Strategic Human Resources Management

Question: Discuss about the Strategic Human Resources Management . Answer: Introduction The Austin health is one of the main providers of health professional education as well as tertiary health services and research in the North east of Melbourne in Australia. The institution is made up of the Austin Hospital, Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital and the Royal Talbot Rehabilitation center. As of February 2017, the hospital operates 980 beds across acute, mental health and sub-acute with an estimated annual budget of over AUD700 Million(Austin, 2017). The institution is international recognized as being a leader in the training, clinical teaching for affiliated eight universities. The facility is also the largest provider of training for specialist surgeons and physicians in Victoria. As per 2013-14, the institution completed 95,142 inpatient admissions, 75, 366 emergency attendance and 177,027 outpatient attendance(Austin, 2017). The focus of this strategic Human resource plan will be in one of its branches the Austin heath Heidelberg facility. This facility was originally built in 1941 and became part of Austin health in 1995(Austin, 2017). The main activities of the facility has been to care for war veterans and widows. As of now, the Heidelberg health facility is a major player in the treatment of war veterans and widows while at the same time providing service to the communities around. Some of the services offered in the facility include palliative care, day surgery, mental health services, outpatient services like nuclear medicine, radiotherapy, radiology and radiation oncology. The strategic mission for the human resource management department will only be realized if every employee is aware of their roles and exercise these roles well through the facilitys core values. In this manner, each staff will be able to enjoy the benefits of the new human resource strategic plan by working through a common good. By carefully setting up the Human resource strategy of Austin health, it is comes out clearly that as a hospital the facility is yet to deal with a lot of real human resources issues which leads to any form of disciplinary action. Company Vision and Strategy With regard to Austin Health, the companys vision is going to be to change the healthcare system for the better. This will be done through education, world class research and exceptional patient care(Anand Daft, 2007). To achieve this, the facility is going to work through reputable values such as integrity, accountability, respect and excellence(Adler Elmhorst, 2010). The mission of the hospital ensures the facility has adopted new circumstances that establish a workable human resource department that foster patient care and human dignity. Key Strategic HR Issues According to Benn Bolton, (2011); Baumruk, Jr., Gorman, Robert, Ingham, (2006) and Dowling, Festing, Engle (2013), the human resources management functions in hospitals is one way of driving change in a hospital facility. This means that having a better workforce strategy will ensure better patient care as well as business performance for the hospital(Peters, 2011)(Best, 2008). Some of the Human Resources issues for the hospital facilities are identified as follows: Poor Staff Retention staff retention is one of the major human resource issue for a hospital in Austin Health Heidelberg(Austin, 2017). Some of the consequence that have been realized in the facility include high cost of employee turnover from time to time(Anand Daft, 2007). The knowledge of the company also becomes at a greater loss and the staff seem to experience low work morale. All of the above issues are detrimental for an organisation. According to Peters, (2011), the retention of staff is one of the main factors that determine long term success and health of the facility. It is thus important that the health facility find a better strategy to retain their best employees and ensure that all patients are satisfied, the hospital is able to generate revenue(Lorshe, 2012). This will also ensure that staff, co-workers and other reporting staff are satisfied, there is an effective succession planning and organisation knowledge and learning is exercised. The hospital staff assessment program is also one of the main issues in the Human resource department. There needs to be a well-defined assessment center specifically for the Heidberg facility based no competence selection for vacancies in the organisation(Armstrong, 2009). The approach is important as it ensures the hospitals commitment to the delivery of dignity in care through a proper workforce that is led by requisite values and behaviors. In this regard, there should be modalities for induction process as well.Recruitment Process The recruitment process is also another human resource issue. A proper recruitment process will ensure that staff are well selected on merit and can be retained for a long time. Jain Jain (2014) argues that recruitment process will also vary with the department and economic conditions of the country. Cultural Shift Cultural shift will also be a human resource management issue especially when it comes to employee retention. With the change in management, some employees will be resistant to change. According to Anand Daft (2007), resistance to change in an organisation will usually take different forms, some of them will include those employees that will undermine the new director initiatives, others will withhold information and other active forms of resistance like planned strike(Securitas, 2015). According to Baumruk, Jr., Gorman, Robert, Ingham (2006), poor communication is also a cultural issue in human resource management that will surround the effectiveness of change management because an imposed change is bound to encourage employee resistance. 