Human resources introduction

The growing desire for better and outstanding corporate success is one of the core activities associated with the acquisition of HR expertise in an organization. With growing cases of the strike, underperformance, unsatisfied employees, and underpayment, as well as unending strikes and threats from employees' unions, the GTR faces a number of problems that the company has to resolve. To return to its best and improve employee performance and organizational productivity (Holbeche, 2009). The organization is in need of HR expertise in an effort to understand the way in which to strategically align human resource with organizations future development and growth. With the GTR organization focused on modernizing its operations, increase its capacity, which are required infrastructure modernization as well as cases of drivers turning overtime, conflict between ASLEF and RMT union, which accused the company of mismanaging and work collisions between the conductors, drivers and the newly adopted on-board supervisors. This paper provides a detailed report with reference to the case study provided (GTR). The report will focus on mitigating the challenges identified from an Interim HR consultant to the firm drawing from the knowledge acquired as well as the case scenario.

Task 1: HR Functions in a Contemporary Business Environment

Since its invention and adoption onto the daily management of organizations, Human resource have grown to become an integral element in today’s business environment. Ranging from recruitment and selection process of employee training and development, Human Resource has been an important tool for effective organizational management. This is due to the fact that, its policy formulation and performance management as well as change management can hardly be ignored for organizations that focused to improve its performance and employee relations.

Drawing from the provided case study, different management issues can be identified to be affecting/facing the GTR. One of the people management issues facing the organization is a threat or strained relationship between the employee unions and the company. The company has been accused of sabotaging the employee efforts as well as their rights, this is leading to the threatened strike by the workers, which would affect more than 300, 000 users of the train. On the other hand, pay dispute has been another issue or factor behind train drivers planning to take part in the strike. With employees fighting for recognition, through strikes, negative relations with the employee unions and fight for their rights as well as pay rise can be regarded as people management issues. Finally, the introduction of Driver Only Operations has been met with obstacles as workers has opposed the move and change of job description for drivers, conductors and supervisors.

Drawing from the Human resource knowledge and policies, practices and its effective application would help in alleviating the issues identified above. The HR helps an organization in performing its financial and operations in an effective way. With the primary objective of the HR department and personnel’s being to strengthen the relationship between the employee and the employer/organization, the application of HR in the issues can be a positive development towards the way the GTR Company manages the issues to the best of the organization and employee benefit. With the proposed changes, the HR can deploy the employee management policies not only would this allows for successful relations between the employees and the organization, but also provide successful and positive environments for dialogues on the way forward (Awadzi-Calloway et al 2016, P. 34).

With reference to the numerous staffing issues, employee training, development, selection and employment are one of the primary objective or functions of HR sector. This would in turn provide a detailed platform into which the organization solves its employee related issues more so, with relation to staffing. One application of HR is conflict mitigation in an organization, hence would be perfect for conflict resolution between the roaming employee strikes, employee dissatisfaction with the management and the change process as well as the pay change. This is possible through effective change management in organizations. On the other hand, another function of the HR is to evaluate and set acceptable employee payment with reference to law and other payment affecting factors (Awadzi-Calloway et al 2016, P. 36). With reference to a GTR case scenario, the application of HR would help in providing solutions to the challenges, and in turn enabling a smooth change implementation with minimal challenges. In summary the use of HR would help in recruiting, employee engagement, compliance, compensation and benefits as well as change management, which aligns with the needs of the organization at GTR.

Task 2: HR Planning In a Business Environment

In an effort to improve an organization's strategic alignment of staff and other resources, it is in turn an important aspect of an organization with reference to the understanding of how a strategic HR planning process works for the benefit of the organization, employee, managers and the overall stakeholders. In its most basic understanding, the human resource planning ensures that, there is adequate staffing who would meet an organizations operation objectives and goals, hence matching the right people with the right skills at the right time. Successful implementation of HR planning within GTR would help towards employing the right candidate for the right job, and more so, aligning with the organizational objective.

In order to implement a successful and sustainable HR planning process, the GTR Company can align the plan with its objective to realize and maximize the organizational achievement. The first take is to assess the current GTR HR capacity. This would help in identifying the current strengths and position of the GTR in terms of HR management and planning. For example, it would help in identifying how much effort has been implemented in solving the employee related issues. In addition, the assessment stage would also enable in assessing the knowledge, skills, as well as the abilities of the GTR current staff.

