Unit6 Flashcards

1
Q

What are the roles of HR?

A
  • Job analysis
  • Recruitment
  • Performance management
  • Training
  • Reward
  • Diversity
  • Safety and wellbeing
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2
Q

What are common HR objectives?

A
  • employee engagement
  • talent development
  • training
  • diversity
  • alignment of values
  • right number, skills and location of staff
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3
Q

1) employee engagement- HR objectives

A

if employees are fully engaged and involved in the business they’re more likely to be motivated= higher productivity and quality

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4
Q

2) talent development - HR objectives

A

development and guidance of talented staff so they can contribute to the success and growth. also improves employee retention of talent

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5
Q

3) Training - HR objectives

A

development of employee skills or behaviours to carry jobs out more effectively and improve performance

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6
Q

4) diversity- HR objectives

A

recognising each employee ad an individual and welcoming employee differences

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7
Q

5) alignment of values- HR objectives

A

the sharing of common set of core values between all employees

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8
Q

6) right number, skills and location of staff - HR objectives

A

meet the needs of the business there must be the right number of staff with the right skills and the right time in the jobs

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9
Q

what are the internal factors affecting HR objectives?

A

1) Financial objectives
2) Operational objective
3) Marketing objective
4) Corporate objective

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10
Q

what external factors affecting HR objectives

A

1) market changes
2) economic changes
3) tech changes
4) social changes
5) political and legal changes

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11
Q

what is hard HR?

A

approach treats employees as just another asset or resource that must be used as efficiently as possible

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12
Q

what is soft HR?

A

approach treats employees as a valuable asset or resource that needs to be developed

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13
Q

what is human resource data?

A

quantifiable information used to measure performance of the workforce. used to make improvements on performance

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14
Q

what does labour productivity measure?

A

a measure of how efficient the workforce is in transforming inputs into outputs

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15
Q

how do you calculate labour productivity?

A

total output / number of employees

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16
Q

what are the key factors influencing labour productivity?

A
  • extent and quality of fixed assets
  • skills and ability and motivation
  • methods of production
  • training and support given
  • external factors
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17
Q

what are the potential problems when trying to increase labour productivity?

A
  • loss of quality with higher output
  • potential employee resistance
  • employees may want higher pay for higher productivity
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18
Q

what are ways to improve labour productivity?

A
  • measure performance and set targets
  • streamline processes
  • invest in capital equipment
  • employee training
  • improve working conditions
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19
Q

what does labour cost per unit measure?

A

the total labour costs divided by the number of units of output.
e.g. wages, taxes, motivators

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20
Q

how do you calculate labour cost per unit?

A

total labour costs / total output

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21
Q

what does employee cost as a percentage of turnover measure?

A

the proportion of sales revenue that is spent on employee remuneration

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22
Q

how do you calculate employee cost as a percentage of turnover?

A

(employee costs / sales turnover) x 100

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23
Q

what does labour turnover measure?

A

measure of the number of employees leaving as a percentage of the average size of the workforce in a given time period

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24
Q

how do you calculate labour turnover?

A

(number of staff leaving / avg number of staff) x100

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25
Q

what are the consequences of high labour turnover?

A
  • recruitment costs
  • training costs
  • reduced productivity
  • low morale
  • hard to maintain quality and customer service
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26
Q

what are the ways of improving labour turnover?

A
  • improve conditions
  • motivate staff
  • improve wages
  • communication
  • training
  • delegation
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27
Q

what does retention rate measure?

A

measure of the number of long- term serving staff as a percentage of the avg size of the workforce

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28
Q

what are the main reasons for employees leaving their jobs ?

A
  • ineffective leadership and communication
  • wages and salaries lower than other jobs
  • boring
  • poor working conditions
  • low motivation
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29
Q

how do you calculate retention rate?

A

(number of long serving staff / avg number of staff) x 100

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30
Q

what examples of internal data that helps HR planning?

