“Staffing in the 21st century: New challenges and strategic opportunities”
One of the main reasons why the article “Staffing in the 21st century: New challenges and strategic opportunities” written by Ployhart (2006) represents a significant body of knowledge is his approach to describing the key staffing processes and the impact of personnel selection on company performance. The article provides a critical analysis of the existing implications and future applications of HR theories. Ployhart (2006) pointed out a specific link between business unit effectiveness and a variety of staffing theories, creating room for the conclusion that further critical evaluation might be necessary. There is a definite strategic value that can be associated with recruitment because hiring the right employees might become the best solution for numerous organizations willing to improve their organizational outcomes (Ployhart, 2006). Therefore, the author also found several gaps in the existing research on HR practices and stated that multi-level staffing research is required to close them.
Ployhart (2006) also addressed some of the most relevant micro theories related to staffing in order to obtain enough details regarding the process of recruiting and the key factors that might increase the rate of success. He found that theoretical precision in recruitment research might not be replicated in practice at all times, making it harder for organizations to track their success and manage the workforce. Even job choice might be affected by HR managers, helping the executives hop on the whole new level of organizational effectiveness (Ployhart, 2006). The article discloses the meaningful impact of well-thought-out staffing practices and the possibility to turn every missed opportunity into a future benefit. While Ployhart (2006) does not have answers to all the questions regarding staffing, his approach to describing the role of HR brings lots of value to the general discussion and the possible future areas of research.
“Strategic staffing and small‐firm performance”
The article “Strategic staffing and small‐firm performance” written by Greer et al. (2016) may serve as an attempt to predict the best ways of setting up the staffing strategy when working with a small- or medium-sized enterprise. They investigated the role of recruiting messages and found that the presence of unique workplace advantages might be dependent on employee attitudes and smarter staffing strategies. In accordance with their findings, the role of informality should never be discounted since it fuels the competition and creates a link between staffing and performance (Greer et al., 2016). The current findings show that staffing procedures might be directly associated with the personal impact that HRs have on employees, their directness in communication, and the ability to employ flexibility in the workplace. All the findings listed by Greer et al. (2016) were in line with the social identity and optimal distinctiveness theories.
The possible positive relationship between firm performance and staffing messages was not identified in Greer et al.’s (2016) research, proving that some of the perceived values have to be tested recurrently in order to find a solution. The authors suggested that further studies are required to satisfy the condition of uniqueness and support firm environments where the concept of liability has not been considered just yet. For Greer et al. (2016), it became an essential task to ensure that the existing theory could be aligned against the intended practical applications of staffing procedures. Their findings also encouraged a much more strategic approach to HR management, proving that the emphasis should be placed on the perceived legitimacy of employment strategies and the possibilities of differentiation. Greer et al. (2016) ultimately proved that applicants’ ability to reach personal and professional development was another dimension of HR management research that had to be investigated further.
“To align or not to align the HR strategy; that is the question.”
The chapter written by Nalband and Alankari (2015) dwelled on the importance of integrating strategic business plans and HR management in an attempt to establish a predominant approach that would possess fewer drawbacks than any of its alternatives. Therefore, it was hypothesized by the researchers that the HR function represents a reactive role that cannot be viewed apart from organizational policies and strategies (Nalband & Alankari, 2015). The article also provides a detailed outlook on how business objectives could be aligned against the capabilities of HR managers and the benefits included in the HR system itself (such as compensation, training, and selection). Nevertheless, they also mentioned the crucial nature of product life cycle stages, hinting at the possible failures linked to growth objectives that do not respond to employee aspirations and needs. In a sense, Nalband and Alankari (2015) identified that business objectives should always be in line with the HR strategy.
Another important outlook from the chapter written by Nalband and Alankari (2015) is that employees should participate in the process of formulating the strategy, as an increased number of stakeholders might facilitate the procedure of unlocking more competitive advantages. Their main idea was that different behaviors displayed by employees might affect organizational flexibility as a matter of fact and help the management introduce non-transient changes (Nalband & Alankari, 2015). The authors suggested that employees might only become a valuable asset for the organization in the case where they recognize the need for change and accommodate it by any means. According to Nalband and Alankari (2015), there are two significant choices that one might make when encountering staffing issues: the interpretation (an individual view of the situation intended to help resolve conflicts) and the enactment (a possible alteration of employee behaviors for the sake of corporate performance improvements).
“Change…Changes the change?”
In the chapter completed by Nalband (2016), he discussed the role of Saudi Telecom Company in sparking organizational changes across Saudi Arabia and addressed the huge role played by organizational change and the existing life cycle. It was hypothesized that changes that affect the whole organization are much better than their small-scale counterparts, with the key supporting idea being that larger transformations bring all the strengths and weaknesses of the team at the forefront, allowing managers to delegate tasks effectively (Nalband, 2016). Even the employment of a single worker could significantly alter the workflow or organizational output. The increasingly important technology advancements and essential environmental resources could be mediated by a strong HR strategy intended to keep the organizational force intact and recognize the need for change. Nalband (2016) suggested that each of the factors described above could serve as a trigger for improved team functioning.
One more finding that has to be included in the summary is the necessity for a proactive response that would actually curate the approach of most employees to external pressure and help the executives track organizational performance under different circumstances. For example, Nalband (2016) highlights the typical role of smaller adjustments to the workforce that could serve as a connector to the future major changes related to the ever-shifting business environment. Even though not all large-scale projects turn out to be successful for Saudi Telecom Company, it should be noted that prior failures in terms of staffing might be addressed effectively with the help of theoretical evidence from the past (Nalband, 2016). The existence of multiple customer segments makes it safe to say that there are several levels of expectations that have to be met by the telecom sector.
References
Greer, C. R., Carr, J. C., & Hipp, L. (2016). Strategic staffing and small‐firm performance. Human resource management, 55(4), 741-764.
Nalband, N. (2016). Change…Changes the change? Journal of Competitiveness Studies, 24(1), 35-48.
Nalband, N., & Alankari, H. (2015). To align or not to align the HR strategy; that is the question. Journal of Competitiveness Studies, 23(3), 70-89.
Ployhart, R. E. (2006). Staffing in the 21st century: New challenges and strategic opportunities. Journal of Management, 32(6), 868-897.