FIA 1373 Introduction to Business: Human Resource Management

Vocabulary flashcards covering core human resource management concepts, planning, recruitment, selection, training and development, compensation plans, performance appraisals, and labor-management relations.

Human resource management (HRM)

The process of determining human resource needs and then recruiting, selecting, developing, motivating, evaluating, compensating, and scheduling employees to achieve organizational goals.

Human resource inventory

A compilation of employee information—including ages, names, education, capabilities, training, specialized skills, and languages spoken—used to reveal whether the workforce is technically up-to-date and thoroughly trained.

Job analysis

A study of what employees do who hold various job titles, yielding two written statements: job descriptions and job specifications.

Job description

A written statement about the job itself, specifying its primary objectives, responsibilities, and specific duties.

Job specifications

A written statement detailing the personal qualifications, characteristics, skills, education, and experience required of a person qualifying for a job.

Recruitment

The set of activities used to obtain a sufficient number of the right people at the right time, with the purpose of selecting those who best meet the organization's needs.

Internal sources

Recruitment sources within the company, including current employees who can be transferred, promoted, or retrained, or who can recommend candidates.

External sources

Recruitment sources outside the company, such as advertisements, employment agencies, college placement offices, job fairs, and social media.

Selection

The process of gathering information and deciding who should be hired, under legal guidelines, to serve the best interests of the individual and the organization.

Training and development

An attempt to improve productivity by increasing an employee's ability to perform.

Training

Instruction and learning activities focused on improving an employee's short-term skills.

Development

Learning activities designed to cultivate an employee's long-term abilities.

Orientation

The activity that initiates new employees into the organization, introducing them to fellow employees, immediate supervisors, and the policies, practices, and objectives of the firm.

On-the-job training

A method that lets the employee learn by doing, or by watching others for a while and then imitating them, right at the workplace.

Apprentice programs

Training programs where a trainee works alongside an experienced employee to master the skills and procedures of a craft.

Off-the-job training

Internal or external training programs that occur away from the workplace to develop a variety of skills or foster personal development.

Vestibule training

Classroom-based training (also known as near-the-job training) conducted using equipment similar to that used on the job so employees learn proper methods and safety procedures before assuming an assignment.

Job simulation

The use of equipment that duplicates actual job conditions and tasks so trainees can learn complex procedures before attempting them on the job.

Management development

The process of training and educating employees to become good managers, and monitoring the progress of their managerial skills over time.

Understudy position

A management development method in which selected employees work as assistants to higher-level managers, participating in planning and other functions until ready to assume those roles.

Job rotation

A management development technique where managers are assigned to a variety of departments to learn different functions and obtain a broad picture of the organization.

Mentor

A corporate manager who supervises, coaches, and guides selected lower-level employees by introducing them to the right people and acting as their organizational sponsor.

Performance appraisal

An evaluation that measures employee performance against established standards in order to make decisions about promotions, compensation, training, or termination.

Salary

Fixed compensation computed on weekly, biweekly, or monthly pay periods.

Hourly wage or daywork

A wage system based on the number of hours or days worked, commonly used for blue-collar and clerical workers.

Piecework system

A compensation system where wages are based on the number of items produced rather than on the hour or day.

Commission plans

Compensation based on a percentage of sales, frequently used to compensate salespeople.

Bonus plans

Extra monetary or cashless pay awarded for accomplishing or surpassing certain objectives.

Profit-sharing plans

Annual bonuses distributed to employees based on the company's profits using a predetermined percentage.

Gain-sharing plans

Annual bonuses paid to employees based on achieving specific targets such as quality measures, customer satisfaction measures, and production goals.

Stock options

The right given to employees to purchase company stock at a specific price over a specific period.

Fringe benefits

Non-wage compensation provided to employees beyond base wages, including sick-leave pay, vacation pay, health plans, pension plans, and recreation facilities.

Cafeteria-style fringe benefits

A benefits plan allowing employees to choose the specific benefits they want up to a specified monetary allowance.

Collective bargaining

The negotiation process through which management and unions reach an agreement regarding compensation, working hours, and working conditions.

Labor contract

A formal, written document spelling out the agreed relationship between union and management for a specified duration, typically two or three years.

Strike

A union tactic occurring when workers collectively refuse to work to draw public attention and slow or cease company operations.

Primary boycott

A union tactic where labor encourages members and the general public not to purchase the products or services of a firm engaged in a labor dispute.

Secondary boycott

An attempt by labor to convince outside parties to stop doing business with a firm that is the subject of a primary boycott.

Lockout

A management tactic to put pressure on union workers by temporarily closing down the business facility.

Injunction

A court order directing an individual or organization to perform or refrain from performing a specific action, such as ordering striking workers back to work.

Strikebreakers

Workers hired by management to perform the duties of striking employees until a labor dispute is resolved.