IIBM Institute of Business Management

Human Resource Management

Registration. No: D20/10/DL17165

Name : Thandapani.P

Course : Master Program in Business Administration

Course Learning Access Duration – 2 Year

Subject Code-B102

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Section A: Objective Type & Short Questions

Part one:

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I.

Answer: (c)Recruitment.

II.

Answer: (d)All of the above.

III.

Answer: (a)Job performance

IV.

Answer: (c)Immediate boss

V.

Answer: (b)External recruitment

VI.

Answer: (d) All the above.

VII.

Answer: (d)All of the above.

VIII.

Answer: (b)Satisficing

IX.

Answer: (a)Business Strategy, Human Resource Practices,Organizational Capabilities.

X.

Answer : (d) All of the above.

Part Two:

1.

Answer:

Nature of Human Resource Management ( HRM)

Human resource management (HRM) is an inevitable part of every organisation. It is crucial to have
an in-depth knowledge of HRM to realise organisational goals and simultaneously creating a happy
and contented workforce. Human resource management (HRM) is an inevitable part of every
organisation. It is crucial to have an in-depth knowledge of HRM to realise organisational goals and
simultaneously creating a happy and contented workforce .

To get a better understanding of the nature of human resource management, we must go through
the following points:

Pervasive Function: HRM is practised at all levels of management and applies to all kinds of
organisations, even to non-profit organisations.

Result Oriented: It aims at achieving organisational objectives through the optimum utilisation of
human resources.

Tactful Approach: HRM deals with the people who are distinct from one another; thus the manager
needs to apply diverse strategies and tactics at different point of time and in different situations.

People-Centric: Human resource management is concerned majorly with the employees working in
an organisation.

Integrative Action: It focusses on maintaining cordial relations among the employees at different
levels and also addresses employee grievances.

Continuous Process: HRM is an ongoing process of procurement, development and redirection of

personnel towards the organisational goals. It cannot be completed in a day, a week or a month.

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2.

Answer:

Human Resource Development (HRD) is a series of organised activities, conducted within a

specialised time and designed to produce positive behavioural changes.

This is the definition according to Dr. Leonard Nadler, who first introduced the concept in the United
States in 1969. Dr. Nadler was a pioneer in the field of HRD, and one of its premier thought leaders.

Simply put, HRD is the training and development provided by an organisation to increase the
employees’ knowledge, skills, education and abilities.

Specifically, BusinessDictionary defines HRD as ‘the part of human resource management that
specifically deals with training and development of the employees. Human resource development
includes training an individual after he/she is first hired, providing opportunities to learn new skills,
distributing resources that are beneficial for the employee’s tasks, and any other developmental
activities.

Furthermore, HRD includes such opportunities as:

* Employee training

* Employee career development

* Performance management and development

* Coaching

* Mentoring

* Succession planning

* Key employee identification

* Tuition assistance

* Organisation development

These are paramount factors for organisations who care about their workforce development, and in
light of this.

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3.

Answer:

Some major trends and challenges point to how the HR profession will have to adjust to the
changing nature of work and the workplace.

1. Globalisation

Global competition is the new norm, with employers and employees seeing themselves as global
players in product and HR markets. The Australian Financial Review competes every day online with
the UK’s Financial Times, all because consumers are flexing their purchasing muscle. Similarly, Apple
and Google are recruiting Aussie talent with the promise of an engaging career in California.

2. Demographic changes

Demographic shifts are constantly changing workforce patterns. The most prominent aspect is the
ageing population, which raises two concerns: the potential loss of organisational memory and
intellectual property when ageing workers retire; and the subsequent demand for post-retirement
incomes/pensions, and public health and welfare services. The other demographic pattern of
concern is the emergence of a new younger ‘lost generation’ – those neither in education nor
employment, and for whom prospects appear quite dismal.

3. Technological changes on the employment market

The structure of the workforce is changing too. The power of IT is causing a permanent loss of jobs in
the middle tier and at first-job entry level. Also experiencing hardship are those with narrow
industry-specific skills that are becoming outmoded, such as automotive workers, and the future re-
education burden will be heavy.

