Human Resources (4)

Question 1

What are the 4 basic organisational structures within a hierarchy?

Answer 1

• Directors
• Managers
• Supervisors
• Operatives

Question 2

What is a span of control?

Answer 2

The span of control is the number of workers who report to one manager in a hierarchy

Question 3

Describe Tall Organisational Structure

Answer 3

There is a long chain of command with more layers of management. In a tall structure, each manager only has a narrow span of control. This can make a firm more effective as managers can monitor the employees they are responsible for more closely

Question 4

Describe a Flat Organisational Structure

Answer 4

There is a short chain of command. Each manager has a wide span of control. This means that each manager has to manage a lot of employees at once- it can be difficult to manage a lot of employees effectively

Question 5

Which Organisational Structure can give better communication within the business?

Answer 5

Flat

Question 6

What does it mean if an organisation is centralised?

Answer 6

All major decisions are made by one person or a few senior managers at the top of the heirarchy

Question 7

What is an advantage of centralised organisations?

Answer 7

Senior managers will be more experienced and can get an overview of the whole business

Question 8

What is a disadvantage of centralised organisation?

Answer 8

If decisions are being made by one or two people, it can take a long time and slow the decision making process down

Question 9

What is decentralised organisation?

Answer 9

The authority to make decisions is shared out e.g power could be delegated to regional managers or more junior employees

Question 10

What is an advantage of decentralised organisation?

Answer 10

The employees can use their expert knowledge of their sector to make decisions

Question 11

What is a disadvantage of decentralised organisation?

Answer 11

Inconsistencies may develop between between departments or regions. They might not make the best decisions for the overall business

Question 12

What information must be included in a Contract of Employment?
(9 pieces of information)

Answer 12

• the job title
• the starting date of the employment
• the hours of work
• the starting pay and the regular day of payment
• where the employee will be working
• the holiday the employees entitled to
• details of sickness pay and any company pension
• information about disciplinary procedures
• the length of notice employees have to give if they want
  to leave