Unit6 Flashcards
What are the roles of HR?
- Job analysis
- Recruitment
- Performance management
- Training
- Reward
- Diversity
- Safety and wellbeing
What are common HR objectives?
- employee engagement
- talent development
- training
- diversity
- alignment of values
- right number, skills and location of staff
1) employee engagement- HR objectives
if employees are fully engaged and involved in the business they’re more likely to be motivated= higher productivity and quality
2) talent development - HR objectives
development and guidance of talented staff so they can contribute to the success and growth. also improves employee retention of talent
3) Training - HR objectives
development of employee skills or behaviours to carry jobs out more effectively and improve performance
4) diversity- HR objectives
recognising each employee ad an individual and welcoming employee differences
5) alignment of values- HR objectives
the sharing of common set of core values between all employees
6) right number, skills and location of staff - HR objectives
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
what are the internal factors affecting HR objectives?
1) Financial objectives
2) Operational objective
3) Marketing objective
4) Corporate objective
what external factors affecting HR objectives
1) market changes
2) economic changes
3) tech changes
4) social changes
5) political and legal changes
what is hard HR?
approach treats employees as just another asset or resource that must be used as efficiently as possible
what is soft HR?
approach treats employees as a valuable asset or resource that needs to be developed
what is human resource data?
quantifiable information used to measure performance of the workforce. used to make improvements on performance
what does labour productivity measure?
a measure of how efficient the workforce is in transforming inputs into outputs
how do you calculate labour productivity?
total output / number of employees
what are the key factors influencing labour productivity?
- extent and quality of fixed assets
- skills and ability and motivation
- methods of production
- training and support given
- external factors
what are the potential problems when trying to increase labour productivity?
- loss of quality with higher output
- potential employee resistance
- employees may want higher pay for higher productivity
what are ways to improve labour productivity?
- measure performance and set targets
- streamline processes
- invest in capital equipment
- employee training
- improve working conditions
what does labour cost per unit measure?
the total labour costs divided by the number of units of output.
e.g. wages, taxes, motivators
how do you calculate labour cost per unit?
total labour costs / total output
what does employee cost as a percentage of turnover measure?
the proportion of sales revenue that is spent on employee remuneration
how do you calculate employee cost as a percentage of turnover?
(employee costs / sales turnover) x 100
what does labour turnover measure?
measure of the number of employees leaving as a percentage of the average size of the workforce in a given time period
how do you calculate labour turnover?
(number of staff leaving / avg number of staff) x100
what are the consequences of high labour turnover?
- recruitment costs
- training costs
- reduced productivity
- low morale
- hard to maintain quality and customer service
what are the ways of improving labour turnover?
- improve conditions
- motivate staff
- improve wages
- communication
- training
- delegation
what does retention rate measure?
measure of the number of long- term serving staff as a percentage of the avg size of the workforce
what are the main reasons for employees leaving their jobs ?
- ineffective leadership and communication
- wages and salaries lower than other jobs
- boring
- poor working conditions
- low motivation
how do you calculate retention rate?
(number of long serving staff / avg number of staff) x 100
what examples of internal data that helps HR planning?
- labour productivity
- labour turnover
- retention
- unit labour cost
- skill
- financial performance
- corporate objectives
- level of absenteeism
what are examples of external data that helps HR planning?
- min wage
- wage paid by competitors
- market trends
- unemployment rates
- tech
- social trends
- employment laws
what is organisational structure?
the way in which the workforce within a business is organised including job roles and communication flows
what is an organisational chart?
provides a visual representation of the organisational structure
what is organisational design ?
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.
what is authority?
the power of an employee to instruct subordinates, make decisions and control the use of resources
what is subordinates?
a person under the authority or control of another
what is span of control?
the number of subordinates a manger is responsible for
what is chain of command?
the line of communication and authority in a a business.
what is delegation?
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
what are the advantages of delegation?
- reduce manager workload
- focus on key tasks
- empowerment
- on- the- job training
what are the disadvantages of delegation?
