1 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA MACHILIPATNAM THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.

PRASAD

2 Human Resource Management (HRM) We often hear the term Human Resource Management, Employee Relations and Personn el Management used in the popular press as well as by Industry experts. Whenever we hear these terms, we conjure images of efficient managers busily going about their work in glitzy offices. In this article, we look at the question what is H RM ? by giving a broad overview of the topic and introducing the readers to the p ractice of HRM in contemporary organizations. Though as with all popular percept ions, the above imagery has some validity, the fact remains that there is much m ore to the field of HRM and despite popular depictions of the same, the art and s cience of HRM is indeed complex. We have chosen the term art and science as HRM is both the art of managing people by recourse to creative and innovative approache s; it is a science as well because of the precision and rigorous application of theory that is required. As outlined above, the process of defining HRM leads us to two different definitions. The first definition of HRM is that it is the pro cess of managing people in organizations in a structured and thorough manner. Th is covers the fields of staffing (hiring people), retention of people, pay and p erks setting and management, performance management, change management and takin g care of exits from the company to round off the activities. This is the tradit ional definition of HRM which leads some experts to define it as a modern versio n of the Personnel Management function that was used earlier. The second definit ion of HRM encompasses the management of people in organizations from a macro pe rspective i.e. managing people in the form of a collective relationship between management and employees. This approach focuses on the objectives and outcomes o f the HRM function. What this means is that the HR function in contemporary orga nizations is concerned with the notions of people enabling, people development a nd a focus on making the employment relationship fulfilling for both the managemen t and employees. These definitions emphasize the difference between Personnel Ma nagement as defined in the second paragraph and human resource management as des cribed in the third paragraph. To put it in one sentence, personnel management i s essentially workforce centered whereas human resource management is resource cente red. The key difference is HRM in recent times is about fulfilling management ob jectives of providing and deploying people and a greater emphasis on planning, m onitoring and control. Whatever the definition we use the answer to the question as to what is HRM? is that it is all about people in organizations. No wonder tha t some MNCs (Multinationals) call the HR managers as People Managers, People Enab lers and the practice as people management. In the 21st century organizations, t he HR manager or the people manager is no longer seen as someone who takes care of the activities described in the traditional way. In fact, most organizations have different departments dealing with Staffing, Payroll, and Retention etc. In stead, the HR manager is responsible for managing employee expectations vis--vis the management objectives and reconciling both to ensure employee fulfillment an d realization of management objectives. In conclusion, this article has briefly touched upon the topic of HRM and served as an introduction to HRM. We shall tou ch upon the other topics that this field covers in other articles. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

3 Importance of HRM for Organizational Success We have discussed the basic conce pt of HRM and the ways in which it helps the organization meet its goals. In thi s article, we discuss the reasons for organizations to have a HRM strategy as we ll as the business drivers that make the strategy imperative for organizational success. It is a fact that to thrive in the chaotic and turbulent business envir onment, firms need to constantly innovate and be ahead of the curve in terms of bu siness practices and strategies. It is from this motivation to be at the top of the pack that HRM becomes a valuable tool for management to ensure success. The Evolving Business Paradigm One of the factors behind organizations giving a lot of attention to their people is the nature of the firms in the current business environment. Given the fact that there has been a steady movement towards an eco nomy based on services, it becomes important for firms engaged in the service se ctor to keep their employees motivated and productive. Even in the manufacturing and the traditional sectors, the need to remain competitive has meant that firm s in these sectors deploy strategies that make effective use of their resources. This changed business landscape has come about as a result of a paradigm shift in the way businesses and firms view their employees as more than just resources and instead adopt a people first approach. Strategic Management and HRM As discus sed in the articles on modern day HRM practices, there is a need to align organi zational goals with that of the HR strategy to ensure that there is alignment of the people policies with that of the management objectives. This means that the HR department can no longer be viewed as an appendage of the firm but instead i s a vital organ in ensuring organizational success. The aims of strategic manage ment are to provide the organization with a sense of direction and a feeling of purpose. The days when the HR manager was concerned with administrative duties i s over and the current HRM practices in many industries are taken as seriously a s say, the marketing and production functions. Importance of HRM for Organizatio nal Success The practice of HRM must be viewed through the prism of overall stra tegic goals for the organization instead of a standalone tint that takes a unit based or a micro approach. The idea here is to adopt a holistic perspective towa rds HRM that ensures that there are no piecemeal strategies and the HRM policy e nmeshes itself fully with those of the organizational goals. For instance, if th e training needs of the employees are simply met with perfunctory trainings on o mnibus topics, the firm stands to lose not only from the time that the employees spend in training but also a loss of direction. Hence, the organization that ta kes its HRM policies seriously will ensure that training is based on focused and topical methods. In conclusion, the practice of HRM needs to be integrated with the overall strategy to ensure effective use of people and provide better retur ns to the organizations in terms of ROI (Return on Investment) for every rupee o r dollar spent on them. Unless the HRM practice is designed in this way, the fir ms stand to lose from not utilizing people fully. And this does not bode well fo r the success of the organization. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

4 Scope of Human Resource Management Human resources are undoubtedly the key res ources in an organization, the easiest and the most difficult to manage! The obj ectives of the HRM span right from the manpower needs assessment to management a nd retention of the same. To this effect Human resource management is responsibl e for effective designing and implementation of various policies, procedures and programs. It is all about developing and managing knowledge, skills, creativity , aptitude and talent and using them optimally. Human Resource Management is not just limited to manage and optimally exploit human intellect. It also focuses o n managing physical and emotional capital of employees. Considering the intricac ies involved, the scope of HRM is widening with every passing day. It covers but is not limited to HR planning, hiring (recruitment and selection), training and development, payroll management, rewards and recognitions, Industrial relations , grievance handling, legal procedures etc. In other words, we can say that its a bout developing and managing harmonious relationships at workplace and striking a balance between organizational goals and individual goals. The scope of HRM is extensive and far-reaching. Therefore, it is very difficult to define it concis ely. However, we may classify the same under following heads: HRM in Personnel M anagement: This is typically direct manpower management that involves manpower p lanning, hiring (recruitment and selection), training and development, induction and orientation, transfer, promotion, compensation, layoff and retrenchment, em ployee productivity. The overall objective here is to ascertain individual growt h, development and effectiveness which indirectly contribute to organizational d evelopment. It also includes performance appraisal, developing new skills, disbu rsement of wages, incentives, allowances, traveling policies and procedures and other related courses of actions. HRM in Employee Welfare: This particular aspec t of HRM deals with working conditions and amenities at workplace. This includes a wide array of responsibilities and services such as safety services, health s ervices, welfare funds, social security and medical services. It also covers app ointment of safety officers, making the environment worth working, eliminating w orkplace hazards, support by top management, job safety, safeguarding machinery, cleanliness, proper ventilation and lighting, sanitation, medical care, sicknes s benefits, employment injury benefits, personal injury benefits, maternity bene fits, unemployment benefits and family benefits. It also relates to supervision, employee counseling, establishing harmonious relationships with employees, educ ation and training. Employee welfare is about determining employees real needs an d fulfilling them with active participation of both management and employees. In addition to this, it also takes care of canteen facilities, crches, rest and lun ch rooms, housing, transport, medical assistance, education, health and safety, recreation facilities, etc. HRM in Industrial Relations: Since it is a highly se nsitive area, it needs careful interactions with labor or employee unions, addre ssing their grievances and settling the disputes effectively in order to maintai n peace and harmony in the organization. It is the art and science of understand ing the employment (unionmanagement) relations, joint consultation, disciplinary procedures, solving problems with mutual efforts, THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

5 understanding human behavior and maintaining work relations, collective bargai ning and settlement of disputes. The main aim is to safeguarding the interest of employees by securing the highes t level of understanding to the extent that does not leave a negative impact on organization. It is about establishing, growing and promoting industrial democra cy to safeguard the interests of both employees and management. The scope of HRM is extremely wide, thus, can not be written concisely. However, for the sake of convenience and developing understanding about the subject, we divide it in thr ee categories mentioned above. Difference between Personnel Management & HRM Man y students of management and laypeople often hear the term HRM or Human Resource Management and wonder about the difference between HRM and the traditional term Personnel Management. In earlier times, the Personnel Manager of a factory or f irm was the person in charge of ensuring employee welfare and interceding betwee n the management and the employees. In recent times, the term has been replaced with HR manager. This article looks at the differences in usage and scope of fun ctions as well as the underlying theory behind these nomenclatures. In the secti on on introducing HRM, we briefly looked at the main differences. We shall look into them in more detail here. Personnel Management Traditionally the term perso nnel management was used to refer to the set of activities concerning the workfo rce which included staffing, payroll, contractual obligations and other administ rative tasks. In this respect, personnel management encompasses the range of act ivities that are to do with managing the workforce rather than resources. Person nel Management is more administrative in nature and the Personnel Managers main j ob is to ensure that the needs of the workforce as they pertain to their immedia te concerns are taken care of. Further, personnel managers typically played the role of mediators between the management and the employees and hence there was a lways the feeling that personnel management was not in tune with the objectives of the management. Human Resource Management With the advent of resource centric organizations in recent decades, it has become imperative to put people first as well as secure management objectives of maximizing the ROI (Return on Investment ) on the resources. This has led to the development of the modern HRM function w hich is primarily concerned with ensuring the fulfillment of management objectiv es and at the same time ensuring that the needs of the resources are taken care of. In this way, HRM differs from personnel management not only in its broader s cope but also in the way in which its mission is defined. HRM goes beyond the ad ministrative tasks of personnel management and encompasses a broad vision of how management would like the resources to contribute to the success of the organiz ation. Personnel Management and HRM: A Paradigm Shift ? THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

6 Cynics might point to the fact that whatever term we use, it is finally about m anaging people . The answer to this would be that the way in which people are mana ged says a lot about the approach that the firm is taking. For instance, traditi onal manufacturing units had personnel managers whereas the services firms have HR managers. While it is tempting to view Personnel Management as archaic and HR M as modern, we have to recognize the fact that each serves or served the purpos e for which they were instituted. Personnel Management was effective in the smoke stack era and HRM is effective in the 21st century and this definitely reflects a paradigm shift in the practice of managing people. Conclusion It is clear from the above paragraphs that HRM denotes a shift in focus and strategy and is in tu ne with the needs of the modern organization. HRM concentrates on the planning, monitoring and control aspects of resources whereas Personnel Management was lar gely about mediating between the management and employees. Many experts view Per sonnel Management as being workforce centered whereas HRM is resource centered. In conclusion, the differences between these two terms have to be viewed through the prism of people management through the times and in context of the industry that is being studied. PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT Personnel management can be defined as obtaining, using and maintaining a satisfied workforce. It is a significant part of management concerned with employees at work and with their relationship within the organization. According to Flippo, Personnel management is the plannin g, organizing, compensation, integration and maintainance of people for the purp ose of contributing to organizational, individual and societal goals. According t o Brech, Personnel Management is that part which is primarily concerned with huma n resource of organization. Nature of Personnel Management Personnel management i ncludes the function of employment, development and compensation- These function s are performed primarily by the personnel management in consultation with other departments. Personnel management is an extension to general management. It is concerned with promoting and stimulating competent work force to make their full est contribution to the concern. Personnel management exist to advice and assist the line managers in personnel matters. Therefore, personnel department is a st aff department of an organization. Personnel management lays emphasize on action rather than making lengthy schedules, plans, work methods. The problems and gri evances of people at work can be solved more effectively through rationale perso nnel policies. It is based on human orientation. It tries to help the workers to develop their potential fully to the concern. It also motivates the employees t hrough its effective incentive plans so that the employees provide fullest co-ope ration. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

7 Personnel management deals with human resources of a concern. In context to huma n resources, it manages both individual as well as blue- collar workers. Role of Personnel Manager Personnel manager is the head of personnel department. He per forms both managerial and operative functions of management. His role can be sum marized as : Personnel manager provides assistance to top management- The top ma nagement are the people who decide and frame the primary policies of the concern . All kinds of policies related to personnel or workforce can be framed out effe ctively by the personnel manager. He advices the line manager as a staff special ist- Personnel manager acts like a staff advisor and assists the line managers i n dealing with various personnel matters. As a counsellor,- As a counsellor, per sonnel manager attends problems and grievances of employees and guides them. He tries to solve them in best of his capacity. Personnel manager acts as a mediato r- He is a linking pin between management and workers. He acts as a spokesman- S ince he is in direct contact with the employees, he is required to act as repres entative of organization in committees appointed by government. He represents co mpany in training programmes. Functions of Personnel Management Following are th e four functions of Personnel Management: Manpower Planning Recruitment Selectio n Training and Development Following are the elements of Personnel Management: O rganization- Organization is said to be the framework of many activities taking place in view of goals available in a concern. An organization can be called as a physical framework of various interrelated activities. Right from manpower pla nning to employees maintainance, all activities take place within this framework. The nature of the organization is dependent upon its goal. The business concern goal being profit- making. Clubs, hospitals, schools,etc. their goal being servi ce. The objective of consultancy being providing sound advice. Therefore, it is organizational structure on which the achievement of goals of an enterprise depe nds upon. In personnel management, a manager has therefore to understand the imp ortance of organizational structure. Job- The second element, i.e., jobs tell us the activities to be performed in the organization. It is said that the goals o f an enterprise can be achieved only through the functional department in it. Th erefore, seeing THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

8 the size of organization today, the nature of activities are changing. In addi tion to the three primary departments, personnel and research department are new additions. Various types of jobs available are : Physical jobs Creative jobs Pr oficiency jobs Intellectual jobs Consultancy jobs Technical jobs People- The las t and foremost element in personnel management is people. In a organizational st ructure, where the main aim is to achieve the goals, the presence of manpower be comes vital. Therefore, in order to achieve departmental goals, different kinds of people with different skills are appointed. People form the most important el ement because : The organizational structure is meaningless without it. It helps to achieve the goals of the enterprise. It helps in manning the functional area s. It helps in achieving the functional departmental goals. They make a concern operational. They give life to a physical organization. The different types of p eople which are generally required in a concern are : Physically fit people Crea tive people Intellectuals Technical people Proficient and skilled people In pers onnel management, a personnel manager has to understand the relationship of the three elements and their importance in organization. He has to understand basica lly three relationships:Relationship between organization and job Relationship b etween job and people Relationship between people and organization. Relationship between organization and job helps making a job effective and significant. Rela tionship between job and people makes the job itself important. Relationship bet ween people and organization gives due importance to organizational structure an d the role of people in it. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

9 Manpower Planning / Human Resource Planning Manpower Planning which is also called as Human Resource Planning consists of pu tting right number of people, right kind of people at the right place, right tim e, doing the right things for which they are suited for the achievement of goals of the organization. Human Resource Planning has got an important place in the arena of industrialization. Human Resource Planning has to be a systems approach and is carried out in a set procedure. The procedure is as follows: Analysing t he current manpower inventory Making future manpower forecasts Developing employ ment programmes Design training programmes Steps in Manpower Planning Analysing the current manpower inventory- Before a manager makes forecast of future manpow er, the current manpower status has to be analysed. For this the following thing s have to be notedType of organization Number of departments Number and quantity of such departments Employees in these work units Once these factors are regist ered by a manager, he goes for the future forecasting. Making future manpower fo recasts- Once the factors affecting the future manpower forecasts are known, pla nning can be done for the future manpower requirements in several work units. Th e Manpower forecasting techniques commonly employed by the organizations are as follows: Expert Forecasts: This includes informal decisions, formal expert surve ys and Delphi technique. Trend Analysis: Manpower needs can be projected through extrapolation (projecting past trends), indexation (using base year as basis), and statistical analysis (central tendency measure). Work Load Analysis: It is d ependent upon the nature of work load in a department, in a branch or in a divis ion. Work Force Analysis: Whenever production and time period has to be analysed , due allowances have to be made for getting net manpower requirements. Other me thods: Several Mathematical models, with the aid of computers are used to foreca st manpower needs, like budget and planning analysis, regression, new venture an alysis. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

10 Developing employment programmes- Once the current inventory is compared with future forecasts, the employment programmes can be framed and developed accordi ngly, which will include recruitment, selection procedures and placement plans. Design training programmes- These will be based upon extent of diversification, expansion plans, development programmes,etc. Training programmes depend upon the extent of improvement in technology and advancement to take place. It is also d one to improve upon the skills, capabilities, knowledge of the workers. Importan ce of Manpower Planning Key to managerial functions- The four managerial functio ns, i.e., planning, organizing, directing and controlling are based upon the man power. Human resources help in the implementation of all these managerial activi ties. Therefore, staffing becomes a key to all managerial functions. Efficient u tilization- Efficient management of personnels becomes an important function in the industrialization world of today. Seting of large scale enterprises require management of large scale manpower. It can be effectively done through staffing function. Motivation- Staffing function not only includes putting right men on r ight job, but it also comprises of motivational programmes, i.e., incentive plan s to be framed for further participation and employment of employees in a concer n. Therefore, all types of incentive plans becomes an integral part of staffing function. Better human relations- A concern can stabilize itself if human relati ons develop and are strong. Human relations become strong trough effective contr ol, clear communication, effective supervision and leadership in a concern. Staf fing function also looks after training and development of the work force which leads to co-operation and better human relations. Higher productivity- Productiv ity level increases when resources are utilized in best possible manner. higher productivity is a result of minimum wastage of time, money, efforts and energies .This is possible through the staffing and it's related activities ( Performance appraisal, training and development, remuneration) Need of Manpower Planning Manpower Planning is a two-phased process because manpower planning not only ana lyses the current human resources but also makes manpower forecasts and thereby draw employment programmes. Manpower Planning is advantageous to firm in followi ng manner: Shortages and surpluses can be identified so that quick action can be taken wherever required. All the recruitment and selection programmes are based on manpower planning. It also helps to reduce the labour cost as excess staff c an be identified and thereby overstaffing can be avoided. It also helps to ident ify the available talents in a concern and accordingly training programmes can b e chalked out to develop those talents. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

