Introduction to Human Resources Management - Coursework Example

?Introduction to HRM Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 Activity 1 6 Identify The Different Activities That Susan Has To Carry Out In RelationTo People Management As Part Of Her Role As Supervisor. 6 2 Why Do You Think HR Is an Important Aspect of a Supervisor’s Job? 6 3 Do You Think These Are Typical Activities For A Supervisor In A Busy Restaurant? Why? 7 4 How Do Susan’s HR Activities contribute To the Successful running Of the Restaurant? 7 5 What HR Activities Have You Carried Out As Part Of Your Job? 8 Activity 1.2 9 1 What Is Meant By The Organisational Environment? 9 2 What Information Could They Find Out? 9 Activity 1.3 13 1 Identify The Historical Influences On The Approach To HRM Adopted At Utility X? Give Reasons for Your Answer. 13 2 Why Do You Think Mike Finds His Working Environment Stressful? 14 3 Why Do You Think There Is A High Turnover Rate Among Staff In The Call Centre At Utility X? 14 4 If You Were In Mike’s Position What Would You Do? 15 Activity 1.3 Windows 16 1 Identify the Historical Influences Operating In Windows 16 2 Why Do You Think Jane Now Enjoys Working For Windows? 16 3 Which Organisation Would Your Prefer To Work For? Explain Why. 17 Activity 1.4 18 1 Using The Storey’s (1992), Table, Cited In Bloisi (2007) Page 15, Identify The Factors That Indicate That College Z May Be Taking A Personnel Or HRM Approach To Managing People In The Following Table: 18 2 Given The Factors Listed Above, Is College Z Taking A Personnel Approach Or HRM Approach? Explain Your Decision 19 3 Using The Storey’s (1992), Table, Cited In Bloisi (2007) Page 15, Identify The Factors That Indicate That The Windows Case Study In Activity 1.3 May Be Taking A Personnel Or HRM Approach To Managing People In The Following Table: 20 4 Given The Factors Listed Above, Are Windows Taking A Personnel Approach Or HRM Approach? Explain Your Decision. 21 5 Think Of An Organisation That You Have Worked In, What Type Of Approach To Managing People Did It Adopt – Personnel/HRM. Explain Why You Think This? 22 6 From Your Experience Of People Management And Your Reading In This Chapter, Do You Think There Is A Difference Between Personnel Management And HRM? Why? 22 Activity 1.5 23 1 What Type of Approach to HRM Do You Think Has Been Adopted At Windows? What HR Models Do You Think Have Been Used? Give Reasons for Your Answer. 23 Using the Utility X Case Study from 1.3, Answer the Following Questions: 24 1 What Type of Approach to HRM Do You Think Has Been Adopted At Utility X? Give Reasons for Your Answer. 24 2 Explain What The Michigan Model Of HRM Is Based Upon And Describe How It Applies To Utility X. 24 Activity 1.6 25 1 Why In The Authors Views Is The ‘Employee Champion’ Role So Important? 25 2 Do You Agree or Disagree With the Authors’ Views in This Article? Give Examples Of Areas Of Agreement Or Disagreement And Explain Your Reasons. 25 3 Who Should Carry Out the ‘Employee Champion’ Role in Organisations? 25 4 Read The Last Paragraph Carefully. Do You Agree With The Authors’ Views? Explain Why This Is The Case. 26 5 How Can Line Managers And HR Managers Be Encouraged To Work Together For The Mutual Benefit Of The Organisation? 26 Activity 1.7 27 1 What Changes Have Been Made In Relation To HR Work Within The Hotel? 27 2 What Are The Benefits Of Making These Changes For The Organisation And Line Managers? 27 3 What Problems Can Occur When HR Work Is Devolved To Line Managers? 28 4 Why Do You Think The Line Managers Find HR Work Problematical? 29 5 Explain How HR And Line Managers Can Work Together More Effectively? 29 Bibliography 30 Activity 1.1 1 Identify The Different Activities That Susan Has To Carry Out In Relation To People Management As Part Of Her Role As Supervisor. Susan had the responsibility of arranging staff cover when the existing staffs were on leave. The pizza franchise was also planning on recruiting new staff. The advertisement for the purpose of recruitment would be drafted by Susan. An employee had mistakenly provided a free meal to a customer without consulting Susan. Thus, Susan has the responsibility to explain clearly to the staff, the procedures pertaining to refunds. The newly recruited staffs need to be provided adequate training and development opportunities. Moreover, Susan also has to look after the performance management of her subordinates. Susan also needs to prepare an accident report for a burn injury suffered by a kitchen assistant. 2 Why Do You Think HR Is an Important Aspect of a Supervisor’s Job? Human resource is the most important asset of an organisation. The management of the human resources is a crucial task for a supervisor. The success of an organisation largely depends on how the human resource is managed. The supervisor is responsible for the performance management of the staff. He needs to assess whether the staff is being able to perform up to a certain desired level. He identifies the need to recruit new employees. It is the supervisor who identifies the training and development needs of the employees. Thus, it can be said that a supervisor has to perform certain critical HR related tasks in an organisation. 