- cannot delegate responsibility
- depends on experience of subordinates
= quality risk - increase sub workload = stress
what does it mean if a business is centralised?
keep decision making at the top of the hierarchy amongst senior management.
what are the benefits of a centralised business?
- quicker decision making
- consistency
- motivation and clear communication
what are the drawbacks of a centralised business?
- rigid = less flexible decision making
- lower motivation = low empowerment , productivity, innovation
what does it mean if a business is decentralised?
decision making is spread out to include more junior manager in the hierarchy, as well as individual business units or trading locations
what are the benefits of a decentralised business ?
- motivation = productivity and innovation
- flexible decision making
- internal recruitment = reduce costs and on the the job training
what are the drawbacks of a decentralised business?
- less consistency = quality at risk
- depends on skill and experience
- bad in crisis
what are the influences on organisational design?
- 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
what is hierarchy?
the structure and number of layers of management and supervision in an organisation
what is a tall structure?
large number of layers
what are the key characteristics of a tall structure?
- narrow span of control
- tighter control
- promotion opportunities
- longer to communicate
- more staff = more cost
what is a slat structure?
small number of layers
what are the key characteristics of a flat structure?
- wide span of control
- less direct control = more delegation
- fewer promotion opportunities
- vertical communication improved
- less staff = less cost
what are the benefits of a narrow span of control?
- allows for close supervision
- communication with subordinates is easier
what are the benefits of wider span of control?
- fewer levels of management
- greater decision making and delegation
- lower supervision costs
what is organisational design?
the process of reshaping an organisational structure and roles to fit in the strategy of the business
how would re designing organisational structures and job roles benefit the business?
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
what is delayering?
involves removing layers of management from the hierarchy of the organisation
what are the advantages of delayering?
- empowerment and motivations
- better communication
- remove department rivalry
- reduce costs
- encourage delegation
- better customer service
what are the drawbacks of delayering?
- flat structure not suited to mass production, low skilled
- low motivation = job losses
- increased workload for managers
- skill shortages
what is HR flow?
the movement of employees into the business, around the business and out of the business
what is inflow in terms of HR flow?
recruitment and selection of employees
what is internal flow in terms of HR flow?
training and redeployment
what is outflow in terms of HR flow?
resignations and redundancies
what is redeployment?
the process of moving employees to a different job or of sending them to work in different places
what is HR planning?
the process of assessing current and future staffing needs
what is recruitment?
identifying a vacancy and attracting suitable candidates. this can be internal or external.
what methods of internal recruitment are there?
- jobs given to existing staff
- promotion or reorganisation
what are the benefits of internal recruitment?
- cuts cost
- already established in business
- quicker
- improve motivation
what are the drawbacks of internal recruitment?
- there’s a gap left
- limited skill and knowledge to choose from
what methods of external recruitment are there?
- job centres
- job advertisement
- recruitment agencies
- headhunting
personal recommendation
what are the benefits of external recruitment?
- fresh ideas / skills
- larger pools of candidates
- qualified and experienced
what are the drawbacks of external recruitment?
- riskier
- expensive
- longer process
what is selection?
identifying the best candidate for a job
what is a job description?
sets out the duties and tasks associated with a particular job
what is a person specification?
sets out the qualifications, skills and experience required of an employee for a specific job
what is training?
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
what is induction training?
the introductory training fr employees new to an organisation
what benefits come with training?
- productivity
- quality
- less supervision = trust
- retention
- motivation
what is On-the-job training?
where an employee receives training whilst remaining in the workplace
what methods of On-the-job training are there?
- demonstration
- coaching
- job rotation
- projects
what is job rotation in training?
where the trainee is given several jobs in succession, to gain experience of a wide range of activities
what are the benefits of On-the-job training?
- cheaper
- hands on = control
- build relationships
what are the drawbacks of On-the-job training?
- limit to mentors ability
- take time away from staff
what is Off-the-job training?
that takes place away from the workplace
what are the benefits of Off-the-job training?
