Strategic Human Resource Management: A monkey, a boat or a celestial object?

I just concluded the lectures and seminars at a course on Strategic International Human Resource Management (the most complicated course title ever) with a another group of smart and motivated Hanken students. At the final lecture, the students were asked to build a metaphoric presentation out of what I saw as the main concepts of strategic HRM.

Three competing interpretations emerged:

1. Strategic HRM as a monkey (representing fit between strategy and HRM), climbing a tree that has strategy at its roots, multiple sets of branches and business performance at the top

2. Strategic HRM as a ship, with
- organizational culture as sails,
- ethics as a flag, and
- power as the helm.

3. Strategic HRM as a celestial system, with
- strategy as the sun;
- competition, market and value chains as stars;
- subjectivity, local responsiveness and corporate social responsibility as the moon;
- nationality, globality, integration and power as the earth; and
- expatriates in a rocket to the moon

Sometimes, I tell you, my job can be kind of cool. :-)

Saw a picture recently which drew my attention. It was taken by photopgrapher Richard Childs in Inverpolly, Scotland. Striking foreground interest and impressive mountains.