QUESTION
Essay
Task Description
Stimulus
Consider the following statement about Strategy and Human Resource Management
(SHRM).
The economic and technological context has changed very significantly over the last
thirty years
and this has led to some key adaptations in HR systems in a firm. “How might a firm
develop,
interrelate and manipulate its resources – human and non-human – to become the best
adapted, the
most consistently profitable of all firms in its industry, despite the efforts of other firms to
emulate
or undermine it? This is the nub of the debate in strategic management around
sustained
competitive advantage” ( Boxall and Purcell 2011, p. 97).
Task
Critically analyse Fordism. Compare and contrast Fordism with Lean Manufacturing
linking them to the different approaches to SHRM in order for a firm to achieve
sustained competitive advantage through oganisational strategy/direction and HRM
(‘best fit’, ‘best practice’ and the
Resourced Based View). You are required to examine the HR challenges, issues and
practices
associated with various directional strategies.
:The following aspects should be critically analysed to reinforce your argument
·strategic approaches explained in chapters 3 & 4 in your prescribed text book.
·work systems and changes in economic production (chapter 5) including the two key
elements to each HR system: the kind of work organisation involved; and the
employment
practices that are used to hire and manage the people doing the work.
To demonstrate your research ability and understanding of the topic, your essay
should include:
Practical (real world) examples, with evaluation of the successes and/or failures-
evident in those examples.
– Reference to relevant theories and models.
– Synthesis of research from multiple, correctly cited sources (at least fifteen (15)
peer reviewed research articles).
Assessment Due Date
Week 6 Wednesday (11-Apr-2012) 11:00 AM AEST
Return Date to Students
Week 8 Thursday (26-Apr-2012)
Weighting
50%
Assessment Condition
Must Submit You
must submit this item to be eligible to pass the course
Size
:3500 words(±10% excluding title page and reference list)Length
: Author-date style (Harvard Referencing Style) Reference style
page 1
FormatRefer to the essay writing guides available at:
– .http://fbi.cqu.edu.au/FCWViewer/getFile.do?id=17724
– . http://content.cqu.edu.au/FCWViewer/getFile.do?id=28639
Format
Essay format
Refer to the essay writing guides available at:
http://fbi.cqu.edu.au/FCWViewer/getFile.do?id=17724
http://content.cqu.edu.au/FCWViewer/getFile.do?id=28639
Referencing Style
Harvard (author-date)
Submission
Online
Learning Outcomes Assessed
1. situate strategy and human resource management within a contemporary
WRITTEN ASSESSMENT
Assessment Title
Report
Task Description
organisational framework
3. incorporate appropriate individual and organisational human resource management
strategies within an organisational context by way of analytical essays and reports
5. communicate your knowledge and analysis skills, in counter argument.
Boxall and Purcell (2011, p.322) refer to three competitive scenarios which can be
utilised to create
readiness for a range of competitive futures. One is based on the most desirable
business case, the
second on the fact there are competitive rivals and the third is defined as the least
desirable case.
Your task for this assessment item is to write a report on scenario based HR Planning.
To
undertake this task you will need to choose a large national or multinational company
with an
Australian branch/subsidiary and conduct a scenario based HR
Planning exercise as depicted in Box 11.1 of the text (Boxall and Purcell 2011, pp.
322-3) in
Chapter 11.
Step 1: Choose a large national Australian company or a multinational company (MNC)
with an
Australian branch/subsidiary in the service industry.
Step 2: Research the company through the company website and associated
documentation.
Step 3: Research the service industry and the key issues affecting this industry.
Step 4: Research the academic literature for research and commentary on SHRM,
scenario
planning and HR planning for relevant articles on this topic.
Step 5: Conduct an analysis of the company’s current position and develop a three case
scenario
for the company in terms of its HR Plan: most desirable business case; most likely
business case;
and the least desirable business case. Refer to Box 11.1 in the text.
Step 6: Combine ideas from the three different options/scenarios and conclude the
report with a
recommended HR Plan for the company.
To demonstrate your research ability and understanding of the topic, your report should
include:
·Practical examples, with evaluation of the successes and/or failures evident in those
examples.
