HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Topic 3: HR Strategies

Ali Huzam Hassan

Contents

➢ Introduction
➢ What are HR strategies
➢ General HR strategies
➢ Specific HR strategies
➢ Criteria for an effective HR strategy
➢ How should HR strategies be formulated
➢ Implementing HR strategies
Introduction

❑ HR or people strategy specifies what the organization intends

to do about people management generally or in particular areas

to support the achievement of corporate goals and meet its

obligations to its stakeholders, especially its employees.

Introduction

❑ It sets out how its people management policies and practices

should be integrated with the business strategy and with each

other.
HR strategy

❑ Dyer and Reeves (1995) described HR strategies as ‘internally

consistent bundles of human resource practices’.

❑A human resource strategy is the plan that a business creates to

manage its human capital in a way that aligns with the

company’s overall mission, goals and future aspirations.

HR strategy

❑ It addresses all essential areas of human resources (HR),

including searching for and training employees, organizing

benefits, appraising performance and providing development

opportunities.
Nature of HR strategy

❑ According to Purcell (2001), Strategy in HR, like in other areas,

is about continuity and change, about appropriateness in the

circumstances, but anticipating when the circumstances change.

It is about taking strategic decisions.’

Nature of HR strategy

❑ HR strategy should be distinguished from HR policy. HR

strategy is purposeful and dynamic. It provides a sense of

direction and constantly adjusts to meet changed circumstances.

❑ HR policy is more about the here and now. It defines ‘the way

things are done around here’.

General HR strategies and Specific HR strategies
General HR strategies

General strategies describe the overall system or bundle of

complementary HR practices that the organization proposes to

adopt or puts into effect in order to improve organizational

Performance.
General HR Strategy: High-performance management

❑ High-performance management aims to make an impact on the

performance of the organization in such areas as productivity,

quality, levels of customer service, growth and profits.

General HR Strategy: High-performance management

❑ It can do this through high-performance work systems (bundles

of practices that enhance employee performance and facilitate

their engagement, motivation and skill enhancement).

General HR Strategy: High-performance management

❑High-performance working practices include rigorous

recruitment and selection procedures, extensive and relevant

training and management development activities, incentive pay

systems, and performance management processes.

General HR Strategy: High-performance management

(High performance working ingredients examples)

✓Linking of better employment relations with better performance.

✓Using staff experience to improve customer service.

✓Increasing use of cross-departmental projects to tackle wider

opportunities.
General HR Strategy: High-commitment management

❑One of the defining characteristics of HRM is its emphasis on

the importance of achieving ‘mutual gains’ by pursuing

employment policies that produce benefits for both the

organization and its employees.

General HR Strategy: High-commitment management

❑ High-commitment management has been described by Wood

(1996) as: ‘A form of management which is aimed at eliciting a

commitment so that behaviour is primarily self-regulated rather

than controlled by authorizations.

General HR Strategy: High-involvement management

❑ As defined by Benson et al (2006), High-involvement work

practices are a specific set of human resource practices that

focus on employee decision making, power, access to

information, training and incentives.

General HR Strategy: High-involvement management

❑Camps and Luna-Arocas (2009) observed that; High-

involvement work practices aim to provide employees with the

opportunity, skills and motivation to contribute to organizational

success in environments demanding greater levels of

commitment and involvement.

Specific HR Strategy

Specific HR strategies set out what the organization intends to

do in specific areas such as; knowledge management, employee

wellbeing, social responsibility so on.

Specific HR Strategy (areas)

Engagement – the development and implementation of policies

designed to increase the level of employees’ engagement with their

work and the organization.

Knowledge management – creating, acquiring, capturing, sharing

and using knowledge to enhance learning and performance.

 Specific HR Strategy (areas)

Resourcing – attracting and retaining high quality people.

Talent management – how the organization ensures that it has the

talented people it needs to achieve success.

Employee well-being – meeting the needs of employees for a

healthy, safe and supportive work environment.

Specific HR Strategy (areas)

Performance management – integrating the values contained in

the HR strategy into performance management processes and

ensuring that reviews concentrate on how well people are

performing those values.

Specific HR Strategy (Examples)

➢Implement training and development that supports the business

objectives of the society and improves the quality of work with

children and young people.

➢Reward and recognition: use recognition and reward

programmes to stimulate outstanding team and individual

performance contributions.
Specific HR Strategy (Examples)

➢ Talent management: drive the attraction, retention and

professional growth of a deep pool of diverse, talented

employees.

➢ Organizational effectiveness: ensure that the business adapts its

organization to maximize employee contribution and deliver

performance goals.
Criteria for an effective HR strategy

✓It will satisfy business needs.

✓It is founded on detailed analysis and study, not just wishful

thinking.

✓It can be turned into actionable programmes that anticipate

implementation requirements and problems.

Criteria for an effective HR strategy

✓It is coherent and integrated, being composed of components

that fit with and support each other.

✓It takes account of the needs of line managers and employees

generally as well as those of the organization and its other

stakeholders.
Developing HR strategy (Steps)

✓Scan the internal and external environment and analyse the

implications.

✓Analyse the effectiveness of existing people strategies.

✓Conduct a diagnostic review.

Developing HR strategy (Steps)

✓On the basis of this review, decide what needs to be in the

shape of overall or specific strategies.

✓Conduct a stakeholder analysis.

Developing HR strategy (Steps)

✓Set out the objectives of the strategy and how the effectiveness

of any policies and practices included in it will be tested against

those objectives. Performance criteria can be determined which

may be expressed as targets or in terms of return on investment.

Developing HR strategy (Steps)

✓Plan the implementation of the strategy, ensuring that any

likely problems are identified and means of overcoming them

established. It is essential to spell out how the strategy is to be

implemented as well as what is to be implemented.

Developing HR strategy (Stakeholder analysis)
Implementing HR strategies
To ensure the effective delivery of HR strategies it necessary to adopt the following approaches

✓formulate practical strategies that can be readily put into effect

✓involve line mangers and other employees
✓communicate
✓build skills
✓monitor and evaluate
✓manage change
THANK YOU