This document discusses HRM practices and organizational culture. It provides an example of how SK Holdings' HRM practices did not initially align with their business strategy when the government mandated non-discrimination policies. The document recommends that SK Holdings hire and promote more women to encourage change and enhance alignment between HRM practices and business strategies. It acknowledges that women face challenges in the workplace but can provide skills to improve competitive advantage, such as relationship building and identifying resources.

1. HRM and Culture
LaTrice S. Ford
Leslie Wills
HRM 530 – Strategic Human Resource Management
December 2, 2012

2. Determine if and how the HRM practices align with the company’s business strategy.
HRM practices, policies and procedures are critical as to how departments are able to
operate. Managers have to ensure that the company’s business strategy is being aligned with
the practices and procedures they are demonstrating. The primary role of human resource is to
ensure that laws, rules, and relations are being upheld which is also the mission of the
organization. Alignment is a key function as how managers should operate because it ensures
that both parties have the same understanding as what direction the organization should be
going.
Human resource management is the way that organizations perform such practices as
recruitment of new talent, compensation and benefits, employment motivation, training and
employee development. These practices are the focal point of human resources offices. These
practices help to motivate human resource departments to choose, train, and develop capable
individuals for organizations. They are also available to encourage current employees and
help them develop new skills and talents and for new employees to bring in new ideas.
In the case of SK Holdings, the human resource management practices did not align
with the company’s business strategy. A few years earlier the government made a change and
decided to ban gender discrimination in organizations. Company’s then had to allow women
to be added to their workforce, SK Holdings was one those organizations. This company
began to hire women and place them in positions to work alongside men, although their ideas
and suggestions went unwarranted. It is very important to understand the practices of human
resources and the organization must work together to have an effective business strategy.
Without the cooperation of either party, alignment is not being fulfilled. In order for

3. organizational strategies to succeed, then both parties must be on the same page and work as
one.
Although it may seem practical, gender should not be a consideration nor should it be a
factor in human resource business strategies. The SK Holdings Company should consider
opening more positions for women to encourage change and enhance the human resource
practices and strategies. The fact that the manager allowed Sonia Kim to be in charge of TV
marketing at Samsung Electronics, is evident that the company is learning to work together
instead of disregarding individuals for their gender or other differences.
Everyday HRM are faced with challenges that try to break down the walls of all
strategies in organizations. These challenges can be anything from employees quitting,
performance issues and goals that are not being aligned with the organizational strategy.
Strategically, human resource departments have to develop programs that are effective and
productive to the organization. The overall role of human resource managers is to ensure that
the goals and objectives of the organization are being fulfilled and going forward in the
correct direction. Many of the practices that are being used by HRM are being performed by
employees and managers alike to fulfill goals and success of company policies and
procedures.
In order for the goals of human resource departments to be achieved all employees have
to be motivated and trained and ready to perform. This has to do with a lot of how the culture
of the organization is present and sustained. The culture of an organization is entailed in the
company’s values and behaviors that help maintain employees’ performance and talents. The
organizational culture also helps attain and reach the goals of what the organization stands for
and believes.

4. The useful company practices align up with business strategies by using all the
components of the organizational culture, recruiting, training and developing by encouraging
and motivating their current and new employees to uphold the standards, beliefs and ideas.
When companies ensure that all employees and managers are working together for the growth
and ongoing of the organization, then the company strategy and practices are being aligned
together.
Discuss how hiring more women and promoting them could improve the
competitive advantage of this company.
Over the years, women have increasingly had to struggle to find their place in the
workplace. For many years, when have been trying to receive the same wages, benefits and
promotions as men. Women have been faced with criticism, discrimination, and sexual
harassment from their co-workers and many of those in authorities but since the 1990’s the
advantages of women and what they can do have improved the thinking of others.
Women have also been faced with such situations as leadership roles where men have
been promoted over women. The men in these situations necessarily did not have the same
level of skills and talents as more advanced women, but were still given higher status or
bigger promotions. The support for women and how they have been viewed in the workplace
has been an issue that has been debated ever since the first women wanted to take her place in
the workforce. They have had to endure all the bad things and challenges that have had to
come their way.
Women have been said to be the driving force in workforces across the United States.
They have been able to handle challenges often better than their male counterparts. Women
are now able to climb the corporate ladder just as men have done in the past. Although there

