Sunday, 16 June 2013

Strategic Human Resource Management (Case study on Ryan-Air)

CONTENT PAGE

Section                                                                                                                         Page No.


Introduction                                                                                                                             3                                                                                                                                 
1: Analysing the business factors that underpin human resource planning with regards to RyanAir 4                                                                                                                                    
2: Assessing the human resource requirements with regards to Ryan-Air                                            9                                                                                                                                             
3: Developing a human resource plan for Ryan-Air                                                                10
4: Critically evaluate how HR plan can contribute to meeting the organization’s objective                  15

5. Explain the purpose of HRM polices in regards to Ryan-Air                                                           16

6: Analysing the impact of regulatory requirements on human resource policies                                 18

7: Analysing the impact of an organizational structure on the management of human resources for the business operation                                                                                                                     19
8: Analysing the impact of an organizational culture on the management of human resources for Ryan-Air business operation                                                                                                       20
9: Examine how the effectiveness of human resources management is monitor in Ryan-Air 22

10: Make justified recommendations to improve the effectiveness of human resources management for Ryan-Air                                                                                                                                    24

Conclusion                                                                                                                              25
Bibliography                                                                                                                            26



Introduction
Ryan-air was founded in1985 with one 15-seater Bandeirante aircraft, operating daily from Waterford in the southeast of Ireland to London Gatwick. Today Ryan-air is Europe’s largest low fares carrier with an annual profit of €503 million that is a 25% increase in profit from the previous year.  Ryan-air fleet has grown to 294 Boeing 737-800s with an extra 25 air new 737-800s craft expected later this year according to Ryan-Air (n.d). Ryan-Air is now carry over 76 million passengers on 346 low fare routes across 24 countries. These impressive figures are a result of the Human Resource Management and implementation of a cost-oriented business approach and efficient operations. Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM), a branch of Human Resource Management, was proven to be a long-term strategic approach to keep sustainable competitive advantage. As Snell, Youndt and Wright (1996) comment that Strategic Human Resource Management can be established by the organization to achieve competitive advantage according to people.
Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) is identified as an effective macro-organizational tool to support the role and function of Human Resource Management according to focus on the organization’s business strategy compared with the traditional human resource management, as well as addressing the problems impacting on people-centred management solutions in the long-term in the organisation (Randall, Susan, 1999).
The purpose of this report is to analyse the business factors and evaluate strategic human resource management (SHRM) using (Ryan-air) as the case study and make recommendation on how Ryan-air can improve their human resource activities and function.


1: Analysing the business factors that underpin human resource planning with regards to Ryan Air
Human resource planning
According to (Investopedia, 2012), human resource planning is the ongoing process of systematic planning to achieve optimum use of an organization's most valuable asset - its human resources. The objective of human resource (HR) planning is to ensure the best fit between employees and jobs, while avoiding manpower shortages or surpluses. The three key elements of the HR planning process are forecasting labour demand, analyzing present labour supply, and balancing projected labour demand and supply.
Human resource planning (HRP) has always played an important role by contributing to the success of the company either directly or indirectly. HRM is involves in setting policies, formulating plans and trying to make decisions for the benefit of both the company and the staffs.
Planning should consider information from staff at all levels and HR, but is most often decided on finally by senior managers in consultation with human resources management - (not the HR dept. which deals with the day to day issues. Human Resource (HR) Manager and other senior manager should have a very strong relationship. Manager from other department may require certain personal information such as personnel records, staff satisfaction, position details and HR expertise they could not have gotten this without the human resources department and would not have the knowledge or expertise to deal with the financial and business side of the decision making.
In regards to Ryan Air the three key elements of HR planning process are Forecasting labour demand, Analyzing present labour supply and Labour demand and supply. We will only discuss forecasting labour demand.
 Forecasting labour demand
Forecasting is all about knowing and matching the right candidates with future job postings. The human resources must use the right forecasting method to determine how many future workers with what skills and ability the company will likely need over a given period of time. There are several techniques a company could use to forecast and fill then available job opening, some of these techniques are,

