ASSIGNMENT On Human Resource Management
Q.1 a) What is the impact of globalization and
liberalization on industries in our country?
Answer 1(a)
During the mid 1980s, the
Congress Government headed by Rajiv Gandhi made a move to change the policies
regarding business, licenses, and permits, as also its attitude towards
multinational companies (MNCs) operating in India. However, it was only during
the succeeding government of Narasimha Rao government that a strategy was
actually formulated in this direction and marketed both in India and abroad.
The strategy aimed to bring the Indian economy into the mainstream of the
global economy, and at the same time allow a whiff of competition and growth to
Indian business. This it was hoped would bring a new dimension to the concepts of
quality, productivity, and growth.
In evitably, the winds of liberalization that
swept through the nation opened a variable Pandora box, with far-reaching
implications for hu7man resources management. It bought in a new era of
technology, quality consciousness and competition which compelled Indian
business to wake up from its somnambulism and reassess its assumptions for
dealing with the complete-or-perish’ situation.
India has proven world that despite its chaotic
political scenario, imbalance wealth distribution, redundant bureaucracy, past
baggage of Nehruvian socialism, and its sundry other problem, it can implement
sustainable economic restructuring in the world’s most populous democracy.
India has the potential, but the strong economic performance of recent years
requires continuing efforts to deepen it and make it work.
Since foreign entrants in India have distinct
advantage in terms of state-of—art technology R&D.
Strong brand equity, Indian companies will be
ringlet carefully quality system, capital and challenged to shape out. On the
other hand, multinational companies (MNCs) have to settle down and be accepted
by the domestic consumer, which is not always an easy process. Das gives
guidelines to Indian companies for pursuing a winning strategy in the face of
global competition.
The after math of liberalization and globalization
has made Indian companies conscious of competition and quality and acquire a
totally global mindset. According to Gurucharan Das they need to:
1. Focus on a single area of
competence and not haplessly diversity
2. Initially concentrate on the
domestic market and then leverage their economies of scable overseas
3. Be able to capitalize on
global trade
4. Not ignore quality even when
they are pursuing a low cost strategy
5. Be able to overcome their
historic phobia for investing in product development.
Synergy between industry and government in an
emerging country such as India is a major requirement. Several factors from
which private enterprise was barred, till the recent past have been opened up.
Simultaneously the domestic industry is reforming itself to meet the challenges
of opportunity and competition from multinationals. The latter being a fresh
entrant in Indian business has an advantage of designing its systems and
procedure according to the challenged environment. Established Indian
organizations however will have considerable baggage to carry, in terms of
systems and also manpower.
Although India has significantly progressed due to
the structural adjustment program, a lot remains to be achieved. A free market
economy demand a transparent set of laws and quick disposal of
litigation-something that the archaic Indian judicial system is ill-equipped to
cope with.
The conflict between labor and capital had formed
the basis of unionization in India. The unions demanded protection of labor
against capital. With the introduction of technology and competition, the very
existence of their jobs had become a major area of concern for the workers.
Today due to restructuring programmed, in the short run job loss is quite
significant in May industries.
Liberalization has not liberated poor in villages
from the clutches of the moneylender. The rural poor are now perhaps even more
under the grip of corrupt petards than say years ago.
Although there is little doubt that liberalization
and globalization will generally lead to a buoyant economy, one needs to be
watchful of the intense pain that change can cause to the affected sections of
society during the crucial transition period.
Q1 (b) What is the effect of competition on Human
Resource Management?
Answer 1 (b).
As a result of domestic and
international competition, human resource management is being given a key role.
Some of the effects in HRM are highlighted below:
·
With manpower costs going up, and the need to bring product prices down
to meet competition, manpower productivity has become a central issue in
organizations. HR professionals will have to play a crucial role to fulfill
this need.
·
Another area of intervention would be in the case of joint ventures
where professionals will have to predict and manage culture-fir policies.
Companies are focusing on people with right profiles as also those who are
capable.
·
There is increasing emphasis on training and retraining to tap talent.
·
Companies are showing increasing willingness to retain talent and
redeploys manpower necessary.
·
In some industry, India employees are being sought after abroad. This
coupled with competition for employees among Indian companies, has led to an
alarming attrition rate for some companies. To meet ambitious career
aspirations and salary expectations, HR department are usually industry wise
benchmarking for salary revisions.
·
Employee compensation is being linked and programmers are becoming more
focused, responsive and are also constantly reviewed against the external
environment.
·
Globalization has resulted in an influx of foreign managers to India.
·
Corporate restructuring and redefining of roles are areas also focus
Q2 (a) What is
Performance Appraisal? What are the objectives of the Performance Appraisal
System?
Answer2 (a)
Performance appraisal can be
defined as a formal exercise conducted by an organization to evaluate its
employees in terms of the contribution made by them towards achieving organizational
objectives or there personal strengths and weaknesses and in terms of the
attributes that he has shown in achieving the objectives of the organization.
Objectives
of the Performance Appraisal
The basic objectives of Personal Appraisal are as
follows:
1. It enables each employee to
understand his role and responsibility of the job that is being done by
him/her.
2. To make each employee aware
about his own strengths and weaknesses with respect to his role in the
organization.
3. It identifies the developmental
needs of the employee of the organization.
4. It tends to improve the
relationship between the superior and subordinate through realization that each
is dependent on each other.
5. It serves as a mechanism for
improving the communication between the subordinate and the superior. The
subordinate is well aware of the expectations of their superiors.
6. It provides an opportunity
for the employees for their self-evaluation and goal setting.
7. It enables every employee to
internalize the norms and values of the organizations so that an organizational
identity and commitment is developed throughout the organization.
8. It prepares its employees
for higher jobs by continuously reinforcing development of behavior and
qualities for their high level positions.
9. It tends to motivate its
employees and create a healthy environment in which the employees feel free to
work.
10. It helps in a variety of
personnel decision by generating relevant data on each employee periodically.
So performance appraisal can
be treated as a tool, which can help the employee and the organization to work
together in a more cordial manner towards the achievement of the organizational
goals. Its acts a force which tends to motivate the employees of the
organization to work towards the attainment of the organizational and personal
goals.
Q2 (b) Explain the concept of 360-degree appraisal.
How is this concept used in industry to appraise the employees?
Answer2 (b)
360-degree appraisal is
basically Multi Rater Appraisal and feedback system, where a number of assesses
an individual assesses including superior, subordinates, peers, and internal
and external customers. The assessment is made on questionnaire specially
designed to measure behaviors considered as critical for performance. The
concerned persons do the appraisal anonymously and officials of the HRD
department collect the assessment. The assessment is consolidated and feedback
profiles are prepared and given to the participants after a workshop or
directly by his boss or the HRD department in performance review discussion
session.
Objective
of 360-degree feedback
1. It provides an insight into
the strong and weak areas of the candidates in terms of effective performance
of roles, activities, style, traits, qualities, and competence impact on
others.
