report writing formats"report writing formats" I writing a report in MLA format and I had a question about work citing.....?
If I have a source for a whole paragraph, how do I indicate that the source is for the whole paragraph and not for the sentence before the source? How do I indicate that a source is for the last sentence of the paragraph and not for the whole paragraph?
As long as the pargraph is not a quote, you should be o'kay since it's all in one paragraph. Check with your instructor for his/her preference to be sure. :)
how to write interim report"how to write interim report"
‘Best practice' as a human resource strategy
Introduction
Best practice as a human resource and development strategy attempts to link two issues i.e. human resource strategies and competitive advantage. This perspective is founded on the belief that human resource and development strategies can cause employees to become committed and highly motivated towards their organisation. Consequently, such employees are expected to contribute towards improvement of the company's performance. Reward systems form a critical part of best practice policy because they still fall under human resource strategies.
The organisation to be examined is John Lewis Partnership. This company is a worker co-op. It is one of the most exemplary companies when it comes to implementation of best practice strategies. This is because all the employees within the organisation are part owners of the organisation. The organisation focuses on addressing all their needs whether in the reward section or elsewhere. On the other hand, the employees pay back these efforts through commitment and best performance. Best practice has formed one of the organisation's key strengths.
Strategic capability and degree of sophistication of the strategic Human resource and development effort
John Lewis partnership has made sure that training is part of its human resource and development efforts. This is because it realises the value of this best practice strategy. Pfeffer and Velga (1999) explain the importance of training and development of skills within any organisation. A company that takes its employees through training solidifies their contribution to the company. This is because such employees get equipped with the ability to make decisions in their work. On top of this, such employees have high levels of initiative and will try their utmost best to improve their organisational contribution. Skill development is a characteristic part of the John Lewis Partnership because employees who feel the need to improve their skills are given opportunities to do so through training schemes.
Youndt et al (1996) emphasise that training is one of the most fundamental aspects of best practice models. However, these same authors also add that training should be integrated into other development activities like staffing, job rotation and others. They claim that no amount of training will contribute towards organisational development if employees are not granted the permission to practice those acquired skills. This means that an organisation should try its best to grant work autonomy to its employees and to empower them through training. John Lewis has achieved this very well. In other retail companies, line managers are given minimal responsibilities. Most of them are expected to consult with higher authorities in order to decide on issues. However, the company under study has eliminated that problem by training those members of staff (so that they can have necessary skills) and then allowing them to make independent decisions. They believe that this is a form of investment into human capital since most of these employees feel valued.
According to the Classical and Human relations approach, an organisation's structure and operation are affected by certain situational factors such as technology, size and environment. However best practice advocates like Burnes (2000) came up with a contingency theory. He believes that a reward system within any company can affect the way it operates or how it is structured. Pfeffer (1994) believes that best practice companies should have a structure that places staff members into groups. Those groups should be such that they have the ability to make their own decisions. Another aspect of best practise firms is that they ought to have reward systems that are compact in nature. This implies that there should be minimal differences between different members of staff so that most employees within the organisation operate in a relatively independent manner with the ability to make their own decisions. John Lewis' strategic capability in this aspect of structure is demonstrated by the division of the company into departments. These departments work together to achieve gaols and have been granted relative autonomy. One can consider them as teams. Also, the company gives almost equal rewards to all members of the teams. One can therefore conclude that the company's structure is a clear depiction of its best practise strategy. (Pfeffer, 1994)
Why and whether human resource strategy is seen as adding value
Best practice strategies have definitely added value to the organisation. This is because the approach has motivated performance within the organisation. According to the Equity and expectancy theories (main components of the best practice model) put forward by Adam (1965). It can be seen that there are two aspects in motivation. The first is the input made by an employee and the second is outcome which normally comes from the respective organisation. The ratio between these two aspects needs to be equal otherwise employees will loose motivation to perform. This is where the term negative inequity stems from. Here, an employee's input is not matched to outcome from the organisation. There is a need for justice to be administered in this area otherwise employees will lack motivation.
Hertzberg (2001) came up with a two factor model to illustrate the importance of performance motivation as part of best practice strategy. He asserted that factors causing job satisfaction were quite different from those ones causing job dissatisfaction. He places more emphasis on factors that cause job satisfaction such as the nature of work, responsibilities in the workplace and recognition of achievement. This is something that is quite different from simply increasing salaries. Pay can be considered as a factor that can cause job dissatisfaction and should be dealt with so as to have time to concentrate on other important aspects. This is the reason why John Lewis does not simply increase employees' salaries. It appreciates achievement and places more emphasis on the latter rather than the former. This is the reason why its best practice strategies have added value to the company. John Lewis realised that payments simply alter behaviour but do not change the attitudes causing these behaviours as stated by Kohn (1993).
Kohn (1993) and Pfeffer (1998) solidify this stand point by adding that the financial aspect is not the only thing that matters. This is because the absence of it could be taken as a form of punishment by the organisation. This is the reason why John Lewis uses its aspect of partnership to motivate employees rather than just focusing on financial issues. These same authors assert that if a company only focuses on this type of approach, it may prevent employees from tapping their full potential. John Lewis realised this and this is why the partnership adds other factors into the equation. For example, employees within the organisation have the power to hire or fire leaders within their council upon giving justification of their reasons for doing so. Employees in the Company also have the freedom to air out their grievances and misgivings about some of their administrators. Such approaches move away form the financial aspect of motivation and consequently add value to the firm.
Kohn (1993) adds that it is possible to motivate employees without the need to increase their pay. He claims there are three C's that employees can add to their organisation in order to add value. These include Choice; where an employee should be given the opportunity to participate in decisions affecting the company. This is an aspect that John Lewis has perfected through voting power granted to its employees. Also, that they have an internal magazine where suggestions on governance are given and the administration reciprocates. The second C is the issue of Collaboration. Here there should be a two-way exchange of information between the company and the employees. The third C put forward by the same author is Content where organisations should go out of out their way to enrich employees' jobs. This is an aspect that John Lewis has also incorporated into their management style since employees work in teams, line managers have considerable amounts of responsibility and yet there are always new technical issues faced John Lewis. All these qualities deal with the content aspect of motivation thus adding value top the company.