11 It helps in growth and diversification of business. Through manpower planning , human resources can be readily available and they can be utilized in best mann er. It helps the organization to realize the importance of manpower management w hich ultimately helps in the stability of a concern. Obstacles in Manpower Plann ing Following are the main obstacles that organizations face in the process of m anpower planning: Under Utilization of Manpower: The biggest obstacle in case of manpower planning is the fact that the industries in general are not making opt imum use of their manpower and once manpower planning begins, it encounters heav y odds in stepping up the utilization. Degree of Absenteeism: Absenteeism is qui te high and has been increasing since last few years. Lack of Education and Skil led Labour: The extent of illetracy and the slow pace of development of the skil led categories account for low productivity in employees. Low productivity has i mplications for manpower planning. Manpower Control and Review: Any increase in manpower is considered at the top level of management On the basis of manpower p lans, personnel budgets are prepared. These act as control mechanisms to keep th e manpower under certain broadly defined limits. The productivity of any organiz ation is usually calculated using the formula: Productivity = Output / Input. Bu t a rough index of employee productivity is calculated as follows: Employee Prod uctivity = Total Production / Total no. of employees Exit Interviews, the rate o f turnover and rate of absenteesim are source of vital information on the satisf action level of manpower. For conservation of Human Resources and better utiliza tion of men studying these condition, manpower control would have to take into a ccount the data to make meaningful analysis. Extent of Overtime: The amount of o vertime paid may be due to real shortage of men, ineffective management or impro per utilization of manpower. Manpower control would require a careful study of o vertime statistics. Few Organizations do not have sufficient records and informa tion on manpower. Several of those who have them do not have a proper retrieval system. There are complications in resolving the issues in design, definition an d creation of computerized personnel information system for effective manpower p lanning and utilization. Even the existing technologies in this respect is not o ptimally used. This is a strategic disadvantage. Types of Recruitment Recruitment is of 2 types Internal Recruitment - is a recruitment which takes pl ace within the concern or organization. Internal sources of recruitment are read ily available to an organization. Internal sources are primarily three Transfers , promotions and Re-employment of ex-employees. Internal recruitment may lead to increase in THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

12 employees productivity as their motivation level increases. It also saves time , money and efforts. But a drawback of internal recruitment is that it refrains the organization from new blood. Also, not all the manpower requirements can be met through internal recruitment. Hiring from outside has to be done. Internal s ources are primarily 3 Transfers Promotions (through Internal Job Postings) and Re-employment of ex-employees - Re-employment of ex-employees is one of the inte rnal sources of recruitment in which employees can be invited and appointed to f ill vacancies in the concern. There are situations when ex-employees provide uns olicited applications also. External Recruitment - External sources of recruitme nt have to be solicited from outside the organization. External sources are exte rnal to a concern. But it involves lot of time and money. The external sources o f recruitment include - Employment at factory gate, advertisements, employment e xchanges, employment agencies, educational institutes, labour contractors, recom mendations etc. Employment at Factory Level - This a source of external recruitm ent in which the applications for vacancies are presented on bulletin boards out side the Factory or at the Gate. This kind of recruitment is applicable generall y where factory workers are to be appointed. There are people who keep on solici ting jobs from one place to another. These applicants are called as unsolicited applicants. These types of workers apply on their own for their job. For this ki nd of recruitment workers have a tendency to shift from one factory to another a nd therefore they are called as badli workers. Advertisement - It is an external s ource which has got an important place in recruitment procedure. The biggest adv antage of advertisement is that it covers a wide area of market and scattered ap plicants can get information from advertisements. Medium used is Newspapers and Television. Employment Exchanges - There are certain Employment exchanges which are run by government. Most of the government undertakings and concerns employ p eople through such exchanges. Now-a-days recruitment in government agencies has become compulsory through employment exchange. Employment Agencies - There are c ertain professional organizations which look towards recruitment and employment of people, i.e. these private agencies run by private individuals supply require d manpower to needy concerns. Educational Institutions - There are certain profe ssional Institutions which serves as an external source for recruiting fresh gra duates from these institutes. This kind of recruitment done through such educati onal institutions, is called as Campus Recruitment. They have special recruitmen t cells which helps in providing jobs to fresh candidates. Recommendations - The re are certain people who have experience in a particular area. They enjoy goodw ill and a stand in the company. There are certain vacancies which are filled by recommendations of such people. The biggest drawback of this source is that the company has to rely totally on such people which can later on prove to be ineffi cient. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

13 Labour Contractors - These are the specialist people who supply manpower to t he Factory or Manufacturing plants. Through these contractors, workers are appoi nted on contract basis, i.e. for a particular time period. Under conditions when these contractors leave the organization, such people who are appointed have to also leave the concern. Employee Selection Process Employee Selection is the process of putting right men on right job. It is a pro cedure of matching organizational requirements with the skills and qualification s of people. Effective selection can be done only when there is effective matchi ng. By selecting best candidate for the required job, the organization will get quality performance of employees. Moreover, organization will face less of absen teeism and employee turnover problems. By selecting right candidate for the requ ired job, organization will also save time and money. Proper screening of candid ates takes place during selection procedure. All the potential candidates who ap ply for the given job are tested. But selection must be differentiated from recr uitment, though these are two phases of employment process. Recruitment is consi dered to be a positive process as it motivates more of candidates to apply for t he job. It creates a pool of applicants. It is just sourcing of data. While sele ction is a negative process as the inappropriate candidates are rejected here. R ecruitment precedes selection in staffing process. Selection involves choosing t he best candidate with best abilities, skills and knowledge for the required job . The Employee selection Process takes place in following orderPreliminary Inter views- It is used to eliminate those candidates who do not meet the minimum elig iblity criteria laid down by the organization. The skills, academic and family b ackground, competencies and interests of the candidate are examined during preli minary interview. Preliminary interviews are less formalized and planned than th e final interviews. The candidates are given a brief up about the company and th e job profile; and it is also examined how much the candidate knows about the co mpany. Preliminary interviews are also called screening interviews. Application blanks- The candidates who clear the preliminary interview are required to fill application blank. It contains data record of the candidates such as details abo ut age, qualifications, reason for leaving previous job, experience, etc. Writte n Tests- Various written tests conducted during selection procedure are aptitude test, intelligence test, reasoning test, personality test, etc. These tests are used to objectively assess the potential candidate. They should not be biased. Employment Interviews- It is a one to one interaction between the interviewer an d the potential candidate. It is used to find whether the candidate is best suit ed for the required job or not. But such interviews consume time and money both. Moreover the competencies of the candidate cannot be judged. Such interviews ma y be biased at times. Such interviews should be conducted properly. No distracti ons should be there in room. There should be an honest communication between can didate and interviewer. Medical examination- Medical tests are conducted to ensu re physical fitness of the potential employee. It will decrease chances of emplo yee absenteeism. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

14 Appointment Letter- A reference check is made about the candidate selected an d then finally he is appointed by giving a formal appointment letter. HR Planning Human resources (HR) planning HR planning is one of key function in HR managemen t. HR planning include subs as follows: 1. HR forecasting. 2. Analyze existing H R of corporate/organizations 3. Build a HR plan for short-term and long-term. 4. Competency mapping Competency Mapping What are competencies? Competencies are the human capabilities and work-related behaviors that provide a competitive advantageto an organization. What is compet ency mapping? Competency Mapping is a process of identify key competencies for a n organization and/or a job and incorporating those competencies throughout the various processes of the organization. Types of competencies Knowledge: Informat ion and understanding needed to fulfill the responsibilities. Skills: Acquired a bility or experience needed to fulfill the responsibilities. Attitudes: Way of t hinking or behaving needed to fulfill the responsibilities. Aptitudes: Natural a bility that prepares the person to fulfill the responsibilities. Methods of cond ucting competency mapping In Basket Exercises Stress Interviews Structured Group Discussion Psychometric Tests Case Studies Peer Coaching & Counseling Exercises Focused Behavioral Event Interview Presentation Vision / Strategy Speeches Lead erless Group Exercises Role Play Business Games HR Scorecard 1. Balanced scorecard A balanced score card means achievement of balance in 4 as pects in an organization as follows: 1.1 Financial aspect: to succeed financiall y how should we appear to our shareholders.. how it contributes to profit. 1.2 Cu stomer aspect: to achieve organization vision how should we appear to customersth eir expectations and how much we are successful in meeting it.. It covers market share, customer acquisition, customer retention and satisfaction, customer loya lty, customer profitability 1.3 Internal Business Process: What are the business process should we excel at in attaining growth. It includes CRM,SCM, post sale s ervice process etc. 1.4 Learning and growth: to achieve aim how is the organizat ion sustaining and the ability to change and improvementIt concerns with employee capabilities, IS capabilities, organizational climate for employee motivation, challenging status quo THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

15 2. HR scorecard HR scorecard include components as follows: 2.1 Financial Per spective This perspective tries to answer questions relating to the financial me asures that demonstrate how people and the HR function add value to the organiza tion. This might include arriving at the value of the human assets and total peo ple expenses for the company. Examples Compensation and benefits per employee. H R expenses per employee. Turnover cost. Profit per employee. Cost of injuries 2.2 Strategic Perspective. It is the results of strategic initiatives managed by th e HR group. The strategic perspective focuses on the measurement of the effectiv eness of major strategy-linked people goals. Examples HR budget / actual. HR ann ual resource plan. Change management capability of the organization Skills/ comp etency level 2.3.Operational Perspective the operational tasks at which HR must e xcel. This piece of the Balanced Scorecardprovides answers to queries about the effectiveness and efficiency in running HR processes that are vital to the organ ization. Examples include measuring HR processes in terms of cost, quality and c ycle time such as time to fill vacancies. Examples Training cost per employee Tr aining hours per employee Average employee tenure in the company Lost time due t o injuries Time taken to fill vacancies Cost per recruitment promotions Absentee ism by job category Accident costs Accident safety ratings 2.4.Customer Perspect ive This focuses on the effectiveness of HR from the internal customer viewpoint . Are the customers of HR satisfied with their service; are service level agreem ents met; do the customers think they can get better service elsewhere? Conducti ng an HR customer survey might typically arrive at this. Examples Employee perce ption of the HRM Employee perception of the company , as an employer Customer/ma rket perception of the company, as an employer. 6. HR strategy HR strategy Build ing HR strategies of key factors in HR planning. (HR management). You can ref al l information about HR strategies as below. 1. HR Environmental analysis 2. Inte rnal HR analysis. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

16 3. Identify vision, objectives of company/organization. 4. Building HR strate gies: Recruitment strategies HR development strategies HR retention strategies B usiness strategies and HR strategies 7. Job analysis Job analysis is one of key functions inhuman resources management. 8. Job descriptions 9. Job specification s 10. Person specification 11. KSA model 12. Job design 13. HR audit 14. HR chec klists Human Resources Policies Building HR policies are one of important activity in HR management. You can ref HR policy samples as follows. If you have any ideas, please take some time to l eave your comments at box at the end of this topic. 1. Recruitment and selection Recruitment policy Employment category Sexual harassment policy Probation polic y Equal employment opportunity policy 2. Training and development 3. Compensatio n and benefits Leave policy Bereavement leave policy Adoption leave policy Pater nity Leave policy Maternity leave policy Loan policy Working time policy Vacatio n policy Holiday policy Sick leave policy Overtime policy 4. Health and safety H ealth and safety policy Smoking policy Visitor policy Corporate security policy Alcohol and drug policy Discipline policy Computer policy Email policy THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

17 Internet use policy Cell phone policy Grievance policy 5. Employee relations Communication policy Problem resolution policy Personal appearance policy Confli cts of interest policy Recruitment And Selection Recruitment and selection Recruitment and selection is one of key function in HR management. You can ref more information aboutRecruitment and selection by topi c as follows: 1. Recruitment Recruitment methods Recruitment plan Recruitment pr ocess Recruitment forms Recruitment tips Recruitment KPI 2. Employee selection S election process 13 Selection methods Test methods 10 Interview methods Intervie w process Interview forms Over 1000 sample interview questions 3. Hiring Hiring process. Probationary procedure Hiring forms New employee training Induction pro gram Recruitment Methods Recruitment can conduct by 9 methods as follows: 1. Rec ruitment by Campus method Campus is the location of a university, college, or sc hools main buildings. This method is based on recruitment at university, colleges 2. Recruitment by Job centers Job centers often specialize inrecruitment for spe cific sectors. They usually provide a shortlist of candidates based on the peopl e registered with the agency. They also supply temporary or interim employees. 3 . Head hunting. Head hunting are recruitment agents who provide a more specializ ed approach to therecruitment of key employees and/or senior management. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

18 4. Recruitment by Advertisements They can be found in many places such as: Ne wspaper Job posting on job sites Ads on websites related to positions recruited. 5. Database search on job sites. Company can buy data from job websites for a w eek or a month to search candidates. 6. Employee referral This method often refe r to as word of mouth and can be a recommendation from a colleague at work. 7. Con tract staffing. Company can buy staffing contract from HR outsourcing. 8. Word-o f-mouth recruitment 9. Free online ads You can post your recruitment ads at free websites such as forums, blogs 10. Internal recruitment Internal recruitment can conduct by types of: Present permanent employees (based on programs of career d evelopment). Present temporary / casual employees. Retired employees. Dependents of deceased disabled, retired and present employees. Recruitment Plan This is sample example of recruitmentplan 1. Quantity of recruitment Identify nu mber of employee / staff recruited per department Design a table with columns: N o, department, Position, Number ofemployee, date got new employee, remarks 2. De sign of recruitment materials Testing tools for the above positions are availabl e? If not, company should have plan to fulfill above materials Job description o f the above positions are available? 3. Sources of recruitment You should design a table with columns: No, position, channel, budget, who follow?, remark You ca n identify recruitment sources by internal or external What are channels for rec ruitment? You should identify suitable channel for each position. 4. Selection p lan Who receive CVs? and when do? Who review CVs? and when do? Who organize to c heck professional and skills of candidate? and when do? Who interview? and when do? Who make final decision? and when do? You should design a table with columns : No, working contents, who follow, who support, date, remark. 5. Recruitment bu dget Identify what is budget of this recruitment. 6. Notes (if any) Sign: THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

19 Make byHR ManagerCEO Recruitment Process 1. Objectives of recruitment process The recruitment process has the following o bjectives: To ensure that the recruitment is as per the company expectations. (e .g time, skills, etc.,) To attract sufficient applications from potential candid ates with the required skills, qualities, experience, and competencies deemed as being necessary to the job. To develop and maintain processes which will assist in ensuring the appointment of the most suitable candidate. 2. Recruitment Proc ess 2.1. Getting Recruitment Request Need to hire a resource can be due to any o f the following instances: Non-availability of existing resource to fulfill a ne w requirement. Replace an existing resource Vacancy created due to the resignati on of a existing resource Recruitment as backup resource Other reasons as deemed fit by the CEO and Senior Management A recruitment request has the job specific ations detailing the job title, mandatory skills, desired skills, responsibiliti es, location, start date, and approximate end date of the assignment. 2.2. Make recruitment plan Based on recruitment requests, HR dept make recruitment plan an d send to Director for approval. Recruitment plan, including the: Number of empl oyees need to recruit. Job descriptions. Recruitment Sources. Checking Plan for candidates. Budget of recruitment 2.3 Researching of workforce market HR dept ne ed to regularly study the labor market to determine the recruitmentchannels appr opriate to each audience. The following factors need to be considered when study ing the labor market Ability to provide. Time to provide fast or slow. Cost. Sui table audiences. Based on the requirements of recruitment, HR should propose sui table channels. 2.4 Contact recruitment agencies Based on the channel recruitmen t approved, HR dept conduct to contact recruitmentchannels to: Determining costs . Determining when recruitment ads are posted. Conducting procedures with recrui tment agents such as contracts and payment. 2.5 Issue recruitment ads HR dept sh ould: Design recruitment ads. In some cases, it must be sent to director for app roval. Post information to recruiting agents or post to free recruitment channel s. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

20 HR manger should check the information which was posted to ensure conformity with the requirements set out. 2.6 Take care of candidates Candidates often call or email to inquire information of recruitment, and HR dept need to build up in formation channels to answer the requirements of candidates. 2.7 Receiving CVs f rom candidates After receiving CVs, HR dept perform the next step in the process of selecting candidates. Selection Process Selection process include steps from receiving CVs from candidates to interview. Before selection process isrecruitment process. After selection process is hiri ng process. Steps of selection process include: 1. Get CVs from candidates Resum es are obtained from a variety of sources that include extensive database of com pany, internet job boards, job fairs, employee referrals, and direct recruitment All applicants are invited to either e-mail or telephone for finishing applicati on form. 2. Pre-check CVs and make short-list candidates After receiving CVs, HR dept check records of candidates by the standards of the company. Potential app licants are screened via telephone, in order to confirm their relevant skills, e xperience, and availability. After testing is complete, HR dept make a list of p otential candidates to prepare for the test below. For some key positions, you c an a survey to related people of candidate about candidates background. Unqualifi ed CVs should be kept carefully for the next recruitment. 3. Written Exams The f orms of examination can be: English. Computer and internet. Professional knowled ge and skills. For the candidates who have to make test, HR dept associate with line managers build system of questions then moved to director for approval. Pur suant to bank of questions, recruitment staff conducted written exams. 4. Interv iews Interviews are normally conducted by a panel which will include the line ma nager, an HR Representative and perhaps more senior members of the Department or Faculty. In some cases, there may be second or even third interviews. Some inte rviews may need to be conducted by telephone. The interviews include interviews of personnel manager with department heads and interviewed by the director. Befo re each interview, the company must call or send invitation letter to candidates . 5. Hiring decision After the interview is finished, HR dept perform the next s tep is the hiring process. HR dept should send letter of notice to candidates wh o does not meet the requirements. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

21 Selection Methods I/ Selection methods: 1. Interview methods This is most popular methods of selec tion. You can use 10 methods of interview to select candidates. 2. Application F orms and CVs This method is used to review all records of candidates such asAppl ication form, CVs, Certificates 3. References Involves assessment of an individua l by a third party, usually a former work colleagueor boss. 4. Work Sample Work samples involve an individual or group of candidates completing exercises that t hey would be required to undertake as part of the position. 5. Test methods Test methods include Ability testing, Aptitude testing, Personality test 6. Assessmen t Centres Assessment centres provide an opportunity to review and assess the per formance and ability of candidates in a variety of ways including individual and group exercises, case studies, role- plays, and presentations. 7. Presentations method Presentations is a method of recruitment and selection. The applicant is provided with a topic and given a timeframe to deliver a presentation on that t opic. 8. Group discussion Group discussion is a method of recruitment and select ion. It include 3-5 candidateswho discuss about a topic or some ones given by em ployer. 9. Online screening and shortlisting It review, screen candidates s knowl edge, skills by online checking. 10. Biodata With an increase of CVs in internet , applications have become more and more similar so that biodata (biographical d ata) forms have been developed to identify selection of people that are similar to those high performers already in the organization. 11. Informal meetings Info rmal meetings can be used as a way of observing a candidates behavior in a less f ormal environment, such as lunches or morning tea, cafes. 12. Graphology The ess ence of graphology is that analysts claim to be able to describe an individuals p ersonality from a sample of their handwriting. Their theoretical basis is that o f trait psychology, which holds that personality has a number of fixed dimension s which are relatively unchangeable and do not depend on the situation. 13. Astr ology This is a method used mainly in Asia area. II/ Choice of selection method Choice depends on: Practicability: The costs incurred etc. Reliability: Whether the result varies from day-to-day. Validity: Whether the activity measures what is sought. Sensitivity: The measure of differentiation between candidates. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

