Business Management Unit 2 Sac 3

Staffing a business

What are the stages of the employment cycle?

• Establishment Phase (1)

• Maintenance Phase (2)

• Termination Phase (3)

Establishment Phase

Planning, recruiting, selection, employment, arrangements/remuneration

Define remuneration

Money paid for work or a service

Maintenance Phase

Induction, training + performance management

Termination Phase

Managing Termination Entitlement and transition issues

Examples of business objectives:

• Making a profit

• Expand the business

• Increase market share

Define a business objective

A desired outcome or specific result that a business aims to achieve

Profit formula:

Revenue - expenses = profit

Define staffing in a business

The process of finding, acquiring , preparing and retaining the right employee for a position in the business

What is human resources management?

The effective management of the formal relationship between the employer and employee

What does human resources management involve?

• Recruitment

• Selection

• Training

• Development

• Appraisal and Dismissal of staff

Responsibility for Staffing

Employees are integral to the success of the business and therefore their quality directly influences the business’s ability to achieve its objectives

How human resources impact a business’s objectives 

Staffing strategies ——> Performance of staff ——> Business objectives

Staffing Strategies

• Job analysis

• Recruitment

• Selection

• Induction

Achieving business objectives

Human resources, should focus on recruiting employees, motivating them and increase their productivity in order to achieve objectives

What is human resource planning?

The process of determining current and future staffing needs for a business and the development of strategies to meet those needs

What are staffing needs?

The human resource requirements of a business

How does a business develop appropriate strategies and objectives

1. Analysing the Internal Environment / Analysing the External Environment

2. Business objectives and strategic plan

3. Forecast Demand / Forecast Supply

4. Determine Variances

5. Staffing Shortage, No variance, Staffing Surplus

6. Develop appropriate strategies and objectives

Analysing the Internal environment

• Goals + objectives

• Current business performance

• Technology

• Structure

• Size

• Rates of staff turnover + promotion

• Productivity levels

• Budget (financial capacity)

Analysing the External environment

• Competition

• Labour market trends (seasonal + unemployment rates)

• Economic trends impact on sales

• Changes in legislation that affect human resources

• Changes in industrial relations practices

Business Objectives and Strategic Plan (question to consider)

What are the objectives of the business + what are the strategies to achieve these objectives?

Forecast Demand

• Turnover

• Number

• Skills

• Tasks needed to be performed from job analysis

• Experience

• Knowledge

• Ideas

What is staff turnover?

The rate in which employees leave the business and are replaced by new employees during a specific period of time.

Forecast Supply

• Human resources inventory

• Numbers; qualifications; skills; occupations; performance; experience

• Turn over rates (high/low)

• Career goals

Staffing shortage considerations

• Increase overtime use of casuals

• Stop retirements

• Accelerate training and development

• Start recruiting

• Outsourcing

Define outsourcing

The hiring of an external party to produce goods or perform certain services 

No variance considerations

May need to change some other aspects of employment relations (e.g: training, improved workplace culture)

Staffing surplus considerations

• Reduce overtime use of casuals

• Encourage early retirements — retrenchment packages

• Stop recruiting

• Reduce working hours

Define Retrenchment 

The termination of an employee's employment because their job role is no longer required by the company

Define E-commerce

Use of the internet to conduct the full range of business activities

Impacts on staffing needs:

Information and communication tech have changed

New technologies, the following issues can arise:

• Existing employees need to be trained on how to use the new tech (AI)

• New tech may lead to reduction in staffing requirements

• Rates of pay may need to be readjusted to account for new skill acquired

• Staff more likely to use work computers to do personal business during work hours

• Laptops, tablets + smartphones changed the nature of work (now more mobility can complete almost anywhere)

What is job analysis?

Study of an employees job in order to determine the duties of those duties and the time involved in each of them, the Responsibility involved + the equipment needed

What does job analysis examine?

