Decision-Making Procedures in the Factory - Case Study Example

Title: Analysis of Phlip’s Case Student’s Name: Instructor’s Name: Course Name and Code: University: Date of Submission: Human resource management Introduction Human Resource managers are key personnel to the productivity and profitability of a company. This is given by the fact that they directly deal with issues that affect the performance of employees. While many human resource managers tend to believe in whatever they inject into the systems of their organizations as being the best, failure to be inclusive makes their work to be difficult. As a human Resource manager, I studied the job and work design from the Philips in Australia, on which I believe will help me in my new assignment as a human Resource manager in Manila. The Philips Company is an example of a well laid out design that will ensure that a company is able to be productive even in the midst of economic challenges. This will also ensure that the rate of employee turnover is low. Work methods Autonomy From my experience and getting it directly from the Philips case, autonomy is an important aspect that as a manager, I will always root for. While many managers, tend to look as strict direct supervision as the best way of getting results from workers, this is actually not the case. The other way round tends to provide better results, workers who are used to supervision tend to do things to please their supervisors, which may not on the actual ground translate to concrete productivity of the company. By allowing workers to work in autonomy, it gives them the chance to reinvent the programs and processes of production, because at the end of the day, it is the profit that counts A company being technological based, I would always root for workers being allowed to freely work without much pestering, in terms of searches and direct supervision. This would give the workers the confidence they dearly need, so as to produce higher quantities and also ensure that there is high quality of products. Constant direct supervision tends to put workers under pressure that cause them, to always depend on the managers and supervisors for quality work to be realized. Teamwork Team work is an important aspect that cannot be wished away, if a company has to reduce its employee turnover and at the same time ensure that productivity is high. Team work will only exist if the company through Human Resource management is able to put up the necessary environment that is conducive for workers to work effectively. For workers to be able to work as a team, they must all be having a push factor that makes them want to achieve whatever they are working hard towards (Duening, 2002) Employees have to be given the leeway to form groups and form unions that will help them in working, while at the same time fight for their welfare. However, such groups can also be useful in instilling the spirit of oneness that will help workers work as a single unit, and with an aim of achieving the same goal. Through such groups, an organization will find an easy way through which communication of the policies and expectations that the organization has. Working in a technology based firm, this will require that there is total cooperation by all workers working in different work stations. Failure by management to ensure that there is some understanding and good working relations amongst the employees, will render this effort impossible. Team work will therefore depend on other factors, such as the relations between the employees and managers and the working conditions on the ground. Team work will dictate that each person in the organization is concerned with achieving a given goal. Just like the case in Philips in Australia, workers were only able to realize improved production, when they themselves set targets that each worker was working to achieve (Gibson & Donnelly, 2008). Results oriented schedules For some time now, companies have failed due to being more focused with the process of production rather than the quality of production. Whichever way one looks at it, the most important thing that a company requires, is the production of goods and services that will facilitate the profitability of an organization. Human resource managers should be willing to take in changes. With the changing working environment, failure by the human resource management to initiate changes and accept that necessity will render the activities of the organization to be failed. From the experience I have had and looking at the case study of Philips Company in Australia, the most important thing that a human resource manager must focus, and which I will endeavor to push for, is results based policies and not one that is much inclined to time an employee takes to do particular tasks. Given the same working conditions, two employees may never produce goods that are of the same volume and quality. As such employees should be much vetted using criteria that is based on their productivity, and not being present in the work station. The Australian Case involving Philips has demonstrated this very well. Workers can be allowed to go for long breaks and when they get back to their working stations, they are able to do more productive work that if they were restricted to shorter break time. Management should therefore, assign duties and demand that a given quantity and quality is delivered but not to pin down on duration. Physical and social environments The high employee turnover at Philips is partly as a result of the poor working environment. As everyone must agree, humans work very differently from the way machines work. Humans unlike machines have feelings (Dessler, 2004). As such their feelings will affect everything that they do. This means that the employees must work in environments which are conducive to facilitate productivity. Workers are put at a risk of contracting diseases or getting unwell, if they are to work in a bad environment. Workers getting sick will dictate that they have to get offs, which will negatively impact on the productivity of the company (Ivancevich, 2006). A high –Tech Company in Manila cannot afford to have its workers working in a poor or difficult environment, as this would negatively impact on the quality if not the quantity of the company. Poor working conditions in the working place are an indicator that there is no close working relations between management and the workers. This therefore means that workers have no avenue through which, their views can be presented and attended to. On the other hand it may mean that an organization does not take into consideration the grievances and opinions of the employees. Decision-making procedures in the factory Communication is an important aspect that describes Human Resource management. Poor communication between managers and the workers in an organization will definitely lead top conflicts in the organization. An organization must have a proper mechanism of communication and avenues that facilitate this course. Proper communication channels will help ensure that the workers are involved in all the activities of the organization, thereby creating a sense of belonging to the company. This will be a great step in reducing employee turnover as they will be satisfied with the company and work harder (Hall & Taylor, 2008). Involvement of the employees and junior staffing, designing the work schedule and methodology is important if the productivity of the company has to improve. Many companies have failed as they have forced the workers to have work procedures and design in a manner that is not in line with the methodology and design work that they are able to comfortably deal with. Work design by employees will ensure that productivity is high, but at the same time quality is assured. This will also reduce in the time that units are made by great deal (Mathis & Jackson, 2008). As a human Resource manager, I Have learnt that as human beings we may not have the best ideas that can translate into increased productivity. This calls for increased involvement of the workers in generating ideas that will be useful in the running of the organization. Ideas generated by workers if implemented will work well, as employees will have what it takes to maximize their potential, by working using the models they developed themselves. Conclusion From the analysis of the case study of Philips in Australia, it is worth noting that success of a high tech plant will be pegged on inclusiveness of the workers in all aspects of production and policy formulation. The production methods and models that emanate from the people that are the initiators, and at the same time implementers of this models, usually results in perfection hence, increasing productivity. Mostly, high employee turnover is usually a result of poor human resource management. Failure to have a proper communication channel between the employees and the managers, will definitely lead to constant conflicts between the two, making workers to seek for greener pastures. By the company allowing workers to work independently will give workers an opportunity to develop managerial skills, and hence reduce chances of a leadership vacuum in the future as the new managers exit. References Mathis, R. & Jackson, H. (2008). Human Resource Management New York: Cengage Learning. Hall, L. & Taylor, S. (2008). Human Resource Management.Carlifonia: Financial Times. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, USA: Prentice Hall. Dessler, G. (2004). Human resource management, Texas: Pearson/Prentice Hall Ivancevich, M.(2006). Human Resource Managemen. Toronto: McGraw-Hill Irwin. Ivancevich, M. & Daniel, C. (2000). Gangster Job stress: from theory to suggestions London. London: Routledge Gibson, T. & Donnelly, M. (2008). Organizations: Behavior, Structure, Processes. Toronto: McGraw-Hill. Duening, N. (2002). Managing Einstein: leading high-tech workers in the digital age. Toronto: McGraw-Hill Professional. Ganster, M. & Ivancevich, M. (2003). Job stress: from theory to suggestions. London: Routledge Read More