ABB Case Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

ABB Case - Essay Example In the 1990s, ABB was to consolidate its market space by going for major acquisitions. The company's sales that was at about USD 15 billion in 1988 and 1989, went to over USD 30 billion in the mid 1990s. But the acquisitions did not yield the results that were expected by the company and the company went into a spin. By 1997 and later in 1998, there was a steep fall in the sales turnover of the company.The turnover fell to USD 20 billion in 1999 and the company started its divestitures. Though a higher profit was indicated in the years 1999 and 2000, it was primarily out of these divestitures. Now under this background a new strategy was worked out for the company and the strategy has to be viewed under this perception.2. Solid foundation and operating profitability is more critical than the number of businesses the company does. The company moved into a number of new areas of business that were not really contributing to the profitability of the company.2. A corporate culture for ex cellence and perfection in execution has to be stressed by the company. This would help the company capitalize on the man power and on the efficiency of operation of the company.These formed the core of the strategy adopted by the company. The implementation of every one of these issues was brought about in both the structure of the organization and in the spirit of the organization.... 'At home everywhere' was made the slogan of the company. 5. Innovation will be core of the growth in all areas of business. More research establishments were positioned and more patents registered during the next five years. These formed the core of the strategy adopted by the company. The implementation of every one of these issues was brought about in both the structure of the organization and in the spirit of the organization. Question 2 Organization Structure Figure 2: Interlinked business structure The company would essentially work on a business structure that is interlinked and would produce the required result. The organization will have two major product groups; one, the process automation and two, the power systems. And derivatives of these products will also interlink the businesses and strengthen them as well. In either of the cases, this will help in customer sharing as well as in strengthening the technology in addition to cost sharing. 1. This strategy will help in strengthening the basic strategy of concentrating on the core business strengths of the company, namely, the automation and power sector. 2. This will also help in identifying the major revenue sources or customers who would provide better margins to the company's operations. 3. By providing this kind of product organization and support, the customer will get supporting products and services that complement one another. This will increase the overall margins of the company which is also the major thrust for their operation. 4. The company visualizes this to provide an effective cost leadership in the market place. By concentrating on specific product lines, the economies of scale could be leveraged to their advantage. This would help the

Dealing with Evil Essay Example for Free

Dealing with Evil Essay After the World War II the planet has been divided by the Iron Curtain into two antagonistic camps: the communist countries, headed by the USSR and the capitalistic countries, headed by the USA. The struggle between two systems took forms of economic competition, ideological dispute, armament race and even local armed conflicts. Both leaders aimed to spread their influence at every possible region and attract carry over every possible country. At that they often paid little attention to home policy of a particular state concentrating exclusively on their ability to control it. Declaring their desire for democracy both the USA and the USSR often supported authoritarian and totalitarian regimes. This paper shall review some examples when the US cooperated with undemocratic rulers and demonstrate the necessity of such cooperation in order to stop the communist expansion. In one of the global key-points – the Middle East the USA did a lot to support an unpopular regime of the Shah of Iran. Between 1945 and 1979 Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran, conducted a policy of westernization and close ties with the United States. His rule has been marked by growing poorness of the population and total corruption of the state officials. Failure of economic reforms has only compounded the crisis. Under such conditions the communist party gained increasing popularity among the people of Iran. However, despite of Shah’s authoritarism, the USA instructed him when he removed a democratically elected government in 1953, as well as later in his actions. Only in 1977 the President has sent â€Å"a polite reminder† to the Shah about the necessity to take care of human rights . In response the Shah has freed some political prisoners and allowed the Red Cross to operate in Iran. Those measures appeared to be late and the Shah has been overthrown in 1979. Between 1940 and 1959 the USA favored a regime of l Ruben Fulgencio Batista at Cuba, preferring to have a dictator rather than a communist country just a few miles away. Batista has been provided with funds for electoral campaign. The CIA assisted Batista in detecting and destroying his opponents. However, Batista’s regime appeared to be so unpopular among the people of