A Critical Analysis of Workforce Management in ABC Limited

To: CEO of ABC limited

From:

Date: 6th November 2020

Subject: Executive Summary

The COVID 19 pandemic has created an economic shock due to its devastating impact on businesses. As a result, all businesses, irrespective of their size and industry where they operate, face serious managerial and operational challenges arising from job losses, decreased revenues, and insolvencies (International Labor Organization, 2020). The report by International Labor Organization also highlights that the instigated COVID 19 containment measures have affected both the quantity and quality of jobs through unemployment and underemployment.

This report aims to critically analyze the changing role of operation managers in ABC Limited arising from COVID 19 while considering the associated implications in Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM), High-Performance Working (HPW), and knowledge management. Additionally, the research paper explores how COVID 19 has contributed to the need for change in ABC Limited Company. Based on this information, both operations management and effective implementation of change initiatives have been proposed.

The report consists of four parts. Subsequent to this introduction, the changing role of operation managers in ABC Limited has been discussed in the second chapter. Chapter 3 highlights culture and change management and the impacts of COVID 19 on the change process. In Chapter 4, conclusions are drawn after which recommendations that can be adopted for effective management and change processes are proposed.

Changing Role of Operations Managers 

Traditional Role of Operation Managers 

Operations Managers are responsible for overseeing all the management activities that involve the production of goods and services. It involves planning, checking, reviewing, and embracing designs, planning, control, provision of strategies for effective management, and improvement of performance from a broad perspective. Other responsibilities include interacting with functional managers in accounting, personnel, finance, and engineering. These responsibilities are detailed below:

Decision making: The primary responsibility of operations managers in any organization is a decision making (Reid & Sanders, 2019). These decisions are fundamental in designing, managing, and improving operation systems, which entails production, quality assurance, and quantities of goods and services.

Management of human resources : An organization consists of employees who participate in the production process as highlighted in Understanding Operations Management (2020). The operations managers have the responsibility of managing these employees.

Management of assets:  Organizations utilize other resources besides human resources, for the production of goods and services. These include space and facilities, networks, economic power, stock, materials, equipment, etc.

Management of costs:  Costs refers to monetary resources that are utilized in acquiring other resources, processing them, and utilizing them into goods and services that meet the customer ( Understanding Operations Management , 2020). Cost management is important since it is one of the key determinants of an organization's competitive advantage. 

Impacts of COVID-19 to the Functions of Operations Manager in ABC Limited 

ABC Limited is a private construction company established in 1972 with a mission of providing clients with the necessary resources to complete their projects efficiently. The company has several allied companies such as the ABC Real Estate Company, ABC Ready Mix Concrete Supplier, and ABC Real Estate Ventures (ABC Limited, no date).

Taking into account that ABC Limited operates within the construction industry, it has been affected by COVID 19 in the following ways:

Current Contracts 

Most of the projects are managed by FIDIC Conditions of Contract and Conditions of Contract governing European Union (EU) projects. The emergence of COVID has resulted in disruption to Contracts since the proposed works have been altered.

Supply Chain 

COVID 19 pandemic brought about the disruption of the supply chain due to the imposed restriction on goods and services. Consequently, there has been a price escalation in the cost of labor, equipment, plant, and materials.

Human Resources 

Consistent with the above, the disruption in transportation and the stay-at-home advisory has negatively affected the availability of human resources.

Resource Management  

The organization's revenue has been negatively affected since there have been delays in the execution of contracts. Also, to note, the working capital and overall company's liquidity has reduced. Lastly, Baker (2020) notes that there has been a shortfall of cash from funders that has resulted in fluctuations in the stock market.

Culture and Change Management 

Schein’s Levels of Culture 

Edgar Schein, a psychologist in Sloan School of Management, developed Schein's Level of Culture in the 1980s ((Hogan & Coote, 2014). Schein’s Level of Culture divides culture into artifacts, assumptions, and espoused values.

Artifacts are the specific observable aspects of an organization. They include office layout, dress code, mantras, inside jokes, free food, team building activities, etc. Schein (2015) noted that while it is arguable that artifacts are easy to observe, the motive behind the behavior may or may not be easily known.

Espoused values are an organization's set of norms and values that guide the organizations on how they behave in the workplace environment (Khandelwal et al., 2010). It consists of mission statements, principles, and strategies that are publicly declared by the organizations.

Assumptions are the beliefs ingrained in organizations that drive their culture. Usually, these assumptions are not documented but are known and accepted in the organizations.

Competing Values Framework 

Robert Quinn postulated the Competing Values Framework in 1983 (Tong & Avery, 2015). The framework assesses the individual leadership behavior and their implication on different competencies and the resulting values.

