People in Business

Question 1

What is the Role of Human Resource Management?

Answer 1

The human resource management
(HRM) function in a business deals
with any issue relating to the
management of staff (employees). A
business must look after its
employees because they play an
important role in helping to meet its
objectives. The HRM function has a
number of activities to carry out.

Question 2

The recruitment process has a number of stages, what are they?

Answer 2

Identify a job vacancy

Carry out a job analysis

Prepare a job description

Prepare a person specification

Advertise the job

Send out applications

Question 3

Describe the Stage- Identifying a Job Vacancy

Answer 3

Identifying a Job Vacancy:

This is the first stage in the recruitment
process. This means to check that a job
vacancy actually exists; perhaps someone has left the business or the business has expanded and new employees are required. Sometimes job vacancies occur because of periods of high demand, eg in retail over the Christmas period or because someone is off work ill.

Question 4

Describe the Stage- Carry out a job analysis

Answer 4

Carrying out a Job Analysis:

The job vacancy is looked at in detail and the tasks, duties and responsibilities that the successful candidate would carry out are considered. This information is then used to construct the job description and person specification.

Question 5

Describe the Stage- Prepare a job description

Answer 5

Prepare a Job Description:

A JOB DESCRIPTION contains information about what the job involves: tasks, duties,
responsibilities, pay, working hours, holiday entitlement and any other benefits.

Question 6

Describe the Stage- Prepare a person specification

Answer 6

Prepare a Person Specification:

A PERSON SPECIFICATION provides information about the type of person that is
required to do the job. Different jobs demand different skills, qualities, qualifications and experience and this document provides details of what is required in a specific job.

The person specification can help in the selection process because it provides a list of what is ESSENTIAL (must have) and what is DESIRABLE (ideally would have) for an
applicant to have. This can be used to assess how suitable someone is for a job; it can be used as a checklist.

Question 7

Describe the Stage- Advertise the job

Answer 7

Advertise the Job:

Before people can apply for a job, they have to know it exists. This is when advertising the job is important – making people
aware that a job vacancy exists. A job vacancy can be advertised INTERNALLY or EXTERNALLY.

A job could be advertised internally by e-mail, on the business intranet, or by a poster on a notice board. A job could be advertised externally in a newspaper (locally or nationally), on the business website, via a social networking site, via a recruitment agency or at a Job Centre.

Question 8

Describe the Stage- Send out applications

Answer 8

Sending out Applications
The final stage of the recruitment process is to send out applications. Businesses can ask
people to apply for a job in a number of ways:

 By completing an application form (on paper or online)
 By sending a Curriculum Vitae (CV)

An APPLICATION FORM requires applicants to answer a number of questions that the
business has decided. These include questions about the applicant’s qualifications, experience, skills and why they want the job. Questions are sometimes very specific to the job being applied for and sometimes applicants have to describe situations they have been involved in, eg when working in a team or dealing with a difficult situation.

A CURRICULUM VITAE (CV) is a word-processed document that applicants create themselves. It contains information the applicant has chosen to include, but would normally contain details of their education, work experience and other achievements.
The CV would be submitted by e-mail or sent in the post to the business where the vacancy exists. Sometimes a business will ask applicants to submit a CV in addition to completing an application form.

Question 9

Explain the Selection process

Answer 9

Selection:

Once applications have been received, the best person for the job has to be selected. First of all, the business would normally
look very carefully at each application received (and often references as well) before deciding whether to invite them to
the next stage of the selection process or to reject them. This is known as SHORT-LISTING – a list of people who are thought to be suitable for the job based on their application form and references. If invited to the next stage, this would normally involve attending an interview and maybe having to undertake a test.

References:

REFERENCES are a report from a previous employer, school/college about a person.
References normally include details about a person’s experience, ability to carry out a
job, comments on skills/qualities and their attendance record.

Interviews:

An interview is a meeting between an applicant and people from the business. The applicant has to answer a number of questions about why they want the job.

Test
A test can assess a number of things, eg medical, personality or specific skills. Each test will assess a different aspect of the applicant and can confirm the information given on the application form.

Question 10

What are some advantages and disadvantages of interviews

Answer 10

Advantages:

 Personality and appearance of the applicant is
seen
 The content of the applicant’s CV or application
form can be checked
 The applicant can ask questions

Disadvantages:

-Time consuming to carry out
- Some people don’t perform well at interviews, but might be more than suitable for the job
- Interviewer bias can exist

Question 11

What are some advantages and disadvantages of Tests

Answer 11

Advantages:

 The content of the applicant’s CV or application
form can be confirmed
 Can provide information about the personality
of the applicant

Disadvantages:

-Time consuming to carry out
-Some people might not be good at tests (they are like exams) because they are stressful

Question 12

Why is Training provided?

Answer 12

Training is provided by businesses to help people carry out their jobs. Training gives employees the skills and confidence to carry out different tasks to the best possible
standard and to do their jobs better. It is of benefit to the business and the individual employee.

