HR Plan For Silver Tail Airlines

Analysis of the problem and impact

Write in a professional report format with tables. Start with an overview and identify the problems and explain. Appreciate enquiry in table format. Include content such as : What are the strategies you will use, What will the outcome be. A full HR plan in a table format including employee engagement strategies etc.

The Human Resource department is considered to be an effective part of the organization and it is the duty of the department to ensure that the organization and the human resource department work as strategic partners in order to achieve a competitive edge for the long term of the organization (Noe et al. 2006). Very often the organization needs to undergo a considerable change policy, following which the company needs to ensure that it has adequate resources and the employees are able to abide by the change and adjust considerably. However any organization who is planning to undergo change needs to ensure that the employee resistant is dealt with comfortably and the organization is well prepared to make the change work out well for it.

The problem lies wherein the older and more experienced employees in an organization tend to show resistance to change. These employees have been associated with the organization for a long period of time and for this reason they believe that they need to be given utmost preference and the different operations need to take place accordingly. However, this can always not be the case and there may arise various situations where the business style needs to be changed and this can go a long way in helping the company but the employees may not go well with the image of the new style and hence, it can cause issues.

The report will be discussing one such issue related to the Human Resource Aspect of the organization Silver Tail which in order to ensure the continuity of the business changed its image and now is facing difficulties due to the employees who are unable to match with the image formed. Hence, as the organization plans to downsize the different employees, instead of being direct and to avoid consequences, the company aims to adopt indirect techniques. The problem being faced shall be analysed critically followed by the analysis of this impact on the organization (Teh and Girardi 2015). This shall be followed by the evaluation of the downsizing techniques and their implications on the organization. The latter part of the report will be conducting an appreciative inquiry and provide recommendations based on the same. An HR plan will also be presented to analyse the impacts and for the evaluation of strategies further.

Till 1990, the government of Singapore had been following a two airline policy and had considerable control over the different airline terminals and ensured that the arrangement between the airlines was fine. However later on the business dynamics changed considerably and the governmental bodies decided to deregulate the given airline segment and involve competition from the private players as well. In order to abide by the given change which was being made, the company Silver tail Airlines decided to improve its image because the company`s share prices fell immediately and the different changes needed to be made. Hence, the company changed the dynamics and brought in a new board of directors who worked effectively for the welfare of the organization (Alfes et al. 2013). The new board comprised of advertisers, marketers, accountants and various experts who were brought down from United States of America who were under the leadership of an open minded CEO.  Lean became the new mantra and a flat structure of the organization was adopted in place which helps to remove the middle management and maintenance could be outsourced easily.

The implications

This helped in bringing about a new image of the airlines company and for this reason, the Silver tail airline emerged with a new image and it promote itself as being innovative and young. This worked well with the different customers who wanted to experience the new services which were being provided by the organization to the different customers and hence, the sales increased considerably (Marler and Fisher 2013). However, there was a certain tint missing and although the different offers being made by the organization were redundant in nature, the public face of the airlines which was the cabin crew along with the ground crew, were not as per the image. This is because the employees were very aged as compared to the image of the airlines.

The primary issue arising in the given scenario was that the target market as being targeted by the organization was the younger crowd and due to this, they would not be able to connect with the older crew which could be stated to be old enough to be their mother. For this reason, the sales of the company might be affected and the company now wanted to overcome the given problem by downsizing these older employees.

However, downsizing these older employees was not feasible, because the company would be faced by various legal issues when it would be doing so and secondly it was the moral responsibility of the business to serve these employees. Hence, the company is planning to make the situation difficult for them which would then enable the different employees to leave the organization themselves (Bratton and Gold 2017). The case study further discussed the different downsizing techniques which can be used by the company.

Poor image- If the brand image which the company wants to prepare for the different members does not match with the employees, then it portrays a wrong image of the firm. It reflects that the promises as made by the company made are fake in nature whereby the company does not want to incorporate the strategy in reality.

Inefficient working- The older employees may not be able to work efficiently with limited funds and resources. The work in airlines is quite difficult and hence, due to this reason, the employees which are older cannot work efficiently due to the cost cutting and other techniques.

