey showed that the move to variable pay may not be as pronounced as it is tempting
to think. Only three countries’ managers (China, Japan and Taiwan) rated pay incentives
as an important part of their current reward systems, much higher than the USA and
Australia. However, all managers in all ten countries in their research were of the opin-
ion that there should be greater dependence upon pay incentives in their reward
systems. This suggests that actual reward practice is running behind management ambi-
tions. When asked if incentives were a significant amount of pay, only Korea scored
highly, whereas USA, Canada and Australia were low. This last finding is surprising given
the national cultural value of individualism in these three countries. Again, managers in
all ten countries thought incentives should be a more significant amount of pay. A simi-
lar result was evident when the focus turned to reward being contingent upon
organisational or group performance. Again, only China and Taiwan reported relatively
high dependence upon reward contingent upon organisational or group performance.
In another study, Brown (1999) notes that although 94 per cent of the respondent
organisations in a Towers Perrin study of 460 organisations in 13 European countries
reported that they had made ‘significant’ changes to their reward policies in the preced-
ing three years and even more had changes planned,
the reward package of the average European worker, in fact, looks very similar to
that of three, five or even ten years ago, with base pay levels set using a job evalua-
tion system in three-quarters of the companies; pay managed within ranges
averaging between 20 and 40 per cent in width; an annual profit-sharing scheme;
and an increasingly comprehensive bundle of benefits.
(Brown, 1999: 53)
SHRM_C11.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 402
Brown argues that the impression gained from this study is one of incremental change
with, for example, competences being used to improve traditional job evaluation schemes
and team pay introduced alongside, rather than in place of, individual bonus schemes.
This lack of major change does raise questions as to what obstacles there may be to its
introduction. Brown (1999) argues that there may be two such obstacles. The first is the
lack of skill and commitment that many line managers have when it comes to the imple-
mentation of reward initiatives, particularly (as noted in Chapter 10) when they are
linked to performance management. The second obstacle is the poor grasp that many
employees have of such basic issues as how their base pay is set and the value of their
reward packages. This is what the authors found (Lewis et al., 2002) found in a study of
the introduction a new reward scheme in a large UK company. Only eight of the 460
respondents to the Towers Perrin survey noted above were able to say that their employ-
ees had a strong understanding of the basic pay issues that relate to them.
Equally well-known are the theories of Maslow (1943) and Herzberg (1968). Maslow’s
‘hiearchy of needs’ suggests that people’s needs change as they ascend a hiearchy, which
has basic needs for food, security, etc. at the lowest level, with self-actualisation at the
highest. Herzberg argued that employees were more likely to be motivated by factors such
as achievement and the work itself than simply by money. While money has only limited
power to motivate, it does have the ability to demotivate employees if they are dissatisfied
with the amount they receive or the way in which this amount is determined.
It is beyond the scope of this chapter to go into detail on these and the many other
motivation theories. What is clear is that this is a highly complex issue. Perhaps the best
we can say is that money may motivate some people to behave in particular ways some
of the time, in some circumstances. What we cannot assume is a clear relationship
between pay and motivation.
service. Base pay will also change, of course, upon promotion to a more responsible job.
Base pay embodies the values of predictability, security and permanency – none of
which are characteristics consistent with the desire to change employee behaviours.
From a managerial perspective, base pay is not necessarily the best form of reward
strategy because the element of permanency that it entails is expensive. Increasingly
employers are asking themselves why they should build into their fixed salary costs a per-
manent salary bill that takes little account of changing external, organisational and
individual circumstances. Reward strategies that rely exclusively on base pay built into
salary scales, through which employees move annually until the top of the scale is reached,
or promotion achieved, are typical in public-sector employment. Such strategies assume
that length of service equates with experience and loyalty – neither of which tends to be as
prized by organisations now as in the past. Indeed, such is the pace of change that yester-
day’s experience may be an impediment to change. Moreover, it is now generally accepted
that loyalty to one employer, typified by a career spent with that employer, is an increas-
ingly outdated concept in an age where employees may have a number of different careers
as well as employers. Reward strategies that rely on promotions for employees to grow
their salaries do not take into account the fact that organisations now have flatter struc-
tures, with the consequence that promotion is less available.
However, the decreasing interest in the dominance of base pay does raise an interesting
question for HR specialists: ‘how can the traditional reward objectives of attracting, retain-
ing and motivating employees be achieved while making the pay budget more cost
effective?’ The answer for many organisations has been to make base pay reflect the market
rate for the job and to supplement this with a variable pay element related to individual
performance, team performance, organisational performance and individual competence
acquisition – or a combination of these. One of the key decisions that needs to be taken
into account is whether to pay the variable element as a lump sum bonus or to consolidate
this into salary. The trend in both the USA and UK has been for a move towards one-off
cash bonuses (IDS, 2003a). This is hardly surprising given the cost saving that the organi-
sation enjoys. By not raising base pay, one-off cash bonuses do not affect future base pay
increases or other associated payments such as overtime, and, of course, pensions.
Moving from all base pay to a combination of base and variable pay does, of course,
signal the organisation’s desire to move from paying for the job to paying for the person.
Therefore, the reliance on traditional bureaucratic forms of job evaluation is less pro-
nounced. However, job evaluation is still relevant. Base pay still needs to be set at a level
consistent with jobs throughout the organisation and the external labour market. There-
fore, some method of determining the relative importance of jobs is needed. It is that
definition of importance that is likely to be different in the organisation which places
more significance in a combination of base and variable pay. Such a definition is likely to
reflect the changed employee behaviours the organisation wishes to encourage in order
to meet its changed organisational circumstances. What is clear, according to Schuster
and Zingheim (1992), is internal equity will no longer be the dominant consideration.
The market value of jobs, and employees’ skills and their impact on the organisation’s
strategy will take precedence over internal equity.
Moving from a situation where all pay is base pay to one where there is a combi-
nation of base and variable pay does carry with it threats. What may these be?
SHRM_C11.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 405
The outcome of these implementation weaknesses is that the value of paying for per-
formance is not practised. What seems a good idea in principle becomes overtaken by
perceived problems with the result that employees and managers lose faith in the concept.
This then raises considerable doubts about the ability of IPRP to deliver the cultural
change objectives planned by organisations (see Key Concepts 11.2 and In Practice 11.2).
If appraisal-related pay is not suitably designed and introduced sensibly into an environment where
trust is high and there is a readiness to adapt to the change, employee relations may suffer. It may not
only fail to motivate but may in fact demotivate. Employees may soon become discouraged if they are
not aware of the levels of performance they need to attain or where appraisal-related pay awards are
not applied consistently across the eligible participants. There may be doubts about the credibility of
the scheme where financial constraints, for example by the use of budgets or ‘quotas’, unnecessarily
restrict the extent or amount of appraisal-related pay awards. A carefully developed scheme should
minimise the scope for complaints about subjectivity in assessment and divisiveness in operation.
In particular, the appraisal-related pay scheme should be designed to avoid any tendency to mark
higher each year to retain employees during periods of labour shortage. Any beneficial link between
performance and reward may be lost with pay costs rising but without a corresponding rise in corpo-
rate or individual performance. Employers are also advised to consider how the scheme will fit with
the management style and culture of the organisation.
Employers may also need to overcome a disinclination among some employees to move around
an organisation where learning the skills required by a new job may jeopardise their appraisal-related
pay awards. Employees may prefer to remain in a job where they have already been rewarded. Fur-
thermore, employers who have operated a highly centralised method of pay determination may find a
scheme that relies on openness and the judgement of line managers inappropriate.
Some trade unions and employee representatives remain hostile to appraisal-related pay as they see it
as an individualised method of payment running counter to the principles of collective bargaining. These
objections will best be overcome if, through negotiation and/or consultation, they have an opportunity to
influence and agree management’s proposals, develop confidence in the fairness of the scheme and the
way it will operate, and if the potential benefits to their members are clearly demonstrated.
Appraisal-related pay should not be introduced retrospectively. Employees should be consulted at
the earliest opportunity about any proposal to alter the established payment system in favour of
appraisal-related pay. Employers will need to explain the need for such an initiative as well as how both
the organisation and individual employees might hope to benefit from its introduction. Necessary
research will need to be conducted to select the most suitable and flexible scheme that can accommo-
date the immediate and continuing needs of the organisation. Extensive communications and training
will need to take place as far in advance of the scheme’s implementation date as possible. Employees
can only then know what is expected of them and in turn what to expect from the scheme.
The following points summarise some important ways in which appraisal-related pay may be made
more effective.
There must be commitment to appraisal-related pay from senior managers.
The role of managers is critical.
Adequate resources and suitable training should be provided.
Employers should consult with managers, employees and their representatives before appraisal-
related pay is introduced.
SHRM_C11.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 407
All employees involved must receive full and clear information about how the scheme will operate.
Appraisal-related pay should be fair and open and based on a formal system of performance
assessment.
The scheme should be carefully designed, simple to operate and should encourage consistency
and objectivity.
There should be an appeals procedure and the scheme should be regularly evaluated.
In Practice 11.2
Mobile phone company O2 has reduced staff turnover by introducing performance-related pay for new
workers in its UK call centres. The director of compensation and benefits at O2 said the new pay struc-
ture, which includes a performance-linked bonus and a revised career and pay progression framework,
had ‘dramatically reduced’ staff attrition rates and the company’s reliance on temporary staff.
O2 introduced the reward structure as part of a larger transformation programme to increase
employee commitment and customer satisfaction following customer complaints about the complex-
ity of its billing tariffs. Prior to the introduction of the new scheme, pay rises were linked to service
and length of time in the role. There was no performance element and some of the salaries the com-
pany was paying were thought to be higher than the market rates.
Staff pay rises are now based on individual performance, monitored via phone-call observations and pro-
ductivity levels. Employees can receive a target bonus of up to 10 per cent of their salary per annum, paid
out twice yearly. They also sit down every month with their line managers to discuss their performance.
Currently only 30 per cent of O2’s 3,300 UK call centre staff are on the new pay structure, with the
remainder on a set salary up to £5,000 higher than those on the new pay scale. The difference is a
result of O2’s demerger from BT in 2001, because transferred staff were on the same terms and con-
ditions that BT originally set in place.
O2’s compensation director notes that the next task is to merge the existing employees onto the
new terms and conditions. However, it was thought that the different pay scales had not caused
problems between employees as the company had been very open about the two levels of pay.
Source: People Management (2004b).
In team-based pay, payments, or other forms of non-financial reward, are made to team
members on the basis of some predetermined criteria. These criteria may overcome one of
the objections to team-based pay, that of differential contribution, by making differenti-
ated rewards. Armstrong (2002: 336–337) notes that the purpose of team-based pay is to
‘reinforce the sort of behaviour that leads to and sustains effective team performance by:
1. providing incentives and other means of recognising team achievements;
2. clarifying what teams are expected to achieve by relating rewards to the attainment of
pre-determined and agreed targets and standards of performance or to the satisfac-
tory completion of a project or the stage of a project;
3. conveying the message that one of the organisation’s core values is effective teamwork.’
Thomson (1995) identified the types of teams that may be associated with team-
based pay. He categorised these as temporary and permanent. The former may be a team
set up to achieve a specific project-related goal. The team would consist of employees in
different functions operating at different levels in the organisation. Permanent teams
may be those based on a specific function (e.g. HR), a process (e.g. in manufacturing
plants), a product market or a geographical area. What seems to be important for team-
based pay to have a chance of success is that the team has a clear identity, a sense of
autonomy, consists of members whose work is interdependent and are flexible, multi-
skilled and good team players (Roberts, 1997: 570).
IRS (2001) argue that the slow take-up of team-based pay may be for five reasons:
1. the problem of identifying teams;
2. the difficulty is assessing individual contributions;
3. the effect that it may have in encouraging employees to stay in high-performing/
rewarding teams thus prejudicing organisational flexibility;
4. group norms which encourage teams to perform at the level necessary to trigger the
financial reward; and
5. the ‘peaking out’ effect, where teams reach a performance peak from which they
decline after two or three years.
In Practice 11.3
The Big Food Group, a retail chain which includes Iceland stores, launched its scheme in 2001. It
covers all employees and aims to link bonus to group and business unit profit.
For the majority of employees 75 per cent of the bonus potential is linked to the business unit
profit target and the remaining 25 per cent to the group profit target. The annual payment is triggered
when the group profit target is hit, since this covers the cost of the bonus payout. Additional pay-
ments are made for performance beyond target. Bonus potential depends upon role and seniority. In
the initial year of operation all staff received a payment of £200. This amount could be doubled if the
maximum profit target is achieved.
At the launch of the scheme, much effort was put into employee communication through briefings
to managers and letters and leaflets to all employees. Progress towards targets is communicated to
employees quarterly.
Source: IDS (2003a).
these tax advantages no longer remain, the link between profit and reward is a straight-
forward one which contributes to the Chancellor’s ambitions.
In addition to linking bonus to profit, many organisations run employee share own-
ership schemes in which employees obtain shares in the company’s stock.
Prior to October 2001, SIPs were known as all-employee share ownership plans (AESOPs). SIPs
provide for four types of share provision:
free shares: given by the company to employees up to a limit of £3,000 in any tax year;
partnership shares: purchased by employees out of their salary before it is subject to tax or
national insurance to a limit of £125 per month (or 10 per cent of salary, whichever is the lower);
matching shares: companies match partnership shares purchased by employees up to a limit of
two matching shares for each partnership share purchased;
dividend shares: dividends may be re-invested tax-free up to a limit of £1,500 per year depending
on the rules in the company plan.
Employees who keep their shares in the scheme for five years pay no income tax or national insur-
ance contributions on the shares. If the shares are withdrawn after three years, income tax and
national insurance contributions must be paid on the initial market value of the shares. In addition,
employees do not have to pay capital gains tax if their shares are kept in the scheme for five years.
Of the 27 large UK employers that participated in an IRS study in 2003 (IRS, 2003b), four were
operating SIP schemes. One of these was the financial services organisation National Australia Group
Europe. Ninety per cent of its employees participate in the scheme. The minimum monthly employee
purchase of partnership shares is £10 and additional free shares are allocated, based on the com-
pany’s performance (no matching shares are allocated as part of the scheme).
The savings-related share option scheme requires a contribution from the employee. In such
schemes, the employee saves for a specified period of three, five or seven years. The scheme speci-
fies that employees can buy shares at the end of the savings period with the savings fund
accumulated. The price of the shares will be the market price at the start of the savings contract or at
an agreed discount agreed at the start of the contract. The shares bought at the end of the savings
contract attract tax relief.
With the three-year savings contract, the employee saves a fixed amount monthly (it cannot
exceed £250) and at the end of the term a cash bonus of 2.75 months’ payment is added. At the end
of a five-year contract, a cash bonus of 7.5 months’ payment is added. At the end of the three- or
five-year term, the employee uses the amount saved and the bonus to buy shares in the company.
For employees who have saved for five years there is the option of extending the term to seven years,
in which case, 13.5 months’ payments is added as a cash bonus. Employees who choose a seven-
year contract do not have to make monthly contributions after five years but agree to leave their
savings untouched for the final two years to qualify for the higher bonus.
The price at which employees have the opportunity to purchase shares must not be below 80 per
cent of the market value at the start of the contract. This seemed to be the typical price determined
by employers in an Incomes Data Services (IDS) study (IDS, 1998). At the end of the contract period,
employees also have the option to have their contributions returned if the share price is not
favourable, rendering the scheme risk-free.
SHRM_C11.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 411
As with profit-sharing schemes, all employees who have been employed by the company for five
years must be eligible to participate in savings-related share option schemes if the scheme is to gain
Inland Revenue approval.
The UK bank First Direct’s savings-related share option scheme has a 61 per cent take-up among
eligible employees (those with at least six months’ service). Participating employees must make a
minimum monthly payment of £5. The company offers a discount of up to 20 per cent on the market
price of the shares purchased. Three- and five-year period options are available (IRS, 2003b).
Gainsharing
Gainsharing is more popular in the USA than in Britain. Gainsharing schemes differ
from employee share ownership schemes in that the relationship between employees’
efforts and their eventual reward is more direct. Gainsharing schemes are designed so
that employees share the financial results of improvements in productivity, cost saving
or quality. The resultant payment is paid from costs savings generated as a result of such
improvements. The gainshare plan payment may be made in three ways: as a percentage
of base pay; as a one-off cash bonus or as a payment per hour worked.
Schuster and Zingheim (1992) are careful to point out that the organisation must
design safeguards to ensure that it derives financial value from the results generated
from the project linked to gainsharing. This type of gainsharing differs from more tra-
ditional forms of gainsharing which have operated in manufacturing under the heading
of Scanlon and Rucker plans. The principal difference is that the foundation of this new
type of gainsharing is the future goals of the organisation, whereas that of more tra-
ditional gainsharing plans is the historical performance standards of the participating
employees. The key point here, of course, is that historical performance standards may
be achieved or exceeded while the organisation’s overall goals are not met.
In Practice 11.4
Gainsharing at BP Grangemouth
BP’s Grangemouth site has operated a gainsharing plan for several years. It covers all 2,300 employ-
ees at the site and is designed to focus the performance of employees on the site’s performance
objectives. The plan is divided into output measures and input measures. Output measures account
for 80 per cent of the overall bonus and include a range of factors, such as:
profits;
costs;
reliability; and
safety.
Input measures cover:
people and organisational objectives;
the completion of projects on time; and
the development of new strategy.
SHRM_C11.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 412
The financial, safety and reliability targets are annual or quarterly cash-based targets and a share of
the savings generated by meeting or exceeding these targets is distributed among employees. The
input targets are ‘yes/no’ targets, which yield payment only if they are fully achieved in the year.
The gainshare bonus is paid annually. In 2003 it was 15 per cent of salary.
Communication to employees is achieved by line managers explaining targets and regularly updat-
ing their teams on progress towards target achievement. Employees can also obtain information on
targets and potential bonus payments from the site intranet.
Source: IDS (2003a).
In Practice 11.5
Norlife is a supplier of retail financial services products in the UK. In recent years the financial services
market has been characterised by intense competition following the deregulation of the market in the
late 1980s. This competition led to the development of a strategy in which cost reduction was a cor-
nerstone. In particular, it was felt to be of paramount importance that more value needed to be
obtained from the organisation’s employees. Obtaining more value from Norlife’s employees was the
driving force behind the new reward strategy that was introduced in 1998.
For some years Norlife operated a traditional pay system. The foundation of this was a conven-
tional pay structure in which a sequence of job grades existed and jobs of broadly equivalent value
were slotted into grades. A pay range was attached to each grade and pay progression was through
that range which contained, typically, ten pay points. Grades were determined by job evaluation.
While this provided an orderly basis for managing pay relativities, it led to a belief by employees that
the only means of career and pay progression was by promotion through the grade structure.
The new structure is based on the principle of job families. All jobs at Norlife are grouped into eight
families that are on six different levels. For example, staff who deal with customer queries in the com-
pany's call centre were placed in the job family ‘sales support’ at level 6 (the lowest level), whereas
directors are in the ‘strategy and policy’ job family at level 1.
For each generic role (e.g. accounting technician) a set of competences was defined reflecting what
role holders should be able to demonstrate as a ‘starter’, ‘typical performer’ or ‘high performer’. Under the
new system, pay is to be determined by market rate, acquisition of competences and the achievement of
individual performance targets. In addition, Norlife management stressed that pay will be determined by
job not grade. An important defining principle of the new system is that those employees who contribute
more will progress faster through the pay scales than those who are average or below average performers.
Stress was laid upon the fact that current pay and benefits were unaffected by the new system.
The company newsletter which announced the new job families system noted several advantages
of the change.
SHRM_C11.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 414
employees would be better equipped to plan their own careers (within or outside the organisation)
and their own training and development needs;
broader job descriptions would give employees more opportunity to increase their skills and make
their jobs more challenging;
employees would not see grade promotions as the only way of furthering their salaries but be
encouraged to think of skill acquisition as a means of career and salary progression;
more effective employees would be able to earn more competitive salaries.
In the final analysis Norlife was seeking to develop a more competent and flexible workforce,
better equipped to manage change and to meet the Norlife goal of increased efficiency and therefore,
reduced cost.
Source: Lewis et al. (2004).
In Practice 11.6
English Welsh & Scottish Railway (EWS) is a rail freight operator running trains to and from British
ports and into continental Europe. The company employs around 6,000 people. It emerged as a
single entity from an international consortium that bought British Rail’s freight operation in 1996. The
company recognises four trade unions.
New structure
The revised organisational structure consists of five bands or ‘levels’, ranging from the more junior
roles in level one to the chief executive and director roles at level five. Broad-banded pay applies to
SHRM_C11.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 416
the 1,200 white-collar workers only, leaving the remaining 4,800 employees in level one (largely train
drivers, guards and ground staff) on a specific pay rate for a job.
Using external market data, EWS sets the range of pay attached to each level and this is further
broken down into three sections: low (L), medium (M) and high (H). These salary ranges can be altered
over time as and when changes occur in the market place. An outline of the general level, dimensions
and accountabilities of the jobs that fall into each band was agreed with the unions and this is used
by managers and HR as a guide to determine where each job sits within the framework.
Source: IRS (2004c).
Competence-related pay
Competence-related pay can be defined as ‘a method of rewarding people wholly or
partly by reference to the level of competence they demonstrate in carrying out their
roles. It is a method of paying people for their ability to perform’ (Armstrong, 2002:
289). It is not surprising that interest in competence-related pay should grow given the
enormous amount of attention paid to the definition of competences for purposes of
selection, training and appraisal in recent years. However, there is some evidence that
take-up of competence-related pay is limited. Only 14 per cent of the 460 organisations
in the Towers Perrin study noted above (Brown, 1999) reported that they related base
pay increases to employees’ competences.
As Chapter 9 details, perhaps the main reason for the low adoption of competence-
related pay, in spite of the general interest in competences, is that managers often tend to
concentrate on the ‘hard’ outputs (i.e. those performance indicators that can be calculated
numerically) rather than the ‘soft’ processes (e.g. processes such as working with other
team members) when measuring employee performance. Normally, managers are not too
concerned with how the job is done provided that results are achieved. Yet competence-
related pay overcomes this alleged weakness of IPRP by ensuring that, usually, both
processes and outputs are taken into account when pay-related measurement is made.
Armstrong’s definition of competence-related pay highlights the most important dif-
ference between competence-related pay and IPRP. This is that IPRP is essentially
retrospective in that it measures performance over the past pay period (often one year).
However, competence-related pay is forward-looking. It identifies those competences
that are likely to be associated with effective current and future job performance.
SHRM_C11.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 417
Flannery et al. (1996: 92) define competences as ‘sets of skills, knowledge, abilities,
behavioural characteristics, and other attributes that, in the right combination and for
the right set of circumstances, predict superior performance’. So the technical skill to do
the job is insufficient. The successful job-holder must ally this skill (e.g. introducing
clients to new products) with other attributes (e.g. the desire to enhance the perform-
ance of the branch or team). In other words, competence-related pay is highly
contextual. It also has, potentially, strong links to organisational strategy. Using the
model of reward strategy in Figure 11.2, the question which may be asked at business
strategy level is ‘what employee behaviours/competences do we want our people to
demonstrate in order that we may achieve our business goals?’
Competence-related pay need not necessarily ignore performance outputs at the expense
of concentrating on competences. Many organisations introducing competence-related pay
accompany competence-related ratings with performance output measurements, the market
rate for the job, and the position of the individual on the pay scale in determining salary
level. (A good example of such a reward programme is that of US giant Dow Chemical
(Risher, 2000).)
One of the problems with IPRP is that managers can apply IPRP measurement crite-
ria in an arbitrary way which creates in employees perceptions of a lack of fairness. This
is no less true of competence-related pay. In fact, the more the approach moves from
one where identifying discernible skills and outputs is possible, the more subjective the
measurement process becomes. As yet, little empirical research has been done on the
operation of competence-related pay but it would be surprising were it to uncover any-
thing other than the same sort of employee dissatisfactions as found in relation to IPRP.
However, the measurement criteria themselves may be more acceptable to employees
than in the case of IPRP. This is often because there is some form of employee involve-
ment in the development of the competence statements (Armstrong and Murlis, 1998),
albeit that line managers are making the assessment of the extent to which the compe-
tences have been demonstrated. This contrasts with IPRP where it is usually the
manager who defines the performance objectives and assesses performance.
Summary
A variety of factors in the external environment has led to the increased interest in
strategic reward management. Principal among these are those factors which have
impacted upon the commercial environment in which organisations operate creating
the necessity to be more competitive and responsive to change.
The intra-organisational factors that impact upon strategic reward management are
the organisation cultural strategies, structural strategies and other HR strategies. In
terms of reward, the principal contributors to the organisation’s cultural strategies are
pay for performance schemes. These may be at the level of the individual, the team,
the business unit and the organisation.
The reward contribution to the organisation’s structural strategies involves changing
reward structures. In this chapter the move from traditional pay structures to job
family and broad-banded structures was examined. Competence-related pay was
analysed as the means by which reward may complement other HR strategies.
Use an organisation with which you are familiar, which may be one in which you are
currently employed or have worked for, or one known to you, in order to study the fol-
lowing topics.
Assess the degree to which the organisation has specific reward objectives.
Using the model in Figure 11.2, evaluate the extent to which the organisation’s reward
management may be termed ‘strategic’.
Analyse the external factors that are impacting on the organisation’s reward strategy.
Evaluate the extent to which the organisation’s pay structure fits the culture and
structure of the organisation.
Evaluate the extent to which the organisation’s reward strategy complements the
other HR strategies in place.
What role do line managers play in the management of reward and how may this role
be made more effective?
How can employee involvement activities contribute to the effective management of
reward?
What constitutes an ‘effective’ reward scheme?
SHRM_C11.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 419
Case Study
Developing a global reward strategy at Tibbett and Britten Group
Business context had grown rapidly but there had been no attempt to
introduce consistency in the way that managers in
The Tibbett and Britten Group (TBG) is a UK-based different countries were rewarded. The UK grading
international logistics service provider. Its main cus- structure had been identified as an issue in need of
tomers are retailers and manufacturers, to whom it attention, but it was felt that the best way to
provides warehouse, distribution and supply-chain approach the problem was to take a step back and
management services under long-term contracts. put a broader framework for reward in place across
The company directly employs 35,000 people in 35 the company. The objectives were to:
countries, with the biggest markets in Europe and bring a measure of internal consistency to
North America.
reward by establishing a group policy framework
TBG employs people on a variety of contracts in
that would:
different countries. Operating in a highly competitive
sector, margins are low and the penalty to the busi- help managers communicate a coherent
ness of passing on sudden rises in employment costs policy on reward;
to customers is high. This is especially true where con- guide country managers in the alignment of
tracts are operated on an ‘open book’ basis, whereby reward policies and projects within overall
a management fee is charged and other costs are group principles;
agreed with the customer. The company’s objective initiate a cost-effectiveness review of current
was, therefore, to reform group reward policy in a way reward expenditure in light of what was identi-
that would be largely cost-neutral. Between 65 per fied as valued by employees; and
cent and 70 per cent of the Group’s overall operational maintain the flexibility for local innovation and
costs relate directly to people, so staff reward man- adaptability to customers’ needs;
agement is key to business competitiveness.
The majority of TBG’s employees were transferred
address tactical issues impacting negatively on
from major customers such as Debenhams, Home- employee motivation and engagement, and
base or IBM. These employees retained their existing create a culture where performance drove
terms and conditions of employment. This meant that reward and recognition;
there was a wide variety of pay and grading arrange- create competitive advantage for TBG in the
ments in operation. These varied by country and market place, particularly by improving its repu-
contract. There were short- and long-term incentives tation as a contractor and employer of choice.
and other benefits. There were also differing local rela-
tionships with trade unions. Local managers had The key elements of the reward project were to:
traditionally agreed to vary certain arrangements introduce a broad strategy focused on ten
locally and to pay upper quartile rates, for instance, or
reward principles;
to use a particular form of competence-based pay.
While the use of TBG incentives and benefits had review all elements of reward in line with these
become more consistent, many contracts were deter- principles, project by project;
mined by the terms and conditions transferred from move from the current grading structure to a new
the customer. Most non-management employees job level and job family structure, with five broad
were not on TBG terms and conditions. Managing this work levels, to be rolled out first in the UK; and
complexity was a key issue in the company’s relation- continue to roll out a new voluntary benefits pro-
ships with both employees and customers.
gramme as part of the strategy, introduced in the
UK in September 2003, to European countries.
Developing a new strategy TBG focused on a population of around 3,000
managers in developing the new reward strategy
The group started the process of reviewing its pay and introducing the new job levels. The approach
and benefits arrangements in 2002. The company was ‘one step at a time’.
SHRM_C11.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 420
The introduction
Grading project
An overhaul of the grading system used in the UK was TBG planned to communicate the reward strategy
the largest project being rolled out as part of the over- and UK grading project within the company. The
all reward strategy. In the UK, TBG has historically implementation required a thorough and painstaking
operated a standard grading structure determined by process of one-to-one reviews, group meetings and
job evaluation points. This was extended to evaluate written communications. A management panel was
jobs of managers in other countries. established to provide a permanent consultative
The proposals for the new pay and grading forum to oversee the roll-out of the project to man-
structure meant moving from grades to five broad agement grades. To encourage a move towards
job levels and a job family structure. There were to alignment with the reward principles, annual ‘con-
be clear and structured capability statements for sensus meetings’ were introduced, at which
each level and descriptions of outputs that defined divisional heads met to compare and benchmark
the scope of the role. Using the balanced scorecard information on the reward systems currently operat-
approach, they were to cover four key areas: ing in different customer contracts and countries.
SHRM_C11.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 421
1. ‘Think global, act local’ by creating programmes that employ group principles and maintain optimum internal con-
sistency and cohesion, while providing the flexibility to adapt to local market requirements and practices.