12 Month HR Plan The Initiative Rationale Priorities Time Frame Success Measures 1 Recruit Highly Professional and experienced staff This will ensure that there is increased patient satisfaction for services and less resistance to the new strategies. By doing so, the hospital facility will also be in a better position to effect new organisation culture. Review staff information for each department and assess qualifications/ Hold a one day orientation workshop for that will introduce new policies and deliverables to staff. March 2017 1. Improved services with regard to patient care and treatment. 2. Low staff turnover. 3. Cultural change taking effect with little resistance. 2. Orientation Training for the new team Orientation training will be very vital as the new management takes place. This will ensure that all staff understand the directors mission and vision. It will also enable strong teamwork as all the staff in the organisation will be able to work towards a specific goal. Orientation training will also be a better opportunity for the old staff to address their human resource issues. Conduct baseline assessment to identify strategic human resource issues. Come up with an orientation training curriculum that will address the human resource issue at the facility. Select staff to participate in the orientation training. Draw a budget for the orientation training. There will also be continuous seminars conducted as part of refresher courses for staff to ensure that they are up to date with the new technologies and patient care. March 2017 1. Complete orientation training curriculum for the established and new staff. 2. Complete training done. 3. Implementation of the new strategies in the organisation by trained staff. 4. Employee satisfaction on the new human resource strategy. 3 Employee Assessment The new strategy will ensure that each employee is evaluated each month. This is important as it will enable the director understand progress of each employee and find ways of improving. It will also ensure that the management knows whether employees are performing with regard to the facilitys mission and vision. Through continuous assessment systems, the management will be able to judge whether employees are matured for salary increase and other forms of reward. It will also make the management understand how employees view the company and if there is reason for change. 1. Formulate a continuous assessment program. 2. Select employees for assessment and assessment dates. 3. Formulated an appraisal system for best performing employees. May, August and November 2017 1. High performance among employees. 2. Employee promotion and reward system implemented. 3. Increased employee morale and patient satisfaction. 4. Positive perception of employee about the new human resource management team. 4. Initiate Compensation, Benefits and reward programs This will ensure that every hired employee is compensated with a basic pay wage according to the standard of Melbourne. In addition, through this initiative, all ranks including those responsible for records and store keeping will receive an additional pay in terms of profit sharing in every four months. There will also be performance based incentives or reward, these will be used in motivating employees against poor performance and turnover. Through compensation and reward programs, the hospital facility hopes to retain well experienced and high performing employees, it will ensure that they are not bought out by other hospitals with competitive pay package. 1. The Human resource department will conduct and review the salary scale for each employee. This will be done in relation to qualification, work experience, experience with the hospital and performance levels of the employee. 2. New pay packaged will be implemented with regard to provided human resource guidelines. 3. Implementation of the new pay package will be in effect after approval by the board. April 2017 1. Low staff turnover. 2. Increased performance. 3. Improved lifestyle among employees. 4. Satisfied patient. 5. Corporate recognition during resignation, Promotion and Termination. This is an important aspect for the new human resource strategy. Firstly, it will provide terminated employees with required support as they seek new employment based on the condition of termination or dismissal. The initiative will also be important as it ensures that employees will be looking to elevate their education or competency level are provided with assistance in case the facility is unable to provide them with requested position. In this regard, the company will also include employee resumes in the pool of recommendations and for future recruitment should the desired space be available. 1. The first point will be to ensure that there is proper filing system for all employees in the organisation. Employee data will all be entered in to a customized hospital software that shall contain all staff records. Information about employee being terminated will be provided by the human resource department upon request. There will be a follow up program and compensation package to ensure that employees terminated have been absorbed or continue well with their careers. A data base for best performing employees will be kept for future reference and selection. Throughout the year. 1. Low employee turnover. 2. Absorption of former Austin Heidberg employees to other affiliate programs and health institutions. 3. Proof of compensation for terminated employees and recommendations. Conclusion In conclusion, the hospitals human resource management current strategy is not fluent. In addition, procedures were found to be put in a haphazard way. Some of the areas that need to be considered is an increase in financial resource and get rid of the facilitys out of date policies. The other important area is to ensure continuous implementation for training and recruitment programs. This should especially focus on work performance, employee motivation and patient care. These are important in reducing employee turnover among other legal personnel issues in organisations. At this, there should be very clear guidelines that are going to protect the hospitals workforce, employee interests and the interest of patients. Succession plans should ensure that running of the hospital is effective. In addition, there should be clear channels of promotion, termination and recruitment of employees. This will ensure the hospital has established a culture of fairness and integrity in the human res ource department. References Adler, R. Elmhorst, J., 2010. Communication at work: principles and practices for business and the professions. 