Higher pays- The employees working since a long period of time will be required to be paid a higher salary than that as compared to the new ones which will then act as a barrier for the efficient functioning of the company (Briscoe, Tarique and Schuler 2012).

Not willing to work- The older employees have not been very enthusiastic about the new business model and will not be willing to work in case a proper step is not taken seriously.

In order to ensure that the older crowd present in the chosen organization does not work anymore and willingly opt to retire from the given position, the company directors were reviewing a certain number of downsizing techniques which if applied in the organization would compel the different members in the company to leave the job on their own without any direct notification (Brewster, Chung and Sparrow 2016).  Hence, given below are certain downsizing techniques which were being discussed by the members and can be applied in the firm along with additional technique. The implications of each of these strategies shall be stated and discusses along.

Evaluating downsizing techniques and implications

One of the most popular techniques of downsizing is reducing the number of Cabin crew as present in the present airlines. This means that for instance if there were 10 crew members as present in every airline flight, the company would reduce it down to 5 which would then increase the work burden on the existing members and they would automatically choose to leave the organization (Kshetri 2017).

Assigning ground duty to others

Apart from downsizing the members from the cabin crew the rest of the members can also be sent to abide by the duties of the ground staff. The areas differ in nature and hence, the company can save additional ground staff costs in this manner. In a similar manner, those employees who are not willing to take up the job of the ground staff may opt to leave the organization.

Poor hospitality management

The cabin crew staff are provided with adequate facilities and they are allowed to reside at luxurious hotels and their stay in a foreign country is well reimbursed by the company (Cascio 2018). However, as stated by one of the members, at present the crew members are allowed to stay in a 5 star hotel and hence, as a downsizing technique these employees will be asked to stay in a 3 star hotel which will thereby cause them more inconvenience.

Changing holiday schedules

The crew members in the organization are provided with different holiday rosters during the lean seasons and other times when they ask for it. Hence, the airline company is generally very comfortable in providing them these holidays but if the company wants to follow an indirect downsizing technique then they can make them stay in 3 star hotels (Taylor, Doherty and McGraw 2015). When the employees will be made to live in lower facilities then they will be compelled to leave the organization themselves.

Promoting younger employees

This is another technique which is generally followed by the different organizations who tend to believe that the conflicts between the different age groups in any organization can be used as a weapon in order to compel the older employees to leave the organization.  If the younger employees in an organization are given higher posts, they will be compelled to leave the organization which will then make the task easier for the employers.

Laying down qualifications

Various organizations often set up minimum targets for qualifications. This means that in order to be eligible for promotion, the company demands that the employee needs to have a rough idea about a second language or a post graduate degree. Although this is easy for the new employees who are taken in only when they have the stated qualifications, this us considerably difficult for the older employees to possess such qualifications (Lazarova, Morley and Tyson 2014). Even when the company allows them to learn at their expense, they are unable to do so as they are not provided with enough time frame.

Changing the competency as required.

The organization can also adopt the method of changing the internal competencies as possible. This shall make it easier for the firm to let go of the employees who would have otherwise refused to leave

Although the techniques as stated above are very useful in downsizing the employees. Downsizing comes in as a handy technique especially when the company is looking out to see adopt a cost leadership strategy. In the case of the given company, the organization is looking out to change the image of the organization and due to this reason, it believes that it needs to apply the different indirect strategies as available for the firm. Hence, the company believes that the strategies may compel the older employees to leave willingly, however, this is not always possible (Brewster 2017). The chosen employees may be not having a financial backup and may continue working in the organization for longer time periods. Moreover, engaging in the stated downsizing techniques may also bring about a brand image for the organization as the severe techniques applied by the firm may not be adopted positively. However, Poor conditions in the workplace and excessive load often compel an employee to resign and thus, the ultimate motive of the airline company might be successful.

The Appreciative Inquiry Framework can be described as a 4 D procedure which tends to work on four different dimensions. These dimensions are collectively used to analyse a given situation and to understand the different complications or barriers which may come in the way of the business in its path to implement the strategic change as being incorporate in the organization (Collings, Wood and Caligiuri 2014). The Appreciative Inquiry looks out and analysis all the spheres of a situation and based on this analysis an action plan is formulated.  The four different dimensions of the 4D process are given as follows:

Discover

This aspect of the process tends to understand the aspect which is working best for the organization. In this aspect, the procedure or process which is going the best is appreciated and analysed (Fenton-O’Creevy, Gooderham and Nordhaug 2008).

