Industry Competitive Position
UnitedHealth Group is an established company with decades of experience in managing its various resources to ensure it remains competitive among an array of other organizations in the industry. In regards to human resources (HR), UnitedHealth Group has a team of experts working at facilitating the best conditions for employee productivity and engagement at all times. The HR department includes Vice President of Human Resources David Sparkman, Senior Director of Global Talent Management Savannah Curtin, Director of HR Catherine Brucker, and Vice President of Engagement Karen Sachs who also acts as Chief Inclusion and Diversity Officer at the company (Comparably, 2021). When compared to HR departments at other enterprises of similar size, the human resources team at UnitedHealth rates its company as “B” or “above average,” according to the employee data gathered by Comparably (2021). Comparably is a well-respected online platform providing insights into and data surrounding the culture and compensation of a range of privately and public ally owned businesses. The human resource team at UnitedHealth Group ranks its employer as one of the top 40% of the companies operating in the geographic area of Minneapolis, MN (Comparably, 2021). While these rankings are not perfect, they demonstrate that UnitedHealth is doing relatively well, while having some space for improvement.
The economic, marketing, financial, social, technological, and regulatory environments, which the insurance industry is situated within, are constantly changing. This leads to the HR departments of insurance companies facing a number of unique challenges, UnitedHealth Group being no exception. Thus, in order to assess the industry competitive position of UnitedHealth Group, it is important to identify these challenges and then analyze how effectively the company responds to them. The first main challenge is competition for personnel, which is understandable since insurance companies operate in the field of financial services, which is exceptionally lucrative to many. Hence, to attract the brightest and most competent employees, businesses in this industry have to employ the best hiring, development, and engagement strategies.
UnitedHealth Group’s hiring process consists of six main stages, all of which are described in detail on the company’s official web-site. These stages include application, application review, assessment, interview, offer, and on-boarding (UnitedHealth Group, 2021). Employee development at the company refers to a variety of challenges workers at UnitedHealth are provided with in order to grow professionally and personally. Feedback is prioritized for employees with individual assessment and feedback sessions scheduled on a quarterly basis at the company. Development is also facilitated through training and a range of other opportunities for learning. Moreover, employees are engaged by establishing systems of recognition and providing opportunities for growth. Thus, it is evident that the work of the human resource department in the aspects of employee engagement, development, and hiring is up to the standards adopted by the enterprises in the insurance industry.
The second challenge worth mentioning is regulatory compliance, which often becomes more than a nuisance for an HR department of any insurance company. In order to effectively respond to the challenge, UnitedHealth Group instructs its HR team to consciously train managers in regards to all aspects of employment law issues such as compensation, supervision, and inclusion. Throughout the recruitment process, UnitedHealth Group carefully scans all the candidates for their inclination to violate regulatory standards (UnitedHealth Group, 2021). UnitedHealth Group prioritizes the laws, which the company must abide, particularly those in relation to working conditions. Once again, the company seems to be at the same level when facing the challenge of regulatory compliance prominent in the financial sector and the insurance industry, in particular.
In addition to the aforementioned assessment of UnitedHealth Group’s competitive position in the industry based on its efficiency at responding to the most common challenges insurance enterprises have to face, it is crucial to discuss other aspects of UnitedHealth. According to the report by Comparably (2021), UnitedHealth Global is in the top 35% of similar companies based on size and industry when it comes to its overall culture and leadership. The same report reveals the company is in the top 25% based on the assessment of the work environment and in the top 50% in employee satisfaction based on the workers’ personal testimonies (Comparably, 2021). Thus, UnitedHealth Group can be confidently placed in the “above average” tier when compared to the other industry players of the similar size.
Comparator Group Competitive Position
As for the comparator competitive position of UnitedHealth Group, it is obvious the company of this size operating in one of the most competitive industries does not lack competition. It includes enterprises such as Cigna, Milliman, Humana, and many others. Yet, the focus of this assessment will be on Humana and its position in comparison to that of UnitedHealth Group. Humana and UnitedHealth Group are going to be compared based on 5 primary factors integral for any company to take into consideration while developing their HR departments.
Benefits and Compensation
Firstly, it is important to compare the benefits and compensation opportunities Humana and UnitedHealth provide to their staff. UnitedHealth Group’s benefits include a great health insurance plan, industry-average financial incentives, 401K, employee stock purchase opportunities, and an ability to take a paternity or a maternity leave. Furthermore, UnitedHealth Group’s employees can work remotely, have a right to paid vacation and days off, enjoy a range of discounts and perks included with the job such as a free gym membership and employee discounts. Humana’s benefits are almost the same except for the fact that the company offers mental health care plans and health savings accounts to the staff. As for compensation, salaries are usually higher at UnitedHealth Group in comparison to Humana. Overall, it seems that UnitedHealth Group is in a better competitive position compared to Humana when it comes to benefits and compensation.
Diversity
Diversity can be a crucial factor of a company’s competitive advantage on the market as it provides the team with various unique perspectives on things, allowing better understanding of possible issues, which leads to the development of more effective solutions. Inclusion and diversity are some of UnitedHealth Group’s core values. The company provides its employees with a digital platform to share their different backgrounds and experience for the purpose of accumulating shared knowledge and promoting diversity. Humana is dedicated to creating a culture of diversity as well. The company ensures that the recruitment process is as inclusive as possible. Thus, it is evident UnitedHealth Group is in a relatively similar position to its competitors in the industry when it comes to diversity.
Corporate Social Responsibility
As for the social responsibility, which consumers seem to admire deeply nowadays, UnitedHealth Group and Humana are both dedicated to ensuring their operations are as sustainable as possible and their efforts actually help communities. The enterprise itself notes that sustainability “is an extension of [their] business strategy” as it works “to shape a health system that works better for everyone” (UnitedHealth Group, n.d.). As for Humana, there are only a few insights into its social responsibility initiatives that can be found online. UnitedHealth Group is positioned much better in terms of the corporate social responsibility commitments.
