Strategic Human Resource Management: Trends, Theories & Evaluation

This report delves into the strategic aspects of Human Resource Management (HRM), focusing on its holistic approach to building effective teams that drive organizations towards their goals. It examines current trends influencing HR strategy, such as globalization and changing skill requirements, and analyzes external factors impacting HR practices, including government regulations, economic conditions, technological advancements, and workforce demographics. The study also presents theories related to the growth and development of strategic HRM, like the organizational lifecycle theory, strategic contingency theory, and transactional cost theory. Furthermore, it evaluates change management models relevant to HR strategy and explores methods for measuring HR outcomes in specific organizational contexts. The report concludes by assessing how HR management and development can support sustainable performance to meet company objectives, using Hays Travel, an independent travel company in the UK, as a case study. Desklib provides students access to this and many other solved assignments.

STRATEGIC HUMAN RESOURCE
MANAGEMENT

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
P1 Presenting Key current trends that influence an organisation’s HR strategy.........................3
P2. Describing the external factors influencing HR practice....................................................5
P 3. Presenting theories related to growth and development of strategic HRM..........................6
P4. Evaluating change management models that evaluates HR strategy....................................7
P5. Describing how HR outcomes can be measured if applied to particular organizational
situation........................................................................................................................................8
P6 Evaluating how HR management and development can support sustainable performance to
meet company’s objectives........................................................................................................10
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................11
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................12

INTRODUCTION
The aim of this unit is to discuss on the strategic human resources is holistic approach of
making the best team that will help organization in achieving the organizational goals in the
limited frame of time. In others words, it a particle of attracting, awarding and retaining the
employees that will benefit both the company and subordinates in order to enhance their
performance. Furthermore, the report will analyse the external and contextual development
that influence Human resources strategy.
Moreover, the present study is based on Hays travel that is independent travel company of
the UK that provide their customers with various services such as hotel and resorts, package
holidays as well as charter provide airline services (Hays Travel., 2021). The organization
mainly deals in the market area of the UK with them headquarter situated at Sunderland,
England. Moreover, the report will cover topics related to change management that will support
HR strategy. The study will also depict about the theories on human resources development.
Lastly, the report will throw light on how HR management helps in increasing growth of
business.
P1 Presenting Key current trends that influence an organisation’s HR strategy
The human resources management has to prepare it from the rapid changes in the society
in order to make the company more stable in the competitive market. There are many trends that
HR has to understand while making the strategy such as globalisation, changing in skill
requirement that are discuss in detail below:
Globalisation: It can be defining as the process of interacting with companies, people and
government worldwide. The rise in the multinational company has placed a new requirement for
the human resource. Moreover, the Human resource has to hire the people with the appropriate
mix such as candidate must posse with skills, knowledge and culture arability and the ability of
accomplishing the goals (Agarwal and Al Qouyatahi, 2018). Furthermore, HR has to develop
the training and development programme for the employees in order to meet the company goals
and globalisation challenges. Moreover, human resource management has to develop mechanism
that will contribute in managing the employs of different culture to work together. Along with
this, HR will have to conduct team coordination activity so that subordinates of different culture

