Critically evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of 'universal' Essay

Critically evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of 'universal' and 'contingent' approaches to human resource strategy. Give examples to illustrate your answer - Essay Example ies are facing increasingly complex and dynamic business environment necessitating change in their ways they operate in harnessing their resources including human resources. The main objective behind HRM is to ensure organizational success through its people (Armstrong, 2006). The paper aims at exploring the advantages and disadvantages of universal and contingent approaches to human resource strategies that are currently practiced. Caldwell (2004) argues that HRM is concerned with several policy goals to be listed as: managing people as assets to build competitive strength; aligning corporate strategy and HRM policies; creating a flexible organisation responsive to external environment; to promote more cohesive team working; creating a strong customer orientation; empowerment to workforce for self-management and learning; institute proper reward system to develop a performance-driven environment; enhancing employee commitment within the organisation. Companies attempt to achieve these goals either through universal also known as best-practice approach to human resource strategies or take a diversion from it and deploy contingent approach to human resource strategies depending upon the need or the type of business they operate. Universal or the best practice approach is based on the basic premise that adopting certain proven HRM practices will inevitably lead to superior organizational performance. For example, most firms in 1960s and 1970s and a huge proportion even today adopt a sophisticated selection and recruitment processes so that the best from the available lot is selected. Induction programme is also sophisticated providing necessary training to the recruits so that they can accomplish the task given to them. The appraisal system is quite coherent so that none has reason to complain. Workforce skills are allowed to develop such that they attain flexibility. Comprehensive and frequent communication to workforce is maintained. All employment terms and

GrammLeachBliley Act and its effect in Economy Essay

GrammLeachBliley Act and its effect in Economy - Essay Example The GLB Act is also known as the Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999. As its name suggests, it is meant to bring into practice or reality what were then needed at that point –_ to modernize financial services. Signed into law by President Bill Clinton to repeal part of the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933, which limits what banks could do, GLB created opening up of the market among securities companies banking companies, and insurance companies. Under the Glass-Steagall Act, the three companies cannot be combined in any way but under GLB, they were made free to do so. The GLB Act therefore gave more power to the players of the financial services industry as it allowed consolidation or combination of commercial banks, investment banks, securities firms, and insurance companies. The 1998 case of Citicorp, a commercial bank holding company, merging with Travelers Group, an insurance company by forming conglomerate Citigroup exemplified the case in point. A temporary waiver pro cess1 for combining securities, insurance, and banking was needed or the merger in 1998, would have violated the Glass-Steagall Act and the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956. GLB therefore legalized the merger on a permanent basis. How it became a law through the legislative process? Through congressional vote by chamber and party, GLB came about in 1999. Prior to said date, the banking industry had been seeking the repeal of the 1933 Glass-Steagall Act since the 1980s, if not earlier. In 1987, the Congressional Research Service reported on the matter, after exploring the cases for and against preserving the Glass-Steagall Act2. This was followed by respective versions of the legislation being introduced in the US Senate by Phil Gramm and US House of Representatives Jim Leach with the support of Rep Bliley, Jr, Chairman of House Commerce Committee from 1995 to 2001. As stated earlier, the banking industry