2. Develop and communicate total rewards policies and practices consistent with the stated group objective of
attracting, motivating and retaining highly capable employees who regard Tibbett & Britten as their employer of
choice.
3. Establish a competitive position for total compensation in the market place (fixed and variable pay and benefits) using
appropriate comparator references, as well as internal benchmarks. Recognise that certain strategic roles and exceptional
circumstances will drive variations from the norm without compromising the integrity of the established principles.
4. Pay for performance, strongly differentiating rewards, which reflect the underlying contribution of individuals
through performance assessment against stretching objectives.
5. Establish and communicate accepted levels of operation that communicate clear career paths and development
opportunities.
6. Ensure that all incentive programmes are exciting, ‘SMART’, credible and, where appropriate, tailored to the unique
characteristics of different roles.
7. Implement rewards selectively and tactically, where justified, in recognition of the unique characteristics of certain roles.
8. Support and encourage all managers to ‘recognise from the heart’ the contribution of individuals and teams, as a
critical component of the total rewards strategy.
9. Incorporate flexibility in the design of reward programmes, to provide the benefit of choice across our increasingly
diverse workforce and to facilitate controlled tailoring to customer requests.
10. Exploit the Group’s scale and available financial and fiscal opportunities in the delivery of benefit programmes for
mutual advantage.
A culture where relative status is reinforced A culture where individual performance drives recognition
through grades of contribution.
Externally validated, cumbersome job evaluation TBG bespoke job-levelling methodology: business
methodology: lengthier process, low risk, yet not responsive (and owned), greater discretion and
transparent to managers transparency
Published pay bands drive pay decisions Reliable market information drives pay
Grade changes and promotion naturally hand-in-hand Greater emphasis on lateral job moves planned around
building capability
Grades seen to drive pay Individual performance seen to drive pay
Many grades and benefits thresholds, frequent Fewer, significant job levels, with more benefits paid as
requests for grading reviews cash
Grade increases reflect reporting lines Some managers and their direct reports within the same
level of operation
Grade thresholds are determined by job evaluation So far as possible, grade levels reflect accepted
points (‘tail wags dog’) differences in levels operationally (‘dog wags tail’)
Continue to roll out Hay grades to continental/rest of Reconsider, in light of where and how the interests of
world operations country operations and the Group are best served
Case study questions 2. Look again at the ten principles. Do you think
there may be any potential contradictions
inherent in these principles?
1. Why do you think that the creation of internal 3. What potential benefits do you think may
consistency was such an important objective of accompany the achievement of greater
the new reward strategy? transparency in the new reward strategy?
SHRM_C12.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 422
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 423
Introduction
The aim of this chapter is to consider how the management of the employment rela-
tionship can contribute to the achievement of SHRM. Essentially it has three key
areas, the first area focuses on defining the changes that have taken place in the
employment relationship. Central to this discussion has been the shift away from
industrial relations to employee relations. The aim of this chapter is to explore and
assess the linkages that exist between employee relations and SHRM. This explo-
ration will emerge in the second and third areas of this chapter. In the second area an
analysis of key theoretical discussions on the linkages between SHRM and employee
relations will be presented. In the third area of the chapter evidence of the practices
associated with a strategic approach to the management of the employment relation-
ship will be presented. These practices are grouped around the central SHRM
concept of employee involvement and participation.
The last 25 years in the HRM literature has seen significant focus and evaluation being
placed on a ‘strategic’ approach to the development and implementation of HRM policies
and practices (Legge, 1995b; Storey, 1995, Tyson, 1995; Schuler and Jackson, 1999a;
Boxall and Purcell et al. 2003). Extensive discussions on this strategic approach have
taken place in previous chapters of this book and the purpose of this chapter is to con-
sider the management of the employment relationship and evaluate the strategic choices
that are available to the various parties in this relationship. The term employment relation-
ship can be defined most simply as the interaction between employers and employees.
This simplistic definition highlights a potential problem in the employment relationship, if
the relationship is merely based on interaction, at best it will be operational and as such
have little strategic value for the parties involved. Traditionally, the management of the
employment relationship has focused around the concept which is known as industrial
relations. Industrial relations is generally understood to refer to the relationship between
employers and employees collectively. The focus of industrial relations was firmly based
on collective relationships that existed between individual or often groups of employees
and the representatives of employees, namely trade unions. The CIPD (2005b) believe
that the term industrial relations is no longer widely used by employers and refers to a set
of employment relationships that no longer widely exist. So, do examples of traditional
industrial relations exist?
The first place to look would be within the public sector generally and in health, edu-
cation, central and local government.
Second would be in traditional industries, such as transport, heavy engineering and
utility companies in the electricity, gas and water sectors.
These industries have had traditionally high levels of trade union membership.
Industrial relations became the central element of personnel management from the
mid-1940s until the late 1970s. This period can be characterised by widespread union
membership, industry-level pay agreements, collective bargaining and widespread
industrial disputes and strikes. Employers struggled to assert their authority and in
many sectors collective bargaining was accepted as a form of ‘joint regulation’ that
gave trade unions a say in many key management decisions. Over the last 25 years, a
dramatic shift away from industrial relations towards employee relations has been
SHRM_C12.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 424
witnessed. Employee relations is closely associated with SHRM and is often defined
as an individual relationship between employer and employee. Employee relations
can be considered as a way of describing a variety of employer policies and prac-
tices, which are aimed at improving workplace communications, for engaging
employees directly or indirectly in decision-making and for securing employee com-
pliance with management rules through disciplinary action. The key tool used by
employers in managing employee relations is often employee involvement and partic-
ipation (EI&P). This topic will be discussed in detail in a subsequent section but it is
useful to introduce it at this point. Employee involvement and participation is seen as
playing a central role in SHRM and is regarded as playing a central role in the devel-
opment of high-performance work systems (Marchington, 2001). Bratton and Gold
(2003) identify three aspects in relation to the contemporary debate on EI&P. These
aspects are as follow:
from a management perspective EI&P initiatives are seen as fundamentally trans-
forming the climate of employment relations because they lead to long-term changes
in workers’ attitudes and commitment;
communication plays a critical role in constructing and maintaining a ‘strong’ organi-
sational culture, and, as a feature of the leadership process, ‘communication style’ is
seen as being central to effective leadership;
EI&P initiatives that promote the individual employee rather than employees’ collec-
tive bodies deliberately undermine the role of trade unions; the exception to this is
where the organisation uses partnerships agreements with trade unions to develop-
ment and implement EI&P.
The concept of the employment relationship can be viewed as being a central element of a body of
academic and practitioner writing in the field of employee relations. As Lewis et al. (2003a) highlight, a
skim through the titles of books covering the relationship between employers and employees over the
last 20 years will give an idea of the shift in emphasis that has taken place. In the 1970s and 1980s
important authors such as Clegg (1979) and Bain (1983) used the term ‘industrial relations’ in their
book and paper titles, while more recently the terms ‘employee relations’ (e.g. Rose 2001) and
‘employment relations’ (e.g. Gennard and Judge (2002)) have been used. Undoubtedly there is an ele-
ment of fashion at work here. Lewis et al. (2003a) believe that ‘industrial relations’ is associated with
the declining ‘smokestack’ industries and blue-collar workers and the accompanying emphasis upon
collective bargaining between employers and trade unions. ‘Employee relations’ suggests that a
wider employment canvas is being covered with equal importance being attached to non-union
employment arrangements and white-collar jobs. Nonetheless, the emphasis still tends to be on the
structure of ‘perspectives, participants, processes and practices’ adopted by Salamon (2000).
SHRM_C12.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 425
Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 425
If the analysis presented in Key Concepts 12.1 is correct, the emerging employee
relations concept with a strong strategic theoretical underpinning may be open to
similar criticism to that expressed in relation to the general models of HRM.
These criticisms have been led by Legge (1995b). At this point it may be useful to
consider the following issue: HRM and, in particular, the enhanced strategic focus of
the concept in what is now called SHRM have had widespread coverage in both aca-
demic and practitioner publications but research collected in this field shows limited
evidence regarding the reality of this process in observable organisational practice.
One of the key purposes of this chapter is to consider strategic approaches to
managing the employment relationship both in theory and practice, and to present
evidence of strategic practices in relation to the management of the employee rela-
tions. This issue will be explored throughout this chapter but it is useful to briefly
consider it at this point. A central element of SHRM is the achievement of strategic
integration. Strategic integration relates to linking HR policy choices with different
types of business strategy. At the organisational level, one of the most effective ways
of integrating HR and corporate strategy is through the management of the employ-
ment relationship. At a basic level, three strategic options that are aimed at gaining
‘competitive advantage’ can be identified:
innovation;
quality enhancement;
cost reduction.
Each of these strategies will have an impact on HR strategy, and each will require
the development and implementation of a series of HR policies and practices. The
effective implementation of these policies and practices will require a series of SHRM
behaviours. The choices available to the organisation will be dependent on a series of
internal and external factors. At the internal level, the current and potential future
employment relationship will have a major impact on how effectively the organisation
develops its SHRM behaviours. So, for example, it may be more difficult to move to a
more strategically focused approach in a unionised organisation as the union may
resist attempts by management to make dramatic changes to the terms and con-
ditions of workers.
Each of the basic strategic options has major SHRM implications, for example:
A strategy that focuses on innovation will require multi-skilled employees, who are
regularly appraised; the focus of the appraisal is on the achievement of long-term
goals; pay rates tend to be low but employees may have the opportunity to individu-
alise pay and rewards and link pay to performance.
A quality enhancement strategy will require fixed explicit job descriptions and high
levels of employee involvement and participation; pay is based on market evalua-
tions to ensure equality; there is a high emphasis on team working.
Finally, a cost reduction strategy will result in minimal levels of training and development,
narrowly defined jobs and limited opportunities for career development; pay is based on
market evaluations with the employer seeking to pay below the market average.
The strategy chosen and the associated SHRM policies will have a major impact
on the employment relationship and will directly affect the psychological contract.
SHRM_C12.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 426
The psychological contract will be discussed in depth in the final area covered in this
chapter, but it is useful at this point to offer a brief introductory definition. The psy-
chological contract has been defined by Rousseau (1994, cited by Hiltrop, 1995: 287)
as ‘the understanding people have regarding the commitments made between them-
selves and their organisations’. It is therefore concerned with each party’s perception
of what the other party to the employment relationship owes them over and above
that which may be specified in the contract of employment. As this contract is based
upon perceptions, it is clear that the ‘context’ of this contract is not written and often
not explicitly stated.
Having introduced the key themes to be addressed in this chapter it is now impor-
tant to define the employment relationship.
Involvement
Definition Unitarism New realism and
participation
Individualised Psychological
SHRM contract
Employee Changes in
The black
voice and organisational
hole
commitment practice
Figure 12.1 Mapping the employment relationship territory: a summary diagram of the chapter content
In Key Concepts 12.1, two terms that are central to developing an understanding of the
employment relationship are highlighted. These terms are industrial relations and
employee relations. Throughout this chapter, the term employment relationship is used.
This is deliberate and aimed at supporting the successful achievement of learning out-
SHRM_C12.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 427
Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 427
Define the employment relationship and discuss the changes that have taken
place to the relationship in recent years.
Gospel and Palmer (1993: 3) define the employment relationship as ‘an economic,
social and political relationship which provides manual and mental labour in exchange
for rewards allocated by employers’. An important addition to this definition would be
the psychological element of the employment relationship. Gospel and Palmer go on to
note that there are certain characteristics of the employment relationship that mark it
out as different from, say, the relationship between the customer and the supplier. The
circumstances of the employment relationship may vary considerably. In the UK con-
text, the evaluation and analysis of these factors is a significant area for study and
discussion. These factors are presented in Key Concepts 12.2.
As Rose (2004) points out, ‘the rewards from employment can be economic, social,
and psychological, while the effort (the contribution the employee makes in his or her
job) can range from skilled to unskilled and can be tightly controlled or left free to ini-
tiative and individual creativity’. A variety of employment relationships may exist to suit
the needs of the employer and the employee; this has resulted in changes in the standard
contract of employment to include short-term employment, part-time contracts, use of
agency employees, subcontracting, casual labour and greater flexibility in terms of work-
ing hours, etc. Examples of the use of these methods can be found in the public and
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Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 429
organisational context with which you are all familiar. Within a university, there is a vast
variety of jobs ranging from academics, functional administrative and managerial sup-
port for staff and students, technical staff in relation to information technology, learning
resources (library), security, catering and cleaning operators. The job areas listed above
are only indicative of the range of jobs and roles that exist within a university but the
fact that each category will perform different tasks, require different training and quali-
fications and that the job will be performed in different locations means that the
employment relationship varies enormously. The most visible element of difference can
be in how the main terms and conditions of employment are determined. Two major
variations can be identified. The first is an individualised approach focusing on direct
negotiation between the employer and the employee, which in theory should have a
strategic underpinning based on detailed negotiation between both parties. The practi-
cal reality of this individual approach is predominantly based on the employer laying
out the terms and conditions they are prepared to offer to the potential employee with
little or no opportunity offered to enter into any negotiations. The terms and conditions
offered will focus on elements, such as starting salary, holiday entitlement, pension and
sick pay entitlement, job description, performance and quality standards, etc. Although
the terms and conditions offered should reflect the individual qualifications, expertise
and knowledge of the employee, in many cases the organisations have standardised
terms and conditions across a particular job type or category.
The second variation is based on a more distant collective arrangement between
the employee’s representative in the form of a trade union or professional body and the
employer or the employer’s representatives who jointly determine the main terms
and conditions.
In recent years, there has been increasing interest in the non-legal aspects of the
employment relationship. Lewis et al. (2003a: 12) believe this is particularly because the
very foundations of the relationship, in many cases built upon years of mutual under-
standing, have been threatened. This has given rise to the psychological contract that
exists between employer and employee, this concept will be considered in the final sec-
tion of this chapter. Having considered changes occurring around the employment
relationship, it is now useful to review and assess the differing perspectives on the
employment relationship.
In previous sections of this chapter, time has been spent defining the employment rela-
tionship. As Lewis et al. (2003a: 16) suggest, it is implicit in this definition that a number
of different parties are involved in the operation of that relationship, employees,
employers, trade unions and state agencies being the principal parties discussed above.
Our understanding of the differing theoretical perspectives driving the employment
relationship has been conceptualised by Fox (1966); the three concepts are unitarism,
pluralism and Marxism. In the context of assessing a strategic approach to employee
relations it is essential to examine the first two of these theoretical perspectives. It is
important to note than the modern model of SHRM is largely based around the per-
spective of individualism and the traditional model personnel or industrial relations is
based around the collective perspective. (For an evaluation of the concept of Marxism
generally and individualism and collectivism specifically see Lewis et al. (2003a: 21–25).)
SHRM_C12.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 430
Unitarism
Fox (1966: 2) defined unitarism as a way of thinking about the organisation ‘as a team
unified by a common purpose’, that common purpose being the success of the organisa-
tion. Among the principal characteristics of unitarism are the following:
The employees of an organisation are seen as a team, unified by a common purpose
with all employees pursuing the same goal.
There is a single source of authority, that source being management.
As all employees are pursuing the same goal, conflict is irrational, it must be the result
of poor communication or ‘troublemakers’ at work who do not share the common
purpose.
The presence of third parties in the employment relationship is intrusive: therefore
there is no place for trade unions (Lewis et al. (2003a).
Given this definition it is clear that unitarism is principally a management philosophy
with regard to employee relations. As will be seen shortly, unitarism is very closely linked
to the theory of SHRM that emerged in the USA in the early 1980s. It facilitates manage-
ment to present an approach to managing the employment relationship that is well
matched to their views and opinions. The outcome of this process in organisational
terms is the creation of what has come to be known as management prerogative – which
is described by Lewis et al. (2003a: 17) as the ability of management to make decisions
without hindrance from those who may disagree with those decisions. If this is the case,
the implementation of the unitary perspective can be considered as being consistent
with the view that ‘management knows best’. In this context Rose (2001) notes that the
unitarist ideology may be useful for projecting to the outside world that management’s
decisions are right and any challenge to them comes from those who are either mis-
guided or subversive.
A standard theme in many reviews of unitarism is that the concept bears little or no
resemblance to organisational reality. Fox (1966: 4) argued that unitarism ‘has long been
abandoned by social scientists as incongruent with reality and useless for the purpose of
analysis’. Lewis et al. (2003a: 17) argue that the view that unitarism is ‘useless for the
purpose of analysis’ is questionable. They believe that it is a way of thinking about the
employment relationship that has gained great currency in recent years, as it chimes
with one of the central tenets of the so-called human resource management movement.
Many of the well-established models of SHRM position the employment relationship
firmly in the unitarist domain. An example of this is Storey’s (1995) list of 25 dimen-
sions that differentiate human resource management from personnel management. In
this list, the nature of (employee) relations is ‘unitarist’. Storey’s checklist is presented in
Key Concepts 12.3.
An analysis of Key Concepts 12.3 reflects Fox’s (1966) definition of unitarism as a
way of thinking about the organisation ‘as a team unified by a common purpose’ in sev-
eral ways. A central theme running through many of the elements of SHRM is that of
organisational culture. Lewis et al. (2003a: 18) believe that the development of a culture
that is consistent with unitarist principles and in which the needs of individuals are of
secondary importance to those of the organisation, dominates the thinking.
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Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 431
Unitarism presented in the guise that SHRM may be attractive and of significant
value to some and it is unquestionable that it forms a core element in the majority of
academic analysis in recent years. In the concept of SHRM, it is currently the most influ-
ential theme of analysis in relation to employment relationships. Among the rhetoric
that has been developed in conjunction with the development of the SHRM models and
theories is the concept that ‘people are the organisation’s most important asset’. With so
much theoretical progression and sheer volume of analysis in this area, it would seem
natural to assume that dramatic changes would have taken place in observable organisa-
tion policy and practice. For evidence of these dramatic changes the obvious starting
point would be in the practices of UK companies, who would be actively developing and
implementing policies and practices with the necessary strategic underpinning to trans-
form employment relationships at a workplace level.
The key strategic tool that managers would utilise to achieve this transformation
would, of course, be HRM and the strategic practices associated with it. So the rhetoric,
in the form of key theories and models, tells us that the employment relationship will
have a much greater strategic underpinning based on the pursuit by managers of a wide-
ranging series of strategically underpinned HRM-based practices. So what is the reality?
Following a review of survey evidence collected in the 1990s, Guest (2001) highlights
very low adoption of high commitment human resource management work practice
based upon the principles identified in the right-hand column of Key Concepts 12.3.
This leads Guest (2001: 112) to conclude that ‘the popular cliché that ‘people are the
organisation’s most important asset’ is patently untrue based on the current employ-
ment relations practices and actions of UK managers. Lewis et al. (2003a) argue that
even if there had been wholesale adoption of the unitarist perspective by managers, it
raises the question of whether it is consistent with the new psychological contract. A
simple evaluation would suggest that the two ideas are contradictory. Unitarism stresses
the absorption of the individual into the organisation, with the loss of their own identity
and interests. The new psychological contract, on the other hand, suggests that the
employee is ‘on their own’ to a significantly greater extent, and must respond to their
own needs.
The psychological contract will be discussed in more detail in a subsequent section
but in the context of this section of the chapter the new psychological contract recog-
nises that there is a plurality of the different interests in the employment relationship
rather than a common purpose. This is a view that has traditionally dominated employ-
ment relations thinking and practice and which will be analysed in the next section.
Pluralism
An understanding of the central tenets of pluralism is vital to the understanding of
employee relations because many of the principal procedures, processes and practices
that exist to manage the employment relationship are based on the principles of plural-
ism. Fox (1966: 2) defined pluralism as the organisation being a ‘miniature’ democratic
state composed of sectional groups and divergent interests over which the government
tries to maintain some kind of dynamic equilibrium. Lewis et al. (2003a: 19) believe that
employing organisations are essentially a microcosm of society as a whole. They argue
that the sectoral groups with divergent interests that exist in the organisational context
are as easy to identify in this context as they are in society generally. Employers and
managers represent obvious, potentially different, groups. The differences may be
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Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 433
evident in how the two groups go about achieving certain common goals. In the plural-
ists’ ideology, the validity and legitimacy of these differing interests are recognised.
Managers are responsible for ensuring the overall effectiveness of the organisation and
the achievement of the organisation’s goals. Employees, on the other hand, are more
likely to be concerned with personal goals, in particular the wish to obtain better terms
and conditions of employment. Within each organisation there will be a diverse range of
sectional groups, at the employee level these will be determined by the nature of tasks
performed by each group of employees and the terms and conditions each enjoy.
To give examples of this in a manufacturing environment, one group of employees
will see their key tasks as being linked to performance in a production line environment,
another may interact with clerical and admin staff whose key roles and tasks are quite
different. A third group of employees in that organisation may be dealing directly with
the company’s customers or clients. At the management level, differences of interest will
exist depending on each manager’s function. The existence of the sectional groups with
divergent interests in the organisation signals the potential for conflict, as their interests
may clash over, say, the distribution of scarce resources. Each group makes a case for it to
have what it sees as its ‘fair’ share of those resources. These discussions are often seen as
healthy in an organisational context, and a small degree of internal conflict may well be
necessary to achieve improvements and progression. The key strategic issue for organi-
sations is to ensure that they have appropriate policies and procedures to ensure that
these conflicts do not grow and escalate and create negative organisational cultures.
Methods to ensure that these conflicts do not become unmanageable may be focused on
a process of involvement and participation, and giving employees or sectional employee
groupings a voice in the workplace strategic decision-making process. The concept of
involvement and participation will be discussed in a subsequent section of this chapter.
The effectiveness of conflict handling mechanisms used by organisations is very
much dependent on a key issue that Fox (1966) stressed: that the differences between the
parties are not as ‘fundamental or wide as to be unbridgeable’ (Salamon, 2000: 8). These
parties must have an interest in the survival of the organisation of which they are part.
In strategic terms, simple survival may be a minimum goal but progression and devel-
opment of the organisation should be in the interests of all parties involved. In periods
of major economic problems in the UK, including the late 1970s and early 1980s,
employees and, more frequently, the unions representing them were accused of being
determined to destroy both individual organisations and complete industries. The late
1970s and early 1980s in the UK can be viewed as an era of mass industrial conflict, with
a high number of strikes and widespread disputes in many industry sectors. In this con-
text, virtually every conflict-handling procedure imaginable would be ineffective.
Fox (1966) clearly believed that the pluralistic perspective on employee relations
was the most valid and realistic way to manage the employment relationship.
Given the emergence of the HRM models of management in the 1980s do you
believe that unitarism ia a more appropriate way of managing the employment
relationship in the twenty-first century?
SHRM_C12.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 434
Many analysts, including Guest (1995), and Beaumont (1995), have commented that the
rising interest in SHRM throughout the 1980s coincided with a steady decline in the sig-
nificance of industrial relations as a central element of economic performance and policy.
It also coincided with a decline in the membership and influence of trade unions; during
the 1980s, trade union membership density declined from 53 per cent to 33 per cent of the
employed workforce. Industrial conflict displayed a similar decline, so that in the early
1990s strikes were at their lowest level for decades. As Guest (1995) suggests, it was tempt-
ing to seek an association between the apparent rise of SHRM and the decline of trade
unions and industrial relations. Certainly many of the early models of SHRM were drawn
mainly from successful American non-union firms. On closer examination, the changes
that have occurred in industrial relations in the UK would, in all likelihood, have occurred
with or without the emergence of SHRM, if perhaps at a more gradual pace. In the mid-
1990s, for many organisations industrial relations were no longer a contingent variable
helping to shape business policy and strategy in the way they might have done 10 or 15
years before. What emerges from the literature is that industrial relations (or employee
relations) are of greater importance in the UK than in many of the other developed
economies. A good example of this is the USA, where traditional industrial relations are
now seen as a peripheral issue for many companies. Guest (1995) places the key themes
that are discussed in the SHRM literature in regard to employee relations into three dis-
tinct categories. These categories are presented in Key Concepts 12.4.
Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 435
The first is an examination of organisational commitment and dual commitment. Dual commitment
refers to the fact that employees can be committed to both their employer and a trade union. The
concepts of commitments and dual commitment can be used as a basis for considering the inter-
action between SHRM and trade unionism.
The second examines the evidence on the choices being made by employers in the UK about the
type of SHRM and employee relations they wish to pursue.
The third considers strategy, taken from the trade union perspective, and explores the possible
agendas available to trade unions in an environment where SHRM may be viewed as an opportu-
nity as much as a major challenge.
(Table 12.1) suggests that this provides the basis for the contrasting values and assump-
tions underpinning the normative views of SHRM and industrial relations which have
been presented by Walton (1985), Cradden (1992) and Storey (1992).
This dichotomy has been described as reflecting a soft view of SHRM (see Cradden,
1992; Guest, 1995), and is concerned with the full utilisation of human resources for the
benefit of the organisation. It can be argued that the implementation of SHRM creates a
shift away from industrial relations to employee relations. This is underpinned with the
belief that the best way to ensure full utilisation of human resources is to take care of
what Herzberg (1968) would term hygiene factors, such as job security and pay, through
generous and fair provision, and to tap motivation by providing autonomy and chal-
lenge. Guest (1995) is of the opinion that to fill out the SHRM model, the organisation
should invest in careful selection and extensive training to ensure the high quality of
human resources. In many respects this has been the traditional means of managing and
motivating managerial and professional staff. Guest believes that organisational com-
mitment is central for a number of reasons:
The belief is that committed workers will be highly motivated and will go beyond
contract, delivering higher performance.
Second, committed workers can be expected to exercise reasonable autonomy or self-
monitoring and self-control, removing the need for supervisory and inspection staff
and producing efficiency gains.
Third, committed workers are more likely to stay with the organisation, thereby
ensuring a return on the investment in careful selection, training and development.
Finally, but correctly considered of greatest importance to the discussion of SHRM
and employee relations, it is assumed that a worker who is committed to the organi-
sation is unlikely to become involved in any type of collective activity which might
reduce the quality and quantity of their contribution to the organisation.
Guest (1995) argues that placing organisational commitment at the core of the defi-
nition of SHRM acknowledges the deliberate attempt to win the hearts and minds of the
workforce. In defining organisational commitment, he cites Mowday et al. (1982) as
being the most relevant for any analysis involving HRM and industrial relations. They
define organisational commitment as consisting of three components: identification
with the goals and values of the organisation; a desire to belong to the organisation; and
a willingness to display effort on behalf of the organisation. As Gordon et al. (1980)
state, union commitment can be defined in precisely the same way. The key issue then
becomes the compatibility of the goals and values of the company and the union. If they
are compatible, then it is possible to display high commitment to both the union and
the company. One good example is that of the union Amicus (formerly AEEU & MSF),
which appears to have taken on board many SHRM ideas, with the honourable aim of
maintaining at least a single union presence within the workplace. This of course raises
questions about the role of the union and the nature of the values for which it stands.
Guest (1995) believes an alternative scenario must be considered, based on workers
being able to live with the inherent conflict and ambiguity of identification with two
potentially opposing sets of values. Research by Reichers (1985, 1986) has suggested that
workers can express loyalty and commitment to potentially conflicting targets such as a
workgroup, career and company. This leads to the idea of a dual commitment, to both
company and union, a subject often discussed in literature pertaining to HRM and
industrial relations. The choices available to employees in relation to commitment to
company and union are presented in a simple format in Figure 12.2.
Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 437
Guest (1995) believes that a matrix of this type is a useful starting point for analysis
of commitment to company and union. It is important to bear in mind that it is an
oversimplified specification in two respects. The first is that there may be intermediate
levels of commitment to both company and union, reflecting, perhaps, a kind of con-
ditional approval of both. The second, building on the work of Reichers and others, is
that there are other potential foci of commitment. These include career, a profession and
the family. Commitment to any of these may also conflict with commitment to either
company and/or union.
Much of the research on this subject has been conducted in North America, where
trade unionism has been in decline for a considerably longer time than in the UK. This
might be expected to result in few, if any, employees feeling any commitment to a trade
union and, as such, evidence of dual commitment minimal. The study of dual commit-
ment in the work of Angle and Parry (1986) is probably the most important research
evidence available. They identify the industrial relations climate as the key mediating
variable. Where there was a cooperative and conflict-free climate, dual commitment was
feasible. However, where the climate was hostile, workers were forced to confront the
competing commitments to the company and union, and make a choice, or alternatively
display a commitment to neither. This implies that, when conflict occurs, even though
commitment to company and union may be caused by different factors, some choices
among these factors have to be made.
During the 1980s, management in many UK organisations launched initiatives to win
the hearts and minds of the workforce. Often, these fell under the broad umbrella of cul-
tural change programmes. Guest believes that the evidence of limited dual commitment
presents challenges for the unions. It would be unwise for unions to rely on one of the
traditional bases of the commitment to the union, namely a presumed belief in trade
unionism. The apparent failure of many companies to generate enthusiastic commit-
ment among their workforce suggests that opportunities for unions still exist. If
management is tempted to pursue a hard version of HRM, this might backfire, provid-
ing scope for unions to extend both membership and influence. Guest (1995) then
considers recent developments at the interface of SHRM and industrial relations as a
basis for understanding company policy and practice.
establishment of a partnership agreement between the employer and the union. Where
the employment relationship is individualised and a trade union does not represent
employees, the link between SHRM and employee relations will be developed through
the psychological contract. Both these approaches will be discussed in a subsequent sec-
tion of this chapter.
As with many of the other areas of employee relations, the terminology is changing.
As already noted, industrial relations was traditionally the most significant area of
human resource activity. Kochan et al. (1986), in proclaiming the transformation of
American industrial relations, discuss a number of cases illustrative of the collaborative
joint endeavour to shape a new relationship between management and union. These
cases appear to fit well with the rhetoric of the Harvard approach to SHRM. Beer et al.
