Executive Summary For this Capstone assignment, you will develop a well-written executive summary that presents the principal finding identified in the Capstone assignments you’ve developed (assignments are listed in document) throughout the course and addresses the following two concerns: 1. Summarize the knowledge and skills that a competent human resources professional should possess 2. and describe how the knowledge and skills can be acquired Recommend strategies for transitioning the current human resources department at Elllard Williams from a purely transactional/process-oriented role within the organization to one in which it is a strategic partner in determining the future of the organization Your executive summary should meet the following requirements: Be 3-4 pages in length Be formatted according to the CSU-Global Guide to Writing and APA Requirements Cynthia Phillips-Lewis HRM 580-1 Capstone - Human Resource Management Colorado State University-Global Campus Dr. Harold Shoemaker March 19, 2017 Contents INTRODUCTION 2 COMPENSATION MANAGEMENT 3 RECRUITMENT 3 EMPLOYEE AND LABOR RELATIONS 3 RESPONSIBILITIES OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEPARTMENT 3 JOB ANALYSIS 3 PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL 4 REWARD SYSTEMS 4 EMPLOYEE DEVELOPMENT AND TRAINING 4 MEANINGFUL CONTRIBUTION TO BUSINESS PROCESSES 4 CONCLUSION 5 REFERENCES 6 INTRODUCTION In this report a detailed description of the role and function of the human resources department is being discussed. As there was serious concern about the performance of company many suggestions have been provided to improve the results. The purpose and the role of human resource department in the manufacturing company are discussed and it provides the ways through which issues can be removed from the company. Further to enhance the knowledge about the human resource department many responsibilities of this department is discussed and further explanation is also provided that enhance the ability of the organization to meet its objective. PURPOSE AND ROLE OF HUMAN RESOURCES IN A LARGE MANUFACTURING ORGANIZATION There are many manufacturing companies arising nowadays and it has become very important for the organizations to have an effective Human Resource (Mathis, Robert and John, 2005). Whether the manufacturing organizations are small and large they are getting aware of the need of effective human resource that can help in the success of the bottom line of the business (Ali, 2013). There are some factors that define the role of HR in manufacturing company: COMPENSATION MANAGEMENT After the expense of the raw material and the purchased goods this is the second largest expense for the business. On the basis of wages competing talent is not considered as cost effective now a days. It is the role of the HR to determine the right mixture of base pay and the salary program that motivate the employees towards the work (Frye, 2004). RECRUITMENT There is usually a decline of interest in the manufacturing sector among the youth because of the perception that there is no cutting edge in this sector as compared to the other sector. This industry has many challenges in context of temporary workers and many others so it is important to have persuasive HR leader so that company can gain advantage. Hence the HR recruits the workers for the organization in the most efficient cost effective way and in a timely manner. EMPLOYEE AND LABOR RELATIONS This relationship of employee and labor is important in the manufacturing companies. It is difficult to maintain the status of the relationship if the company is non-union. So it is the duty of the HR to look upon these relations and also to make sure whether employees are treated well in the company or not. If employees are facing any kind of issue then it is the duty of the HR to resolve those issues. RESPONSIBILITIES OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEPARTMENT Human resource department deals with the progress of the employees and the firm in which they function (Price, 2004). There are many responsibilities that are associated with this department but there are few primary duties that are as follows: JOB ANALYSIS Job analysis is an effective HRM practice because valid information about the jobs is provided that helps in hiring and promoting people. There is also establishment of wages and training needs are also determined. There is a process called staffing that manages the flow of personnel within and outside the organization. When completion of recruitment of the staffing process takes place then further selection is done with the help of job postings, interviews, tests and from other tools also. PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL It is a process of evaluating the job performance of the employees. Further a proper feedback whether in aspect of negative or positive is given to the employees. For both the organization and the employees performance measurements is necessary as it helps in determining the increase of salary, promotions and unsatisfactory results are also determined with this (Hassan, 2016). REWARD SYSTEMS This is also the area managed by the HR department. This is actually the most important aspect in this department as with the help of this approach rewards are given to the employees who have performed better in the past and for that incentives are given to them by the organization so that they feel motivated and give their best in the future also (Guest, 2011). EMPLOYEE DEVELOPMENT AND TRAINING This is another important aspect of the human resource department. For all the training needs that are required by the organization, HR is responsible for this and it also evaluates the employee development programs that are designed to meet the needs. This training program ranges from the initial orientation program that helps acclimate the new hires for the company to the education programs (Dessler, 2008). After the organization brings in the best talent it is the duty of the organization that these workforce help in executing the plans that are required for the organization to achieve. And this can only be possible with the performance appraisals and the trainings that are given to the employees. MEANINGFUL CONTRIBUTION TO BUSINESS PROCESSES The meaningful contributions are recognized within the organization if human resource management practices are active (Armstrong, 2006). Manager in the human resource department always contribute for the business process in context of monitoring the employee behavior and also ensures whether the organization is following the regulatory guidelines or not. In all the changes that occur in the organization human resource department will always be involved as it will help in shaping the performance of the business. CONCLUSION A detailed description of the human resources department was discussed in this report. And from the report it can be concluded that, for the organization to survive in the market and to achieve the goals it is very important to have an effective human resource department which can be considered as the heart of the organization. Without this department there will be no management in the organization. The purpose and roles of the human resource have been clearly mentioned in this report that describes the importance of this department in the organization. Beside the roles and the purpose, many responsibilities of human resource department can be seen in this report.   