The path to career development at both facilities differs quite a bit. At FMC Green River, employees further their career by moving upward in the organization. This type of career development often requires continuing education in a school environment. FMC Aberdeen does not many levels of management. There is the work team, and they report to the plant manager. This infrastructure does not leave much room for upward career development. Their employees are encouraged to enrich themselves and their careers through outward development. Training for this is done on-the-job and often on the employees own time.
The current job design of FMC Green River is simple. Each employee has their task and then it goes to the next person. In order the change this; you would first put employees into work teams. Then practice job enlargement and job enrichment strategies by combining tasks the employee performs and giving them more control over their work. Some ways this could be implemented are:
- Rewrite job descriptions to include two or three skill sets.
- Rewrite policy to give the employees control over their schedule.
- Change the Credo statement to reflect employee responsibility in everything that the organization does.
These recommendations will not only change job design but also improve the five core dimensions that affect intrinsic movement: skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and feedback.
Once an employee is in a work team and has the added responsibility, they will need to set goals. This will be accomplished as a team. The team may set goals in reference to absenteeism, productivity, or any other facet of the job. Right now each individual sets maybe personal goals for their job, but these goals cannot be changed by them only by management. With forming work teams, adding responsibility, and broadening the job comes a need for changing the pay scale.
Performance appraisals need to be of formal (written) and informal (verbal) nature. You will need to change the performance review to include traits and behaviors encouraging individuals to work well in a team. You could add a line the reads something to the effect of: Individual is open to feedback, Actively participates in their work team, or Strives to reach goals set by the work team. They are now not only being reviewed on their technical skills but also on their interpersonal skills.
I mentioned in Unit 1 that if an employee reached four skill sets, they would become a salary based paid personnel. Implementing this would be a good incentive for cross training to occur. This type of pay plan is based on merit or performance. The more an employee can do; the more they get paid. Right now, it seems as though the merit pay plan is based on an individual contribution. Rearrange the pay system to reflect a merit pay plan based on group performance. Such as if your group meets the goal they set at the beginning of the quarter, each member of that group will receive either a bonus pay or a day off; however, each member of the group cannot choose to have the same day. You can also achieve organizational performance goals by rearranging the pay system to reflect rewards or incentives for meeting those as well.
Career development at FMC Green River will change as participative management leadership unfolds. When all other plans are in place, management hierarchy will be minimal causing a more involved role for each employee. These employees will become increasingly concerned with the good of the organization. This means they will start wanting to do more, thus expanding their role within the company. At the same time, they will be learning new skill sets to make them more valuable to the company. Outward growth is just as important as upward growth and in some cases increases job satisfaction and organizational commitment making organizational effectiveness improve.
The union will probably not support the combination of too many jobs, and they will probably not allow the combination of certain jobs. In order to keep peace, schedule a meeting with the union president. Already have your plan of action written out for their review. Allow them to voice opinions and make counter-recommendations. This will ensure the union support in the process. Many of the managers who have worked their way up the ladder will be against this new management style because it eliminates a need for them. You may experience heavy resistance when trying to give the employee more responsibility. You may never completely solve this problem, but one way to reduce the problem is to send management to training sessions on group behavior, emotional intelligence, and interpersonal skills. You may find the need to let one or more of the traditional managers go because they are not willing to change.
References
Clawson, J.G. (2007). Prentice Hall Custom Business Resources. Boston: Pearson Custom Publishing.
George, J.M., & Jones, G.R. (2008). Understanding and Managing Organizational Behavior (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River: Pearson Prentice Hall.