5. have been many issues that had to be addressed when have contributed much to the business
strategies of organizations as well as the competitive advantage.
A competitive advantage is when superiority is gained over another individual or an
organization. Competitive advantages can be very health for organizations because it keeps
them always looking forward to new technology and business trends and they can stay ahead
of their counterparts and peers. Those who are familiar with using competition as a tool are
organizations that are successful in business.
Hiring and promoting more women could improve this company’s businesses strategy
by using these women to be placed internationally throughout the country. Women are
becoming global leaders that are effectively taking human resource management strategies and
applying them to these international organizations to improve businesses not only domestically
but in other countries as well. Again women are able to handle relationship to relationship
confrontations often better than men because they can be more personal and able to listen to the
concerns of others.
Organizations can help improve their competitive advantages by hiring and promoting
women because when can provide things that men cannot. First of all, women are opportunity
seekers. They believe that when the opportunity presents itself, then one should be able to take
their chances. Also, when taking these chances, there are different ideas and facts that can
contribute to opportunity taking.
Second, women are relationship and resource specialist. Women have a tendency to
relate more to different types of individuals than men. They will use these relationships and
will work closely along with different people to make a strategy work. Resources for an
organization are critical and women track, identify, and gather need materials for whatever

6. they are called for. The bottom line is that women do not give up and they will do whatever
need to be done to get the job completed.
Last, women are natural givers, which can be a good tool to posses’ especially when it
comes to giving to the community and non-profit organizations. They are concerned about the
social and economic needs of those around her and at times can be very inspiring and
uplifting when organizations need to be encouragement and motivated. These aspects ensure
that they can be good leaders as well as innovators and promoted to leadership positions.
Prepare a recruitment and retention plan for this company that specifically targets
women employees.
Recruitment and retention plans are very important aspects in the strategies of human
resource managers and organizations. Recruitment is the way in which human resource
departments attract, screen, and select qualified personnel for a job. It may also involve the
development of employees’ talents and skills training. Recruitment is also responsible for
assessments, job analysis and interview of potential employees.
Retention is the processes in which the organization tries to keep their employees.
Individuals will choose different reasons in order for them to leave companies but it is the
responsibility of organizations to choose whether or not they would like the person to stay and
will be willing to offer promotions, raises or better compensation plans to encourage them to
stay. When companies loose employees for various reasons, the organization then has to
spend more funds to either bring in a new person or promote from within, either way, multiple
moves can be harmful to the strategies or plans of the company.
When recruiting for women employees, organizations have to ensure that there is a plan
is the best for the company as well as for the individuals they want to hire. Recruiters also

7. have to be prepared to use the last technology and often different methods to encourage
individuals to join their organization.
Strategies for recruitment and retention:
1. What is the major need for the organization – The organizations primary need is to
target women. These women must be skillful, possess leadership skills, talented, and
able to demonstrate the basic needs of technology. The new hires should also have a
background of working community projects and well with others. We will also be hiring
a specific number of women to fulfill the needed positions.
2. Recruiters Needed – The organizations is to gather a recruiting team and devise a
strategy to encourage the hire of women. This team should include a leader to
coordinate recruitment activities. Recruiters should also be self-motivated, positive and
social and possess the right attitude.
3. The roll of the committee is to strategize, analyze and with gathering ideas for tools to
be used for individuals to apply. Another tactic is to choose how applicants will apply.
Will they apply by internet or paper copy and when and where will interviews be
administrated.
4. Approaches to the community – The strategies that have been devised should be aligned
with the needs of the community. These needs should also involved non-profit
organizations. The recruiting team should ensure that they are moving throughout the
community to encourage local talents, skills and ideas. Recruiting efforts should include
community business owners and leaders, larger employers, and the local community
colleges and technical schools.