background, age, class and custom will work together and build a healthy environment within the
organization.
Changing skills requirement: Since recruiting skilled labour is very important for the
organization for improving the efficiency of the firm as well as increasing the productivity. The
skill employs help the organization in dealing with the threats of company and make the
appropriate plans for accomplishing the business goals (Jiang and Messersmith, 2018).
Moreover, skills deficiency can be significant loss for the company such as lower productivity
and poor quality of the work. Along with this, for fulfilling the gaps of skill labour the firm
has to develop the training and developing department so that it can enhance and improve their
ability that will contributes in increasing the productivity of the firm.
Continuous improvement programs: This type of programs is built by the company in
order to serve their customer with the great quality of services. Moreover, the organization
build their machinery and focus on the needs and demands of their consumer and change the
workforce so that it can improve the productivity of the firm. Generally, business make changes
related to hiring the individual, using advance digital technology and improve the overall
administrative operation. Furthermore, making improvement in the business is very hard
collaboration of top-level management is very necessary as the main decision for the
organization is taken by them (Kaufman, 2020). HRM plays a very important role in planning
and implemented improvement programmes for the company. It has to prepare the employees for
making the changes and it can be done by communication and discuss on why the changes will
occur and what effect it will have on employees.
Re- engineering work process for improve productivity: Company runs in dynamic
rapid changes business environment. For meeting the changes of the environment, the
organization has to implement improvement programme for enhancing the performance.
Moreover, for meeting such needs organization needs high budget that results in increasing the
operational cost of the firm. Along with this, HRM has to conduct training and development
programmes for guiding the employees regarding the improvement within the organization.
Furthermore, re- engineering occurs when 60% of the work process has been evaluated and
altered. HRM plays a significant role in this process such as it directs the employees regarding
what to do and what are expected them to do so that it can deal with the external threat of the
business as well as dealing within the internal conflicts of the firm (Delery and Roumpi, 2017).

In addition to this, for getting the benefits of re – engineering human resources management
has to conduct skill training for the subordinates in order to improve their decision making.
P2. Describing the external factors influencing HR practice
Strategic management can be described as the practice of hiring the appropriate
employees for the organization and motivating them so that it can accomplish its personal and
company objective more effectively. The aim of human resources is to make strategy for the
company in order to improve the performance of the business in the competitive environment.
It plays important role in the company as it helps the organization in developing the appropriate
plans in order to deal with the internal and external threats. Along with this, it also helps in
building the coordination among the various department of firm by conducting team
development activities that contributes in creating the healthy work environment.
Moreover, there are two types of factor that affect the strategic human resources in
positive and negative way (4 External Factors that Affect Human Resource Management., 2021).
Such as external factor can be defined as those factor that lie outside the business and affect
the working of human resources. Additionally, internal factors are present within the company
and can impact negatively and positively on performance of the organization. There are 4 four
external factor that influence HR strategy are explained in details below:
Government Regulation: The laws related to workplace environment and employment
are adversely affecting the Human resources strategy as it is under pressure for staying with the
laws. HR of each company has to make strategy according to the changes going in the external
environment that include hiring, training, termination and compensation. Etc. However, if the
Hays travel do not follow this then it can negatively affect the overall performance of the
organization (Lee, 2021). Moreover, if the business does not follow such rules than firm has to
shut down their business.
Economic condition: This is one of the major external factors that can severely affect the
business such as if the economy of the country is down the organization will not be able hire
talented people. Along with this, the labour productivity will be negatively affected due to that
company will not be able to achieve the decided target (Bayraktaroğlu, Atay and İlhan, 2018).
However, the organization can prepare the company against this situation by investigating about
what is going in the economy and makes plan according to it.

Technology Advancement: This is also one of the major external factors that affect the
organization. This has positively affected for the human resources strategy such as company can
make the use of advance technology that will help the company in achieving the aims and
objective in more effective way (Boon and et.al., 2018). Moreover, this technology allows HR to
hire less employees that contributes in saving the operational cost of the firm. Thus, it is very
internal cost saving process.
Workforce demographics: The main ole of human resources management is to firing
and hiring people. So, HR make the strategy in order to cope up with external threats. As the
HR hire new people it has to meet the needs and demands of those employees related to work
environment. Moreover, the organization has to make attractive and innovative approach
related to the income and compensation as it will contribute in building strong relations with the
subordinates (Alghamdi, 2020). In addition to this, Human resources management of Hays
travel has to develop heathy work environment so that employees can wok more efficiently and
achieve their personal and organizational goals in limited frame of time.
P 3. Presenting theories related to growth and development of strategic HRM
Human resource theories are basically strategy and objectives that business make in order
to manage their administration as well as to sustain in the business environment. There are
majorly 4 types of theories that are explained in details below:
Organizational lifecycle theory: This is one of the most common theory of Human resource
management. It defines organization as a type of living organism such as human being
company also grows, mature and develop in the competitive environment. Moreover, it also
attains the age, decline and in many cases, it also dies because of not being able to sustain in the
market or death of any partner (Alomari, 2020). Furthermore, it is considered a growth and
development theory of company as it helps in predicting the life cycle of the organization at
each stage of working. In addition to this, Hays travel lifecycle is generally affected by the
external and internal threat that occur within the firm or outside. These threats can be legal and
political that negatively affect the growth and operation of the firm in the competitive market.
However, the rise and fall of the firm mainly depends on these factors. For example: Hays
travel is a mature company that is growing and developing their business.
Strategic contingency theory: This type of theory is used in order to meet contingent situation
that can occur while conducting business. The main role of the HRM is to make strategies and

