Unit 5.1: Human Resources Intro

HR management

management function of deploying and developing people within an organization to meet its business objectives

• Different roles of human resources: 

  • HR Planning

  • Recruitment

  • training/development

  • performance management

  • staff appraisals

  • pay and remuneration

  • disciplinary procedures

  • welfare 

HR Planning

the management process of anticipating and meeting an organization's current and future staffing needs

Short Term Planning

• deals with the existing and upcoming demands of an organization

Long Term Planning

• looks at the human resource needs of the business in the foreseeable future

Internal influences

1. Demographic change

2. Changes in labour mobility

3. Immigration

4. Flexitime

5. Gig Economy

Net birth rate

• difference between number of births and deaths in a time period 

Net migration rate

measure the difference between number of people entering a country immigrants versus those leaving emigrants →  positive value means human resources increase

• Aging population

1.  increased dependent population:  people who are below the working legal age and those that are retired who are supported by the working population

2.  reduced labor Mobility:  younger people tend to move around more so less secure

3.  changes in consumption patterns: a different age groups been differently you higher levels of each will change  the current market

4. Changes in employment patterns: average age of entering Workforce has risen due to higher level of Education people go for

•  harder to retain staff

Geographical Mobility

Ability to move to a different location 

•  limitations to geographical Mobility: 

  •  friends and family ties

  •  relocation costs

  •  fear of the unknown

  •  cost of living in particular places

  •  language and cultural differences

Occupational Mobility

Ability to change jobs

•  degree of Occupational Mobility

  •  tend to be greater with higher educated workers

  •  younger people tend to change careers more

  •  some workers are immobile because they are highly specialized in their area of expertise

    • Eg,  Pilots and surgeons 

  •  discrimination can lead to  job changes

  • Part time workers tend to be less valued in a company and are more likely to leave 

reasons for migration workers

1.  pay and remuneration

2.  employment opportunities

3.  seasonal factors 

•  like agriculture workers

4.  domestic instability

5.  higher living standards

Flexitime

for system which requires employees to work for a court period but the rest of the time is flexible

• Gained popularity during covid-19

Adv to employees with Flexitime

• Given the autonomy to determine when they will work 

• Job opportunities for those living in remote areas 

• suitable for those who have to care for family

•  flexible hours

•  less commuting

•  higher productivity and work and motivation

disAdv to employees with Flexitime

•  huge cost for electronics

•  end up spending more time working then their contracted time

•  let's job security

•  distractions at home but also lack of community at work

•  lack proper training

Adv to employers with Flexitime

•  reduced overhead costs

•  flexible work hours offered to customers

•  flexible practices allows firms to adjust properly to  peak times

•  less absenteeism rates

• Provides for flexibility with maximum working hours per week

disAdv to employers with Flexitime

•  and high setup costs with electronics

•  recruitment process is harder cuz you don't know who you can trust

•  monitoring and control is harder

•  any disruption in the internet can cause issues

•  not always possible due to the security of the work

 Shamrock organization

suggests the business will be gradually use fewer core staff to improve their flexibility

Dejobbing

• increasing number of people becoming independent workers rather than conventional meaning of being an employee

Portfolio workers

are those who simultaneously carry out a number of different jobs, often for various contractors, usually on a temporary basis.

Adv to gigs

•  great  flexibility

•  usually cheaper

•  allows contractors and Freelancers to make extra money

•  workers yourself employed normally and have more autonomy

Disadv to gigs

•  no traditional structure

•  missing out on extra pays like fringe benefit

•  no regular income

•  lack of professional career path

• GIg workers tend to be stressed and overworked due to the lack of stability

HR Planning research methods

• Historical Data/ trends:

• Sales and Income levels

• Labour turnover rates

• Flexibility and workload of employees

• Demographic changes

Issues if there is no HR planning 

• Recruitment: - Higher costs of recruitment, induction and training

• Resources: Increasing amounts of resources and management time spent on dealing with personnel problems, rather than on achieving organizational objectives 

• Reservations: Most productivity due to lower morale or higher uncertainty rates

• Returns:  lower productivity profits and competitiveness

• Reputation: Worse corporate image since the business cannot Motivate their staff 

Barriers to Change in the Workplace

1. Self interest: Focus more on themselves rather than the benefit to the organization

2. Low tolerance: Job turnover due to the lack of stability

3. Misinformation:  misunderstanding because it hasn't been communicated effectively

4. Different assessments of the situation: causes misinterpretations because everyone's viewing it differently

Ambivalence

the internal conflicts surrounding change or some people do not necessarily voice their concern

Approaches to change - prevents resistance

1. Education and communication 

2. Participation and involvement 

3. Facilitation and support

4. Negotiations and agreement

• The carrot approach: Managers use incentives to remove or lemon resistance to change

5. Manipulation and co-option:  Bringing a person who is resisting to change into the operation - provides representation

6. Explicit and implicit coercion:

•  the stick approach:  usually it last resort where managers use intimidation tactics