In the article “Flexible Compensation Evaluated,” the author underlines the need for organizations to meet the challenges of individual needs by implementing flexible compensation programs. In the discussion, the author argues that for organizations to succeed, they must not only seek innovative approaches to satisfy employee needs, but the approaches adopted must have the capacity to enhance organizational performance.
The author underlines the need to find a balance between organizational goals and individual needs if employee satisfaction and organizational performance are to be maintained. This balance, as observed by the author, can be achieved by addressing issues and policies surrounding compensation.
It has been observed that traditional policies have often favored organizational goals to the detriment of employee needs, occasioning an imbalance that not only increases individual dissatisfaction but also decreases organizational performance. Overall, the author makes a critical observation that organizations can increase employee satisfaction and elevate organizational performance by implementing flexible compensation programs.
In the article “Competency-Based Pay: A New Approach to Compensation Policy,” the author underlines the need for organizations to develop a competency-based compensation policy because traditional compensation and reward policies have become unresponsive to the challenges and expectations of today’s disordered business environment.
The author particularly stresses the need for organizations to reconfigure their compensation and reward strategy together with their business strategy, organization culture, and the firms’ organization design and human resource management approaches.
Overall, the author posits that adopting competency-based pay have the obvious benefits of positively impacting employee attitudes, developing employees with diverse skills in a given operational area, and provision of flexibility to management with an efficient, well-informed and multi-skilled workforce.
In the article “A Comprehensive Model and Measure of Compensation Satisfaction,” the authors not only develops a comprehensive compensation satisfaction construct that could be used to evaluate the level of employee satisfaction relative to compensation but also develop a psychometrically sound measure of this compensation model based on existing measures as well as new items.
In their analysis, the authors find out that compensation arouses either positive or negative affect/feelings in employees, this could be used as a triggering factor to achieve optimal employee performance. Overall, the authors suggest that a good compensation approach must be in line with employees’ beliefs, demonstrate sound pay procedures, adopt a balanced pay structure, and arouse maximum pay raise satisfaction.
Lastly, in the article “A Systematic Framework for Performance Appraisal and Compensation Strategy,” the authors underline the importance for organizations to streamline their strategies, including performance appraisal and compensation strategies, with their respective mission statements if they are to maintain profitability and competitiveness.
The authors further posit that performance appraisals and compensation strategies not only directly connect the organizations with their employees, but are effective in distributing resources for increased employee satisfaction and achievement of organizational competitiveness and objectives.
It can be stated that the four articles summarized exhibit common as well as divergent themes. But to concentrate on the common themes, it is deducible that all the articles underline the importance of compensation to the fulfillment of organizational goals and objectives, as well as the realization of employee satisfaction in the workplace.
Compensation has also been correlated to organizational profitability and competitiveness in all the articles. This, therefore, implies that an organization practicing efficient compensation policies will remain profitable and competitive.
Efficient compensation strategies such as competency-based pay have also been associated with the development of positive employee attitudes, development of employees with diverse levels of skill and expertise, and the provision of flexibility to management with an efficient, well-informed and multi-skilled workforce. These are some of the flexible benefits of compensation.
Works Cited
Chen, H.M., & Peng C. Fu. “A Systematic Framework for Performance Appraisal and Compensation Strategy.” Human Systems Management 27.2 (2008): 161-175.
Werther, W.B. “Flexible Compensation Evaluated.” California Management Review 19.1 (1996): 40-46.
Williams, L.M., Holly H. Brower, Lucy R. Ford, Larry J. Williams, & Shawn M. Carraher. “A Comprehensive Model and Measure of Compensation Satisfaction.” Journal of Occupational & Organizational Psychology 81.4 (2008): 639-668.
Zaim, H. “Competency based Pay a New Approach to Compensation Policy.” Journal of Academic Studies 9.32 (2007): 115-133.