Business: Human Resources

What do the HR team do?

• Hiring

• Ending of staff employment

• Induction / Training

• Look after employees

• Employee relations / unions

• Reward systems

• Organise pensions / benefits

Why do a business need to establish HR needs?

To create a personnel plan

What is a personnel plan & what is included?

• A plan detailing what employees business needs

• How many

• Type of workers (qualifications & skills)

• Time they will work (Part or full time)

• Where they will work

What is an organisational structure?

How people and departments are arranged in a business

Hierarchical - many layers of employees between floor workers and board of directors

Flat - Few layers

Advantages of a Tall organisational structure within a business

• Opportunity for promotion

• Work is shared, less stress

• Orderly, organised structure, everyone knows their place

• Small span of control, know subordinates well

• Delegate work to most suitable person

Disadvantages of a Tall organisational structure within a business

• Communication takes too long

• Decisions take time

• Demotivate by delegating work

• Inflexible, can’t change

• Expensive, more managers & supervisors

What is delayering?

Removing a layer from the hierarchy

Cuts costs

When is a tall organisational structure suitable?

• Large organisations e.g. Large hospital

• Non-creative businesses where tasks are clear and limited e.g. building company

Advantages of a Flat organisational structure within a business

• Info moves quick

• Decisions are quick

• Staff given greater responsibility

• Opportunities to use abilities

Disadvantages of a Flat organisational structure within a business

• Overworked, less supervision

• Less promotion opportunity

• Power struggle if manager is rarely around

• Too many staff, lose connection

When is a Flat organisational structure suitable for a business?

• Creative businesses e.g. computer game designing

• Smaller businesses so workers feel valued

What is the chain of command?

Flow of power, communication & authority through a business.

More power at top

Delegate tasks to subordinates

What is span of control?

Shown as a number

Number of subordinates they can delegate to

What is delegation?

Give a task to appropriate employee

Tasks may carry deadline

Good managers will only delegate tasks they can do themselves

What is a subordinate?

Employee lower in rank or job position than their manager.

Manager delegates tasks to subordinates

What is authority?

Someone gives employee the power ti make decisions

Authority is like permission

What are the different ways of working?

Fulltime - More than 35 hours Max 48 hours per week (on average over 17 weeks)

Part time - Less than 35 hours

Flexible - work from home, flexible start & end time

Permanent - Salaried, full time

Temporary - staff needed in seasons

Working mobile - Own business, low cost on rent

Self-employed - Own boss, sole trader, online selling

Ways of communication

• Feedback - confirms message received & understood

• Internal - within organisation

• External - Between in & out organisation

• Vertical - Different layers of hierarchy

• Horizontal - same layer of organisation

• Formal - official channels

• Informal - Conversation

Uses, pros & cons of a letter

1. Formal doc, Permanent record, Respond to complaints, recruitment process

2. More formal, structured, communicating legal terms & conditions

3. No body language, Time taken to write & send, No feedback, pay to send (stamp), misinterpreted

Uses, pros & cons of an email

1. Delivers letter instantaneously, globally

accessible, text, images, docs, links,

discussing ideas, follow up a meeting

2. Fast, global, quick response, copy others into

message, transfer docs

3. Viruses / spam, not everyone has email

address, not checking emails regularly

What is turnover?

Staff leaving

What is absenteeism?

Staff off work

E.g. sick

What is retention?

Keeping staff long term

Methods of selection Adv and disadv

	Adv	Disadv
CV	Show their skills & Qualifications. Easy to compare	Long
Interview	Face to face	Costly, long
Group Activities	Measure teamwork, reduces time and cost	May be N/A
References	Past employer experience	May not have one
Tests	Measure capabilities	May not be good at actual job
App form / cover letter	Creative, cheaper	Hard to compare

What is a job description?

The duties and responsibilities of the role

Gives clarity about the work wanted

What is a person specification?

Document outlining:

Personal qualities

Qualifications

Work experience

Skills

A 'wish list' of qualities foe the new member of staff

What is the recruitment process?

1. Business identifies need to recruit

2. Business writes job description

3. Business writes person specification

4. Business advertises the job and interviews candidates

External recruitment methods adv and disadv

Adv	Disadv
Break bad culture	May leave
Fill skills gap	May not fit in
No employee gap	Ads - costs
More enthusiastic	Have to induct

Internal recruitment methods adv and disadv

Adv	Disadv
Cheaper - no ads	Skills Gap
Not inducted	Employee gap
Know their skills, personality	Retain bad culture
Less likely to quit

What is a skill gap?