2. It helps in identifying the
developmental needs and preparing development plans more objectively in
relation to current or future roles and performance improvement for an
individual or a group.
3. It helps in data generating
to serve as a more objective basis for rewards and other personnel
decisions.
4. It acts as a basis for
performance linked pay or performance rewards.
5. Alignment of individual and
group goals with organizational vision, values and goals.
360-Degree Feedback
The whole process of
conducting 360-Degree feedback process in any organization could last anywhere
from one and a half to about 3 months from the start, depending of course on
the coverage of people and the geographical spread of the organization’s unit.
Five phases that make up the
process of the Feedback exercise are:
1. Participants Orientation and
modality of the exercise: this phase
lays the foundation of the whole exercise in the organization. Some very
important issues that are discussed and clarified in this phase are as follows:
ü Purpose of 360-degree
feedback.
ü How is it going to be
administered?
ü Who are going to rate or
provide feedbacks?
ü Who will analyze the data?
ü Is it a part of the
performance appraisal.
ü Does the organization own
the data generated and could corporate decisions be taken on this basis?
ü Validity of the data
generated and raters rating.
Also discussed and clarified
are the issues related to choosing the raters, guidelines for the process, type
of work related people who are eligible to give the feedback and also the
anonymity maintained during the whole exercise.
2. Questionnaire distribution:
All participants are to submit a list of appraisal by which they would like to
assess. Guidelines, if any, for choosing assessors would depend on factors such
as size of the company and the work culture therein. There are companies where
the HR department lists out the rater by choosing randomly from the
participant’s list of work related employees. Each rater receives an envelops having
the following:
ü Letter from the
administrator: it includes brief description regarding the exercise regarding
the exercise, name of the participant nominated for the workshop and a request
for feedback, which would help enhance effectiveness of the participant.
ü Letter from the participant
soliciting feedback: contains his/her direct request to the rater explaining
the exercise and to whom the questionnaires are being given
ü Self-addressed envelop from
the administrator: contains a note of thanks from the participant’s side and
reinforcement or anonymity.
ü Questionnaires
3. Monitoring and Follow Up:
this phase follows the distribution of questionnaires to all assessors. Since
the whole exercise is done on an anonymous basis, it is difficult to closely
monitor on who has sent the feedback and who has not sent. All the
questionnaires are being processed in a central place of the administrator. And
then these questionnaires are being processed for the name of the participant,
the working relationship of the rater and hence for each participant, a
schedule is being kept regarding the feedback the assessor is getting.
4. Data Feeding and Reports: as
the questionnaires are being received the data is being feeded in the computer
in its raw form. There is a pre-set format that on basis of the questionnaires
and the individual data sheet would contain only the raw scores of all his
assessors arranged in order of categories of superiors, subordinates,
colleagues etc. and as the data is feeded he formulas are being applied.
5. Work shop: basically a two
day workshop is conducted which stretches to three or more days since two days
are taken up for distributing the reports and its analysis in a phased manner
while the remaining period is used for individual counseling with the administrator. The two main issues that are stressed
through out the workshop are as follows:
ü Openness to feedbacks.
ü Development attitudes.
Each question in the
workshop is being ranked keeping in mind its relative importance to the job of
the participant. The activity not only help in getting a better understanding
of what each question measures, but also helps them later on in terms of
pointing out specific areas needing more attention.
So with the help of all
these five phases 360-degree the concept of 360-degree is used in the
industry.
Q3 (a) What is
Performance Counseling? Explain the process involved in Performance Counseling.
Answer3 (a)
Performance Counseling
refers to the help provided by a superior to its subordinates in objectively
analyzing their performance. It focuses on the analysis of performance and
identification of training and developing needs for bringing about further
improvement. The major benefits of performance counseling that can help an
employee are as follows:
v It helps the employees to
know their strengths and weaknesses.
v It helps in improving the
professional and interpersonal relation between the superior and the
subordinates.
v It tends to set goals and
formulate action plans for future improvement.
v It helps the employees in
generating various solutions for different problems.
v It provides a supportive and
empathetic atmosphere in which the employee feels encouraged to discuss his
suggestions, tensions, conflicts etc.
Process
involved in Performance Counseling
The basic process involved
in Performance Counseling is that the superior should pay careful attention to
the ideas and feeling of the subordinate and should listen to all the
suggestions and ideas that are being given by the employees. He should be able
to encourage his employees to be more open towards the new ideas and should
feel free to talk to the manager about their tensions and conflicts. This
requires both patience and skills on the part of the superior, who is doing the
performance counseling. Questions play a very important role in performance
counseling as it can help in gathering more information and stimulating
thinking. By asking questions the manager will be able to know more about the
employee and will be able to help him in solving different tensions and
conflicts that are being faced by him. But not all the questions lead to
facilitate healthy communication.
The manager should be able
to make the employee know about his strengths and weaknesses and should help
him in overcoming his weaknesses and should be able to convert his weaknesses
into his strengths. The employee should be able to improve the relationship
between the superior and the subordinates. With the help of the performance
counseling the manager should be able to provide his employee with an
environment in which he is free to talk about the different tensions, conflicts
and problems.
The performance counseling
process also includes the setting of goals and formulating the action plans for
the achievement of goals and generating the alternative solutions for different
problem faced while working for an organization.
Process involved in performance counseling
For repeated but relatively minor incidents of
substandard performance, misconduct, or rule violations, corrective counseling
and discipline should be progressive. The normal sequence of action is: (1)
Initial discussion; (2) Oral Warning; (3) Written Reprimand; (4) Suspension;
(5) Discharge. Depending on the severity of the case, the action may begin at
any of these steps. Any action involving suspension or discharge requires prior
review by the Assistant Vice President of Human Resources or his/her designated
representative.
Initial
Discussion:
Normally,
initial disciplinary action should be in the form of an oral discussion, especially
for minor rule violations. If it appears that an employee has failed to perform
his/her work or conduct him/herself according to requirements, the supervisor
should first talk to the employee about the matter and informally inquire
further into the situation. If facts indicate that the employee may have been
at fault, the supervisor should discuss the matter with him/her and the
expectations of the supervisor or steps needed for improvement. The supervisor
should always seek to ascertain the employee's comments regarding the incident,
behavior, or poor performance.
Oral
Warning:
If
the initial discussion fails to produce the desired results, an oral warning is
normally the next step. With an oral warning, the supervisor should again
discuss the matter with the employee. If the supervisor wishes, he/she may call
on another person to be present as a witness, preferably another supervisor.
The employee should understand the gravity of the situation. With an oral
warning, the employee is put on notice that disciplinary action will be
forthcoming if there is a repeated violation or if the situation does not
improve. Supervisors should maintain a complete and accurate written notation
of the warning.
