Cypress: Alignment and Hr Strategy

Cypress Semiconductor Qn: Is the Cypress strategy aligned with its HR strategy? Why or why not? Cypress Semiconductor’s strategy mainly focuses on: •Winning: Provide the best and does not tolerate losing. oHiring the best people oReward based on meritocracy oMaximizing revenue •Innovation oLeading the innovation: best product, lowest pricing. oConstantly improving. Alignment to HR strategy Areas that the Cypress strategy aligns with its HR strategy: 1. Ownership Threats employees like entrepreneurs.

Allowing employees to run the business like their own actually gave them empowerment and vested interest to do their personal best for their job. Positive results are treated with high return and recognition. This also in turn ensured maximum revenue and profits for their projects. 2. Career Opportunities Cypress Semiconductor is extremely aggressive to hire the best fit of people for their business. They will go to lengths of hiring the best people and pay them adequate compensation to retain them in the company. 3.

Compensation Meritocracy in nature, the compensation scheme maintains that outstanding performers are rewarded, non-performers are eliminated. Stock options were given to performers to instill a sense of ownership in the company and the last 3% are deemed as non-performing and are unacceptable. 4. Hiring The almost military clock-work style in their hiring actions quick and precise. Offering at onset of the interview is an aggressive style in hiring and would probably a unique and effective way to get the people they want.

Basically, Cypress is hiring people with the winning mentality, they are more likely to be looking for leaders in the hiring process. They will hire the people who can make quick and tough decisions and the candidates they hire are already pre-selected. The whole process of hiring I feel is indeed indigenous as it is self-eliminating. Survival of the toughest ensured that the best in the industry joined. Areas that the Cypress strategy that does not align with its HR strategy: 1. ‘Killer’ software

This system was in placed to help track and improve performance without the development of a bureaucracy in place. Eventually, the system caused the company to focus its attention to bad performance and eliminates the lower tail distribution, the non performing people. This in itself is bureaucratic and military as it does not have a single tolerance to failure. The increased monitoring under the ‘killer’ software became micro-managing in the whole process of performance measure. 2. Goals system This system was set to allow project driven process, that has speed and agility.

And was supposed to help teams solve problems and dissolve conflicts. However the feedbacks were negative rather than constructive and highlights failures more than successes. This may not be useful for their annual staff review. 3. No failure tolerance The tough and intensive work environment created by Cypress was not for everyone. The stress faced by employees who do not fit is high. There are no other ways to help and retain these people. This tough and competitive environment contributed to the lack of sensitivity towards employees and customers.