Pfeffer (1998) asserts that employees can add value to an organisation when there is equity within the organisation. Any given company should realise that an employee will only be motivated when they receive appreciation for their efforts. This appreciation should be equal among all members of the organisation. Most organisations have made the mistake of sharing profits among managers and top administrators yet this is quite a big misconception. All members of the organisation should receive equal treatment in this area because it will be a justifiable issue. Al members within the organisation will feel just as importance as the he other and it will strengthen the bond within the organisation. John Lewis has recognised this truth. It has given a lot of emphasis on equality. In the year 2007, the Company distributed fifty five million pounds fairly and equally among all members of staff.
Relationship between Human Resource and development activities and the strategic imperatives facing the company
One of the most crucial aspects of human resource and development activities within the organization under study is reward systems. Reward systems have a direct and fundamental link between strategic imperatives facing the Company and overall effectiveness achieved by the company. This is because pay systems can be modified so as to align themselves with overall goals and objectives of the organisation consequently becoming part of the businesses strategy within the organisation. It is important for companies to have business strategies first. This is because business strategies provide a guideline that will help a given organisation have a sense of direction. Business strategy defines the way the firm will operate and what level of performance should be expected. Therefore, business strategy is the foundation for rewards systems within the best practice model.
The best practice model is such that reward systems should encourage involvement by employees. This implies that the best practice model is against job-based approaches where employees are paid according to their merits. Instead, it advocates for pay systems that are based on skill and rewards and bonuses are given to employees when the company has achieved success. Therefore the best practice model moves away from the traditional methods of measuring employee performance through performance appraisals. More focus is placed on creating a sense of concern within the employees about the performance of the organisation. Also pay systems are dependent on the nature of business success mad not on the merits employees have. Pfeffer (1998) points out some disadvantages of the traditional reward systems where merits were the most important aspect at that time. These are;
The merit system creates fear culture within the organisation
employees mainly focus on short rather than long term goals
employees do not care about how the organisation performs
it devalues team work because emphasis is on individual performance
it is subject to biases and politics
In light of these disadvantages, it became necessary to adopt a reward system that addresses these pitfalls. One should take note that best practice policies remain stagnant even when the organisation's strategic direction changes.
Some of the theoretical frameworks contained in this model were spearheaded by Huselid (1995) and Pfeffer (1996). The best practice model is such that a company that adopts this form of practice attract the best human resource personnel there is out there. This implies that the strategy the company adopted will be influenced greatly by these valuable staff members and thus leading to organisational success. One can therefore conclude that policies within this type of strategy precede business strategy.
The main relationship between best practice and an organisation's strategic imperatives is that it provides a basis for achieving an organisation's pay objectives. Lawler (1996) states that an organisation first needs to identify its reward system objectives. This is because the objectives act as a basis for measuring the effectiveness of the pay systems and they also act as guidelines. Some of the objectives are;
‘Objectives of reward systems
Attract and retain employees;
Motivate performance;
Promote skill and knowledge development;
Contribute to corporate culture;
Reinforce and define structure; and
Determine pay costs' (Lawler, 1996)
These objectives have contributed greatly towards achievement of John Lewis Strategic intent. These shall be examined in detail. The first link between the latter mentioned acts is attraction and retention of employees. For the organisation under study; John Lewis, there is a need to attract best quality individuals because the retail sector is highly competitive. This is highly relevant since there are instances when labour markets become stringent. Pfeffer (1998) suggests that there is a link between what amount a firm pays to its workforce and the quality of employees it is able to attract. This theory is seen clearly in the John Lewis partnership where the company paid millions in bonuses to its workforce. This caused an increase in the company's performance as seen from its favourable market shares.
Huselid (1995) adds that attracting the right employees is not just something that is achieved by a pay system. It is also something that needs to be combined with a meticulous selection process. The organisation needs to ensure that thee are well qualified candidates in large numbers. the importance of the selection process is that a candidate may feel honoured to belong to an organisation that takes its selection process seriously. This can be carried further to imply that the organisation also values people and this means that those employees will feel privileged to belong to the organisation. This is exactly what has occurred at John Lewis Company.
Delery and Doty (1996) assert that whenever there is a low employee turnover, employees will feel more obliged to perform because they are assured of their job security. They highlight the importance of knowing that one will not loose their job. This is because it will. prevent them from worrying about this and instead focus on tasks at hand. Pfeffer (1994) goes on to add that low employee turnover is quite necessary when trying to create a family friendly culture within an organisation. This means that workers will feel at home in their work environment. They will also be challenged intellectually and consequently enjoy their work experience. This is also toped up by a good reward system. John Lewis is characterised by such practices since it has a rigorous selection process, high employee retention and a strong organisational culture.
Contribution Human resource and development can make towards achieving the organisation's strategic intent
Best practice as a human resource development strategy can help an organisation achieve its strategic intent through creation of a unique corporate culture. Drennan (1992) describes corporate culture as the way things are done within any organisation. It can either impede or promote organisational effectiveness depending on its implementation.
