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biz! > Unit 6-decision making to improve HR performance > Flashcards

Unit 6-decision making to improve HR performance Flashcards

1
Q

what is the value of setting HR objectives?

A

-employment engagement and involvement: leads to motivation, higher productivity, higher quality output
-talent development: retention, development of skills
-training: development of skills
-diversity: acceptance and respect, understanding uniqueness and individual differences
-alignment of values: bringing together employee and business values
-number, skills and location of employees: making sure everything is in place

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2
Q

if a business fulfils all HR objectives, what might they benefit from?

A

-lower labour turnover
-higher labour retention rate
-higher productivity
-full compliance with any UK labour legislation

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3
Q

what are some external influences on HR objectives?

A

-economy: growing economy may be a greater requirement for HR
-political factors: variety of measures that affect HR planning. equality measures, minimum wage
-tech: reduced labour requirement, need for new skills
-competitive environment: changes in market and environment affect demand, will impact HR requirement

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4
Q

what are some internal influences on HR objectives?

A

-corporate objectives: need to have skilled workers available to prepare for corporate objectives
-type of product or service: skills of the workforce are appropriate for that particular product

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5
Q

what is labour turnover and what is the formula?

A

-refers to the proportion of a business’s staff leaving their employment over a period of time

no. leaving during the year/ avg. number of staff x100

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6
Q

what is labour retention and what is the formula?

A

-the number of employees with more than one year of service

no.of employees with 1 or more yrs of service/ overall workforce numbers x100

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7
Q

why might employees leave a business?

A

-low or inadequate wage levels, leading employees to defect to competitors
-poor morale and motivation
-buoyant local labour market offering more attractive opportunities

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8
Q

what is labour productivity and what is the formula?

A

-key measure of business efficiency and measures the output per employee over a specific time period

total output per time period/ no. of employees

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9
Q

labour costs as a percentage of turnover formula

A

labour costs/ turnover x100

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10
Q

labour costs formula

A

labour costs/ output

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11
Q

examples of internal data

A

-productivity
-unit labour costs
-retention rates
-labour turnover
-skills
-age profile of workers
-corporate objectives

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12
Q

examples of external data

A

-wage rates
-sales forecasts
-market trends
-competitor actions
-unemployment rates
-skills available
-operational capacity

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13
Q

what are organisational factors and how do they affect job design?

A

the nature of work and the culture of the business will determine the extent to which a business is able and willing to design jobs in such a way that enrichment and empowerment exist

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14
Q

what are environmental factors and how do they affect job design?

A

factors such as the employee availability and ability as well as social and cultural expectations

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15
Q

what are behavioural factors and how do they affect job design?

A

the extent to which job or task offers autonomy, diversity and the use of skills will determine the level of enrichment and empowerment possible and impact on job design

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16
Q

what is job design?

A

the process of deciding on the contents of a job in terms of its duties and responsibilities, on the methods that could exist between the job holder and superiors

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17
Q

what are the different methods used for job design?

A

-job rotation: switching the employees to other tasks with similar levels of complexity
-job enlargement: extends the employees’ range of duties, more tasks of similar nature
-job enrichment: include more challenging tasks, more responsibility
-empowerment: giving employees control over their working lives, team work, planning their own work, set targets, make own decisions

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18
Q

what does the Hackman and Oldham job characteristics model state?

A

That there are five core job characteristics: skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and feedback

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19
Q

what are the critical psychological states of Hackman and Oldham’s job characteristics model?

A

-skill variety, task identity and task significance: experienced meaningfulness of the work
-autonomy: experienced responsibility for outcomes of the work
-feedback: knowledge of the actual results of the work activities

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20
Q

what are the personal and work outcomes of Hackman and Oldham’s job characteristics model?

A

-high internal work motivation
-high quality work performance
-high satisfaction with work
-low absenteeism and turnover

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21
Q

what is organisational design?

A

the process of shaping the organisational structure so that the organisation can achieve its objectives effectively

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22
Q

what are the influences on the organisational design?

A

-span of control possible
-amount of delegation
-level of centralisation and decentralisation
-size of business
-life cycle of organisation
-corporate objectives
-technology

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23
Q

what is a hierarchy?

A

the way different levels of authority are ranked in an organisational structure

24
Q

what is a chain command?

A

the order in which authority and power in an organisation are exercised and delegated from top management down

25
Q

what is authority?

A

the power or right to give orders or make decisions

26
Q

what is span of control?

A

the number of subordinates who can be controlled effectively by one manager

27
Q

what does the span of control depend on?

