Strategies in Human Resource Management

Question 1

What is an authoritarian (autocratic) leadership style?

Answer 1

A manager leads on the basis that they are responsible for telling employees what they want done and how to accomplish it

There is no or limited role for employees to contribute to the process of making decisions

It is most often used in industries when decisions must be made quickly or in areas of mass production

McDonald’s utilises a strict chain of command so that its operations can occur effectively over the 38,000 stores worldwide

The McDonald’s franchising overview booklet states quite clearly “be prepared to follow a proven system - if you’re not prepared to follow advice, don’t join our team”

Question 2

What is participative (democratic) leadership?

Answer 2

A manager involves one or more employees in the decision-making process’

While employees are consulted, the final decision-making authority still rests with the leader

It is most often used in labour-oriented industries, where the knowledge and skill base of the staff are valuable to the organisation

Participative leadership can encourage a more open and healthy workplace culture

Question 3

What is delegative leadership?

Answer 3

A manager allows employees to make decisions on certain issues

Involves a clear understanding between leaders and employees regarding who can make what decisions

It is most often used in industries which have a wide area of operations and responsibility, where centralised decision making would create inefficiency

Question 4

What is job design?

Answer 4

The function of HR management whereby managers develop and specify the work activities of employees

As well as meeting the needs of the organisation, job design should also lead to job satisfaction (the needs of employees being met) and job enrichment (making use of the skills of the employee)

Question 5

What is the difference between general and specific task design?

Answer 5

Specific task design involves individual employees performing specialised parts of the production process (assembly line) - can lead to efficiency, but repetition creates low job satisfaction

This is the type of task design used by McDonald’s - as Ray Kroc stated “I put the hamburger on the assembly line”

General task design involves designing jobs around general tasks, and having the employee perform a broader range of tasks to increase satisfaction

Question 6

What are two key considerations when deciding upon internal or external recruitment?

Answer 6

Is it possible to spread the workload over existing employees? This will up-skill current employees and make cost savings for the employer

Given the complexities of HR management, businesses should consider if the use of specialised recruitment firms is more relevant to their needs

In McDonald’s most employees start s crew members and are recruited externally

Most management are internally recruited - McDonald’s reports that 51% of restaurant managers started their careers as crew members

Question 7

What is the difference between general and specific skills?

Answer 7

General skills are those that all individuals have and relate to their level of initiative, communication and problem solving abilities - they can be easily transferred across operations

Specific skills relate to the operation in question

Question 8

What is the importance of developing current and future skills in training?

Answer 8

Developing current skills will help an employee perform better in their present role

Developing future skills can be critical for performance management - some organisations identify potential future leaders and target them for future training

Question 9

What is the difference between formal and informal training?

Answer 9

Formal training involves employees take on a role similar to that of students within the organisation, and are shown how to apply themselves to operations

In Australia, potential McDonald’s franchisees must undergo a minimum of nine months full-time, unpaid formal training

Informal training occurs when an employee is shown the correct skills through the use of a mentor, or learns the work on the job

Question 10

What is performance management?

Answer 10

The process of recognising the efforts and contributions of employees to their work

Question 11

What are the developmental benefits of performance management?

Answer 11

The employee understands how their role contributes to the success of the business

The employer is able to identify any problems early, and assist the employee with improving their performances

Performance review and improvement is ongoing, allowing the employee to be continually aware of their own personal goals and those of the business

Question 12

What are the administrative benefits of performance management?

Answer 12

HR managers can refer to performance evaluations when making decisions about promotions, transfers and employee rewards

Performance management data can help assess how effective the organisation’s training and development programs are

The data can indicate the strength of the current workforce, and suggest if more or different employees are needed

Question 13

What are the three stages and features of the performance management cycle?

Answer 13

Planning:
- Goal setting between the employer and employee

Checking In
- the employer regularly observes the employee’s performance and provides feedback

Assessment
- the process of measuring the employee’s performance against the objectives established in the planning stage

In Australia, McDonald’s corporate employees and restaurant managers undertake annual performance and salary reviews

Question 14

What is the difference between monetary and non-monetary rewards?

Answer 14

Monetary awards (most common) are additional payments given to employees that go beyond their legal entitlements

Non-monetary rewards (fringe or intrinsic benefits) may include offering discounts (50% for McDonald’s employees), flexible working conditions (corporate are eligible for company cars, discounted childcare & fitness memberships) or simply greater job satisfaction

Question 15

What are the benefits and drawbacks of rewarding group achievement?

Answer 15

Benefits;

• it encourages a greater sense of teamwork
• employees become more motivated as they are working not only for themselves, but also for others
• improves communication between staff

Drawbacks;

• not all employees may apply equal effort
• employees may have different personal goals
• conflict may occur within the group

Question 16

What are the benefits and drawbacks of performance pay?

Answer 16

Performance pay refers to linking an employee’s income to their performance at work

Benefits;

• monetary rewards are a key motivator for employees
• good employees are attracted to work for the organisation
• encourages unmotivated and inefficient individuals to improve their performance

Drawbacks;

• there may be occupations in which the performance of employees is considerably influenced by external factors, such as the attitudes of customers and general economic conditions
• the process of measuring performance may create conflict between employer and employee
• the concept assumes individuals are motivated by money alone

Question 17

What are the global factors of cost, skills and supply on the human resource process?

Answer 17

Globalisation allows businesses access to a cheaper workforce - functions can be outsourced to overseas where labour can be skilful but costs are cheaper

A global business will have to balance the opportunity to reduce costs by accessing cheap labour against the cost of training labour to gain the required skills

The lowest paid McDonald’s workers (India) earn approximately AU$1.20 per hour, while the highest paid (Denmark) earn almost 20 times that amount

Question 18

What are grievance procedures?

Answer 18

These are the rules and procedures that employers and employees must follow in order to resolve disputes in the workplace

Benefits include;

• provides a clear outline of the issues that are regarded as workplace grievances
• illustrates the correct and appropriate processes to use when raising a complaint
• provides a mechanism that can be used to achieve a quick resolution of disputes

In Australia, McDonald’s has a Workplace Relations Team which takes calls directly from employees who have unresolved issues

Question 19

What does the negotiation stage involve?

Answer 19

Negotiation involves a discussion between both parties in an attempt to resolve the dispute

Collective bargaining is the common term to describe negotiations over workplace duties within an organisation

During this process, employer associations may be called on to asisst the employer

Question 20

What does the mediation stage involve?

Answer 20

Mediation occurs when an independent party with no ties to either stakeholder is asked to assist the conflicting parties to reach a settlement

This party could suggest ideas or present issues in an alternative way

Question 21

What is the process of conciliation?

Answer 21

Should the parties still fail to reach a settlement, the FWC will be notified and requested to assist with a resolution

In conciliation, the role of the FWC is to help create an agreement where all parties are satisfied - although this agreement is not legally binding

When the FWC requests that both parties attend conciliatory meetings, each party has a legal obligation to do so

In Australia, the total number of staff who request assistance from the FWC compared to the total number of employees is around 0.03%

Question 22

What is the process of arbitration?

Answer 22

When a dispute reaches arbitration, it is clear that the parties have not been able to reach an agreement and that a degree of hostility still remains

During this process, lawyers representing the parties will present their case to the FWC

The organisation will evaluate the arguments and reach a decision binding on all parties