John Lewis partnership should ensure that it promotes organisational effectiveness through the following ways. It should try as much as possible to reinforce its value in areas such as innovation, quality, performance and teamwork as suggested by Armstrong (1999). Lawler (1996) adds that an organisation can create a culture through best practise approaches by encouraging the following;
-participation
-innovation
-entrepreneurship
-eliminating too much bureaucracy
-encouraging competency
Lawler (1996) goes on to add that organisations should deal with two aspects in order to change their corporate culture and to achieve their strategic intent. This can be done through communication and the decision making process. John Lewis should make sure that it continues to maintain open and transparent channels of communication about its reward systems. This will eliminate any uncertainties among members of staff and will contribute towards their commitment. The Company should also go out of its way to maintain a participative approach in decision making. Lawler (1995) notes that companies that have failed in the past are those ones that adopted autocratic methods of governance; these are characterised by secrecy and top down communications. The Company should stick to these best practice principles in order to achieve their strategic intent.
Conclusion
Best practise is a human resource strategy that affects overall organisational strategy. According to the best practice approach, reward systems contribute to organisational culture. However, pay should not be the only thing that takes precedence. There should be adequate consideration of decision making powers, communication channels and job enrichment. If these latter three factors are implemented by companies, then they will achieve competitive advantage. The John Lewis has been on the frontline of best practise strategies because it is a worker and most of their decisions are participative. Reward systems within this company encourage equity and this is why it has been recorded increased profits in the recent years.
Reference:
John Lewis (2007): Interim Financial report. Retrieved 24 March, 2008
Pfeffer, J. and Velga, J. (1999): Putting people first for organizational success;
Academy of Management Executive, 13 (2), p. 37-48
Youndt, M. A. et al (1996): Human Resource Management, Manufacturing Strategy, and Firm Performance; Academy of Management Journal, 39, p836-66
Pfeffer, J. (1998): Six Dangerous Myths About Pay; Harvard Business Review, May-
June, p. 109-119
Pfeffer, J. (1994): Competitive Advantage Through People: Unleashing the Power of
the Workforce, Boston, MA: Stanford Graduate School of Business; Harvard Business
School Press
Burnes, B. (2000): Managing Change: A Strategic Approach to Organisational
Dynamcis, Harlow: Financial Times; Prentice Hall
Adams, J. (1965): Inequity in Social Exchange. In Advances in Experimental Social
Psychology, vol. 2, ed. L. Berkowitz, p. 267-299; New York: Academic Press.
Herzberg, F. (2001): One More Time: How Do You Motivate Employees? Harvard
Business Review, 81(3), p. 87-96
Huselid, M. (1995): The Impact of Human Resource Management Practices on
Turnover, Productivity and Corporate Financial Performance; Academy of
Management Journal, 38 (3), p. 635-72
Kohn, A. (1993): Rethinking Rewards; Harvard Business Review, 71(6), p. 48-49.
Lawler, E. (1996): The Design of Effective Reward Systems. In Motivation and
Leadership at Work, sixth edition, eds. R. Steers, L. Porter and G.Bigley, p. 527-550.
New York; McGraw Hill International Press
Delery, J. and Doty, D. (1996): Models of Theorizing in Strategic Human Resource
Management: Tests of Universalistic, Contingency and Configurational Performance
Predictions; Academy of Management Journal, 39(4), p802-35
Armstrong, M. (1999): Employee Reward. 2ndedition. London: CIPD
Lawler, E. (1995): The New Pay: A Strategic Approach; Compensation and Benefits
Review, 27 (4), p.14-22
Introduction
Best practice as a human resource and development strategy attempts to link two issues i.e. human resource strategies and competitive advantage. This perspective is founded on the belief that human resource and development strategies can cause employees to become committed and highly motivated towards their organisation. Consequently, such employees are expected to contribute towards improvement of the company's performance. Reward systems form a critical part of best practice policy because they still fall under human resource strategies.
The organisation to be examined is John Lewis Partnership. This company is a worker co-op. It is one of the most exemplary companies when it comes to implementation of best practice strategies. This is because all the employees within the organisation are part owners of the organisation. The organisation focuses on addressing all their needs whether in the reward section or elsewhere. On the other hand, the employees pay back these efforts through commitment and best performance. Best practice has formed one of the organisation's key strengths.
Strategic capability and degree of sophistication of the strategic Human resource and development effort
John Lewis partnership has made sure that training is part of its human resource and development efforts. This is because it realises the value of this best practice strategy. Pfeffer and Velga (1999) explain the importance of training and development of skills within any organisation. A company that takes its employees through training solidifies their contribution to the company. This is because such employees get equipped with the ability to make decisions in their work. On top of this, such employees have high levels of initiative and will try their utmost best to improve their organisational contribution. Skill development is a characteristic part of the John Lewis Partnership because employees who feel the need to improve their skills are given opportunities to do so through training schemes.
Youndt et al (1996) emphasise that training is one of the most fundamental aspects of best practice models. However, these same authors also add that training should be integrated into other development activities like staffing, job rotation and others. They claim that no amount of training will contribute towards organisational development if employees are not granted the permission to practice those acquired skills. This means that an organisation should try its best to grant work autonomy to its employees and to empower them through training. John Lewis has achieved this very well. In other retail companies, line managers are given minimal responsibilities. Most of them are expected to consult with higher authorities in order to decide on issues. However, the company under study has eliminated that problem by training those members of staff (so that they can have necessary skills) and then allowing them to make independent decisions. They believe that this is a form of investment into human capital since most of these employees feel valued.
According to the Classical and Human relations approach, an organisation's structure and operation are affected by certain situational factors such as technology, size and environment. However best practice advocates like Burnes (2000) came up with a contingency theory. He believes that a reward system within any company can affect the way it operates or how it is structured. Pfeffer (1994) believes that best practice companies should have a structure that places staff members into groups. Those groups should be such that they have the ability to make their own decisions. Another aspect of best practise firms is that they ought to have reward systems that are compact in nature. This implies that there should be minimal differences between different members of staff so that most employees within the organisation operate in a relatively independent manner with the ability to make their own decisions. John Lewis' strategic capability in this aspect of structure is demonstrated by the division of the company into departments. These departments work together to achieve gaols and have been granted relative autonomy. One can consider them as teams. Also, the company gives almost equal rewards to all members of the teams. One can therefore conclude that the company's structure is a clear depiction of its best practise strategy. (Pfeffer, 1994)
Why and whether human resource strategy is seen as adding value
Best practice strategies have definitely added value to the organisation. This is because the approach has motivated performance within the organisation. According to the Equity and expectancy theories (main components of the best practice model) put forward by Adam (1965). It can be seen that there are two aspects in motivation. The first is the input made by an employee and the second is outcome which normally comes from the respective organisation. The ratio between these two aspects needs to be equal otherwise employees will loose motivation to perform. This is where the term negative inequity stems from. Here, an employee's input is not matched to outcome from the organisation. There is a need for justice to be administered in this area otherwise employees will lack motivation.
