Question

Subject: HRM

Comprehensive Case Scenario Human Resources Management The Wilson Brothers Limited Case Case Scenario Written By Charles Purchase, Seneca College (Case Fictional) History In 1960, the Wilson Brothers, Bob and John, started Wilson Brothers Limited. This Canadian company manufactured and distributed various lines of prepared food products for the Canadian market from a number of plants, with the head office located in Brandon, Manitoba. Bob was just 23 years old at the time, and John was 21. In the first year of operations, the sales volume for Wilson Brothers Limited was $300,000. By 2000, Wilson Brothers Limited had six operating plants in Canada. They had also expanded to the western US market and had several plants in Europe. Wilson Export Division was responsible for exporting product to Japan and China. In 2000, the total sales volume of the Company was over $6 billion. The company was a Canadian business success story, both at home and abroad. In addition to the spectacular volume increases, the company was very well managed financially. It had no reason to go public to raise capital as it financed all of its expansion through earnings. There were several reasons for the Company's exponential growth. First and foremost, the brothers valued hard work. They each worked ten to twelve hours per day, even in the latter stages of their careers. Consequently, their senior and middle management group worked similar hours. Secondly, each brother was a skilled salesman in the traditional sense. Their handshake was their bond. Thirdly, they had tremendous "cultural sensitivity." Whenever they expanded to foreign markets, they recruited a local executive to be CEO at that location so that the local culture was respected and integrated to business practices (fostered). They assigned a Canadian executive to be VP Finance so that financial reporting was consistent across all Company operations. The brothers were proud of the exponential growth of the Company and were particularly proud of their Canadian roots. This pride and work ethic permeated through the organization from top management to the line

Introduction and Instructions

You have recently been hired as the Director of Human Resources for Wilson Brothers Canada and have HR responsibility for all of the company’s Canadian operations. Bob and John Wilson have asked you to prepare a report for their review focusing specifically on organizational behavior within the company. Review the Wilson Brothers Case Scenario in depth and address the required topic listed below in your analysis report. Marks are allocated for thoroughness of coverage of the ten required topics and their analysis-linkages to appropriate OB theories and practices from the course and external sources. It is not enough to just describe the happenings at Wilson Bros. Analysis should include the effectiveness of the current approach for the topics as well as recommendations for improvement in each. Use topic as a heading in your analysis. While there are no page requirements for the analysis report include all relevant analysis and be concise. Remember this is an Executive Summary for the owners of the company.

The topic to be covered, and subjected to analysis:

Power, Influence and Motivation (The types of power used by the Wilson Brothers and how they impact and influence employee behavior and motivation).

Your analysis of the topic should include the following:

1. Describe the current situation for each topic at Wilson Brothers.
2. Analyze the effectiveness of their approach i.e. how it helps or hinders.
3. Make recommendations on how Wilson Brothers can improve.
4. Link your recommendations to specific OB theories/concepts

Answer 1

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Comprehensive Case Scenario Human Resources Management

          As the new director of Human Resource Management for the Canadian operations of Wilson Brothers, I will not sit back and entertain bad human resource management policies in the company just because the company is performing well in terms of profits, but I will ensure that I move the company forward. Human resources is the major asset of any company and therefore no lasting performance can be achieved when there are not right human resource policies put in place protect the rights of the employees.

        Good management of human resources is good for the long survival of the company and right policies has to be put in place to guard against any discrimination of employees due lack or poor policies. I will therefore take necessary steps to develop and implement HR polices so that the company can apply them throughout the Canadian organization. I will also ensure that I introduce the policies to the international operations to ensure union status is maintained as I coordinate with Ron Abrams.

What I will do as the director of human resource management for the Canadian operations

         I will introduce a policy to replace the current trend where hiring of managers and executives at a starting salary is based on their ability to negotiate rather than specific salary range. I will introduce a specific salary range generally based on qualifications and job description. Employment equity is a very important policy in organization that ensures that employees are treated fairly equally. I will ensure one is in place.

          Job description is important as it shows what is expected from employee in terms of duties and work process. Lack of this policy can be a disaster for the company and therefore I will ensure I introduce it. Performance appraisal is important too as it shows whether the employee performs according to the expectation or not. It rates employee performance and therefore important for the organization as a way of motivating its staff.

         Unequal treatment for employees by giving others bonuses and leaving the rest can demoralize them. I will ensure that equity policy is in place to address this inequality at workplace.

          It’s important for a company to have a well documented succession policy as this will avoid confusion in the future. It’s wrong for the brother to determine a vacancy by offering that position to an existing employee based on the ability of employee to implement strategic objectives. I will also ensure that a legally binding employment contract is created to help eliminate fear of job loss among employees in the event they fall out of favor with the brothers.
          Meetings are very important functions that ensure stock taking is done. This should not only take place among the senior management only. Other lower level employees should also be involved as they are the cornerstone of every company operation and information got from them can be valuable in ensuring the company succeeds. I will introduce this policy and make it a priority.

