CASE 1

HR Restructuring - The Coca Cola & Dabur Way

The Coca-Cola Way

In 1999, following the merger of Coca-Cola's four bottling operations (Hindustan Coca-Cola
Bottling North West, Hindustan Bottling Coca-Cola Bottling South West, Bharat Coca-Cola North
East, and Bharat Coca-Cola South East), human resources issues gained significance at the
company. Two new companies, Coca-Cola India, the corporate and marketing office, and Coca-
Cola Beverages were the result of the merger. The merger brought with it over 10,000 employees
to Coca-Cola, doubling the number of employees it had in 1998.

Coca-Cola had to go in for a massive restructuring exercise focusing on the company's human
resources to ensure a smooth acceptance of the merger. The first task was to put in place a new
organizational structure that vested profit and loss accounting at the area level, by renaming each
plant-in-charge as a profit center head

Each region had a separate head (Regional General Manager), who had the regional functional
managers reporting to him. All the Regional General Managers reported to VP (Operations), Sanjiv
Gupta, who reported directly to CEO Alexander Von Bohr (Bohr). The 37 bottling plants of Coca-
Cola, on an average six in each region, had an Area General Manager as the head, vested with
profit-center responsibility. All the functional heads reported to the Area General Manager. Coca-
Cola also declared VRS at the bottling plants, which was used by about 1100 employees.

The merger carried forward employees from different work cultures and different value systems.
This move towards regionalization caused dilution of several central jobs, with as many as 1500
employees retiring at the bottling plants. The new line of control strengthened entry and middle-
level jobs at the regions and downgraded many at the center. This led to unrest among the
employees and about 40 junior and middle-level managers and some senior personnel including
Ravi Deoi, Head (Capability Services) and Sunil Sawhney, Head (Northern Operations), left the
company.
As part of the restructuring plan, Coca-Cola took a strategy level decision to turn itself into an
employee-driven company. The company introduced a detailed employee planning system for over
530 managers in the new setup. The system included talent development meetings at regional and
functional levels, following which recommendations were made to the HR Council. The council
then approved and implemented the process through a central HR team. Coca-Cola also decided
that the regional general managers would meet the top management twice a year to identify fast-
track people and train them for more responsible positions. Efficient management trainees were to
be sent to the overseas office for a three-week internship. To inculcate a feeling of belonging, the
company gave flowers and cards on the birthdays of the employees and major festivals.

Coca-Cola also undertook a cost-reduction drive on the human resources front. Many executives
who were provided accommodation in farm-houses were asked to shift to less expensive
apartments.

Questions:

1. What is Coca Cola HR strategy?

2. What is the strategic role of the HRM function at Coca Cola How does HRM help
Coca Cola to become a more successful international business?
3. How does Coca Cola manufacture their products?
4. What does HR strategy include?
 CASE 2

CASE STUDY ON “GODREJ AND TRAINING &

DEVELOPMENT”

"Many Indian companies have increased their emphasis on training tremendously. I think it is
absolutely essential to spend a lot of money on training and continuous improvement. In our group
every employee has to undergo at least five days of training a year." - Adi Godrej, Chairman Godrej
Group. Introduction In January 2002, Godrej Industries Ltd. (GIL) bought a 26% stake in
"Personalities Academy Ltd." Personalities provided interactive soft skills training programmed
online to corporates. Personalities training modules have since been a part of Godrej's training and
development initiatives. It all started in 1996 with the break-up of the joint venture between Godrej
Soaps Ltd (GSL) and Proctor and Gamble (P&G). Post break-up, GSL was bereft of a distribution
system and had to start from scratch. As part of the rebuilding exercise, GSL recruited about 250
new employees who had to be aligned with its corporate culture. In 1997, GSL conducted a Total
Quality Management (TQM) workshop for all its 5000 employees to help them connect to their
job. Parivartan was launched in September 2000 in GSL to train new as well as existing employees
on various aspects of the business and to motivate them. In 2001, new initiatives like Young
Entrepreneurs Board (YEB), Red and Blue Teams, Mentoring and Reverse Mentoring were
introduced in the Godrej Group, (Godrej) to encourage the involvement of youth in strategic
decision-making. In early 2002, a need was felt among the top brass of Godrej to instill a
performance- driven culture in the company. In addition to upgrading the talents of existing
employees, Godrej had to train new recruits. Thus, Godrej developed a comprehensive and
innovative training programmed for management trainees and named it Godrej Accelerated
Learning Leadership and Orientation Programmed (GALLOP). The objective of GALLOP was to
develop a newcomer into a professional by giving him or her exposure to various departments and
inculcate in him or her, Godrej & Training and Development

Later, in September 2002, GIL introduced Spark, a training programmed for managers to help
them become effective coaches. Towards the end of 2002, Egyan was introduced in GIL to increase
the learning potential of employees. In January 2003, a special HR programmed on honing the
interpersonal and negotiation skills of officer- level employees were launched in GIL. Further, in
October 2003, an English language training programmed was held for floor workers of Godrej and
Boyce Manufacturing Company Ltd (GBML), so that they could follow all instructions issued in
that language independently.

Background Note the Godrej story started in 1897, when Ardeshir Burjorji Godrej (Ardeshir) gave
up his legal practice and started manufacturing locks in a small shed at Lalbaug near Mumbai.
Thus was GBML born. His brother, Phirozshah Godrej (Phirozshah), carried on the pioneering
work and in 1905 GBML built its first safe, thus entering the security equipment business. GBML
expanded its range of products by manufacturing office equipment, typewriters, tool-room
equipment, etc. In the early 1920s, GBML started making soaps from vegetable oils and
incorporated GSL in 1928. In 1958, GBML started manufacturing refrigerators, its first home
appliance product. GSL ventured into animal feed in 1971 to help dairy and poultry farmers rear
healthier livestock. Godrej Pacific commenced operations in 1982 as the Electronic Business
Equipment (EBE) Division of GBML. In 1985, GBML ventured into Computer Aided Designing
services as part of its EBE division. In 1990, Godrej Properties & Investments Limited (GPIL)
was incorporated to provide meticulously planned townships. In 1991, the Godrej group entered
the processed food and edible oil segment by incorporating Godrej Foods Ltd (GFL).

The entire distribution network of Godrej was transferred to this company and the joint venture
was entrusted with the task of marketing both Godrej and P&G's toilet soap and detergents brands.
The EBE division was spun off into Geometric Software Solutions Ltd in 1994 to offer complete
solutions to customers. In 1994, Godrej ventured into the insecticide market through GSL, which
bought 75% stake in Transelektra Domestic Products Pvt Ltd (TDPL), the manufacturer of the
"Good Knight" brand. In 1995, Godrej entered into a joint venture with the US multinational, Sara
Lee and the new concern was called Godrej-Sara Lee. The venture was the world's largest
manufacturer of mosquito repellents. In August 1996, P&G-Godrej Ltd, terminated the
arrangement and Godrej re-took charge of marketing its soap & detergent brands but without a
distribution network of its own. In 1999, GSL sold 22.5 per cent of its shareholding in Godrej-Sara
Lee to the group holding company GBML for Rs 994.7 million. Godrej Infotech Ltd was
incorporated in 1999 to offer software solutions. In March 2001, GSL got demerged and its
consumer products division came to be known as Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL)... Total
Quality Management (TQM) Workshops Godrej started total quality management (TQM)
workshops in 1995, to inculcate a `positive work culture' in the company. In 1997, all the 5,000
employees of GSL were put through a three-day workshop as part of the "visioning" session of
TQM... 'Parivartan' In 2000, 'Parivartan' was launched in GSL with the objective of motivating
employees as well as imparting knowledge about the sales functions of GSL. A team of 18 senior
executives from all divisions spanning sales, logistics and HR were called on to provide necessary
inputs... Economic Value Added (EVA) Training In 2001, Godrej introduced Economic Value
Added (EVA) in all its group companies. An extensive training program was undertaken for
various managerial and officer levels. Over 500 employees were trained to manage EVA by
making appropriate decisions involving investments and/or trade-offs between the income
statement and the balance sheet. This training programmed was conducted by Stern Stewart, New
York based management consultancy who had pioneered the concept Godrej & Training and
Developmentof EVA... GALLOP GALLOP was instituted in early 2002 as a structured and
organize induction training programmed at Godrej. GALLOP aimed at nurturing the new recruits
into leaders and dynamic performers through this one-year programmed. The programmed started
with an induction speech by the chairman, followed by the speeches by the CEOs of all the group
companies. The trainees were rotated in four departments other than their primary department
including a compulsory sales stint. This mandatory rotation in sales enabled the trainees to get a
hands-on experience in understanding the market... Spark The objective of the Spark programmed,
initiated by GIL in September 2002, was to "train the trainers". The training programmed was
aimed at equipping the managers to become successful coaches. GIL, in association with a Delhi-
based HR consultant, conducted a host of workshops to enable the managers assume the role of a
coach... E-Gyan was the e-learning initiative of GIL launched in the second half of 2002. It was
an attempt to move away from traditional training methods of workshops and help sharpen the
intellect of the employees by self- learning initiatives. Initially, Satyam Education Services Ltd
was the content provider and rendered the entire gamut of learning resources through its e-learning
portal -learnatsatyam.com. Internal communication measures like 'enrolment on a first-come-first-
serve basis' and 'be the first e-Gyan' were circulated... Criticisms One criticism against the training
and development programs at Godrej was that there were no measurement techniques to judge the
effectiveness of the programs. For example, no specific measures were developed to determine the
extent to which the interpersonal and negotiation skills training aided the employees to develop a
more robust business concept... Troy and Modular Management Development Academy

When Nationwide Crash Repair Centers needed to raise the professional standard of the managers
running its sites, it turned to Troy Training and Development. Troy provided a modular
Management Development Academy which was designed to target the critical business issues
faced by Nationwide and enable its managers to concentrate their learning around the real-life
issues and leadership challenges facing them in the workplace. The Client Nationwide Crash
Repair Centers Ltd is the UK's largest group of accident repair centers. The firm has been operating
in the motor industry since 1908 when the founder Harold Perry started the Capital Screen, Hood
& Motor Accessories Company. Considerable investment in staff, training, equipment and
premises has allowed the company to constantly improve capabilities and capacity. With a total of
62 body shops, Nationwide is by far the largest group of accident repair centers in the UK and is
recognized as the market leader in the UK accident repair market. The Problem Nationwide was
faced with increasing demands and requirements on its customer service levels particularly from
clients such as insurance companies. In order to maintain its reputation as the market leader,
Nationwide wanted a Management Development programmed that raised the standard of the
managers running its sites. Its 62 sites are found across the country, therefore the training
programmed needed to be able to take into account a range of diverse experiences. The Solution
Troy was carrying out customer satisfaction indices (CSI) for Nationwide when it was appointed
to conduct a Management Development programmed. The key driver for Nationwide and Troy
was to provide a consistent and pragmatic business focused approach. Troy spent time with both
Nationwide's Regional & General Managers to determine the key skills and behaviours that needed
developing. Once the situation had been assessed, it was felt by both parties that the best way
forward was with the use of a Troy Management Development Academy. The aim of the Academy
was to assist individuals in further developing key personal, interpersonal and organizational skills
in their role as Managers enabling them to become the Best in Europe.

To achieve this aim, Troy wrote a ten module Academy programmed with each module lasting
one day. The specific objectives of the Academy were to: •
Clarify and develop the role of a Nationwide Manager Provide a range of people management
tools and techniques to support the achievement of Nationwide's corporate objectives Enable the
use of management skills and knowledge within the business environment Build a continual, self
reflective process for professional development within a supportive, learning environment

Throughout this process Troy referenced the original results of the CSI as both a pragmatic and
targeted way to move forward and as a benchmark for measuring the success of the Academy. The
Benefits Troy's Management Development Academy enabled Nationwide's managers to
concentrate their learning around the real-life issues and leadership challenges facing them in the
workplace. Through the Academy, Nationwide saw the following benefits: • • • •

Managers were able to expand on their existing skills The Academy was designed specifically for
Nationwide to meet the needs of its managers � it was not an �off the shelf' training programmed
The Modular approach helped identify and focus on personal development needs within their
individual roles It was business-focused, with the Troy approach ensuring that the training was
relevant and timely

This resulted in 60 managers being trained in 10 modules over a 2-year period. Commenting on
the Academy, Martin Fletcher, Regional Manager for Nationwide, said: "The Nationwide
Academy has been a real opportunity for me to hone my management skills and grow as a manager
within the business. Its practical, real-life approach means the modules are focused on what's really
happening in our business, and not just 'management theory'. One of the advantages of the
Academy was that it gave me the opportunity to take time out once every 6 - 8 weeks and really
think about my approach to both my team and my customers.

When I began the Academy last year, I was a General Manager of a site, and have now been
promoted to Regional Manager." For the Future As a result of its satisfaction with the Academy,
Nationwide have now contracted Troy to deliver a 2-day Supervisory Skills course to 54 of its
assistant managers, and a 2-day Customer Care course for 164 of its front-line staff.
Questions:

1. What do you Understand the role of the HR department in managing change in an

organization?
2. What is the objective of GODREJ AND TRAINING &DEVELOPMENT?
3. Highlight the role of company in training & development.
 CASE 3

Microsoft India’s HR Approach

Dealing with the human resources in the IT sector has been challenging for most of the companies
that have set up operations in India. These companies aimed to take advantage of the relatively
low cost of technically competent labor in India in comparison to the US and developed countries
in Europe. There was a huge demand for skilled personnel in this sector, but companies confronted
by a lack of sufficient numbers of skilled personnel to meet the demand. Though Microsoft India's
HR practices received accolades from many quarters, the 'Best Employer Survey 2008' released
by Dataquest said that in totality employee satisfaction at Microsoft India was below the industry
average in India.

