The relationship between human resource practices and a company’s business strategy are aligned in many ways. The ultimate goal of the alignment is to use human capital as instrument to maximize the organization assets for the benefit of the stakeholders. Below are some of the relationship between human resource practices and business strategy.

STRATEGIC HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Human resource practices create the process for the development of employees’ knowledge and the skill-set across the organization to promote its core competencies that support and maintain its competitive advantage in the industry. The term “strategic HRM” is the new template in the management of modern organization that is anchored on the concept that the most valuable asset an organization provides itself is HR, since it is the tool that is responsible for the coordination and implementation of other factors of production that spurs corporate performance journals

The business strategy adopts by an organization is meant to showcase how it intend to succeed by using the factors of production at its disposal to build a competitive advantage, strategy-business. Business strategy helps to identify the direction that the organization wishes to go in relation to its environment. Human resource strategies manage human resource so that the goals set by the organization can be achieved. The focus is directed on what the business intentions are as they relate to human resource policies and practices. Therefore, how human resource is spread across the organization’s units and departments, motivated, managed and retained will affect the performance outcome after the business strategy has been implemented. The relationship between business strategy and human resource practices also would determine the organization competitive and performance outcome.

A glimpse into Oya Erdil & Ayse Gunsel’s ‘BUSINESS STRATEGY AND HUMAN RESOURCE STRATEGY- THE INTERACTION’ shows there is a relationship between human resource management practices and an organization business strategy, which also could be referred to as the business environment and organizational development. Another defining aspect of that relationship is the across the board acceptance that an organization’s human resource management practices have a link to the firm’s decision making process, in other words, the HR practices be closely aligned with the strategy of the whole business. While there is not much disagreement as pertaining to the relationship between HR practices and business strategy, there is a tendency not to acknowledge the deeper nature of the relationship. The theory of human resource management opined that should employees be considered and managed as a valued strategic asset, the organization in practice would be able to achieve a competitive advantage, and the outcome will be a superior performance. This again, means managing human resource in such a way that it will correspond to the business strategy, being that the goals and process of each of the strategy profiles are different.

According to Oya Erdil & Ayse Gunsel, this relationship is further entrenched when you look at how human resource practices are selected based on competitive strategy espoused by the organization. An organization that coordinates its business strategy and human resources policies and practices achieve a superior performance outcome than those that do not.

ALIGNING PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT TO STRATEGY AND CULTURE

As explained by Rob Gray’s ‘Aligning performance management with business strategy,’ some employers could be missing the key factor that links performance management to strategy and culture. For it is an organization’s prevailing culture and practices that will determine the optimum use of its valuable asset (human beings) when its business strategy is aligned with its human resource practices. The right tools are needed if employers are to succeed in aligning their human resource management to its business strategy. The era of using performance review and appraisal as the only tools for performance, management solutions have since been replicated by a complete suite of competency measurement tools. These tools are able to assist employees to understand the means and learning resources through which they can effectively develop their skills and talent. Technology is one of the enablers but needs commitment from top down that is important for a high performance culture.

TALENT MANAGEMENT

Edward E. Lawler lll’s, ‘What should HR Leaders Focus On In 2014′ gives a deep insight into how business entities could achieve a superior outcome for their shareholders. While technology is a valued enabler that spurs performance leading to superior outcome for an organization, another thing that should be a thing of focus for HR is the aspect of talent management that assesses the necessary skills every organization needs to implement its business strategy, the plan for recruitment and the management of critical talent. Even though, talent has long been determined to be important, it is of recent becoming more so given that many businesses are performing knowledge based work that is more complex, and with operations in the global markets. This has led to the situation of performance talent having a great impact on the organization’s bottom line. Google, Amazon, Apple, and other techs and service organizations have done a tremendous job of recruiting and managing people around the world that have the needed critical knowledge based skills. Their talented workforce have been able to perform well, differentiate their companies from competitors across industries which have translated to a pattern of communication that relays their type of employees and the jobs they offer.