(1984) discuss the coincidence of stakeholder interests and the importance of partici-
pation, power equalisation, trust and commitment. Walton’s (1985) definition of
mutuality emphasises this point. He argues that the new HRM model is composed of
policies that promote mutuality: mutual goals; mutual influence; mutual respect;
mutual rewards; and mutual responsibility. The theory is that policies of mutuality will
elicit commitment, which in turn yields both better economic performance and greater
human development.
Although this was the pattern that was described as emerging in employment rela-
tionships in the USA, it is also the pattern that may be expected to emerge in those
organisations in the UK where attempts are being made by managers to pursue an
approach that integrates HRM and employee relations. One of the most notable exam-
ples of recent decades is that of Nissan (Wickens, 1987). But Wickens account has been
criticised by some commentators (Garrahan and Stewart, 1992) as being a story of
implementation of a hard version of HRM, in the sense that tight control and perform-
ance systems operate. Many of the examples of serious attempts at a joint approach – the
former MG Rover Corporation being a case in point – come from the car industry,
where the unions were very well entrenched but market forces demanded improvements
in productivity and quality. Guest (1995) proposes that these cases are similar to those
cited by Kochan et al. (1986). In most older organisations, managers start from a po-
sition where the unions are entrenched. In the case of new plants or greenfield sites the
choices are more open and these will be discussed in greater detail in a later section.
However, Guest gives the example of Toyota and Bosch, both of which recognise a single
union, and Honda who has decided to operate without any unions.
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Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 439
A phenomenon much associated with new plants, is the so-called beauty contest,
where unions compete for recognition rights. From the union side, this constitutes a
form of concession bargaining, based on who promises an agreement closest to the
management’s ideas.
Guest, following Storey (1995) in describing recent trends relating to HRM and
industrial relations, concludes that there is little evidence of any frontal attacks on
unions in the UK, but equally little attempt to involve the unions in the planning and
implementation of change. In most cases, where unions have been well established in
the past, the two systems – industrial relations and HRM – operate side by side but with
little tendency for management to give increased weight to systems of employee involve-
ment and, in particular, communication, which tends to bypass the union. Guest agrees
with Storey’s (1992) conclusion that the two systems can co-exist and remain relatively
compartmentalised. Guest (1995) gave four possible explanations for employee relations
remaining healthy in the context of SHRM, presented in Key Concepts 12.6.
1. SHRM may be so ineffective that it is having a minimal impact on values and commitment; the hard
version of SHRM is being used, and this leaves a level of anxiety such that workers continue to sup-
port the traditional industrial relations system and the trade union as a safeguard and safety net.
2. Management, while supporting SHRM, recognise the value of retaining collective arrangements
because of their convenience, particularly in those establishments where large numbers are
employed.
3. It is possible that the system of mutuality is viable and a mutually beneficial collaboration between
management and unions can operate, resulting in the maintenance of both systems.
4. Employee relations systems may continue as a largely symbolic empty shell, insufficiently impor-
tant for management to confront and eliminate, but retaining the outward appearance of health to
the casual observer.
Management often set strategic agendas that are solely market-driven, while the
employment relationship is relatively low on the list of concerns. It may thus be mislead-
ing to suggest that the two systems co-exist. Direct management channels of
communication are receiving increased attention, while the union channels are in
decline. There are, moreover, very few documented cases of a robust trade unionism in
the context of enthusiastic SHRM policies. In the case of Rover, the unions were invited
to participate but declined the invitation. The partnership described at Ford focused less
on SHRM issues and more on the quality of working life. Guest (1995) describes the UK
Ford example as fitting well with the analysis of the American model of Kochan et al.
(1986), which included Ford in America as one of its cases. The underlying message,
which the analysis of new realism reveals, is that managements and unions have made
little attempt to forge new partnerships that give high priority to both SHRM and indus-
trial relations through a process of integration. In recent years managers have
implemented a significant number of the piecemeal SHRM initiatives, and in doing so
SHRM_C12.QXD 20/2/07 09:31 Page 440
ignored or bypassed the employee relations system. On the surface, it may appear that
SHRM and employee relations are given high priority. Often, in the case of both, this
will be an illusion, giving yet more credibility to the argument that much of the SHRM
literature bears little resemblance to what is happening in reality. An example of an
organisation that appears to place high emphasis on SHRM and employee relations is
presented in ‘In Practice’ 12.1.
In Practice 12.1
ITV, the UK’s major independent television company, bases its employee relations approach on
engaging with its employees. It does this by a combination of methods: collective bargaining, consul-
tation with elected employee representatives; and direct engagement with individuals. Engagement is
regarded as being critical to the success of the company, which is using engagement to integrate its
corporate and HR strategies. ITV uses a wide range of direct communication methods to engage with
individual employees, these methods include:
intranet;
individual development reviews;
briefings meetings;
workshops;
individual relationships between employees and their line managers;
employee opinion survey.
This individualised approach can be considered as being reflective of an SHRM approach. The
company also engages in collective consultations through elected representatives because, although
50 per cent of workers are covered by a collective bargaining arrangement, unions represent only
15 per cent of employees and the employer wants feedback from the whole workforce. ITV needs to
consult employees frequently because of the scale of change within the organisation.
ITV uses collective bargaining as a means of securing employee agreement on new working prac-
tices. It believes that the collective relationships deliver significant change management benefits for
the company and help to reassure employees that their interests are being respected. This can be
considered a collective approach, associated with a high emphasis on employee relations.
Source: adapted from CIPD (2005b).
The ITV example gives a good insight into an organisational example of new realism.
The company is using SHRM and employee relations to ensure that it engages with all
its employees. ITV does this through consultation with individual employees and
employee representatives and negotiation with the unions.
Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 441
industrial relations system. Guest cites the evidence of Workplace Employee Relations
Surveys (WERSs), which suggest that, in many places where trade unions are well estab-
lished, the employee relations system appears to operate much as before. (For a detailed
analysis of the WERSs see Millward et al. (2000).)
Management may continue to use the employee relations system, but afford it much
less priority. This would appear to support the theory that managements view the mar-
ginalisation of the unions as a better strategy than formally to de-recognise them and
risk provoking a confrontation; better to let them wither on the vine than receive a
reviving fertiliser. A more optimistic view can also be offered, which appears more
attuned to soft SHRM, in which the management decide that it is easier to continue to
operate with a union. This may be based on the fact that it provides a useful well-estab-
lished channel for communication and for the handling of grievance, discipline and
safety issues. The strongest evidence that this type of industrial relations-centred system
exists is mainly to be found in the public sector and in some industries which have been
recently removed from public ownership. For examples of this approach look at the
NHS trusts, all areas of the education sector and central government in the form of the
UK civil service. There are also examples that have traditionally placed a high emphasis
on collective industrial relations but are developing policies to move towards SHRM. An
example of this is presented in ‘In Practice’ 12.2.
In Practice 12.2
The company has a well-established collective bargaining agreement with four trade unions. The
unions involved are ASLEF, the RMT, TSSA and Amicus. The agreement gives the unions negotiating
rights on a range of issues, including pay and terms and conditions of employment. They are also
consulted on issues relating to performance and attendance, changes in working practices and
redundancy. So traditional collectivism is well established in South West Trains.
The company also realises that if it is to implement SHRM it needs to ensure that it involves and
engages all staff, not just its union members. South West Trains would prefer to adapt the current col-
lective bargaining machinery to allow non-union representatives to be informed and consulted
alongside a union representative. However, other options may be possible, including establishing
employee forums which would be open to all staff.
Although the company has very good relationships with all the unions, it has moved away from
relying solely on collective machinery. It uses a range of direct communication methods including
email and intranet, undertakes regular staff surveys and is beginning to individualise the employment
relationship by having face-to-face communication between line managers and employees.
While the unions are well established and professional the future employee relations strategy
appears to focus on a partnership approach. The company sees this partnership as being between
the employer and the individual employee and, as such, South West is a good example of a company
which focuses on traditional collectivism but is moving towards an individualised SHRM approach.
Source: adapted from CIPD (2005b).
SHRM_C12.QXD 20/2/07 09:31 Page 442
In Practice 12.3
Dell is a US company that has grown rapidly since is formation 20 years ago, and is now the world’s
number one PC manufacturer. Dell is a non-unionised company and focuses its SHRM activities on
an individualised and team-based partnership between employer, teams and the individual employee.
The focus is on the team and on individual contributions to the team. People/line mangers are
expected to interact with individuals, and their performance is closely monitored. Employee involve-
ment and participation is the driving factor in the employment relationship. Key elements include:
setting of performance plans;
giving feedback to improve performance;
work in each team on individual performance plans;
ensuring employees understand the business challenges and priorities facing the company;
ensuring employees are stakeholders in the business;
ensuring employee and management skills development keeps pace with business changes;
creating fair and open work environments where employees feel they have a voice and are treated
fairly.
Implementation of each of these elements identifies Dell as an organisation with a strong individu-
alised SHRM approach.
Source: adapted from CIPD (2005b) and The Irish Times (2006).
Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 443
Choose an organisation with which you are familiar and, using Guest’s evaluation
of the four possible approaches to the management of the employment relation-
ship, describe the current employment relationship.
In this section a review the two key strategic concepts mentioned above will be pre-
sented. As has been the theme throughout this chapter, attempts will be made to
differentiate between the rhetoric presented in literature and research and the reality
that is observable in organisational practices.
Partnership
The TUC (Trades Union Congress) argues it has that longstanding commitment to part-
nerships between unions and employers. Partnerships at work can deliver higher
productivity, improved performance and successful changes to workplace organisation.
Partnership enables unions to play an active role in shaping an organisation’s policy and
strategy, and increases union involvement in organisational change. The TUC Partnership
Institute, launched in January 2001, provides expertise, advice and support to unions and
employers on developing successful workplace partnerships. Most partnerships that exist
are at the workplace or organisational level and simply involve the employer and the trade
union forming an agreement that is based on the concepts of partnerships.
Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 445
There is no set pattern, and where such written agreements have emerged the impor-
tance of context is acknowledged, in that they are based specifically on a
problem-solving approach within a plant or organisation. Neither is there agreement
that trade union presence or recognition is necessary, and the Chartered Institute of Per-
sonnel & Development (CIPD) maintains that ‘partnership has more to do with an
approach to the relationship between employers and employees, individually and in
groups, than it has to do with trade unions as such’ (CIPD, 2006). The Institute of Direc-
tors (IOD) has taken a strongly unitarist stance towards partnerships, and the
Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has warned of a ‘possibly damaging build-up of
trade union influence, hidden behind the new buzzword partnership’ (CBI, 1999).
Nonetheless, the TUC view is that ‘partnerships between employers and trade unions
can make a real contribution to company success’ (Monks, 1998), and the Involvement
and Participation Association (IPA) has produced evidence from case studies and sur-
veys to show a direct link between partnership approaches and enhanced organisational
performance (IPA, 1996, 1998).
The ‘new realism’ identified by Guest (1995) as one of four possible policy options for
organisations on SHRM and employee relations matters, seeks to integrate them, with
high priority being given by organisations to both, and cites the examples of Rover and
Nissan in the UK (Guest, 1995). However, some scepticism also exists on the ideological
left about the reasons for labour–management partnerships, it being argued that they
have their origins in the extension of HRM practices, and are inherently unitarist. In this
respect, some would say that union weakness is the reason behind unions seeking part-
nership agreements – as, as it were, a self-preservation measure. Kelly draws attention to
this: ‘Since it is difficult, if not impossible to achieve a partnership with a party that
would prefer that you didn’t exist, the growth of employer hostility is a major objection’
(Kelly, 1996). He also refers to a significant number of writers in Europe and the USA
who ‘came to the conclusion that union survival and recovery turned on the willingness
of unions and their members to behave “moderately” and to offer concessions to the
employer as part of a new social partnership between labour and capital’. He goes on to
point out that ‘there is a striking parallel between the social partnership and human
resource management literatures, evident most clearly in the way that employers’ priori-
ties have come to dominate the intellectual agenda of researchers’ (Kelly, 1998).
Others have pointed to the two clear schools of thought that are emerging in academic
circles, with some addressing the dynamics of labour–management partnerships only,
and others taking a broad philosophical approach, examining employer, union and
worker motives or responses. The former position is adopted by Kochan et al., (1996), the
IPA (1998), Coupar and Stevens (1998), and by Kochan and Osterman, (1994). The latter
position is adopted by writers such as Kelly (1996, 1998), Nissen (1997) and Parker and
Slaughter (1997). This could be summarised as the ‘incorporatist’ approach, as in Allen
and Haynes (1999), and Cressey and MacInnes (1980); this relies on the old socialist con-
ventional wisdom that trade unions – and especially their paid officials or bureaucrats –
can easily sell out and become incorporated in management’s exploitative apparatus.
Before attempting to assess the extent to which these businesses are using a partner-
ship approach, let us consider some views and experiences from the USA. In addressing
the issue of labour–management partnerships and the implications for the UK and Ire-
land, McKersie (1996) has drawn attention to the possibility of transforming existing
workplaces into modern, high-performance systems – as against the trend in the USA
SHRM_C12.QXD 20/2/07 09:31 Page 446
towards closing plants with traditionally strong adversarial cultures, and starting afresh
with modern work practices and non-union labour on greenfield sites. He acknowledges
that businesses and trade unions in the UK may be better able to manage change, and
‘transform their industrial relationships for mutual gains’ (McKersie, 1996) in order to
be able to compete at a world-class level. Indeed, he is in no doubt that the UK experi-
ence of partnership will be different from that in the USA; Milsome (2001) has provided
a valuable summary of the US experience, including a detailed description of one of the
most celebrated successes of partnership: the General Motors (GM) Saturn Car project
in Tennessee. The joint involvement of the United Auto Workers and GM from the ini-
tial planning stage, to full facilitation of the new plant on a joint basis on a greenfield site
is in stark contrast to the evolutionary approach to partnership emerging in the UK.
At this point is useful to give an example of a partnership agreement. This example is
presented in ‘In Practice’ 12.4.
In Practice 12.4
Bausch and Lomb is an American multi-national company that develops and manufactures health-care
products for eyes. The company employs 12,000 people worldwide with annual revenues of $1.7 bil-
lion in sales. The company’s plant at Waterford in the Republic of Ireland employs 1,750 people and is
one of the few unionised plants in the company. The plant is the largest and most competitive manu-
facturing facility in the entire organisation. The plant operates a successful partnership forum that has
been in place since 1998. The aim of the forum is to facilitate a two-way flow of information, giving all
stakeholders an opportunity to shape the future of the company, for the common good. The forum is
made up of management, elected and nominated members from the unions, and clerical and technical
groups. They work on issues such as communications, pensions, training, finance and strategy.
The Waterford plant is clear about the practical benefits of the partnership and has improved com-
munication. According to Bausch and Lomb the overall benefits of partnership are:
1. All stakeholders know the needs of the business and where it is heading.
2. Improved performance through discussion and debate.
3. Builds trust between employees, managers and unions.
4. Allows everyone to contribute to a constructive atmosphere.
5. Disclosure and communication of information leads to a better understanding of why decisions
are made.
6. Widens the area of discussion and puts it on a strategic level and in a national and international
context.
Source: adapted from The Irish Times (2006).
Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 447
This work indicated that if all these matters were addressed successfully on a joint
basis by management and unions, then companies could expect productivity gains,
quality improvements, a better motivated and more flexible workforce, and a decline in
absenteeism and labour turnover rates. Unions and their members could expect to gain
improved job security, closer involvement in running the company and, ultimately, a
better rewards package. While to some this may seem to be a wish list, and almost
impossible to achieve all of the time, Roscow and Casner-Lotto (1998) believe that a
win–win situation could be achieved, and that their research evidence shows that com-
panies and unions really were managing to develop a successful partnership approach
around these values.
It is interesting to compare the key values for labour–management partnerships iden-
tified in the USA with the behavioural aspects identified by Coupar and Stevens (1998)
as distinguishing partnerships in the UK:
… a commitment to working together to make the business more successful, under-
standing the employee security conundrum and trying to do something about it,
building relationships at the workplace which maximise employee influence through
total communication and a robust and effective employee voice.
Monks (1998) has also sought to identify the underlying values of a partnership
agreement in practice as: ‘employee security, employee voice, fair financial rewards, and
investment in training’.
In economies close to the UK, such as the Republic of Ireland, partnership agreements
are underpinned by and emphasise the notion of social partnership. This has resulted in
national agreements dating back to 1986; the most recent of these agreements have been
the Partnership 2000 agreement of 1996 and the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness
of 2000. The aims of these agreements are based around building competitiveness
SHRM_C12.QXD 14/2/07 15:56 Page 448
through improved employee involvement at enterprise level. The National Centre for
Partnership and a number of other support initiatives have been created to stimulate the
roles of all stakeholders at enterprise level.
In the UK, most employer organisations, professional management associations and
trade union interests have subscribed to the Department of Trade and Industry
(DTI)/Department for Education and Employment (DfEE) initiative entitled ‘Competi-
tiveness through Partnerships with People’ (DTI/DfEE, 1998). This was launched as part
of the programme for implementing the Employment Relations Act 1999. It is built
around the key values of:
shared goals – understanding the business they are in;
shared culture – agreed values binding them together;
shared learning – continuously improving themselves;
shared effort – one business driven by flexible teams;
shared information – effective communication throughout the enterprise (DTI/DfEE,
1998).
Some modest financial incentives are provided by the DTI to assist implementation
and improvement programmes (see http://www.gov.dti.uk/partnershipfund/).
Finally, there is wide agreement, first, that a direct trade-off exists between the
important issues of security of employment and flexible working and, second, that
all the employees in an enterprise are stakeholders, with a direct interest in enhancing
its competitiveness.
Consider the arguments for and against the development and introduction of a
partnership agreement in an organisation.
Having assessed the partnership concept, the psychological contract will now be
considered.
Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 449
return for employee loyalty and commitment. Such reciprocal expectations charac-
terised (and to some extent still characterise) the employment relationship in many
areas of employment. Typical examples of this can be found in local government and
the civil service. Key Concepts 12.8 summarises the characteristics of the ‘old and
‘new’ psychological contracts.
Focus of employment relationship Security and long-term career in Employability driven by changes
the company in this and future employment
Employer’s key responsibility Fair day’s work for a fair day’s pay High pay for high job
performance
Employee’s key responsibility Good performance in present job Making a difference to the
organisation
Employer’s key input Stable income and career Opportunities for self-
development
Much of the key research carried out on the psychological contract in the context
of the UK has been undertaken by the CIPD. The structure of this section has been
developed in the context of the key areas of discussion and analysis as presented by the
CIPD (2006).
obligations will often be informal and imprecise: they may be inferred from actions or
from what has happened in the past, as well as from statements made by the employer,
for example during the recruitment process or in performance appraisals. Some obliga-
tions may be seen as ‘promises’ and others as ‘expectations’. The important thing is that
they are believed by the employee to be part of the relationship with the employer.
The CIPD (2006) believes that the psychological contract can be distinguished from
the legal contract of employment. In many cases the latter will offer only a limited and
uncertain representation of the reality of the employment relationship. The employee
may have contributed little to its terms beyond accepting them. The nature and content
of the legal contract may only emerge clearly if and when it comes to be tested in an
employment tribunal.
The psychological contract, on the other hand, looks at the reality of the situation as
perceived by the parties, and may be more influential than the formal contract in affect-
ing how employees behave from day to day. It is the psychological contract that
effectively tells employees what they are required to do in order to meet their side of the
bargain, and what they can expect from their job. It may not – indeed in general it will
not – be strictly enforceable, although courts may be influenced by a view of the under-
lying relationship between employer and employee, for example in interpreting the
common law duty to show mutual trust and confidence.
A useful model of the psychological contract is offered by Guest (2002) (see Table
12.2). In outline, the CIPD (2006) believes that the model suggests that:
the extent to which employers adopt people management practices will influence the
state of the psychological contract;
the contract is based on employees’ sense of fairness and trust and their belief that the
employer is honouring the ‘deal’ between them;
where the psychological contract is positive, increased employee commitment and
satisfaction will have a positive impact on business performance.
HR practices Delivery
Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 451
are badly handled. Managers cannot always ensure that commitments are fulfilled – for
example where employment prospects deteriorate or organisations are affected by mergers
or restructuring – but they may still take some blame in the eyes of employees.
The CIPD (2006) believes managers need to remember:
Employment relationships may deteriorate despite management’s best efforts: never-
theless, it is the managers’ job to take responsibility for maintaining them.
Preventing breach in the first place is better than trying to repair the damage after-
wards.
Where breach cannot be avoided it may be better to spend time negotiating or re-
negotiating the deal, rather than focusing on delivery.
In Key Concepts 12.9 the changes currently affecting the workplace are highlighted.
The nature of jobs: more employees are on part-time and temporary contracts; more jobs are
being outsourced; tight job definitions are out, functional flexibility is in.
Organisations have downsized and delayered: ‘leanness’ means doing more with less, so individ-
ual employees have to carry more weight.
Markets, technology and products are constantly changing: customers are becoming ever more
demanding, quality and service standards are constantly going up.
Technology and finance are less important as sources of competitive advantage: ‘human capital’ is
becoming more critical to business performance in the knowledge-based economy.
Traditional organisational structures are becoming more fluid: teams are often the basic building
block; new methods of managing are required.
Source: CIPD (2006).
to identify a set of corporate values or to set down the organisation’s mission. The pur-
pose of creating an ‘employer brand’ (sometimes referred to as the employment
proposition) is to outline the positive benefits for employees of buying into the relation-
ship with that employer. In practice, the employer brand can be seen as an attempt by
the employer to define the psychological contract with employees so as to help in
recruiting and retaining talent.
Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 453
There are continuing concerns about long hours and work intensity.
A majority of employees consistently report that they are satisfied with their jobs.
Four out of five employees are not worried about losing their job, and most expect that if they did
lose their job they would be able to find another one at similar pay without having to move house.
Levels of commitment have not shown any significant trend – whether up or down – in recent
years.
However, trust in the organisation has declined somewhat, in both private and public sectors.
SHRM_C12.QXD 14/2/07 15:57 Page 454
However, CIPD (2006) research findings suggest that managers can usefully focus on
other issues. In particular:
Employability: although job security cannot be guaranteed, employers can recognise
employees’ need to build up a ‘portfolio’ of skills and competences that will make
them more marketable. Employees can be helped to develop occupational and
personal skills, become more proactive and take more responsibility for their
own careers.
Careers: early comments on the likely impact of labour market change suggested that
employers were no longer able to provide ‘careers’ and that this was bound to sour the
employment relationship. Research suggests that, while organisations have been de-
layering and reducing the number of middle management posts, most employees
have in fact adjusted their career expectations downwards. Many will be satisfied if
they believe that their employer is handling issues about promotion fairly. They may
also benefit from the opportunity to negotiate alternative career options.
Empowerment: despite some cynicism about employers’ willingness to delegate
responsibility, and employees’ enthusiasm for accepting it, high-performing organisa-
tions demand that employees make an important contribution to decisions that
would formerly have been seen as the sole prerogative of management. This is partly
an issue of the way in which jobs are designed and partly of helping managers adopt
new behaviours.
Work–life balance: there is an important link between employees feeling that they
have a satisfactory balance between work and the rest of their life, and having a posi-
tive psychological contract. Employers need to think through how employees can be
helped to achieve such a balance.
Source: CIPD (2006).
Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 455
Research into employee ‘voice’ by Marchington et al. (2001) shows the importance of
communication and specifically of dialogue in which managers are prepared to listen to
employees’ opinions. Managers need to manage expectations, for example through sys-
tems of performance management which provide for regular employee appraisals. HR
practices also communicate important messages about what the organisation seeks to
offer its employers. However, employee commitment and ‘buy-in’ come primarily from
listening not from telling.
The CIPD (2006) claims that employers are experimenting with a range of attitudinal
and behavioural frameworks for securing employee inputs to management thinking as
part of the decision-making process. This can be using a range of methods including:
Face-to-face, for example through ‘soap box’ sessions, which encourage employees to
speak their minds.
Employee attitude surveys can also be an effective tool for exploring how employees
think and feel on a range of issues affecting the workplace. In times of rapid change,
managers and employees frequently hold contrasting opinions about what is going on.
Two-way communication, both formal and informal, is essential as a form of reality
check and a basis for building mutual trust.
Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 457
The psychological contract can help HR managers to make the business case for
incorporating effective people management policies and practices into the change man-
agement process at an early stage, and to successfully manage their implementation.
Research by CIPD (2006) shows that:
A majority of workers in both public and private sectors report major organisational
changes taking place.
Employees are not necessarily hostile to change but major changes – particularly
leading to redundancies – tend to cause negative attitudes.
Most people say change in their organisation is badly managed.
Employee trust in organisations has declined and this can make the process of man-
aging change more difficult.
Breach of the psychological contract can seriously damage the employment relation-
ship. It will not always be possible to avoid breach of the psychological contract but
employees are more likely to be forgiving where managers explain what has gone wrong
and how they intend to deal with it. The contract may need to be renegotiated.
Key lessons
Some of the key lessons that the CIPD (2006) believes emerge from research into the
psychological contract are presented in Key Concepts 12.13.
11. Do not use tight management and close supervision; this will reduce employee satisfaction.
12. Use recruitment and appraisal processes to clarify the ‘deal’; employee expectations are influ-
enced by a number of factors.
13. If you cannot keep a promise, explain why; failure is often punished by loss of trust.
14. Trust employees to do a good job; most are highly motivated to do so and will respond to the
trust you show in them.
15. Do not rely on performance management systems to motivate employees; you need to engage
hearts and minds.
16. Be aware of changing expectations; for example more employees now want to work for organisa-
tions that behave responsibly.
17. Ensure consistency of treatment; perceived unfairness undermines trust.
18. Hold team meetings and focus groups; two-way dialogue will help flag issues at an early stage.
19. Review procedures for handing workplace conflict; mediation may offer a better outcome for
both sides than an employment tribunal.
20. Encourage the growth of ‘relational’ contracts if you want employees to develop a long-term
emotional attachment to the organisation.
Source: CIPD (2006).
The psychological contract does not supply a detailed model of employee relations
but it does offer important clues about how to maintain employee commitment. With
the decline in collective bargaining, attention is more clearly focused on relations
between the organisation and individual employees. The psychological contract re-
inforces the need for managers to become more effective at the communications
process. Consultation about anticipated changes will help in adjusting expectations and,
if necessary, renegotiating the deal.
Employees are becoming both more critical to business performance and more
demanding of the organisations for which they work. In a ‘winner takes all’ economy,
doing a good job is no longer enough: outstanding performance is essential to survival.
This level of performance cannot be achieved by downsizing or cost control: it will only
come from persuading employees to make a willing contribution.
The psychological contract provides a convincing rationale for ‘soft HRM’, or behav-
ing as a good employer. It offers a perspective based on insights from psychology and
organisational behaviour rather than economics. It emphasises that employment is a
relationship in which the mutual obligations of employer and employees may be impre-
cise but have to be respected. The price of failing to fulfil expectations may be serious
damage to the relationship and to the organisation.
SHRM_C12.QXD 14/2/07 15:57 Page 459
Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 459
In this chapter attempts have been made to consider both the theoretical rhetoric and
the organisational reality in relation to the management of the employment relation-
ship. At present there still appears to be a significant gap between the theories of SHRM
and employee relations, and the observable practices evident in most UK and Irish
workplaces. Students reading this book will hopefully become senior members of the
HR professions in the future and may well take up executive positions within organisa-
tions. The reality is that it is only senior executives in companies and HR professional
who can ensure that the employment relationship is managed in the most strategic
manner. This is of vital importance not only in the context of the current internal and
external operating environments that organisations are facing, but also with respect to
the future challenges they are likely to face.
Summary
Use the internet to explore the employee relations’ practices of two different ‘case’
organisations and develop explanations that account for similarities and differences
between their practices.
Use the internet to explore the employee relations’ practices of two different national
contexts and develop explanations that account for similarities and differences
between their national practices.
SHRM_C12.QXD 14/2/07 15:57 Page 460
Interview a friend or colleague who is a member of a trade union and ask him or
her why he or she joined the trade union and if that trade union plays a key role in
the development of a strategic approach to the management of the employment
relationship.
Using the section titled ‘Involvement and participation: strategic concepts and prac-
tices’, in this chapter as your starting point, consider the practical implications for
organisations generally and HR managers specifically of the emergence of concepts
such as partnership and the psychological contract.
Case Study
Strategic approaches to the employment relationship social
partnership: the example of the Republic of Ireland
In other case studies presented in this book the stability for both employers and employees; can
focus of analysis has been at the organisational allow indigenous businesses, particularly SMEs, to
level and presented company-based cases. Man- grow; and helps to attract and retain foreign direct
aging the employment relationship in a strategic investment (FDI) to the economy. In economies
manner is important for both employers and such as the UK, where unions still have a key role to
employees, but can be a strategic issue that covers play in many companies across a wide range of
complete industries and sectors and, in exceptional sectors, the most realistic strategic approach to
cases, can have influence across complete national developing a stable and flexible employment rela-
economies or even huge market places such as the tionship may be through the partnership approach.
European Union. Creating stability in the employ- The case to be considered in this chapter focuses
ment relationship at a national level can be of on social partnership in the Republic of Ireland. The
significant strategic importance. The benefits of reasons for choosing this case should become
such stability can be felt by all citizens who partici- apparent after you have read it but there are a
pate in the labour market, greater levels of job number of key factors which should be considered:
security may result, realistic increases in salaries
and wages can be implemented on a regular basis, There are many similarities between employee
improvements in the employment relationship will relations in the UK and Ireland, such as heavily
occur at the workplace, company, sector, industry unionised public sectors and traditional industry
and national levels. Such an approach can create: sectors.