3 Do You Think These Are Typical Activities For A Supervisor In A Busy Restaurant? Why? The supervisor, as a line manager has to perform these HR related activities in the organisation. This is because the supervisor’s responsibility is to achieve good results through the staff who work under him and is responsible for performance management of the staff. 4 How Do Susan’s HR Activities contribute To the Successful running Of the Restaurant? Susan’s effective implementation of HR practices in the organisation ensures smooth running of the organisation. She ensures that the staffs receive adequate training and clearly communicates the expectations regarding performance level from the staff. The organisational rules and procedures are clearly communicated to the staff. Susan has ensured implementation of adequate safety measures for the staff. Accidents that take place are monitored and recorded. The performance of the staff is evaluated at regular intervals. These activities have contributed to the success of the pizza franchise. 5 What HR Activities Have You Carried Out As Part Of Your Job? The human resource activities that are carried out as a regular part of jobs are related to recruitment, selection, training and development. Maintaining effective employee relations is also a part of HR activity. Greater involvement of the staff in the management of the organisation and effective communication ensures maintenance of effective employee relations. Performance appraisal of the staff and compensation and benefits provided to the staff are certain common HR activities undertaken in the organisation. Maintenance of workplace safety and sanitation is also an important responsibility of the HR department of the organisation. Activity 1.2 1 What Is Meant By The Organisational Environment? The operations of an organisation can be analysed both in terms of their external and internal environment. The external environment that has an impact on the organisational environment can be analysed with the PESTLE analysis. The political factors determine the extent of political influence on the economy which has an affect on the business operations of the enterprise. Economic factors include exchange rate, inflation rate and the economic growth. The social factors refer to the trends in the society that affect the organisation; technological factors include relevant technological innovations in the field of operation of the enterprise. Legal factors include laws that guide the operation of the enterprise. The internal environment of the organisation is determined by the nature of business, the geographical spread of the organisation, management style, structure, organisational culture, experience of the management and profitability. 2 What Information Could They Find Out? The employees, to get an understanding of the political environment, were able to collect information related to banks at local, national and international levels. They also needed to obtain permission for planning of vacant buildings and information regarding closure of branches. They will also collect information related to the level of customer activity and analysis of existing as well as new customers. They will also gather information related to the society in which they operate in relation to the population, the age, employment levels and the economic activity of the population residing in the locality. They will conduct an analysis of the economic activities in their locality through the opening and closure of new businesses and setting up of schools. The technological advancements that are taking place to address the needs of customers and the degree of rivalry in the locality will also be analysed. 3 How Can They Monitor The Environment? The employees will be able to keep a track of happenings in the business environment by reading the local and national newspapers. They will keep a close watch on the strategies and the offerings of the competitors. They will analyse the impact of changes on the business operations and on HRM. 4 What Are The Benefits Of Supplying Local Information To Headquarters? The supply of local information to the headquarters is extremely beneficial to them. The awareness regarding the happenings in their surroundings help in taking crucial decision pertaining to the launch of new products and the services offered to customers. 5 Identify An Example Of A Current Issue And Discuss The Impact That It May Have On HRM Within An Organisation. The credit crunch that had resulted in the global economic slowdown had a disastrous affect on the banks worldwide. The banks had to suffer problems associated with lesser number of customers. Thus, it became essential for the banks to differentiate their offers from their customers in order to retain the existing customers. The bank needed to develop more efficient methods of functioning to achieve profitability. HRM had to ensure that these objectives could be achieved by introducing a better and more efficient management style. Activity 1.3 1 Identify The Historical Influences On The Approach To HRM Adopted At Utility X? Give Reasons for Your Answer. Utility X focuses mainly on tough HRM practices. A strong influence of Taylor’s scientific management philosophy is evident from the study of their existing HR