The Impact of HR Trends in Amazon Inc

The Impact of HR Trends in Amazon Inc

The human resource department is an important part of an organization that helps in the effective management of employees with the view of attaining the set objectives and goals. Numerous companies use HRM to leverage technology to increase their market share and dominance. One of the companies that have successfully implemented HRM is Amazon which has enabled the organization to become one of the four biggest technology companies in the United States of America and the world at large. Global HR trends such as Human Resource Integrated Software (HRIS), globalization and CSR have had the greatest impact on Amazon while other trends such as Off shoring, outsourcing and worker’s unions have had no impact on Amazon.

Trends that Impact Amazon

Human Resource Integrated Software (HRIS)

Amazon has one of the biggest workforces in the world, with a total population of more than 750,000 employees spread worldwide (Veenendaal & Bondarouk, 2015). The management of the workforce can be a toll on the organization structure in that it can result in the disruption of the chain of production. Notably, Amazon deals in the online retail of products, cloud computing. Besides, the company engages in offering cloud computing and artificial intelligence services. To ensure that there is effective management of the workforce, the company uses HRIS to control and monitor the vats workforce.

The computerized system of HRIS helps the Human resource manager to store the names of the employees in a chronological manner indicating the date they were hired, qualifications, designation and salary (Veenendaal & Bondarouk, 2015).  In addition, HRIS is used by Amazon to offer the promotion to workers by providing consistent data and information that pertain to the performance of workers and the ability of the employees to meet the key performance indicators set by the directors and supervisors. It is important to note that Amazon is a company that is highly scrutinized by both the public and the government hence the need to ensure that the workers are promoted based on merit.

In addition, the HRIS system automates the payroll of workers where the pay slips are processed by the system (Belcourt et al., 2016). Notably, the HRIS implements the check-off system in that it is able to remit money to banks that the employees have taken up loans, mortgage and other financial obligations. In addition, HRIS is used to send pay slips to employees via the various emails provided by workers. Additionally, the computerized system is instrumental in the recruitment of workers in that it is able to match the resumes of different people with the requirements of a job.

Globalization

The invention of internet services has turned the country to a global village in that people can be able to transact business in different locations seamlessly. It is integral to highlight that Amazon relies heavily on the internet to adverse its business objectives and goals (Belcourt et al., 2016).  The internet has helped Amazon to reach millions of customers across the globe. Notably, customers are able to access the Amazon website from different geographical locations and place their orders which are delivered within the stipulated time. Besides, globalization has enabled Amazon to increase its pool of employees in which they can choose from.

Globalization comes with various aspects such as various geographies, employment laws and safety standards. The operations of Amazon allow the company to employ workers from different nations (Rao & Krishna, 2015).  Each country that Amazon operates has different employment laws which are not similar to those of the US. If not followed to the core, the companies can be used by the company, which might have a huge financial impact on Amazon. Globalization has enabled Amazon to understand the employment laws applicable in different jurisdictions.

Furthermore, globalization enables Amazon to adhere to the safety standards of countries. The environment in which people receive process and distribute goods should be safe in that it does not interfere with the health of workers (Rao & Krishna, 2015).  Globalization has enabled Amazon to construct warehouses with adequate room temperature. Besides, the use of social media helps the company increase the clientele base of the organization. Notably, the company advertises its products such as books and electronics to prospective consumers on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram where customers are given the option of placing orders.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

CSR is an integral part of Amazon in which the company gives back to the various stakeholders that are affected by the operations of the entity. One of the beneficiaries of CSR are the employees who are given funds by the company to advance education in other careers, apart from what they do in Amazon (Rao & Krishna, 2015). In addition, employees in the IT department that maintain the e-commerce website is highly compensated by the management. Also, the company organizes workshop forums where the company trains the staff and impacts hem, with new skills that position them higher in the job market.

