Instructions
Respond to 2 threads below, identifying at least 1 strength and 1 weakness in their reasoning, supported by at least 2 scholarly sources per thread (published within the last 5 years) in addition, 1 from text book (Noe, R.A., Hollenbeck, J.R., Gerhart, B., & Wright, P.M. (2017) Human resource management: Gaining a competitive advantage (10th edition) New York, NY: McGraw-Hill) and 1 relevant biblical integration. All citations and references must be in current APA format. Each reply must be 275–300 words.
Thread 1:
Do you believe that managers should be given more autonomy to make personnel decisions such as hiring, appraising, and compensating subordinates, or do you believe that managers should be given less autonomy to make such decisions? Explain and substantiate your reasoning?
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8, ESV). Jesus Christ said this to His disciples before He ascended into heaven. He appointed people to be His personal ambassadors on Earth and continue His work. This provides us with a great leadership example that we can apply in all organizations. Businesses should apply this principle by allowing managers to have autonomy over personnel decisions.
Autonomy is essential for the functionality of all organizations. The motivational job design teaches us that employees will have good attitudes, reactions, and impressions of their job and the organization they are part of if they will be motivated to do well. The job characteristics model assesses five different ways that employees view their jobs. One of those ways is autonomy (Noe et al, 2017, p. 170). Autonomy results in “increased organizational citizenship behaviors, commitment, satisfaction, job involvement, energy, and decreased burnout” (Boz Semerci, 2020, p. 45). More oversight and control from the top reverses this effect.
Studies show that employees are less satisfied with their work when they are micromanaged or when they are unable to make decisions about the things they are responsible for. A mentality often develops that they are not needed because their superiors are making decisions on things that effect their unit or section. Employees will also speculate that their superiors have less time to focus on issues effecting the entire organization if they are focused on a small part of the organization (Hassell, 2018, p. 24-25). Employees are also more likely to become embittered and obtain autonomy through disrupting operations or through opposition to the company’s goals. This all applies to the autonomy of managers being able to hire, evaluate, and reward employees (Dobbin et al, 2015, p. 1034).
Autonomy for managers to handle their employees will benefit an organization in several ways. One of those ways is productivity. Subordinates are a lot more inclined to display disciplined initiative if their superiors trust them (Department of the Army, 2019, p. 1-31). Organizations that have employees who care about their job and have buy in on how well the organization does are usually 22% more profitable and 21% more productive (Hassell, 2018, p. 24). Employees are more satisfied with their jobs when more autonomy is given to them (Dobbin et al, 2015, p. 1018). A positive attitude from management will pour into the employees they hired. Autonomy also results in “increased organizational citizenship behaviors, commitment, satisfaction, job involvement, energy, and decreased burnout” (Boz Semerci, 2020, p. 45).
Autonomy must be applied the correct way for these benefits to exist. Managers who have authority to hire, evaluate, and reward employees should be given guidance from their superiors on what this process will involve. Jethro gave Moses guidance on the kind of men he was to appoint as judges over God’s people. He told his son in law: “moreover, look for able men from all the people, men who fear God, who are trustworthy and hate a bribe, and place such men over the people as chiefs of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens” (Exodus 18:21, ESV).
Similar guidance must be followed by managers who are given the responsibility to manage their employees. The U.S. Army relies on decentralization in a similar manner. The higher headquarters pushes as much information to subordinate units as possible to allow them to make the best informed decisions (Department of the Army, 2019, p. 1-5). The Army also relies on performance counseling and evaluations to develop its leaders. This feedback is another part of the job characteristics model (Noe et al, 2017, p. 170). Managers must be given feedback on their hiring, appraising, and compensation decisions.
There are instances where centralization is important. There are decisions that need to be made that effect entire organizations that subordinate elements are not capable of making because they are so focused on their own specialization. This inhibits them from seeing the big picture; therefore, top level management needs to make these decisions so the right thing happens for the entire organization (Noe et al, 2017, p. 154). Examples of this type of decision include whether to initiate an early retirement program or how the company is going to facilitate work despite the current social distancing restrictions. The employment, evaluation, and compensation of individuals at the subordinate levels of an organization are not decisions that will effect the entirety of the organization; therefore, subordinate managers should be empowered to make these decisions.
References
Crossway. (2001). The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV). Wheaton, Illinois: Author.
