OPTION 2: Critical evaluation of an organisation’s HRM practices that are aimed at developing and maintaining a desired organisational culture. To complete this assignment, you must: 1. Find a suitable organisation: Some of you are currently working in an organisation and senior management in your organisation may be willing to allow you to use the organisation as a ‘case study’ (but do check first!). Otherwise, use your contacts to provide a starting point for gaining access to an organisation. You will need to contact someone in the organisation who can provide the information you need for your assignment. Preferably this should be a senior manager, someone with the knowledge and authority to provide access to good quality information, such as an HR manager. Make sure that you explain the purpose and scope of the assignment to them, and address any concerns they may have about confidentiality. (You may use fictitious names for your informant(s) and his or her organisation.)
Please avoid organisations that have minimal HRM practices relating to organisational culture.
2. Conduct library research: Conduct library research to identify the most significant practices that organisations employ to build and maintain an effective organisational culture. These practices typically include:
• Identifying the organisation’s core values
• Recruitment practices
• Selection practices
• Induction practices
• Training practices
• Performance appraisal practices
• Recognition and reward practices
3. Critically evaluate the ‘case study’ organisation’s practices that are currently being employed to develop and maintain an effective organisational culture. You must critically evaluate the organisation’s practices by comparing the practices that are actually being employed by the organisation with the ideal or ‘good practice’ that is recommended in the literature.
4. Make recommendations for improvement. You must make clear-cut, specific, actionable and practicable recommendations that the organisation could adopt to improve or introduce the practices.
The report must consist of the following components:
• Title page
• Table of contents
• Introduction (Approx 1 page)
• Literature overview: (Approx 3 pages)
– The meaning of organisational culture
– The link between organisation culture and organisation performance
– HRM practices that help build and maintain a desired organisation culture
• Findings – what practices are currently employed in the organisation? (Approx 3 pages)
• Analysis and Evaluation – of organisation’s current practices in relation to the literature (Approx 5 pages)
• Recommendations (Approx 1 page)
• References
Note: The approximate number of pages that should be dedicated to each of the report components are indicated in brackets. Further detail about each component of the report is in the table on the following page. The report must preserve confidentially and the anonymity of the informant(s) and his or her organisation, unless you have received explicit permission by senior management in the organisation to reveal identities.
YOUR REPORT MUST BE ANALYTICAL AND INCORPORATE A CRITICAL PERSPECTIVE ON THE ORGANISATION’S PRACTICES, AS OPPOSED TO BEING MERELY DESCRIPTIVE.
Elements of Report and Evaluation Criteria
Introduction
Criteria include: Provides background information about the organisation. Describes information gathering methods (e.g., How was information gathered? Who was interviewed? What type of material was referred to?). States limitations of the report. Previews structure (i.e. an overview of what the reader should expect to read in the rest of the report.)
Literature review
Criteria include: Provides a succinct overview of literature on: (a) the meaning of organisational culture; (b) the link between organisation culture and organisation performance; and (c) HRM practices that help develop and maintain a desired organisation culture.
Findings Criteria include:
Clearly identifies and succinctly describes the organisation’s current actual practices. Number of practices identified and described provides sufficient breadth and depth of discussion.
Analysis and Evaluation
Criteria include: Insightful analysis and evaluation of the organisation’s practices in relation to the literature. Analytical and evaluative, as opposed to descriptive.
Recommendations
Criteria include: Follows logically from the findings, analysis and evaluation. Suggest practicable courses of action. Explicitly linked to organisational culture. Written as action statements. Clear-cut and specific.
References
Criteria include: Complies with APA referencing guidelines. Complete list. Suggests wide reading. Good
These are highly recommended readings.
Option 2:
Chapter 5: Culture as a source of sustained competitive advantage. In Barney, J.B. & Clark, D.N. (2007). Resource-based theory: Creating and sustaining competitive advantage. Oxford: Oxford University Press.*
Den Hartog, D.,N., & Verburg, R. M. (2004). High performance work systems, organisational culture and firm effectiveness. Human Resource Management Journal, 14(1), 55-78.
Lau, C. M., & Ngo, H. Y. (2004). The HR system, organizational culture, and product innovation. International Business Review, 13(6), 685-703.
Linnenluecke, M. K., & Griffiths, A. (2010). Corporate sustainability and organizational culture. Journal of World Business, 45(4), 357-366.
MacIntosh, E. W., & Doherty, A. (2010). The influence of organizational culture on job satisfaction and intention to leave. Sport Management Review, 13(2), 106-117.
Madhani, P. M. (2014). Aligning compensation systems with organization culture. Compensation & Benefits Review, 46(2), 103-115. *
Mosley, R. W. (2007). Customer experience, organisational culture and the employer brand. Journal of Brand Management, 15(2), 123-134.
Warrick, D.D., Milliman, J.F. & Ferguson, J.M. (2016). Building high performance cultures. Organizational Dynamics, 45(1), 64-70. *
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