Strategic human resource management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Strategic human resource management - Essay Example Strategic human resource management (SHRM) is a field of HR that highlights how the human resource of the organization contributes to the attainment of the desired goals by means of various HR strategies, policies and practices. This approach considers human resource as the primary factor contributing to the success of the organization It is as Leif Edvinsson (2002) puts it: â€Å"The only vital value an enterprise has is the experience, skills, innovativeness and insights of its people† (12 Manage). In addition to that, it is of the view that the success of any organization is actually dependent on the factor of best fit between the business strategies and its human resource strategies (Armstrong, p. 33). SHRM constitutes a mindset based on certain concepts rather than a set of techniques. It revolves around three primary propositions, which are as follows: The human capital of all the organizations is a primary asset, which when put to effective use, plays a strategic role i n its success and can be a major source of competitive advantage for the organization. The human resource strategies should be in perfect alignment to the business level strategies of the organization and its mission and vision. The human resource strategies at individual level should be coherent and should be designed in a manner that they provide a mutual support (Armstrong, p. 34). This paper aims to shed light on the factor of Strategic human resource management in view of the airlines industry, which have been subject to a deluge of turmoil over the past few years. In the light of the various economical crises, the situation has not only changed on the customer side of the picture, but it has had a huge impact on the industrial level as well. The organizations all over the world are in a state of struggle to keep with the needs and wants of the customer. This in turn, pushes the organizations to make their internal functions all the more effective and efficient and requires the m to not only be vigilant in their resource deployments and other such major strategies, but also in effectively managing their workforce. This whole study would be done with reference to the Canadian Airline established in 1987, which later ceased its operation in 2000 and was merged with Air Canada. Issues in the Airline Industry: An airline is an industry that is highly sensitive to economical changes. Such changes not only impact the productivity side of the industry, but also influence the side of the consumer, in turn affecting the profitability of organizations working in this industry. The industry can be observed on a continuous cycle of gigantic profits and mammoth losses. A few of the factors having a direct influence on the airlines industry are given as follows: Recession: The airline industry gets highly affected by the downturns in the economical circle owing to the fact that in such a scenario, the business travel that can also be constituted as the bread and butter of the airline industry gets cut down when the economy is facing a slump. The lengthy global recession of the past few years has now turned into the single biggest challenge being faced by the airlines industry. This has resulted in weak revenues and air travel (Reals, 2008). Soaring Fuel Prices: The industry that is getting most affected by the hike in the oil prices is the airline industry. It has now turned into a tedious task for the airlines to cope up with such colossal fuel prices that are so intense that they are even pushing several airlines to bankruptcy. Those that do continue to operate in such unsteady conditions are having to face immense financial burden along with thinning profit margins in these pricey fuel times (Fleming, 2011). Terrorist Attacks: The 9/11 attack on the world trade centre and the global conditions that followed served as a serious blow to the airline industry, which was having to through a tough time due to the factor of recession even before the a ttack. This