10th ed. New York, NY.: McGraw Hill. Anand, N. Daft, R. L., 2007. What is the right organisation design?. Organisation dynamics, 36(4), pp. 329-344. Armstrong, M., 2009. Armstrong's handbook of management Practice. 10 ed. London: Kogan. Austin, 2017. About us. [Online] Available at: https://www.austin.org.au/heidelberg-repatriation-hospital/ Austin, 2017. Austin Hospital. [Online] Available at: https://www.austin.org.au/austin-hospital Baumruk, R. et al., 2006. Why Managers Are Crucial to Increasing Engagement. Strategic HR Review, 5(2), pp. 24-27. Benn, S. Bolton, D., 2011. 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Strategic Human Resources Management Question: Discuss about the Strategic Human Resources Management. Answer: Introduction Organizational managers and leaders play the integral role of handling employee relation in order to attain organizational goals and objectives(Isidor, 2011). It is by effective handling of employee relation that an organization is able to attain employee satisfaction, motivation and hence productivity. The report analyses the effect of inappropriate employee relation handling by a truck company and its managers. The ineffectiveness resulted in low employee morale and dissatisfaction levels which affected productivity and approaches that an employee developed towards the company. Post the company got taken over by another national truck company and a new manager was appointed, employee motivational levels were highly impacted(Armstrong, 2014). The high motivation levels for employees resulted in better performance, more productivity, and improvement of employee relations. Constructive Relations at Top Trucking Company Ways in which new workplace practices introduced by the new yard manager complement one another Top Trucking company at Wollongong yard was a family run business that was handled by an appointed manager. The family as well as the manager had a reluctant attitude towards the drivers as well as their union leader. They adopted traditional managerial approach of dominance by showcasing a supervisor and subordinate relationship. However, post the family run truck company was taken over by a national transport group, the managerial attributes changed. The new company board appointed a new manager by replacing the old manager, as it was also his time to retire(Collins, 2006). The new manager followed modern techniques in handling employees and in negotiating with the union. The new managers dealt with the drivers of the trucks with immense respect and maintained steady communication with them such as to ensure that flow of information and ideas takes place from the company heads to the drivers at the other end. The new company invested in the tuck company by changing several trucks and also by providing the drivers with dresses that they could wear during their service at the company. This greatly affected employee morale and work level motivation for the drivers, who were till date treated as children by their previous managers(Armstrong, 2014). The manager often communicated regarding the various pressure that he dealt with and the deliverables that were expected from the drivers of the trucks. This mode of communication enhanced employee morale and job commitment and the drivers were more eager to fulfill their job roles. The union leader found the newly manager easy to deal with regarding various issues pertaining to employee satisfaction(Guest, 2011). The newly adopted work place practiced were thus completing the new appointed managers behaviors. The new company wanted to instigate and invest in the business so as to revive the business. The new manager adopted practices that could en hance the traditional work culture by transforming the systems that persisted and work environments. The new company invested in new trucks and dresses for the drivers, whereas the new manager was keen to establish a positive relationship with the primary employees of the business, truck drivers(Harzallah, 2006). Both of their focus was to attain work level motivation such that the company could attain and deliver high level of performance. Risks to sustaining changes if George or the yard manager moves on In the truck company post take over by the national truck company and appointment of a new manager several work practices were implemented and changed. The new manager established a dialogue between the company and its most important stakeholder the drivers. The newly appointed manager had made immense efforts in developing employee relations with the current company(Daley, 2006). The employee had a negative though and regards for the company, but the newly appointed manager was able to mold the same. The new manager adopted the role of a transformational leader by inspiring and motivating the drivers to work. Employee relations are driven by particular managers or leaders, who envisions the change and employee develops an element of trust in him. Change is a transitory process that creates either positive or negative impact in the minds of employees. Therefore any organization adapting to a changed process does so through a leader who is capable of handling the changed procedure, he nce it is important that the leader or manager whoever is responsible for initiating the changed process continues with the organization as well as with its employees to sustain the change process(Jiang, 2012). In this case the newly adapted change was applied by the new manager hence employees already have developed a