Organisations

Organisations Today organizations especially large ones are very complicated, because they are in a continuously changing business and economic environment. Moreover consumers demand is high, constantly changes and all that force organisations to be in an intensive competition and to increase the standards of performance. Companies have established Human resource departments or senior managers to perform human resource management functions and use practices in order to try to improve and sustain a better organisational performance. Every company has to know their employees, their capabilities to actually get best of them because it is believed to be the most valuable capital and main source of competitive advantage. In 2001, Calkin claimed, that more than 30 studies in the US and UK leave no room for doubt; how organizations mange and develop people has a powerful-perhaps the most powerful-effect on overall performance, including the bottom line. The main ones have been done in the past starts in 1990s by Arthur in 1992, 1994; MacDuffie in 1995; Martell and Carroll in 1995b; Huselid in 1995; Delaney and Huselid in 1996; Wood in 1996; Guest in 2001 which claim to prove statistically the bond between both HRM practises and organizational performance because of increased productivity. The results of their studies are that the HRM activities such as decentralisation of authority will result in lower degree of turnover (Arthur, 1994) or Bundles of internally consistent HRM practices are associated with higher productivity and quality ( McDuffie, 1995) are to support the hypothesis that there is a link between HRM and the HRM outcomes on performance. Also looking through studies established in the UK call centres, US firms, Australia and New Zealand manufactures, Norway, those cases do identify a relevance in favour that there is a relationship between human resource management and organisational performance. However there is a strong criticism about them, especially how the resea rch was performed, evaluation methods used and the data interpreted. Before linking HRM and performance it is important to understand what it is. First of all human resource management in many textbooks is simply explained as getting things done through the people. A more objective definition would be proposed by Storey (1998) where he states that HRM is a distinctive approach to employment management which seeks to achieve competitive advantage through the strategic deployment of a highly committed and capable workforce, using an integrated array of cultural, structural and personnel techniques. Additionally it useful to mention that is the strategic perspective of HR, which actually presents the importance of human resource practices for organisational performance Companies try to achieve significant superior performance by using HRM and different practices. The US academic Jeffrey Pfeffer (1998) identified seven main HR practices in the successful organisations. According Pfeffer human resource practices for performance improvement are: employment security, selective hiring, self-managed work teams, high pay contingent on company performance, extensive training, reduction of status differences, sharing information. Later European researchers Den Hartog and Verbug (2004) complemented Pfeffers job by distinguishing eight key practices which help to understand the association between HR and organizational performance. They are: employment skills, autonomy, pay-for-performance, profit-sharing, performance appraisal, team performance, information-sharing, job evaluation. Thus there is different ways to recognise how HR policies and practices actually contribute, because only certain ones might always result in high performance. This approach is called universalistic approach. The contingency approach proposes that that variety of practices needed to make a difference also taking into account environment and business strategy. Another view is that we have to realise that every organisation has its own culture, unique employees and because of that the set of HR practices and polices which will be the best will also be unique to that company. This approach is call as resource-based view (D.Torrington, L.Hall, S.Taylor, 2008 p.256). Every organisation has different outcomes and according Brattson and Gold this organisational performance can be measured from two sides (2007 4thed:527). The first measure is operating performance what includes reduced unit costs, improved product/service quality, labour productivity, innovation of products and processes all those are employee related indicators. Another measure of a performance is by financial performance such as profit, market share, and return on investment. Because companies can quite easily copy one anothers technology, but not human resource capabilities if an organisation has well working HR practices that is a big advantage to achieve sustainable competitive advantage. (Toby D. Wall and Stephen J. Wood, 2005) For instance not a long time ago Stephen Wood, David Holman and Christopher Stride (2006) did a research on HRM and performance in UK call centres. They have use data from a