REFERENCES Ali, A. (2013). Significance of human resource management in organizations: linking global practices with local perspective. International Refereed Research Journal. 4(1). Armstrong, M., (2006). A Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice. (10th edition), London & Philadelphia, Kogan Page Ltd. Dessler, G. (2008). Human Resource Management. (11th edition), New Delhi, Prentice Hall of India Private Ltd. Frye, M.B. (2004). Equity‐based compensation for employees: firm performance and determinants. Journal of Financial Research, 27(1), 31-54. Guest, D.E. (2011). Human resource management and performance: still searching for some answers. Human Resource Management Journal, 21(1), 3-13. Hassan, S. (2016). Impact of HRM Practices on Employee’s Performance. International Journal of Academic Research in Accounting, Finance and Management Sciences. 6 (1), pp. 15–22. Mathis, Robert, L. and John, H. J. (2005). Human Resource Management. Thomson South-Western. Price, A. (2004). Why is HRM Increasingly Important? Retrieved on: 17 march 2017. From: http://www.bestbooks.biz/hrm/why_hrm.html. Cynthia, Good work. Your interpretation of critical responsibilities is well thought out. Although I would not necessarily have chosen these as the top five, all HR responsibilities are critical to the success of the organization. Your final duty of making a meaningful contribution suggests more management responsibilities and involvement in strategic planning. That is important. Good work. Hal Shoemaker Hal Shoemaker Cynthia Phillips-Lewis HRM 580-1 Capstone - Human Resource Management Colorado State University-Global Campus Dr. Harold Shoemaker March 26, 2017 INTRODUCTION In this report a description of some of the major issues that may have an impact on a manufacturing company productivity and profitability are discussed. Human Resource Departments may play a vital role in helping to identify those factors that can be advantageous to the organization or to mitigate their impact on an organization. MAJOR ISSUES THAT WILL IMPACT ORGANIZATIONS SOCIAL The labor market tends to agitate more for better terms with time. This can be attributed to the fact that the society also tends to get more enlightened day by day and keep on comparing their situation to the next situation. The increased communication and networking across the globe make it easier for the society to draw comparisons from one situation to another. Equally the labor market through its unions will always compare working environment of those whom they represent and other conditions elsewhere. They can draw comparisons on profits and remunerations as well as the output of their members. Therefore in the next 3-5 years the management of the Ellard Williams through its human resource department/division should be up to date on this trend to guide them and adjusting appropriately. The cost of living is also a social factor that will likely experience upward mobility and the company should be aware of this factor to better manage the management/company-employee relationship. (Wheeler, 2002) ECONOMIC The cost of production is likely to go up significantly in the next 3-5 based on the world’s dynamic macro economy. Ellard Williams being a manufacturing firm the cost of energy either fuel or electricity is likely to go up. Due to recent dip in the global oil prices as a result of overproduction the oil producing countries (OPEC) whom is the biggest exporter of crude oil to United States at 2.65 million barrels of petroleum per day in 2016, recently came up with an agreement to limit production to induce surge in demand and cost of oil. Ellard Williams being end user of energy should expect increase in cost of production in the next 3-5 years as a result of increase in oil prices as OPEC countries continue hording petroleum. The profit margin is therefore likely to reduce. (Gillman, & Nakov, n.d.) More production companies are also likely to come up in the US owing to the large market supported by a population of over 324 million people in 2016 according to the statistics kept at US census bureau. This will definitely eat into the products market share. Most of the new companies employ the best available technological advancements that were not available when the earlier companies where being set up. The process of reconfiguring the production process of a whole company can be expensive but it is not always necessary as most of the production lines can be upgraded in stages. ("US Census Bureau study correlates college majors with workplace salaries", 2011). TECHNOLOGICAL Technological sophistications continue to revolutionize the world and the next 3-5 years is not going to be an exception. Ellard Williams should consider continuous research on relevant business tools available to leverage on technological advancement. The inventions in machines that consume less energy or are more efficient in production should be embraced by Ellard Williams. The initial cost of these changes can be high but in the long run the company stands to benefit as more efficient machines cut cost on labor and energy consumption. (Kight, 1992) Manufacturing industries face continued depletion of resource or raw materials for production. In the next 2-5 years the availability of these materials for processing will continually become harder. By law of demand and supply the prices will definitely go up and Ellard Williams should have contingency plans in place to protect the company from this eventuality. MITIGATIONS FOR SOCIAL, ECONOMIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL FACTORS SOCIAL To take advantage of these situations and mitigate them where necessary, the management through the human resource should carry out annual research about terms and conditions of employees of different comparable and reputable companies and be informed about changes in the labor market earlier before any agitation. The research should indicate not only salary increments/reductions but also labor work load and performance, promotion and employee recognitions, employees’ turnover and disciplinary processes. With this information, Ellard Williams can make justifiable adjustments in employee remunerations that should work well with the employees and regain and maintain that high employee motivation and productivity. ECONOMIC