4. Technological changes on how work is undertaken

Technological innovations provide both threats and opportunities. Fewer people need to work in a
central office location, and are instead able to do their jobs remotely. On the other hand, these
trends are increasing workplace diversity through the growth of a multigenerational, flexibly skilled,
cross-cultural workforce, which is requiring more sophisticated people management practices.

5. Education

While education responses are common solutions to demographic challenges, the traditional
educational sector is becoming a workplace challenge in itself. Business practitioners are finding the
divide between acquired formal professional qualifications and workplace learning needs is getting
wider. Plus, the quality of tertiary and technical qualifications varies enormously across institutional
providers.
6. Smart work

Smart work in the services sector is now dominating employment growth patterns. The momentum
of this is being met by relative reductions for labour required in the agriculture and manufacturing
sectors, and the social and political resistance to this is finally crumbling.

7. Income distribution

Not all our global changes are simple net positives. Many connote serious tensions. Society’s
standards for greater equity are intensifying demands for better income distribution and benefit
sharing between wages and profits, and to even out regional growth disparities within Australia and
internationally.

What do these challenges mean for our profession? That will be the subject of next month’s
Perspective column.

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4.

Answer:

Manpower planning is the process of estimating the optimum number of people required for
completing a project, task or a goal within time. Manpower planning includes parameters like
number of personnel, different types of skills, time period etc. It is a never ending continuous
process to make sure that the business has the optimized resources available when required taking
into consideration the upcoming future projects and also the replacement of the outgoing
employees. It is also called as Human Resource Planning.

Large businesses often work on forecasting and upcoming opportunities in the pipeline. If these
opportunities convert into actual business, they would need manpower to start working on them.
But the dilemma is that what if they hired a large number of people to work on an almost sure
project but at the last moment the project didn't start on time. What would the business do with the
additional skilled manpower. The other dilemma is that if they kept waiting till the last moment for a
project and when the project starts they might not have enough manpower to work and deliver.
These questions are solved by the process of manpower planning.

Manpower planning also includes the details like how and when will new employees be acquired.
This whole process is done keeping in view the goals of the organization, the future predictions for
business and changing technology trends. This helps the organization be prepared for the future
with the correct manpower at their disposal for business prosperity.

Manpower Planning Process

HR department of every company has to constantly keep an eye on the human resources that the
company has. With every possible event like change industry dynamics, increase in business
requirements, skills required for a particular technology etc, the need for having better resources
increases. The process and steps for having manpower planning are as below:

1. Understanding the existing workforce: The HR department has to thoroughly understand the
manpower available with the company. They should examine the background, skill set, qualification,
location etc of the entire work force so that they have a good idea regarding the pool of talent which
the company has.

2.Forecasting for the future: With constant changes in business requirements, companies must
understand the future trend and which type of employees would be best suited for their
organization. Hence, companies must examine, evaluate and forecast the type of employee
workforce they want in the future years.

3. Recruitment and selection: Depending upon the business requirements, manpower planning leads
to a much more well thought out recruitment and selection pattern. This totally depends upon the
forecasts made and the business requirements. Hence, candidates with better qualification, skill set,
experience etc are shortlisted as employees to best suit the future needs.

4. Training the employees: Employees who are a part of the organization are trained to have the
best skills, knowledge and understanding about the current job as well as the future requirements.

All these above mentioned manpower planning steps help organizations become better prepared to
adapt to new technology, future industry developments and even to face off with competitors.
The above diagram shows the manpower planning process which depends upon the business
objective.

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Section B: Caselets:1

1.

Answer:

Mr. Raghavan has to give Mr. Sanjay an induction training program. The way of Mr. Raghavan’s
approach of training is totally wrong.

Various studies have shown that induction training directly affects employee attrition rate. It is a
well-known fact that more than 25% of new employees decide to stay with or quit an organization in
the first week of their stint. Employee training is very important for the organization, and delivering
an effective induction training program to new employees who join the company should be its first
priority.
The main purpose of induction training is to integrate new employees into the company and make
them understand the systems and procedures followed by the organization. Induction training helps
new employees settle down quickly in the new work environment, and gives them a sense of
belonging.

