Talent and Workforce Management

Running head: U06A1- TALENT AND WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT

U06a1- Talent and Workforce Management

Sheila D. Bew

Capella University

Human Resource Management Capstone

HRM 5920

Dr. Robert Rowden

November 21, 2010

U06a1- Talent and Workforce Management

Human Resource Management Practices

Business challenges and the pressures of globalization have had a tremendous impact on

human resource management (HRM) practices in several organizations. When business

strategies and human resource management policies are developed at the same time, they

positively affect organizational performance.

Strategic HRM practices have been defined as those that are "theoretically or empirically

related to overall organizational performance" (p. 15). Internal career opportunities, formal

training systems, performance appraisals based on results, employment security, job

participation and job descriptions are the practices that are defined. This approach has come to

be known as the "best practices".

Internal career opportunities are when the companies hire from within the organization;

training systems consist of extensive training programs that are provided by the company;

performance evaluations are based on actual outcome-based performance ratings; employment

security is when employees do not fear losing their jobs; job participating is when employees

have a voice in the decision making opportunities of the organizations and their ideas and

suggestions actually count; and job description refers to a well defined description of their job

title.

Strategic HRM practices can create distinctive competencies as a source of sustained

competitive advantage. Not all human capital resources, however, lead to this end result equally.

Human resources that are valuable, rare, difficult to imitate, and supported by the organization

can lead to sustained competitive advantage (Akhtar, S. & et. al., p. 20).

Human resources management has a tremendous impact on organizational performance.

Numerous studies have shown a positive relationship between effective human resources

management practices and organizational performance (Huselid, 1995). However, little is

known on how and what to measure regarding effective HRM practices, the level of

measurement and measuring the outcomes of HRM on organizational performance.

Strategic human resources management (SHR) is an important step to organizing and

staffing and it is critical to developing and implementing responses to profit pressures. SHR is

concerned with the contributions HR strategies make to organizational effectiveness, and how

these contributions are accomplished (Becton and Schraeder, 2009) and involves designing and

implementing a set of internally consistent policies and practices to ensure that an organization's

human capital (employees' collective knowledge, skills, and abilities) contributes to overall

business objectives.

Human resource has accomplished a great deal into becoming more strategic, but is

lacking in establishing the role as a strategic business partner. There is a big difference in the

traditional human resource management perspectives and the strategic human resource

management and that is why so many organizations are finding it difficult to transition. A total

mind-set is needed for HR to become a strategic business partner.

Organizational Talent

When an organization transforms their human resources management process from their

traditional administrative focus to a strategic business contribution it is the key needed to

improve