Cuba, that it has been destroyed by a small group of guerillas lead by Fidel Castro in 1959 . Another example of support rendered by the USA to totalitarian leader is cooperation with the regime of Mobutu Sese Seko in Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo ). Mobutu’s attitude to Soviet Union was rather frosty because of the Soviet support of local rebels. So he has chosen to strengthen the relationships with America and Belgium – a former mother-country of Zaire. The US was third largest donor to Zaire economy. Even despite of Mobutu’s warlike rhetoric and poor human rights record, Zaire received almost 50% of US assistance to sub-Sahara countries in the times of President Carter. America also directly cooperated with Mobutu during inner conflicts by providing supplies and transporting Belgian paratroopers . Nevertheless after collapse of the USSR the USA has found it unnecessary to further work with Mobutu and he was even refused of American visa. In contrast he was now suppressed to democratize his regime. And without outside assistance he has been overthrown in 1994. In total, the attitude of the USA to friendly dictators can be characterized by a rude but frank phrase of Franklin D. Roosevelt: â€Å"He may be a son of a bitch, but he’s our son of a bitch†. In the titanic struggle with communism political loyalty was a priority in comparison to observation of human rights. REFERNCES 1. Gellman, Irwin F.(1973) Roosevelt and Batista: Good neighbor diplomacy in Cuba, 1933-1945. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, NM 2. Ayittey, George B. N. (1999) Africa in Chaos: A Comparative History. Palgrave Macmillan 3. Afoaku, Osita. U. S. foreign policy and authoritarian regimes: Change and continuity in international clientelism, Journal of Third World Studies, Fall 2000, pp. -345-241

Total Quality Management Techniques

Total Quality Management Techniques Total quality management (TQM) principles and techniques are now a days well accepted part of almost every managers tool kit (Dow et al., 1999). According to Powell (1995), most large firms have adopted TQM in some form, and official quality awards are a badge of honour whether a company is operating in Japan, the USA, Europe, or Australia. Implementing TQM is a major organizational change that requires a transformation in the organizations culture, processes, strategic priorities, and beliefs, among others. Quality: Different people have different definitions of quality but they all have the same central theme. According to (Text book), Quality is consistent conformance to customers expectations. Some refer to quality as fitness for use and other calls it as conformance of requirement. According to American Society for Quality, Quality is the totality of features and characteristics of a product or service that bears on its ability to satisfy stated or implied needs. However, quality doesnt have a single perspective and is different for the customers of any product and service and for the producers of that good or service. In the Operations view, targeting quality is to undertake operations to produce outcomes which are in line with the specifications defined through processes that are designed and controlled to maintain consistency in the specified production and above all, that the Customers Expectations are met through the produced good or service. In customers view, quality has no single definition for all customers. It depends on how they perceive it. Hence, quality is referred to as customers perception and expectation about different values of a single product or service. Following are the different dimensions of any product or service: Performance Main characteristics of a product/service Special Features Extra characteristics Conformance How well a product/service corresponds to the customers expectation Reliability Consistency of performance Durability Useful life of a product/service Perceived Quality Indirect evaluation of quality (e.g. reputation) After Sales Service Handling of complaints and requests for information THE DIMENSIONS OF QUALITY (Stevenson, 1999) The Quality Costs The cost of quality is a balance of the cost of assurance of quality against the costs associated with shortcomings resulting in the lack of quality. An attempt to minimize the total quality costs is mere balancing of the four components of quality cost: prevention: incurred to prevent quality problems, appraisal: associated with controlling quality to check whether problems have occurred or not, internal failures: associated with errors dealt with inside of operations and external failures: associated with errors or problems going out of the operation to a customer.