1.      Managerial Judgment
2.      Trend Analysis
3.      Ratio Analysis
4.      Scatter Plot
5.      Computerized forecast
6.      Works study technique
7.      Delphi technique
For the purpose of this report only one technique will be looked at. The technique to be look discuss is the Delphi technique with regards to Ryan Air.
Managerial judgment technique
Managers of the various departments come together and after considering the future volumes of work decide how many and what type of persons will be needed by the organization. There are two different ways in which this technique is being used by Ryan Air. In the top-down approach, the top managers prepare the forecast for the number of employees needed for unit as a whole and then discuss these estimates with the departmental heads and their subordinates to see whether any modification is necessary in the estimate prepared by them. In the second approach, which is known as bottom-up approach, the estimates about employees is demanded from the supervisors of the sections and departments and their heads consider the estimates, make necessary changes and forward them to the top managers for their consideration.
This technique is very simple and fast and the implementation can be carried out by the HR manager in a short time.
Business factors
Creating a sustainable Human Resource for Ryan-Air means to organize and focus on the company long-term strategy. To be successful in the future Ryan-Air has to know the present situation the company is in they has to look at the broader perspective.
According to (Hoftmann, 2004) The macro-environment describes all factors which influence the company as a whole but are out of their direct control including wider social, political and economic factors (Hooley, Saunders, Piercy, 2004). The analysis of those factors is therefore often known as Pest analysis (Johnson, Scholes, 1999).
The airline industry is affected by any environmental changes over the past decade the airline industry has seen dramatic changes.
Political
The airline industry is affected by changes whether political, economic, social technological   taking place in the environment and has seen dramatic changes since 9/11. After 9/11, the tighten security measure has affected the business, Ryan-Air lost a lot of revenue due to the fact that people was too scared to fly.
Economics
The rising fuel price will affect the airline industry. Most of the airline company will do some hedge for the fuel in order to stable the cost as fuel is a major cost for every airline. However, the fluctuation of fuel price can have a negative effect on the airline financial report.
 The fluctuation in the US dollars will affect Ryan-Air because the customer from US will reduce their travelling as US dollars are depreciating.
Social
According to (Hoftmann, 2004) The increasing travelling lifestyles are factor that will affect the business of Ryan-Air. Nowadays people are more enjoy a travelling lifestyle. They love to travel all around the world. And more and more people will have graduation trips, backpack trips etc. These people become major customers for the company. Also, the merging of different companies from different countries also becomes a big factor to generate revenues. It is because people from these companies need to travel a lot. Thus they need the service provide by Ryan-Air.
Technological
 Technology is advancing. And it really affected Ryan-Air in almost all areas.
ü  Internet sales are getting more and more popular but the competition are also increasing.
ü  High speed trains travelling to some destination and low fuel consumption cars are some of the other means people are now using instead of travelling by plane.
Environmental
ü  IATA has some measure and restriction on the noise level and the carbon emission level. And they request the airline industry to be an environmentally-responsible industry. And not only
ü  IATA is now asking the airline companies to invest in technology to minimize the pollution, to improving operational efficiency, to building and using efficient infrastructure.
Legal
According to Oxbridge Writers (2005) the legislation with the most impact on Ryanair - and other low-cost carriers - is an EU ruling on providing compensation, food and accommodation for passengers whose flights are cancelled or heavily delayed. This was introduced in February 2005, and has been unsuccessfully challenged by bodies representing low-cost carriers (Milner et al 2006). Ambiguous wording in the law has been exploited by airlines: the rules do not apply if a cancellation is for reasons of safety.


2: Assessing the human resource requirements with regards to Ryan-Air
The airline industry is one of the most competitive, safety-sensitive and high technology organization. Employees have to be on high alert. The safety of the customers is top priority in all case. The (HR) team at Ryan-air has to ensure the right staffs are placed in the right position. The (HR) have to be able to change with the current changes taken place in the current climate.

