Problems in Knowledge Management: A Case Study of a Knowledge‐Intensive Company

Knowledge management has become an important tool in staying ahead in the competition between companies. In this article five different phases of the knowledge management process are distinguished: acquiring knowledge, codifying knowledge, disseminating knowledge, developing knowledge and applying knowledge. The occurrence of knowledge management problems is demonstrated in a case study in a knowledge‐intensive company. Most of the problems in this case occur in the first three phases of the knowledge management process. It is recommended that the company monitors on a regular basis, starting from its core competencies and its strategy, what essential knowledge their employees are lacking and encourages them to acquire it. Furthermore, the company should ensure that employees have time to codify their knowledge regularly and that adequate information systems are in place and kept up‐to‐date. The dissemination of knowledge can be improved by working in different teams, coupling junior with senior employees, and by the exchange of new knowledge between employees on a regular basis by encouraging the development of communities of practice and by the systematic creation of learning histories.     

Organization Context and Human Resource Management in the Small Firm

This paper examines the relationship between organization contextual variables and human resource management (HRM) practices in small firms. The proposed model is based on an integration of theoretical perspectives, including the resource-based approach, institutional theory, transaction cost economics (TCE), and concepts from strategic management. The model is explored empirically, with qualitative and quantitative analyses of data collected from a sample of sixteen small Dutch firms. Specific contextual variables examined include company size, the presence of a collective labor agreement, having a large firm associate, either as supplier, purchasing group or franchiser, and the company's strategic orientation toward growth (growth strategy). An important finding is the significance of having a large firm associate. Companies with a large firm associate are more likely to report having employer-based training programs. As predicted, company size is associated with more formal HRM practices, including greater regularity of performance appraisal and greater likelihood of employer-based training. A weak relationship is found between a more growth-oriented strategy and greater formality of these two HRM practices. Predictions based on collective labor agreements are not supported. The paper concludes that the findings warrant further research on the relationship between organization contextual variables and the formalization of HRM practices, although a clearer definition of the latter variable is needed in future research.     

An evaluation of The Ethics Program at General Dynamics

The Ethics Program at General Dynamics was evaluated relative to its stated objectives and its implied objectives. The program was found to have met its specific objectives which require employees to follow rules and standards of conduct. The program did not apparently meet its implied objectives which would have created a more humanistic work environment for employees. This result apparently stemmed from program planners' intentions to use the hope for better working conditions as a motivation for employees to follow company standards. A substantial conflict was found between the philosophical bases for ethics programs and work environment improvement programs.Dr. Barker recently joined the faculty of Marist College to teach courses in organizational behavior, human resources management, and business policy. He was previously an internal change agent, at middle management levels, for General Dynamics for thirteen years. During that period, he also taught courses part time for the University of Redlands in business ethics, management theory, organizational behavior, human resources management, strategic planning, and research design.     

Strategic and Business Planning Practices of Fast Growth Family Firms

Fast-growth family firms were surveyed about their business and strategic planning practices. Of the 65 fast-growth family firms surveyed, the majority prepare written formal plans. The business plans are in sufficient detail to enable the business to tie planning to actual performance and to adjust management compensation accordingly. The majority of the firms regularly share information with employees regarding comparisons between actual company performance results and goals or planned performance. Further, the majority of the firms describe their business strategy as a high quality producer strategy rather than as a low-cost or time-based strategy. Further, when bringing new products to market, these fast-growth family firms adopt a first mover or early follower strategy. Implications of these findings for growth-oriented family firms are presented.     

Solidarity Day at Unión Fenosa in Spain

The growing interest organizations have in concepts like social involvement and sustainability has helped unite programs and practices of different natures, mostly in the form of large investments in local communities. But what role can employees play in achieving this corporate aim, and how do these policies affect the way employees see their organization? Unión Fenosa has been a pioneer in the Spanish business community in maintaining corporate social responsibility and the commitment of its employees to these values. An analysis of its Solidarity Day policy shows the perspective of its employees, their motivation, and the relations between them and their company.     

Managing organizational culture in a Japanese organization in Hong Kong

The issue of how MNCs manage the organizational culture in their overseas subsidiaries is one of the central questions for managing overseas employees. The study explores how a Japanese MNC in Hong Kong manages its organizational culture across cultures. The results imply that a company will not be effective if it uses artifacts only, such as ceremonies to convey the desired culture to the local employees. The more important mechanism is the human resource management system which is considered as the statement of the company's values, beliefs and assumptions. Since the case company uses a dual human resource management system and a dual control practice for the Japanese and local employees, these practices send out mixed messages and signals to the local employees who cannot project the desired state culture. Furthermore, because local employees bring along with them their values derived from national culture, they tend to adhere to these values rather than those of the company.     

