[Ailist] Appreciative Human Resources Policy & Procedure

Wed May 27 07:38:31 MDT 2009

Hi Lionel,

I would like to add some points regarding your very appropriate comments.
Please note that these come from Quality Management System (QMS) and
Operational approach. I'm not a Human Resources specialist.

I agree that policies and procedures can be used in legal cases and all
should be crafted with care. However, the 'care' should come from the fact
that they are important and meaningful. I think that sits squarely with an
Ai approach to crafting them.

There's also a difference in importance and meaning. A policy has more to do
with a wide ranging notion of why you do something. When procedures are
found lacking or missing the policy can guide your decision. It also guides
the design of your procedures to a certain extent. Many good QMS auditors
will ask an employee what the company's quality procedure means to their
daily work. The auditor doesn't want them to recite the policy word for
word. He wants to find out that the employee actually understands how to
implement the policy in their instinctive actions. 

As you move from Policy to Procedure the degree of inherent control
increases. However, a procedure still allows for a lot of interpretation as
to how something is actually executed. In large organizations a degree of
procedural commonality is a good thing.

The final tier in a QMS is the Work Instruction. These detail exactly how
something is to be done. For me these work at a local level and are
important for important procedures. They can easily be overdone though. When
a common work instruction is implemented company wide with no accounting for
local site variances and cultures it can be very damaging. For a laboratory
procedure it's an essential but is it essential for an HR procedure or every
operational procedure? In the latter case as long as the policy and
procedure are upheld some interpretation may be of great value in sustaining
or developing a positive culture at each location. Interpretation leads to
ownership and employee engagement. The opposite may also be true.

Even a work instruction is subject to interpretation. No more is this
obvious than in employee evaluations. The existing relationship between the
employee and appraiser plays a huge role in the outcome even if the work
instruction is followed to the letter.

To re-iterate all the policies and procedures mean something and, following
the principle of simultaneity also influence the culture of the
organization. They should all be generated with the fact that they are
meaningful and important in mind first and ensure that they are compliant
with standards and legal issues second.

Many times I have seen bad procedures written and introduced purely with the
mindset of compliance and with complete ignorance about their cultural
impact. Developing any Policy or Procedure is best done appreciatively. The
legal and Standards issues are just part of what needs to be appreciated.

Best Wishes

Roger

-----Original Message-----
From: ailist-bounces at lists.business.utah.edu
[mailto:ailist-bounces at lists.business.utah.edu] On Behalf Of Lionel Boxer
Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2009 12:31 AM
To: ailist at lists.business.utah.edu; dougkerr at telus.net
Subject: Re: [Ailist] Appreciative Human Resources Policy & Procedure

Because policies and procedures can be harnessed in legal pursuits, it is
necessary to craft them in the sort of "careful" way that may be at odds
with AI.  This is not to say that AI cannot be used to consider the issues
surrounding policy and procedures, but the crafting of the documents should
be done with sensitivity to legal issues and from an operational
perspective.

Lionel Boxer CD PhD MBA BTech(IndEng) - 0411267256 Associate of RMIT
University - lionel.boxer at rmit.edu.au Graduate School of Business my
"Assessment of Quality Systems with Positioning Theory" 
now in a googe book - see link at http://intergon.net
>>> Doug Kerr <dougkerr at telus.net> 27/05/09 9:43 AM >>>
Subject: Appreciative Human Resources Policy & Procedure

Hello everyone.

I¹ve just rejoined the list after being away for some time.
I hope this request has not been made recently.

In my work with Canadian First Nations communities, I¹ve used Appreciative
Inquiry extensively as a mode of inquiry into best experiences of
traditional practices, and as a change facilitation process.
Not surprisingly, Appreciative Inquiry fits with traditional First Nations
values.

Over the next few months I will be working with the leadership of a First
Nations community who will be rethinking their Human Resources policies.
Has anyone out there developed Appreciative Human Resources Policy &
Procedure?
I¹d be delighted if folks were willing to share examples of their
organization¹s Policy & Procedure - and a narrative account of how they got
there.

Much thanks,
Doug
--
Doug Kerr, President
Tracon Training Consultants Corp.
Victoria, BC, Canada
T 250.384.5090

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