netrashetty
Netra Shetty
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak (reporting mark AMTK), is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track".[2] It is headquartered at Union Station in Washington, D.C.[3]
All of Amtrak's preferred stock is owned by the U.S. federal government. The members of its board of directors are appointed by the President of the United States and are subject to confirmation by the United States Senate. Common stock was issued in 1971 to railroads that contributed capital and equipment; these shares convey almost no benefits[4] but their current holders[5] declined a 2002 buy-out offer by Amtrak.[6]
Amtrak employs nearly 19,000 people. It operates passenger service on 21,000 miles (34,000 km) of track primarily owned by freight railroads connecting 500 destinations in 46 states[7] and three Canadian provinces. In fiscal year 2008, Amtrak served 28.7 million passengers, representing six straight years of record ridership.[7][8] Despite this recent growth, the United States still has one of the lowest inter-city rail usages in the developed world.
Strategic human resources management, alignment with mission achievement, strategic alignment these terms are some of the phrases, which are being used to explain the latest, evolving function of human resources management (HRM). Different people will give different meaning for these terms. Consequently, it is imperative to ascertain from the starting what we are really talking about. Human resources management alignment implies integrating decisions concerning employees with decisions regarding the outcomes a business is attempting to reach the objective of the company in relations to its business targets. (Hunger & Wheelen, 2003) This report will address strategic human resource management in APS Company. The report will take a critical evaluation of the human resource and offer the best strategy to follow.
A critical evaluation of the role of strategic human resource management in contributing towards the success of APS
With human resource rising as the primary asset of an organisation, human resources (HR) management are being faced with new challenges to come up with strategic approaches that can add value to the organisations when sourcing for new employees. To address this issue the human resource have to formulated strategies that will add value to an organisation in pursuit of identifying, recruiting, developing and retaining highly talented employees who can take the company to new heights and provide a competitive advantage to the company (Armstrong, 2006)
Recruitment and retention
Beardwell & Holden (1997) states that; employee recruitment is very important in an organization. It consists of administration, performance and staffing. All these are interrelated activities that are carried out in an organization. Management and staffing activities help in ensuring that employees with right or desired skills are recruited. The employees have also to be in the right numbers desired by the organization. Employee recruitment aims at ensuring that employees are at the right place at the right time. Human resource manager in this case is concerned with ensuring that employees perform their best. Best recruitment processes insure that the organizations get the best staff that can improve and add value to the company. The human resource has to provide better employment terms to retain employees who are experienced in the organization. This will highly help the restructuring processes. (Beardwell & Holden, 1997)
Training and development
Each employee requires more learning in order to improve his /her skills, no matter how best a candidate is, he/she can not be 100% percent qualified. Thus, the human resource management should implement learning management system (Beardwell & Holden, 1997)
In general the human resource management is supposed to come up with training and education programs for its employees. Training can be termed as systematic enhancement of knowledge, skills and attitudes of the needed by an employee in order to perform a given task. Development is the growth of an employee in terms of capability, understanding and awareness. In an organization training and development is important in order to;
1. Develop a workforce that can perform higher-grade assignments
2. Increase efficiency, effectiveness and standards of performance by the employee
3. Keep the employees informed
4. Provide the usual training of new recruited workforce
Employee performance management