Hertzberg (2001) came up with a two factor model to illustrate the importance of performance motivation as part of best practice strategy. He asserted that factors causing job satisfaction were quite different from those ones causing job dissatisfaction. He places more emphasis on factors that cause job satisfaction such as the nature of work, responsibilities in the workplace and recognition of achievement. This is something that is quite different from simply increasing salaries. Pay can be considered as a factor that can cause job dissatisfaction and should be dealt with so as to have time to concentrate on other important aspects. This is the reason why John Lewis does not simply increase employees' salaries. It appreciates achievement and places more emphasis on the latter rather than the former. This is the reason why its best practice strategies have added value to the company. John Lewis realised that payments simply alter behaviour but do not change the attitudes causing these behaviours as stated by Kohn (1993).
Kohn (1993) and Pfeffer (1998) solidify this stand point by adding that the financial aspect is not the only thing that matters. This is because the absence of it could be taken as a form of punishment by the organisation. This is the reason why John Lewis uses its aspect of partnership to motivate employees rather than just focusing on financial issues. These same authors assert that if a company only focuses on this type of approach, it may prevent employees from tapping their full potential. John Lewis realised this and this is why the partnership adds other factors into the equation. For example, employees within the organisation have the power to hire or fire leaders within their council upon giving justification of their reasons for doing so. Employees in the Company also have the freedom to air out their grievances and misgivings about some of their administrators. Such approaches move away form the financial aspect of motivation and consequently add value to the firm.
Kohn (1993) adds that it is possible to motivate employees without the need to increase their pay. He claims there are three C's that employees can add to their organisation in order to add value. These include Choice; where an employee should be given the opportunity to participate in decisions affecting the company. This is an aspect that John Lewis has perfected through voting power granted to its employees. Also, that they have an internal magazine where suggestions on governance are given and the administration reciprocates. The second C is the issue of Collaboration. Here there should be a two-way exchange of information between the company and the employees. The third C put forward by the same author is Content where organisations should go out of out their way to enrich employees' jobs. This is an aspect that John Lewis has also incorporated into their management style since employees work in teams, line managers have considerable amounts of responsibility and yet there are always new technical issues faced John Lewis. All these qualities deal with the content aspect of motivation thus adding value top the company.
Pfeffer (1998) asserts that employees can add value to an organisation when there is equity within the organisation. Any given company should realise that an employee will only be motivated when they receive appreciation for their efforts. This appreciation should be equal among all members of the organisation. Most organisations have made the mistake of sharing profits among managers and top administrators yet this is quite a big misconception. All members of the organisation should receive equal treatment in this area because it will be a justifiable issue. Al members within the organisation will feel just as importance as the he other and it will strengthen the bond within the organisation. John Lewis has recognised this truth. It has given a lot of emphasis on equality. In the year 2007, the Company distributed fifty five million pounds fairly and equally among all members of staff.
Relationship between Human Resource and development activities and the strategic imperatives facing the company
One of the most crucial aspects of human resource and development activities within the organization under study is reward systems. Reward systems have a direct and fundamental link between strategic imperatives facing the Company and overall effectiveness achieved by the company. This is because pay systems can be modified so as to align themselves with overall goals and objectives of the organisation consequently becoming part of the businesses strategy within the organisation. It is important for companies to have business strategies first. This is because business strategies provide a guideline that will help a given organisation have a sense of direction. Business strategy defines the way the firm will operate and what level of performance should be expected. Therefore, business strategy is the foundation for rewards systems within the best practice model.
The best practice model is such that reward systems should encourage involvement by employees. This implies that the best practice model is against job-based approaches where employees are paid according to their merits. Instead, it advocates for pay systems that are based on skill and rewards and bonuses are given to employees when the company has achieved success. Therefore the best practice model moves away from the traditional methods of measuring employee performance through performance appraisals. More focus is placed on creating a sense of concern within the employees about the performance of the organisation. Also pay systems are dependent on the nature of business success mad not on the merits employees have. Pfeffer (1998) points out some disadvantages of the traditional reward systems where merits were the most important aspect at that time. These are;
The merit system creates fear culture within the organisation
employees mainly focus on short rather than long term goals
employees do not care about how the organisation performs
it devalues team work because emphasis is on individual performance
it is subject to biases and politics
In light of these disadvantages, it became necessary to adopt a reward system that addresses these pitfalls. One should take note that best practice policies remain stagnant even when the organisation's strategic direction changes.
Some of the theoretical frameworks contained in this model were spearheaded by Huselid (1995) and Pfeffer (1996). The best practice model is such that a company that adopts this form of practice attract the best human resource personnel there is out there. This implies that the strategy the company adopted will be influenced greatly by these valuable staff members and thus leading to organisational success. One can therefore conclude that policies within this type of strategy precede business strategy.