(Text Book) The variations within the individual quality cost categories are secondary in importance compared to their combined effect on the overall total quality cost. The quality cost concept is an effective tool that can be used to express the value of the quality aspects of the operation in terms of money so that monitoring and analysis of investments and savings in that area can be readily evaluated using the language of business: money. (George P. Laszlo) Prevention is the important influence more than inspection, according to a rule of thumb, for every dollar spent in prevention; a company can save $10 in failure and appraisal costs. (Chase, Aquilano and Jacobs, 1998) Consequences of Poor Quality Quality has been recognised as the key ingredient for success in business and has been focused upon intensely so as to match the pace of the contemporary market growth and the subsequent competition in it. Production of good or service with the required quality is possible only through properly managed production process, whose vital part is to ensure the satisfactory quality assurance. However, in case this vital part fails to contribute its role effectively, processes produce outcomes with poor quality. Poor quality products may disappoint the buyer and result in the customer migration. Buying a product and finding it below expectations will make buyer not to buy the same product again. In fact, the chances that the buyer will buy any other product from the company are also low. Poor quality affects the overall costs associated with that product. The failure cost increases as poor quality product is repaired, replaced or made new. The cost associated with the reimbursements and waste materials increases the overall variable production costs and hence profit margins and contribution. As a consequence of the cost increase, companies alter the price levels. ( Begg Ward) However, spending enough prevention cost at first place, the economic turbulence in the market can be avoided. More than all, poor quality damages the image and reputation of the company among the customer base. The famous example of Mercedes, launching A-class car without noticing its faulty design, showed the sensitivity of the relation between reputation of a company with the quality of its products. ( Topfer,1997) As the repairs or rectification of any faulty product demands for more efforts, the overall productivity of the firm is also affected by the poor quality outcomes. Also, the Consumer and Product Safety Act of 1972 makes firms liable for damages caused by the products or services, which do not fulfil the standards set and enforced by the act. (Heizer and Render, 2000) What is TQM? The concept of TQM (Total Quality Management) is generally understood, and often also described, as some form of management philosophy based in a number of core values, such as customer focus, continuous improvement, process orientation, everybodys commitment, fast response, result orientation and learn from others. (Ulrika Hellsten and Bengt Klefsjo, emerald). All these core values collectively are nothing but quality improvement. Hence, TQM is best thought of as a philosophy of how to approach the organization of quality improvement. (Text Book) TQM philosophy stresses the Total of TQM. Putting quality or improvement at the heart of everything and including all activities within an operation, TQM aims at participation of all the members in organization targeting long-run success through customer satisfaction, and benefits to all members of the organization and to society. TQM and the Quality Gurus Although the quality gurus seem to be recommending different solutions to bringing about improvement, they are all talking the same language but they use different dialects.(Text book). Each Guru stressed a different set of issues, which catalysed the transition from TQM concept to operations improvement. It is believed that Japanese were the first to introduce the concept and implemented it on a wide scale and subsequently popularized the term Total Quality Management. Few of the popular contributors and their philosophies about TQM are briefly described. A. Feigenbaum stressed on the integration of quality development, quality maintenance and quality improvement efforts of the various groups in an organization so as to enable production and service at the most economical levels which allow for full customer satisfaction.( Text book) W.E.Demings basic philosophy is that quality and productivity increase as process variability (the unpredictability of the process) decreases. In his 14 points for quality improvement, he emphasizes the need for statistical control methods, participation, education, openness and purposeful improvement.(Text book) J.M. Juran was concerned about management responsibility for quality and he focussed on user based approach in defining the specifications of the products. TQM as an extension of previous practice. Quality is explained with a different perspective in contemporary organizations in comparison to traditional organizations. The new perspective suggests that from narrow, manufacturing-based discipline, quality has transited to a corporate emphasis and is applicable to each business function and every employee with broader implications for management. The evolution of quality management has reached a point where quality is being viewed as a basis for competition. Total quality management can be viewed as a natural extension of earlier approaches to quality Management. Earlier quality was achieved by inspection and screening out defects before they were noticed by customers. The quality control (QC) concept introduced the concept of treating the quality problems. Quality assurance (QA) widened the responsibility for quality to include functions other than direct operations and made use of statistical quality techniques. TQM added few more factors or themes into it. The first and the key element of TQM is that organizations should see the product or its value and quality from customers point of view in a process of setting its specifications, designing and actual production. In these days, rapidly changing trends, technologies and preferences are collectively making the process of realizing customers expectations a critical, time taking and expensive process for