The most important aspect of human resource management practice is employee evaluation. The performance of any organisation is determined directly by the performance of the employees. It is possible to monitor the evaluation if the employees of any company via the use of human resource evaluation systems. These systems are done continuously with a view to retaining useful employees. Some organizations, because of their soft approaches, have incurred huge losses due to the fact that most employees are joy-riders in the organisation. These employees are considered a liability to the organisation because they contribute very little for the productivity levels. This means that their cost benefit ratio is high (Hunger & Wheelen, 2003)
Regulatory compliance
In the recent days, human resource management practices have extended its functions to include regulating employees in the organization. The human resource management will have to ensure that employees comply with the company rules and regulations. In addition the manager will also have to ensure that good working relations do exist between the employees. In case an employee breaks the company rules or regulations, then the human resource management has to take steps in disciplining the employee so that he/she can comply. If the employee persist being disobedient to the company rules, then the human resource management can sack him/her if that the only step that remains to be undertaken. Complying with company rules is directly related with improving production. (Hunger & Wheelen, 2003)
Compensation and benefits
Workers need to be compensated for their performance in order to encourage them to keep up or improve on that performance. The moment the human resource establishes the performance of the worker, managers should reward to commensurate with the worker's achievement. These will ensure maximum production and effectiveness of the worker; current compensation programs should include a mix of basic pay, equities and variable pay. (Hunger & Wheelen, 2003)
Employees need to be motivated in order for the company to get the best out of them. An employee who is well motivated will easily stay in the organization and be more productive. For this to occur human resource have to attend to the financial and psychological needs of the workers by rewarding them well. Hunger & Wheelen (2003) observers that, better conditions for service and financial rewards are examples of measures applied to motivate employees within the organisation while in some, it could be in terms of annual, leave, insurance or shorter working periods. The human resource manager of the organization needs to come up with good employment policies that are desirable to the employees. It is important that the workers when paid accept their pay package as "fair and just" in order for them to be motivated. (Hunger & Wheelen, 2003)
Propose a strategy you would propose for managing HR in APS showing how it aligns to the published goals
Sound Manpower planning
The best method in which APS Company can directly improve its performance in successfully in relation to its objectives and missions, is through Manpower planning
Human resource management main function is manpower planning. As observed in APS organization, it lacks proper planning in its human capital which has been it undergo costly penalties. Having the right staff, in terms of numbers and skills is a task that the human resource may strategies well. When it comes to sourcing the human resource must source well so that it can get the maximum benefits from its workforce. The human resource has to understand that overstaffing is a waste and expensive to the organisation and does not add any value to the organisation but, instead reduce the competitive advantage of the organisation. (Armstrong, 2006)
In planning of the workforce, an assessment of current and future needs of the organisation has to be taken into account, compared to the available resources together with future predicted resources. Then appropriate strategies can be undertaken to balance demand and supply of the work force. Thus, before sourcing for more workers, the human resource has to take analyse the current workforce profile in terms of numbers, ages, skills, experience, gender, flexibility, forecast capabilities, etc. the human resource then can adjust this for say 2 or 5 years ahead so as to amend for normal employee turnover, retirements and staff movement in accordance with the business plan in relation to the corresponding time frames. (Armstrong, 2006)
The result from this will give the human resource a lot of information on how to come up with sourcing plans that will be able to add value to the organisation. The human resource will have a well "though out" and sound sourcing demand programme for different dates in future which then, can be compared with the rough supply programmes. The evaluation will then show the steps that have to be taken when sourcing in order to strike a balance. (Dainty, 2000)When human resource undertake such workforce planning program it will save the organisation a lot of money at the same time add competent staff to the organisation who can take the organisation to new heights and surpass the set targets.