To take advantage and mitigate the economic factors, Ellard Williams should consider relooking at its production line to see where they can cut cost of production as soon as now. The capacity of machines should be relooked with regard to required output levels. The company should also consider alternative use of raw materials which are affordable as long as it doesn’t compromise on quality. Ellard Williams should also start exploring other forms energy source like solar and more so how it will transport its products to the consumers. The company can start doing it in a larger scale so that the net cost of transportation per item is low and thus keep prices within reach of the target market. This can be one of the competitive advantages the Ellard Williams will have against competition from new companies coming up or the existing ones. TECHNOLOGICAL The company should invest in continuous research in alternative resources or raw materials that the company can utilize in the manufacturing process without compromising on the quality of the final product. This will cushion the company profit and prevent increasing cost of raw materials to eat into their profit margins. With new raw materials in place Ellard Williams should also put in place plans to continually train its workforce in line with the new changes in the production line. The company will need to ensure that its workforce is properly acquainted with knowledge on the handling and usage of the new raw materials for sustained quality end product and also for safety and health precautions. CONCLUSION A detailed description of the human resources department was discussed in this report. And from the report it can be concluded that, for the organization to survive in the market and to achieve the goals it is very important to have an effective human resource department. An effective human resource department can be of great help in developing an engaging work environment. REFERENCES Bloch, H. (2010). Technological Change in Australian Manufacturing. Australian Economic Review, 43(1), 28-38. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8462.2009.00574.x Gillman, M., & Nakov, A. Monetary Effects on Nominal Oil Prices. SSRN Electronic Journal. http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1517694 Kight, L. (1992). How to predict companies' future actions. Competitive Intelligence Review, 2(3), 15-17. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/cir.3880020307 Shapiro, P., & Petchey, J. Internationally Mobile Factors of Production and Economic Policy in an Integrated Regional Union of States. SSRN Electronic Journal. http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.295500 US Census Bureau study correlates college majors with workplace salaries. (2011). Physics Today. http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/pt.5.025336 Wheeler, H. (2002). The future of the American labor movement (1st ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Cynthia, Excellent work. You addressed all issues plus providing logical and attainable solutions. Well done. Hal Shoemaker Cynthia Phillips-Lewis HRM 580-1 Capstone - Human Resource Management Colorado State University-Global Campus Dr. Harold Shoemaker April 2, 2017 Table of Contents Introduction 3 Impact of Labor Unions on the Organizations 3 Reasons for Labor-Management Conflict 4 Recommended Strategies 5 Conclusion 5 References 5 Introduction The relation between the labors and management of an organization is the most complicated type of relation. The human resource management of an organization has to face significant difficulties to deal with the relation between the labors and management. The efficient maintenance of labor-management relationship helps to retain a harmonious work environment in the organizations; and this process helps the organization to achieve its desired goals and objectives. It can be seen that there are several reasons that lead to the conflict between the employees and management. However, with the help of proper strategies, this situation can be avoided (Knights & Willmott, 2016). Impact of Labor Unions on the Organizations Human resource is one of the most important resources of a business organization. Human resources refer to the employees and labors of the business organizations. It can be seen that there are several companies that use unionized labors for their various business operations. These unionized labors are called Labor Unions. The impacts of labor unions on the business operation are discussed below: Unionization: The National Labor relation Act is a prime force behind the establishments of various labor unions. As per the rules and regulations, the labors of the organizations have the rights to form, assist and join the labor unions. The labor unions help in collective bargaining with the help of representation. The main aims of the labor unions are to ensure that the labors are properly represented and to eliminate the unfair labor practices (Lichtenstein, 2013). Increase in Wages: The labor unions impact the organizations by increasing the wages of the labors. There are many instances where the labors are underpaid. In this kind of situation, the labor unions make collective bargaining with the management of the organization and increase the wages for the labors. This process helps to increase the productivity of the labors. Pension Plans: The collective bargaining agreement of the labor unions helps to create the pension plans that are heavily favorable for the labors of the business organizations. All these benefit and pension plans help to increase the cost per employees. In addition, the employees can get more than average rate of compensation (Dubofsky & Dulles, 2014). Reduction in Workforce: The management of the organizations cannot cut the jobs of the labors due to the presence of labor unions. This creates significance impact on the operations of the business organizations as they cannot unnecessarily reduce the number of the employees. Consideration: Due to the presence of labor unions, the management of the organizations treats the labors with more respect and dignity. On the other hand, the employees become motivated and loyal towards their jobs and organizations (Fossum, 2014). Reasons for Labor-Management Conflict There are various reasons that contribute to the conflict between the labors and management of the organizations. The major reasons of conflicts between the labors and management are discussed below: Wages and Benefits: Wages and benefits have been the major reasons behind the conflict between labors and management. In order to cut down the expenses of the organization, the management always wants to reduce the wages and benefits of the labors (Kochan et al., 2013). Employee Layoffs: Cutting down the workforce is a natural practice for the management at the time of reduction of expenses. This is one