Human Resource requirements

According to (Deborah, 2003) One of the main roles of an HR department is managing current employees. Unlike managers who directly oversee the employees' day-to-day work, the HR department deals with concerns such as benefits, pay, company policies and training. Among the benefits that might be handled by the HR department are insurance plans, paid vacations, paid leave for illnesses and other health matters, pension plans and employee investments. The HR department also might settle conflicts between employees or between employees and their managers as well as grievances filed against the company by employees.
Recruitment
According to Sims (2002) is the process by which organizations discover, develop, seek, and attract individuals to fill actual or anticipated job vacancies. Employee recruitment includes interview, screening, and selection of most qualified candidates, filling of positions through transfer or promotion, and coordinating temporary employment.
Ryan-Air aim to identify and recruit suitable applicants in a cost effective and legal manner, the recruitment process involved planning, screening and selecting. The HR team at Ryan-Air most ensure recruitment program is directly related to the company strategic planning.
Effective recruitment
According to Sims (2002) effective recruitment must be consistent with the strategy, the vision, and the values of the organization. Strategic discussions focus on the general needs of the organization. Once those needs are understood, the focus turns to defining the needs of specific units or departments and the requirements for specific positions. The objectives of the company’s recruitment process are:
ü  Ensure that the supply of talents and skills are adequate
ü  Help management determine future human resources requirements
ü  Attract an adequate pool of job applicants where employees can be selected
ü  Attract and encourage applicants to apply in the organization
ü  Help the organization to communicate with job seekers regarding job vacancies
In order for Ryan-Air to reach these objectives, the HR department make use of both internal and external recruitment. Internal recruitment involves vetting and selecting current employee to file the available vacancies. This process is a lot more cost effective for Ryan-Air as they would have saved a lot if they decide to recruit internally. External recruitment can be very costly, every company including Ryan-Air prefer to recruit internally but this is not always possible in all case. Filling job vacancy outside of the organization involves. Interview, screening, and selection of most qualified candidates, the aim of recruitment is to identify a suitable pool of applicants quickly, cost efficiently, and legally.
Performance Appraisal
According to Sims (2002) through the performance appraisal process, organizations measure the adequacy of their employees’ job performance and communicate these evaluations to them. Performance appraisals are a critical link in the HRM process, as they assess how well employees are performing and determine appropriate rewards.
Training and Development
Training and development such as orientation, performance management skills training, and productivity enhancement are planned learning experiences that teach employees how to perform their current and future jobs. Training focuses on present jobs, whereas development prepares employees for possible future jobs.


3: Developing a human resource plan for Ryan-Air
The Human resource department is one of the most important departments in any successful organization. The human resource managers (HRM) need to adapt to the environmental changes and develop new plans and activities to enable the company to stay in line with the current changes while looking out for the staff welfare. The HRM planning process involves forecasting HRM needs and developing programs to ensure that the right numbers and types of individuals are available at the right time and place (sims, 2002).
Ryan-Air has successfully implemented three HR planning methods. These are:
Managerial Judgment
Very simple and straight forward, the HR managers can carry out their functions without interference.
Delphi Technique
According to (Sandford, 2007) The Delphi technique, mainly developed by Dalkey and Helmer (1963) at the Rand Corporation in the 1950s, is a widely used and accepted method for achieving convergence of opinion concerning real-world knowledge solicited from experts within certain topic areas. This technique has being used by Ryan-Air HR team successfully; the technique requires a facilitator to collect expert opinion on the labour force. When the HR receive the estimates from the experts who act as an intermediaries, summarized the various Reponses received from the experts and report the findings. The experts will make the necessary modification, if needed, the Delphi technique is a very time consuming approach but Ryan-Air has being using it very well to date.
HR Audit
HR audit is carried out periodically to find out how well the present work force is utilized. The audit will bring the HR department up to date with the performance of the employees and whether their skills and abilities are fully utilized. It also enables the planners to identify the employees who can be developed for undertaking more responsible jobs in the future. Information about each staff from senior to junior will become available through HR Auditing.
The graph below will show a basic view of HR planning regards to Ryan-Air.

4: Critically evaluate how HR plan can contribute to meeting the organization’s objective
Human resource planning involves gathering of information both internally and externally in a systematic way, the information gathered will be used to make better decision for the company. HR needs to ensure the availability of the correct number of employees with the necessary skills at the right time. When companies plan for the future they create business plans in order to help them achieve their short and long-term goals, the employees is the company major asset, without the right employees the company will not be able to function productively therefore the understanding of what changes or improvements are required to succeed is a major part of any business development.  This may also include the decision to reduce staff numbers in areas that are not critical to the end goal, or redeployment to add value where it is needed most.

