Human Resource Management

in the Service Sector

Review of the course


2
Overview
Course examines the HRM challenges in the knowledge-
intensive service sector

1. Introduction: characteristics of the service sector and
identifying the knowledge-intensive section of this
sector (1 week)
2. Develop theoretical frameworks and perspectives for
analysing the HR challenges (2 weeks)
3. Investigation of HR challenges in four types of
organisations in this sector: call centres, management
consulting, law and creative (8 weeks)

Summary and review (second half of final week)

3
Course design







HRM
challenges
theory
Call
centres
Theory
Management
consultancies
Theory
Law
Firms:
theory
and case
Creative
Firms:
Theory and
case
Managing
knowledge
workers
Call
centres
Case
Management
consultancies
Case

Law
Firms:
theory
and case
Creative
Firms:
Theory and
case
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4
Literature focus for the course
HRM & knowledge-
intensive services
Services sector
Professional
Services
5
Week 1: Introduction to the service
sector: objectives
Outline the importance of the service sector in
modern economies
Identify the key characteristics of service work
and the areas of the sector for detailed study:
knowledge intensive work
Outline the research in the area
Introduce the HRM challenges posed by
knowledge based service sector working
6
Converting Human Capital into
Intellectual Capital
Human Capital
Employee
Knowledge
Skills
Experience
Conversion
Process
Intellectual Capital Human Capital
Role of HR
practices in this
conversion process
Products
and
services
which have
market value
7
Implications for HRM
Intangible
Knowledge
based
Customised
Professional
Measurement
Standardisation
Performance
management/reward
Training and
Development
Recruit and retain
Staff
allocation
Renewal
Organisational
commitment
Nature of Work Managerial problem HRM issue
(Drawn from Suddaby and Greenwood (2006) Maister (2003) and Batt (2006))
8
Week 2: HR practices in knowledge
intensive firms: objectives
To understand the distinctive characteristics of
knowledge intensive service firms
To identify the key resources (forms of capital)
that knowledge intensive firms draw on for their
success
To identify the challenges for managing people
and managing knowledge faced by knowledge
intensive firms
To explore the ways in which HR strategy,
structure, delivery and practices can be used to
create valuable products and services
9
Pressures on knowledge intensive firms
Product market -
Customers and clients
Financial success
short and long term
Employment market
needs of employees
KIF
(Maister, 2003)
10
Intellectual
Capital
Human
capital
Social
capital
Structural
capital
Network
Capital
Client
Capital

Organizational
Capital

Forms of Capital
Knowledge skills
and experience of
staff
Knowledge
embedded in
values, culture
and
relationships
Ways of
structuring
work
Procedures, policies
and processes
Knowledge of
and
relationships
with clients
Knowledge of
and
relationships
with network
members
11
Human
capital
Social
capital
Structural
capital
Network
Capital
Client
Capital
Organizational
Capital

Intellectual
Capital
Resourcing
Pay and Reward
Delivery
The HR
Wheel
Kinnie et al 2006
12
Week 3: Managing knowledge
workers: objectives
Define a knowledge worker
Identify the characteristics of knowledge workers and
understand the human resource management
challenges presented by them
Explain how knowledge workers are managed
Identify and discuss the dilemmas associate with the
management of knowledge workers
Understand how social identity can resolve some of the
tensions involved in the management of knowledge
workers
13
Managerial challenges
How can organisations retain and develop their
professionals?
Presents three dilemmas that sit between the
employee and the organisation

Retention Employability
Organisation specific
Transferable
Value capture
Ownership of value
M
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14
Multiple sources of identity
Organisation
Client
Professional
Team
EE
15
Weeks 4 and 5: Call Centres:
objectives
Define call centres and understand the reasons for their
growth
Identify the key characteristics of the nature and
management of call centres
Analyse their forms of human capital and consider the
implications for HR especially recruitment, selection and
retention
Examine recent changes in call centres especially the
moves towards outsourcing and off-shoring
Apply the 4 ID model to gain insights into the nature of
work in call centres with reference to the Norwich
Union case