Aligning employees through “line of sight”

Aligning employees with the firm's larger strategic goals is critical if organizations hope to manage their human capital effectively and ultimately attain strategic success. An important component of attaining and sustaining this alignment is for employees to have a “line of sight” (LOS) with their organization's strategic objectives. In this article, we illustrate how the translation of calculated firm goals into tangible results requires that employees not only understand the organization's strategy, but also accurately appreciate what actions are aligned with realizing that strategy. Using recent empirical evidence, theoretical insights, and tangible examples of exemplary firm practices, we provide thought-leaders with a comprehensive view of LOS by showing how it can be created, how it can be enhanced or stifled, and how it can be effectively managed. Further, we integrate LOS with current thinking on employee alignment to help managers more effectively benefit from understanding human capital potential.     

Activity-based Costing (ABC) and the Life Insurance Industry

This paper describes the concept of activity-based costing (ABC) and examines its relevance to the life insurance industry. The paper contends that the high overheads and diversified product lines of many life insurance companies makes them appropriate environments within which to apply ABC. It is considered that ABC can provide at least three important benefits to a life insurance company, namely: more accurate cost information, closer insights into the costs of production and better information concerning the strategic consequences of business decisions. These attributes can help a life insurance company to achieve important business objectives, such as the management of expenses and the continuous improvement in the quality of its products and services. However; the transition to ABC is not easy and it cannot be seen as a panacea for all corporate woes. Nevertheless, the paper concludes that with sound project management, an ABC system can provide life insurance companies with much better information for activity management and the achievement of longer term strategic goals.     

When union strategy meets business strategy: The union voucher at Axa

In the 1980s, the French reformist union CFDT and insurance company Axa tested the union voucher. This was a novel solution for the union branch inside the company to address financial difficulties, broaden its membership base and generate new resources. The union voucher is a tool that provides unions with company funding: the company distributes vouchers to employees on an annual basis; employees then allocate the voucher (or not) to the union branch of their choice. The voucher system thus combines company financing and individual employee choice. Axa adopted the system in the early 1990s. Axa’s decision can ultimately be explained by its external growth strategy and because it needed to preserve a favourable climate during a period of intense restructuring. This article traces the history of the union voucher and assesses Axa’s experience.     

The Business Value of Health Management

For organizational development that is future-oriented, enterprises increasingly need qualified, motivated and efficient workers who are able and willing to contribute actively to technical and organizational innovations. Furthermore, customers and consumers are increasingly interested in healthy products and services. Therefore, health has become a (potential) business value of strategic importance. In interaction with all relevant stakeholders, an approach was developed for companies that want to manage their health impact in a proactive and preventive manner. The approach was termed Integral Health Management (IHM). IHM forms a strategic approach for reducing the costs of sickness absence and working disability, while the productivity and resilience of the company and its employees are increased. This brings the company direct economic benefits. Finally, it is of prime interest for employees to remain physically and mentally healthy and employable. The IHM approach distinguishes seven lines of development: (1) health as a strategic company interest; (2) the realization of a healthy primary process; (3) a safe and sound physical (work) environment; (4) an inspiring social (work) environment; (5) vital people; (6) a sound relationship with the immediate organizational environment and local community, and (7) healthy products and/or services. The inter-relationships between the seven development lines are essential for combining an improvement of the business impact on health with a strategic interest of companies and organizations. The seven lines of IHM development can easily be linked to the European Foundation for Quality Management's European Excellence Model.     

基于胜任力的“捆绑式”人力资源管理整合

人力资源实践内部匹配是战略性人力资源管理的要求,企业需要对人力资源管理进行相应的整合。以胜任力为基础对人力资源实践进行捆绑式整合,针对核心员工、一般员工、边缘员工、合作伙伴分别采取聚焦于承诺、工作、合同、合作等整合模式。     

Strategic transformation as the essential last step in the process of business turnaround

Just over a decade ago, the work of strategic management scholars helped to broaden the perspectives of executives caught in the throes of declining organizational performance. In addition to the traditional turnaround options that stabilized financial performance, managers were shown approaches that they could deploy to reduce the chances of a recurrence of the turnaround situation. This article updates the progress that has since been made in understanding the turnaround process. Further, we look at an ambitious approach to redirecting the strategies of a reemerging company toward a more promising competitive position, as the essential last step in the process of business turnaround. Called strategic transformation, this approach to reformulating strategy cultivates company growth in strong or emerging markets.     

Effective employment brand equity through sustainable competitive advantage, marketing strategy, and corporate image

Traditional human resource management does not consider adopting a marketing approach in creating a positive company image to enable the recruitment of better employees. Recently, however, many scholars have attempted to apply marketing principles to recruitment management. Marketing can help create an effective image for a firm and position the firm as a good place to work. The study here examine ways marketing management relates to recruitment marketing in the hospital industry and finds that a hospital's sustainable competitive advantage, marketing strategy, and employment brand equity can influence the intention of medical doctors to pursue job opportunities.     