The approach to developing a Human Resources plan will vary from one organisation to another. Organization plans can be broken down into the following:
  1. Setting the strategic direction
  2. Designing the Human Resource Management System
  3. Planning the total workforce
  4. Generating the required human resources
  5. Investing in human resource development and performance
  6. Assessing and sustaining organisational competence and performance
The airline industry plays a big part in the economy; it generates 31.9 million jobs globally. The airline industry has generally seen success in the many aspects involved with it – service, tourism and innovations .The airline industry is vulnerable to threats posed to the environment based on Porter’s Five Forces Model (The Industry Handbook: The Airline Industry 2011) comprising of competitors, suppliers, buyers, substitutes and new entrants. HR planning links people management to the organization's mission, vision, goals and objectives, as well as its strategic plan and budgetary resources.     



                              

Setting the strategic direction
Ryan-air focuses on aligning human resource policies to support the accomplishment of the airline mission, vision, goals and strategies. In order to align business and HR Ryan-air apply the following components.
·         Conduct an external environmental scan and evaluate its impact on the organisation
·         Identify the organisation's vision, mission and guiding principles and consult all relevant stakeholders.
·         Evaluate the impact of legislation on the organisation
Designing the Human Resource Management System
HRM policies and practices range from outsourcing certain non-core functions, adopting flexible work practices (telework, work from home) and the increased use of information technology. In addition, it is essential that a cost-benefit analysis of implementing new HRM policies and practices be undertaken
Planning the total workforce
Ryan-Air development of a workforce plan is a critical component of the human resource strategy. The workforce planning is a systematic process required to meet the company's strategic goals. According to Guardian (Jan 17, 2012), Ryan-Air planned to hire 1,000 people by the end of 2012, thereby creating an increase in its workforce by 10%, as it boosts its fleet to 305 aircraft from 270.
Last year Ryan-Air carried more international scheduled passengers than any other airline, according to the International Air Transport Association. 2011 Financial Statement of Ryan-Air indicates that it expects to make a profit of €440m (£365m) for its 2011 financial year, up from its previous forecast of €400m. The airline currently employ 8,063 staff, they were only able to achieve this through good HR planning and the following
  • Determine the appropriate organisational structure to support the strategic objectives
  • Structure jobs (competencies, tasks and activities) around key activities
  • Develop a workforce plan designed to support the organisations strategic objectives. 

5. Explain the purpose of HRM polices in regards to Ryan-Air
Human resource policies are the formal rules and guidelines that Ryan-Air put in place to recruit, train, assess, and reward their workforce. These policies provide the company with the tool to manage risk by staying up to date with current trends in employment standards and legislation. The policies will help to prevent misunderstanding between the employees and the organization; the policies must be in line with the company long-term objectives and vision.
Purpose
HR policies allow Ryan-Air to clearly establish worker’s employment is at-free will and to establish that each employee understands his or her employment.

The HR polices should be clear on the following:

·         The nature of the company
·         Equal Employment Opportunity policies
·         The company expectation of the employees
·         The employees expectation of the company
·         How the policies and procedures works and the likely impact if these are not followed
·         The code of conduct
·         Disciplinary procedures
·         Remuneration, Payroll deductions, Vacation policies, Holidays, Sick days and personal leave, Overtime compensation
·         Performance evaluations and salary increases, Performance improvement, Termination policies
Each company set their own polices depending on the nature of business they are in, when setting these polices the HRM has to acknowledge the government legislation to ensure they are not in breach. Ryan-Air policies will help the organization demonstrate, both internally and externally, that it meets requirements for diversity, ethics and training as well as its commitments in relation to regulation and corporate governance. HR policies can also be very effective at supporting and building the desired organizational culture.



6: Analysing the impact of regulatory requirements on human resource policies
The regulatory requirements are mandatory and it differs from country to country and business to business. These policies are generally thought to be best applied when good behaviour can be easily defined and bad behaviour can be easily regulated and punished through fines or sanctions. The Human resource department has to be up-to-date with the changes.
Human resources was created to make sure the organization reaches its goals, which is to maximize returns on investment for the organization’s human capital and minimize financial risk, providing the organization with well trained and motivated employees, to ensure all reconciliation of individual goals with those of the organization, developing overall personality of each employee in  all aspect, and ensuring effective utilization and maximum development of human resources.
Ryan-air human resource team has regulations responsibilities to follow such as the Equal Opportunity Commission (EEOC). This commission established on July 2, 1965, and  is listed under  the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA),[7] the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, and the ADA Amendments Act of 2008. The guidelines for employees have been made into regulations enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunity instead of the perception “common sense and compassion in the workplace” has been replaced by litigation to make discrimination incidents legally enforced.
According to (ryanair/doc/investor/EmployeeShareOption, n.d) the airline industry across Europe has being rigorously scrutinised by both domestic and the European Union government. Heavy restriction was imposed on the airline industry before the 1980s; these restrictions were imposed by the individual countries trying to protect their national airline. In the 1980s a liberalised bilateral agreement was reached between Ireland and UK, this was a big change towards the deregulation of the airline industry, this new agreement allowed the airline to set their own price and it also allow room for more competition.