Written
Reprimand:
Before
a Written Reprimand is issued, the employee should be allowed to respond
(preferably in writing) to the charges of misconduct currently made against
him/her. If it is then determined that a Written Reprimand is appropriate, the
Written Reprimand should involve both a formal interview with the employee by
the supervisor and an official memorandum to the employee emphasizing the
negative effect of the employee's conduct or work performance on his/her record
and opportunities for advancement. If the immediate supervisor does not have the
authority to discharge, then such an interview should be conducted by or with
the permission of the department official who does have discharge authority. A
written reprimand should include: names of everyone involved, dates,
description of incident or unsatisfactory performance, witnesses (if any), and
action taken. Reference should be made to dates and results of prior oral
warning(s), or other written reprimand(s), if any. Also included should be
action that will be taken if satisfactory improvement does not occur.
Additionally, this document should provide the employee with information
relevant to their right to appeal the action under the Complaint and Grievance
Policy (9.03) of the Personnel Policies and Procedures Manual. A copy of this
policy should be attached to the reprimand. The reprimanding official should
sign the reprimand. It should also bear or request the employee's comments, if
any, and his/her signature. The employee should be informed that his/her
signature indicates receipt of a copy of the reprimand letter, but not
necessarily mean that he/she agrees with its contents. If the employee refuses
to or is unable to sign the reprimand, a witness, preferably another supervisor
should verify that the employee has received a copy of the reprimand. A copy of
the letter of reprimand should be sent to Human Resource Services, Employee
Relations division. Written Reprimands will be removed from an employee’s
permanent file, and placed in a confidential file in Human Resource Services,
if requested by both the employee and the supervisor and the employee has
performed satisfactory work for a twelve (12) month period from the date of the
last reprimand letter. In unusual circumstances, the department official may
request the reprimand be removed from the file prior to the end of the
twelve-month period. The reprimand will remain a part of the employee’s record.
Suspension:
"
Suspension" means the interruption (without compensation) of the active
employment status pending an investigation and decision as to the extent of
disciplinary action; or suspension may be disciplinary action in itself. A
supervisor with authority to discharge has authority to suspend without pay,
either as a disciplinary measure or to permit investigation of alleged charges.
Before suspension action is taken the immediate supervisor must discuss the
situation with his/her supervisor, the Assistant Vice President of Human
Resources or his/her designated representative and the employee and allow the
employee to respond (preferably in writing) to the charges. If suspension is
warranted, the employee should be presented with a written document which
indicates he/she is being suspended, the number of days suspended, and the
reasons for the suspension. Suspension involves removal from the payroll for a
specified period of time, or in some cases, indefinitely. To suspend (dock) an
employee from payroll, the supervisor who has discharge authority must forward
a written memo to Payroll. The memo should stipulate the name of the employee
being suspended, his/her social security number, and the number of days
suspended and that the employee is "being suspended as disciplinary action
for violation of a major work rule. A Payroll Authorization Form HRM-6 should
be completed to remove the employee from the payroll.
Discharge
or Release:
In
cases other than serious offenses, release from employment should be used as a
last resort. When it becomes necessary to release an employee, the record
he/she has established, in effect, will have released the employee. The
supervisor/manager who has the authority to employ also has the authority to
discharge. Since the most extreme disciplinary measure is discharge, before the
discharge the supervisor or management official who initiates this action must
review with the Assistant Vice President of Human Resources or his/her
designated representative, the procedure that has been followed. This review
will assure that the case for dismissal has been objectively investigated and
is both justified and properly documented. Regular non-probationary staff that
is being considered for discharge for major rule violations shall be given an
opportunity to respond to the allegations (preferably in writing) prior to the
decision to discharge. This may be accomplished in a meeting with the employee
or by providing the employee a written letter for his or her response. If after
reviewing the response, and discharge is in order, an employee should be
presented with a letter indicating discharge, the reasons for the discharge, and
the date of the discharge. As with every step outlined in this policy, the
manager must allow for and seek to ascertain the employee's comments regarding
the situation. Since discharge requires prior consultation and approval, it
should not be done "on-the-spot.” If the management official feels it is
improper to leave the employee on duty until such approval can be obtained,
he/she should consult with Human Resource Services to see if indefinite
suspension or administrative leave is appropriate. This also allows time for
any necessary investigation.
Immediate
Suspension:
In
extremely serious cases involving unruly behavior, violence or imminent threat
to personal safety or property, the supervisor and/or Police Department may
determine the need for immediate arrest or removal from Health Science Center
property of an employee. This may include collecting all Health Science Center
property from the employee. This should be considered an immediate suspension
and may warrant proceeding with the discharge process above.
So to conclude we can say
that the process of Performance Counseling includes all the motivational
factors that can help the employees to work freely towards the achievement of
the organizational goals.
Q3 (b) What are the objectives of Potential
Appraisal?
Answer 3(b)
The objectives of potential
appraisal are:
- To assess an individual in terms of the highest level of work the
individual will be able to handle comfortably and successfully in future
without being over-stretched.
- To assist the organization in discharging its responsibility of
selecting and developing managers for the future to ensure continuous
growth of the organization.
Q4 (a) Define TQM. Examine the elements involved in
TQM and evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of TQM.
Answer4
(a)
The ISO 8402
has defined TQM as: “ Management approach of the organization, centered on
quality, based on the participation of all its members and aiming at long term
success through customer satisfaction and benefits to all members of the
organization and to society” or in other words it can defined as a cost
effective system for integrating the continuous quality improvement efforts of
people at all levels in the organization to deliver products and services which
ensures quality satisfaction.
Elements of TQM
TQM emphasizes on various
elements that support the philosophies of customer focus, continuous
improvement, defect prevention and recognition that all shares quality
responsibility. The basic elements are as follows:
1. Management Commitment to
quality: the implementation of TQM should start from top and the management has
to be unwavering in its commitment to quality. The management should reflect
proper control on the part of the quality of goods and services that it is
giving to its customers.
2. Focus on customers: the
basic emphasis of TQM should be on customer satisfaction and the management
should assure that the customer’s need and expectations should be understood
and met.
3. Prevention rather that
detection of defects: this philosophy seeks to prevent poor quality rather than
detecting and sorting out defects. The technologies evolved to prevent defects
are statistical process control, continuous process improvement and problem
solving and system failure analysis.
4. Universal quality
responsibility: according to TQM, quality is considered as a guiding philosophy
that everyone shares in an organization and is not only the responsibility of
the quality control department. Everyone that is responsible for the production
of the good and services should share the credit of the quality of the goods
and services given to the customer.
5. Quality measurement: it
plays a very important aspect of TQM and quality being a measurable commodity
one should be aware as to what current quality levels are prevailing and what
amount of improvement is to be made in order to improve the quality of the
product and should be able to meet the customer satisfaction.
6. Continuous improvement: TQM
strives for continuous improvement in all areas, which is made possible by
typing in closely with quality measurement and universal quality
responsibility. The basic objective of this element is that it aims at zeroing
on the process deficiencies that allowed the problem. It is not being attempted
on a grand scale but pursued in small, incremental and manageable steps.