A

-the ability of the manager
-the type of work
-the skills of the employees

28
Q

what is a flat hierarchy?

A

-not many layers of management
>wider span of control

29
Q

what is a tall hierarchy?

A

-where there is a lot of layers of management
>narrower span of control

30
Q

what is delegation?

A

the granting of authority by one person to another for agreed purposes

31
Q

what is centralisation?

A

concentrating all management and decision making power at the top of the organisational hierarchy

32
Q

what is decentralisation?

A

redistributing decision making power away from a central location or authority

33
Q

what are some influences on the level of centralisation and decentralisation?

A

-uniformity of decisions
-management style
-skills and availability of workforce
-economic influences
-technology

34
Q

what is HR planning?

A

it is the process that identifies the current and future HR needs of an organisation in order to achieve its objectives

35
Q

what is HR flow?

A

the movement of employees through an organisation, including recruitment, promotion and employment termination

36
Q

what is job description?

A

sets out the duties and and tasks associated with a particular post

37
Q

what is job specification?

A

sets out the qualifications and qualities required of an employee

38
Q

what is performance appraisal?

A

a systematic and periodic process that assesses an employee’s job performance in relation to established criteria

39
Q

what is redundancy?

A

when an employee is dismissed due to their job no longer existing

40
Q

what is redeployment?

A

the process of moving existing employees to a different job or location

41
Q

what is natural wastage?

A

the loss of employees from a business due to retirement, resignation or death

42
Q

why might an employee be dismissed?

A

-gross misconduct: violence towards a customer or colleague, or theft, etc
-persistent minor misconduct: such as constant lateness even after warnings
-a substantial reason: such as not agreeing to new reasonable terms of employment

43
Q

what are some potential benefits of a motivated an engaged workforce?

A

-productivity: work harder, produce more, extra work
-recruitment and retention: employer of choice, retain its workers
-absenteeism: will be lower
-innovation: more ideas
-profitability: likely to be higher

44
Q

what is motivation?

A

-the will to work due to enjoyment of the work

45
Q

what were Taylor’s ideas of motivation?

A

-people are solely motivated by money
-efficiency improves productivity, competitiveness and profits
-workers should have no control over their work
-social aspect of work is irrelevant and should be ignored

46
Q

what were Mayo’s ideas of motivation?

A

motivation depends on:
-the type of job and the type of supervision
-group relationships, morale and individual’s sense of worth

47
Q

what are the parts of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs?

A

-physiological: the need for food, shelter, water and sex (basic need)
-security: the need to be free from threats and danger (basic need)
-social: the need to love and be loved, and to be part of a group (higher level need)
-esteem: the need to haver self-respect and respect for colleagues (higher level need)
-self-actualisation: the need to develop personal skills and fulfil one’s potential (higher level need)

48
Q

what were Herzberg’s ideas of motivation?

A

-motivators: positive factors that give people satisfaction (eg: recognition, bonuses) and increase productivity as motivation increases
-hygiene factors: factors that may cause dissatisfaction. improving hygiene factors will reduce dissatisfaction. (eg: pay, fair treatment, good working conditions)

49
Q

what financial methods can you use for motivation?

A

-wages and salaries
-piece-rate pay
-commission
-profit-related pay
-performance-related pay

50
Q

what are non financial methods of motivation?

A

-meaningful work
-involvement (with decision making process)
-responsibility and recognition

51
Q

what are some factors that might influence the choice and effectiveness of reward systems?

A

-finance
-nature of the work
-culture
-external factors

52
Q

what might have an effect on how involved and appreciated employees feel in the business?

A

-management style
-nature of the work
-legislation

53
Q

what is a trade union

A

an organised group of employees that aims to protect and enhance the economic position of its members

54
Q

what do trade unions do?

A

-negotiate pay and conditions of work
-discuss major changes in the workplace, such as redundancy and help protect job security
-provide financial and legal advice, as well as other services

55
Q

why have there been a decrease in the number of people who are part of a trade union?

A

-legislation: controls the activities of trade unions
-decline of traditional industries: coal mining, steel and ship building
-increasing number of small businesses: not strongly unionised

57
Q

what are work councils?

A

a body composed of both employer and employee representatives convened to discuss and negotiate on matters of common interest including pay and conditions

58
Q

what areas can the value of a good employee-employer relationships be seen in?

A

-productivity: employees are more likely to be motivated, less wastage and better quality
-employee loyalty: labour turnover rates likely to be lower and higher retention rates
-decision making: likely to be taken faster, introduction of change easier

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