People in organization: HRM Flashcards
Define Hard HRM
This approach is when managers treat employees like any other resource
-> Employee relations are likely to be strained
Define Soft HRM
This approach is when managers make sure that employee welfare and motivation are top priorities
Pros and Cons of Hard HRM (3 and 6)
Pros:
- Cost-effective -> Efficiency and effectiveness could be improved
- Quicker Decision-making
- Well monitor of staff
Cons:
- Demotivation
- Higher absenteeism
- Higher staff turnover
- Less successful recruitment due to bad publicity
- Spent money on recruitment more because high labour turn over
- Reliant on management
Pros and Cons of Soft HRM
Pros:
1. Motivated staff
2. Loyalty
3 Increased recruitment power due to good employee reviews
4. Good publicity because high level of staff staticfaction.
Cons:
- Costly [higher pay, performance-related incentives]
- Decision-making may take longer
Define Temporary contract
Lasts for a fixed time period, can be full-time or part time
e.g) 6 months
Define part-time contract
Employment contract that is for less than normal full working week such as 40 hours
e.g) 8 hours/week
Define flextime contract
Employment contract that allows staff to be called in at times most convenient to employers and employees
e.g) at busy times of day
Define Outsourcing
Not employing staff directly, but using an outside agency or organisation to carry out some business functions
Pros and Cons of Part-time and flextime contract for the firm (4- 3)
Pros
- Staff can be required to work at particularly busy periods of the day but not during the unproductive time
e. g) Banking staff needed at lunch time
- > reduce overhead costs to a business
- > Flexibility for firm -> real competitive advantages because they give customer service without substantial cost increases- Higher staff availability to cover up absenteeism
- Can assist staff skill before provide them the full-time contract -> Safe & more efficient in long term.
- Teleworking could apply to some groups of workers
e. g) Online customer service- > Save overhead costs such as smaller office building and less table, chairs needed.
Cons:
- There will be more staff to manage than if they were all full-time
- Poor communication due to more staff and it’s hard to have 100% of the staff at a certain time.
- Low motivation levels because part-time employees are easily to feel less involved and committed than the full-time workers
- > Harder to do teamwork and spread the culture because staff never actually meet each other due to different working hours.
Pros and cons of Part-time & flextime contract for the worker (2-3)
Pros:
- Ideal for students, parents with young children, elderly people who do not wish to work a full week but still want to make a living
- Easier to combine jobs with different firms, giving greater variety to their working lives + earning more.
Cons:
- Paying and reward system are not the same with the full-time workers
- Earning less than full-time workers
- Working contracts and working condition are not as secure compare to full-time workers
Define Teleworking
Staff working from home but keeping contact with the office by means of modern IT communication.
Define 4 measurements of poor employee performance?
- Labour productivity: The output per worker in a given time period. It’s calculated by:
Total output in time period ( per year) / Total staff employed - Absenteeism rates: Measures the rate of workforce absence as a proportion of the employee total. It is measured by:
Absenteeism (%) = number of staff absent / total number of staff x 100 - Labour turnover: Measures the rate of employees leaving an organisation. It’s measured by:
Number of staff leaving in 1 year / the average number of staff employed x 100 - Labour costs per unit:
Total salary/ labour productivity
Explain Labour productivity (5)
- Key measurement of employee performance
- Output per worker increases over times = Labour productivity or efficiency is increasing = given constant wage rates
- Low Labour costs per unit => set lower price for product => High level competitive with other businesses
- Productivity data usually compared with business in the same industry
- Measuring productivity in service industry is more complex than in primary or secondary sector industries
E. g) - Transport industry - Km travelled/ driver/ year
- Hotels - number of guest nights/ employee/. Year
- IT and Banking/ Finance service - Revenue earned on average/ employee/ year
5 factors that caused level of productivity to increase
- Motivated staff -> Higher level of effort
- Higher efficiency and reliable capital equipment
- Better staff training
- Increase worker involvement in problem solving to speed up methods of production e.g: Kaizen or quality circle group
- Improved internal efficiency
e. g: Avoid waiting for supplies to arrive)
Explain Absenteeism rates (2)
- Expensive to employ extra staff or ask other staff to work over-time to cover absent staff
- Hygiene factors of the job might increase absenteeism
e. g) Poor working condition = illness of staff
- Oversupervison = worker stress
Explain labour turnover (3)
- High % of labour turnover = staff discontent, low morale and possibly a recruitment policy that leads to employed wrong people
- % of labour turnover can be particularly high in certain industry.
e. g) Fast food restaurant’s labour turnover can exceed 100% - Labour turnover rate in organisation can be very low because they have different legislation and contract.
4 Cost of high labour turnover
- Expensive recruitment, selection & training new staff process
- Low output level and poor customer services due to not enough staff before recruit new staff
- Hard to establish staff loyalty and regular contact with customers
- Hard to establish team spirit and team work culture.