Department of the United States Army (2019). Mission Command: Command and Control of
Army Forces (ADP 6-0). Washington, D.C.: Headquarters, U.S. Army.
Dobbin, F., Schrage, D., & Kalev, A. (2015). Rage against the Iron Cage. American Sociological
Review, 80(5), 1014–1044. Retrieved from: https://doiorg.ezproxy.liberty.edu/10.1177/000312 2415596416. Accessed May 16, 2020.
Hassell, D. (2018). Are the Best Leaders Hands-Off? Five Secrets of Effective
Managers. Professional Safety, 63(8), 24–25. Retrieved from: https://search-ebscohost-com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bsu&AN=131049636&site=bsi-live. Accessed May 16, 2020.
Noe et al. (2017). Human Resource Management: Gaining a Competitive Advantage. New York,
NY: McGraw-Hill Education.
BOZ SEMERCİ, A. (2020). The Role of Employee’s Social Capital in the Relationship between
Empowerment and Cynicism. Ege Academic Review, 20(1), 43–55. Retrieved from:
https://doi-org.ezproxy.liberty.edu/10.21121/eab.539372. Accessed May 16, 2020.
Thread 2:
What seems to be the main source of conflict between supervisors, employees, and the HR department?
Introduction
Human Resource Management (HRM) refers to the policies, practices, and systems that influence employees’ behavior, attitudes, and performance (Noe, 2017). Effective HRM has been shown to enhance company performance by contributing to employee and customer satisfaction, innovation, productivity, and development of a favorable reputation in the company’s community (Noe, 2017). However, HR departments that do not talk with their managers and employees on a regular basis, but instead simply issue directives and policies without consulting anyone, spread a negative feeling throughout the company. Based on my personal experience, what seems to be a main source of conflict between supervisors, employees, and the HR department is poor management and discrimination.
Poor Management
Poor management can be perceived as a lack of unified goal or a disconnect between two offices. Employees feel like HR doesn’t have their best interest in mind while HR feels like employees don’t see the big picture that they do. Supervisors can act as the liaison between the two, but they should be able to see both perspectives. So, which side they’re on depends on the organization and how disconnected HR appears form the rest of the employees.
I have worked in an office where HR has shown a serious lack of communication and sympathy in the workplace, where not only employees fought back but also the management team. When that happens, it’s much more difficult for the supervisor to be the liaison between HR and the employees. For instance, due to COVID-19 many companies have either gone out of business, closed, or remain open. For the companies that remain open, like a call center, usually employees are able to work remotely. Continuing on with the example of the call center, it becomes unfortunate when you have multiple employees and management voicing their concerns to HR about their safety during this time and requesting to work from home, but receiving emails back from HR denying their requests. It’s disappointing to hear that employees who had health issues or close family members they lived with who had health issues get denied. To add on, even when HR received a ton of backlash from that, before they finally started approving employees to work from home, they requested that employees get three pages of paperwork filled out by their doctor. For a situation that literally affects life or death, HR should have put the employees’ safety first.
This caused a major drift between HR, the supervisors, and the employees because the employees felt like they could not trust anyone. As tensions started rising even more, HR and upper management continued to neglect communication with their employees about the situation, leaving their employees very uneased and angry. Once the company got publicly scrutinized for their lack of actions, HR finally made some adjustments. However, if HR had not waited so long to act, not only would they have avoided being publically attacked, they would have gained the trust of the employees under them.
What is Discrimination and How Should it be Addressed?
The multitude of decisions that face modern managers and human resource personnel entail various concerns that they must handle properly, and one of those concerns is to avoid all discrimination in hiring practices. However, in an attempt to avoid the appearance of discrimination, some hiring managers might unwittingly be committing discrimination against groups that one would not normally consider underprivileged. This phenomenon is called reverse discrimination, which typically occurs when hiring decisions are cast in favor of racial minorities over Caucasians, or in favor of women over men- but only when the hiring decisions was made with race, sex or any other protected characteristic as a primary determinant.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission was founded by the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and was established to regulate and enforce law regarding equal employment opportunity (Aiken et. al, 2013). The initial effects of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (CRA) was the illegalization of discriminatory hiring practices based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin. As a product of the Civil Rights era, one of the major goals of the law was to ensure that African-Americans received the same opportunity as white Americans in searching for a job, but the law itself prohibits discrimination based on any of the protected characteristics listed previously. If an individual believes that they were the victim of negative discrimination within a hiring decision or compensational decision, they can file a complaint to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) within 180 days of the incident. Afterwards, the commission has at least 60 days to review the case and decide whether to move forward with charges or not (Noe et. al., 2018).