sample of 145 UK call centres and the research has found direct relationships between human resource practices and performance. However the represented response rate was only 20per cent. It is very low response rate, but it allowed for the authors to make conclusions from what was detected that firstly, that performance appraisal was negatively associated with unauthorised absence. Secondly, systematic selection tests, longer initial training and higher levels of internal recruitment were positively associated with achieving target times and suggestion making. Also there was significant links between relationship-building and both work discretion and teamworking, task discretion is associated with both training and improvement teams as well as internal recruitment seems to improve performance and innovation, cust omers satisfaction.(p:117-120) This example identifies relevance that practices and their implementation are vital ingredient in linking employees especially management to overall organisational performance. In addition there is a reason given to believe in a linkage because of Peters H. van der Meer and Kristens Ringdals research which was conducted in Norway (2003) findings were positive after organisation introduced job rotation which appeared to reduce labour costs per unit produced by having lower wage cost. Also the productivity increased more than in the organisations without job rotations. However the critique here would be that like in other similar works that there is n obvious limitation in data collection, because results could be affected by selectivity and response of respondents, also there is not enough of the evidence to prove. Graeme Salaman, John Storey and Jon Billsberry state that it is very important to identify the best HRM practices, those whose adoption generally leads to valued firm-level outcomes (2005:p122) Authors have extinguished that as extensive recruitment, selection, and training policies; formal information sharing, attitude assessment, job design, grievance procedures, and labour management participation programs; performance appraisals, promotion, and incentive compensation systems that recognise and reward employees practices. Than the research was given which was held in the US 3,452 firms participating. There were thirteen High performance practices to analyse the independent contribution of each practice to firm performance. The results showed that before the research there was a strong support for the hypotheses predicting that High performance work Practices will affect firm performance and important employment outcomes, the results justified it and that also significant effects o f High performance practices found are also financially meaningful as Graeme Salaman, John Storey and Jon Billsberry state.(2005: p140) Although all those studies propose that there is a synergy among increasing productivity and HRM especially strategic HRM, what is the overall combination of HR philosophy, processes, policies, programmes and practices creating the human performance desired and it is doing so at a reasonable cost (Gordan 2001). However not all of the studies finds only positive results. For instance it was thought because of the previous studies that one of the main HR practices are training and team working, from the example of NHS. Thus the research does identify a link; it can not be taken for granted that HR really helps to reduce mortality rates. Yes training helps to develop skills, and company expects them to be transferred into work floor, but does it happen straight after employees have been trained. Moreover according the D. Challis, D.Salmon and B.Lawson research done in the Australia and New Zeland 1024 manufacturing sites indicates that organizational and human resource practices are sig nificant additional variance in both employee and manufacturing performance. The results have showed that both training and teams are important in weak manufacturing environments, but are not significant in strong manufacturing environments. Moreover although training helps develop worker skills, it may not be enough to guarantee that skills employee got will actually be transferred to the factory floor.'(2005 vol. 43(1) p.103) So it is very difficult to prove and there are some disadvantages of the processed studies and the results. First of all because of the evaluation of a study is very subjective. There are different available methods used in evaluating results. People have their own interpretation, opinions, such as about the turnover, in one case it can be assumed to be a good thing because constantly changing employees bring new ideas into the organisation. And on the other hand if employees today do not have job satisfaction, do not have their career developing, do not get higher wages or better working conditions they leave. Some peoples answers depend upon the way questioned employees feel that day, or because after the notice of research taking place makes them feel suspicious maybe and work harder. Also it depends on the bundles of practices used in the research and put together. Sometimes it can be forgotten that practices used or implemented can bring benefits