HUMAN RESOURCE DEPARTMENT CHAPTER NO.5 TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT The unit of Training and Development performs several important functions for the company, like orientation training, Performance Appraisal and the general Training and Development. 5.1 Orientation Process and Induction of New Employees The Descon holds that orientation Program is very necessary for the old as well as
for the new employee. The entire process of orientation is conducted at Descon as
follows:
1)Need determination for orientation program
2)Designing of orientation program
3)Implementation of orientation program
4)Analysis of orientation programming And Development
5.1.1 Steps of Orientation Program Need determination for orientation program. When an employee joins Descon, the HR Department, the department in which the employee has been selected and the top management determines the need for the orientation program. If the candidate has been transferred from some other country to Descon Pakistan, it is very necessary to acquaint him to the culture of the country and the general business practices. He is of course, aware of the Descon engineering culture but he may be informed about the new department he has joined and about his new duties and authority. Designing of orientation program At Descon the orientation program is designed by 35
HUMAN RESOURCE DEPARTMENT •Head of HR Department • Training Specialists • Immediate Supervisor •Head of the Department in which the employee is selected In designing the orientation program, the length of the program depends on the employee for whom the program is conducted. If the employee has joined Descon from some other country the program is very lengthy as he is not only to learn the culture of the organization but also the culture of the country as a whole. The program usually includes • History, policies, practices, rules and regulations of the organization • An overview of the department, the employee joints • An introduction to the work environment, co-workers, superiors, and sub- ordinates. Hence, in this way the new employee is thoroughly acquainted with the Descon culture and thus can perform his job effectively. Implementation of orientation program at this step management simply implement the already design orientation program effectiveness. Analysis of Orientation Program The HR Department of Descon holds that the feedback on the success of orientation program is very necessary. The follow-up is conducted in the following manner:
HUMAN RESOURCE DEPARTMENT the prose and corns of the orientation Program. If he is comfortable with the Descon environment, the Program is a success or vice versa. Management’s View on Orientation Process The management of Descon believes that orientation Program necessary because of socialization and knows how about company’s policies and procedures. The purpose of this step is to introduce the new employee with the work unit, organization, peers. Tell them the rule and regulations of the company. In different companies different persons are responsible for this but when we talk about Descon manager gives orientation. Training Policy Basic purpose of training is to update the knowledge of employees and enhancing their skills. Today organizations want professional employees because they have come know the importance of employee that’s reason organization call employees “their most important assets”. Due to which companies send their employees on different types of workshop, seminars and other educational programs. Even some companies provide opportunity of getting knowledge on the cost of company. 5.2 Training Need Assessment The training program of Descon normally for the period of lesser then six months and its purpose is to investigate strength and weakness after that making effort to remove these weaknesses. They analyze that employee need training by self assessment, performance record, and questionnaire. The handouts which they provide to trainee develop by themselves not net based. All the cost incurred by the company let it be in-house training or training organized by the Descon Engineering Co. The employee normally needs training about his skill, knowledge and career development. 5.3 Training design After the need assessment process complete, the designing process starts to train employees in systematic way
All of Amtrak's preferred stock is owned by the U.S. federal government. The members of its board of directors are appointed by the President of the United States and are subject to confirmation by the United States Senate. Common stock was issued in 1971 to railroads that contributed capital and equipment; these shares convey almost no benefits[4] but their current holders[5] declined a 2002 buy-out offer by Amtrak.[6]
Amtrak employs nearly 19,000 people. It operates passenger service on 21,000 miles (34,000 km) of track primarily owned by freight railroads connecting 500 destinations in 46 states[7] and three Canadian provinces. In fiscal year 2008, Amtrak served 28.7 million passengers, representing six straight years of record ridership.[7][8] Despite this recent growth, the United States still has one of the lowest inter-city rail usages in the developed world.
Strategic human resources management, alignment with mission achievement, strategic alignment these terms are some of the phrases, which are being used to explain the latest, evolving function of human resources management (HRM). Different people will give different meaning for these terms. Consequently, it is imperative to ascertain from the starting what we are really talking about. Human resources management alignment implies integrating decisions concerning employees with decisions regarding the outcomes a business is attempting to reach the objective of the company in relations to its business targets. (Hunger & Wheelen, 2003) This report will address strategic human resource management in APS Company. The report will take a critical evaluation of the human resource and offer the best strategy to follow.