• actual job activities

• the equipment used to do the job

• specific job behaviours required

• working conditions

• the degree of supervision required

Methods of job analysis:

• The observation method

• The interview method

• Questionnaires

• The critical incident technique

The observation method:

This involves observing workers carrying out their tasks

The interview method:

Employees are interviewed by a supervisor or human resources manager to help develop a job analysis

Questionnaires:

Employees can be asked to provide written answers to questions about their duties, responsibilities and skills

The critical incident method:

Staff responses to particular incidents are judged to be effective or ineffective based on the actions taken

What is job design?

Details the number, kind + variety that individual employees perform in their jobs. Jobs may be designed so they include a variety of tasks to keep employees interested + motivated

Examples of Job design:

Flexibility, adequate resources, opportunity for achievement, opportunities for social interaction + appropriate levels of challenge

Job description:

A written statement describing the employee’s duties + tasks + responsibilities associated with the job

Job specification:

A list of the key qualifications needed to perform a particular job in terms of education, skills, knowledge and level of experience

Benefits of job analysis and job design

• Ensures employees possess the right skills and knowledge for the job

• Improves recruitment + performance management processes

• Leads to more motivated and productive employees

Limitations of job analysis and job design

• Time consuming

• Expensive to gain accuracy for every aspect

• Job descriptions can quickly become outdated

Recruitment 

The process of attracting qualified job applicants – by using advertisements, websites, employment agencies and word of mouth – from which to select the most appropriate person for a specific job.

Internal Recruitment 

Filling job vacancies with pre-existing employees of the business, rather than looking outside the business

Methods of Internal Recruitment

• Intranet posting

• Promoting employees

• Email

• Notice to staff noticeboard

• Recommendation

Define Intranet posting

An internal website that helps employees stay up-to-date with their company

External Recruitment

Finding suitable applicants from outside the business

Methods of External Recruitment

Online recruitment agencies, company website, social media, advertisements, jobactive, schools/Tafe, recommendations

Advantages of Internal Recruitment 

• Employees are already familiar with the business’s views, values and expectations

• It creates a reward pathway for pre-existing employees

• Saves advertisement costs 

• Less induction + training required

Online recruitment agency:

A business that specialises in finding suitable candidates to fill vacancies for a variety of different employers

Disadvantages of Internal Recruitment 

• May be no one suitable within the business

• Could lead to conflict or rivalries amongst employees

• Limits fresh perspectives 

Advantages of External Recruitment

• Larger talent pool

• Fresh perspectives

• New skills and qualifications

• Rapid growth of the business (as it increases number of staff)

Disadvantages of External Recruitment

• Costs associated with advertisement 

• Process of selection may be harder due to larger selection

• Qualified employees already within the business may resent the decision

• Greater risk as the applicant is unknown

What is selection?

Process of choosing the candidate who best matches the business requirements — can be expensive

Selection Methods:

• Applications Forms

• Tests

• Online Selection

• Interviews

• Background checks

• Medical Examinations

Application Forms

Candidates outline information about themselves 

Tests

Written or practical and are designed to assess aptitude, intelligence or ability

Background checks

Contacting referees or agencies from previous experiences

Medical examinations 

Some jobs require certain physical attributes

Interview

Ask questions to evaluate the candidate’s motivation, personality and attitude

Psychological testing

A standardized method to measure a candidate's cognitive abilities, personality traits, and emotional intelligence to predict their suitability for a job

Work Testing

A hiring method where candidates perform tasks similar to those required in the job to demonstrate their skills and abilities

Online Selection

Part of screening + selection process is conducted online

Benefits of using the Interview method

• gives the applicant a chance to ask questions

• can assess candidate’s appropriateness for the role (in person) 

Limitations of using the Interview method

• Some people are able to present well at an interview, but may not be completely honest.