contemporary organizations. Another powerful aspect of TQM is the concept of Internal and External customers which suggests the inclusion of all the parts of organization. Delivering the goods and services with a level of quality within the organization considering everyone as customer ensures the delivery of the final product to the external customer to be of required level of expectations and quality. Several companies are adopting the internal customer concept in their operations. Hewlett-Packard, the information systems company, was one of the first to make a success of the internal-customer concept in its operations. (Text Book) The concept of never ending improvement makes TQM an even better tool for improvement. The reputation and business of any company runs on quality of its product. However, with increasing pace of advancement and research, one level of quality doesnt reflect the same value to customers in very short time. So, implementing continuous improvement concept keeps the organization in the competition. Quality programs like zero-defects, which aims at performing right at the first time, and six sigma, which is intended to keep the error rate of about 3 defectives per million units, are also used to describe the continuous improvement efforts. (Stevenson, 1996 Blackboard) TQM Cost Model Quality Systems and Procedures Very often people are prevented from making improvements by the organizations systems and procedures. Indeed, there is a belief that direct operators can correct, at the most, only 15 per cent of quality problems; the other 85 per cent are managements responsibility because they are due to the system or the lack of one. (Text Book) This calls for a properly defined Quality management system which should cover all facets of the organizations operations. ISO 9000 series is a set of worldwide standards that draws the common requirements for quality management systems for all organization and provides a framework for quality assurance. The registration process involves a third party evaluation and regular audits to ensure the system doesnt deteriorate. (Text Book). ISO 9000 registration is an effective element for organizations to have an edge over those which doesnt hold the registration. Customers, these days, are very well aware of these standards and gain confidence, in terms of assured quality, in any company if it is ISO 9000 recommended. Surely, organizations and customers, both are benefitted. However, on the other hand, those contemporary organizations which still havent achieved the ISO 9000 have to somehow, undertake the time and cost consuming implementation of these set of quality measures to sustain in the highly competitive era. Implementation of TQM While implementing TQM, organizations should not forget that firms will have different needs and thus TQM must be specially customised to the circumstances of the organization. (Slack, Chambers and Johnston; 2001). Also, TQM involves all aspects of the firm and unless its significance is fully understood by everybody, its implementation will fail. (N.N., 2000b Blackboard). The successful implementation of TQM should focus on following factors. Factor 1: Top management commitment: The degree of visibility and support that management takes in implementing a total quality environment is critical to the success of TQM implementation (Deming, 1982; Juran and Gryna 1980). Management should plan to reduce traditionally structured operational levels and unnecessary positions. For example, spot checking can be implemented instead of hiring a supervisor for this job. Simplifying the organization will lead to the establishment of an infrastructure of integrated business functions participating as a team and supporting the strategic vision of the company. (Jaideep Motwani) Factor 2: Quality measurement and benchmarking: Most authors endorse a zero defect and a do it right the first time attitude towards the quality program. Measurement techniques should include monitoring supplier quality levels, utilizing SPC (Statistical Process Control) to reduce process variability, and calculating the cost of quality (Ahire et al., 1996; Powell, 1995; Hardie, 1998). Factor 3: Process management: This factor emphasizes adding value to processes, increasing quality levels, and raising productivity per employee. The concept of Continuous improvement discussed earlier, has to be implemented for assurance. The other tactics can be reducing the operator material handling duties, achieving a compact process flow or implementation of quality circles. Factor 4: Product design: The study of quality performance commence from the product design stage, when everything is in flux. A range of possibilities exist at this stage about the material to be used, specifications, vendors etc. Hence, at this critical point, customers expectations should be clear. Factor 5: Employee training: Employees should be trained and oriented to the overall gaols of the company, the commitments to successfully utilizing the TQM methodology and to be an effective team member. There are techniques for staff to learn as well, of course, but the purpose of the techniques is solely to work towards the basic objective the elimination of errors. (Text Book) Factor 7: Customer involvement and satisfaction: When considering customers, internal and external customers are addressed. Internal customers should undertake timely and dependable deliveries, continuously improve and self-implement solutions. An external customer