7. Root cause correction
action: TQM seeks to identify the root cause of the problems and by implanting
corrective actions that address problems at the root cause level which includes
problem solving approach and systems failure analysis approach including fault
free analysis and managing tracking tools.
8. Employee’s involvement and
empowerment: according to TQM every employee is an active participant in goal
attainment and should be provided with necessary tools and authority to
overcome obstacle to achieve the goal of customer satisfaction.
9. Synergy of team: TQM
emphasizes on synergy of team to tackle the problem and challenges of
continuous improvement in the quality of the goods and services provided to the
customer.
10. Benchmarking: This element
involves defining competitor’s best features and adopting the best practices of
these organization for once own operations.
11. Inventory reduction: also
known as just in time inventory management, intends to address the material
shortages and quality improvement i.e. the ultimate impact of this concept is
that as inventory grew smaller, quality improved.
12. Value improvement: The
essence of value improvement is the ability to meet customer expectation while
removing unnecessary cost. Another principle of TQM is to develop long term
relationship with a few high quality suppliers, rather than selecting those
suppliers with the lowest initial cost. TQM philosophy believes that lower
initial cost does not reflect the lowest overall life cycle cost if quality
problem later immerges with the low bidder supplies.
13. Training: this is the basic
element of TQM process and can be developed by encouraging continuous
improvement in the quality and assuring customer satisfaction.
Advantages of
TQM
1. It is able to generate
higher profits in accordance with customer satisfaction.
2. Helps in manufacturing
better quality products at lower cost.
3. Reduces wastages and
prevents poor quality rather than detecting and correcting defects.
4. It eliminates shortage in
the supply of inputs and insures that the organization does not purchase
excessive inventory.
5. TQM analysis and improves
the basic business system and subsystem to match customer requirements which
helps in reducing product development time.
6. Increases the flexibility in
meeting the market demand and helps in ascertaining the requirements of the
customer and evolve systems to do a better job in shorter time.
7. TQM tends to motivate human
resource, as it demands for employee’s involvement and empowerment.
8. It encourages the company to
face competition, which is facilitated by better quality product, lower
possible cost and a team of dedicated employees.
Disadvantages
of TQM
1. It is enable to provide with
reserves, which lead to disappoint, anxiety and even panic among the employees
of the organization.
2. It is a time consuming
process.
3. It gives rise to expectation
on the part of the customer as the customer become knowledgeable about what a
quality organization is all.
Q4 (b) What are Quality Circles? Examine the process
involved in Quality Circles and evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of
quality circles.
Answer4 (b) Quality Circle can be defined as “a small group of employees from
the same work area that meet regularly and voluntarily to identify, solve and
implement solutions to work related problems.” i.e. it is the group of people
who comes together to solve the work related problems in an effective manner.
Characteristics
of Quality Circles:
ü It ranges from 4to 15
members and 8 members are considered to be the norm.
ü All members are from the
same work area that gives the circle an identity.
ü There is one supervisor who
usually works as a leader who moderates a discussion and promotes consensus but
does not has the power of issuing orders or decisions.
ü Usually meets once a week to
work on the problems faced by them.
ü Training is being given to
each member of the Quality Circle bout the rules of the participation in the
circle, the mechanics of running a meeting and making management presentation,
and techniques of group problem solving.
ü It is the members and not
the management who choose the problem to work upon.
ü The members of the circle
are being helped by technical specialist and management to solve a particular
problem.
Process of Quality Circle
The basic aim of the circle
members is to identify the problem and then analyze the problem and to find the
solutions for the same. It also aims to achieve the objective through the
development of people. The basic process involved in Quality Circle consists of
the following points:
1. Problem collection: the
primary task of the member of the circle is to create a problem bank and then
to give priority to each problem depending on its benefit potential and
urgency.
2. Problem Analysis: A good
number of data collection tools, charts and statistical techniques to establish
facts, before proceeding to find solutions.
3. Problem Solutions: A proper
environment and group thinking together helps in finding the proper solutions
to the problems. The people involved in the work area are best equipped to find
the solutions to the problem in a more practical manner.
4. Management Presentation:
Through management presentation, the circle members present there solutions to
the management, highlight the benefits anticipated from the solution and if
there is an acceptance to there solution then it acts a motivation
factors.
5. Implementation, review and
follow up: After getting the sanction from the management he next step is to
plan for the implementation of the solution and follow up that are to carried
out after a period of time.
So to conclude we can say
the quality circle works as group that works in the fulfillment of the
objective that leads to a problem free working toward the objective of the
organization.
Q5 (a) What is
manpower planning? Explain the various steps involved in the manpower planning.
Answer5 (a)
Manpower planning is defined
as the process by which Management determines how the organization should move
from its current manpower position to desired manpower position. Through
planning, management strives to have the right time, doing things, which result
in both the organization and individual receiving maximum long run benefits.
Manpower planning is concerned with two things:
1. Planning of manpower
requirement
2. Planning of manpower
supplies.
The various benefits of
Manpower Planning are:
v Forecasting of long-term
manpower requirements helps to forecast the compensation costs involved and
have an opportunity for developing existing manpower needs to fill the future
openings through promotions which acts as a factor towards motivating the
employees.
v Manpower Planning also
enables the determination of the weaknesses of the existing manpower so that
corrective training could be incorporated..
Steps
involved in Manpower Planning
v Anticipating Manpower Needs:
for securing maximum motivation, it is always better to encourage internal
recruitment therefore it is more effective to try and meet the manpower requirements
from the supplies existing within the organization itself which in turn will
secure optimum motivation and ensure retention within the organization of its
people.
v Planning job requirement and
description: An important part in the manpower planning consists of the
planning job requirement, which should be clearly determined through a minute
study of the duties to be performed in that job.
Job Information
Job information helps in
many ways and more particularly for the following:
ü Adequate Recruitment: the
recruitment officer should have clear information regarding the type of person
to be recruited that could be gathered from the job description and man
specification.
ü Adequate Training: it is
necessary for the training manager to know the job’s skills, which have to be
learnt by the employee recruited.
ü Adequate Salary Structures:
Job description is necessary for determining job grading structures
appropriately stating the job value relationship internally.
ü Fair Appraisal: Performance
appraisal cannot be fair unless the appraisal is clear in his mind about the
requirements.
Job Description
A job description can be
defined as written records of the duties, responsibilities and conditions of
the job. The methods that generally provides the data are
ü Observation of the employees
while performing their work.
ü Study of specially
maintained diaries.
ü A review of critical
incidents.
ü Discussion with departmental
head or supervisor.