Based on this framework, ABC Limited has adopted the adhocracy framework, which is highly innovative, flexible, and externally focused (Hogan & Coote, 2014). The main drive to the organization is creative ideas. Apart from that, leadership is visionary and synergy creating. Fikry (2020) also notes that the main driving force of the organization arises from innovating and reinventing itself, a vision shared amongst the employees.

  ABC Limited has maintained its operations within this framework's confines, particularly since it is the most ideal for companies within the construction industry. Its creative ideas, adaptability, and visionary leadership are evident in the diversification of its allied companies that deal with concrete manufacturing and real estate development.

The Implications of COVID 19 as a Driver to Change in the Organization 

COVID 19 has triggered different changes in ABC limited and has necessitated the need for change within the organization as follows:

Rapid reskilling:  Training employees to have a continuous learning mindset and adapt to abrupt changes in the work environment has become key since the pandemic (Agrawal, 2020). Continuous shifts in workload have resulted in changes in resource allocation. For this reason, there has been an increased need for reskilling and upskilling of workers to match these changes.

Changes in leadership competencies:  The work from home advisory has necessitated improving managerial skills to improve their focus on empathy (Battilana et al., 2010). Additionally, there has been an increased need for improved infrastructure and digital skills.

Individual and social well-being:  Several organizations have had an increased need for better initiatives to improve social well-being for their employees. Truss (2013) pointed out that there is increasing need for hiring counselors due to the realization that mental health has a significant impact on employees’ productivity.

Change Kaleidoscope and Change Dynamics for ABC Limited 

According to Managing Strategic Change (2020), the kaleidoscope consists of three rings representing a broad strategic change context. These specific contextual factors have to be considered in formulating a change plan, and the innermost circle, which gives a list of specific interventions.

Contextually, there is a need for ABC Limited to react quickly to a crisis, such as the COVID 19 pandemic. It is also noteworthy that a large proportion of the organization is bound to be affected in cases of crisis, hence the need for realignment. Considering that COVID 19 pandemic is a one-of-a-kind catastrophic event that most organizations in the construction industry, including ABC Limited, never anticipated and planned accordingly for its eventuality, the shift in operations has proven that the organization had insufficient capacity resource-wise and readiness to operate amidst uncertainties.

Specific interventions that ABC Limited should take into consideration include initiating a top-down change start point. Once the top management streamlines its operations, it becomes easy for the other employees to adopt ( Managing Strategic Change , 2020). Also, effective change interventions should focus on combining cultural interventions, education, and effective communication.

Conclusion 

The report has assessed the impacts of COVID 19 on the management and operation of ABC Limited. Considering that the company operates within the construction industry, it has been severely affected by COVID 19, particularly since the pandemic disrupted the supply chain of goods and services. Further, there has been a reduction in efficiency of human resources since the pandemic created panic and the stay-at-home advisory reduced the number of employees in the organization. Nonetheless, with a top-down change start point, the organization can effectively implement strategies aimed at minimizing the impacts of COVID 19 on its operations.

Recommendations 

Recommendations for Operations Management 

Workforce management:  Managing staff and the associated costs are key in operations management facing unforeseen disruptions. ABC Limited management should consider re-evaluating all the employees in the organizations and the roles and responsibilities. Based on this information, strategies such as capacity planning, retention of key staff, and hiring on short-term contracts should be considered.

Financial planning:  ABC Limited should reconsider re-forecasting cashflows to identify areas to preserve cash for both the short and mid-term. Apart from that, the lending documents should be reviewed to note the key terms and flexibility of the repayment plans (Delloite, no date). Lastly, considering that the construction industry will be slow to pick up even post-COVID, the organization can consider identifying new sources of income, such as considering asset-based financing and even liquidating some of its assets.

Supply Chain:  The organization's management should review its end-to-end supply chain and its potential short and medium-term impacts (Krajewski et al., 2010). Subsequent to this, a contingency plan comprising an alternative supply chain for critical goods and services should be established.

Recommendations for Effective Implementation of Change Initiatives 

Clear definition of the change process and proper alignment with the business goals. Ensuring the effectiveness of a change process requires a critical evaluation of the organization’s goals, objectives, and vision to ensure all operations are carried out strategically and ethically.

Establishing a support structure for employees during the transition process. An effective support system is important for the provision of emotional support to employees. Rees (2020) contended that such support helps employees regulate their behaviors and proficiency, thus helping the organization realize its mission and vision.

Establishing a communication strategy. An effective communication strategy used in the implementation of the change process requires specific timeliness during which the messages will be conveyed, the medium and communication channels to be used, and the techniques that will be used in assessing the feedback.

Determining the impacts of change process on the employees. The organization should be classified into different levels or departments, and the effects of the change on these departments, which will subsequently trickle down to the employees can then be assessed. Using this information, management can pre-determine how the change process will be received. After this, strategies aimed at mitigating any negative consequences can be established.

References 

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