Strategic Human Resource Management in Adidas Company and Its Effects on Performance
Strategic human resource practices has turned out to be an important ground of research, this new attention on the study has enabled the growth of innovative tactics in managing businesses and human resource. Effecting human resource practices to organizational tactic stresses the need for human resource strategies and approaches to be framed within the framework of general organizational approaches and goals (Wright et al., 2017). It also requires the company to be receptive to the shifting nature of the organization’s external background. It is a tactic which needs clarification and adaptation by specialists to guarantee the most appropriate fit amid human resource corporate approaches and strategies (Mazur, 2014). Strategic human resource practices relate to precise practices, formal strategies, and viewpoints that are intended to appeal, progress, inspire, and preserve workers who guarantee the actual operational and endurance of the business (Ulrich, 2014).
It allows strategic judgments to be made that have a key and long-term influence on the conduct and accomplishment of the business. This is done by guaranteeing that the business has the capable, dedicated and well-motivated workers it requires to realize competitive lead (Wright et al., 2017). A strategic human resource practice is an effectual role that gets by with environmental fluctuations. It openly and ultimately profit companies since it alters inactiveness into inventiveness, conducts organizational objectives plainly and inspires the participation of line supervisors (Mazur, 2014). Strategic human resource practices positively sways firm performance since it causes organizational interrelation, an employee spawned interaction that pushes a corporation headlong, allowing the business to react to its environment while still continuing to grow.
Adidas Human Resource management
A good illustration of this is with Adidas Company, which is one of the leading brands in the sporting world. Adidas has understood the importance of human resource management for its business success. The company has made tactical changes in the techniques that it uses to manage its employees, by crafting a culture centred on people. This is a culture that recognizes and appreciates the worth of personnel and thus aids them attain their career objectives.
Talent management
As one of the greatest sports brand, the company attracts a large number of great talents from all over the world. The company has developed a talent management program known as ‘Talent Carousel’ the emphasis of this program is to coach the personnel certifying that they are ready for management positions in the future (Pratap, 2019). The company encourages their employees to enrol in the two years program where in the end twenty finalists are selected to start a new global and cross efficient profession. The finalists are given new job roles in new locations where they get the chance to practice their management skills and hence advance in their careers (Pratap, 2019).
Adidas also has a dominant recruitment process in its Germany head office that guarantees that new employees has a personalized worth involvement once they start working in the corporation (Pratap, 2019). This is a unique method of induction which helps in engaging the new employees through a company app where the management engages with the new employees. This engagement is important because it helps the new employees to be guided into their roles which help in reducing complexity during these initial stages.
Employee motivation
Motivating employees is a critical element to help improve performance in an organization; this can be done through good remuneration and recognition (Mazur, 2014). Adidas believes in training and education as an important element of motivating employees and helping them advance on their skills. Adidas has a digital learning institution which gives all its personnel internationally an access to learning prospects (Doke, 2016). Through this podium, the staffs have the chance of pursuing any course that they want relating to marketing and management. The platform offers the employees a chance to attain additional skills that are required for greater career expansion and advancement.
Adidas has implemented several other programs that act as motivational elements for its employees. One of the programs is the employee stock purchase plan which has so far been extended to countries like China, Hong Kong and Taiwan (Doke, 2016). So far over 50% of Adidas employee population has taken part in the program which the company plans to extend to other countries. The company has also opened up a kinder Garten program and also a secondary care centre which holds about 140 children in its headquarters (Doke, 2016). Doing this greatly benefits its employers who have the advantage of working in a convenient and collaborative environment where their needs both personal and organizational are understood.
Internal communication and work life integration
Commitment of employees is a significant element that contributes to staff motivation. To guarantee that workers do not feel unsatisfied or uninvolved, it is imperative for corporations to use staff commitment programs which help the employees to feel appreciated and also involved in the evolution of the business (Boon et al., 2018). An effectual communication structure is significant for employment commitment and to help form a learning setting. Adidas is very keen on how their manager communicates with the subordinates and this strategy is used to help understand the needs of the employees.