·Reference to relevant theories and models.
·Synthesis of research from multiple, correctly cited sources (at least fifteen (15) peer
reviewed research articles)
The assignments in this course will be assessed using criterion-based assessment as
set out in the
Assessment Criteria & Standards Matrix provided at the end of this course profile.
Assessment Due Date
Week 11 Wednesday (16-May-2012) 11:00 AM AEST
Return Date to Students
Exam Week Friday (08-Jun-2012)
Weighting
50%
Assessment Condition
Must Submit You
must submit this item to be eligible to pass the course
Size
: 3500 words(±10% excluding title page and reference list)Length
: Author-date style (Harvard Referencing Style)Reference style
Format
Report Format.
Refer to the Report writing guides available on the Course Moodle site and at:
– .http://fbi.cqu.edu.au/FCWViewer/getFile.do?id=17724
– http://content.cqu.edu.au/FCWViewer/getFile.do?id=28646
Referencing Style
Harvard (author-date)
Submission
Online
Learning Outcomes Assessed
1. situate strategy and human resource management within a contemporary
organisational framework
2. develop insights into implementation strategies and understand the importance of
those insights for the human resource management professional
3. incorporate appropriate individual and organisational human resource management
strategies within an organisational context by way of analytical essays and reports
4. critically and analytically evaluate the relevance of new theories, design methods
and concepts within human resource management
5. communicate your knowledge and analysis skills, in counter argument.
SOLUTION
Fordism came into existence after Second World War to make an effective and efficient mass production system with the objective of cost minimization. That will have a direct effect on the profit maximization for the organization.
Mass production i.e Fordism was initiated in the 1910s and 1920sby Henry Ford’s Ford Motor Company.
Henry Ford, the catalyst of the revolution in form of Fordism as the integrated system of mass production and could make a revolutionary change in the whole manufacturing industry with this system. The whole system changed from craft manufacturing to the mass manufacturing. The system was based upon the standardization of the whole manufacturing system that will have a positive and integrated effect on the whole manufacturing system and finally will reflect on the cost minimization.
Lean manufacturing is a kind of manufacturing process integration that leads to the effective utilization of the available resources without making misuse or wastage of it. It sounds more effective due to its viability and effective implementation that may result in the cost minimization and profit maximization with the available resource utilization. So it is a kind of integrated system that can have all the aspects included in it. Lean manufacturing was firstly implemented by the Toyota motors, a giant in the vehicle manufacturing company.
The ideas of ‘lean production’ were originally encapsulated within the Toyota Manufacturing System and are well articulated by Womack et al (1990). Lean thinking subsequently became the generic term to describe their universal application beyond manufacturing (Womack and Jones, 1996).
They started using this lean manufacturing system in their manufacturing units and after that the whole manufacturing industry started adopting the system of lean manufacturing due to its inevitable effectiveness to the whole process of manufacturing, which is the most important and critical part of any organization. The relationship of lean thinking to Taylorism is well described by Dohse (1985):
“Toyotism is…not an alternative to Taylorism but rather a solution to its classic problem of the resistance of the workers to placing their knowledge of production in the service of rationalisation.”
Best Fit practices mainly means that what is exactly suitable for a project is being allocated to that one. In other words, if a project needs carbon steel pipes rather than glass reinforced pipes we would go ahead and allocate that pipes only irrespective of the prices of the pipes and other things. Best practices on the other hand mean that a general phenomenon that is being followed up by that company for all the projects.
According to Purcell (1999, p. 27), what is most notable about the best practice model is there is no discussion on company strategy at all.’ The underlying premise of this view is that organisations adopting a set of best practices attract super human resources, talent and competencies.
That means that if a company is only using carbon steel pipes for all projects then we would be doing only those projects which suit the same rather than doing all kinds of projects. That is the main reason and that is the main thing that is different from that of other things. Thus best fit and best practices are different phenomena that are being used in industries and both have very much similarity within themselves.
