april '22 - practice exam

Question 1

Define the term Human Resources Management. (1 point)

Answer 1

HRM ?
* STRATEGIC approach
* Activity of managing employees (TECHNICAL)
* Process of managing employees (HUMAN)

• the strategic approach to the effective management of people in a company or organization such that they help their business gain a competitive advantage. (Wikipedia)
• the activity of managing a company’s employees, for example, by employing new
  workers, training them, managing their employment records, and helping them
  with problems Research shows that human resource management plays a huge role in
  how successfully a company performs.
  (Cambridge dictionary)
• the process of managing an organization’s employees. HRM includes all aspects of people management to
  effectively meet an organization’s goals.
  (SHRM)

Question 2

How can an effective HR strategy assist the overall organizational strategy?
Cite an example, and the subsequent implications for HR. (2 points)

Answer 2

GAP ANALYSIS & SUCCESSION PLANNING

Examples of strategies & implications for HR
- CUSTOMER INTIMACY ;
recruit and select job candidates with strong customer service and relation skills.
Focus reqard strategies on customer attraction, satisfaction and retention
- Customer/MARKET FOCUS ;
Use strong market research to druve recruitment and selection so employee have a strong understanding of the target market
Emphasize versatility and adaptability as products and services are subject to rapid change

Question 3

Managers play an important role in HRM, describe how. (2 points)

Answer 3

But also, working hand in hand with HR:
* Ensure no risk of mismatch between needs and resources
* Check feasibility of the strategy in terms of skills
* Help build and defend the HR policy
* Identify training needs
* Implement training plan
* Focus on employee evolution: feedback, annual appraisals and career evolution coherent with the strategy
* Work together to allow staff to identify realistic paths for progression
* Orient recruitments according to targeted roles: select, onboard, retain, etc.
* Help identify skill gaps

More exceptionally :
* Ensure the org has competent teams to make an important project profitable
* Restructuration
* strategy

otherwise, their basic activities :
Activities
* Supervising employees
* Monitoring work and QA
* Allocating work and rotas
* Managing employees
* Stimulating and challenging employees
* Retaining employees

Question 4

What are the benefits of strategic workforce planning?
What are the main steps involved in strategic workforce planning for HRM? (3 points)

Answer 4

Why ? :
* Employee retention
* Talent identification
* Identification of skill gaps
* Meeting financial targets (revenue shortfalls and budget cuts)
* Prepare for the future : advance planning
* Forecast challenges (labour supply, workforce demographics)

Steps :
1. Strategic PLanning
2. Current workforce analysis
3. Future requirements analysis
4. Gap analysis
5. Workforce Action PLanning
6. Execute and Monitor
(loop back as necessary)

Question 5

Performance management is an important area for HRM.

What exactly is performance management, and how can it help employees develop? (3 points)

Answer 5

Performance Management - Definition

• an ongoing process of COMMUNICATION between a supervisor and an employee that occurs throughout the year, in support of accomplishing the strategic objectives of the organization.
• The communication process includes clarifying EXPECTATIONS, setting OBJECTIVES, identifying GOALS, providing FEEDBACK, and reviewing RESULTS, (Berkeley).

Why bother?
Helps to develop productive employees:
* Establish objective performance standards (in relation to strategic goals)
* Communicate objectives/standards to employee clearly and concisely (with feedback)
* Measure actual performance and compare (competencies – job function).
* How? Personal observation, stats, financial reports, client feedback, written reports, project success etc.
* Any DEVIATION?
Review with employee during the appraisal process
* Initiate CORRECTIV ACTION if necessary
* Can be very sensitive (contribution/ability: self-esteem)
? DEV PLAN

Question 6

Why is talent management often a key area of focus within an organization?

Why is it sometimes challenging? (2 points)

Answer 6

Anticipating risks
* Portfolio: insufficient talent to meet business objectives
* Transition: risk of inadaptation in new role
* Vacant roles: risk that the leadership strategic roles are vacant
* Inadequacy: risk of having
incompetent successors

Useful for :
Attract
* Recruit
* Retain
* Develop
* Recognize
* Comparing mngt practices

Talent: difficult to “manage”
* Talent manager: to identify talented people internally and externally
* Help them develop
* Retain them
* Invest talent profitably
* Make sure that it is “presented” (hidden talent).
* But what about equity? Discrimination? Cohesion?

Question 7

With regards to the workforce, why is effective communication so important in the workplace? (2 points)

Answer 7

Importance of communication
* Builds employee MORALE, satisfaction and ENGAGEMENT.
* Helps employees understand terms and conditions of their employment and drives their commitment and LOYALTY.
* GIVES EMPLOYEES A VOICE—an increasingly meaningful component of improving employees’ satisfaction with their employer & helps provide useful feedback.
* Helps to lessen the chances for MISUNDERSTANDINGS & potentially reduces grievances /LAWSUITS.
* IMPROVES PROCESSES and procedures and ultimately creates greater EFFICIENCIES and reduces costs.

• Authentic dialogue, Two-way:
  Listening to employee issues and concerns
  builds loyalty and drives improved
  productivity

                Effective communication 

• The CEO and senior managers set the tone and
  establish organizational culture.
• Key leaders should be coached on their role in
  ensuring effective companywide communication.
• The HR professional and communication leader
  also have critical roles, especially in challenging
  economic environments.
• Managers are responsible for daily communication with their employees and for relating to their peers and colleagues.
• All employees have a responsibility to:
• voice concerns and issues,
• provide feedback,
• listen effectively

Question 8

Why are health & safety considerations critical for HRM?
Which measures can HRM take to help prevent risks? (3 points)

Answer 8

PSR and the employer
* In the employer’s interest to prevent this type of risk and create a harmonious
workplace (WELLBEING)
* Obligation of security including mental health!
* LEGAL responsibility: both penal (criminal) and civil
* * Harassment/suicide: can be officially recognized as a work accident
* * Lack of action by employer or HRM = misconduct
* * Harassment: need sufficient proof and direct correlation to the person concerned

How to prevent PSR
* Reinstate or improve SOCIAL DIALOGUE and communication (authentic dialogue)
* Accompanying change and optimizing CHANGE MANAGEMENT: create working groups, progress groups to exchange on best practices, detect and anticipate sources of dysfunctions to evaluate the decisions put in place
* Reconsider workload and define SMART objectives that can be met (analysis of job functions, evaluation of risks etc.)
* IDENTIFY INFORMATION, SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL RESSOURCES that are available or possible and adapt according to situation
* REPORTING SYSTEM in place where people can share issues in all security/confidentiality
* CSE/work doctor/management/HR/specialists

Question 9

How can HR professionals make organizations more diverse and inclusive?

What are the benefits of doing so? (2 points)

Answer 9

HOW ? (..inclusiveness…)
* Compliance-based inclusion: formal process built into policies, procedures, regulations, and workplace rules
* Use of soft and hard quotas
* Collective impact of inclusive leaders
* Walking the talk (words into action, positive spill-over)

What are the advantages of a diverse workforce?

• Diverse cultural perspectives can inspire creativity and drive INNOVATION
• LOCAL MARKET KNOWLEDGE makes a business more competitive and profitable
• CULTURAL SENSITIVITY & insight means higher quality, TARGETED MARKETING
• DRAWINF FROM BIGGER POOL OF CANDIDATES = BETTER TALENT
• Diverse teams are more productive and perform better
• Diverse teams are better at RISK ASSESSMENT
• Reputational advantages, and a stronger EMPLOYER BRAND.
• STATS SAY ‘number go up’