study guide bmhr5103 human resource management

8/17/2019 STUDY GUIDE BMHR5103 Human Resource Management

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STUDY GUIDE BMHR5103 Human Resource Management

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CENTRE FOR GRADUATE STUDIES

STUDY GUIDE

BMHR5103

Human ResourceManagement

Writer: Dr Siti Rohaida Mohamed Zainal Universiti Sains Malaysia

Developed by: Centre for Instructional Design and Technology

Open University Malaysia

First Edition, August 2012

Copyright © Open University Malaysia (OUM) All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced in any form or by any meanswithout the written permission of the President, Open University Malaysia.


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INTRODUCTION TO STUDY GUIDE

This Study Guide is intended for Open University Malaysia’s BMHR5103Human Resource Management course. It comes in TWO parts, asdescribed below:

Part One comprises the Course Introduction, which gives you an overviewof the course. More specifically, it provides you with the course synopsis,objectives, learning outcomes and study load. There is a brief description ofthe main textbook(s), which you must read to fulfil the course requirements.There is also a list of additional reading references. You are encouragedto go into myVLE to check out the assessment, assignment and finalexamination formats.

Part Two comprises the Learning Guide. This starts with an Overview, a

recommended weekly study schedule to guide your learning process, and abrief description of the various elements in the Learning Guide. There is alsoa list of topics to be covered. For each topic, you are given the specificlearning outcomes, a topic overview and a listing of the focus areas, togetherwith assigned readings and the pages where information on the focus areasis found. To consolidate your learning and test your understanding, asummary of the main content covered and study questions are provided atthe end of each topic.

Finally, there are two appendices, Learning Support and Study Tips, tohelp you walk through the course successfully.

Please read through this Study Guide before you commence your course.We wish you a pleasant study experience.


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Contents

Part One: Course Introduction ....................................................................5Synopsis .............................................................................................5Objectives ...........................................................................................5Learning Outcomes ............................................................................5Study Load ..........................................................................................6

Main Textbook(s) ...............................................................................6 Assigned Readings .............................................................................6 Additional Recommended Readings ..................................................7 Assessment ........................................................................................7

Part Two: Learning Guide ...........................................................................9 An Overview .......................................................................................9

Topic 1 .............................................................................................11Topic 2 ..............................................................................................16Topic 3 .............................................................................................19Topic 4 .............................................................................................24Topic 5 .............................................................................................26Topic 6 .............................................................................................31Topic 7 .............................................................................................33Topic 8 .............................................................................................39Topic 9 .............................................................................................44Topic 10 ...........................................................................................48

Appendices .................................................................................................51

Appendix A: Learning Support ..........................................................51 Appendix B: Study Tips ....................................................................52


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PART ONE: COURSE INTRODUCTION

Synopsis

This course emphasises the practices of HRM. This course also highlightsthe synergistic relationship between HRM and organisation performance. Itwill also highlight the importance of HR practices in managing a firm in orderto leverage the organisational success and achieve employee well-being.This course explores the role of HR managers and provides a comprehensivefoundation to managing HRs for non-HR managers.

Objectives

The general aims of this course are to:

1. Present HRM practices, concepts and the application;

2. Explain the roles of HR manager in determining the performance oforganisations regardless of the size and industry;

3. Describe HR managers’ activities;

4. Explain the development of HR through HR development, careerdevelopment and performance appraisal;

5. Discuss employee reward systems such as incentives, pensions andbenefits; and

6. Identify the components of organisational employment relations andworkplace safety and health.

Learning Outcomes

By the completion of this course, you should be able to:

1. Explain what is meant by HRM, its theories, concepts and thechallenges facing the HR manager;

2. Assess the effectiveness of the role of a HR manager in relation toorganisational goals;

3. Assess why job analysis, job design and HR planning are basicHRM tools in determining the numbers and kinds of employees the

organisation will need at future dates in order to realise its goals;

4. Respond to how training and development programmes, careerdevelopment programmes and performance appraisal improveemployees’ performance in an organisation;


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5. Outline key issues such as remunerations, incentive, pension andbenefits that will determine the success of managing human resources;and

6. Analyse approaches taken by organisations to take care of employmentrelations and safety and health.

Study Load

It is a standard OUM practice that learners accumulate 40 study hours forevery credit hour. As such, for a three-credit hour course, you are expected tospend at least 120 hours of learning. Table 1 gives an estimation of how the120 hours can be accumulated.

Table 1: Allocation of Study Hours

Activities No. of Hours

Reading course materials and completing exercises 60

Attending 5 seminar sessions (3 hours for each session) 15

Engaging in online discussions 15

Completing assignment(s) 20

Revision 10

Total 120

Main Textbook(s)

Dessler, G. (2012). Human resource management . United Kingdom: Pearson.