A
  • labour productivity
  • labour turnover
  • retention
  • unit labour cost
  • skill
  • financial performance
  • corporate objectives
  • level of absenteeism
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31
Q

what are examples of external data that helps HR planning?

A
  • min wage
  • wage paid by competitors
  • market trends
  • unemployment rates
  • tech
  • social trends
  • employment laws
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32
Q

what is organisational structure?

A

the way in which the workforce within a business is organised including job roles and communication flows

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33
Q

what is an organisational chart?

A

provides a visual representation of the organisational structure

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34
Q

what is organisational design ?

A

the process of structuring an organisation so that it is in the format that enables it to deliver its objectives in short and long term. the process also structures the organisation to enable change to be managed effectively.

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35
Q

what is authority?

A

the power of an employee to instruct subordinates, make decisions and control the use of resources

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36
Q

what is subordinates?

A

a person under the authority or control of another

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37
Q

what is span of control?

A

the number of subordinates a manger is responsible for

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38
Q

what is chain of command?

A

the line of communication and authority in a a business.

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39
Q

what is delegation?

A

the passing of authority to a subordinate within a business. it is the power to undertake a task that is delegated but not the responsibility for it

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40
Q

what are the advantages of delegation?

A
  • reduce manager workload
  • focus on key tasks
  • empowerment
  • on- the- job training
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41
Q

what are the disadvantages of delegation?

A
  • cannot delegate responsibility
  • depends on experience of subordinates
    = quality risk
  • increase sub workload = stress
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42
Q

what does it mean if a business is centralised?

A

keep decision making at the top of the hierarchy amongst senior management.

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43
Q

what are the benefits of a centralised business?

A
  • quicker decision making
  • consistency
  • motivation and clear communication
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44
Q

what are the drawbacks of a centralised business?

A
  • rigid = less flexible decision making
  • lower motivation = low empowerment , productivity, innovation
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45
Q

what does it mean if a business is decentralised?

A

decision making is spread out to include more junior manager in the hierarchy, as well as individual business units or trading locations

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46
Q

what are the benefits of a decentralised business ?

A
  • motivation = productivity and innovation
  • flexible decision making
  • internal recruitment = reduce costs and on the the job training
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47
Q

what are the drawbacks of a decentralised business?

A
  • less consistency = quality at risk
  • depends on skill and experience
  • bad in crisis
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48
Q

what are the influences on organisational design?

A
  • attitudes and priorities of leaders and leadership style
  • skills and attitudes of workforce
  • nature of decisions being made
  • functional objectives
  • degree of stability and confidence in the economic environment
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49
Q

what is hierarchy?

A

the structure and number of layers of management and supervision in an organisation

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50
Q

what is a tall structure?

A

large number of layers

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51
Q

what are the key characteristics of a tall structure?

A
  • narrow span of control
  • tighter control
  • promotion opportunities
  • longer to communicate
  • more staff = more cost
52
Q

what is a slat structure?

A

small number of layers

53
Q

what are the key characteristics of a flat structure?

A
  • wide span of control
  • less direct control = more delegation
  • fewer promotion opportunities
  • vertical communication improved
  • less staff = less cost
54
Q

what are the benefits of a narrow span of control?

A
  • allows for close supervision
  • communication with subordinates is easier
55
Q

what are the benefits of wider span of control?

A
  • fewer levels of management
  • greater decision making and delegation
  • lower supervision costs
56
Q

what is organisational design?

A

the process of reshaping an organisational structure and roles to fit in the strategy of the business

57
Q

how would re designing organisational structures and job roles benefit the business?

A

employees become more engaged and motivated, resulting in higher productivity, quality and less waste. leading to competitive advantage and potential for higher revenue and profit

58
Q

what is delayering?

A

involves removing layers of management from the hierarchy of the organisation

59
Q

what are the advantages of delayering?

A
  • empowerment and motivations
  • better communication
  • remove department rivalry
  • reduce costs
  • encourage delegation
  • better customer service
60
Q

what are the drawbacks of delayering?

