Question 1

Strategic Goals of the organization

 To come up with new HR framework, structure and policies that will reduce the cost of

the function by 20%, or $2.8 million.

 To ensure top-level managers are responsible for the management of talent,

 To ensure an equal distribution of HR talent across all the departments in the company,

and to abide the processes with company’s culture

Sonoco’s HR practices and policies

 Formation of a Human Resources Council:

To get their feedback on teamwork and guidance in a proper direction, a council of HR seniors

from different divisions was created to ensure that all goals and objective of HR function were

consistent with the organization's culture. This helped to simply the process and centralize it for

some extent.

 Leadership development:

The general management team has approved a new team of leadership development.For every 24

moths 360 degree updates occur. This addresses the concerns of employees who feel that the

company is not providing indicators or the proper feeback of their work. It will also help

improve company tracking talent.

  Creation of a position or a platform for Organizational Development:

The position of director of organizational development was developed to overhaul the benefits

group such that benefits design, planning and administration are all exercised by single and same

person. This simplified the previously decentralized structure in the company, which allowed

each division to establish its own policies, while also lowering costs.

 Modifications and alterations to the compensation control system.

Five broader pay bands replaced the earlier 18 salary grades ones. Managers were asked to

ascertain control of the performance systems in order to achieve a greater understanding of the

employee's contribution, as manager is more aware of it. This simplified the payout system while

also lowering the costs associated in the earlier structure.

 Newly established Performance Management System:

The new system was designed to establish congruency and consistency in the system, as well as

a new cycle of performance management to connect the company's business objective and

employee's position. This showed that employee and organisation growth could compliment each

other, as well as increased employee transparency for employees.

 Leadership development:
The general management team has approved a new team of leadership development.For every 24

moths 360 degree updates occur. This addresses the concerns of employees who feel that the

company is not providing indicators or the proper feeback of their work. It will also help

improve company tracking talent.

The above programs have helped to achieve some of the compny’s goals. The foundations were

there but there were still problems such as not being able to deal with the issue of weak

performance players and with the compensation plan the basic payment was changed but some

incentives did not match the company's objectives.

By continuing implemented changes and exercising the hybrid organization framework that is

much better than the other Centralized Organization Structure, Sonoco can meet its oragnisation

goals.

Hybrid structure is better than structure which is centralized one. This is due to some studies,

large complex organizations with dynamic areas and advanced technology perform better with

hybrid structures. This structure will allow the right person for the right place in the company's

most profitable area.

Question 2

Changes made in HR policies and practices were as follows:

Changes, including the formation of a director of organizational development role and

restructuring the benefits division to provide design administration and planning benefits under

one person were introduced. A new performance management system was implemented in

March 1996. The new system was exercised to establish continuity in the system, and a new

performance management cycle was designed to connect the company's business goals and

employee's position.

Changes were made to the management of performance. Five broader pay bands were introduced

and replaced the earlier eighteen salary grades. Managers were asked to assume control of the

pay scheme in order to achieve a greater understanding of the employee's contribution. A new

leadership development committee was supported by the succession planning team of general

managers for succession planning and leadership developments. Every 24 months, 360-degree

evaluations were successfully exercised.

Yes the changes introduced in Sonoco’s HR policies and practices can lead to better employee

engagement. For the top management team leadership development program was of great help.

Due to this, adequate personal and job resource were made available to the target employees

such as performance feedback, supervisory coaching and autonomy. The 70/30 rule was

implemented, in which 70% of the learning were undertaken during work phase on the projects

and reaming 30% was dedicated to classroom learning. This 70/30 rule contributed to employee

engagement. According to the new changes the manager was a key person responsible was the
employees promotion and other related activities. This made the system more transparent as the

manager has more knowledge than others about the employees performance. A 360 degree

performance feedback system was exercised which helped employee gather the performance

feedback. This feedback system helped the employees’ better plan the career path with the aid of

the seniors. So the early concern of the employees that only he/she for his work was fulfilled.

Shift from 18 salary structure to five grade system helped link compensation to performance pf

the individual which contribute to employee engagement and satisfaction.

Despite the shifts in HR procedure and strategy, there was always work to be done. Some of the

managers were afraid to deal with long-term issue workers. Furthermore, talent was still mainly

managed and reinforced by division HR managers at the division manager stage. Finally,

although the basic pay structure had been significantly altered, other facets of compensation,

such as bonus programs, remained inconsistent and were not in line with the company's new

strategies. While primary motive of the restructuring of HR was to cut costs, it was also seen as

an opportunity to further standardise and streamline HR processes related to hiring and growth.

To overcome the challenges new steps can be undertaken;

 Bonus programs should alter and should be made consistent with company’s new

strategy. This will help employees fetch better benefits

 Recruitment process should be standardized across the organization. Managers should be

involved in the recruitment process to choose their team members.