practices. Utility X is a call centre where division of work and specialisation of work exists. This is because every aspect of the work has been minutely analysed and the operators work in specialised teams. The functioning of the company is extremely systematic and thus Mike is allowed to devote only 2 minutes/call and on an average has to receive 150 calls in a day. Moreover, league tables are posted on the notice board at the end of the day and at the end of each week and each month for all the employees. The staffs are rated on the basis of their individual call rates. The emphasis on strategic management is vivid from the strategic statement ‘to become the largest utility company in the UK by 2012 and break into the European market by 2015’. The goals set for the employees are related to the business strategy. 2 Why Do You Think Mike Finds His Working Environment Stressful? There were several factors that made working in Utility X stressful. These factors were excessive focus on task specialisation, strict adherence to scripts, the less time devoted to each customer made it difficult for Mike to delve into the problem faced by the customer, rigid control of the staff behaviour, excessively high targets set for customers in terms of the required call rates to be achieved and the threat of disciplinary action faced by the employees. 3 Why Do You Think There Is A High Turnover Rate Among Staff In The Call Centre At Utility X? Staff turnover is generally high in Utility X because of the repetitive and monotonous nature of the work. The staff turnover is above 60% in Utility X. The reason for the high level of staff turnover is that recruitment is done by the HR department and not the supervisors even though the supervisors have a better knowledge about the requirements of the job. The recruitment criteria used may not be the ideal one. The prospective candidates are not acquainted with the job requirements prior to their joining. The manner in which the job has been designed, the constraints imposed on the staff, the rigid management style and excessive control, absence of team work and lack of interactive relation between the employees, aggravate the stressful environment at Utility X. 4 If You Were In Mike’s Position What Would You Do? If I were in Mike’s position, I would stick to my present job and would indulge in a simultaneous search for a job which has a better approach towards managing human resources and which allows a scope to provide better customer service. Activity 1.3 Windows 1 Identify the Historical Influences Operating In Windows Windows had incorporated a change in their management style which was on the lines of the human relation movement and they had also adapted the Japanese management practices. They are emphasising on staff motivation. The employees are empowered, allowed more freedom and are provided with the opportunity of skill enhancement and development which provides motivation to them. The changes incorporated in lines of the human relation movement included removal of call quotas and the staffs were allowed to independently handle the problems of a customer and could continue with the same customer until his problem was resolved. The jobs had been redesigned to allow flexibility to the employees. Line managers were provided regular training since the philosophy underlying the Japanese management style is of continuous improvement. The employees were allowed regular breaks to rejuvenate them and greater cooperation and coordination was allowed. This was in lines of Mayo’s theory. 2 Why Do You Think Jane Now Enjoys Working For Windows? Jane enjoys a good position in her company and is valued by her company. She receives wholehearted cooperation from her line managers. The virtues searched for while recruiting managers in Windows is a positive attitude in handling the staff and their focus on skill enhancement of the staff with the aim that they are capable of providing better customer service. The employees do not have to work under the pressure of targets and thus they can provide better customer service. Employees can coordinate with each other to come up with a team solution collectively. 3 Which Organisation Would Your Prefer To Work For? Explain Why. I would definitely be interested in working for Windows because of their humanitarian management style whereby they value their employees. Activity 1.4 1 Using The Storey’s (1992), Table, Cited In Bloisi (2007) Page 15, Identify The Factors That Indicate That College Z May Be Taking A Personnel Or HRM Approach To Managing People In The Following Table: Personnel HRM The salaries at College Z are based on negotiations with the trade union and decided through collective bargaining. The norms of the organisation are largely based on their customs and traditions. There is excessive focus on compliance with rules, regulations, norms and procedures. The management’s actions are based on the procedures. The conflict at College Z is institutionalised and relations are pluralistic. The requisitions for staff recruitment and processing functions are performed by the HR department. The HR performs a transactional management role. Training and development requires HR approval. All actions require approval from the HR manager. The entire operational activities including recruitment, selection and training are solely the responsibility of the HR department. 