Research and Applications of the Processes of Performance Appraisal: A Bibliography of Recent Literature, 1981-1989

[Excerpt] There have been several recent reviews of different subtopics within the general performance appraisal literature. The reader of these reviews will find, however, that the accompanying citations may be of limited utility for one or more reasons. For example, the reference sections of these reviews are usually composed of citations which support a specific theory or practical approach to the evaluation of human performance. Consequently, the citation lists for these reviews are, as they must be, highly selective and do not include works that may have only a peripheral relationship to a given reviewer\u27s target concerns. Another problem is that the citations are out of date. That is, review articles frequently contain many citations that are fifteen or more years old. The generation of new studies and knowledge in this field occurs very rapidly. This creates a need for additional reference information solely devoted to identifying the wealth of new research, ideas, and writing that is changing the field

Human Resource Information Systems for Competitive Advantage: Interviews with Ten Leaders

[Excerpt] Increasingly, today\u27s organizations use computer technology to manage human resources (HR). Surveys confirm this trend (Richards-Carpenter, 1989; Grossman and Magnus, 1988; Human Resource Systems Professionals 1988; KPMGPeat Marwick, 1988). HR professionals and managers routinely have Personnel Computers (PCs) or computer terminals on their desks or in their departments. HR computer applications, once confined to payroll and benefit domains, now encompass incentive compensation, staffing, succession planning, and training. Five years ago, we had but a handful of PC-based software applications for HR management. Today, we find a burgeoning market of products spanning a broad spectrum of price, sophistication, and quality (Personnel Journal, 1990). Top universities now consider computer literacy a basic requirement for students of HR, and many consulting firms and universities offer classes designed to help seasoned HR professionals use computers in their work (Boudreau, 1990). Changes in computer technology offer expanding potential for HR management (Business Week, 1990; Laudon and Laudon, 1988)

Human Resource Function Competencies in European Companies

This paper presents an overview of recent empirical research on human resource competencies in Europe. The data were collected in 2002 in the global Human Resource Competence Study, an initiative of the University of Michigan. The results suggest that personal credibility and HR delivery have a positive effect on the relative ranking of the HR function and its professionals. According to non-HRM respondents strategic contribution is the competency that will lead to financial competitiveness, while HR managers consider business knowledge to be crucial for added value of the HR function

Corporate education system as a factor of ensuring modern companies’ financial stability

Purpose: This article aims to identify the role of corporate universities opened by large holdings for their employees’ effective training as a part of the company’s mission implementation and ensuring business financial stability strategy. Design/Methodology/Approach: To implement flexible project management of the companies’ financial stability, a concept of corporate university development is presented on the grounds of a competency-based approach. Main emphasis of the competency-based approach is aimed at the labor functions performance and establishment of a correlation between competence and labor efficiency of employees. Findings: Methods and techniques of corporate education are aimed at creating human capital development optimal model, ensuring the company’s financial stability. Practical Implications: The study results were tested as part of a corporate retraining program for the specialists at the “Russian Railways” company in Rostov-on-Don. Participation in corporate university programs allows employees responding quickly to market changes. Originality/value: Main contribution of this study is to create an algorithm for transmitting the company's strategy to all management levels. The tools for key changes in the company’s organizational and financial management system are formed at a corporate university.peer-reviewe

Personnel and Human Resource Management

The basic endeavor of this discipline has not changed over the years: it has sought “to contribute to organizational success by assuring that the right numbers of the right people are in the right places at the right times doing the right things in the right ways.

Studi Tentang Persepsi, Praktek Dan Sikap Terhadap Sistem HACCP Pada Industri Pakan Dalam Mencapai Kesesuaian Keamanan Pakan

Industry have not yet been implementing the feed safety system including the feed hygiene practices. Therefore,A study of perceptions, practices and attitudes on hazard analysis critical control point (HACCP) in achieving feedsafety compliance of Indonesian stock-feed production has been conducted. This study was carried out usingframe works of study as follows, i.e. Module I, Assessment on existing conditions using methods of survey,observe, interview, plant visit and distribute a questionnaire to medium and large feed industries at 6 provinces,i.e Lampung, Banten, West Java, Center of Java, East Java and South Sulawesi with the number of samples forrespondents about 20 feed industries; They were also asked about the feed hygiene practices in their business,their systems used such as HACCP, and the perceptions and attitudes toward a range of feed hygiene issues;Module II, Identification of potential critical control points; Module III, Evaluation of HACCP programs. Theanalysis was conducted using descriptive analysis method that developed by Hair et al. and to test the differenceusing one-way statistical analysis of variance. The results showed that the HACCP systems were implemented at95% in the large feed industries and 65% in the medium feed industry, respectively (P< 0.005); 30% medium and15% of large feed industry managers stated that their business represented a low-risk to feed safety. Higherlevels of feed hygiene qualifications among the industry managers and higher perceptions among managers ofthe risk of feed safety of the business were also significantly related to use HACCP in sectors (P<0.05). Sixpotential hazards were identified along the process to be controlled as critical control points (CCPs). Total cost forimplementing the system was around 1 billion and 400 millions rupiahs; while the time needed since designing upto fully operating the system with audit results fulfill the prerequisite programs and HACCP requirement was about7 months