SHRM_C12.QXD 14/2/07 15:57 Page 461
Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 461
Modern private-sector industries and SMEs are The Result was a three-year tripartite agree-
largely non-unionised. ment grandly titled the Programme for National
Similarities exist in the UK and Irish govern- Recovery (PNR).
ments’ approaches to employee relations. The PNR set sharp limits on pay, with only a 3 per
cent pa increase on the first £120 per week of earn-
Both economies are locations for major indige- ings, and 2 per cent thereafter – with an underpinning
nous and foreign companies that face significant minimum of £4. The most significant features of PNR
competition from emerging economies in China were competitive commitments to the control of
and India, for example. public expenditure and a reduction in government
Similar education levels, age and gender break- borrowing. However, PNR included other broadly
downs exist in most workplaces in both economies. expressed ‘classical’ commitments: to promote
Dramatic shifts have occurred that result in increased employment through industrial develop-
employment moving from traditional industries ment; to improve social welfare provision; and to
to new high-technology industries and the serv- reduce direct taxation on lower paid workers covered
ice sector. by the Pay As You Earn (PAYE) system.
As the title suggests, one of the main non-pay disadvantaged, those on low incomes, and those
issues addressed by the PCW was unemployment. living in the more deprived areas of the country. In
Another was employee involvement; for the Irish addition, P2000 required the review of a number of
Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) now wanted more economically important topics:
than the lip service paid in the PNR and PESP. Signif-
modernising employee relations;
icantly, an ICTU internal report on new management
methods seemed to endorse ‘bottom-up’ employee modernising the public service;
involvement with a ‘competitive edge’ component. promoting enterprise – and it contained provision
What was wanted was for partnership at national for a review mechanism on competitiveness.
level to be complemented by partnership in the
enterprise, the plant and the office. But while there Where to after P2000?
were more words about participation in the PCW, There were a number of other things to cheer sup-
IBEC fought hard against anything too prescriptive. porters of social partnership. Although anecdotal
There was further disappointment for ICTU when evidence suggested wage drift beyond agreed
post-agreement discussions produced little more. norms, a survey of 1,000 pay settlements confirmed
PCW ended on a sour note, with public service that the level of adherence was ‘remarkably high’.
workers complaining loudly that they had done In addition, there were other achievements:
poorly in comparison with other groups.
agreement in broad terms to a procedure for
P2000 – making partnership a priority union recognition;
The tone was set by the name – Partnership 2000 unemployment had dropped sharply;
(or P2000); it had a key part devoted to ‘developing days lost due to disputes at all-time low;
partnership in the workplace’:
ICTU saw it ‘as a watershed in the evolution of survey of IBEC members showed strong support
social partnership’ and believed ‘it would determine for the continuation of social partnership;
whether it develops or dies’. It was a last opportu- opinion poll in late 1999: 78 per cent of the
nity ‘to widen and deepen the national partnership public thought social partnership was ‘very
process into a genuine partnership at the level of important’ or ‘quite important’ to economic
the workplace’. The extent of new workplace part- development and 80 per cent of employers
nership would be ‘the union benchmark when it believed that social partnership had been of vital
comes to assessing its success or failure’. importance to strategic developments in the way
In order to meet the benchmark, a National Centre that people were managed at national, organisa-
for Partnership was established to promote partner- tional and workplace levels;
ship in enterprises and workplaces. However, P2000 finally, spending in real terms on health, educa-
also included strong commitments to ‘promoting
tion and social welfare had increased by 117 per
enterprise’ and the setting up of a National Competi-
cent, 71 per cent and 45 per cent respectively
tiveness Council. Private-sector companies were
since 1987 (IRS, 1998: 9, 18, 24 and 42).
also encouraged to reward employees by means of
profit sharing.
With reguard to the equality, employment and Programme for Prosperity and Fairness
‘social inclusion’ aspects, it was argued that eco- In January 2000, union leaders accepted a new
nomic growth had accelerated in a period marked by agreement in the social partnership process. The
increasing income inequality, low pay and high levels new agreement was called the Programme for
of relative income poverty (Allen, 2000; Kirby, 2002). Prosperity and Fairness (PPF).
In other words, there were too many margin- Under final PPF terms, workers on basic national
alised people not enjoying any of the fruits of the minimum wage (NMW) were to receive pay
‘Celtic Tiger’. Adding a more traditional or ‘classi- increases worth 18.65 per cent over 33 months;
cal’ neo-corporatist dimension, then, P2000 laid workers on £200 would receive a 16.3 per cent pay
stronger emphasis on dealing with such issues. rise and other workers would receive a 15.75 per
New agreement contained government commit- cent pay rise.
ments to spend £25 million on a range of important The NMW started at IR£4.40 (€5.60) and rose to
social projects before 2000. Targeted specifically IR£4.70 (€5.80) in July 2001; it increased to IR£5
were the long-term unemployed, the educationally (€6.25) in October 2002.
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Chapter 12 Managing the employment relationship: strategic rhetoric and operational reality 463
There were several interesting ‘non-pay’ parts to be too much of a shock for the employee relations
the deal, including agreement to create new jobs for system. An associated worry was that many man-
1,500 primary school teachers. PPF also sought to agers and union officials were ill-equipped to deal
deepen the workplace partnership measures begun with face-to-face negotiating at firm and plant level.
under P2000. Third, and perhaps most telling, it was argued
At the time of writing this case the Irish govern- that retaining neo-corporatism was essential in the
ment, IBEC and ICTU are currently in negotiation face of an economic downturn. With so much US
on a new partnership deal. It is useful to consider investment, Ireland was especially vulnerable to
the arguments for and against a further partnership effects of the US recession of 2001 that was deep-
deal. ened by the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
To make economic matters worse, soon after the
Stick with partnership? No! 2002 General Election – which returned the Fianna
First, the unions had ‘pushed their luck’ too far. Fáil/PD coalition for a second term – suspicions
Moreover ICTU was no longer the authentic, major- about looming problems in public finances were
ity voice of Irish workers; it now represented proved justified, with expenditure running well
predominantly public-sector employees and it had beyond expectations but with tax receipts in seri-
failed to convince most investors – especially US ous decline. This was not the right moment, so it
high-tech companies – to recognise trade unions. was argued, to make any radical change of
Second, it was claimed that the strategic aims approach. Social partnership might be essential to
that prompted the birth of social partnership in the economic stability.
late 1980s had been almost fully realised. What was
needed now was a dose of free market, employee Sustaining Progress
relations – to sharpen up the act of the unions, In the event, the arguments for continuation of part-
management and employees. nership finally won the day but there were several
Third, the pay agreement at the core of the PPF
crisis points in the negotiations and it was only with
was becoming a fiction. Increases in the booming
the last-minute intervention of the Taoiseach (the
parts of the private sector appeared to be exceed-
Irish Prime Minister) that the most recent partner-
ing the PPF’s pay norms and pay militancy was
ship agreement, entitled Sustaining Progress (SP),
rising in the public sector. Could increases really be
was concluded in February 2003. Like its predeces-
held to 2–3 per cent in a highly successful economy
sors, the SP was intended to cover a three-year
with real labour shortages?
period, however a degree of uncertainty was evi-
Fourth, there was widespread ‘partnership
dent in the pay provisions from the start, which
fatigue’ arising from the 20+ working groups set up
covered only an ‘interim’ period of 18 months. In
under the PPF on work, housing, gainsharing, etc.
late 2002 there was a ‘benchmarking’ (income com-
This demanded return to the ‘leaner’ and less com-
plicated agreements of the late 1980s and 1990s. parison) process for public-sector employees. The
aim was to redress a relative falling behind in the
Stick with partnership? Yes! pay of the government’s own employees during the
For all the factors against partnership there remain course of the previous agreement. So SP dealt sep-
three main pressures for a continuation of social arately with public-sector pay, providing an
partnership. implementation schedule for benchmarking, then a
First, a simple argument was that the cumulative six-month pay pause. This was followed by a gen-
strategic benefits and improvements in the employ- eral increase of 7 per cent payable in three phases
ment relationship, that had occurred as a result of (3 per cent, 2 per cent and 2 per cent) ending in
social partnership, were so obvious that it would December 2004. For the private sector, SP provided
foolish to throw them all away. It would be even an earlier but similarly phased implementation of
more regrettable to abandon the uniquely Irish the same 7 per cent. And the national minimum
model for managing the employment relationship – wage was increased to €7 with effect from February
one that incorporated both classical and competi- 2004. But, despite a focus on possible effects of SP
tive neo-corporatism, and represented, as it were, on competitiveness, there remained a clear tradi-
neo-liberalism with a social conscience. tional commitment to social improvement –
Second, there was some apprehension that a including a strong re-commitment to the develop-
return to unfettered free collective bargaining would ment of workplace partnership.
SHRM_C12.QXD 14/2/07 15:57 Page 464
All the old arguments – and a few new ones – were Many analysts have concluded that the Irish social
rehearsed in the run-up to the current negotiations. partnership model has played a vital role in the dra-
The start was delayed by a dispute in December matic growth of the Irish economy in the last 20
2005 between a major employer, Irish Ferries, and years. This process of economic growth and devel-
the largest Irish trade union, SIPTU, which repre- opment has driven economic and political analysts
sented over 85 per cent of Irish Ferries’ 1,000+ to use the term the ‘Celtic Tiger’ economy. Two
employees. This dispute arose out of concern clear benefits of social partnership can clearly be
about a more general displacement of Irish workers linked to economic growth:
by foreign nationals who were being paid signifi- 1. low inflation – a key factor early on;
cantly less. 2. psychological effect – arguably the most impor-
At the time of writing it appears that employers tant in the long term, for both Republic of Ireland
hold the key to the successful creation of a new employers and potential foreign direct investors
agreement. Employers appear to have regarding who bring new employment with their investment.
the fact that IBEC will only commit if a new agree-
ment can restore the economy’s competitive edge It seems impossible, then, to conclude other than
by controlling salaries and wages costs by: that social partnership was a key, if not the key, to
recent economic strategic success of companies
getting pay back into line with main trading part- who are based in the Republic of Ireland. But, as well
ners, e.g. UK, USA and EU; as those factors relating to employee relations and
maintaining a flexible labour market; economic results, there is another wider lesson to be
learned from social partnership – because the Irish
improving productivity. experience shows that collective partnership is a real
On employment standards employers say ‘no more and demonstrably effective strategic policy alterna-
labour market regulation’ – must maintain flexibility. tive to an individualised approach to the strategic
management of the employment relationship. That
Will there be new agreement? the collective social partnership-based employment
Eight out of 25 EU member states came to partner- relationship in Ireland and the free-market individu-
alised employment relationship of the USA were
ship pacts of a competitive kind in recent years
among the best performing economies 1990s and
(Belgium, Finland, Germany, Greece, Italy, The
early 2000s is adequate testimony to this.
Netherlands, Portugal and Spain) but of course the
new Irish pacts actually contained elements of both
old and new approaches to managing the employ- Case study questions
ment relationship:
Classical – fairness and social justice. 1. Outline the main driving factors for the
development of social partnership in Ireland.
Competitive (strategic) – recognition of the impor-
tance of success of the national economy. 2. Why do you think it was so important to have a
Competitiveness obviously became a stronger tripartite agreement between the national
government, employers and trade unions?
component with the passage of time, but issues
of justice and fairness have not been lost sight of. 3. Why do you think it has been possible to
develop and sustain social partnership in Ireland
The present Irish model of social partnership for such a long period?
thus represents what might be call a balanced ver- 4. Do you think it would be possible and/or
sion of strategic management of the employment beneficial for the UK to develop its own model of
relationship. social partnership?
SHRM_C13.QXD 14/2/07 15:57 Page 465
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
Introduction
In today’s highly competitive labour market, the ability to attract and retain talented
people is now rated higher than market share in the top ten non-financial measures
investors use to analyse company performance (Ernst and Young, 2000). Traditional mar-
kets for attracting talented people, however, are changing and becoming increasingly
challenging for many organisations, owing to major shifts in the demographic composi-
tion of the workforce including age, gender and ethnicity. When Figure 13.1, is examined
it can be seen that, although the total population of the EU’s 15 member states (prior to
the 2004 accessions) is predicted to remain stable over the next 25 years at approxi-
mately 380 million people, its composition will alter markedly. In particular, the number of
people of traditional working age (16–59) will fall from 228 million in 2005 to 203 million
by 2030, while the number aged 60 or over will rise from 86 million to 123 million, an
increase of over 40 per cent (Eurostat, 2005a). As we read regularly in the newspapers,
this has major implications for pension provision, in particular the ability of organisations
and countries to fund them. However, these changes also have considerable strategic
implications for organisations seeking to plan their future human resource requirements.
The EU predicts that such demographic changes will have considerable impact upon
the composition of the Union’s labour force (Eurostat, 2005b). Although these states’
total labour force is predicted to rise slightly from 181 million in 2005 to 183 million by
2010, it will decline gradually to 170 million by 2030, the changes to full- and part-time
worker numbers differing. Over the 2005–2030 period, the number of full-time (32 or
more hours per week) workers in the labour force is predicted to decline by 8 per cent
and, while the number of long part-time workers (20 to 31 hours per week) is predicted
to remain reasonably constant, the number of short part-time (up to 19 hours per week)
will grow by 5 per cent. These variations are even more dramatic when specific age
groups are considered, in particular those aged 60 and over (Figure 13.2) where the
numbers in the labour force are predicted grow by over 65 per cent.
Note down the changes in the EU’s population highlighted by Figures 13.1 and 13.2.
1. How are these predicted changes likely to impact upon the composition of the
labour force in relation to full- and part-time work, age and gender?
2. What implications do you consider these change are likely to have for SHRP
(strategic human resource planning)?
3. What other demographic changes do you predict based upon your own knowl-
edge of labour markets.
Many of the demographic changes you have probably highlighted in your answer
to Self-Check Question 13.1 are likely to have been raised by other writers. For exam-
ple, by 2006, the number of 16–24-year-olds in the UK labour market is likely to have
fallen by 1 million compared with 1987. By 2010, 80 per cent of the UK workforce
growth will be among women and only 20 per cent of the workforce will be white,
able-bodied, male and under 45 years of age (Pearn Kandola, 2000).
SHRM_C13.QXD 14/2/07 15:57 Page 467
Chapter 13 Diversity management: concern for legislation or concern for strategy? 467
400
350
Aged 60 plus
300
150
100
Aged 16–24
50
Aged 0–15
0
2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030
Year
0
2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030
Year
Given these changes, it is not surprising that issues associated with the composi-
tion of organisations’ workforces and their management have become a strategic
imperative for HR managers and, as a consequence, their management a necessity.
However, the way in which such issues associated with workforce diversity are tack-
led and the approach adopted is varied. Organisations have available to them a
number of ways in which both to conceptualise the issue of diversity management
and to operationalise their responses.
This chapter commences by considering the different ways in which diversity man-
agement has been conceptualised (Figure 13.3). Building upon this, equal opportunities
and managing diversity approaches to diversity management are compared and con-
trasted, and the debates relating to these approaches discussed. As part of this, the
question as to whether or not managing diversity represents a strategic shift from equal
opportunities is addressed. After evaluating the business case for adopting diversity
management, the issues for organisations wishing to implement a managing diversity
approach to managing their human resources are assessed. The chapter concludes with
a case study of a UK public-sector organisation, which explores the approaches used to
promote the advantages of valuing diversity to their employees.
Concept of Supportive
diversity Separate or Business culture and Evidence and
management interdependent case benefits implementation
Supportive Empirical
Conceptualisations
culture evidence
Managing
diversity
Figure 13.3 Mapping the diversity management territory: a summary diagram of the chapter content
SHRM_C13.QXD 14/2/07 15:57 Page 469
Chapter 13 Diversity management: concern for legislation or concern for strategy? 469
Conceptualisations
As has already been seen in our earlier discussions of SHRM (Chapter 2) and of SHRP
(Chapter 7), a variety of definitions of the same concept are often put forward, the defi-
nition being dependent upon both organisational and individual interpretation.
Diversity management has also been defined in different ways which are open to a range
of interpretations. For some it is concerned with issues of managing differing national
cultures within a multi-national organisation (Hofstede, 2001) (Chapters 3 and 6); for
others it relates to further development and application of equal opportunities within
the workplace (Liff, 1999); while for yet others it refers to a particular approach through
which different parts of an organisation are integrated and/or the way in which people
are managed strategically (Cox, 1991, 1993).
Much of the literature regarding diversity management emanates from the experi-
ences of organisations in the USA, where the concept is particularly popular; a
reflection perhaps of the more diverse workforce composition (Cassell, 1996). For
example, a report by the US Department of Education (1999) described managing and
valuing diversity as key components of effective people management, arguing that the
focus on improving organisational performance and promoting practices that enhance
the productivity of all staff were imperative to future organisational success. In this
articulation of diversity management, dimensions of diversity included gender, race,
culture, age, family/carer status, religion and disability. The definition provided also
embraced a range of individual skills, such as educational qualifications, work experi-
ence and background, languages, as well as other relevant attributes and experiences
that differentiate individuals.
Within the UK and Europe, the concept of diversity management is a more recent phe-
nomenon, gaining prominence particularly since the mid-1990s. In the UK context, unlike
equal opportunities, the term has no legislative definition. Rather, the term diversity is
applied when describing a range of dimensions on which an organisation’s employees may
differ. These can include role, function and personality. In general, however, within the
SHRM literature, diversity management is conceptualised usually in terms of differences
that are particularly relevant to the issues of an individual employee’s identity, such as
gender, age, ethnicity, disability and sexual orientation (Hicks-Clark and Iles, 2000). This
can be broadly categorised into two groups (Figure 13.4).
The first group, the equal opportunities approach, can be seen as contributing little
more than a reiteration of the traditional arena of equality of status, opportunities and
Diversity
rights (Key Concepts 13.1) (for example, Cooper and White, 1995; Ellis and Sonnerfield,
1995; Copeland, 1988). Within this group, it is often argued that, although anti-discrim-
ination legislation (sex, race and disability) has played some part in focusing attention
on the practice of equal opportunities, these laws have had minimal impact despite, in
the case of sex and race, being on the statute books for three decades (Ross and
Schnieder, 1992). Thus, in this strand of the literature, diversity management is pre-
sented as providing the equal opportunities cause with some much needed
revitalisation, broadening and reinvigorating a compliance-based perspective. Few
would support the premise that this has met its stated objectives: to bring about equality
in employment for groups facing particular disadvantage, such as women, those from
ethnic minorities and people with disabilities (Johnson and Johnstone, 2000), differ-
ences in pay serving to emphasise this.
An examination of the definitions of these words in a dictionary highlights three distinct concepts:
Equality: being equal in status, rights and opportunities
Discrimination: unjust or prejudicial treatment of different groups of people
Diversity: being different or varied
The application of these concepts to SHRM has different foci, the first two emphasising similarity, and
the third differences.
By contrast, the literature in the second group, the managing diversity approach,
views diversity management as a paradigmatic shift from a conventional legislative focus
upon equal opportunities to an explicit strategy of valuing differences, such as gender,
age, social background, disability, personality, ethnicity and work style (Kandola and
Fullerton, 1994a).
Whereas equality can be equated with equal status, rights and opportunities, diver-
sity is equated with differences and variability among individuals and, to a lesser extent,
groups of employees (Key Concepts 13.1). Within this, it is argued that, if these differ-
ences are managed properly, they are an asset to work being done more efficiently and
effectively (Bartz et al., 1990) and organisational goals being met (Kandola and Fuller-
ton, 1994a). Consequently, a managing diversity approach focuses upon recognising
both visible and non-visible differences and building upon the advantages that they
What do you consider to be the strengths and limitations of the equal opportuni-
ties and the managing diversity approaches to diversity management?
SHRM_C13.QXD 14/2/07 15:57 Page 471
Chapter 13 Diversity management: concern for legislation or concern for strategy? 471
offer, rather than utilising legislation and targeted group initiatives to try to ensure that
differences do not result in unjust or prejudicial treatment (Kandola and Fullerton,
1994a, 1998).
Mavin and Girling (2000) believe that, at its most simple, managing diversity can be
viewed as a permissive concept, which is positive in emphasis and indicates a desire to
do things. In contrast, they argue that equal opportunities is more restrictive, emphasis-
ing the negative with a focus on not doing things. Consequently, managing diversity is
seen as an approach enabling all individuals to work in an environment that facilitates
their development, releases their potential and encourages them to do all they can to
support the organisation’s progress by virtue of their differences. An equal opportunities
approach is perceived as seeking to protect specific groups of employees in their work
environment, usually supported by legislation, and tries to ensure, through compliance,
that organisations do not behave in particular ways that are perceived as discriminatory
to these individuals. The first piece of UK legislation to contain a more positive focus
was the Race Relations (Amendment Act) 2000 (In Practice 13.1). This was introduced
as part of the response to the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry’s concern about institutional
racism. It requires public-sector employers, including government departments, local
authorities, the police, National Health Service, schools and the like to positively pro-
mote racial equality (Willey, 2003).
In Practice 13.1
Sir William MacPherson’s (1999) report on the racist murder of Stephen Lawrence concluded that the
UK’s Metropolitan Police Service’s investigation of the murder ‘was marred by a combination of pro-
fessional incompetence, institutional racism and a failure of leadership by senior officers’
(MacPherson, 1999: para. 46.1). Institutional racism was defined as ‘the collective failure of an organ-
isation to provide an appropriate and professional service to people because of their colour, culture or
ethnic origin’ (MacPherson, 1999: para. 6.34). This, it was argued in the report, could be seen through
the processes, attitudes and behaviours that amounted ‘to discrimination through unwitting preju-
dice, ignorance, thoughtlessness, and racist stereotyping which disadvantage minority ethnic people’
(MacPherson, 1999: para. 46.13). The report concluded that every organisation should examine their
policies and the outcomes of these policies and practices to ensure that sections of communities
were not disadvantaged.
Barmes and Ashtiany (2003) argue that the differentiation between equal opportuni-
ties and managing diversity on the basis of their respective emphases offers only a partial
understanding of the nature of equality. In their view, equality entails more than the
negative requirement of avoiding unfair disadvantage based on membership of a disad-
vantaged group. Rather it has a positive element, according to which each person should
have an equal chance to make a distinctive contribution. Since individual circumstances
differ, and perceptions of different groups within both society and the workplace are not
the same, it follows that equality will sometimes require differential treatment among
those drawn from different parts of society to ensure that their chances are equal. This
argument is put succinctly by Fredman (2001), who observes that simply focusing on
SHRM_C13.QXD 14/2/07 15:57 Page 472
sameness of treatment does not require individuals to be treated well, they could all be
treated the same but this could be badly.
SHRM thinking about diversity has other notable features (Industrial Society, 2000;
Kandola and Fullerton, 1998). Within the managing diversity perspective, there is a
strong emphasis on the individual represented by the aim of diversity management pro-
grammes for each individual’s potential to be realised fully. This is particularly
significant because it means that diversity strategies can be presented as applying to and
including everyone. However, simply because individuals are the central focus, this does
not mean that consideration at the group level becomes irrelevant. For example, mem-
bership of a group, such as older people, younger people or parents returning to work
after a period of full-time care, needs to be taken into account when designing measures
to promote diversity because of the major consequences such identities have for individ-
uals’ life chances and experiences (In Practice 13.2). Barmes and Ashtiany (2003) also
emphasise that, although targeted measures to eliminate barriers faced by members of
particular groups can and are contemplated, there is clear and emphatic rejection of
benefits being awarded based solely on group membership (Thomas, 2002). In the UK
context, both the managing diversity and the equal opportunities perspectives support
positive action but reject completely positive discrimination (Key Concepts 13.2).
In Practice 13.2
In 2001 the CIPD undertook a study of age discrimination at work. In its survey one in eight respon-
dents said that they had been discouraged from applying for a job due to an age limit or age range
being specified in the advertisement or through the advertisement’s wording, in particular the use of
words such as ‘young’. In the same survey, 7 per cent of those aged 16–24 said that they had been
told they were ‘too young’ for the job, while a further 5 per cent suspected that this was the reason
even though they had not been told.
Positive action and positive discrimination are concerned with the position of individual job applicants
or existing employees as well as wider patterns of discrimination within society.
Positive action refers to encouragement for under-represented groups to apply for vacancies and
promotion and to participate in development opportunities. Within the UK it is commended in statu-
tory codes of practice such as those published by the Equal Opportunities Commission.
Positive discrimination, sometimes known as reverse discrimination, refers to preferential treatment
for under-represented groups. This reflects the American practice of affirmative action justified by a
desire to eradicate historic patterns of disadvantage and to meet what are considered moral obliga-
tions and rights. It is unlawful in the UK.
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Chapter 13 Diversity management: concern for legislation or concern for strategy? 473
Sex Discrimination Act 1975 Promoted equal treatment of men and women in employment,
education and provision of goods and services
Covered discrimination against women and men and on the
grounds of marital status at all stages of the employment
relationship
Exempted small firms of five or fewer employees
Race Relations Act 1976 Made indirect and direct discrimination unlawful on the grounds of
colour, race, nationality, or ethnic or national origin in employment
(and other areas)
Act did not apply to the police or public services
Sex Discrimination Act 1986 Removed exemption of small firms (five or fewer employees) given
in the 1975 Act
Extended scope of 1975 Act to include retirement, dismissal,
promotion, demotion, transfer or training and amended Equal Pay
Act 1970 in the same way
Human Rights Act 1998 Incorporated all of the European Convention on Human Rights,
including Article 14 outlawing discrimination, into UK law
SHRM_C13.QXD 14/2/07 15:57 Page 474
Sex Discrimination (Gender Made direct and indirect discrimination on the grounds of gender
Reassignment) Regulations 1999 reassignment unlawful in employment and vocational training
Does extend to pay discrimination matters
Sex Discrimination (Burden of Introduced a new definition of indirect discrimination in the field of
Proof) Regulations 2001 employment and vocational training
Definition of indirect discrimination was harmonised with
that for the treatment of sex and racial harassment in
October 2005.
Subsequently there is only a need to show that a practice by
an employer is inherently discriminatory and places women or men
at a disadvantage
Race Relations Act 1976 Implemented the provisions of the EU Race Directive into UK law,
(Amendment) Regulations 2003 covering discrimination on the grounds of ethnic, racial or national
group
Excluded discrimination on the grounds of nationality and colour
Gender Recognition Act 2004 Allowed people who had taken decisive steps to live fully and
permanently in their acquired gender to apply to a Gender
Recognition Panel for legal recognition of that gender
Equality Act 2006 Outlaws mandatory retirement ages below the age of 65
Bans unjustified discrimination (including by age) in recruitment,
promotion and vocational training
Removes the upper age limit for unfair dismissal and redundancy
rights
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Chapter 13 Diversity management: concern for legislation or concern for strategy? 475
The focus of equality legislation has been to remedy individual complaints rather than
actively requiring employer action to promote equality (with the exception of the Race
Relations (Amendment) Act 2000, discussed earlier). Within the UK context, there is a
rather piecemeal approach to the issue of discrimination, legal regulation targeting spe-
cific groups such as women, ethnic minorities and people with a disability, and being
used where a member or members of these groups feel unfairly treated in employment.
What is lacking in the UK legislative framework (and present in the USA and Canada) is
an overall right to fair and equal treatment for all individuals within employment. This is
despite the fact that the UK’s Human Rights Act 1998 incorporates all articles from the
European Convention on Equal Rights, including Article 14 outlawing discrimination.
The combined focus of the UK’s Sex Discrimination Acts of 1975 and 1986 and the
Race Relations Act 1976 is to prioritise equal treatment, and the key legislative force is
contained in the concepts of preventing both direct and indirect discrimination. The
main legal obligation for organisations contained within the notion of direct discrimi-
nation is to treat people in the same situation the same, regardless of their membership
of particular groups.
However, it is notable that no particular standard of conduct is imposed on organisa-
tions as the legislation only requires no differentiation to the detriment of a member of
a protected group, in other words those from ethnic minorities, the disabled or women.
Indirect discrimination is more complex as it recognises a need for differential treat-
ment, where acting neutrally would put a person at a disadvantage because of their age,
gender or race. As a consequence, treating people in the same situation in the same way
will not always be lawful. However, rather than reducing the centrality of the concept in
the traditional model of the equal treatment principle, the concept of indirect discrimi-
nation strengthens the principle because it tackles less obvious and unintentional
discriminatory treatment that might arise as part of employment (Willey, 2003).
There are an estimated 8.9 million disabled people in the UK who frequently face
discrimination and disadvantage in employment (Taylor, 2002) (In Practice 13.3). The
Disability Discrimination Act 1995 seeks to ensure that such disadvantage is min-
imised, and has significant legal and training implications for employers. A period of
In Practice 13.3
Statistics on disability are notoriously difficult to compare between countries and, in some instances,
to obtain. Different countries use different definitions of disability and have different degrees of politi-
cal will to publicise such information. In many countries disability information is only collected every
five or ten years as part of their national population census (International Labour Organisation (ILO),
2004). In addition, data sources often underestimate the number of people for whom a physical or
mental impairment creates a substantial disadvantage when in or seeking employment (CSR Europe,
2005). The ILO estimates that there are 39 million disabled people living in Europe and 610 million dis-
abled people worldwide. Within the UK, although nearly 20 per cent of the working age population
have a disability, only 13 per cent of the workforce is disabled. A recent UK survey revealed that
15 per cent of young disabled people said that they had been turned down for a paid job, and told it
was for a reason related to their disability or health problem (CSR Europe, 2005).
SHRM_C13.QXD 14/2/07 15:57 Page 476
consultation led to a draft revised statutory code of practice, requiring those who pro-
vide goods and services to the public to make their premises accessible to disabled
people. Section 3 of the Act, relating to goods, facilities, services and premises, has been
in force since October 2004. This requires that services are physically accessible to all
who wish to use them.
