The case study centers on human resource management policies. The research focuses on the problems of the case. The research includes providing solutions to eradicate the two major problems. The solutions will favorably reduce the company’s employee turnover rate.
In terms of the case study overview’s background facts that affect the current problems, the company’s turnover rate is high. The employees are disgruntled with the employees’ financial and job security future. There is no section that focuses on the development of the current and future employees.
Many of the top caliber employees are transferring to the competitors. The employees’ disgruntlement is grounded by the company’s not caring for the good employees of the company. The company’s employee turnover rate stood at 30 percent. The employee turnover rate was the same during the past three years.
In terms of the constraints or obstacles of the above situation, there are many constraints or obstacles to reducing the company’s employee turnover rate. The obstacles are grounded on management’s use of practical reasons as basis for their unfavorable employment policies (Morrison, 1991, p. 1).
First, the company refused to institute a plan that ensures the company’s promotion possibilities do not reach a dead end. The average employee will do one’s best to surpass job benchmarks. In turn, the hardworking employee expects some reward from management. The reward may include bonuses for exemplary job performance.
Another reward is a salary increase. Third reward is giving the employee citations or plaques for his overzealous job performance. The management officers were too busy focusing on resolving the current financial crisis, forgetting the employees’ economic welfare.
The economic crisis forced the company to set aside employee job enhancement plans. The company’s tight cash position prevents allocating funds for the enhancement of the company’s current employee benefits. The benefits include increasing the employees’ salaries and wages.
In terms of identifying the problem and the related symptoms, the problem is the improvement of the company’s employment image. There are several symptoms of the problem. In terms of the first problem, the company’s employee turnover rate averages an unfavorably high rate (30 percent).
The company’s hiring a new human resource manager indicates there is a serious employee turnover problem. The employees’ dead end concept of the company indicates the company has an urgent problem. Helen’s own person conviction indicates that she is not happy with the current human resource management policies.
In terms of the second problem, some management officers are preventing the enhancement of the employee retention program. In the case study, Helen Morgan mentioned that the company’s board of directors, especially Harry James, hinders the promotion of many qualified company employees.
Harry James insists on retaining the better employees under his wings. By doing so, Harry James does not need to hire the promoted employees’ replacements. Harry James feels that hiring new employees will entail training of the new employees.
Training the new employees will reduce the company’s available cash balance. When compared to the seasoned current employees, the new employees generate more breakages and spoilages during their training months.
In terms of pinpointing the relevant evidences that pertain to the problems, there are several evidences that show there are problems. Duane Brown (Brown, 2002, p. 37) reiterated a person’s work is one of the individuals’ status symbols within the society. In term of the first problem, the company does not have an exit interview.
During the exit interview, the resigning employees explain the reasons for their resignation. The reasons will help management enhance its employee retention program. Second, Helen Morgan, one of the research and development employees, stated that the company does not care about the employees’ future.
In terms of the second problem, the high turnover rate is indicative of a problem. The employees normally prefer to stay with the company. Transferring to another company would entail an adjustment to the new work setting, raising issues of workplace identity change (Pickman, 1997, p. 13).
Generally, staying with the company is preferable since the employees are already well adjusted to their current work conditions. However, the company’s lending a deaf ear to the employees’ benefit and promotion requests often drive the quality employees away from the company.
In terms of identifying the underlying factors that triggered the problems, there are underlying causes of the two problems. Regarding the first problem, improvement of the company’s employment image, the company does not prioritize the employees’ welfare; the company does not have a good employee retention program.
The company does not care about the employees’ eager transfer to greener job pastures. The company centers its strategies to increasing revenues at the expense of withholding the employees’ rightful promotion and other benefits.
Regarding the second problem, some management officers are preventing the enhancement of the employee retention program; the board of directors is too focused on increasing the company’s profits, setting aside the enhancement of the current employee welfare programs.
Increasing the profits entails increasing the company’s revenues. Increasing revenues entails marketing the company’s products and services. Marketing the company’s products and services includes allocating cash to marketing expenses.
In terms of solutions, there are viable answers to the two problems. To resolve both problems, the organization, especially the board of directors, should provide more employee benefits. The employee benefits are included in the company’s Career Planning System (Walsh, 1988, p.137). The enticing benefits should include more promotions.
With the promotions in place, the employees will surely defer their resignation to a later time period. With the promotions, the employees will work harder and longer to achieve their promotion dream, reducing the employee turnover rate. The company should constantly increase the employees’ salaries.
The salary increases will discourage resignations. The salary increases will challenge the current and prospective employees to give their 120 percent to each job responsibility. One such salary increase policy is to give the employees an annual five percent salary increase.
Further, the company, especially the board of directors, should institute other employment benefits that will reduce the current employee turnover rate. For example, the management, including the board of directors, must offer travel bonuses to the deserving employee.
The company, especially the board of directors, can offer housing privileges to its loyal employees. To reduce the current employee turnover rate, the company can shower its top caliber line and staff employees with tempting car plans as well as other similarly attractive benefits.
Based on the above discussion, the present case study focuses on enhancing the current human resource management policies. There are two major problems in the case study that need to be resolved. There are several effective solutions to resolve the two major problems. Indeed, the solutions will positively lessen the company’s employee turnover rate.
References
Brown, D. (2002). Career Choice and Development. San Francisco, California: Jossey Bass Press.
Morrison, R. (1991). Contemporary Career Development Issues. Hillsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Press.
Pickman, A. (1997). Special Challenges in Career Management. Mahwah, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Press.
Walsh, B. (1988). Career Decision Making. Hilllsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Press.