after long term. The author Phillips (1991) in his book states that external factors can influence and change the performance, government regulation, labour market conditions, and union strength. For instance the economic recession determines workers to work hard and not to l ose jobs in the case of reduction of staff. A very relevant critique was found in an article called The romance of human resource management and business performance, and the case for big science written by Toby D. Wall and Stephen J. Wood(2005), they argue that the studies done before have created wrong expectations of the effect of HRM practices on performance. Their critique upon the studies done, what they call as a romance is containing errors; Wall and Wood identify that the reliability is often tolerant although the sizes of effects are typically small in prior research. Also in some cases measures of performance chosen might not be appropriate; they have to look at the environment of a business. Authors judge the studies because they are not done properly, and say that in the future it should be used better research methods and design, and also should be large-size long-term research when you can look what it was like before and what is after implementation and use of HRM. O therwise it is like a failure of to see the certified link between HRM and performance. In the conclusion nowadays business world is changing very rapidly and both people and organisations which vary in size, aims, functions, construction, the nature of their product or service are complicated and because of that to be the best in the industry firms have to have a well established human resource management according main studies. Organizations have to have their HRM working at a strategic level because then practices are focused on a short or better on a long term results when the improved performance could have an added-value and benefits. However the discussion about the link between the HRM and performance is under investigation for about more than 20 years and nobody is sure about it. Yes it is known that HRM management is working and do have the impact on employees and might make organisation successful but which particular practice or bundle to use universally is not known, because one thing combines with another, one organisation is different than another. Howeve r to apply studies and believe in all the results of practices or practice make a different would be violent interpretation. Because in studies done to prove the link of HRM and organizational performance there are limitations and it is very important to understand bias as well as that how the research been conducted and interpreted. References: Arthur, J. B. (1994) Effects of human resource systems on manufacturing performance and turnover. Academy of Management Journal, 37: 670-87 Bratton and Gold (2007) Human resource management: Theory and Practice 4th ed.; Palgrave Macmillan, New York D. Challis, D.Salmon and B.Lawson (2005) Impact of technological, organizational and human resource investments on employee and manufacturing performance: Australian and New Zealand evidence International Journal of Production Research, 43(1): 81-107 Derek Torrington., Laura Hall, Stephen Taylor (2008) Human Resource Management; 7th ed. London, Pearson education, p.256 Godard, J., (2001) High Performance and the Transformation of Work: The Implications of Alternative Work Practices for the Experience and Outcomes of Work Industrial and Labor Relations Review 54 (4): 776-805 Graeme Salaman, John Storey and Jon Billsberry (2005) Strategic Human resource Management: Theory and Practice; 2nd ed. Sage publications, London Lahteenmaki, S., J. Storey and S. Vanhala (1998) HRM and Company Performance: the Use of Measurement and the Influence of Economic Cycles, Human Resource Management Journal, 8(2): 51-65. MacDuffie , J.P. (1995) Human resource bundles and manufacturing performance: organizational logic and flexible production systems in the world auto industry. Industrial and Labor Relations Review, vol.48: 197-221 Michael Armstrong and Duncan Brown (2009) Strategic Reward Implementing more effective reward management; Kogan Page, London and Philadelphia Pfeffer, J. (1998) The Human Equation: Building Profits by Putting people first. Boston: Harward Business School Press. Toby D. Wall and Stephen J. Wood (2005) The romance of human resource management and business performance, and the case for big science Vol.58(4): 429-462 West A., Carol Borrill, Jeremy Dawson, Judy Scully, Matthew Carter, Stephen Anelay, Malcolm Patterson and Justin Waring (2002) The link between the management if employees and patient mortality in acute hospitals Int. J. of Human Resource Management 13(8): 1299-1310 West, M. et al. (2002) The Link between the Management of Employees and Patient Mortality in Acute Hospitals, International Journal of Human Resource Management, 13(8): 1299-1310. Wood S. (2006) Human resource management and performance in the UK call centres British Journal of Industrial Relations 44(1):99-124

Nonprofit organizations Essay

