Assessment Of General Motors Comparator Group Human Resource Posture

Running head: HUMAN RESOURCE POSTURE OF GM COMPARATOR GROUP 1

Assessment of General Motors’ Comparator Group Human Resource Posture

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HUMAN RESOURCE POSTURE OF GM COMPARATOR GROUP 2

Assessment of General Motors’ Comparator Group Human Resource Posture

Introduction

The comparator group of companies helps to keep a particular organization in check with

relation to its strategies, internal capabilities, human resource management functions and overall

company operations. As one of the largest automotive companies in the world, General Motors

has a large pool of comparable companies, both outside and inside the automotive industry. In

the automotive industry, the comparator group includes companies like Toyota Inc., Ford

Motors, Hyundai, Suzuki Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co. Ltd., Mazda Motor Corp., among

others. Outside the automotive industry, some of the companies include General Electric

Company, PepsiCo Inc., Johnson Controls, United Technologies Corp., Intel Corporation, and

The Boeing Company. One thing all these companies have in common is that they are highly

successful, and are renowned all over the world. Moreover, they earn revenues that are greater

than 25 billion dollars annually (General Motors Annual Report, 2017). Their success can be

greatly accredited to their good human resource posture. An assessment of the HR posture

reveals prosperity in their most prevalent HR functions, including diversity, talent management,

employee relations, and leadership, among others.

Benefits and Compensation

In 2017, General Motors adjusted its performance standards measures to be in line with

the Titans 30 automobiles and parts organizations. The automotive companies make large

amounts of revenues on an annual basis, and hence, their compensation and benefit structures are

off the charts. The companies under the Titans 30, including Toyota Inc., Ford Motors, Honda,

and Hyundai are highly competitive in the industry. To gain a competitive edge, each company

strives to keep all their staff satisfied with effective compensation packages. According to the

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GM annual report of 2017, the compensation structures for the comparator group is highly

favorable. As a result, they attract large employee applications on a regular basis. In all the

companies, the CEO earns the most revenues, followed by the board of directors. The

contribution of each employee is highly valued. For companies like Toyota and Ford, the

compensation and benefits are among the highest, and the result is a large pool of satisfied

employees. In addition, they have internal motivation programs that recognize the efforts of the

most performing employees, who are rewarded with financial incentives. For workers who work

in the manufacturing department, they are compensated hourly for every extra time worked.

Consequently, employees who work over the weekend are compensated for every hour worked.

Some of the benefits provided in almost all the companies in the comparator group include

holiday coupons, fees for the children of employees who have served in the organization for a

long time, free training and development programs, and car allowances. In companies like Ford,

there are free driving and testing lessons by employees for new car designs.

Business Leadership and Strategy

Majority of companies in the group are headed by board of directors. The top managers

are responsible for making strategic business plans, while the day to day decisions are left to the

departmental heads. In addition, most companies employ transformational leadership style of

management. In such leadership, the employees look up to the management for inspiration and

change (Cascio, 2018). Therefore, the leaders have unique sets of skills, capabilities and many

years of experience in management positions so as to drive change. They assess the employees

according to their diversity and needs, and determine the leadership style to use with each

individual. Through strategic leadership, the companies make plans that last for many years.

They take into account all areas of the organization, including human resource planning, future

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technological needs, cost of resources, and potential risks and uncertainties. Strategic leadership

has contributed to their success, as they plan for all organizational aspects.

Diversity

Diversity in the comparator group is highly valued. As global companies, they employ a

large pool of employees from different parts of the world, with distinct skills and capabilities.

The companies recognize that the more diverse the workforce, the more the creativity and

innovation in the particular organizations. Diversity starts from the top leadership, whereby the

board of directors is represented by people from all backgrounds and gender. In companies like

The Boeing, General Electricity, and Ford Motors, the top leadership positions are occupied by

women (Turner et al, 2017). All employees are valued, and treated equally and fairly. Most

companies have a zero discrimination policy, whereby workers who engage in discrimination are

punished through demotion or firing.

Employee Relations

Employee relations pertain to all matters related with all individuals in the organization.

It is the duty of the HR department to ensure that all workers are safe and secure in the premises,

and that all conflicts are sorted out (Armstrong & Taylor, 2014). These companies have effective

HR systems that put the wellbeing of employees first. They have proper communication channels

with a clearly stipulated chain of command that allow employees to report any grievances. There

are training and development programs meant to facilitate their skills. Apart from training and

motivation, the employees in all the companies are provided with challenging tasks and

responsibilities that enable them to be creative and innovative. The workplace dynamics is highly

competitive and challenging, prompting the workers to think outside the box and better their

skills. For the highly performing employees, they are promoted to managerial positions

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Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility

Companies have to adhere to various ethical guidelines when interacting with the

employees, customers, and all stakeholders in general (Cascio, 2018). The companies listed in

this assessment are all competitors. Hence, they have to maintain a certain image with the

customers and the market environment in general. For competition purposes, they do not engage

in unscrupulous means to remain ahead of competitors, but rather, they compete fairly. Since all

the companies are headed by board of directors, there are several ethical principles that the

leadership has to follow. For instance, they ensure that the employees have safe and secure

working environment, especially in the manufacturing plants. In case of injuries, the companies

take full responsibility. One of the most important ways to show ethics is through Corporate

Social Responsibility (CSR), and these companies have illustrated their concern for the

community around them. They engage in community development programs, coordinate with

charity organizations, and support humanitarian activities. For companies like Ford, Toyota,

Hyundai and General Electronics, their main CSR activity is conservation of the environment.

