Application of HR Bodies of Knowledge at AT&T Essay

Human resource departments today have a more distinct, calculated position within organizations, and human resource strategy influences the bottom line. “One of the challenges for HR leaders is convincing executive leadership teams that human capital is one of the most important resources in which the company can invest” (Mayhew, 2014, p.). Subsequently, “this return on investment is an essential part of the argument for including HR as part of an overall business strategy” (Mayhew, 2014, p.). Human resource departments utilize the information given to them from company executives and leaders, coupled with their respective expertise on all things personnel, and they plan and implement staffing concerns for the betterment of the organization. From preparing job analysis, to comparing inventory and forecasting, it is the responsibility of human resources to consider the objectives of an organization and fulfill those goals while operating the specific planning relative to HR.

In an era of organizational flux due to competition and globalization, companies and employees are faced with constant change. Leaders must be able to adapt to change as the environment shifts. HR has been known as the organizational change agent, administrative expert, and employee advocate. More recently they have been regarded as business strategic partners for many organizations. In order to be successful and remain competitive in today’s market, Human Resources (HR) must be considered a strategic partner if an organization wants to flourish. Top executives today commit significant resources to ensure that their company’s functions are capable of rapid change and achieving their

Human Resource (HR) strategic plan’s outline short term goals that have been aligned with their organization’s strategic plans. With the HR’s goals being aligned it also helps the representative know how much man power is needed from the budgeting process done through HR. The HR function of an organization is responsible for ensuring top talent is recruited and retained, which means ensuring success of an organization’s strategic plan.

Human Resource Management (HR) is a function in an organisation aimed at maximizing employee performance in relation to the employer 's set standards and strategic objectives. The primary focus of HR is concentrated upon the management of employees, and on the policies and systems within and outside the organisation. (Boxall & Purcell, 2011). “Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) aims to align the functions and processes of HR with the strategic aims and objectives and competitive advantage of an organisation.” (Hartel, Fujimoto, Strybosch & Fitzpatrick, 2006). After all, the key characteristic of HR is ‘integration.’ The role of HR and HR Professionals can be linked to four main SHRM theories, namely: Jackson & Schuler (1995), Kochan & Barocci (1985), Klatt, Murdich & Schuster (1978) and Lundy & Cowling (1996).

But, it is very difficult to imagine measures for these quantities. Hence, in the current state of HR there is a clear rift between what is measured and what needs to be measured. As mentioned in the introduction, the role of HR is no more just administrative. It has a much broader, connected and strategic role to play. But, these statements must be substantiated. The reasons why HR must be considered as a strategic asset must be highlighted. A strategic asset is something difficult to trade or imitate. They are normally a set of scarce, special or even exotic resources and capabilities that bestow a firm its competitive advantage. An unlikely paradox is that the very intangibility of human capital that makes it so difficult to measure and evaluate, also proves to be the one quality that makes it a strategic asset. Consider the difference between being able to align employee efforts with the company’s strategic goals and instead having innovative policies of performance appraisals. The latter is a policy. It is visible to competitors and can be easily copied. The former on the other hand is a strategic move. It is not easy to imitate since it is a very circumstantial effort, which depends on the specific firm, its goals and its people. This proves to be a strategic asset i.e. something that competitors cannot see but that can be utilised to gain a competitive advantage. It is thus

Whether an organization consists of five or 25,000 employees, human resources management is vital to the success of the organization. HR is important to all managers because it provides managers with the resources – the employees – necessary to produce the work for the managers and the organization. Beyond this role, HR is capable of becoming a strong strategic partner when it comes to “establishing the overall direction and objectives of key areas of human resource management in order to ensure that they not only are consistent with but also support the achievement of business goals.” (Massey, 1994, p. 27)

Over the years, the role of human resources has changed and evolved based on the needs of our society. Put in basic terms, human resource management must change as the business environment in which it operates changes. An article written by Susan Heathfield, states that while successful organizations are becoming more adaptable, resilient, quick to change direction, the HR professional is considered by line managers as a strategic partner, an employee sponsor or advocate and a change mentor (Heathfield, 2006). Human Resources professionals have gone from simply handling personnel issues to making strategic contributions to the future development of an organization. There are various factors that have