Microsoft follows following practices:

I. Recruitment and Selection: Microsoft India recruited, fresh graduates from academic campuses
and experienced professionals in the IT industry. For campus recruitments, the selection process
included written tests and several rounds of personal interviews.

ii. Training and Development: Microsoft India conducted a training program named Leap
Engineer Acceleration Program (LEAP) which imparted technical and personal skills required to
carry out the job.

iii. Flexible Work Timings: Microsoft India followed a flexi-time policy that enabled the
employees to work according to their convenience liberating them from rigid work timings.

iv. Career Management: In all the six business units present in India, Microsoft India provided
both vertical and lateral growth prospects for its employees.

v. Work-Life Balance: Microsoft India launched a program called 'Bring Your Child to Work' in
a move to improve work-life balance among its employees, in 2007. Employee benefits were
standardized for all the employees.
vi. Employee Retention at Microsoft Global Technical Support Center (MSGTSC): Microsoft
India initiated various programs particularly in MSGSTC, Bangalore, where work was carried out
24 X 7, in order to provide technical support services to its customers in different nations and time
zones. For employee retention, Microsoft India conducted special recruitment drives exclusively
for women in line with the overall IT industry's aim of raising the female-male ratio in the
workforce.

vii. Performance Management: Microsoft India followed a candid and transparent process while
evaluating the performance of employees so as to enable employees to identify their performance
levels and have a clear idea of what was required in terms of performance in order to reach to the
next level as well as for compensation.

viii. Women Empowerment: In line with the overall IT industry's aim of raising the female-male
ratio in the workforce, Microsoft India conducted special recruitment drives especially for women

HR Metrics Followed by Microsoft India: Metrics were developed to track and define the
effectiveness of the HR function. In Microsoft India HR policies focused on talent acquisition and
development, management development, leadership development, and management of evolution
of the Microsoft culture. They aimed to maximize the value of human capital in achieving business
growth.

Questions:

1. What is the HR function as a change leader and business driver?

2. Explain Talent management and employee retention in the Indian IT industry.
3. How did you Managing knowledge of workers and their work-life balance?
 CASE 4

Recruiting – the Cisco Way

RECRUITING - THE CISCO WAY Answer part the importance of recruitment and selection
Recruiters play an important role in the success of an organization. They essentially act as a filter
that -- when used properly -- only selects the best candidates. In a constantly changing business
world, companies need to hire people who are adaptable, loyal, knowledgeable, dependable and
confident, thereby creating a foundation for success. Cost is a major reason why effective
recruitment and selection is important. There are many ways in which poor recruitment practices
can result in financial losses.

For example, if a candidate's competency is not accurately assessed, he may make mistakes that
can hinder productivity. If he needs to be retrained or replaced, this takes up more company time
that could otherwise be invested toward remaining competitive. Retention Improper recruitment
and selection practices can often result in high turnover or involuntary separations. If a recruiter is
not careful when analyzing resumes and conducting interviews, he may hire an employee with a
weak work ethic or a tendency to move quickly from one job to the next -- "job hopping. Another
so-called "red flag" is a gradual decrease in responsibility Loyalty and Productivity Loyalty and
productivity are linked. Interviewers should inquire about a candidate's greatest achievements
throughout the career. Generally, loyal employees will have a track record of striving for
excellence, resulting in a more competitive, innovative and profitable business. Legal Issues
Discrimination is a serious concern among recruiters. If discriminatory hiring practices can be
proven, this could result in serious harm, both financially and in terms of reputation.

Things such as language proficiency or physical capabilities should not be listed unless they are
absolutely essential for the role. Influence on recruitment process of company by changing
dynamics of the global InfoTech industry … Recruitment is undergoing a change. Not just a small-
scale evolution but a fundamental seismic shift. A change that will see the recruiting landscape
change forever. A change that will see many traditional recruiters falling behind and being replaced
by new, differently skilled recruiters, ready for the challenges.
The current global recruitment landscape is changing. The global war for the best talent is real,
(note the use of “best”); talent is geographically mobile and happy to move for the best job; talent
is more demanding, not only in pay but career progression and training and development; the
experienced talent pool is shrinking in volume; convergence of talent, as recruiters fighting in a
smaller talent pool attract candidates across different sectors.

Recruitment agencies are failing to be creative in attracting unique talent to their databases, hence
perpetuating “recruitment chess” of the same talent across companies. Not everyone is looking for
a job. Different market research exists but the benchmark seems to suggest that, for any given role,
only 10% of relevant/experienced talent is actively looking for a role at any given moment in time.
That means that 90% of candidates relevant for your role/s are not engaged in job searches. The
best candidates typically among them.

Hence in a candidate short market, with a host of competition for particular skill-sets, the global
war for the best talent is being fought out among 10% of active job seekers. Businesses can no
longer control what is said. Today there is a shift in the balance of power. Technology is shifting
the power away from the publishers, media, the elite, corporate to us, and the people. Recruiters
need to embrace this, as must as their PR; Marketing departments. The rise in the use of the Internet
is probably the most significant development in the recruitment field in the early 21st century.

There is, however, little evidence that the Internet produces better-quality candidates, but it does
deliver more of them and more employers report that online recruitment made it easier to find the
right candidate. Candidates themselves are increasingly choosing this medium to search for jobs,
with 89 per cent of graduates only searching online for jobs. The benefits of online recruitment to
employers include the speed, reduced administrative burden and costs, and no geographical limits.
The benefits to applicants are that t is easier, faster and more convenient to post a CV or search a
job site online than to read a selection of printed media. This is all very well if you have skills that
are highly in demand, but if employers are tending to post vacancies on their own websites,
candidates still have to trawl the web in order to find vacancies and even ‘web savvy’ applicants
may be deterred by the perceived impersonal nature of online recruitment. Also, there are still
some people who are either not comfortable using the Internet or do not have ready access to a
computer.
Thus, there is still a role then for conventional advertising. Whatever the pros and cons, online
recruitment continues to expand and employers are now combining more traditional methods with
online recruitment by using printed adverts to refer jobseekers to an Internet vacancy (Murphy,
2008). Other employers such as Microsoft are enhancing its brand visibility and credibility by
having a wider Internet recruitment presence. Microsoft uses its online tools to impact and
influence its public image and reach a broader audience and thus create a diverse workplace with
varied skills and talents.

One initiative is the introduction of ‘corporate recruitment blogs. The idea is that potential job
candidates may be attracted to the company through what they see on the blog and make contact
through the specific blogger who will initiate the recruitment process on behalf of the company.
Cisco, well regarded for its leading-edge products, is also known for its progressive corporate
culture. The company builds employee loyalty with generous benefits as well as work schedules
that respect employees outside interests.

Like many high-technology companies, Cisco hands out bonuses to employees who make hiring
recommendations that pan out. The company also offers contests and prizes, in one instance
rewarding a worker who recruited the most salespeople with a one-year Porsche Boxster lease.
Answer part b CISCO’s recruitment philosophy the company followed a policy of hiring ‘top 10-
15%’ people in the networking industry. This was a mechanism to remain the industry leader. Its
vision statement was, “Attracting, growing and retaining great talent is critical to sustaining
Cisco’s competitive advantage.” The company began to use newer techniques like the ‘build-the-
buzz’ strategy, which was centered on the primary market for its products, I. e., the Internet. Cisco
changed the way it wanted advertisements in newspapers. It listed specific job openings and
featured its Internet address in its ads and invited prospective candidates to apply. This helped in
directing all job seekers to its website where it could inexpensively post hundreds of openings and
provides information regarding them. The website also offered features through which applicants
could fill their resumes online or create one with the help of Cisco’s resume builder.

Friends program the focus group’s exercise ensured that a candidate would approach the company
if he had been informed by a friend about better opportunities at Cisco. This led to the launch of
the friend’s program in April 1996. Cisco also organized art fairs, beer festivals and certain annual
events in which people from Silicon Valley participated More than 1,000 Cisco employees
volunteered for the Friends program, attracted by the referral fee, which started at $500 and a
lottery ticket for a free trip to Hawaii for each prospect they befriended and who was ultimately
hired.

Cisco also found that applicants and recruiters were not totally comfortable with, the time-
consuming recruiting process. To speed up the process, Cisco hired in house headhunters to
identify qualified candidates for managers. Amazing people It encouraged internal referrals for
recruitment through a program called ‘Amazing People.’ This facilitated the employees to refer
their friends’ and acquaintances for positions within Cisco. Employees earned a referral bonus if
the company hired the person they referred.

Questions:

1 What is Cisco job?

2 What is recruiting connection?

3 What is recruiting intelligence?

4 What is a recruiting network?

 CASE 5

HR Problems in Hyundai Motor Co.

Hyundai Motor Co., formed in 1967, was a part of the large South Korean Chaebol - the Hyundai
Group - until the group split in September 2000. In the last four decades, Hyundai managed to
establish itself all over the world as a company producing reliable, technically sound and stylish
automobiles.

In the 90s, the company started aggressive overseas expansion programs. By the late 90s, when
Southeast Asian crisis struck, the company like all the other chaebols, faced serious financial
problems. To survive, it had to cut its labor force. The company offered various retirement
schemes, unpaid leave for two years, etc. to workers, and expressed its inability to support its entire
workforce in the slack period. The unions refused to compromise and the management too held its
ground. Finally, the government intervened to force a negotiated settlement between the union and
the management.

The Hyundai Motor Co. (Hyundai), South Korea's largest automobile manufacturer was in the
midst of acute labor problems in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Until the mid-1990s, Hyundai had
been successful in handling South Korea's traditionally disruptive labor unions. It had kept strikes
at bay with nearly double-digit pay hikes and other benefits. But the Southeast Asian crisis and the
general slump in the automobile industry in the late 1990s forced the company to restructure and
cut down jobs. However, the Hyundai labor union and workers rebel against the management's
efforts to restructure the organization and the company faced strikes and worker unrest repeatedly
from late 1990s to early 2000s. Members of the Hyundai group such as the Hyundai Construction
and Engineering and Hynix Semiconductor were also facing financial troubles at the time, and
were on the brink of insolvency.

Founder chairman of the Hyundai Group, Chung Ju-yung commented, "We are losing our
international competitiveness." Regretting the continuous labor unrest, he said, "Wages have
doubled in three years and productivity has gone down."
The labor problems Hyundai faced were not an isolated case in South Korea. By the late 1990s,
the chaebols had grown into large mismanaged structures with many having several unprofitable
units. During the economic slump of the late 1990s, most of these chaebols felt the need to
downsize.

There was also mounting pressure from the IMF on the South Korean government to undertake
strict economic reforms and restructuring measures. The labor unions, which have traditionally
been very strong and influential in South Korea, felt threatened.

Since jobs were being cut, social unrest and a feeling of insecurity among the labor class was
rising. The unions resorted to extreme measures in an effort to establish their authority. Although,
all over South Korea, companies were facing labor unrest, Hyundai was among those that were hit
the most.

An Overview of the South Korean Economy

Until 1960, South Korea focused on agricultural development. But a series of five-year plans, the
first of which was implemented in 1962, greatly altered the economic structure of South Korea.
Starting from 1962, economic policies were geared towards industrial growth. Export promotion
and import substitution were the key elements in South Korea's growth plans. The industries of
electronics, telecommunication, automobile production, chemicals, ship building and steel were
the major thrust areas.

Business in South Korea was predominantly controlled by a few large conglomerates or chaebols.
Chaebols were industrial groups that were established after the Korean War in early 1950s. They
differed from other corporate organizations in the sense that they were still largely controlled by
their founding families and were not managed by professional corporate managers.

All decisions, expansion plans and company policies were made by the members of the founding
families, who occupied the top positions in the chaebols. In 1995, the top 30 chaebols alone
accounted for nearly 16% of South Korea's GDP.
The top four chaebols at that time - Samsung, Hyundai, Daewoo and LG contributed 9% of GDP.
South Korea has shown an incredible growth pattern. Between mid-1960s and mid-1990s, the
annual GDP expanded by more than nine percent annually.

From being at par with some of the poorer countries of Asia and Africa in 1960, its GDP per capita
in 2003 was seven times that of India, eighteen times that of North Korea and at par with some of
the less prosperous economies of the European Union.

This remarkable success has been a result of close cooperation between the government and the
chaebols. Government policies were framed keeping the industrialists' demands - availability of
credit, import restriction, sponsorship of specific industries, import of raw material and
technology, encouragement of savings and investment over consumption - in mind. To encourage
domestic industry, the markets were heavily protected by quotas and tariffs...

Labor Problems in the Late 1990s

The slump in the South Korean economy in late 1990s was bound to have an effect on Hyundai
also. The automobile segment was among the first to be hit by the downslide in the economy. The
domestic automobile sector had negative growth of almost 55% in 1998 compared to the previous
year.