The main relationship between best practice and an organisation's strategic imperatives is that it provides a basis for achieving an organisation's pay objectives. Lawler (1996) states that an organisation first needs to identify its reward system objectives. This is because the objectives act as a basis for measuring the effectiveness of the pay systems and they also act as guidelines. Some of the objectives are;
‘Objectives of reward systems
Attract and retain employees;
Motivate performance;
Promote skill and knowledge development;
Contribute to corporate culture;
Reinforce and define structure; and
Determine pay costs' (Lawler, 1996)
These objectives have contributed greatly towards achievement of John Lewis Strategic intent. These shall be examined in detail. The first link between the latter mentioned acts is attraction and retention of employees. For the organisation under study; John Lewis, there is a need to attract best quality individuals because the retail sector is highly competitive. This is highly relevant since there are instances when labour markets become stringent. Pfeffer (1998) suggests that there is a link between what amount a firm pays to its workforce and the quality of employees it is able to attract. This theory is seen clearly in the John Lewis partnership where the company paid millions in bonuses to its workforce. This caused an increase in the company's performance as seen from its favourable market shares.
Huselid (1995) adds that attracting the right employees is not just something that is achieved by a pay system. It is also something that needs to be combined with a meticulous selection process. The organisation needs to ensure that thee are well qualified candidates in large numbers. the importance of the selection process is that a candidate may feel honoured to belong to an organisation that takes its selection process seriously. This can be carried further to imply that the organisation also values people and this means that those employees will feel privileged to belong to the organisation. This is exactly what has occurred at John Lewis Company.
Delery and Doty (1996) assert that whenever there is a low employee turnover, employees will feel more obliged to perform because they are assured of their job security. They highlight the importance of knowing that one will not loose their job. This is because it will. prevent them from worrying about this and instead focus on tasks at hand. Pfeffer (1994) goes on to add that low employee turnover is quite necessary when trying to create a family friendly culture within an organisation. This means that workers will feel at home in their work environment. They will also be challenged intellectually and consequently enjoy their work experience. This is also toped up by a good reward system. John Lewis is characterised by such practices since it has a rigorous selection process, high employee retention and a strong organisational culture.
Contribution Human resource and development can make towards achieving the organisation's strategic intent
Best practice as a human resource development strategy can help an organisation achieve its strategic intent through creation of a unique corporate culture. Drennan (1992) describes corporate culture as the way things are done within any organisation. It can either impede or promote organisational effectiveness depending on its implementation.
John Lewis partnership should ensure that it promotes organisational effectiveness through the following ways. It should try as much as possible to reinforce its value in areas such as innovation, quality, performance and teamwork as suggested by Armstrong (1999). Lawler (1996) adds that an organisation can create a culture through best practise approaches by encouraging the following;
-participation
-innovation
-entrepreneurship
-eliminating too much bureaucracy
-encouraging competency
Lawler (1996) goes on to add that organisations should deal with two aspects in order to change their corporate culture and to achieve their strategic intent. This can be done through communication and the decision making process. John Lewis should make sure that it continues to maintain open and transparent channels of communication about its reward systems. This will eliminate any uncertainties among members of staff and will contribute towards their commitment. The Company should also go out of its way to maintain a participative approach in decision making. Lawler (1995) notes that companies that have failed in the past are those ones that adopted autocratic methods of governance; these are characterised by secrecy and top down communications. The Company should stick to these best practice principles in order to achieve their strategic intent.
Conclusion
Best practise is a human resource strategy that affects overall organisational strategy. According to the best practice approach, reward systems contribute to organisational culture. However, pay should not be the only thing that takes precedence. There should be adequate consideration of decision making powers, communication channels and job enrichment. If these latter three factors are implemented by companies, then they will achieve competitive advantage. The John Lewis has been on the frontline of best practise strategies because it is a worker and most of their decisions are participative. Reward systems within this company encourage equity and this is why it has been recorded increased profits in the recent years.
Reference:
John Lewis (2007): Interim Financial report. Retrieved 24 March, 2008
Pfeffer, J. and Velga, J. (1999): Putting people first for organizational success;
Academy of Management Executive, 13 (2), p. 37-48
Youndt, M. A. et al (1996): Human Resource Management, Manufacturing Strategy, and Firm Performance; Academy of Management Journal, 39, p836-66
Pfeffer, J. (1998): Six Dangerous Myths About Pay; Harvard Business Review, May-
June, p. 109-119
Pfeffer, J. (1994): Competitive Advantage Through People: Unleashing the Power of
the Workforce, Boston, MA: Stanford Graduate School of Business; Harvard Business
School Press
Burnes, B. (2000): Managing Change: A Strategic Approach to Organisational
Dynamcis, Harlow: Financial Times; Prentice Hall
Adams, J. (1965): Inequity in Social Exchange. In Advances in Experimental Social
Psychology, vol. 2, ed. L. Berkowitz, p. 267-299; New York: Academic Press.
Herzberg, F. (2001): One More Time: How Do You Motivate Employees? Harvard
Business Review, 81(3), p. 87-96
Huselid, M. (1995): The Impact of Human Resource Management Practices on
Turnover, Productivity and Corporate Financial Performance; Academy of
Management Journal, 38 (3), p. 635-72
Kohn, A. (1993): Rethinking Rewards; Harvard Business Review, 71(6), p. 48-49.
Lawler, E. (1996): The Design of Effective Reward Systems. In Motivation and
Leadership at Work, sixth edition, eds. R. Steers, L. Porter and G.Bigley, p. 527-550.
