Managing other people (2.4)

Question 1

What is an organisational strategy ?

Answer 1

organisational structure is about how the people in a business are arranged into teams

Question 2

Define a flat structure ?

Answer 2

Flat structure has few layers and a small chain of command

Question 3

Define a tall structure ?

Answer 3

A tall structure has many layers and a long chain of command

Question 4

what is decentralisation ?

Answer 4

decentralisation is when your organisational structure gives freedom for decisions to be made by a large group of people

Question 5

what is centralisation ?

Answer 5

centralised is when you leave decision making to a small group

Question 6

What are the advantages and disadvantages of a flat structure ?

Answer 6

Advantages:
- less chance of communication getting muddled
- cheaper because there are less manager salaries
- get to interact with senior staff regularly, this makes you feel ‘valued’
- staff are given more independence because they are highly monitored.
Disadvantages:
- wide span of control makes it harder to manage
- not much opportunity for promotion, meaning lower motivation of employees

Question 7

What are the advantages and disadvantages of a tall structure ?

Answer 7

Advantages:
- more opportunities for promotion so staff are more motivated
- allows you to have more specialised teams, this will increase quality and customer service
- working in smaller teams means you interact more with colleagues
Disadvantages
- more expensive to employ these people
- long chain of command, chief executives will have less control
- annoying for customers to be passed between departments
- people at the bottom feel less valued

Question 8

Outline the stages of the recruitment process?

Answer 8

• job vacancy identified
• job analysis ( what the job involves)
• job or person specification drawn up ( type of person needed)
• job description
• job advertised
• short listing
• interview/tests
• appoint

Question 9

what is internal recruitment ? and what are its benefits and drawbacks ?

Answer 9

Internal recruitment is where the employer looks for potential applicants from within the organisation
Benefits:
- you already know the workers abilities and strengths
- it is quicker and cheaper to recruit ( no advertising costs)
- offers a career promotion ladder which motivates staff
Drawbacks:
- limited number of workers to choose from
- will have to replace the worker appointed
- may cause resentment from candidates not promoted

Question 10

what is external recruitment ? and what are its benefits and drawbacks ?

Answer 10

External recruitment is where the employer advertises the job vacancy widely to attract applicants from outside the organisation.
Benefits:
- you have a wider range of workers to choose from
- you can bring new external ideas into the company with the new person.
Drawbacks:
- takes longer
- will be more expensive
- can de-motivate staff who believe they should be promoted

Question 11

What are the benefits and drawback of recruiting for attitude rather than skill ?

Answer 11

Benefits:
- the worker will be receptive to new ideas & training
- the worker will get on with others/team members
- the worker will be more productive and motivated
- can avoid workers who have a negative attitudes or resist change.
Drawbacks:
- the worker will need training in a skill which will be costly
- it may take several years before the worker is fully trained.
- the worker may not be mentally/physically able to do the skill

Question 12

What are the 3 forms of training ? and what do they consist of ?

Answer 12

Induction training:
- helps new recruits to settle quickly into organisation by making sure that they know as much as possible about the work, the company policies and their term and conditions of employment.
On-the-job training:
- allows the business to concentrate on the skills that they need most. it works well when the skills required are particular to that organisation. it is often appropriate in the service sector ‘how to serve customers’
Off-the-job training:
- Is carried out externally. Many firms prefer to train off the job, and works well with young employees who need a specific qualification.

Question 13

What is the equation for labour turnover ?

Answer 13

Labour turnover = number leaving per year/average number of employees x 100

Question 14

The benefits and drawbacks of low labour turnover ?

Answer 14

Benefits:
- lower recruitment and training costs
- can motivate its quality of products or good customer service
- by retaining its skilled workforce it can maintain it competitiveness
- suggest the business is making use of good motivation system.
Drawbacks:
- unable to bring in new staff with new ideas or positive attitudes

Question 15

What is Taylors motivational theory ?

Answer 15

• money was a motivator or financial incentive to work hard
• Taylor was keen on using piece rate approach to paying workers because he wanted to link pay to productivity and believed workers were lazy

Question 16

What was Maslows (hierarchy of needs) ?

Answer 16

• Maslow suggested that humans have a ‘hierarchy of needs’ going from basic/physiological to safety (friendship and belonging) to self esteem (achievement) to self actualisation ( your full potential as a person fulfilled)
• he highlighted that social need were particularly important hence why businesses put workers in teams or groups.

