HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT

Sessions: 16
Classes: Wednesday, 18.30 21.00
Natalia Corobco
MBA - IE Business School - Madrid, Spain
B.S. in Economics - Academy of Economic Studies - Chisinau, Moldova
Consultant/Founder - IMG strategy & communications consulting - Chisinau, Baku
ncorobco@imgbaku.com

COURSE OVERVIEW
The main objective of this course is to give the students a set of specific tools to
help them think strategically about human resources.
We will take the
managers perspective to explore how human capital can become the source of
sustainable competitive advantage. To do this, we will analyze and discuss a
number of different strategies, their links to HR practices, and the factors that
determine their effectiveness. This course will be based on a mix of short
lectures and presentations, assigned readings and case discussions.
The
students will be asked to prepare the readings ahead of class.
EVALUATION
The students will be graded on the curve:
100 points A+
with honors
95 points
A
5% of the class
15%
90 points
A10% of the class
85 points
B+
20% of the class
80 points
B
50% of the class
75 points
B10% of the class
70 points
C+
5% of the class
60 points
C
unsatisfactory

Grade breakdown:
Individual effort 60%
Midterm exam
Final exam
Participation
Team effort
Group presentation 10%
Team assignment

30%
15%
40%
30%

Midterm Exam
15%
The exam will be in the form of an individual case analysis report prepared in
class. If you are not familiar with the case method, please refer to the note at
the end of the syllabus. The case and assignment questions will be emailed to
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the students one day ahead of the exam date. You will not be allowed to use
supplementary materials, books or the internet during the midterm. Laptops
may be used to type out the reports. If you prefer to submit a word document
rather than a hand-written report your file will be saved to my flash drive at the
end of the exam.
Evaluation criteria:
Quality ability to structure the report and clearly answer all the questions;
Use of concepts ability to apply the concepts from classroom discussions and
course readings;
Originality ability to link the case to strategic business issues.
Final Exam
30%
The exam will consist of a multiple choice test based on the material covered
throughout the course and another individual case analysis report.
The
procedure and evaluation criteria will be the same as for the midterm exam.
Participation
15%
You will be graded on both the quantity and quality of your comments. If you do
not participate, I may call on you so it is advisable to come prepared. Absences
and late arrival to class will affect your participation grade.
Team Project
30%
I will assign six teams of four students each based on individual backgrounds and
level of experience. You will not be able to withdraw from a team but you will be
able to provide feedback for each of your team members at the end of the
course. Team feedback will affect your participation grade.
Each team will analyze the HR system of a particular organization in order to
explore its fit with its competitive strategy. Your objective will be to:
Define the organization, its competitive strategy and major challenges;
Identify the major elements and factors that support or obstruct the organizations
competitive strategy;
Makes suggestions on how to strengthen the alignment between the
organizations HR system and its competitive strategy (support your arguments
with a clear analysis and theoretical concepts).
Deliverables:
One-page summary of the teams proposed topic and preliminary findings due
before the day of the midterm exam;
A Power Point presentation to be delivered in class during session 14 (each
team will have a total of 15 minutes plus 5 minutes for Q&A at the end);
Three-page report (12 font-size, single-spaced, normal margins), you may
include as many exhibits at the end of the report as you wish.

Group Presentations
10%
The syllabus includes six articles, which are not required reading for the entire
class. Each team will be assigned one article, for which it will present the key
findings in a one-page summary and a 15-minute oral presentation. The
presentations should link the article to the case for that session or other cases
from the course. Evaluation criteria:
Effectiveness smoothness, time management, and quality of the
presentation;
Clarity ability to summarize and link the article to broader concepts from the
course;
Delivery ability to engage the audience.

COURSE OUTLINE
Session 1&2
HR as a Source of Competitive Advantage
Reading: Building Competitive Advantage through People (Sloan Management
Review)
Reading: The Strategic Impact of HR (HBR)
Reading: People Management (HBS 9-406-034)
Case: Southwest Airlines, Using Human Resources for Competitive Advantage
(Stanford HR1-A)
Evaluate Southwests business strategy and decide whether it is a good one;
Evaluate Southwests HR system from a strategic perspective;
To what extent can other airlines replicate Southwests business model?
Session 3&4
Recruiting, Selection and Job Design
Article: Hiring Without Firing (HBS 5351) Group 1
Reading: Control in an Age of Empowerment (HBR 3545)
Reading: Strategic Human Resources: Frameworks for General Managers (Barons
& Kreps pp.29-33)
Case: Microsoft: Competing on Talent (A, B) (HBS 9-300-001, 9-301-135)
Is Microsofts ability to attract and retain superior talent is the source of its
competitive advantage?
How did Microsoft formalize the informal practices that emerged during the
1980s?
Are the changes in HR practices sufficient to address the new challenges
Microsoft faces?
Session 5&6
Creating Leaders
Article: Make Your Company a Talent Factory (HBR R0706D) Group 2
Reading: What is a Global Manager? (HBR R0308F)
Reading: Managing HR, Productivity, Quality of Work Life, Profits (Cascio, Wayne
pp. 158-169, 171-189)
Case: GEs Talent Machine: The Making of a CEO (HBS 9-304-049)
What are GEs sources of competitive advantage?
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 Does the recruiting strategy reflect the characteristics GE looks for in people?
How do other elements of the HR system support GEs leadership
development strategy?
Session 7

Midterm Exam

Session 8&9
Compensation
Article: The Importance of Pay in Employee Motivation (HR Management) Group 3
Reading: Six Dangerous Myths about Pay (HBR 6773)
Case: Performance Pay at Safelite Auto Glass (HBS 9-800-291)
Will the proposed plan solve Safelites productivity problems?
What are the possible consequences of a switch from wage to piece rates?
Session 10
Alternatives to Compensation
Article: Behind the Mask: The Politics of Performance Appraisal (Academy) Group
4
Reading: Fair Process. Managing in the Knowledge Economy (HB R0301K)
Case: SAS Institute (Stanford)
What were the elements of the SAS HR system that made it effective?
Why was SAS able to violate industry conventions in its compensation system?
Would this approach work in other high-tech companies or cultures?
Session 11
Training
Case: Leadership Development at Goldman Sachs (HBS 9-406-002)
Why was Goldman Sachs so successful in the late 1990s?
Why is the bank considering a more structured approach to developing
leaders?
Session 12
Performance Management
Article: Harnessing the Power of Informal Employee Networks (McKinsey) Group 5
Reading: A Tool Kit for executive Development (Business Horizons)
Case: Shinsei Bank: Developing an Integrated Firm (HBS 9-407-006)
What does a Chief Learning Officer do and how would you rate Pedersens
performance?
Should the performance evaluation system be rolled out to the entire
organization?
What other practices can help reinforce collaboration within the firm?
Session 13
Retention, Downsizing, and Mergers
Article: Talent Management for the 21st Century (HBR) Group 6
Reading: Strategies for Responsible Restructuring (Academy)
Case: Cisco Systems: The Acquisition of Technology is the Acquisition of People
(Stanford)
How did Cisco become one of the internet leaders so fast and did its HR
practices help in this?
What are the success factors of Ciscos acquisition strategy?
Do you think the current staffing strategy may pose problems in the future?
Session 14

Reorganization
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Reading: Delivering Strategic Human Resource Management (HBS 9-405-049

Case: Sonoco Products: Building a World-Class HR Organization (HBS 9-405-009)
What are the key industry trends and how will they affect Sonocos
competitive strategy?
How successful were the HR changes and were they conducted in the right
order?
What are the next priorities for Sonoco?
Session 15

Presentations of Team Projects

Session 16

Final Exam