of the major reasons for the conflict between employees and management. Conflicts can be arrived over the pending amount of employee compensation. Safety: For the companies that have global presences, safety of the labors is a major contributor to the conflict between labors and employees. It has been seen that there are many safety issues for the labors of the organization like child labor issues, safety for women labors and many others. Work Hours: It can be seen that the business organizations tend to stretch the working hours of the labors in an illegal way. This is one of the major reasons that leads to the conflict between labors and management. Many industrial conflicts can be seen over this particular issue (Roediger & Esch, 2012). Unionization: The development of various labor unions is crucial reason for the conflicts between labors and management. The labor unions always stand behind the labors in case of any kind of injustice done by the management. This process creates conflicts. Recommended Strategies The above discussion sheds light on the reasons of employee and management conflicts. However, the adoption of effective strategies can promote cordial relationship among the labors and management. Three major strategies are discussed below: Implementation of Effective Communication and Resolution Channel: The lack of effective communication channel is a major reason of conflict. Hence, in order to promote cordial relationship between the labors and management, it is needed to establish an effective communication channel and conflict resolution channel in the organization. This step will provide both the labors and management the opportunity to resolve the conflicts on a quick manner (Rosenbloom, 2012). Active Involvement of the Union in the Management: One of the major ways to promote cordial relationship between labors and managements is to invite the labors and unions in the management process of the organization. This creates a friendly atmosphere in the organization. Addressing Key Issues: Management and labor unions must address the key issues related to labors. This is one of the major ways to improve the relationship between the labors and the management of the business organizations (Burke & Barron, 2014). Conclusion The above study sheds lights on the various aspects of the relationship between the labors and the management of the organizations. It can be seen that the labor unions have some major impacts on the business like the increase in the wages, to motivate the labors and many others. It can be seen that there are many reasons that lead to the conflict between the labors and management like the compensation issue, layoff issue and many others. However, with the help of effective strategies, one can promote cordial relationship between labors and management like the improvement in various communication channel and others. References Burke, R., & Barron, S. (2014). Project management leadership: building creative teams. John Wiley & Sons. Dubofsky, M., & Dulles, F. R. (2014). Labor in America: A history. John Wiley & Sons. Fossum, J. A. (2014). Labor relations. Mcgraw Hill Higher Educat. Knights, D., & Willmott, H. (Eds.). (2016). Labour process theory. Springer. Kochan, T. A., Eaton, A. E., McKersie, R. B., & Adler, P. S. (2013). Healing together: The labor-management partnership at Kaiser Permanente. Cornell University Press. Lichtenstein, N. (2013). State of the union: A century of American labor. Princeton University Press. Roediger, D. R., & Esch, E. D. (2012). The production of difference: race and the management of labor in US history. Oxford University Press. Rosenbloom, B. (2012). Marketing channels. Cengage Learning. Cynthia, You have very good ideas. You broke the various issues that impact the relationship between labor and management very well, using separate headings for each. I made a small correction on the use of the word impacts rather than impact. A minor learning point. Good work. Hal Shoemaker \ Cynthia Phillips-Lewis HRM 580-1 Capstone - Human Resource Management Colorado State University-Global Campus Dr. Harold Shoemaker April 9, 2017   Table of Contents Introduction 2 Reasons and strategies for motivating employees 2 Role and impact of compensation 3 Model of an Incentive Compensation Plan for Ellard Williams 5 Conclusion 6 References 8   Introduction Employees are the lifeblood of many organizations. Individuals within the workplace are just as varied as the many reasons they have elected to work. In most cases employees are in the work place for some form of compensation. The forms of compensation may vary and the importance levels placed on the numerous levels of compensation will vary by employee as well. Organizations that work to identify those reasons may be more successful at retaining employees Reasons and strategies for motivating employees The employees likes and appreciates the reasonable salaries as the money acts as an integral part of an incentive i.e. a part of the influential values in an organization. The rewards of a financial nature have a capacity of maintaining the maintenance and motivational behavior of the individuals. It involves higher performances particularly the workers of the production organizations as the amounts helps in the satisfaction of the essential needs and requirements. Hence, the pay has an integral impact on the establishment of the diligence and commitment of the employees. The studies have proved that the paying structure not only boosts up the productivity of the long-term business of the money but also improves the performances in a significant manner. Moreover, there are varieties of non-financial factors that have a positive influence on motivation (Pinder, 2014). The non-financial factors include rewards, recognition socially and feedbacks on the performances. The rewards and recognitions enhance the satisfaction of the job that in turn influences the performances of the employees in a positive and direct direction. The majority of companies use the various forms of rewards like extra pay, encouragement, additional benefits for the motivation of the employees and in enhancing the quality of the performances. The employees also can be motivated through strong and perfect form of leadership as it provides the perfect way of carrying out the work. The leaders must gain the trust of the employees for achieving the goals that can be done only through proper motivation. There must be proper training of the staff regarding the effectiveness and proper achievement of the staff. Hence, the development and implementation of the training programs of employees is also a necessary strategy of motivating the workers (Lau, & Roopnarain, 2014). Role and impact of compensation The compensation is a reward that is provided to the employees in return of the rendering of the services to the organization. It is often regarded as the