INNOVATION

Innovation is another standard of performance management, Innovation.Tools.com, that when effectively coordinated with an organization business objectives lead to a superior performance outcome. When an organization devote a substantial amount of time to innovation and business strategy, and both are valued equally, promoted across the board, and well communicated, a culture would exist naturally which will foster a relationship of the two. The fostered culture creates a top down business objectives that are communicated across the board in the organization, that enable all units to focus in addressing the organization’s short and long-term goals. From then, it becomes the innovators’ task to forge an alignment of their activities in support of the organization’s goals. The various ways to naturally coordinate both camps is the joint development of technology/product, and business road maps that encourage discussion and debate, forging links that guides actions. Successful performance outcome are highlighted through internal business and fairs, using the avenue to raise visibility for long term opportunities.

DIVERSITY

Diversity in an organization plays a significant role in forging a link between performance management and business strategy. There is a business case for diversity in the organization based on the evidence and arguments that both believe that when diversity is leveraged in an organization, it can contribute to the achievement of the company’s goals and priorities. To understand the relevance of diversity to the attainment of business objectives, the type of diversity under consideration has to be relevant to business performance and innovation accaglobal.com

Whether navigating tricky conversations or counseling employees through conflict, there are always going to be difficult workplace issues that crop up. How you handle these obstacles will go a long way toward determining the atmosphere of your office. Will the office be a space where you and your team can speak and work freely, or will it be a place that stifles creativity and operates out of fear discipline? All workplaces are comprised of imperfect individuals that have good intentions but will still inevitably fail, struggle, or cause conflict. Mistakes happen, errors will be made, and feelings might get hurt. Having a plan in place for how you will respond to these things and mitigate the fallout will set you on a path to a peaceful and successful work environment.

When difficult times arise, consider trying out one or more of the following five proven strategies:

1. Practice Patience

A good rule of thumb when faced with a difficult situation like a disgruntled employee or a grumpy client is to take a deep breath and just listen. Many times, if you can help the person you are interacting with feel heard, the situation will de-escalate on its own. We all long to be understood and valued, so when you patiently give those around you ample space to air their grievances and vent their frustrations (even if they are unfounded or if you disagree with them) you are feeding the side of them that longs to be seen and appreciated. Once they are done talking, take a brief moment to gather your own thoughts; then, calmly restate what they said to you and work with them to achieve a solution that works for everyone involved.

2. Grow in Gratitude

If you can cultivate an office culture of thankfulness, you may be surprised at how much the attitudes of everyone in your workspace elevate. Recognizing your employees’ successes and telling them often that you appreciate their hard work will help them feel valued, and will often build a spirit of excitement and congeniality, which acts like a hedge of protection against the small, everyday inconveniences and irritations that can crop up.

3. Bite the Bullet

While it can be tempting to sweep conflict under the rug – especially if you personally dislike conflict – it is important that as the leader of your company you set an example for those looking up to you. Instead of pretending like issues are not there, just confront them. The longer you allow things to lurk under the surface, the larger the feelings of resentment and frustration will become.

Clients and employees that feel slighted or not taken care of can quickly turn into disgruntled people loudly voicing their displeasure to others. This can create a heavy fog of bitterness and backbiting that reduces productivity and inhibits work/life harmony. The best way to stop this in its tracks is to confront issues head on as soon as you become aware of them. Don’t let them grow into something large and uncomfortable. Have a hard conversation, if needed, and get to the bottom of things as soon as possible.

4. Try A Positivity Sandwich

This technique has been utilized by teachers and coaches for decades; it is incredibly simple, and requires little to no practice or preparation to master. You start by identifying the issue, problem, or behavior that needs to be discussed or brought to someone’s attention. Then, you build the sandwich by determining something positive to say before the difficult thing and then something else positive to say immediately following the difficult part of the conversation.

If, for example, you need to reprimand an employee for their habit of late arrival, you may choose to start the conversation by affirming how valuable they are for keeping the office running smoothly. Then you can discuss the need for them to be punctual. Afterward, you could end the conversation by thanking them for being an important member of the team. Most people are eager to please and will respond positively to this process. You are still engaging in the difficult but necessary correction, and you are doing it in a way that still calls out greatness in that person and affirms their value to your firm.

