Unit 6: Decision-making to Improve Human Resource Performance

Question 1

What is Human resource management?

Answer 1

Managing people

Question 2

What HR objectives might a business set?

Answer 2

Training
Diveristy

Question 3

Why do businesses set HR objectives?

Answer 3

Effective working environment
Good performance
Allocate resources

Question 4

Soft HRM

Answer 4

Concentrate on the needs of employees- their roles, rewards, motivation

Question 5

Hard HRM

Answer 5

Identify workforce needs of the business and recruit and manage accordingly (hiring, moving and firing)

Question 6

Key features of Soft HRM

Answer 6

Long term workforce planning
Strong communication
Competitive pay structure
Employers are empowered
Feedback

Question 7

Key features of Hard HRM

Answer 7

Short term changes
Minimal communications
Little empowerment
Minimum wage

Question 8

Employee retention

Answer 8

The ability of an organisation to retain its employees

Question 9

Labour turnover

Answer 9

Employees leaving in a given period

Question 10

What factors can influence labour turnover?

Answer 10

Competitors
Working conditions
Pay
Type of business

Question 11

What problems does high labour turnover cause?

Answer 11

High recruitment
Pressure on staff
Hard to maintain standards
Distribution

Question 12

How could a business minimise labour turnover?

Answer 12

Effective recruitment
Staff loyalty
Rewards
Recruit right staff
Job empowerment

Question 13

Labour Productivity

Answer 13

Amount of output that is obtained from each employee

Question 14

Labour costs per unit

Answer 14

Average labour costs involved in producing one unit of output in a given time

Question 18

Tall Organisational Structures

Answer 18

Many levels of hierarchy
Less people to manage
Longer to communicate
Lighter control

Question 19

Flat Organisational Structure

Answer 19

Few layers of hierarchy
More promotion
Fewer opportunities

Question 20

Delegation

Answer 20

Giving authority to others

Question 21

Advantages of Delegation

Answer 21

Reduces management stress
Better decisions
Subordinates are motivated

Question 22

Disadvantages of Delegation

Answer 22

Hard in small firms
Increase workload
Depends on quality

Question 23

Job Empowerment

Answer 23

Giving employees the power to do their job

Question 24

Job Empowerment Benefits

Answer 24

More motivated
Boosted reputation
Increase customer service
Better labour productivity

Question 25

Job Empowerment Drawbacks

Answer 25

Difficult with low skilled workers
Blame

Question 26

What is Job Design?

Answer 26

The task and responsibilities that are grouped into a specific job
Can have a significant influence on labour productivity

Question 27

Hackman and Oldham

Answer 27

Believes that the task itself is key to employee motivation
Design jobs that add to employee motivation

Question 28

Skill Variety

Answer 28

How many different skills and talents does the job require of a person

Question 29

Task Identity

Answer 29

Is there a clear defined beginning, middle and end to a given task? Does a worker know what they need to do?

Question 30

Task Significance

Answer 30

Will the job matter to people? is the job meaningful?

Question 31

Autonomy

Answer 31

How much freedom does an individual have to accomplish the task?

Question 32

Job Feedback

Answer 32

Is the employee kept in the loop about their performance?

Question 33

Why might a business decide to change organisational structure?

Answer 33

Growth of the business
Reduce costs
Employee motivation
Customer service

Question 34

What difficulties might a business face?

Answer 34

Manager and employee resistance
Disruption and less motivation
Costs
Negative impact on customer

Question 35

Advantages of Delayering

Answer 35

Lower management costs
Faster decision making
shorter communication paths
Stimulating employee innovation

Question 35

Delayering

Answer 35

Involves removing layers of management from the hierarchy

Question 36

Disadvantages of Delayering

Answer 36

Wider spans of control
Potential loss of management expertise

Question 37

Disadvantages of Centralisation

Answer 37

More bureaucratic
Lack of authority
Managers making decision’s without knowledge

Question 38

Centralisation

Answer 38

Keep decision making firmly at the top of the hierarchy

Question 39

Advantages of Centralisation

Answer 39

Easy to be implemented
Prevents other parts of business to be independent
Easier to coordinate
Economies of scale
Quicker decision

Question 40

Decentralisation

Answer 40

Decision making is spread out to include more junior managers in the hierarchy

Question 41

Advantages of Decentralisation

Answer 41

Decisions are made closer to the customer
Able to respond to local circumstances
better customer service
Improve staff motivation
Good way of training

Question 42

Disadvantages of Decentralisation

Answer 42

Hard to get financial control
Diseconomies of scale
Hard to practice policies

Question 43

How is the workplace changing?

Answer 43

Increase in part time working
More women seeking work
Ageing population
More flexible work hours
People move jobs
Technology changes
increase single parents

Question 44

Advantages of part-time and flexible working

Answer 44

Cheaper to employ
More flexible
Range of potential recruit

Question 45

Disadvantages of part-time and flexible working