Human Resources Management Assignment 1

Program	Diploma in Business
Unit Number and Title	Human Resources Management
QFC Level	Level 4

 

Introduction

Human resource management plays a very significant role in ensuring the success of the organisation and also helps to improve its brand image, which in turn helps the company or the organisation to stay in the market for a long time. The following assignments provide a brief idea regarding the concepts of human resource management and management with respect to different organisations. This assignment is written under the guidance of Locus Assignments’ expert assignment helper and further deals with the case scenario provided and the organisation related to the same one of the organisations provided the Chicken Master. In task 2 the given organisation has been compared to the popular organisation Google, in order to get an idea about the recruitment and the selection policies of the same.
 

 

Task 1

 

1.1 Differentiate between personnel management and human resource management giving examples in two suitable organisations.

Personnel management differs from human resource management in the following aspects as shown in the table below:
 

PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

• It is considered to be a traditional approach for managing the human resources within the organisation • It can be briefly defined as obtaining, utilising as well as managing a satisfied workforce within the organisation • It mostly focuses on employee welfare, employee relations as well as personnel administration • It has limited scope than human resource management • Personal functions are mostly concerned with ensuring employee satisfaction • Personnel management is usually focussed on or concerned with satisfied employees as well as increased production of the company • For example: Personnel Management policies are commonly practised by the Gazprom Group of Companies. Companies followed it mostly in earlier times. However, it is considered to be less effective and less apt as well when compared to human resource management.

• It is considered a modern approach towards the management of human resources within organisations • It can be broadly defined as the formal systems of management which are employed for maximising the performances of the human resources or the employees • Its focus areas consist of staffing, growth, motivation, and proper maintenance of the employees within the organisation (Van Buren, Greenwood and Sheehan, 2011). • It has a broader scope than human resource management • The administrative functions are usually concerned with the achievement of the goals of the company or the organisations • Human resource management is mainly concerned with the effectiveness, productivity, organisational culture as well as participation of the employees • For example: Human resource management is followed by, Google. However, it is implemented or rather followed by most of the top companies in the world

 

1.2 Assess how human resource management functions help your chosen organisation in achieving its functions.

Human resources or the employees are the most valued asset for the organisations and therefore it is essential to ensure the proper management of the same which will ultimately prove to be helpful in the achievement of the desired results of the organisation (Bratton and Gold, 2012). The most important functions of human resource management are recruitment, selection, training and development, payroll, employee relations, compensation management, employee engagement policies, etc. Google is known for its effective management of human resources and also makes relevant efforts to ensure the satisfaction of its employees. It believes in empowering its employees in order to ensure the achievement of the goals of the company and also follows a flexible organisational structure which helps to ensure smoothing functioning of the organisation and also provides opportunities for the employees to make important decisions related to their job roles rather than taking permission from their seniors.
 

Google always believes in hiring the best talent for their team in order to derive expected results. It also believes in paying unfairly (that is paying more to people who perform better) in order to motivate the employee to work harder in order to achieve the rewards or incentives from the company. It also pays equal attention to the worst as well as the best employees. The human resource management of Google even involves relevant training and development programs in order to ensure continuous development in the performance of the employees as well as to ensure easy implantation of change within the organisation as and when required. Google is one of the most famous companies in the world and is probably the only one to use ‘people analytics’ in order to ensure effective and efficient management of HR functions.  After the successful implementation of People Analytics, Google became the third most valuable company in the world.

 

1.3 Evaluate the roles and responsibilities of line managers in your organisation or familiar organisation and how they support human resource management functions.

Line managers play an important role in order to ensure the successful implementation of human resource policies within the organisation. Line managers for the HR department are mostly employed in large organisations where the number of people working is significantly huge. Line managers play a crucial role in the company Google as well which is indeed tough as it becomes significantly difficult at times to manage the engineers. The important responsibilities of the line managers include the following –

• Employee Engagement – The line managers are responsible for supervising the employees and hence play a significant role in creating the organisational culture for the employees working for the organisation.