22 Test Methods 1. Psychometric tests Psychometric means that a mental measure is used. Therefore, psychometric testing covers: 1.1 Ability testing. 1.2 Aptitude testing (over 300 Aptitude test questions) 1.3 Personality test. 2. Knowledge and skills testing These tests are designed to test knowledge and skills of candidates. This method is suitable for workers and staffs not for management positions. 3. Social and economic testing These tests are designed to test social and economic of candida tes. This method is suitable for workers and staffs not for management positions . Psychometric Test 1. What is psychometric tests? This term is often called a me ntal measure. Therefore, psychometric testing covers ability testing, aptitudetes ting and personality testing. Psychometric tests aim to measure attributes like intelligence, aptitudeand personality. 2. Types of psychometric tests 2.1 Abilit y tests. 2.2 Aptitude tests 2.3 Personality tests. 3. Conditions of a psychometr ic test Objective: The score must not affected by the testers beliefs or values. Standardized: It must be administered under controlled conditions. Reliable: It must minimize and quantify any intrinsic errors. Predictive: It must make an acc urate prediction of performance. Non discriminatory: It must not disadvantage an y group on the basis of gender, culture, ethnicity Ability Test 1. What is ability test? Ability is the having inherent physical or mental abili ty or capacity; able to learn ; able to lift This method also called general mental ab ility tests or general intelligence tests. Tips to search more definitions You c an use structures as below for search engines such as: Google, Yahoo, Bing. What is (are) + keyword; define:keyword (no space). We would like to be received you r ideas or other definitions from you and we will update your personal informati on in this post. Thank in advance! 2. Methods of ability test General Aptitude T est Battery (GATB). Ravens Progressive Matrices. Wonderlic Personnel Test. ACER Advanced Tests (eg. AL-AQ, BL-BQ, B40). Aptitude Tests Aptitude tests Aptitude test definition of nde.state.ne.us a test used to predic t future performance in a given activity, intended to predict success in some occ upation or training course (Cronbach, 1984). Cp. achievement test. Aptitude test definition of caps.uss.ualberta.ca THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

23 A standardized test designed to measure a persons skill and/or knowledge in a specific area. This type of test is often used by employers to test potential em ployees on their ability to perform a particular task or tasks that they will be asked to do if hired. (ex. keyboarding skills). Apart from that, you also ref o ver 100 aptitude test questions by topics as follows: 1. Aptitude test questions 2. Career aptitude test 3. Online aptitude test 4. Sales Aptitude Test 5. Examp le aptitude test 6. Sample aptitude test 7. Attitude test 8. Free online aptitud e test 9. Free aptitude test 10. Job aptitude test 11. Verbal ability test 12. G eneral aptitude test Personality Tests 1. What is personality test ? Personality has a significant role to play in deci ding whether candidateshave the enthusiasm and motivation that the employer is l ooking for. Depend on corporate culture and requirements of jobs, candidate must have some personalities to meetrecruitment requirements of employer. 2. Methods of personality tests Numerous models of personality have been suggested eg. Cat tells 16PF; Eysencks EPI; Five-Factor Model. Thus various scales and measures have been developed eg. 16PF; Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI); NEO-PI-R; EPQ-R. 3 . Factors of personality tests a. Extraversion / Surgency sociable, gregarious, active If people who score high on this factor, he/she will works in cooperation with others, are talkative, enthusiastic and seek excitement. If people who sco re low on this factor, he/she can be perceived as cold, difficult to understand, even a bit eccentric. b. Neuroticism /Emotional Stability anxious, depressed, a ngry People who score high on this factor are alert, anxious, sometimes worried. People who score low on this factor are usually calm, relaxed and rational. The y may sometimes be perceived as lazy and incapable of taking things seriously. c . Agreeableness / Like ability courteous, flexible, trusting Those who score hig h on this factor are usually co-operative, can be submissive, and are concerned with the well-being of others. People who score low on this factor may be challe nging, competitive, sometimes even argumentative. d. Conscientiousness careful, thorough, responsible, hard-working People who score high on this factor are usu ally productive and disciplined and single tasking . People who score low on this f actor are often less structured, less productive, but can be more flexible, inve ntive, and capable of multitasking. e. Openness / Intellectance imaginative, cul tured, curious People who score high on this factor are neophile and curious and sometimes unrealistic. People who score low on this factor are down-to-earth an d practical and sometimes obstructive of change. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

24 Interview Process I/ INTERVIEW ROUNDS 1. First-Round Interview The first-round interview is an indepth conversation between HR dept andcandidates to check basic requirements of experience and skills relate to jobspecification. 2. Second interviews This roun d is conducted between line manager, HR manager and candidates to check backgroun d and technical competencies of candidate. 3. Final interview This round usually conduct between director and candidate. This round also include discussion abou t compensations and benefits. II/ INTERVIEW PROCESS: 1. Before the Interview Inf orm interview plan to all participants Prepare all interview forms, equipment, b ook interview room. Determine your options which skills are vital as opposed to convenient. If other people are going to be involved in the interview process, m ake sure they have taken the time to prepare for the interview. Have detailed in formation about the candidate. Each person should have a couple of overlap quest ions to provide insight on the prospective employees responses. Have company info rmation available for candidates. Allow plenty of time for the interview. 2. Dur ing the Interview Interview the person. Tell the candidate what to expect in the hiring process. Tell them your expectations: experience expected, career advanc ement, training, duties the direction the department is headed in. Show the cand idate where they would fit into the organization. Ask questions that are, broad, job-related, objective, meaningful, direct, clear, open-ended, understood & rel ated. Be open and honest with the candidate. Dont talk money. 3. Closing the Inte rview Insure that you and the candidate have concluded on common ground. Review the next steps with a clear and honest timetable (and stick to it). Be friendly and honest to the end of the interview; dont give false encouragement or go into details for rejection. Ask if she/he has any other questions. At the end of the interview, if you are interested in the candidate, let them know. 4. After the I nterview Rate the applicant on a 1-5 scale as a potential employee. Discuss the candidates reaction and interest. Take time to update the next person in the int erview process. Second Interview 1. Purpose of second interview An interviewer c onduct first interviewsto screen candidates based on general qualifications. Fro m the selectedcandidates he or she then applies further screening methods, at a secondinterview, to find out their specific qualities and cultural fits. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

25 In the second interview, the employer is trying to find 1-3 qualified candida tesfrom the shortlist candidates. 2. Interview methods. Second interviews are of ten panel interviews or are a series of several meetings with individuals or sma ll groups. 3. Contents of second interview Focus on experience and skills, not f ocus on knowledge. Salary and benefits 4. Types of interview questions These que stions may be typical tough questions (e.g., why should we hire you? ) or they may involve specifics about technical skills or soft skills (e.g., conflict manageme nt). Final Interview 1. Overview of final interview Interviews are usually condu cted between the recruiting authorities (director) and candidates. A full checki ng records should send to director by HR dept before interviewing. 2. Purpose of final interview Check candidate background at final time. Negotiate salary, com pensations, benefits and other conditions at labor contract. 3. Contents of fina l interview Employers usually check family situation of candidate. Corporate cul ture Benefits of candidates. Salary negotiation Interview Methods 1. What is candidate interview? The interview process is formed through identifi cation of the key requirements of the job and a list of questions is drawn up. A panel of interviewers works through each set of questions with each candidate a nd scores them on their answers. 2. When we use interview? Often acts as the fin al phase of a selection process, after short-listing ofcandidates has occurred. We can use 10 methods of interviews as follows: Unstructured Interviews 1. What is unstructured interview? Unstructured interview are a method of interviews whe re questions can be changed to meet the respondentsintelligence, understanding. I t is designed to use questions based on the candidates responses. Unlike a struct ured interview they do not offer a limited, pre-set range of answers for a respo ndent to choose. 2. Advantages of unstructured interviews Unstructured interview s are good in the initial stages of the project as they provide a general unders tanding of the problem. Permit full exploration of ideals and beliefs. It is mor e like a conversation and the interviewee is relaxed. 3. Disadvantages of unstru ctured interviews The information from the expert may be vast and too unrelated for the engineer to unravel. There is a temptation on the part of the expert to discuss more unusual and different areas that he/she deals with, whereas the pri mary purpose of the interview is to concentrate on the central issues. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

26 They also tend to be time consuming and difficult to analyze, so it is usual to move to a structured interview or special method once the knowledge engineer is reasonably sure of his/her ground. Attention not focused on a given issue. Ve ry little factual information is provided. Less details provided on general conc epts and objects. Structured interview 1. What is structured interview? The inte rviewer has a standard set / sequence of questions that are asked of all candida tes. Interviewers read the questions exactly as they appear on the surveyquestio nnaire. The choice of answers to the questions is often fixed (close-ended) in a dvance, though open-ended questions can also be included within a structured int erview. This makes it easier for the interviewer to evaluate and compare candida tes fairly. 2. Purposes of structured interview The aim of this approach is to e nsure that each interviewee is presented with exactly the same questions in the same order. This ensures that answers can be reliably aggregated and that compar isons can be made with confidence between sample subgroups or between different survey periods. 3. Contents of structured interview Instructions to conduct comp rehensive and consistent interviews to ensure the best person is hired. Basic en try level test with answer key and scoring sheets. Interview questions specifica lly for health care mechanics. Job descriptions for three levels of health care maintenance work. Evaluation matrix to score each potential candidate. 4. Advant ages of structured interview Provides insight into declarative knowledge used. S tudy of one concept can lead to the definition of other unknown related concepts . Maintains a focus on a given issue. Provides detailed information on the issue . Provides structural relationships of concepts. 5. Disadvantages of structured interview Concepts unrelated to the interviews focus may not be found. You must be secure in your understanding of the important issues to direct the interview. Provides only weak insight into procedural knowledge such as rules or problem-s Screening Interview 1. What is screening interview? Screening olving strategies. interviews are generallyconducted when an employer has a large applicants which they want to narrow down to a more manageable number. The screening interview i s usually the first formal step in the interviewprocess. 2. How to conduct scree ning interview? Screening interviews are usually done by Phone interview Face-to -face interview Chat interview 3. Characteristic of screening interview Tend to be very short. Questions will focus on basic qualifications. These interviews ar e usually quick, efficient. These interviews save time and money by eliminating unqualified candidates. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

27 4. Results of screening interview Interviewer should ask questions about key requirements to candidates. Output of screening interview is a short list of qua lified candidates. Behavioral Interview Behavioral Interview: 1. What is behavio ral interview? In behavioral interviews, candidatesare asked to explain their sk ills, experience, activities etc as examples of your past behavior. 2. Purpose o f behavioral interview The purpose of this type of interview is to predict futur e based on pastexperiences. Standard interviews typically have a 10% predictive value in predicting the future success of an applicant 3. Sample behavioral inte rview questions Describe the project or situation which best demonstrates your a nalytical abilities. What was your role? Give a specific example of a time when you had to address an angry customer. What was the problem and what was the outc ome? Describe a situation in which you were able to effectively read another perso n and guide your actions by your understanding of their individual needs or valu es. Discuss an important decision you have made regarding a task or project at w ork. What factors influenced your decision? Have you ever been caught unaware by a problem or obstacles that you had not foreseen? What happened? Have you ever been in a situation where you had to settle an argument between two friends (or people you knew)? What did you do? What was the result? Describe a situation in which you were able to use persuasion to successfully convince someone to see th ings your way. Did you have a strategic plan? How was it developed? How did you communicate it to the rest of your staff? Describe a situation when you had to e xercise a significant amount of self-control. Stress Interview 1. What is stress interview? The stress interview is designed to find applicants who can handle s tress, and handle it well. 2. Why we use stress interview? For some position, jo bholder have to work under high pressure so that employer need checking this abi lity of candidate. 3. How to conduct stress interview? The interviewer may try t o stresscandidates in one of several ways such as: Disagreement Conflict Contrad ictions Argument Hostility Pressure Aggression and intimidation Criticism THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

28 Situational Interview 1. What is a situational interview? A situational inter view utilizes hypothetical events in the form of a question. Candidates are aske d how they would react if they encountered that event. This type of interview is most often used with college graduates who do not have as much past work experi ence. In situational interviewing, job-seekers are asked to respond to a specifi c situation they may face on the job, and some aspects of it are similar to beha vioral interviews. 2. Benefits of situational interview This method will help em ployer check: Analytical skill. Problem-solving skill. Situation-solving skill 3. Relationship of situational interview and behavioral interview Situational inte rviews are similar to behavioral interviews, except while behavioral focus on a past experience, situational interviews focus on a hypothetical situation. For e xample In a behavioral interview, the interviewer might ask a question with, Tell me about a time you had to deal with . In a situational interview, the interviewer asks, How would you solve . Phone Interview 1. What is phone interview? Phone inter view is a method which is conducted by telephone. 2. When phone interviews is us ed? Most screening interviews are done by phone interview. A phone interview is also used whencandidates reside in other countries. 3. What phone interviews sho uld dos ? Be well prepared. Use a land line to avoid the possibility of a cell ph one call being dropped or poor reception. Ask family members and friends not to disturb you during the interview. Show enthusiasm. Remember that you do not have the advantage of interview body language. Switch your mobile phone off. Switch your computer speaker off. Speak normally or a notch slower. Make sure there is no background music. Switch the front bell off (if you can). Make a list of thin gs to say and of your strengths and keep them handy. Practice a phone interview with a friend. 4. What phone interviews should dont? Never conduct a phone interv iew in your car you need to focus all your attention onthe interview. Conduct th e interview in a quiet private area. No eating, surfing the web, I/M or text mes saging during the phone interview Avoid distractions and focus on the interview. Do not smoke, chew gum or drink tea during the interview. Avoid salary discussi ons in a phone interview. Face To Face Interview THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

29 1. What is face to face interview or one to one interview? Face to Face inter view (one to one interview) is most common interview method and just involves in terviewer and interviewee alone in a private office. This is also known traditio nal interview in which job seekers meet the employers in face to face. 2. Advant ages of face to face interview Interviewer and candidates can easily display the ir point of view comfortably. Suitable for low-level candidates. 3. Disadvantage s of face to face interview Candidates take a long time because they must partic ipate in several differentinterviews. Group Interview 1. What is group interview ? All the candidates/job seekers will be in the same room during the interview. 2. Topics of group interview: Leadership qualities. Communication with possible team mates. How the candidate will face the public and customers. What level of knowledge candidateshave. How knowledge is used in a discussion. 3. Remarks to group interviews: Show your opinion but let the other candidates speak. Ignore a ny candidates who are too aggressive or make any personal remarks. Try to avoid getting in one to one conversations. It is always a good idea to have the final statement in a group interview. 4. Output of group interviews: One or two candid ates will be chosen. one to one interview should be conducted in next step. Pane l Interview 1. What is panel interview? A panel interview is a technique that al lows several member of a hiring company to interview a interviewee at the same t ime. A panel interview include a committeeinterview and one interviewee 2. Who a re members of interview team? Hiring manager Line managers Department heads Mana gers Clients HR personnel Stakeholder representatives 3. Conditions of panel inte rviews One interviewer should be the leader, and everyone else is in a support p osition. The panel should include no more than three or four people All member o f interview committee must ask question. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

30 4. Advantages of panel interviews You dont make instant judgments about the qu ality of an answer while the candidate is answering because others are asking fo r clarifying information. Its a great way for subordinates to meet the candidate without the typical awkwardness. Theyre more objective since there is less person al interaction. Its hard to chit-chat during a panel interview. You have a chance to think more about the candidates responses since youre not the only one asking questions. With a panel interview, youll also see more of the candidates true pers onality, especially if most of the follow-up questions are about how accomplishm ents were achieved. It saves time. It only takes three or four people one to two hours to conduct a complete interview versus a whole day. The assessment is mor e accurate and consistent. Since everyone is using the same information to make an assessment, consistency is achieved. It allows weaker interviewers to be invo lved. This is especially important if the weaker interviewer is the hiring manag er. 5. Disadvantages of panel interviews It is often time consuming and difficul t to get the panel together and this delays the hiring process. It can be an exp ensive exercise. You may find it difficult to reach consensus on the hiring deci sion due to different views and approaches. 4. Interview purposes a. For candida tes: An opportunity to convince the employer of your potential. An opportunity t o find out more about the job and the company. An opportunity to expand on the i nformation in application form or resume. b. For the employer: A means to assess your abilities in relation to the requirements of the position, Have you got wha t they want? . An opportunity to discuss your training, experience, knowledge and abilities in more detail. An opportunity to see what drives and motivates you an d to determine whether you will be able to fit in with both the team and the com pany as a whole. Orientation and Placement Once the candidates are selected for the required job, they have to be fitted as per the qualifications. Placement is said to be the process of fitting the sele cted person at the right job or place, i.e. fitting square pegs in square holes and round pegs in round holes. Once he is fitted into the job, he is given the a ctivities he has to perform and also told about his duties. The freshly appointe d candidates are then given orientation in order to familiarize and introduce th e company to him. Generally the information given during the orientation program me includes Employees layout Type of organizational structure Departmental goals O rganizational layout General rules and regulations THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

