What Makes a Company Great: HR in Action and My Vision as a Future Manager
Exploring companies ranked in the 2020 Fortune Best Companies to Work For, a few stood out in how they align their HR practices with core strategic goals. For instance, Cisco, Salesforce, Wegmans Food Markets, and NVIDIA each exemplify how strategic HR practices contribute to creating engaging, high-performance workplaces.
At Cisco, employees frequently mention a sense of trust, inclusivity, and empowerment. This directly connects to the idea from Lecture 2 that strategic HRM means aligning HR practices with organizational capabilities—like fostering collaboration and innovation through a culture of trust. Salesforce is praised for its commitment to values, social responsibility, and employee wellness. These reflect Lecture 1’s emphasis on the importance of organizational culture and how HR shapes and reflects it. Wegmans excels through employee training and promotion from within, showing how investing in development helps create the competencies needed to perform effectively. This supports the idea from Lecture 3 that evidence-based HR—backed by data and proven practices—can improve performance and employee satisfaction. Finally, NVIDIA stands out for empowering its people through innovation and flexibility, reinforcing the lecture point that workforce planning and employee engagement are key HR functions.
As a future manager, I aspire to be someone who inspires, empowers, and supports my team—someone who values development, inclusion, and data-informed decision-making. I believe HR functions like training, development, and employee engagement will be essential tools in building high-performing teams.
The most challenging part of a manager’s job, I believe, will be balancing strategic business goals with individual employee needs—especially in a dynamic workplace shaped by technology, diversity, and rapid change. Leveraging the HR strategies and analytics discussed in class will be key to overcoming those challenges while fostering a positive and productive workplace.
