Employee Involvement Strategy in Blue Mark - Paper Example on HR Management

Executive Summary

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The notion of employee involvement is one of the critical elements of human resource management relating to the targets and objectives of an organization. This report involves a critical analysis of the employee involvement strategy in Blue Mark Inc., which is operating in diverse cultures based on the market of operation. The report evaluates the current strategy used to ensure comprehensive employee inclusion in line with the China, India, and Germany chapters of the firm. The report highlights essential theoretical backgrounds, which are indispensable in drawing the necessary conclusions based on the shortcomings associated with the existing approaches. The report presents the current as well as the potential individualism and particularism methodology that the organization can adopt to enhance employee involvement.

Table of Contents

Executive Summary 2
1.0 Introduction and Background of Employee Involvement in Blue Mark 4
1.1 Overview of the Organization 4
1.2 Communication, Leadership, and Teamwork 4
1.3 Affinity, Affiliation, and Autonomy 5
2.0 Employee Involvement Strategy: Theoretical Exploration 6
2.1 Bennet and Graham 6
2.2 Moorhead, Griffin, and Lutham 7
2.3 Geert Hofstede 7
2.4 Trompenaars 8
2.5 Halls Theory 9
3.0 Critical Evaluation of the Strategy and Possible Shortcomings 10
3.1 Overemphasis on Universalism and Communitarianism 10
3.2 Supremacy of Management 11
3.3 Overemphasis of Needs of Organization 11
4.0 Conclusion and Recommendations 12
References 16

1.0 Introduction and Background of Employee Involvement in Blue Mark

1.1 Overview of the Organization

One of the key areas in Blue Mark Inc. management process and undertakings is the level of employee involvement. Since the organization is operating in three major economies involving China, India, and Germany markets, the process of ensuring effective human resource management practices is complicated. The Blue Mark Inc. is a technology-based organization, which manufactures electronic devices such as phones, computers, tablets, and tracking devices. The nature of the products requires the support from the employees to guarantee the customers needs as well as the market trends. Therefore, one of the critical areas in the firm is the incorporation of the targets of the organization and the needs of the employees to strike a balance for efficient customer satisfaction. However, based on the diversity of the market of operation, which affects the composition of the employees in Blue Mark Inc., the business needs a comprehensive employee involvement strategy to ascertain the anticipated success in line with performance indicators.

1.2 Communication, Leadership, and Teamwork

The management at Blue Mark Inc. has focused on several dimensions to assist in improving output among employees to capitalize on the available resources. With over 5000 employees and an operating capital of about US$ 5 billion, the management has incorporated teamwork and leadership as part of the approaches unifying the move to transformational production and competitive advantage in the technology industry. The organization is seeking to increase the sales by 30% in the next financial year, which correlates to the effective engagement of employees based on the goals of the business. On the other hand, the firm has also developed a communication strategy that integrated both vertical and horizontal interaction to enhance the sharing of ideas between workers and management across all the departments in the organization. Communication is an essential part of the human resource management process to ensure full participation of the employees. Sharing information among employees has assisted the organization to reduce the challenges relating to customer-employee interaction as well as employee-management disputes. The needs of the customers have been addressed effectively based on the established communication structure, which is a typology of the central management system adopted in the organization.

1.3 Affinity, Affiliation, and Autonomy

Moreover, the firm has included the three dimensions to the needs of the employees in the human resource management targets to ensure that the required objectives in line with the performance indicators are attained. The first dimension is the identification of the employee affinity to make sure that the management is aware of what the employees believe. Over the years, organizations in different industries have inspired their employees to be part of the processes being undertaken in the organization. The element of affiliation also forms part of the course of guaranteeing performance among employees. Whenever workers are included in the processes, they develop the sense of belonging and eventually own the desire to achieve. The same concept has been used in Blue Mark Inc. to ensure that the workers performance is outstanding. Finally, the notion of autonomy also includes the involvement approach to performance and effectiveness. The employees are part of the decision processes where they assist in designing solutions, strategizing the market and customer approach, and setting performance standards. Such considerations have supported Blue Mark Inc. to make crucial market turnovers and growth in line with sales and customer acquisition. Nevertheless, several shortcomings are associated with the unified approach to employee involvement in the organization.