Induction training is the first training program in which the employee participates after he joins the
organization. Induction training provides him all the information needed to start performing his
duties. If an employee is trained well in the induction program, he can easily adapt to his new role
and start delivering results quickly – that’s how it saves the organization a lot of money and time.

People join a company with a lot of expectations, and at the same time, they have lot of questions
about the organization. All these queries must be answered in the induction training. Ineffective
induction training leaves new employee confused about the job. Employees may feel frustrated and
helpless, if they are not trained properly. On the other hand, effective induction training goes a long
way in increasing staff retention rate and reducing employee turnover in a big way.

A good induction training program covers all aspects of the company thoroughly. It helps new
employees become familiar with the organization’s work culture, vision, mission, and goals. At the
same time, new employees understand their own role in achieving the goals of the company. This
will help enhance the efficiency of employees quickly, as they adjust to the work culture of the
organization and get involved in their job. Overall, it greatly helps increase the operational efficiency
of the organization.

The training method adopted by Raghvan is not apt for new trainee employee, even through from a
reputed management institute. Sanjay skill and knowledge are limited, as is not aliened to the
current organization. The material collected in relation to the products of the company only
provides an insight as to what the company sells and not what sanjay is desired to perform as a part
of his job and his goals and objectives towards his company. This will not help in performance
evaluation and Sanjay skills to perform the task will not incline. This type of training is not beneficial
for Sanjay’s performance and Company’s productivity and is waste of time.

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2.

Answer:

The method suitable for trainging would be On-the-Job Training because:-

-In this method, the trainee would receive firsthand experience of the jobconditions.

-This method is economical.

-The trainee learns on the actual equipment in use and in the true environment of his job.

-The trainee also learns by day-day observation the applications of the rules, regulation and
procedures.
 -Since the nature of the job is of sales, hence hands on experience is necessary for gaining
experience of the job.

Employee training is one of the most critical parts of the employee experience. When a new
employee starts, they’re a sponge, ready to absorb information about your company, your policies
and procedures, and their role and responsibilities. Existing employees also need ongoing training to
learn new skills, improve existing ones and continue to grow over time. But what’s the best way to
facilitate the training process?

Technological advancements have revolutionised the training industry, giving managers more
training method options than ever. Companies now have access to all kinds of digital tools like
training videos and computer-based training, and can still leverage tried-and-true methods like
traditional classroom training. Trainers also have to bear in mind the 3 key learning styles; visual
(learning by seeing), auditory (learning by hearing) and Kinaesthetic (learning by doing) learning. But
with so many different options, it’s hard to know what’s right for your company and employees.

In this circumstance interactive method is suitable one

This training method takes classroom-style lectures to a new level by adding interactive and group
activities to the training experience. Popular interactive methods include small group discussions,
case study reviews, role playing, quizzes and demonstrations.

Interactive training can be highly effective because it combats the one-directional transfer of
knowledge that comes with lecture-style training; by empowering conversation and group
interaction, you not only keep the energy high, but allow participants to all learn from each other.

Unfortunately, however, some people can get lost in the shuffle. This method is great for outgoing
people who are more extroverted, but quieter employees might not feel as comfortable speaking up
and interacting, and may get less out of this type of training. If you are going to use interactive

training methods, consider incorporating activities that get everyone equally involved to ensure all
your trainees reap the benefits of your time together.

Other methods like OJT, simulation or experiential methods are not suitable in this circumstances
because

1. Teaching is a skill that everyone does not possess:

Teaching is a skill and there are trainers who are appointed to train for the same. You can’t pick up
anyone in your project and ask them to train the new trainee. Not everyone can explain the job
better as you need to have clear communication, patience to hear the questions and skills to answer
them. You need to have skilled trainers who can ensure that the training given is effective and is not
a waste of time.

2. It is a rushed process:
Every employer wants to have his or her new trainee on the job as soon as possible so that you can
ensure the resources are utilized to the fullest. There is a higher probability of rushing through the
process of training, creating a lot of doubts and confusion right from day one.

Rushing into the training process to complete it as soon as possible can lead to new mistakes and
less efficient trainee. Every process has its own time and hence you should not rush into completing
the training as soon as possible as it can lead to a bad outcome.