mental dependence towards the individual and is motivated due to the role of the person. But in case of his absence, it can create a negative impact in the minds of the employees and they can either decide to leave the organization or follow their course of action, which might result in a strike. These are the possible outcomes the organization is susceptible to face in case the manager moves on(Chen, 2009). George has also been instrumental in the truck company being able to deliver results till date. George had on several instances played the role of a leader who attends to his employees. He demonstrated tremendous leadership qualities and skills for which he was highly liked and followed. But in case George moves to another company or to the head office of the same company then its possible that the company can face high employee turnover(Becker, 2006). As George has been providing employee empowerment to employee and also supporting them in times of crisis, this has led to the drivers building immense trust on him. He has been a leader who has been driven organizational performance levels by motivating his subordinates and fellow employees. Thus, employees have in-built trust on him and performs on the basis of direction provided by him. In case he is absent employees will lack the sense of direction in performance, and can in turn leave the organization. The organization can also ex pect adverse performance from its employees as a result of this(Lengnick-Hall, 2009). Hence it is extremely important that he continues with the current set-up of employees in order to enhance and maintain organizational level performances. Tough blue collar unions like the Transport Workers Union are more of less likely to engage in workplace changes like these than public or service sector unions. Reasons for such justifications. Adopting workplace related changes requires tremendous amount of efforts and vision on the part of both the company as well as its unions. Often companies and unions are unable to visualize the potential effects from adopting a workplace related change. Hence tough blue collar unions like Transport Workers Union are more of less likely to adopt changes in the workplace. Blue collar unions attaches great importance to themselves and their roles in the organizations, they apply their roles in bargaining contracts with managers and leaders of organizations(Chen, 2009). With adaptation of workplace related changes the importance of these unions will greatly be affected and hence they will not be interested in engaging in workplace related changes. Public and service sector unions on the other hand are less powerful and will want to adopt these changes for improving and impacting employee performance levels within an organization(Williams, 2006). Employee relation improvement can be seen as a modern technique of handling employee motivation and job satisfaction levels. Hence organizations or unions that adopt to these changes are more contemporary in nature and wants to apply improvement for the employees as well as for the organization. but reluctance from the part of employees or organizations can result in low employee morale and motivational levels leading to low job satisfaction and high turnover ratios(Turner Parish, 2008). Often organizations that has adopted contemporary approaches in handling employees have removed or reduced the role of unions in negotiating contracts and in handling employee disputes. The growing unimportance of these unions are seen negatively often by many thus, there is a level of reluctance in adopting to these changes. Practical researches and data from employee and trade union disputes reflect that there is reluctance amongst many in adapting to the process of improved employee relations(Edwards, 2009). However, with rapid expansion in companies and globalization unions have realized that it is in their best of practices to adapt and follow the new norms that drives employee performances. Large organizations are often known to put increased pressure on unions as well as reluctant employees to adopt to these new and improvised norms for better organizational culture and environment. Recommendations The analysis of various factors of employee relation reflects that it is a key aspect that has an important part to play in organizational achievement levels. Organizations are driven by the key performances from its most important resource which is the human resources. Some recommendations for organizations such that employee relation can be maintained are; Conclusion As employee relation is integral, an organizational strategies and that of its managers apply needs to be in line with maintaining and enhancing employee relations such that employee motivation and productivity can be maintained. Employee relations can be maintained by improvement of employee empowerment, by treating employees with adequate respect that they deserve. Employee can deliver immense results if they are satisfied with the organizations behavior and approaches towards them. As employees are the key drivers of organizations, they need to apply strategies such that work level motivation and job satisfaction can be developed. Job satisfaction levels can be greatly be improved by adapting appropriate job design for employee roles. Handling employee relation is a dynamic capability of the organizations which needs to be implemented by its managers, hence organization needs to apply appropriate leadership styles. A superior-subordinate relationship is no more applicable in gaining results, rather a transformational leader, with whom employees can identify themselves and who is a patient listener can act as a proper guide. References Armstrong, M. . (2014). Armstrong's handbook of human resource management practice. . Kogan Page Publishers. Becker, B. E. (2006). Strategic human resources management: where do we go from here?. . Journal of management, 898-925. Chen, C. a. (2009). 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