5. Pinpoint Personalities

Everyone has a unique personality and perspective; the more that you can understand those around you – where they are coming from and how they see the world – the better you can anticipate their responses to situations and build them up positively. If you know, for example, that one of your employees is incredibly analytical and processes information slowly and methodically, you will know not to require them to take the lead on projects that require spontaneous and freewheeling thought.

Setting people up for success, or playing to their strengths, is a surefire way to foster a spirit of collaboration and positivity in your workplace. Consider having your team take a personality assessment, and then tabulate the results to share with everyone. The more equipped everyone is to work together well, the less likely it will be that you find yourself managing conflicts in the first place.

Consider starting this week off by evaluating the personalities of everyone on your team and creating action steps you can take to play to each person’s strengths in the future.

Many simple and effective resources get created when I’m coaching my one-on-one clients. An issue or situation comes up and I create a resource tool to help them get an even better result. In this example, my business owner coaching client wanted to better hold his support team accountable, so I created a performance assessment tool. This enhances regular communication with each team member about their specific performance of what they are responsible for. It lets the team member feel good about their progress and it helps the business owner feel more confident about what is being done and at what level of performance. You will benefit, just as my clients have, from utilizing this simple and effective performance assessment for every member of your team. Customize it for each person on your team based on their job description. More specifically, each team member should customize it for themselves, and you approve it. Schedule a meeting every 90 days to review progress in each area you are measuring.

One of the most important tasks you, as a business owner, will undertake is getting employees to buy into your vision for the company and take ownership over their roles. An uninspired workforce can tank a company’s productivity and financial growth faster than almost anything else.

The people you hire to be the hands and faces of your company are out there every day representing you – they are either happily showcasing all the wonderful things about your company, or they are bringing it down with poor attitudes or a lack of enthusiasm.

So, how do you inspire greatness in those that work for you? How do you promote a company vibe of inclusion, ownership and high morale?

Give Them Unhindered Opportunities to Do Things Their Way

No two people are alike. We all approach problem solving and communication with a unique perspective and set of skills. When you require employees to only do things your way, you run the risk of potentially hindering them from doing their best work. You also keep them from bringing to the proverbial table all the unique skills and abilities that they have hiding inside.

Micromanaging employees is a fast track to workplace dissatisfaction. It not only heaps more onto your already-full plate, but it also subtly sends the message to the people you have hired that you do not trust them to figure out how to do an exceptional job on their own. However, if you did a thorough job vetting candidates when you first hired your employees, you should be able to trust them to do the job you hired them for. Not only that, you should be able to freely give them room to grow in that role and to approach their work in the way that best fits their personality and perspective.

If you hired a bubbly and vivacious client manager that loves small talk, don’t require him or her to tone it down when speaking to clients. Perhaps you would not spend five minutes chatting up a client before digging into the details of an overdue invoice or scheduling their next appointment, but that does not mean it is wrong for your employee to work that way.

By allowing them to bring their unique voice and outlook to their tasks, you empower them to take ownership over that role. Not only that, but the chances of them staying with your company long-term increase dramatically, because they will feel appreciated, needed, and invested.

Help them Learn and Include Them in Company Growth Conversations

One of the fastest ways to alienate employees and push them to become disillusioned with your company is to leave them out of conversations, procedure adjustments, and policy changes that directly affect the jobs they were hired to complete. According to Forbes,

“Employees want to create impact. Allow them to be part of the innovation-based projects in your company by letting them get their hands dirty. Ideation is important, but being part of implementing the ideas that come to life can be a more exciting and meaningful growth opportunity for your employees that will inspire them to perform… When given the right tools and resources, the best employees will instinctively challenge themselves to be more innovative in their work – and will perform better. Focus on giving your employees the opportunities to elevate their individual value while serving the needs of the company.”

When given room to grow and to develop an ownership perspective in your company, chances are good that you will eliminate the “I am just punching a timecard and then leaving” mentality that plagues so many workplaces.

