People in business Flashcards
Motivation
The factors that influence the behaviour of employees towards achieving set business goals
Labour productivity
A measure of the efficiency of employees by calculating the output per employees by calculating the output per employee
Absenteeism
Employees’ non-attendance at work without good reason
Labour turnover
The rate at which employees leave the business
The theory of the economic man
The view that humans are motivated only by money
Piece-rate
Paying employees for each unit produced
Maslow’s hierarchy from bottom to top
Physical needs, safety needs, social needs, esteem needs, self-actualisation
Hygiene factors
The factors that must be present in the workplace to prevent job dissatisfaction
Motivators
The factors that influence a person to increase their efforts
Job dissatisfaction
How unhappy and discontent a person is with their job
Financial rewards
Cash and non-cash rewards paid to employees which are often used to motivate employees to increase their efforts
Non-financial
Methods used to motivate employees that do not involve giving any financial reward
Hourly wage rate
A payment to employees based on a fixed amount for each hour worked
Salary
A fixed annual payment to certain grades and types of staff not based on hours worked or output
Commission
A payment to sales staff based on the value of the items they sell
Bonus
An additional reward paid to employees for achieving targets set by managers
Performance-related-pay
A bonus scheme used to reward staff for performing to the required standard
Fringe benefits
Non-cash rewards often used to recruit or retain employees and to recognise the status of certain employees
Profit sharing
An additional payment to employees based on the profits of the business
Job rotation
Increasing variety in the workplace by allowing employees to switch from one task to another
Job enlargement
Increasing or widening tasks to increase variety for employees
Job enrichment
Organising work so that employees are encouraged to use their full abilities
Job satisfaction
How happy and content a person is with their job
Quality circles
Groups of employees who meet regularly to discuss work-related problems
Team working
Organising production so that groups of employees complete the whole unit of work
Delegation
Passing responsibility to perform tasks to employees lower down in the organisation
Organisational structure
The formal, internal framework of a business that shows how it is managed and organised
Functional departments
The main activities of a business: finance, marketing, operations, human resources and reseach and development
Hierarchy
The number of levels in an organisational structureC
Chain of command
The route through which authority is passed down through an organisation
Subordinate
An employee who is below another employee in the organisation’s hierarchy
Span of control
The number of subordinates reporting to each supervisor/manager
Delayering
Reducing te size of the hierarchy by removing one or more levels - most often middle management
Centralised organisation
One where all the important decision-making is held at head office, or the centre
Decentralised organisation
One where the decision-making powers are passed down the organisation to lower levels
Manager
An individual who is in charge of a certain group of tasks, or a certain area or department of a business, for example factory manager
Supervisor
An individual who checks and controls the work of subordinates
Delegation
Passing authority down through the heirarchy to a subordinate
Autocratic leadership
A leadership style where the leader makes all the decisions
Democratic leadership
A leadership style where employees take part in decison making
Laissez-faire leadership
A leadership style where most of the decisions are left to the employees
Trade union
An organisation of employees aimed at improving pay and working conditions and providing other services, such as legal advice, for members
Internal recruitment
Filling a vacant post with someone already employed in the business
External recruitment
Filling a vacant post with somebody not already employed in the business
Job description
A list of the key points about a job, job title, key duties, responsibilities and accountability
Person specification
A list of the qualifications, skills, experience and personal qualities looked for in a successful applicant
Shortlist
A list of candidates who are chosen from all of the applicants to be interviewed for the job
Induction training
A training programme to help new recruits become familiar with the workspace, the people they work with and the procedures they need to follow
On-the-job training
Training at the place of work; watching or following an experienced employee
Off-the-job training
Training that takes place away from the workplace, for example at college, university or specialist training premises
Resignation
Termination of employment by the employee, perhaps because they have found a job with a different employer
Retirement
Termination of employment due to the employee reaching an age beyond which they do not need to work
Redundancy
Termination of employment by the employer because the job is no longer needed
Dismissal
Termination by the employer because the employee has broken company rules or is not performing work to the required standard
Communication media
The methods used to communicate a message
Feedback
The receiver’s response to a message
Effective communication
Information between two or more people or groups, with feedback to confirm that the message has been received and understood
Two-way communication
The reciever is allowed to respond to the message and the sender listens to the response
