1.4 Managing People

Question 1

Part-time

Answer 1

A part time contract is a form of employment where people work less hours per week than people with a full-time job.
These employees usually work in shifts and usually work under 30 hours per week.
Part-time employment contracts can be better for both businesses and employees because they offer more flexibility. If the business is only busy at certain times of the week or certain months in the year then part-time contracts can be helpful.

Question 2

Full time

Answer 2

A full-time contract is a contract where the employee will work a minimum number of hours. This number is defined by the contract.
Full-time employment contracts give businesses more control over the hours that employees work. Employees work a minimum number of hours each week and this gives businesses and employees certainty.
For employees, although part time contracts offer greater flexibility, full time contracts offer certain benefits that are not typically offered by part time contracts.

Question 3

Job share

Answer 3

A job share happens when two people share a full-time job.
This is good because it gives the employees more flexibility and for a business, it guarantees the number of hours that will be worked.
But, organising a job share can be hard and it requires very good communication between the two employees and the business.

Question 4

Zero-hour contracts

Answer 4

Zero-hour contracts are contracts where a business does not have to give a person any work at all and the employee doesn’t have to accept any work offered to them.
They are beneficial for businesses because they provide the maximum amount of flexibility. This means they are less likely to waste money on unnecessary labour costs.
However, they can be bad for employee motivation because the employees won’t feel a high level of commitment to a company.

Question 5

Advantages of outsourcing

Answer 5

Outsourcing can provide cost savings because a third-party business may be able to create or produce a product or service at a lower cost than the original business.

Question 6

Disadvantages of outsourcing

Answer 6

Outsourcing can lead to quality problems if the business which is outsourced to does not uphold the same quality standards.
The business may lose its influence on quality control.

Question 7

Redeployment

Answer 7

Redeployment can be used to move, or redeploy, staff around the business according to business needs and demands and this can support business objectives.

Question 8

Redundancy

Answer 8

Redundancy can be used when the skills of current employees are no longer required by the business and the role no longer exists, and this can support the business’ objectives through reducing cost.

Question 9

Dismissal

Answer 9

Dismissal is effectively when a worker is fired from a job.
The employer needs to provide valid grounds for the dismissal and to have investigated the situation.

Question 10

Influence of employees

Answer 10

The expertise and skill set of the employees will influence their involvement in decision-making as this may affect how the business value’s the contributions of staff.

The culture of the business will affect the extent to which employees are involved in the decision-making process.

The size of the business will affect the extent to which employees are involved in the decision-making process, as smaller businesses may find it more manageable to involve their employees in decisions made.

Question 11

Trade Unions

Answer 11

Instead of active involvement, the views of employees can also be represented by trade unions and works councils:
A trade union will represent a group of employees and negotiate with the employer on behalf of the employees.
A works council is a committee or group of individuals, including employees and the employer, and regular meetings take place to discuss work-related issues on behalf of all employees.

Question 12

Advantages and disadvantages of employee representation

Answer 12

Employee representation offers managers and leaders to gain an understanding of their employees and issues affecting them.
Unsuccessful employee representation can lead to strikes and industrial action which affects reputation and productivity.

Question 13

Importance of communication

Answer 13

To manage and improve employee representation processes, both employees and employers must, therefore, understand the importance of honest and open communication for the process to be successful.

Question 14

Improving the employer representation process

Answer 14

The employer representation process can improve the relationship between an employer and its employees. Good employer-employee relations are important:

Employees feel valued and will trust their employer, which supports retention and productivity.
Understanding the views of employees can improve the decision-making process which minimises mistakes.
For example, a supermarket which maintains good employee relations will benefit from increased productivity which can increase profit and allow increase bonus payments to staff.

Question 15

Internal recruitment

Answer 15

Internal recruitment is when a job position is advertised to people who already work at a business.
Internal recruitment can be beneficial to a firm because employees that already work for them may need less training. This is because the employee will already know a lot about the firm.
Because the role is advertised internally, the costs of attracting and training people are lower.
But it may create another vacancy in the business.

Question 16

External recruitment

Answer 16

External recruitment is when a business looks for new people outside of the organisation to fill a specific position.
It is usually more expensive because jobs are advertised and hires need more training. But it will reach more people.
New people from another business may bring in new ideas.
It does not create another vacancy in the business.

Question 17

High productivity

Answer 17

Productivity should be higher with more skilled, harder working employees. A recruitment process that is effective will attract these employees and this should lead to higher output for the firm.