cornerstone of an efficient workforce and the performance and the quality of the group or team of employees has a direct dependence on the execution of the planning strategies of compensation. The Impact of Compensation on Employee Performance Positive Impacts A package of compensation does not always mean a reward in the form of monetary gains. The package also includes the medical concern, balance of work and life and as well as the other perquisites towards the employees. In modern times, the employees do not work only for money but also the other features of compensation (Barrick et al., 2015). A high-quality compensation package makes certain the following: • Retention: A convincing plan of compensation helps in reducing the rate of turnover of the company. The incentives and other compensation help the employees to continue in their role and the same saves the possible expenses connected to earnings (Bryant & Allen, 2013). • Motivation – Compensation is the most important factor of motivation for the employees for giving a continuous push to them. The motivation helps them to make every effort for greater achievements. It recommends them a cause for working hard and drives them towards attaining the subsequent milestones (Gupta & Shaw, 2014). Negative Impacts If the compensation is not provided, there can be drastic effects to the organization in the form of the following: • Low job satisfaction – Through low or no compensation, the employees will have a feel of being underappreciated and hence can obtain low contentment and lowering of the morale from the job. • Low productivity – The reduced compensation persuades a low level of productivity. There is no or lesser motivation for workers to struggle for superiority. • High turnover – If the incentive versus hard working ratio is small, employees are influenced in getting away from the company. The agitations within the employees incur an immense charge to the company (Dau-Schmidt et al., 2016). Model of an Incentive Compensation Plan for Ellard Williams Purpose of the Plan The objective of the Incentive Compensation Plan is the motivation and rewarding of the key and efficient employees for achieving individual performance objectives recognized in agreement with the targets of the business of the Company. The Guidelines of the Plan • The management team must nominate the individuals who have a crucial role of play in the success of the organizations and participation in the compensation plans, prior to the start of the year. • The significant employees must be included in the calendar year in which they had been hired and thus the award will be calculated proportionately on the services offered by them. • The key participants must have an employment by the company at the time of the plan of the payouts of the incentive that will have an occurrence within 50-75 days after the close of the considered year. The exceptional cases will be like those having a full-time continuous work status for at least six months in the whole year, the ones terminated due to causes like demise, retirement, disability of a permanent nature and certified medically. They or their beneficiaries would be receiving an award or incentive that would be prorated based on their length of service i.e. within 50-75 days of the year-end closing date. • The employees or the participants can be removed from the plan of the incentives due to relocation or reduced performances. • The beginning of the year must have a publishing of the business goals and should attain approval of the list of the incentive participation list. • The managers will determine the range and the amount of the incentive award based on the real performance relative to the goals of the participants. • The Participants may decide to reschedule the disbursement of their incentive award or a certain percentage of the receivable incentives. The two-deferral options comprise a 5 years and 10 years beyond the plan year. The deferral election must be made in writing prior to the beginning of the plan year. The rescheduling determination cannot be modified just once the year under plan has begun. • The Employees who have elected to have the deferment of their incentives, and who terminates proceeding to the rescheduling payment date but following the date of payment will receive the award as soon as it becomes feasible, after their termination. Conclusion The above information regarding compensation and motivation is helpful to both the employee and the organization as they work together as a team. It can be said that there are many reasons why employees work and that the various forms of compensation are important to employees. As an organization it is helpful to identify those factors and work towards helping the employees identify goals and work towards objectives.   References Barrick, M. R., Thurgood, G. R., Smith, T. A., & Courtright, S. H. (2015). Collective organizational engagement: Linking motivational antecedents, strategic implementation, and firm performance. Academy of Management Journal, 58(1), 111-135. Bryant, P. C., & Allen, D. G. (2013). Compensation, benefits and employee turnover: HR strategies for retaining top talent. Compensation & Benefits Review, 45(3), 171-175. Dau-Schmidt, K. G., Finkin, M., & Covington, R. (2016). Legal protection for the individual employee. West Academic. Gupta, N., & Shaw, J. D. (2014). Employee compensation: The neglected area of HRM research. Human Resource Management Review, 24(1), 1-4. Hood, J., Hardy Jr, B., & Simpson, L. (2016). Workers' compensation and employee protection laws in a nutshell. West Academic. Lau, C. M., & Roopnarain, K. (2014). The effects of nonfinancial and financial measures on employee motivation to participate in target setting. The British Accounting Review, 46(3), 228-247. Pinder, C. C. (2014). Work motivation in organizational behavior. Psychology Press. Cynthia, You have some very good ideas. Be careful with grammar and sentences structure. Avoid using bullets in lists. Overall good work. Hal Shoemaker Cynthia Phillips-Lewis HRM 580-1 CAPSTONE Human Resource Management Colorado State University – Global Campus Dr. Shoemaker April 16, 2017 Human resource recruitment process of a talented workforce by Ellard Williams According to (Richardson, 2000), many organizations always have the objective and aims of getting the best out of their employees so as to enable them meet the organizational goals. The organizations have different levels and categories of employees and have different functions to perform. The basic fact remains that they are all employees and their recruitment process may be or is similar regardless of roles given. Various employees always chose the kind of firm or organization they wish to work for in regard to their qualifications, interest and other personal issues (Billsberry, 2008). Firms and organizations also chose the kind of