IB811-10 Managing People for the Future of Work
Introductory description
Human Resource Management (HRM) is a catch-all term for all activities associated with the management of work and people in organisations (Boxall and Purcell, 2016). For a small number of organisations, the way in which the organisation manages its people is the cornerstone of that organisation’s source of competitive advantage and superior performance compared to industry rivals. Some academics and consultants who have studied these organisations have held them up as examples of ‘best practice HRM’ and have argued that other organisations should learn from them by adopting this ‘best practice’ approach.
Yet only a small number of organisations fully adopt best practice, and when we observe the practice of human resource management across different sectors and countries, we observe a huge amount of diversity, while many organisations that do not follow best practice are very successful.
Module aims
A key axiom of the approach of this module to HRM is that developing an effective package of HRM strategy, policy and practice depends on the context of the organisation. The term ‘context’ covers the organisation’s strategy, industry, work systems and technology and social and political environment. For some organisations, in some contexts, HRM can be used to develop an ‘inimitable form of competitive advantage’ for others, in different contexts this approach simply isn’t feasible; the goal of HRM is to keep the organisation viable in its specific context.
This means that the module is not about teaching ‘best practice’ in the different functional areas of HRM (recruitment, training, appraisal, payment systems, etc.). Rather, it is about enabling students to analyse the strategic context of HRM to understand why organisations manage their people in particular ways. Only after we understand the ‘why’ of HRM can we start to think about what might constitute best practice in specific contexts. At all times, the module is grounded in analysis of the available theory and empirical evidence from academic research.
Outline syllabus
This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.
The following topics will be considered:
Attaining organisational objectives through people management practices
Selective acquisition to achieve strategic objectives
Training, Development, and Socialisation of people as an important precursor to future roles in a wholesome work environment
Rewarding people for their effort and sustaining the motivation
Managing People in a rapidly changing context (capital markets and financialisation, ESG, AI, Big Data and Analytics, Global Value Chains)
Empowering and engaging people through coaching for example
Learning outcomes
By the end of the module, students should be able to:
- Demonstrate a thoroughly assimilated understanding of current issues, approaches and debates in a number of strategic people management areas.
- Demonstrate a thoroughly assimilated understanding of theories and frameworks that are used to assess the various ways in which talent management practices can contribute to organisational success.
- Analyse and interpret the complex arguments related to the internal and external context within which people management policies are implemented and evaluated.
- Apply analytical and practical skills to case studies of contemporary strategic people management problems and develop appropriate, creative and conceptually-informed solutions.
- Critically evaluate the key theoretical frameworks used in the analysis of People Management and appreciate how theory relates to practice
- Construct and articulate reasoned arguments.
Indicative reading list
The majority of readings will be flagged in the online lessons. Here is a small list that can help the student prepare ahead of time.
Textbooks:
Boxall, P. and Purcell, J. (2022). Strategy and Human Resource Management (5th edn). London: Bloomsbury Publishing
Further reading:
Belcourt, M. and Podolosky, M. (2019). Strategic Human Resources Planning (7th edn). Oxford: Oxford University Press
Adler, S.; Campion, M.; Colquitt, A.; Grubb, A.; Murphy, K.; Ollander-Krane, R. and Pulakos, E.D. (2016). 'Getting rid of perfomance ratings: Genius or folly? A debate'. Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 9, 2, pp. 219-52
Aguinis, H., Gottfredson, R.K. and Joo, H. (2012). 'Delivering effective performance feedback: The strengths-based approach'
Business Horizons, 55, 2, pp. 105-11
Buckingham, M. and Goodall, A. (2015). 'Reinventing performance management'. Harvard Business Review, 93, 4, pp. 40-50
Cappelli, P. and Tavis, A. (2016). 'The performance management revolution'. Harvard Business Review, April, pp. 40-50
Locke, E.A. (2004). 'Linking goals to monetary incentives'. Academy of Management Executive, 18, 4, pp. 130-3
Seijts, G.H. and Latham, G.P. (2005). 'Learning vs. performance goals: when should each be used?'. Academy of Management Executive, 19, pp. 124-31
Becker, B.E. and Huselid, M.A. (2006). 'Strategic human resource management: Where do we go from here?'. Journal of Management, 32, 6, pp. 898-925
Pfeffer, J. (1998). 'Seven practices of successful organizations'. California Management Review, 40, 2, pp. 96-124