Employees are protected with reguard to age discrimination throughout the EU
through member states’ compliance with the EU’s Equal Treatment Directive (2000).
Within the UK, the Equality Act 2006 introduced age discrimination legislation from
October 2006. Although it has been argued that these regulations will not affect the age
at which people can claim their state pension, recent debate cast some doubt upon this.
In summary the regulations will, in relation to age discrimination:
outlaw mandatory retirement ages below the age of 65, other than where they can be
objectively justified, while still allowing those under 65 to retire early if they wish;
ban unjustified discrimination (including by age) in recruitment (In Practice 13.2),
promotion and vocational training;
remove the upper age limit for unfair dismissal and redundancy rights;
introduce a duty for employers to consider requests to continue working beyond
retirement.
Within the UK, these Acts are currently enforced through the Commission for Racial
Equality, the Equal Opportunites Commission and the Disability Rights Commission.
These aim to eliminate unfair treatment in the workplace, review existing legislation and
lobby for change, and actively promote equality of opportunity in organisations. They
also produce and publish codes of practice, which provide practical assistance and best
practice benchmarks, and assist organisations to ensure they comply with their legisla-
tive obligations. However, the Equality Act 2006 has established the Commission for
Equality and Human Rights (CEHR) that will come into being in October 2007. The
CEHR will bring together this expertise to promote equality and tackle discrimination
in relation to gender, disability, sexual orientation, religion or belief, age and human
rights. It is planned to also include race by April 2009 (Commission for Equality and
Human Rights, 2006).
In Practice 13.4
The UK’s Environment Agency has an overall national target of recruiting 10 per cent of black and
ethnic minority employees. This target is amended for each of its regions to reflect more closely the
composition of the population it serves. In 2004 the Agency linked the bonuses it pays to its senior
managers to these targets, setting them alongside other key performance indicators (Griffiths, 2005).
At the same time the Environment Agency introduced a toolkit to help raise awareness of diversity
among recruiters and set up a national diversity, action group. Since this increased focus on diversity,
the percentage of applicants for advertised vacancies has more than doubled from 3 to 7 per cent. The
number of these applicants who have been offered jobs has also more than doubled (Griffiths, 2005).
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Chapter 13 Diversity management: concern for legislation or concern for strategy? 477
Outline the strengths and limitations for diversity management of the equal
opportunities approach.
ethical case. Valuing diversity goes further than equality. Equal opportunities policies
are legislation led, remedial and based on the assumption that minority groups will
assimilate into the dominant culture. By contrast, valuing diversity is visionary in
aiming to create a positive work environment in which everyone benefits and can
work to their full potential in pursuit of organisational goals, aims and objectives. This
may involve changes in core values, mindsets and behaviours – supported by poli-
cies and strategies.
In Practice 13.5
The CIPD (2005) reports that the cost of age discrimination to the UK economy is between £19 billion
and £31 billion a year. It argues that, as life expectancy increases and the birth rate remains low, the
proportion of the population aged 65 and over will increase (see also Figures 13.1 and 13.2) and soci-
ety will increasingly depend upon the contribution these people can make. Based upon this, the CIPD
highlights the following points:
the difference in absenteeism between age groups is slight;
older employees stay in the same job longer than younger people;
findings from studies show that workers, both young and old, are equally effective in their work;
given the right training, older people are as capable at learning new skills as younger employees;
age discrimination leads to employees underachieving, a reduction in self-confidence and motiva-
tion and lower self-esteem.
Building upon this discussion, the underlying philosophy would seem to support the
suggestion that managing diversity represents a shift in thinking about the cost of dis-
crimination and disadvantage within the labour force. The focus shifts from the
implications for individuals who are members of disadvantaged groups, to the cost to
the organisation of the failure to fully recognise and utilise the talents and skills of all
employees regardless of which segment of the labour force they are drawn from. The
managing diversity approach implies that an organisation can gain competitive advan-
tage and enhanced performance through a more strategic and inclusive deployment of
all its human resources. This is based on the assumption that an organisation will be
able to meet the needs of increasingly diverse customers, and tackle increasingly com-
plex business and management problems by consciously fostering and effectively
managing a diverse workforce (Cox, 1991; Stephenson and Lewis, 1996). Despite the
pluralist ideal of valuing differences, from a managerial perspective managing diversity
can therefore be seen as unitarist, promoting the importance of unifying people in
organisations to the common purpose of organisational success.
Unification has parallels with the increase in the power of HR managers associated
with the strategic aspects of HRM, the corresponding devolution of more operational
aspects to line managers and their teams, and the expectation that employees will
respond to diversity in their customers or clients, especially in the service sector (Agocs
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Chapter 13 Diversity management: concern for legislation or concern for strategy? 479
and Burr, 1996). At the same time, it should be noted that through devolvement of oper-
ational HR activities to line managers, the HR function is generally reduced in size and
thus the HR manager’s line management role is reduced. These and other differences
when compared with the equal opportunities approach are summarised in Table 13.1.
Table 13.1 Managing diversity and equal opportunities approaches to diversity management
Sources: Thomas (1990); Hall and Parker (1993); Mavin and Girling (1999); Maxwell et al. (2001).
Given our earlier discussion, it is therefore not surprising that, within the academic
literature, managing diversity is considered a more holistic, strategic and more sophisti-
cated organisational programme than equal opportunities or affirmative action (Cox,
1993). Such traditional concepts are viewed as being based on the recognition that
employment discrimination exists, and a belief that, as highlighted in Table 13.1, the
issue is best addressed by targeting groups with specific characteristics, which it is
believed have led to their disadvantage. Consequently, for many, the managing diversity
approach is seen as building upon the initiatives undertaken as part of equal opportuni-
ties (Gill, 1996).
In seeking to determine the organisational benefits to be gained from this interpreta-
tion of the managing diversity approach, Kandola and Fullerton (1994b) draw on
literature and research from McEnrue (1993) and Cox and Blake (1991). They assert
that this research provides proof of the benefits of diversity, in particular:
the best candidates are employed;
the organisational culture is one in which the potential of all employees is capable of
realisation;
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Outline the strengths and limitations for diversity management of the managing
diversity approach.
So far in this chapter a clear distinction between managing diversity and equal opportu-
nities approaches to diversity management has been maintained. However, before
moving on to a discussion of the business case for diversity management, it is important
to offer a note of caution. From the preceding discussion it might appear that SHRM
needs to adopt either an equal opportunities or a managing diversity approach. In real-
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Chapter 13 Diversity management: concern for legislation or concern for strategy? 481
ity they are often considered as interdependent, diversity management seeking to value
individual differences, and equal opportunities seeking to ensure that specific groups
and sub-groups are not discriminated against. McDougall (1996) suggests that, what in
this chapter is termed managing diversity approach, should not be adopted instead of
equal opportunities as, to focus on this alone, may mean the equal opportunities agenda
is lost in the general search for valuing all aspects of difference. This is supported by
research undertaken in the USA at IBM (In Practice 13.6). In addition, research under-
taken with HR practitioners indicates that both approaches need to be considered
together if they are to realise their strategic potential as organisational development
tools and deliver an improvement in business results (Ford, 1996).
In Practice 13.6
Research undertaken by Child (1996) at IBM highlighted the interrelationships between three ‘pillars’
of diversity management:
equal opportunities;
affirmative action;
work and personal life balance programmes.
Equal opportunities was found to enable employees to be employed and to work in a harassment-
free environment. Affirmative actions taken helped enable individuals to compete on a level playing
field without giving anyone an advantage but seeking to eliminate disadvantage. Work and personal
life balance programmes aimed to eliminate attitudinal, policy and practice barriers that impacted
upon employee productivity and prevented an individual’s ability to balance work and personal life.
Liff (1993) argues that conventional equal opportunities approaches are deeply
rooted in traditional approaches to personnel management, which have tended to see
the employees as a collective. Equal opportunities approaches are considered bureau-
cratic, relying on setting rules for managers to follow and subsequently monitoring their
compliance. To this extent, equal opportunities might be paralleled to personnel man-
agement, which is often viewed as largely legislatively driven, operating piecemeal
initiatives assimilated into an existing culture. These aim to eradicate barriers and, with
a focus on groups and numbers, normally remain the responsibility of the personnel
function. In contrast, the diversity management approach, like SHRM in general, is
driven by organisational needs, with a holistic strategy often requiring culture change
and nurturing in order to improve the workplace environment (Chapters 1 and 2).
Diversity therefore becomes a concern of the entire organisation. Liff (1993) further
argues that, as SHRM focuses on the role of the individual and the importance of
involvement and commitment, a diversity approach appears to fit more comfortably
with this style. Like personnel management and SHRM, equal opportunities and man-
aging diversity approaches can also be viewed as distinct concepts, yet remain
organisationally interdependent.
SHRM_C13.QXD 14/2/07 15:57 Page 482
Building upon these, Liff (1999) argues in later work that it is important for SHRM to
offer both equal opportunities and managing diversity initiatives. Within this she sug-
gests that equal opportunities, which she terms ‘dissolving differences’ (1999: 68) is
probably a prerequisite for managing diversity, which she terms ‘valuing differences’
(1999: 68). The assertion is that diversity has become an increasingly important issue for
organisations to manage. The significance of diversity appears to be in its relation to
diverse markets and labour pools as opposed to the impact of legislation. This suggests
that organisations will become more effective if they adopt a pluralist approach, paying
attention to and utilising the different personal characteristics among their employees.
However, this appears perhaps inconsistent with the unitarist business case for diversity
management outlined earlier; unifying employees to the common purpose of organisa-
tional success. It is this business case for diversity management that is now considered.
The business case supporting diversity management has been presented by numerous aca-
demics (for example, Liff, 1997, 1999; Foster and Newell, 2001; Schneider, 2001; Ward,
2001); and practitioners (for example, Johnson and Redmond, 2000; Bain, 2001; Elmes,
2001) as well as professional bodies such as the CIPD (2003). It is based on the argument
that organisations will only survive and succeed in the current highly competitive and
dynamic global environment if they respond positively to the increased heterogeneity of
their markets, customers and employees. In essence, diversity management provides a
competitive advantage, through differences being promoted as a positive source of innova-
tion and improved organisational practice by, for example, utilising multiple perspectives.
The business case therefore represents a strategic shift in focus to the management of dif-
ference which proposes that rather than engaging in equal opportunities activity to ensure
social justice, or viewing equal opportunities as correcting an imbalance, an injustice or a
mistake (Thomas, 1990), the activity is engaged in to gain business advantage. Robinson
and Dechant (1997) caution, however, that this business case remains to be measured and
documented (Frame and O’Connor, 2002).
From a managerialist perspective, diversity management means ensuring that every
member of the workforce has the opportunity to perform to his or her full potential
(Thomas, 1990). However, this definition lacks the consideration of the ways in which
diversity management will benefit the individual employee and contains implications of
organisational and managerial control. In contrast, Miller (1996) argues that the diver-
sity management approach simply restates the ‘neo-liberal’ perspective where the
maximisation of each individual’s potential is the central principle. Within this model,
diversity is to be used to add value to the organisation and a range of measures is
deployed essentially to refocus corporate culture (In Practice 13.7). Articulating a busi-
ness case for diversity therefore offers a way to operate equal opportunities as a strategic
issue, a core value linked to the achievement of organisational competitiveness (Dickens,
1994). Consequently, a way to place diversity management on an organisation’s strategic
agenda is to position it as providing tangible benefit, rather than simply being socially
and morally right.
Examination of the literature in relation to diversity management reveals that, over
the past three decades, the overriding reason for a shift in emphasis from the promotion
of equality of opportunity prevalent in the UK and other countries (such as the USA
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Chapter 13 Diversity management: concern for legislation or concern for strategy? 483
and Australia) has been business driven, and strategically and managerially focused. This
is highlighted by training and development literature that increasingly frames diversity
as a ‘productive strategy’ with ‘bottom-line value’ to create ‘dividends’, with the result
that ‘multiculturalism just makes good business sense’ (Kirby and Harter, 2003: 29).
In Practice 13.7
Although the Ford Motor Company has a long history of promoting equal opportunities, this image
was tarnished in the 1990s by a number of incidents. In 1996 the Company was found to have super-
imposed white employees’ faces on four black employees in a photograph taken for an advertising
campaign, while in the late 1990s allegations of abuse and harassment resulted in the prospect of
formal investigation by the UK’s Commission for Racial Equality (Burke, 2004).
Ford undertook wide-ranging measures to ensure that there would be a change in the organisa-
tion’s culture. The negative events were used as a catalyst for positive change. A UK Diversity
Manager was appointed and the organisation developed and implemented a Dignity at Work policy.
Rather than focusing upon race or gender, this ensured that all employees are treated fairly and that
all have a stake in Ford’s reforms. A key feature in the success of this policy is getting universal buy-in
from the entire organisation, which includes employees in eight salaried functions and ten manufac-
turing plants across the UK (Burke, 2004).
The business benefits of the Dignity at Work policy are that, if Ford’s policies and practices and
employee profiles relate to its customers, it will be able to avoid negative publicity and sell more
motor vehicles (Burke, 2004).
Gender has often been found to have a negative effect on career progression, with
women being less likely to be promoted than men (Kirchmeyer, 2002). Where women
and those from ethnic minorities perceive this occurring in their organisations, they are
likely to be less involved in their jobs (Grey and Healy, 2004).
Within the business case for diversity management, it is proposed that organisations
willing to invest by harnessing the talent and ability of all their employees and in creat-
ing an environment that is positive and supportive of them, will reap a number of key
organisational outcomes. These, in turn, will provide the organisation with competitive
advantage. The main organisational benefits claimed to emanate from the creation of a
positive and supportive environment for diversity management are summarised in Key
Concepts 13.4.
Sources: Fernandez (1991); Henderson (1994); Esty et al. (1995); Hirsch (1995); Golembiewski (1995);
Cox and Beale (1997); Graham (1997); Sonnenschein (1997); Cook Ross (2001);
J. Howard and Associates (2001); The Diversity Group (2001).
Thus, the business case for diversity appears to be based upon a perceived necessity
for organisations to move away from a piecemeal approach to equality and the manage-
ment of difference. Simply implementing an equal opportunities awareness training
programme without linking this with SHRM initiatives, such as cultural change (Chap-
ter 6), is unlikely to bring about the permanence of attitudinal and organisational
change. To gain the positive outcomes claimed, diversity management needs to address
the issue in a coordinated and strategically integrated manner. As with other cultural
changes and illustrated by the case at the end of this chapter, the benefits are likely to be
long term rather than immediate. Thus, what is actually being proposed by diversity
management is a cultural shift in the way organisations value employees’ talents, who-
ever they are, and a questioning of many of the taken-for-granted assumptions about
what talent is, how contributions are recognised and assessed, and how human resources
are managed strategically. This issue of implementation is discussed in ‘Evidence of the
strategical adoption of diversity management and implementation advice’ later in this
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Chapter 13 Diversity management: concern for legislation or concern for strategy? 485
chapter. However, before this we will consider the cultural context in which diversity
management may be realised and the claimed benefits.
The benefits claimed for diversity management are likely to be realised within the con-
text of the re-alignment of an organisation’s culture to one where diversity is valued
(Doherty and Chelladurai, 1999). Although issues associated with organisational culture
and its re-alignment have already been discussed in some detail in Chapter 6, there are
some aspects that are worth reiterating. In particular it must be remembered that,
within organisations, people are often reluctant to instigate culture change as this may
lead to their own loss of power (Martin, 1992). However, if the culture is to be re-aligned
to one in which diversity is truly valued, then it is likely that it will be necessary to per-
suade those in power that this will impact positively upon the organisation’s
effectiveness (Wright et al., 1995; Robinson and Dechant, 1997).
at management and senior management level in the organisation. Indeed, Kossek and
Zonia (1993) consider demographic mix to be an important determinant of a culture
that values diversity, through the provision of role models to prospective recruits and
existing employees, perhaps suggesting implicitly a need for affirmative action. Cox
(1993) also asserts that, with the creation of a more supportive organisational environ-
ment, comes an increase in individual satisfaction and commitment. This can result in
positive organisational outcomes, such as reduced industrial conflict, positive work atti-
tude, increased cooperation and productivity gains (Harsis and Klenier, 1993).
Claimed benefits
In a UK study, Hicks-Clarke and Iles (2000), sought to assess whether the positive claims
made for a culture supportive of diversity were evident in organisations. Based on a
study of the retail and NHS sectors, they found a positive climate for diversity (indicated
by perceptions of policy support, evidence of organisational justice, support for diversity
and recognition of the need for diversity) was related strongly to the presence of positive
employee job and career attitudes. In particular, there was a strong relationship between
employees’ perception of organisational justice and their organisational commitment.
Positive perceptions of organisational justice were also predictive of increased job satis-
faction, career planning, career commitment, satisfaction with manager and career
satisfaction. Where employees felt that flexible working hours were available to them,
this correlated strongly with organisational commitment, job satisfaction, satisfaction
with manager, career satisfaction and career future satisfaction. Those in the study who
had seen a copy of the organisation’s equal opportunities policy were more likely to be
satisfied with their manager, and the provision of career breaks strongly predicted satis-
faction with future career opportunities. Finally, perceived organisational support for
diversity was found to be linked to satisfaction with manager and future career opportu-
nities. In Hicks-Clarke and Iles’ view, these results confirm the importance of both a
supportive climate for diversity in general and of specific associated policy dimensions
such as flexible working hours, presence and sight of an equal opportunities policy, and
career break policies in generating positive organisational and work-related attitudes
and perceptions.
Despite such claims, others (for example, Barmes and Ashtiany, 2003) have argued
the diversity agenda faces particular challenges if it is to be linked directly to a business
case. Their concern is that, if financial business benefits are the key motivation for
adopting the diversity perspective, then a diversity management strategy may be vulner-
able to short-term economic conditions. By focusing instead upon non-economic
justifications for the adoption of diversity management, continued investment in poorer
economic conditions would allow business benefits to emerge and so provide an addi-
tional justification for promoting diversity (Practice 13.8). In addition, and more
fundamentally, achieving the business advantage to be derived from diversity manage-
ment is dependent upon a high-trust work environment. In such a context, each
employee will have favourable expectations of the organisation’s and other employees’
motives and intentions, which will be manifest in their own resultant behaviours. The
corollary of this is that trust is unlikely to exist unless organisational members and
potential organisational members believe that commitment to their futures is genuine.
Where the justification for valuing each person’s distinctive contribution is based on
economic considerations alone, such as within a business case, it is likely to be harder to
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Chapter 13 Diversity management: concern for legislation or concern for strategy? 487
In Practice 13.8
Over the past few years there has been increased awareness of the importance of a diverse work-
force. A growing number of organisations have made their employees increasingly aware of the need
and benefits of a more inclusive culture; employers have provided diversity workshops to advise
employees of the benefits of a diverse culture, and foster a culture in which diversity is valued.
Kraft Foods is a good example of diversity management practice; it is also an example of an
organisation that has embraced a diversity management approach because it is seen to be the ‘right’
thing to do, but, through its active approach has also reaped economic benefit through obtaining and
retaining suppliers of high standards and quality (Forbes, 2002).
Kraft Foods is cited by the Wall Street Journal as being one of the key pioneers in the USA of sup-
plier diversity. Kraft believes in doing business with suppliers and vendors who not only demonstrate
a commitment to diversity in their own operations, but also show commitment to high standards of
quality and ethical practice. Kraft actively manages its supplier diversity programme, which began in
1981 to ensure that goods and services are purchased from the widest possible pool of high-quality
suppliers regardless of national origin, race or gender. The Kraft supplier diversity task force, seeks to
encourage minority suppliers and provides assistance to such suppliers in understanding and taking
advantage of the organisation’s purchasing procedures. It has been argued that the high standards
set for suppliers translate into these companies becoming excellent and attracting further business
(Forbes, 2002).
believe that the focus on diversity management is genuine. Pursuing this argument to a
logical end, the much sought after, and highly desirable, benefits articulated by the busi-
ness case for diversity are therefore ultimately dependent upon an organisation focusing
on diversity management because it fits with the culture’s basic underlying assumptions
(values), and not only because it promises future economic advantage.
suggests that few organisations operate in quite this way. For these organisations, diver-
sity management is seen as potentially providing business advantage requiring
management of human resources in its delivery. The final section of this chapter consid-
ers evidence regarding the strategic adoption of diversity management and the advice
available to organisations to manage diversity management programmes.
Despite discussion regarding the strategic adoption of diversity management, there is rela-
tively little empirical evidence to support this process. Schneider (2001), for example, refers
broadly to changing the organisation’s culture thorough management development, change
management and specific diversity awareness-raising, skills-building workshops. However,
the tactics through which such major strategic re-alignments would be undertaken in prac-
tice, often require elaboration (Worman, 2001). This may be due to anticipated significant
resource implications (Foster and Newell, 2001). When development opportunities are
offered in company or by professional trainers, little evidence is present of a holistic, strate-
gically aligned, culture-changing approach, as outlined in Chapters 6 and 10. Often what can
be observed is an exclusive approach with an operational, or at best tactical, focus as
opposed to the much discussed inclusive approach and strategic focus.
The exclusive approach is typified by diversity programmes that focus on gender and
race-based scenarios, with trainees being invited to suggest appropriate actions as the
scenarios unfold. The focus is therefore a particular theme, thereby excluding other
aspects of diversity. Without careful management this may result in workshops being
run to the exclusion of those who are not members of the group in question. In such cir-
cumstances, diversity initiatives differ little in substance from the equal opportunities
approach outlined previously in this chapter.
Empirical evidence
Although rhetoric claims that there are differences between the managing diversity and
equal opportunities approaches, the extent to which organisations have actually
embraced these differences in their approach to managing diversity is less clear. Empiri-
cal evidence that assesses the extent to which the full diversity management agenda has
really been adopted by organisations is limited. Kandola and Fullerton (1998) surveyed
445 organisations from 30 different industry groups from a perspective of promoting
the adoption of managing diversity, and a belief that organisations should adopt this
approach. They concluded that a managing diversity perspective was not being fully
embraced. Rather, the majority of organisations were focusing only on those initiatives
traditionally categorised as equal opportunities, for example placing emphasis on fair
recruitment and selection processes. On the basis of this, Kandola and Fullerton (1998)
argue that many organisations are using the banner of managing diversity when, in real-
ity, they are undertaking equal opportunities initiatives.
Girling (1999) explored equal opportunities and managing diversity in 60 UK organ-
isations across both the private and public sectors. Her survey asked about their
organisations’ approaches to diversity management, encompassing the strategy/policy,
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Chapter 13 Diversity management: concern for legislation or concern for strategy? 489
characteristics, aims and what was happening in practice with respect to equal opportuni-
ties and managing diversity. Respondents were also asked if they were aware of the two
approaches and whether they appreciated the differences. She found that the majority of
respondents were aware of equal opportunities and managing diversity approaches and
some of the distinctions between them, this awareness coming from educational pro-
grammes. However, 25 per cent of the HR professionals were not sure if their organisation
had a strategy/policy on managing diversity, whilst 78 per cent of the general line man-
agers were also unaware of their organisations’ responses (if any) to this issue.
In another study, respondents were asked to identify what they perceived as the main
aims of equal opportunities and managing diversity (Mavin and Girling, 2000).
Although 90 per cent of respondents believed adherence to legislation was the main aim
of equal opportunities, there was still confusion between the terms. Eighty-one per cent
of respondents considered that the responsibility for equal opportunities should fall pre-
dominantly to the personnel or HR function. Even for the low number of organisations
following a managing diversity approach, it was interesting to note that diversity man-
agement was considered the primary responsibility of the personnel or HR function,
rather than of senior management. This study also considered the methods being used
by organisations to initially raise, and then progress, equal opportunities and managing
diversity issues. The most frequently cited methods were:
organisations were monitoring for equal opportunities (88 per cent);
using personnel/HRM department to promote the issue (85 per cent);
applying fair selection training (83 per cent);
employing positive recruitment advertising (82 per cent).
Additionally, respondents were asked about the policies their organisations followed.
These included:
study leave provisions for those wishing to enhance their career through educational
qualifications (95 per cent);
special leave arrangements to assist individuals with personal issues as they arose (91
per cent);
training and development initiatives (90 per cent);
placing emphasis on recruitment and selection (88 per cent);
implementing harassment and bullying policies (73 per cent).
However, in relation to extending and integrating the policies in a diversity management
strategy, only 46 per cent had family friendly arrangements, while 5 per cent had
work/life balance programmes. These results are therefore similar to those of Kandola
and Fullerton (1998), where it was found that equal opportunities approaches were still
the main method of raising awareness in UK organisations.
Such empirical research findings indicate that, for many organisations, the rhetoric of
managing diversity remains as rhetoric rather than a distinct approach. This may be par-
tially explained by Thomas’s (1990) observation that it is impossible to manage diversity
unless you actually have it. However, examination of the case study at the end of this
chapter, shows that this need not be the case. For organisations where diversity among
employees is visible, the characteristics of diversity management noted by respondents
to the three research surveys described are based predominantly on established equal
opportunities approaches. Collet and Cook (2000) believe that there are several reasons
SHRM_C13.QXD 14/2/07 15:57 Page 490
why organisations decide against such proactive management of diversity, the most fre-
quent one being that the organisation believes it is already undertaking sufficient
investment in ensuring equality of opportunity. Despite this, for those organisations
considering implementation of a managing diversity approach within diversity manage-
ment, advice is available.
Implementation advice
Ross and Schneider (1992) provide advice that enables organisations to grasp the holis-
tic nature of implementing a diversity management approach. As part of this they stress
the importance of adopting a strategic perspective. This, they argue, differentiates a
diversity management approach to one that simply promotes equality of opportunity. In
their view, the diversity management approach is:
internally driven and not externally imposed;
focused on individuals rather than groups;
focused on a total culture change, rather than just change at systems or process level;
the responsibility of all organisational members and not just those in the HR or per-
sonnel function.
To successfully implement diversity management, Ross and Schneider (1992) advo-
cate six key stages (Figure 13.5). In the first of these, the current situation is assessed,
using secondary data such as equal opportunities monitoring statistics, policy docu-
ments as well as organisational surveys. Based upon this, the key diversity issues and
their likely causes are identified. The next stage uses the analysis to establish the aims of
the diversity management programme. As part of this it has been argued that, as with
4. Develop policy
5. Implement policy
Chapter 13 Diversity management: concern for legislation or concern for strategy? 491
Summary
is concerned with equality of status, opportunities and rights. This, it can be argued,
is deeply rooted in traditional approaches to human resource management;
the managing diversity approach, which focuses upon an explicit holistic strategy
of valuing differences, such as age, gender, social background, ethnicity and dis-
ability. This, it can be argued, is like SHRM, driven by organisational needs.
SHRM_C13.QXD 14/2/07 15:57 Page 492
The business case claimed for a managing diversity approach includes a better public
image for the organisation, a satisfying working environment for employees,
improved employee relations, increased job satisfaction and higher employee morale,
increased productivity and, for the organisation, improved competitive edge. It is
argued that organisations will only survive and prosper in an increasingly competi-
tive and dynamic global environment if they respond to the heterogeneity of their
markets. However, there is limited empirical evidence to support these claims in
either the UK or USA.
Despite a lack of evidence, it seems probable that the benefits of diversity manage-
ment will only be realised within the context of the re-alignment of an organisation’s
culture to one where diversity is valued. For this to happen, it will be necessary to per-
suade those in power that this will impact positively on organisational effectiveness.
Empirical evidence suggests that, for many organisations, diversity management
remains a theoretical concept rather than a strategic reality, combining equal oppor-
tunities and managing diversity approaches. The most frequent reason advanced for
this is that organisations believe they are already undertaking sufficient investment
through ensuring equality of opportunity. However, for organisations considering the
implementation of a managing diversity approach, advice is available.
1. Choose an organisation with which you are familiar. If you are in full-time education,
you may wish to choose your university or college. Obtain copies of the organisation’s
diversity management and/or equal opportunities policies. Based upon this evidence
and what you have read, to what extent do you consider the organisation has adopted
a strategy of diversity management?
2. Re-examine Table 13.1. Update this table in the light of the most recent UK legislation.
3. Visit the European Union’s Eurostat statistical data web site (http://europa.eu.int/
comm/eurostat/newcronos/). Using the demographic data available for member states
choose two countries, one in western Europe and one country that joined the EU in
2004. To what extent do these data suggest different issues for diversity management
with regard to workforce composition in relation to age and gender?
4. How persuasive do you think the business case for diversity management is? What
information/evidence would you need to make the case more convincing?
5. To what extent do you think the recent emphasis on diversity management is entirely
positive? Outline the key benefits of this recent emphasis, but also consider some of
the less positive aspects of people working together that may be highlighted through
such widespread emphasis.
Chapter 13 Diversity management: concern for legislation or concern for strategy? 493
Case Study
Making diversity an issue in leafy Elgarshire
Background
Gender
Males 18.6 49.0 48
Females 81.4 51.0 51.3
Age
0–15 – 19.5 20.2
16–64 99.9 64.1 63.8
65–74 0.1 8.6 8.4
75 and over – 7.8 7.6
Health
Limiting long-term illness Comparable data 16.7 18.2
General health ‘not good’ not available 8.0 9.2
Ethnicity
White 97.5 97.5 92.1
All minority ethnic population 2.5 2.5 7.9
Total (= 100%) 17,458 542,107 58,789,194
Sources: developed from National Statistics (2003); Worcestershire County Council (2004a, 2004b).
