Final Project
Diane Hart
HRM 201 Human Resource Management
10/14/2014
Dr. Charlene Glenn
Abstract
Human resources have been called the “key ingredient to organizational success and failure” (Baron and Kreps, 1999). In today’s Globalized era Human resource practices have become more innovative and technological. This paper is about the innovative human resources practices that some companies use every day, specifically the best places to work and the innovative human resources that they provide. The three companies that will be discussed are Google, FedEx, and Apple. This paper will review what the companies do and how they stay on top being one of the best places to work. ...view middle of the document...
In a survey conducted by BusinessWeek magazine, Google was the most sought after company by college students, MBAs, women, engineers, and diverse individuals. Google ranked 1st on the 10th annual ‘100 Best Companies to Work For’ list of Fortune, a well-known international business magazine. Google Inc. is a global technology organization focused on innovation thus, improving the ways in which people connect with information while upholding the brand equity and reputation. The company recorded revenue of $10.58billion in 2011, employing 18 500 people in the U.S and a 33% job growth (Google Inc., 2011).
Googles Human Resource Strategy
Google has renamed human resources to people operations. This encourages employees to participate in running the company and building effective teams. One philosophy that Google focuses on is what they consider people management when it comes to human resource strategies. Sullivan (2013) reveals a top priority for Google. They believe that innovations come from people and you cannot maximize innovations unless you are capable of recruiting and retaining innovators. Google uses a human resource strategy called databased decision-making strategy. This human resource strategy has been highly successful in attracting innovators and managing them within the company. “Almost everyone has heard about Google’s free food, 20% time, and wide range of fun activities but realize that each of these was implemented and are maintained based on data” (Sullivan, 2013). Google’s HR practices clearly reveal the impressive results of the company’s approach, which help in increasing employee productivity.
The following is a brief description of the human resource strategies that Google has in place. Human resource managers at Google have determined that great managers are essential for top performance and retention. One practice they use to keep manager’s performance high is to have their employees’ rate managers twice a year. Google also uses the PiLab. The PiLab conducts applied experiments within Google to determine the most effective approaches for managing people and maintaining a productive environment (Sullivan, 2013). This data driven strategy has provided results to human resources on the approaches of how to be successful in their HR strategy.
Hiring the right people is a key HR strategy at Google. Their retention rate and turnover data proves that the organization has been successfully able to attract, retain, and motivate a younger generation of workers who would otherwise be more apt to leave an organization.
Another important HR strategy for Google is in its training and development program. Google employees are offered tremendous opportunities to learn and grow. Some of the professional development opportunities include classes on individual and team presentation skills, content development, business writing, executive speaking, delivering feedback, and management and leadership (Lawler, 2014). Google pays...