TASC which stands for treatment alternative for safe communities is nonprofit making organization providing access to recovery and specialized services for people involved in corrections, criminal justice, public aid systems and child welfare. TASCS programs serve more than 30,000 people each year across Illinois every year including transitional programs for providing management for clinical case to over 4,000 adults each year who enter the community after incarceration. TASC work together with other service providers and partners to offer treatment, support recovery and establish faith –based organization. Addiction treatment field has grown in the past three decades due to expansion of market for illicit drugs in United States which started in 1960s and need for treatment services and intervention. In the areas of societal changes, key leaders have provided guidance on development in the last thirty years. They have shown their understanding on the need and possibilities for the field, they assess environmental landscape in order to anticipate the coming trends, take care of appropriate risks, act collectively in advancing the field and use influence and power in achieving a common vision. New leaders have been developed who are involved in identification and possible growth of individual who will be leaders of the field of alcohol, prevention and treatment of drugs in the years to come. Beyond leadership being understood as competencies and individual skills, cultures need to be developed about leadership at all levels in the organization. Leadership is involved in working together with others to advance the overall field. It explores, define and implement strategies to bring together diverse entities under common purposes and goals. There is a framework for developing leaders by convening efforts such as initiative for partners’ recovery. the main goals of efforts that are made in development of leadership is to make sure there is continuing evolution in leadership and having sound public policy and quality services to everyone. Fragmentation of philosophies has marked the field of preventing substance abuse and treatment of addiction for more than one century. Right now views are different concerning standardizing treatment methods, using medication-assisted treatment, purpose of recovery movement and outcome measures. Instead of a unified voice being presented, the field is described as multiple movements with many leaders and institutions having different agendas. Recently, the field is coming together with common philosophies to understand the science of recovery from addiction. Leadership understands societal context where the field is located. Plan for future of addiction treatment begin by assessing current environment and anticipating forces and trends for shaping the years to come. Forces in the society are external to control of the field yet for the people who will be involved in treatment and recovery; their future will be shaped by the people within the field by understanding opportunities and challenges that may emerge. The skills for a leader in treating addiction are complex. They need understanding of clinical and all service aspects and have business skills such as property acquisition, financing, contracting and managing profit and nonprofit organizations for organization to be viable and competitive. Leadership is involved in being capable of moving others forward to achieve strategic vision and his skills are strategic planning, financial development, mentoring and communication. Management is involved in putting in place all infrastructure and processes for effective working of organization. Vital management and business skills include team building, development of product and service, human resource development and marketing.

Accounting Software Installation Project

The Accounting Software Installation Project (from Larson, E. E. , and Gray, C. F. , 2011 Project Management – the managerial process, fifth edition p441) Sitting in her office, Karin Chung is reviewing the past four months of the large corporate accounting software installation project she has been managing. Everything seemed so well planned before the project started. Each company division had a task force that provided input into the proposed installation along with potential problems. All the different divisions had been trained and briefed on exactly how their division would interface and use the forthcoming accounting software.All six contractors, which included one of the Big Five consulting companies, assisted in developing the work breakdown structure—costs, specifications, time. Karin hired a consultant to conduct a one-day â€Å"partnering† workshop attended by the major accounting heads, a member of each task force group, and key representatives from each of the contractors. During the workshop, several different team-building exercises were used to illustrate the importance of collaboration and effective communication. Everyone laughed when Karin fell into an imaginary acid pit during a human bridge-building exercise.The workshop ended on an upbeat note with everyone signing a partnering charter that expressed their commitment to working together as partners to complete the project. TWO MONTHS LATER One task force