• Performance Appraisal – They are also responsible for assessing the performance of the individual employees and also for conveying the feedback to their senior managers.

• Maintenance of Discipline among the employees – Maintaining discipline within the workplace is important to ensure a healthy as well as a secure work environment and also ensure easy implementation of the HR policies and procedures.  

• Compensation Management – It is the responsibility of the line managers to ensure that the payments received by the employees are as per the performance of the employees. Moreover, the performance ratings provided by the line managers can either increase the pay structure of the employees or can also decrease the same as well.

 

1.4 Analyse how legal and regulatory frameworks impact human resource management.

 

Legal and regulatory frameworks have a significant impact on the human resource management of the company. The rules and regulations or the laws associated with employment are important to maintaining smooth as well as healthy relationships between the employees as well as the employers and is different for different countries as well. Thus, it indeed becomes very essential to be well-versed with the laws related to employment or the HR policies in order to handle the legal issues efficiently and successfully.

Some of the important laws which have an impact on the human resource management of companies can be stated as follows –

• The Civil Rights Act of 1964 – This Act is important for organisations as it prohibits the employers or the owners of the company from discriminating against the employees or the workers on the basis of their gender, race religion as well as national origin. Thus, it ensures that the human resource managers of the companies are fair while recruiting employees for their respective organisations.

• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission – It is a body which is responsible for enforcing the Civil Rights Act, of 1964. It also covers the following acts –

(i) Age Discrimination Act

(ii) Equal Pay Act

(iii) Pregnancy Discrimination Act

Apart from the above-mentioned acts, there are certain policies which are commonly known as the Affirmative Action which is mostly concerned with the involvement of the minorities within the workforce. It usually relates to certain policies which the organisations must follow in order to employ certain groups of individuals which include:

(i) Minorities

(ii) Disabled person

(iii) Women

(iv) Qualified veterans

 

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Task 2

 

2.1 Analysing the reasons for human resource planning

Human resource planning is very vital for organisations as it helps to determine successfully the number of people required as well as the essentials which are required to be possessed by them in order to ensure the growth and sustainability of the organisation. HR demand forecasting as well as supply forecasting which are considered to be important components of human resource planning help to fulfil the future human resource requirements of the organisation successfully (Boxall and Purcell, 2011).

It is mentioned in the given scenario that the employee turnover rate of the organisation was increasing rapidly as the organisation did not follow any human resource management policy. The importance of human resource planning for the organisation can be cited below –

• It helps to determine the future manpower needs of the organisation

• It also proves to be helpful for the organisation to adapt itself in accordance with the changes that occur in the  external environment

• It also proves to be helpful in recruiting talented and skilful personnel for the organisation

• It also ensures the development of the human resources within the organisations

• It also ensures appropriate as well as maximum utilisation of the human resources towards achieving the desired goals of the organisation

• It also minimises the chances of uncertainties regarding the human resources of an organisation

The major reasons for using as well as implementing the policies and procedures related to human resource planning are –

• To determine the number of employees required by the organisation

• To identify the skills of the employees that are essential for the organisation

• To identify the processes as well as the procedures which are essential for maximising the performance of the human resources

• To identify the ways that are essential for maintaining as well as retaining the employees within the organisations
 

 

2.2 Outlining the stages involved in planning human resource requirements

Human resource planning can be defined as the process which helps to identify the current as well as the future manpower requirements in order to achieve the growth and success of the organisation. The steps involved in the process of human resource planning involve the following:
 

 

• Identifying the objectives of the organisation as well as analysing them appropriately – This step mostly involves gathering the relevant data and identifying the future human resource requirements of various fields which may include marketing, finance, operations, etc. that from a part of the organisation

• Determination of the inventory of the current human resource requirements – The updated data from the human resource information system must be collected in order to get an idea about the current employee capacity of the organisation, the number of employees currently employed by the organisation, the level of performance as well as the potential of the employees of the organisation. Knowledge regarding all these things is very essential in order to fill up the available vacancies as well as to meet the future human resource requirements of the organisation

• Demand and Supply Forecasting – It proves to be helpful in the appropriate estimation of the human resource requirements of the organisation in accordance with the different positions or job profiles. It also ensures proper matching of the components of job analysis that is job specification and job description in order to ensure or rather facilitate the employment of the most appropriate candidate for the available vacancy within the organisation (Kallunki, Laitinen and Silvola, 2011).