Dream

This aspect looks out for what is being envisioned about the organization. It states down what the company might want in the future as a vision.

Design

The design can be described as the plan which the company forms in order to help itself to reach the vision created. They decide how the idea needs to carried out for the long term success of the firm (Pudelko, Reiche and Carr 2015).

Deliver

This determines the practical strategies or the projects which will be used to create ideas and develop adequate strategies. This places emphasis on the encouragement on empowering the people to take action and to utilise their own ideas.

The Appreciative Enquiry for the case study has been given as follows:

Appreciative Enquiry	Applicability to the case
Discover	In the given case study for Silver Tail, the Human resource plan and strategy is being analysed effectively. The organization has gone through a considerable change and for that reason it is planning to let go of the senior employees because they are not willing to let go of the different older ways and are not aligning with the new business regime. Hence, the employer would like to apply strategies which would enable them to leave the organization and thereby ensure that the company as a new face of the cabin crew which matches up to its image and also aligns with the different customers and their expectations (Dickmann, Brewster and  Sparrow 2016).
Dream	The dream of the organization Silver tail can be described as the vision of the organization. At present, the organization aims to improve its image in the organization and to align its image as being an efficient organization who provides frill free and quick services to the flyers. The company wants to save costs and provide on time and efficient services to the different customers in order to combat against the competition which exists in the given market.
Design	Hence, as the direct downsizing is not possible in the given scenario, the company wants to engage in indirect downsizing (Kang and  Shen 2014). This the company wants to carry out by engaging in activities which tend to force the senior employees who do not want to go well with the new change and do not align with the image to leave the company on their own (Harris 2012). Hence, the different strategies which have been designed are as follows: Reducing the Number of Cabin crew hours Increasing the ground duties Keeping qualifications for internal competency (Furusawa and  Brewster 2016) Log working hours and reduced holidays Promotion of younger crews in leadership positions and others. The organization wants to apply these strategies over the time and hence, ensure that through these it takes in the older generation of employees compatible with the new norms or is able to let them go willingly.
Deliver	The plan will be delivered over a time frame of 8 months (Aswathappa 2013). At first the company will try to engage in activities like the engagement of the different employees, trying to make them consistent with the needs of the audience and after that, the different strategies like setting qualifications, change in the cabin crew hours and others shall be applied appropriately (Haak-Saheem, Festing and  Darwish 2017). After the given steps and procedures they will be measuring the success of the activities by seeing to it that the different employees are able to adjust with the given requirements and if not they will be asked to leave as per the guidelines.

Asking the various employees for ideas

The employees can be asked to contribute towards the organizational needs and be asked to give in their ideas which they deem to be suitable for the long term goal achievement of the different organizational needs (Pournader, Tabassi and Baloh 2015). As the different employees often work very closely with the organization, the need to be given the freedom to give in their ideas and to check whether their ideas can be applied or not.

Considering virtual office

With the advent of technology, the creation of the virtual office becomes comparatively easier and thus for this reason, they will be required to work virtually and fulfil other customer engaging needs of the employees. They can be asked to fulfil the requirements in the comfort of their homes.

Cut wages

Instead of downsizing the employees completely, the different employees can be provided with less wages which will then enable the firm to ensure that the different employees are being able to continue their work

A Human Resource Plan tends to play a key role in detraining the success of the company in the long run and any company who is engaging in bringing about a huge change in this domain, needs to ensure that they have a designated HR plan in place which would encourage them to ensure that the long term strategy of the organization is achieved. Hence the different steps in the HR Plan is given as follows:

• Determining the needs
• Determining the recruitment strategy (Harvey and  Moeller 2009).
• Selecting the employees
• Develop the training
• Determining compensation
• Appraising the performance

