Strategic Human Resource Management

Running Head: STRATEGIC HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 1
STRATEGIC HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
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STRATEGIC HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 2
Introduction
AstraZeneca is a British-Swedish science-led multinational biopharmaceutical company
headquartered at Cambridge in United Kingdom. The human resource of AstraZeneca company
has understood the importance of developing and implementing proper human resource
strategies aimed at achieving maximum benefits. The HM strategies at AstraZeneca are aligned
to the broader corporate strategies of achieving scientific leadership, being a great place to work,
and creating a valuable and trustworthy relationship with the stakeholders (Mazzetti et al., 2018).
To ensure the overall strategy of the organization is achieved, the human resource strategies
should be aligned to the mission and vision of the company. This paper discusses the rationale of
embedding HR strategies into the broader corporate strategies, how AstraZeneca embeds its HR
to the corporate strategy, Implementation of HR strategy at the departmental level, and
Contemporary HR challenges facing the AstraZeneca company.
1. Rationale of embedding HR strategies into broader corporate strategies
Integration of the HR policies and practices to the organizational strategy involves
aligning them to the global-arching human resource management (HRM) so as to achieve a
competitive edge over the rivals (Noe, Hollenbeck, Gerhart, & Wright, 2017). While formulating
the HR strategies, it is important to put into consideration the external and internal environment
factors that may influence the company’s business strategy. Embedding HR strategies to
organization strategy requires in-depth knowledge of the process. The HR Organization
Alignment and Integration Model has been used by many companies to embed the HR strategies
with the overall organization planning and organization management (Sthapit, 2010). The model
uses the top-down, bottom-up, and Management by Objectives (MBO) approaches to align the
HR strategies to the broader corporate strategy as well as evaluate the effectiveness of strategies.

STRATEGIC HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 3
Therefore, the HR-Organization Alignment/Integration Model involves: identifying organization
mission/goals, core competencies, needs assessment, integrating solutions, and finding
organization outcomes (Sthapit, 2010).
a) Organization mission/goals/strategies- The human resource need to make strategies that align
with the goals and mission of the company. The Human resource functions such as staffing,
performance appraisal, and performance management systems should be designed in such a way
that they support the overall company goals (Bratton & Gold, 2017).
b) Core competencies- The core competencies such as skills, abilities, and knowledge employed
in making the HR strategies should be steered towards achieving a corporate success. The HR
strategies, systems, and employee career paths should be able to promote and strengthen the
company’s core competencies.
c) HR needs assessment- The strategies should identify any performance issues and opportunities
that are crucial for innovation and invention within the company. The human resource should
have enough training that will enable them to make the right decisions and proper strategies in
line with the organization priority (Pollach, 2015).
d) Integrated solutions- The strategies should find solutions to performance issues that are arise
within the organization. This may include automating work, improving management systems,
training, and development. Here, the HR practices, programs, and priorities are configured in
support of the broader company future plans (Sthapit, 2010).
e) Organization outcome- After embedding the HR strategies, it is possible to expect positive
outcomes such as improved organization performance and enhanced outputs (Pollach, 2015).