Human Resources are the most critical and vital resources for the manufacturing process and even for any kind of process not only the production, it may include selling, marketing, promotion and other. To make an effective utilization of the human resources we need to have some kind of effective and integrated human resource management practices in the organization. Human resource management is wholly responsible for the effective moulding of the human resource available and associated with the organization. They can make a better work environment and they can also make the worst work environment. So it depends on the HRM functionality of the organization that how much capable they are? To make an effective and efficient work flow in the organization the HRM practices should be very much clear and transparent that will suit the employees and encourage them to work effectively.
Human being should not be treated as a machine or the result making robots. They should be considered as a long term profitable asset for the organization. The human resource has an immense potential that may lead the organization to success if being utilized in an effective and positive manner, on the other hand it may lead to the failure of the organization if not being taken extreme and smooth care for them.
HRM is essential for the whole organization including manufacturing processes and system in the organization. If we talk about the HRM effectiveness and necessity of the HRM in the process of Fordism then we will get some clear picture of the real word happening and mostly with the manufacturing industry. Need of HRM in Fordism and Lean manufacturing:
- Training and Development: The employees need some kind of training while working on the machines for the better and effective working operations and result orientation. These aspects will be fulfilled only by the HRM. If the workers are provided a good and effective training and development opportunities then we can rely more on the worker and the manufacturing team. This will help in effective waste management of the available resources for the effective and optimal manufacturing process and system.
- Employee satisfaction: Until and unless the organization is able to satisfy the employees they won’t be able to get 100 percent from the employee’s side. To get 100 percent effort and cooperation the organization need to keep the employees satisfied and energective at each point of time. Then see the work condition and working ability of the employees. It will directly be visible by the organization and that will enhance the profitability aspects for the organization point of view.
- Motivation: Motivation is the key to success. If the HRM is able to keep the employees motivation ignited, then we can have a positive and effective aspect for the long term production and manufacturing effectiveness in the organization. That will again reflect in the profitability of the organization.
- Compensation strategy: Compensation paid to the employees should also have an effect in the manufacturing and other related processes in the system. Employees should get the compensation as per the norms and regulations. The effective compensation strategy is very much essential for the employee’s satisfaction and retention for the smother and effective flow of the whole manufacturing process.
- Team effort: Team effort is always required, whether it’s manufacturing of the lean manufacturing or any other task. To successfully complete that task we need to have a team effort that will help the team in gaining synergy and it will also help the organization in gaining competitive advantage for the long run of the business.
- Diversity management among the team: As the globalization came into existence there is no any kind of boundary and the work allocation in a defined manner. There is always diversity in the team for the companies which are very much essential and effective for the long term visionary aspects and objectives.
- Appraisal system: Appraisal is again an important phenomenon aspect for the employee’s satisfaction and employee’s improvement at each stage of their experience and the category of the organization.
These are the main aspects of the HRM that are mostly required and expected by any organization for the better growth and expansion of their business. These activities will also help the organization to gain competitive advantage and long term sustainable development. On the other hand if not being utilized in an effective and efficient manner then again it will have an adverse effect on the organization and may hinder the growth of the organization. Critical research therefore seeks to challenge the way in which management studies subordinate knowledge to efficiency of production (Fournier and Grey, 2000).
To understand and define the changing need for the upliftment and better growth opportunities in the organization and to gain competitive advantage the organization should think out of the box regarding the betterment of the organization in a strategic and cumulative manner.
Researches and outside consultation may be helpful in the understanding of the HRM need in the organization while the implementation of the Fordism and the lean manufacturing that are the need of the day to sustain in the market. Philosophical and methodological reflexivity is central to the critical project (Fournier and Grey, 2000). While handling critical and manufacturing processes which are mostly complex in nature and hard to understand the strategy behind that process?
It should be noted that lean manufacturing is in itself a theoretical construct. Koskela (2000) has championed the cause of theorising in respect of production. These aspects clearly indicate the need and essential requirement of the HRM practices in the organization for the effective and efficient utilization of the available resources to the organization mostly applicable with the manufacturing system and process integration.