Ryan-Air is subject to extensive regulatory and legal compliance requirements that result in significant costs. For instance, the FAA from time to time issues directives and other regulations relating to the maintenance and operation of aircraft that necessitate significant expenditures. Ryan-Air is expected to continue incurring expenses to comply with the FAA’s regulations.
Other laws, regulations, taxes and airport rates and charges have also been imposed from time to time that significantly increase the cost of airline operations or reduce revenues.

Aviation and Transportation Security Act
 Aviation and Transportation Security Act take effect in November 2001, mandates the federalization of certain airport security procedures and imposes additional security requirements on airports and airline.
Data protection Act
There are strict regulatory rules regarding the treatment of peoples data, carriers are subject to domestic and foreign laws regarding privacy of passenger and employee data. In addition of the highlighted level of concern regarding passenger data, Ryan-air HR has to ensure they are recruiting the right staff to deal with such sensitive matters, any breach can result in a Hugh fine for the airline. The following below shows how Ryan-air treats people’s data
·         personal data shall be processed fairly and lawfully and, in particular

·         Personal data shall be obtained only for one or more specified and lawful purposes, and shall not be further processed in any manner incompatible with that purpose or those purposes.


·         Personal data shall be adequate, relevant and not excessive in relation to the purpose or purposes for which they are processed.

·         Personal data processed for any purpose or purposes shall not be kept for longer than is necessary for that purpose or those purposes..

·         Personal data shall not be transferred to a country or territory outside the European Economic Area unless that country or territory ensures an adequate level of protection for the rights and freedoms of data subjects in relation to the processing of personal data.
It is the responsibility of the HR manager to comply with the law and observe confidentiality regarding matters of which they become aware of and which are subject to confidentiality. This confidentiality remains in force throughout and after the service or termination of an employee. The employee must maintain the highest standard of integrity and fairness to the employee and the customers of the airline.


7: Analysing the impact of an organizational structure on the management of human resources for the business operation.
Organizational structure
Organizational structure is nothing more than the follow of authority of an organization. According to (business dictionary, n.d) the  organizational structures arranges its lines of authority and communications, and allocates rights and duties. Organizational structure determines the manner and extent to which roles, power, and responsibilities are delegated, controlled, and coordinated, and how information flows between levels of management.
Ryan-Air HR Organizational Structure has to follow the needs of the organization, but it has to allow the employees inside Human Resources to operate smoothly and to deliver consistent results over the longer period of time.
Human resource management (HRM)

Human resource management (HRM) is the organizational function that deals with issues related to people such as compensation, such as, organization development, safety, wellness, benefits, employee motivation, communication, administration, and training. HRM is a major contributing factor to the success of the organization because it is in a position to affect the customers.

According to about (n.d), Human Resource Management (HRM) is the function within an organization that focuses on recruitment of, management and providing direction for the people who work in the organization.
 The structure also determines how human resources will be allocated by considering where people will perform their best work. A business may choose its structure based on various different criteria, and the structures that it uses will have different effects on the business and the employees.

Functional Departmentalization

The organizational structure splits business into departmental units based on the functions that each department must complete. The structure may have a positive effect on the organization by encouraging employees to enhance their skills, thereby providing them with a clear career path. Each of the department has skill or multi skill employees, this is an advantage to the organization, and departments can collaborate and increase efficiency and productivity within the organization.

Geographic Departmentalization

Businesses may organize according to geographic areas, particularly if the business is spread out with global operations. These geographic departments may be given additional autonomy to increase efficiency in management and address the different business needs of different areas.