member came to Karin to complain that the contractor dealing with billing would not listen to his concerns about problems that could occur in the Virginia division when billings are consolidated. The contractor had told him, the task force member, he had bigger problems than consolidation of billing in the Virginia division.Karin replied, â€Å"You can settle the problem with the contractor. Go to him and explain how serious your problem is and that it will have to be settled before the project is completed. † Later in the week in the lunchroom she overheard one consulting contractor bad-mouthing the work of another—â€Å"never on time, interface coding not tested. † In the hallway the same day an accounting department supervisor told her that tests showed the new software will never be compatible with the Georgia division’s accounting practices.While concerned, Karin considered these problems typical of the kind she had encountered on other smaller software projects. Case FOUR MONTHS LATER The project seemed to be falling apart. What happened to the positive attitude fostered at the team-building workshop? One contractor wrote a formal letter complaining that another contractor was sitting on a coding decision that was delaying their work. The letter went on: â€Å"We cannot be held responsible or liable for delays caused by others. The project was already two months behind, so problems were becoming very real and serious. Karin finally decided to call a meeting of all parties to the project and partnering agreement. She began by asking for problems people were encountering while working on the project. Although participants were reluctant to be first for fear of being perceived as a complainer, it was not long before accusations and tempers flared out of control. It was always some group complaining about another group.Several participants complained that others were sitting on decisions that resulted in their work being held up. One consultant said, â€Å"It is impossible to tell who’s in charge of what. † Another participant complained that although the group met separately on small problems, it never met as a total group to assess new risk situations that developed. Karin felt the meeting had degenerated into an unrecoverable situation. Commitment to the project and partnering appeared to be waning. She quickly decided to stop the meeting and cool things down.She spoke to the project stakeholders: â€Å"It is clear that we h ave some serious problems, and the project is in jeopardy. The project must get back on track, and the backbiting must stop. I want each of us to come to a meeting Friday morning with concrete suggestions of what it will take to get the project back on track and specific actions of how we can make it happen. We need to recognize our mutual interdependence and bring our relationships with each other back to a win/win environment. When we do get things back on track, we need to figure out how to stay on track. †

The Theory Of Environmental Ethics Essay - 1605 Words

Paul W. Taylor was a philosopher most known for his work in the field of environmental ethics. In 1996, Taylor published Respect for Nature: A Theory of Environmental Ethics, in which he argues for the theory of Biocentrism. Biocentrism is an attitude of respect for nature, whereby one attempts to make an effort to live one s life in a way that respects the welfare and inherent worth of all living creatures. This egalitarian theory is a biologically-informed, philosophical worldview about humans, nature, and the place of human civilization in the natural world. Taylor uses the theory to create a model for the equal consideration of all sentient beings based on a conceptual shift that the mental state of an organism’s well-being is it’s ability to realize biological powers. Taylor’s argument for â€Å"respect of nature† stems from a number of principles of moral consideration and intrinsic value that establish all living things as teleological centers of life. This means that the actions of an individual’s life directs them toward some distinctive goal in life or Telos; for example, a caterpillar larva metamorphosing into a butterfly. It’s Taylor’s contention that viewing individuals as teleological centers of life makes it easier to see that some things, are good for that individual, and some are bad. Taylor separates these into â€Å"flourishing† as an individual and not, respectively. Upon understanding this conceptual shift, Taylor argues that all living organisms can beShow MoreRelatedRespect Of Nature : A Theory Of Environmental Ethics Essay1511 Words   |  7 Pagesphilosopher who became most known for his work in the field of environmental ethics. In 1996, Taylor published the book Respect for Nature: A Theory of Environmental Ethics, in which he argues for the theory of Biocentrism. Biocentrism, in Taylor’s words, is an attitude of respect for nature, whereby one attempts to make an effort to live one s life in a way that respects the welfare and inherent worth of all living creatures. This egalitarian theory is a biologically-informed, philosophical worldviewRead MoreEthical Ethics And Normative Ethics1078 Words   |  5 Pagestwo questions