ü Discussion with outside
consultants and experts.
v Skills analysis: the
managerial abilities can be viewed the different emphasis placed by various
schools of management thoughts. For e.g. according to the management science
group, mangers are perceived as decision makers. And the behavioral scientist emphasizes the
leadership and motivation abilities of mangers. However the skills required for
successful executives can be divided into four types (1) Decision making skills
(2) Leadership skills (3) Communication Skills (4) Organizational and social
skills.
v Selecting adequate source or
recruitment: there are two basic methods for the recruitment of people I the
organization i.e. the internal source and the external source. The internal
source includes the recruitment of the people who are already working in the
organization in the form of there promotions or transfer on the basis of the
employee’s merits, initiatives, accuracy of work, job knowledge and personal
records. The internal source of recruitment is the best method that is being
used in order to motivate the employees and to boost their morale and to
develop loyalty among the employees for the organization.
The external
source of recruitment involves the following points:
ü Recruitment advertising: It
involves inviting applications from outside the organization through advertisements
in the new papers and magazines.
ü Reference to employment
exchange.
ü Recruitment from colleges.
ü A study of central
applications’ file maintained of past applicants not selected at that time.
ü Use of special consultants
for recruiting.
With the help of all these
points we can say that external recruitment plays an important part in
selecting the right kind of a person for the right kind of job.
So to conclude we can say
that process of manpower planning need to have all the steps properly incorporated
so as to choose the right number of recruitment for the right number of jobs.
Q5 (b)
Explain what is meant by Human Resource Planning.
Answer5 (b) Human Resource planning can be defined as a process by which an
organization ensures that it has the right number and kinds of people, at the
right place, at the right time, capable of effectively and efficiently
completing those tasks that will help the organization achieve its overall
objectives or in other words HRP can be defined as planning for the future
personnel needs of an organization, taking into account both internal
activities and factors in the external environment.
Need and Importance of HRP
Human resource Planning
translates the organization objectives and plans into the number of workers
needed to meet these objectives. The need and importance of HRP is as follows:
ü HRP helps in determining the
future manpower requirements and avoids problems like over staffing or
understaffing in the organization.
ü HRP helps in tackling with
the factors like competition, technology, government policies etc. that
generates changes in the job content, skill requirements and number and types
of personnel required.
ü Now a days there is a demand
of exceptional intellectual skills while the existing staff becomes redundant,
the HR manager has to attract and retain qualified and skilled personnel and
also required to deal with issues like career development, succession planning
for which he takes the help of HRP.
ü A proper and realistic human
resource plan is needed to ensure equal employment and promotional appointments
to the candidates fro weaker sections, physically handicapped and socially and
politically oppressed citizens.
ü HRP provides valuable and
timely information for various designing and execution of personnel functions
like recruitment, selection, transfers, promotions, layoffs, training and
development and performance appraisal.
ü It helps the organization to
anticipate imbalance in human resources, which in turn will facilitate
reduction in personal costs.
ü HRP facilitates planning for
future needs which will help in better planning of assignments to develop
managers and to ensure the organization has a steady supply of experienced and
skilled employees.
Factors affecting Human
Resource Planning
HRP is a dynamic and on
going process. The process of updating is not very simple, since HRP is
influenced by many factors, which are as follows:
ü The type of organization
determines the production process and number and type of staff needed.
ü The human resource needs of
an organization depend on the strategic plan adopted by it. For e.g. the growth
of a business calls for hiring of additional labor, while mergers will need a
plan for layoffs.
ü Organization operates under
different political, social environment and has to carefully formulate the HR
policies and so the HR manager has to evolve suitable mechanism to deal with
uncertainties through career developments, succession planning, retirement
schemes etc.
ü HRP also depends on the time
periods and accordingly the short and long-term plans are adopted. And this
time span is based on the degree of environmental uncertainties.
ü The type and quality of
information used in making forecasting is an important factor influencing HRP.
Accurate and timely human resource information system helps in getting better
quality personnel.
ü HRP is required to ensure
that suitable candidates should be appointed at the right kind of job.
So these are some of the
factors that affect the human resource planning.
Limitations of Human
Resource Planning
ü It is very difficult to
ascertain future manpower requirements of an organization, as future is always
uncertain.
ü It is more relevant to the
countries that face the problem of scarcity of human resources.
ü It is a time consuming and
costlier process.
ü It is beneficial in the
organizations that adopt a professional approach and at the same time are
conscious about the changing environment.
ü HRP is beneficial where
adequate skilled manpower is available. .
ü HRP is also made difficult
in the organizations that have a very high labor turnover.
Q6 (a) Explain how the training needs can be
identified?
Answer6
(a)
Training
could be useful aid in improving the transformation process that takes place in
an organization n terms of the processing of inputs to outputs. Training needs
have to be related both in terms of the organizational demands and that of the
individual’s. Diversifications of product lines, new technology and hence a new
kind of jobs demands the individual’s growth and development through induction
training, or training necessitate by job rotation due to an organization’s
internal mobility policies.
Recognition that a problem existsIdentification of the real problemConsideration of possible solutions |
Non training solutions Training solutions
Discuss
as appropriate Commitment
of management action
Fig.1 Models of Identifying Training needs
Many methods have been
proposed for identifying training needs, which are as follows:
1. View of the line manager
2. Performance appraisal
3. Company and departmental
plans
4. View of training manager
5. Analysis of job
difficulties.
Now we can explain a model
of identifying training needs, which constitute the following three factors:
1. Organizational Analysis
2. Task Analysis
3. Man Analysis
Total Organizational
Analysis
It is a systematic effort to
understand exactly where training efforts needs to be emphasized in an
organization. It involves the detailed analysis of the organizational structure,
objectives, human resources and future plans, and an understanding of its
cultural values. An in depth analysis of this factor would facilitate an
understanding of deficiencies need to be rectified.
The first step in
organizational analysis is achieving a clear understanding of both short-run
and long run goals.
From the point of view of
the training, a manager would need to examine if there are any specific
training inputs that could contribute towards the attainment of the corporate
objectives. For instance, the organizational structure might have to be
realigned keeping in view the changed objectives, growth and diversification
plans, or the possibility of need for greater decentralization or induction of
new employees and redefined jobs all of which will have implications on each
individual job role in the organization necessitating the training of the
employees.
For an organization analysis there are three essential
requirements, which are as follows:
v An adequate number of
personnel available to ensure fulfillment of business operation.
v The personnel performance is
upto the required standard.
v The working environment in
there departments is conducive to fulfillment to tasks.
In order to analysis the
organizational climate there are two different methods that are being used i.e.
the direct and indirect method.
Direct methods are
observations, use of questionnaires and interviews whereas indirect methods
would not give a clear understanding of the attitudes and predispositions of
the employees. It would be better to make a careful analysis and study each
indicator in a particular situation in conjunction with more direct methods.
Task Analysis
This activity entails a
detailed examination of a job, its components, its various operations and condition
under which it has to be performed. The focus is on the task itself, rather
than on the individual and the training required to perform it. Analysis of the
job and its various component will indicate the skills and training require to
perform the job at the required standard.
Standard of performance:
every job has an expected standard of performance unless such standards are
attained, not only interrelated job suffers but organizational viability will
be effected and so will be the expectation that have been set for that
particular job itself. It enables us to know whether the job is being performed
at the desired level of output or not.
