Evaluation and recommendations in terms of the five functions of human resource management: The case of Accenture

Résumé du document

The most important resource in an organization is its people. So the role they play, how they play, how they interact through formal and informal processes and the relationships they build are crucial to the success of strategy" say Johnson and Scholes (2002: 419). With 178,000 people in 49 countries, ACCENTURE - a literal mix between "Accent" and "Future"- is a "global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company, committed to delivering innovation". ACCENTURE brings its experience, skills and research to the world's most successful companies and generated net revenues of US$19.70 billion in 2007. As a consulting company, ACCENTURE is focused on the management of human resources, neither only because the sustainable competitive advantage (the added value) of the company is the high quality of employees' skills, nor because ACCENTURE has to be an example itself to advice its customers in the human resources fields.

Extraits

[...] New hired employees have to be considered as an asset for the company as soon as possible. In practice, the objective is aimed after an average of three months! 3 Using and maintaining HR The objective is to develop the whole skills of employees as well as possible. In order to maintain the employees within ACCENTURE, to improve their performance, to plan their future positions or to ensure competitiveness of the organisation in the market by retaining workers or preparing themselves to change, the HRM develops permanent training and development, internal advancement and a motivating performance appraisal process. [...]

[...] In ACCENTURE, because employees constitute the main asset of the company, the relationships with labour unions are clever and good quality. O ne on the main strengths of ACCENTURE is its HRM department. People compose the added value of the international firm. HRM plays a key function in promoting the core values of ACCENTURE and makes the corporate culture very important. These two elements represent a sustainable competitive advantage in regards to the strategy of competitors. The ability to work in team, the initiatives-taken capacity, curiosity and the well establishment of ACCENTURE in the economic life are its key success factors. [...]

[...] Each new employee is in relation with a Counsellor and a HR expert to help him/her in the first months to find his/her place within the company. To welcome people in the best conditions, an incentive is organised. The objectives are: to be familiar with the new organisation, to inform people about administrative processes, to meet the HR managers who will be in relation with new employees throughout the career and to train to main communication tools. The aim is also to ensure them to create a business network since their integration in ACCENTURE. [...]

[...] In ACCENTURE, HRM wants to develop optional training sessions in order to maximize the independency of each worker in his/her choices, the development of his/her career and the improvement of his/her skills. This strategy is successful and allows employees to develop their expertise to others fields. ACCENTURE expands HRM through the software myDevelopment & myPerformance where the performance culture is everywhere. Employees can settle objectives and evaluate themselves at the end of the process. They are really satisfied regarding this system and they want HRM department preserves and perform it Performance appraisal system The performance appraisal system is formal and systematic process by means of which the job-relevant strengths and weaknesses of employees are identified, observed, recorded and developed” (Swanepoel et al. [...]

[...] In a language point of view, some practices are applied like the persistent use of English words in a French conversation, the utilization of mysterious abbreviations More generally, ACCENTURE uses its seven key values to its staff. This strong culture is employed in internal and external environments. The top management advice consultants bringing their values to clients. It must be one of their contributions. This strategy allows reinforcing the highlighting of HRM within and outside ACCENTURE. Human resources participate to the corporate culture strength. [...]