New York; McGraw Hill International Press
Delery, J. and Doty, D. (1996): Models of Theorizing in Strategic Human Resource
Management: Tests of Universalistic, Contingency and Configurational Performance
Predictions; Academy of Management Journal, 39(4), p802-35
Armstrong, M. (1999): Employee Reward. 2ndedition. London: CIPD
Lawler, E. (1995): The New Pay: A Strategic Approach; Compensation and Benefits
Review, 27 (4), p.14-22
About the Author
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Umayr Ibn Sad Al-Ansari
Umayr ibn Sad became an orphan at an early age. His father died leaving him and his mother poor and destitute. His mother eventually married again, to one of the richest men in Madinah. His name was Julas ibn Suwayd who was from the powerful tribe of al-Aws. Umayr was well looked after by Julas and loved him as a son would love a father. Indeed he began to forget that he was an orphan. As Umayr grew older, Julas fondness and love for him grew. Julas would marvel at the intelligence he displayed in everything he did and at the honesty and trustworthiness which characterized his behavior. When he was barely ten years old, Umayr became a Muslim. Faith found in his tender heart a secure niche and penetrated deeply into his being. In spite of youthfulness, he would never delay in the performance of salat behind the noble Prophet. Often he would be found in the first row of worshippers, hoping for the thawab promised those who attend mosques early and sit in the foremost rows. His mother was particularly pleased whenever she saw him going to and coming from the mosque, sometimes with her husband and sometimes alone.
Umayr's days passed in this fashion with no major disturbance to upset his calm and contentment. This idyllic state, however, could not last forever. Umayr was soon to face a most difficult test for a boy of his age, a test which shook the peaceful and loving atmosphere of his home and challenged the steadfastness of his faith. In the ninth year after the Hijrah, the Prophet, peace and blessings of God be on him, announced his intention to lead an expedition to Tabuk against the Byzantine forces. He ordered the Muslims to get themselves ready and make the necessary preparations. Usually when the Prophet wanted to go on a military campaign he would not give precise details of his objective or he would set off in a direction opposite to his intended destination. This was for security purposes and to confound the enemy's intelligence service. This he did not do in announcing the expedition to Tabuk. This was perhaps because of the great distance of Tabuk from Madinah, the enormous difficulties expected and the overwhelming strength of the enemy. The preparations needed for this expedition had to be extensive. In spite of the fact that summer had set in and the intense heat produced languor and listlessness, and in spite of the fact that the date crops needed harvesting, the Muslims responded enthusiastically to the call of the Prophet and busied themselves in preparing for the arduous campaign ahead. There was however a group of munafiqun or hypocrites who outwardly had declared their acceptance of Islam but inwardly did not believe in it. They were critical of the expedition and tried to weaken the resolve of the Muslims. They even ridiculed the Prophet in their private gatherings. Disbelief and hatred remained in their hearts.
One day, shortly before the army was due to set out, the young Umayr ibn Sad returned home after performing Salat in the mosque. He was all agog with excitement. He had just witnessed the great generosity and the spontaneous spirit of sacrifice which the Muslims displayed in preparing for the expedition. He had seen women of the Muhajirin and the Ansar donating their jewellery and their ornaments to buy provisions and equipment for the army. He had seen Uthman ibn Affan handing over a purse containing a thousand gold dinars to the Prophet and
Abdur Rahman ibn Awl carrying on his shoulders two hundred awqiyyah of gold and placing it before the noble Prophet. Indeed he had even seen a man trying to sell his bed in order to purchase a sword for himself. At home, he recalled these moving and inspiring scenes. He was surprised however that Julas was so slow in preparing for the expedition with the Prophet and at his delay in contributing especially since he was quite rich and could afford to give generously.
Umayr felt that he had to arouse his ardor or stir his sense of generosity and manliness. So with great enthusiasm he related what he had seen and heard at the mosque particularly the case of those believers who, with great fervor, had come to enlist themselves in the army and were turned away by the Prophet because there was not sufficient means of transport. He related how sad and disappointed these people were at not realizing their desire to go on the path of Jihad and sacrifice for the sake of Islam. Julas' response was sharp and shocking. "If Muhammad is true in claiming that he is a Prophet ," he shouted angrily, "then we are all worse than donkeys." Umayr was flabbergasted. He could not believe what he had heard. He did not think that a man as intelligent as Julas could have uttered such words, words which put him instantly outside the pale of faith. A host of questions paced through his mind and he immediately began to consider what action he should take. He saw in Julas' silence and his tardiness to respond to the Prophet's call, clear signs of a traitor to God and His Prophet, who wanted to bring harm to Islam in just the same way as the munafiqun who were plotting and conspiring against the Prophet. At the same time he saw a man who had treated him as a father and who was kind and generous to him, who had taken him as an orphan and had saved him from poverty. Umayr had to choose between preserving this close relationship with Julas on the one hand and dealing with his treachery and hypocrisy on the other. The choice was painful but his decision was swift. He turned to Julas and said: "By God, O Julas, there is no one on the face of the earth, after Muhammad ibn Abdullah, dearer to me than you. You are the closest of men to me and you have been most generous to me. But you have uttered words which, if I should mention them will expose and humiliate you. If I conceal them, however, I will be a traitor to my trust and destroy myself and my religion. I will, therefore, go to the Messenger of God, peace be upon him, and tell him what you have said. It is up to you to clarify your position."