Question 18

High quality output

Answer 18

People who are more skilled and are a better fit for the job will produce higher quality output.

Question 19

Good customer service

Answer 19

People who are better suited to a particular job and a particular firm are more likely to care about the firm and its image. Because of this, they may make more effort to do their best and offer good customer service.

Question 20

Staff retention

Answer 20

Recruitment and training are usually expensive. This means that retaining (keeping hold of) staff is important for a firm.
Finding a person that is right for the job will likely mean that they stay much longer.

Question 21

Increased productivity

Answer 21

Training a workforce means that they are likely to become more skilled at what they do.
In factories or services industries, if staff are more productive, this will be beneficial for the company by increasing output or reducing costs.

Investment Banks like Goldman Sachs start their graduate schemes with training programmes where employees learn about different investment products and the industry.

Question 22

Ability to deal with change in technology

Answer 22

Training is needed for employees to know how to use new technology. In the digital world we live in this is more important than ever.

Question 23

How motivation increases after training

Answer 23

If staff feel that they are learning and progressing in a firm, then they are likely to be happier and more motivated.

Question 24

How training affects output

Answer 24

Training staff usually makes them more skilled at the job they do. This will lead to higher quality output and this is usually beneficial for the firm’s profitability.

Question 25

How training increases staff retention

Answer 25

If employees are happier and more motivated then they are likely to stay at a firm for a longer period of time.
Reduces the costs involved with recruiting and training new employees.
Staff tend to get better at their job with more experience within the same business.

Question 26

Induction training

Answer 26

Induction training happens when employees first arrive at a firm. It introduces them to the firm and provides initial training for their role. Benefits include:
Employees feel comfortable in their surroundings and meet their new co-workers (colleagues), which may increase happiness, confidence, motivation and productivity.
Induction training is likely to make employees less likely to make basic mistakes.

Question 27

On-the-job training

Answer 27

This is the most common type of training. The employee learns how to do the job to a high standard while actually doing the job.
This usually involves an employee being shown how to do something and then practicing and improving over time.
On-the-job training is low cost.
It is best suited to jobs involving practical skills.
The main drawback is that the teaching is done by other employees, so bad habits could be passed on from others.

Question 28

Off-the-job training

Answer 28

Off-the-job training happens away from the workplace, allowing employees to be taught a wider range of skills. They get to learn skills that aren’t just related to one specific task.
For example, it is common for managers to get training on leadership (what makes a good leader).
Off-the-job training is often taught by specialist instructors and this means that it may be higher quality training. But, this can make it more expensive than on-the-job training.

Question 29

Authority

Answer 29

Authority is linked to delegation. Delegation involves passing authority to employees further down in the hierarchy.
Authority can motivate and empower employees and therefore increase productivity.

Question 30

Spans of control

Answer 30

Spans of control are the number of people who report directly to a supervisor or manager.
Businesses with tall hierarchies have narrower spans of control so employees can be monitored more closely.
Businesses with flat hierarchies have wider spans of control and it can be harder to monitor employees as closely as each manager will manage and lead a larger group of employees than in a business with a tall hierarchy.

Question 31

Hierarchies

Answer 31

Hierarchies are the levels and layers of management. Tall hierarchies have many layers of management and flat hierarchies have few levels.
Communication can be more difficult in a tall hierarchy as there are more layers for the communication to pass through.
Tall hierarchies provide promotional opportunities for employees as there are more layers and therefore a greater number of promotional opportunities throughout the business.

Question 32

Hierarchies

Answer 32

Hierarchies are the levels and layers of management. Tall hierarchies have many layers of management and flat hierarchies have few levels.
Communication can be more difficult in a tall hierarchy as there are more layers for the communication to pass through.
Tall hierarchies provide promotional opportunities for employees as there are more layers and therefore a greater number of promotional opportunities throughout the business.

Question 33

Delegation

Answer 33

Delegation refers to a manager passing responsibility or authority to an employee below them in the hierarchy.
Delegation can reduce the workload of managers which allows them to focus on their own tasks.
Delegation can empower and motivate employees and prepare them for promotional opportunities in the future.
Delegation may require a business to invest in and provide employee training to ensure that employees have the necessary skills to complete a task.

Question 34

Centralisation and decentralisation

Answer 34

Centralisation and decentralisation refer to the decision making power within the business and how this power is held by employees.
In centralised businesses, decision making power is helped by a small number of people who make decisions and then share these with other staff.
In decentralised businesses, decision making power is distributed throughout the business to staff with appropriate skills and expertise.