Part 1:
The CNA Financial Corporation is an insurance company based in Chicago that has recently enhanced its human capital model by means of aligning the capabilities of the staff with that of the stakeholders’ objectives. The customized model of the company, also referred to as the capability profile model, was actually based on the change-agent and consulting models, which was developed by PricewaterhouseCoopers. The tailored model was designed in order to allow the company to attract, develop and retain highly-skilled internal auditors ( 2001). For this purpose, the model is made up of human capital measures or capabilities that would help in achieving the company’s expectations. These measures include project management, customer focus, people development, business and organizational knowledge, team and individual accountability, IT audit proficiency, logical reasoning and audit proficiency.
The model applied by the company is based on the basic concepts of human capital. The firm works in a knowledge-based field; thus, it realizes the significant role human capital plays in its operations. The measures selected by the model developer were also dependent on human capital concepts. Specifically, it has been cited that skills, knowledge and capabilities of the employees serve as the critical resource of human capital ( 1988). In addition, as previous authors have cited, assessing human capital can be done through individuals’ identifiable skills, education and experience ( 2001); this concept is also evident in the company’s intent for applying its enhanced human capital model.
The human capital concept basically explains that knowledge and skills of the employees are significant for companies to work. In particular, this concept is crucial in achieving satisfaction, improve sales and income as well as social cohesion. On a higher level, human capital is also a significant concept that contributes towards economic growth. With these basic features, the development of human capital model matches the behavior of CNA Financial Corporation. Based on its objectives, the human capital model was established in order to ensure that the capabilities of the employees meet the needs of the company as well as the business environment where it operates. The management of the company also believes that the human capital model will add value to its different control procedures and business plans ( 2001).
The model applied by CNA is quite different from the original concept of human capital. While the original concept is focused on recruiting highly-skilled employees, the company’s model emphasizes on continuous staff development. Specifically, the human capital model of the company involves the provision of opportunities for the employees’ growth. In order to optimize the skills and potential of its human resource, the staff is given the chance to master the competencies of a particular task in order to move to higher level responsibilities. The management realizes that applying the human capital concept does not stop from the workers’ employment but up to their actual performance. To optimize the concept of human capital, companies should then provide means of constant development for the employees. The employment of this feature has actually helped CNA achieve significant changes as member of the internal audit eventually become the organization’s key leaders ( 2001).
Part 2:
Similar to CNA, the International Revenue Service (IRS) of the United States has developed human capital metrics in order to adopt the concept. The organization also aims to acquire the right people and assess whether the existing workforce complies with its work standards. The metrics of the organization is composed of different standards that focus on certain employee aspects. For example, standard 1 evaluate if the human capital meets the organization’s mission and objectives. Standards 3, 4 and 5 are more concentrated in the output or performance of the staff. On the other hand, the fifth standard is focused on the employees’ knowledge, mission-critical skills, talent and competency. Through this standard, the organization can then develop means of closing competency gaps as well as assess the effectiveness of these means ( 2005).
The application of the human capital concept as well as the development of standard metrics of the IRS is patterned after the role of the human capital model in any organization. Specifically, a human capital model is applied in order for the organization to acquire human unique knowledge and skills that will make its operations possible ( 1999). Through its efforts, the organization is able to achieve increased performance in 2004 ( 2005).
The application of the human capital concept in IRS however, is somewhat different from traditional and current theories. In the early times, the theory of human capital was focused the effect of human capital to earnings ( 1980). Considering that the IRS is a service-based organization that does not particularly operate for profit generation, such traditional concept does not suit the nature of the IRS. In addition, companies typically apply human capital models in their operations mainly to gain and utilize unique competitive advantages ( 1994). Organizations invest on hiring and training employees in order to shape them in accordance to their standards. Eventually, these investments will return through the employees’ performance, contributions and ideas.
Nonetheless, in the case of the IRS, the organization did not actually apply the human capital concept in order to gain advantages that would make it more competitive. But more specifically, the organization applied this concept in order to gain more competent staff that would deliver better services for the people. Although the aim of the human capital model application is different for the IRS, the outcome of the strategy is still the same. In particular this helped the organization increase the value of its abilities. From this example, it has been stressed that human capital models are not only for the main purpose of increasing profitability; acquiring human knowledge and skills through the human capital concept is also useful for delivering more efficient non-profit services.
Part 3:
A firm that specializes in collections and asset investigations, Hunter Warfield, Inc. (HWI) had recently opened a corporate university. This multi-faceted learning facility is centered on the growth, development and success of the company’s employees. For this strategy, the company developed the Hunter Warfield Human Capital Model that applies the human asset optimization approach. This model starts with the process of recruitment down to the employees’ journey on their respective career paths. Similar to the aforementioned organizations, HWI also applies various measures that would facilitate its selection of knowledgeable and highly skilled candidates. The process of targeted screening, testing and selection are all carried out at this phase. The short listed employees are then subjected to an on-boarding process; at this stage, employees go through a process called New Employee Orientation where they are taught of the company’s business operations, culture, objectives and standards. After which, employees are trained in accordance to the position they will fill in ( 2006).
As with the case of CNA, HWI’s human capital model includes a feature called the Individual Development Plan (IDP), which serve as an outline that describes the learning and performance development required from an employee in order to fulfill their goals as well as reach a higher level of success. The company’s human capital model supports the provision of both informal and formal learning interventions. Activities and subjects such as client service, management and sales are all covered by these interventions and are based on the culture of the company ( 2006).
The goal of the company for applying the human capital model is also based on the concept relevant to it. As mentioned, human capital models are developed and applied in a company in order to ensure that the employed human resources have the abilities, skills and knowledge that will contribute to good business outcomes ( 1997). Specifically, these models enable companies to increase the levels of their productivity ( 1995). HWI developed it human capital model in order to ensure that its entire staff are trained properly and are capable of delivering the best services. Ultimately, this model was developed by the company in order to become the greatest agency among other similar companies. With these application objectives, it becomes clear that the behavior of the company suits what the human capital can provide.
There is a great emphasis in this company example that the concept of human capital model is a two-way concept. Rather than selecting highly-skilled employees for the company benefit, the concept adapted by HWI highlights the benefit of the model to the employees as well. The model developed also ensures that the employees are not only trained based on their individual job positions, but they are given a clear overview of the company’s nature and goals. This aspect ensures that the employees truly understand the meaning of their roles and contributions for the company. This example then highlights the true meaning and role of the human capital model to actual company application.
References:
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
0 comments:
Post a Comment