31 Standing Orders Grievance system or procedure In short, during Orientation em ployees are made aware about the mission and vision of the organization, the nat ure of operation of the organization, policies and programmes of the organizatio n. The main aim of conducting Orientation is to build up confidence, morale and trust of the employee in the new organization, so that he becomes a productive a nd an efficient employee of the organization and contributes to the organization al success. The nature of Orientation program varies with the organizational siz e, i.e., smaller the organization the more informal is the Orientation and large r the organization more formalized is the Orientation programme. Proper Placemen t of employees will lower the chances of employees absenteeism. The employees wil l be more satisfied and contended with their work. Training of Employees Need and Importance of Training Training of employees takes place after orientat ion takes place. Training is the process of enhancing the skills, capabilities a nd knowledge of employees for doing a particular job. Training process moulds th e thinking of employees and leads to quality performance of employees. It is con tinuous and never ending in nature. Importance of Training Training is crucial f or organizational development and success. It is fruitful to both employers and employees of an organization. An employee will become more efficient and product ive if he is trained well. Training is given on four basic grounds: New candidat es who join an organization are given training. This training familiarize them w ith the organizational mission, vision, rules and regulations and the working co nditions. The existing employees are trained to refresh and enhance their knowle dge. If any updations and amendments take place in technology, training is given to cope up with those changes. For instance, purchasing a new equipment, change s in technique of production, computer implantment. The employees are trained ab out use of new equipments and work methods. When promotion and career growth bec omes important. Training is given so that employees are prepared to share the re sponsibilities of the higher level job. The benefits of training can be summed u p as: THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

32 Improves morale of employees- Training helps the employee to get job security and job satisfaction. The more satisfied the employee is and the greater is his morale, the more he will contribute to organizational success and the lesser wi ll be employee absenteeism and turnover. Less supervision- A well trained employ ee will be well acquainted with the job and will need less of supervision. Thus, there will be less wastage of time and efforts. Fewer accidents- Errors are lik ely to occur if the employees lack knowledge and skills required for doing a par ticular job. The more trained an employee is, the less are the chances of commit ting accidents in job and the more proficient the employee becomes. Chances of p romotion- Employees acquire skills and efficiency during training. They become m ore eligible for promotion. They become an asset for the organization. Increased productivity- Training improves efficiency and productivity of employees. Well trained employees show both quantity and quality performance. There is less wast age of time, money and resources if employees are properly trained. Employee Training - Benefits and Steps in Employee Training Programme Training implies enhancing the skills and knowledge of the employees for perform ing a specific job. Training tries to improve employees performance in current jo b and prepares them for future job. The crucial consequence of training is learn ing. Objectives of Employee Training Programmes To prepare employees to meet the varying and challenging needs of the job and organization To provide knowledge and skills to new entrants and to help them to perform their role and job well. To coach employees for more complex and higher level jobs. To educate employees new and innovative ways and techniques of performing job. Benefits of Trained Em ployees Training is a significant tool for employee development. Training has as sumed great importance because of exceptional rate of change in the internal and external organizational environment. The importance/benefits of trained personn el towards organizational development are as follows Trained employees do not req uire tight control and supervision as they are well aware of how to perform a jo b. Trained employees can show higher performance by making optimum and best util ization of the materials, tools, equipments and other resources provided to them . Trained employees minimize wastages of resources in the organization and work both efficiently and effectively. Training makes employees more committed to an organization as the employees are provided with growth, advancement and learning opportunities. Training develops a line of proficient and skilled managers as i t prepares employees for complex and higher level tasks. Trained employees adjus t to the job better and there are fewer rates of absenteeism and turnover. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

33 Trained employees produce quality and quantity output. Trained employees enab le the organization to face competition from rival firms. Trained employees can respond and adapt to the changing technology well. Trained employees become more proficient and, thus, their earning potential increase. Steps in Employee Training Programme Training programme involves the following steps: Identifying the training needsThe training needs of each employee should be identified. Programmes should be developed that are best suited to their needs. Prepare the trainer- The trainer must do his home work well. He should know both what to teach and how to teach. Time management is required by the trainer. Training should be delivered in such a manner that the trainee should not loose the interest in the job. Prepare the trainee- The trainee should remain active during training. He should know that why is he being trained. He should put across the trainer questions and doubts. The trainee should be put at ease during the training programme. Explain and dem onstrate the operations- The trainer should explain the logical sequence of the job. The trainee should perform the job systematically and explain the complete job he is performing. His mistakes should be rectified and the complex step shou ld be done for him once. When the trainee demonstrates that he can do the job in right manner, he is left to himself. Through repetitive practices, the trainee acquires more skill. Follow up and feedback- The trainee should be given feedbac k on how well he performed the job. He should be asked to give a feedback on the effectiveness of training programme. Methods of Training Ways/Methods of Training Training is generally imparted in two ways: On the job training- On the job training methods are those which are given to the employees within the everyday working of a concern. It is a simple and cost-effective tra ining method. The inproficient as well as semi- proficient employees can be well trained by using such training method. The employees are trained in actual work ing scenario. The motto of such training is learning by doing. Instances of such o n-job training methods are job-rotation, coaching, temporary promotions, etc. Off the job training- Off the job training methods are those in which training i s provided away from the actual working condition. It is generally used in case of new employees. Instances of off the job training methods are workshops, semin ars, conferences, etc. Such method is costly and is effective if and only if lar ge number of employees have to be trained within a short time period. Off the jo b training is also called as vestibule training,i.e., the employees are trained in a separate area( may be a THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

34 hall, entrance, reception area,etc. known as a vestibule) where the actual wo rking conditions are duplicated. There are various methods of training, which can be divided in to cognitive and behavioral methods. Trainers need to understand the pros and cons of each method , also its impact on trainees keeping their background and skills in mind before giving training. Cognitive methods are more of giving theoretical training to t he trainees. The various methods under Cognitive approach provide the rules for how to do something, written or verbal information, demonstrate relationships am ong concepts, etc. These methods are associated with changes in knowledge and at titude by stimulating learning. The various methods that come under Cognitive ap proach are: LECTURES DEMONSTRATIONS DISCUSSIONS COMPUTER BASED TRAINING (CBT) o o o INTELLEGENT TUTORIAL SYSTEM(ITS) PROGRAMMED INSTRUCTION (PI) VIRTUAL REALITY Behavioral methods are more of giving practical training to the trainees. The va rious methods under Behavioral approach allow the trainee to behavior in a real fashion. These methods are best used for skill development. The various methods that come under Behavioral approach are: GAMES AND SIMULATIONS o o o o o o BEHAVIOR-MODELING BUSINESS GAMES CASE STUDIES EQUIPMENT STIMULATORS IN-BASKET TE CHNIQUE ROLE PLAYS THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

35 Both the methods can be used effectively to change attitudes, but through differ ent means. Another Method is MANAGEMENT DEVELOPMENT METHOD MANAGEMENT DEVELOPMEN T The more future oriented method and more concerned with education of the emplo yees. To become a better performer by education implies that management developm ent activities attempt to instill sound reasoning processes. Management developm ent method is further divided into two parts: ON THE JOB TRAINING The developmen t of a manager's abilities can take place on the job. The four techniques for on the job development are: COACHING MENTORING JOB ROTATION JOB INSTRUCTION TECHNI QUE (JIT) OFF THE JOB TRAINING There are many management development techniques that an employee can take in off the job. The few popular methods are: SENSITIVITY TRAINING TRANSACTIONAL ANALYSIS STRAIGHT LECTURES/ LECTURES SIMULATI ON EXERCISES Employee Remuneration Employee Remuneration refers to the reward or compensation given to the employee s for their work performances. Remuneration provides basic attraction to a emplo yee to perform job efficiently and effectively. Remuneration leads to employee m otivation. Salaries constitutes an important source of income for employees and determine their standard of living. Salaries effect the employees productivity a nd work performance. Thus the amount and method of remuneration are very importa nt for both management and employees. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

36 There are mainly two types of Employee Remuneration 1. Time Rate Method 2. Pi ece Rate Method These methods of employee remuneration are explained below in de tail Methods of Employee Remuneration Time Rate Method: Under time rate system, remuneration is directly linked with the time spent or devoted by an employee on the job. The employees are paid a fixed pre-decided amount hourly, daily, weekl y or monthly irrespective of their output. It is a very simple method of remuner ation. It leads to minimum wastage of resources and lesser chances of accidents. Time Rate method leads to quality output and this method is very beneficial to new employees as they can learn their work without any reduction in their salari es. This method encourages employees unity as employees of a particular group/ca dre get equal salaries.There are some drawbacks of Time Rate Method, such as, it leads to tight supervision, indefinite employee cost, lesser efficiency of empl oyees as there is no distinction made between efficient and inefficient employee s, and lesser morale of employees.Time rate system is more suitable where the wo rk is non-repetitive in nature and emphasis is more on quality output rather tha n quantity output. Piece Rate Method: It is a method of compensation in which re muneration is paid on the basis of units or pieces produced by an employee. In t his system emphasis is more on quantity output rather than quality output. Under this system the determination of employee cost per unit is not difficult becaus e salaries differ with output. There is less supervision required under this met hod and hence the per unit cost of production is low. This system improves the m orale of the employees as the salaries are directly related with their work effo rts. There is greater work-efficiency in this method. There are some drawbacks o f this method, such as, it is not easily computable, leads to deterioration in w ork quality, wastage of resources, lesser unity of employees, higher cost of pro duction and insecurity among the employees. Piece rate system is more suitable w here the nature of work is repetitive and quantity is emphasized more than quali ty. Job Analysis - Job Description and Job Specification Job analysis is primary tool in personnel management. In this method, a personne l manager tries to gather, synthesize and implement the information available re garding the workforce in the concern. A personnel manager has to undertake job a nalysis so as to put right man on right job. There are two outcomes of job analy sis : Job description Job specification The information collected under job anal ysis is : THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

37 Nature of jobs required in a concern. Nature/ size of organizational structur e. Type of people required to fit that structure. The relationship of the job wi th other jobs in the concern. Kind of qualifications and academic background req uired for jobs. Provision of physical condition to support the activities of the concern. For example- separate cabins for managers, special cabins for the supe rvisors, healthy condition for workers, adequate store room for store keeper. Ad vantages of Job Analysis Job analysis helps the personnel manager at the time of recruitment and selection of right man on right job. It helps him to understand extent and scope of training required in that field. It helps in evaluating the job in which the worth of the job has to be evaluated. In those instances where smooth work force is required in concern. When he has to avoid overlapping of a uthority- responsibility relationship so that distortion in chain of command doe snt exist. It also helps to chalk out the compensation plans for the employees. t also helps the personnel manager to undertake performance appraisal effectivel y in a concern. A personnel manger carries job analysis in two ways : Job descri ption and Job specification

JOB DESCRIPTION is an organized factual statement of job contents in the form of duties and responsibilities of a specific job. The preparation of job descripti on is very important before a vacancy is advertised. It tells in brief the natur e and type of job. This type of document is descriptive in nature and it constit utes all those facts which are related to a job such as : Title/ Designation of job and location in the concern. The nature of duties and operations to be perfo rmed in that job. The nature of authority- responsibility relationships. Necessa ry qualifications that are required for job. Relationship of that job with other jobs in a concern. The provision of physical and working condition or the work environment required in performance of that job. Advantages of Job Description It helps the supervisors in assigning work to the subordinates so that he can guide and monitor their performances. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

38 It helps in recruitment and selection procedures. It assists in manpower plan ning. It is also helpful in performance appraisal. It is helpful in job evaluati on in order to decide about rate of remuneration for a specific job. It also hel ps in chalking out training and development programmes.

JOB SPECIFICATION is a statement which tells us minimum acceptable human qualiti es which helps to perform a job. Job specification translates the job descriptio n into human qualifications so that a job can be performed in a better manner. J ob specification helps in hiring an appropriate person for an appropriate positi on. The contents are : Job title and designation Educational qualifications for that title Physical and other related attributes Physique and mental health Spec ial attributes and abilities Maturity and dependability Relationship of that job with other jobs in a concern. Advantages of Job Specification It is helpful in preliminary screening in the se lection procedure. It helps in giving due justification to each job. It also hel ps in designing training and development programmes. It helps the supervisors fo r counseling and monitoring performance of employees. It helps in job evaluation . It helps the management to take decisions regarding promotion, transfers and g iving extra benefits to the employees. From the above advantages, we can justify the importance of job analysis and its related products. Both job description as well as job specification are importan t for personnel manager in personnel management function. Therefore, job analysi s is considered to be the primary tool of personnel management. Job Evaluation Job evaluation is a process of determining the relative worth of a job. It is a process which is helpful even for framing compensation plans by the personnel ma nager. Job evaluation as a process is advantageous to a company in many ways: Re duction in inequalities in salary structure - It is found that people and their motivation is dependent upon how well they are being paid. Therefore the main ob jective of job evaluation is to have external and internal consistency in salary structure so that inequalities in salaries are reduced. Specialization - Becaus e of division of labour and thereby specialization, a large number of enterprise s have got hundred jobs and many employees to perform them. Therefore, an attemp t should be made to define a job and thereby fix salaries for it. This is possib le only through job evaluation. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

39 Helps in selection of employees - The job evaluation information can be helpf ul at the time of selection of candidates. The factors that are determined for j ob evaluation can be taken into account while selecting the employees. Harmoniou s relationship between employees and manager - Through job evaluation, harmoniou s and congenial relations can be maintained between employees and management, so that all kinds of salaries controversies can be minimized. Standardization - Th e process of determining the salary differentials for different jobs become stan dardized through job evaluation. This helps in bringing uniformity into salary s tructure. Relevance of new jobs - Through job evaluation, one can understand the relative value of new jobs in a concern. According to Kimball and Kimball, Job e valuation represents an effort to determine the relative value of every job in a plant and to determine what the fair basic wage for such a job should be. Thus, job evaluation is different from performance appraisal. In job evaluation, worth of a job is calculated while in performance appraisal, the worth of employee is rated. Performance Appraisal Performance Appraisal is the systematic evaluation of the performance of employe es and to understand the abilities of a person for further growth and developmen t. Performance appraisal is generally done in systematic ways which are as follo ws: The supervisors measure the pay of employees and compare it with targets and plans. The supervisor analyses the factors behind work performances of employee s. The employers are in position to guide the employees for a better performance . Objectives of Performance Appraisal Performance Appraisal can be done with fol lowing objectives in mind: To maintain records in order to determine compensatio n packages, wage structure, salaries raises, etc. To identify the strengths and weaknesses of employees to place right men on right job. To maintain and assess the potential present in a person for further growth and development. To provide a feedback to employees regarding their performance and related status. To prov ide a feedback to employees regarding their performance and related status. It s erves as a basis for influencing working habits of the employees. To review and retain the promotional and other training programmes. Advantages of Performance Appraisal It is said that performance appraisal is an investment for the company which can be justified by following advantages: THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

40 Promotion: Performance Appraisal helps the supervisors to chalk out the promo tion programmes for efficient employees. In this regards, inefficient workers ca n be dismissed or demoted in case. Compensation: Performance Appraisal helps in chalking out compensation packages for employees. Merit rating is possible throu gh performance appraisal. Performance Appraisal tries to give worth to a perform ance. Compensation packages which includes bonus, high salary rates, extra benef its, allowances and pre-requisites are dependent on performance appraisal. The c riteria should be merit rather than seniority. Employees Development: The system atic procedure of performance appraisal helps the supervisors to frame training policies and programmes. It helps to analyse strengths and weaknesses of employe es so that new jobs can be designed for efficient employees. It also helps in fr aming future development programmes. Selection Validation: Performance Appraisal helps the supervisors to understand the validity and importance of the selectio n procedure. The supervisors come to know the validity and thereby the strengths and weaknesses of selection procedure. Future changes in selection methods can be made in this regard. Communication: For an organization, effective communicat ion between employees and employers is very important. Through performance appra isal, communication can be sought for in the following ways: Through performance appraisal, the employers can understand and accept skills of subordinates. The subordinates can also understand and create a trust and confidence in superiors. It also helps in maintaining cordial and congenial labour management relationsh ip. It develops the spirit of work and boosts the morale of employees. All the a bove factors ensure effective communication. Motivation: Performance appraisal s erves as a motivation tool. Through evaluating performance of employees, a perso ns efficiency can be determined if the targets are achieved. This very well motiv ates a person for better job and helps him to improve his performance in the fut ure. Performance Appraisal Tools and Techniques Following are the tools used by the organizations for Performance Appraisals of their employees. Ranking Method Paired Comparison Forced Distribution Confidenti al Report Essay Evaluation Critical Incident Checklists THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

41 Graphic Rating Scale BARS Forced Choice Method MBO Field Review Technique Per formance Test We will be discussing the important performance appraisal tools an d techniques in detail. Ranking Method The ranking system requires the rater to rank his subordinates on overall performance. This consists in simply putting a man in a rank order. Under this method, the ranking of an employee in a work gro up is done against that of another employee. The relative position of each emplo yee is tested in terms of his numerical rank. It may also be done by ranking a p erson on his job performance against another member of the competitive group. Ad vantages of Ranking Method Employees are ranked according to their performance l evels. It is easier to rank the best and the worst employee. Limitations of Rank ing Method The whole man is compared with another whole man in this method. In pract ice, it is very difficult to compare individuals possessing various individual t raits. This method speaks only of the position where an employee stands in his g roup. It does not test anything about how much better or how much worse an emplo yee is when compared to another employee. When a large number of employees are w orking, ranking of individuals become a difficult issue. There is no systematic procedure for ranking individuals in the organization. The ranking system does n ot eliminate the possibility of snap judgements. Forced Distribution method This is a ranking technique where raters are required to allocate a certain percenta ge of rates to certain categories (eg: superior, above average, average) or perc entiles (eg: top 10 percent, bottom 20 percent etc). Both the number of categori es and percentage of employees to be allotted to each category are a function of performance appraisal design and format. The workers of outstanding merit may b e placed at top 10 percent of the scale, the rest may be placed as 20 % good, 40 % outstanding, 20 % fair and 10 % fair. Advantages of Forced Distribution This method tends to eliminate raters bias THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

42 By forcing the distribution according to pre-determined percentages, the prob lem of making use of different raters with different scales is avoided. Limitati ons of Forced Distribution The limitation of using this method in salary adminis tration, however, is that it may lead low morale, low productivity and high abse nteeism. Employees who feel that they are productive, but find themselves in low er grade(than expected) feel frustrated and exhibit over a period of time reluct ance to work. Critical Incident techniques Under this method, the manager prepar es lists of statements of very effective and ineffective behaviour of an employe e. These critical incidents or events represent the outstanding or poor behaviou r of employees or the job. The manager maintains logs of each employee, whereby he periodically records critical incidents of the workers behaviour. At the end of the rating period, these recorded critical incidents are used in the evaluati on of the workers performance. Example of a good critical incident of a Customer Relations Officer is : March 12 - The Officer patiently attended to a customers complaint. He was very polite and prompt in attending the customers problem. Adv antages of Critical Incident techniques This method provides an objective basis for conducting a thorough discussion of an employees performance. This method av oids recency bias (most recent incidents are too much emphasized) Limitations of Critical Incident techniques Negative incidents may be more noticeable than pos itive incidents. The supervisors have a tendency to unload a series of complaint s about the incidents during an annual performance review sessions. It results i n very close supervision which may not be liked by an employee. The recording of incidents may be a chore for the manager concerned, who may be too busy or may forget to do it. Checklists and Weighted Checklists In this system, a large numb er of statements that describe a specific job are given. Each statement has a we ight or scale value attached to it. While rating an employee the supervisor chec ks all those statements that most closely describe the behaviour of the individu al under assessment. The rating sheet is then scored by averaging the weights of all the statements checked by the rater. A checklist is constructed for each jo b by having persons who are quite familiar with the jobs. These statements are t hen categorized by the judges and weights are assigned to the statements in acco rdance with the value attached by the judges. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

