Employee Relationship Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Employee Relationship - Essay Example Finally, the paper concludes stating that a sophisticated employee relation is necessary for efficient running of any firm. It is not feasible to discuss conceptual approaches to flexible working without reference to the work of Atkinson (1984), who developed the concept of "the flexible firm" in the recognition of changes which had taken place in the nature and composition of the workforce at that time. In the model of the "flexible firm" (see Figure overleaf), Atkinson propounded the concept of "core" versus "peripheral" workers. Core workers are a permanent component of a firm's workforce who deliver functional flexibility through their capacity to undertake a wide range of tasks. In contrast, peripheral workers provide a firm with numerical flexibility, with their numbers increasing or reducing with changing labour market conditions. The flexible firm approach involves a reorganisation of a firms' internal labour markets and their division into separate components, wherein workers' experiences and employer's expectations are increasingly differentiated (see Atkinson and Gregory 1986). Bryson (1999) argues that training/development and the involvement of employees are more likely to be directed at core workers, while 'peripheral' workers will be exposed more and more to 'raw' market forces. In times of recession, peripheral or non full-time workers are much more susceptible to lay-offs and redundancies. It is not insignificant that atypical workers, including those job-sharing, working part-time or on short-term contracts, are very clearly located on the periphery of the workforce under this approach. There is little doubt that the flexible firm model was influential in the development of employment policy in UK private and public sector organizations in recent years (see Lawton and Rose 1994). The extent to which this placement of atypical workers as peripheral workers truly reflects the reality of life in Irish organizations remains to be seen. There is certainly evidence to show that, in the Civil Service, opting for flexible, family friendly working arrangements, such as job-sharing, is perceived as unlikely to enhance longer-term career prospects (see Humphreys, Drew and Murphy 1999). However, what is clear is that, given the frequent gender differentiation between core and periphery workers, it is absolutely vital from both the equality and 'family-friendly' viewpoints that flexible working arrangements move in from the periphery to the core of organizational activity and thinking. - http://www.welfare.ie/publications/work_fam/chapter3.html INDIVIDUALISM AND COLLECTIVISM Individualism and collectivism are conflicting views of the nature of humans, society and the relationship between them. Individualism holds that the individual is the primary unit of reality and the ultimate standard of value. This view does not deny that societies exist or that people benefit from living in them, but it sees society as a collection of individuals, not something over and above them. Collectivism holds that the group---the nation, the community, the proletariat, the race, etc.---is the primary unit of reality and the ultimate standard of value. This view does not deny the reality of the individual. But ultimately, collectivism holds

Mutual Exclusiveness of Generic Strategies Essay

Mutual Exclusiveness of Generic Strategies - Essay Example Thus, a firm that seeks cost leadership must explore all avenues that will guarantee its cost advantage in the industry. For a firm to achieve differentiation advantage over its competitors, it must come up with the necessary measures to produce a unique service or product that is valued by the customers to the extent of foregoing a relatively cheaper service or product offered by the firm’s competitors to buy from the firm at a higher price (Dahlen, 2006). Therefore, cost leadership and differentiation strategies define two fundamentally different approaches to business strategy given that a firm competing on low cost is discernible from that competing through differentiation evident from their different organizational characteristics, market poisoning, capabilities and resources (Grant, 2010). Michael Porter pooled differentiation and cost leadership with the firm’s choice of scope to constitute the generic strategies that a firm can use to achieve high profit margins . According to Porter, cost leadership and differentiation are mutually exclusive strategies to the extent that firms that endeavor to practice both strategies are stuck in the middle. Further, Porter defines a firm that is stuck in the middle as one with a guaranteed low profitability since it losses the high volume customers who demand low prices or has lowered its profits so that it can attract customers from those firms offering lower prices. The firm that is stuck in the middle loses its high-end customers who have high margin targets in their mind or have generally achieved differentiation. Such a firm would also lack a well-defined corporate culture in addition to having an incompatible set... This essay has looked at what is covered under cost leadership and differentiation as the two most important components of generic strategies. The following parts of the essay have looked at why it is possible for firms to implement both cost leadership and deferential generic strategies successfully. The paper has highlighted as a case example the strategic approach employed by Toyota which is an industry leader in automobile industry as a major example of how combining the two strategies is possible. The changes in market environment in areas like demand and supply calls for firms that need to keep up with modern trends to diversify their strategic approaches. Evidence from contingency approach to human resource management has been presented to oppose the mutual exclusive view of generic strategies. This paper makes a conclusion that the fear that firms employing both strategies simultaneously run the risk of being stuck in the middle, not knowing which of the two to concentrate on, has also been dispelled. Last part has presented a brief analysis detailing why the concepts as detailed by Porter needs further scrutiny. This analysis assists in place Porters ideas in the context of practical business environment as opposed to the theoretical framework under which Porter postulated the two strategies. Therefore, this essay has succeeded in proving that Cost leadership and differentiation generic strategies are not mutually exclusive but are approaches that business organizations can take advantage of to achieve greater margins in terms of their profits.