Strategic HRM Measurement in the 21st Century: From Justifying HR to Strategic Talent Leadership

Measurement will be vital to the evolution of human resource management in the coming century, but in this chapter we propose that it will not be measurement as usual. The future of HRM will require a decision science for talent resources that is as logical, reliable, consistent and flexible as Finance, the decision science for financial resources, and Marketing, the decision science for customer resources. In this chapter we describe the elements of this new decision science, which we call “Talentship,” and its implications for the future of strategic HR measurement. Using this framework, we review leading measurement approaches, describe their contributions, and identify the significant opportunities for improvement in future HR measurement systems

Beyond Cost-per-Hire and Time to Fill: Supply-Chain Measurement for Staffing

Identifying and acquiring talent is one of the most important processes in human resource management. It is a key element in being competitive in a knowledge driven, talent constrained economy. In addition, it is often the first contact that potential employees have with the organization, so it can be the basis for the entire employment relationship. Increasingly, organizations recognize that a professionally excellent staffing process can be a source of competitive advantage. Moreover, the emergence of fundamentally new information technologies and communication processes – such as the Internet, virtual job fairs, online testing, and global job boards – increase the opportunities and the risks associated with staffing process management. Unfortunately, existing staffing process measurement systems typically fail to provide the information necessary to understand, evaluate and make rational decisions about investments in the staffing system, and fail to support decisions about staffing by HR professionals, line managers, applicants and employees. As a result, organizations often base decisions about their staffing systems solely on information about the volume of applicants or new hires, or the costs and time involved in staffing activities. This leads to potentially disastrous decisions, and opens the door for competitors. In this article, we propose a framework for a staffing measurement system that truly supports professional excellence, partnership and optimal investment decisions

Strategic I/O Psychology and the Role of Utility Analysis Models

In the 1990’s, the significance of human capital in organizations has been increasing,and measurement issues in human resource management have achieved significant prominence. Yet, I/O psychology research on utility analysis and measurement has actually declined. In this chapter we propose a decision-based framework to review developments in utility analysis research since 1991, and show that through lens of this framework there are many fertile avenues for research. We then show that both I/O psychology and strategic HRM research and practice can be enhanced by greater collaboration and integration, particularly regarding the link between human capital and organizational success. We present an integrative framework as the basis for that integration, and illustrate its implications for future research

Global Talentship: Toward a Decision Science Connecting Talent to Global Strategic Success

It is widely accepted that global competitive advantage frequently requires managing such complex situations that traditional organization and job structures are simply insufficient. Increasingly, in order to create a flexible and integrated set of decisions that balance local flexibility with global efficiency, organizations must rely on more social, informal and matrix-based shared visions among managers and employees. Research on global strategic advantage, global organizational structures, and even shared mindsets has suggested that dimensions of culture, product and function provide a valuable organizing framework. However, typical decisions about organization structure, HRM practices and talent often remain framed at such a high level as to preclude their solution. We maintain that there is often no logical answer to such questions as, “Should the sales force be local or global?” or “Should product authority rest with the countries or the corporate center?” However, we propose that embedding business processes or value chains within a Culture and Product matrix provides the necessary analytic detail to reveal otherwise elusive solutions. Moreover, by linking this global process matrix to a model that bridges strategy and talent, it is possible to identify global “pivotal talent pools,” and to target organizational and human resource investments toward those talent areas that have the greatest impact on strategic advantage. We demonstrate the Value-Chain, Culture and Product (VCCP) matrix using several examples, and discuss future research and practical implications, particularly for leadership and leadership development