A
  • flat structure not suited to mass production, low skilled
  • low motivation = job losses
  • increased workload for managers
  • skill shortages
61
Q

what is HR flow?

A

the movement of employees into the business, around the business and out of the business

62
Q

what is inflow in terms of HR flow?

A

recruitment and selection of employees

63
Q

what is internal flow in terms of HR flow?

A

training and redeployment

64
Q

what is outflow in terms of HR flow?

A

resignations and redundancies

65
Q

what is redeployment?

A

the process of moving employees to a different job or of sending them to work in different places

66
Q

what is HR planning?

A

the process of assessing current and future staffing needs

67
Q

what is recruitment?

A

identifying a vacancy and attracting suitable candidates. this can be internal or external.

68
Q

what methods of internal recruitment are there?

A
  • jobs given to existing staff
  • promotion or reorganisation
69
Q

what are the benefits of internal recruitment?

A
  • cuts cost
  • already established in business
  • quicker
  • improve motivation
70
Q

what are the drawbacks of internal recruitment?

A
  • there’s a gap left
  • limited skill and knowledge to choose from
71
Q

what methods of external recruitment are there?

A
  • job centres
  • job advertisement
  • recruitment agencies
  • headhunting
    personal recommendation
72
Q

what are the benefits of external recruitment?

A
  • fresh ideas / skills
  • larger pools of candidates
  • qualified and experienced
73
Q

what are the drawbacks of external recruitment?

A
  • riskier
  • expensive
  • longer process
74
Q

what is selection?

A

identifying the best candidate for a job

75
Q

what is a job description?

A

sets out the duties and tasks associated with a particular job

76
Q

what is a person specification?

A

sets out the qualifications, skills and experience required of an employee for a specific job

77
Q

what is training?

A

the process of increasing the knowledge and skill of the workforce to enable them to perform their jobs effectively. training is a process where an individual acquires job related skills and knowledge

78
Q

what is induction training?

A

the introductory training fr employees new to an organisation

79
Q

what benefits come with training?

A
  • productivity
  • quality
  • less supervision = trust
  • retention
  • motivation
80
Q

what is On-the-job training?

A

where an employee receives training whilst remaining in the workplace

81
Q

what methods of On-the-job training are there?

A
  • demonstration
  • coaching
  • job rotation
  • projects
82
Q

what is job rotation in training?

A

where the trainee is given several jobs in succession, to gain experience of a wide range of activities

83
Q

what are the benefits of On-the-job training?

A
  • cheaper
  • hands on = control
  • build relationships
84
Q

what are the drawbacks of On-the-job training?

A
  • limit to mentors ability
  • take time away from staff
85
Q

what is Off-the-job training?

A

that takes place away from the workplace

86
Q

what are the benefits of Off-the-job training?

A
  • focused fully
  • expert mentor
  • new skills
87
Q

what are the drawbacks of Off-the-job training?

A
  • expensive
  • not at work
  • not bespoke to the business ethics
88
Q

what is redundancy?

A

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

89
Q

what is employee engagment?

A

occurs when employees are deeply integrated into their work including the values of the organisation

90
Q

what does a motivated workforce result in?

A
  • increased output
  • improved quality
  • higher level of staff retention
91
Q

how can managers influence employee motivation?

A
  • monetary factors = hard work rewarded with higher pay
  • non monetary factors
92
Q

what does Taylor’s motivational theory show?

A

that money is the only way to make staff work hard. reward staff for the amount of work they produce.
- piece rates

93
Q

what does Maslow’s motivational theory show?

A

people work to fulfill some needs, starting with basic needs and work hard to achieve the higher level needs.

94
Q

what does Herzberg’s motivational theory show?

A

some elements of a job make staff turn up for work (hygiene factors) and others make them work hard (motivators)

95
Q

what is job design?

A

the way jobs are arranged in order to reduce boredom and employee dissatisfaction. it includes the number and variety of tasks to be undertaken by an employee

96
Q

what is job enlargement?