Hyundai was responsible for almost 50% of total automobile production in South Korea and was
therefore badly hit. The domestic sales of the company fell by 55% in the year 1998 and its exports
crashed by 74 percent to only 15,056 units. Hyundai recorded a 200 billion won loss in 1998.

According to company officials, Hyundai's six assembly plants with a yearly production capacity
of 1.65 million vehicles, were operating at only 40 percent of their capacity. In May, 1998,
Hyundai reacted to this grim situation by announcing plans to lay off 27 percent of its 46,000
workforces in South Korea and to cut pay bonuses and benefits in a bid to save 230 billion won.

Unfortunately for the management of the company, Hyundai had one of the most powerful and
militant unions. The decision of the company to lay off workers sparked off agitations not only in
Hyundai but in other companies too. The unions were particularly offended at the government's
approval of Hyundai's decision. In a demonstration in Ulsan, where Hyundai has its biggest
automobile plant, 32,000 employees participated in rallies. All across South Korea almost 1,20,000
employees from about 125 companies participated in demonstrations against Hyundai and the
government's decision. The government had to deploy nearly 20,000riot police to control the
demonstrators...

Labor Problems in the Early 2000s

On September 1, 2000, Hyundai officially cut ties with the Hyundai Group and had relocated its
head office to Yangjae-dong, Seoul, Korea - a move that was seen as symbolic of its rebirth as an
independent automotive business group. In December 2001, Hyundai forecasted its highest profits
ever - $900 million for the year. In the same year, it posted 23.4 percent growth in unit sales and a
74.5 percent improvement in net income. Most importantly, Hyundai vehicles were being accepted
as a technologically advanced, stylish and reliable in overseas markets like the US and Europe. In
the United States, the world's largest auto market, Hyundai recorded a 42 percent sales increase in
2001.

This was an era of growth, reorganization and new market exploration. But the success story was
marred by another strike threat in Hyundai. Workers at the Ulsan plant went on a two-day strike
in December 2001, demanding higher wages and higher bonuses. They also demanded a 30% share
in the profits that year as a performance bonus.

The management clarified, that though the company had done well that year, it could not afford
performance bonuses to the tune of 30% of profit. The reasons given were: firstly, the increased
influx of imported cars into South Korea was bound to hurt Hyundai's market share and margins
in South Korea.

Secondly, General Motors' purchase of Daewoo was a threat that could not be ignored or taken
lightly, and the company had to gear itself up to be able to compete with General Motors, and
lastly, the most important reason stated was that due to the appreciation of the Korean won,
Hyundai cars were becoming less competitive in international markets and profitability
consequently would be hurt
Questions:

1. What is the Damage that unhappy management-labor relations can cause to an

organization?
2. How to improve the effectiveness of human resources management in Hyundai Motor
3. What is the impact of Hyundai Motor culture on the management of human resource?
 CASE 6

Job Sharing at Motorola

Motorola was founded in 1928 in the U.S., and currently employs more than 100,000 people
worldwide. Today, it is harnessing the power of wireless, broadband and the Internet to deliver
embedded chip system–level and end-to-end network communications solutions for the individual,
vehicle and home. Motorola employs 1,530 staff in its East Kilbride, Scotland operation, of which
about 700 are operators. Motorola operates in a highly competitive global environment; to
maintain its competitive advantage, it operates its plants 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

A variety of work-life balance arrangements are offered, many of which are long-established
throughout the company. They include part-time work; dependency leave; an employee assistance
program (EAP); job sharing; health care (adding some private health care benefits to the state-
funded U.K. system); special shift arrangements (non-standard shifts); study leave (time off work
to complete sections for formal qualifications); and emergency holidays (when annual leave needs
to be taken for non-holiday time). Moyra Witcombe, the human resource operations manager at
the East Kilbride location, explains that they are offered as part of being a premier employer and
to attract high-caliber people, then recognize and reward them. This fits with Motorola’s
philosophy of balancing life and work, which has contributed to the company’s high rating in
America’s 100 Best Corporate Citizen award lists for environment, community and employment
practices.

Job Sharing in Manufacturing

In 2000, there was a major change in work hours at the East Kilbride plant. The change was
intended to standardize shifts throughout the whole organization. Today, full-time Motorola
operators work seven 12-hour shifts over a two-week period, on the basis of four days one week,
and three days the next. When the work hours were changed, employees were offered job sharing,
either on the day or night shifts. Job sharing means that two people share a full-time job between
them, splitting equally the number of hours worked. Though not commonplace, it has been an
occasional practice in the U.K. for some years, mainly in the public-service sector.
Mary McDonald, a single parent with two children, applied for a job-share on the day shift. She
felt the full-time shift pattern was too onerous given her family situation. In making her written
application to the Human Resource department, she gave her personal and operational reasons.
Her application was successful and,

matched with her job partner, Heather Chalmers, she works in the wafer fabrication production
area. McDonald says this system “has worked very well” for her. “I’m full of energy for the days
I work—Motorola gets 100 percent from me.” She is extremely positive about job sharing,
“especially for people with families...it is very good for family life.”

Alistair Reid, a manufacturing section manager, concurs. He also highlights that Motorola East
Kilbride hosts 120 job sharers and explains that they are all included in feedback sessions and the
annual reviews conducted to assess the effectiveness of partnerships. He stresses that “the
transition to new shift patterns, including job share, allowed us to retain key skills and avoid
external recruitment.”

Outcomes

Neil McKinven, a senior line manager, believes that job share plays a high-profile role for the East
Kilbride Motorola plant to remain competitive and to meet their performance metrics in the face
of stiff global competition. In particular, he notes that “job share allowed us to retain our pool of
highly qualified and well-trained talent.” Most job share employees are women who are unable to
or prefer not to work full-time due to family commitments. Job share, McKinven explains, “created
a different management dimension in developing supporting procedures, such as procedures for
holiday and absence cover.” These procedures have been refined over time and now function
smoothly.

Reid believes there are important benefits for individuals in job share, and highlights that many
women returning after maternity leave value this arrangement. He considers that the most
challenging issue is when job share partnerships are fractured during the year when, for example,
changes in partnerships necessary for holiday cover arrangements can disrupt the workflow. This
means a change in one of the jobs share partners when holidays are taken. Most job sharers work
very closely together to meet their combined job requirements without manager involvement; this
can easily change during their holiday leave periods because the temporary holiday employee is
unlikely to be very familiar with the regular sharing system between the two main job sharers.
Managers may then need to be involved in work scheduling in job share posts during job sharers’
holidays. McKinven stresses the need for standardization and open discussion when developing
policies on how people

are treated at work with respect to work-life balance arrangements and manager involvement in
these. Withycombe highlights the importance of matching business needs and individual requests,
and summarizes that overall, “any negatives of work-life balance arrangements are outweighed by
the positives.”

Questions:

1. How does Motorola’s job-sharing system fit with their business needs?

2. What particular needs do female employees face in work-life balance arrangements

such as job sharing?

3. What are the advantages and disadvantages of job sharing to job sharers and their
managers?

4. What factors come into play in introducing job sharing into other organizations in a
U.S. context?
 CASE 7

Young, Confident, and Moving too Fast

Julia, who is 26 years old, recently graduated from the University of Chicago with her master’s
degree in social work. She is a confident young woman who is used to making quick decisions,
and she greatly values her independence. She graduated at the top of her class and, throughout
her course of study, was known by her peers and professors as a “go-to person” for resolving
conflicts and finding strategic, innovative approaches to social work. She is highly motivated and
passionate about social justice and social change issues, particularly those involving poverty and
housing.

She has high expectations in her career as a social worker and has found a job working with a
local non-profit organization that provides transitional housing to people who are homeless. Her
boss, Joanne, holds her in high regard, but now, in her second month of the job, Julia is
increasingly annoyed by her boss’s constant micromanagement and questioning of her decisions.
“Come to me before you make a major decision. I don’t want you to move so fast on your own,”
Joanne says.

Julia asks, “Have I made any mistakes so far?” “No,” Joanne retorts, “but I feel that you need to
check in with me before you move on with some projects. You’ve only been here for two months
and there’s a lot of stuff you still need to learn.”

“Well, tell me what they are. I’m eager to learn everything so I can do my job better,” Julia
replies.

“I don’t think you’re ready yet. There’s a lot to learn about this job. Believe me, I was like you,
too, when I was younger, but over the years I’ve learned that it takes time and patience to do this
work. It’s fast paced and working in this field can be emotionally draining. We just can’t afford
to make mistakes when we do this work.”
Julia cannot believe what she is hearing. Here she is, eager and motivated to take on more work,
and Joanne says that it is too overwhelming. She thinks, “What kind of work environment is this
that won’t let me use skills and knowledge?”

This week, Julia is furious. She worked on a slide presentation for a major donor and prepared a
report about the progress of the organization’s clients, for which Joanne commended her.
Nevertheless, she was told bluntly that she could not be a part of the donor meeting. “This is
ridiculous,” Julia thinks. “I’m moving on. I’ll stay here until I get something better, but I sure am
going to start looking around.”

Questions:

1. What beliefs and values “root” Joanne and Julia to their self-concepts?
2. What suggestions do you have for Joanne and Julia when working with a person of
another generation?
3. How would you suggest Joanne and Julia use the cultural intelligence principles to
resolve this intercultural situation?
 CASE 8

Building a Multicultural Team—Is it Worth it?

Kalia works in a large business, managing a diverse team of eight individuals. Two of her
employees are in their early 20s, two in their 30s, three in their late 40s, and one in her late 50s.
Four members of her team are Caucasian and the other four are Hispanic, African American,
Asian, and African. Her younger employees are fairly new, having been there for less than two
years. Most of her team members have worked with the organization for 5 to 10 years, and her
most senior staff has been there for 25 years, 10 years longer than Kalia has been in her
leadership position.

Generally, team members are cordial to one another on the surface, but Kalia knows that there
are tensions among some of the staff that have an impact on the success and productiveness of
the team. She is aware that one of the younger employees, Robert, is frequently frustrated that
his Hispanic co-worker, Ana, defers authority and decision making to others in the team. In
conversations with him, she discovers that the younger employee feels Ana should express her
opinions more often. Robert’s frustration results from his beliefs that everyone on the team
should be able to contribute in a shared, democratic process. He feels that when Ana defers her
decision making to others, she is not being accountable as a team member.

Margaret, a senior member of the team has picked up on Robert’s comments and feels that he is
disrespectful of Ana’s working style. She has mentioned to him that it could be a “cultural thing”
and that he should learn to adapt his behaviour and working style to better meet her needs. In
response, Robert mutters, “Whatever. You don’t know anything about us.” Responses like this
have led Margaret to believe that he is disrespectful of her knowledge and tenure in the
organization.

Frankly, Kalia is tired of managing people’s personalities. She feels that people should just learn
to adapt to each other’s working styles. Even though she believes this, she also believes that a
good leader has to unite the team, no matter their differences and working styles. This year, she
has made it a goal of hers, and of the team, to resolve these intercultural issues. But given her
previous attempts, she does not have high hopes for a successful outcome. The last time she tried
to resolve intercultural team issues, she felt like a complete failure. She is concerned about the
employees’ responses to this next attempt. In fact, every time she thinks about that meeting, she
flinches. She just did not have the skill sets to facilitate the conversation in their last meeting.
She wonders if this next try will progress her team in any way or whether it will just be another
failure.

Questions:

1. How do you describe Kalia’s self-efficacy?

2. How does Kalia’s self-efficacy impact her leadership?
3. What strategies do you recommend to Kalia to help her improve her cultural
intelligence?
4. What suggestions do you have for Kalia in leading her staff to be a culturally
intelligent team?
 CASE 9

Starbucks Corporation: Case Study in Motivation and

Teamwork

Because of rapid globalization over recent years, competition around the world becomes more
intense, especially for the service industry with similar products. The most critical point for
business to achieve success is not only the quality of products they supply, but the atmosphere of
cooperating and the amount yielded from teamwork in retail sales. Therefore, it turns out to be
essential for companies to motivate, reward and train their employees to be the best quality
personnel.

Starbucks Corporation, the most famous chain of retail coffee shops in the world, mainly benefits
from roasting and selling special coffee beans, and other various kinds of coffee or tea drinks. It
owns about 4000 branches in the whole world. Moreover, it has been one of the most rapid growing
corporations in America as well. The reasons why Starbucks is popular worldwide are not only the
quality of coffee, but also its customer service and cozy environment. Starbucks establishes
comfortable surroundings for people to socialize with a fair price, which attracts all ages of
consumers to come into the stores. Besides, it is also noted for its employee satisfaction. The
turnover rate of employees at Starbucks was 65% and the rate of managers was 25% a year
However, the rates of other national chain retailers are 150% to 400% and 50% respectively.
Compared with them, the turnover rate of Starbucks is much lower than other industries on
average. As a result, Starbucks is one of the optimal business models for strategies of employee
motivation, customer satisfaction and cooperation of teamwork.

