Making Strategy Personal: A Set of Exercises for Students of HRM Strategy

Abstract

Although the field of human resource management (HRM) positions itself as a source of sustained competitive advantage, HR practitioners are often criticized for their lack of strategic thinking skills. While a growing number of business programs now offer courses on strategic HRM, there are limited published teaching techniques designed to incorporate active learning into the strategic HRM classroom. This paper outlines an in-class exercise and assigned paper that gives HRM students hands-on experience applying strategy tools used in organizations. On the basis of their analysis, students develop a an action plan using goal-setting theory (Locke & Latham, 1990) and a Personal Value Proposition that describes what they will be able to offer employers after graduating. After introducing the field of strategic HRM and the challenges of making HR strategy relevant and engaging to undergraduate students, this paper outlines SWOT analysis, stakeholder analysis and scenario planning as three strategic tools applicable to HRM. Next, an in-class exercise and course paper that provides an opportunity to apply these tools and assists students their own professional development are outlined. Student survey responses report that the exercise contributed to their learning about strategy tools (M = 4.03, SD = 0.69 on a five-point scale) and that the exercise was valuable for developing self-awareness about their future career (M = 4.07, SD = 0.62 on a five-point scale). The paper concludes with a discussion of how the activity can be incorporated into other management courses.