Human Resources Management Methods and Planning

NB: We do not resell your papers. Upon ordering, we do an original paper exclusively for you.

NB: All your data is kept safe from the public.

Telecommuting

Telecommuting or remote work station or working from home is growing in acceptance in the last several years in the United States. Commuting shares half of our working life (Johnson para1). There are many issues like energy conservation, environmental impact, refocusing on family values, and other issues that have changed the total working life style (Johnson para1). Some benefits that the companies attribute to the telecommuting are as under (Johnson para1):

Energy Conservation

With the extensive use of telecommuting, there will be less use of vehicles like automobiles, buses, trains, and aircraft as a result, less energy will be required to produce, maintain or repair this equipment. This will also decrease the need for expanding and maintaining highways and creating new office spaces.

Environmental impact

Our environment will be preserved with a less number of automobiles on the roads. More land will be available in the green zone as there will be less need for highways and offices, giving us a clean and fresh environment.

Family Values

Working from home will offer people to bond with their family more strongly as they will have more time in their hands as a result, we will get a stronger society.

But the most important benefit of telecommuting will be.

Improvement in productivity

In the traditional method, much time gets wasted in unproductive activities by people who commute from work. With extra time in hand, people will be less stressed and will be more focused on the assignment.

Purpose of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977

The Foreign Corrupt Practices act came into existence in 1977 and was revised in 1988. Its purpose was to make illegal the bribery of foreign government officers by US persons and put into practice the accounting and record-keeping. It focuses upon the fact of bribes to get hold of a business. Gatti et al. (Para 1) mention that it does not include easy payments or grease payments from the FCPA. Grease payments are done to speed up the acts of the government (Gatti et al., Para 1). Gatti et al. (Para 1) state that these acts of the government are getting permits or licenses, processing official papers, loading and unloading cargo, clearing goods through Customs, and giving police security (Gatti et al., Para 1).

There are many events where Foreign Corrupt Act has been violated. Seitzinger (p 3, Para 15) that Mercator Corporation was guilty of the charges of making an illegal payment to a senior government officer in Kazakhistan. It happened on 6 August 2010 when the corporation accepted its fault. It was stated, that the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission are checking if Merck Corporation has violated the act in many foreign countries (Seitzinger, p 3, Para 15).

Steps of Job Analysis

The six steps in doing job analysis are as under:-

Step 1 – Firstly, the company has to decide how they will use the data information, as this will determine the kind and means of collecting data. (Anonymous, Steps in Job analysis, 201, Para 1). Some methods of collection are like interviewing the employee and asking job demand, position analysis questionnaire, etc (Anonymous, Steps in Job analysis, 2010 Para 2).
Step 2 – The information related to the job description, organization charts, and other processes should be analyzed (Anonymous, Steps in Job analysis, 2010, Para3). How the job in question relates to the other jobs, it should be properly reviewed (Anonymous, Steps in Job analysis, 2010, Para 3).
Step 3 – To select the candidate for a representative position, there could be many analogous jobs to assess (Anonymous, Steps in Job analysis, 2010, Para4).
Step 4 – The job should be analyzed. The data related to job activities, employee working conditions, and employee’s skills and behaviors should be properly scrutinized (Anonymous, Steps in Job analysis, 2010, Para 5).
Step 5 – To test the reliability of information about the job from the current employees and the supervisor (Anonymous, Steps in Job analysis,2010, Para 6).
Step 6 – Develop the two tangible products of job analysis i.e. description and specification. (Anonymous, Steps in Job analysis, 2010, Para 7). The job specification carries information like personal qualities and background regarding the job (Anonymous, Steps in Job analysis, 2010, Para 7).

Skills inventory

The companies use such inventories to evaluate the skills of their employees, which are required for their companies (Anonymous, How can a skills inventory be used for strategic HR planning? 2010, Para 2). Accordingly, the companies can do tactical planning which is favorable for their organization (Anonymous, How can a skills inventory be used for strategic HR planning? 2010, Para 2)

These inventories are helpful to take decisions related to manpower hiring: whom to hire and why to hire. They help in understanding the need of the companies related to manpower (Anonymous, How can a skills inventory be used for strategic HR planning? 2010, Para 3)

These inventories are very helpful in making succession plans based on present employees’ skills (Anonymous, How can a skills inventory be used for strategic HR planning? 2010, Para 5).

The process of putting the right men on the right job is called the selection process. Successful selection is possible only when there is successful matching. For selecting a good candidate for the job, the organization will be praised for its qualitative performance. This process will be better for saving time and money. The selection process will scrutinize all the prospective candidates (Anonymous, Employee Selection Process,1998, Para1).