The history of Starbucks

Starbucks began by three friends, Jerry Baldwin, Zev Sigel, and Gordon Bowker, who knew each
other at the University of Seattle, in 1971. A sales representative, Howard Schultz, decided to be
a part of Starbucks, as director of marketing and retail sales, after he realized the atmosphere and
environment of Starbucks 1985 Howard Schultz chose to establish a new coffee shop, named II
Gornal, in Seattle. After the next two years, due to the successful strategy of Schultz, the original
three owners of Starbucks decided to sell their corporation to Schultz. Then Schultz gathered other
investors and changed the name of II Giornale to Starbucks. He sought to pursue his dream to
make everyone taste his coffee, so he focused on the rate of expanding. At that time, he thought
that the most efficient way to grow the number of branches was to setup new stores in other places.
In I987, Starbucks had the first overseas store in Japan. Until the end of 2002, Starbucks has
developed from 17 stores to 5,688 spreading over 30; it has grown over 300 times in these ten
years! In Fortune magazine, Starbucks was ranked the 11th best company to work for in 2005 in
the USA and then rose up in 2006 to 29th. In 2007, it was ranked as the 16th best. Ianthe same
year, Starbucks was also voted as one of the top ten UK workplaces by the Financial Times.

Motivation

Motivation is a vital factor for business in the production process. Laboure’s are not machines, and
cannot always do the same task with equal passion. The chief executive officer of Starbucks
corporation, Howard Schultz, considers that the reason for success in Starbucks is not coffee but
employees. He firmly believes that the spirit of Starbucks is employees and feels honored about
the value of Starbucks employees. Starbucks offers an interactive structure that makes personnel
throw themselves into their job.

1) Equal treatment: The managers in Starbucks treat each employee equally and all of the staff are
called ‘partners’, even the supervisors of each branch. In order to narrow the gap between
managers and employees, they also co-work with the basic level staff in the front line. Due to this,
they can maintain a good management system and create a much closer and more familiar
atmosphere than other places. Not only do employees enjoy their job but customers are also
affected by their enthusiasm.

2) Listen to employees: Starbucks has a well-organized communication channel for employees. It

places great importance on labor. For example, managers plan the working hours per workers and
arrange the schedule of time off, according to the workers’ wants in order to meet their
requirements. There areinterviews weekly to see what employees’ need
s is. The partners have the right to figure out what is the best policy for them, and the directors
show a respect for each suggestion. Starbucks even wants every employee to join in making and
developing plans, then work together in achieving their goals. As a result, the policies and
principles are communicated betweenall staff, and there is no limitation in employees’ personal
opinions.

3) Good welfare measures: All employees, including informal personnel, are offered a great deal
of welfare policies, for instance, commodities discounts for employees, medical insurance
(including health, vision and dental) and vacations. Moreover, the partners who work over 20 hours
a week are entitled to benefits. Starbucks also thinks that debt financing is not the best choice, thus
it chooses to allocate stock dividends to all employees with a free script issue. By this policy, the
employees can get benefits from the dividends of the company. Because of this, they have the
same goal; in other words, they are motivated to increase the sales to earn more profits. To
Starbucks, the employees are the most important asset.

Teamwork

1) The strategies to keep good relationships: Starbucks establishes a well-developed system to

keep good relationships between managers and employees. As mentioned, they use the title
“partner “regardless of the level of the worker, which narrows the gap of bureaucracy.
Furthermore, they co-work in the first line to eliminate the distance between different statuses.
Thirdly, the numbers of employees are usually from three to six. Such a small size helps staff get
to know each other easily and deeply. Suggestions and complaints made by employees are treated
of equal importance. In the same way, they have a right to participate in the process of revising
company policies. In that case, each staff member thinks that they also play an important role in
company operating, and they jointly work out the direction of Starbucks. All this gives employees
respect and a sense of participation.

2) A goal of public welfare: Starbucks contributes part of its profits to public service. As an All
this an idea that what they do for Starbucks is for society as well. With regard to goals, Starbucks
set a challenging and specific goal, and it allows all partners to decide the direction.
Questions:

1. Starbucks’ employees can be seen as a formal team as opposed to an informal team.

Differentiate between ‘formal’ and ‘informal’ teams.
2. The employees of Starbucks retail shops clearly work together well as a team. List
four characteristics of teams that have ‘gelled’ together.
3. “… the numbers of employees are usually from three to six.”
a. a. Why is the size of team an important factor?
b. Reviewing is an ongoing process. Explain three things Starbucks can do
continually to ensure goals are being accomplished. (HINT: apply your facts
on the review process to the Starbucks situation).
 CASE 10

IKEA’s Innovative Human Resource Management Practices

and Work Culture

The case study presented in this article shows how IKEA’s Innovative Human Resource
Management Practices and Work Culture have helped them accomplish their mission. The creative
thinking and developing new ways of working towards the common goal that they have set for
themselves are a key part of what the IKEA Group is all about.

“One of the reasons we love our jobs is because we’re not afraid to follow our dreams,” said
Johanna Line, who works as a salesperson in IKEA. “If we don’t make it, we’ll try something else.
The IKEA Group gives us the chance to take risks.”

Having been a part of IKEA’s Human Resources for five years, she can attest to the importance of
the organization’s innovative human resource management practices and work culture. In the past
she had to find a new job or leave her current one because of her position. Now, she can stay and
be a part of IKEA’s initiatives which she has always wanted to take part in. It has also given her a
new perspective on working with colleagues as well as customers.

Each person in the group is given the freedom to choose a job in different types of stores. When
there is a shortage of one type of employee, they can choose to work elsewhere. This concept has
really inspired them to stay committed to their job while they have yet to start working in IKEA’s
stores.

The organization really understands the way they can make a difference in other people’s lives and
that they can develop their own talents too. They understand the value of their role and how it can
help those around them. “Being part of the IKEA Group has been extremely valuable and so
rewarding,” says Line.

IKEA’s innovative human resource management practices and work culture actually have a bigger
impact on its employees than most organizations. “The foundation of the IKEA Group is people
and learning. It’s about people who like what they do and care about the same things that everyone
else does,” says Alfred Jested, who works as a salesperson in IKEA’s IKEA Dock store in Sweden.

Case Study Solution for IKEA’s Human Resource Management Practices and Work Culture “We
provide our employees with the freedom to choose where they want to work,” said Harald
Palmquist, who works as a salesperson in IKEA’s IKEA Dock store in Sweden. “It’s easier for me
to decide to work somewhere else if the company offers me such a wide choice of places to work.
That’s why it’s important to work here because it gives employees the opportunity to grow and
learn so that they can be successful and a part of IKEA Group.”

Innovation in the workplace is always great and there is no doubt that a company which has an
innovative approach to work will always be able to gain a loyal workforce and a market which are
loyal to them. Companies which are innovative, dynamic and very dynamic will always enjoy
growing customer base as their business is just in demand.

The IKEA Group is continually innovating in a number of areas. It has been proven that the group’s
Innovative Human Resource Management Practices and Work Culture have contributed in
increasing employee satisfaction, improving employee-employer relations, improving the health
and well-being of the employees, and improving the productivity of the employees.

IKEA has been the first to come up with the concept of project-based work. It is a sustainable,
effective and cost-effective system which has been used by the organization for many years. The
IKEA Project-Based Work enables employees to express themselves by delivering creative
solutions that can be used in several areas of the business in a cost-effective manner.

Hiring people who fit in well with the IKEA Group’s values and culture is the most important step.
To truly become part of the IKEA Group, it is important that the employees are aware of IKEA’s
values and their place in the organization.
Questions

1. Discuss the business ethics and values issues in this case and analyses problems faced by
IKEA’s Innovative Human Resource Management Practices and Work Culture

2. Discuss the source of IKEA, s innovative concepts and describe how this approach linked
to IKEA’s organizational culture, and analyses the effect of culture on employee morale and
the relationship between culture and innovation.
 Case 11
Technology in Asian motors a need for the hour
Asian motor Ltd is an automobile spare part company which is there in the market from 6
decades. It was serving to the needs of the customers (majorly focused on 3 companies) by
giving product delivery time to time and goods with good quality. To achieve the above said
things Asian motors had to walk a long history. The work force is the main reason because of
which Asian motors is well known for its timely delivery and good quality goods.
Most of the employees in Asian motors are associated with the organisation for more than 3
to 4 decade. It is said that the one who join the organisation as a fresher will leave the
organisation as a retired person only. The turnover ratio is very low in Asian motor ltd due to
the feel of satisfaction and job security provided by Asian motor ltd management.
Till last year everything was fine with Asian motors. During the last year the scenario has
changed. Number of competitors enters in the market and each one of them was well
equipped with all modern technologies. 2 among the major 3 customers who applied for
Standards like TQM ISO started pressurising Asian motors to go for modern technology as a
part of their Standards process. They want the goods that are manufactured through modern
machineries. The management is also ready to go for an organisational development by
accruing new machines and adopt all required modern technologies and allocated a big
amount of fund towards this plan. The management was fully aware that to sustain the
business they have to go for Organisational change and development. The management hired
an OD consultant who will work out a plan for the change and find out the hurdles in
implementing the plan.
The OD consultant stated in his report that, the employees are the major hurdles in achieving
the target of modern plant in Asian Motors. The reasons stated by him are:-
a) Very old employee who are not much comfortable in adopting the new system.
b) Chances of employees to show less interest towards Training in the new machineries as
their employment period will be very less due to their age.
C) Major reason is it is not advisable and won’t be fruitful to invest the training and
development amount on those employees
( 40% ) who are going to retire in less than 5 years.

This started a pressure in the minds of the employees about the job security. The union leader
quoted in front of management that “The place which we felt it is our own organisation which
will never leave us aside or where we want to serve for our life time becomes a question mark
in front of us”.
The management assured him that “we will never commit such things which will put the
employees in loss. There will be no question of job security here. And we all together will
create a modern plant equipped with latest technology at Asian motors. Our plan is ready for
that.”
He presented the plan in front of all the employees after listening to which the employees felt
so happy and they confirmed that it is their own organisation and they will serve for the
company till their life time.

Questions:-
1) Discuss the state of mind of employees of Asian Motors before the plan is discussed with
them.
2) Locate and discuss the external factors which are determinates of this case in detail.
3) What would be the possible plan drafted and discussed by the management to solve the
issue through which both the employees and management would be benefited.
4) Discuss the pros and cons of the plan that is been framed in question no.3.
 Case 12
Title: “MAKAR” Gained profit by missed opportunity & lost wealth