Change is the essence of life. No individual can remain without having change in his or her life. Change mainly happens so that a person gets accustomed to newer conditions that are prevailing in the environment and there is ease of power and energy. If change had not happened, we would not have the privilege of a lot of comforts like electricity, water and other kinds of electronic equipment’s that we are using as of now. Thus, change is the process that has been initiated by the God and he himself sees to it that change happens.
According to Fuglsang,(2005), “ All organizations need to change their working process as per the need and wants of customers, producers suppliers and other concerned officials in the industry. “Thus change is one thing that is inevitable for any business organization and the organization that is not able to change perishes in the industry.
This is the case with the automobile manufacturing company that has been listed in the case below. It is using old techniques of assembling and production of its and that is the reason why it takes so much time to produce the cycle. This kind of thing leads to more pressure on the people and thus there is wide scale disturbance in the production.
If we take the Change Management concept in Toyota and Ford we can understand that their were a lot of problems that were going around in the organization and that was the reason why the company was not going smoothly. One of the main concerns in the organization was the time management concepts. All the work was to be done by the workers and thus time was not properly utilized in the organization. Thus, change management was very much needed in the organization. The people had to understand and get through the change that was needed long back. Machines needed to be replaced by workers so that work is done smoothly and efficiently in the organization. For implementing a change in an organization one should mainly have a good relationship between the system, process, culture and the working group.
This has been well said by well known Change Management Specialist, Albert, M. (2005). The system would be the whole process of making the by cycle and how the machines should be involved in the whole of the process. Hence, the company should first have a good understanding as to what all would be changed if machines are brought into the picture. This can only happen when the workers it down and discus about the machines that would be doing the whole process of workers and how would it be having a short terms and long term impact on the people would be doing that work. What the workers would be now doing that they were in the past doing.
Hence, a lot of things need to be sought out first as to when and how the change process should be initiated. The second thing that needs to be understood is the cultural change that is going to take place. The culture would now be different as people would now be attached to machines more than humans and thus the cultural attitude that they would be having would be less. They would now be communicating more with the machines than the humans and this need to be sought out first.
As per Leviathan,(1991), “Major change would be adaptability to machines in the organization.” The workers need to now adapt themselves to the changing environment o machines. They need to understand the whole process of how machines do change and what all are the factors for these kinds of changes. They need to understand and adapt as per the machines and hence change accordingly.
One of the biggest thing in change management is understanding where your organization is currently. What all is required so that it changes s per the specifications’ of the industry and there is no problem in the change. Thus, we at Mildred are mainly bicycle manufacturing company and we need to understand that all are not adapted now to the machine type environment. Hence we need to adapt as per this specifications. Also, apart from this kind of adaption we need to make sure that there are no problems for the other persons ho all are attached with us. Thus, we need to communicate all these things to our suppliers, customers and other people who are associated with our company.
Fordism is based upon the objective of the cost minimization in the organization. Whereas the lean manufacturing system confirms the effective and optimal utilization of the available resources for the better and collective output, that will have a effective influence on the pricing strategy and price fixing of the manufactured goods or the services. HRM need to have a clear concept and perspective.
Fordism is being configured by the Ford motors and the lean manufacturing is being configured by Toyota. That is why sometimes it is also known Toyotaism. Thus we can see that there is great amount of difference in both the methods of production. One method is mainly intended to minimize the costs whereas on the other hand the other method is only intended to use the available resources at the best optimum value. These methods were mainly made so that there is effective and good utilization of resources and money and no one can challenge these methods at any cost. These are time tested methods and there is enough proof for all to make sure that these methods are being given with good amount of applause.
Thus the main area of difference in both the methods of production is the way and manner in which they are being produced and also there are different companies which support the stance for the same. Ford and Toyota have done a very good job in ensuring that there is great methods that are being prepared and their is no doubt that both the methods have been a great help to human mankind. However we also have to say that both the methods are being related to different areas of production rather than just one area of production. Hence we can say that Ford manufacturing process is a bit different from that of Toyota and there is great amount of comparison in the methods of production in both the cases. We also have to see the areas where both the methods are being applied and they are also said to have a great amount of differences. The Ford method is mainly developed by Mr. Ford, the catalyst of the revolution in form of Fordism as the integrated system of mass production and could make a revolutionary change in the whole manufacturing industry with this system. The whole system changed from craft manufacturing to the mass manufacturing. The system was based upon the standardization of the whole manufacturing system that will have a positive and integrated effect on the whole manufacturing system and finally will reflect on the cost minimization.