plans for meeting the conflicts and threats that affect the overall growth of the business.
Moreover, the leader of the organization becomes a central part because of its problem-solving
skills that contributes in finding an appropriate solution to the problems in order to reduce them.
The Hays Travel has various advantage of adopting this theory such as it focusses on the task
an find appropriate solution for reducing the threats (Kasemsap, 2019). Along with this, it
helps in identifying the skills and techniques of the leader.
Transactional cost theory: It is a part of agency theory and corporate governance. Generally, it
is based on principle that cost of the company will rise when the organization hire people. For
example: subordinates and director to run the business. As soon as the company hire new people
it has conduct training programmes for them that contributes in increasing the operational cost
of the firm (Soltis, Brass. and Lepak, 2018). Along with this, the Hays Travel has to spend
money on external party such as barraging and decision making in order to purchase the
material from the market. As well as search and information cost to find the insights of the
market related to new trends, needs and demands of the customer. That result in making the
products according to them and increase the sales of the firm. In addition, to this firm also
spends a particular amount on policy and enforcement cost in order to manage the quality of the
products.
P4. Evaluating change management models that evaluates HR strategy
Change management can be defining as a systematic approach that helps organization to
prepare, support and teams and individual of the company so that it can achieve the goals and
objectives of the firm in the limited time of frame. In other words, it a structural approach and
sets of tools that helps individual in meeting the change as well as achieve the personnel and
companies’ objectives. There are various types of change model that are describe in details
below:
Lewin change model: According to Lewin change in any individual or organization is a very
complex process that is hard to accomplish and involves several stages before attaining the
stage of stability and equilibrium (Hussain and et.al., 2018). For explaining it’ s process it has
used the example of ice cube such as how cube change its shape and transform into cone of ice
through the process of unfreezing. There are three stage in this stage such as unfreezing, change
and freeze.

 Unfreezing: The first stage model is unfreezing that is one of the most critical stage
that involves readiness and willingness of change from existing comfort zone to
transformed situation. This stage involves making the individual aware about the
changes that need to be made in the organization as well as motivating employees for
accepting the new ways of working. Moreover, HR plays important role in this by
using its effective skills for motivating employees such as communication and
supporting subordinates for accomplishing the desire objectives.
 Change: This stage includes the actual process of implementing the changes decided by
the organization. Human resources management plays important role in making the
strategy for implementing the overall changes in the business. Moreover, the people of
the organization are unfrozen and actual plans are implemented in the firm (Abd El-
Shafy and et.al., 2019). During this stage effective communication and proper plan is
required as well as involvement of the employees are also necessary for making the
necessary change in the Hays travel. Furthermore, this stage can be complex as there are
many subordinates that do not want to adopt the new changes so it can be difficult of
Human resources argument to motivate them.
 Freeze: During this stage individual move form transition stage to the equilibrium or
stable stage. This stage is also known as refreezing stage because employees of the
organization accept the changes and develop new skills and behaviour in order to meet
the new working approach. As well as accept it as a part of their life and establish new
relationship. Moreover, for strengthen the behaviour of the employees HRM can reward
such as perks, support policies and positive reinforcement that will contribute in
transformed approaches working.
Kotter’s 8 Step Model of change: This framework mainly include creating a sense of
urgency, forming vision and mission of the company. so that it can cope with the
external and internal changes in the business environment. Moreover, the first step is
consisting of creating an urgency that can be possible by identifying the threat that can
damage the performance of the firm (Wentworth, Behson and Kelley, 2020). Along with
this, organization need to examine the opportunities that will contribute in increasing
the growth of the firm. Furthermore, in the second stage the company has to make
the powerful guiding coalition that can be achieved through identify the effective changes