Assigned Readings

Barnadin, H. J. (2007). Human resource management: An experientialapproach (4th ed.). Asia: McGraw-Hill.

Dessler, G. (2005). Human resource management (10th ed.). Upper SaddleRiver, New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.

Gomez-Mejía, L. R., Balkin, D. B., & Cardy, R. L. (2007). Managing humanresources (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: PearsonEducation, Inc.

Ivancevich, J. M. (2007). Human resource management (10th ed.).New York: McGraw-Hill.


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Mondy, R. W. (2008). Human resource management (10th ed.). UpperSaddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.

Noe, R. A. (2006). Human resource management: Gaining a competitiveadvantage (5th ed.). New York: McGraw/Hill Irwin.

Snell, S. (2007). Human resource management. Thomson.

Additional Recommended Readings

None.

Assessment

Please refer to myVLE for information on the assessment format andrequirements.


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PART TWO: LEARNING GUIDES

An Overview

This Learning Guide is arranged by topic. It covers essential content in themain textbook and is organised to stretch over TEN study weeks, before theexamination period begins. Use this Learning Guide to plan your engagementwith the course content. You may follow the recommended weekly studyschedule in Table 2 to help you progress in a linear fashion, starting withWeek 1.

Table 2: Recommended Weekly Study Schedule

Topic Week

Topic 1: Understanding the foundation of HRM and Strategic

HRM Introduction to HRM

HRM Strategy and Analysis

1

Topic 2: Job Analysis and Talent Management

Job Analysis and the Talent Management Process2

Topic 3: Planning, Recruiting and Interviewing

Personnel Planning and Recruiting

Interview Candidates

3

Topic 4: Interviewing Candidates

Interviewing Candidates4

Topic 5: Training and Performance Appraisal Training and Developing Employees

Performance Management Appraisal

5

Topic 6: Managing Employees

Employee Retention, Engagement and Careers6

Topic 7: Pay, Incentives and Benefits

Establishing Strategic Pay Plans

Pay for Performance and Financial Incentives

Benefits and Services

7

Topic 8: Handling Work Related Issues

Ethics and Employee Rights, and Discipline

Labour Relations and Collective Bargaining

8

Topic 9: Safety and Global Issues

Employee Safety and Health

Managing Global Human Resources

9

Topic 10: HR in Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SME)

Managing HR in Small and Entrepreneurial Firms10


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Each topic in the Learning Guide comprises the following sections (refer toFigure 1):

Learning Outcomes: outline the specific tasks to be accomplished; Topic Overview: briefly explains what the topic touches on so as to

provide a general interpretative framework for understanding the topiccontent;

Focus Areas: identify the main and sub areas to be covered;

Assigned Readings: help you to navigate the main textbook and readingmaterials;

Content Summary: provides an interpretative framework forunderstanding the core content; and

Study Questions: help you to focus on key subject areas.

Figure 1: Organisation of the Learning Guide


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Topic 1: Understanding the Foundation of HRM andStrategic HRM

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this topic, you should be able to:

1. Explain what HRM is and how it relates to the management process;

2. Define and provide an example of evidence-based HRM;

3. Explain the importance of strategic planning to all managers; and

4. Describe the tools of strategic HRM.

Topic Overview

This topic provides an overview of HRM. It also highlights the importance ofHRM practices in managing employees. The second item in this sectionaddresses strategic HRM process, strategic HRM, HR metrics and analysis,and building high-performance work systems. This topic also highlights thetools used in planning and designing strategic HRM.

Focus Areas and Assigned Readings

Focus Areas Assigned Readings

1.1 What is HRM and Why is it

Important?

1.2 The Trends Shaping HRM

1.3 The New HR Managers

1.4 The Strategic Management

Process

1.5 Strategic Human Resource

Management

1.6 What are High-Performance WorkSystems

Dessler, G. (2012). Human resource

management . United Kingdom:Pearson.

Chapter 1, pp 30–35.





Chapter 3, pp 106–109.Chapter 3, pp 117–119.


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Content Summary

1.1 What is HRM and why it is important – The management process

involves the following functions: planning, organising, staffing, leading,and controlling. The activities of HRM includes conducting jobanalyses; planning labour needs and recruiting job candidates;selecting job candidates; orienting and training new employees;managing wages and salaries; providing incentives and benefits;appraising performance; communicating; training and developingmanagers; building employee commitment; being knowledgeableabout equal opportunity, affirmative action, and employee health andsafety; and handling grievances and labour relations.

1.2 HR managers also have line, coordinative and staff functions.However, they exert line authority only within the HR department.

They have implied authority with line managers due to the fact thatthey have the ear of top management on many important issuescontributing to organisational health.

1.3 There are six categories of trends shaping HRM, namely,globalisation and competition trends, indebtedness (leverage) andderegulation, technological trends, trends in the nature of work,workforce and demographic trends, and economic challenges andtrends.