A critical evaluation of the role of strategic human resource management in contributing towards the success of APS
With human resource rising as the primary asset of an organisation, human resources (HR) management are being faced with new challenges to come up with strategic approaches that can add value to the organisations when sourcing for new employees. To address this issue the human resource have to formulated strategies that will add value to an organisation in pursuit of identifying, recruiting, developing and retaining highly talented employees who can take the company to new heights and provide a competitive advantage to the company (Armstrong, 2006)
Recruitment and retention
Beardwell & Holden (1997) states that; employee recruitment is very important in an organization. It consists of administration, performance and staffing. All these are interrelated activities that are carried out in an organization. Management and staffing activities help in ensuring that employees with right or desired skills are recruited. The employees have also to be in the right numbers desired by the organization. Employee recruitment aims at ensuring that employees are at the right place at the right time. Human resource manager in this case is concerned with ensuring that employees perform their best. Best recruitment processes insure that the organizations get the best staff that can improve and add value to the company. The human resource has to provide better employment terms to retain employees who are experienced in the organization. This will highly help the restructuring processes. (Beardwell & Holden, 1997)
Training and development
Each employee requires more learning in order to improve his /her skills, no matter how best a candidate is, he/she can not be 100% percent qualified. Thus, the human resource management should implement learning management system (Beardwell & Holden, 1997)
In general the human resource management is supposed to come up with training and education programs for its employees. Training can be termed as systematic enhancement of knowledge, skills and attitudes of the needed by an employee in order to perform a given task. Development is the growth of an employee in terms of capability, understanding and awareness. In an organization training and development is important in order to;
1. Develop a workforce that can perform higher-grade assignments
2. Increase efficiency, effectiveness and standards of performance by the employee
3. Keep the employees informed
4. Provide the usual training of new recruited workforce
Employee performance management
The most important aspect of human resource management practice is employee evaluation. The performance of any organisation is determined directly by the performance of the employees. It is possible to monitor the evaluation if the employees of any company via the use of human resource evaluation systems. These systems are done continuously with a view to retaining useful employees. Some organizations, because of their soft approaches, have incurred huge losses due to the fact that most employees are joy-riders in the organisation. These employees are considered a liability to the organisation because they contribute very little for the productivity levels. This means that their cost benefit ratio is high (Hunger & Wheelen, 2003)
Regulatory compliance
In the recent days, human resource management practices have extended its functions to include regulating employees in the organization. The human resource management will have to ensure that employees comply with the company rules and regulations. In addition the manager will also have to ensure that good working relations do exist between the employees. In case an employee breaks the company rules or regulations, then the human resource management has to take steps in disciplining the employee so that he/she can comply. If the employee persist being disobedient to the company rules, then the human resource management can sack him/her if that the only step that remains to be undertaken. Complying with company rules is directly related with improving production. (Hunger & Wheelen, 2003)
Compensation and benefits
Workers need to be compensated for their performance in order to encourage them to keep up or improve on that performance. The moment the human resource establishes the performance of the worker, managers should reward to commensurate with the worker's achievement. These will ensure maximum production and effectiveness of the worker; current compensation programs should include a mix of basic pay, equities and variable pay. (Hunger & Wheelen, 2003)
Employees need to be motivated in order for the company to get the best out of them. An employee who is well motivated will easily stay in the organization and be more productive. For this to occur human resource have to attend to the financial and psychological needs of the workers by rewarding them well. Hunger & Wheelen (2003) observers that, better conditions for service and financial rewards are examples of measures applied to motivate employees within the organisation while in some, it could be in terms of annual, leave, insurance or shorter working periods. The human resource manager of the organization needs to come up with good employment policies that are desirable to the employees. It is important that the workers when paid accept their pay package as "fair and just" in order for them to be motivated. (Hunger & Wheelen, 2003)
Propose a strategy you would propose for managing HR in APS showing how it aligns to the published goals
Sound Manpower planning
The best method in which APS Company can directly improve its performance in successfully in relation to its objectives and missions, is through Manpower planning
Human resource management main function is manpower planning. As observed in APS organization, it lacks proper planning in its human capital which has been it undergo costly penalties. Having the right staff, in terms of numbers and skills is a task that the human resource may strategies well. When it comes to sourcing the human resource must source well so that it can get the maximum benefits from its workforce. The human resource has to understand that overstaffing is a waste and expensive to the organisation and does not add any value to the organisation but, instead reduce the competitive advantage of the organisation. (Armstrong, 2006)
In planning of the workforce, an assessment of current and future needs of the organisation has to be taken into account, compared to the available resources together with future predicted resources. Then appropriate strategies can be undertaken to balance demand and supply of the work force. Thus, before sourcing for more workers, the human resource has to take analyse the current workforce profile in terms of numbers, ages, skills, experience, gender, flexibility, forecast capabilities, etc. the human resource then can adjust this for say 2 or 5 years ahead so as to amend for normal employee turnover, retirements and staff movement in accordance with the business plan in relation to the corresponding time frames. (Armstrong, 2006)
The result from this will give the human resource a lot of information on how to come up with sourcing plans that will be able to add value to the organisation. The human resource will have a well "though out" and sound sourcing demand programme for different dates in future which then, can be compared with the rough supply programmes. The evaluation will then show the steps that have to be taken when sourcing in order to strike a balance. (Dainty, 2000)When human resource undertake such workforce planning program it will save the organisation a lot of money at the same time add competent staff to the organisation who can take the organisation to new heights and surpass the set targets.