The relationship between an organisation’s strategic management and the management of its human resources is concerned with SHRM (Boxall, 1996). In SHRM, the HR department is more involving in acquiring and creating human capital resource which can ultimately realize the organization strategic goals. HR leaders are required to ensure that its procedures and plans align with the corporate business strategy as a whole. HR leaders should be able to visualize the complete system of HR activities from beginning to end to deliver the expected commercial results. External environments such as government policies, demographic, and labour market influence on the design of SHRM

Certain combinations of human resource management practices lead to superior outcomes for organizations. The HR combination department is at the heart of organizational performance, productivity, turnover, profits, and market value outcomes. Employees are considered a source of non-duplicable and sustainable competitive advantage. By using the combinations in capabilities, resources, relationships and decisions presented by employees, organizations strategically position themselves thus avoiding threats and maximizing opportunities. Organizations and HR combinations managers aim to generate strategic capacity by ensuring that an organization acquires a skilled, committed and motivated workforce. Integration of HR combinations issues, organization performance and HR management systems in organizational strategic processes serve as a solution to business problems. The need to create and manage capabilities and skills and align such capabilities to organizational performance and future needs drives Human Resource Management. As such, the HR department plays a greater role in planning and implementing a coherent approach in designing and managing personnel systems and matching HR activities and policies to the overall business goals.

This paper will be examine how the strategic application of HR practices improves corporate success. I will outline what measures of success are impacted by the application of HR practices and explain how HR strategies affect operational, functional, and business strategies. I will use research to show the link that ties long-term business success to effective people management practices. Before I move into these elements it is important to understand what criteria is used to select the best places to work, what criteria is used to select Fortune’s Most Admired Companies, and how top domestic and international organizations leverage their HR strategy to help them maintain long-term success. Let’s dive into some of those questions in

It is telling that Becton (2009) stated that the effective management of a particular organization’s HR tends to be critical to that organization’s profitability, and its general ability to compete. As a result, HR activities of a particular organization need to be managed from a strategic perspective in order to accomplish competitive advantage through its human resources. However, in order for HR to become a strategic business partner, there needs to be a change in mindset (Becton, 2009).

Bredin (2008) notes a shift from traditional to strategic Human Resources Management and the implications for the organisation. Ulrich (1997) suggested how Human Resource Management and the role of a Human Resources Business Partner can contribute to an organisation’s competitive advantage. Ulrich suggests that to deal with the challenges, the organisation should move away from the traditional HR approach and apply four new strategic HR roles, namely Strategic partners, Administrative Experts, Employee Champions and Change agents. This model aligns HR strategies with the organisation’s strategies. The HRBP role creates the people strategy for meeting current and future HR needs of the organisation and works to ensure that the organisation is resourced accordingly to benefit the organisation in a positive and efficient manner.

Aim: This research will help us understand the role played by Strategic Human Resources Management in Organizational success, what role a HR manager plays in improving organizational efficiency and how it differs from traditional Human Resources Management.

According to Brockbank (1999), he recommended that the HR managers must be hands-on in formulation and implementation of organisational strategy. Crosby (1986) also suggested that a strategic HR manager as part of his or her role should be in the position to articulate the theory of change for the airline, establish partnership with like-minded airlines, monitors the global market, succession planning and talent management. As HR managers, they must be very familiar with the business and their stakeholders

Although Human Resource Management did begin as a administrative job, advancements in technology has increased a business’s resources to the point of needing this department to take on a more strategic role. The HR Department is or all intend and purposes the center point for the employees needs ranging from - payroll, benefits, vacation, as well as staying up to date with the legal matters. The roles the HR department have always been aimed at meeting the needs of the employee, with a strategic approach, the HR department will be continue to be aimed at meeting the needs of employees, as well ensuring the employees can meet the needs of the company as well.