Hr at Hp

The HP Way was difficult to define in some areas since it was not completely standardized but more of a general atmosphere of the company. The HP way did however stem from the fact that the company cared about how things were done as opposed to only what was achieved in the end. The primary values of the HP Way were trust and respect for individuals; high level of achievement and contribution; conducting business with integrity; common objectives and teamwork; and flexibility and innovation. These objectives were first envisioned by David Packard in order to bring everyone in the company on the same level of thinking. According to the people interviewed in the case, the concept worked quite well. For example, workers said that working there “felt different” and that the lack of complaining about management stood out. This stood out so much that one worker thought it was too good to be true and became somewhat suspicious at first.

The company had many structures and policies which supported the HP Way. It was said in the case that when HP hired someone, they were hired forever. They went for the best talent they could find with the expectation of keeping them onboard. The hiring process reflected the HP Way focus on “how” something was done by asking applicants about how they would go about doing something in their interviews. In addition, the company avoided layoffs by increasing work hours and instituting a transfer system within the company. HP also instituted a policy of “management by objectives” or MBO. The greatest advantage to this policy was that while it did set goals for employees and groups, it was not a specific task set handed out by management. It was a set of goals which could be achieved in multiple ways and allowed the employees to grow in their own way to some extent. It was decentralizing in some ways to the company but in the big picture it was a positive step for management to take. In terms of management style, the company was committed to teamwork. One of the best ways this was shown was “management by wandering around” or MBWA. MBWA was an excellent policy because it enabled open communication throughout the company. While it was time consuming, it worked very well in showing lower level employees that their voice mattered and that management was listening. Some employees and managers thought it odd at first since it was not something frequently seen in companies and budgeting time for it was the main concern.

Other seemingly small details reinforced the HP way throughout the company with details like top executives having modest sized offices and most individual offices having no doors. These details psychologically reinforced the idea of open communication within the company by symbolically eliminating “barriers” between employees and management and between employees themselves. The company also instituted the same profit sharing plan across all employees and all employees received stock options. The little details which may be big issues to some people within the company were part of the big picture which reinforced the HP way throughout the company.

Question 2

Working for Hewlett-Packard would have many good points and bad points. In the first forty years of business, the company established its objectives and followed them almost to the letter even though many of these “values” were not written down until much later. The process was a type of mission statement although not exactly the same. The company went out of its way to keep employees with the company, even if this meant requiring weekend work. In the 1980s when a downturn happened and the company instituted the greater working time policy, it did not work as well as expected. Instead of resorting to layoffs, the company instituted a system of transferring within the company which was called “redeployment”. This policy showed the level of commitment Hewlett-Packard had for its employees but it also showed how the company wanted to maximize its human capital pool. The policy also required responsibility on the part of the employee where they were expected to find another job within the organization during three months paid search time. Profit sharing also required responsibility on the part of employees. Since the success of the company is a team effort, it required all employees to contribute in order for a profit to be achieved. Promotion and merit increases were also focused on responsibility of the employee. This was done by making performance reviews based on “sustained contribution”. This required that employees actually “play” the part rather than “act” the part. This was important within the organization because it encouraged personal commitment on the part of the employees.

Like UPS, Hewlett-Packard began