service program should include providing customers with timely information and quick responsiveness to complaints, and maintaining a corporate goal to reduce the quantity of questions or complaints while recognizing all successful efforts by employees in providing outstanding service (Kasul and Motwani, 1995b). Reasons of TQM failure: Organizations often do not understand the depth of implementing TQM. The weak commitment results in ineffective value setting in the organization. A blind pursuit of TQM, which doesnt integrate quality into strategy, will draw an organisations attention away from the real important issues like customer focus and never ending improvement and thus TQM, considered a short-term investment, will certainly fail. (Reid and Sanders, 2002 and Stevenson, 1999). At the same time, expecting a radical change or a quick fix by mere implementing it results in the failures. Managers take issues for granted after implementing TQM; creating an absence of good decision making skills which leads to the TQM failures. Another reason is the ambiguity in the roles for making change, undertaking quality measures and eliminating errors in an organisation after implementing TQM. Top management may believe that identification and eliminations of errors has to be processed at operations level, however, operation workers may not take extra responsibility and can develop a perception that improvement measures are burdening them which can lead to lack in belief and commitment and eventual failure. Lack Employees Commitment As discussed earlier, training is an important part of the TQM implementation process. Training the employees doesnt only points to the operations training but also the attitude training as well. Absence or lack of employee training can be a reason of failure. TQM demands for the complete awareness and participation at every level of the organization.(Text Book) Unless, employees develop a commitment level at which they perceive organizational goals as their own, they cannot work to their full potential. However, spending adequate amount on conducting trainings can be a key for the desired outcome. Lack of organizations communication system and function is also a cause for the failure of TQM in an organization. The varied information regarding TQM as a result of lack of co-ordination between different departments may not satisfy the questions of workforce and hence create a loss of ideas which may have developed with proper information in the flow. Absence of proper review technique to check the effectiveness of the quality system is a major cause for failure. Organizations fail to find the cause for defects in products or procedures on implementation of TQM. It may be due to the wrong techniques being used to review or ineffective business process adopted.

Anagnorisis and Existence (Rosencrantz and Guildenstern) :: essays research papers

Anagnorisis and Existence The Point of Realization in Stoppard’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the young prince realizes what living is. Yea, from the table of my memory I'll wipe away all trivial fond records, 105 All saws of books, all forms, all pressures past, That youth and observation copied there; And thy commandment all alone shall live Within the book and volume of my brain, Unmix'd with baser matter (Hamlet, I, v. 104-110) Upon realizing his fate – that he must save the â€Å"state of Denmark† – Hamlet must literally discard his prior knowledge and start anew. Aristotle argues that the exact moment when Hamlet realizes his fate – by moving from innocence and ignorance to knowledge – is the cause of tragedy in drama. Aristotle’s calls this realization that all humans must have anagnorisis. For all the moaning and a whining about his situation, Hamlet will fight whatever is â€Å"rotten in the State of Denmark.† (Hamlet, I, iv, 67) Though this self discovery is integral in Shakespeare’s tragedy, Stoppard’s two characters do not even address their fate. And, the result of this lack of action and lack of any anagnorisis in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead when framed against the proactive Hamlet, Fortinbras and Laertes is an interesting commentary on human beings’ reactions to mortality. Death is not romantic, and death is not a game which will soon be over†¦ Death is not anything†¦ death is not†¦ It’s the absence of presence, nothing more†¦ the endless time of never coming back†¦ a gap you can’t see, and when the wind blows through it, it makes no sound. (R&D, 124) To Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, death is lying in a box – bored. Their inability to comprehend death’s complexity stems from the fact that even when alive, they are hardly present, barely hanging onto their existence. If we stopped breathing we’d vanish. (R&D, 112) Part of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern’s lack of existence is Stoppard’s emphasis on the seeming interchangeability of their identities. However, whereas in Hamlet the King, Gertrude and Hamlet mistake the two for each other, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern actually mistake themselves. Their lack of identity leaves the two characters as not human – they literally do nothing and do not develop. It is for that reason that, though they discover their fate, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern literally cannot die: they don’t actually exist. So, when the time comes for their fate to catch up to them, they literally disappear.

