Case study 9 high performance work systems HIGH PERFORMANCE WORK SYSTEMS AT ORLEY COUNCIL

Case Study 9. High-performance Work Systems HIGHPERFORMANCE WORK SYSTEMS AT ORLEY COUNCIL
The case
Orley Council is a medium-sized borough council with about 4,000 staff covering all the
normal local government functions. A traditional approach to personnel management has
been adopted with the following main features:
●

recruitment through advertisements and agencies (no selection tests used);

●

conventional job descriptions available for most jobs, listing duties in some detail;

● a competency framework has been developed that is used in the analysis of training
needs but it has not yet been fully applied as an aid to selection interviewing or
performance management;
●

a performance appraisal system is in operation using a rating scale – there is
evidence that managers are not particularly enthusiastic about it and that staff think it
just exists as a stick to beat them with;

●

extensive supervisory training takes place, administered by external providers;

●

a policy to encourage personal development planning exists but is not applied
comprehensively;

●

a multi-graded pay structure (16 grades) is in place; progression is entirely through
service-related increments;

●

the standard local government job evaluation scheme is used.

The newly appointed Director of HR has been given a brief to review all aspects of the
personnel/HR practices adopted by the council and produce a people strategy.
The Comprehensive Performance Assessment has given the council two stars and reports
that in general it is improving. But the report criticized the council for a failure to pay sufficient
attention to improving performance and commented that a strong performance culture did not
appear to exist. The Director of HR was therefore asked by the Chief Executive to pay
particular attention to this criticism.
The Director of HR consulted the DTI (now the Department of Business, Enterprise and
Regulatory Reform) report on high-performance working practices, which described the
concept in some detail and included a number of interesting case studies, none of which,
unfortunately, was for a local authority.
He referred to the Tavistock Institute 2006 report for the Local Government Board on future
workforce issues. He noted that the report contained the views of 10 leading chief executives
on their key workforce challenges, which were:


1. To improve general management skills (including relationship management,
sophisticated project management, strategic management and management of
structural change).
2. To develop a flexible, customer-orientation among frontline staff.
3. To become an employer of preference in an increasingly tight labour market.

He also noted the report’s conclusion that the reluctance to change in local government is
often well grounded or deeply embedded; for instance:
●

High-performance/high-commitment HRM tends to get introduced under particular
circumstances.

●

A strategic approach to HRM does not necessarily imply a transformational HR
approach.

●

There are rational alternative choices and other levers for driving change.

●

There are less rational forces at work too (for instance between members and
officers);.

● The organization of local government around professions continues to have profound
effects and cannot be wished away.
Finally, he looked up the e-reward case study on Lloyds TSB in which was reproduced their
definition of a high-performance organization, which read as follows:
● People know what's expected of them – they are clear about their goals and
accountabilities.
●

They have the skills and competencies to achieve their goals.

●

High performance is recognized and rewarded accordingly.

●

People feel that their job is worth doing and that there's a strong fit between the job
and their capabilities.

● Managers act as supportive leaders and coaches, providing regular feedback,
performance reviews and development.
●

A pool of talent ensures a continuous supply of high performers in key roles.

●

There's a climate of trust and teamwork, aimed at delivering a distinctive service to
the customer.

The task
Prepare proposals on the high-performance strategy that the council should adopt. You will
need to set out the main areas that might be covered by a high-performance work system
(HPWS), indicate priorities and a development programme, consider how the considerable
changes that might be involved should be resourced and managed, and produce a business
case for any new policies and practices you propose. You should refer to relevant research


on HPWSs, including research that provides evidence on the impact such a system could

make on firm performance.

Comments
This case is designed to illustrate how an HPWS might operate in practice. In dealing with it,
the emphasis should be on producing realistic proposals. Taking into account the comments
made by the Tavistock Institute quoted above, there may well be problems in trying to go too
far too fast. It should be remembered that funds will be limited and the business case should
emphasize the pay off from any performance improvements (productivity, customer service,
etc) that might result from introducing an HPWS approach.
There has been a considerable amount of research on HPWSs, for example:
Appelbaum, E, Bailey, T, Berg, P and Kallberg, A I (2000) Manufacturing Advantage: Why
high performance work systems pay off, ILR Press, Ithaca, NY
Arthur, J (1994) Effects of human resource systems on manufacturing performance and
turnover, Academy of Management Review, 37 (4), pp 670–87
Boxall, P (2003) HR strategy and competitive advantage in the service sector, Human
Resource Management Journal, 13 (3), pp 5–20
King, J (1995) High performance work systems and firm performance, Monthly Labour
Review, May, pp 29–36
Tsai, C-J (2006) High performance work systems and organizational performance: an
empirical study of Taiwan’s semiconductor design firms, International Journal of Human
Resource Management, 17 (9), pp 1512–30