43 Advantages of Checklists and Weighted Checklists Most frequently used method in evaluation of the employees performance. Limitations of Checklists and Weight ed Checklists This method is very expensive and time consuming Rater may be bias ed in distinguishing the positive and negative questions. It becomes difficult f or the manager to assemble, analyze and weigh a number of statements about the e mployees characteristics, contributions and behaviours. Performance Appraisal Biases Managers commit mistakes while evaluating employees and their performance. Biase s and judgment errors of various kinds may spoil the performance appraisal proce ss. Bias here refers to inaccurate distortion of a measurement. These are: First Impression (primacy effect): Raters form an overall impression about the ratee on the basis of some particluar characteristics of the ratee identified by them. The identified qualities and features may not provide adequate base for apprais al. Halo Effect: The individuals performance is completely appraised on the basis of a perceived positive quality, feature or trait. In other words this is the t endency to rate a man uniformly high or low in other traits if he is extra-ordin arily high or low in one particular trait. If a worker has few absences, his sup ervisor might give him a high rating in all other areas of work. Horn Effect: Th e individuals performance is completely appraised on the basis of a negative qual ity or feature perceived. This results in an overall lower rating than may be wa rranted. He is not formally dressed up in the office. He may be casual at work to o! . Excessive Stiffness or Lenience: Depending upon the raters own standards, val ues and physical and mental makeup at the time of appraisal, ratees may be rated very strictly or leniently. Some of the managers are likely to take the line of least resistance and rate people high, whereas others, by nature, believe in th e tyranny of exact assessment, considering more particularly the drawbacks of th e individual and thus making the assessment excessively severe. The leniency err or can render a system ineffective. If everyone is to be rated high, the system has not done anything to differentiate among the employees. Central Tendency: Ap praisers rate all employees as average performers. That is, it is an attitude to rate people as neither high nor low and follow the middle path. For example, a professor, with a view to play it safe, might give a class grade near the equal to B, regardless of the differences in individual performances. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

44 Personal Biases: The way a supervisor feels about each of the individuals wor king under him - whether he likes or dislikes them - as a tremendous effect on t he rating of their performances. Personal Bias can stem from various sources as a result of information obtained from colleagues, considerations of faith and th inking, social and family background and so on. Spillover Effect: The present pe rformance is evaluated much on the basis of past performance. The person who was a good performer in distant past is assured to be okay at present also . Recency E ffect: Rating is influenced by the most recent behaviour ignoring the commonly d emonstrated behaviours during the entire appraisal period. 360 Degree Feedback 360 degree feedback is also known as multi-rater feedback or multi-dimensional f eedback or multi-source feedback. It is a very good means of improving an indivi duals effectiveness (as a leader and as a manager). It is a system by which an in dividual gets a comprehensive/collective feedback from his superiors, subordinat es, peers/co-workers, customers and various other members with whom he interacts . The feedback form is in a questionnaire format, which contains questions that are significant to both individual as well as organization from performance aspe ct. It is filled by anonymous people. The number of people from whom feedback is taken can range from 6 - 20. The individuals own feedback is also taken, i.e., h e self-rates himself and then his rating is compared with other individuals rati ngs. Self ratings compel the individual to sit down and think about his own stre ngths and weaknesses. The primary aim of a 360 degree feedback is to assist an i ndividual to identify his strengths and build upon them, to recognize priority f ields of improvement, to encourage communication and peoples participation at all levels in an organization, to examine the acceptance of any change by the emplo yees in an organization and to promote self-development in an individual. It mus t be noted that the assessment of individual by other people is subjective. A 36 0-degree feedback is challenging, promoting and analytical. It should not be reg arded as ultimate and concluding. It is a beginning point. Self-assessment is an ongoing process. 360 degree feedback provides a comprehensive view of the skill s and competencies of the individual as a manager or as a leader. The individual gets a feedback on how other people perceive and assess him as an employee. 360 degree feedback is beneficial to both an individual as well as organization. It leads to pooling of information between individual and other organizational mem bers. It encourages teamwork as there is full involvement of all the top manager s and other individuals in the organization. It stresses upon internal customer satisfaction. It develops an environment of continuous learning in an organizati on. Based on a 360 degree feedback, the individual goals and the group goals can be correlated to the organizational strategy, i.e., the individual and the grou p can synchronize their goals with the organizational goals. The feedback must be confidential so as to ensure its reliability and legitimacy. The feedback must be accepted with positivity and an open-mind. The effectivene ss of the feedback must be evaluated and analyzed on a regular basis. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

45 360 Degree Feedback - Advantages & Pre-requisites Advantages of 360 Degree Fe edback It is an effective medium for improving customer service and the inputs qu ality to the internal customers. It encourages participation of all and thus mak es HR decisions more qualitative. It pinpoints the favoritism and biases of the supervisors present in conventional appraisal systems. The employees find 360 degree feedback more acceptable than the traditional feed back approaches. traits. 360 degree feedback is more impartial and objective tha n a one-to-one assessment of employee It concentrates and stresses upon internal customer satisfaction. It broadens the scope for employees to get various says for enhancing their job role, performance, and views. It can act as a supplement and not replacement to the conventional appraisal system. It can be motivating for the employees who un dervalue themselves. It encourages teamwork. It is more credible as various peop le give almost same feedback from various sources. It brings into limelight the areas of employee development as it confirms the em ployee strengths and identifies his weaknesses on which he can work upon. It cre ates an environment of trust and loyalty in an organization. Basics and Pre-requisites of 360 Degree Approach It is essential that an organiz ation should be prepared for 360 Degree feedback. Not only the organization, but also the candidate (the employee) should be prepared for accepting it. Followin g are the essentials of an organizations preparedness for the 360 degree approach - The top level management must be keen to spend their time and efforts in giving feedback to their subordinates. Status and ego issues shouldnt overwhelm in the organization. The subordinates and the peer both should assess and analyze the top-level manag ers and the toplevel management should be open to accept their feedback. Everyon e in the organization should take the feedback considerately and constructively and utilize it for their development. Ethics and moral values should be predomin ant in the organization. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

46 The organization should encourage teamwork. There should be self- learning in the organization, especially for the managers. The personnel department of the organization should be highly credible. There should be no politics in the organ ization. Everyone in the organization should take the feedback seriously and should make an attempt to benefit from the same. It must be ensured that the feedback is con fidential. Following are the essentials of analyzing the candidates (employees) preparedness for the 360 degree approach- The employee should have an intention to be better. The employee should be open to accept the feedback and should respect the views of others. The employee should have a competitive feeling. The employee should b e keen in knowing the viewpoints of others towards him. The employee should alwa ys learn on the job. Employee Grievance - Effective Ways of Handling Grievance Grievance may be any genuine or imaginary feeling of dissatisfaction or injustic e which an employee experiences about his job and its nature, about the managemen t policies and procedures. It must be expressed by the employee and brought to t he notice of the management and the organization. Grievances take the form of co llective disputes when they are not resolved. Also they will then lower the mora le and efficiency of the employees. Unattended grievances result in frustration, dissatisfaction, low productivity, lack of interest in work, absenteeism, etc. In short, grievance arises when employees expectations are not fulfilled from the organization as a result of which a feeling of discontentment and dissatisfacti on arises. This dissatisfaction must crop up from employment issues and not from personal issues. Grievance may result from the following factorsImproper workin g conditions such as strict production standards, unsafe workplace, bad relation with managers, etc. Irrational management policies such as overtime, transfers, demotions, inappropriate salary structure, etc. Violation of organizational rul es and practices The manager should immediately identify all grievances and must take appropriate steps to eliminate the causes of such grievances so that the e mployees remain loyal and committed to their work. Effective grievance managemen t is an essential part of personnel management. The managers should adopt the fo llowing approach to manage grievance effectivelyTHE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

47 Quick action- As soon as the grievance arises, it should be identified and re solved. Training must be given to the managers to effectively and timely manage a grievance. This will lower the detrimental effects of grievance on the employe es and their performance. Acknowledging grievance- The manager must acknowledge the grievance put forward by the employee as manifestation of true and real feel ings of the employees. Acknowledgement by the manager implies that the manager i s eager to look into the complaint impartially and without any bias. This will c reate a conducive work environment with instances of grievance reduced. Gatherin g facts- The managers should gather appropriate and sufficient facts explaining the grievances nature. A record of such facts must be maintained so that these ca n be used in later stage of grievance redressal. Examining the causes of grievan ce- The actual cause of grievance should be identified. Accordingly remedial act ions should be taken to prevent repetition of the grievance. Decisioning- After identifying the causes of grievance, alternative course of actions should be tho ught of to manage the grievance. The effect of each course of action on the exis ting and future management policies and procedure should be analyzed and accordi ngly decision should be taken by the manager. Execution and review- The manager should execute the decision quickly, ignoring the fact, that it may or may not h urt the employees concerned. After implementing the decision, a follow-up must b e there to ensure that the grievance has been resolved completely and adequately . An effective grievance procedure ensures an amiable work environment because i t redresses the grievance to mutual satisfaction of both the employees and the m anagers. It also helps the management to frame policies and procedures acceptabl e to the employees. It becomes an effective medium for the employees to express t feelings, discontent and dissatisfaction openly and formally. Employee Discipline and Features of a Sound Disciplinary System Discipline means systematically conducting the business by the organizational me mbers who strictly adhere to the essential rules and regulations. These employee s/organizational members work together as a team so as to achieve organizational mission as well as vision and they truly understand that the individual and gro up aims and desires must be matched so as to ensure organizational success. A di sciplined employee will be organized and an organized employee will be disciplin ed always. Employee behaviour is the base of discipline in an organization. Disc ipline implies confirming with the code of conduct established by the organizati on. Discipline in an organization ensures productivity and efficiency. It encour ages harmony and co-operation among employees as well as acts as a morale booste r for the employees. In absence of discipline, there will be chaos, confusion, c orruption and disobedience in an organization. In short, discipline implies obed ience, orderliness and maintenance of proper subordination among employees. Work recognition, fair and equitable treatment of employees, appropriate salary stru cture, effective grievance handling and job-security all contribute to organizat ional discipline. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

48 Discipline is viewed from two angles/dimensions: Positive Discipline: Positiv e Discipline implies discipline without punishment. The main aim is to ensure an d encourage self-discipline among the employees. The employees in this case iden tify the group objectives as their own objectives and strive hard to achieve the m. The employees follow and adhere to the rules and regulations not due to the f ear of punishment but due to the inherent desire to harmonize in achieving organ izational goals. Employees exercise self-control to meet these goals. Negative D iscipline: Employees adhere to rules and regulations in fear of punishment which may be in form of fines, penalties, demotions or transfers. In this case, the e mployees do not perceive organizational goals as their own goals. The action tak en by the management to ensure desired standard of behaviour/code of conduct fro m the employees in an organization is called negative discipline. The fear of pu nishment prevents the employees from going off-track. Characteristics of a Sound Disciplinary System (Red Hot Stove Rule) Discipline should be imposed without g enerating resentment. Mc Gregor propounded the red hot stove rule which says that a sound and effective disciplinary system in an organization should have the fol lowing characteristicsImmediate- Just as when you touch a red hot stove, the bur n is immediate, similarly the penalty for violation should be immediate/ immedia te disciplinary action must be taken for violation of rules. Consistent- Just as a red hot stove burns everyone in same manner; likewise, there should be high c onsistency in a sound disciplinary system. Impersonal- Just as a person is burne d because he touches the red hot stove and not because of any personal feelings, likewise, impersonality should be maintained by refraining from personal or sub jective feelings. Prior warning and notice- Just as an individual has a warning when he moves closer to the stove that he would be burned on touching it, likewi se, a sound disciplinary system should give advance warning to the employees as to the implications of not conforming to the standards of behaviour/code of cond uct in an organization. In short, a sound disciplinary system presupposesAcquain tance/Knowledge of rules- The employees should be well aware of the desired code of conduct/ standards of behaviour in the organization. This code of discipline should be published in employee handbook. Timely action- Timely enquiry should be conducted for breaking the code of conduct in an organization. The more later the enquiry is made, the more forgetful one becomes and the more he feels that punishment is not deserved. Fair and just action- There should be same punishmen t for same offence/ misconduct. There should be no favouritism. Discipline shoul d be uniformly enforced always. Positive approach- The disciplinary system shoul d be preventive and not punitive. Concentrate on preventing misconduct and not o n imposing penalties. The employees should not only be THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

49 explained the reason for actions taken against them but also how such fines a nd penalties can be avoided in future. Types of Penalties for Misconduct/Indisci pline For not following the standards of behaviour/code of conduct in an organiz ation, there are two kinds of penalties categorized asMajor penalties- This incl udes demotion, dismissal, transfer, discharge, withholding increments, etc. Mino r penalties- This includes oral warning, written warning, fines, loss of privile ges, etc. Managing Workforce Diversity Introduction We live in times when global corporations and their reach across th e world bring benefits in terms of innovative HR policies as well as challenges in terms of managing the workforce are concerned. The rise of such corporations means that the workforce is composed of diverse races and ethnicities. Further, the issue of gender diversity in terms of more women participating in the workfo rce has been a trend that has accelerated in the last two decades in India and m uch earlier in the developed countries. This article looks at the reasons for ma naging workforce diversity and the issues that such management brings to the for e. Why is Management of Diversity Important ? When an organization has people of different ethnicities and a greater proportion of women than the industry avera ge, naturally the question arises as to how to reconcile the differences between these employees without causing too much friction in everyday interactions. Man aging diversity is important as otherwise the performance of the organization ta kes a hit and worse, there can be possible lawsuits and legal tangles from disaf fected employees who feel aggrieved because of instances of discrimination and h arassment based on their ethnicity or gender. Issues in Managing Diversity One o f the central issues in managing diversity is to do with the majority and the mi nority perspective. Usually, it is the case in organizations that there is a pre dominant majority of a particular race or ethnicity and various others in minori ty groups. And considering that the most pressing issue in managing diversity ar ises out of the treatment of women, we get a sense of the issues of race and gen der as the primary drivers in managing diversity. In recent times, these issues have come to the forefront of the debate because of greater awareness among the minority groups about their rights as well as stricter enforcement of laws and r egulations that govern workplace behavior. Hence, it is in the interest of the m anagement of any firm to sensitize their workforce towards race and gender issue s and ensure that the workplace is free of discrimination against minority group s as well as women. Gender Sensitization THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

50 When compared to other issues in managing diversity, this is the most pressin g issue because of the preponderance of women in the workforce as well as recent trends that point to the emergence of this single issue as the dominant issue t hat is taking the mind space of managers. The worrying aspect about this issue i s that despite policies and rules governing gender specific issues in most organ izations, there is little evidence to show that they are being followed. Hence, what is needed is a mindset change rather than more policies and this can only b e done if the workforce is sensitized to the needs of women. Conclusion Though t he situation in Corporate India or India Inc. has not yet reached the stage wher e lawsuits are routinely brought against management for discriminatory practices , nonetheless, the trend in recent years is towards a more vocal disapproval of such practices from industry leaders and management consultants who repeatedly e mphasize the importance of a non-discriminatory workplace. Hence, the onus is on the management, senior and middle, to ensure that they follow the norms that is required of them. In our opinion, the middle management and the managers who di rectly interact with the teams of people have a greater role as they are the Sand wich between the upper management and the workforce and hence are in a position t o follow the policies as well as enforce them. Employee Stress - Strategies for managing stress at workplace What is Employee Stress ? Employees stress is a growing concern for organization s today. Stress can be defined as a lively circumstance in which people face con straints, opportunities, or loss of something they desire and for which the cons equence is both unpredictable as well as crucial. Stress is the response of peop le to the unreasonable/excessive pressure or demands placed on them. Stress is n ot always negative. It may also bring out the best in individuals at times. It m ay induce an individual to discover innovative and smarter way of doing things. This positive dimension of stress is called as enstress. But usually, the term s tress has a negative implication and this negative aspect of stress is termed as distress. For instance - When a subordinate is harassed or warned by his superi or, unhappiness of unsuitable job, etc. We can say that Stress causes some people to break, and other to break records. Symptoms of Stress Some of the symptoms of stress at workplace are as followsAbsenteeism, escaping from work responsibilit ies, arriving late, leaving early, etc. Deterioration in work performance, more of error prone work, memory loss, etc. Cribbing, over-reacting, arguing, getting irritated, anxiety, etc. Deteriorating health, more of accidents, etc. Improper eating habits (over-eating or under-eating), excessive smoking and drinking, sl eeplessness, etc. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

51 It is thus very essential to have effective stress management strategies in a n organization so that the detrimental repercussions of stress on the employees as well as their performance can be reduced and controlled. Sources/Causes of St ress The factors leading to stress among individual are called as stressors. Som e of the factors/stressors acting on employees areOrganizational factors- With t he growth in organizational stress and complexity, there is increase in organiza tional factors also which cause stress among employees. Some of such factors are Discrimination in pay/salary structure Strict rules and regulations Ineffective communication Peer pressure Goals conflicts/goals ambiguity More of centralized and formal organization structure Less promotional opportunities Lack of employe es participation in decision-making Excessive control over the employees by the managers Individual factors- There are various expectations which the family mem bers, peer, superior and subordinates have from the employee. Failure to underst and such expectations or to convey such expectations lead to role ambiguity/role conflict which in turn causes employee stress. Other individual factors causing stress among employees are inherent personality traits such as being impatient, aggressive, rigid, feeling time pressure always, etc. Similarly, the family iss ues, personal financial problems, sudden career changes all lead to stress. Job concerning factors- Certain factors related to job which cause stress among empl oyees are as followsMonotonous nature of job Unsafe and unhealthy working condit ions Lack of confidentiality Crowding Extra-organizational factors- There are ce rtain issues outside the organization which lead to stress among employees. In t odays modern and technology savvy world, stress has increased. Inflation, technol ogical change, social responsibilities and rapid social changes are other extraorganizational factors causing stress. Strategies for Managing Stress Stress exp erienced by the employees in their job has negative impact on their health, perf ormance and their behaviour in the organization. Thus, stress needs to be manage d effectively so as to set off these harmful consequences. Strategies for managi ng stress are as followsTHE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

