Problem
Mr. Harris On The Job-Case Study
850 words maximum
Dashon Harris was hired nine (9) months ago as the Human Resources Manager for MO Ice Cream Company. MO Ice Cream has been in operation for 50 years and has a strong brand in the local market. MO Ice Cream main competition is from foreign high-end ice cream brands that are sold in the major supermarkets.
MO Ice Cream has 95 employees spread between the following departments:
1) Engineering
2) Sales
3) Logistics
4) Production
5) Marketing
6) HR & Administration
The majority of the staff are in the Production, Sales and Logistics departments. The HR & Administration Department comprises of the Human Resources Manager, HR Assistant, Payroll Clerk, Receptionist/Accounts Clerk and Accountant.
Mr. Harris arrives to work on Monday to find two (2) employees sitting waiting to meet with him. His Assistant indicated that they were sent by the Production Manager, so he can speak to them about the importance of reporting to work on time. As he was about to sit behind his desk, he receives a call from the Logistics Manager, requesting that they need a helping hand in Logistics, and he wanted to know if Mr. Harris can inquire of Sales or Production if they could transfer an employee to Logistics for the day.
Mr. Harris looked at his watch and he remembered that he needed to go with the Engineering Manager to meet with the Supplier of Safety Shoes, as the Labour Department will be auditing the Production Plant later in the week, they needed to ensure that their safety shoes were to the required specifications. However, as he was getting ready to leave, two employees from the Sales Department turned up along with the Shop Steward, as they have a grievance with the Sales Supervisor. Harris stopped to speak with the employees to find out about the grievance, but in speaking with them, he realised they had not spoken with the Sales Manager. Mr. Harris explained that he had an appointment for which he was already late for and he will speak with them on his return. As he left the office with the Engineering Manager, he realised that he was still to design a new Performance Management System for the Company.
He recognised that the staff are losing their focus and the competitors are starting to take some of their market share but there are just not enough hours in the day. The staff at MO Ice Cream needs targets and sales targets. He was hired to deliver on the Performance Management System, but nothing has been done. He was starting to wonder if he will keep his job. As Mr. Harris was thinking about this outstanding task, when the General Manager, Jo-anne Mo, called to find out when will he be making the presentation of the Performance Management System to the Management Team for their input. He told her he will get back with a date, but he knows she must be running out of patience.
As they pulled into the carpark of the supplier's office, he received another call from the HR Assistant informing him that when he returns to the office the Sales Department would like him to sit in of their vacation planning meeting, the staff are not pleased with the holiday dates given and would wish Mr. Harris to address the problem. He realised, if he was going to accomplish the key goal given to him on hiring, he is going to have to work some late hours over the next few weeks. As he got out of the car, he remembered he had to review the Company's weekly payroll before if goes to the Payroll Clerk. Last week he did not get to review it and there were so many discrepancies, some staff were over paid, and some received short hours.
As Mr. Harris walked towards the door of the supplier's office, he thought this was going to be his dream job ... the pay and benefits are real good but his heart has been racing almost every day for the last three (3) months when he is at work and when he goes home he is no fun to be around.
Task
A. Is Mr. Harris practising human resources management or personnel management? Please justify your response.
B. Assess Mr. Harris' performance to date at MO Ice Cream.
C. What is the role of the Human Resources Manager when compared to the Line Manager?
D. What advice would you give to Mr. Harris?