Methods: Task analysis
entails not merely simple listing of the various job components but also of the
relatively critical nature of the various sub-tasks. Conventional methods of
job analysis are usually suitable for task analysis. They are as follows:
1. Literature review regarding
the job.
2. Job performance
3. Job observation
4. Data collection regarding
job interviews
Analysis of the job is but
one part of the task analysis other areas are the skill required either in
terms of an education and training to perform the job knowledge, and finally
attitudinal predispositions.
Man
Analysis
Man analysis is the third component
in identifying training needs. The focus of man analysis is on The individual
employees; his abilities, his skills and the inputs required for job
performance, individual growth and development in terms of career planning. Man
analysis help to identify whether the individual employee requires training and
if so, what kind of training. Clues to training needs can come from an analysis
of an individual’s or group’s typical behavior. The primary source of such
information is
1. Observation at place of work;
examination of job schedules; quantum of spoilage; wastage; and clues about
interpersonal relations of the employees
2. Interview with superiors and
employees
3. Comparative studies of good
vs. poor employees to identify difference; skills and training gaps.
4. Personal records.
5. Production report
6. Review of literature
regarding the job and machines used.
7. Job knowledge, work sampling
and diagnostic psychological tests also provides information about employees.
Job performance data are
more reliable when an employee is responsible for a simple, repetitive, single
outcome type of a job. The job complexities increases with increasing
responsibilities and the employee are more responsible for more outcomes.
The second method is by
devising situations, which requires an employee to use similar skills and
knowledge as on his job. These simulation exercises can focus on all aspects of
the job and allows for better training than offered by the situation where only
a particular aspect is stressed due to exigencies of work.
Finally, there are
observational measures. The main features of this method are that this is an
indirect data gathering process, by the supervisor or the third person. Some of
these methods are checklist, merit rating, employee performance record etc.
So these are some of the
methods through which we can identify the need for training in a particular
organization.
Q6 (b) Explain
how the results of training can be evaluated?
Answer6 (b)
Evaluation of any activity
is important, since in evaluating one try to judge the “ value or worth of the
activity, using the information available”. It is an attempt to obtain
information on the effect of the training and to assess the value of the
training in the light of that information. The various steps involved in the
evaluation process are as follows:
- The first method in the evaluation process is to identify the
areas of training to be evaluated. The next step would be to decide on the
strategies and methods to be used in collecting the relevant information,
which is then processed into tabular format and then analyzed.
- The second method of the evaluation of the training is that of
rating. “Various elements of the training system should be rated
independently by several qualified persons. These elements include
trainees, instructors, equipments etc.
- The third method is trainee surveys where opinions of the trainees
are used for evaluation.
- The fourth method is trainee interviews, whereby ideas and views
that trainees might not put down on paper can be determined by skilful
questioning which allows for more precise information and details to be
obtained and prevent ambiguity.
- The final method is that of collecting the observation and
recommendations of instructors through surveys and interviews “ to ensure
that the system is consistent with the needs of the implementers of the
training”.
So these are some of the
methods that can be used in the process of evaluation of training
Q7 (a) Examine
the elements of Succession Planning?
Answer7 (a)
The various
elements of Succession Planning are as follows:
1. The first and for-most
element of succession planning is the development of staffing plans which
should be prepared on an individual basis for all anticipated needs in the
immediate year ahead and for key positions the intermediate and long range
future. The business plans should be reviewed to determine their effect on
managerial needs and there should be a proper formulation of the organizational
plans and human resource. This can be more illustrated with the help of the fig
given below:
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Fig. 1 Structure of Development Plans of Succession
Planning
2. The second step concerns the
staffing and development. Staffing includes recruitment, selection and
placement of candidates from outside as well as selection and movement of
present employees through promotion and transfer. There are some approaches
that are to be used during the development procedure of the managerial staff
which are as follows:
v There should be some formal
training given to the managerial staff.
v There should be planned job
rotation process.
v There should be a
performance planning and appraisal program that should help to motivate
employee to work hard.
v Proper counseling and
coaching should be given to each and every employee to do its work properly.
3. The third element of
Succession Planning is creation of a congenial environment where the employees
can work at there best. The organizational environment should be such that the
relation between the superior and subordinate should be more healthy and the
subordinates should be aware about the expectation of the superiors and vice
versa.
4. The concept of the appraisal
is the most efficient method to motivate the employee to give their best for the attainment of the
goals. The Appraisal and analysis of results achieved should provide an
organization with the feedback of the performance of all the employees working
with the organization.
5. The last step of the element
of succession planning is the preparation of Management Resources Inventory
consisting of the following:
v Personal Data
v Performance
v Potential
v Skills
v Career Goals
v Career Plans
This should help identify
the best-qualified employees for filling present and future managerial
vacancies.
Q 7(b) Explain the advantages of promoting employees
from within the organization rather than employing outside persons.
Answer7 (b) From the motivational angle, importing new blood is undesirable
especially when the existing personnel can be absorbed into higher positions.
An exclusive policy of promoting persons from within the organization can lead
to “inbreeding” resulting in promotion of people who have intimated there
superiors. The benefits of recruiting from within the organization are as
follows:
1. The valuable contacts with
the major suppliers are kept. As the person who is working in the organization
and dealing with the major suppliers, he will be more comfortable in getting
the business from those suppliers other than the person who will be recruited
as a new blood as it will take him time to create a reputation with that
supplier and to get the business for the organization.
2. It builds loyalty among the
employees: with the help of the internal recruitment the organization will be
able to gain the loyalty of the employee who is working with the organization.
As he will be aware that the organization knows about the worth of the person because
of which he is being promoted and will also encourage other employee to prove
there worth to the organization.
3. It ensures the stability
from continuity of employment: Internal recruitment also helps in creating the
stability and the continuity of the employees of the organization, as they will
be encouraged to work hard to gain the status that they look forward to which
will help in attaining the stability of the employees.
4. Creates a sense of security
among the employees: as there will be more and more internal recruitment it
tends to create a sense of security among the employees and will not be
hesitant to work towards the achievement o the goals.
5. It encourages other
executives and lower ranked officers to look forward to rising to higher
levels. It acts as a motivational factor and encourages other employees to have
a positive effect on their work and they start working with more enthusiasm and
willingness.
6. The most important benefit
of internal recruitment is that the people who are already working with the
organization will be aware about the rules and regulation of the organization
and will be familiar with the different activities that are happening in the
organization.
7. The internal recruitment
will also reduce the cost of training the new blood about the different
strategies of working in the organization as the person who is already working
with the organization will already have the knowledge about the work that will
be given to him when he will be promoted.
8. Internal recruitment will
help in saving the time that will be wasted in selecting the new blood for the
organization and it will not include the process of scrutinizing the new blood
for the organization.
So, to conclude we can say
that the internal recruitment is the best way to motivate people within the
organization to work hard towards the organizational goals and will also reduce
the cost and time that is being spent on the procedure to select the new blood
from outside for working in the organization.