52 Organizational strategies for managing stress Encouraging more of organizatio nal communication with the employees so that there is no role ambiguity/conflict . Effective communication can also change employee views. Managers can use bette r signs and symbols which are not misinterpreted by the employees. Encourage emp loyees participation in decision-making. This will reduce role stress. Grant the employees greater independence, meaningful and timely feedback, and greater resp onsibility. The organizational goals should be realistic, stimulating and partic ular. The employees must be given feedback on how well they are heading towards these goals. Encourage decentralization. Have a fair and just distribution of in centives and salary structure. Promote job rotation and job enrichment. Create a just and safe working environment. Have effective hiring and orientation proced ure. Appreciate the employees on accomplishing and over-exceeding their targets. Individual strategies for managing stress The employees should make a to-do list daily, prioritize the acts in the list and plan the acts accordingly. Take regul ar breaks during work to relax you. By effective time management, the employees can achieve their targets timely and can meet work pressures and, thus, avoid st ress. Do hard work. Strive to achieve your goals but do not do it to the harm of family, health, or peer. Indulge in physical exercises. It helps in effective b lood circulation, keeps you fit, diverts mind from work pressures. Encourage a h ealthy lifestyle. Take a regular sleep, have plenty of water, have healthy eatin g habits. Promote relaxation techniques such as yoga, listening music and medita tion. The employees should have optimistic approach about their work. They shoul d avoid connections with negative approach employees. The employees should have emotional intelligence at workplace. They should have selfawareness, self-confid ence and self-control at workplace. The employees should build social support. T hey should have close connections with trustworthy peer who can listen to their problems and boost their confidence level. This social network will help the emp loyees to overcome stress. Employee counselling is a very good strategy to overc ome employee stress. Through counselling, employees can become aware of their st rengths and how to develop those strengths; their weaknesses and how to eliminat e them; and they can develop strategies for changing their behaviour. Employees are also given career counselling which helps in reducing their ambiguities with regard to career. Find a fun way to release stress, such as, cracking jokes, pl aying tennis, golf, etc. Do not remain pre-occupied with yourself. Turn your foc us outwards. Help others. This will release some stress. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

53 HR Challenges - How to cope with them efficiently ? Human Resource Management used to be considered as other conventional administra tive jobs. But over a period of time, it has evolved as a strategic function to improve working environment, plan out human resources needs and strike a balance between the organization and employers in order to increase organizational prod uctivity and meet organizational goals. Not to exaggerate but in todays highly co mpetitive world it has gradually become one of the most important functions of a n organization. It is really a huge challenge to understand the psychology of wo rkforce, retain the best talents of the industry, motivate them to perform bette r and handle diversity while maintaining unity simultaneously, especially in cou ntries like India, where it is still evolving. Globalization has resulted in man y positive developments but it has left many concerns for HR managers. In todays tough world and tight job market, coordinating a multicultural or diverse workfo rce is a real challenge for HR department. Human resource managers are on their toes to strike a balance between employer and employees keeping in mind the rece nt trends in the market. They may find themselves in dire consequences if they a re not able to handle the human resource challenges efficiently. To remain in bu siness, human resource managers need to efficiently address following human reso urce challenges: Handling Multicultural / Diverse Workforce: Dealing with people from different age, gender, race, ethnicity, educational background, location, income, parental status, religious beliefs, marital status and ancestry and work experience can be a challenging task for HR managers. With this, managing peopl e with different set of ideologies, views, lifestyles and psychology can be very risky. Effective communication, adaptability, agility and positive attitude of HR managers can bind the diverse workforce and retain talents in the organizatio n. Managing Change: Who wants to change their ideology or way of working? Neithe r you nor I. How can we expect others to change then? Bringing change in organiz ational processes and procedures, implementing it and then managing it is one of the biggest concerns of HR managers. Business environment is so volatile. Techn ology keeps changing every now and then. All thanks to globalization. Upgrading the existing technology and training people for them is a real headache for HR d epartment. The success rate of technology change depends how well HRD can handle the change and manage people issues in the process. Retaining the Talents: Glob alization has given freedom to working professionals to work anywhere in the wor ld. Now that they have endless lucrative opportunities to work, hiring and retai ning the best industry talent is no joke. Maintaining harmonious relations with them, providing excellent work environment and offering more remuneration and pe rks than your competitors can retain and motivate them. Conflict Management: HR managers should know how to handle employee-employer and employeeemployee confli cts without hurting their feelings. Although it is almost impossible to avoid co nflicts among people still handling them tactfully can help HR managers to resol ve the issues. They should be THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

54 able to listen to each party, decide and communicate to them manner in order to avoid future conflicts. HR professional must h all strategies and action plans in order to meet the changing anization. They must be thorough with the basic functions of HR ng, organizing, leading and controlling human resources.

in a convincing be proactive wit needs of the org including planni

Need & Importance of Employee Retention Employee Retention refers to the techniques employed by the management to help t he employees stay with the organization for a longer period of time. Employee re tention strategies go a long way in motivating the employees so that they stick to the organization for the maximum time and contribute effectively. Sincere eff orts must be taken to ensure growth and learning for the employees in their curr ent assignments and for them to enjoy their work. Employee retention has become a major concern for corporates in the current scenario. Individuals once being t rained have a tendency to move to other organizations for better prospects. Lucr ative salary, comfortable timings, better ambience, growth prospects are some of the factors which prompt an employee to look for a change. Whenever a talented employee expresses his willingness to move on, it is the responsibility of the m anagement and the human resource team to intervene immediately and find out the exact reasons leading to the decision. Need & Importance of Employee Retention L et us understand why retaining a valuable employee is essential for an organizat ion. Hiring is not an easy process: The HR Professional shortlists few individua ls from a large pool of talent, conducts preliminary interviews and eventually f orwards it to the respective line managers who further grill them to judge wheth er they are fit for the organization or not. Recruiting the right candidate is a time consuming process. An organization invests time and money in grooming an i ndividual and make him ready to work and understand the corporate culture: A new joinee is completely raw and the management really has to work hard to train hi m for his overall development. It is a complete wastage of time and money when a n individual leaves an organization all of a sudden. The HR has to start the rec ruitment process all over again for the same vacancy; a mere duplication of work . Finding a right employee for an organization is a tedious job and all efforts simply go waste when the employee leaves. When an individual resigns from his pr esent organization, it is more likely that he would join the competitors: In suc h cases, employees tend to take all the strategies, policies from the current or ganization to the new one. Individuals take all the important data, information and statistics to their new organization and in some cases even leak the secrets of the previous organization. To avoid such cases, it is essential that the new joinee is made to sign a document which stops him from passing on any informati on even if he leaves the organization. Strict policy should be made which preven ts the employees to join the competitors. This is an effective way to retain the employees. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

55 The employees working for a longer period of time are more familiar with the companys policies, guidelines and thus they adjust better: They perform better th an individuals who change jobs frequently. Employees who spend a considerable ti me in an organization know the organization in and out and thus are in a positio n to contribute effectively. Every individual needs time to adjust with others: One needs time to know his team members well, be friendly with them and eventual ly trust them. Organizations are always benefited when the employees are compati ble with each other and discuss things among themselves to come out with somethi ng beneficial for all. When a new individual replaces an existing employee, adju stment problems crop up. Individuals find it really difficult to establish a com fort level with the other person. After striking a rapport with an existing empl oyee, it is a challenge for the employees to adjust with someone new and most im portantly trust him. It is a human tendency to compare a new joinee with the pre vious employees and always find faults in him. It has been observed that individ uals sticking to an organization for a longer span are more loyal towards the ma nagement and the organization: They enjoy all kinds of benefits from the organiz ation and as a result are more attached to it. They hardly badmouth their organi zation and always think in favour of the management. For them the organization c omes first and all other things later. It is essential for the organization to r etain the valuable employees showing potential: Every organization needs hardwor king and talented employees who can really come out with something creative and different. No organization can survive if all the top performers quit. It is ess ential for the organization to retain those employees who really work hard and a re indispensable for the system. The management must understand the difference b etween a valuable employee and an employee who doesnt contribute much to the orga nization. Sincere efforts must be made to encourage the employees so that they s tay happy in the current organization and do not look for a change. The manageme nt cant completely put a full stop to the process of employees quitting their job s but can control it to a large extent. Let us go through some strategies to ret ain an individual: An employee looks for a change when his job becomes monotonou s and does not offer anything new. It is essential for everyone to enjoy whateve r he does. The responsibilities must be delegated according to the individuals sp ecialization and interests. It is the responsibility of the team leader to assig n challenging work to his team members for them to enjoy work and do not treat i t as a burden. Performance reviews are important to find out whether the employe es are really happy with their work or not. Constant disputes among employees en courage them to go for a change. Conflicts must be avoided to maintain the decor um of the place and avoid spreading negativity around. Promote activities which bring the employees closer. Organize outdoor picnics, informal get together for the employees to know each other better and strengthen the bond among themselves . Let them make friends at the workplace whom they can really trust. Friendship among employees is one strong factor which helps to retain employees. Individual s who have reliable friends at the workplace are reluctant to move on for the sa ke of friendship. No one likes to leave an THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

56 organization where he gets mental peace. It is essential to have a cordial en vironment at the workplace. The human resource department must ensure that it is hiring the right candidate. Frustration crops up whenever there is a mismatch. A finance professional if is hired for a marketing profile would definitely end up being frustrated and look for a change. The right candidate must be hired for the right profile. While recruiting a new candidate, one should also check his track record. An individual who has changed his previous jobs frequently would a lso not stick to the present one and thus should not be hired. Employee recognit ion is one of the most important factors which go a long way in retaining employ ees. Nothing works better than appreciating the employees. Their hard work must be acknowledged. Monetary benefits such as incentives, perks, cash prize also mo tivate the employees to a large extent and they prefer sticking to the organizat ion. The performers must have an upper edge and should get a special treatment f rom the management. Performance appraisals are also important for an employee to stay motivated and avoid looking for a change. The salary hike should be direct ly proportional to the hard work put by the employees. Partiality must be avoide d as it demotivates the talented ones and prompt them to look for a better oppor tunity. The salary of the employees must be discussed at the time of the intervi ew. The components of the salary must be transparent and thoroughly discussed wi th the individuals at the time of joining to avoid confusions later. The individ uals should be made to join only when the salary as well as other terms and cond itions are acceptable to them. The companys rules and regulations should be made to benefit the employees. They should be employee friendly. Allow them to take a leave on their birthdays or come a little late once or twice in a month. It is important for the management to understand the employees to gain their trust and confidence. The consistent performers must also have a say in the companys decis ions for them to feel important. What is Business Communication ? Communication is neither transmission of message nor message itself. It is the m utual exchange of understanding, originating with the reciever. Communication ne eds to be effective in business. Communication is essence of management. The bas ic functions of management (Planning, Organizing, Staffing, Directing and Contro lling) cannot be performed well without effective communication. Business commun ication involves constant flow of information. Feedback is integral part of busi ness communication. Organizations these days are verly large. It involves number of people. There are various levels of hierarchy in an organization. Greater th e number of levels, the more difficult is the job of managing the organization. Communication here plays a very important role in process of directing and contr olling the people in the oragnization. Immediate feedback can be obtained and mi sunderstandings if any can be avoided. There should be effective communication b etween superiors and subordinated in an organization, between organization and s ociety at large(for example between management and trade unions). It is essentia l for success and growth of an organization. Communication gaps should not occur in any organization. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

57 Business Communication is goal oriented. The rules, regulations and policies of a company have to be communicated to people within and outside the organizati on. Business Communication is regulated by certain rules and norms. In early tim es, business communication was limited to paper-work, telephone calls etc. But n ow with advent of technology, we have cell phones, video conferencing, emails, s atellite communication to support business communication. Effective business com munication helps in building goodwill of an organization. Business Communication can be of two types: Oral Communication - An oral communication can be formal o r informal. Generally business communication is a formal means of communication, like : meetings, interviews, group discussion, speeches etc. An example of Info rmal business communication would be - Grapevine. Written Communication - Writte n means of business communication includes - agenda, reports, manuals etc. Compo nents of Communication Process Communication is a process of exchanging verbal a nd non verbal messages. It is a continuous process. Pre-requisite of communicati on is a message. This message must be conveyed through some medium to the recipi ent. It is essential that this message must be understood by the recipient in sa me terms as intended by the sender. He must respond within a time frame. Thus, c ommunication is a two way process and is incomplete without a feedback from the recipient to the sender on how well the message is understood by him. Communicat ion Process The main components of communication process are as follows: Context - Communication is affected by the context in which it takes place. This context may be physical, social, chronological or cultural. Every communication proceeds with context. The sender chooses the message to communicate within a c ontext. Sender / Encoder - Sender / Encoder is a person who sends the message. A sender makes use of symbols (words or graphic or visual aids) to convey the mes sage and produce the required response. For instance a training manager conducti ng training for new batch of employees. Sender may be an individual or a group o r an organization. The views, background, approach, skills, competencies, and kn owledge of the sender have a great impact on the message. The verbal and non ver bal symbols chosen are essential in ascertaining interpretation of the message b y the recipient in the same terms as intended by the sender. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

58 Message - Message is a key idea that the sender wants to communicate. It is a sign that elicits the response of recipient. Communication process begins with deciding about the message to be conveyed. It must be ensured that the main obje ctive of the message is clear. Medium - Medium is a means used to exchange / tra nsmit the message. The sender must choose an appropriate medium for transmitting the message else the message might not be conveyed to the desired recipients. T he choice of appropriate medium of communication is essential for making the mes sage effective and correctly interpreted by the recipient. This choice of commun ication medium varies depending upon the features of communication. For instance - Written medium is chosen when a message has to be conveyed to a small group o f people, while an oral medium is chosen when spontaneous feedback is required f rom the recipient as misunderstandings are cleared then and there. Recipient / D ecoder - Recipient / Decoder is a person for whom the message is intended / aime d / targeted. The degree to which the decoder understands the message is depende nt upon various factors such as knowledge of recipient, their responsiveness to the message, and the reliance of encoder on decoder. Feedback - Feedback is the main component of communication process as it permits the sender to analyze the efficacy of the message. It helps the sender in confirming the correct interpret ation of message by the decoder. Feedback may be verbal (through words) or non-v erbal (in form of smiles, sighs, etc.). It may take written form also in form of memos, reports, etc. Importance of Communication in an Organization Effective C ommunication is significant for managers in the organizations so as to perform t he basic functions of management, i.e., Planning, Organizing, Leading and Contro lling. Communication helps managers to perform their jobs and responsibilities. Communication serves as a foundation for planning. All the essential information must be communicated to the managers who in-turn must communicate the plans so as to implement them. Organizing also requires effective communication with othe rs about their job task. Similarly leaders as managers must communicate effectiv ely with their subordinates so as to achieve the team goals. Controlling is not possible without written and oral communication. Managers devote a great part of their time in communication. They generally devote approximately 6 hours per da y in communicating. They spend great time on face to face or telephonic communic ation with their superiors, subordinates, colleagues, customers or suppliers. Ma nagers also use Written Communication in form of letters, reports or memos where ver oral communication is not feasible. Thus, we can say that effective communica tion is a building block of successful organizations . In other words, communicati on acts as organizational blood. The importance of communication in an organizat ion can be summarized as follows: Communication promotes motivation by informing and clarifying the employees about the task to be done, the manner they are per forming the task, and how to improve their performance if it is not up to the ma rk. Communication is a source of information to the organizational members for d ecision-making process as it helps identifying and assessing alternative course of actions. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

59 Communication also plays a crucial role in altering individuals attitudes, i.e ., a well informed individual will have better attitude than a less-informed ind ividual. Organizational magazines, journals, meetings and various other forms of oral and written communication help in moulding employees attitudes. Communicati on also helps in socializing. In todays life the only presence of another indivi dual fosters communication. It is also said that one cannot survive without comm unication. As discussed earlier, communication also assists in controlling proce ss. It helps controlling organizational members behaviour in various ways. There are various levels of hierarchy and certain principles and guidelines that emplo yees must follow in an organization. They must comply with organizational polici es, perform their job role efficiently and communicate any work problem and grie vance to their superiors. Thus, communication helps in controlling function of m anagement. An effective and efficient communication system requires managerial p roficiency in delivering and receiving messages. A manager must discover various barriers to communication, analyze the reasons for their occurrence and take pr eventive steps to avoid those barriers. Thus, the primary responsibility of a ma nager is to develop and maintain an effective communication system in the organi zation. Communication Barriers - Reasons for Communication Breakdown Communicati on is a process beginning with a sender who encodes the message and passes it th rough some channel to the receiver who decodes the message. Communication is fru itful if and only if the messages sent by the sender is interpreted with same me aning by the receiver. If any kind of disturbance blocks any step of communicati on, the message will be destroyed. Due to such disturbances, managers in an orga nization face severe problems. Thus the managers must locate such barriers and t ake steps to get rid of them. There are several barriers that affects the flow o f communication in an organization. These barriers interrupt the flow of communi cation from the sender to the reciever, thus making communication ineffective. I t is essential for managers to overcome these barriers. The main barriers of com munication are summarized below. Following are the main communication barriers: Perceptual and Language Differences: Perception is generally how each individual interprets the world around him. All generally want to receive messages which a re significant to them. But any message which is against their values is not acc epted. A same event may be taken differently by different individuals. For examp le : A person is on leave for a month due to personal reasons (family member bei ng critical). The HR Manager might be in confusion whether to retain that employ ee or not, the immediate manager might think of replacement because his teams pr oductivity is being hampered, the family members might take him as an emotional support. The linguistic differences also lead to communication breakdown. Same w ord may mean different to different individuals. For example: consider a word val ue . What is the value of this Laptop? THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