3. Low productivity:

You are asking the trainees to join the project and learn the process while doing a project. This can
cost you a lot of time to execute a task as it would be explaining each and every step of the task
before hitting the green button.

You might end up wasting your time as well as the time of the trainee at the cost of your project.
This will take a hit on the productivity of your ongoing project which can lead you too late delivery
costing you a bad review on job satisfaction

4. Creates Disturbance:

With new trainees crawling into the actual workplace can lead to a lot of disturbances within the
team. You might end up poking them at the wrong time for giving information to the new trainees
costing them their valuable time.

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Caselets:2

1.

Answer

Yes. It will lead to lack of motivational immaturity for Ms. Preeti.

A drop in staff motivation can become contagious if the cause is not identified and addressed.
Management needs to be conscious of employee motivation, and that means being able to identify
the factors that cause a lack of motivation in the workplace. Become familiar with the factors that
can degrade staff motivation and design plans to combat these productivity killers.

The important thing to remember about rumors is that they are not always wrong. Some rumors
have basis in fact, but that does not make them good for employee morale. An employee that hears
a rumor that she may be laid off experiences an instant drop in motivation. To deal with the problem
of rumors in the workplace, it is important for management to share important information with the
staff in a timely manner. This helps employees to feel confident that management will address
rumors and encourages staff members to wait on information from the company before acting on a
rumor.”
Employees are motivated to succeed at jobs for which they feel prepared and properly trained.
Before moving an employee into a position of greater responsibility or before allowing any changes
to an employee's job duties, be certain that employee has had the training needed to get started.
Putting an employee in a position where she feels she has inadequate job skills will erode the
employee's confidence and stifle any motivation to succeed.

Employees are not motivated by the notion that their hard work will make company owners and
executives rich, organizational change consultant Paul Levesque writes on the Entrepreneur website.
The more internalized a company's goals sound, the less motivated employees are to fulfill those
goals. The company needs to focus on the customer and give employees a chance to feel as though
it has done something substantial to help the customer. For example, develop a referral program
that encourages customers that have recently purchased products to recommend other people that
your sales professionals can call on. The company and sales staff benefit from the increase in
business, but the sales staff also gets to see the appreciation of past clients in the form of potential
new business.

Employees that are overworked are likely to lose motivation regardless of how much overtime pay
they are receiving. If you know a period is coming where extra hours will need to be worked,
develop a schedule in advance and give your employees ample warning so they can make
preparations in their personal life. Make sure the staff schedule still allows employees to spend time
with their families and get away from the stress of working too much.

The best-known theory of motivation is probably Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory. He
pro¬posed that people are motivated by a predictable five-step hierarchy of needs. According to
Maslow, most individu¬als are not consciously aware of these needs; yet we all supposedly proceed
up the hierarchy of needs, one level at a time.

The highest level of Maslow’s hierarchy involves self-realization needs. These reflect our desires to
realize our full potential. It is the need “to become more and more what one is, to become
everything that one is capable of becoming.” It is related to self-concept. It gives self-fulfillment. It
requires continuous self-development. It is rarely fulfilled.

After describing these five classes, Maslow separated these five needs into higher and lower levels.
Physiological and safety needs were described as lower-order needs, and social, esteem, and self-
actualization needs were called as higher-order needs. This difference was made to emphasize that
the higher-order needs are satisfied inter¬nally, whereas lower-order needs are mainly satisfied
externally.

According to this theory, people attempt to satisfy their physiological needs first. Until these needs
are not satisfied, they dominate behaviour. When physiological needs are reasonably well-satisfied,
the next category of safety needs become active and dominant demanding satisfaction. This process
continues up to the top rung of the ladder of human needs. These needs are interdepen¬dent and
overlapping.
Maslow says that a higher-order need arises only when a lower-level need is completely satisfied.
Only unsatisfied needs motivate behaviour. A man gets motivation only when he is deprived of or
threatened with deprivation of some need. A satisfied need ceases to be a motivator.

