Case study methodology and applications

¶ … Coach Who Got Poaches" by Idalene Kesner, et al. Specifically it will discuss the central problem and relevant factors to the case, with an application of human resource theories relevant in the case. This case showcases what can happen when a manager is "too" successful at recruiting talent and managing and developing them. Jared is such a good manager, other departments are "poaching" his employees, and he is getting tired of it. The central problem here is that Jared is frustrated at the lack of support from the administration and leadership, including human resources, and he may get so frustrated that he leaves the corporation, which would really be a tragedy. It is also that Jared is developing employees, from hiring them to helping them develop their talents, and then is losing them, so he has to go through the entire process again.

Relevant factors contributing to this problem include the freedom for other managers to "raid" Jared's staff, the lack of support from administration and the corporate center, as the article refers to upper management, and a clear lack of a corporate human resources policy to address these kinds of internal issues. Somehow, the company and the HR department have to address these issues, because if they do not, department's like Jared's will continue to lose valuable employees, and they will probably lose valuable managers, as well. In addition, Jared is an excellent manager, and other managers know that, and feel free to pick and choose from his best employees, leaving him to pick up the pieces, which is not good for his department's numbers or morale.

The first relevant factor and its importance is Jared's management abilities. Clearly, he is an excellent manager. Sue tells him, "To be honest, I think other managers see your division as prime raiding ground. They respect your ability to identify great talent" (Kesner, et al., 2002, p. 33). In a sense, however, he is being punished for being so good, because there are no HR policies to protect him. He is an excellent recruiter, but there are no limits on how many employees he can lose, and so, his department is fair game for transfers. This is important because it is constantly changing the dynamics of the department, it is frustrating Jared the manager, and it is not being addressed by the upper management or human resources. It could frustrate Jared so much that he leaves the company, and that is something human resources must recognize. If they do not want to lose some of their brightest managers and staff, they need to address this human resource issue immediately.

The next key factor is human resources' reaction to the problem. First, Sue knows there is a problem, and it is happening in another department, as well, but she does not have a solution to the problem. She has a couple of ideas, but neither of them seems satisfactory. Human resources, in the form of analysis, statistics, or some other form of investigation, tracks the problem, but allows it to continue. That is a big problem for managers like Jared, who retain some of the best people the company offers. Human resource analysts and statisticians should be more involved in this process, and should be developing human resource policies to help manage the situation. They should be able to show what the situation is costing the department in training and recruiting costs, the labor cost of training new personnel, and the overall costs to the department's effectiveness.

Human resources must convince upper management there is a problem, as well. Upper management and the CEO does not seem to have any kind of support or involvement in the success of their managers and that is a serious lack of support and encouragement. Jared is surprised that he is so well thought of by management, and that is a big problem. It could lead to losing him, but that means that not all the managers have the support and encouragement of the CEO and others, and that could lead to widespread employee dissatisfaction and low morale. If the situation continues, and that would lead to many more human resource problems, from dealing with increased recruiting and hiring to increased human resource planning and training, which could lead to all kinds of issues within the global corporation.

There are several ways to manage and solve this problem. First, Jared is a good manager, but there must be reasons people are leaving his division. It could be more than money reasons, too. One problem may be salary, and to combat that, Jared's division could implement a performance-based salary that might encourage more workers to stay in the department. Another writer notes, "Programs that augment an individual's salary based on their performance have become a very, very important part of compensation packages for executives today" (Ryssdal). Human resources specialists could help Jared develop a better salary package that could keep some people from changing departments or even leaving the company, and this could help keep down costs of recruiting and training new people.