If you purchased a new textbook, you received a free copy of Human Resource Management in the Fast Company Age, a booklet of readings related to human resource management reprinted from Fast Company magazine. If your instructor assigns these readings, you can use these learning objectives and discussion questions to guide your analysis of the articles.

Sanity Inc.
Whatever Happened to Globalization?
Sisterhood Is Digital
A Cast of Leaders
What Happened to Your Parachute?

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"Sanity Inc." by Charles Fishman

Learning Objectives:
After reading this article, you should have a better understanding of:

1. How meeting employees' diverse motivational needs can contribute to an effective organizational strategy.
2. How skilled workers can be retained in a tight job market.
3. How important non-financial motivators are in building an effective human resource strategy.

Discussion Questions:

1. Do you think there are any financial disadvantages to the human resource strategy developed by SAS? Are there offsetting advantages?
2. The point of CEO Goodnight's strategy at SAS is to make it impossible for people not to do their work. What do you think this means? How does not working overtime fit into this strategy?
3. How does SAS achieve high employee performance in such an informal environment?
4. How do you think other firms could begin to adopt some elements of SAS's human resource strategy? What challenges would they face?

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"Whatever Happened to Globalization?" by William C. Taylor

Learning Objectives:
After reading this article, you should have a better understanding of:

1. What the globalization of business means for U.S. firms and how globalization and technology will affect their human resource strategies.
2. Why managers in global firms should make communication an integral part of their human resource strategy.
3. How the "battle for talent" will change human resource strategies in global firms.

Discussion Questions:

1. Do you agree with Martin Sorrell's assertion that the United States will remain a central player in the global marketplace?
2. Do you think Sorrell's view of the "battle for talent" applies only to the advertising business? Why or why not?
3. How effective do you think WPP's internal communication strategies are at keeping employees motivated and ensuring that management stays in touch with "what's really going on" in the firm? Are there other strategies you would recommend?
4. Sorrell comments that firms should not be concerned about whether they are big or small but rather try to achieve the best attributes of both. "The great thing about the new digital technologies is that they make it possible to be both big and small." Do you agree? How does this capability affect human resource strategy?

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"Sisterhood Is Digital" by Katharine Mieszkowski

Learning Objectives:
After reading this article, you should have a better understanding of:

1. Why diversity is an important consideration in human resource management.
2. How corporate culture can affect human resource functions.
3. Why knowledge workers can present special human resource challenges and opportunities.

Discussion Questions:

1. Do you think men and women have different needs when it comes to the design and functionality of technology products and services? If so, what kind of differences do you see, and why?
2. Do you think knowledge workers are different from other kinds of workers? Why or why not? What special role does human resource management play in the careers of knowledge workers?
3. Why do you think Borg's message appeals to women? Is there a lesson for corporate managers here?
4. What effect do you think workshops like Borg's can have on the work environment? How can corporate culture be changed, and what role do you think human resource management can play in such change?

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"A Cast of Leaders" by Stevan Alburty

Learning Objectives:
After reading this article, you should have a better understanding of:

1. How diverse the many styles of leadership are, and why human resource management should develop and support them.
2. What makes a leader.
3. How people learn.
4. Why human resource managers should include building diversity in their human resource strategy.

Discussion Questions:

1. What do you think artistic performances such as dance and theater can tell us about leadership? Is it important for a leader to know about the arts?
2. Do you agree that there are different styles of leadership? How do you think Payne's format for the class helps him make this point?
3. Can you apply the lessons the students learn about diversity, both through their arts experiences and through their semester's interactions with one another? To what human resource functions do you think they are most relevant, and why?
4. Do you think the idea behind Payne's course could be adapted to a corporate leadership training program? How? What would be your goals for such a program?

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"What Happened to Your Parachute?" by Daniel H. Pink

Learning Objectives:
After reading this article, you should have a better understanding of:

1. What employees seek through work, and how the human resource function helps them meet their needs and goals.
2. How the human resource management tasks of recruiting and selection have changed, and what effect those changes have on human resource strategy.
3. How people look for jobs and how that affects the recruiting function.

Discussion Questions:

1. What are the implications for human resource managers of Bolles' advice to job seekers-know what you're good at and find a place that needs you?
2. Do you agree with Bolles about what the job market is like today? How would your answer affect the human resource strategy in your organization?
3. About the Internet Bolles says, "It's the same old ineffective system in a new dress. . . . research is the Internet's primary value for job hunters." Comment.
4. How have you, or how do you plan to, look for a job? How will you find out about human resource strategies in the firms to which you apply?