The compensation of employees helps them to secure the information systems and computing devices of Amazon. Additionally, the act of compensating the IT employees helps in maintaining the employees in the general workforce and reduces the chances of rival companies such as Alibaba from poaching the workers hence increasing its dominance in the market (Rao & Krishna, 2015). On the other hand, the idea of funding higher education for its employees motivates the workers to work more and ensures that Amazon builds its human capacity. Moreover, Amazon improves its public image by engaging in charitable activities. It is important to note that the customers decide which charitable activities that the organization should take part in.

Trends with No Impact

Offshoring

Offshoring is an HR trend that deals with the transfer of jobs from one country to another. Notably, Amazon was founded in the US but is spread to various countries in the world. The organization does not transfer its workforce to work in other countries (Belcourt et al., 2016).  Instead, Amazon employs workers from the countries that they establish the company. It is important to pint out that majority of countries do not allow the importation of labor, especially in areas that the citizens can work effectively. Moreover, Amazon hires local workforce of the respective countries, which enables improve the image of the organization. Besides, employing the local workforce helps them to own Amazon’s activities.

Outsourcing

Amazon is a large company in terms of assets and employment, which makes it difficult to handle all the processes. As a consequence therein, Amazon outsources various services from other companies. Some of the common services outsourced include vehicles and drivers for delivering goods to consumers (Belcourt et al., 2016). Additionally, Amazon outsources the services of an international shipping company to transport products overseas. Also, the company uses importing companies to buy products from other countries. Besides, Amazon outsources external auditors who go through the book of accounts and provide the actual position of the company.

However, outsourcing service from other parties in the form of contracts has no significant impact on the business. The various services offered by outsourced companies can be done by the people employed by Amazon (Belcourt et al., 2016). Notably, Amazon can purchase vans and employ its own drivers who can effectively deliver products to customers in various locations. When it comes to shipping services, the company can venture in the logistics business to help it make overseas sales. Therefore, outsourcing has no impact on the workforce and the general operations of Amazon.

Worker’s Union

In many countries, there has been an increase in the number of unions of workers. The unions are formed to advance the interest of the workers and defend workers in the event the employer contravenes the rights of an employee (Kaiser et al., 2015).  Notably, an employer is supposed to remit a certain percentage of a worker to the union to facilitate the operations of the workers. In addition, the worker’s union offers mediation services between an employer and an employee. Besides, the emergence of unions offers workers with legal services on the rights and those of employers.

However, the worker’s union has no impact on the operations of Amazon. Since Amazon was formed, employees are not allowed to join any union. The Amazon leadership has laid appropriate mechanisms where the grievances of workers are addressed (Kaiser et al., 2015).  It is integral to pint out that the company offers a competitive remuneration package compared with other technological companies.  The Human resource department is instrumental in addressing the complaints of workers such as poor remuneration, promotion, job transfers and working environment. Therefore, there is no need for employees to join unions since Amazon has a robust framework of HRM that the workers can use to address their plights.

Conclusion

The human resource management experiences tremendous changes that relate to the management of workforce and attainment of goals. The changes in HR are normally referred to as trends which have an impact. Also, some of the trends have no impact on the management of the human resource. Some of the trends that have a huge impact on the operations and effectiveness of human resource in Amazon include Human Resource Integrated Software (HRIS), globalization and CSR which increase the efficiency of the workforce in terms of productivity. On the other hand, there are trends such as Offshoring, outsourcing and worker’s unions’ trends have no impact on the management of employees in Amazon since the company can create alternative mechanisms of countering the trends.

References

Belcourt, M., Bohlander, G. W., Snell, S., Singh, P., & Morris, S. (2016). Managing Human Resources. Vancouver : Langara College

Kaiser, S., Kozica, A., Swart, J., & Werr, A. (2015). Human Resource Management in Professional Service Firms: Learning from a framework for research and practice. Zeitschrift Für Personalforschung / German Journal of Research in Human Resource Management, 29(2), 77-101.

Rao, G., & Krishna, D. (2015). Alignment of HR Practices with Organizational Strategies. Indian Journal of Industrial Relations, 50(4), 666-679.

Veenendaal, A., & Bondarouk, T. (2015). Perceptions of HRM and their effect on dimensions of innovative work behaviour: Evidence from a manufacturing firm. Management Revue, 26(2), 138-160