Porter, M.E. (1996). 'What is strategy?'. Harvard Business Review, 74, 6, pp. 61-78
Sadun, R.; Bloom, N. and Van Reenen, J. (2005). 'Why do we undervalue competent management?'. Harvard Business Review, 97, 3, pp. 121-7
Wright, P. and Ulrich, D. (2017). 'The past, present and future journey of strategic human resource management'. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 4, pp. 45-65
Ren, S.; Tang, G. and Schuler, S. (2018). 'Green human resource management research in emergence: A review and future directions'. Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 35, pp. 769-803
Dickens, L. (1999). 'Beyond the Business Case: A Three-Pronged Approach to Equality Action'. Human Resource Management Journal, 9, 1, pp. 9-19
Noon, M. (2012). 'Simply the best? The case for using 'threshold selection' in hiring decisions'. Human Resource Management Journal , 22, 1, pp. 76-88
Schneid, M.; Isidor, R.; Li, C. and Kabst, R. (2015). The influence of cultural contect on the relationship between gender diversity and team performance: a meta-analysis'. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 26, 6, pp. 733-56
Meyer, E. (2014). 'Navigating the cultural minefield'. Harvard Business Review, 92, 5, pp. 119-123
Datta, D.K., Guthrie, J.P. and Wright, P.M. (2005). 'Human resource management and labor productivity: Does industry matter?'. Academy of Management Journal, 48, 1, pp. 135-145
Lepak, D.,and Snell, S. (1999). 'The human resource architecture: Toward a theory of human capital allocation and development'. Academy of Management Review, 24, 1, pp. 31-48
Baptista, J., Stein, M. K., Klein, S., Watson-Manheim, M. B., & Lee, J. (2020). Digital work and organisational transformation: Emergent Digital/Human work configurations in modern organisations. The Journal of Strategic Information Systems, 29(2), 101618
Aroles, J., Cecez-Kecmanovic, D., Dale, K., Kingma, S. F., & Mitev, N. (2021). New ways of working (NWW): Workplace transformation in the digital age. Information and Organization, 31(4), 100378.
Raisch, S., & Krakowski, S. (2021). Artificial intelligence and management: The automation–augmentation paradox. Academy of management review, 46(1), 192-210.
Leonardi, P., & Contractor, N. (2018). Better people analytics. Harvard business review, 96(6), 70-81.
Giermindl, L. M., Strich, F., Christ, O., Leicht-Deobald, U., & Redzepi, A. (2022). The dark sides of people analytics: reviewing the perils for organisations and employees. European Journal of Information Systems, 31(3), 410-435.
Klein, S., & Watson-Manheim, M. B. (2021). The (re-) configuration of digital work in the wake of profound technological innovation: constellations and hidden work. Information and organization, 31(4), 100377.
International
There is a session on people management in multinational companies, and also managing people in global value chains
Subject specific skills
Demonstrate a command of strategic people management practice (including some basic use of People Analytics) specifically in relation to complex issues such as performance management as well as an appreciation of the realities of implementing these practices.
Analyse how changes in labour market conditions (e.g., remote working, AI, changing demographics and preferences) influence managerial decision-making
Transferable skills
Written communication through work appropriate to social science writing requirements
Study time
| Type | Required |
|---|---|
| Online learning (scheduled sessions) | 6 sessions of 1 hour (6%) |
| Online learning (independent) | 21 sessions of 1 hour (21%) |
| Private study | 43 hours (43%) |
| Assessment | 30 hours (30%) |
| Total | 100 hours |
Private study description
Private Study and preparation for online lectures, including module prep
To note - online scheduled sessions may vary in length and number
Costs
No further costs have been identified for this module.
You do not need to pass all assessment components to pass the module.
Assessment group A5
| Weighting | Study time | Eligible for self-certification | |
|---|---|---|---|
Assessment component |
|||
| Individual Assignment | 100% | 30 hours | Yes (extension) |
Reassessment component is the same |
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Feedback on assessment
Assessments are graded using standard University Postgraduate Marking Criteria and written feedback is provided. Feedback for individual essays include comments on a marksheet.
Pre-requisites
N/A
To take this module, you must have passed:
Courses
This module is Optional for:
-
TIBS-N1Q1 Postgraduate Business Administration (Executive) London
- Year 1 of N1Q1 Business Administration (Executive) London
- Year 3 of N1Q1 Business Administration (Executive) London
- Year 1 of TIBS-N1Q4 Postgraduate Business Administration (Executive) London
- Year 1 of TIBS-N1PW Postgraduate Taught Business Administration (Distance Learning)
-
TIBS-N1Q2 Postgraduate Taught Business Administration (Distance Learning)
- Year 1 of N1Q2 Business Administration (Distance Learning)
- Year 2 of N1Q2 Business Administration (Distance Learning)
- Year 1 of TIBS-N1P9 Postgraduate Taught Business Administration (Executive)
- Year 1 of TIBS-N1Q3 Postgraduate Taught Business Administration (Executive)