A newly hired HR director has been assigned to lead a company’s transition to a total rewards environment. The company CEO expresses full support for the HR director but expects results.

The HR director has identified significant challenges to be overcome:

Within HR, there is personal and professional conflict between the benefits manager and the compensation manager. Each believes that the former HR director favored the other in allocating resources.

Senior leaders are dissatisfied with the benefits and the HR department as a whole. They believe that HR used employee survey data to make them and their departments look bad. They doubt that HR can successfully implement any change initiatives.

The company’s hourly workforce has not had a raise in the last three years, although virtually all salaried workers have received at least a 2% annual adjustment with an additional 2% to 3% merit award based on individual performance against goals.

What should the HR director do about the benefits manager and the compensation manager who do not get along?

A domestic airline rapidly gains market share through an innovative business model, a charismatic leader, a unique work environment, and sound HR practices. This has led to a global strategic plan of aggressively acquiring small local airlines in neighboring countries.

The VP of HR has been with the airline for 15 years and is an active member of its leadership team. He is a big believer in the benefits of an inclusive and multicultural workforce. This is the VP of HR's first experience with globalizing HR practices. An immediate conflict between headquarters and local policies emerges when a country HR manager raises the issue of discounted tickets for exempt U.S. management in the total rewards package. In the headquarters country, exempt management is paid on a salary basis, but in some of the new countries of operation, management is paid contractually on an hourly basis. The VP of HR is concerned that expanding the benefit globally to all management will create excessive costs and has not taken action after several requests. Frustrated, a country HR manager writes directly to the CEO about the issue, arguing that limiting this benefit may lead to legal challenges or employee relations issues that could damage the company's reputation, the work climate, and the ability to attract talent in the future.

The issue is complicated by the fact that the country HR manager is herself paid hourly as a manager.

Which method should the VP of HR use to best communicate the final policy on this matter to the organization?

A manager has to leave work in the middle of the day because of a sick child. The employer does not have a paid time off policy. The manager notes a deduction equivalent to a half-day of salary in his nest paycheck. What is a possible outcome?