Keeping The Environment Clean Essay

There are trees,herbal plants flower,waterfalls,forests,mountains,water,airetc.Every people can’t live without this environment.All of us want this environemnt to spend our life.So we get many things from environment.Example water,trees,airetc.If you clean this surroundings all of us can healthy and strong life.So we must clean our environment.But today’s population are increasing.These population live with environment.So day by day,the people destroy this environemnt.Specially,I want to tell about the air pollution.In our country,have many industries.So this industries throw chemicals and vassels.In this case,collect lot of carbendioxide air then pollute environment.So many people put garbages to the water.Some times this activity do industries.They put their garbage,chemicals to this water.We can get many information regarding this from T.V and newspapers.So what happend this case pollute the water.Many time the fishes are killed.It will be poisonous.And also many peo ple set fire to chena cultivating.It pollutes the enviroment .We can see so many garbages on road sides.Villager collect the garbages and they use these garbages as their plants.So if you pollute this enironment we will notbe able to grow foods.So we will decide not to pollute the environment.I grew up in a environment where pollution, disease, and other problems are a big issue. Cars and factories release greenhouse gasses into the air, and forests are being cut down. In other countries, many people are behind on cures for diseases. Many people talk about how the polar ice caps are melting and the ozone layer depleting. An Inconvenient Truth opened my eyes to see how today’s technology and garbage affect these environmental disasters, and I want to do something about it. I do some things to make myself more environmentally friendly. I walk to school instead of driving because I live about two blocks away. I also take the bus when I go downtown or my friend’s house. When I need to get somewhere and many people are going, I carpool with some friends. I recycle any cardboard boxes and milk cartons, and I reuse water bottles and fill them with filtered tap water instead of buying more water. I take short showers and I don’t leave the facet on when I am brushing my teeth. At school, I am constantly learning about the environment and how we ar e affecting it. I noticed recycle and compost bins in the cafeteria and an old Asian woman picking up cans and bottles in the gym. In the A.P. Environmental Science  class, I see how other third world countries are less fortunate than us and how we just dump our trash in their countries. We need to find a way to use less resources and produce less trash so other countries can improve their standard of living. During the summer of 2008, I was a intern at North East Medical Services (NEMS), which is a clinic near Chinatown. I worked as a lab technical assistant and they had strict safety regulations. I always had to wash my hands and wear latex gloves because I was transporting blood samples. My mentor told me that a clean work place reduces the chance of people spreading any diseases. He also told me that many people are ill because their houses or work places are unsanitary. A clean environment is good for everyone, but we are far from one. If we continue what we are doing, most of our natural resources would be gone and our future generations would have nothing to survive on. We should focus more on renewable energy sources like the wind, sun, and maybe even rain instead of wasting all of our fossil fuels. We also need to do more with our trash instead of burning or burying it. I hope that if apply my studies to environmental problems and coming up with a solution to them, I can help make a better future for everyone.

The concept of strategic human resource management (SHRM)

The concept of strategic human resource management (SHRM) Strategic human resource management is not a simple process as it keeps on evolving over time. The concept does not have an absolute definition since opinions about it vary between various scholars and analysts. However, one thing that remains clear is that the concept is essential for improved business performance.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on The concept of strategic human resource management (SHRM) specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It can be regarded as a strategic approach to human resource management which links human resource to the future plans and directions of an organization. Basically this implies that the strategic HRM seeks to ensure that resources are matched with organizational future needs by concerning itself with long term issues relating to employees, organizational culture, values, and commitments. Harter et al. (2006) says that strategic human resource management focuses on increasing producti vity and effectiveness by motivating employees to give their best and work towards achievement of organizational strategic goals. The approach revolves around policies that motivate employees and cause them to be committed towards their work. It entails practices such as employee comprehensive training, employee development activities, developmental appraisal, and staff selection among many others. In the recent years, the notion of high commitment human resource management has been of much interest in many organizations and research studies. Elwood et al. (1996) agrees with the fact that strategic human resource management focuses on shaping organizational culture. HR practices within organization directly affect their culture which eventually is reflected in the company’s overall success. Employee attitudes are affected and shaped by systems of human resource management. Strategic human resource management therefore is linked to increase in organizational effectiveness. It helps create a working condition where employees become highly motivated and focused on the goals of the organization. Employees tend to assume that high commitment practices of human resource are a direct show of commitment by the organization to them. They therefore tend to reciprocate the same gesture by being committed to the organization. Relationship between SHRM and Outsourcing HR The concept of outsourcing human resource can be regarded as part of strategic human resource management. It involves the use of a third party provider to administer the human resource functions in an organization. The popularity of HR outsourcing has increased as most companies seek the expertise of HR outsourcing firms to effectively manage their internal human resource activities.