Sr. No	Activity	Contents	Person Responsible	Time frame
1	Determining the needs	The first step involves checking out the different needs of the organization and determining where the organization is actually lagging in order to determine the areas of special focus. Here the need of the organization is to hire the suitable employees who would contribute to the image of the organization and who would assist it in becoming one of the best companies as present in the given industry.  If the brand image of the organization goes hand in hand with the different employee qualifications, then the organization would achieve long term success.	The HR Manager Supervisor Manager	4 weeks
2	Determining the recruitment strategy	The recruitment strategy of the organization needs to take into consideration various aspects. These aspects are given as follows: The number of people required The time frame for the recruitment procedure (McGraw 2004) The sources of the recruitment like whether the employees will be taken in from the organization or if they will belong to outside the organization. The people responsible for the recruitment procedure are also determined effectively. The skills and competencies of the different employees will also be taken into consideration in this step	The HR Manager Supervisor Cabin head	8 weeks
3	Selecting the employees	The given step is where the actual plan begins. The Silver Tails airlines will now be selecting the employees for the recruitment procedure (Tarique, Briscoe and  Schuler 2015). This can be effectively divided into three major steps which range as follows: Competency test: The employees may be tested in the given step with regard to what is actually required out of them. Interview: The employees would be required to take an interview with the HR manager. Final interview: The final interview will be taken with the different employees Selection: Based on the interview results and other competencies the final employees will be selected for the airlines company.	The HR Manager Supervisor Manager	4 weeks
4	Develop the training	The training procedure needs to be conducted for the different employees. The training forms the essential part of the organization and any new members who join the organisation must be trained effectively in order to be able to help them to adjust to the different needs of the organization and to ensure that the job role is well understood with the employees (Kshetri 2017). On the job training Role playing Off the job training These training methods can be effectively used as a measure to gain training in the organization.	The HR Manager Supervisor Manager	8 weeks
5	Determining the compensation	After the training procedure is undertaken, based on the training results the compensation of the employees must be decided upon. There might be a fixed pay or there might exist a pay based on the competency of the different employees. Hence, compensation needs to be determined accordingly (Purce 2014).	The HR Manager Supervisor Manager	4 weeks
6	Appraising the performance	This is one of the most crucial stages. The performance appraisal of the employees needs to be undertaken regularly in order to be able to assist the organization and make them at par with the competitors (Baum 2016). It is in this stage that the company is required to engage in various employee engagement strategies so as to enable them to feel a part of the organization (Harzing   and Pinnington 2014). The employees may be made to feel a part of the organization and to meet this objective it may conduct regular meetings and based on this the organization might achieve success in the long run (Storey 2014).	The HR Manager Supervisor Manager	4 weeks

Unfreeze	Change	Refreeze
In this step, the components which need to be changed in this organization are determined effectively. With respect to this, the Silver tails organization is required to determine the changes needed to be made like the removal of old employees and ensuring the employees match with the image of the organization.	The change stage is the action stage whereby the different changes which need to be made in the organization are determined and the actions are taken accordingly. With respect to this organization, all the downsizing techniques, like that of ensuring of different working hours, increasing ground hours and other aspects (Joshi 2013).	The next step is the refreezing step whereby the different changes being made are adopted in the organization, furthermore, providing support to the employee’s forms and essential aspect.

Activity
Month 1	Month 2	Month 3	Month 4	Month 5	Month 6	Month 7	Mont 8
Determining the needs
Determining the recruitment strategy
Selecting the employees
Develop the training
Determining the compensation
Appraising the performance

Conclusion

Therefore, from the given analysis it can be stated that the Human resource department of any organization plays a key role in determining the success of the organisation and contributes towards understanding whether the chosen organization, will be able to meet up with the different competition or not. This is crucial as the Human resource department needs to act as the strategic partner of the organization and is required to assist the company.

In the case of Silver tails, the company needs to ensure that it is able to change the different employees and their representation in the organization. This will assist the company in a achieving its long term objectives. Hence, in the given report, the problems being faced by the organization were analysed which was then followed by the assessment of the change which is required to be made with respect to the Appreciative Enquiry model. A Human Resource Plan for the organization has also been suggested.