They ensure they their activities have little impact on the environment, through recycling of

harmful chemicals and their waste management plants. They also ensure that the customers

adhere to environmental conservation by guiding them on how to use their products with less

pollution. Generally, all the companies engage in a large number of CSR activities while at the

same time adhering to business ethics.

Organizational and Employee Development

Organizational and employee development is a significant HR function that ensures that

companies move forward and adapt to the changes in the external environment. The companies

in the comparator group are highly competitive and hence, they have to further their capabilities,

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strategies and internal functions. Thy facilitate employee development through offering them

extensive training to improve upon their skills and to adapt to the evolving technologies. They

also offer programs that facilitate both personal and professional development. They are

encouraged to take on more challenging tasks and responsibilities to enhance their careers and

increase their effectiveness in the organizations. Developing employees facilitates organizational

development in the long run. With their new found skills and capabilities, they apply the

knowledge gained to come up with innovative ideas for new product designs and performance

improvement. It stems from the top leadership, where the management aligns the day to day

operations with the business goals.

Talent Management

Talent management is careful human resource planning that involves identification and

utilization of the most effective employee skills into the organizational operations. It entails

recruiting, selecting, and retaining the most qualified employees to fit the job description (Aarts

& Itansa, 2016). One thing all the companies have in common is that they recognize human

resources as the most significant assets in the organization. Due to their success and popularity,

each of the respective human resource department strives to retain the best skills for the different

functions and operations. Though they receive thousands of applications from different parts of

the world on a regular basis, only the most qualified employees are selected. One of the main

factors considered during the recruitment process is diversity of skills. The selection process is

usually a long and complex one for most companies, as the candidates are interviewed more than

four times.

After new employees are selected, they are taken through extensive training and

development programs to further improve upon their skills. Training usually lasts between two to

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three weeks, due to the complexity of operations, especially for the automotive companies.

While the new hires are provided with the most extensive training, existing employees are also

trained. These companies operate in technical environment, where technology keeps changing.

Hence, employees have to be trained regularly. In addition, they have rewards systems in the HR

department, which recognizes the efforts of the highly performing employees.

Technology

For the past thirty years, the rapid evolution of technology has caused many changes in

the business environment. More importantly, companies in the automotive industry are the most

affected by new innovations, as they have to keep producing new designs that are not only

aligned with new technologies, but also meet consumer expectations. The companies in GM’s

comparator group have integrated technologies in all areas of their operations, including HRM

(Turner et al, 2017). As noted earlier, employees and their skills are highly valued in these

organizations, and hence, the use of technology in crucial HR functions is inherent in all the

companies. Majority of these organizations employ thousands of employees in all their locations

worldwide. Managing the large number of employees is a complex process, and therefore they

use IT and other forms of technology to improve efficiency of operations.

One of the most significant technological tools used by all the companies is the

Performance Management System (PMS). PMS is electronic software that has the information of

all employees in the organization, their workstation, personal details, skills and capabilities, and

their assigned tasks. It is used to electronically monitor the tasks completed against the finishing

time set. The managers do not have to meet each individual in person, but rather, performance is

monitored from the office with the computers. Other technologies used in HRM include e-

recruiting, HR portals, Employee Self Service (ESS), e-learning software, and Management

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Information Systems (MIS). The use of technology in HR helps to improve efficiency of

operations, reduce the workload for the HR managers, and improve the overall organizations

performance. Overall, the companies in the GM comparator group have effectively utilized

technology in the management of human resources.

Best Practices in Human Resource Management

One of the main reasons for the success of the companies is the application of the best

human resource management practices. The companies recognize the crucial role of employee in

the attainment of business strategies and objectives and hence, they have effective HRM

strategies that contribute to their overall success. Diversity and inclusion is a common practice to

all companies. They employ individuals with diverse skills and capabilities, regardless of the

gender, race, religion, disability, or background. Another common HR practice is recognition

and motivation of employees. Motivating the workers helps to improve the overall performance

of the organization, as they are focused on reaching their objectives. Other practices include

performance management, becoming the employer of choice, and retaining of employees.

Conclusion

An assessment of the comparator group of General Motors shows a highly effective

human resource posture in all the companies. The companies are competitive in nature and

therefore have to strive to engage in HR functions that contribute to the overall growth and

development of the organization. Their HR activities have contributed to their success and

popularity all over the globe. They are also highly profitable, with revenues of more than 25

billion per year.

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References

Aarts, E. H. L., & Itansa, M. M. (2016). Employee organizational commitment: The role of

HRM practices, public service motivation, and job satisfaction.

Armstrong, M., & Taylor, S. (2014). Armstrong's handbook of human resource management

practice. Kogan Page Publishers.

Cascio, W. (2018). Managing human resources. McGraw-Hill Education.

General Motors Annual Report, (2017). 2017 Proxy Statement. Retrieved from

https://www.gm.com/content/dam/gm/en_us/english/Group4/InvestorsPDFDocuments/20

17_GMProxyStatement.pdf

Turner, H. A., Clack, G., & Roberts, G. (2017). Labour relations in the motor industry: A study

of industrial unrest and an international comparison (Vol. 10). Taylor & Francis.

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