HR and Organizational Structure Flashcards

Flashcards covering key concepts in Human Resources and Organizational Structure.

Recruitment

Hiring the right number of appropriately qualified and suitable workers at the right times to fill job vacancies.

Induction

Training for new employees to become familiar with the norms and operations of the organization.

Retention

Retaining/keeping workers at the organization by meeting the needs of employees.

Appraisals

The formal procedure of assessing the performance and effectiveness of employees in relation to their job description.

Absenteeism

Dealing with issues that arise when employees are unable to attend work

Dismissal

Letting go of workers no longer needed, often due to underperformance or misconduct in the workplace.

Redundancies

Letting go of workers if/when their jobs are no longer needed.

Training and Development

Improving the competencies, productivity, and skills of workers.

Labour Turnover

The rate at which employees leave an organization over a specific period of time

Problems with High Labour Turnover

The costs of replacing staff, transition costs, lower quality output, and indirect costs.

Factors to consider in the Labour Market

Number of people seeking jobs, job seeker qualifications, competitor labour needs, competitive wage rate, demographic changes, education levels, mobility of labour

Labour Turnover Rate Formula

(# staff leaving)/(Total Staff) * 100%

Recruiting Workers Components

Job Analysis, Job Advertising, Job Description, Person Specification, Job Advertisement

Objectives of Training: 5 'TRAPS'

Truthful, Relevant, Accurate, Positive, Short

Selecting Workers Components

Application forms, Curriculum Vitae (Resume), Cover Letter, Interviews

Interview Types

Video Conferencing, Telephone interviews, Face to face interviews, Group interviews

Interview Questions

Behaviour based questioning and Situational based testing

Methods of External Recruitment

Newspaper advertising, Special trade publications, Internet advertising, Commercial employment agencies, Job centres, Headhunting, University visits, Employee referrals

Mentoring

Partnership between two people (mentor and the mentee)

Off the Job Training

Training carried out off-site, at a tertiary college or hotel conference room.

Behavioural Training

Facilitate career and personal development, develop a multi-skilled and productive workforce, help staff adapt and change, certification, introduce new information.

On the Job Training

Training carried out while at the workplace, through induction training, mentoring or to update staff.

Induction Training topics

Team building, Health & Safety training, Ethical business practice, Emotional intelligence, Motivational training, Conflict resolution, Stress management.

Cognitive Training

Help improve memory, attention, listening, logic, and problem-solving skills.

Internal Influences on HR Planning

Corporate or overall objectives, type of product sold

HR plan when achieving rapid rates of growth

Involving significant amounts of recruitment or training depending on skills needed

Incompetence (Valid Reason for Dismissal)

Lack of job ability. Underperformance

Misconduct (Valid Reason for Dismissal)

Unacceptable behaviour (lates, rudeness, missing deadline, etc).

Gross Misconduct (Valid Reason for Dismissal)

Egregious acts which can result in immediate termination (violent acts, theft, etc)

Unfair dismissal

Discrimination or constructive dismissal

Redundancies

Retrenchments or lay-offs because they are not needed

Ways Planning helps a business

Many people want it, to develop loyalty and maintain a skilled workforce. Reduces less recruitments and training

External Influences on HR Planning

Demography, Immigration, Change in Labour Mobility, Gig Economy, Changing Employment Patterns & Practices

Demography

Study of human populations

Effect on HR Planning

Affect on demand for goods and services and number of employees to hire may be low or high.

Change in Labour Mobility

Employees can move to jobs in different occupations or different areas

Geographic mobility of labour

Ability and willingness of people to move to jobs in different areas.

Occupational mobility of labour

Ability and willingness of people to move to jobs in different occupations

Gig Economy

Short-term contracts or freelance work are common, as opposed to permanent jobs.

Portfolio working

Career is a series different jobs, often carried out simultaneously

Flexitime

When a business allows its employees to work flexible hours.

Outsourcing

When you use third party companies to operate in your business

Offshoring

When the operation of a company is moved to another country (part of the company)

Organisational structure

Outlines the reporting relationships, roles, and responsibilities of employees in the organization.

Organizational Charts

A diagrammatic representation of a firm’s formal structure

Chain of Command

Formal line of authority that flows down from the top management to lower-level employees and defines who reports to whom

Span of Control

Number of employees that a manager or supervisor can effectively manage

Levels of Hierarchy

Authority within an organization and ranking of positions from top to bottom

Authority

Power given to a person to act and make decisions within boundaries

Responsibility

Carrying out the specific delegated tasks

Accountability

Being liable for actions and decisions

Delegation

The empowerment of a person lower down in the organizational structure by passing on control and authority to complete a certain task or role

Delayering

Process of removing one or more levels in the hierarchy to flatten the organizational structure.

Bureaucracy

The execution of tasks that are governed by official administrative and formal rules of an organization.

Centralized

Decision making is made by a small number of people

Decentralized

Decision making authority is shared (many people, and slower)

Tall Structures

Many levels of hierarchy (management) - Smaller span of control

Flat Structures

Few levels of hierarchy (management) - Larger span of control

Project Based Organization

Human resources are organized around particular projects

Matrix Structure

Involves organizing or assigning individuals to multiple roles, so they are placed in multiple reporting lines. Used to promote cross-functional collaboration.

Organization by Function

Company is arranged by roles ex Marketing, production, R&D, Finance, Sales, ICT, Administration, etc

Leadership

The process of influencing people so that they will perform a variety of tasks in an effective manner, who can inspire and motivate the employees.

5 Basic Functions of Managers

Setting organizational objectives, Organizing tasks and people, Communicating with and motivating people, Measuring performance, Developing people

Situational leadership components: CLOTS

Culture, Leader, Organization, Task, Subordinates

Paternalistic leadership

Acts in a fatherly manner to guide and protect the workers like family

Laissez-Faire leadership

Let it be’ - the leadership responsibilities are shared by all

Autocratic leadership

Manager is the one that makes all the decisions and prefers not to delegate any responsibility

Democratic leadership

Encourages decision making from different perspectives

Culture (Factors that Affect Leadership Styles)

The ways in which a business is run can also affect what style of leader it works best under

Culture

Often described as “the way things are done here”. It refers to the way things are done or how things are done within an organization, community, or country.

Corporate Culture

Set of beliefs and work attitude that is accepted in an organization.

7 Factors that affect the organisational culture of a business

Vision, Values (beliefs), Practices, People, Traditions, Leadership style

Apollo - Role Culture (democratic)

Organizational norms backed by formal structures and procedures (bureaucracy).

Athena - Task Culture

Teams of experts are empowered to complete a project or tackle a problem with their particular skills.

Dionysus - Person Culture

people regard themselves or their skills set as being more important than the organization itself.

Zeus - Power culture

Power and authority are concentrated in the hands of the elite few at the top of the organization.

Culture Clash Questions

What would the end result be of a culture clash?, What would the benefits be in a good culture “mesh”?, How would a culture gap influence a company?, How can leaders help establish culture and prevent a culture clash?

Mergers and acquisitions

Culture of the more dominant firm tends to prevail

Reasons for Cultural Clashes

Growth of firms, Mergers and acquisitions, Change in leadership

How to create a positive culture

Develop a sense of history, Create a sense of unity, Encourage a sense of responsibility