Q9
(a) What is Job Evaluation? Explain the
various methods used in conducting Job Evaluation Studies.
Answer9
(a)
Job
evaluation is the technique to determine in a systematic and analytical manner
the comparative worth of a job with an organization in relation to other jobs in
terms of the skills needed, responsibilities involved, efforts required and the
surroundings in which it is performed. Job evaluations attempts to measure
these requirements for individual jobs and arrive at their respective worth and
place them in their relative order. There are various techniques of job
evaluation that helps in the analysis of the different jobs.
Techniques of Job Evaluation
All forms of the job
evaluation are designed to enable the management to determine how much one job
should be paid as compared to some other job. All the systems of job evaluation
are being classified in to two categories:
1. Non quantitative which
includes simple ranking and grading system
2. Quantitative, which included
Point system and factor comparison method.
The description of these
techniques is as follows:
1. Job Ranking: this method is
widely used in small organizations being a very simple and inexpensive method
it consumes less time and promises enough potential in its usefulness. Before
actual ranking, brief job description of all jobs are taken and then the job’s
relative worth is being worked on and the highest and the lowest job are
determined which serves as the bench mark for the ranking of the remainder. The
second method is the paired comparison technique in which each job is to be
compared with all other jobs and once the comparison is being done, jobs are
arranged to their worth.
2. Job Grading: in this we have
the additional feature of pre-decided scale of values consisting of grades and
grade description. From this, the grade descriptions are prepared which should
be broad enough to include several jobs. Two approaches are being used in
preparing the grade description that helps to create a single scale of values
for measuring the worth of a job. For e.g. in an enterprises, job A and B are
similar in nature and job X, Y and Z are of similar nature. Another approach is
to give some known key jobs.
3. Factor comparison system: in
this the job factors are compared instead of the whole job. It consists of the
following steps:
v Selection of job
characteristics
v Selection of key jobs
v Determination of correct
rats of key jobs
v Ranking key jobs under each
job factor
v Allocation of correct rates
to each key job
v Evaluation of all other jobs
v Designing, adjusting and
operating the wage structure.
4. Point rating system: it is
quantifying, analytical and detailed approach hammered out to derive a balance
wage structure with least dispute among employees. The method consists the
following steps:
v Select job factor or features.
v Prepare yardstick of values
for each job factor.
v Decide the values of all the
jobs against the predetermined yardstick.
v Build a wage survey for
selected key jobs.
v Design the wage structure.
v Adjust and operate the wage
structure.
Q. 8 (a) Explain the importance of Career Planning
in industry.
Answer
8 (a)
Career planning involves
efforts on the part of the organizations to provide avenues for growth to its
employees. Certainly this growth should be accompanied by development. The
other side of the coin is the role of employees in career planning. It involves
effort on the part of employees to clearly think through and decided areas in
which they would like to make a career for themselves.
When
employees have assessed their career needs and have become aware of
organizational career opportunities, the problem is one of alignment. The
crucial role has to be played by HRD in ensuring this alignment to build up
morale in the organization. A systematic choice of development techniques like
training, special assignment, counseling and rotational assignments should be
made to ensure this alignment.
Employees are often
uncertain as to the type of work that would suit them best. There are a number
of evaluation instruments available to determine basic aptitudes. Human
Resource Development Managers should be able to guide employees by
administering these instruments on them. Employees should also find out whether
they are loners or socially active. These exercises with some assistance from
HRD Managers should help in career need assessment.
Realizing that employees
have definite career needs, organization should chart different career paths.
These should be made known to all employees. As every employee wishes to see
bright future for himself, these career paths do provide the hope to achieve
success.
At certain stage the upward
mobility stops for many employees. This is inescapable in view of pyramid
organizations structure. This phenomenon is called plateauing. It takes place
around the age f 40. Some suggested measures to deal with such employees are:
·
Mentors should be assigned measures to deal with such employees are:
Depending on the maturity of
such mentors, good results can be achieved in assuaging the hurt feelings of
plateaued employees
Additional career ladders
could be established to retain some valuable resource.
Giving them importance by
assigning them to some important task force or committee.
Assisting them to choose a
new career. Some organizations assist their plateau executives to start their
own business.
Career path models developed
by a large public sector undertaking:
This organization has
developed career paths models for the major discipline
·
Sales
·
Technical services
·
Operations
·
Engineering
·
Aviation
·
LPG
·
Finance
·
Personnel
Q8 (b) “Career Planning and Succession Planning are
very vital to meet the challenges thrown by the forces of globalization and
liberalization.” Explain.
Answer
8 (b)
Career planning and
succession planning is very vital to meet the challenges due to globalization
and liberalization.
Market is open and vast in India and lot of
professionally managed companies are entering the market, giving people a lot
of scope in enhancing the career with very good and managed companies. No
longer a hierarchical an autocratic organizations where no career planning and
succession planning is performed.
Lot of recruitment and training cost is incurred due
to lack or poor planning of career.
People do not see their career drafted and planned
by organizations. HR only worries about the present state. No training and
induction on work is provided continuously keep the gaps closed for all
employees. Retention is the need of the hour. Talent and knowledge of personnel
needs to be kept alive. Corporate environment and congenial atmosphere keeps
employees motivated to do work.
Competition in the market to get best suitable
candidates keep the HR to retain and curve a need career for the employee.
With globalization and liberalization, working hours
and freedom to employees in their work, led to companies looking at the HR
policies.
The survey recorded the most important changes in
human resources in the different companies from 1991-96.
- Virtually all companies starting placing emphasis on the up
gradation of managerial and professional skills.
- A flatter organizational structure had resulted in fewer levels of
hierarchy and enhanced empowerment; empowerment to all categories, from
shop floor workers to managers had facilitated decision-making,
flexibility, and trust. This had led to improved employee involvement and
motivation.
- People at the middle levels of management were becoming more
participated and result-oriented. On the other hand, decision-making was
increasingly being handled at the group level.
- In security level among employees had diminished and their sense
of responsibility had increased.
- There was emphasis on openness and transparency. An improvement in
the communication channels within organization had resulted in better
interpersonal
- Change in recruitment policy had led to the induction of
professional with diverse technical, managerial, and academic background.
Q9 (b) What is meant by HRD Audit?
Answer9
(b)
HRD
audit is a comprehensive evaluation of the current HRD strategies, structures,
systems, styles and skills in context of the short term and long term business
plans of the company. It attempts to find out the future HRD needs of the
company after assessing the current HRD activities and inputs.
Importance of HRD audit
HRD audit plays a very
important role in the working of the organization that can be traced with the
help of the following points:
1. It helps to make HR
functions business driven: HRD audit is undertaken by most organizations to
make HR systems and processes more relevant to business goals. Some companies
go in for HRD audit to examine and make changes in the HR function to accompany
organizational changes.
2. It tends to take stock of
things and to improve HRD for expanding, diversifying and entering into the
fast growth phase
3. it helps in promoting
professionalism among employees and to switch over to professional management.