The need to make diversity an issue Relations (Amendment) Act 2000. Rather, it wanted
to be seen to be taking actions that actually made a
Simply considering the headline figures in Table 1, it difference to those living in the county and working
might be argued that, within Worcestershire, diversity for the County Council. COMB felt that an approach
is ‘not an issue’ and is ‘not something the County was needed that forced employees to recognise that
Council need to bother about’. Indeed this appears to diversity issues were important, needed to be
be the perception of many, the much used ‘leafy Elgar- addressed and, as part of this, challenged widely
shire’ description of Worcestershire, conjuring images held perceptions. Through such an approach it
of white rural prosperity associated with English shire aimed ‘to produce observable changes in the behav-
counties. However, as the earlier discussion highlights, iour and impacts upon underpinning beliefs and
this is not the only reality for people within the county. values’ within the County Council (Britton, 2002: 1).
For example, although the County Council’s employ-
ees reflect the composition of the county in terms of Worcestershire’s approach
ethnicity as a whole, for some parts of the county there The County Council’s approach was outlined in the
is a marked mismatch between ethnicity of employees internal document: Promoting Equality and Dignity
and that of residents in receipt of services. In addition, at Work (Britton, 2002). Although this focused upon
workforce monitoring has highlighted a lack of women development and training activities required in
in more senior positions within the organisation. response to Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000,
The County Council’s Chief Officers’ Management it also stressed that the County Council’s commit-
Board (COMB) was aware that the council was not ment to equality and dignity was much broader, the
serving some of the residents of Worcestershire as
underpinning principles of the proposed approach
well as it should. It also recognised that, in order to
consisting of four interrelated and overlapping
get the best from all employees, there was a need to
phases embracing all diversity issues:
recognise diversity. COMB was determined to
address these issues and raise the awareness of all Phase 1 – capturing attention (awareness
staff to the diversity of needs of those living in campaign);
Worcestershire and of their employees. In particular it Phase 2 – addressing the issues (training);
was keen to be seen as not just ‘ticking boxes’ to
meet legislative requirements, such as those set by
Phase 3 – operational briefings for managers;
the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 and the Race Phase 4 – embedding the learning.
SHRM_C13.QXD 14/2/07 15:57 Page 495
Chapter 13 Diversity management: concern for legislation or concern for strategy? 495
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
Introduction
Downsizing has become a major HR strategy used by organisations of all sizes. At a
superficial level, downsizing appears a reassuringly simple and inviting strategy to
consider. Reducing an organisation’s headcount is a more concrete idea than, say, re-
aligning an organisation’s culture (Chapter 6) and appears to offer cost savings
through fewer people being employed. However, although such a strategy may be
easier to comprehend at this superficial level, in reality the process of downsizing is
highly complex and can often generate a range of reactions that undermine the
strategic objectives for downsizing. In this chapter we explore such reactions and
their consequences for an organisation using this strategy (Figure 14.1). As a major
organisational HR strategy, downsizing is also capable of promoting and contributing
to other organisational strategies. Indeed, within this chapter it will be argued that the
successful use of downsizing requires the implementation of and integration with
other human resource strategies discussed in this book. Through doing this, possible
negative reactions to downsizing may be avoided or reduced and the greatest bene-
fits from its use gained. This chapter therefore focuses upon the human aspects of
downsizing in order to maximise the positive and minimise the negative outcomes of
using of this strategy.
Job insecurity
Systemic
and
change
communication
Career and
psychological Stress
contract
Figure 14.1 Mapping the downsizing territory: a summary diagram of the chapter content
SHRM_C14.QXD 14/2/07 15:58 Page 499
Downsizing
What is downsizing?
Downsizing is an organisational strategy to reduce the size of an organisation’s workforce.
However, it is frequently used as a synonym for redundancy. You have almost certainly come
across news reports where alternative terms such as rightsizing, restructuring and reorgani-
sation have been used in relation to downsizing. The literature about downsizing recognises
that it can use a range of methods. Consequently, downsizing can be seen as an HR strategy
that includes some of the interventions or approaches to reducing headcount that have tra-
ditionally been seen as alternatives to redundancy. These include the use of natural wastage,
early retirement, voluntary as opposed to compulsory redundancy, freezing recruitment,
redeployment and retraining, as well as forms of work sharing, such as reduced working
hours and job sharing. In recent years this appears to have been accompanied by changing
employment practices through increased use of fixed-term and temporary employees
(Guest, 2004) as organisations respond to sectoral shifts in the structure of employment and
a need to cut costs. Freeman and Cameron (1993) offer two further distinguishing features
of downsizing in relation to redundancy (or ‘layoffs’ as this is referred to in the North Amer-
ican literature). For them, downsizing is an organisational-level concept, whereas
redundancy is approached at the level of the individual. Building upon this discussion,
downsizing can be considered a strategic issue, whereas redundancy is one of a number of
possible operational means to achieving it. Finally, downsizing differs from redundancy in
the extent to which it is regulated. While redundancy is subject to tightly prescribed legisla-
tion associated with dismissal in many western countries; downsizing, because it may utilise
a range of methods other than dismissal, not surprisingly falls outside dismissal legislation.
former goal and the use of redundancy, leads to the fundamental problem associated
with its intended purpose. In practice, pursuing short-term cost cutting through redun-
dancy to reduce headcount is likely to lead to the loss of key skills and competences from
the workforce and to the creation of lowered morale and insecurity. This outcome may
adversely affect, rather than improve, aspects of the performance of an organisation.
Even the use of a carefully managed and longer-term attempt to restructure and trans-
form the organisation may still have adverse effects. Thus, downsizing is likely to be
associated with the creation of negative psychological and behavioural consequences for
survivors, no matter how well it is managed. The management of this HR strategy there-
fore needs to incorporate measures to alleviate the causes of such consequences as far as
is possible and reduce their effects.
Organisations as well as human resource management theorists often recognise the
importance of committed employees (Swailes, 2002). Alternatives to a strategy that encour-
ages employee commitment to the goals of an organisation may be to muddle along or
overtly increase the degree of managerial control over the workforce. However, the use of
either of these approaches is likely to only work effectively in the short term, where no
attempt is made to manage the issues that arise from downsizing. As can be seen in relation
to BT (In Practice 14.1), survivors’ commitment may also be affected. The need for organisa-
tional commitment and loyalty is likely to be more significant after downsizing, since those
who remain become more important to the functioning of the organisation. However, this is
likely to be threatened if the organisation does not foster continued commitment from those
remaining, or unless its employees maintain some sort of third-party relationship with its
customers, perhaps related to a sense of professional commitment.
Shaw and Barrett-Power (1997) recognise that the external measures typically used to
assess the effectiveness of downsizing from a corporate perspective are clearly inade-
quate as a means to understand and manage the impact of this process on stakeholders,
such as work groups and individual employees, who survive this event. Typically, corpo-
rate measures are related to profitability, productivity, investment returns, customer
satisfaction ratings and the like. While these may indicate indirectly that downsizing has
had a negative impact on those who survive as employees in the organisation, they can
only imply the presence of psychological and behavioural consequences for survivors.
In Practice 14.1
Between 1991 and 1995 BT’s workforce fell from 215,000 to 137,000, a loss of 78,000 staff. During the
early part of this period, the success of voluntary redundancy schemes led to many more BT staff apply-
ing than the targeted numbers. However, despite these release schemes being based on the principle of
voluntary severance, a number of those who survived the event had negative reactions. The success of
attracting so many volunteers for the redundancy terms being offered led to a situation where some of
those retained felt ‘angry and hurt’ because they had not been allowed to leave (IRS, 1993: 14). This
undoubtedly had an impact on the remaining employees’ commitment to the company (Doherty et al.,
1996: 56), one employee stating, ‘What drove us on to complete the project, even with its impossible
targets, was our professionalism and our relationship with the customer to whom we were committed. It
had little to do with loyalty to the company.’ Subsequently, some of the survivors felt a sense of loss
about colleagues with whom they had worked closely. For some this led to a sense of guilt about the
fact they had kept their jobs while former colleagues had lost theirs (Thornhill et al., 2000).
SHRM_C14.QXD 14/2/07 15:58 Page 501
There is evidence of the existence of such consequences, and their adverse effect on
expected corporate outcomes from downsizing, from the findings of a number of USA-
based surveys. Mishra and Mishra (1994) cite Tomasko (1992) who found that just
one-quarter of downsized organisations had realised their objective of improved pro-
ductivity and higher returns on investment. Similarly, a survey by the Wyatt Company of
1,005 downsized organisations found that less than half were able to agree that they had
achieved a particular organisational objective related to a desire to reduce costs, improve
productivity, increase investment returns, or increase profits, etc. (e.g. Cameron, 1994a).
The continued commercial success of many organisations that have engaged in sig-
nificant downsizing programmes means that there is a need to interpret the results of
such surveys with a degree of caution. While a failure to achieve an objective following
downsizing may indicate negative psychological and behavioural reactions from sur-
vivors, we believe that such consequences may be present even where corporate results
do not point to this outcome. A range of contextual variables could affect, and disguise,
the impact of survivors’ negative reactions on the commercial performance of an organ-
isation. These include the nature of the technology being used; the skills of the
workforce; the nature of work processes; the need for innovative behaviour and level of
redundancy payments made. Even within the EU, the minimum pay differs significantly
between countries (In Practice 14.2) For this reason, the authors believe that the nega-
tive impact of survivors’ reactions may often be hidden from an organisation’s ‘balance
sheet’, at least in the short-term.
In Practice 14.2
Minimum redundancy payments in some EU countries are almost six times higher in some European coun-
tries than others (Mercer Human Resource Consulting, 2003). The graph below compares the minimum
statutory paid notice period and number of weeks of severance pay for a typical non-manual employee
aged 40 who was made redundant after ten years’ service and with a salary of €30,000.
60
Minimum notice period
Weeks after ten yearsí service
40
30
20
10
0
m
rg
ce
en
ria
ly
ce
nd
n
ga
an
nd
ar
ai
an
U
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iu
an
ed
st
la
Sp
rtu
nm
bo
m
re
lg
rla
nl
Au
Ire
Fr
Sw
Be
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G
Fi
Po
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xe
et
Lu
Country
SHRM_C14.QXD 14/2/07 15:58 Page 502
Thus, even where observable commercial costs are not considered, it may be the case
that a significant adverse impact has occurred. This may be related to the creation of
negative psychological consequences for survivors or to the altered profile of an organi-
sation’s workforce, which impairs its ability to demonstrate adaptability to altered
circumstances in the future.
To summarise the discussion so far, it has been suggested that the intended purpose
for organisations to downsize is to achieve an improvement in organisational perform-
ance. Despite this, the creation of psychological and behavioural reactions from those
who survive this process may lead to the impairment, rather than the improvement, of
the performance of the organisation. This suggests that downsizing needs to be exam-
ined as a ‘bottom-up’ process as well as a ‘top-down’ one. In other words, for the
strategic outcomes of downsizing to be realised it will be necessary for the organisation
to consider and manage the process from the perspective of affected individual employ-
ees and workgroups, and the stresses which this event creates. This type of approach has
led Shaw and Barrett-Power (1997: 109) to propose a definition that focuses on this per-
spective: ‘we define downsizing more broadly as a constellation of stressor events
centering around pressures toward workforce reductions which place demands upon the
organisation, work groups, and individual employees, and require a process of coping
and adaptation.’ The nature of these psychological and behavioural reactions is sum-
marised in Figure 14.2 and discussed more fully, along with their implications, in
‘Interventions to manage downsizing as a bottom-up process’, later in this chapter.
Behavioural reactions
Absenteeism
Intention to leave/turnover
Risk taking
Resistance to change
Work effort/performance
Millward and Brewerton (1999) emphasise that psychological contracts can be described in terms of
both the nature of the beliefs about the contract between employee and employer, and the process
through which these beliefs arise.
Within the literature, the nature of employees’ beliefs has been differentiated in terms of its trans-
actional or relational orientation. A psychological contract with a transactional orientation has been
argued to focus upon short-term, largely financial benefits to the employee (Rousseau, 1995). Per-
ceived terms of employment are predicted to be calculative and instrumental with limited reciprocity,
focusing upon beliefs about remuneration (Herriot and Pemberton, 1996). Within such contracts,
affected employees will concentrate on distributive outcomes, there being limited identification and
integration with the organisation (Millward and Brewerton, 1999). Thus, loyalty and commitment are
unlikely to be an integral part of the transactional psychological contract.
A psychological contract with a relational orientation is likely to have evolved over time as a part-
nership develops between employee and employer (Rousseau, 1995), implying mutuality and
reciprocity between them. Perceived terms of employment are therefore likely to be more than remu-
nerative, incorporating beliefs about support from the employer, such as training, and personal and
career development. Processes through which equity and fairness are affirmed are important in main-
taining a relational contract, with the nature of beliefs becoming more pronounced as they are
assessed over time (Herriot and Pemberton, 1996). Consequently, a relational psychological contract
has been characterised for the employee as trusting his or her employer, high affective commitment,
high integration and identification with the organisation, and long-term commitment (Rousseau,
1995). As argued earlier, organisational interventions such as downsizing may impact negatively upon
these relational aspects, leading to a more transactional orientation.
SHRM_C14.QXD 14/2/07 15:58 Page 504
Downsizing can therefore be seen as both a strategic intervention in its own right and
a component of a wider business strategy. Implicit in this interpretation is the need for
the process of and outcomes from downsizing to be managed proactively, and to try and
ensure clear integration between different interventions. In practice, as we outline later,
this may not happen, and the opportunity to achieve the strategic objectives intended
from the use of downsizing is likely to be impaired. This will require reactive interven-
tions to attempt to obtain the type of outcome that was originally intended. The need
for a reactive intervention to overcome unintended and negative outcomes may also
result from the use of inappropriate or ineffective interventions when downsizing was
introduced. These types of events are illustrated in Figure 14.3.
Intended
e outcome
tiv
r o ac ion
P litat
i
fac
Downsizing Reactive
strategy facilitation
ine La
ffe c
cti k of,
ve
, fa or Unintended
cili
tat outcome
ion
Cameron and colleagues (e.g. Cameron et al., 1991, 1993; Cameron, 1994b) have identi-
fied three organisational strategies to achieve downsizing (Figure 14.4). The first of these
is the workforce reduction strategy, which focuses simply on reducing an organisation’s
headcount. This usually has an emphasis on cutting costs and is also known as conver-
gent downsizing. The second is the organisation redesign strategy which, in addition to
reducing headcount, involves elements of delayering, eliminating areas of work and job
redesign, so that the amount of work is also reduced (In Practice 14.3). The third is the
systemic change strategy which, in addition to workforce reductions and structural
changes, is a longer-term approach. This is intended to promote a more fundamental
change that affects the culture of the organisation (Chapter 6), for example by promot-
ing employee involvement and adherence to a continuous improvement strategy. This
and the second strategy are also known as reorientation strategies. Downsizing may thus
be implemented solely through reducing an organisation’s headcount (the most popular
strategy) or in combination with one or more other strategies that seek to reduce the
amount of work undertaken and bring about structural and cultural change to the
organisation (In Practice 14.3).
SHRM_C14.QXD 14/2/07 15:58 Page 505
Workforce reduction
reducing headcount
Organisatonal redesign
delayering, eliminating areas of work,
job redesign, outsourcing
Systemic change
continuous
improvement,
changing culture
Downsizing strategy
Workforce reduction
Significantly, Cameron et al. (1993) found that the exclusive use of a workforce reduc-
tion strategy resulted in a reduction, rather than an improvement, in organisational
performance. In a confirmatory study, Mishra and Mishra (1994) found that organisa-
tional performance was adversely affected in relation to both cost and quality, where this
strategy was used exclusively. Such a strategy may lead to the loss of valued organisa-
tional competence, as discussed earlier, and negative consequences for those who
remain. Its benefits are seen to be short term, whereas the attendant costs remain into
the longer term as the organisation attempts to overcome the loss of required compe-
tence and negative survivor reactions.
In Practice 14.3
BBC People, the HR department at the BBC, is planning to reduce its headcount from almost 1,000
to 450 posts in 2006 (Griffiths, 2005). Of these, 260 will be outsourced, 180 will be made redundant
and other jobs will be transferred to other BBC divisions. Like many HR functions, BBC People
already outsources services such as payroll and recruitment. The additional areas likely to be affected
by this new outsourcing include:
assessment and development;
contracting of casuals;
freelancers;
HR advice and technical support;
engineering training;
occupational health;
access services;
relocation.
At the same time, HR support will increasingly be delivered using IT. Through the outsourcing, the
headcount of back-office functions is likely to be reduced by 47 per cent and associated costs by
25 per cent (Griffiths, 2005).
tion strategy has been shown to further damage employee morale as subsequent down-
sizing programmes are revealed, resulting in anorexic organisations (Kinnie et al., 1998).
The implications arising from an organisation’s use of a downsizing strategy are also
related to the extent to which the approach adopted is proactive or reactive (Kozlowski
et al., 1993) (see Figure 14.3). A proactive downsizing strategy is likely to be integrated
with the organisation’s business strategy, target organisational areas and competences
for downsizing selectively, and recognise the potential consequences from both organi-
sational and individual perspectives. The recognition of potential consequences is also
likely to lead to the development of interventions to alleviate or manage their incidence.
Proactivity, therefore, implies careful planning throughout the stages of downsizing.
In contrast, a reactive approach is unlikely to consider those aspects that a proactive
approach is designed to address. It is therefore more likely to be used where the aim of
downsizing is limited to reducing organisational costs, and lead to the creation of negative
consequences in relation to remaining employees. The North American literature suggests
that a reactive approach to downsizing may be more frequently used than a proactive one.
For example, the small amount of time available to the HR managers in the study under-
taken by McCune et al. (1988) meant that they had little opportunity to plan before
downsizing. Managers faced with such a situation are unlikely to have sufficient time, if
any, to plan and develop interventions to alleviate and manage the consequences of down-
sizing for those who survive. The HR implications are thus more likely to be negative and,
in the event, more difficult to manage, where an organisation pursues only a workforce
reduction strategy, especially where this is conducted on a reactive basis.
SHRM_C14.QXD 14/2/07 15:58 Page 507
Compulsory
redundancy
Natural Voluntary Involuntary without
attrition redundancy redeployment outplacement
High Low
Level of employee influence
The use of methods such as natural attrition or wastage or early retirement are likely
to reduce the level of perceived managerial control. This should reduce levels of job inse-
curity for those below the early retirement age as well as concerns about low employee
influence, since the use of such methods does not threaten these employees’ continuity
of employment. Greenhalgh et al. (1988) discuss five downsizing methods which they
place on a continuum that emphasises employees’ influence over their continuity of
employment at one end and managerial control at the other. The authors have added
job share, early retirement, voluntary redundancy and recruitment freeze to this contin-
uum (Figure 14.5).
However, even where an organisation encourages early retirements or uses a volun-
tary approach to redundancy, a high level of managerial control may be exercised (Wass,
1996). All types of redundancy arise as the result of a managerial decision. Voluntary
redundancy involves employees volunteering to be made redundant. This decision to
volunteer may be in response to either a general request by the organisation or in
response to specific targeting of individuals. Although voluntary redundancy involves a
decision by an employee to accept an offer of a redundancy payment, and is differenti-
ated from compulsory redundancy, which affects selected employees regardless of their
wishes, managerial control over inducements to accept voluntarily have been shown to
be highly persuasive (Wass, 1996). In most instances, those taking it feel that, although
their choice was constrained, it was a voluntary process, financial incentives helping to
make it an attractive proposition (Clarke, 2005). In addition, non-financial inducements
to volunteer are likely to have an impact. For example, increasing the target number of
staff to be made redundant may increase the pressure upon employees, reducing morale
and resulting in more volunteers (Lewis, 1993). Work intensification and other changes
may have a similar effect.
Perhaps the key point in this respect is the perception by employees of their level of
influence over the downsizing process. While strategic targeting of the redundancy
terms offered may allow organisations to exercise effective control over the implementa-
In Practice 14.4
Soon after its return to Chinese sovereignty as a Special Administrative Region in 1997, Hong Kong,
like neighbouring Asian economies, experienced an economic downturn. By 1999 a survey by the
Hong Kong Institute of Human Resource Management found that 40 per cent of firms were reporting
problems with surplus labour (Chu and Ip, 2002). In mid-1999, a sudden downturn in internet busi-
nesses prompted a series of layoffs in the workforce.
Downsizing in the internet businesses was more sudden than in other industries. Over two-thirds
of those organisations making employees redundant communicated their decisions to employees in
person, over half being dismissed immediately (Chu and Ip, 2002). According to Chu and Ip’s
research, employees’ viewed the process as unfair. There had been no prior consultation or commu-
nication to explain the reasons for downsizing. Assistance with job search was not provided for those
made redundant and, although some organisations used subcontracting to cover for lost employees,
little was done to help those who remained in employment. These survivors felt uneasy and perceived
little justice in the downsizing process or their own treatment.
SHRM_C14.QXD 14/2/07 15:58 Page 509
tion of downsizing, even where the process is ostensibly voluntary, employees may per-
ceive that they still exercise little choice in accepting redundancy. Alternatively, there
may be an exchange relationship whereby employees are willing to trade their influence
over the process for a sizeable compensatory payment. There may even be a sense that
employees have exercised some degree of collective control in influencing management
to offer relatively generous redundancy terms to avoid particular negative reactions.
However, where the method to implement downsizing is presented as voluntary but is
perceived not to be, the outcome is likely to be the creation of negative reactions. These
may be created among survivors as well as leavers, with consequences for the future
management of the organisation (Thornhill, et al., 1997b). In this situation any sense of
influence by employees would be perceived to be false, with the implication that sur-
vivors’ reactions may be negatively affected through this type of organisational
treatment. This may also mask underlying problems of morale and commitment
(Clarke, 2005) as dissatisfied employees opt for voluntary redundancy.
Which factors related to the methods used to implement downsizing might affect
managerial control and employee influence over the process?
Survivors’ reactions to …
Time Time
… the organisation … individuals
Figure 14.6 Principal determinants and categories of survivors’ reactions to the advent of
downsizing
Source: developed from Thornhill et al. (2000).
How would you react to the redundancy of colleagues in the organisation for
which you work, or in an organisation for which you have worked? (Perhaps you
have actually experienced this event. If you have, how did you react and why?)
Research using a number of applicable theories, such as those related to equity, organisa-
tional justice, job insecurity, job redesign and organisational stress, suggests a number of
interventions for managers to consider. These would be designed to reduce the inci-
dence and strength of negative survivor reactions and encourage more positive reactions
to the downsizing organisation.
by categorising employees’ views and feelings about their and others’ treatment within
an organisation (Morrison and Robinson, 1997). Distributive justice is related to
employees’ perceptions regarding the fairness of the decisions that are made – the ‘out-
comes’ of the process. The elements of distributive justice promote an understanding of
why survivors may not perceive the outcomes of redundancy decisions to be fair. Organ-
isations are likely to make or promote redundancy selection decisions based on criteria
related to business needs, efficiency and performance. However, in many, if not most,
cases, such criteria will be unlikely to produce outcomes that match the economic need
to maintain employment of those threatened by redundancy (Brockner and Greenberg,
1990). Explaining why criteria were chosen may help to reduce the consequences of
redundancy decisions based on this mismatch between organisational and individual
objectives. In addition, employees may perceive that the business-related criteria used
for redundancy selection do not match their judgements about effective performance.
The use of such criteria will lead to an outcome that is perceived to be unfair. The possi-
bility of such an outcome has clear implications for the validity of selection criteria and
the need to shape perceptions about this. Another aspect of distributive justice may
relate to perceptions about whether downsizing and redundancy also affect manage-
ment, or whether managers are seen to avoid redundancies (Brockner, 1992).
Perceptions about the processes used to arrive at, and to implement, these decisions
form the basis of two further dimensions of justice that are sometimes treated as one in
the literature: procedural justice and interactional justice (Cropanzano and Greenberg,
1997). Procedural justice focuses on employee perceptions about the fairness of the
processes used to make decisions about downsizing and redundancies. This suggests that
not only should the outcomes of downsizing decision-making be seen to be fair but so
too should the procedures used to arrive at such decisions. Where negative reactions are
created by outcomes that are perceived as unfair, these may be moderated by the use of
procedures that are seen as fair (Brockner et al., 1990). Studies related to procedural jus-
tice have focused mainly on two factors that affect perceptions about procedural
fairness. These are ‘voice’, which is linked to employee involvement in the process (Chap-
ter 8), and ‘justification’, which relates to education through explanation (Daly and
Geyer, 1994). The promotion of involvement in this context may include the use of con-
sultation and communication about the process; the use of a voluntary, as opposed to a
compulsory, redundancy; affected employees being provided with options about rede-
ployment and relocation; the provision of outplacement facilities and; interventions
aimed at allowing survivors to adjust to downsizing-related changes. Guest and Peccei
(1992: 55) evaluated the effects of involvement initiatives used during the closure of a
British Aerospace site and found that ‘employee involvement can work as a strategy for
easing the process of plant closure’. However, they also found that certain groups were
less involved, with the implication that these employees may have had less favourable
perceptions about the fairness of the procedures used.
Involvement allows those affected to exercise some degree of influence in relation to
the process, as we discussed earlier. This has been linked to a number of attitudinal and
behavioural survivors’ reactions. Davy et al. (1991) found that employee influence over
the downsizing process positively affects perceptions about fairness and job satisfaction,
which in turn affect level of commitment to the organisation and intention to stay.
Organisations may therefore genuinely seek to engender employee involvement to pro-
mote perceptions that the process used is just (Davy et al., 1991). Justification may also
be promoted through an educative process to explain why downsizing is necessary. As
with employee influence in relation to the process, justification has been found to be
SHRM_C14.QXD 14/2/07 15:58 Page 514
related positively to procedural fairness and, in turn, to intention to stay (Daly and
Geyer, 1994). This may be explained through the finding that employees are more likely
to accept a decision, even an unfavourable one related to redundancy, when they receive
an adequate and genuine reason for it (Brockner et al., 1990).
Procedural justice has been distinguished from interactional justice that focuses on
employees’ perceptions about fairness of interpersonal treatment received during the
implementation of downsizing (Bies and Moag, 1986). However, there has been consider-
able debate concerning interactional justice. Initially, researchers (Bies and Moag, 1986;
Greenberg, 1993) suggested that it consisted of two distinct types of treatment: treatment
of people (interpersonal justice) and explanations provided to people (informational jus-
tice). Subsequently, it was argued that, as interactional justice produces the same type of
perceptual outcomes as procedural justice, it should be considered a facet of procedural
justice rather than as a separate dimension (Cropanzano and Greenberg, 1997). More
recently, research has suggested that procedural, informational and interpersonal justice
are three empirically distinct dimensions (Colquitt, 2001; Kernan and Hanges, 2002). Line
managers have a potentially significant influence over the way their subordinates react to
downsizing in terms of their treatment of those who leave and the survivors. Line man-
agers therefore need to be able to demonstrate a range of skills that might be broadly
described as change management skills. In addition, line managers need to be able to deal
with issues that are specific to a redundancy situation. These will include communicating
notification decisions and providing reasons for these (informational justice), as well as
the sensitivity with which they treat leavers during their notice period (informational jus-
tice). It is therefore suggested that line managers will require preparation and training to
be able to cope effectively and fairly (Thornhill et al., 1997a).
harder and longer, and engage in a broader range of roles, and cope not only with their
traditional management tasks but also with new aspects related to the implementation
of change. This led Belasen et al. (1996) to report that the managers in their study
needed to be ‘hyper-effective’ in order to cope. However, the sustainability of this
requirement, its impact on these managers’ psychological contracts, and their level of
organisational commitment were questioned. Both studies found these managers felt
they did not receive adequate information, leading to a sense of powerlessness, and that
their psychological contracts had been unilaterally altered by the nature of the changes
occurring within their organisations (Belasen et al., 1996; Newell and Dopson, 1996).
Newell and Dopson (1996) reported that the experiences of the managers in their study
had led several of these to re-appraise the nature of their commitment, shifting the focus
away from work irrespective of career progression.
All survivors may, of course, experience feelings of insecurity arising from uncer-
tainty and unilateral changes to their psychological contracts. Kozlowski et al. (1993)
used facets of job redesign, related to job enrichment or enlargement, to explore the
relationship between an organisational strategy used to downsize and structural deter-
minants of survivors’ reactions following downsizing. In the earlier discussion of Figure
14.4, three organisational strategies to downsize were outlined. The first of these simply
involved the use of a workforce reduction strategy, where the intention is to reduce
organisational headcount and costs, as highlighted by In Practice 14.4. However, the
amount of work that remains in the downsized organisation may not be reduced, at
least on a commensurate basis. This will lead to a situation of job enlargement for sur-
vivors, where feelings of role stress and dissatisfaction may result in an altered
commitment focus and intention to leave. This is likely to be associated with ineffective
leadership, unclear job responsibilities, poor communication and feedback, and poorly
defined performance standards, as well as role overload, following downsizing
(Tombaugh and White, 1990). The use of an organisation redesign strategy (Chapter 5),
in conjunction with a workforce reduction one, will instead be aimed at reducing the
quantity of work in the downsized organisation. Where effective, this may lead to job
enrichment enhancing personal control in relation to job roles (Kozlowski et al., 1993;
Cameron, 1994b).
SHRM_C14.QXD 14/2/07 15:58 Page 517
Summary
Downsizing is an organisational strategy to reduce the size of an organisation’s work-
force. Its use is likely to generate a range of reactions from those who remain in an
organisation, which may lead to adverse consequences.
Three organisational strategies have been identified to achieve downsizing. These are:
the workforce reduction strategy; organisation redesign strategy; and the systemic
change strategy. An important distinction has also been drawn between the use of
proactive and reactive approaches to downsizing. The use of a reactive, workforce
reduction strategy has been found to impair, rather than improve, organisational per-
formance. Even where this approach is not used there may still be a negative effect
arising from the creation of negative survivors’ reactions and the loss of organisa-
tional competence.