“Makar” a textile manufacturing unit located in the city of Jaipur with enough infrastructure
and a good workforce. The organization is specialized in shirting and suiting particularly the
supplies that are done in Rajasthan only. The organization is run by the CEO who is commonly
known for well educated, experienced, a businessman with a humane approach.
Mr. Mukund CEO “Makar” considered the employees as a competitive advantage of his
organization and want to keep the workforce always updated to face the challenges from
their competitors.
Mukund the people’s leader:
Mr.Mukund, who heads the production himself, developed an efficient top management
group which includes Mr.Prem Heading marketing, Mrs.Mrunal leading HR and T&D,
Mr.Vaidya leading finance.
All these department heads are always been supportive heads for the ideas of Mr.Mukund in
handling the workforce.
Mr. Mukund always quotes that “I believe that satisfied, educated, the dedicated workforce
will be a key to success at any condition to any organization.
Money spent on employees will always be an investment for my organization.”
Activity of the Organization:- raining and development become a day to activity in the
organization. Employees are been trained by well-versed trainers in that area. The
organization also encourages the employees to do further studies as part of the career
development program and they get a helping hand from the organization.
Happy Employees
The employees of Makar are very much satisfied with this kind of support from the
organization and they realized that being with Makar their personal growth will be assured.
Because of the above-said things Makar had many advantages like highly trained and qualified
workforce, highest quality of supplies assured, less rate of attrition, dedicated workforce,
meeting the targets on time, satisfied workforce, etc…
Announcement by Mr. Mukund:-
One day the employees of Makar were in deep Grief when the news hit the office that Mr.
Mukund CEO made an announcement, ” Dear employees. You all are my colleagues rather
than my employees.
I always feel that I am one of you with more responsibility. Now my age is not allowing me to
shoulder that responsibility, I wish to give way to my younger generation. So I have decided
to handover the charge to Mr. Mithun, My only son, who had completed his studies and
returned to India. I know you all will be with him as a pillar and extend your support, in the
same manner, you supported me. Without you people, this organization would not have
reached these heights. I am Sure you all will support him. Now it has been three months since
Mr. Mithun take over the charge and from day one he started auditing in almost all the
departments with a motto to reduce cost. And he got a strong statistics that the
compensation is the highest cost bared by the company compared to any other cost incurred
in the organization.
Mitun’s decision: Shocked Mrunal
Mitun called Mrs. Mrunal the head HR and told her “Mrs. Mrinal, I need an immediate action
plan to reduce the labor force by 30% by way of Lay-off” he continued, “Mrunal I hope you
are getting my point and I want it to happen soon”. Mrs. Mrunal got shocked by listening to
this decision and said to Mr.Mithun that “ Sir it is my responsibility to tell you that the
workforce which we have is an excellent, well trained, loyal and self-motivated workforce. In
case of lay off such the competitors will take advantage of that. We can think of other options
rather than Layoff.”
Mr.Mithun was not in a position to listen to her words he said that “sorry Mrs.Mrunal I am
not ready to review my decision and neither wants any alternatives for this I want this work
to be done within a week”. Finally, with all her regrets Mr. Mrunal reduced the workforce by
30%. On the other hand, the employees who were waived from Makar joined the competitors
with a better package.
One day in his office Mr.Mithun was discussing with Mrs.Mrunal that the cost of labor in the
organization has been reduced to a great level which increases the net profit also. After
listening to this Mrs.Mrunal said that “it is well-said sir, we have reduced the labor cost and
increased the profit but it is more true that we have missed the great opportunity to grow
more by losing our wealth to the competitors”
Questions on Case study on T&D
“Employees are the competitive of the advantage of Makar” comment on this statement
relating to the approach of Mr. Mukund CEO
1. How did you judge the actions taken by Mr. Mithun to reduce the cost of labor
was it really a successful one.
2. “We have gained the profit by losing our wealth” discuss the statement of
Mrs.Mrunal and support her statement.
3. From the above-said case find the opportunity which was missed by Makar due to
the lay off as mentioned by Mrs. Mrunal.
 10
CASE 13
 CASE 14
CASE 23
NURTURING YOUNG TALENT
Hexaware Technologies is an organisation which gets a large number of its people through
campus placements. The company has its college network spread around India and tries to
absorb a number of students from the Engineering, MBA, MCA and BSC streams. It is a young
company and the average age of employees is 26 years. At Hexaware, 75 per cent of the
employees are MCA or BE graduates.
According to Deependra Chumble, Chief People Officer, Hexaware Technologies, recruiting from
colleges is a year-long process. He says that the entire process takes this much time because,
"We have to establish a relationship with the institution before we can start taking in their
students."
Another means by which Hexaware recruits personnel is through job fairs. Says Chumble, "We
ensure that our HR Personnel visit job fairs organised by various agencies such as Nasscom."
Chumble is of the opinion that a large number of candidates can be recruited from these fairs as
these events are focused and do not bring in candidates who are not suitable for certain posts.
Hexaware also has an internal referral programme whereby existing employees can refer a
candidate. The company allows for referrals of relatives and friends as long as they are suitable
to the company's needs. It can therefore be seen that though there is a relaxed manner of
recruitment through internal referrals, it cannot be equated with being unprofessional.
Chumble says that the recruitment procedures "are good, but not there yet." He says that
Hexaware is currently trying to align its recruitment processes to be more client- centric rather
than technology-centric. Another attempt that aims at improving the recruitment processes at
Hexaware is that of centralisation of recruitment. The company feels mat this will be of great
help as far as overseas and onsite applications are concerned. By 2007, Chumble hopes to achieve
complete automation of the process, which will help them track and save CVs to a database that
can be used later.
Testing the Candidate
The kind of tests that a company gives to its potential employees easily reflects its attitude - not
just towards its own development, but also towards its employees'. And if Hexaware were to be
evaluated on this parameter, the attitude seems positive, for themselves and the people who
join them in the course of time.
Hexaware takes the help of external agencies that provide standardised technical tests. The
results for these tests are declared in a matter of two hours. However, what Hexaware does
differently is to make candidates understand as to why they have or have not been chosen to
take the HR interview. "We'd rather not give them just a pass or fail result." says Chumble, with
an opinion that candidates need to understand their abilities and shortcomings.
The next level of testing is the HR interview. Here, the candidate's technical skills are personally
tested. Those applying for customer facing jobs also undergo tests on communication skills test.
Thus, the company tries to ensure that the same kinds of testing methods are not applied to
candidates looking at different positions in the organisation.
Chumble says that more psychometric testing techniques will soon be added to the company's
testing procedures to ensure that there is utmost accuracy in hiring employees.
Training Ground
When a fresher from college joins a company, he may or may not know the intricacies of the job
he is going to undertake. It becomes the unwritten responsibility of the employer then, to ensure
that adequate knowledge – and not just theoretical, is imparted to new joinees.
The company has a separate training programme for freshers. This is called the Freshers' Training
Programme (FTP). This programme includes a two-month classroom training and orientation on
hardware and specific technologies.
The employees' soft skills are also honed in FTP, A number of management training programmes
form a part of the broader training process. Says Chumble, "On most occasions a client interacts
with fresh employees in training sessions." According to him, this is important because a large
chunk of the employees do interact with clients during their tenure. So, a client talking to them
early on in their career becomes helpful.
"On-the-job training plays a major part of a fresher's early days at Hexaware. Here, the main thing
that a fresher does is called "shadowing seniors" on a project. This process helps freshers
understand intricate details of the work, some of which may have been impossible to
theoretically explain during the classroom sessions. The duration of the shadow projects may last
from one to six months, and is determined by the fresher's abilities and the complexity of the
project in picture.
The Money Part
The evaluation and compensation processes at Hexaware aims to review all facets of an
employee's work.
The process begins with a self-evaluation stage. These evaluations are then sent to the particular
employee's appraiser. After this, a meeting is arranged between the appraiser and the appraisee.
Here, detailed information and feedback is given to the employee.
According to the results of the meeting, further projects or training necessities are decided. Along
with this, the compensation is also determined. It is after this meeting that the employee's future
KRAs are also decided.
For members of the senior management, a 360 degree approach towards appraisals is looked at.
These employees follow self-evaluation, along with evaluation by an appraiser, peers and juniors.
And the process of appraising senior management members begins a little earlier than the
fresher or medium level appraisals. This is because of the complexity involved.
Chumble says that the appraisals and bonuses depend on various factors apart from the
employee's potential. "There are factors such as the competition's pay scales and the overall
market condition," he says.
Saying Farewell
At Hexaware, an attempt is made to understand the reasons behind an employee's resignation
so as to remedy them immediately or keep a watch on similar problems in the future.
The employee talks to his supervisor about the reason for resigning. A formal resignation letter
is then handed to the supervisor. The HR department then comes into picture and tries to talk to
the employee about rethinking his decision. If the employee's decision does not change, an exit
interview is conducted.
The company identifies another person to carry out the responsibilities of the resigning employee
in case he has quit while a project is in progress. The client is duly informed about the employee's
exit from the organization so that there is no confusion when it co-ordination about the project.
Chumble reveals that these processes may not be possible for an onsite or overseas resignation
formalities are then carried out either over the e-mail. Chumble says honestly, "Not all piece
process are working as desired and we are working towards making it better."
Talking about attrition rates in relation with Hexawara Chumble points out that it is an industry-
wide problem and is not specific to any organization. The company tries in rotate jobs so that
employees do not get bored of doing the same thing over and over again. Also, opportunities are
provided for employees to choose the location of their work. Hexaware reviews its compensation
scales twice a year so that employees do not stay discontent with their pay cheques.
Transparent Culture
An open door policy or policy is one of the major ones followed at Hexaware. Employees can
meet the HR Personnel or even the top management of the company in case they have grievances
to be looked at.
An official open house is also part of the company's constant effort to keep its employees happy
at all times and make them feel part of the company. There are leadership development
programmes to enhance employees' skills.
Says Chumble, "Apart from these formal processes, there are other things that we do to ensure
that there are no lines drawn between different sections of the organisation." He explains that
there are various committees such as the food committee, stress management committee, etc.
Employees also have the options to choose flexible timing and work from home if need be. The
individual is respected and hierarchy stays on paper. This results in a relaxed work environment,
where employees are allowed to talk. And this furthers helps in nipping problems in their buds
and keeping the work place a happy one-For the employer and the employee alike. According to
Chumble, "We have various events such as the annual Tech Summit. We haven't seen any
hierarchy in them."
Social Welfare Initiatives
Hexaware employees are proactive in corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities. H30 is the
company's CSR group that tries to look at what problems the society is having and help the
underprivileged. An apt example would be the help provided to victims, including the children
hit by the tsunami destruction in India. That was H30's first attempt at helping the society. The
total amount donated for the tsunami victims came up to about one crore.
Today, many dilapidated schools for tribal children have been rebuilt and health camps
constructed for the poor. Recently, they held a Valentine's Day celebration for the children at the
Helen Keller Institute for the Deaf.

Questions for Discussion

1. Comment on how Hexaware is able to hire and retain talent through HR initiatives.
2. Is it possible for large IT companies to follow the example set by Hexaware? Why or why
not?
3. Is it a good strategy to work on compensation issues more closely while trying to hire as
well as retain talent? Why or why not?
CASE STUDY: HR POLICIES AND PRACTICES AT LG ELECTRONICS INDIA CASE 15
In India for
decade now, LG Electronics India Pvt.
a consultants are also required to post their CV thru this
Ltd. (LGEIL, established in 1977) is the market leader in site. As a result, duplication of CV is immediately
consumer durables - including colour televisions, LCD identified and not accepted. The CV hen comes to the
projectors, DVO
players, washing machines, ar-conditioners data bank and for short listing/screening both the
microwave ovens, direct cool and frost-free functional users and HR Department has got the rnghts.
refrigerators,
personal computers, monitors, vacuum cleaners, optical Once a cand idate is rejected, immediately an
storage devices and recognised as a leading
technology infomation goes to the consultant or the candidate. In
innovator in the information technology and mobile case the candldate is selected for intenview, then the
communications business. LG is the acknowledged trend information goes for finalisation of interview at specified
setter for the consumer durable industry in India with the date and time. This speeds up the whole process as
fastest ever nationwide reach, latest global technology and it does the initial screening of the vital parameters in
product innovation. Right from the inception, the company tems of age, qualification, experience, etc.
tried every trick in the book to capture the imagination and At the same time, there is nothing idealistc about LG's
mindspace of consumers by positioning LGas a global
technology brand that comes at a very affordable price. Latest corporate social responsibility vision, nor is it in confict
with hard-headed business sense. It is purely an
technology at an unbeatable price is the mantra which
enabled the brand to push competitors to the wall and remain understanding on LG's part that the time, resources
and in-house professional expertise invested in social
at the top for over a decade now.
development projects pay rich dividends to the company
The compan has been able to come out with fAlying and the communides in which it operates. Therefore, at
colours in a termibly competitive market, owing to its excellent LG, the message is clear creating profits can and
HR practices. The focus is atways on getting the right man
for the right job and offering the best incentives in order to
should go hand-in-hand with generating goodwill.
retain talent. All systems are put in place in order to deliver LG also asks the candidates to undergo Psychometric
the best results tests which throw up the complete profle of the person.
through people- with an unwavering
commitment to corporate ethics and moral Keeping in view the Organisational Requirements of
obligations mindset, we look into the aspect of organisational fit
towards society. More importantly, it tries to put people on
the tasks in an atmosphere of transparency, trust, and and decide whether the person shall fit into the system
mutual confidence- with a certain amount of or not. Bold display of Organisational Cuture is also
informality done so as to help align the mindset. Those not
as well. Some of these practices are somewhat unique to willing
LG only, as the following description shows: to accept the culture refuse to proceed further for
interview thereby saving the company of valuable time
For example, LG has a Online Recruitment and effort in inducting, grooming and developing a
Management System. Under this prospective, person. Negative Interview is conducted to assess
candidates visit our website and can directly register whether the candidate would be able to survive the
their CV for any postion listed on the site. Similarty, al
organisational stress at different levels.
LG is always seeking out committed and People" the are those who wll fit in well with
enthusiastic team LG Seeks the Services
players Exceptional the company's corporate culture and who are
of Right People
individuals who possess the necessary skills to determined to succeed. They are dedicated and
perfom at the highest level. Keen thinkers who enthusiastic, with a marked and insatiable
armed with both professionalism and a desire
hunger for challenge. They are proactive, highly
to take active role
an
global stage.
on the And competent, and able to take quick and decisive
achievers well-versed in global market issues, action. They bring 100% determination to the
with cultivated knowledge,
expertise, and an pursuit of short- and long-term goals equaly
engaging work style At LG Electronics, we call dedicated
the talented people
to perfoming brliantly, with a passion
that we seek- "The Right for the big win. (www.lg.com)
 54 Personnel Management Chapter 3

LG as a brand and a market leader in India attracts regular feature at LG where the HR department meets
candidates in hordes and it's industry leadership up with the employee having a problem and their
status serves as a major factor in attracting immediate senior to solve issues.
employees. Therefore, LG has the ability to hire the melt-ins also
best in the industry. Once these candidates are hired, Apart from HR melt-ins, departmental
take place at regular intervals in LG wherein the every
they undergo an exhaustive induction programme meets up to discuss
member of a certain department
for a duration of 14 days under which the candidate and solve internal issues within their department.
is acquainted which each and every aspect of the
organisation. A thorough integration with HR and
LG also has helpdesk facility for their employees to
a

Business Processes takes place and the formulation help them overcome every aspect of their professional
of a KPI is done within three days of taking the
problem. Business related problem solving is also a
help tool available across board to all employees
candidate onboard. Customer DepartmentVendor
and cross-functional teams and TDR's also exist
Department interaction also takes place.
within the company.
LG as an organisation takes pride in the they fact that Apart from the above, a host of facilities are provided
have the highest man power productivity and the
to the employees to make feel as comfortable and
lowest manpower cost in comparison to the industry.
much a part of the LG family as possible. All
In fact, LG is benchmarked in terms of manpower
employees are given pick and drop facility and are
costing. Creative problem solving when it comes to
served breakfast, lunch and dinner. Workers get a
employees is also LG's forte. The company has
chance to take a half-day break on request to come
regular line meeting at the manufacturing lines in
up with the innovation of the day, so as to make the
the factory with the workers to discuss and solve their
problems then and there. Moming meetings are also production process more efficient. Team slogan
shouting is done every morning to motivate workers.
the norm at LG where the whole team gets together
World renown six sigma training is
to motivate each other. LG has come
up with the provided to all
unique concept of Pizza Meetings where the whole employees. The blue-collar employees are given
department meets up for a Pizza Treat and discusses English coaching classes and at the end of every
month one employee gives a speech in
issues in an informal setting. HR melt-ins is also a English in
front of MD and gets an incentive for the same.

