Evaluation Of Hrm Policies In Nestle Management Essay

Bob Kane, John Crawford and David Grant (1999) research discussed the effectiveness of HRM policies in Australian and New Zealand organizations. The authors had highlighted that HRM effectiveness could be achieved through soft and hard approaches. They had also identified the barriers to effective implementation of HRM policies. The first barriers as identified in the research paper were the low priority of top management towards HRM issues as they focused towards power and control. Second barrier as explained was the competencies of HR personnel to implement a credible HRM programs within the organization. Third barrier concerned the lack of knowledge about the long term impact of effective HRM programs.

This study specifically focused on problems or barriers which had a negative impact on HRM effectiveness. For that purpose, researchers gathered responses from managers, employees and HR staff. They measured respondents perception of both hard and soft approaches which had been practiced in various organization. Researchers floated questioners that targeted managers, employees and HR personnel of organization of Australia , New Zealand, USA, UK and Canada. The questionnaire consisted of 42 questions. A total 702 respondents completed the questionnaires. The result indicated that employees and managers were not satisfied with HR personnel as their policies were not effective in order to improve the employee motivation, satisfaction and commitment.

The research concludes that HRM polices can be achieved through soft and hard HRM approaches however companies have failed to successfully implement HRM policies due to lack of the support of company’s top level management and inadequate and incompetent HRM staff.

The researchers defined soft HRM approach as employee motivation, commitment and development. This approach plays a significant role in a business to create a work environment where employees work efficiently for the company. Employees can enhance their skills through trainings and commitment which creates a competent workforce. This workforce allows the companies to enjoy competitive advantage over its rivals. Another approach as identified in the paper is HARD HRM approach also known as strategic HRM. This approach of the view that HRM effectiveness can be achieved through implementation of cost reducing measures in human resources.

Tanuja Agarwala (2002) in his research paper the author had studied the factors which had changed the trends in Human Resource Practices. Rapid change in technology had brought innovation in the human resource activities (r recruitment, selection, training, appraisals etc). The study also highlighted organizational effects and employee’s outcomes which were directly inclined to creative HR practices. This study focused on the growing trends of Human Resource Management. It also focused on outcomes by appling innovative HR policies within the organization.

Tanuja Agarwala (2002) conducted in-depth interviews to understand the emerging trends of innovation in human resource management. A total of 21 in-depth interviews were conducted with private sector organization and public sector organizations. The entire expert’s believed that innovation in HRM had brought positive changes in organizations as it increased the skills and commitment of the employees. He also stated that people were organization’s precious assets and innovative human resource policies would increase the skills of the employees.

The variables and their relationships deduced were most significant for my research. Innovative HR practices (recruitment, selection, testing, training, appraisals) directly influences the overall organizational climate. It also has an impact on employee’s performance, attitude and his knowledge and skills. These practices also had an impact on the organizational productivity, employee turnover and financial performance.

R.S. Dwivedi (2001) study highlighted the key competencies required for selection and training and development of key managers. The three competencies as indentified by the author were interpersonal communication skills, leadership skills and motivational skills. The research was conducted on 106 successful managers of Indian organization. This study focused to identify the interpersonal communication styles of successful managers, transformational or transactional leadership among managers and the factors which motivate people at work. It also intended to identify the key competencies required to make HRM decision in Indian organizations.

The author deduced that consultative communication style was considered more feasible then despotic style. Moreover mostly managers in the sample were equipped with transformational leadership which enables the strengthening of the organization. The author also identifies that employees could be motivated by satisfying their needs and wants. Thus these competencies as identified in the paper were significant for my research and they can be sued as a key to make critical HR decisions.

Marcel Van Marrewijk and Jonna Timmers(2003) in addition to human resource management introduced a new approach called Human capital management. Human capital management stressed on alignment between individual and organization as it is the key to successful management.

The authors highlight that human resource management only deals with recruitment, retention and rousing the workforce. However it doesn’t play an important role in order to bring motivation and commitment among the employees. On the other hand, the new approach ( HCM) embodied the features of human resource management and provides undiminished values. Human capital management aligned with employees in three domains: Human operations, corporate identity and values and human development with the goals of dedication, commitment and motivation respectively. Therefore human capital management outshines human resource management in every possible way.

Mark A. Youndt, Scott A. Snell, James W. Dean, Jr. and David P. Lepak (Aug.1996) research examined two alternative views-universal and contingency- of the human resources (HR) in manufacturing industry. This study was conducted to study determine the degree to which Human resource management policies have an impact on firms overall performance. It also focused to analyze the relationship between human resource management and operational performance of the firm. It also studied the linkages between manufacturing strategies and HR policies and its impact on the overall performance of the firm. It was revealed from the research that contingency approach (human resource management on the basis of cost, quality and flexibility) was better than universal approach. Shaping HR practices according to the organizational strategies was the key for competitive advantage.