Selection and recruitment both are completely different employment procedures. Recruitment triggers off more candidates for applying for the job, but the selection procedure can reject the candidates also. The best candidate who has all the skills set for the required position is selected through the selection process (Anonymous, Employee Selection Process, 1998, Para 2).

Steps for Selection Process

Step 1 – Preliminary Interviews – It eliminates those who do not even meet the minimum eligibility criteria of the organization. Then the screening interviews are conducted which analyze the candidates’ education and family background. They also test their skills and education. The candidates are also told about the company and the job profile (Anonymous, Employee Selection Process, 1998, Para 3).
Step 2 – Application Forms – Successful candidates from the screening process are required to fill in the application forms. It has details about age, qualification, the reason for leaving a previous job, etc. (Anonymous, Employee Selection Process,1998, Para 4).
Step 3 – Written Tests – The third step of the selection is to conduct some tests like aptitude and reasoning (Anonymous, Employee Selection Process,1998, Para 5). These tests objectively assess the potential candidate (Anonymous, Employee Selection Process, 1998, Para 5).
Step 4 – Employment interviews – This is done face to face between the employer and the potential candidate. This is a time consuming and expensive step. Many times they are biased as the real potential of the candidate cannot be judged by interviewing in the room (Anonymous, Employee Selection Process, 1998, Para 6).
Step 5 – Medical Examination –It is required to avoid absenteeism and to check the physical fitness of the potential employee (Anonymous, Employee Selection Process, Para 7).
Step 6 – Appointment Letter – the selected candidate gets a formal appointment letter after the company is satisfied with all his details (Anonymous, Employee Selection Process, 1998, Para 8).

Weighted Application Blank

Weighted Application Blank: it is an application form that is created to get scores more methodically. It is similar to the biographical information blank (Ivancevich, p.223-224). Ivancevich (p.223-224) states that for creating the scoring system of a weighted application blank, presently working high and low performers are assessed. They are evaluated based on education, work experience, etc., which have been in the records when they first applied for the job.

Each quality is given different weights according to its difference in nature. For example, a Zero means ‘no difference’ + 1 means a small difference, and + 2 means a large difference (Ivancevich, p.223-224). Then the totaling of the weight is done for each applicant, and the one applicant who gets the highest total is preferred to the other applicants. The applicants who are evaluated as less qualified according to weighted application blank, then enter into the next application process (Ivancevich, p.223-224).

360 feedback surveys

In this system, People fill out an unmarked, anonymous feedback form that has questions related to workplace competencies. The questionnaire is based on the rating scale system where the rates have to give written comments (What is 360 Degree Feedback? Para 1). A self-rating survey is also filled by the person receiving feedback (Anonymous, What is 360 Degree Feedback? n.d. Para 1).

360 feedback surveys have a very clear calculative format. The companies can easily make a development plan on its basis (Anonymous, What is 360 Degree Feedback? n.d. Para 2). The feedback from individuals and others is clubbed together to have an unbiased result giving an insight into the strengths and weaknesses of the employee (Anonymous, What is 360 Degree Feedback? Para 2).

Unlike every other system 360 Feedback system is also not an ultimate tool. It is not a way to measure employee performance objectives. It is not focused on basic, technical, or work-specific skills. It cannot be treated as a way to determine that the employee is meeting the basic job requirements (Anonymous, What is 360 Degree Feedback? n.d.Para 6-8).

MBO

MBO is very helpful in specifying the goals and objectives of any organization. It marks an individual’s objectives, completion time, etc. It tracks and sends feedback on the ongoing process to reach objectives (Anonymous, Management by Objectives n.d. Para 1).

MBO helps in decentralizing the various tasks among the employees that help in achieving the objective of the organization (Anonymous, Management by Objectives, Para1).

As compared to the traditional performance evaluation method this system makes people work in a team, clearly focused, aiming for the organizational objective. Each individual is treated as a strong pillar for achieving a common goal. Everyone is dependent on each other for the outcome of the result. This system helps in measuring the performance of the key managers, especially in areas like marketing, HR, finance, Research and Development, Social responsibility, etc

This system is effective only where the staff is competent, has self-leadership skills, takes initiatives, has entrepreneurial creativity, and tacit knowledge.

A merit-based compensation

Merit-based compensation is based on the work performance of the individual employee. It motivates the employee to better perform and help the organization in achieving its objectives. As the employees are motivated the chances of redundancies are very less. It also helps in attracting competent staff. Compensation in variable component absorbs downturns in business and reduced labor costs. Employees also get a feeling of ownership (Silva, page 1-14).

