Human Resources Flashcards
Reasons why a business have to recruit
- business growth
- an employee leaving
- an employee being promoted
Benefits of recruiting the right people
- maintains the business’ reputation
- increase labour retention
- increased worker motivation
Equation for labour turnover
(no. of employees leaving /total no. employees) x 100
Equation for labour productivity
output per period (units) / number of employees
What is the 1st stage of the recruitment process?
Identifying the job vacancy - compare a businesses expected future needs for employees with the existing workforce.
What is the 2nd stage of the recruitment process?
Job analysis - the process that identifies in detail the particular duties and responsibilities of the job.
What is the 3rd stage of the recruitment process?
Preparing a job description - A job description explains the duties and responsibilities for a specific job.
What is the 4th stage of the recruitment process?
Prepare person specification - A person specification describes the skills, knowledge, and experience needed by an individual to complete the job.
What is the 5th stage of the recruitment process?
Create a job advert - the job advert will communicate with the potential applicants the details of the job and the type of person the business is looking to recruit.
What is the 6th stage of the recruitment process?
Shortlisting applicants - selecting the most suitable applicants from those who applied
What is the 7th stage of the recruitment process?
Referencing process - a reference is a written statement about the personal attributes, skill and work-related experiences of a job applicant written by a referee
What is the 8th stage of the recruitment process?
Interviewing applicants - the firm will ask a number of questions to the applicant and the applicant can also ask
What is the 9th stage of the recruitment process?
Select and appoint the successful candidate - the final stage of the recruitment process where the business decides who to offer the job to.
What is internal advertising?
When the business decides to only advertise the job to existing employees
What is external advertising?
When the business decides to advertise to individuals from outside of the organisation
What is training?
Training provides workers with knowledge and skills which enable them to perform their jobs more effectively
What is induction training?
training to introduce a new worker to the business, place of work and their fellow workers as well as their job
When would retraining be required?
- there are changes in the working conditions
- the level of performance has fallen
- new technology
- new working practices
- new health and safety
What is on-the-job training?
training that is done while the employee is working
What is off-the-job training?
training which is done away from the workplace
What does on-the-job training include?
- demonstration
- job shadowing
- coaching
- mentoring
- job rotation
what does off-the-job training include?
- off site/external training
- computer based training
- sandwich courses
What are advantages to the business with on the job training?
- it is cheaper because there are no travel or accommodation costs
- the trainee produces good and services so the firm makes money
What are disadvantages to the business with on the job training?
- the quality of the work may not be very good which could lead to wasted materials and a lowered reputation
- the trainer may need to temporarily leave their position to train a new employee so production may fall
What are advantages to the worker with on the job training?
- the trainee can take these skills to another business and possibly gain promotions
- the trainee is given individual training so it makes them feel valued
What are disadvantages to the worker with on the job training?
- may restrict opportunities for the worker as the skills they are taught are tailored to this specific business
What are advantages to the business with off the job training?
- experts provide the training so this makes the quality high
- workers feel valued so they are more likely to stay at the business therefore this reduces the recruitment costs
What are disadvantages to the business with off the job training?
- usually more expensive
- the absence from work means that the employee isn’t producing any goods whilst they are being trained
What are advantages to the worker with off the job training?
- workers enjoy a change in environment
- skills are transferable to other businesses
What are disadvantages to the worker with off the job training?
- workers learn in different ways so could be a potential waste of money
- may be losing out on extra money whilst they are being trained
What is motivation?
motivation refers to how driven and happy and employee is in their role
What is meant by a financial method of motivation?
involves a money reward for the employees
What is meant by a non financial method of motivation?
involves any other incentives that do not involve money
What is a wage?
They are usually paid weekly and are mostly paid to manual and low skilled jobs. They can be based on hourly rates as well.
What is overtime?
Workers are paid a higher hourly rate for any hours they work beyond their agreed weekly hours
What is a piece rate?
employees are paid based on the amount they produce
What is a salary?
A financial amount received by an employee based on an annual figure
What is a bonus?
Additional financial payments above the normal wage or salary
What is profit sharing / profit related pay?
Paid to all the employees if the business has performed well and has achieved high sales and profits for the year
What is commission?
Employees will receive payments based on the amount of sales they make
What is a fringe benefit?