Factors Affecting Organizational Choices

The size of a company clearly affects the organizational structure that the company uses; large companies like Ryan-air use a more formal structure the airline is operating in a very unstable environment, where customer needs are expected to change. The Stable environments favour traditional structures -- with top-down management -- more than dynamic environments, which require flexible structures that can change at a moment's notice.


8: Analysing the impact of an organizational culture on the management of human resources for Ryan-Air business operation
Organizational culture is the behaviour of the workforce in an organization.  Culture is comprised of the organization, values, norms, working language, systems, including habits and beliefs of the organization. There is no clear way to define culture in an organization but culture exists in every organization, in the case of Ryan-air their culture is to offer low-cost flights to European destination. The concept of culture is particularly important when attempting to manage organization-wide change. Organizations are coming to realize that, despite the best-laid plans, organizational change must include not only change in structures and processes, but also change in the corporate culture as well.
Impact of organizational culture
·         Competitive edge derived from innovation and customer service
·         Consistent, efficient employee performance
·         Team cohesiveness
·         High employee morale
·         Strong company alignment towards goal achievement
An organization culture is very important to the organization if the company has good culture this could lead to an increase in the performance of the organization. Organizational culture can be a major factor in the survival of the organization, although this is hard to prove statistically.
According to (Journal-archieves, 2012) Culture idea must be learned and shared in the organizations (Titiev, 1959).  (Pettigrew, 1979), argue that cultures of organization based on cognitive systems which help to explain how employees think and make decision.
(Melear, 2006), corporate culture is impacted by history of the company, the founder of the organization and country of origin of the organization. There is link between corporate culture and corporate history because the interaction among the group can develop culture. Melewar (2006) stated that the founder of the company can affect the corporate culture.
Human Resource Management
The human resource management is responsible for the recruitment of staff in their various disciplines. Ryan-Air has been committed to Low-cost air fare since the company was incorporated in 1985. Ryan air has grown from a small airline flying short journey from Waterford to London into one of Europe's largest carriers. Ryan air now employs over 8500 members of staff and as seen rapid growth over the years, since Ryan-Air went public 1997, the money raised was used to expand the airline into a pan-European carrier. With the major growth and continue expansion and success of Ryan-Air the HR department have to keep up-to-date with the continuous changes of the internal and the external environment. They have to position the right staff at the right place to maintain the company competitive advantage over their competitors; it is believed that the company human resources are the source of competitive advantage over its rivals. The world today is not what it used to be, companies are getting more innovative and technology has been revolutionize, company strategy has changed. The HR department have to be able to deal with the changes and keep developing their staff in order to main their competitive edge.
Business operation
Ryan-air, an Irish low cost carrier (LCC) and also becomes the Europe's largest LCC, which operate over 200 low-fare routes that serve more than 90 destinations across 17 European countries.
 To keep the airfare low Ryan-Air launch their website in 2000, the aim of this is to give customers the convenience to book ticket online. This will cut out the travel agency who in the pass has imposed large cost on the customers. The website is now handling ¾ of their booking, with this number increasing. Ryan-Air is now carrying over 76 million passengers per year that’s an increase  prior to the 74 million in 2011. According to (Theguardian, 2012) on 19 June 2012 Ryan-air Chief Executive, Michael O'Leary announced his intentions to make an all cash offer to buy Aer Lingus. On Tuesday 19 June Ryan-air offered €1.30 per share in Aer Lingus despite shares closing at €0.94 on the Irish Stock Exchange (ISE). Ryan-air said the cash offer represents a premium of 38.3% over the Aer Lingus closing price. This would put the company value at approximately €694 million. This offer was rejected by Aer Lingus for the 3rd time.

9: Examine how the effectiveness of human resources management is monitor in Ryan-Air
The effectiveness of HR in an organization depends on the method that is use to measure the performance of an employee. Having the right people in the right position is very curial to the success of an organization, the corporate culture, value, personal style and the long-term objective of the organization plays an important factor for the HR to be effective.
Human resource management (HRM), as defined by(J. Bratton & J. Gold, 2007) "A strategic approach to managing employment relations which emphasizes that leveraging people's capabilities is critical to achieving sustainable competitive advantage, this being achieved through a distinctive set of integrated employment policies, programs and practices."

