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OGL 481 Pro-Seminar I:

PCA-Human Resource Frame Worksheet
Worksheet Objectives:
1. Describe the human resource frame
2. Apply the human resource frame to your personal case situation

Complete the following making sure to support your ideas and cite from the textbook and other
course materials per APA guidelines. After the peer review, you have a chance to update this and
format for your Electronic Portfolio due in Module 6.

1) Briefly restate your situation from Module 1 and your role.

My situation is the problems experienced during Salt River Project (SRP)'s

realignment from an in-person to a hybrid workspace. To solve their concern of
insufficient office space, SRP instituted several changes. In this adjustment, they
converted cubicles to shared spaces, allocated modern technology to work from home,
and introduced two online platforms to facilitate virtual communication.
During this period, I had recently left retail to join the Quality Assurance and
Asset Management team (QAM) as a Digital Asset Management Intern. In that role, I
managed the organization’s created photo and video files. Unfortunately, the timing of
my arrival signified that I had to acclimate to their new and old procedures. It was a
difficult period that challenged my inexperience in the field and ability to quickly build
rapport with team members.

2) Describe how the human resources of the organization influenced the situation.

When everyone viewed employees as replaceable, Mary Parker Follett and Elton
Mayo perceived skills, attitudes, energy, and commitment as integral factors for success
(Bolman & Deal, 2021). That belief has shaped the perspective of modern organizations,
with leaders valuing team growth and morale above profit margins. At SRP, they
implement many of the basic human resource strategies. In this approach, the
organization created HR guidelines for management to follow, evaluated prospects based
on organizational fit, offered various employee benefits, and facilitated development
opportunities.
Despite those efforts to promote internal growth, our team became dependent on
the knowledge and expertise of employees. Within this group, we had several members
assigned work equivalent to two employees. For example, when processing files, they
were also expected to investigate them for their relative location and the identification of
individuals depicted. That dependency required employees to have a substantial
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knowledge of previous conventions and the faces of those associated with the
organization. Due to that increased responsibility, our team quickly became overwhelmed
and prone to errors.

3) Recommend how you would use the human resources for an alternative course of
action regarding your case.

Although SRP managed to provide numerous benefits for employees, they fell
into the pitfalls of the Lean and Mean archetype. Because of this, the QAM team was
small and flexible in job responsibilities. In consequence, they cost the organization less
money and operated with higher efficiency (Bolman & Deal, 2021). However, that size
caused our team to struggle to meet the current work expectations. While the group could
fulfill the tasks assigned, the quantity overwhelmed them. Instead, I would suggest
pivoting toward the investing in people approach.
Despite the company providing substantial support to hired employees, the
problem stemmed from a reluctance to expand. In a newly formed team like QAM,
leadership was uncertain of the necessary staff. As a result, they ignored requests for
more job openings after deeming that the current standard was enough. However, with
their new platform innovations relying on our archival and review process, this need for
expansion grew. In this situation, I would recommend increasing the personnel prior to
implementation. That decision affords managers time to onboard new employees with the
company’s basic procedures before acclimating to recent changes.

4) Reflect on what you would do or not do differently given what you have learned
about this frame.

In summary, SRP’s utilization of the human resources frame was beneficial and
harmful to the organization. With this frame, leadership afforded current employees with
benefits, inclusion, and stability. That treatment by the company led employees to feel
comfortable enough to remain decades later. Unfortunately, the problem was the
organization’s overreliance on the employees’ developed expertise.
Instead, I believe SRP should utilize Argyris and Schon’s second model. This
method split into four quadrants based on high to low proficiency in advocacy and
inquiry: assertive, integrative, passive, and accommodating (Bolman & Deal, 2021). In
doing so, management fields open communication with employees by listening to the
concerns and potential solutions that employees might offer. At SRP, this extended
invitation could have led to a faster hiring process in understaffed departments like QAM.
Thus, lightening the workload as the company embarked toward organizational
realignment.
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Reference
Bolman, L.G., & Deal, T.E. (2021). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership
(7th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.