Implications for HR Practices in Other Companies LIKE Zappos.com Research Paper

Implications for HR Practices in Other Companies LIKE Zappos.com - Research Paper Example HR Lessons from Zappos.com A similar company in online retailing is Modcloth.com. It has been in operation for only two years, so it has a lot to learn in terms of having a clear-cut organizational culture. Zappos.com took the time to define what its company culture is, and then made sure that all individuals who worked for it fit into the culture. Everything else that they did was an offshoot of this parameter (Palmeri, 2009). Therefore, Modlcoth.com can learn from this company by doing the same. They must decide on the values and norms that will help them achieve their goals. Once this is done, then the organization can focus on other strategic elements. Modcloth.com may also emulate the extent to which organizational culture is a personal responsibility for all staff at Zappos. Modcloth treats organizational culture as a human-resource issue yet Zappos takes a totally different approach. Zappos prefers to hold everyone accountable for the maintenance of their culture. Individuals often work towards this component in every aspect of their jobs. This culture is captured in ten statements that include â€Å"Being adventurous and creative," â€Å"being humble† and â€Å"pursuing growth." The proactive nature in which Zappos diffuses its values may also be used by managers in Modcloth.com. They should not just expect their employees to discover their values independently. Training for new workers should involve learning about the company’s style. Modcloth.com can benefit from teaching employees explicitly about these issues before they allow workers to interact with clients. Sephora.com is a highly successful cosmetics online retailer. Its HR practices, however, do not mirror this new-age approach. Their hiring process is something that needs improvement. It normally carries out a technical recruitment process with a little focus on organizational culture. Zappos.com focuses on a person’s fit with the company culture during recruitment. The y believe that possessing technical skills will not yield substantial results if these cannot translate into their values. Therefore, they do not compromise on it. Hiring processes usually last for a relatively long time. The firm expects job candidates to attend at least one departmental and company event as interviews continue. This leads to the appreciation of organizational values. Sometimes some recruitment processes may last for up to four months (Inghilleri & Solomon, 2010). In Zappos’ recruitment, interviewers often ask six questions that are likely to determine the person’s behavior. Usually, these questions are meant to assess the extent to which a candidate’s behavior fits in with the company culture. However, some parts of the interview will also look at the applicant’s skills. Sephora can learn a lot from these hiring practices. First, they must hire for their core values. Secondly, they must have a structure to follow when recruiting. Sephor a.com usually leaves aspects of the hiring process in the hands of professionals, and what they decide is the final word on the matter. This means that transparency is a challenge. Zappos.com has a highly transparent hiring process. Once an interview has been completed, the interviewer is expected to vote on whether the candidate should be hired or not. These individuals often enter their feedback into a computer. They are also supposed to give explanations for why