 Emphasize your mission and model your primary values

 Plan to reward accomplishments and identify top performers

 flexibility to be provided for the empolyeed

  arrangement of company outings for employees.

 educate the supervisors on best practices in employee engagement

Question 3

Sonoco's current culture has been described as family-oriented, ethical , collaborative,

paternalistic, and team-oriented. The company values its asstes who are employees and is

dedicated to giving them every opportunity to advance their careers and the company by using

their abilities, talent, expertise, passion, and imagination. It was not unusual for workers to spend

their entire careers at the company, according to one longtime employee. Good employee

connections were at the core of Sonoco's value proposition.

Sonoco's brand image would undoubtedly improve as a result of implementing improvements in

Human Resources practices and policies.

 360-degree evaluations were implemented every 24 months. Employees were asked to

share their feedback with their boss and then work together to create development

strategies for their performance improvement form to resolve areas of failure after

receiving it. Employees would not be afraid of any repercussion , if they make

suggestions or recommendations. Where there is a lack of trust between workers and

leaders, truthful feedback will not be forthcoming. As confidence between employee and

manager increases, so does the input department's integrity, which ultimately helps to

improve the employer brand and organizational culture even further. This empower as
 well as motivate employees to progress by offering regular positive input or the

suggestions on their own success, but it will also make them feel respected, recognized

and appreciated, the employee engagement and retention.

 Employees will also be granted flexible working arrangements and family friendly

practises, as stated in the case under the heading benefits, in order to improve work-life

balance and fulfil family obligations. This will not only increase employee trust, but it

will also help in attracting talent and retaining key workers, encouraging everyone to

collaborate and share ideas.

 Introducing performance assessment indicators and management system including

machine downtime, efficiency, customer returns, and so on will show places that each

employee needs to improve, and this will serve as a foundation for developing a career

development plan for them.

 The change the company has implemented in HR policies and practices will increase the

efficiency in the systems. Moreover it can create more transparent structure which can

engaged employees and also attract new Talent in the market.

Question 4

A new performance management system was successfully to help Sonoco Products streamline its

HR processes and make the HR work more tilting towards strategic management rather than

tactical. Continuous training and review of programs is a critical component of a performance

management system. It should be performed and implemented according to set schedules and

frequencies which will help ensure effective follow-up of Performance Management System

which is newly established.

Training programs are critical in recognizing an employee's existing managerial and

technological competence deficiencies or gaps in relation to the current work requirement. An

efficient feedback system, combined with clear time frames, will ensure that an employee or

manager is measured in real time and receives real-time feedback on his or her results, allowing

him or her to progress in the organization.

There are many types of training programmes. In light of the company's current situation,

Sonoco Products should implement the training programmes as stated for its managers in order

for them to succeed in their respective roles:

 Leadership Development Program which has structured framework (required 15-day

training each quarter):

It was created to solve the company's problem of workers struggling to reach management ranks

despite having 15 years of experience. With the support of synchronous and asynchronous

resources in a standardized format, this will help them build the skills in the individuals which

they require. At the management level, having team integration and working skills and abilities

while simultaneously meeting the goals becomes important.

 Action Learning which involved training in each quarter for 8-10 days

The curriculum is structured to provide a manager with an all-encompassing experience of

working in various divisions of the company, confronting and solving current issues in that

division. It will also help develop various viewpoints necessary to effectively handle any of the

obstacles or the important situation. The most important takeaway is that managers will be able

to cultivate the ability to manage a variety of teams in a variety of situations an objective-

oriented approach to problem solving , as well as analytical skills.

 University-based Programs

Time duration: Must be selected for 15 days in three of the next eight quarters

This curriculum will provide managers with up-to-date business developements and key as well

as assist them in acquiring the skills that are in high demand. The business could form a

collaboration with multiple industry training institutes or B-schools to provide their employees

with these skills through asynchronous learning.

The next step is to assess the efficacy of the applied training programme after it has been placed

in place. It is suggested that you use the Kirkpatrick model to accomplish this.
Reaction, Learning, Behaviour, and Results are the four components of the model.

 Managerial Reaction:

This assesses how the managers feel about the program and their own experiences. It

being with data collection to extract useful insights about various aspects such as

managerial learning and efficiency from the managers in order to better understand the

implementation of the training programme.

 Learning: It is mainly on evaluating the amount of learning from the program that

managers have grasped significantly in order to understand the nature of the program and

to decide whether any adjustments or alterations are necessary. The defined learnings are

then used to build individual goals for each manager that include the major learning

objectives.

 Behaviour: It measures the managers' behavioural changes in terms of managing a team

and coping with a crisis. This is assessed by looking at a variety of scenarios over a set

period of time and seeing how the manager applied the knowledge to the practical on

goingg challenges

 Results: It deals with assessing the effect of the training program on the company and

changes that resulted from it. The emphasis of this process is on separating individual

evaluations in order to provide individual recommendations for progress, and then

combining all of the outcomes to draw a conclusion about the efficacy of a training

programme.