2 Given The Factors Listed Above, Is College Z Taking A Personnel Approach Or HRM Approach? Explain Your Decision College Z adopts a personnel approach in managing their employees. All the activities are controlled by the personnel department and recruitment, selection and training related decisions are taken by them. The line managers have to report to the personnel department. The management policies and procedures are formulated after negotiation with the trade union. The information is shared indirectly through the trade union. 3 Using The Storey’s (1992), Table, Cited In Bloisi (2007) Page 15, Identify The Factors That Indicate That The Windows Case Study In Activity 1.3 May Be Taking A Personnel Or HRM Approach To Managing People In The Following Table: Personnel HRM The employees are allowed greater degree of freedom. They can undertake actions that are beyond their contract but can help in betterment of the organisation. They can coordinate with fellow employees to solve the problems of customers. The employee behaviour is guided by the mission and values of the organisation. The recruitment of the managers is based on their attitude towards the employees. A nurturing attitude is preferred. Unitarist employee relation is maintained. Communication is direct without the involvement of the union. A customer focus is maintained. The management have a transformational role and are committed towards the skill enhancement of their employees. Team work is encouraged. The organisational culture is maintained and is provided importance. 4 Given The Factors Listed Above, Are Windows Taking A Personnel Approach Or HRM Approach? Explain Your Decision. Windows have adopted an HRM approach in managing their human resource. They provide flexible working conditions to their employees; provide skills development opportunities to employees with the aim that organisational goals can be achieved. A customer focus is adopted and team work is encouraged. The employee behaviour is based on the values and mission of the organisation and only those line managers are recruited who have an encouraging attitude towards employees. 5 Think Of An Organisation That You Have Worked In, What Type Of Approach To Managing People Did It Adopt – Personnel/HRM. Explain Why You Think This? The organisation had adopted a blend of both personnel and HRM management style since both approaches have certain advantages associated with them. 6 From Your Experience Of People Management And Your Reading In This Chapter, Do You Think There Is A Difference Between Personnel Management And HRM? Why? Personnel management and HRM differ in their approaches towards managing people. Personnel management has a more formal approach based on rules, regulations and procedures whereas HRM focuses on motivating employees with the intention that they perform better and achieve the organisational goals. Activity 1.5 1 What Type of Approach to HRM Do You Think Has Been Adopted At Windows? What HR Models Do You Think Have Been Used? Give Reasons for Your Answer. The HRM approach in windows was based on the Harvard model which believes that employees are valuable human resources and they should not be managed in the same manner as other resources. A ‘Soft HRM’ was adopted at Windows. This was evident from the changes the management had introduced in the organisation. The importance of employees as stakeholders had been realised and they were allowed greater freedom. Employees were allowed to coordinate with each other. They believe that these practices will ensure greater commitment from the employees and enhance their performance. Regular staff meetings and staff attitude survey were held to determine the impact of the changes on the employees. 2 Why Do You Think The Harvard Model Includes Employees As Stakeholders Within The Organisation? Harvard model stresses on the importance of employees as the stakeholders because they have a vested interest in the organisation’s growth, survival and effectiveness. The views of the employees should be provided equal importance alike the other stakeholders. Using the Utility X Case Study from 1.3, Answer the Following Questions: 1 What Type of Approach to HRM Do You Think Has Been Adopted At Utility X? Give Reasons for Your Answer. A hard approach of HRM was adopted at Utility X. Employees are viewed as a means to achieve the organisational goals. Utility X had incorporated a great degree of control, specialisation and set targets to improve efficiency in the organisation. This is in lines with the scientific management approach of Taylor. 