2.1 Introduction to Human Resource Management

Question 1

Human Resource Management (HRM)

Answer 1

strategic approach to the management of people within a business to meets its objectives

Question 2

what does an HR department do?

Answer 2

HR Planning
Recruitment
Training
Appraisal
Remuneration
Dismissal
Motivations

Question 2

Why is HR Important?

Answer 2

People are a business’ most important resource
HR tries to get the best employees and getting them to work productively

Question 3

Reasons for Dismissal (Firing, Termination)

Answer 3

Incompetence, misconduct
Formal Process - verbal warning, written warning etc

Question 4

Redundancies (Laid off)

Answer 4

Employee leaves the company because there is no need for their job. No fault of their own.
Redundancy pay usually must be paid

Question 5

HR planning

Answer 5

Predicting how many employees are needed and what skills they need

Question 6

Internal Factors (what are they)

Answer 6

things that the business has some sort of control over

Question 7

Internal Factors (examples)

Answer 7

Labour Turnover
Change in company objectives
Productivity of employees
Automation
Flexitime

Question 7

External Factors (what are they)

Answer 7

things that are beyond the control of the business

Question 8

External Factors (examples)

Answer 8

demographic change
changes in labour mobility
immigration
economy
change in laws
gig economy

Question 9

Labour Turnover (Internal)

Answer 9

% of employees leaving in a year as a proportion of the workforce
the higher the labour turnover, the higher the need to hire more staff

Question 10

Change in company objectives (Internal)

Answer 10

E.g. expansion, new product
will need to hire more workers with particular skills

Question 11

Productivity of employees (Internal)

Answer 11

Increased productivity may mean less need to hire more workers

Question 12

Automation (Internal)

Answer 12

when everything switches to machines
possibly less workers needed, but need to hire machine specialist

Question 13

Flexitime (Internal)

Answer 13

Homeworking, teleworking
workforce becomes more flexible
can lead to job sharing, access to larger pool of talent, more equitable
job sharing = one job can be done by two people

Question 13

Demographic change (External)

Answer 13

Increase in retirement age, more women entering the workforce
larger pool of talent

Question 14

Changes in labour mobility (External)

Answer 14

Willingness to move location for a job
Willingness to take jobs with a different skill set

Question 14

Immigration (External)

Answer 14

People moving from one country to another
immigration increases the pool of labour

Question 15

Economy (External)

Answer 15

E.g. a recession might decrease demand for the product reducing the need for so many employees

Question 16

Change in laws (External)

Answer 16

E.g. maximum 40 hour week
increase in retirement age

Question 17

Gig economy (External)

Answer 17

Temporary workers (Uber)

Question 18

Reasons for resistance to change in the workplace

Answer 18

One HR goal is to maximize productivity of employees in the workplace
But changes they make may encounter resistance
e.g. change in working hours, change in pay structure

Question 19

Why are there reasons for resistance to change?

Answer 19

Fear of change/the unknown
self-interest
poor communication by the business
lack of trust in management