Human Resource Practices Development Team

VII. Critical Success Factors

Successful implementation of the work of the HRPD team rests on four critical success factors: full-time individuals dedicated to the success of the transition team, close collaboration and communication among the different constituencies, widespread use of technology, and, perhaps most important, strong leadership throughout the Institute.

• First, the HRPD team must be assembled with clear team leadership and a full-time membership dedicated to the implementation of the recommendations and supported by administrative and support staff.

   

• Second, they must collaborate and communicate with specific constituencies and the MIT community at-large. This includes the Personnel Office, the Steering Committee, senior academic and administrative officers, reengineering design/implementation teams, and the areas where structural change is occurring.

   

• Third, technology is the engine of the operating system for the future. Human resource experts predict that reengineering human resources will be primarily enabled by the extensive use of networked, integrated personal computers, which make it possible to automate transactions and process virtually all human resource paperwork electronically (Lyle Spencer, Reengineering Human Resources, Wiley & Sons, 1995, p. 15). There are 15,000 MITNET drops already installed across campus positioning the Institute favorably for enhanced electronic service delivery. Therefore, the HRPD team requires technology experts and partnership between IT and central HR.

   

• Finally and perhaps most important, strong leadership at all levels throughout MIT must fully and visibly support the work of the HRPD team. Many of the recommendations involve behavioral and cultural change. Both types of change are difficult and must be driven by strong leaders.

Once each of these success factors is in place, MIT will have begun the transition process. Only then can MIT become as excellent an employer as it is an educator.

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