Unit 3 - Human Resources Flashcards
What are Human Resources?
Human Resources are people who do the work for a business
What’s a Human Resources purpose and plan ?
A plan detailing the workers and bussines needs- how many workers, weather or not they will work full time or part time, skills they should have. When they should work
Why might your Human Resources plan change?
Workers leave/ retire / are promoted
The bussines either grows or shrinks
The bussines may introduce new technology
The bussines may relocate
The budget of a bussines may change
What is an organisational structure?
An organisational structure is how people and departments organise a business.
What’s an organisational chart?
Organisational charts are diagrams that show the internal structure of a business
Benefits of organisational structures…
-See who is responsible for which tasks , functions and people
-see who each person is accountable to
-view lines of communication
-view links between departments
-identify a promotion route
Types of structures of a business…
Flat- many layers
Tall- few layers
Types of spans of control within structures…
Wide span of control= control many people
Narrow span of control= control few people
What is a tall structure ?
An organisational structure that has many levels of heirarchy
What is a flat structure ?
An organisational structure with few levels of heirarchy
What is delayering?
The process of removing levels of heirarchy
Advantages of tall structures…
-more promotion opportunities as there’s more layers
-narrower span of control, manager has more time to spend with subordinates
Advantages of flat structures…
-communication will be quicker
-messages will be more accurate so less mistakes are made
-workers at the bottom will share ideas with those at the top because they know and trust them
Why do large businesses have tall structures?
So there are clear lines of communication and control
Why are flat structures suitable for smaller businesses or creative ones?
They encourage communication between people at different levels
What are the different ways of working ?
-Zero hour contracts
-full time and part time work
-working from home
-flexitime
-working while mobile
-temporary working
What’s a zero hour contract ?
A zero hour contract is when an employee has no set or garanteed hours of work
Advantages and disadvantages of zero hour contacts for the employee..
For employee …
Advantage -zero hour contracts are flexible and particularly appealing to those who may need to turn down work at times. Eg- students
Disadvantage - employees will not have regular Jon security or regular level of income which causes stress
Advantages and disadvantages of zero hour contracts for the business …
For the business ..
Advantage - gives the business flexibility to meet increases in demand
Disadvantage- employees can turn down shifts which may lead to lack of staff for customer demand
Advantages / disadvantages of working at home for the employee…
Advantages - employee will enjoy freedom and trust. Will save time and money travelling
Disadvantages- the employee may be less productive without supervision from their manager. Miss the social side of working with others
Advantages / disadvantages of working from home for the bussines …
Advantages - workers can work longer as they aren’t travelling. Workers work better as they’re less distracted
Disadvantages- workers will not be able to exchange ideas. Costly for bussines to buy technology for workers to use at home
What is flexitime?
Where workers can work their weekly hours in as few or many days as they wish.
Advantages of flexitime…
-Employees can work around their lifestyle and commitments , eg : family . This may lead to higher staff retention.
- less absenteeism as staff won’t need to call in sick
Disadvantages of flexitime….
- Customers may not like inconsistency in employees pattern of working
- communication may not be as good
What is flexible working?
Flexible working relates to working arrangements where there are a variety of options offered to employees in terms of working time, working location and the pattern of working.
Advantages of flexible working for the worker….
Disadvantages of flexible working for the worker…
Advantages- suits people with family commitments. Workers save time and money travelling to work.
Disadvantages-some workers may miss the social side of working with other people
Advantages of flexible working for the bussines…
Disadvantages of flexible working for the busssines….
Advantages- bussines saves costs by needing less office space.
Disadvantages- workers may need more supervision to ensure their working well.
Advantages of flexible working for the bussines…
Disadvantages of flexible working for the busssines….
Advantages- bussines saves costs by needing less office space.
Disadvantages- workers may need more supervision to ensure their working well.
What is working while mobile?
Employers working when they are travelling, on the move or on holiday.
Why do businesses like people working while mobile?
- it has increased productivity of their workers.
Why do employees enjoy working while mobile?
It gives them flexibility over when and where they work.
What is temporary working?
Where workers only work for a short period of time.
Contract is normally for fixed term
Drawbacks of temporary working for workers and for bussines ?
Workers may find their finances are insecure
Shortage of workers when labour is needed
Advantages of self employment?
- creative freedom
-independence
-variety
-salary
Disadvantages of self employment?
-long hours and extra hours of work
-financial risk
-extra responsibilities
- no sick pay
How many people in the UK are self employed?
4.25 million
Why do businesses like using self employed workers?
Because they can use them when they need them, this saves costs and increases profit margins. Don’t have to pay sick pay.
Don’t have to pay pension.
What is written communication?
Process of sharing info using written symbols or text
What is verbal communication?
sharing information between individuals using speech
Advantages of written communication?
-there is a record of the message
-the receiver can read the message to make sure they understand it
-The message can be sent to more than one person at a time
-written message can avoid confusion
Disadvantages of Written communication?
-not possible to check immediately that that the receiver understood the message
-emails may get lost in spam
-the success depends how clearly it’s been written
-some people may become overwhelmed the number of emails they receive.
Advantages of verbal communication….
-The person can check the message has been understood.
-speaker can use diagrams and pictures to represent something
Disadvantages of verbal communication..
-There is no permanent record of the message
-costly if workers need to travel together.
-
Examples of written communication….
-letters
-texts
-emails
-social media websites
What’s likely to happen to the volume of written communication as the size of the business increases?
It’s likely to increase
Advantages and disadvantages of emails and texts…
Advantages - low cost, instantly received
Disadvantages - can be overwhelming, can be destruptive
What might businesses use letters for?
-invite an employee to disciplinary hearing
-confirm a job offer
-inform a customer they’ve missed a payment
Why is social media used by businesses?