employees they recruit based on qualifications and motivation to enable and push them towards achieving their goals. In this paper, we are going to tackle the challenges faced by Ellard Williams in the recruitment of qualified and talented employees in the quest to achieving their organizational goals. Challenges faced by Human Resource Managers in Recruitment Process As the job market has increasingly become competitive and many organizations are trying to remain afloat in the market and maintain the competitive edge, various challenges are also faced in ensuring that the best employees are recruited, who will enable the organization maintain the competitive edge. According to (Zinyemba, 2014), some of the challenges faced in the recruitment process include: i. The budgets of advertising of job vacancies have increased significantly and many companies have to grapple with the available budget and the choice of media with which they can reach a wide variety of qualified individuals (Breaugh, 2008). The best media to advertise has always been on the print media, the television and online platforms. All these are very costly and hence a challenge to human resource managers. ii. The high levels of unemployment in many countries always make individuals to canvass in order to get jobs advertised. Canvassing has proved to be a very serious challenge to many employers because those who are picked for the jobs always turn out to not having the best qualifications thereby increasing loses to the organization. iii. Favoritisms and prejudice among the employers is another challenge. Many employers sometimes are coerced to pick particular candidates because they have been bribed or are related to the candidates or even related to their bosses (Furtmueller, Wilderom, & Tate, 2011). These are costly because the best candidates who are qualified always end up unemployed and the organization increasing loses. iv. The physical location of the business, especially in remote areas may be a challenge since many employees would wish to stay close to their families and maybe in urban areas. The growth of the business may also need more qualified employees than the unskilled staff who can only be found in the urban setting. v. Influence from politics and its polarization effect have given Human Resource personnel a challenge in recruitment due to their requirement to comply with the demands of the ruling government (Gusdorf, 2008). This results in employment of unqualified staff in the organizations. vi. Internal recruitment to limit the cost of external recruitments have limited many organizations to a smaller circles of employees and as a result, many qualified employees migrate to other countries to solicit employment therefore a high level of brain drain. vii. Legal compliance requirements may be costly or are influenced by the ruling political body hence very uneven and sometimes do not favor smaller firms. Mistakes to avoid in the challenges faced in the recruitment process Various firms undergo the challenges mentioned above during recruitment of employees. Fortunately, some of the mistakes and challenges could be avoided. They include; a. Before giving appointments to candidates who pass interviews, they should be properly checked to ensure they have not practiced any form of canvassing therefore giving equal opportunities to all. b. The organizational leadership and all its executive management system could design policies and procedures that do not condone favoritism, nepotism or ethnicity (Kumari, 2012). Private organizations that are not funded by governments should also be able to block political interference in their recruitment process. c. Accurate and precise job descriptions could be made in a way that it can attract the best qualified candidates but at friendly costs to reduce the high budget in advertisement (Lievens & Chapman, 2010). These will also enable the reduction of levels of brain drain at the same time expanding the circle of best employees to be recruited. d. Proper channels in ensuring legal compliance could be followed in advance before recruitment is done to avoid problems with the authorities. Recruitment process Ellard Williams face critical challenges in employing their staff and according to (Faitle, 2013), they can follow these processes to ensure they attract and recruit the best employees in the organization; i. Before employing, check the main reason for which the vacancy arose, the capability to pay and manage employment related costs and the probability of promoting or external sourcing of a new employee. ii. Analyze the job description of the new employee and how to attract the best (Ordanini & Silvestri, 2008). This will provide a good step in making proper decisions and getting the best objective criteria for candidate evaluation. iii. Advertise the job using the highly read or watched media in order to reach the best. These should be done with the consideration of whether employees are sourced externally or internally. iv. Conduct interviews with the objective of picking the best and not based on their wellness or good performance because some may canvass (Rees & Rumbles, 2010). Proper and sound decision making will be required in the recruitment process. v. Select and appoint candidates based on their merit, the sound decisions made by the interviewing committee and the qualifications required for the position. vi. Once employed, on the job training and regular evaluation of the employee, the first few moths should be done to ensure that a serious damage is not done to the organizational market reputation. These process by (Faitle, 2013) when fully and carefully followed, then Ellard Williams could be able to reduce some of the mistakes and challenges they face when recruiting and employing their staff. The best three strategies that could be used to create a broader and more talented candidate could be: 1. Promotion of the organization by the marketing department and the human resource departments in various places in order to attract the best talented and more qualified candidates (Kumari, 2012). This is because qualified and talented candidates always chooses or prefers to apply and work for bigger popular firms. 2. The firm should ensure it satisfies its customers and remain on top of the competitive edge by using the Total Quality Management process in all its businesses and practices. 3. Proper market research should be done to ensure that the demands of the customers are met, without over production or under production of the goods or services therefore conservation of inventories and consumables. The characteristics that employer seek in qualified employees for their organizations according to (Faitle, 2013) may include but not limited to the following; • Educational training and qualifications related to the job in question • Skills and knowledge required for the job, and any other particular skills or work experiences. • Personality, physical attribute or health attributes of the employee in relation to the job • Communication skills, flexibility of the candidate, innovation and enthusiasm or motivation towards work and pressure handling. Ellard Williams can be recommended to follow the procedures and methods discussed in this paper to select the best candidate hence reduce the problems they have been facing over the years, and focus on achieving their goals.   