How Supervisors Influence Performance: A Multilevel Study of Coaching and Group Management in Technology-Mediated Services

This multilevel study examines the role of supervisors in improving employee performance through the use of coaching and group management practices. It examines the individual and synergistic effects of these management practices. The research subjects are call center agents in highly standardized jobs, and the organizational context is one in which calls, or task assignments, are randomly distributed via automated technology, providing a quasi-experimental approach in a real-world context. Results show that the amount of coaching that an employee received each month predicted objective performance improvements over time. Moreover, workers exhibited higher performance where their supervisor emphasized group assignments and group incentives and where technology was more automated. Finally, the positive relationship between coaching and performance was stronger where supervisors made greater use of group incentives, where technology was less automated, and where technological changes were less frequent. Implications and potential limitations of the present study are discussed

Estimating Workforce Development Needs for High-Speed Rail in California, Research Report 11-16

This study provides an assessment of the job creation and attendant education and training needs associated with the creation of the California High-Speed Rail (CHSR) network, scheduled to begin construction in September 2012. Given the high profile of national and state commitment to the project, a comprehensive analysis that discusses the education, training, and related needs created during the build out of the CHSR network is necessary. This needs assessment is achieved by means of: 1) analyzing current high-speed rail specific challenges pertaining to 220mph trains; 2) using a more accurate and robust “bottom-up” approach to estimate the labor, education, skills, and knowledge needed to complete the CHSR network; and 3) assessing the current capacity of railroad-specific training and education in the state of California and the nation. Through these analyses, the study identifies the magnitude and attributes of the workforce development needs and challenges that lie ahead for California. The results of this research offer new insight into the training and education levels likely to be needed for the emergent high-speed rail workforce, including which types of workers and professionals are needed over the life of the project (by project phase), and their anticipated educational level. Results indicates that although the education attained by the design engineers of the system signifies the most advanced levels of education in the workforce, this group is comparatively small over the life of the project. Secondly, this report identifies vast training needs for the construction workforce and higher education needs for a managerial construction workforce. Finally, the report identifies an extremely limited existing capacity for training and educating the high-speed rail workforce in both California and in the U.S. generally

The Role of Corporate HR Functions In Multinational Corporations: The Interplay Between Corporate, Regional/National And Plant Level

The HR literature has been abundant in providing typologies of the roles of HR professionals in their organisation. These typologies are largely related to the changing nature of HRM over time, and the context in which empirical work was carried out. In this paper we focus on the context of the increasing internationalisation of firms and how this has an effect upon modern-day typologies of HR roles. We explore these roles by focusing on the way in which HRM practices come about. Especially in a MNC setting of increasing internationalisation of firms the issues of coordination, shared learning and standardisation versus leeway for adapting to the local context (customisation) are prominent. These issues present themselves both at the corporate and regional level and at the national and local (plant) level. On all these levels HR practitioners are active and find themselves amidst the interplay of both (de-)centralisation and standardisation versus customisation processes. This paper thus explores the way in which HR practices come into being and how they are implemented and coordinated. These insights help us understand further the roles of international corporate HR functions that are being identified. Our data is based on 65 interviews, which were held (as part of larger study of HR-function excellence) with HR managers, line managers and senior executives of six multinational companies in eight countries from September to December 2004. This data reveals new classifications of processes by which HR activities are developed, implemented and coordinated, both in terms of who is involved and how these processes are carried out

An Inquiry into the Competitiveness of Emerging Philippine Cities

This paper attempts to approximate the competitiveness of the country’s ten leading emerging urban centers: Angeles, Baguio, Cagayan de Oro, Davao City, General Santos, Iligan, Iloilo, San Fernando La Union, Tacloban and Zamboanga. The study uses both ranking and scoring methods to rate the cities in eight major drivers: cost competitiveness, human resources endowment, infrastructure, linkages with major urban centers and growth areas, quality of life, responsive of local government units and dynamism of local economy. It best serves as a policy and urban management tool for concerned local officials and leaders of various private sector groups in identifying the cities’ strength and areas of improvement. Insights on overall scores and rankings point to the importance of local leadership, emphasis on improving quality of lives in urban centers and the role of surrounding local and/or international growth formations in enhancing urban competitiveness. Any combination of these factors actually explains the high rankings garnered by General Santos City, Angeles City and Baguio.urban management, urbanization, competitiveness, urban development