References

Alfes, K., Truss, C., Soane, E. C., Rees, C.,  and  Gatenby, M. , 2013. The relationship between line manager behavior, perceived HRM practices, and individual performance: Examining the mediating role of engagement. Human resource management, 52(6), 839-859.

Aswathappa, K.E.M.A.L., 2013. Human resource management: Text and cases. Tata McGraw-Hill Education.

Baum, T. ed., 2016. Human resource issues in international tourism. Elsevier.

Bratton, J.,  and  Gold, J. , 2017. Human resource management: theory and practice. Palgrave.

Brewster, C., 2017. The integration of human resource management and corporate strategy. In Policy and practice in European human resource management (pp. 22-35). Routledge.

Brewster, C., Chung, C., and Sparrow, P., 2016. Globalizing human resource management. Routledge.

Briscoe, D., Tarique, I.,  and  Schuler, R. , 2012. International human resource management: Policies and practices for multinational enterprises. Routledge.

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

Collings D., Wood, G.,  and  Caligiuri, P. , 2014. The Routledge Companion to International Human Resource Management. Routledge.

Dickmann, M., Brewster, C.,  and  Sparrow, P. , 2016. International Human Resource Management: Contemporary HR Issues in Europe. Routledge.

Fenton-O’Creevy, M., Gooderham, P., and Nordhaug, O. ,2008. Human resource management in US subsidiaries in Europe and Australia: centralisation or autonomy?. Journal of International Business Studies, 39(1), 151-166.

Furusawa, M.,  and  Brewster, C. , 2016. IHRM and expatriation in Japanese MNCs: HRM practices and their impact on adjustment and job performance. Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources, 54(4), 396-420.

Haak-Saheem, W., Festing, M.,  and  Darwish, T. K. , 2017. International human resource management in the Arab Gulf States–an institutional perspective. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 28(18), 2684-2712.

Harris, M. , 2012. Handbook of Research in International Human Resource Management. Psychology Press.

Harvey, M.,  and  Moeller, M. ,2009. Expatriate managers: A historical review. International Journal of management reviews, 11(3), 275-296.

Harzing, A  and  Pinnington, A. , 2014. International Human Resource Management. SAGE.

Joshi, M., 2013. Human Resource Management. Bookboon.

Kang, H.,  and  Shen, J. , 2014. International human resource management policies and practices of South Korean MNEs: A review of the literature. Asia Pacific Business Review, 20(1), 42-58.

Kshetri, N. ,2017. Institutional factors affecting offshore business process and information technology outsourcing. Journal of International Management, 13(1), 38-56.

Lazarova, M. B., Morley, M. J.,  and  Tyson, S. (Eds.). , 2014. International Human Resource Management: Policy and Practice. Routledge.

Marler, J.H. and Fisher, S.L., 2013. An evidence-based review of e-HRM and strategic human resource management. Human Resource Management Review, 23(1), pp.18-36.

McGraw, P. ,2004. Influences on HRM practices in MNCs: a qualitative study in the Australian context. International Journal of Manpower, 25(6), 535-546.

Noe, R.A., Hollenbeck, J.R., Gerhart, B. and Wright, P.M., 2006. Human resource management. China People’s University Press.

Pournader, M., Tabassi, A.A. and Baloh, P., 2015. A three-step design science approach to develop a novel human resource-planning framework in projects: the cases of construction projects in USA, Europe, and Iran. International journal of project management, 33(2), pp.419-434.

Pudelko, M., Reiche, B. S.,  and  Carr, C. ,2015. Recent developments and emerging challenges in international human resource management.

Purce, J., 2014. The impact of corporate strategy on human resource management. New Perspectives on Human Resource Management (Routledge Revivals), 67.

Storey, J., 2014. New Perspectives on Human Resource Management (Routledge Revivals). Routledge.

Tarique, I., Briscoe, D. R.,  and  Schuler, R. S. ,2015. International human resource management: Policies and practices for multinational enterprises. Routledge.

Taylor, T., Doherty, A. and McGraw, P., 2015. Managing people in sport organizations: A strategic human resource management perspective. Routledge.

Teh, E.C. and Girardi, A. ,2015. Organisation Development & Change : Practice Manual, Readings & Case Studies, 5th edition, Cengage Learning, Australi