HRM Case Study Assignment: A Change in Strategy at Megamines International (Essay Sample)

HRM Case Study Assignment: A Change in Strategy at Megamines International Extent of HR roles Strategic partner A strategic partner in HR is about aligning the HR activities and initiatives with the standing global business strategy. It is all about making the HTR management and HR business partners. From a practical perspective, strategic partner is about the HR making strategies by predicting what the future holds and what the organization is currently going through. Sasha Mena is portraying the role of HR as a strategic partner by identifying the fact that shutting down the mine will put about 2000 employees out of work, and this will have a horrendous effect on the community. Since Green valley is a mining town, with Megamines being the main employer, putting the employees out of work will have social and economic consequences. By demonstrating concern over this effect, the CHRO is being a strategic partner. As argued by Gavin, Stone & Cox (2020), showing this concern may give rise to tension among the ranks of HR practitioners since there is a belief that a strategic emphasis may sacrifice the interests of the employees. Functional expert In HR, a functional expert is a HR professional who is able to re-strategies the HR functions through the utilization of technology, innovation and redesign work process. As the term suggests, it is about being innovative with the functionality of an organization. A functional expert is also one who is able to create value and measure the HR results in term of efficiency and effectiveness, whose indicators are cost and quality respectfully. In the Megamines case, Michelle is exhibiting the element of a functional expert in HR by stating that the focus should be on becoming internationally competitive by not depending on government handouts, rather by reducing costs and improving productivity. Vice President Bertram also shows the functional expert element of HR by raising the issue of slashing costs at the Mirrabooka and Mandalay mines by the introduction of driverless trucks and trains. As well, he mentions the use of technology in survival in the industry, noting that a computer can be several fold more efficient than human labor. Also, Adrian remarks on the issue of robots either making lives better or harder for some as the company moves into the future. With these sentiments, these HR personnel are showing the functional expert of HR. Change agent The central idea of a HR being a change agent is facilitating the transition of the organization in the area of human capital, while at the same time supporting the change activities that will bring forth the capacity for changes. In doing so, the HR introduces a change or brings in an innovative idea that eventually transforms the organization. In the case of Megamines, the vice-president, Adrian Bertram, exhibits the quality of being a change agent by bringing in the idea of advancing their technology by introducing robots, which, according to him, “work 24/7, 365 days a year and have a great work ethic”. He feels that introducing more trucks will be a solution to the human capital because they can help save more than 500 work hours every year. From a work environment perspective, the vice-president feels that introducing robots will solve the problem of having humans laboring in unpleasant and dangerous work environments, therefore cutting operational costs and saving lives. Employee advocate A HR who exhibits the qualities of employee advocate is one who works in the best interests of the employees. This may be motivating the employees, making them happy and having them contribute positively to the organization. Put in Gavin et al’s (2020) words, this requires the HR manager to be the employees’ voice in management decisions, understands their point of view, and utilizes various tools to access employees and promote their engagement in organizational issues. Sasha Mena, the CHRO, shows the quality of being an employee advocate by resisting the idea of slashing 2000 employees out of the company, which would bring about social and economic consequences for them. Brad Tyndall exhibits employee advocacy by considering the political importance of the employees to the government, which would save them their jobs through tax breaks and financial assistance to the company. Perhaps Adrian shows the least quality for employee advocacy because he is of the idea of replacing human labor with robotics in the company. HR-Related SWOT Strengths 1. Employer of choice – Green valley is a mining town and Megamines Australia is the major employer. 2. Functionality strength – Megamines has been able to slash its operational costs because of its highly innovative HR practices, which include introducing driverless trucks and trains. It has successfully used technology in its HT practices for survival. Weaknesses 1. Rigid workplace rules – identified by the CEO as one of the problems the company is facing, rigid workplace rules are a major point of weakness in the area of human resource productivity. 2. Poor leadership culture – from the arguments about solutions, it is evident that Megamines has a poor human resource affairs management leadership, since different officers have conflicting approaches to the current issue. Opportunities 1. Robots – The company is set to improve its productivity by replacing human workers with more efficient robots. 2. Lobbying on behalf of the employees – there is an opportunity to save the human resource department (the workers) by lobbying the government to give them tax breaks. Threats 1. Trade unions – The trade unions threaten the solidarity of its workers because of tough regulations. 2. Workers morale – the workers are likely to oppose the move to cut their pay and numbers, which would slow down productivity. HR related problems existing at Megamines International * Big employee number According to the sentiments by Mike Lee, the general manager of operations, Megamines Australia currently has too many employees, and they need to cut the number by about 500 so that the company can be profitable. * Union interference in employee relations It is evident that the management is facing a hard time with the union in an attempt to streamline and solve issues within its workforce. Specifically, their hands are “tied” by the union, and cant manage the mine accoridn to best practice because they are seemingly at the mercy of the union and the FWC. * Rigid workplace rules Jake highlights the issue with rigid workplace rules which is affecting the productivity. These rules may be related to the government regulations and union demands, and they may include issues such as holidays, lunch and rest breaks, which are mentioned elsewhere in the report. * Excessive labor costs Jake highlights the issue of excessive labor costs. Mike also says that the cost per ton at the Kookaburra mine is double to the other operations. Fundamentally, human labor cost are part of the operational costs. As well, they are trying to reduce the wage bill by cutting 500 jobs. * Robotics use ethical dilemma There is an issue of human resource ethics when considering replacing humans with robots. When weighing the options, Megamines faces the ethical dilemma of laying off workers who would lose their livelihoods. Business-level strategy Megamines International is implementing In general terms, a strategy defines the direction that an organization is intending to move towards, and puts in place a framework for action (Gavin et al., 2020). Strategizing entails consistent approach over time and shows an organization’s approach to achieving the same. Particularly, a business level strategy is intended to give an organization a competitive advantage, and is chosen based on the strengths and weaknesses of the organization. Megamines is focusing on cost leadership for competitive advantage, with the competitive scope being a narrow-market scope, which focuses on the niche market of the core products, iron ore and coal. Considering all these factors, Megamines’s business level strategy is cost leadership strategy. This is a strategy that is applied by businesses that are looking to compete for a broad customer base, prioritizing the impact of cost on achieving organizational goals. From the discussions held by the company’s officers, the main issue with Megamines’ business seems to be the rising cost of operations, which is the reason they are discussing issues such as cutting 500 jobs and reducing the wages bill by at least 25%. According to Botin (2009), the common mechanism of driving down costs include establishing rigid cost controls and investing in technology to reduce the production costs. The solutions to these objectives include Megamines’ intentions to reduce the human labor cost, introducing high-level mechanization at its mines, and even considering relying on robots as the main source of labor. Addressing the problems Big employee number As the general manager of operations states, the company is currently unable to implement changes that will increase productivity because of being stuck with the Fair Work Commissions in the negotiations aimed at reducing the head count. As well, the management argues that in order to become viable in the current market, they need to cut 500 jobs and reduce the wage bill by at least 25%. Considering the ethics involved, such as forcefully laying off the employees and leaving them with no income, it is highly recommended that the company moves some of its employees to other branches that a...