COE 3116 STRATEGIC HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT
Short Description
This course deals with the ways in which strategic thinking can be applied to Human Resource
Management in organisations. SHRM considers questions such as: What does it mean to be a HR
professional? How can we integrate HR concerns into organisational decisions and strategies?
How can strategic thinking underpin HRM activities? The course focuses on the way strategies
can be formed and enacted in organisations, and on the internal and external environmental
contexts from which human resource strategies emerge.
Course Objectives
 To provide students with opportunities to synthesise managerial strategy issues with
HRM processes, in a considered and reflective manner.
 To introduce a range of contemporary issues in HRM, and promote strategic human
resource management as a new way of thinking about organisations and their
stakeholders.
 To offer the opportunity to enhance students skills in organisational analysis, issue selling
and strategic thinking - through fieldwork, case studies and seminars.
Learning Outcomes:
By the end of the course, students should be able to:
 Intelligently discuss the linkages among firm strategies, business environments,
organizational outcomes and human resource management.
 Analyse and resolve situations involving the role of human resource management in
achieving organizational goals.
 Develop an in-dept knowledge of different perspectives on the relationship between
human resource management practices and organisational performance.
Intellectual, practical and transferable skills
 Problem solving skills
 Analytical
 Team work
 Communication
Teaching and Learning Pattern
Instruction methods shall include readings, lectures, case studies, and class discussion. Readings
provide the foundational concepts and terminology for the course. Lectures will supplement
information gained from the readings and help integrate course material. Case studies facilitate
comprehension of course material and allow application to real-world issues. Finally, class
discussion, particularly in form of seminars will allow students to learn from each other, raise
different viewpoints, and clarify understanding of course information.
Indicative Content
Course topics shall include:Introduction to Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM);
Linking Business Strategy and HR Functions: HR Planning, Recruiting and Selection, Strategic
Compensation, Strategic HR Development, HR systems and firm performance; Linking Business
Strategy and HR systems - High Commitment Work Systems, Strategic Fit Models, Putting
SHRM in context: Knowledge Based Economy, Globalization, New Technologies, Changing
Workforce Demographics.
Assessment Method
The assessment method is structured to include coursework and final examination. Coursework
consists of assignments, presentations and tests.
Course work assessment
30%
Final Examination
70%
100%
The minimum mark required to pass is 50%, this includes course work and final examination.
Each course in the programme is allowed a maximum of three hours for final examination
Indicative Sources
1.
Jeffrey A. Mello (2005)Strategic Human Resource Management (with InfoTrac )
2.
William P. Anthony, K. Michelle Kacmar, and Pamela L. Perrewe (2005)Human
Resource Management: A Strategic Approach
3.
Charles R. Greer (2000)Strategic Human Resource Management: A General Managerial
Approach (2nd Edition)
4.
Randall S. Schuler and Susan E. Jackson (2007)Strategic Human Resource Management
5.
Kenneth M. York (2009)Applied Human Resource Management: Strategic Issues and
Experiential Exercises
6
Dennis M. Daley ( 2001)Strategic Human Resource Management: People and
Performance Management in the Public Sector