Employer branding: strategic implications for staff recruitment

Abstract

In many developed economies, changing demographics and economic conditions have given rise to increasingly competitive labour markets, where competition for good employees is strong. Consequently, strategic investments in attracting suitably qualified and skilled employees are recommended. One such strategy is employer branding. Employer branding in the context of recruitment is the package of psychological, economic, and functional benefits that potential employees associate with employment with a particular company. Knowledge of these perceptions can help organisations to create an attractive and competitive employer brand. Utilising information economics and signalling theory, we examine the nature and consequences of employer branding. Depth interviews reveal that job seekers evaluate: the attractiveness of employers based on any previous direct work experiences with the employer or in the sector; the clarity, credibility, and consistency of the potential employers’ brand signals; perceptions of the employers’ brand investments; and perceptions of the employers’ product or service brand portfolio.     

Purchasing's strategic irrelevance

The resource based perspective (RBP) is an area within strategy theory dealing with the effects of resources and their management on company financial performance. One sub-set of the RBP literature deals with the effects of resources on strategic performance through the generation of competitive advantage. This paper explores the implications of the RBP for purchasing and its potential contribution to sustainable competitive advantage. It is concluded that purchasing typically has no significant strategic role to play, and that the function's activities are operational in nature.     

福建省上市企业多元化经营对企业绩效的影响

多元化经营是一个公司的重要发展战略,对公司绩效有着重要的影响,因此一直是战略管理领域的研究重点。文章根据学者对多元化与企业绩效的研究提出相应的假设,并以福建省上市企业2007、2008年末和2009年第三季度末共135个样本数据进行实证分析,研究发现,福建省专业化经营的上市企业比多元化经营的上市企业具有更大的经济绩效,但多元化程度与经济绩效并无显著的负相关关系。     

竞争力二元结构与成长模型:一个外生的视角

本文认为,在基于供应链竞争的综合议价能力和基于替代竞争的反替代能力所构成的企业竞争力二元结构矩阵中,存在粗放型和集约型两条演进路线,可使企业达到强势竞争力的状态。在粗放型演进情况下,企业从弱势竞争力开始,抢占竞争对手的市场份额,而在拥有较强的替代竞争力并占据一定市场份额以后,则注重培养自己的综合议价能力,保持企业长久稳定发展。在集约型演进情况下,企业从弱势竞争力开始,凭借其强大的综合议价能力快速演进到集约成长竞争力阶段,尔后则注重增强自身的替代与反替代竞争力。文章指出,企业在该矩阵中的定位反映了其竞争力的总体状况,并为企业竞争力发展战略提供决策依据与框架;企业应清楚认识或选择本企业的竞争力成长路线,并根据演进的阶段提出相应的发展对策,以推动企业竞争力从弱势竞争力状态向强势竞争力状态不断前进。     

中小建筑企业战略管理研究——以武汉华艺建筑工程有限公司为例

通过对企业战略管理理论的深入研究,利用PEST分析模型对武汉华艺建筑工程有限公司的外部环境进行了深入的分析,又对企业的财务、经营管理、质量管理、安全文明、招投标等多方面剖析,选择了适合的战略管理途径,最后通过公司战略管理模型的建立找到了未来公司战略发展的前景及方向。推广研究,良好模式的建立对于我国中小建筑企业核心竞争力的识别和如何落实战略规划的完整实施和有效控制这两个关键问题有非常重要的作用。     

胜任力在现代中小企业人力资源管理中的价值分析

在人力资源管理中,胜任力的优势和价值主要在于为未来岗位工作提供高绩效的参考标准,能有效配置企业内部各种资源,可以实现企业发展与员工成长的统一,可以更多地关注员工的能力提升、潜能开发,真正体现＂以人为本＂的理念等方面。中小企业的人力资源管理,应以员工的胜任力为基础,将岗位研究和对人的评价分析结合到一起,帮助企业按照经营战略要求和员工个体特征,在个人优势和潜能的基础上对员工进行选拔、绩效评估、员工培训、多层激励,从而实现人力资源的合理配置和绩效提高,驱动员工产生优秀工作绩效、提升企业核心竞争力。     

论企业内部人力资源管理的有效性

企业中的“人”将决定企业能否最终取得市场或战略上的成功。在诸多的论著中经常会看到“员工是上帝”这种说法,那么企业的员工又处于什么样的位置呢?从一个较新的视角——“顾问咨询与市场交流”这个角度来探讨企业内部人力资源管理中“员工”问题,并尝试着如何从战略的高度解决或者说提升企业内部人力资源管理方面的有效性问题。