in the leaders of the firm. As well as to investigate in the weak areas of the team and
involve international employees in the group in order to improve the working
environment. Along with this, the third step is involved with developing the strategy and
vision for that Hay’s travel has to determine the core value and define the aims and
objectives to the employees. And the leader of the company should make the plans
and increase the moral of the subordinate to accomplish the goals of the firm effectively.
The fourth stage is consist of communication in this step the leader need to solve the issues
faced by the employee (Pawar and Charak, 2017). In addition to this, the fifth stage is
consisting of removing the obstacle that can be accomplish by ensuring the
organizational structure and aligning the goals with it. Moreover, the sixth stage is creating
the short term goals that can be achieved by establishing the functional area. However, in
the seventh stage is known as consolidating the gains the Hays travel can identify
the improvement by using technological tools such as data analytical. In order to know
strengths and weakness of the company in the market. The last stage is establishing the
change in the corporate culture.
P5. Describing how HR outcomes can be measured if applied to particular organizational
situation
Human resources management can be described as the process of managing the
administration of the company as well as staffing, running welfare services as well as maintain
healthy work environment. Moreover, the performance of all this stage are assessed by the
general management for identifying the efficiency and quality of the employees and the overall
business (Guest and et.al., 2021). There are many criteria for measuring the productivity and
performance of Human resources such as labour productivity report, recruitment cost report etc.
Recruitment cost report: This include the recruitment cost of the different employees on
the basis of different categories and measure such costs with the result over time. Moreover, if
the their is raise in the cost over a year that reflect the inefficiency of the Human resources
department. Whereas, if there is reduction in the cost then it will contribute in overall success of
HR policy.
Labour turnover rate: It can be used to judge the efficiency of HR and personnel department.
This is one of the most important task of Human resources management is to make sure that all
the vacancy of the organization is filled in order to reduce the labour turnover rate.

Furthermore, this rate helps the company in identifying the numbers of employees that has left
business over a year or given period of time (Al Haziazi, 2020). As well as the average number
of people employees during that year. However, the increase in labour rate result in bad
performance of HR related to working environment. Whereas, lower labour rate result in success
of Human resources policy and reflect the success of the company in the competitive market.
Performance development plans: This tool helps in recognizing the efforts of the HR while
making the strategy and its performance as well as setting the plans that will help human
resources management in making the plans for the accomplishing the goals. This tools allows
HR manager to identify the needs of conducting training development for the employees and
help them in developing action plan that will result in meeting their needs.
Employee Moral: Moral can be defined as the state of mental health and the role of the Hr is to
keep its employees moral so that it can work hard for the growth of the employees as well as for
the company. However, high moral indicates the good performance of the organization in the
competitive environment (Ali, Awan and Javed, 2020). Whereas low moral reflects like failure
such ass high absents, high employee turnover, lower outputs. This also showcase the poor
performance of the HR policy. Moreover, for reducing this issues manger can motivate the
employees by providing them with various incentives such as perks and support.
Profitability: The main aim of HRM is to improve the overall performance of the company as
well as increasing the overall revenue of the firm. Moreover, the modern approach of human
resources management is to enhance the productivity of the employees, using the minimum
resources and plan strategy for increasing the brand reputation of the firm in the business
environment (Zhou and et.al., 2021). However, profitability helps the company in identifying the
management of HRM. And the increase and decrease of the total revenue of the organization
helps in knowing the performance of human resources of the management.
P6 Evaluating how HR management and development can support sustainable performance to
meet company’s objectives
Each organization wants to attain the sustainable growth and this is possible when HR of
a firm workforce planning plays an importance role in influencing growth and retention. There
are different ways through which HR management and development can support to improve the
performance of a company. This includes Hire to value and invest, in this HR of Hays travel