• Doesn’t assess actual skills or abilities on the job

Benefits of psychological testing method

• Can give an insight into the personality of the applicant, not just job skills

• Can be used to assess skills such as the ability to work in a team, leadership and decision making

Limitations of psychological testing method

• Relies on the applicant giving honest answers to the test questions or tasks

• Not all tests have the necessary reliability in measuring what they claim to measure

Benefits of work testing method

• Can provide an assessment of the actual skills needed to carry out the job

• Allows future work colleagues and supervisors an opportunity to see different applicants in action

Limitations of work testing method

• May test technical skills but not broader skills such as leadership or problem solving

• Can be an artificial environment, and some applicants may be nervous and not demonstrate their actual abilities

Benefits of Online Selection method

• Convenient: applicants can complete at any time, and selection panel can view responses in their own time

• Can be used for a wide variety of different types of tasks and responses

Limitations of Online Selection method

• Impersonal — gives no indication of the actual person performing the tasks

• There may be many applications (especially for lower skilled positions). These can be difficult to sort with no context or background.

Typical selection Process

Application Received —> Screen Applications —> Shortlist Candidates —> Interviews —> Referee check —> Offer job

Full-time permanent employment

An ongoing employment contract that includes all legally required entitlements

Part-time permanent employment:

Working fewer ordinary weekly or monthly hours compared with full-time employees

Fixed-term contract:

Employment offered for a specific period

Casual employees:

Workers employed on an hourly basis (lacks typical benefits like paid leave but allows for flexible working hours)

Superannuation:

A system by which contributions are made to a fund that will provide benefits to an employee after retirement

How many hours is full time?

38 hours per week at minimum

How many hours is part-time?

Less than 38 hours per week

What are the entitlements under the NES requirements

Annual leave, Sick leave, Superannuation, Flexible working arrangement (after 12 months)

What entitlements do causal employees not get?

Annual leave, Sick leave, Superannuation

What are some of the National Employment standards?

1. Hours of work

2. Parental leave

3. Offers and requests to move from casual to permanent

4. Flexible working arrangements

5. Annual leave

6. Personal/carers leave

7. Community service leave

8. Long service leave

9. Public holidays

10. Notice redundancy pay

Annual Leave

Four weeks of paid leave per year, plus an additional week for certain shift workers

Personal/carer’s leave and compassionate leave

10 days paid personal/carer’s leave, two days days unpaid carer’s leave as required, and two days compassionate leave (unpaid for casuals) as required 

Community service leave

Unpaid leave for voluntary emergency activities and leave for jury service, with an entitlement to be paid for up to 10 days for jury services

Long service leave

A transitional entitlement for employees as outlined in an applicable pre-modernised award, pending the development of a uniform national long service leave standard (usually after 7-10 years)

Maximum weekly hours of work

38 hours per week, plus reasonable additional hours

Requests for flexible working arrangements

An entitlement allowing parents or carers of a child under school age, or of a child under 18 with a disability, to request a change in working arrangements to assist with the care of the child

Parental leave and related entitlements

Up to 12 months leave per employee, plus a right to request an additional 12 months of unpaid leave, plus other forms of maternity, paternity, and adoption related leave

Employers expects employees:

• Terms of Notice

• Be punctual

• Contracts of employment (are uphold)

• Complete projects on time

• Have excellent customer service

• Be loyal to the business

Agreements

A mutual understanding between two or more parties about the terms of a deal, which can be informal or legally binding

What is an award?

A legally binding document that sets out minimum wages and conditions for a group of employees

What an award covers:

• Pay Rates

• Hours of work and breaks

• Rostering rules

• Leave loading

• Allowances (like uniform or travel)

What is an Enterprise agreement?

An agreement that has been directly negotiated between employee and employer (often negotiated every 3 years)

Award vs Enterprise Agreement

Award = industry-wide minimum standards.

Enterprise Agreement = workplace-specific rules that improve on the award.

What does an employment contract include?

Typically includes details such as the job title, hours of work, employment arrangement (f/t, p/t, casual), the rate of pay and other conditions.

Business loyalty

Shows loyalty to the business. Not resign in the short term to work for rivals. No negative statements.