HUMAN RESOURCE DEPARTMENT CHAPTER NO.5 TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT The unit of Training and Development performs several important functions for the company, like orientation training, Performance Appraisal and the general Training and Development. 5.1 Orientation Process and Induction of New Employees The Descon holds that orientation Program is very necessary for the old as well as
for the new employee. The entire process of orientation is conducted at Descon as
follows:
1)Need determination for orientation program
2)Designing of orientation program
3)Implementation of orientation program
4)Analysis of orientation programming And Development
5.1.1 Steps of Orientation Program Need determination for orientation program. When an employee joins Descon, the HR Department, the department in which the employee has been selected and the top management determines the need for the orientation program. If the candidate has been transferred from some other country to Descon Pakistan, it is very necessary to acquaint him to the culture of the country and the general business practices. He is of course, aware of the Descon engineering culture but he may be informed about the new department he has joined and about his new duties and authority. Designing of orientation program At Descon the orientation program is designed by 35
HUMAN RESOURCE DEPARTMENT •Head of HR Department • Training Specialists • Immediate Supervisor •Head of the Department in which the employee is selected In designing the orientation program, the length of the program depends on the employee for whom the program is conducted. If the employee has joined Descon from some other country the program is very lengthy as he is not only to learn the culture of the organization but also the culture of the country as a whole. The program usually includes • History, policies, practices, rules and regulations of the organization • An overview of the department, the employee joints • An introduction to the work environment, co-workers, superiors, and sub- ordinates. Hence, in this way the new employee is thoroughly acquainted with the Descon culture and thus can perform his job effectively. Implementation of orientation program at this step management simply implement the already design orientation program effectiveness. Analysis of Orientation Program The HR Department of Descon holds that the feedback on the success of orientation program is very necessary. The follow-up is conducted in the following manner:
HUMAN RESOURCE DEPARTMENT the prose and corns of the orientation Program. If he is comfortable with the Descon environment, the Program is a success or vice versa. Management’s View on Orientation Process The management of Descon believes that orientation Program necessary because of socialization and knows how about company’s policies and procedures. The purpose of this step is to introduce the new employee with the work unit, organization, peers. Tell them the rule and regulations of the company. In different companies different persons are responsible for this but when we talk about Descon manager gives orientation. Training Policy Basic purpose of training is to update the knowledge of employees and enhancing their skills. Today organizations want professional employees because they have come know the importance of employee that’s reason organization call employees “their most important assets”. Due to which companies send their employees on different types of workshop, seminars and other educational programs. Even some companies provide opportunity of getting knowledge on the cost of company. 5.2 Training Need Assessment The training program of Descon normally for the period of lesser then six months and its purpose is to investigate strength and weakness after that making effort to remove these weaknesses. They analyze that employee need training by self assessment, performance record, and questionnaire. The handouts which they provide to trainee develop by themselves not net based. All the cost incurred by the company let it be in-house training or training organized by the Descon Engineering Co. The employee normally needs training about his skill, knowledge and career development. 5.3 Training design After the need assessment process complete, the designing process starts to train employees in systematic way
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