2.0 Employee Involvement Strategy: Theoretical Exploration

2.1 Bennet and Graham

The concept of employee involvement is the current consideration for firms and managers, which has created attention from scholars seeking to unravel the best approaches and mechanisms that can enhance performance sustainability. Several theorists such as the Bennet, Hofstede, Trompenaars, and Hall among others have discussed the issue of employee involvement from a multidimensional perspective. One of the key areas associated with the job satisfaction among workers has been the inclusion of the decision-making processes. Several evaluations have been carried out to ascertain the contribution of employees in organizations decision undertakings and their commitment and satisfaction in line with respective positions held. Based on Bennet and Graham analysis (1998), the level of efficiency and sustainability of decision-making activities and techniques depends on the capacity of the management to include the employees in the processes associated with identification of a problem, evaluation, planning, and mitigation of associated risks. In Blue Mark Inc., the management has been keen in improving the efficiency level in the firm through inclusive decision-making. It is essential to note that, based on Armstrongs assessment (2006), the ability of the management to reduce the level of absenteeism depends on the capacity of the firm to include employees in activities such as policy formation, decision making, and change implementation.

2.2 Moorhead, Griffin, and Lutham

According to Moorhead and Griffin (2004), the expertise in making decisions depends on the magnitude of constant exposure and participation in creating solutions to problems through critical thinking, brainstorming, and assessment. Exposing the employees to the cognitive activities that engage memory, thinking, and evaluation keeps the workers active while orienting them towards the success needs of the organization. The same sentiments have assisted the Blue Mark Inc. to improve market efficiency through quality products and adaptability to trends associated with the changing customer tastes and preferences in line with technology-based products. On the other hand, Luthans (2005) examined a concept related to decision-making where the analysis of the research indicated the correlation between the consultative approaches as employee involvement technique to assist in building the culture of success in an organization. Such methodologies encourage employees to the committed to their duties and achieve higher job satisfaction level. In Blue Mark Inc., the management is aware of the contribution of job satisfaction to the performance level of employees at different departments and levels in the organization. Employee orientation and turnover are essential for the organizations stability in line with the set objectives and market sustainability needs.

2.3 Geert Hofstede

Moreover, Geert Hofstede (1984) carried out a comprehensive research based on his extensive interviews between 1978 and 1983 across 53 different countries to establish the relationship that existed between culture and performance in the organization. At the end hi evaluation, the Dutch sociologist developed five broad dimensions associated with the effect of culture on the success and orientation of organizations or social groups. The perception of the employees, as well as their respective relationship with the managers and their fellow workers, has a significant influence on the development of a sustainable trend of success in an organization. According to Hofstede, the effect of culture on performance, which depends on the level of employee involvement in managerial practices, can be understood based on several factors. The elements included in the evaluation include power distance factors, ones behavior towards the community or authority, gender factor in line with role distribution, uncertainty avoidance from the organizational structure, and the time factor based on culture orientations (Hofstede, 1984). Therefore, in Blue Mark Inc. the issue of culture has been a complicated dimension of organizational management based on the three distinct cultures associated with the market of operation, which defines the employee engagement strategies that should be adopted.

2.4 Trompenaars

Furthermore, another important theoretical perspective relating to the concept of culture and employee involvement in organizations is the arguments of Trompenaars (1994). The publications in the Riding, the Waves of Culture' book, outlined seven major dimensions of culture that firms must incorporate to ensure a strategic approach to employee inclusion in the activities of the company such as decision-making, strategic planning, change management, and performance enhancement. Trompenaars established the theory based on the evaluation of over 4,000 managers in about 40 different nations with diverse cultural inclinations. The scholar outlined how universalism and particularism plays an essential role when setting up plans to include employees in the managerial activities and processes. A similar concept that is described in theory is the aspect of communitarianism and individualism, which assist the managers in identifying the issues to be addressed at the different level of inclusion. The other dimensions that form the baseline of the Trompenaars evaluation include the element of specific versus diffuse, neutral versus emotion, and ascription versus achievement. The time factor, based on whether it is sequential or synchronous, also featured as the sixth dimension of the nature of direction the organization chooses being the seventh (Trompenaars, 1994). The Blue Mark Inc. employee management approach focused on universalism, communitarianism, and sequential timing as major employee-dependent factors. Most of the activities in the organization are handled at the organizational level and su...