Question 17

What was Herzbergs theory of motivation ?

Answer 17

• herzberg developed a two factor theory of motivation
• it consisted of , hygiene factors- which don’t motivate but if not good enough would cause dissatisfaction, eg: pay, working conditions.
• Motivating factors - include recognition of worker, opportunity to achieve or promotion, personal development.

Question 18

What are the criticisms for the 3 motivational theories ?

Answer 18

Taylor:
- workers were treated like machines, totally controlled not trusted
Maslow:
- difficult to when a level has been achieved
- what about workers who work from home or are not in a team or group
- not everyone will achieve self actualisation
Herzberg:
- he assumes there are two seperate factors
- not all workers can be placed into each half ( some -workers may be motivated by money)
- motivators may in reality be different to some workers
- some suggest that herzberg was confused as motivators would lead to more job satisfaction rather than productivity.

Question 19

What is piece rate ?

Answer 19

piece rate are wages paid according to the amount produced, eg: fruit pickers

Question 20

What is a bonus ?

Answer 20

A bonus is a one off payment to a worker in recognition of their contribution.

Question 21

What is profit sharing ?

Answer 21

Gives the employees a percentage of profits as well as basic pay

Question 22

What is performance related pay ?

Answer 22

Usually consists of a bonus related to employee achievement of some kind

Question 23

What is comission ?

Answer 23

Is a payment of a percentage of the value of each product or service sold

Question 24

What is job rotation ?

Answer 24

Allows employees to change task from time to time. they will move from on job to another, in a planned and organised way. this decreases boredom therefore increasing motivation.

Question 25

What is job enlargement ?

Answer 25

Involves reorganising the various jobs to be done, giving each individual several tasks, perhaps making them responsible for putting together a whole product. employee satisfaction should rise.

Question 26

what is job enrichment ?

Answer 26

Expands the process vertically. an employee might be given the responsibility for planning, ordering materials, quality control, completing the job, and maintenance. this brings possibilities of recognition and achievement that may be a big motivating factor.

Question 27

What is delegation ?

Answer 27

Means passing on responsibility to someone lower down the hierarchy, so that decisions are, as far as possible, taken by those who have implemented them. more responsibility means increased job satisfaction therefore increasing motivation.

Question 28

What is consultation ?

Answer 28

this is when you talk to your work force about the business and possible how to improve the business. This makes workforce feel more valued and therefore increases job satisfaction.

Question 29

What is team or group working ?

Answer 29

This is used to improve the quality of work whilst in creasing productivity, by better organised and getting together to solve problems.

Question 30

What is flexible working ?

Answer 30

flexible working can mean being prepared to take on a number of different tasks, and also, being able and willing to work irregular hours, part time or temporary, has been made possible due to technological advances so people can easily work from home.

Question 31

What is worker empowerment ?

Answer 31

Quality circles, kaizen groups, where workers are given more decision making over making improvements.

Question 32

Ways of reducing labour costs ?

Answer 32

1) introduce more flexible working patterns:
- split shifts
- calling people in at short notice
- teleworking or working from home
2) introduce more flexible working contracts:
- bringing in flexi hours arrangements
3) increased use of part time workers:
- eg: students, employees with child care needs
4) use of staff redundancy:
Drawbacks:
- can push wage cost up in the short term
- may result in staff demotivation
- there are strong redundancy laws what must be followed
5) Encourage voluntary labour redundancies:
- natural wastage
- favourable redundancy payments
- seek workers to part time

Question 33

Advantages of flexible working ?

Answer 33

For the business:
- can call worker in only at peak times reducing wage costs
- it may be easier to recruit and retain goo workers - with other commitments
- can lay workers off with short term contracts and avoid redundancy payments
- businesses can secure a competitive advantage over rivals
- teleworking may reduce costs (smaller offices)
For the workers:
- workers who have other commitments can fit work around there life.

Question 34

Drawbacks of flexible working ?

Answer 34

For business:
- some worker may be put off applying to a business who do not off full time work and permanent contracts
- may cause high labour turnover
For workers:
- you may have little job security and have to work unsociable hours
- you may have lower pay and unpredictable earnings