A

staff are given more tasks to do of similar difficulty

97
Q

what is empowerment?

A

staff are given authority to make decisions about how they do their job

98
Q

what is job rotation?

A

staff are switched between different tasks to reduce monotony

99
Q

what is job enrichment?

A

staff are given more interesting and challenging tasks

100
Q

what does Hackman and Oldham’s model show?

A

based on the belief that the task itself is key to employee motivation.
- a boring monotonous job stifles motivation
- a job with variety and autonomy and authority enhances motivation= Job enrichment and job rotation

101
Q

what are the 5 characteristics of Hackman and Oldham’s model?

A
  • skill variety
  • task identity - degree to which an individual is in charge
  • task significance
  • autonomy
  • feedback - effectively completed?
102
Q

what are the financial incentives?

A
  • piece rate
  • commission
  • performance related pay
  • salary
  • wages
  • profit sharing
  • share option
  • bonus
    -fringe benefit
103
Q

what non- financial incentives are there?

A
  • delegation
  • consultation
  • empowerment
  • team work
  • flexible working
  • promotion
  • praise
  • job enrichment, enlargement
104
Q

what is employer-employee relations?

A

the defining features of how employers and employees interact with each other on a day to day basis

105
Q

what is employee representation?

A

the formal or informal methods of involving employees on decision making within an organisation.

106
Q

what is industrial action?

A

occurs when workers do something that is intended to force an employer to agree to something, especially by stopping work.

107
Q

what is a trade union?

A

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

108
Q

what are the two main functions of a trade union?

A
  • represent and protect interest of employees
  • negotiate on behalf of employees
109
Q

what is a work council?

A

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

110
Q

what does less risk of industrial disputes mean?

A
  • avoiding negative media attention
  • reducing loss of revenues and increase in costs due to industrial actions
111
Q

what does motivated and engaged employees mean?

A
  • higher labour productivity
  • lower labour turnover
112
Q

what does better reputation as an employer mean?

A
  • higher staff retention
  • easier to attract new staff
113
Q

what does better reputation mean in the public eye mean?

A

favourable media attention and reputation

114
Q

what are the advantages of employee representation?

A
  • increased empowerment and motivation
  • employees become more committed
  • better decision making = take employee experience and insight into account
  • lower risk of industrial dispute
115
Q

what are the disadvantages of employee representation?

A
  • time consuming
  • conflict between employer and employee
  • managing may feel their authority is being undermined
116
Q

what is communication?

A

the process of passing information between interest parties to the right person

117
Q

how is effective communication beneficial?

A

it will be easier for the business to implement changes as employees understand the reasons behind management decision making and are therefor more likely to accept these changes

118
Q

what is a dispute ?

A

when there is a disagreement between employer and the employee / employee representative

119
Q

what is industrial action?

A

is when the employees take sanctions to try and impose pressure on the employer.

120
Q

what is Work-to-rule as a type of strike?

A

employees follow the strict conditions of their employment contract. Not working above and beyond.

121
Q

what is Overtime ban as a type of strike?

A

employees refuse to work overtime. effecting production capacity during periods of peak demand

122
Q

what is Go-slow as a type of strike?

A

employees work at least productive pace that is allowable under employment contracts.

123
Q

what is strike?

A

last resort , fraught with danger for both employer and employee and strictly policed by legislation on industrial action.

124
Q

what are the damages for the business in case of a strike?

A
  • loss of sales and profits from lost output
  • damage to customer satisfaction
  • internal management distraction
  • staff relationship damaged
125
Q

what are damages for the employee in case of a strike?

A

-lost pay
- loss of jobs risk
- loss of customer and public support
- risk that illegal action will result in legal proceedings

126
Q

what is Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) for?

A

introduced in 1975 as an independent body with the responsibility of resolving industrial disputes and preventing industrial action.
- preparing individuals by training to rep staff

127
Q

how do ACAS avoid disputes?

A
  • regular consultations
  • staff forum
  • elect consultative body to speak of issues
  • team meetings