Obstacles Arising from the EEOC
The CRA is a noble law that was passed in order to pursue an honorable goal, which is to ensure that all people have the same opportunity in pursuing employment among other things. However, in attempts to demonstrate compliance with the laws of the EEOC, it can be easy for employers to overcompensate with their hiring practices. When present, this overcompensation leads to the detriment of allegedly “privileged” classes of people (mainly white males), who might dismissed for certain employment opportunities in favor of a lesser-qualified minority class. If a white male is the more qualified for a position than an African-American female, the position should go to the white male. If the African-American female is more qualified than a white male for the same position, the African-American female should be offered the position. If either position was offered to the lesser qualified candidates based on racial factors, the EEOC should consider that scenario to be an example of discriminatory hiring practices. It is crucial for hiring managers to ensure that the only factors involved in personnel selection are those factors relating to the job, and to disregard all protected characteristics (exception made for Bona Fide Occupational Requirements, such as religious stipulations for religious organizations). If a human resources manager or hiring manager does not completely disregard all protected characteristics, it is likely that discrimination will occur, whether it be standard or “reverse” discrimination.
The concept is simple, but outside forces can impede the proper enforcement of equal opportunity in hiring decisions. Example- if a company has only white males on the payroll, despite multiple application from minorities and females, the easy assumption is to accuse the company of discriminating against minorities and women. However, this would not necessarily be the case, as the white men in the applicant pools might have been the only qualified candidates. Such an example is highly idealized to make the point, and is unlikely to occur in real life. If the previous scenario were to occur, the EEOC should be compelled to ascribe discrimination violations to the company only after discovering evidence of discriminatory motives.
Steps for Resolution of Reverse Discrimination
The Civil Rights Act has accomplished wonders for minority populations within the United States, but the EEOC should take further action to ensure all races and sexes receive truly equal opportunity with their employment pursuits. One measure to remedy the problem would be to clarify the legal definition of discrimination, as some have made the claim that such definitions are lacking. One such statement is found in an entry of the Stanford Law Review, stating: “antidiscrimination law does not offer us a clear, empirical conception or definition of discrimination; instead it often offers us only that set of formal presumptions, inferences, and procedures that the advocates of greater realism hold in such contempt. (Ford, 2014, p. 1393)” Composing an objectively set definition for discrimination would clarify the various lines that might be violated in hiring decisions.
Another measure to help prevent reverse discrimination would be to establish the difference between equal opportunity in employment pursuits, and equal results in hiring decisions or workforce demographics. One possible misconception is that workforce demographics display the presence of discrimination, and this is a common conflation. If the EEOC leaves this confusion unchecked, it will inevitably lead to false claims of discrimination where there is no discrimination.
Biblical Application
In the New Testament, Paul assures the church in Galatia that certain class distinctions have no bearing on various peoples’ salvation. In Galatians 3:28 Paul states, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. (English Standard Version)” The purpose of this verse is to encourage believers to accept that all people have an equal share in Christ’s forgiveness, as the distinction between Jews and Gentiles was a strong one at the time. Christian hiring manager can look to this verse as an establishment of universal opportunity within the Christian faith, and transfer that concept to hiring practices and promotion decisions.
References
Aiken, J. R., Salmon, E. D., & Hanges, P. J. (2013). The origins and legacy of the civil rights act of 1964. Journal of Business and Psychology, 28(4), 383-399. Retrieved from https://search.proquest.com/abicomplete/docview/1449255675/E51B4A779F0E4E9BPQ/1?accountid=12085
Ford, R. T. (2014). Bias in the air: Rethinking employment discrimination law. Stanford Law Review, 66(6), 1381-1421. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/1548675339?accountid=12085
Noe, R.A., Hollenbeck, J.R., Gerhart, B., & Wright, P.M. (2017) Human resource management: Gaining a competitive advantage (10th edition) New York, NY: McGraw-Hill
Srimannarayana, M. (2012). Line & HR conflict: Some empirical insights. Indian Journal of Industrial Relations, 47(4), 700-716.
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