LG is a Pretty Great Great Opportunities: LG offers

Place to Work, Innovating Company: What's more, LG
opportunities for fast growth to talented Electronics' innovative products enhance
Because it Offers
individuals and technical experts in offices people's lives, and have established a
and hubs around the world.
corporate culture based on challenge and
Great Spirit: LG looks after those who are innovation. LG's culture of non-stop
determined to succeed, and who demonstrate innovation is prompting us to lead through
great initiative and professional skills. change. The sky's the limit with LG
Great Rewards: LG offers Electronics. Since its establishment in
rewards for exceptional
guaranteed 1958, LG Electronics has, over the past 50
employee years, developed cutting-edge technologies
performance.
and products in the areas of electronics,
A Global Corporation: LG Electronics is aa information and
communications
global corporation with 82,000 employees technology. LG Electronics is now the global
working for its 81 subsidiaries around the ader in the electronics, information
world. LG Electronics strives to and
provide its communications technology industries.
customers with new products and
technologies. LG Electronics is a world-
class electronics/telecommunication giant.
 3 Personnel Policies, Procedures and Programmes 55
Chapter
factors were Stress, Communication,
Apart from this, LG also has a family ambassador core
JW5
programme where a dedicated mentor goes to the Leadership, Target setting and working hours.
issues
workers house and talks to his family, their problems, campaign helped eliminating the existing
factors and
etc. and tries to make their situation better. All workers pertaining to the above-mentioned
bringing fun at workplace. Now, work is
no more a
are served lunch along with the other senior
mission for
employees so that no demarcation is made. In fact, work at LGEIL, Indeed it has become a
time. All
lunch is first served to workers and then to the white each individual to complete his job well in
and full of
collar employees. On the first Monday of every month, this happened by making workplace lively
the workers meet the MD and 50 workers amongst Fun. The launch of this programme happened through
issues
of them get awards for outstanding performance the melt in of top management, where key
were discussed to bring about
the culture change.
Besides this, LG India is one of the very few
cultivate
companies in the country that has an internal Energy. A Culture change meant the change that will
better
Environment, Safety and Health Department. This the spirits and develop the employee for the
mind our
function caters to activities like Energy Conservation, future to achieve high targets. Keeping in
and
Environmental Issues, Workplace Fire and Safety as values and motto we took one step ahead

Health for the benefit of the benchmarked some activities form Industry as well
well as Occupational
as overseas companies and introduced them at the
employees. There are informal clubs such as
such as
de- company wide level. Certain best practices
singing. games and yoga clubs which aims at
stressing employees and building their
overall Improving upon employee and subordinates
relationships bringfamily like feeling in teams/
personality.
departments, creating more openness.through
5
Another unique point in LG is the Joyful Working
forums, giving positive strokes to employee at right
and strengthen the
programme at LG. To accelerate time, fun day celebrations in departments, building
which
Culture at LGEIL survey was conducted,
leadership competencies and lot more. All this will
a

the monotony employees are

mainly focused on not only bring bonding between the teams but will
are undergoing.
facing at work and the boredom they also help molding the organisational culture to suit
new campaign
Therefore, company came up with the the employee needs. This is only the beginning at
the
which not only helped the company creating LGEIL and not the end because we believe that
compeling future, but also build
thee culture of striving
working with compulsion is not for long, but working
for Number one industry always. This
postion in the with fun is for lifelong and we will continuously keep
working
campaign was named as JW5 (i.e., Joyful moving forward to lead fun at workplace.
based on 5 Key
5) Joyful Working 5 was mainly Source: www.lg.com
factors our organisation needed to focus upon. These

Questions for Discussion

HR policies and practices have contributed to its
success in the marketplace? Why or why
1. Do you think that LG's excellent
not?
lessons to be learnt from LG's HR policies? If yes, list
them. If no, state the reasons?
2. Are there any important
CASE STUDY: A DIRTY GAME CASE 16
Anand Industries is a medium-sized engineering Manager complained that he does not have adequate staff to
company producing a large-range of product lines according plan and control the production function; and whatever little
to customer requirements. It has earned a good reputation planning he does, is generally overlooked by shop-floor
as a quick and reliable supplier to its customers because manager. Shop-floor managers complained of unrealistic
of which its volume of business kept on increasing. planning, excessive machine breakdowns, power failure, and
However, the past one year, the Managing Director of
over shortage of materials for scheduled products because of
the company has been receiving customer complaints due which it is impossible to stick to the schedule. Maintenance
to delays in dispatch of products and at times the company manager says that he does not get important spares required
has to pay substantial penalty for not meeting the schedule for equipment maintenance because of which he cannot
in time. repair machines at a faster rate. Inventory control manager
says that on one hand the company often puts him in an
The Managing Director convened an urgent meeting
of various functional managers to discuss the issue. The embarrassing position for carrying too much stock and on
other hand people are grumbling over shortages.
marketing manager questioned the arbitrary manner of
giving priority to products in manufacturing line, causing Fed up by mutual mud-slinging. the Managing Director
delays in wanted products and overstocking of products decided to appoint you, a bright management consultant with
which are not required immediately. Production Control training in business management to suggest ways and
means to put his "house in order".
 Chapter 4 Growth, Philosophy and Principles 81

Questionsfor Discussion
1. How would you examine if there is any merit in the remarks of various functional managers?
2. What, in your opinion, could be the reasons for different managerial thinking in this case?
3. How woud you design a system of geting comect information about job status to identify delays quickly?
4. What would you suggest to promote co-coordinated interaction of various people to meet the scheduled dates?
5. List some scientific decision aids that you may
prescribe to improve the situation.
 CASE STUDY: SOMETIMES YOUR "ATTITUDE" MIGHT SPOIL THE SHOW? CASE 17
The Monkanto Chemical Company (MCC) is a large the same project with Milka Singh, namely Santosh (age 40,
producer and distributor of commodity chemicals with 15 years with the company), Prem (age 35 years, 10
years with
production plants all over India. A fairly large research and the company) and Datta (age 32, 8 years with the company).
design centre of the company is at Hyderabad where the
As a new employee, Milka
Singh was very excited about
company commenced its manufacturing activity in early 1960s.
working at one of the top chemical companies of India. He
The principal design team consists of 12 male liked the work very much because it was very demanding
engineers and their supervisor Ravi Kant. Having worked and gave a chance to put his IIT learning to
practice. Being a
together for many years, all the members of the group have student of IT, Milka Singh was passionate about his work
friendly relations both inside and outside the design centre and did not find time even to go round the factory even for a
of late, the workload has increased in MCC due to its focus day. He did maintain friendly relations with all his team
on mergers and
acquisitions. Consequently, Ravi had to members but did not go out of the way to develop informal
hire a new design engineer Milka
Singh, from IIT, Delhi. relationships with them during or after working hours.
Milka Singh was asked to look after a project that would
Milka proved to be disciplined and dedicated
a
expand the capcity of one of the existing plant facilities in
Gurgaon. Three other design engineers were also put in employee and everyone began to label him as a typical
100 Personnel Management Chapter 5

'company man'. When things go off track, he was seen to show off his atttude
like this, we will
certainly try to put our
going that extra mile to put things in order. Because of his best foot forward
elsewhere.

brilliant background from one of the top technical schools

Next week, Ravi thought carefully about his meeting with
of the country, Milka would often run ahead of others in
the Milka Singh. He knew that Santosh is the mouthpiece of the
team. He would finish his portion of
project work several entire group and they are not in a mood to listen. When Ravi
days ahead of his colleagues. Of course, he did not like
took up the mid-year review session, the conversation was
this happening with frustrating regularity. He never liked mostly concerned with intra-group relations in the design
the idea of sitting idle without doing constructive work. So
centre. One portion of the conversation went as follows:
he had to run to Ravi Kant seeking additional work to
keep himself busy-till others caught up to him. To break Ravi: "Milka, I am quite happy with your technical
the monotony during those intervening performance. You have certainly made a valuable contribution
moments, he
Would volunteer to help others in his team- to the company and your performance is highly appreciated by
mostly Prem
and Datta who were always falling behind the schedule. top management. However, I must hasten to add, your working
But to his surprise and anguish, all three members of his relations with other members of your team need to be improved
team refused to accept help from Milka. and even strengthened."

About six months after Milka Singh had

joined the Milka: "Sorry, I am unable to catch the point. Please come
design group, Santosh- the senior most member of the back again and put me on track".
team-wanted a meeting with
Ravi Kant in order to Ravit: "t is very simple. You should stop coaching your
discuss a problem that the group was facing. The team. Your know-it-all atitude is the crux of the problem. Other
conversation between the two went as follows: members in your team do not like you to come in their way. In
Ravi: "I am told you want to discuss something fact, you would be better off if you do not put their perfomance
important relating to your work group." Is that right? for open discussion in front of others. To tell you frankly, the
company has no problem with any one of them. For over a
Santosh: Yes, without wasting your time,I want to
decade, they have been doing things in this manner only -and
put the finger on the problem causing trouble. Milka
Singh without any complaints from any quarter. At this stage, I must tell
is proving to be a pain in the neck with his know-it-all, you, I do not want any problems that will compel the group to
pompous attitude. He thinks he can run miles ahead of us.
disintegrate and go in search of greener pastures outside."
He'sjust not the kind of fellow we would like to get along."
Milka: "Oh it's turning out to be quite ugly and
Ravi: That's quite surprising. I am told Milka does even nasty.
Let me straighten out things a bit.
his work sincerely mostly turning out excellent
-

performance and that too ahead of all his team mates First,I never discussed their standards of
performance
not once, but several times. In fact, I am about to with any one. I did not bring this to your notice till date.
recommend his name for the next level of promotion. MCC When they were falling behind schedule, I tried
my level
requires the services of such people only." best to put them on track but they bluntly told me to
mind my own business. I took the hint, and thereafter,
Santosh: "1 don't agree with your assessment sir.
The company would never want a fellow to ride over never tried to reach out to them.
others
in the name of Second, after having worked here for over six months,
coaching. Milka would often turn himself
into a mentor and
begin to deliver
lectures regarding our have noticed one thing. This is just a minor thing. What
performance. We don't like to be guided like children after I have observed is very disturbing to me personally.
having lived in this company for over a decade now. Most other members in the design centre are trying to
Working with such fellows is quite nauseating. He is
only regulate the pace of work to their advantage. They are
provoking us to a point of break down and anytime other not putting their best foot forward. They are, in fact setting
members of my team would run for cover. I don't like this a work pace much slower than they are capable of. I
to happen to a well-knit group". must not say this loudly but I have seen them focus
Ravi: "Ok. I got the point. No need to lose more attention to online games, music, cricket and other
your cool.
Next week Milka would be coming to me to discuss his nonsensical stuff like this.
half-yearly performance. I will place the cards on the table Finally, I do not want to be part of a group that does not
then. I don't like to promise anything at this stage, but I will behave well, that does not deliver results, and that does
certainly discuss the issue with him openly". not rise to a challenge. This is, unfortunately, just not
the wayI was raised or trained. And I do not like
Santosh: "I don't think he is going to improve
continue in this kind of environment any more. Please
suddenly. I am pretty sure about one thing. If he is allowed
get a replacement soon, because I am going to put in
my papers next week!".
 Chapter 5 The Strategic Role of HRM in 21* Century 101

Questions for Discussion

1. What is the crux of the problem in this case?
2. Do you think Milka Singh has an attitude problem?If yes, whae's the remedy? If not, why members of his team are not
able to get along with him?
3. Do you appreciate Ravi Kant's handling of the situation? Why or why not?
4. What is the best way to put out fires, in case problems of this nature crop up inside a healthy organisation?
 CASE STUDY: FISH OUT OF THE POND CASE 18
Sandeep Mulye has finished the ITI diploma from a Mulye was quick to indicate this to his
members.
crew

leading technical institute in Delhi in 1998. He has joined He said, "I do not like this kind of waste in the workplace.
as a trainee in Shanker Foams (P) Ltd. on the strength of You must be sincere to your job. Instead of standing around
his brilliant interview performance. He was asked to report and talking, why don't you assist me in the unloading
to Suresh Kumar, the warehouse supervisor, immediately operations. Don't you think, by wasting your time on useless
after the interview. On the first day, Suresh assigned Mulye activities you are also cutting off the profits and consequently
to a small group of 8 workers who were responsible for your own bonus packages"? The workers on this part were
loading trucks that supplied the materials and carried back quick to retort: "if you don't like our company, better hang out
the foam mattresses, furniture, pillows, bolsters, cushions, outside. If you plan to complain, you better hold your tongue
bus seats, sheets, etc. to various marketing centres and indecent haste. Otherwise you may have cause to feel
sorry later on."
Being atechnician, Mulye was basically surprised to
find workers not doing things properly. They were carrying After the unhappy exchange of arguments and counter
out instructions, no doubt, but at a slow pace, indulging in arguments, the crew virtually boycotted Mulye from their social
gossip and even playing "hide and seek' wherever there network, such as taking tea and lunch together, celebrations
was lot of work to do. Mulye often found himself alone on weekend movies, celebration of festivals
Friday afternoon,
unloading the trucks while other members of the group were in company quarters, street-side card games, etc. Beihg a
off messing around elsewhere. bachelor, Mulye found this a bit too hard and, one day, picked
118 Personnel Management Chapter 6

an argument with Shanker Dada, one of the older workers a spot their shirts. Anyway, I am not going to stick my neck
on

thus: out for long here. I am glad that you guys have not been able
to change me a bit."
What's wrong with you guys? I am just tryingto do my
job. I am paid for the work here. I don't want to be a parasite Shanker Dada replied Comrade Mulye, if you had been
on the company andI don't like others to run saround without here as long as we have, you would be just like us."

