The labour pool becomes a supply chain
The labour pool becomes a supply chain
Weber M. Industrial Management (USA), July/August 2006, Vol. 48 No. 4, Start page: 20 (5 pages)
Purpose – To document how IBM conducts international workforce management. Design/methodology/approach – Gives the size of IBM’s workforce as 329,000 employees in 75 countries, emphasizes the complexity of optimizing use of such a large, diversely located labour force, and reveals that IBM applies supply-chain management principles to workforce management. Uses a grocery store analogy to describe labour supply-chain roles of resource providers, and supply, demand, optimization and workforce-supply managers,highlights the need for a common language for describing individuals’skills and qualifications, and outlines how the corporate computer system is used by managers to locate individuals with required skills, covering use of internal and external candidates, and contractors. Depicts the framework on which workforce management is based, incorporates talent and mobility, resource and supply management, and learning in the framework, and points out the value of the system to employees in indicating direction for skill/knowledge acquisition and career development. Refers to resistance to change, and to release of skilled employees, observes that managers need to think globally and act locally, and stresses that senior managers need to lead by example in releasing employees to growth areas and career-enhancing projects.Originality/value– Outlines the cost savings, and employee benefits, generated by the system.Reference: 35AW054
Keywords: Human resource management, Internal labour market,International trade