Base on the definition, HR is more than recruitment and discharging of employees, in fact, good HR is one of the major contributing factors to the success of an organization. In-order to measure and effectively monitor HR the following components should be formulated and implemented:
·         Clear Vision & Mission Statement, Core Values (behavioural aspect/culture)
·         Clear Corporate Objectives using SMART (Specific, measurable, realistic and time bounded).
·         Clear Table of Organization and Effective Orientation Program should be in place and this should be observed across all levels in the organization
·         Manpower Succession Plan, Merits, Awards, Incentives and Disciplinary Measures should be created and made known to everyone.
·          Clear Man's Specifications and Position Job Profile (Skills, Competencies, Expertise, and Responsibilities) should be in placed
·          Rationalize skills/competencies required for the position/role and will be able to allocate the right resources for the job

·          The system shall also be use by HR when conducting external recruitment if identified skills can't be found within the organization.

·         Inventory of knowledge and skills, including standards or proficiencies, required in all positions / functions of the organization

·         Introduce a system that would assess employees and determine their strengths and potentials, as well as areas for improvement and development - skill/competency gap then can be identified wherein areas for training can be identified to fill in the variance.

According to report by the (BBC, 2012) and information from the Ryan-Air website (Ryair-Air, n.d) Ryan-Air now flies to 175 destinations across Europe and the UK with a record Net profit for the year to March was 503m Euros ($643m; £406m), up 25% on a year earlier. Revenue rose by 19% to 4.3bn Euros.

Ryan-air success was attainable due to good HRM implementation of HR strategies, by implementing the components listed above and setting-up a workable metric system to support corporate line managers\Department and individuals.


10: Make justified recommendations to improve the effectiveness of human resources management for Ryan-Air
According to (perspectivebd, 2010) Effective HRM practices assume that appropriate HRM practice taps the motivation of employees and generates employee’s commitment. The way to do this is through management philosophy which assumes that eliciting worker discretionary effort of enhancing motivation and generating employee commitment will lead to improved organizational performance.
Effective management of human resource is valued not only for its role implementing a given competitive scenario but also for its higher productivity of organization. In this circumstance effective HRM practice has the potential to create organizations that are more intelligent and flexible than their competitors through the use of policies and practices that focus on the development of staffs
 Ryan-air HRM, based on the above analysis, Ryan-air has its own competitive advantage including the unique, organization-specific resource and its business strategy. However, the human resourcing at Ryan-air is facing a lot of negative review base on increasing issues and complaint by the staff members. For example, there is a high staff turnover and the negative reputation of the staff being rude to customers and the lack of customer service. That shows Ryan-air’ business strategy must be related to other human resources policies and practices to become more effective with organisation’s different development stage and competitive advantage. Therefore, it is strongly recommended that Ryan-air should adopt a model which is best for the company development.
Recommendations
In addition, for employees, Ryan-air should be more co-operative with the union, which will ensure that employees have union’s help if they may demand it and also increase the employee's salaries, Ryan-air should develop staff trainings in various areas to continuously contribute to the  improve of the staffs development skills and reduce the high staff turnover.
Ryan-air should motivate their staff s by making the working condition more workers friendly and encourage their staff s, hence building their staffs moral by making them feel as if they are a part of the Ryan-air company and not just an employee of Ryan-air.  Example, giving staff incentives including rewards, bonuses and so on. The customer service of Ryan-air should improves by making the customers feel better while travelling with the airline, hence, achieving more business opportunities  and improving Ryan-air’s reputation and image. Airline companies are subjected to extensive security checks and scrutinized both internally and externally, therefore regular training should be in place to better equip staffs to deal with any possible issues that might threaten the safety of the passengers.

Conclusion
Ryan-air has been playing a pioneering role in low budget segment of Europe’s aviation industry. The company succeeded in establishing the leading position due to long standing experience, a large fleet size and an extensive route network as well as valuable strategic capabilities facilitating business operations at lowest costs with maximum efficiency (high load factor, fast turnaround, etc.). This track record has resulted from the implementation of an innovative cost oriented business model focusing on fleet commonality, contracting out of services, airport charges, staff costs and productivity and marketing costs.
 As a consequence of the cost oriented strategy,   Ryan-air has the highest profit margin in the aviation industry enabling them to take over cost leadership and offering the lowest ticket prices compared to all competitors. The low fares as strategic key element account for Ryan-air’s immense popularity and annually rising passenger amounts even though  complains about missing service have been recorded on a continuous basis.

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