8. List three (3) potential obstacles that this company could face in its quest to diversify its
workforce in this particular culture.
Becoming a diverse organization is critical to businesses. It means that organizations
leaders are accepting changes and differences of those working for them. Diversity is also a
huge factor the organization culture and the overall environment. Although the business culture
has changed over the years with the hiring of more diverse and different, there are still a
number of challenges that may arise when organizations are trying to make changes to
diversify. These challenges should be faced with a sense focus and developing a clear policy of
how to tackle the issues.
One of the issues that a company could face when trying to diverse is when male
employees are unfamiliar working with women or under their leadership, may feel resentful
towards their female co-workers. Male employees, although have worked with females, still
may feel that they do not want to work with women. What could cause more issues is if the
female leaders decided to make changes within the organization. The resentful feeling of male
employees towards females could cause for tension and strife. These issues will cause the
organization environment and production to suffer due to lack of communication and
cooperation.
Another diversity issue is when female employees are being harassed by male co-
workers. Harassment can come in many forms such as, sexual, verbal, derogatory language,
materials or offensive jokes. These forms of harassment can be detrimental to the individual as
well as the organization. Individuals can have emotionally and physically damages from these
different forms of harassment. Organizations can be effected by being sued or having a
negative reputation placed upon them.

9. Recommend two HRM strategies that this company could enforce to improve the
visibility of its women employees.
Human resource management strategies are put in place to ensure that organizations
have a plan of act when it comes to the different diversities and demographics within their
organizations. These plans of acts can be very beneficial to both the employer and employee by
offering opportunities to open up for growth and for the organizations to move forward in
future endeavors and technology.
A recommendation for this company is to improve visibility of women employees is to
continue to place women in leadership roles. If the company takes this position, it will cause for
women and men to communicate more and share ideas and strategies when they normally
would not. Basically, placing women in these positions will open up a line of communication
with men and women that would probably not be used if women are just regular co-workers.
Another recommendation is to make public the accomplishments and tasks that these
women have brought to the table. They can make public through the internet, emails and other
technological devices as to what improvements or strides women have made with the
organization and outside in the community. There can be communication throughout the
organization about the good steps made by female employees that have made an impact within
the organization and our customers. There will also be bonus and rewards for those individuals
who are will to demonstrate and go above and beyond for the company.
In conclusion, women have made great strides to move forward in the business world.
They have overcome many pitfalls and stumbles to gain prestige, power and a sense of
belonging to be able to be treated just as equal as their male counterpart. Although theses great
strides have help women to succeed and move forward there is still a long way to go to

10. continue on the road they are going. More businesses and companies are and have recognized
that women are more than important; they are a major factor on how companies will operate
and grow in the future.
In the case of the Korean Women, these women seem to have come a long way in a
little bit of time. I would recommend that these ladies continue to do what they are doing to
move upward in the workplace in Korea. I also think that these women should maybe begin to
put in more work hours to show men that they are able to work just as hard as their male
counterparts. Lastly they should also grow their educational knowledge to get a head in the
business world. Many men are asked to attend schools to achieve their goals in the workplace.
These goals will align with the organization strategies only if the organization is encouraging
more women to be employed in their organization. If hiring more women is not in their
objectives then, the strategies for hiring women would not matter.

11. Reference:
Burn, K. (April 22, 2009). "Do Women Have a Competitive Advantage Over Men". In US
Money. Retrieved December 1, 2012, from www.money.usnews.com.
Eduardo, P. (March 02, 2006). "Streched to the limit, Women Shall March to Work". In New
York Times. Retrieved December 1, 2012, from www.nytimes.com.
Llopis, G. (August 22, 2011). "4 Skills that Give Women a Sustainable Advantage Over Men".
In Forbes. Retrieved December 1, 2012, from www.forbes.com.
McGraw-Hill. (2011). Strategic Human Resource MGT International Supplement. New York,
NY: McGraw-Hill.
Stewart, G., & Brown, K. (2011). Human resource management (2nded.). Hoboken, NJ: John
Wiley & Sons.