Employee Development
As mentioned earlier, UnitedHealth Group invests a lot into the initiatives related to employee growth and learning. After all, a worker who feels neglected and stuck is more likely to quit and find a more fulfilling job elsewhere. UnitedHealth’s development opportunities include regular feedback for employees to make positive changes, quarterly individual evaluations, seminars and conferences, and the initiatives aimed at facilitating an environment of shared knowledge and dynamic learning. Humana, on the other hand, focuses on mentorships and dedicated training as the basis for employee development. Both organizations are in an advantageous position since they are committed to ensuring their employees are constantly progressing and growing.
HR Technology
Lastly, as both enterprises operate in a highly technological and innovative business environment of the 21st century, it is integral to combine them based upon the integration of technology into HR practices at each company. UnitedHealth Group efficiently uses the digital tools and social media to create a space for its staff to communicate, bond, and share knowledge. Apart from that, the company continuously invests in digitizing the hiring process. As for Humana, what sets it apart from the competition, including UnitedHealth, is the fact its integration of technology into HR practices has helped it to become a truly agile organization. According to the research published by EY, Development Dimensions International and The Conference Board, Humana is “a leader in modern, digital HR practices” (Humana, 2018, para. 1). Humana manages to coordinate the functions of various technologies to allow an integrated employee experience. Thus, while Humana seems to increase its potential even more in integrating technology into its HR practices, UnitedHealth Group is far from reaching Humana’s vantage point.
Human Resources Risks: Description and Analysis
The first HR risk UnitedHealth group faces is loss of productivity. In the case of UnitedHealth, it will not be caused by the lack of employee trainer or work injuries but rather the overall lack of the staff’s engagement and motivation. According to employee reviews featured on Indeed (2021), there is a prevalence towards employees not having a sense of belonging or trust in their colleagues at UnitedHealth Group. Employees do not feel accepted and comfortable in their working environment, which might result in them not wanting to spend extra time at the office or discussing work-related issues with colleagues. Since there is no data in relation to the solutions UnitedHealth might have implemented to avert the risk of productivity loss, it is safe to assume that the company does not have a clear strategy to address this threat.
The next risk is decreased morale among employees caused by the company’s inability to find innovative ways to motivate and compensate its staff. Morale is an exceptionally important part of organizational performance since workers do their tasks to the best of their ability only when they understand the value of themselves and their contribution within the organization. The current benefits and compensation system is akin to any other offered by a company in the financial sector.
The third and final risk UnitedHealth Group faces is the shortage of competent and qualified staff. Since the start of the pandemic and the continuation of the financial troubles in most of the world, many companies have decided to lay off their employees. However, the insurance industry has not suffered a lot and is projected to recover shortly and grow even bigger in the following decade. As workers grow older and get closer to the retirement age, there is a need for someone to replace them. UnitedHealth Group is not actively investing in recruiting young people and training them to become replacements of such employees.
Human Resources Opportunities: Description and Analysis
Each risk discussed in the previous section should have a certain risk aversion strategy, which is why the focus of this section will be opportunities. There is a need to decide on how UnitedHealth Group can prevent such things from happening. Firstly, when it comes to productivity loss, the company has an opportunity to incorporate technology into its talent management practices, focusing on team-building and individual assessments in particular. This way, the staff can get to know each other better and bond during virtual team-building activities, while digital one-on-one evaluations will include words of encouragement and discussions about the importance of each individual employee to the company’s success.
The second opportunity stems from the need of UnitedHealth to prevent the decrease of morale among its workforce and lies in the improvement of the compensation plan. Performance-based salary raises on an individual basis and performance-based bonuses for teams can be a great addition to the company’s existing benefits & compensation plan. This would ensure that employees are rewarded for their work beyond the industry average, keeping their morale and willingness to do better at a high level.
There is an opportunity for UnitedHealth to make its HR practices more millennial- and Gen-Z-friendly as the new generation inevitably enters the workforce. There are multiple approaches to making that happen. UnitedHealth Group can actively seek out young people during the recruitment process and provide them with the unique resources they might need during the on boarding process. In addition, the HR department can facilitate changes in the enterprise’s culture to cater to younger employees, which also refers to the benefits the company provides. For instance, remote work seems to be a great advantage of a workplace in the eyes of many young people.
Overall Assessment of the Company’s Human Resources Competitive Position
UnitedHealth Group finds itself in a relatively comfortable position when it comes to Human resources. The company might not be the best, yet it is far from being the worst either. In the insurance industry, UnitedHealth Group’s HR competitive potential is above average. People recognize the enterprise’s efforts to provide its employees with a positive work environment, while giving back to the community as well. Despite that, according to the recent reports, the company’s employees might feel a bit alienated as they cite the lack of collaboration with colleagues and a relatively hostile work environment to be the main issues they have to face while working for UnitedHealth. In comparison to the primary competitors, particularly Humana, UnitedHealth is doing rather well, although it could do better in regards to the integration of technology into HR practices. As of 2021, UnitedHealth Group faces the risks of loss of productivity, decreased morale, and the shortage of qualified staff. Some of the opportunities the company has is to integrate technology into existing talent management practices, to make its compensation plan of the primary HR competitive advantages, and to make HR practices more in tune with the values and attitudes of the new generation entering the workforce.
References
Comparably. (2021). UnitedHealth Group. Web.
Humana. (2018). Humana cited as a leader in modern, digital HR practices.
Indeed. (2021). UnitedHealth Group employee reviews.
UnitedHealth Group. (n.d.). Social responsibility.
UnitedHealth Group. (2021).Our culture.