The current business environment is characterized by ever-growing technological changes an aspect that has forced businesses to adopt strategies purposely to improve their competitive edge. Whereas the SAS Institute is notable for its culture and strategic principles that place employees at the center of its operations, the company further pursues cost leadership and differentiation generic business strategies for its survival in the current competitive market. More importantly, the cost leadership strategy as emphasized in Porter’s framework enables SAS to achieve a competitive edge by applying reduced costs on its products with an aim of increasing the company’s market share. On the other hand, SAS pursues the differentiation strategy through the development of unique products that are tailored to meet the needs of their diverse customers. Therefore, this paper is aimed to explore whether SAS’s human resource policies support the company’s generic business strategies.
Despite the dominance enjoyed by the SAS Institute, the management is worried about the company’s performance and competitive edge as they embrace sophisticated technology in their operational services. According to the findings presented in the case study by Pfeffer (1998), SAS human resource management has vested interest in the company’s employees who play an imperative role of developing innovative products that enable the company to achieve its competitive edge. In this regard, the company has spelled out human resource policies that not only provides employees with a favorable working environment but also motivates them to enhance their performance and creativity. One of the HR policy is evidenced by the company’s employee recruitment, which emphasizes employing candidates who fit into the culture of the company. The company further gives employees the freedom to showcase their innovativeness through exploring ideas with an intention of developing unique products. Another HR policy is through the commitment of the organization to provide its employees with benefits, such as insurance coverage, scholarships for their children, and competitive salaries among other benefits. This strategy further reduces the company’s turnover rate.
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Conclusively, this paper has demonstrated that SAS’s generic strategies ensure that the company achieves its competitive edge. On the other hand, the SAS’s HR policies provide a positive working environment for employees, which helps the company attain its organizational goals. Therefore, both the firm's HR policies and the business strategy are focused on ensuring that the company achieves a competitive edge over its fiercest competitors and record increased financial returns. In this regard, it is vital to note that these two crucial components of the firm are working toward a common goal.
Reference
Pfeffer, J. (1998). SAS Institute: A Different Approach to Incentives and People Management Practices in the Software Industry. Harvard Business Review, 6 , 5.