Additional financial benefits given to the employee on top of their wage or salary e.g. health insurance
What is empowerment?
Giving workers greater control over their working lives
What is job enlargement?
Involves the addition of extra, similar, tasks to a job
What is job rotation?
involves the movement of employees through a range of jobs
What is job enrichment?
Involves giving employees greater control over their work
What are the benefits of a motivated workforce?
- lower level of absenteeism
- retention of workers
- improved relations between staff
What is an organisational design?
shows how the people in management are organised within a business, it can be illustrated by an organisational chart
Who is 1st on the organisational chart?
Owners / leaders / directors
- they have the most senior and responsible positions of the business
Who is 2nd on the organisational chart?
Managers
- manage the business on a day to day basis
Who is 3rd on the organisational chart?
Supervisors / team leaders
- help the managers to run the business
Who is 4th on the organisational chart?
Operatives / shop floor workers
- carry out the day to day activities assigned to them
What is meant by levels of hierarchy?
refers to the number of layers within an organisation
What is meant by span of control?
the number of managed directly by an individual line manager
What is meant by chain of command?
the formal line of communication that starts at the top of the organisational chart down to the bottom levels
What is a hierarchal / tall structure?
A hierarchical or ‘tall’ structure has many leaders and layers of management, and businesses with this structure often use a ‘top-down’ approach with a long chain of command.
What are the advantages of a tall structure?
- Areas of the business are closely managed
- Managers have tight control over employees
- Excellent progression opportunities
What are the disadvantages of a tall structure?
- There is slow communication due to a long chain of command
- Employees may be demotivated due to lack of autonomy
- Organisational changes can be slow to implement
What is a horizontal / flat structure?
A horizontal or ‘flat’ structure is an organisational structure with only a few layers of management. In a flat structure, managers have a wide span of control with more subordinates, and there is usually a short chain of command.
What are the advantages of a flat structure?
- Less layers leads to better communication
- More autonomy and responsibility for employees
- Employees may feel more motivated, therefore being more productive
What are the disadvantages of a flat structure?
- Lack of progression opportunities
- Higher workloads for managers
- Managers have more subordinates
What is meant by delayering?
when a business removes one or more levels of hierarchy from its organisational structure
What is meant by delegation?
passing down authority to more junior employees
What is communication?
the passing or exchanging of information, ideas, or feelings between 2 parties
What are advantages of good communication?
- better understanding across the business
- faster and more effective decision making
a more motivated workforce - less chance of making mistakes
- improved employee involvement in the decision making process
- effective feedback from and to employees
What are consequences of bad communication?
- low morale
- reduced employee cooperation
- incomplete actions or activities
- reduced efficiency
- slower decision making
What is meant by working pratices?
the way in which people work in the workplace
What are flexible hours?
Employees are given a set amount of hours to work in a week, month or year but they can choose when they work
What is an advantage of flexible hours?
it can motivate employees as it improves work life balance
What is a disadvantage of flexible hours?
lack of commitment from workers so quality may suffer
What are zero hour contracts?
An employee has no specified number or hours per week. Instead they are given work based on when the business requires them.
What is an advantage of zero hour contracts?
firms can respond to a rise / fall in demand quickly
What is a disadvantage of zero hour contracts?
workers on these contracts have virtually no income security at all
What is home working?
Employees are able to work from home
What is an advantage of home working?
Employees save time and stress of commuting and feel motivated
What is a disadvantage of home working?
Lack of teamwork
What is job sharing?
when 2 or more employees share 1 complete job role
What is an advantage of job sharing?
lower labour costs
What is disadvantage of job sharing?
communication problems
What is a trade union?
A trade union is a type of organisation whose main purpose is to represent the interests of employees across many businesses who join the union by paying a membership fee.
How do trade unions impact payment?
Trade unions aim to ensure that payment is fair for its members, and that members receive pay rises in line with inflation and other similar businesses.
How do trade unions impact working conditions?
Trade unions can support employees in relation to working conditions e.g. holiday payment, working hours, heath & safety and sickness issues
What are strikes?
Strike action occurs when a workforce refuse to work, which often forces services or production to stop completely if no alternative workforce is found.
What are go-slows?
A go-slow occurs when employees purposely work at a slower pace, being less productive and completing a lower amount of work.