References Billsberry, J. (2008). Experiencing recruitment and selection. John Wiley & Sons. Breaugh, J. A. (2008). Employee recruitment: Current knowledge and important areas for future research. Human Resource Management Review, 18(3), 103-118. Faitle, I. (2013). Recruitment and Selection: A guide to help you review your existing approach to recruitment and selection policy of employees. Online Business Tools. Furtmueller, E., Wilderom, C., & Tate, M. (2011). Managing recruitment and selection in the digital age: e-HRM and resumes. Human Systems Management, 30(4), 243-259. Gusdorf, M. L. (2008). Recruitment and Selection: Hiring the Right Person. USA: Society for Human Resource Management. Kumari, N. (2012). A Study of the Recruitment and Selection process: SMC Global. Industrial Engineering Letters, 2(1), 34-43. Lievens, F., & Chapman, D. (2010). Recruitment and selection. The SAGE handbook of human resource management, 135-154. Ordanini, A., & Silvestri, G. (2008). Recruitment and selection services: Efficiency and competitive reasons in the outsourcing of HR practices. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 19(2), 372-391. Rees, G., & Rumbles, S. (2010). Recruitment and selection. Rees, G. and French, R. Leading, Managing and Developing People, 169-190. Richardson, M. (2000). Recruitment strategies: Managing/ Effecting the Recruitment Process, retrieved from CareerJournal.com. Zinyemba, A. (2014). The Challenges of Recruitment and Selection of Employees in Zimbabwean Companies. International Journal of Science and Research, University of Zimbabwe. Cynthia, You have very good ideas. Please do not use outline form in your paper. Overall good work. Hal Shoemaker Cynthia Phillips-Lewis HRM 580-1 CAPSTONE Human Resource Management Colorado State University – Global Campus Dr. Shoemaker April 23, 2017 Introduction Creating a collaborative and team oriented culture within the organization promotes a great work environment along with ensuring the job satisfaction of each employee. However, this can be a challenging job to implement the collaborative culture as it may call for changing the entire focus of the team on a whole or a paradigm shift (Aarons et al., 2014). Even though it is, it is a teachable job. In implementing the collaborative culture within the organization, each team needs to harness their strong points to reach the shared organizational goal. The strength of each member of the team makes the organization successful, even if the other factors such as leadership, creative intelligence, innovative and unique approach in the strategic management play significant roles in bringing the success to the company; collaborative team culture plays a major one. At Ellard Williams, there have been problems regarding the employee retention; therefore the productivity has been down. This study will suggest the strategies that can be used in creating a collaborative culture while discussing the potential tools that can be used to assess the health of the organization. Strategies to create a team-oriented, collaborative culture in the organization While creating a collaborative and team oriented culture the human resource personnel should keep this in mind that each of the team members should understand the worth of corroborating, therefore there should be clear communication system within the team in order to build cooperation and trust (Fraser et al., 2017). The collaborative environment would allow the team members to communicate with each other freely, share their own knowledge and ideas, understand the emotional intelligence and learn from others. However, creating this environment would require a well structured strategic format. The strategies that could be used are as follows: Providing the leadership support The successful accomplishment of creating the collaborative culture is largely dependent on the leaders and the top executives of the organization. The leaders need to create the supportive relationship with the team members and exhibit the collaborative behavior at each level (Ryan & Dunn-Jensen, 2014). All of the employees should have the scope to interact with their colleagues and supervisors to gain a valuable experience. The supportive and flexible leaders are essential in creating the productive teams. Setting up the ground rules It is important to establish the primary norms of the team in order to define how the members would be able to interact amongst each other. Establishing these rules would help the members to express their feelings and they could learn from each other without making any disturbance to the work culture. In addition to that, the ground rules play a crucial role for the success of any project. This may provide a background for the team members to discuss if there is any issue regarding work. This may also help them to avoid the long conversations about their grievances that may arise due to misunderstanding in the past (Kargar, Zihayat & An, 2013). Clearing the ground rules also reduces the stress from the team members; therefore they can focus on reaching the organizational goals. Establishing the expectations and the clarity goals In an ideal collaborative environment, every team members knows their individual roles and is responsible enough for their respective jobs that have been assigned to them. However, for gaining this status the team members should be well aware of their individual roles in the organization. This is also helpful for the members to focus on their jobs. The realistic expectations may form the efficient and successful team. Organizing the entire procedure Building the collaborative member would be impossible unless the processes and the operations are not organized. While providing adequate support and explaining the responsibilities and roles to all the team members, the organization also needs to provide a space for the employees to share their individual feedbacks and ideas. The team will remain as a group of stranger individuals unless they all take a part in the decision making and think themselves as a team. Including the team members in the crucial decisions that are related to significant projects can be useful in creating the collaborative environment (Hallam et al., 2015). If the employees are allowed to communicate the recent workflows, they feel a sense of belonging with the team. While working with different teams within the organizations, while