Questions for Discussion

1. Employing some of the theories, explain the possible reasons for the group formation of this work crew. What types of
groups exist in this case?

2. Examine the role the supervisor is playing in encouraging or discouraging the group to do well on the job?
3. Why has Mulye been accepted by the group? Do you agree with Shanker Dada's statement? Why or Why not?
 CASE STUDY: MADNESS AT FORTUNE BUSINESS SCHOOL CASE 19
of
by Internet; the number students
Yes, there are enough reasons for you to celebrate are 'live' or delivered
in

your success in the shortest possible time. It looks so the classes themselves: and the degree of teaching and
wonderful to put the clock back. Every since you completed second
marking support made available by FBS. The
the masters programme in HRM from a prestigious
category is so incredibly broad almost anything could be put
Business school, your career is on a roll. You have achieved into this slot. It covers not only research and publications in
considerable success as a consulting job analyst, the micro journals, books and practitioner magazines; but also media
area that you chose to leave an imprint on the job market. interviews, lectures to professional groups, the public and
People talk openly about how you drive the latest Honda, other bodies and lending professional expertise to groups
your expensive Italian suits, your luxury trips to unknown within and outside FBS. The final category, 'service' is
islands of the world. Things are pretty good on the personal more confusing. It covers serving on various administrative
still
front, but something missing on the other side of the fence, and academic committees, service to community groups
your Alma Mater, Fortune Business School (FBS) Mumbai. and outside agencies-that, of course, increase the
FBS has made its mark in the educational world prestige and visibility of the business school.
through excellent faculty, world-class facilities; fantastic The assignment looks pretty tough. Because it's so
placement offers and headed by a well-known professor different from the corporate world and completely different
from Harvard. Just this morning, you received a frantic phone from what you are doing currently in the private sector. As you
call from Prof. Rajesh, Dean of Administration that the Citi drive down your latest Honda to FBS campus, almost after a
Bank which has been funding the institution all along would gap of over 10 years, you wonder as to how to handle the
cut the funding drastically if FBS fails to put its house in pressures from academic and administrative staff to put
order. Citi wants FBS to implement performance indicators everything in black and white quickly. Yes, FBS cannot afford
forfaculty members-numbering over 60 -

in a concrete to have a drastic cut in funding especially when it is facing

form the heat from global entrants into the educational field in
Now, your role as a job analyst is pretty clear. Within recent times. Big corporate houses have been looking at
the campus, there are serious differences about what a the opportunity closely all these years and they may jump
faculty member is supposed to do while at work. There is into the fray anytime from now. Now, once you are done with
complete madness about the 'core elements of the job'. the job, the measures suggested by you are going to be
used to assess faculty members at every
The broad guidelines in this regard are too general in stage-right from
nature. They simply state that faculty members should look deciding the compensation package to merit pay and
after three essential things: teaching, research and service extendable even to posting to not so popular courses within
FBS. In short, the documents that you wll prepare will
Teaching workloads vary enormously among
guide
and constrain decisions on faculty tenure and
professors with respect to the number of different courses
promotion,
as well as the selection,
and topics taught; whether the courses are introductory or
training, developing and career
progression of faculty members at FBS. You certainly have
advanced, undergraduate or graduate level; whether they your work cut out for you. It's time to get to it.

Questions for Discussion

1. As the consulting job analyst to FBS, prepare an intake evaluation report that contains your recommended steps and
sequencing of activities to conduct this work analysis.
2. List the various stakeholders you will consult and indicate specific methods and techniques you will employ in successfully
completing this contractual assignment.
 CASE STUDY: ENGINEERING GRADUATES FOR GAS MECHANIC JOBS? CASE 20
Raghav was recruiter for South West
assigned as a the company increased quite dramatically the previous year
Gas Company (SVwGC), a major supplier of gas and and SWGC is finding it difficult to get technically qualified
electricity for Gurgaon, Haryana and the surrounding areas. people from the local market.
The company has been expanding quite rapidly during the Raghav is particularly concerned about gas installation
past decade- than ks to the liberal of the
policies mechanics. These mechanics are supposed to visit the
government and the increasing demand from consumers.
premises of customers, study the location closely, lay the
Being a listed company, the company's progress is being
looked into closely by investment analysts and the
pipeline from the mainsupply point, dig up entry points of
gas supply into the customers' residences and fix the
predictions, if they were to be believed, present a rosy picture
metallic pipes as per the drawings made by
for the company in the coming years as well. The company engineers and
carry out vigorous checking to ensure that gas supply through
has been looking at mergers and acquisitions area quite
the metallic as well as rubber
seriously, enthused by the response from consumers for pipes is being ensured in a
safe and effective manner. The work demands
gas. It has purchased a utilities system serving the technical skills
and the ability to carry out work as
neighbouring state, Punjab in 2009. The expansion move per instructions passed
on by engineers of the
concerned Raghav for a variety of reasons. The workforce of company. Of course, they need to be
concerned about safety of the
installations, wherever gas
 Chapter 8 Human Resource Planning 153
pipeline supply is recommended. The pay and perquisites engineering colleges for this kind of technically demanding
for the gas mechanics is, more or
less, in sync with market jobI have decided to.change the education requirement for
conditions. They get around 8,000 in addition to
a bonus gas mechanics from a high school diploma to an
that depends the number of installations made,
on
engineering degree henceforward".
inspections carried out, etc. All in all, an experienced gas
Raghav protested strongly, "Madam, the company is
mechanic would be making around 7 15,000 per month
growing quite rapidly. As someone associated with the
including transportation allowance and other benefits. Of company's recruiting efforts during the last couple of years,
late, the gas mechanics have been making a hue and cry
demanding a higher base pay- which is pending before I visualise lot of problems if we go ahead with your plan.
Getting the required numbers from good engineering9
management. colleges for an entry level salary of around 15,000 is going
Raghav was thinking about how to attract more job to be tough. Moreover, there is the danger of engineering
candidates for the gas mechanics position in view of the graduates using SWGC as a springboard and jump out at
growing demand for such people from rival companies. the first available opportunity from any rival outfit."
Recent trends in the job market suggest a chronic shortage
Sangeetha felt otherwise. She abruptly cut the
of qualified hands in this field. Raghav was also upset when conversation by saying. "No, I don't agree. We need qualified
the Human Resource Manager, Sangeetha, called him up hands to fill the vacancies and we need capable people
yesterday and said: "Raghav, I am unhappy with the job from good engineering colleges. I have consulted
specification calling for only a high school education for gas management about this and they have given me the green
mechanics. We need technically qualified people from
signal."
professionally-run technical institutes possessing at least Source: Adapted from R.W. Mondy et al, Human Resource
a Diploma and ideally we need engineers from good
Management, 2009.

Questionsfor Discussion
is
1. Should there be aminimum education requirement for the gas mechanics, now, especially when the company
difficult to get the required numbers?
expanding rapidly and is finding it
effort to upgrade the qualifications of gas mechanics in the organisation?
2. What is your opinion of Sangeetha's
as far as
issues that need to be looked into closely before taking such a radical step-
3. Are there any other compelling
concerned?
human resource planning is
 CASE 21
CASE 1-HRM
Jennifer, the owner and manager of a company with ten employees, has hired you to take over
the HRM function so she can focus on other areas of her business. During your first two weeks,
you find out that the company has been greatly affected by the up economy and is expected to
experience overall revenue growth by 10 percent over the next three years, with some quarters
seeing growth as high as 30 percent. However, five of the ten workers are expected to retire
within three years. These workers have been with the organization since the beginning and
provide a unique historical perspective of the company. The other five workers are of diverse
ages.

In addition to these changes, Jennifer believes they may be able to save costs by allowing
employees to telecommute one to two days per week. She has some concerns about
productivity if she allows employees to work from home. Despite these concerns, Jennifer has
even considered closing down the physical office and making her company a virtual
organization, but she wonders how such a major change will affect the ability to communicate
and worker motivation.

Jennifer shares with you her thoughts about the costs of health care on the organization. She
has considered cutting benefits entirely and having her employees work for her on a contract
basis, instead of being full-time employees. She isn’t sure if this would be a good choice.

Jennifer schedules a meeting with you to discuss some of her thoughts. To prepare for the
meeting, you perform research so you can impress your new boss with recommendations on
the challenges presented.

1. Point out which changes are occurring in the business that affect HRM.
2. What are some considerations the company and HR should be aware of when making changes
related to this case study?
3. What would the initial steps be to start planning for these changes?
4. What would your role be in implementing these changes? What would Jennifer’s role be?

Team Activities

1. In a group of two to three people, research possible career paths in HRM and prepare a
PowerPoint presentation to discuss your findings.
2. Interview an HR manager and discuss his or her career path, skills, and daily tasks. Present
your findings to your class.
 CASE
CASE 22
2

Harsha and Franklin both of them are postgraduates in management under different streams
from the same B-School. Both of them are close to each other from the college days itself and
the same friendship is continuing in the organization too as they are placed in the same
company, Hy-tech technology solutions. Harsha placed in the HR department as employee
counsellor and Franklin in the finance department as a key finance executive. As per the grade
is concerned both are at the same level but when responsibility is concerned Franklin is holding
more responsibility being in core finance.

By nature, Harsha is friendly in nature and ready to help the needy. Franklin is silent in nature
ready to help if approached personally and always a bit egoistic in nature. They have
successfully completed 4 years in the organization. And management is very much satisfied
with both of them as they are equally talented and constant performers.

Harsha felt that now a day’s Franklin is not like as he uses to be in the past. She noticed some
behavioural changes with him. During general conversations, she feels that Franklin is taunting
her that she is famous among the employees in the organization, on the other hand, he is not
even recognized by fellow employees.

One morning Mr. Mehta General Manager Hy-tech technology solutions shocked while going
through the mail received from Franklin about his resignation. Mr. Mehta called Harsha
immediately and discussed the same as she is close to Franklin. By hearing the news Harsha
got stunned and said that she does not know this before she also revealed here current
experience with him. Mr. Mehta who does not want to lose both of them promised her that he
will handle this and he won’t allow Franklin to resign.

In the afternoon Mr. Metha took Franklin to Canteen to make him comfortable after some
general discussion he starts on the issue. Franklin, after some hesitation, opened his thinking
in front of Mr. Mehta. The problem of Franklin is

1) when he comes alone to canteen the people from others don’t even recognize him but if he
accompanied by Harsha he gets well treated by others.

2) one day Both of them entered the company together the security in the gate wished them but
the next day when he came alone the same security did not do so.

3) Even in meetings held in the office, the points raised by Harsha will get more value so many
times he keeps silent in the meeting.

It happens to Franklin that he has to face such degradation in each day of work which totally
disturbs him. Franklin also questioned that ” Harsha and myself have the same qualification,
from the same institute, passed out in the same year both with first class. We have the same
number of experiences in this organization. Moreover, the responsibilities with me are more
valuable than those of Harsha. After all these things if I am been ignored or unrecognized by
the fellow employees my ego does not allow me to continue here”.

By listening to this statement Mr.Metha felt that it is not going to be very difficult to stop his
resignation. Mr. Mehta explained Franklin the reasons for such partial behaviour of the
employees.
After listening to Mr. Mehta Franklin said sorry for his reaction and ready to take back
his resignation. And he called Harsha and spoke with like before.

Q.1. Find the reason that Mr. Mehta would have given to Franklin.
 CASE
CASE 323
Watson Public Ltd Company is well known for its welfare activities and employee-oriented
schemes in the manufacturing industry for more than ten decades. The company employs more
than 800 workers and 150 administrative staff and 80 management-level employees. The Top-
level management views all the employees at the same level. This can be clearly understood
by seeing the uniform of the company which is the Same for all starting from MD to floor level
workers. The company has 2 different cafeterias at different places one near the plant for
workers and others near the Administration building. Though the place is different the
amenities, infrastructure and the food provided are of the same quality. In short, the company
stands by the rule of Employee Equality.