• Formulation of the Action Plan – In order to develop an appropriate action plan it is first important to analyse whether the organisation is experiencing a surplus or deficit regarding the human resources.  After analysing the present situation the action plan for the same must be drafted as to whether a new recruitment policy is required to be framed or inter-departmental transfer will be helpful, training, job rotation, voluntary retirement schemes or retrenchments, etc.

• Implementation of the Action Plan – It involves monitoring, control as well as evaluation of the effectiveness of the action plan for the organisation. The action plan is required to be strictly monitored in order to identify the deficiencies or issues if any regarding the same and to resolve the same successfully (Bloom and Van Reenen, 2011).

 

2.3 Compare the current recruitment and selection process in the organisation with another organisation you recommending

 

The comparison of the recruitment and selection process of the organisation mentioned in the scenario with that of Google has been provided below –

• No particular HR planning strategies or policies are followed by the organisation mentioned in the provided scenario while Google follows a proper strategy and makes use of appropriate tools as well as techniques for the process of recruitment and selection

• Google makes efficient recruitment sources which are inclusive of internal as well as external mediums such as trainees or interns, promotions, transfers, job advertisements, educational institutions, etc. On the other hand, the organisation mentioned in the scenario does not implement or make use of any such mediums.

• Google has a proper HR department and efficient HR managers who are skilful enough to identify the right candidates for the available vacancies within the country. The organisation in the scenario does not have a proper HR department and neither does it have an efficient HR manager as its Finance manager is currently working as the HR manager and as such has limited knowledge regarding the same.

• The organisation mentioned in the scenario follows a similar procedure of telephonic interview followed by the face-to-face round of interviews and the same questions are asked to the interviewees. The recruitment process at Google comprises 4 to 12 rounds of interviews. The initial 2 rounds are basically HR rounds while the other ones are technical rounds.

 

2.4 Evaluating how effective the organisation's recruitment and selection techniques with another organisation you recommending

The organisation mentioned in the scenario does not follow a proper recruitment and selection procedure for recruiting its employees and as a result, they are not able to retain their employees which ultimately results in a high turnover rate of the employees. The manager cited the reason for the same being that they are not able to recruit good as well as talented people for the organisation as such they lacked commitment towards the organisation. This was mainly because proper HR planning was not undertaken by the company and the company did not even have an effective and efficient HR manager to ensure the development as well as the implementation of the HR policies within the company or the organisation. Job analysis is very important to identify the needs of the company and to provide an idea to the interviewer as well as the interviewee with an idea of their roles, responsibilities as well as capabilities that are essential for the job vacancy in question

On the other hand, Google follows a proper and well-maintained recruitment and selection procedure in order to recruit the best talent for the company. It is one of the companies in the world which is well known for its HR practices and is also known for appointing the best talent which helps to add value to the company.
 

Read About Aspects of Contract Law Negligence in Business

 

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Task 3

 

3.1 Assess the link between the motivational theory and reward at Virgin Media or your chosen organisation. Your answer must show if there is a link that connects the two

Motivation can be defined as the reason behind the varied reactions or the responses of the people regarding their desires, expectations as well as needs. It can also be described as an individual’s direction towards behaviour or the reason behind the want or the desire of the individual to repeat certain behaviours or refrain from the same. Various authors have put forward different motivational theories which help to provide a clear objective about the entire concept of motivation which are discussed in detail below –

 

A. Content theories of Work Motivation:

1. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs – It was developed by Abraham Maslow who has identified the basic needs of the individuals which are essential for the individual in order to maintain a satisfactory lifestyle. He has also stated that once the lower-level needs are satisfied then only an individual moves up to the next higher level of need (Lin and Lu, 2011).