The next step would forecasting of HR requirements which regarded as forecasting an organizations, HR needs for the future with reference to the company’s strategic goals (Zink 2008, P. 796). This entails estimation of both demand and supply, and with reference to GTR, it will help in identifying the number of staffs required for the proposed change, what jobs need to be filed as well as what skills does the people ought to possess. During the forecasting process, the challenges that the GTR HR is focused to address. This will entail the evaluation of the current staff at GTR, and comparing with what the organization is need of in an effort to meet its daily rail operations. Dialogue with staff unions would help in relaying the much needed change and organizational demands in terms of employee skills and knowledge as well as the number.

Thirdly, there is the Gap analysis step with reference to HR strategic planning In GTR which analyses where the organization need to be and where it is at that specific time. Gap analysis helps to focus in the organization's future. More so, the step also entails analysis of HR management practices to identify practices that would help the organization to improve and its capacity to move forward. In simple reference to the GTR scenario, will entail: the analyzing of organizational objective, inventory of the present human resource within GTR, forecasting on the aspect of demand and supply of HR within GTR, estimating manpower gaps, formulating the final human resource action plan, and finally the performance of control, monitoring and feedback.

Improved planning for employee development is a major focus by the planning aspect of HR as it helps the GTR management to effectively manage the existing employees to improve the overall relationship between organizational demands and employee union and job description. For example, the replacement of conductors with on board supervisors would be addressed using the HR planning approach. HR planning would help in identifying major gaps, sources of conflict as well as help in making strategic decisions with reference to hiring and training of the required manpower.

Task 3 Effective HR Practices and Performance Management in Organizations

Increasing productivity and performance among the employees is one of the key goals in every organization. According to Arbaugh (2006, P. 244), employee performance management is focused towards aligning an organization's objectives with the employees acceptable measures such as competency, developmental plans and results delivery. More so, improved and high employee engagement is aligned with business performance. Effective HR practices can be detrimental with reference to overall organizational performance. Different developmental activities can be adopted by organizations in an effort to improve their workers' performance. With reference to a GTR case scenario, different approaches can as well be deployed.

Drawing from the case of GTR, an effective approach that can effectively help in improving employee performance is the adoption of effective communication of clear goals, and expectations of the employees. With the organization on the verge of change to modernizing its operations, the employee should be made an integral part of the team in GTR. Majority of employee looks forward to being part of a compelling future within an organization. They also want to know what is running, work description as well as what is important. For an employee to be meaningful and effective in terms of being part of the organization performance, they must be tied to the larger organization ambitions. This motivates the employees to be part of the team, as well as focus on achieving more within the GTR. By communicating clear goals and expectations of the employees within GTR would help in affirming their role within the organization as well as what is working. It also invites honesty and understanding of the employee’s demands as well as employee understanding the organization goals, intentions and change process. This empowers the employees to ensure their overall committal to the GTR objective. By providing clear and direct expectations helps the employees to focus their overall performance on what the managers and leaders have highlighted as important, and what would lead to desired results hence remaining positive, overall motivated and improved performance.

For example, by drawing the conflicting employee union, involving them in change management and overall decision making, the employees would be motivated as they would feel as part of the larger GTR operations. With reference to HR knowledge, this can be done through stating of the organization's expectations and direct and unambiguous way to ensure there is no confusion among the employees. It can also be done in grouping the employee into functional teams as well as communication expansions in positive terms. A successful organization is regarded as one that effectively manages and communicates its expectation to the stakeholders, employees, customers and managers in the most effective way. This can be through clear, direct and understandable deliverables. By holding time to time meetings with the employees, helps to communicate the desired objective on time as well as make evaluation of the progress. Focusing on the changes within the staff at GTR, frequent communication with the HR management or the organizational leaders would enable individual employees to understand the organizations planned change, employee role, and also the way they (employees) will be affected. Not only does this assure the employees their jobs, but also helps them to understand the overall focus and operations of the organization, and despite their disagreement, they will remain focused on their overall performance.

