Bus 681

  Required Resources
Text
Martocchio, J.J. (2017). Strategic compensation: A human resource management approach (9th ed.). Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu

This text is a ConstellationTM course digital materials (CDM) title.

Article
Nosta, J. (2014, April 9). Be healthy and get rewarded–incentives driving engagement in health and wellness (Links to an external site.). Forbes. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/johnnosta/2014/04/09/be-healthy-and-get-rewarded-incentives-driving-engagement-in-health-and-wellness/
Paper 1
Journal Article Research and Analysis
Strategic compensation is a component of the human resource system. Organizations must determine the importance of many factors when choosing compensation and benefits. Write a three-to-five page essay (not including the title and reference pages) that summarizes the impact and effect of compensation within an organization. Your paper should be written in a scholarly third-person tone; it should be in APA format. In addition to the introduction and conclusion, your paper should address the following:

Examine how organizations determine the relative importance of compensable factors. 
Evaluate how compensation strategies tie into underlying corporate values.
Analyze an example which demonstrates how an organization’s compensation and benefits programs have been utilized to obtain corporate strategic goals.

In addition to the text, cite at least two scholarly references to support your discussion.
Required Resources
Text
Read the following chapters in your text, Strategic compensation:

Chapter 3: Traditional Bases for Pay: Seniority and Merit
Chapter 4: Incentive Pay
Chapter 5: Person-Focused Pay 

Recommended Resources
Articles
Gupta, N., & Jenkins, G.D., Jr. (1996, March). The politics of pay. Compensation and Benefits Review, 28(2), 23. Retrieved from the Proquest database.
Prince, N. R., Prince, J. B., Skousen, B. R., & Kabst, R. (2016, April). Incentive pay configurations: Bundle options and country-level adoption. Evidence-based HRM: a Global Forum for Empirical Scholarship, 4(1), 49-66. https://doi.org/10.1108/EBHRM-02-2015-0004 (Links to an external site.)
Van Hoof, K. (2017, March 22). 5 steps to a compensation strategy that helps your company thrive (Links to an external site.). PayScale. Retrieved from https://www.payscale.com/compensation-today/2017/03/5-steps-compensation-strategy
Websites
Question 1 (250 words)
Seniority and Merit Pay
Define the concept of seniority and merit pay plans, including the strengths and limitations of such plans within an organization.  Discuss the job, organizational and/or other factors that should be considered when deciding between the two.  Respond to at least two of your fellow students’ postings.
Question 2 (250 words)
Incentive Pay Plans
Discuss how incentive pay plans – both individual and group – motivate employees to achieve high levels of performance.  Identify potential weaknesses of these plans and suggest steps that can be taken to make these plans highly effective.  Then, choose one industry that either an individual or group incentive pay plan would work best providing support for your reasoning (using personal examples to illustrate your point if possible).  Explain your answer. Respond to at least two of your fellow students’ postings. 
Paper 2
Performance Management Issues
 You have been asked to return to your alma mater and speak to current students about performance management issues. To make the most of this experience for yourself and the students, write a three-to-five page paper (not including the title and reference pages) to help you prepare. Your paper should be written in a scholarly third-person tone; it should be in APA format. In addition to the introduction and conclusion, your paper should address the following:

Explain the concept of “performance management.”
Identify the most prominent types of performance management plans.
Compare the plans’ impact on the employee and the organization.
Discuss the relationship between performance management and compensation.
Evaluate the factors that should be considered when successfully implementing performance management within an organization.

In addition to the text, cite at least two scholarly references to support your discussion.