Show Your Appreciation

If you want to encourage your employees and make them feel seen, respected, and valued, take time to recognize their efforts and reward a job well done. This could take the form of performance incentives, employee-of-the-month honors, quarterly staff appreciation meals – the options are truly endless. Consider your unique pool of employees and set up something that will meet them where they will appreciate it the most. Remember – while private, individual feedback and praise are important, it is equally important and perhaps even more meaningful to recognize and applaud employees in front of their peers.

“Recognition creates an emotional connection between employer and employee – a critical piece of employee engagement – and fulfills employees’ basic needs of esteem and belonging within a group. The best part is, recognition is essentially free! It can be as simple as sending a thoughtful email (or better yet, a handwritten note) to your team members calling out their amazing work. So, the question shouldn’t be “why should I recognize my people?” but “why wouldn’t I recognize my people?”

Inspiring greatness in your employees is simple; you can start today by taking the time to call out a few of your team members and speak words of encouragement and life over them and the work they are doing for your company. You can go a step further and put something larger on the company calendar – this could be a team lunch or even a morning meeting where you provide treats and go around the room recognizing everyone’s recent accomplishments.

If you are in management, you can always use management tips and techniques to make your job easier and more effective. You need to know what a manager can do and how to be a productive manager. Management comes with some responsibilities that other positions do not have. You have to be professional in your work. You need to know about the business as well as what techniques are available to make a company succeed. Management makes sure a business functions in a profitable margin or at least close to it.Management is not a responsibility to take lightly. You must know the business that you are working in and how to help it succeed. You are the leader and you must be knowledgeable about the business. Tips can help you make better decisions and help the business prosper. If you have no management skills or do not use some techniques and tips that can help you, the position you are in will not advance. You cannot do your job properly if you do not learn ways to improve the business.Once you learn about different techniques and learn some tips that help with management, you will be more suited for a management position. You have to know how to change with the company. You must know how to help the company change for the better. Your input is important, but only if it helps the business succeed. If you are in a management position, you have gotten this far by learning. This learning process never ends. There is always something to learn that can help you in business.If you need to learn some tips and techniques, you need someone or something that can help. More than likely, you will not learn everything on your own. You will need to have a learning process to continue your learning and success. Management tips and techniques are helpful in any business. The more you learn, the more you move forward in a company. This should always be the number one rule in management and every other position in a business that wants to be successful.

For a new house cleaning business owner, you are most likely very much appreciative of any cleaning business tips that may come your way. Well, putting up the business is basically standard. However, it is marketing your business to the general public that may need a bit of your creative ideas.Advertising Up and DownsThe thing about marketing is that it is basically advertising. And advertising may reap results for your cleaning business, but it may also burn a hole into your cleaning business’ marketing budget. There are many ways to advertise your business – through newspaper ads, magazines, billboards, radio, or even television. However, these range from expensive to quite expensive, up to really expensive. Although if it does have returns, then these ways may be worth the expense; but if it doesn’t, then it just sucked a huge amount of money from your company.Free Media PublicityThis is one way of advertising that won’t burn a hole in your house cleaning business’ budget’s pocket. This is what people usually know as “press release”. You don’t really sell or advertise the product or service. Instead, what happens is that the company’s name is mentioned in an article or any kind of press release, giving it exposure to the public’s awareness.This is one of the cleaning business tips that you ought to know as a starting cleaning business owner. And another thing that you should know too: the downside of free media publicity is that although your company’s exposure is given a boost through here, you however, have no final say on what will be reported. But then, it’s free publicity of your business – a great cleaning business marketing tool!Basically, you, yourself, can submit a press release to your local paper. You write an article about an event that recently took place, or will take place, and if you are involved in the activity as an active member or a sponsor, you can include your company’s name. For example, an organization or social group is planning a tree planting activity and your company is a sponsor or participant, say you donated a tree or you sponsored financially – you can include that on the press release. However, the article should be about the event, and your company’s name is just a mere mention in that article.You can also have your company’s name featured in home keeping magazine articles. You may contact the editor for the lifestyle or home section of the magazine and discuss it. So basically, free media publicity is free, or if it may cost you, it will be very minimal. It’s a good way to expose your company.