Hardy (1990) describes how the concept of work has changed throughout the centuries.
BUSI750 – Discuss Board Post Reply – Victoria Zimmerman
Please provide a 250 Word post response to the following DB Post.
The Evolving Concept of Work
Hardy (1990) describes how the concept of work has changed throughout the centuries. What was once considered an activity done by the lowest humans on the totem pole eventually evolved to become something that is necessary and, in fact, a responsibility granted to humanity by God. Through work, an individual serves his or her neighbors, as well as God. When someone is carrying out the tasks outlined in their job description, they are helping others who depend on them to get these jobs done, as well as continuing God’s cultivation of the planet.
It is reasonable to think that the ideas of which Hardy (1990) presents make sense. It is mentioned that everyone is created equally but with different talents and abilities. It is the responsibility of each person to use their gifts to work on a team and further the common good. In a business, all of the employees handle different functions that all come together to support the mission of the organization. From the janitorial staff to the executive officers, each person performs their responsibilities so everyone can work together and accomplish bigger, common goals.
Employee Engagement/Retention and Globalization from a Christian Worldview
Many companies struggle with employee turnover. Narayanan et al. (2019) describe how improving turnover rates is a key factor to increasing effectiveness and maintaining a strong competitive advantage. The authors believe that through talent management a company can improve its retention rates. Companies that carefully select their employees and invest in them will be more likely to find employees who wish to reciprocate to their employers. They generally will have positive attitudes and performance. Hardy (1990) would agree with careful attention being given to talent management to ensure that the employees are a good fit for the role and environment that they will be placed in. Since society is to be organized as an organic unit, members are interdependent and contribute to the whole. If one is not a good fit, all of the members may suffer. This could cause good employees to leave, since they will likely need to be working harder to pick up the other’s slack.
Valentine et al. (2020) discuss how employee engagement is another way to improve employee retention. Employees who are engaged will understand how the work that they are doing directly contributes to the organization. This aligns with what Hardy (1990) discusses regarding each person having a place in society (or in this case, the organization) that contributes to the greater good. Employees who are actively engaged will demonstrate increased loyalty to a company. Valentine et al. (2020) list several benefits that engaged employees bring to an organization, such as putting forth additional effort, remaining productive, and having a strong investment in their position. Disengaged employees are the ones who will eventually separate from the organization. Those who do not separate but are not engaged tend to bring down the morale of the company. One way to encourage employees to feel more engaged with their job is to invest in a variety of different resources. Lee et al. (2020) breaks these resources into five different categories: organizational, social, job, home, and personal.
Globalization is another area that should be given consideration. With increasing numbers of companies expanding into global markets, it is important for human resource professionals to understand how to best manage intercultural interactions. Valentine et al. (2020) explain a model introduced by Geert Hofstede that assists managers when they are making the decision as to whether a geographical area will be a good fit for their expansion or not. Ditta (2020) offers guidance on how to best transition and deal with the changes that a business will experience after making the decision to expand. The concept of globalization can be an example of how humanity is furthering God’s work on earth. As markets grow and companies expand, people are learning and becoming more understanding of new cultures, creating new possibilities to continue to subdue the earth together.
Conclusion
In conclusion, human resources concepts and functions can be heavily related to Christian principles. When one thinks of employee engagement and retention, or even globalization, the strategies become clearer and more successful when a Christian mindset is applied.
References
Ditta, G. (2020). Internationalization and human resource management: Having intercultural understanding in the ages of globalization. Academicus International Scientific Journal, 22(22). 30-40.
Hardy, L. (1990). The fabric of this world. William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
Lee, J., Rocco, T., & Shuck, B. (2020). What is a resource: Toward a taxonomy of resources for employee engagement. Human Resource Development Review, 19(1). 5-38.
Narayanan, A., Rajithakumar, S., & Menon, M. (2019). Talent management and employee retention: An integrative research framework. Human Resource Development Review, 18(2). 228-247.
Valentine, S., Meglich, P., Mathis, R., & Jackson, J. (2020). Human resource management. Cengage Learning, Inc.
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