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.

The situation that will be discussed revolves around the challenges my organization faced

post-COVID related to reducing the physical office space and functioning in a remote work

environment. As many companies did, the organization transitioned to a remote environment

during the pandemic beginning in 2020. When the number of COVID cases decreased and more

people were vaccinated, the organization had to decide whether or not a “return to office” policy

would be implemented. The organization as a whole desired to be flexible and left the decision

on whether or not to return to office up to the Senior Leadership of each individual business unit.

The Senior Leadership for the business unit I work for decided that we would remain

primarily remote. This decision meant addressing things like how to handle our existing large

office space, where to relocate to, ensuring that critical work flows could still be maintained in a

new smaller space, etc. In my role as a Project Analyst, I was involved in finding an adequate

office space that met our needs, determining what ongoing processes needed to be implemented

to ensure a fluid transition to remote status, working with the Leadership on technology needs,

etc.

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

Human resources influenced this situation in various ways. In the beginning, prior to

Senior Leadership deciding that the team would remain remote, they sent out multiple survey’s

to the team. These surveys were meant to gauge where everyone was in terms of their thoughts

about going back to the office (i.e. how comfortable they were with it) and just general

preferences (would they prefer a primarily remote work environment, a hybrid environment with

some requirements weekly or monthly in-office time, or an entirely in-office environment). This

is in line with the concept of egalitarianism mentioned in the reading. Doing these surveys

implied a democratic workplace and that employees' opinions would be integral part of the

decision making (Bolman & Deal, 2021).

Another way human resources impacted the decision in an effort to keep employees.

Many companies, whether they were already operating in a remote environment or transitioning

to remote work, were focused on retaining their valuable employees by offering attractive

benefits. This is a human resources strategy often employed by organizations (Bolman & Deal,

2021). Having a remote environment is typically viewed as a positive benefit. Additionally, the

time during COVID proved to be a test showing that remote work was possible, although it was

initially done under “forced” circumstances. This circumstance is one that worked in favor of

employees because they could use that as a reason to search for other employment if the option

to remain remote wasn’t available..

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

Regarding an alternative course of action, one option could have been to empower

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employees to make individual decisions about their work environment. This means allowing

each person to choose whether they prefer remote work or full-time office work. Some

individuals, despite valuing flexibility, initially wanted to work in the office full time, missing

the social interactions with their team.

The absence of this social aspect also brings to mind one of the "Models of Motivation at

Work," specifically The Two-factor theory by Frederick Herzberg (Bolman & Deal, 2021). This

theory introduces "Motivators," crucial job elements that inspire individuals to stay and grow in

a role (Iyer, 2022). One of these motivators is interpersonal relationships. Without the social

interaction in the in-office environment, some employees may feel that their needs are not being

fulfilled. By adopting a "human resources" frame perspective, there could have been a greater

focus on empowering employees to make decisions that suit them best while ensuring that their

individual needs are being addressed.

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

Given what I have learned this last week of the human resources frame, I wouldn't make

any significant changes to my approach. Utilizing the surveys to assess employee preference

regarding returning to the office or remaining remote was a wise decision. It conveyed to the

employees that the leadership team considered what they desired when deciding post-COVID

plans. In general, involving employees in major decisions can greatly contribute to a positive

environment.

If I were to make a minor adjustment, I would focus on ensuring that the social

interaction needs of employees who wanted to return to the office were adequately addressed.

Since social interaction is a motivator for some individuals in their work environment, providing

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more opportunities for this could be of benefit. Although the decision was made to primarily

remain remote and downsize the office, introducing some structure, such as monthly or quarterly

in-person meetings or work sessions, could offer individuals wanting more team interaction a

sense of belonging. While the organization hasn't implemented this so far, it might be a

beneficial consideration in the future.

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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.

Iyer, Y. (2022, June 10). Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory in Project Management. Blog Wrike.
https://www.wrike.com/blog/what-is-herzbergs-two-factor-theory/#:~:text=Herzberg’s%20two%
2Dfactor%20theory%20is,work%20together%20in%20a%20cycle.