some of the employees are working from remote locations, the organization needs to have a project management tool. In such scenario, the organization needs to have an agile management tool that would promote the flexibility within the organization and help the business to create the collaborative environment that would keep all the team members on a same page. Building the trust Building the collaborative and team oriented culture would first require a work environment that is based on the trust. Having a trustworthy relationship within the organization is crucial for promoting the innovation and creativity. However, both the innovation and creativity factors come with some amount of risks associates with them. At the initial stage, these are nothing but some suggestions and ideas. However, the organization needs to trust the employees so that they can communicate their ideas easily. At the same time, the employees need to have trust on the organization that they would consider their suggestions. However, some individual cannot be forced to have the trust until they feel respected and trusted within the organization (Hallam et al., 2015). If they are ridiculed for their innovations, they would never come up in future. However, in a trusted environment, the employees do not get ridiculed for their ideas; therefore the collaborative environment is enhanced. Tools that can be used to assess the health of the organization There are several interventions and programs that can develop the organization, as it is necessary to evaluate the health of the organization and highlight its negative points of the organization. The organization can use some programs to define the specific object that is being examined. Assessing the organizational environment would help the management to find out the major flaws in the system, so that they can be worked out in future (Cheruvelil et al., 2014). The tools that can be used to assess the organization are as follows: The Organizational Sustainability Tool This is an assessment tool for the groups and designed to be utilized within the entire system to assess the level of development of the organization in significant areas including the human resources and finance (Storey, 2014). Climate Assessment This is a self report assessment tool that is utilized as a learning tool and the post and pre program evaluation tool at the same time. This may indicate to the major areas which need to be reformulated. Satisfaction Survey This particular tool assesses the sense of well beings of the employees within the organization. This can be used in all kind of organizations but the confidentiality of the employee information should be maintained. Quick Start This tool can be utilized to examine the procedures, policies of the organization, so that there can be effective changes in the organization in future. Conclusion Having a team oriented culture within the organization has a huge impact on the productivity of the organization, as it would improve the organization both collaboratively and individually. However, this will not happen with a short span of time. The human resource personnel should evaluate the policies of the organization so that they can find out the major gaps, therefore aimed to bridge them. However, in implementing the culture in the organization the management should also ensure that all the team members are willing enough to work towards it. Then only it would be possible for the organization to develop the collaborative culture that may improve their collaborative productivity.   References Aarons, G. A., Fettes, D. L., Hurlburt, M. S., Palinkas, L. A., Gunderson, L., Willging, C. E., & Chaffin, M. J. (2014). Collaboration, negotiation, and coalescence for interagency-collaborative teams to scale-up evidence-based practice. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 43(6), 915-928. Cheruvelil, K. S., Soranno, P. A., Weathers, K. C., Hanson, P. C., Goring, S. J., Filstrup, C. T., & Read, E. K. (2014). Creating and maintaining high‐performing collaborative research teams: the importance of diversity and interpersonal skills. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 12(1), 31-38. Fraser, C., Honeyfield, J., Breen, F., Protheroe, M., & Fester, V. (2017). From Project to Permanence: Growing Inter-institutional Collaborative Teams into Long-Term, Sustainable Communities of Practice. In Communities of Practice (pp. 567-598). Springer Singapore. Goring, S. J., Weathers, K. C., Dodds, W. K., Soranno, P. A., Sweet, L. C., Cheruvelil, K. S., ... & Utz, R. M. (2014). Improving the culture of interdisciplinary collaboration in ecology by expanding measures of success. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 12(1), 39-47. Hallam, P. R., Smith, H. R., Hite, J. M., Hite, S. J., & Wilcox, B. R. (2015). Trust and collaboration in PLC teams: Teacher relationships, principal support, and collaborative benefits. NASSP Bulletin, 99(3), 193-216. Jackson, S. E., Schuler, R. S., & Jiang, K. (2014). An aspirational framework for strategic human resource management. The Academy of Management Annals, 8(1), 1-56. Kargar, M., Zihayat, M., & An, A. (2013, May). Finding affordable and collaborative teams from a network of experts. In Proceedings of the 2013 SIAM International Conference on Data Mining (pp. 587-595). Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics. Ryan, K. C., & Dunn-Jensen, L. M. (2014, February). The Jigsaw Strategy for Collaborative Work Teams: Ensuring that Every Voice is Heard. In OBTC 2014 at Vanderbilt University. Sparrow, P., Brewster, C., & Chung, C. (2016). Globalizing human resource management. Routledge. Storey, J. (2014). New Perspectives on Human Resource Management (Routledge Revivals). Routledge. Cynthia, Good work. Your comments about collaboration are important. It is also important that any initiative be supported by leadership, and that there be ground rules to know how to get where you want to go. Finally, trust and follow-up on any data collection are critical. Very well done. Hal Shoemaker Executive Summary (70 Points) For this Capstone assignment, you will develop a well-written executive summary that presents the principal finding identified in the Capstone assignments you’ve developed throughout the course and addresses the following two concerns: • Summarize the knowledge and skills that a competent human resources professional should possess and describe how the knowledge and skills can be acquired • Recommend strategies for transitioning the current human resources department at Elllard Williams from a purely transactional/process-oriented role within the organization to one in which it is a strategic partner in determining the future of the organization Your executive summary should meet the following requirements: • Be 2-3 pages in length • Be formatted according to the CSU-Global Guide to Writing and APA Requirements