Strategic Human Resource Leader: How to Prepare Your Organization for the Six Key Trends Shaping the Future [Hardcover]

William Rothwell (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0891061223 | ISBN-13: 978-0891061229 | Publication Date: October 27, 1998 | Edition: 1st

Offering a radical prescription for the contemporary organization that places the HR practitioner at the forefront of change.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Provides an excellent discussion of the effects of the six key trends. -- HR Magazine, March 1999

From the Publisher

A selection of the Doubleday Executive Program Book Club.

A Society for Human Resource Management best seller.

From the Preface: "This book is not for the faint-hearted. It is an action-planning guide for reinventing the HR function to assume a commanding role in the ranks of the first-rate leadership of an organization."

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 376 pages
• Publisher: Davies-Black Publishing; 1st edition (October 27, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0891061223
• ISBN-13: 978-0891061229
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.9 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,802,894 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

William J. Rothwell, Ph.D., SPHR (1951-present) was born in Springfield, IL. His website is www.rothwell-associates.com, and you can see his videos on YouTube by searching on YouTube for WilliamJRothwell. He is currently a professor at The Pennsylvania State University, University Park campus and is also President of Rothwell & Associates, Inc, a consulting firm. He is a frequent conference keynote speaker and seminar presenter. His wife is Marcelina V. Rothwell, President of Greenhills Village Retirement and Assisted Living Residence in State College, PA (see http://www.greenhillsvillage.com/). His daughter is Candice S. Rothwell and his son his Froilan Perucho. Reach William at [e-mail].

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Crucial career heads-up for HR practitioners!, March 10, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Strategic Human Resource Leader: How to Prepare Your Organization for the Six Key Trends Shaping the Future (Hardcover)

Following an initial, probing discussion of the history and present problems plaguing human resource management, the authors present a vision of a new HR function. They carry these ideas forward in terms of six trends: the advance of technology; globalization; cost containment; increasing speed in market change; the increasing importance of knowledge capital; and the overall pace and scope of change. They discuss how to apply insights about these trends to shaping and leading the HR function, specifically in terms of action plans and the requisite leadership competencies to implement these plans. The book contains work sheets for guiding professionals in action planning. Importantly, the results of research underlying the book are included. A worthy contribution to the human resource management field and something of a career heads-up for HR practitioners.

32 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Key HR Leadership Roles for the Future, March 19, 2001

By 

Turgay BUGDACIGIL (Istanbul, Turkey) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Strategic Human Resource Leader: How to Prepare Your Organization for the Six Key Trends Shaping the Future (Hardcover)

"What does the future hold for the HR function and for HR practitioners? Many studies have been undertaken to answer this question. However, three of them stand out as being the must comprehensive: (1) the 1995-1996 Hman Resource Planning Society State-of-the-Art Study (R.Eichinger & D.Ulrich); (2) the Penn State Executive Programs Management Skills Assessment-Human Resources, which was conducted between 1985 and 1997 (A.Vicere & R.Prescott); (3) A 21st-Century Vision of Strategic Human Resource Management (W.Rothwell, S.Schechter & S.McLane). A review of tese studies shows that the HR field is on the verge of moving beyond its recently acquired responsibilities for performance consulting and business partnering to assume strategic leadership" (p.26).

In this context, W.J.Rothwell, P.K.Prescott, and M.W.Taylor review these studies as following:

I- 1995-1996 HR Planning Society State-of-the-Art Study.

1. Seven most essential skills for HR executives today:

* Business savvy and acumen

* Leading organizational change initiatives using personal power and indirect influence skills

* Deep and working knowledge of the basic HR technologies

* Global strategic thinking and planning skills

* Change management technology

* Analytical, conceptual, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills

* Financial analysis and costing skills

2. Seven most essential skills for HR executives in the future:

* Master global operating skills

* Business and financial savvy

* Strategic, visioning, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills

* Using information technology

* Deep HR technology savvy

* Change management skills

* Organizational effectiveness

II- Penn State Executive Program Mnagement Skills Assesment-Human Resources (1997)

1. Six general roles of the new HR leaders: Partner, problem solver, model manager, oracle, conduit, and change agent.

2. Most important competencies of the HR leader:

* Is committed to the success of the organization

* Acts consistently in a manner that instills trust

* Is an effective listner

* Exhibits high standards of performance

* Can manage conflict effectively

* Works effectively with other managers outside the HR function

* Recruits and selects high-quality professionals

* Communicates effectively both orally and in writing

* Understands the overall corporate mission

* Develops HR plans that are clearly linked to the mission and strategy of business units

III- A 21st-Century Vision of Strategic Human Resource Management (1995-1996): The results of the study indicate differences between the most important present and future competencies required for success by HR leaders (see pp.29-30, and Appendix 1).

Within this general framework, they write that "taken together, these three studies provide compelling evidence that HR practitioners of the future must demonstrate exemplary leadership skills if they are to be successful. For HR practitioners, it is no longer enough to be a compliance-oriented practitioner, a supportive, or even a performance consultant. Exemplary HR practitioners of the future will be leaders who are capable of demonstrating a new value-added component to their organizations by managing and developing knowledge capital. By comparing the studies (just summarized above), we can see that six key roles for HR leaders have emerged: change agent, HR strategist, business strategist, HR functional aligner, partner to general managers, and problem solver and consultant."

Highly recommended.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Cancelled order, September 20, 2007

By 

Abu Bakar S. Alvi "Fulbright Scholar" (Baltimore, MD, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Strategic Human Resource Leader: How to Prepare Your Organization for the Six Key Trends Shaping the Future (Hardcover)

I cancelled the order, but the seller was nice to return my payment, and the overall experience with the seller was good. But regardless, its a good book to read as it gives a lot of predictions into the future trends in HR and OD and how a good HR person should work around them.