Business Strategy and HRM

Core reader chapter 1

Armstrong Chapters 1 &
2
 Class activity
In
groups, discuss the personnel policies
that your organisation has.

Identify
the similarities and differences
between different organisations in your
group.

Why are all organisations not the same?

What is Strategy?
Business and Corporate Strategy

the direction and scope of an organisational over

the long term which achieves competitive
advantage for the organisation through it
configuration of resources within a changing
environment to fulfil stakeholders expectation
Johnson & Scholes 2002: 10
Principal elements
Johnson & Scholes 2002

Establishing the long-term direction of the

organisation
Driving the organisation forward to achieve sustained
competitive advantage
Determine the scope of the organisations activities
Matching their internal resources and activities to the
environment to achieve strategic fit
Recognising that top level decisions have major
implications for operational activities
Appreciate that the values and expectations of senior
decision makers play a sizable part in the
development of strategy.
Three levels of strategy

Corporate strategy
Business or competitive strategy
Operational strategy
Whittingtons Typology of Strategy

PROCESSES
Deliberate

CLASSICAL SYSTMATIC

Profit Pluralistic
OUTCOMES
maximising

EVOLUTIONARY PROCESUAL

Emergent

Source: Marching ton &

Wilkinson 2002 p213
Vertical integration

Unitarist perspectives no issue to vertical integration

- Classical devolution through hierarchy, objectivity of people seen
as non complicated
- Evolutionary responding to customer demand brining view of
subjectivity of people, mixed with coercion and power
Pluralist perspectives barriers to vertical integration in practice
tensions, contradictions,
- Processual- micro political perspective
- Systemic external determinants, limiting employer
Class activity for next week

Using Wittingtons Typology, examine your own

organisation and decide how it is best described.
Identify from your own organisations examples of the
principal elements of strategy.
What is HRM
See as a key
differentiator for
competitive advantage,
Research Into HRM

No single definition
Large and diverse theoretical
background
Formal models hard and soft
Definitions
A strategic, coherent and comprehensive approach to the management and
development of the organisations human resources in which every aspect of that
process is wholly integrated within the overall management of the organisation.
HRM is essentially an ideology.
Armstrong, M. (1992) human resource management: strategy and action. Kogan page.
.
A diverse body of thoughts and practice, loosely unified by a concern to integrate
the management of personnel more closely with the core management activity of
organisations.
Goss, D. (1994) principles of human resource management. Routledge.
.
Human resource management is a distinctive approach to employment
management which seeks to achieve competitive advantage through the
strategic development of a highly committed and capable workforce, using an
integrated array of cultural, structural and personnel techniques.
Storey, J (ed.) 1995) human resource management: A critical text, Routledge.
Theoretical Background
F W Taylor scientific management
Frank and Lilian Girbreth work study methods (now developed into performance
management)
Elton mayo human relations behaviour orientation humanistic and people centred
Kurt Lewin models of change
Neo-human relations and socio-technical theorists team based development
Deaming total quality
Pascale and Athos investigation of Japanese working practices
Tom Peters pursuit of excellence
Charles handy, Chris Argris, Edgar Schein, - nature of work and organisation
Henry Mintzberg research with managers and leaders planning and strategy
Rosabeth Moss Kanter organisational change
 Shift to HRM
Beliefs and
assumption
s
Enhanced Strategic
Competition Response

Attitude and behaviour

Line changes:
Managers Commitment Competitive
seize the Customer orientation performance
initiative Quality
Flexible working

Changes in
key levers

Implications for industrial relations

Performance is seen as a function of all the
HR components, selecting people who are
best able to perform the jobs defined by the
structure; appraising their performance to
facilitate the equitable distribution of rewards,
motivating employees by linking rewards to
high levels of performance, and developing
employees to enhance their current
performance at work as well as to prepare
them to perform in positions they may hold in
the future
Contradictions and paradoxes

The nature of HR practitioners authority

Nature and focus of HR responsibility
HR role of caring and controlling
Leaders gaining control by giving it up
Ambiguities and tensions in soft hard HRM models
Wage effort contract requires both cooperation and control
Activity for next week

Review the models of HRM, which one most suits your

organisation and why?