60 I value our relation? What is the value of learning technical skills? Value mea ns different in different sentences. Communication breakdown occurs if there is wrong perception by the receiver. Information Overload: Managers are surrounded with a pool of information. It is essential to control this information flow els e the information is likely to be misinterpreted or forgotten or overlooked. As a result communication is less effective. Inattention: At times we just not list en, but only hear. For example a traveler may pay attention to one NO PARKING sign , but if such sign is put all over the city, he no longer listens to it. Thus, r epetitive messages should be ignored for effective communication. Similarly if a superior is engrossed in his paper work and his subordinate explains him his pr oblem, the superior may not get what he is saying and it leads to disappointment of subordinate. Time Pressures: Often in organization the targets have to be ac hieved within a specified time period, the failure of which has adverse conseque nces. In a haste to meet deadlines, the formal channels of communication are sho rtened, or messages are partially given, i.e., not completely transferred. Thus sufficient time should be given for effective communication. Distraction/Noise: Communication is also affected a lot by noise to distractions. Physical distract ions are also there such as, poor lightning, uncomfortable sitting, unhygienic r oom also affects communication in a meeting. Similarly use of loud speakers inte rferes with communication. Emotions: Emotional state at a particular point of ti me also affects communication. If the receiver feels that communicator is angry he interprets that the information being sent is very bad. While he takes it dif ferently if the communicator is happy and jovial (in that case the message is in terpreted to be good and interesting). Complexity in Organizational Structure: G reater the hierarchy in an organization (i.e. more the number of managerial leve ls), more is the chances of communication getting destroyed. Only the people at the top level can see the overall picture while the people at low level just hav e knowledge about their own area and a little knowledge about other areas. Poor retention: Human memory cannot function beyond a limit. One cant always retain w hat is being told specially if he is not interested or not attentive. This leads to communication breakdown. Overcoming Communication Barriers There are a lot of communication barriers face d these days by all. The message intended by the sender is not understood by the receiver in the same terms and sense and thus communication breakdown occurs. I t is essential to deal and cope up with these communication barriers so as to en sure smooth and effective communication. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

61 As, in the previous section we have discussed the major barriers of communica tion. Lets talk about how to overcome these barriers of communication. Eliminatin g differences in perception: The organization should ensure that it is recruitin g right individuals on the job. Its the responsibility of the interviewer to ensu re that the interviewee has command over the written and spoken language. There should be proper Induction program so that the policies of the company are clear to all the employees. There should be proper trainings conducted for required e mployees (for eg: Voice and Accent training). Use of Simple Language: Use of sim ple and clear words should be emphasized. Use of ambiguous words and jargons sho uld be avoided. Reduction and elimination of noise levels: Noise is the main com munication barrier which must be overcome on priority basis. It is essential to identify the source of noise and then eliminate that source. Active Listening: L isten attentively and carefully. There is a difference between listening and hearin g . Active listening means hearing with proper understanding of the message that i s heard. By asking questions the speaker can ensure whether his/her message is u nderstood or not by the receiver in the same terms as intended by the speaker. E motional State: During communication one should make effective use of body langu age. He/she should not show their emotions while communication as the receiver m ight misinterpret the message being delivered. For example, if the conveyer of t he message is in a bad mood then the receiver might think that the information b eing delivered is not good. Simple Organizational Structure: The organizational structure should not be complex. The number of hierarchical levels should be opt imum. There should be a ideal span of control within the organization. Simpler t he organizational structure, more effective will be the communication. Avoid Inf ormation Overload: The managers should know how to prioritize their work. They s hould not overload themselves with the work. They should spend quality time with their subordinates and should listen to their problems and feedbacks actively. Give Constructive Feedback: Avoid giving negative feedback. The contents of the feedback might be negative, but it should be delivered constructively. Construct ive feedback will lead to effective communication between the superior and subor dinate. Proper Media Selection: The managers should properly select the medium o f communication. Simple messages should be conveyed orally, like: face to face i nteraction or meetings. Use of written means of communication should be encourag ed for delivering complex messages. For significant messages reminders can be gi ven by using written means of communication such as : Memos, Notices etc. Flexib ility in meeting the targets: For effective communication in an organization the managers should ensure that the individuals are meeting their targets timely wi thout skipping the formal channels of communication. There should not be much pr essure on employees to meet their targets. Seven Cs of Effective Communication THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

62 There are 7 Cs of effective communication which are applicable to both written as well as oral communication. These are as follows: Completeness - The communi cation must be complete. It should convey all facts required by the audience. Th e sender of the message must take into consideration the receivers mind set and c onvey the message accordingly. A complete communication has following features: Complete communication develops and enhances reputation of an organization. More over, they are cost saving as no crucial information is missing and no additiona l cost is incurred in conveying extra message if the communication is complete. A complete communication always gives additional information wherever required. It leaves no questions in the mind of receiver. Complete communication helps in better decision-making by the audience/ readers/ receivers of message as they ge t all desired and crucial information. It persuades the audience. Conciseness Conciseness means wordiness, i.e, communicating what you want to convey in least possible words without forgoing the other Cs of communication. Conciseness is a necessity for effective communication. Concise communication has following featu res: It is both time-saving as well as cost-saving. It underlines and highlights the main message as it avoids using excessive and needless words. Concise commu nication provides short and essential message in limited words to the audience. Concise message is more appealing and comprehensible to the audience. Concise me ssage is non-repetitive in nature. Consideration - Consideration implies stepping into the shoes of others . Effective communication must take the audience into co nsideration, i.e, the audiences view points, background, mind-set, education leve l, etc. Make an attempt to envisage your audience, their requirements, emotions as well as problems. Ensure that the self-respect of the audience is maintained and their emotions are not at harm. Modify your words in message to suit the aud iences needs while making your message complete. Features of considerate communic ation are as follows: Emphasize on you approach. Empathize with the audience and e xhibit interest in the audience. This will stimulate a positive reaction from th e audience. Show optimism towards your audience. Emphasize on what is possible rat her than what is impossible . Lay stress on positive words such as jovial, committe d, thanks, warm, healthy, help, etc. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

63 Clarity - Clarity implies emphasizing on a specific message or goal at a time , rather than trying to achieve too much at once. Clarity in communication has f ollowing features: It makes understanding easier. Complete clarity of thoughts a nd ideas enhances the meaning of message. Clear message makes use of exact, appr opriate and concrete words. Concreteness - Concrete communication implies being particular and clear rather than fuzzy and general. Concreteness strengthens the confidence. Concrete message has following features: It is supported with speci fic facts and figures. It makes use of words that are clear and that build the r eputation. Concrete messages are not misinterpreted. Courtesy - Courtesy in mess age implies the message should show the senders expression as well as should resp ect the receiver. The sender of the message should be sincerely polite, judiciou s, reflective and enthusiastic. Courteous message has following features: Courte sy implies taking into consideration both viewpoints as well as feelings of the receiver of the message. Courteous message is positive and focused at the audien ce. It makes use of terms showing respect for the receiver of message. It is not at all biased. Correctness - Correctness in communication implies that there ar e no grammatical errors in communication. Correct communication has following fe atures: The message is exact, correct and well-timed. If the communication is co rrect, it boosts up the confidence level. Correct message has greater impact on the audience/ readers. It checks for the precision and accurateness of facts and figures used in the message. It makes use of appropriate and correct language i n the message. Awareness of these 7 Cs of communication makes you an effective co mmunicator. Guidelines for Effective Communication Effective communication is a part and parcel of any successful organization. A communication should be free f rom barriers so as to be effective. Communication is a two way process where the message sent by THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

64 the sender should be interpreted in the same terms by the recipient. The char acteristics of effective communication are as follows : Clarity of Purpose: The message to be delivered must be clear in the mind of sender. The person to whom it is targeted and the aim of the message should be clear in the mind of the sen der. Completeness: The message delivered should not be incomplete. It should be supported by facts and observations. It should be well planned and organized. No assumptions should be made by the receiver. Conciseness: The message should be concise. It should not include any unnecessary details. It should be short and c omplete. Feedback: Whether the message sent by the sender is understood in same terms by the receiver or not can be judged by the feedback received. The feedbac k should be timely and in personal. It should be specific rather than general. E mpathy: Empathy with the listeners is essential for effective verbal communicati on. The speaker should step into the shoes of the listener and be sensitive to t heir needs and emotions. This way he can understand things from their perspectiv e and make communication more effective. Modify the message according to the aud ience: The information requirement by different people in the organization diffe rs according to their needs. What is relevant to the middle level management mig ht not be relevant to the top level of management. Use of jargons should be mini mized because it might lead to misunderstanding and misinterpretations. The mess age should be modified according to the needs and requirements of the targeted a udience. Multiple Channels of communication: For effective communication multipl e channels should be used as it increases the chances of clarity of message. The message is reinforced by using different channels and there are less chances of deformation of message. Make effective use of Grapevine (informal channel of communication): The employe es and managers should not always discourage grapevine. They should make effecti ve use of grapevine. The managers can use grapevine to deliver formal messages a nd for identification of issues which are significant for the employees. The man agers can get to know the problems faced by the employees and can work upon it. Employee Relations Employee relations is one of key function in HR management. Employee relations include subjects as follows 1. Employee engagement 2. Work li fe balance 3. Quality of work life THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

65 4. Conflict, bargaining, involvement and well-being 5. Tribunals and arbitration systems 6. Models of bargaining 7. Employee involvement 8. Employee involvement in practice 9. Health and safety 10. Stress Employee engagement 1. What is employee engagement? a) Definition of Wikipedia: Employee engagement is a concept that is generally v iewed as managing discretionary effort b) Definition of IES: Employee engagement is a positive attitude held by the employee towards the organization and its va lues. An engaged employee is aware of business context, and works with colleague s to improve performance within the job for the benefit of the organization. The organization must work to develop and nurture engagement, which requires a twoway relationship between employer and employee. 2. Features of employee engagement: Understanding of business context and the bigger picture Respectful of, and helpfu l to, colleagues Willingness to go the extra mile Belief in the organization THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

66 Desire to work to make things better Keeping up to date with developments in the field. 3. Diagnostic tools of employee engagement Training and development Performance management Communication Equal opportunity Fair treatment Pay and benefits Health and safety Cooperation Family friendlines s Job satisfaction Immediate management 4. Different of employee engagement and employee satisfaction Employee engagement is what we get when an employee is motivated by the job; is successful in the job; is well managed by the supervisor and paid fairly by mana gement. Employee satisfaction is what we get when we give employees things they want. So that an employee may be fully satisfied but is unsuccessful. Employee engagement activities Employee engagement activities / programs 1. Picnic at regular intervals 2. Movi e at interval of 2 months THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

67 3. A daily column, written by CEO, on the intranet with company announcements / programs etc. 4. Update via an overhead paging system, which is used to recogniz e employees for significant business achievements. 5. Employee suggestion system s / quick responses. 6. Replay on the intranet about the presidents / CEOs press c onference. 7. Live version of internal house magazine. 8. CEO spending time in f ace to face communication with staff. 9. CEO based FAQ questions on company busi ness. 10. ONLINE ask the CEO mailbox. 11. Monthly staff awards 12. Annual staff aw ards 13. Weekly blog related to serious business issues and staff to read / comm ents. 14. Appointment of disaster management team 15. Appointment of emergency m anagement team Employee engagement questionnaire I/ Employee information 1. Employee name: 2. Position: 3. Department: 4. Start w orking from: II/ Rating scales: 1. Strongly Disagree(1) 2. Disagree (2) 3. Neith er Agree nor Disagree (3) 4. Agree(4) 5. Strongly Agree(5) III/ Employee engagem ent questions THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

68 1. I have the materials and equipment I need to do my job efficiently. 2. I rece ive the information and communication I need to do my job. 3. I regularly receiv e recognition/praise for doing good work. 4. The benefits offered here are fair and reasonable. 5. The people here are pleasant and co-operative to work with. 6 . There is someone at work who encourages my development. 7. My opinions and ide as seem to matter. 8. My supervisor provides me with feedback and guidance. 9. M y supervisor helps me know what is expected of me. 10. My supervisor cares about me as a person. 11. Even if I had the opportunity to get a similar job with ano ther organization, I would stay with my present company. 12. In the last year, I have had opportunities to learn and grow. 13. I would recommend the organizatio n as a good place to work. 14. Overall, I have confidence in the senior managers at the company. 15. Overall, I am extremely satisfied with my job. Work life balance 1. What is work life balance? 1.1 Definition of flexible-working.org Work life balance is about people having a measure of control over when, where and how they work 1.2 Definition of hr cou ncil A range of practices designed to improve the balance between the demands of an employees work and personal life. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

69 1.3 Definition of Wikipedia Work-life balance is a broad concept including prope r prioritizing between career and ambition on one hand, compared with pleasure, leisure, family and spiritual development on the other. 2. Benefits of work life balance 2.1 Benefits to employee More value and balance in your life Understanding your best work life balance Increased productivity Better relationship both on and of f the job Reduced Stress 2.2 Benefits to the organization Increased return on in vestment in training as employees stay longer Reduced absenteeism Reduced use of sick leave Reductions in workers stress levels Improved morale or satisfaction R educed staff turnover rates Lower recruitment and training costs, associated wit h reduced turnover Becoming a good employer or an employer of choice Greater sta ff loyalty and commitment Improved productivity Steps to balance work life 1. Simplify everything Learn to say No . Able to accept failure 2. De Stress Stress higher levels of creativity But Take it easy Take up: Yoga, Painting, Art of Livi ng 3. Be a Child Go on holiday An impulse outing with family. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

70 NO ones looking!! Read fairy tales to your child Take a pet Eat cotton candy, ice cone 4. Share the Load In family, divide the tasks like Dusting In work place: d elegate, dont do their fishing for them, teach them how to fish 5. Slow Down One step at a time. Let go to see light, discover new ways to get things done. D o not get pulled from different directions 6. Take care of your health Take up Sport, Pet, Hobby Well balanced food Please SLEEP zzz All work and no pl ay, makes Jack a dull boy Take a walk, Go to Yoga or Gym 7. Dont Postpone Never Procrastinate Avoidance takes up more energy than actually doing it 8. Have a positive Approach Look around you. So many things to be grat eful about. Make a list of things you are thankful for 9. Take Charge Plan ahead: long/medium/short plan. How employer manage work life balance? How employer manage work life balance? Employer can use methods as below to mana ge work life balance (WLB): 1. Job Sharing THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

71 2. Job Splitting 3. Flexi-time 4. Term-time working 5. Part-time work 6. Annuali zed hours 7. Work Sharing 8. e-Working You can use employee feedback monthly to chose ways that are suitable for you. Work life balance questionnaire 1) Age: 2) Gender: Male/ Female 3) Designation: 4) Nature of Org: 5) How many da ys in a week do you normally work? a) Less than 5 days b) 5 days c) 6 days d) 7 days 6) How many hours in a day do you normally work? a) 7-8 hours b) 8-9 hours c) 9-10 hours d) 10-12 hours e) More than 12 hours 7) How many hours a day do yo u spend traveling to work? a) Less than half an hour b) Nearly one hour THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

72 c) Nearly two hours d) More than two hours 8)Do you generally feel you are able to balance your work life? a) Yes b) No 9) How often do you think or worry about work (when you are not actually at work or traveling to work)? a) Never think a bout work b) Rarely c) Sometimes d) Often e) Always 10) Do you work in shifts? a ) General shift/day shift b) Night shift c) Alternative 11) Are you married? a) Yes b) No If yes, is your partner employed? a) Yes b) No 12) Do you have childre n? a) Yes, no. of children____________. b) No Being an employed man/woman who is helping you to take care of your children? a) Spouse b) In-laws c) Parents d) S ervants e) Crche/day care centers THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

73 How many hours in a day do you spend with your child/children? a) Less than 2 ho urs b) 2-3 hours c) 3-4 hours d) 4-5 hours e) More than 5 hours Do you regularly meet your child/children teachers to know how your child is progressing? a) Onc e in a week b) Once in two weeks c) Once in month d) Once in 6 months e) Once in a year. 13) Do you take care of? a) Older people b) Dependent adults c) Adults with disabilities d) Children with disabilities e) none If yes, how many hours d o you spend with them? a) Less than 2 hours b) 2-3 hours c) 3-4 hours d) 4-5 hou rs e) More than 5 hours 14) How do you feel about the amount of time you spend a t work? a) Very unhappy b) Unhappy c) Indifferent d) Happy e) Very happy 15) Do you ever miss out any quality time with your family or your friends because of p ressure of work? a) Never b) Rarely THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

74 c) Sometimes d) Often e) Always 16) Do you ever feel tired or depressed because of work? a) Never b) Rarely c) Sometimes d) Often e) Always 17) How do you manag e stress arising from your work? a) Yoga b) Meditation c) Entertainment d) Dance e) Music f) Others, specify_________. 18) Does your company have a separate pol icy for work-life balance? a) Yes b) No c) Not aware If, yes what are the provis ions under the policy? a) Flexible starting time b) Flexible ending time c) Flex ible hours in general d) Holidays/ paid time-off e) Job sharing f) Career break/ sabbaticals g) Others, specify________ 19) Do you personally feel any of the fol lowing will help you to balance your work life? a) Flexible starting hours b) Fl exible finishing time c) Flexible hours, in general d) holidays/paid time offs e ) Job sharing THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

75 f) Career break/sabbaticals g) time-off for family engagements/events h) Others, specify_________ 20) Does your organization provide you with following addition al work provisions? a) Telephone for personal use b) Counseling services for emp loyees c) Health programs d) Parenting or family support programs e) Exercise fa cilities f) Relocation facilities and choices g) Transportation h) Others, speci fy______________. 21) Does your organization encourage the involvement of your f amily members in workachievement reward functions? a) Yes, specify the name of s uch program Annual Day________ b) No. 22) Does your organization have social fun ctions at times suitable for families? a) Yes, specify the name of such programs ____________ b) No. 23) Does your organization provide you with yearly Master he alth check up? 24) Do any of the following hinder you in balancing your work and family commitments? a) Long working hours b) Compulsory overtime c) Shift work d) meetings/training after office hours e) Others, specify_________________ 25) Do any of the following help you balance your work and family commitments? a) Wo rking from home b) Technology like cell phones/laptops c) Being able to bring Ch ildren to work on occasions d) Support from colleagues at work e) Support from f amily members f) Others, specify___________. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

76 26) Do any of the following hinder you in balancing your work and family commitm ents? a) Technology such as laptops/cell phones b) Frequently traveling away fro m home c) Negative attitude of peers and colleagues at work place d) Negative at titude of supervisors e) Negative attitude of family members c) Others, specify_ __________ a) Yes b) No 27) Do you suffer from any stress-related disease? a) hy pertension b) obesity c) diabetes d) frequent headaches e) none f) Others, speci fy______. 28) Do you take special initiatives to manage your diet? a) Yes b) No What is your preference for food? a) Carrying home made food b) Dieting on veget ables and fruits c) Choosing less calorific food d) Choosing organic food e) Foo d from the organizations cafeteria f) Spicy/Junk food g) Others, specify________ __. How often will you have refreshment drinks/snacks in a day?] a) None b) Once c) Twice d) Thrice e) More than three times 29) Do you spend time for working o ut? THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