The results suggested that HR practices intended to foster employees and create an egalitarian work environment positively influence operational performance when matched with quality manufacturing strategies. Thus the notion of HR practices on the basis of cost, quality and flexibility holds significant value for my research.

Marianne J. Koch and Rita Gunther McGrath. (1996) deduced that positive and significant effects of labor productivity are found for organizations that utilize more sophisticated human resource planning, recruitment, and selection strategies. The hypothesis of this study were overall human resource sophistication and investment in hiring, human resource planning and employee development will have a positive effect on labor productivity.

In this study, labor productivity being the dependent variable was being influenced by independent variables such as investments in human resource planning, hiring and training. Results had shown that investment in human resource management do pay off as workforce becomes more productive and works efficiently to attain the goals of the organization. Research indicated that firms that systematically train and develop their workers are more likely to enjoy the rewards of a more productive workforce than those that do not.

Robert Roepke, Ritu Agarwal, Thomas W. Ferratt (2000) case study illustrated how 3M had been able to foster the competencies of IT professionals which in turn turned out to be a competitive advantage for the firm. 3M capitalized its sources and introduced innovative human resource management policies within the organization.

The finding of this case study also indicated that investment in improving the leadership capabilities of the employees was essential for success of the firm. Those capabilities can be fostered through trainings and development of the employees, assistance, flexibility and interpersonal understandings.

W. Hatch and Jeffrey H. Dyer (2004) also emphasized on investment in human capital in order to have a competitive advantage. It would increase the overall productivity and performance of the firms. The authors also stressed the importance of learning as it was necessary to foster the skills of employees. The hypothesis of this research were: screening tests improve learning through performance, higher human resource education increase learning, and greater investment in human resource field also increases performance. The data was collected through questionnaires and follow-up interviews in different semi-conductors industries of USA, Asia and Europe. Regression analysis was conducted on the data for findings.

Results suggested that firms which had practiced proper selection, development and deployment of the employees enjoyed greater productivity and higher returns. Tests like screening tests in the selection process would enable the organization to have a skilled pool of employees as compared to the competitors. Development of the individual skills is essential in manufacturing industry as it enables the firms to achieve the excellence in operations of the firm.

Michael Haid (2008) stated that proper implementation of HR practices would increase the commitment and retention of key individuals of organization. Certain HR practices such as manager support, social responsibility and performance appraisal practices would have a positive impact on employees morale as his satisfaction and overall motivation level increased.

Michael Haid laid heavy emphasis on managers skills as it was necessary to increase the motivation and commitment level of the employees working under them. Trainings from mentors and coaches would enable employees to foster their competencies and allow the organization to enjoy competitive advantage. The author also stated that organization should be socially responsible as it was necessary for employees determination and commitment towards organization goals. By practicing these policies, employees would be satisfied, committed and found pride in their organization. The employers on the other hand would be able to retain their key employees.

Geetanjali Pandit Gupta (2009) in his article discussed his point of view on the importance of HR practices as they played an important role in any industry particularly services. In his article, writer gave suggestion and advisees to Cineplex in order to improve its services in India. He believed that effective HR policies are critical in service sector as there was a direct interaction between customers and employees on multiple touch points. Satisfying the customers were necessary for the company.

Choosing the right personnel for the job was a main duty of HR personnel in any organization. Careful recruitment and selection process were required to recruit a skilled workforce. Geetanjali Pandit Gupta (2009) also believed that training of the employees was necessary to improve the skills of the employees working in any service organization.

Objectives

The basic purpose of this study is to analyze and evaluate the HR programs of Nestle.

To identify the strengths and weaknesses of HR programs in Nestle.

To study the effectivenss of motivational techniques being used by managers.

To recommend innovative HR practices in order to increase the competencies, skills and motivational level of employees.

To study the impact of employees competencies on firms performance.

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

Hypothesis Testing

Employee motivation

H0: there is no significant impact of employee motivation on HRM programs

H1: there is significant impact of employee motivation on HRM programs

Employees commitment

H0: there is no significant impact of employee’s commitment on HRM programs

H1: there is significant impact of employee’s commitment on HRM programs

Employee development

H0: there is no significant impact of employee development on HRM programs

H1: there is significant impact of employee development on HRM programs

Technology

H0: there is no significant impact of technology on HRM programs

H1: there is significant impact of technology on HRM programs

organizational productivity

H0: there is no significant impact of organizational productivity on HRM programs

H1: there is significant impact of organizational productivity on HRM programs

employee turnover

H0: there is no significant impact of employee turnover on HRM programs

H1: there is significant impact of employee turnover on HRM programs

financial performance

H0: there is no significant impact of financial performance on HRM programs

H1: there is significant impact of financial performance on HRM programs

leadership skills

H0: there is no significant impact of leadership skills on HRM programs

H1: there is significant impact of leadership skills on HRM programs