These factors include working conditions, job secu¬rity, salary, supervision, company policy etc.
These are extrinsic to the job and environment centred. These fac¬tors are called “dissatisfiers” or
hygiene factors as they are essential for the mental health of employees. These are also called
maintenance factors, because they are neces¬sary to maintain a reasonable level of satisfaction. If
they exist in a work environment, they yield no dissatisfaction. But their existence does not motivate
employees. These factors are not strongly motivating; however, their lack of existence would result
in dissatisfaction. These are job context factors.

These factors are related to the content of the job. They are inherent in the job and operate
primarily to build motivation. Their existence will yield feelings of satisfac¬tion but their absence will
not create strong dissatisfac¬tion among employees. These include achievement, rec¬ognition,
challenging work etc. These are called satisfiers. According to Herzberg, these job content factors are
the real motivators.

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Section C: Applied Theory

1.

Answer:

Complaints… Complaints… Complaints!

Has your job just become the one where you are at the receiving end of every complaint, from
employees, from management and even from the CEO himself? If you are the HR manager in your
company, then you are most likely to hear more complaints about recruiting. While at one side,
unemployment is hovering over the economy, companies are mourning over not being able to find
the skilled workforce and sometimes, filling a single vacancy may take months of head hunting.

HR professionals have more than one reason to explain this, but the problem doesn’t end here,
there are various other challenges that the industry is likely to face in the coming years. With that in
mind, here are the 9 major responses by different HR professionals on being asked, “What will be
the “real” HR challenges in the coming years?”

The fourteen important changes taking place in the field of human resource management and the
changes are:

Change # 1. Increase in the Size of Workforce:

With the increase in the size of the organisations and the emergence of multinational corporations
in the country, the number of people working in the organisations has also increased. The
management of the increased workforce poses a number of problems and challenges for the human
resource managers as the new workforce is very conscious of its rights.

Change # 2. Changing Composition of Workforce:

The composition of the workforce is also changing and creating new problems for the human
resource managers. In future, the minority groups and women will emerge as a significant
component of workforce.

Due to easy access to educational and employment opportunities, the scheduled castes, scheduled
tribes and other minority groups are fast becoming an important source of manpower in the
organisations. The managers will have to take into account the availability of talent in these groups.

The number of working women is also increasing day by day. An increased number of married
female employees and working mothers bring new problems before the human resource managers.
Technological progress in the country is bringing more white collar employees in the organisation
which will make the job of human resource managers more challenging.

Change # 3. Increase in Education Levels:

Technological progress and spread of educational institutions have increased the level of education
and made the employees more mobile. Educated workers are more aware of their rights especially
their higher level needs.

The human resource managers will have to develop appropriate policies and techniques to motivate
the educated workers. New supervisory and leadership techniques will be required for technically
and professionally qualified employees.

Change # 4. Technological Advancement:

With the technological developments, automation and computerisation of the organisations are
taking place which are making the jobs and skills obsolete. In the age of competition, organisations
with old technology cannot think of surviving.

But with new techniques, the problems of unemployment crop up. This problem can be solved by
properly assessing manpower needs and training of redundant employees in alternate skills.
Retraining and mid-career training of both workers and managers will be required. Moreover, rising
of the multinational corporations is posing new challenges to the human resource managers.

Change # 5. Changes in Political Environment:

In a welfare state, Government is always concerned about the welfare of the working class.
Government interferes in the business to safeguard the interest of the workers, consumers and the
public at large. Government’s participation in trade, commerce and industry poses many challenges
before the management. The Government may restrict the entry of private sector in certain areas in
public interest.
It does not mean that there will be no cooperation between the Government and private sector, but
in future the private sector organisations will have to coordinate their labour welfare programmes
with those of Government. Private sector will be required to support Government efforts for
improving public health, education training and development and infrastructure.

Change # 6. Changes in Legal Environment:

Many changes are taking place in the legal framework within which the industrial relations system is
functioning.

It is the duty of the human resource manager to keep abreast of these changes and bring about
necessary adjustments within the organisation so that greater utilisations of human resources can
be achieved. The human resource manager will also have to anticipate the changes and prepare the
organisation to face them without any, interruption in the normal functioning.

Change # 7. Changes in Psycho-Social System:

In future, organisations will be required not only to make use of advanced technology but also to
take into consideration the psychological needs of the employees. In the traditional bureaucratic
model, very little consideration was given to the psycho-social needs.