-large number of users
-useful to receive feedback from customers
-ability to share text, photos and videos
What can a website be used for?
-Sell products
-communicate with customers
-gather feedback
Advantages / disadvantages of websites …
Advantages -
new products and discounts communicated to customers.
Online chat facility to support customers
Feedback opportunity for customers
Disadvantages-
Costly to maintain website and update content
A team is paid to reply to customers
Customers may leave negative product reviews
Disadvantage of excessive communication within a business?
-staff feel demotivated
-staff feel overwhelmed
-staff may miss messages
Why is it important for businesses to communicate effectively ?
-so that messages are received
-tasks are completed on time
-maintain staff motivation
-make sure staff have the info they need to complete their tasks
What’s digital communication?
Digital communication is the electronic exchange of information using ICT
What can be used to send digital messages?
-email
-social media
-websites
-whatsapp
What is digital technology ?
Digital technology is when a business uses computer based tools,systems , devices to store or process data.
What is digital communication ?
electronic exchange of data
Advantages and disadvantages of digital communication?
Advantages ….
-messages can be transmitted quickly
-stored electronically, saving cost of storage
-high quality advertising and marketing
Disadvantage…
-may be unreliable . No garantee messages will be read
-communication overload leading delays and failures
-
How does digital communication affect marketing?
-Businesses can sell online which means they don’t have to run shops.
-competition has increased as it’s cheaper for businesses to sell online and easier for customers to shop around
How does digital communication affect human reasources?
-recruitment and other websites have made it easier for businesses to recruit workers
-digital communication has increased productivity of workers
Why do bussines recruit?
-To start a bussines workers are needed.
-when a bussines grows it may need more workers to produce the goods
replace employees who leave
-to fill a skills gap
What is a skills gap?
When a business recruits skilled workers because it it short of them
What is analysing human reasource needs?
When an organisation decides how many and what type of workers it should employ
What is a job description?
A job description is a list of personal duties, tasks and responsibilities of a worker
What is a person specification?
A list of qualities, qualifications and knowledge that a person should have to do a job.
Internal methods of recruitment…
Advantages of internal recruitment…
-notice boards,word of mouth,emails
-cheaper to advertise internally
-quicker to recruit than external recruitment
-no problems settling in as worker knows the bussines
External methods of recruitment..
Advantages of external recruitment…
- Websites, newspapers,social media
-fill a skills gap when there’s no one who can do the job
-people from the outside can bring ideas
-saves having to recruit someone to replace a worker promoted internally
How does digital communication affect operations?
Communicate with suppliers easier
Benefits of internal recruitment?
-Good for morale when someone in the organisation is promoted
-organisation knows the employee and the employee knows how things are done in the organisation
-it’s cheaper because expensive advertising methods aren’t needed
Benefits of external recruitment …
-Usually means there’s a larger pool of candidates to choose from
-brings new ideas to the business
Disadvantages of internal recruitment?
-Existing staff may not have new ideas to help the business improve
-other workers may become jealous
Disadvantages of external recruitment …
-advertising may be costly
-riskier as manager doesn’t know candidates as well.
-takes longer
Where a job vacancy is advertised will be determined by…
Type of job
Budget available
What’s the chain of command?
Communication from the top to the bottom
What’s the labour turnover ?
The amount of workers that leave annually
What does recruitment involve ?
Identifying a vacancy that exists
What does selection involve ?
Finding out more about candidates
Methods of selection used before meeting a candidate face-face
Cv
Application form
Letter of application
What does the cv summarise ?
Candidates
Skills
Work experience and qualifications
An interview is…
A face to face discussion where the interviewee is asked identical questions to the others
What’s motivation?
What does it lead to in bussiness?
Motivation is essentially the commitment to something
Sucess
Importance to a bussines of having a motivated staff force…
-staff will produce more in the same amount of time
-increased productivity
-high levels of staff retention which lowers training and recruitment costs
- increased quality of work
Benefits of high retention?
-lower recruitment and selection costs
-retained staff are familiar with the bussines
What do group activities help employers identify and establish?
-How good applicants are at working with a team
-which applicants come up with good solutions
What are references ?
Statements from your previous employer
What are references ?
Statements from your previous employer
What can a presentation show?
How well a candidate can communicate and what ideas they have
Why are references useful for a firm recruiting a new employee?
They will find out about them and verified what they said in the recruitment process
Disadvantage of references?
Some firms may give a false good refrence to make someone leave
A recruitment agency….
Acts like a middleman and carries out recruitment and selection process for a business
Advantages of a recruitment agency?
-saves bussines time
-they’re specialists so using one may help find a better candidate for the job
What’s an employment agency?
Keeps lists of people willing to do certain jobs
How are employment agencies different from recruitment agencies ?
-work is often temporary for short periods of time
-firm pays wage of worker and eompltment agency also gets payment
What is productivity ?
What’s it a way of measuring ?
Amount of work that gets done per worker.
Way of measuring output per worker.
Difference between salary and wage..
Salary is a fixed amount paid by the employer on a regular basis
Wage is paid by the hiurb
Two main methods of motivation that businesses use ….
-Financial methods of motivation
-non financial
4 financial methods of motivation….
Pay
Fringe benefits
Profit sharing
Bonus
What are fringe benefits ?
Examples…
Extra benefit given in addition to an employees pay
Free health care, company car
What’s profit sharing ?
Employees receive a proportion of business profits
What’s a bonus …
Extra payments given to staff above their usual pay
3 non financial methods of motivation… examples of each
-award schemes
Employee of the month, badge , certificate
-praise
Verbal feedback, improving self esteem
-working environment
Safe light and comfortable environment are more likely to motivate workers