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The main reason why companies opt for the option of outsourcing ke y HR functions is because it is less costly and more efficient than employing HR personnel to execute these functions. According to Galanki and Papalexandris (2005), the HR vendors are able to provide the services at a lower cost because they benefit from economy of scale. The companies then transfer these benefits to their clients. As a result, Galanki and Papalexandris (2005) argue that small and medium sized companies are the ones who benefit the most from the HR vendors. Delmotte and Sels (2008) say that companies may also decide to outsource their HR functions because of the need for knowhow. According to the authors, such companies may lack the necessary knowledge about strategic human resource management or they may simply have outdated information. This therefore requires them to make significant investment into their human resource functionalities. The idea that Delmotte and Sels (2008) are contending is that outsourcing human resource functions offer knowledge and competen ce which in most cases are usually absent from within companies. Case study: discussion of the key HR functions in the organization In this section, the case study of a nonprofit organization based in California shall be analyzed to develop a discussion of key HR functions for organizations. Strategic human resource management is an important aspect for nonprofit organizations. The company had to ensure that its HR functionalities are aligned to its strategic goals in order to experience effective functioning. The organization was found over 25 year ago with the intention of helping individuals struggling with domestic violence, trauma, mental illness, and substance abuse. The main goal was to help children, women, and communities rebuild their lives. The needs within the community increased forcing the company to also expand its operations to meet the increase. However, in the process of this expansion, the company encountered business challenges in its human resource management. T he department was not fully equipped to handle the requirements that accompany large organizations. The company faced a situation where its employees were overloaded with work. There were numerous challenges relating to the employment and staffing. These challenges also began affecting the finances of the organization. Even with the HR manager and a few other HR personnel in place, the department was overwhelmed with the new emerging HR needs.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on The concept of strategic human resource management (SHRM) specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Key HR functions in the organization include: global mobility, benefit pans, health and welfare, recruiting, payroll, staff performance, and staff development. Cook (1999) suggests that three additional functions can also be effectively outsourced. The three include organizational culture, human resource planning, and performance appraisal system. Critica l analysis of the HR functions that can be outsourced Outsourcing key human resource functionality is designed to help companies integrate their human resource into their needs and goals. With regards to pay and benefits, the payroll clerk job measurements are usually done narrowly since it is considered to one of the back office jobs. This is mostly done by considering the output in terms of paying the employees on time and accurately. Also measures can be done by the finance people to determine the how cost effective and proficient is the job. Outsourcing this function can prove cost effective for the organization since the job of a payroll clerk may not be necessary. Another area that needs outsourcing in the organization is staffing and recruitment. This area falls under organizational man power planning. It seeks to improve and maintain the ability of an organization to attain its entire strategic objective through development of manpower contribution. When an organization deve lops a wrong man power planning, there can be a lot of disruption which will affect the organization adversely. The process of staffing in companies includes recruitment of human resource, selection, training, and promotion. Other processes such as retirement, transfer and demotion also make part of the staffing process. Therefore, recruitment is an initial step of staffing. The entire process of staffing continues with the experience of employees within an organization. Outsourcing firms have the resources and capabilities that ensure staffing and recruitment is done effectively. External sources of recruitment would even be more appropriate in reducing all the chances of biasness. However, despite the recruitment team appointed for conducting the process, that is whether internal or external recruiters, it is appropriate that they be well trained. They have to be aware of the skills and parameters that the company needs from the candidates. All the evaluation processes have to be planned in advance and these include both the technical and human resource interviews and the tests. The systems of performance appraisals focus mainly on the employees who have contributed to the achievement of organizational goals and are also still in a position to assist the organization continue attaining its goals. Promotion is a human resource management best practice that helps to retain employees for long as well as motivating them to perform.