The young Umayr went to the mosque and told the Prophet what he had heard from Julas. The Prophet asked him to stay with him and sent one of his companions to summon Julas. Julas came, greeted the Prophet and sat in front of him. The Prophet, peace be upon him straightaway asked him: "What did you say that Umayr ibn Sad heard?" and he mentioned what Umayr had reported to him. "He has lied against me, O Messenger of God, and has fabricated this. I have not uttered anything of the sort" asserted Julas. The companions of the Prophet looked alternately at Julas and Umayr hoping to detect on their faces what their hearts concealed. They began to mutter among themselves. One of those in whose hearts was the disease of hypocrisy asserted: "The youth is a nuisance. He is bent on defaming someone who has been good to him." Others replied: "Not at all. He is a youth who grew up in obedience to God. The expressions on his face attest to his truthfulness." The Prophet, peace be on him, turned to Umayr and saw his flushed face and the tears streaming down his cheeks. Umayr prayed: "O Lord, send down a revelation on Your Prophet to verify what I have told him." Julas
meanwhile continued to defend what he had said: "What I have told you, O Messenger of God, is certainly the truth. If you wish, make us swear an oath in your presence. I swear by God that I did not say anything of the sort that Umayr reported to you." As the companions turned to Umayr to hear what he had to say, they saw the Prophet come under a special mood of serenity and they realized that he was being inspired. Immediately there was complete silence as they gazed intently at the Prophet in anticipation. At this point, fear and terror gripped Julas and he began to look tremulously at Umayr. The Prophet, having received the revelation, recited the words of God: "(The hypocrites) swear by God that they have said (nothing wrong); yet most certainly they have uttered a saying which is a denial of the truth, and have thus denied the truth after having professed their self-surrender to God; for they were aiming at something which was beyond their reach. And they could find no fault (with the Faith) save that God had enriched them and (caused) His Apostle to enrich them out of His bounty. Hence, if they repent, it will be for their own good; but if they turn away, God will cause them to suffer a grievous suffering in this world and in the life to come and they will find no helper on earth, and none to give them succour." (The Quran, Surah at-Tawbah, 9:74). Julas trembled with fear at what he heard and in his anguish, could hardly speak. Finally, he turned to the Prophet and said: "I do repent, O Messenger of God. I do repent. Umayr told the truth and I lied. I beseech God to accept my repentance..." The Prophet turned to the young Umayr. Tears of joy moistened his youthful face, radiant with the light of faith. With his noble hand, the Prophet tenderly took his ear and said: "Young man, your ear has been true in what it heard and your Lord has confirmed the truth of what you said." Julas returned to the fold of Islam and was a good and faithful Muslim thereafter. The companions realized that by his generosity and good treatment of Umayr, he had reformed. Whenever Umayr was mentioned, Julas would say: "My God reward Umayr with goodness on my behalf. He certainly saved me from kufr and preserved my neck from the fire of hell."
Umayr grew up and distinguished himself in later years with the same devotion and firmness which he had shown in early life. During the caliphate of Umar ibn al-Khattab, the people of Hims in Syria complained much and bitterly of the governors appointed to the city even though Umar in particular used to pay special attention to the type of men he chose as his provincial governors. In selecting a governor, Umar would say: "I want a man who when he is among the people and is not their amir, should not behave as their amir, and when he is among them as an amir, he should behave as one of them. "I want a governor who will not distinguish himself from the people by the clothes he wears, or the food he eats or the house he lives in." "I want a governor who would establish Salat among the people, treat them equitably and with justice and does not close his door when they come to him in need." In the light of the complaints of the people of Hims and going by his own criteria for a good governor, Umar ibn al-Khattab decided to appoint Umayr ibn Sad as governor of the region. This was despite the fact that Umayr at that time was at the head of a Muslim army traversing the Arabian peninsula and the region of great Syria, liberating towns, destroying enemy fortifications, pacifying the tribes and establishing masjids wherever he went. Umayr accepted the appointment as governor of Hims reluctantly because he preferred nothing better than Jihad in the path of God. He was still quite young, in his early twenties. When Umayr reached Hims he called the inhabitants to a vast congregational prayer. When the prayer was over he addressed them. He began by praising and
giving thanks to God and sending peace and blessings on His Prophet Muhammad. Then he said: "O people! Islam is a mighty fortress and a sturdy gate. The fortress of Islam is justice and its gate is truth. If you destroy the fortress and demolish the gate you would undermine the defences of this religion. "Islam will remain strong so long as the Sultan or central authority is strong. The strength of the Sultan neither comes from flogging with the whip, nor killing with the sword but from ruling with justice and holding fast to truth." Umayr spent a full year in Hims during which, it is said, he did not write a single letter to the Amir al-Muminin. Nor did he send any taxes to the central treasury in Madinah, neither a dirham nor a dinar. Umar was always concerned about the performance of his governors and was afraid that positions of authority would corrupt them. As far as he was concerned, there was no one who was free from sin and corrupting influences apart from the noble Prophet, peace be upon him. He summoned his secretary and said: "Write to Umayr ibn Sad and say to him: "When the letter of the Amir al-Muminin reaches you, leave Hims and come to him and bring with you whatever taxes you have collected from the Muslims."
Umayr received the letter. He took his food pouch and hung his eating, drinking and washing utensils over his shoulder. He took his spear and left Hims and the governorship behind him. He set off for Madinah on foot. As Umayr approached Madinah, he was badly sunburnt, his body was gaunt and his hair had grown long. His appearance showed all the signs of the long and arduous journey. Umar, on seeing him, was astonished. What's wrong with you, Umayr?" he asked with deep concern. "Nothing is wrong with me, O Amir al-Muminin," replied Umayr. "I am fine and healthy, praise be to God, and I carry with me all (my) worldly possessions." "And what worldly possessions have you got?" asked Umar thinking that he was carrying money for the Bayt al-mal or treasury of the Muslims." "I have my pouch in which I put my food provisions. I have this vessel from which I eat and which I use for washing my hair and clothes. And I have this cup for making wudu and drinking..." "Did you come on foot?" asked Umar. "Yes, O Amir al-Muminin." "Weren't you given from your amirship an animal to ride on?" "They did not give me one and I did not ask them." "And where is the amount you brought for the Baytalmal?" "I didn't bring anything." "And why not?" "When I arrived at Hims," said Umayr, "I called the righteous persons of the town to a meeting and gave them the responsibility of collecting the taxes. Whenever they collected any amounts of money I would seek their advice and spent it (all) on those who were deserving among them." At this point, Umar turned to his secretary and said: "Renew the appointment of Umayr to the governorship of Hims." "Oh, come now," protested Umayr. "That is something which I do not desire. I shall not be a governor for you nor for anyone after you, O Amir al-Muminin." With that Umayr asked the Khalifah's permission to go to his village on the outskirts of Madinah to live there with his family. This Umar granted.