But future human resource management will be required to ensure effective participation of lower
level in the management of the organisation. Further, the organisational model has to be designed
according to ‘democratic humanistic’ approach.

Change # 8. Computerised Information System:

More recently, there has been and in future there will be the impact of the computerised
information system on the management. The computers will be used for collection and processing of
data and for direct application in the managerial decision making process.

Thus, the computerised information system will have an increasing impact at the coordinative and
strategic levels in the organisations. The managers will have to be computer literate in order to cope
up with these changes.

Change # 9. Mobility of Professional and Technical Workforce:

As individuals develop greater technical and professional qualifications, their services will be in great
demand in the other organisations also. As a result various managerial and professional employees
will become more mobile, which will help to increase effective interface between organisations in
the environment.

Change # 10. Organisational Development:

In future, changes will to be made to improve organisational effectiveness. Top management will
have to be actively involved in the development of human resources. Human resource managers will
have to develop a work culture conducive to organisational development consisting of rigorous
timing and discipline, precise division of labour, impersonal styles of supervision and control.

Change # 11. New Work Ethics:

For setting up and enforcing good quality standards, the human resource managers will have to
develop a new work ethic. Changing work ethic will require increased emphasis on individuals. As a
result, jobs will have to be redesigned to provide challenge to the employees. Flexitime policy may
be provided to the employees. Intrinsic motivators will have to replace the extrinsic motivators.

Change # 12. Development Planning:

Human resource management will have to be actively involved in development, planning and
research, so as to anticipate the impact of environmental changes on the organisation and its staff,
the management will have to be more cost conscious and profit oriented.

Change # 13. New Personnel Policies:

New and better personnel policies will be required for the workforce of the future. Traditional family
management has given way to professional management with greater focus on human dignities.

Thus, human resource managers have to concentrate on performance related compensation, goal
oriented performance appraisal, development oriented training system, management by objectives,
team building, participative management and other sophisticated techniques.

Change # 14. Industrial Relations:

Even though so many efforts are made by the government, yet on the industrial relations front, not
much improvement has taken place. Multi unions in the industrial complexes having different
political affiliations are the significant factors responsible for industrial unrest. In the coming years,
the inter union rivalries would grow more and might create more problems in the industry.

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2.

Answer:

Human resource planning is a process through which the right candidate for the right job is ensured.
For conducting any process, the foremost essential task is to develop the organizational objective to
be achieved through conducting the said process. Six Steps in human resources planning are
presented in Figure:
Steps in Human Resource Planning

1. Analysing Organizational Objectives:

The objective to be achieved in future in various fields such as production, marketing, finance,
expansion and sales gives the idea about the work to be done in the organization.

2. Inventory of Present Human Resources:

From the updated human resource information storage system, the current number of employees,
their capacity, performance and potential can be analysed. To fill the various job requirements, the
internal sources (i.e., employees from within the organization) and external sources (i.e., candidates
from various placement agencies) can be estimated.

3. Forecasting Demand and Supply of Human Resource:

The human resources required at different positions according to their job profile are to be
estimated. The available internal and external sources to fulfill those requirements are also
measured. There should be proper matching of job description and job specification of one
particular work, and the profile of the person should be suitable to it.

4. Estimating Manpower Gaps:

Comparison of human resource demand and human resource supply will provide with the surplus or
deficit of human resource. Deficit represents the number of people to be employed, whereas surplus
represents termination. Extensive use of proper training and development programme can be done
to upgrade the skills of employees.

5. Formulating the Human Resource Action Plan:

The human resource plan depends on whether there is deficit or surplus in the organization. Accord-
ingly, the plan may be finalized either for new recruitment, training, interdepartmental transfer in
case of deficit of termination, or voluntary retirement schemes and redeployment in case of surplus.

6. Monitoring, Control and Feedback:

It mainly involves implementation of the human resource action plan. Human resources are
allocated according to the requirements, and inventories are updated over a period. The plan is
monitored strictly to identify the deficiencies and remove it. Comparison between the human
resource plan and its actual implementation is done to ensure the appropriate action and the
availability of the required number of employees for various jobs.

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