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Promotion can be monetary or non monetary. Nonetheless, it has to be an opportunity for the individual employees to grow personally. Performance appraisals are not only aimed at identifying best performing and highly productive employees, but are also aimed at identifying poor performing employees. This is important for an organization because poor performing employees negatively affect performance of an organization. The human resource personnel manager is responsible for coordinating the process of staffing and recruitment. This is a very conscious process that does not require mistakes to be made. Mistakes can lead to major consequences that would pose a serious threat to an organization. The mistakes can affect the brand value of an organization as well as disrupt operations. The manager in charge of recruitment has to define primary and essential skills that are required for each role within an organization. In addition, the education qualification and experience are also to be defined. The entire experience and stages of an employee in an organization constitute the existence of the process of staffing. Once an employee has been recruited for a position, the human resource team needs to identify the individual skills of the employee’s individual skills and integrate them to the skills required for the job. This is achieved through proper training. There is usually a difference in the required skills for the job and the employee’s individual skills. Depending on the size of the gap or difference, the human resource team should be able to come up with proper training for bridging the gap. Training therefore serves an important role of making the employees competent by giving them the confidence to face the task before them. Each employees within an organization needs to be developing and growing in their career. Therefore staffing process takes care of transfers and promotions of employees. Employees need to be aware of the opportunities for growth within the company. This should be clearly communicated to them and the procedure blueprinted. For instance, in most organization, the path up the career ladder is usually certified through performance appraisals. The employees that qualify for promotions must have performed extremely well to deserve the promotions. Such organizations also require work place diversity. Internal human resource personnel may be challenged to ensure the internal working environment is as diverse as a possible. However, outsourcing firms have the skills and expertise in recruitment and staffing needed to ensure diversity within the workplace. Workforce diversity is one of the main dominant staffing issues experienced by organizations. With increase in globalization, many organizations find themselves having a multicultural workforce. Women, minority community, immigrants and the elderly are making job applications. Labor laws in almost any country require that companies have a balance workforce i n terms of gender, and ethnic communities within its location. The challenge is in staffing professionals and specialties. The organizations also have to recognize the cultural needs of their employees and address them appropriately. Adapting to the diversity provides the organizations with the opportunity to retain staff for longer periods. At the same time, such an organization is able to get the best out of each of their employees. Another area that can be considered challenging for the in-house human resource management of the organization is training and development. The demands in employee training and recruitment can be overwhelming for the nonprofit organizations. The workforce definitely matures over time and this requires that the organization creates opportunities for their growth. Training and education of various fields in the market is advancing with time as current technology is integrated in almost every aspect of life. Organizations find it challenging to retain the old employees who do not the current skills and knowledge required for a company to remain competitive in the market. This therefore forces companies to make new recruitments who are enthusiastic and motivated with the latest education and training. Conclusion Outsourcing provides the company with the necessary human resource expertise which may sometimes be difficult to have from within. An HR outsourcing firm would work close with the company to plan, develop, and implement necessary HR capabilities. Outsourcing critical functionality of human resource management works best in a small and medium sized company. This is primarily because employing HR personnel in such a situation can prove more costly for the company than when the functions are outsourced. The outsourcing firms offer end to end services which sometimes the internal human resource personnel may not be able to fully provide. For large companies, the idea of outsourcing HR functionalities may make sense because HR adm inistration can be time consuming. Outsourcing therefore can free up time and employees who can be made to support in other important company activities. In most cases, companies do assume that HR functions can be handled in a short time. However, human resource requires a full time input for it to be effectively handled. Companies may also try to handle the HR functions with a single human resource personnel or a team of unqualified employees. Such an approach can never be effective and does not offer sound solution to the HR issues faced within the companies. Outsourcing the functions of HR ensures that they are handled by experts with the necessary resourcing to for a fulltime input. Management of human resource has a lot of legalities involved and sometimes companies may lack the necessary resources and expertise to handle these legal implications. However, the outsourcing firms are equipped with professional expertise and resources to handle the legal implications of human reso urce management. As a result, employees within the company will end up being more productive, healthy, and happy in line with the company’s strategic goals. References Chew, I. Sharma, B., 2006. The effects of culture and HRM practices on firm perfomance. international journal of manpower, 23(2), pp. 560-581. Cook, M., 1999. Outsourcing Human Resources Functions. Strategies for Providing Enhanced HR Services at Lower Cost. 1st ed. 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