Læringskulturen i en kunnskapsintensiv organisasjon : En studie av Gard AS

Problemområde/problemstilling: Utgangspunktet for studien er å undersøke hvorvidt læringskultur er et nyttig analytisk begrep, og studien tar sikte på å framstille kjennetegn ved læringskulturen i Gard AS. Studiens problemstilling er: ”Hva kjennetegner læringskulturen, og hvordan arter den seg i en kunnskapsintensiv bedrift som Gard AS?” I tillegg ønsker jeg å studere om medskapende prosesser er en del av læringskulturen i Gard AS. Med utgangspunkt i en sosiokulturell forståelse av kunnskap og læring gjør jeg en deskriptiv analytisk beskrivelse av læringskulturen. Læringsdimensjonen beskrives ut fra fem aspekter ved læring som er situativ, sosial, deltagelse i praksisfellesskap, distribuert og mediert. Kulturdimensjonen beskrives i termer av at kulturens deltagere deler et tradisjonelt opphav og en dynamisk samtidsforståelse. Metode: Det er en kvalitativ studie, der jeg studerer ett tilfelle av en læringskultur. Jeg presenterer materiale i forhold til det teoretiske rammeverket og har derfor tatt utgangspunkt i fem aspekt ved læring. Jeg benytter en kategoribasert analyse som utgangspunkt for en skjematisering av læringskulturens dimensjoner. Gjennom skjematiseringen leter jeg fram kjennetegn ved læringskulturen i Gard AS. Til slutt presenterer jeg åtte kjennetegn ved læringskulturen. Data/kilder: Det empiriske materialet er basert på 10 intervjuer og skriftlig dokumentasjon om bedriften. Informantene representerer henholdsvis Gard AS og konsulentfirmaet Institutt for Medskapende Ledelse. Resultat/hovedkonklusjon: De åtte kjennetegnene jeg kommer fram til er ressurser til læring, fleksibilitet, kunnskapsdeling, kommunikasjon, respekt, myndiggjøring, ansvarliggjøring og kontinuerlig læring. Kjennetegnene framstår på ulik måte i forhold til kulturens referansepunkt og er i ulik grad preget av fortid og nåtid. Jeg har gjennom studien anvendt læringskultur som begrep på en systematisk måte og mener at læringskultur er et nyttig analytisk begrep. Studien viser at læringskulturen i Gard AS til en viss grad preges av medskapende prosesser. Studien problematiserer også det sosiokulturelle perspektivet på læring og setter spørsmålstegn ved sider av samtidens paradigme

Ground-source heat pumps and underground thermal energy storage: energy for the future

We need energy for space heating—but in most cases not where or when energy sources are available. Energy storage, which helps match energy supply and demand, has been practised for centuries, also in Norway. Energy storage systems will increase the potential of utilising renewable energy sources such as geothermal energy, solar heat and waste heat. The most frequently-used storage technology for heat and ‘coolth’ is Underground Thermal Energy Storage (UTES). The ground has proved to be an ideal medium for storing heat and cold in large quantities and over several seasons or years. UTES systems in the Nordic countries are mostly used in combination with Ground-Source Heat Pumps (GSHP). Several different UTES systems have been developed and tested. Two types of system, Aquifer (ATES) and borehole (BTES) storage, have had a general commercial breakthrough in the last decades in the Nordic countries. Today, about 15,000 GSHP systems exist in Norway extracting about 1.5 TWh heat from the ground. About 280 of the Norwegian GSHP installations are medium- to large-scale systems (> 50 kW) for commercial/public buildings and for multi-family dwellings. The two largest closed-loop GSHP systems in Europe, using boreholes as ground heat exchangers, are located in Norway

From Professional Business Partner to Strategic Talent Leader : What’s Next for Human Resource Management

The HR profession is at a critical inflection point. It can evolve into a true decision science of talent, and aspire to the level of influence of disciplines such as Finance and Marketing, or it can continue the traditional focus on support services and program delivery to organizational clients. In this paper, we suggest that the transition to a decision science is essential and not only feasible, but historically predictable. However, we show that making the transition is not a function of achieving best-practice professional practices. Rather, it requires developing a logical, deep and coherent framework linking organizational talent to strategic success. We show how the evolution of the decision sciences of Finance and Marketing, out of the professional practices of Accounting and Sales, provide the principles to guide the evolution from the current professional practice of HR, to the emerging decision science of talentship