77 a) Yes b) No If yes, how many hours? a) less than half an hour b) half an hour c ) half an hour to one hour d) more than 1 hour Where do you usually prefer to do your workouts? a) In your organizations health centers b) Residence c) Nearby G ym d) Walking e) Others, specify_____________. 30) Do you feel work life balance policy in the organization should be customized to individual needs? a) Strongl y agree b) Agree c) Indifferent d) Disagree e) Strongly disagree 31) Do you thin k that if employees have good work-life balance the organization will be more ef fective and successful? a) Yes b) No If so how? ________________________________ __________________ Your comments. ______________________________________________ ____ Thank you very much for your time. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

78 Quality of Work Life 1. Definition of quality of work life: What is QWL? QWL can be define as The qual ity of relationship between employees and the total working environment. Quality of work life refers to temp.,humidity, or any environmental factors, work cultur e, amenities or facilities you have so that you can say the factors that directl y affect your work. Work life balance means is your work life affecting your per sonal life. For examples, you dont have time to spent with your family, to eat no rmally etc. 2. Factors influence to Quality of work life Employee attitude Worki ng environment Job opportunities Nature of job People related Stress level Caree r prospects Challenges Personal and company development Risk and reward 3. Conte nts of QWL a. Health is wealth: Organizations should realize that their true wea lth lies in their employees and so providing a healthy work environment for empl oyees should be their primary objective. b. Personal and career growth opportuni ties: An organization should provide employees with opportunities for personal/p rofessional development and growth and to prepare them to accept responsibilitie s at higher levels. c. Participative management style and recognition: Flat orga nizational structures help organizations facilitate employee participation. Work ers feel that they have control over their work processes and they also offer in novative ideas to improve them. Recognition also helps to motivate employees to perform better. Recognition can be in the form of rewarding employees for jobs w ell done. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

79 d.Work life balance: Organizations should provide relaxation time for the emp loyees and offer tips to balance their personal and professional lives. e. Fair compensation and job security: Pay should be fixed on the basis of the work done , responsibilities undertaken, individual skills , performance and accomplishmen ts. Job security is another factor that is of concern to employees. Permanent em ployment provides security to the employees and improves their QWL. f.Fun at wor kplace: This is growing trend adopted by todays organizations to make their offic es a fun place to work. Improving the quality of work life Improving work life q uality is the satisfactory expression of the important individual needs due to w orking in an organization. I. Forms of work life quality: 1. Being treated fairl y, reasonably and being cared about by leaders. 2. Creating opportunities for ev ery employee to make best of their potential abilities. 3. Creating opportunitie s for every employee to actively take part in the decision making process that r elates to their work. 4. Being paid adequately, fairly and reasonably. 5. Workin g in a healthy and safe environment. II/ Methods of improving work life quality: To consider an enterprise to have improved their employees work life quality, we should see about: 1. Payment: Employees must be paid quickly and on time, fairl y, appropriately and adequately to their work. 2. Benefit: Carry out benefit pro grams in many aspects, care about employees life and family by many various activ ities: give birthday presents, hold wedding for employees, and help their famili es in sudden difficulties. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

80 3. The relationship between leaders and subordinates: Enterprise needs to kee p a close, sincere and open minded relationship between leaders and subordinates . Allow straight line managers to be able to appraise or comment on their subord inates. A special fund deduction should be given to managers only to improve the ir relationship with employees, for example: Having a visit when the employee is sick 4. The Implementation of training programs to improve special skills for ma nagers. 5. Doing research on the opinions, wishes and estimation of all the empl oyees in the company about the firm business activities. 6. Employees performance evaluation period in which managers are required to discuss with employees abou t the development goals of the company as well as individual employee. 7. The Es tablishment of quality circle in the company to make opportunities for every emp loyee to be able to take part in the decision making process that relate to thei r work. 8. The Use of flexible working time system; the reduction of working tim e in a week, working hours in a day or the change in working schedule to make it the most appropriate, convenient and reasonable for employees to work. Models and components of quality of working life Various authors and researchers have proposed models of quality of working life which include a wide range of f actors. Selected models are reviewed below. Hackman and Oldham (1976)[5] drew at tention to what they described as psychological growth needs as relevant to the consideration of Quality of working life. Several such needs were identified : S kill variety, Task Identity, Task significance, Autonomy and Feedback. They sugg ested that such needs have to be addressed if employees are to experience high q uality of working life. In contrast to such theory based models, Taylor (1979)[6 ] more pragmatically identified the essential components of quality of working l ife as basic extrinsic job factors of wages, hours and working conditions, and t he intrinsic job notions of the nature of the work itself. He suggested that a n umber of other aspects could be added, including : individual power, employee pa rticipation in the management, fairness and equity, THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

81 social support, use of ones present skills, self development, a meaningful fut ure at work, social relevance of the work or product, effect on extra work activ ities. Taylor suggested that relevant quality of working life concepts may vary according to organisation and employee group. Warr and colleagues (1979)[7], in an investigation of quality of working life, c onsidered a range of apparently relevant factors, including : work involvement, intrinsic job motivation, higher order need strength, perceive d intrinsic job characteristics, job satisfaction, life satisfaction, happiness, and self-rated anxiety. They discussed a range of correlations derived from their work, such as those be tween work involvement and job satisfaction, intrinsic job motivation and job sa tisfaction, and perceived intrinsic job characteristics and job satisfaction. In particular, Warr et al. found evidence for a moderate association between total job satisfaction and total life satisfaction and happiness, with a less strong, but significant association with self-rated anxiety. Thus, whilst some authors have emphasised the workplace aspects in quality of working life, others have id entified the relevance of personality factors, psychological well being, and bro ader concepts of happiness and life satisfaction. Factors more obviously and dir ectly affecting work have, however, served as the main focus of attention, as re searchers have tried to tease out the important influences on quality of working life in the workplace. Mirvis and Lawler (1984)[8] suggested that quality of wo rking life was associated with satisfaction with wages, hours and working condit ions, describing the basic elements of a good quality of work life as : safe work environment, equitable wages, equal employment opportunities and oppor tunities for advancement. Baba and Jamal (1991)[9] listed what they described as typical indicators of qua lity of working life, including: THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

82 job satisfaction, job involvement, work role ambiguity, work role conflict, w ork role overload, job stress, organisational commitment and turn-over intention s. Baba and Jamal also explored routinisation of job content, suggesting that this facet should be investigated as part of the concept of quality of working life. Some have argued that quality of working life might vary between groups of worke rs. For example, Ellis and Pompli (2002)[10] identified a number of factors cont ributing to job dissatisfaction and quality of working life in nurses, including : poor working environments, resident aggression, workload, innability to deliver quality of care preferred, balance of work and family, shiftwork, lack of involv ement in decision making, professional isolation, lack of recognition, poor rela tionships with supervisor/peers, role conflict, lack of opportunity to learn new skills. Sirgy et al. (2001)[11] suggested that the key factors in quality of working lif e are: need satisfaction based on job requirements, need satisfaction based on work env ironment, need satisfaction based on supervisory behaviour, need satisfaction ba sed on ancillary programmes, organizational commitment. They defined quality of working life as satisfaction of these key needs through resources, activities, and outcomes stemming from participation in the workplace . Needs as defined by the psychologist, Abraham Maslow, were seen as relevant in underpinning this model, covering health & safety, economic and family, social, esteem, actualisation, knowledge and aesthetics, although the relevance of nonwork aspects is play down as attention is focussed on quality of work life rathe r than the broader concept of quality of life. These attempts at defining qualit y of working life have included theoretical approaches, lists of identified fact ors, correlational analyses, with opinions varying as to whether such definition s and explanations can be both global, or need to be specific to each work setti ng. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

83 Bearfield, (2003)[12] used 16 questions to examine quality of working life, and distinguished between causes of dissatisfaction in professionals, intermediate c lerical, sales and service workers, indicating that different concerns might hav e to be addressed for different groups. The distinction made between job satisfa ction and dissatisfaction in quality of working life reflects the influence of j ob satisfaction theories. Herzberg at al., (1959)[13] used Hygiene factors and Moti vator factors to distinguish between the separate causes of job satisfaction and job dissatisfaction. It has been suggested that Motivator factors are intrinsic to the job, that is; job content, the work itself, responsibility and advancemen t. The Hygiene factors or dissatisfaction-avoidance factors include aspects of t he job environment such as interpersonal relationships, salary, working conditio ns and security. Of these latter, the most common cause of job dissatisfaction c an be company policy and administration, whilst achievement can be the greatest source of extreme satisfaction. An individuals experience of satisfaction or diss atisfaction can be substantially rooted in their perception, rather than simply reflecting their real world . Further, an individuals perception can be affected by relative comparison am I paid as much as that person - and comparisons of intern alised ideals, aspirations, and expectations, for example, with the individuals c urrent state (Lawler and Porter, 1966).[1] In summary, where it has been conside red, authors differ in their views on the core constituents of Quality of Workin g Life (e.g. Sirgy, Efraty, Siegel & Lee, 2001[11] and Warr, Cook & Wall, 1979). [7] It has generally been agreed however that Quality of Working Life is concept ually similar to well-being of employees but differs from job satisfaction which solely represents the workplace domain (Lawler, 1982)[14]. Quality of Working L ife is not a unitary concept, but has been seen as incorporating a hierarchy of perspectives that not only include work-based factors such as job satisfaction, satisfaction with pay and relationships with work colleagues, but also factors t hat broadly reflect life satisfaction and general feelings of well-being (Danna & Griffin, 1999).[15] More recently, work-related stress and the relationship be tween work and non-work life domains (Loscocco & Roschelle, 1991)[16] have also been identified as factors that should conceptually be included in Quality of Wo rking Life. Measurement There are few recognised measures of quality of working life, and of those that exist few have evidence of validity and reliability, that is, there is a very li mited literature based on peer reviewed evaluations of available assessments. A recent statistical analysis of a new measure, the Work-Related Quality of Life s cale (WRQoL)[17], indicates that this assessment device should prove to be a use ful instrument, although further evaluation would be useful. The WRQoWL measure uses six core factors to explain most of the variation in an individuals quality of working life: Job and Career Satisfaction; Working Conditions; General WellBeing; HomeWork Interface; Stress at Work and Control at Work. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

84 The Job & Career Satisfaction (JCS) scale of the Work-Related Quality of Life sc ale (WRQoL) is said to reflect an employees feelings about, or evaluation of, the ir satisfaction or contentment with their job and career and the training they r eceive to do it. Within the WRQoL measure, JCS is reflected by questions asking how satisfied people feel about their work. It has been proposed that this Posit ive Job Satisfaction factor is influenced by various issues including clarity of goals and role ambiguity, appraisal, recognition and reward, personal developme nt career benefits and enhancement and training needs. The General well-being (G WB) scale of the Work-Related Quality of Life scale (WRQoL)[17], aims to assess the extent to which an individual feels good or content in themselves, in a way which may be independent of their work situation. It is suggested that general w ell-being both influences, and is influenced by work. Mental health problems, pr edominantly depression and anxiety disorders, are common, and may have a major i mpact on the general well-being of the population. The WRQoL GWB factor assesses issues of mood, depression and anxiety, life satisfaction, general quality of l ife, optimism and happiness. The WRQoL Stress at Work sub-scale (SAW) reflects t he extent to which an individual perceives they have excessive pressures, and fe el stressed at work. The WRQoL SAW factor is assessed through items dealing with demand and perception of stress and actual demand overload. Whilst it is possib le to be pressured at work and not be stressed at work, in general, high stress is associated with high pressure. The Control at Work (CAW) subscale of the WRQo L scale addresses how much employees feel they can control their work through th e freedom to express their opinions and being involved in decisions at work. Per ceived control at work as measureed by the Work-Related Quality of Life scale (W RQoL)[17] is recognized as a central concept in the understanding of relationshi ps between stressful experiences, behaviour and health. Control at work, within the theoretical model underpinning the WRQoL, is influenced by issues of communi cation at work, decision making and decision control. The WRQoL Home-Work Interf ace scale (HWI) measures the extent to which an employer is perceived to support the family and home life of employees. This factor explores the interrelationsh ip between home and work life domains. Issues that appear to influence employee HWI include adequate facilities at work, flexible working hours and the understa nding of managers. The Working Conditions scale of the WRQoL assesses the extent to which the employee is satisfied with the fundamental resources, working cond itions and security necessary to do their job effectively. Physical working cond itions influence employee health and safety and thus employee Quality of working life. This scale also taps into satisfaction with the resources provided to hel p people do their jobs. Applications Regular assessment of Quality of Working Life can potentially provide organisati ons with important information about the welfare of their employees, such as job satisfaction, general THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

85 well-being, work-related stress and the home-work interface. Studies in the UK U niversity sector have shown a valid measure of Quality of Working Life exists[18 ] and can be used as a basis for effective interventions. Worrall and Cooper (20 06)[19] recently reported that a low level of well-being at work is estimated to cost about 5-10% of Gross National Product per annum, yet Quality of Working Li fe as a theoretical construct remains relatively unexplored and unexplained with in the organisational psychology research literature. A large chunk of most peop les lives will be spent at work. Most people recognise the importance of sleeping well, and actively try to enjoy the leisure time that they can snatch. But all too often, people tend to see work as something they just have to put up with, o r even something they dont even expect to enjoy. Some of the factors used to meas ure quality of working life pick up on things that dont actually make people feel good, but which seem to make people feel bad about work if those things are abs ent. For example, noise if the place where someone works is too noisy, they migh t get frequent headaches, or find they cannot concentrate, and so feel dissatisf ied. But when it is quiet enough they dont feel pleased or happy - they just dont feel bad. This can apply to a range of factors that affect someone's working con ditions. Other things seem to be more likely to make people feel good about work and themselves once the basics are OK at work. Challenging work (not too little , not too much) can make them feel good. Similarly, opportunities for career pro gression and using their abilities can contribute to someone's quality of workin g life. A recent publication of the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (N ICE)[20] emphasises the core role of assessment and understanding of the way wor king environments pose risks for psychological wellbeing through lack of control and excessive demand. The emphasis placed by NICE on assessment and monitoring wellbeing springs from the fact that these processes are the key first step in i dentifying areas for improving quality of working life and addressing risks at w ork. Quality of work life questionnaire 1. How long have you been working for company? a) Less than one year b) One Two years c) Two Five years d) Five years or more 2. I am satisfied with the working conditions provided by the company. a) Strongly agree b) Agree c) Disagree d) S trongly disagree THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

86 3. How motivating is the work environment? a) Extremely motivating b) Fairly mot ivating c) Neither motivating nor demotivating 4. Do the other departments in th e hospital cooperate with each other? a) Yes b) No 5. Do you feel free to offer comments and suggestions? a) Yes b) No 6. There is a harmonious relationship wit h our colleagues in the company. a) Strongly agree b) Agree c) Disagree d) Stron gly disagree 7. Sense of belongingness increase with the cooperation. a) Strongl y agree b) Agree c) Disagree d) Strongly disagree 8. How far training programs h elps an employee to achieve the required skill for performing the job efficientl y? a) To great extent b) To some extent c) Rarely 9. Do you think the training p rograms helps in improving relationship among employees? a) Yes b) No 10. How wo uld you rate the programs overall? Very useful 5 4 3 2 1 little use 11. Please c omment on the following infrastructure Appraisal from Excellent to Poor a) Class room/seating arrangement e) Audio visual arrangement f) Quality of lunch g) Trav eling facility THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

87 12. I am given adequate and fair compensation for the work I do? a) Strongly agr ee b) Agree c) Disagree d) Strongly disagree 13. My organization will pay salary by considering responsibilities at work a) Strongly agree b) Agree c) Disagree d) Strongly disagree 14. The company does a good job of linking rewards to job p erformance a) Strongly agree b) Agree c) Disagree d) Strongly disagree 15. I fee l that my work allows me to do in a particular area where I can do best. a) Stro ngly agree b) Agree c) Disagree d) Strongly disagree 16. There is a balance betw een stated objectives and resources provided by the company. a) Strongly agree b ) Agree c) Disagree d) Strongly disagree 17. Fringe benefits provided to you. a) Insurance b) Retirement benefit c) Health checkup d) All the above 18. Does the company provide you the social security benefits? a) Yes b) No 19. Do you feel c omfortable and satisfied with your job? a) Satisfied b) Neutral c) Dissatisfied THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

88 20. Do you feel secured about your job? h) Yes i) No HUMAN RESOURCE INFORMATION SYSTEM(HRIS) The Human Resource Information System (HRIS) is a software or online solution fo r the data entry, data tracking, and data information needs of the Human Resourc es, payroll, management, and accounting functions within a business. Normally pa ckaged as a data base, hundreds of companies sell some form of HRIS and every HR IS has different capabilities. Pick your HRIS carefully based on the capabilitie s you need in your company. Typically, the better The Human Resource Information Systems (HRIS) provide overall: Management of all employee information. Reporti ng and analysis of employee information. Company-related documents such as emplo yee handbooks, emergency evacuation procedures, and safety guidelines. Benefits administration including enrollment, status changes, and personal information up dating. Complete integration with payroll and other company financial software a nd accounting systems. Applicant tracking and resume management. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

89 The HRIS that most effectively serves companies tracks: attendance and PTO use, pay raises and history, pay grades and positions held, performance development p lans, training received, disciplinary action received, personal employee informa tion, and occasionally, management and key employee succession plans, high poten tial employee identification, and applicant tracking, interviewing, and selectio n. An effective HRIS provides information on just about anything the company nee ds to track and analyze about employees, former employees, and applicants. Your company will need to select a Human Resources Information System and customize i t to meet your needs. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD

90 With an appropriate HRIS, Human Resources staff enables employees to do their ow n benefits updates and address changes, thus freeing HR staff for more strategic functions. Additionally, data necessary for employee management, knowledge deve lopment, career growth and development, and equal treatment is facilitated. Fina lly, managers can access the information they need to legally, ethically, and ef fectively support the success of their reporting employees. THE HINDU COLLEGE-MBA, MACHILIPATNAM Copyright@prasad2011 Prof.V.V.S.K.PRASAD