Adidas has what they call ‘monthly touch base’, where the line managers and the employees hold monthly meetings that are focused on performance and development (Wilton, 2016). These meetings are important because they allow the company to understand what is happening within the company and how it is affecting performance. The employees take this space to discuss the issues that affect their performance and how they can be resolved. This motivates the employees to always work hard because they feel valued within the company.
The company also has a 90 day plan where a meeting is held within the company to analyse the focus of the business objectives and what has been achieved so far (Wilton, 2016). These quarterly meetings greatly help to understand the business needs in regard to competition or in matters of microeconomic situations that affect performance. All this meetings help to improve communication between the managers and the rest of the employees which greatly improves performance within the company.
Performance management
One of the key areas that require focus in any organization is performance management, in order to ensure that employees execute at their finest. Debates and responses are very significant in the management of employee performance, this is what helps to guarantee that workers are conscious of their work objectives and that their individual and structural objectives are affiliated (Ulrich, 2014). Adidas has a collaboration system known as ‘A Live’; this is a platform that gives the employees a chance to share information, to associate effectively and to debate current matters with one another (Wilton, 2016). A Live allows the employees to have access to all learning materials any time of the day in a virtual environment. The brand also has an ‘Ask the Management Platform’ that gives employees a chance to communicate with the senior management directly on matters regarding business (Wilton, 2016).
Personal needs of the employees have also been considered by the brand, to ensure that the employees live a harmonious work life. Adidas has flexible working hours and offers family oriented services like day care services which ensure that the needs of their employees most especially those with families are well catered for.
Wages and benefits
One of the key elements that contribute to keeping employees happy is fair remuneration. It is very important for employees to receive equal and also fair payments in order to interest and even preserve the finest workers (Ulrich, 2014). Adidas is one of the companies that offer the best salaries and rewards to its employees. Compensation in the company consists of static and adjustable fiscal recompense, non-fiscal reward and other immaterial remunerations (Wilton, 2016). The brand’s Global Salary Management System helps in establishing and evaluating employees’ positions and the value of their work in a market motivated performance based way (Wilton, 2016).
Diversity and inclusion
Diversity is a key motivator of growth most especially in the contemporary fiercely competitive universal market. The corporations that want success in the universal market must support diversity in the manner that they act, reason and even revolutionize (Wright et al., 2017). Adidas trusts that having a diverse personnel and individuals with diverse experiences is significant in guaranteeing that there is an effectual labour force. Diversity in Adidas is an important element that helps in providing to the ultimatum of a diverse customer base in many units of the world. Adidas is hence against judgement based on sex, faith, culture, age, sexual placement and global opinions (Pratap, 2019). The company has employees from all over the world working in its head office, which helps to show its diversified human resource. Adidas holds consistent global occasions like the Global Diversity day which works to encourage diversity and inclusion all through its organisation (Pratap, 2019).
Conclusion and Recommendation
All this strategies have allowed Adidas to have a great Human Resource strategy whose focus is to ensure that its employees are more productive and have high job satisfaction. Work life flexibility is an important factor that helps create a stress free work environment. Employees also need to be often recognized and given a chance to participate in decisions making within the organization. Another important human resource strategy is good remuneration, offering competitive salaries and rewards help in keeping employees satisfied and hence better performance. Adidas has made all these things possible by understanding the need of their employees and employing the most effective motivation strategies. To have an effective human resource it is important to engage the employees, and this has been done effectively by Adidas. Adidas has been doing its best in nurturing a culture where its employees are motivated and satisfied and tis has greatly contributed to its success.
Even though the human resource management of Adidas is effective, there are still some things that can be done to help it become much more efficient. One element that needs to be focused on is in regard to diversification of its product portfolio. Adidas focuses mostly on the developed nations in Europe, North America and some few Asian countries. This means that the brand has not tapped on human resource in the developing nations in Africa which could greatly help the company to grow and get on par with its competitors.
References
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Doke, D. (2016) ‘Adidas: Where Talent Rules’, Recruiter, pp. 20–25. Available at:
http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=112168495&site=ehost-live (Accessed: 9 July 2019).
Mazur, B 2014, ‘Sustainable Human Resource Management in theory and practice’,
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