4. Multinationals wants to know
the reason for lower labor productivity and for improving their HRD strategies
in the Indian context and so with the help of HRD audit they want to compare
the labor productivity ratio of India with the ratio of other countries as the
labor productivity is more and it is cost effective as compared to other
countries.
5. HRD audits are also done for
the growth and diversification of an organization into new areas.
6. Many organizations took HRD
audit as a comprehensive review to their dissatisfaction with one or two
subsystems of HRD.
7. Some organization takes HRD
audit as a step to recruit new managers and reorient the entire HRD department
Role of HRD audit
The
following are some of the favorable consequences of HRD audit:
1. It can get the top
management to think in terms of strategic and long term business plans
2. In tends to bring the
changes in the styles of the top management.
3. It plays an important role
in clarity of HRD department and the role of line managers in HRD
4. It helps in bringing a large
amount of improvement in the HRD systems in the form of induction training,
career planning, promotion policies etc.
5. It focuses on human
resources and human competencies.
6. It promotes better
recruitment policies
7. It provides more planning
and more cost effective training.
8. It helps 8in strengthening accountability
through appraisal system and other mechanism.
So to conclude we can say
that there are various reason for initiating HRD audit in a particular
organization as it plays a very important role in increasing the work ability
of an organization.
Q10 (a) Explain
the nature of Human Resource Development. Examine its nature and scope.
Answer10 (a)
Human Resource Development
is a process of increasing knowledge, capabilities and positive work attitude
of all people working in a business underrating, in other words in can be
defined as an organized working experience within a given period of time with
the objective of producing the possibility of performance change.
Nature
and Scope of Human Resource Development
The dynamic environment of the organizations demand
regular updating of job requirements, which is necessary for continuous flow of
qualified persons for the changed jobs. Its scope can be understood with the
help of following points:
1. Since HRD is made up of
dependent parts so the design of the system should also take into consideration
its linkage with other departments of the organization.
2. Since HRD is a proactive
function so its function is not only to cope with the needs of the organization
but also to anticipate and act on these needs in a continuous and planned
manner.
3. It aims at developing the
capabilities of the line managers so that they can increasingly handle
functions like industrial relations, rewards and punishments etc.
4. HRD emphasizes on building a
right work culture in the organization that identifies the nature and
capabilities of the people working in the organization.
5. Its main aim is to motivate
the people though job enrichment, participative management etc.
6. HRD also aims at the better
utilization of human resources which leads to an improved performance which in
turn leads job satisfaction and morale boosting.
So we can say that HRD has
given us the problem solving techniques and more committed work force.
Scope of HRD
in India
HR being the only factor
that can facilitate effective use of science and technology it can help the
developing countries like India to attain the goal of molding HR in the right
perspective. HRD helps in incorporating high levels of skills and knowledge,
which leads to improvement in quality, and reduction of cost of production. HRD
also assist in evolving policies which will be useful in generating job satisfaction,
career development opportunities etc. The various elements on which HRD system
is based are as follows:
v Evolving a system of Human
Resources Planning.
v Selection of right people
for the right job.
v Imparting proper training
based on the principal of learning, teaching basic work skills, motion study
and training to foremen.
v Evolving suitable
compensation plans
v Evolving a good performance
appraisal system.
Many organizations in India
have started implementing the HRD programmes and so we can say that HRD
programmes have started having its impact on the different organization in
India.
Q10 (b)
What constitutes Good HR Practices? What is its impact on the organizational
performance?
Answer 10 (b)
Any practice that deals with
enhancing Competencies, Commitment and Culture building can be considered as HR
practice. The practice can take the form of a system, a process, an activity, a
norm, a rule and accepted or expected habit, or just a way of doing things.
Human resource development has been defined as essentially consisting of three
Cs.
Competencies, Commitment and
Culture, all three are needed to make an organization function well. Without
competencies many task of the organization may not be completed, cost effective
or with optimal efficiency. Without commitment they may not be done at all or
are done at such a slow pace that they loose relevance. Without an appropriate
culture, it is impossible for an organization to live. Its utility comes to the
fore specially an organization is in trouble.
Competencies are not merely
related to single individual instead they can also relate to pairs of
individuals which includes departments, task forces, team and other formal or
informal groups and/or teams that may come into existence from time to time on
a temporary, permanent to semi- permanent basis. Competencies may also be
related to the organization as a whole. They may also deal with various areas
and functions. Technology, organization and management; behavioral; conceptual;
etc they may include a variety of skills and ranging from simple awareness;
knowledge and information to highly sophisticated and complex ones; attitudes
values and habits also become competencies though they more often deal with
patterns of working.
Developing commitment has a
lot to do with motivation work habits; commitment is indicated by work effort
zeal involvement and enjoyment of the work on the job. Commitment building
should be continuous and on going process. And should be at a level of
individuals, dyads, teams, the work unit and the entire organization. Various
HR systems process and activities contribute to developing commitment among
employees at the more visible level, rewards, recognition and similar
interventions can lead to greater culture, the behavior of the seniors towards
their subordinates etc influence commitment.
A string culture can have
lasting effect and provide sustenance to an organization; it gives a sense of
pride and identity to individuals and teams. It enhances predictability,
reduces transactional cost and also contributes to commitment. However, the
culture and values associated with an organization needs to be appropriate and
well articulate the instruments of culture building includes organizational
climate surveys, total quality management interventions, value clarification
exercises, vision-mission workshops, organizational –renewal exercises and
various other organizational development interventions.
Good HR practices are those
that contribute to one or more of three Cs. They need to be identified and
implemented cost-effectively, reviewing and revising them from time to time to
enhance their effectiveness and appropriateness.
HRD and
Organizational effectiveness
HRD practices enhance the
internal capabilities of an organization to deal with current or future
challenges to be faced by an organization. Good HR practice also energizes
people. The commitment and motivation built through good HR practice can lead
to hard work and can have a multiplier effect on the conversion of human
capital to organizational capital. The culture so built can help to create a
sustainable and lasting capability of the organization to manage itself and not
only cope with the external turbulence but even encash on the opportunities
offered by the changing environment.
The HRD tools if effectively
used can create a conducive HRD culture and HRD learning processes. HRD
processes are intermediate variables and affect the HRD outcomes. They are less
easily observable and are softer dimension that indicates the effectiveness of
HRD tools. HRD process variables include role clarity on a continuous basis,
working planning, awareness of competencies and a more directed efforts to
build them, better communication and the practice of HRD values like openness, trust,
pro-action authenticity, autonomy, confrontation etc. Such HRD culture and
processes can result in more observable and quantifiable outcomes which include
a higher level of competencies of the employees, better utilization of human
resources through better developed roles, higher work commitment, work
motivation, greater team work and synergy etc. the HRD outcome can influence
the organization’s business goals which may be in terms of higher productivity,
cost reduction, more profits, better image and more satisf
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