STRATEGIC HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

In their best-selling book, The discipline of market leaders. Michael Treacy

and Fred Wiersema studied successful companies in different sectors and

came to similar conclusions as Porter. They suggest that customers look for

one of three sources of value or strategic styles from a company:

 operational excellence - low-cost, reliable and easy to use products or

services;

 product leadership - leading edge products; or

 customer intimacy - highly customized solutions and services.

Applying Treacy and Wiersema's concepts of strategic styles to an

organization’s people requirements we can see how these different strategic

styles demand different competencies from employees and thus, different

strategies from HR. In 'The talent solution’ Ed Gubman characterized these

implications for HR. as shown in Table 2.7

Table 2.7 Implications of strategic style for HR management

Strategic style Work environment Employee

competencies

Lead HR systems

operational
excellence

Stable, measurable cost -

conscious, team-based

continuous improvement.

Process control,

teamwork analysis,

financial / operational

understanding and

attention to detail.

Strategic sourcing, HR

process improvement,

compensation based on

highly measurable results.

Product leadership
Experimental learning
focused technical, informal,
fast-paced, resource rich,
speed to market.

Lifelong learning, infor-

mation-sharing.

creativity, breakthrough

thinking.

Fluid organization,
emphasis on training and
development, relatively
undifferentiated rewards.
Customer intimacy
Values-driven, dynamic,
informal, collegial. service-
oriental.

Relationship-building,

listening, initiative,

collaboration, rapid

problem solving.

Selection for fit with values,

consistent leadership,

balanced emphasis

between short -term and

long term rewards

Source: Gubmal E. L. (1998), The Talent solution New York: McGraw Hill.