Question 13

What is an APPRAISAL?

Answer 13

Training needs are often identified
during an APPRAISAL; a meeting
between an employee and employer
that normally takes place yearly. It
provides the employee and employer
with the opportunity to discuss what is going well, what training is required and what the business can do to help the employee develop and do their job better.

Question 14

What are three different types of training?

Answer 14

 Induction training
 On-the-job training
 Off-the-job training

Question 15

Describe Induction Training

Answer 15

New employees are given INDUCTION TRAINING when they start a job. It provides an introduction to the business and their job. Employees learn about health and safety procedures, the tasks they are expected to carry out, fire evacuation policies and what facilities the business has for staff.

Depending on the number of people starting a job at the same time, induction training might be carried out
by one person (eg the manager or owner) or might involve people from different
parts of the business.

Question 16

Describe On-the-Job Training and name advantages and disadvantages

Answer 16

This is when training takes place within the business that the person works for. A more
experienced employee (a ‘peer’) might show someone how to carry out a task or the
manager might give a presentation to a group of staff on a specific topic.

Advantages:

 Less expensive than off-the-job training
 Creates a good working relationship between the employee and employer
 Training is tailored to the businesses’ objectives and needs

Disadvantages:

 The employee is still expected to carry out their normal duties
 The quality of training might not be as high as off-the-job training

Question 17

Describe Off-the-Job Training and name advantages and disadvantages

Answer 17

This is when training takes place outside the business that the person works for. The
training might be provided by a local college or a specialist training company. Off-the-job
training might last a few hours or a few years (eg if a person was undertaking a
qualification part-time at college).

Advantages:

 Qualifications can be gained
 Training provided by experienced trainers
 Often provides the opportunity to ‘network’ –talking to people from other organisations

Disadvantages:

 No work is done when people are away
undertaking training
 Can be expensive
 Some off-the-job training can take a long time (eg degrees)

Question 18

What is the importance of Motivating and Retaining?

Answer 18

Employees are an important resource for every business; without them, the business would not be able to operate, to meet their objectives and to satisfy customer needs.
Motivation of employees is important because it encourages them to work harder.

Question 19

What are the INCENTIVE business can use to Motivating and Retaining staff?

Answer 19

Businesses can motivate staff by using FINANCIAL and NON-FINANCIAL INCENTIVES.

 FINANCIAL INCENTIVES – using money to motivate people

 NON-FINANCIAL INCENTIVES – using methods other than money to motivate people

Question 20

What are some examples of FINANCIAL INCENTIVES? (name at least 3)

Answer 20

Salary:

Paying a fixed amount of money per year in 12 equal instalments (once every month). The employee knows how much money they will receive each month, but there is no incentive to work harder or produce more.
Eg £18,000 salary (12 instalments of £1,500)

Time Rate:

Paying per hour worked. The more hours worked, the more pay is received. However,
when the employee has not worked many hours, they will not receive as much money.
Eg rate of pay is £.60 per hour and working 30 hours per week (£6.50 x 30 = £195)

Overtime:

Working over the minimum number of hours required per week. Overtime is usually paid at a higher rate than normal, eg time and a half or double time. The advantage is that overtime is optional, so does not have to be done and allows the employee to earn extra money if they want to. The disadvantage is that it might not always be available.

Piece Rate:

An amount of money for each item produced in addition to a low time rate or salary. The more items produced, the more money will be earned. Encourages people to work hard and produce more. However, the employee might produce too quickly, in order to get more pay, and the quality of work might become lower.

Bonus:

Receiving an additional payment on top of a salary or time rate. A bonus might be paid
for very good work or for meeting a target. Encourages people to work hard.

Commission:

A percentage of money paid based on the value of sales a person makes. The more sales made, the more commission is paid. Encourages employees to sell more but might place pressure on the employee to make sales; could cause them stress.

Question 21

What are some examples of NON-FINANCIAL INCENTIVES? (name at least 3)

Answer 21

 Offering flexible working practices

 Giving people extra responsibilities to
encourage them and providing promotion opportunities

 Praising people for a job well done

 Allowing people to work in teams and/or
take part in team-building tasks

 Providing training opportunities

Question 22

What are some Working Practices business can provided?

Answer 22

Businesses often offer a range of working practices to satisfy the needs of their
employees and to develop good employee relations.

Part-time working:

Allowing people to work less hours than full-time hours (which is normally around 35
hours per week)

Temporary contracts:

Employing people for a short period of time, perhaps to cover busy periods (eg
Christmas) or to cover absences (eg maternity leave)

Homeworking:

Allowing people to work from home, using technology to communicate with the
business – employees don’t get as much social contact when they work from home but they do get considerable flexibility in deciding when to carry out different tasks

Teleworking:

Allowing people to work away from the office, using technology to communicate with the business – this method relies heavily on technology working

Flexitime:

Giving people flexibility in their start and finish times, normally the employee would
have to be at work during ‘core times’ specified by their employer, it can be difficult for the employer to know when each employee will start and finish work and might cause problems if the business becomes unexpectedly busy

Job share:

Two people sharing one full-time job, one might work the first half of the week and the other the second-half, they might get the chance to update each other on what they have done and it might cause duplication of work.

