Reference no: EM132245405 , Length: 3000 Words

Assignment - Developing Individuals, Teams and Organisations

Learning Outcomes:

• Analyse employee knowledge, skills and behaviours required by HR professionals.
• Analyse the factors to be considered when implementing and evaluating inclusive learning and development to drive sustainable business performance.
• Apply knowledge and understanding to the ways in which high-performance working (HPW) contributes to employee engagement and competitive advantage.
• Evaluate ways in which performance management, collaborative working and effective communication can support high-performance culture and commitment.

Introduction -

Business growth through higher productivity and enhanced competitiveness is of critical importance to the global economic recovery and future prosperity in general. Hence, the British Department for Business, Innovation and Skills recently published a report in which a considerable body of evidence shows that wider adoption of High Performance Work Practices (HPWPs) would improve a firm's performance and contribute to growth.

Employees report higher job satisfaction, motivation, involvement, commitment and greater opportunities for innovation and creativity with such working conditions, environments and systems.

The system comprises a coherent bundle of high performance work practices including Continuing Professional Development (CPD) which is the means by which professionals maintain and enhance their knowledge and skills. The CPD initiative aims at empowering people and organisations with the skills and knowledge to drive performance, as well as inspire change and unlock potential.

The Whirlpool HPW Case -

In a "company crisis" scenario which culminated in 2011, the North America Regional Staff of Whirlpool who are responsible for executing organizational and strategic changes to sustain the company embarked upon a major restructuring.

The team was aware that the restructuring would require well-informed, timely decision-making, efficient, effective and cross-functional collaboration if the business was to move forward since the organisation was increasingly depending upon teams for innovation and productivity, and that simply being "effective" was not always enough.

The survey in Whirlpool measured its team in the North America Region (NAR) on five core dimensions critical for exceptional team performance. These dimensions include; Shared Commitment to the Company Vision and Extraordinary Goals, Shared Accountability for Results, Transparent Communication, Constructive Conflict, Mutual Respect and Solidarity. With a clear understanding of what needed to be accomplished with the restructuring, the NAR Staff became one of the first teams to ever engage in the HPT assessment process and to implement the necessary changes to ensure HPW.

With these findings Whirlpool employees in the course of a one-day team development session agreed to implement the following changes to improve team functioning:

a. The lengthy and too-often unproductive weekly team meeting was streamlined by focusing on resolving the most urgent operational issues affecting the business.

b. Any NAR staff member who had specific individual needs to address with the president or other team members did so outside of the team meeting, thereby avoiding personal conversations at the weekly staff meeting.

c. Special off-site meetings were arranged so the NAR Staff could thoughtfully and creatively address strategic issues.

d. "End run" communications with the president were eliminated.

e. Team members committed to working more collaboratively to solve business problems by listening to each other and challenging one another, ultimately replacing a "hub-and-spoke" engagement model with the president as the hub.

In addition to these team-level changes, Whirlpool Staff made individual commitments to align their individual behaviour with the newly developed expectations of the team. Those who previously worked in relative isolation agreed to engage with one another before taking certain actions and to self-improve their skills. What was implicitly playing out below the surface was openly put on the table in a fair but explicit way. This helped team members engage in transparent communication and embrace personal ownership for the team's performance."

A second administration of the HPT showed the following:-

1. Shared Commitment to the Vision and Extraordinary Goals

2. Team members communicate a consistent message about the team's vision and goals throughout the organization.

3. Team members demonstrate an enterprise perspective even when executing our individual priorities.

4. Shared Accountability for Results

5. Transparent Communication

6. Team has an appropriate forum for constructive debate and discussion about the issues facing the company.

7. Mutual Respect and Solidarity

The follow up scores demonstrate that in just a half-year period and during a critical time in Whirlpool's business, the HPT effectiveness process helped to improve the organisation performance, strongly enhancing the team's ability to deliver exceptional results.

Scenario: As a HR consultant for Whirlpool, it is required of you to present a report at the annual Confederation of British Industry workshop highlighting ways in which performance management, collaborative working and effective communication can support high-performance culture and commitment.

Please address the LOs and assessment criteria as specified below. [You are encouraged to use practical examples from appropriate sources to support the various principles, concepts and theories that will ensure effective training and development practices]

Using the scenario address the following in approximately 3000 words:

1. Carry out a mini-research to determine the appropriate and professional knowledge, skills and behaviours that are required by HR professionals in an organisation with special reference to the case study at Whirlpool.

2. Analyse a completed personal skills audit to identify appropriate knowledge, skills and behaviours and develop a professional development plan for a given job role with special reference to the case study at Whirlpool.

3. Analyse the differences between organisational and individual learning, training and development with reference to the case study at Whirlpool.

4. Analyse the need for continuous learning and professional development to drive sustainable business performance with reference to the case study at Whirlpool.

5. Demonstrate understanding of how HPW contributes to employee engagement and competitive advantage within the organisational situation.

6. Evaluate different approaches to performance management (e.g. collaborative working), and demonstrate with specific examples how they can support high-performance culture and commitment with special reference to the case study at Whirlpool.