Where organisations use methods to implement downsizing that emphasise managerial
control at the expense of perceived influence by employees, this will generate further
negative survivors’ reactions leading to adverse consequences for the organisation.
The incidence and strength of survivors’ reactions are affected by the existence of
moderating variables. These highlight the scope for downsizing organisations to
intervene to seek to minimise their incidence or manage their effects.
A range of organisational theories, related to equity, organisational justice, job inse-
curity, job redesign and organisational stress, can be used to suggest appropriate
human resource interventions to manage the process of downsizing more effectively,
depending on the characteristics of the organisational context.
1. Using the search facilities of an electronic version of a quality daily newspaper obtain
reports relating to recent downsizing at an organisation. Use these reports to discover
the reasons for the downsizing and how it was implemented. How do you think the
process might have been managed better?
2. Taking In Practice 14.2 as your starting point, explain the implications of variations
in statutory redundancy requirements between member states in the EU.
3. Visit the government statistics web site for a country of your choice (for example
http://www.statistics.gov.uk for the UK). Using that site’s search facilities, obtain
detailed data on redundancy rates. Find out what the overall trend in redundancy
rates has been over the past few years. Explore how this trend differs between males
and females and for different industry sectors.
4. Interview a friend or colleague whom you know has been made redundant from a
previous job. Ask them to describe how they feel they were treated during the process.
To what extent is organisational justice theory helpful in explaining their feelings?
SHRM_C14.QXD 14/2/07 15:58 Page 519
1. Evaluate the management of the downsizing process at organisation XYZ paying spe-
cial attention to the reactions of the survivors.
2. Evaluate the management of the downsizing process at organisation XYZ paying spe-
cial attention to those who were made redundant.
3. Design a downsizing strategy for a large organisation to minimise the negative reac-
tions from existing employees.
4. Explore the implications of variations in national legislation relating to redundancies
for multi-national organisations facing the need to downsize their operations.
Case Study
The demise of MG Rover cars?
Financial Times cutting 1: MG Rover staff The money is part of a £150m package pledged
benefit from speedy payout by the government to help the estimated 20,000
workers who have lost jobs at MG Rover and its
by Bob Sherwood suppliers.
Financial Times, 3 May 2005 The Transport and General Workers’ Union said:
‘It’s excellent that the government has moved very
About 4,000 MG Rover workers who lost their fast. But it’s awful that people with years of service
jobs after the carmaker went into administration have been left with the statutory minimum.’
have received redundancy payments averaging The union also called for a quick settlement for
£5,000 each. the workers who were not paid their statutory 90-
The £20m-plus payout, which will ultimately be day notice period because of the speed of the
paid by the taxpayer, was speeded up by officials, redundancies.
Patricia Hewitt announced while campaigning for Ms Hewitt said administrators had received a
the general election in the West Midlands yesterday. ‘large number’ of expressions of interest from com-
The trade and industry secretary said the total panies contemplating acquiring assets or divisions
payments to former Rover workers would be closer of Rover, but it was uncertain whether they would
to £50m than the £40m she had announced when save any jobs.
the company collapsed last month.
Former workers at the Longbridge plant in Birm-
ingham, where more than 5,000 jobs were lost, had Financial Times cutting 2: New employment
complained they would receive payments up to found by 1,250 ex-Rover workers
£3,300. But the trade and industry secretary said
the actual statutory redundancy payouts were by Jonathan Guthriein
larger. Speaking in the marginal constituency of Financial Times, 22 June 2005
Redditch, she said: ‘I am delighted that my officials
have put in a great deal of extra overtime and have About 1,250 out of more than 5,000 workers who
made these payments in two weeks compared with lost jobs when MG Rover collapsed in April have
the six weeks it can take to come through.’ found new employment. A government-appointed
SHRM_C14.QXD 14/2/07 15:58 Page 520
taskforce said it was evidence that ‘the West Mid- in re-employment in three weeks, when compensa-
lands is fighting back from the biggest company tion payments in lieu of notice ceased.
closure in years’. Many ex-MG Rover workers are learning
MG Rover, the last British-owned volume car- construction industry skills, of which there is a
maker, went into administration after Shanghai national shortage.
Automotive Industry Corporation pulled out of col- Carl Lanchester, 56, previously a paint sprayer,
laboration talks. Yesterday’s news on employment will begin a plastering course this month. Mr Lan-
suggests the blow to the local economy will be chester, who described Ms Hodge’s comments as
lighter than many predicted. This reflects a tight ‘insulting’, said he had felt ‘frustrated’ by delays to
labour market and diversification by suppliers after his retraining.
BMW sold Rover to local industrialists in 2000. Mike Beasley, a taskforce member and chairman
The MG Rover Taskforce, which updated the Prime of the West Midlands Learning and Skills Council,
Minister on its progress yesterday, said 2,200 MG agreed there had been a bottleneck in retraining,
Rover workers had signed up for training courses. adding: ‘You have to remember we are taking on
About 1,000 have already started retraining. A few over 3,000 new students, the equivalent of a whole
hundred MG Rover staff have been retained by the new college being set up.’
administrators to look after the Longbridge factory Workers are mostly resigned to earning less in
site, leaving about 1,000 other workers still looking for new jobs than they did at the Longbridge plant. Mr
jobs or pondering their futures. The administrators Lanchester, who received £21,000 a year, said: ‘I
have set today as the deadline for bidders to lodge will be lucky to get that anywhere else.’ Average
their offers for MG Rover businesses pay at MG Rover was about £22,000 with typical
Tony Blair praised the taskforce, whose efforts salaries for ex-workers beginning new careers esti-
could become a model for dealing with future mass mated at £18,000.
redundancies, alongside such examples as the regen-
eration of Corby after steelworks closures. The body’s
task has been made easier by generous funding. Financial Times cutting 3: Waiting game
The Labour government, which was seeking re- ended in tears as SAIC deal for Rover
election when MG Rover collapsed, has pledged failed to materialise
£175m and the EU has put up £40m. That totals
almost £36,000 per worker, though much of that by James Mackintosh
money has not yet been spent. Financial Times, 7 October 2005
JobCentre Plus, the government employment
and benefits agency, set up an office on the Long- When Tony Lomas, senior restructuring partner at
bridge site and distributed information packs to PwC, arrived at the gates of MG Rover’s Long-
redundant workers. A jobs fair was held on parkland bridge factory in Birmingham on a Saturday
beside the site and a register of manufacturing afternoon in April, he had already decided that a
vacancies was set up. Small suppliers are receiving rescue of the company was close to impossible.
grants to retain workers dependent on MG Rover Colleagues at the professional services firm had
contracts while they diversify. worked through the night, after being appointed as
Margaret Hodge, minister for work and pensions, administrators by the owners of the carmaker, to try to
was embroiled in a row last week when she linked revitalise a deal with China’s largest car manufacturer.
the MG Rover redundancies to vacancies at a local But Mr Lomas found attempts to contact execu-
Tesco store. Some reports interpreted this as a call tives at Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp had
for former MG Rover workers to apply for jobs as failed. He roped in colleagues from PwC’s Shanghai
shelf stackers. This hit a raw nerve with trade union- office, spoke to NM Rothschild, SAIC’s London-based
ists worried by the replacement of well-paid investment banking adviser, and consulted Rover
manufacturing work with poorly-paid services jobs. executives who had negotiated with the company.
However Nick Paul, chairman of the MG Rover Everything he discovered backed up the belief that
Taskforce, said many former MG Rover workers had a sale to SAIC – which had been under negotiation for
found new jobs in manufacturing and that there were a year – was ‘highly unlikely’ and even if possible
still 1,600 vacancies for skilled staff locally. Gerard could not be done quickly. He decided Rover could
Coyne, a member of the taskforce and regional sec- not risk its hoard of £17.2m cash and the workforce
retary of the T&G union, said there would be a ‘spike’ would have to be sacked on Monday. It was also
SHRM_C14.QXD 14/2/07 15:58 Page 521
unclear whether the money was pledged against than 700 bidders asked for information but by late
loans or free to spend. ‘We told both the union and the June only a handful had proved serious, including
DTI that. That was our view on the Saturday morning Nanjing Automobile. Nanjing, which is struggling in
and that was still our view on the Sunday.’ its home market of China, demonstrated it was seri-
People close to SAIC had made clear in private ous by sending a delegation, led by its
ahead of the collapse of Rover that a deal was no second-in-command, to examine Longbridge.
longer on the table. Indeed, bankers at Rothschild At this point, two late bidders emerged: SAIC,
had advised the Chinese company that if a deal which had wanted to buy only the Powertrain
was to be done, it was better to do it while Rover engine factory, realised that PwC preferred to sell
was still trading in order to avoid the brand Rover’s assets as a package; and a consortium led
damage. Anyone buying Rover would also have to by David James, who took over the troubled Millen-
contend with suppliers refusing to provide vital nium Dome in 2000, offered £40m for everything.
parts to the company until they were paid. Yet, late However, SAIC still did not believe Nanjing
on the Sunday, with SAIC still out of contact, the had the money and was finding it difficult to put in
Department of Trade and Industry decided to hand a serious bid. It finally lodged a bid just before a
over £6.5m to stave off redundancies for a week July 22 deadline but Mr Lomas said it was not as
while Chinese talks took place. This money, techni- high as Nanjing’s £53m offer and had conditions,
cally a loan, would only be repaid if the business unlike Nanjing.
was sold as a going concern. Today, Chinese engineers are dismantling pro-
Efforts to contact the Chinese company lasted duction lines to ship to Nanjing, where they plan to
four days before a letter arrived from Shanghai, build MG cars. But Mr Lomas says Nanjing appears
addressed to Patricia Hewitt, the then trade and to be negotiating with GB Sports Car Co to build
industry secretary, which made ‘crystal clear’ that cars in Britain.
no deal was possible. After that, job losses were
inevitable. Mr Lomas brought in experts from PwC’s
human resources consultancy, who had handled Case study questions
the 3,000 job losses imposed during the restructur-
ing of television rental company Boxclever. Before answering these questions read all three
‘When you are trying to do the “hard” commer- articles from the Financial Times.
cial things they made sure you deal with the human
1. Outline the organisational downsizing strategy
matters too,’ he said.
that was adopted by Rover.
As P45s landed on doormats, Mr Lomas heard
from valuers that, apart from a few pieces of spe- 2. Outline the range of support offered to
cialised equipment, most of Rover’s machinery redundant Rover workers.
could only be sold as scrap metal. The 14,000 new Why do you believe this support was offered?
and second-hand cars parked on disused airfields 3. Why did the UK government become involved in
around Britain and Europe were the company’s the downsizing at Rover?
most valuable assets. 4. What were the intended and unintended
This meant finding a buyer that wanted to build outcomes of the downsizing strategy adopted?
MGs or Rovers and so needed the equipment. More
SHRM_Z01.QXD 14/2/07 15:59 Page 522
Glossary
360-degree appraisal This type of appraisal is so called Bandwagon effect This is where companies rush to emulate
because it does not rely on assessment from the line manager competitors by investing abroad for fear of losing competitive
only but from a number of sources. These may include, in edge.
addition to the line manager, other managers such as those Base pay The basic, regular amount of wages or salary received
responsible for projects; peers; employees for whom the indi-
by an employee without additional sums such as bonuses.
vidual may be responsible; internal and external customers;
and self-assessment. Basic research Research undertaken purely to understand
Achievement versus ascription A cultural dimension used processes and their outcomes, predominantly in universities
by Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner that relates to re- as a result of an academic agenda, for which the key con-
lationships with people and, in particular, the way in which sumer is the academic community.
status is accorded. Basic underlying assumptions The deepest level of culture.
Acquisitions see mergers and acquisitions. These are the invisible ‘theories in use’ upon which more visi-
Action research Evaluation strategy concerned with the ble practices and artefacts of culture are built. They are so
management of a change and involving close collaboration taken for granted that there will be little variation in them
between practitioners and researchers. The results flowing within a culture or subculture.
from action research should also inform other contexts. Best practice HRM Similar to the concept of universal
Applied research Research of direct and immediate rele- models of SHRM, this suggests that there is ‘one best way’ of
vance to practitioners that addresses issues they see as achieving HR effectiveness.
important and is presented in ways they can understand and Best value An initiative in the UK public sector that requires
act upon. local authorities (and other best value authorities) to seek to
Appraisal-related pay A method of payment when an individ- achieve continuous improvement by having regard to the
ual employee receives increases in pay based wholly or partly on efficiency, effectiveness and economy of their service delivery.
the regular and systematic assessment of job performance. Big idea A key finding of one of the research projects on the
Artefact A manifestation of a culture that is relatively easy to extent to which HR impacts upon organisational perform-
discern but from which the true meaning is difficult to deci- ance showed the importance of a big idea (e.g. a dominant
pher because of its shallow or superficial nature. Material organisational imperative) that unified organisational
objects, physical arrangements, patterns of behaviour, stories thought and action.
and jokes are often described as artefacts. See also symbol.
Black box A term used in HR research to discover how the
Articulated knowledge The knowledge possessed by indi- processes of people management influence employee and
viduals that can be expressed verbally or in writing so that it
organisational performance.
can be passed on to others to assimilate.
Bottom-up Process typically initiated away from an organi-
Balanced scorecard This assumes that for an organisation to
sation’s headquarters, developed by employees and led by
be successful it must satisfy the demands of its key stakehold-
ers, investors, customers and employees. This suggests four general managers. Tends to be approached incrementally.
key perspectives on business performance: finance; cus- Broad-banding The compression of a hierarchy of pay
tomers; internal business processes; and learning and growth. grades or salary ranges into a small number of wide bands.
SHRM_Z01.QXD 14/2/07 15:59 Page 523
Glossary 523
Bundles (HR) Some of the studies treat HR practices as Compulsory redundancy The selection of employees to be
groups, or ‘bundles’, of activities, thus emphasising the made redundant regardless of their wishes.
importance of horizontal integration between practices. Confucian dynamism A cultural dimension used by Hof-
Capability Refers to an individual employee's ability to per- stede (and Bond) that relates to the long- or short-term
form the work expected of them to required standards. orientation of cultures.
Case study Evaluation strategy that involves the empirical Contingency approach This approach suggests that there is
investigation of a particular contemporary phenomenon no universal best way to design an organisation, that the
within its real-life context, using multiple sources of evidence. design chosen is dependent on the current and future operat-
Closed question see question, closed ing environment of the organisation.
Collective agreement The outcome of the collective bargain- Contract of employment Formed when an offer of employ-
ing process; may be defined as an agreement between a trade ment is made and accepted. Traditionally, the terms and
conditions included in the contract of employment create the
union(s) and employer(s) that determines, among other
central elements of the employment relationship.
things, the terms and conditions of employment of the
employees and the employer who is party to the agreement. Convergence, cultural see cultural convergence.
Collective bargaining Voluntary, formalised procedure Core capabilities A set of organisation-specific capabilities
whereby employers and trade unions negotiate, for specific that can lead to sustainable competitive advantage. These
groups of employees, terms and conditions of employment, capabilities arise from the distinctiveness of internal
and the ways in which certain employment-related issues are to resources and include an organisation’s skill base, its
be regulated at national, organisational and workplace levels. processes and routines, and its assets and patents or intellec-
tual capital. Frequently referred to as core competences. See
Collectivism (1) Refers to employees giving up their indi- also core competence.
vidual interests in favour of the interests of the workgroup,
whether at workplace, company or national level. The Core competence A distinctive organisational capability
employer may have little choice in this as it may be part of an that, if effectively exploited, can lead to an organisation
arrangement where the employees’ interests are progressed achieving competitive advantage over its rivals if the com-
petence cannot be easily copied. See also core capabilities.
through a collective arrangement. (2) An approach to the
management of the employment relationship that assumes Core values see basic underlying assumptions.
that the employees’ interests are pursued through the Corporate culture This is the pattern of values, beliefs and
processes of collective representation to management, usu- expectations shared by organisation members. It represents
ally, but not exclusively, through trade unions the taken-for-granted and shared assumptions that people
Commitment Widely used in current SHRM literature to make about how work is done and evaluated, and how
describe the quality of being dedicated to the cause. Various employees relate to one another and to significant others,
methods are used to develop this quality among employees such as suppliers, customers and government agencies.
with the aim being a dedication to the cause of organisational Corporate strategy The overall aims and objectives of an
success. Some employees may be committed to a career or to organisation and how the organisation plans and utilises its
employment security that is associated with the success of the resources to achieve its strategy. See also strategic manage-
business, while other employees may be committed to their ment; strategic planning; strategy.
career, perhaps at the expense of the business. A final group Cross-sectional The study of a particular phenomenon (or
of employees may have no commitment at all. phenomena) at a particular time, i.e. a ‘snapshot’.
Competence-related pay A method of rewarding employees Cultural convergence The argument that, due to advances in
wholly or partly by reference to the level of competence they technology, the growing number of multi-national organisa-
demonstrate in carrying out their roles. tions and the like cultures will converge.
Competitive advantage (1) A perceived association with a Cultural divergence The argument that between-country
commodity or service of a tangible or intangible attribute of differences, such as language, religious beliefs, laws, political
condition of supply, which makes that product or service systems and education, mean that cultures will diverge.
more attractive to customers than the goods or services of a Cultural web The symbols, power structures, organisational
competitor. (2) The advantage enjoyed by an organisation structures, control systems, rituals and routines, and stories
over its competitors. This can arise accidentally as a result of that, along with their interrelationships define the core values
the particular circumstance of an organisation but is often and beliefs of an organisation’s culture.
deliberately sought and pursued through strategic manage- Culture ‘A pattern of shared basic assumptions that the
ment. It may result from the positioning of an organisation group learned as it solved its problems of external adaptation
in its market place, e.g. niche marketing or competing on and internal integration, that has worked well enough to be
the basis of quality, or from the exploitation of distinctive considered valid and, therefore, to be taught to new members
internal resources, e.g. an organisation’s human capital. as the correct way to perceive, think and feel in relation to
Competitive environment The immediate competitive con- those problems’ (Schein, 1997: 12). See also national culture;
text in which an organisation operates. organisational culture.
SHRM_Z01.QXD 14/2/07 15:59 Page 524
524 Glossary
Differentiation perspective The perspective that different Employee behaviours This term refers to the repertoire of
groups within, for example, an organisation are likely to have attitudes and actions held and performed by employees in
different beliefs and behaviours regarding some aspects of the pursuit of their duties.
organisation, resulting in manifestations of the culture being Employee involvement A unitarist and business-centred
at times inconsistent. concept, fostered by employer and managerial interests,
Direct exporting This takes the form of a company produc- designed to generate employee commitment and contribu-
ing and selling goods to foreign customers. tion. Employee involvement encompasses a range of practices
Discrimination Differential treatment of people in the same that are focused directly on employees including forms of
situation due to their membership of different groups. communicative involvement, task-level involvement and
Distributive justice The perception of the fairness of a deci- financial involvement, and is affected by managerial actions
sion that has been made in terms of that decision’s outcomes. and styles of leadership.
Divergence, cultural see cultural divergence. Employee participation Power-centred concept, advanced
by trade unions and through legislation in some cases. The
Diversity being different or varied. This is normally concep- focus is to allow employees to have a mechanism for offering
tualised using dimensions that are particularly relevant to an their views about managerial proposals.
individual employee’s identity such as gender, age, ethnicity,
disability and sexual orientation. Employee relation/industrial relations These are not simply
different terms for the same activities; they denote a signifi-
Diversity, managing see managing diversity.
cant change of emphasis. Concern with industrial relations
Diversity management Ensuring every member of the developed when the emphasis was on collective relationships
workforce has the opportunity to perform to his or her full within industry, such as engineering, teaching, etc. Each busi-
potential. Diversity is therefore seen as a resource to be man- ness within that industry observed the terms and conditions
aged and used to improve organisational performance and agreed between employers’ representatives and unions, which
competitive advantage. bound each employer. Employee relations have little regard
Double-loop learning In contrast to single-loop learning, for industry criteria and focus on collective or individual
double-loop learning is the term used to explain the learning arrangements at the organisational, workplace or team/
process where the main focus is not on improving current departmental levels.
practice but on questioning the very basis of established prac- Employee share ownership schemes A type of share incen-
tice. So, for example, if an HRD intervention fails to result in tive scheme whereby a special trust is established to purchase
improved employee performance, rather than simply looking company shares.
to see how that training intervention might be made more
Employee voice A term used to denote a series of practices
effective, the relevance of HRD itself in that situation might
(e.g. suggestion schemes) designed to ensure that employees
be challenged. See also single-loop learning.
have an input into the running of their organisation.
Downsizing see organisational downsizing.
Employment relationship Economic, legal, social, psycholog-
Downstream Denotes a later stage. When applied to rational ical and political relationships in which employees devote their
strategic planning this would denote, say, that functional time and expertise to the interests of their employer in return
strategies developed to support corporate strategy would lie for a range of financial and non-financial rewards and benefits.
downstream from that corporate strategy. When applied to
SHRM it denotes, for example, that strategic recruitment and Empowerment The granting to all staff of an organisation of
selection lies downstream from the organisational compe- as much scope for decision-making as feasible within the
tences it is designed to secure. Developing line management framework for a strategy.
competence to manage their human resources would be a End-loaded investment model Where the majority of finan-
downstream activity necessitated by a prior decision to intro- cial investment in HR is directed at managing the
duce SHRM. performance of employees once recruited. This anticipates low
Emergent strategy A strategy that evolves over time and as levels of investment in the recruitment and selection process
such has not been carefully planned. Such strategies can with more significant expenditure being sanctioned to rectify
emerge from, for example, unexpected outcomes from the performance problems arising from unsatisfactory recruits.
pursuit of a deliberate strategy or from initiatives developed Equal opportunities An approach to diversity management
at a local level that grow to take a hold over the organisation that is compliance based, values equality, and focuses on
as a whole. avoiding unfair disadvantage to specific groups utilising legis-
Employability A perspective on the employment relation- lation and targeted group initiatives to try to ensure that
ship in which the onus is placed on the individual to ensure differences do not result in unjust or prejudicial treatment.
sufficient training and experience in order to remain attrac- Equality Being equal in status, rights and opportunities.
tive in the labour market. The employer may provide Avoiding unfair disadvantage based on membership of a dis-
development opportunities but it is up to the individual to advantaged group and ensuring that each person has an equal
take advantage of them. chance to make a distinctive contribution.
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Glossary 525
Espoused value A value of a culture connected with moral Fitting the person to the job Where the attributes or skills
and ethical codes that determines what people think ought to necessary to effectively perform a job are identified first and
be done, rather than what they necessarily will do. then applicants and candidates are assessed against these
Ethnocentric orientation The main orientation of the MNC, attributes and selected where they fit this specification.
here, is to direct foreign operations from parent-country Fitting the person to the organisation Where the prime
HQ. Key jobs at both HQ and local operations are held by concern of recruitment and selection is to recruit employees
parent-country nationals. against a set of organisational competences and values
European Foundation for Quality Management model derived from the organisation’s strategic objectives. Here, fit
(EFQM) European Excellence model This model posits that with the organisation takes precedence over the person–job
business results are a function of leadership driving people fit where the fitting the job to the person approach is more
management, resources, and policy and strategy, which in turn likely to be adopted.
drive business processes. The outcome is people satisfaction, Foreign direct investment (FDI) This involves a company
customer satisfaction and, through these, business results. gaining a controlling interest in a foreign company, usually
Evaluation A process involving the systematic collection of data through acquiring 30 per cent or more of the foreign com-
that are subsequently analysed, the findings being presented in a pany’s equity.
meaningful and useful form and contributing to organisational
Formal (leader, organisation, system) A term used to desig-
decision-making and improvement. This is sometimes referred
to as planned evaluation or formal evaluation. nate a set of organisational relationships that are explicitly
established in policy and procedures (e.g. the formal organi-
Evaluation, formative Evaluation where the focus is sation). The term has been prefixed to many types of
on improving and fine tuning. For formative evaluations, organisational phenomena.
data collection is often part of regular ongoing monitoring
of performance. Formal evaluation see evaluation.
Evaluation, informal A process by which decisions are likely to Formative evaluation see evaluation, formative.
be based on ‘gut feeling’ or unmethodical processes rather than Fragmentation perspective Perspective that little consensus
the systematic collection, analysis and presentation of data. can be detected, regarding beliefs held and behaviours
Evaluation, summative Evaluation that occurs towards the expected across all members of, for example, an organisation.
later stages of a project, such as to assess impact, determine Franchising This is a type of licensing agreement whereby
the extent to which goals have been met, or establish whether the franchiser allows the franchisee to use the franchiser’s
to continue with an intervention. For summative evaluations, intellectual property to undertake a specific business activity.
data collection is unlikely to part of regular ongoing moni-
Front-loaded investment model Where a significant finan-
toring of performance.
cial investment in HR is made at the point of entry, i.e.
Evaluation of human resource development see human recruitment and selection, in order to avoid letting unsatis-
resource development (HRD) evaluation. factory recruits into the organisation. This anticipates that
Evaluation of recruitment and selection Where the return lower levels of investment in managing the poor performance
on investment in recruitment and selection processes and de- of unsatisfactory recruits will be necessary because of more
cisions is assessed to measure their effectiveness. Evaluation effective selection in the first place.
can take place at a number of levels, from assessing individual
Functional The terms used to describe those parts of an
components of the process, e.g. the cost-effectiveness of adver-
organisation that promote the attainment of goals. It comes
tising; the suitability of recruits; and the strategic contribution
of the process. from a mode of organisational analysis that seeks to explain
organisations by understanding the effects that parts of the
Expatriates These employees are not citizens of the coun- organisation have on one another and the mutual effect
tries in which they are working. between the organisation and its environment.
Experiment Evaluation strategy that involves the definition of
Gainsharing Reward schemes designed so that employees
a theoretical hypothesis; the selection of samples of individuals
share the financial results of improvements in productivity,
from known populations; the allocation of samples to different
cost saving or quality. The resultant payment is paid from
experimental conditions; the introduction of planned change
on one or more of the variables; and measurement on a small cost savings generated as a result of such improvements.
number of variables and control of other variables. Gap analysis In human resource planning terms, the differ-
External labour supply The external labour market available ence in quantitative and qualitative terms between an
to an organisation, comprising those available for work or organisation’s demand for labour and its internal supply of
those employed by other organisations. labour. See also human resource planning (HRP).
External strategic integration see vertical strategic integration. Geocentric orientation The major concern of the MNC,
here, is to employ the best people in key positions, irrespec-
Fitting the job to the person Where the focus of recruitment
tive of nationality.
and selection is on recruiting against sets of desired attributes
or skills and then constructing, or allocating, jobs around Global mind-set A state of mind achieved by managers who
those attributes or skills once recruited in order to maximise are able effectively to work across organisational, functional
their utilisation. and cross-cultural boundaries.
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526 Glossary
Hard human resource planning Where the human resource Human resource development (HRD) evaluation Where
planning emphasis is on treating employees as resources to be the return on investment in human resource development
exploited for the benefit of the organisation. There is a focus processes and decisions is assessed to measure its effective-
on the efficient, cost-effective, utilisation of employees ness. Evaluation can take place at a number of different levels
through the exercise of management control and prerogative from, for example, a satisfaction rating of different HRD
within a unitarist framework. interventions, changes in the performance of trainees result-
Hero A person associated with a well-known story about a ing from their HRD experiences to the strategic contribution
culture’s past whose actions are said to be a manifestation of of the HRD process.
that culture. Heroes are relatively easy to discern but the true Human resource development (HRD) function A dedicated
cultural meaning may be difficult to decipher because of the unit, or part of an HR department, staffed by HRD specialists
story’s shallow or superficial nature. whose role is to support the organisation and its managers in
High-commitment management practices Involves such the development of its employees.
SHRM techniques as employee communication, employee Human resource development (HRD) stakeholders Stake-
involvement and profit sharing, designed to generate high holders are all those people, groups and other organisations
employee performance and commitment to the job and the that have a vested interest in an organisation (i.e. those with a
organisation.
stake in that organisation) and can exert influence in it or be
High-performance work systems Management practices affected by it. When applied to HRD it refers to those who
designed to provide employees with the skills, information, have a stake in the process and are affected by its outcomes.
incentives and responsibility to make their own decisions,
Human resource forecasting Process of calculating the
necessary for innovation, quality improvement and responses
to change. future demand for and supply of human resources in both
quantitative and qualitative terms. Demand forecasting
Horizontal integration A term that refers to integration involves translating corporate strategic objectives into the
between the various HR policies, procedures and practices human resource requirements needed to achieve that strategy
(sometimes called ‘internal’ integration). See also horizontal
using a variety of forecasting techniques. Supply forecasting
strategic integration.
involves calculating the internal supply of labour available to
Horizontal strategic integration Where the activities of an the organisation over the plan period, using such techniques
organisation are not only directed at helping to achieve corpo- as labour wastage analysis and demographic profiling, as well
rate strategy but where they interact with each other in a as the external labour supply available through the external
cohesive way. When applied to SHRM this refers to where the labour market.
HR function integrates with other business functions and
where the activities making up HR (such as HRP, R&S, per- Human resource (HR) philosophy A term based on the
formance management, HRD, reward management, employee well-known mission statement that portrays to stakeholders
relations, organisation structure, etc.) are developed as a something of the nature of the organisation.
coherent bundle so that they operate in a mutually reinforcing Human resource planning (HRP) As part of a staged
way to help deliver an organisation’s strategic intent. process it means the development, implementation and eval-
Host-country nationals (HCNs) These employees are citizens uation of a coherent bundle of HR strategies designed to
of the host country in which their employing organisation is reconcile any mismatch between the organisation’s projected
operating (e.g. a Chinese working at VW in China). demand for and supply of labour surfaced through gap
Human capital The accumulated knowledge, skills experi- analysis. More broadly, it can be interpreted as the process for
ence and competence residing within the workforce that securing the human capability to shape and achieve corpo-
represents an intangible asset that adds value to the organisa- rate strategic objectives.
tion. It can be argued that the overriding purpose of HRD is Human resource preservation Steps taken by an organisa-
to increase an organisation’s human capital. tion to retain the investment it has made in recruiting and
Human relations school This school of thought argues that developing its internal labour force. The emphasis is on
social relationships at work are an important determinant of reducing labour turnover and wastage and/or keeping it
employee productivity. within acceptable parameters.
