Second Stage

7

Strategic use of Technology: Microsoft Corporation

Denzel Ridley

Professor’s name

Information Systems in Organizations

Univ. of Maryland Global

08/30/2022

Strategic use of Technology: Microsoft Corporation

The tracking of applicants and utilization of a hiring system play fundamental roles in the process of recruitment and hiring process. The key elements in this process involve job postings and applications, and the main objective is usually to provide some organization associated with job seekers. The purpose of writing this report is to establish the application of technological developments in enhancing the applicant tracking and hiring system. The essence is to enhance the business operations of Microsoft Corporation in relation to tracking candidates across the entire recruitment and hiring process. The focus is based on the information technology (IT) industry which is the core business area of Microsoft. The goal is to solve various issues such as those associated with engagement of qualified candidates, application of recruitment driven by data and efficiency in the recruitment process. The report covers the solutions in hiring through use of technology, the benefits of improvement of the system, the objectives and decisions that it supports.

Business Strategy

The business strategy that Microsoft applies entails investment in creation of cutting-edge technological products and services which satisfy the needs of clients and customers (Analytics Insight, 2019). In order to achieve this, the company relies on the capabilities and expertise of the employees to foster innovation and creativity. The hiring process is critical in attaining this status as it is imperative to have the right people on the job. The recruitment team applies strategies such use of sources like websites and professional organizations to track and recruit individuals. Websites especially social media sites factor in the strategy. Professional organizations and associations provide grounds for recruitment based on the industry specificity or through networking. Campus recruitment takes place through sourcing from colleges and universities. There is the utilization of referrals from current employees, and partaking in events and career fairs.

The main challenges of the manual hiring process include the recruitment of the wrong types of applicants. There has been the possibility of engaging with candidates who are not the right fit for Microsoft or those that lack fundamental qualifications and capacities which are integral in the success of this company (Kenthapadi et al, 2022). The manual process is at times too slow which means that there are delays in filling vacancies which subsequently causes losses in money and operational capabilities. Microsoft also suffered from shortage of professionals in the market. Other issues that have taken place at some points include high costs of hiring talent and the evolution of the candidate expectations (Kenthapadi et al, 2022). Improvement of the hiring process with the help of the applicant tracking and hiring system will enhance the effectiveness and efficiency in recruiting candidates. The system will promote swift recruitment of skilled and qualified personnel who fit the needs and culture of the organization. These aspects are instrumental in promoting innovation across Microsoft.

Competitive Advantage

Microsoft operates in a business environment that defines the information technology sector; an industry that focuses on the production of software, hardware, internet and data services (Analytics Insight, 2019). This is quite a competitive industry thus the company will benefit from the ability of the hiring system to target, recruit and hire candidates who are proficient and have the skills and capabilities to thrive in roles associated with the aforementioned products and services. This means that Microsoft will have the upper hand in sourcing and recruitment of top talent that is available in the market which gives it the edge in employee competence and proficiency compared to other organizations in the same industry (Padmaja & Koteswari, 2021). The data that is accessible through the system improves competitive advantage through recruitment of the most qualified personnel, saving time and resources as the jobs are published across multiple platforms and easy to apply.

Strategic Objectives

The long term success of organizations relies on having robust strategic objectives in place to influence their performance.

Strategic Goal (from case study)	Objective	Explanation (2-3 sentences)
Increase the performance of Microsoft in regards to Business Development through gaining more software and hardware contracts	Increase the total number of business contracts for the company across the country and the globe by 15% over the span of 12 months.	The hiring plan will enable the firm to recruit personnel with the skills that are requisite in expanding the software and computing business sector. The recruitment team will be able to quickly determine the best options among the applicants in terms of potential for innovation (Padmaja & Koteswari, 2021).
Develop a team of consultants across various regions globally to provide software, hardware services to the locals.	Increase the numbers of recruits in different countries by 5% of global coverage in the next 12 months.	The hiring system allows applicants from different countries apply online which helps increase the global reach of Microsoft operations. It would enable the recruiters to carefully monitor the applications for these positions, identify the necessary research and analysis skills needed, and screen resumes for these key skills. The hiring system allows the recruiting team to track the applications from different parts of the world and assess possible needs (Nikolaou, 2021).
Continue to increase the capacity of Microsoft to incorporate employees that are proficient in serving the interests of clients	Enhance the employee population in regards to expertise by 10% over the next 12 months.	The system should factor in swiftly discerning and recruiting high value applicants on the market. It should strengthen the ability to tell whose skills and potential will best serve the core objectives of the company with respect to the needs of the clients (Padmaja & Koteswari, 2021).
Increase Microsoft’s competitiveness in the marketplace by improving its image with respect performance that is aided by recruits who are highly skilled and are innovative.	Establish a five-point growth in performance of the organization relative to other companies within six months	Hiring process would ascertain that the applicants with the best resumes are recruited to the organization. This will ensure that not only does the company get the best talent, but the recruits exhibit high levels of performance across the clientele base (Nikolaou, 2021).

Decision Making

Role	Level as defined in Course Content Reading	Example of Possible Decision Supported by Hiring System	Example of Information the Hiring System Could Provide to Support Your Example Decision
Senior Executive Managers (CEO and the CFO at MTC supported by the hiring system.)	This is the top most level in the leadership hierarchy of an organization	Approval of the hiring. This entails affirming that the choice are appropriate.	Alignment of the recruits with organization needs
Middle Managers (Decisions made by the Director of HR and the Manager of Recruiting supported by the hiring system.)	This is the intermediate level which features leaders who are below the top level	The choice of recruits to hire. This involves ensuring that the recruits have the necessary qualities.	The qualifications and experience of prospective recruits
Operational Managers (Department and project leaders who are recruiting for their projects through utilization of hiring system.)	These are individuals in management who form the first layer of leadership above the front line workers	Provision of recommendation for new hires. The managers provide perspective on the areas of need.	The fit of recruits to the needs of department or project

References

Analytics Insight. (2019). Unveiling business strategy: Microsoft. https://www.analyticsinsight.net/unveiling-business-strategy-microsoft/#:~:text=Additionally%2C%20the%20company%27s%20business%20strategy,Augmented%20Reality%20and%20Virtual%20Reality).

Kenthapadi, K., Lakkaraju, H., Natarajan, P., & Sameki, M. (2022, August). Model Monitoring in Practice: Lessons Learned and Open Challenges. In  Proceedings of the 28th ACM SIGKDD Conference on Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining (pp. 4800-4801). https://doi.org/10.1145/3534678.3542617

Nikolaou, I. (2021). What is the Role of Technology in Recruitment and Selection?.  The Spanish journal of psychology,  24. DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1017/SJP.2021.6

Padmaja P., & Koteswari, B. (2021). Use of Applicant Tracking System (ATS) in Talent Acquisition. Journal of Exclusive Management Science. https://jems.net.in/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Use-of-Applicant-Tracking-System-ATS-in-Talent-Acquisition.pdf