Organizational Design and Structure (Advantages/Disadvantages).
Functional Strategy Advantages and Disadvantages

         In a functional structure, all of the decision-making take at the top structure of management. This ensures that upper management at Wilson Brothers has absolute control over the company. It also offers a understandable career trajectory for the staff of the company, from junior-level positions, up to the high decision-making levels. A functional structure offers stability and efficiency, mainly in big and complex companies like Wilson Brothers, since everybody uses the same procedures. This also enables big companies to take advantage of economies of scale.

Job Design (Use of job design principles to impact employee motivation and employee engagement)
Job Design

         Job Design is the process of incorporating several elements to form a job, knowing well organizational and individual employee needs, and considerations of health, safety, and ergonomics. Job Design generally refers to the way that a set of work or a whole position is arranged.

Impact of Job Design on Employees

Employee Input:

          A good job design results in a good job feedback. Workers have the choice to vary duties according to their personal and social requirements, characters and situations in the workplace.

Employee Training:

          Training is an important area of job design. Contrary to the philosophy of "leave them alone’ job design puts due emphasis on training employees so that they prepared to deliver on what is required of them.

Work / Rest Schedules:

          Job design provides good work and rest schedule by properly defining the amount of time an employee has to use in his/her job.

Decision Making (How decisions are made and communicated)

Clearly state the decision

        This may appear simplistic but clarity is usually obscured by attempts to say a lot, or by your choice of words.

Explain the reasoning behind the decision

          The aim here is not to sell your decision to others, achieve buy-in, or justify your action. Managers are trained to make decisions, so they need no justification.

Show clearly when you will carry out re-analysis of the decision impacts

          Putting an exact time frame on the re-evaluation procedure leads to credibility to the promise it has and forces some form of tracking process to deliver on the promise.

How to Make Decisions

Step 1: Create a Constructive Environment

         Decisions can become complex when they include of directly impact other individuals, so it important to develop a constructive atmosphere in which to explore the circumstances and weigh up your choices.

Step 2: Generate Good Alternatives

         The larger the choice you explore, the better your final decision is likely to be. Creating many diverse choices can appear to make your decision more complex at first, but the act of developing alternatives makes you to dig deeper and focus at the problem from different angles.

Step 3: Select the Best Solution

         Once you’ve analyzed the alternatives, the next step is to make your decision. If one specific alternative is clearly better than the rest, your choice will be obvious. However, if you still have many competing choices, there are many techniques that will assist you decided between them.

Equity (Specific issues related to perceived fairness in the organization)

Add transparency and a commitment to equity to the paycheck

         When it comes to a sense of fair play, it's not only about the salary of the paycheck that is important. The transparency of the compensation system and a clear determination to equity by the organization are important in ensuring employees feel fairly treated.

Organizational Culture (Culture(s) within the organization and the effect of the culture(s) on organization performance)
         Culture, especially in big companies that have a great deal of internal momentum, can be challenging to control or change. The size of a company and the strength of its culture are the biggest contributors to cultural inertia.

Effects of Culture

         A strong organizational culture will lure good level talent. The high level talents coming into corporations want to go to the companies that provide chances for improvements and to show off their talents. The best candidates can be choosy and they will strongly consider the organization’s where the organizational culture looks effective and positive and the employees get along with one another and are united in their goals of making the organization to prosper.

Organizational Change being implemented

Work Groups/Teams (The existence of group or teams in the organization and their effectiveness).
         An effective team can assist a company achieve good results. A team that is not performing can cause unnecessary interference, failed performance and strategic failure. Today it is almost not easy e to avoid being a member of team. If you're not part of official team at work, chances are you operate within one in one way or another. So it's critical for your personal and career development to understand your team working strengths and weaknesses.

Conflict (Evidence and effect of conflict in the organization and how it is handled)

Decrease in Productivity

         When an organization take a lot of its time handling conflict, employees spend time away from paying attention on the core goals they are responsible for achieving. Conflict makes employees to pay less attention on the project at hand and more on talk about conflict or venting about frustrations. Due to this, the company can lose money, donors and access to important resources.

Leadership Style (Leadership and management style of the interviewee and others in management)
         The authoritative leader mobilizes the team toward a common mission and focuses on final goals, leaving the means up to each employee. If this style were put up in one phrase, it would be "Come with me."

Management Style

Consultative

         A more paternalistic form is also important dictatorial. However, decisions consider the best interests of the workers as well as the company. Communication is again generally downward, but feedback to the management is encouraged to keep motivation.

Expert Power

         Expert power derives from knowledge and skill. Steve Jobs has expert power from his ability to understand customer requirements—even before they say it. Others who have expert power in an organization are long-time staff, such as a steelworker who understands the temperature combinations and duration of time to get good results.

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