The difference between the skills wanted / needed

and the skills available from employees

Define recruitment

Process of finding & hiring best candidate for a job vacancy

Analysing requirements for a job, attracting employees, screening & selecting applicants, hiring, inducting new employees

Benefits of good communication

Internally	Externally
Employees feel valued	Respond to complaints - boost reputation
Boosts satisfaction / retention	Increase customer loyalty / satisfaction
Less mistakes	Promotional / marketing tool
Helps decision making, problem solving

Uses, pros & cons of a website

1. Every business had one, communicate with

customers, suppliers, stakeholders

2. Free/cheap, quick & easy to set up

3. Hackers, viruses / fraud / misuse

Uses, pros & cons of a Social Media

Communicate with customers, respond to

complaints

2. Free, instant response, marketing / advert

2 Not all customers use social media. (Target

market

Uses pros & cons of Presentation

Staff presenting complex info to group, ppt,

communicate ideas - graphs, videos, charts

2. Explain complex info inn visual way, Big

screen or single tablet

3. Death by ppt, boring, too simple

Uses, pros & cons or a meeting

Group info simultaneously, discuss projects,

encourages teamwork, increases productivity

2. Dynamic - smaller groups for ideas, non

verbal communication

3. Expensive off flying employees in, easily off

track / distracted

Uses, pros & cons of a phone call

1. Main way a customer contacts a business

may have a call centre

2. immediate feedback, 2 way convo

3. Not able to take call. can't send attachments

overseas Is expensive

Uses, pros & cons of a text

1. SMS short message service, internal use, remind customers of appointments, send special offers

2. Send to lots if people at same time, 90% of messages opened instantly, quick communication for short info

3. Easy to delete/ignore, target segment may not use phone regularly

Delivers letter instantaneously, globally accessible, text, images, docs, links, discussing ideas, follow up a meeting

2. Fast, global, quick response, copy others into message

transter does

3. Viruses spam, not everyone has email address, not checking emails regularly

What is a bonus?

An extra sum of money paid to an individual or team when they reach a target

E.g. Sales or production

What is an award scheme?

Recognising good work from employees

e.g employee of the month

What are fringe benefits?

The employee may receive extras in addition to their pay

e.g. Company car, childcare vouchers, health insurance

What is pay?

Money in return for work done

What is profit sharing?

Employee paid a portion of the profits made by the firm

What is salary?

Employee paid a fixed amount for the work expressed as an annual sum. Divided into 12 and paid monthly

What is overtime?

The standard time rate may be increased to persuade the employee to work additional hours than normally expected.

Time and a quarter / time and a half

What is time rate?

When an employee is paid for each hour worked

What is piece rate?

When an employee is paid for each product produced

• Encourages speed

• At expense of quality

Non financial motivation methods adv and disadv

• Fringe benefits

• Praise

• Award scheme

• Working environment

Adv	Disadv
Cheaper	May not be effective
Feel valued, recognised
Increase retention

Financial motivation methods

• Pay / pay rise

• Bonus

• Profit sharing

Adv	Disadv
Increase retention	More expensive
Feel valued, recognised

What is an induction?

Give some examples.

Introductory training when an employee starts working for a business.

How to use fire extinguishers, fire exits, shown building, meet colleagues

Work shadowing

What are different training methods?

• On the job

• Coaching / mentoring whilst working

• Off the job

• Training at a facility

Advantages of on-the-job training

• Specific training needed for the job

• Cheaper than training centre

• Learning put to use immediately

• Trainees can see relevance to job more clearly when skills are taught in the workplace

Disadvantages of on-the-job training

• Taking time away from teacher employee

• Reduces efficiency

• Pass on bad habits

• New worker might misunderstand

• Badly trained, make costly mistakes

Advantages of off-the-job training

• Trained by experts

• Motivated by day off work

• Feel values, business pay for training

• Safety training is best done by experts

Disadvantages of off-the-job training

• Expensive - travel & training

• Loses output whilst employee is away

• Employees can learn skill to go to another business

Why does a business train their workers?

• Development of business

• Skill shortages

• Customer service

• Motivation & retention

What are the discrimination acts and laws?

1. Equal pay act 1970

2. Sex discrimination act 1975

3. Race relations 1976

4. Equality act 2010 (covers everything)

5. Employees right to contract

What types of staff development is there?

Apprenticeship - long term program to learn whilst working

Vocational / job specific qualifications

Academic qualifications - (GCSE’s, A levels)

Professional development programs