There are some disadvantages, also, to this system. The criteria to measure performance are inadequate. There is an absence of the right mix of monetary and nonmonetary rewards. There is no cyclic assessment of the scheme. Factors outside the control of employees (recession, exchange rate, management decisions, etc.) that affect the performance are not recognized by this system. The employees may feel de-motivated upon receiving less pay for an unsuccessful project. It also requires extra payment for the skilled person. It is also possible without proper administration of the system unusable skills may be acquired (Silva page 1 -14)

The success or failure of this system varies from country to country as it is affected by various circumstances not common to all the regions. This could be an effect of one or all factors, like traditions, culture, the attitude of unions, climate, etc. Therefore for a successful system, it has to be modified accordingly.

Mandated benefits

Organizations use such benefits to pull the new employees towards them and to satisfy the present employees in their recent job position (Anonymous, Government-mandated benefits Para1). Mandated benefits are the benefits that an employer is forced to provide its employee as stipulated by the law. The US government has applied mandated benefits which the employers give to their employees. Some of the mandated benefits are as under (Anonymous, Government-mandated benefits, 2010, Para1).

Unemployment compensation –The employees, who lose jobs without any reason, can have up to 26 weeks of pay, at the rate of 50% to 80% of normal pay (Anonymous, Government-mandated benefits, Para3). Both employer and employees are required to pay unemployment compensation taxes, this takes care of the claims in the event of retrenchment. Employees retrenched due to willful misconduct, etc. are not covered by this benefit (Anonymous, Government-mandated benefits,2010, Para3).

Worker’s Compensation –This kind of compensation consists of injuries and illness for which the employee is insured (Anonymous, Government-mandated benefits, Para2). The employee gets cash benefits or any medical care etc. (Anonymous, Government-mandated benefits, 2010, Para2).

Social Security – In this system, the employee gets either a fixed income after retirement or if, for any reason, he becomes handicapped. (Anonymous, Government-mandated benefits, Para4). As per the law, the employee pays a certain percentage of his salary to the social benefits fund, which is equally paid by the employer (Anonymous, Government-mandated benefits,2010, Para4).

COBRA – This is required by organizations with 20 or more employees to have health coverage even to the discharged employees. It covers the medical of employees up till 18 months or 36 months for the dependants (Anonymous, Government-mandated benefits, Para5). Employees terminated due to misconduct, employees of Churches, and federal government are not covered under this benefit (Anonymous, Government-mandated benefits, 2010, Para5).

For the success of an organization, it is essential to have efficient employees. And to meet this requirement the organizations must train their employees before as well as after joining the organization. Training makes them more efficient and enhances the speed of their work. Moreover, it enhances the productivity of the employees resulting in the optimum utilization of human resources.

In this regard, we can take an example of the two major fast-food companies: Domino’s Pizza and Dunkin’s Donuts. Both companies face the same challenge as far as the training of their employees is concerned. Both train in an industry where turnover averages 300to 400%and where the company locations are widely dispersed.

The following points are to be kept under consideration by the organizations while training their employees:

Training should be started at the age of 18-21 when a person can meet rigorous performance standards.
Training should be decentralized to meet the demands of the particular workplaces.
Training should be given by the corporate training staff having at least 8-10 years of experience.
Training aids like videotapes and posters with job hints should be provided in all the training centers.
Managers should be trained through certain levels with higher performance requirements and more responsibilities. They should also be trained in people management, cost management, and how to conduct job training to the junior staff.

Yes, I have also participated in organizational training. It was very beneficial as it made me more skilled and progressive. It inculcated the team-spirit within me and inspired me to learn with zeal within the employees. The training helped me in developing leadership qualities, loyalty, and a better attitude, which is very essential for successful working. So, in my opinion, training should be an integral part of the working of an organization.

Reference List

Anonymous. (1998). Employee Selection Process. Web. Management Study Guide. Web.

Anonymous. (2010). Government Mandated Benefits. Employment Law Information Network. Web.

Anonymous. (2010). How can a skills inventory be used for strategic HR planning? SHRM India. Web.

Anonymous. (n.d.) Management by Objectives. Ecoach. Web.

Anonymous. (2010). Steps in Job Analysis. Web.

Anonymous. (n.d.). What is 360 Degree Feedback? Web.

Gatti, M M et al. (1997) Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. FindLaw for Legal Professional. Web.

Ivancevich, J M (2008) Human Resource Management 10E. Tata McGraw- Hill. New Delhi P.650.

Ivancevich, J. M. (2010). Human Resource Management (11th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Johnson, R P. (1994) Ten Advantages to Telecommuting. Web.

Seitzinger, M V. (2010) Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA): Congressional Interest and Executive Enforcement. Congressional Research Services. Web.

Silva, S D. (n.d.). An introduction to Performance and Skill Based Pay Systems. International Labor Organization. ACT/EMP Publication. Web.

Click Here To Order Now!