- focused fully
- expert mentor
- new skills
what are the drawbacks of Off-the-job training?
- expensive
- not at work
- not bespoke to the business ethics
what is redundancy?
when an employee is dismissed due to their job no longer existing
what is employee engagment?
occurs when employees are deeply integrated into their work including the values of the organisation
what does a motivated workforce result in?
- increased output
- improved quality
- higher level of staff retention
how can managers influence employee motivation?
- monetary factors = hard work rewarded with higher pay
- non monetary factors
what does Taylor’s motivational theory show?
that money is the only way to make staff work hard. reward staff for the amount of work they produce.
- piece rates
what does Maslow’s motivational theory show?
people work to fulfill some needs, starting with basic needs and work hard to achieve the higher level needs.
what does Herzberg’s motivational theory show?
some elements of a job make staff turn up for work (hygiene factors) and others make them work hard (motivators)
what is job design?
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
what is job enlargement?
staff are given more tasks to do of similar difficulty
what is empowerment?
staff are given authority to make decisions about how they do their job
what is job rotation?
staff are switched between different tasks to reduce monotony
what is job enrichment?
staff are given more interesting and challenging tasks
what does Hackman and Oldham’s model show?
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
what are the 5 characteristics of Hackman and Oldham’s model?
- skill variety
- task identity - degree to which an individual is in charge
- task significance
- autonomy
- feedback - effectively completed?
what are the financial incentives?
- piece rate
- commission
- performance related pay
- salary
- wages
- profit sharing
- share option
- bonus
-fringe benefit
what non- financial incentives are there?
- delegation
- consultation
- empowerment
- team work
- flexible working
- promotion
- praise
- job enrichment, enlargement
what is employer-employee relations?
the defining features of how employers and employees interact with each other on a day to day basis
what is employee representation?
the formal or informal methods of involving employees on decision making within an organisation.
what is industrial action?
occurs when workers do something that is intended to force an employer to agree to something, especially by stopping work.
what is a trade union?
an organised group of employees that aims to protect and improve the economic position of its members
what are the two main functions of a trade union?
- represent and protect interest of employees
- negotiate on behalf of employees
what is a work council?
a body composed of both employer and employees convened to discuss and negotiate on matters of common interest including pay and conditions
what does less risk of industrial disputes mean?
- avoiding negative media attention
- reducing loss of revenues and increase in costs due to industrial actions
what does motivated and engaged employees mean?
- higher labour productivity
- lower labour turnover
what does better reputation as an employer mean?
- higher staff retention
- easier to attract new staff
what does better reputation mean in the public eye mean?
favourable media attention and reputation
what are the advantages of employee representation?
- increased empowerment and motivation
- employees become more committed
- better decision making = take employee experience and insight into account
- lower risk of industrial dispute
what are the disadvantages of employee representation?
- time consuming
- conflict between employer and employee
- managing may feel their authority is being undermined
what is communication?
the process of passing information between interest parties to the right person
how is effective communication beneficial?
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
what is a dispute ?
when there is a disagreement between employer and the employee / employee representative
what is industrial action?
is when the employees take sanctions to try and impose pressure on the employer.
what is Work-to-rule as a type of strike?
employees follow the strict conditions of their employment contract. Not working above and beyond.
what is Overtime ban as a type of strike?
employees refuse to work overtime. effecting production capacity during periods of peak demand
what is Go-slow as a type of strike?
employees work at least productive pace that is allowable under employment contracts.
what is strike?
last resort , fraught with danger for both employer and employee and strictly policed by legislation on industrial action.
what are the damages for the business in case of a strike?
- loss of sales and profits from lost output
- damage to customer satisfaction
- internal management distraction
- staff relationship damaged
what are damages for the employee in case of a strike?
-lost pay
- loss of jobs risk
- loss of customer and public support
- risk that illegal action will result in legal proceedings
what is Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) for?
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
how do ACAS avoid disputes?
- regular consultations
- staff forum
- elect consultative body to speak of issues
- team meetings