The company has one registered trade union. The relationship between the union and the
management is very cordial. The company has not lost a single man day due to strike. The
company is not a paymaster in that industry. The compensation policy of that company, when
compared to other similar companies, is very less still the employees don’t have many
grievances due to the other benefits provided by the company. But the company is facing a
countable number of problems in supplying the materials in the recent past days. Problems like
quality issues, mismatch in packing materials (placing material A in the box of material B)
incorrect labelling of material, not dispatching the material on time, etc…

The management views the case as there are loopholes in the system of various departments
and hand over the responsibility to the HR department to solve the issue. When the HR manager
goes through the issues he realized that the issues are not relating to the system but it relates to
the employees. When investigated he come to know that the reason behind the casual approach
by employees in work is

 The company hired new employees for a higher-level post without considering the potential
internal candidates.
 The newly hired employees are placed with higher packages than that of existing employees in
the same cadre.
Questions:

1. Narrate the case with a suitable title for the case. Justify your title.
 CASE
CASE - 424
Proper communication Channel a way to Effective Management

Background of the case study

AutoSpare public Ltd is an Age-old automobile industry involves in the manufacturing of

engine Spare parts. They are highly valued among the customers as they are a monopoly in
some of their parts. Most of the Indian Automobile leaders are the customers of Auto Spare to
name a few TATA, Force Motors, M&M and Cummins, etc.

Auto spare has 3 manufacturing Unit and all of them are situated in 3 various places in Southern
India and the management is been done from one of the Manufacturing plants located in
Chennai. As most of the customers are located in the Northern and western regions of the
country the marketing managers are spread in those places convenient to meet the customer.
Only the VP Marketing and GM Marketing are working from the head office. They act as a
link between the company and the marketing people as they communicate the targets to the
marketing people and submit the reports, send by those people, to the higher authorities.

Mr.More, Mr.Mehta, Mr.Rajesh are the marketing team looking after the western region, from
where more number of customers are operating. The Job profile of these people includes getting
monthly requirements from the clients, mailing the same to the respective departments, looking
after the supply whether the goods are reaching the customers as per schedule, and attending
the customers in case of any quality issue regarding auto spare parts. And sending the weekly
report consists of reports in detail about all the above-said things to the VP & GM Marketing.

In recent days the western region of Autospare is facing a different problem. Even though there
is a slag in the Automobile industry being a monopoly Autospare doesn’t face a problem as it
gets a continuous schedule to supply from the customers. But the marketing department finds
it very difficult to get the material from the plant and supply it to the needy customers. Most of
the time it happens that the production itself was supposed to be stopped due to the non-
availability of materials from Autospare.

The marketing team has to attend quality issues at least thrice a week. They have sent a number
of reports regarding these issues but all at the vein, no improvement from the production side.
The marketing executives were losing their good terms with the customers. Slowly the
customers started to develop other sources for the parts manufactured by Autospare Pub Ltd.
Still, they are finding it difficult to develop such sources as the raw material required is unique.
In this situation, the CEO of Autospare visited the customers of the western region. Almost all
the customers highlighted the quality as the main issue. And most of them also stated that
Autospare fails to supply the products as per schedule most of the time.

As soon as he returned to head office he sent a mail to all the marketing executives in the
western region claiming that:-

o “The executives failed to maintain their rapport with that of customers.

o The sales in the western region are not up to the mark due to the irresponsive nature of the
marketing department.
o Failed to check out whether the schedule is met or not.
o All the employees in the marketing department of the Western region including the territory
head, along with GM and VP must give a detailed explanation about the issue.”
He also demanded a detailed report, from Production VP, regarding Production and dispatch
of products along with schedules received by the production department from the Marketing
Department.

Questions

1. Who is at fault in this case CEO or VP GM Marketing or Production Department or

marketing people in the western region. Justify your answer. ( can make necessary assumptions
if required)

2. Consider yourself as one of the marketing executives from the western region and frame a
report as demanded by the CEO ( can make necessary assumptions if required)
CASE
CASE25
5
CASE
CASE 26
6
CASE
CASE27
7
CASE
CASE 28
8
 29
CASE 21
 CASE 30
AMS Fertilizers is a 11-year-old fertilizer manufacturing company in Punjab, decided to
expand their business in 3 other states namely Karnataka, Tamilnadu and Assam where the
product is having good demand. They planned to approach farmers directly to understand their
demands and also the dealers in the said state to establish the products.

Mr. Aditya who is looking after the HR department of AMS was been called by Mr. AM Singh.
He informed Aditya that, “Aditya today I am excited as we are expanding our business in other
parts also. So, I want you to identify best candidates for our marketing department who can
establish our products in the new market”. He continued, Aditya I want 3 best marketing
candidates in place within a week. Don’t wait for any further order complete the task in a best
possible way.” Mr. Aditya also started his work with immediate effect.

He finalized 3 best candidates namely Mr. Kushwa, Mr. Dev and Mr. Bowmick. All the three
candidates were having good experience and excellent track record in top fertilizer companies.
After Recruitment Mr. Aditya introduced them to Mr. AM Singh thereafter Mr. Singh assigned
with their duties.

Challenge to MR. Aditya

After a month Mr. AM Singh called Mr. Aditya and started a heated argument as follows,
“Aditya I believed you and asked you to recruit 3 best candidates, Once you finalized I didn’t
had a second thought, I placed them for the task and you blasted all my dreams”. Confused
Aditya asked in a polite voice “But sir I brought best candidates, I am not able to understand
the issue sir. I didn’t even get the opportunity to meet them after I left them in your cabin”

Mr. Singh said “OK, let me explain you clearly. Except Mr. Bowmick who is placed in Assam,
both of your other 2 candidates could not bring any business, they failed and are in verge to
give up themselves. So Mr. Aditya tell me what should I do now. Why should I pay you if you
are unable to do even a basic HR job.”

Questions on Case
1. What went wrong in the case.

2. Who is at fault Mr. Singh or Aditya or the 2 failed candidates

3. How the fertilizer company can come out of this issue.

4. What are the HR concepts that you can correlate with this case.
 CASE 31
Technology Plus

Technology Plus is one of the largest and fastest growing computer retailers in India. Presently,
the company is functioning with 442 stores and is going to expand its business in the next two
years. Technology plus wants to bring improvements in the customer service in order to build
the long-term relationship with the customers that would benefit both; the company as well as
the customers.

Presently, the company is facing the issue of high turnover rate. There is also the shortage of
store related staff especially store managers. Sometimes, the company has to hire the staff from
other hiring firms that increase the cost. The Company has hired Kirti Mazumdar, an HR
executive, to evaluate the hiring process and provide training to the store managers. The
Company also wants Kirti to analyse the reasons for leaving the job at the faster rate, the job
requirements for the position of store managers, and develop training modules accordingly.

Questions

1. What is the central issue highlighted in the case.

2. Discuss the theory behind the problem of hiring.

3. Help Kirti to find solutions for issues related to Hiring and Turnover.
 CASE 32
Karagari

“Karagari” a textile manufacturing unit located in the city of Surat with enough
infrastructure and a good workforce. The organization is specialized in shirting
and suiting particularly the supplies that are done in Gujarat only. The
organization is run by the CEO who is commonly known for well educated,
experienced, a businessman with a humane approach. Mr. Dhairya CEO
“Karagar” considered the employees as a competitive advantage of his
organization and want to keep the workforce always updated to face the
challenges from their competitors.

Dhairya the people’s leader

Mr. Dhairya, who heads the production himself, developed an efficient top
management group which includes Mr. Prem Heading marketing, Mrs. Sheetal
leading HR and T&D, Mr. Vaidya leading finance. All these department heads
are always been supportive heads for the ideas of Mr.Dhairya in handling the
workforce. Mr. Dhairya always quotes that “I believe that satisfied, educated, the
dedicated workforce will be a key to success at any condition to any organization.
Money spent on employees will always be an investment for my organization.”

Activity of the Organization

Training and development become a day to activity in the organization.

Employees are been trained by well-versed trainers in that area. The organization
also encourages the employees to do further studies as part of the career
development program and they get a helping hand from the organization.

Happy Employees

The employees of Karagari are very much satisfied with this kind of support from
the organization and they realized that being with Karagari their personal growth
will be assured. Because of the above-said things Karagari had many advantages
like highly trained and qualified workforce, highest quality of supplies assured,
less rate of attrition, dedicated workforce, meeting the targets on time, satisfied
workforce, etc…

Announcement by Mr. Dhairya

One day the employees of Karagari were in deep Grief when the news hit the
office that Mr. Dhairya CEO made an announcement, ” Dear employees. You all
are my colleagues rather than my employees. I always feel that I am one of you
with more responsibility. Now my age is not allowing me to shoulder that
responsibility, I wish to give way to my younger generation. So I have decided to
handover the charge to Mr. Utsav, My only son, who had completed his studies
and returned to India. I know you all will be with him as a pillar and extend your
support, in the same manner, you supported me. Without you people, this
organization would not have reached these heights. I am Sure you all will support
him.

Now it has been three months since Mr. Utsav take over the charge and from day
one he started auditing in almost all the departments with a motto to reduce cost.
And he got a strong statistics that the compensation is the highest cost bared by
the company compared to any other cost incurred in the organization.

Utsav’s decision: Shocked Sheetal

Utsav called Mrs. Sheetal the head HR and told her “Mrs. Sheetal, I need an
immediate action plan to reduce the labor force by 30% by way of Lay-off” he
continued, “Sheetal I hope you are getting my point and I want it to happen soon”.
Mrs. Sheetal got shocked by listening to this decision and said to Mr. Utsav that
“ Sir it is my responsibility to tell you that the workforce which we have is an
excellent, well trained, loyal and self-motivated workforce. In case of lay off such
the competitors will take advantage of that. We can think of other options rather
than Layoff.”

Mr. Utsav was not in a position to listen to her words he said that “sorry Mrs.
Sheetal I am not ready to review my decision and neither wants any alternatives
for this I want this work to be done within a week”. Finally, with all her regrets
Mr. Sheetal reduced the workforce by 30%. On the other hand, the employees
who were waived from Karagari joined the competitors with a better package.

One day in his office Mr. Utsav was discussing with Mrs. Sheetal that the cost of
labor in the organization has been reduced to a great level which increases the net
profit also. After listening to this Mrs. Sheetal said that “it is well-said sir, we
have reduced the labor cost and increased the profit but it is more true that we
have missed the great opportunity to grow more by losing our wealth to the
competitors”

Questions on Case study on T&D with solution

1. “ Employees are the competitive of the advantage of Karagari” comment on

this statement relating to the approach of Mr. Dhairya CEO

2. How did you judge the actions taken by Mr. Utsav to reduce the cost of labor
was it really a successful one?
3. “We have gained the profit by losing our wealth” discuss the statement of Mrs.
Sheetal and support her statement.

4. From the above-said case find the opportunity which was missed by Karagari
due to the lay off as mentioned by Mrs. Sheetal.
CASE 33
CASE 34
 CASE 35
Find Reasons

Mehak and Harsh both of them are postgraduates in management under different streams from the same
B-School. Both of them are close to each other from the college days itself and the same friendship is
continuing in the organization too as they are placed in the same company, Hy-tech technology
solutions. Mehak placed in the HR department as employee counsellor and Harsh in the finance
department as a key finance executive. As per the grade is concerned both are at the same level but
when responsibility is concerned Harsh is holding more responsibility being in core finance.

By nature, Mehak is friendly in nature and ready to help the needy. Harsh is silent in nature ready to
help if approached personally and always a bit egoistic in nature. They have successfully completed 4
years in the organization. And management is very much satisfied with both of them as they are equally
talented and constant performers.

Mehak felt that now a day’s Harsh is not like as he uses to be in the past. She noticed some behavioural
changes with him. During general conversations, she feels that Harsh is taunting her that she is famous
among the employees in the organization, on the other hand, he is not even recognized by fellow
employees.

One morning Mr. Singh General Manager Hy-tech technology solutions shocked while going through
the mail received from Harsh about his resignation. Mr. Singh called Mehak immediately and discussed
the same as she is close to Harsh. By hearing the news Mehak got stunned and said that she does not
know this before she also revealed here current experience with him. Mr. Singh who does not want to
lose both of them promised her that he will handle this and he won’t allow Harsh to resign.

In the afternoon Mr. Singh took Harsh to Canteen to make him comfortable after some general
discussion he starts on the issue. Harsh, after some hesitation, opened his thinking in front of Mr. Singh.
The problem of Harsh is

1) when he comes alone to canteen the people from others don’t even recognize him but if he
accompanied by Mehak he gets well treated by others.

2) one day Both of them entered the company together the security in the gate wished them but the next
day when he came alone the same security did not do so.

3) Even in meetings held in the office, the points raised by Mehak will get more value so many times
he keeps silent in the meeting.
It happens to Harsh that he has to face such degradation in each day of work which totally disturbs him.
Harsh also questioned that ” Mehak and myself have the same qualification, from the same institute,
passed out in the same year both with first class. We have the same number of experiences in this
organization. Moreover, the responsibilities with me are more valuable than those of Mehak. After all
these things if I am been ignored or unrecognized by the fellow employees my ego does not allow me
to continue here”.

By listening to this statement Mr. Singh felt that it is not going to be very difficult to stop his resignation.
Mr. Singh explained Harsh the reasons for such partial behaviour of the employees.
After listening to Mr. Singh Harsh said sorry for his reaction and ready to take back his resignation.
And he called Mehak and spoke with like before.

Questions

1. Find the reason that Mr. Singh would have given to Harsh.
2. Highlight the HR concept related to this case.