HR FUNCTION RE-ENGINEERING

Lecture 6

Lecture 6 1
HR FUNCTION RE-ENGINEERING

Summary

1. Some reasons for re-engineering the HR function

2. Impact analysis on strategy, organization, management
and employment
3. Global impact on the HR function
4. Implementation plan
5. Main targets of the implementation plan
6. Consequences for operational and organizational issues

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HR FUNCTION RE-ENGINEERING
1_ Some reasons for re-engineering the HR function 1/3

Traditional activities
In a context of low competition and vertical corporate
structures, traditional HR activities were:
- Recruitment: employment contracts
- Headcount management
- Payroll administration
- Training program
- Social insurances etc.

All these activities made up the hard core of HR activities

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Trends and forecasts

But due to the pressure of the market and the
evolution of management practices, "soft HR"
activities had to be considered:
- market pressure = clients expect more
competencies from the employees
- managers from other corporate branches expect
new services from HR

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TRENDS and FORECASTS

Market IMPACT on:
HARD SOFT
strategy
HR FUNCTION HR FUNCTION organization
management
Managers employment

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HR FUNCTION RE-ENGINEERING
2_ Impact analysis 1/3

Impact on:
1) Strategy = The HR function includes:
- Change leadership
- Support to managers in implementing strategic decisions
- Search for new work organization
- Implementation of new relationship between managers and employees

2 ) Organization =
- The HR function has to reduce its own costs (less bureaucracy)
- Optimization of all HR processes: recruitment, mobility,
development

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2_ Impact analysis 2/3

Impact on (continue) :
3) Management
- The HR function needs to become a business partner able to
understand the situation managers have to deal with (for example, to
set up very quickly a new training programme because of competition
and customer requirements, or to provide employees with new
competency profiles as soon as possible)
- HR managers have to develop a new relationship with other
managers and even to share with them part of their responsibilities

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HR FUNCTION RE-ENGINEERING
2_ Impact analysis 3/3

As a result:
The pressure of the market will oblige the HR function to
adopt a sharing-based approach to traditional activities,
with simplification of all processes and user-friendly HR
management tools for managers
The managers expect tools for job evaluation, career
orientation, change management, administration of benefits
and incentives, etc.
- Autocratic management styles are being replaced by
teamwork encompassing individual initiatives

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HR FUNCTION RE-ENGINEERING
4_ Global impact on the HR function

Why change the orientation of the HR function ?

1) Turn the organization towards customer service

2) Go from a public service culture to a service
organization culture
3) Develop collective competency
4) Orient employees towards emerging occupations
5) Welcome change in order to meet the market
dynamics

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HR FUNCTION RE-ENGINEERING
5_ Main targets of the implementation plan 1/3

Make HR function into a management support tool

- for the contributions they expect
- with the competencies and the organization required
Slash the cost of the HR function to improve the performance
of the support functions
Contribute to business development through the HR domain
The HR function evolution project should be an opportunity
for introducing a new, more effective management mode
and improving the credibility of line management

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5_ Main targets of the implementation plan 2/3

Three types of activity:

CULTURE mobilizing line management

empowering the staff
ORGANIZATION
build up HR at operational unit level
clarify HR objectives at every level
streamline the HR hierarchy
set up HR service centres (sharing)
HR professionalization plan
PROCESS
simplification
automation

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5_ Main targets of the implementation plan 3/3

Strong pressure for results: staff cuts for the HR

function
Top-level commitment:
respect for individuals and recognition of HR
competencies
managers have to buy into the process, and
provide top-level coordination of reforms
gradual implementation of process
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6_ Consequences for operational and organizational issues 1/11

Impact on the tasks of the different levels in the organization: national,

regional/territorial, operational, HR service centre

The regional/territorial level is the interface, it provides support to the

operational level in the form of expert advice and a framework for
sharing

- management planning for jobs and competencies

- mobility management (rules of the game, critical populations)
- management of upgrading or/and transition programmes
- managerial administration
- customized support for operational unit executive

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Guidelines for division of responsibilities between operational
and territorial (regional or central) units:

- Anything to do directly with work situation

► inside Operational Unit (unit and team
manager role)
- All individual management decisions
► inside Operational Unit (manager tasks)

- The management level above the operational unit retains the

policy function, process design and specialized HR expertise
(legal, workplace law, disputes etc.)

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Territorial level Operational unit
• HR budget X
Payroll
employment budget X X
• Recruitment
- Process X
- Offers and choice of jobs X
- Contract X X
• Pay
- Policy (areas and components) X
- Changes X
• Jobs
- Quantitative and qualitative X
X
- Development of competencies
X
- Evaluation/promotion
X X
- Management planning for jobs
and competencies X
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Territorial level Operational unit
• Organization and conditions
of work ?
- organization X

- conditions of work X
• Workforce relations
- relations with labour X
representatives
- internal communication X
• Information
system/management control
IT system X
management control X
• Other
Social welfare system X

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Example of HR function activities and organization

in an operational unit

I – Jobs and competencies

Start reflection early and involve managers, to look at
occupations, flows, needs
• Set up an individual development function for employees, to
handle all processes involved in professional development
• Develop training and career management policy
Success depends on two crucial factors:
– timeliness
– involvement of the management

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II – Social dialogue
Involve the supervisors = social monitoring
• HRD of the Operational Unit is the first main player
» acts by delegation of the OU director
» recognized by the players: unions and managers
• Strengthen WHS committee competency and standards for
workplace health and safety and coordinate the activity with
logistics

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III - Communication and managing change

• Need to set up operational systems for communication and

support for managers and their teams
• Action through a permanent mechanism to give impulse to
management practice
• Effective translation, for the benefit of the teams, of the
communication that takes place on HR issues with managers
• HR players need personal communication skills

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6_ Consequences for operational and organizational issues 8/11

IV – HR control – synoptic reporting

• Strengthen the financial approach in HR
• Know how to translate specific decisions into
budget terms
• BUT a steering mechanism is needed
• Ensure effective relations with HR Service Centre

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HR team of operational unit

I – HR Director
– Carries all HR activities, and coordinates them.
– Puts policies into life and ensures consistency
– Provides support/advice to management
– Represents the OU director before the unions
– Carries communication in its own domain
– Organizes reporting
– Is business partner

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II – The HR team
– Includes experts, with a minimum of multi-role
capability
– Need strong skills in job management and guidance
– Must allocate effective resources to individual
development
– Must strengthen its action and skills in HR control and
guidance

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To be discussed:
• Allocate resources specifically for:
• moderation of social dialogue
• communication and management of change
• HR monitoring
– Inclusion of activities:
• internal communication
• workplace health and safety
•

Lecture 6 23