Structure of the HR function Flashcards
Center of excellence (COE)
An organizational structure that leverages staff expertise
in certain areas to improve the entire organization’s
strategic performance.
Cosourcing
Arrangement in which an enterprise and a vendor share
different tasks within a larger complex, often strategic
responsibility.
Dedicated HR
HR structural alternative that allows organizations with
different strategies in multiple units to apply HR expertise
to each unit’s specific strategic needs.
Functional HR
HR structural alternative in which headquarters HR
specialists craft policies and HR generalists located
within divisions or other locales implement the policies,
adapt them as needed, and interact with employees
HR audit
Systematic and comprehensive evaluation of an
organization’s HR policies, practices, procedures, and
strategies.
Outsourcing
Process by which an organization contracts with third-party vendors to provide selected services/activities
instead of hiring new employees.
Shared services HR model
HR structural alternative in which centers with specific
areas of expertise develop HR policies in those areas;
each unit can then select what it needs from a menu of
these services.
Balanced scorecard
Performance management tool that depicts an
organization’s overall performance, as measured against
goals, lagging indicators, and leading indicators.
Benchmarking
Process by which an organization identifies performance
gaps and sets goals for performance improvement by
comparing its data, performance levels, and/or processes
against those of other organizations
Environmental scanning
Process that involves a systematic survey and
interpretation of relevant data to identify external
opportunities and threats and to assess how these
factors affect the organization currently and how they are
likely to affect the organization in the future.
Key performance indicators (KPIs)
Quantifiable measures of performance used to gauge
progress toward strategic objectives or agreed standards
of performance.
Lagging indicator
Type of metric describing an activity or change in
performance that has already occurred.
Leading indicator
Type of metric describing an activity that can change
future performance and predict success in the
achievement of strategic goals.
Mission statement
Concise outline of an organization’s strategy, specifying
the activities the organization intends to pursue and the
course its management has charted for the future.
Organizational values
Beliefs and principles defined by an organization to direct
and govern its employees’ behavior
PESTLE analysis
Scanning process that searches for environmental forces
in political, economic, social, technological, legal, and
environmental categories.
Strategic fit
State in which an organization’s strategy is consistent
with its external opportunities and circumstances and its
internal structure, resources, and capabilities.
Strategic management
System of actions that leaders take to drive an
organization toward its goals and objectives.
Strategic planning
Process of setting goals and designing a path toward a
competitive position.
Strategy
Plan of action for accomplishing an organization’s overall
and long-range goals.
SWOT analysis
Method for assessment of an organization’s strategic
capabilities through use of the environmental scanning
process, by which internal and external factors affecting
achievement of organizational goals are identified and
considered.
Systems thinking
Process for understanding how seemingly independent
units within a larger entity interact with and influence one
another.
Value drivers
Actions, processes, or results that are needed to deliver
a desired value.
Vision statement
Description of what an organization hopes to attain and
accomplish in the future, which guides it toward that
defined direction.