The diagram below gives an idea about the basic needs and the different levels of needs of an individual –

2. ERG Theory – It was a revised version of Maslow’s theory and was put forward by Clayton Alderfer. He reduced the hierarchy levels from five to three and termed them as needs related to Existence needs concerned with Relatedness as well as Growth needs. The following diagram gives an idea regarding the aforesaid theory –

3. Theory X and Theory Y – It was developed by Douglas McGregor in which he divided the employees into two categories (Theory X and Theory Y). He further stated while the employees belonging to the category of Theory X disliked work, avoided the same, and required supervision in order to carry out the work, the other category of people who belonged to Theory Y loved and enjoyed their work and were committed to achieving the objectives of the organisation and did not even require supervision as well (Herzberg, Mausner and Snyderman, 2011).

The following diagram provides a detailed view of McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y –

 

4. Herzberg’s Theory of Motivation – This is also known as Herzberg’s Two Factor Theory or Herzberg’s Theory of Motivation and Hygiene (Tan and Waheed, 2011). The detailed aspects of the same can be shown in the diagram given below –

5. McClelland Theory – In this theory, McClelland has identified the link between the high performance of managers with the need for achievement, affiliation and power.

The details of the theory can be seen in the following diagram:


 

B. Process Theories of Work Motivation

• The Porter-Lawler Model

• The Equity Theory

• The Expectancy Theory

• The Contingency Theory

The reward management system or the reward framework can be shown in the following diagram –

Virgin Media believes that rewards are one of the most efficient motivating factors for employees and encourages the employees to perform better in their respective tasks in order to receive the rewards which may be monetary as well as non-monetary in nature. The company also believes that it is important to meet the basic needs of the employees in order to derive expected results from them as and when required. Virgin Media conducts training and development programs in order to motivate employees. In accordance with McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y, Virgin Media prepares strategies to utilise its workforce and makes efforts to improve its skills as well. Virgin Media also provides various new benefits schemes in order to motivate the people. One such benefit scheme for the employees is known as ASPIRE field pay as well as reward scheme.

 

3.4 Examine the methods Virgin Media or your chosen organisation use to monitor employee performance

 

Virgin Media currently follows the central medium or system for learning as well as for the management of the performance of the employees of the company. It helps the managers to keep a track record of the performances of the employees on a short-term as well as on a long-term basis.

The other ways which are used by the company to monitor the performance of the employees include the following –

As Virgin Media believes in empowering its employees hence also uses the method of performance of the employees on the basis of punctuality, quality of performance, attitude, efforts made by the people, etc. Various performance appraisal methods such as 360° appraisal, ranking system, normal distribution system, etc are used for appraising the performance of individual employees.

 

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Task 4

 

4.1 Identify the reason for termination of Faisal’s employment with the Chicken Master and generally explain other reasons for cessation of employment

 

The reasons for the cessation of employment or the termination of Faisal from the Chicken Master have been discussed in detail below –

• Inadequate or Unsatisfactory Job Performance – Faisal’s performance was not up to the mark and was rather poor. His responsibilities included cleaning as well as stocking the front of the store, cleaning the kitchen, preparing the food and supervising the employees. None of the above-mentioned responsibilities were being fulfilled by Faisal as was noticed by Bob Jones who was the owner of the Chicken Master after closely monitoring the performance of Faisal. Although Bob tried to coach Faisal regarding the same it was of no use as improvements were not visible in the performance of Bob. An employee who keeps himself absent from work hampers the productivity of the company significantly. It was also noticed by Bob that often took time off from his job in order to fulfil his personal commitment or to meet his personal business during the hours of work and did not even feel the requirement of informing anyone.