Human resource (HR) activities All those individual activi- Human resource utilisation Steps taken by an organisation
ties that come under the HR banner and are performed by to reap the dividend from its investment in its labour force.
managers and/or specialist staff, such as culture management, From a hard human resource planning perspective this can
organisation restructuring, human resource planning, be interpreted as getting more from less from the efficient
recruitment and selection, performance appraisals, etc. utilisation of employees. A soft human resource planning
Human resource (HR) consultants Support line managers perspective moves the emphasis from making labour more
with advice on the HR aspects of their roles. productive to ‘winning hearts and minds’ so that employees
commit to the organisation and ‘go the extra mile’ willingly.
Human resource development (HRD) Those organisational
activities and interventions directly associated with develop- Incremental change Change that occurs gradually, dealing
ing its employees that, when employed generically, can be with one issue or part of the organisation at a time. Such change
seen to cover education, learning and training. involves distinct modifications rather than radical changes.
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Glossary 527
Indirect discrimination Differential treatment of people in Integration perspective Perspective that all members of, for
the same situation, where acting neutrally would put a person example, an organisation share a common culture with con-
at a disadvantage due to their membership of a particular sensus regarding beliefs held and behaviours expected.
group or groups. Intellectual capital The utilisation of human capital by an
Indirect exporting This may be a domestic manufacturer organisation to generate tangible benefits that can help it to
importing goods from a foreign exporter, who then incorpo- obtain a business advantage and comprises such things as
rates these goods as components in the manufacture of a inventions, patents, market brands, reputation, problem solv-
product, which may in turn be exported. ing, and research and development capability.
Individualism An approach to the management of the Intellectual property rights These may include technical
employment relationship which assumes a one-to-one rela-
expertise, patents, commercial knowledge and, most impor-
tionship with that employee’s manager. It refers to the will of
tantly, brand names.
the individual to look after his or her own interests rather than
relying on another person or body to do this for him or her Inter-unit linkages This refers to the way in which the MNC
and the desire of the employer to deal with his or her employ- differentiates its operating units throughout the world and at
ees in the way he or she sees fit without outside interest. the same time integrates, controls and coordinates its activities.
Individualism versus communitarianism A cultural Interactional justice The perception of the fairness of a
dimension used by Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner that decision that has been made in terms of the treatment
relates to relationships with people and, in particular, empha- received during the implementation of that decision. Also
sises that societies can be individualistic or collectivist. considered a type of procedural justice. See also informa-
Individualism–collectivism A cultural dimension used by tional justice, interpersonal justice.
Hofstede that relates to the views societies have about pre- Internal labour supply That labour supply available to an
ferred ways of social organisation, as individual members or organisation from its existing workforce in both quantitative
collective groups. and qualitative terms.
Industrial relations see employee relations.
Internal strategic integration see horizontal strategic
Informal (leader, group, organisation, system) Term used integration.
to designate the set of organisational relationships that
International investment This applies to the transfer by
emerge over time from the day-to-day experiences that
people have with one another. Informal relationships are companies of resources in order that they may undertake
expressive of the needs that people actually feel in situations, business outside their country of origin.
in contrast to the needs leaders think they should feel. International trade This term refers to the export and
Informal evaluation see evaluation, informal. import of goods and services.
Information asymmetry This occurs when managers Internationalisation The increased interaction between
control all the information relevant to performance manage- national units, most often in international business transac-
ment. tions, taking the form of exports or foreign direct investment.
Informational justice The perception of the fairness of a Interpersonal justice The perception of the fairness of a
decision that has been made in terms of the information decision that has been made in terms of the interpersonal
received, in particular the explanations received during the treatment received during the implementation of the de-
implementation of the decision. Also considered a type of cision. Also considered a type of interactional justice.
interactional justice.
Interview Data collection technique in which an interviewer
Inner directed v. outer directed A cultural dimension used physically meets the respondent, asks him or her questions,
by Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner that relates to atti- and records the responses.
tudes to the environment.
Interview, semi-structured Wide-ranging category of inter-
Institutional integration Where the human resource function view in which the interviewer commences with a set of
is strategically integrated into the organisation and is more
interview themes but is prepared to vary the order in which
likely to occur where the head of function is a board-level
questions are asked and to ask new questions in the context
appointment. This ensures that a meaningful dialogue about
the relationship between people and strategy will take place. of the research situation.
Institutional racism ‘The collective failure of an organisa- Interview, structured Data collection technique in which an
tion to provide an appropriate and professional service to interviewer physically meets the respondent, reads them the
people because of their colour, culture or ethnic origin’ same set of questions in a predetermined order, and records
(MacPherson, 1999: para. 6.34). his or her response to each.
Integration The state of collaboration that exists among Interview, unstructured Loosely structured and informally
departments that are required to achieve unity of effort by conducted interview that may commence with one or more
demands of the environment. The term is primarily used in themes to explore with participants but without a predeter-
relation to contingency approaches to organisational design. mined list of questions to work through.
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528 Glossary
Job analysis The formalised study of how a job is conducted Licensing This involves the licenser allowing the licensee to
in order to determine the way of most effectively combining use the licenser’s intellectual property rights in return for a fee.
the job operations with the human capacities of the job holder, Linear/sequential v. circular/synchronic A cultural dimen-
its operating environment and the use of tools and equipment sion used by Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner that relates
necessary to perform the job. From a job analysis it is possible to attitudes to time.
to construct a job description and person specification.
Long-term–short-term orientation dimension (national
Job description A formal document, normally drafted culture) A cultural orientation that relates to the attitude
following the job analysis, that summarises important that people have about long-term decisions, such as invest-
dimensions of a job including: its overall purpose; perform- ment in training and development. Some countries
ance objectives; key tasks; reporting relationships; traditionally have a focus on the future as opposed to those
responsibilities for staff; and financial or tangible resources. It countries that have a shorter-term view.
may also include reference to the main terms and conditions Longitudinal The study of a particular phenomenon (or
of employment. phenomena) over an extended period of time.
Job evaluation A systematic assessment of job content. It Managerialism A model of managing that assumes that
establishes the worth of a job in terms of salary or wage com- management will conceive and implement strategies without
pared to other jobs. considering the perspective of employees.
Job family This is a group of jobs that may be similar in pur- Managing diversity An approach to diversity management
pose and content although carried out at different levels in that focuses upon recognising both visible and non-visible
the organisation. differences between individuals and building upon the
Knowledge-based economy An economy where the utilisa- advantages they offer, rather than utilising legislation and tar-
tion of existing and new knowledge is the basis for economic geted group initiatives to try to ensure that differences do not
performance and success as opposed to adding value through result in unjust or prejudicial treatment.
the classic factors of: production capital; labour; and materi- Manpower planning The precursor to human resource
als. Such economies are characterised by a high proportion of planning that essentially reflected a ‘downstream’, tactical
knowledge workers. response to strategy and emphasised a ‘hard’, quantitative
Knowledge economy see knowledge-based economy. approach with a focus on forecasting and controlling labour
Knowledge management The development of human, intel- to ensure its efficient utilisation.
lectual and social capital as a route to securing sustainable Market rate The ‘standard’ rate paid by employing organisa-
competitive advantage based on knowledge utilisation, cre- tions for a given occupation against which organisations may
ation and transfer within an organisation. compare their pay rates.
Knowledge transfer The transfer of knowledge within an Masculinity–femininity A cultural dimension used by Hof-
organisation so that it becomes available for others to utilise. stede that relates to the importance societies put upon the
Through transfer, it prevents knowledge from being simply values assertiveness or caring for others.
locked up in employees’ heads and lost to the organisation if Matching models of SHRM closed There is a clear and
those employees should depart. Within HRD, knowledge mutually supportive relationship between organisational
transfer assumes great importance as it is the transfer and strategy and HR strategy and this relationship gives rise to
subsequent use of know-how that can be the key to successful the implementation of specific HR initiatives. That is to say
HRD interventions. the match between the organisational strategy and HR strat-
Knowledge workers Employees whose work requires the egy is closed and prescribed in the sense that a particular type
utilisation of their existing knowledge base, and the acquisi- of organisational strategy suggests the need for a specific HR
tion and utilisation of new knowledge in order to enhance strategy and set of practices.
organisational efficiency, effectiveness and innovation. Such Matching models of SHRM open An approach that assumes
workers would be expected to continuously learn from their the existence of a clear and mutually supportive relationship
experiences and to actively engage in knowledge transfer. between organisational strategy and HR strategy. However, it
Labour preservation see human resource preservation. differs from the closed approach in that the HR strategy in-
itiatives should not be prescribed, following from the
Labour utilisation see human resource utilisation. organisational strategy, but should be left open. The degree to
Layoff see redundancy. which the HR strategy is truly ‘strategic’ is a test of its appro-
Learning culture A culture residing within an organisation that priateness to the organisational strategy.
promotes and facilitates individual, workgroup and organisa- Matrix organisation An approach for integrating the activi-
tional learning and development. The creation of a learning ties of different specialists while maintaining specialised
environment can constitute a key organisational capability. organisational units.
Learning organisation An organisation that develops a Mergers and acquisitions Mergers involve the combination
capacity to learn more quickly than its rivals and that utilises of two or more organisational entities of roughly equal
that capacity to continually adapt itself to its business envi- standing into a new business entity, whereas acquisitions
ronment in order to secure sustainable competitive advantage. involve the takeover of one business entity by another.
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Multi-national company (MNC) This type of organisation Organisation redesign strategy A downsizing strategy that,
is characterised by the globalisation of its management sys- in addition to reducing headcount, involves elements of de-
tems, perspectives and approaches to strategic decisions. layering, eliminating areas of work and job redesign, so the
Multi-stakeholder (approach to recruitment and selection) amount of work is also reduced.
Stakeholders are all those people, groups and other organisa- Organisational capabilities see core capabilities and core
tions that have a vested interest in an organisation (i.e. those competence.
with a stake in that organisation) and can exert influence in it Organisational capability This focuses on the organisation’s
or be affected by it. When applied to recruitment and selec- internal processes, systems and management practices to
tion it refers to those who have a stake in the process and are
meet customer needs and directing the skills and efforts of
affected by its outcomes, for example internal and external
the employees to achieving the goals of the organisation.
customers, managers, peers (particularly fellow group mem-
bers), subordinates and HR professionals. Organisational citizenship behaviour (OCB) The readiness
of an employee to contribute to the organisation beyond that
National culture The patterns of beliefs, values and learned
required by her or his contract.
ways of coping with experiences that have developed during
the course of a nation’s history, and which tend to be mani- Organisational culture ‘The patterns of beliefs, values and
fested in its material arrangements and in the behaviours of learned ways of coping with experiences that have developed
its members (after Brown, 1998). during the course of an organisation’s history, and which
Network organisation An organisational structure that tend to be manifested in its material arrangements and in the
involves managing an interrelated set of organisations, each behaviours of its members’ (Brown, 1998: 9).
specialising in a specific business function or task. The struc- Organisational design Involves bringing about a coherence or
ture extends beyond the boundaries of any single organisation fit among organisational choices about strategy, organising
and involves linking different organisations to facilitate inter- mode, and the mechanisms for integrating people into the
organisational exchange and task coordination. organisation. The greater the fit among these organisational
Neutral versus emotional A cultural dimension used by dimensions, the greater will be the organisational effectiveness.
Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner that relates to relation- Organisational downsizing An organisational strategy to
ships with people and, in particular, the extent to which it is reduce the size of an organisation's workforce that may use a
acceptable to express emotions publicly, such as within inter- range of methods including early retirements, natural
personal communications. wastage, and voluntary and compulsory redundancy to
New-style managerialism This is characterised by less con- achieve this outcome.
cern for the technical side of individuals’ jobs than by talking Organisational justice A set of related theories focusing on
to them about the help that is needed for them to do their perceptions about fairness in organisations that seeks to cate-
jobs. The new-style manager is supportive, a team leader, a gorise and explain the views and feelings of employees about
coach and facilitator. This is a style of management that is their own treatment and that of others within an organisa-
concerned with processes as well as outputs. tion. See also distributive justice; interactional justice;
Non-financial rewards This term includes such factors as procedural justice.
achievement, recognition, responsibility, influence and per- Organisational re-orientation strategy An alternative name
sonal growth. for organisation redesign strategies and systemic change
Observation The systematic observation, recording, descrip- strategies.
tion, analysis and interpretation of people’s behaviour.
Output goals Relates to the product of the employee’s
Observation, participant Observation in which the performance.
researcher attempts to participate fully in the lives and activi-
Parent-country nationals (PCNs) A term used to denote the
ties of the research subjects and thus becomes a member of
home country of an employee that is the same as the parent
the subjects’ group(s), organisation(s) or community.
company (e.g. a German working for VW in China).
Observation, structured Observation in which the researcher
observes and records the same predetermined set of activities Participant observation see observation, participant.
or actions and records them, usually on a schedule. Partnership An approach to trade union recognition and
One-way strategic integration (or linkage) Vertical (or involvement in an employing organisation, where there is
external) strategic integration where, ‘downstream’, functions joint commitment by management and unions to work for its
are shaped and managed to meet the strategic objectives successive development, implying a model of mutual gain for
passed down to them. Under this prescription the HR func- the employer, employees and union.
tion would be charged with helping to achieve the, ‘upstream’, Pay range Attached to each job grade, it specifies the mini-
corporate strategy. mum and maximum pay rates payable for any job in the grade
Open question see question, open. and the points between the minimum and maximum rates.
Organic organisation This type of organisation is relatively Performance appraisal A process where an individual's per-
flexible and relaxed. The organic style is most appropriate to formance and progress are assessed and performance
unstable environmental conditions in which novel problems feedback is given. Pay, promotions and training needs are
continually occur. often based on the information provided by the appraisal.
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530 Glossary
Performance culture Usually used to characterise an organi- Process consultation The process where the consultant
sational culture in which employees have to perform; have to assists the client to perceive, understand and act upon the
make a difference. process events that occur within his or her environment in
Performance feedback Information on the employee’s per- order to improve the situation as the client sees it.
formance usually given by the immediate manager. Process goals Relates to the way in which employees per-
Performance indicators Indicators of what may constitute form their duties.
effective performance, often expressed in numerical form. Profit-related bonus schemes Bonus schemes that reward
Performance management A strategic and integrated approach employees according to the level of profit generated by their
to delivering sustained success to organisations by improving employing organisation.
the performance of people who work in them and by develop- Psychological contract The expectations of employee and
ing the capabilities of teams and individual contributors. employer, which operate in addition to the formal contract of
Performance measurement The process of assessing per- employment. It therefore is concerned with each party’s percep-
formance against predetermined measures of performance. tions of what the other party to the employment relationship
Based on key success factors which may include measures of owes them. See also relational aspects; transactional aspects.
deviation from the ‘norm’, measures to track past achieve- Psychometric model of recruitment and selection This
ments and measures of output and input. model is based on the premise that it is possible to determine,
Person specification A formal document that specifies the per- through job analysis, the nature of jobs and the human quali-
sonal attributes and skills required by prospective employees in ties associated with their effective performance, and that
order to effectively perform jobs as detailed in a job description. these qualities can be measured in people so that their future
Pilot test Small-scale study to test a data collection technique job performance can be predicted.
to minimise the likelihood of respondents having problems Qualitative HR forecasting Forecasting the ‘soft’ human
in answering the questions and of data recording problems, resource requirements (demand), and their availability
as well as to allow some assessment of the questions’ validity (supply), necessitated by an organisation’s strategic objec-
and the reliability of the data that will be collected. tives. The emphasis is on the qualities required of an
Planned evaluation see evaluation. organisation’s human resources, such as competences or
skills, knowledge or intellectual capital, attitudes and values.
Pluralism A way of thinking about employee relations that
conceptualises the organisation as being a ‘miniature demo- Quantitative HR forecasting Forecasting the ‘hard’ human
cratic state composed of sectional groups with divergent resource requirements (demand), and their availability
interests over which government tries to maintain some kind (supply), necessitated by an organisation’s strategic objec-
of dynamic equilibrium’ (Fox, 1966). The most fundamental tives. The emphasis is on the numbers of employees required
of these sectional groups is managers and employees. Many and their distribution across grades and jobs.
of the traditional institutions, principles, procedures, Question, closed Question that provides a number of alterna-
processes and practices that exist to manage the employment tive answers from which the respondent is instructed to choose.
relationship are based on the principle of pluralism. Question, open Question allowing respondents to give
Polycentric orientation Here the MNC treats each separate answers in their own way.
foreign operation as a distinct national entity with some Questionnaire General term, including all data collection
decision-making autonomy. Foreign subsidiaries manage local techniques, in which each person is asked to respond to the
operations, albeit they are seldom promoted to parent- same set of questions in a predetermined order.
country HQ.
Rational economic person A term used to describe a person
Positive action Encouragement for under-represented who acts to obtain the highest possible well-being for him-
groups to apply for vacancies and promotions, and to partici- or herself.
pate in development opportunities.
Realistic job preview The steps taken by an organisation to
Positive discrimination Preferential treatment for under- present potential applicants and shortlisted candidates with
represented groups, also known as reverse discrimination. an honest and accurate portrayal of the job and its organisa-
Positive discrimination is unlawful in the UK. tional context so that they may make informed decisions
Power distance A cultural dimension used by Hofstede that throughout the recruitment and selection process. It is a
relates to the views societies have about the exercise of power ‘warts and all’ approach. The rationale for this approach is
in organisations. that both parties need to be satisfied with their decision for
Practices A collective noun for the visible artefacts of culture recruitment to be deemed effective.
symbols, heroes and rituals. Recruitment Those activities performed to create a pool of
Procedural justice Theory concerned with perceptions applicants for a job vacancy from which subsequent selection
about the fairness of the procedures and processes used to can take place. At a more general level, and confusingly, the
arrive at organisational decisions. See also distributive justice; term can be used to mean the whole of the recruitment and
interactional justice. selection process.
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Redundancy This is defined in UK law as a dismissal due, Soft human resource planning (HRP) Where the HRP
wholly or mainly, to the complete closure of a business; the emphasis is on treating employees as resourceful humans and
closure of the employee’s workplace; or a diminishing need on developing employee capability to the mutual benefit of
for employees to do work of a particular kind in the business both employees and employers. There is a focus on integrat-
as a whole, or at the employee’s particular workplace. ing employee values, beliefs and behaviours with
Relational aspects Aspects of the psychological contract organisational goals through culture management within a
between an employee and an employer that focus upon mutual pluralistic framework.
trust and commitment. See also psychological contract. Sophisticated selection The use of selection methods with
Reliability The extent to which the method produces the demonstrable high reliability and predictive validity that may,
same result (e.g. measure of human attributes) irrespective of at times, need to be tailor-made to obtain such measurements
who is doing the measuring and when it is performed. For of particular attributes, for example honesty. As a conse-
example, high reliability in interviews would mean that a quence, they are relatively expensive and more likely to be
candidate would be assessed similarly irrespective of who used by organisations adopting a front-loaded investment
conducted the interview or when it was conducted. model for recruitment and selection.
Resource-based theory see resource-based view of the firm. Specific versus diffuse A cultural dimension used by
Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner that relates to relation-
Resource-based view of the firm View presented as an alter- ships with people and, in particular, the relative importance
native to the traditional view of strategy. Under the ascribed by different cultures to focusing on the specific, for
traditional view, strategy formulation is seen as a process of example analysing issues by reducing them to specific facts,
analysing the external environment of an organisation in tasks, numbers or bullet points.
order to devise a strategic direction that matches the oppor-
tunities that this offers. In contrast, the resource-based view Strategic business unit The units responsible for making
shifts this perspective so that strategy making focuses on the strategy in a particular product area.
internal capabilities of an organisation, including its people, Strategic human resource development (SHRD) Where the
so that these can be used as the basis of its strategic direction. thrust of an organisation’s HRD processes and interventions
Reverse discrimination see positive discrimination. are primarily directed at supporting the achievement of the
organisation’s strategic goals, as opposed to focusing on tacti-
Reward How people are rewarded in accordance with their cal responses to training needs identified at the level of
value to the organisation. It is concerned with both financial individual employees.
and non-financial rewards and embraces the philosophies,
strategies, policies, plans and processes used by organisations Strategic human resource management (SHRM) Combines
to develop and maintain reward systems. a stress on the integration of personnel policies both one
with another and with business planning more generally.
Ritual A visible practice that is said to be a manifestation of a
culture that is relatively easy to discern but from which the Strategic human resource planning In essence, this means
true meaning is difficult to decipher because of its shallow or the same as human resource planning but where the addition
superficial nature. of the word ‘strategic’ not only mirrors changes to HR termi-
nology more generally but is also used to differentiate the
Scientific approach Approach that involves the systematic process from short-term, tactical HRP approaches that are
observation of and experiment with phenomena. directed at resolving the human resource demands arising
Secondary data Data used for evaluation that were originally from operational concerns.
collected for some other purpose. Strategic integration The state where the varied activities of
Selection That part of the recruitment and selection process a business are aligned to serve the overall strategic direction
that assesses or measures the suitability of applicants for of the organisation, or the process of securing this alignment.
shortlisting or candidates for employment against the job Strategic international human resource management
description and person specification. There are many different (SIHRM) This relates to the HRM policies and practices that
selection methods that can be used to do this but arguably result from the strategic activities of MNCs and the impact
shortlisting from application forms and/or CVs, interviews that SIHRM has on the international concerns and goals of
and references are the most widely known and applied. those organisations.
Semi-structured interview see interview, semi-structured. Strategic management Processes adopted and decisions and
Single-loop learning The learning process where the main actions taken by an organisation that result in formulating,
focus is on improving current practice through operating a implementing and evaluating its chosen strategy.
continual cycle of detecting errors in current practice, identi- Strategic planning Process of determining organisational
fying potential areas for improvement and making strategy that involves making conscious choices between a
incremental enhancements to work operations. See also number of different alternatives. The orthodox view reasons
double-loop learning. that strategy is formulated at the top of the organisation
Social capital The processes that facilitate intra- and inter- through a deliberate, rational process. An alternative perspec-
group cooperation that help translate human capital into tive argues that strategy makers do not always act rationally,
intellectual capital, such as social networks and shared values, and that strategy may emerge over time so that it only becomes
norms and understandings. apparent through trying to make a pattern out of prior events.
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532 Glossary
Strategic recruitment and selection Whereas, under psycho- managers but is assumed by senior line management. The
metric traditions, recruitment and selection is primarily focus shifts from management–trade union relations to
directed at filling jobs with suitable employees, the strategic management–employee relations, from collectivism to indi-
variant primarily seeks to recruit employees to help achieve the vidualism. There is stress on commitment and the exercise of
organisation’s strategic goals. Such an approach places priority initiative, with managers now donning the role of ‘enabler’,
on the person–organisation fit rather than the person–job fit. ‘empowerer’ and ‘facilitator’.
Strategic reward management Contributes to the achieve- Third-country nationals (TCNs) These employees are not
ment of the organisation’s overall strategy through the citizens of the countries in which they are working and are
delivery of specific employee behaviours that are consistent not citizens of the country of the parent company (e.g. a
with the organisation’s overall strategy. UK employee working for a German organisation operating
Strategy A deliberate course of action taken by an organisa- in China).
tion in order to utilise its resources to meet its long-term Top down Typically initiated and led by senior management.
objectives developed to exploit opportunities presented by its Total reward This combines the traditional pay and benefits
external and internal environment. elements with the other factors that employees gain from
Strategy formulation see strategic planning. employment. These may be skills, experience, opportunity
Strategy making see strategic planning. and recognition. Total reward takes into account the less tan-
gible benefits of employment.
Stretch goals Clear and challenging goals that lead to higher
job performance. Trade union Collective organisation of employees, a trade
union’s central function is to protect the interests of its mem-
Structure The formal arrangement of the different parts of
bers and to participate in job regulation of relations between
an organisation and their interrelationships.
these employees and their employer.
Structured interview see interview, structured.
Training Planned actions (or interventions) designed to
Structured observation see observation, structured. increase employees’ job-related knowledge, skills and atti-
Summative evaluation see evaluation, summative. tudes in order to enhance their performance in that job.
Survey Evaluation strategy that involves the structured col- Training and development A term gradually being replaced
lection of data from a sizeable population. Although the term by human resource development that embraces not only job-
‘survey’ is often used to describe the collection of data using related training but also those actions that are oriented
questionnaires, it includes other techniques such as struc- towards the future and designed to help employees towards
tured observation and structured interviews. personal growth and the realisation of their potential.
Symbol A manifestation of a culture that is relatively easy to Transactional aspects Aspects of the psychological contract
discern but from which the true meaning is difficult to deci- between an employee and an employer that focus upon the
pher because of its shallow or superficial nature. Material mutual instrumentality of the work–effort reward bargain.
objects, physical layouts and events are often described as See also psychological contract; relational aspects.
symbols. See also artefact. Transformational change Change that is radical and overturns
Systematic approach to training A term used to represent, the status quo, often occurring throughout an organisation.
or model, a particular approach to HRD (or training) that Triple-loop learning A learning process where the main
reflects a continuous cycle of identifying HRD needs, plan- focus is on the processes of learning itself (i.e. learning to
ning and designing HRD interventions to address identified learn more effectively). Essentially it involves ‘reviewing and
needs, implementing these HRD interventions and evaluat- reflecting on previous learning experiences and using such
ing their outcomes. experiences as a basis for the formation of new learning activ-
Systemic change strategy A downsizing strategy that, in ities and insights’ (Walton, 1999: 389). See also double-loop
addition to reducing headcount and involving elements of learning; single-loop learning.
delayering, eliminating areas of work and job redesign, takes Two-way strategic integration (or linkage) Vertical (or
a long-term approach. external) strategic integration where ‘downstream’ functions are
Tacit knowledge That implicit (as opposed to explicit) not only shaped and managed to help achieve corporate strategy
knowledge, which it is difficult or impossible to put it into but may also operate to influence strategy formation itself. This
words because it comprises intuition, values, etc. that are creates a more synergistic perspective to strategy making.
highly personal and relate to particular contexts. Uncertainty avoidance A cultural dimension used by Hof-
Team-based pay Payments, or other forms of non-financial stede that relates to actions members of societies take in
reward, are made to team members on the basis of some pre- respect of ambiguous and uncertain situations.
determined criteria. Unitarism A view of the employment relationship which
Temporal focus Time span of an organisation’s focus and is assumes that the employees of the organisation are seen as a
frequently translated into three perspectives: short term; team, unified by a common purpose, with all employees pur-
medium term; and long term. The locus of responsibility for suing the same goal; there is a single source of authority, that
personnel management no longer resides with specialist source being management. Since all employees are pursuing
SHRM_Z01.QXD 14/2/07 15:59 Page 533
Glossary 533
the same goal, conflict is irrational and it must be the result Validity When applied to recruitment and selection there are
of poor communication or ‘troublemakers’ at work who do many different types of validity but most commonly it refers to
not share the common purpose. The presence of third parties the extent to which a selection method produces an accurate
to the employment relationship is intrusive, therefore there is prediction of a candidate’s future job performance if recruited.
no place for trade unions. Values see basic underlying assumptions.
Universal models of strategic human resource management Variable pay That amount of the employee’s salary or wages
This suggests that there is ‘one best way’ of achieving that varies according to a variety of factors, such as perform-
HR effectiveness. ance bonuses.
Universalism versus particularism A cultural dimension Vertical integration A term that refers to the link between
used by Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner that relates to wider business strategy and HR strategy (sometimes called
relationships with people and, in particular, the rigidity in ‘external’ integration).
which contractual agreements and rules are important in
defining individuals’ conduct within the workplace, as well as Vertical strategic integration Where the different levels of an
in the relationships between organisations. organisation are strategically aligned in a one-way or two-way
relationship. Taking Purcell’s (1991) three orders (or levels) of
Unplanned evaluation see evaluation, informal.
strategy, comprising first-order corporate strategy; second-
Unstructured interview see interview, unstructured. order strategies relating to structures and organisational
Upstream Denoting an earlier stage. So, when applied to processes; and functional strategies, these would be developed
rational strategic planning, corporate strategy making lies in such a way that they integrated one with another.
upstream of functional strategy making. However, these ‘clas- Voice The opportunity for the subjects of organisational
sic’ relationships can be reversed. So if, for example, an design to participate in the process of arriving at, including
organisation’s core competence was based around the unique being able to influence, these decisions.
capabilities of its employees and it was that core competence
Voluntary redundancy The volunteering of employees to be
that was driving strategy formulation, then core competences
made redundant in response to either a general request or the
would lie upstream of corporate strategy making (or corpo-
rate strategy making would lie downstream from the specific targeting of individuals.
organisation’s core competence). Workforce reduction strategy A downsizing strategy that
Upward feedback A process in which performance feedback focuses simply on reducing an organisation’s headcount.
is provided to line managers in advance of their own devel- Work–life balance This is about people having a measure of
opment discussions and formal performance reviews. control over when, where and how they work. It is achieved
Usually, every member of the manager’s team has the oppor- when an individual's right to a full life inside and outside
tunity to give feedback to their manager. paid work is accepted and respected.
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Index
Index 557
558 Index
Index 559
560 Index
Index 561
562 Index
Index 563
564 Index
Index 565
566 Index
Index 567
568 Index
Index 569
570 Index
Index 571
572 Index