Condensed hours:

Working the required number of hours over few days, eg 35 hours over three days
instead of five, it can be stressful and tiring for the employee to work long hours over a
short number of day

Question 23

Having a workforce that is motivated (wanting to work hard) has benefits, what are they?

Answer 23

 Staff turnover is lower

 The quality of the product will be
higher

 Better customer service is provided

 The reputation of the business is
improved

Question 24

Flexible working practices have benefits for the employee and employer, what are they?

Answer 24

Benefits to the Employee:

 Personal commitments (eg family) can be juggled more easily

 Start and finish times can often be chosen

 Travelling times can be reduced

 Less stress as people are in control of
their own working time and other commitments

 Improved happiness and productivity when at work

Benefits to the Employer:

 Employees are happier at work and more
productive

 Attendance at work will be improved and staff turnover reduced

 Can attract more potential employees

 Space and money can be saved on desks and other facilities

Question 25

How can Business create good working relationships?

Answer 25

 Consulting with employees on matters
relating to them

 Involving employees in decision making

 Having an appraisal system, where
employees and employer sit and discuss the
job they are doing, how well they are doing
it and where improvements can be made
(this usually takes place once a year)

 Having an ‘open door’ policy

 Following the terms and conditions of each employee’s contract

Question 26

Why dose Industrial Action happen and what are some examples?

Answer 26

Industrial action can be taken by employees when they are unhappy with their
employment terms and conditions or working relationship with their employer.

Strike:

Employees refuse to enter the workplace, they might have a picket line or
demonstration outside the business to raise awareness of the issues they are facing

Work to rule:

Employees only carry out the tasks and duties written in their job description and no other tasks are performed

Sit in:

Employees refuse to work and ‘sit in’ the workplace Go slow Employees work slower than normal in order to reduce productivity

Overtime ban:

No hours above the minimum required (as per the employee’s contract) are worked
Boycott Employees refuse to carry out a new task or to use a new piece of machinery

Demonstration:

A gathering of people raising awareness of a particular issue

Question 27

What can the impact of industrial action be?

Answer 27

The impact of industrial action can be very serious for a business:

 Production can stop or be slower and this might give the business a bad reputation

 Customers might be lost to competitors

 The image and reputation of the business might be damaged

Question 28

What is Legislation?

Answer 28

Pieces of legislation (laws) are determined by the government and set out different rules and procedures that people and organisations have to follow. There are consequences if the law is not followed.

Question 29

Name the 4 Pieces of legislation

Answer 29

The Equality Act

The National Minimum Wage Act

The Health and Safety at Work Act (HASAWA)

Keeping Records Act

Question 30

Describe the Equality Act

Answer 30

The Equality Act brings together a number
of different aspects of equality under one
piece of legislation. Previously, different
pieces of legislation existed. The law states
that people must be treated fairly regardless of their race, gender, sexual orientation, age and religion. This applies not just to employees of a business, but also to the people who purchase goods and services from them.

Question 31

Describe the National Minimum Wage Act

Answer 31

The National Minimum Wage Act sets out the lowest amount of pay a person can receive per hour. There are different rates for different ages- there is also a different rate for apprentices.

Question 32

Describe the The Health and Safety at Work Act (HASAWA)

Answer 32

The Health and Safety at Work Act sets out the responsibilities employees and employers have concerning health and safety in the workplace. Both have a responsibility to ensure everyone is
kept safe and not just themselves.

Employers must:

 Provide relevant health and safety training to employees

 Provide any necessary equipment and clothing to employees

 Provide toilets and clean drinking water

Employees must:

 Comply with the training given by the employer

 Take care of themselves and other people they work with

 Report any hazards or accidents that occur

Question 32

Describe the Keeping Records Act

Answer 32

The human resource department will keep a number of records, eg employee personal
details and pay details.

A DATABASE package could be used to record employee personal details. The database would have different fields for each specific piece of information. A database allows you to search for information quickly and prepare different reports.

A SPREADSHEET package could be used to record employee pay details. The Finance
unit looks at spreadsheets in more detail.

When keeping records, the human resource
department must abide by the DATA PROTECTION ACT. This Act is concerned with the way a business collects, stores, processes and distributes information. It is based on eight principles.

Data must:
1. Be obtained fairly and lawfully
2. Be used for the registered purposes only
3. Not be used or given to any other person without permission
4. Be relevant, adequate and not excessive for the required purpose
5. Be kept accurate and up-to-date
6. Not be kept for longer than necessary
7. Be available to the person who it relates to
8. Be kept secure