2 Explain What The Michigan Model Of HRM Is Based Upon And Describe How It Applies To Utility X. The Michigan model view employees similar to the other resources of the organisation. The underlying idea is that the reason for the existence of the organisation is achievement of missions and objectives. Strategic management integrates organisational structure, strategy, mission and the human resource system. The management makes decisions on the mission and the structure of the organisation. The HR is fitted into that structure. Utility X is based on the Michigan model. They have a clearly established mission, stress on work efficiency, emphasis on targets, strategic control and structure and systems. HR carries out all the essential activities in the organisation. Activity 1.6 1 Why In The Authors Views Is The ‘Employee Champion’ Role So Important? The HR focus on their strategic role rather than their employee champion role. They consider other roles to be less important and the ‘employee champion role’ is considered to be an operational function of the line managers. The ‘employee champion role’ involves maintaining a balance between the economic and the human factors of the organisation. A relationship of trust and cooperation should be maintained by the HR with the employees. 2 Do You Agree or Disagree With the Authors’ Views in This Article? Give Examples Of Areas Of Agreement Or Disagreement And Explain Your Reasons. Employee champion is not just the role of the line managers. The HR managers are equally responsible for maintaining a cordial relationship based on faith with the employees. 3 Who Should Carry Out the ‘Employee Champion’ Role in Organisations? The employee champion role should be adopted by both the HR and the line managers. This is because the HR managers need to maintain proximity with their employees and focus on employee relation. They will in the long run have no knowledge about how the employees are managed in the organisation and the impact of the policies and procedures formulated by them on the employees. The strategic goals of the business should be balanced with the human resource issues. 4 Read The Last Paragraph Carefully. Do You Agree With The Authors’ Views? Explain Why This Is The Case. I completely agree with the author’s views. It is extremely important for the HR to balance the economic issues and HR issues. They need to integrate their human resource with the strategic goals of the company. 5 How Can Line Managers And HR Managers Be Encouraged To Work Together For The Mutual Benefit Of The Organisation? The line managers should work in coordination with the HR managers. They should be provided the necessary training to enable them to perform their role in a better manner. They should be made aware about the importance of their job role and how it affects the performance of the employees. Activity 1.7 1 What Changes Have Been Made In Relation To HR Work Within The Hotel? A common HR service centre was established for all the hotels and each had their own regional HR managers. The line managers would carry out the regular day to day HR activities in the organisation and performed the administrative activities. The regional HR managers make a weekly visit to the hotel and thus on site support is not required. 2 What Are The Benefits Of Making These Changes For The Organisation And Line Managers? Benefits for the Line Managers Benefits for the Organisation Line managers have been entrusted with greater control, authority and responsibility over the working of the organisation. Streamlining the HR department has enabled cost reduction by reducing the number of employees and repetition of tasks. Line managers are able to perform better since they have better knowledge of the local conditions. Knowledge sharing has become possible because of the shared service centre. The areas on which the line managers had earlier criticised the HR people will be handled by them. Thus, they can ensure that things are dealt with in the best manner. The quality of service has enhanced. Time can be saved since line managers will not need to obtain permission from the HR managers. The removal of the administrative activities from the purview of HR has enabled them to focus on strategic HRM issues. The implementation of organisational intranet and use of other relevant technologies are encouraged. 3 What Problems Can Occur When HR Work Is Devolved To Line Managers? The line managers may not be competent enough to carry out the HR responsibilities. They may lack the necessary training and may have a condescending attitude towards the HR work. They may prioritise other job responsibilities over their HR responsibilities. Moreover, the individual line managers differ in the manner in which they implement the HR policies; therefore, this might result in irregularities. 4 Why Do You Think The Line Managers Find HR Work Problematical? The line managers may not have the sufficient training or knowledge to carry out the HR related task. They may not get the necessary support for carrying out the activities and may not be able to consult the HR personnel. Moreover they may not be able to handle the additional work pressure of undertaking HR responsibilities. 5 Explain How HR And Line Managers Can Work Together More Effectively? HR managers and line managers should work in a coordinated manner and ensure mutual benefits. Easy to comprehend HRM policies and making the use ‘people management’ factor can make line and HR managers to work together. They will be able to implement HR policies and procedures in a better manner if they work in conjunction and will thus be able to manage the human resources better. Bibliography Green, N. D. & Duncan, F., 2009. Introduction to HRM. Edinburgh Napier University. Read More