Zappos
Zappos is a web- based shoe and clothing shop, headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. In 2004, it made the headlines for its ground-breaking HR experiment wherein it adopted a radical organization approach called “holacracy,” which basically means no job titles, no hierarchy and no managers. (Zappos, 2014)This change was brought in by Zappos to evolve into a more innovative and agile company and to save itself from the shackles of bureaucracy and politics. Under holacracy, the traditional hierarchical organization structure is replaced by democratic decision- making, and instead of the job titles there are 400 different self- organizing circles focussing on the work at hand rather than focussing on people. (Holacracy, 2007) This change …show more content…
The employees have an opportunity to choose which circle they want to be a part of and what job they want to do. This kind of structure prevents the company from being too rigid and unwieldy and attracts a lot of job applicants. Employees feel more satisfied and engaged as they do not find their jobs static or stagnant. (Malter, 2014) On the negative side it causes chaos and disorder for the HR department. Conventionally, one applies for a particular job only when the job requirements meet one’s job description. But, the whole concept of holacracy leaves a job applicant confused as he does not know what job position he’s applying for. Also, because Zappos is the largest and one of the only adopters of this structure, new employees joining the company need sufficient time and training to adapt to the organizational structure as they are different from their previous employer’s. Research shows that when the interview questions are developed based on the job information, the validity of the interview is enhanced. (Stone, 2013)So, if the HR managers are not aware of the job requirements it is very difficult to recruit the right people. Another issue while recruitment is that new employees have to gain holacracy education over a span of three days at their orientation. (Greenfield, 2015) Most people come in with a lot of misconception and confusion which makes this job for the HR department even …show more content…
As there are no job titles, it follows a reliable badging system wherein the employees have the power to build their salary based on the different avenues they discover. There are no managers for performance evaluation employees wanting a raise in their salary need to submit an application to the Zappos Compensation circle. (Feloni, 2015)This avoids exploitation of the employees at the hands of managers who often indulge in favouritism and derogation and gives a voice to lowest- paid workers. Not only are these badges for job- based achievements but also for fun activities like teaching a musical instrument. This helps the employees to feel more happy, satisfied and engaged at their workplace. On the negative side, it is very difficult for the HR department to keep a track of compensation for all the employees who are trying different jobs. This system disappoints the senior management as they are not getting their seniority based pay anymore and are at the same plane as others. This does not reward the loyal employees and their service and hard- work of many years as it fails to recognize the correlation between performance and experience. (Stone,
Zappos is a web- based shoe and clothing shop, headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. In 2004, it made the headlines for its ground-breaking HR experiment wherein it adopted a radical organization approach called “holacracy,” which basically means no job titles, no hierarchy and no managers. (Zappos, 2014)This change was brought in by Zappos to evolve into a more innovative and agile company and to save itself from the shackles of bureaucracy and politics. Under holacracy, the traditional hierarchical organization structure is replaced by democratic decision- making, and instead of the job titles there are 400 different self- organizing circles focussing on the work at hand rather than focussing on people. (Holacracy, 2007) This change …show more content…
The employees have an opportunity to choose which circle they want to be a part of and what job they want to do. This kind of structure prevents the company from being too rigid and unwieldy and attracts a lot of job applicants. Employees feel more satisfied and engaged as they do not find their jobs static or stagnant. (Malter, 2014) On the negative side it causes chaos and disorder for the HR department. Conventionally, one applies for a particular job only when the job requirements meet one’s job description. But, the whole concept of holacracy leaves a job applicant confused as he does not know what job position he’s applying for. Also, because Zappos is the largest and one of the only adopters of this structure, new employees joining the company need sufficient time and training to adapt to the organizational structure as they are different from their previous employer’s. Research shows that when the interview questions are developed based on the job information, the validity of the interview is enhanced. (Stone, 2013)So, if the HR managers are not aware of the job requirements it is very difficult to recruit the right people. Another issue while recruitment is that new employees have to gain holacracy education over a span of three days at their orientation. (Greenfield, 2015) Most people come in with a lot of misconception and confusion which makes this job for the HR department even …show more content…
As there are no job titles, it follows a reliable badging system wherein the employees have the power to build their salary based on the different avenues they discover. There are no managers for performance evaluation employees wanting a raise in their salary need to submit an application to the Zappos Compensation circle. (Feloni, 2015)This avoids exploitation of the employees at the hands of managers who often indulge in favouritism and derogation and gives a voice to lowest- paid workers. Not only are these badges for job- based achievements but also for fun activities like teaching a musical instrument. This helps the employees to feel more happy, satisfied and engaged at their workplace. On the negative side, it is very difficult for the HR department to keep a track of compensation for all the employees who are trying different jobs. This system disappoints the senior management as they are not getting their seniority based pay anymore and are at the same plane as others. This does not reward the loyal employees and their service and hard- work of many years as it fails to recognize the correlation between performance and experience. (Stone,