Task 4 Influence of Employment Legislation on HR Practices in Organizations

The development and implementation of HR practices within an organization most probably involve activities that are protected by the employment law, which confers employee rights as well as impose legal responsibilities on the employees. With reference to this, the Human resource professionals are in turn required to familiarize with the laws that apply to their business type and company operations, as well as within their geographical regions (Ivanovic & Blazevic 2009, P. 110). For example, some of the common employee rights are protected by the employment Law under the non-discrimination as well as the equal employment chance/ opportunities dockets. Others include freedom to join their preferred unions, right to privacy etc.

Drawing from the provided case scenario, and more so the current strike action, the industrial relevant employment legislation plays an essential role of the employee and management relations, one of the factors behind the challenges in the CTR is the issue of payment and employee wages. The law on minimum wage that can be offered to an employee clearly defines a detailed guidance on how an organization should pay their employees. The law allows for strikes as well as right for the employees to join their preferred unions within an organization.

The human resource functions with regard to the issue of compliance plays an important role as well. There are different laws and regulations that governs employment relations which HR professionals ought to understand. These include the Fair Labor Standards Act, which defines the allowed minimum wage as well as rights to overtime for certain employees. As the GTR HR functions would also include establishment of an acceptable compensation and benefit plan which would define the employees’ level of skills, duration and also the agreement with the unions. With reference to following the established employment laws relating to pay and wages, the organization can also adopt hiring of the right talent, proper education and training, the HR also needs to create an employee handbook which is updated regularly, and finally communicate key changes or proposed changes with reference to changes in payment and changes. Not only does communication allow the trade and employee unions to air their ideas, grievances hence minimizing the strike actions by the employees in GTR. The application of HR policies and functions would allow the GTR to effectively determine what the organization will pay for wages and salaries. This in turn brings the understanding of the economic conditions of the organization and the region in which the GTR functions, volume of potential employees and legislative requirements.

On the other hand, contracted working times establishes an organization's employment contract which establishes the responsibilities and duties of an employer as well as that of the employee. The HR should ensure the employee well understands the contract terms before signing the provided contract. Adhering to the law aspects, the HR should make it clear the terms and provide the document to the employees two months prior to signing. The document should clearly defining hours of work and normal working hours. With reference to the GTR case scenario, one issue of contention is the employees working hours, threatening to dishonor the overtime working hours (Ivanovic & Blazevic 2009, P. 115). Applying the functions of HR in terms of employee benefits would help in establishing a detailed work plan on employee working hours pay as well as overtime pay. This would allow for legislation adherence, GTR financial status and union demands, bringing into the end the strikes and employee conflict on the ground of payment issues. The previously protracted pay rise to the employees would be rendered an issue of contention with regard to the company changes and proposed modernization, would in lead to the HR adopting either an alternative or ensure the proposed change in payment and employee contracts is adhered to.

Conclusion

The increasing importance of HR policies and functions within an organization can hardly be ignored in the contemporary organizations. The different functions of HR have been deemed important. These include employee management, planning, benefits and rewards to the workers. The HR policies would allow for the GTR to navigate through the identified challenges such as conflict between the managers and the employees, workers strikes union conflict, manage employee performance including other challenges. The invention and adoption of human resource practices have brought massive change with reference how organizations mitigate challenges that result from changes within an organization. As technology advances and any organizational change create challenges for human resource managers to effectively run an organization. An organization's workforce has to ensure it keeps up with the recent development, there may be a risk of in terms of employee management, relations as well as overall organizational performance. The Human resource manager plays an integral part in an organization more so in helping mitigate any employee and organizational performance related challenges.

References

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Awadzi-Calloway, J, Awadzi, C, & Awadzi, W 2016, 'The Role of Human Resource Specialists in Motivation, Training and Engagement in the Hospitality Industry', Consortium Journal of Hospitality & Tourism, 20, 2, pp. 32-37.

Holbeche, L 2009, Aligning Human Resources and Business Strategy, Amsterdam: Routledge, eBook Collection (EBSCOhost), EBSCOhost, viewed 26 December 2017.

Ivanovic, S, & Blazevic, M 2009, 'Human Resource Management in the Hospitality Industry', Tourism & Hospitality Management, 15, 1, pp. 107-116.

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Zink, KJ 2008, 'Human resources and organisational excellence', Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 19, 7/8, pp. 793-805, Hospitality & Tourism Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 26 December 2017.