(Refs: Deery and Kinnie, 2004; Korczynski, 2002, Frenkel et al, 1999, Homan, 2004)
16
Weeks 6 and 7: Management
Consulting: objectives
To understand the characteristics of the management
consulting industry
History
Types of organisations
Types of consultancy activities
Typology of human capital
According to the client interface process
Career structures within management consultancy
The role of consultants as knowledge brokers
Typology of client capital
The consulting firm client relationships
The HRM practice focus:
Recruiting human capital
Managing across boundaries


Human
capital
Social
capital
Structural
capital
Network
Capital
Client
Capital
Organizational
Capital
17
Using external facilitators poses a challenge to many
forms of intellectual capital flows
Clients Facilitators
18
Facilitator network: HC viewpoint
External pool of
facilitators
Focal
Practice
Group
Regions
Other
Practice
Groups
Clients
Clients
Clients
Clients
Facilitators
within
clients
External skill experts
External skill experts
External skill experts
HC
boundary
19
Weeks 8 and 9: Law Firms:
objectives
Understand the basic characteristics of the
sector
Identify the traditional model of organising
and management of HR
Consider some of the key changes in the
sector and the responses of law firms
Identify the challenges this presents for HRM
and for knowledge management
Focus on the key issue of remuneration and
reward, especially variable reward
Analyse a practical case drawing on our
knowledge of theory
20
Traditional HR practices
Up or Out
Elite
recruitment
Apprenticeship
model
Partner in 6 years
or leave the firm
High reward for
equity partners
21
High Trust
Local law firm - medium sized and growing fast
Strong emphasis on culture and values inclusive
and mutual respect building social capital
sharing work and knowledge
Issue of how to reward their staff who contribute
to the success of the firm while reinforcing their
values
22
Weeks 10 and 11: Creative
Firms: objectives
Understand the basic characteristics of the
sector and establish our focus on
advertising/marketing agencies
Identify the key forms of capital present in
these firms
Identify the challenges this presents for HRM
especially the development and retention of
staff
Draw contrasts between two practical cases
on the way they manage these HR
challenges
23
Building network capital
Client
Marketing
manager
Agency
24
Key challenges and tensions facing
HRM in marketing agencies
External Resourcing
Attraction and retention of staff valuable to the firm and to existing and potential clients
Recruiting for internal development recruiting experienced staff
Internal Resourcing
Promotion and career building efficient allocation of staff
Rotation of staff - building and maintaining client and network relationships
Training and Development
Developing human capital - developing client capital
Importance of coaching, feedback and development importance of serving client needs
Reward
Intrinsic rewards linked to development extrinsic rewards linked to client success
Longer term rewards through promotion shorter term linked to targets

Our focus: the interaction between the need to develop employees, serve the
needs of clients and achieve financial success




25
Revision
Essential to understand the basic
theoretical frameworks underlying the
course (weeks 2 and 3 especially)
Need to be able to apply these to the four
sectors studied (eg how does the reactor
model apply to creative firms)
Facility to move between theory and
practice (to understand the theory in
practice and the practice in theory)
26
Revision continued
Cases studied in class are important along
with other cases and your own experience
Key is to build up your understanding of
the issues at a sector level and at a
macro/cross sector level
Use the frameworks and models to guide
your analysis to help you understand the
issues/problems/cases
27
Examination structure and rubric
Unseen paper in 2 hours no additional
materials
6 questions one from each sector
studied plus two others
Answer three questions
28
Sample questions
What are the most important external pressures
on the managers of knowledge intensive firms?
How might HR strategy and practice help to
manage these pressures?
How might the concept of multiple identities help
managers of HR contribute to the creation of
organisational value in professional service
firms?
With reference to the High Trust case study
discuss the problems associated with designing
a variable reward system in law firms. How
might these problems be resolved?
29
Expectations
Demonstrate your learning and your understanding of
the theory and the practice
Answers which directly focus on the question (basic
descriptive answers will get a low pass)
Explicit references to previous research (you will get
credit for this)
Good use of practical examples to illustrate points
(credited)
Highlight conflicts and tensions where they exist
Develop an argument which is supported by theory and
evidence (illustrates higher level understanding)
30
Advice
All the basics apply: plan your answer/focus on
the question/refer to relevant theory and
examples/pull it together
Thorough revision understanding not rote
learning test yourself out use the models to
analyse cases; use the cases to ask: what is this
an example of?
See links between the models and sectors
Use contemporary examples if you can shows
engagement with the material