A long time passed since Umayr had gone to his village and Umar decided to put him through a test to make sure of his circumstances. He said to one of his trusted aides called al-Harith: "Harith, go to Umayr ibn Sad and stay with him as though you were a guest. If you see on him any signs of luxury or good living, return quietly as you went. If, however, you find him in straitened circumstances give him these dinars." Umar handed Harith a bag with a hundred dinars. Al-Harith set our for Umayr's village and found his home after making enquiries. "As-
salamu alaykum wa rahmatullah," he greeted Umayr. "Wa alaykum as-salam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu," replied Umayr and asked, "From where have you come?" "From aI-Madinah." "How are the Muslims there?" "Fine." "How is the Amir al-Muminin?" "He is fine and doing well." "Has he applied the hudud laws?" "Yes. He carried out the sentence of punishment on his own son for committing the crime of adultery. His son died as a result of the punishment." Al-Harith continued: "O Allah, help Umar. I only know that he has a great love for you." Al-Harith stayed as Umayr's guest for three nights. On each night he was given only a small flat piece of barley bread. On the third day a local man said to Harith: "Umayr and his family are suffering great hardship. They only have these loaves which they have given you in preference to themselves. They are hungry and in great distress. Harith went to Umayr and gave him the bag of money. "What is this?" asked Umayr. "The Amir al-Muminin sent it to you." "Return it to him. Give him my greetings of peace and tell him that Umayr has no need of it." "Take it, O Umayr," shouted his wife who was listening to the conversation between her husband and his guest. "If you need it, you can spend it. If not, you can spend it in other appropriate ways, for those in need here are many."
When al-Harith heard what she had said, he placed the dinars in front of Umayr and left. Umayr took the money and placed it in a small bag. He only went to sleep that night after he had distributed the money to those in need and especially to the children of those who had been martyred. Al-Harith returned to Madinah and was questioned by Umar al-Faruq. "What have you seen, Harith?" "A very distressing situation, O Amir al-Muminin." "Did you give him the dinars?" "Yes, O Amir al-Muminin." "What did he do with them?" "I don't know. But I think that he did not keep a single dirham of it for himself." Al-Faruq wrote to Umayr: "When you receive this letter, do not put it down until you come to me." Umayr proceeded straightaway to Madinah. Umar greeted and welcomed him and proceeded to question him. "What did you do with the dinars, Umayr?" "You have no responsibility for the money after you have donated it to me." "I adjure you to tell me what you did with it." "I stored it away for myself so that I could benefit from it a day when neither wealth nor children will be of any avail." Tears came to Umar's eyes as he said: "I swear that you are one of those who are hard against themselves even when they are in dire need." And he ordered a camel load of food and two garments to be given to Umayr who protested: "About the food, we do not need it, O Amir al-Mumineen. I left two saas of barley with my family and when we have finished that, Allah- Great and Exalted is
He - will provide. As for the two garments, I will take them for (my wife). Her dress is now in tatters and she is almost naked." Not long after that meeting with Umar al-Faruq, Umayr ibn Sad passed away to his Lord. He was not weighted down with the cares and burdens of the world and he was concerned to provide plenty of provisions for the hereafter. Umar received the news of his death with a heavy heart and said in deep sorrow: "I have wished to have men like Umayr ibn Sad whose help I could seek in dealing with the affairs of Muslims."
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My group of four is writing a design report in Biology, and I'm not sure how to tackle the "author name" problem. Is there any protocol for this? I know it's an unusual situation. If you know there isn't any, what would you suggest I do? Any help is appreciated. QUICK EDIT: We're going to turn it in, so it must contain all of our names. Somehow.
i'm pretty sure u do the first name alphabetically, followed by et al. for the others so ex. Reddig, Alvin, et al. et al. means 'and others' in Latin
edit- judging by how it is for bio and not english, i doubt the teacher will care much, just put ur names (all of them) in last name alphabetical order i.e. bove, billy, do, abby, manning, art.
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I've got this assignment for Uni where I have to use a report format to complete it. Now I know for a report format you need a title, table of contents, Introduction, headings throughout, conclusion,etc... But the problem is I don't know what to write for each heading, I mean like for an executive summary you would have to include what's the whole purpose of the assignment and so on.... so I just wanna know what to write for the other headings, for instance, the introduction. Can someone plz give me a detailed explanation about such formats or point me to a website which gives out such information about report formats. Thnks in advance.
well after reading ur question i asumed that u r talkin abt a business report as u talked abt executive summary......here r some sites that i found abt business report writing format....they explain each heading well..... http://www.glan-hafren.ac.uk/LearnCent/StudyGuides/BusinessReportWriting.pdf http://www.slc.auckland.ac.nz/resources/for_undergraduates/report_writing_for_business.php http://business.clayton.edu/arjomand/business/writing.html http://www.roma.unisa.edu.au/07118/language/reports.htm http://us.deskdemon.com/pages/us/career/business-report-writing (gud site)
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i need to reccommend different computers to my boss... ones that are going to be good for the workplace and 2 of ours now keep crashing... i dont know if it would be best to upgrade all the computers or just get new ones as the ones we have are pretty old anyways. i gotta have a comparison of prices, and weather upgrading or buying new computers will be accommodated within the budget... i have no idea how much these things cost!!! i have to have the report written up by wednesday!!! any suggestions... software is no issue.. i need help... oh and i need help in starting off the report lol.. i cant think of an opening sentance at all!!!!!!!!!!!!! arrgghh!!!
Highly dependant on the type of use they will have... I always tell my boss that going better now, means less problems later, so he's always happy to pay that little bit more... message me with the business type and use of each computer, and I'll find something for you
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About the Author
Cathy Goodwin, Ph.D., is an online copywriter who helps business owners get more clients and sell more products online. Download The Case Of The Missing Website Profits and discover 3 clues to why your website isn't working (and 3 red herrings that lead you down the wrong trail). http://www.CopywritingDetective.com
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