creating a sustainable growth and succession plans. If the employees are hired in innovative
ways and HR invest upon these practices, then it will be beneficial for the employees to become
a leader in an organization (Chasm, N. and García-Blandon, 2019). Further, hiring new talent
and invest into professional development will assists to support the sustainable performance
because having a skilled employee in a business assist to generate the best outcomes.
In addition to this, promote is another method that is adopted by Hays travel HR that
helps to support the business performance. It helps to remove the negativity from working place
and that is why, it assists to generate the best outcomes for the company and make employees fit
within company (Zaid, Jaaron and Bon, 2018). Thus, HR of the company also hired right people
and also invested in their professional development so that the company sustain the brand image
at global level. That is why, it can be stated that to promote the company, there is a need to
focused upon workplace environment that assists to gain competitive advantage within a market.
Creating a long term leadership solution is another way through HR of Hays travel
sustain the brand image within future. Such that HR develop different management practices that
holds leadership position within a firm and this bring valuable employees within a company that
clearly reflected that business improve the overall brand image globally. Moreover, it can be
stated that through effective HR practices, company can sustain the brand image and generate
better outcomes as well. In addition to this, this help in developing business productivity and
performance. Thus, providing a clear vision to the company assists to contribute affectively and
make them successful.
Communication is another method which is used by HR in order to make the employees
more productive and company’s more sustainable. It is so because company is more sustainable
when there will be proper flow of communication and this helps to foster the environment and
engage both employees as well as leaders within them. Therefore, a flow of communication
between both assists to achieve the company’s goals. Also, including the employees in a process
also assists them to let them understand that they are an important part of a company. Therefore,
getting feedback from employees and then make effective actions assists to generate the better
outcomes. Thus, it helps to build the company culture and also contribute to the company’s
success. Hence, it can be stated that HR of the firm can improve the culture and make a company
more sustainable to attain further level of success.

CONCLUSION
From the above report it has been concluded that human resources management plays very
crucial role in development of the company. Such as it helps the organization in hiring the
skilled labor that contributes in enhancing the productivity of the firm. Along with this, it also
makes strategic plans for dealing with external and internal threats that contributes in enhancing
the overall growth of the frim in the competitive environment. Furthermore, the study has also
summarized about the external factors that can influence human resource strategy such as
government regulation and technology advancement that can impact positively and negatively on
the HRM strategic policies.
Along with this, the report has also describe about the key trends likewise globalization,
changing skills and re-engineering that influence policies made by human resources
management. Furthermore, the study has also depicted about various theory related to HR
strategy such as organizational, transactional cost as well as strategic theory. Lastly, the report
has thrown light on Lewin change model and HR management that contributes in sustainable
performance.
REFERENCES
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Agarwal, S. and Al Qouyatahi, K. M. S., 2018. HRM Challenges in the Age of
Globalisation. International Research Journal of Business Studies. 10(2). pp.89-98.
Al Haziazi, M., 2020. IMPACT OF E-HRM SYSTEM ON ORGANIZATIONAL
PERFORMANCE IN THE SULTANATE OF OMAN. International Journal of
Management (IJM).11(8).
Alghamdi, S. A., 2020. The Impact of HR Strategy on Organizational Effectiveness. American
Journal of Theoretical and Applied Business. 6(4). pp.91-97.