1.4 Knowledge workers and human capital – This refers to theknowledge, education, training, skills and expertise of a firm’s

workers. The HR function must employ more sophisticated andcreative means to identify, attract, select, train and motivate therequired workforce.

1.5 Goal-setting and the planning process – Strategic planning isimportant because, in a well-run organisation, the goals from the topof the organisation downward should form an unbroken chain, orhierarchy, of goals. These goals, in turn, should guide everyone in theorganisation in what they do.


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1.6 Figure 1.1 below shows the seven stages of strategic management.

Figure 1.1: Seven stages of strategic management

1.7 Managers develop three types of strategies, which are explainedbelow.

Figure 1.2: Three types of strategies


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1.8 Defining strategic HRM – Strategic HRM means formulating andexecuting HR policies and practices that produce the employeecompetencies and behaviours the company needs to achieve its

strategic aims. The following steps demonstrate linking company-wideand HR strategies:

Evaluate company’s competitive environment

Formulate business strategy

Identify workforce requirements

Formulate HR strategic policies and activities

Develop detailed HR scorecard measures

1.9 Strategic HRM tools – There are three important tools, namely,

strategy map, HR Scorecard and digital dashboard.

Figure 1.3: Strategic HRM tools


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Study Questions

1. Assume that you are a HR manager for Company A. Your company is

focusing on manufacturing computer chips. Your competitor, CompanyB, is about to close down. The top management of your companydecided to buy company B in order to expand their business. As the HRmanager, you are required to strategise the acquisition process. Explainyour answer.

2. Summarise the linkage between HR activities and organisationalperformance.

3. Compare and contrast three tools for strategic HRM.


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Topic 2: Job Analysis and Talent Management

Learning Outcomes


1. Explain the importance of talent management;

2. Describe the nature of job analysis and understand the method ofconducting job analysis; and

3. Write job descriptions and compare these with job specifications.

Topic Overview

This topic highlights the process of analysing jobs and designing two

important documents related to job analysis, namely, job description and jobspecification. It also highlights the uses of job analysis as part of talentmanagement.



2.1 The Talent Management Process

2.2 The Basics of Job Analysis

2.3 Methods of Collecting Job

Analysis Information

2.4 Writing Job Descriptions

2.5 Writing Job Specifications


management . United Kingdom:

Pearson.







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Content Summary

2.1 Talent management is the goal-oriented and integrated process

of planning, recruiting, developing, managing and compensatingemployees.

2.2 Job analysis – The procedure for determining the duties and skillrequirements of a job and the kind of person who should be hiredfor the job, by collecting the following types of information: Workactivities; human behaviours; machines, tools, equipment and workaids; performance standards; job context; and human requirements.

2.3 Job description – A list of a job’s duties, responsibilities, reportingrelationships, working conditions, and supervisory responsibilities –one product of a job analysis.

2.4 Job specification – A list of a job’s “human requirements”: Therequisite education, skills, knowledge, and so on – another product ofa job analysis.

2.5 Uses of job analysis information

Figure 2.1: Uses of job analysis information

2.6 There are six steps in conducting a job analysis:

Step 1 – Decide how the information will be used because that willdetermine what data will be collected and how they will becollected.

Step 2 – Review relevant background information, such asorganisational charts, process charts, and job descriptions.

Step 3 – Select representative positions to analyse because theremay be many similar jobs, and it may not be necessary to

analyse all of them.

Step 4 – Analyse the job by collecting data on job activities, requiredemployee behaviours, working conditions, and human traitsand abilities needed to perform the job.


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Step 5 – Verify the job analysis information with job incumbents andsupervisors to confirm that it is factually correct andcomplete.

Step 6 – Develop a job description and job specification from theinformation.

2.7 Methods for collecting job analysis information include interview,questionnaire, observation, participant’s diary/logs, quantitative jobanalysis techniques, and Internet-based job analysis.

Study Questions

1. Discuss the differences among job analysis, job description and jobspecification.

2. Explain the uses of job analysis information.

3. Aminah is a new executive trainee in Company A. The managementdecides to locate her in two departments: finance and marketing. Createa job description for Aminah for both departments.


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Topic 3: Planning, Recruiting and Interviewing

Learning Outcomes


1. List the steps in the recruitment and selection process;

2. Explain, with examples, the need for effective recruiting;

3. List and discuss the main outside sources of candidates;

4. Explain what is meant by reliability and validity; and

5. List eight tests you could use for employee selection and how you coulduse them.

Topic Overview

In this topic, we will learn how to improve your effectiveness in recruitingcandidates, including personnel planning and forecasting, recruiting jobcandidates, and developing and using application forms. We also will knowhow to use various tools to select the best candidates for the job including theselection process, basic testing techniques, background and referencechecks, ethical and legal questions in testing, types of tests, and worksamples and simulations.