• Business conditions or the conditions of the employment contract – Faisal was not even complying with the conditions of the employment or rather was found to disobey the rules of the organisation.  It was clearly mentioned in the employee handbook of the Chicken Master that the equipment of the company was not to be used by any of the employees for his or her personal use. It was noticed by Bob that Faisal used his computer to watch pornography, e-mail personal messages to his wife, help his daughter with her homework and was also often busy designing his new restaurant on the computer during work hours.

• Unacceptable Behaviour – Faisal was also found to be not complying with the code of ethics of the company as he was caught watching pornography during working hours on the computer provided by the company for carrying out his job. Faisal was also not committed towards the organisation as he made no efforts to improve his performance even when he was personally guided by the owner of the company. 4.2 Describe the employment exit procedures used by the Chicken Master and another organisation of your choice

The Chicken Master did not follow any particular employment exit procedure rather the owner of the company had simply fired Faisal on the grounds of poor performance as well as violation of the policies or the rules and the regulations of the company.

However proper employment exit procedures as employed by the other organisations include the following steps –

Organisations have certain rules regarding the exit of employees (retirement, resignation, etc.) which are in accordance with the National Employment Standards

• Exit Interviews – These are conducted in order to find out the reason why an employee is leaving the organisation, what the employee feels regarding the organisation as well as his job profile, and what the views of the employees regarding the behaviour and the attitude of the other employees as the seniors or the managers of the company, do they trust their company or its management or not, etc. (Kehoe and Wright, 2013)

• Following an Exit checklist – It involves clearing all the dues of the employees, restraining the employee by removing his access from the private information related to the company, by deleting his profile, ID or password that was used by the employee for performing his tasks, maintaining confidentiality of the contact and the exit formalities, etc. Policy StatementDefinition of certain terms related to the employment such as permanent employee, temporary employee, unbroken service, contractual employee, notice period, etc. Termination with causeTermination without causeTermination of employment by the employees4.3 Consider the impact of the legal and regulatory framework on employment cessation arrangements with an organisation such as The Chicken Master if Faisal’s claim was proven to be true.

There is a huge impact of the legal and regulatory framework on the employee cessation agreements or the arrangements of the companies. They can have a positive as well as a negative impact on the company. Faisal claimed that he was a victim of race and age discrimination and was fired by the  Chicken Master because of the same. The Equality Law 2010, prohibits discrimination of any sort by employers against the employees. As such after the investigation if concerned authorities find that Faisal’s claims are correct the company The Chicken Master will have to reappoint and will also have to provide compensation for the same.

 

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References

• Bloom, N. and Van Reenen, J., 2011. Human resource management and productivity. Handbook of labour economics, 4, pp.1697-1767.
• Boxall, P. and Purcell, J., 2011. Strategy and human resource management. Palgrave Macmillan.
• ratton, J. and Gold, J., 2012. Human resource management: theory and practice. Palgrave Macmillan.
• Herzberg, F., Mausner, B. and Snyderman, B.B., 2011. The motivation to work (Vol. 1). Transaction publishers.
• Kallunki, J.P., Laitinen, E.K. and Silvola, H., 2011. Impact of enterprise resource planning systems on management control systems and firm performance. International Journal of Accounting Information Systems,12(1), pp.20-39.
• Kehoe, R.R. and Wright, P.M., 2013. The impact of high-performance human resource practices on employees’ attitudes and behaviours. Journal of Management, 39(2), pp.366-391.
• Lin, K.Y. and Lu, H.P., 2011. Why people use social networking sites: An empirical study integrating network externalities and motivation theory.Computers in Human Behavior, 27(3), pp.1152-1161.
• Milyavskaya, M. and Koestner, R., 2011. Psychological needs, motivation, and well-being: A test of self-determination theory across multiple domains.Personality and Individual Differences, 50(3), pp.387-391.
• Paterson, J., 2012. Virgin Media uses social media-based recognition. [online] Available at: http://www.employeebenefits.co.uk/ [Accessed 14 Jun. 2016].