are examples of why mete-ethics and normative ethics exist. To be able to create an environmental ethic, one must have a sense of moral conclusion. Whether these morals are categorized through self-interest or obligation, meta ethics and normative ethics try to decipher these notions. To derive a normative ethic, meta-ethics needs to explain the language of morality, and how do humans come to a consensus of specific actions and thoughts. Ethics, by short definition, is how we (humans)Read MoreHuman Centered And Life Centered Systems Of Environmental Ethics1393 Words   |  6 PagesBiocentrism is the theory that within the world inherent value is extended to all living things. This means that Biocentrism, in most examples, encourages the protection of animal rights, the environment and biodiversity. With these ideas of inherent value and respecting the environment it is not surprising that the approach is based around the idea that mankind, and no other species for that matter, is more superior to another. This means that within this theory man himself is considered to be apartRead MoreAldo Leopold’S Essay â€Å"The Land Ethic† Was Published In1122 Words   |  5 PagesAldo Leopold’s essay â€Å"The Land Ethic† was published in A Sand County Almanac. The short paper confronts the imperfections in the most common approaches in preserving the environment. Leopold’s answer is to develop a new branch of environmental ethics to model humanity’s ever-changing relationship with the environment. Leopold observantly describes the history of ethics, the meaning of community with the land and why it’s appropriate to do so. Toward the end of the essay – as the reader is ready forRead MoreEcofeminism Essay1217 Words   |  5 Pagesforefront the ethical issues that Ecofeminism is involved with, then distinguish primary ideas and criticisms. Though in theory, ecological feminism has been around for a number of years, it emerged as a political movement in the 1970s. Francoise dEaubonne, a French feminist philosopher, coined the term Ecofeminism in 1974. Ecofeminism is a feminist approach to environmental ethics. Karen Warren, in her book Ecofeminist Philosophy, claims that feminist theorists question the source of the oppressionRead MoreThe Social Responsibility Of Engineering1385 Words   |  6 Pagesspace, the need for transformative efforts commensurate with controlling human capabilities. Ethics is the concept of the general culture; it refers to one of the oldest branches of philosophy. It regulates the mutual obligations of people towards each other. Encountering various ethical dilemmas, individuals receive moral instruction on how to live, what to follow, what to strive for. Engineering Ethics, establishing compliance with the criteria of social engineering efficiency, affordability andRead MoreAnalysis Of Stanl ey Hoffman s Duties Beyond Borders : On The Limits And Possibilities Of Ethical International Relations Essay1566 Words   |  7 Pagesentitled â€Å"Evaluating the Possibility of Co-existence of Utilitarianism and Kantianism in Development and Environmental Ethical Decision-making.† As indicated by the title, this work tries to explore the avenue that would allow these two theories to exist together. Here, the purpose of using the phrase ‘to exist together’ is to indicate that, rather than denying utilitarian and Kantian ethical theories completely, this approach concerns with the lessening of the distance between them by relying on someRead More Eco-feminism Essay1188 Words   |  5 Pagesforefront the ethical issues that Ecofeminism is involved with, then distinguish primary ideas and criticisms. Though in theory, ecological feminism has been around for a number of years, it emerged as a political movement in the 1970s. Francoise d’Eaubonne, a French feminist philosopher, coined the term â€Å"Ecofeminism† in 1974. Ecofeminism is a feminist approach to environmental ethics. Karen Warren, in her book Ecofeminist Philosophy, claims that feminist theorists question the source of the oppressionRead MorePlanning Stage At North West Shelf818 Words   |  4 PagesDeontological theories, have the potential to explain that certain people have moral standing to complain about and hold to account those who breach moral duties [Kant]. In addition to this, Virtue framework should be used as it allows wide range of behaviour to be ethical. Virtue based framework focus on rights of nonhumans or duties we have to the environment, usually generated by considerations of intrinsic value(Appendix F). APPENDIX E Act utilitarianism is part of the utilitarian theory and followsRead Morethe Environment Suffers Because Business Has No Ethics. Discuss1121 Words   |  5 Pagessuffers because business has no ethics’ discuss Business Ethics can be defined as the critical and structured examination of how people amp; institutions should behave in the commerce world. Furthermore, it particularises the involvement of examining appropriate limitations upon the pursuit of complete self-interest; however, this may also apply for firm profits when the actions of each individual or firm affects others in some form. If the business really has no ethics, it can be concluded that the