On the other hand Lean manufacturing is a kind of manufacturing process integration that leads to the effective utilization of the available resources without making misuse or wastage of it. It sounds more effective due to its viability and effective implementation that may result in the cost minimization and profit maximization with the available resource utilization. So it is a kind of integrated system that can have all the aspects included in it. Lean manufacturing was firstly implemented by the Toyota motors, a giant in the vehicle manufacturing company. Hence we now can see that there is great amount of differences in both the methods and the mechanism with which they are being produced and marketed. Their usage have been completely different from that of the other and there is wide spread awareness of the same.
Best fit mainly means that what particular thing should be best suited for a project that only should be taken and done. Best practice on the other hand means that an industries overall practice that is being followed for all the projects that are being executed are is going to be executed in the coming days. Thus the main difference between both the things is the nature and the intensity with which both the things are being done.
With the help of the above report we can now say that there is a lot of differences in the way both the concepts work. One concept mainly focuses on optimum utilization of resources and on the other hand the other concept mainly talks about how to reduce the wastage and get more profits that are being derived. The key HRM issues that have to be discussed in both the cases are the change management techniques.
Change is an essence of life and we should understand the techniques and the principles in the best possible way so that there is no problem for us in the coming days. We have to make sure that there is great amount of respect for time and we should also adopt ourselves with the time so that these changes management techniques are fulfilled as per it. This gives me a great amount of satisfaction to say that change management techniques were being applied in the best possible ways in both the Ford and Toyota and that is why both the companies have risen to great heights and their methods are also being used by the rest of the world.
References:
Kim, P. S. (1999). Globalization of Human Resource Management: A Cross-Cultural Perspective for the Public Sector. Public Personnel Management, 28(2), 227
Mathews, A. (1998), Diversity: A Principle of Human Resource Management. Public Personnel Management, 27(2), p.175-182
Management and Staff Motivation Key to Cope with Rapid Change, Report Stresses, 2006, August 16, Western Mail (Cardiff, Wales), p 8
Rosenzweig, P. M., & Nohria, N. (1994), Influences on Human Resource Management Practices in Multinational Corporations. Journal of International Business Studies, 25(2), p.229-234
Benders, J. (1996) Leaving Lean? Recent changes in the production orientation of some Japanese car plants, Economic and Industrial Democracy, 17(1), 9-38.
Berggren, C. (1993) Lean production – the End of History?, Work, Employment and Society, 7(2) June, 163-188.
Delbridge, R., Lowe, J. and Oliver, N. (2000) Worker automony in lean teams: evidence from the world automotive components industry, in Proctor, S. and Mueller, F. (eds.) Teamworking, MacMillan, Basingstoke, 125-142.
Dohse, K., Jurgens, U. and Malsch, T. (1985) From Fordism to Toyotism? The social organization of the labour process in the Japanese automobile industry, Politics and Society, 14(2), 115-46.
Fournier, V. and Grey, C. (2000) At the critical moment: conditions and prospects for critical management studies, Human Relations, 53, 7-32.
Hampson, I., Ewer, P. and Smith, M. (1994) Post-Fordism and workplace change: towards a critical research agenda, Journal of Industrial Relations, June, 231-257.
Hutchinson, S., Kinnie, N and Purcell, J. (1996) Report by the University of Bath, in The People Management Implications of Leaner Ways of Working, Issues in People Management, No.15, Institute of Personnel and Development, London.
Rehder, R. R. (1994) Saturn, Uddevalla and the Japanese lean system: paradoxical prototypes for the twenty-first century, International Journal of Human Resource Management, 5(1), p.1-31.
The HRM implications of Lean construction, online available at
http://www.personal.rdg.ac.uk/~kcsgrest/Lean-hrm.htm
JC12
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