3.1 Workforce Planning and

Forecasting

3.2 Internal Sources of Candidates

3.3 Outside Sources of Candidates

3.4 Why Careful Selection is Important

3.5 Types of Tests



Pearson.







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Content Summary

3.1 The recruitment and selection process involves five main steps;

Figure 3.1: Five main steps in the recruitment and selection process

3.2 Strategy and workforce planning – Planning should be directly relatedto the company’s strategic goals.

3.3 Forecasting personnel needs (labour demand) – Forecast revenues,and then estimate the size of the staff required to achieve this sales

volume.

3.4 Trend analysis requires studying a firm’s employment levels over aperiod of years to predict future needs.

3.5 Ratio analysis involves making forecasts based on the ratio between(1) some causal factor, such as sales volume, and (2) the number ofemployees required, like the number of salespeople.

3.6 The scatter plot shows graphically how two variables (such as ameasure of business activity and a firm’s staffing levels) are related.

3.7 Markov analysis involves creating a matrix on employees in the chainof feeder positions for a key job.


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3.8 Manual systems and replacement charts – Simple manual devicescan be used to keep inventories and development records to compilequalifications information on each employee. Personnel replacement

charts show the present performance and promotability for eachposition’s potential replacement. Position replacement cards can alsobe created for each position to show possible replacements as well astheir present performance, promotion potential and training.Computerised skills inventories are used to track the qualifications ofhundreds or thousands of employees.

3.9 Forecasting the supply of outside candidates – This may involveconsidering general economic conditions and the expected rate ofunemployment.

3.10 Finding internal candidates – To be effective, promotion from within

requires using job posting, personnel records and skill banks.

3.11 Succession planning – Succession planning ensures a suitable supplyof successors for senior or key jobs. It can include the followingactivities: determining the projected need for managers andprofessionals by company level, function and skill; auditing currentexecutive talent to project the likely future supply for internal sources;planning individual career paths based on objective estimates offuture needs and assessments of potential; offering career counsellingbased on the needs of the individual and the firm; acceleratedpromotions, with development targets against the future needs of thebusiness; providing performance-related training and development;

planning strategic recruitment to fill short-term needs and meet futureneeds; and actually filling the positions.

3.12 Outside sources of candidates:

Advertising

Employment agencies

Temp agencies and alternative staffing

Offshoring/outsourcing jobs – Hiring workers abroad is becomingmore and more common. There are several specific issues thatthe HR manager should keep in mind when considering this

option.

Executive recruiters, also called headhunters, are specialemployment agencies retained by employers to seek out top-management talent for their clients.


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On-demand recruiting services (ODRS) – This service providesshort-term specialised recruiting to support specific projectswithout the expense of retaining traditional search firms. Basically,

recruiters get paid by the hour or project, instead of a percentagefee. Two trends – technology and specialisation – are changingthe executive search business. Executive recruiters are becomingmore specialised, and large ones are creating new businessesaimed specifically at specialised functions or industries.

College recruiting involves sending employers’ representatives tocollege campuses to prescreen applicants and create an applicantpool of management trainees, promotable candidates, andprofessional and technical employees.

Referrals and walk-ins are alternatives for identifying potentialcandidates. Referrals tend to generate high-quality candidates.

Walk-in candidates may be attracted by posting a “Help Wanted”sign.

3.13 Recruiting a more diverse workforce.

Single parents – Formulating an intelligent programme forattracting single parents should begin with understanding theconsiderable problems they often encounter in balancing work andfamily life.

Older workers – With the entire population ageing, manyemployers are encouraging retirement-age employees not toleave, or are actively recruiting employees who are at or beyond

retirement age by making their companies an attractive place inwhich older workers can work. An image of older worker-friendliness and flexibility in scheduling are vital.

Recruiting minorities – Requires employers to tailor their way ofthinking and to design HR practices that make their firms attractiveto minority workers.

Welfare-to-Work – The Federal Personal Responsibility andWelfare Reconciliation Act of 1996 prompted many employers toimplement programmes to attract and assimilate former welfarerecipients.

The Disabled – Employers can do several things to tap into this

huge potential workforce. The Department of Labour’s Office ofDisability Employment Policy offers several programmes, and allstates have local agencies that provide placement services andother recruitment and training tools.


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Study Questions

1. Explain the pros and cons of external hiring.

2. You are the HR manager for 3rd M Company. Your company decides toexpand the business to China due to its growing market. In order toventure into China’s market, the top management decides to hire asenior marketing executive to oversee the market. Explain in detail allfour levels of the recruitment process.


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Topic 4: Interviewing Candidates

Learning Outcomes


1. List the main types of selection interviews;

2. List and explain the main errors that can undermine an interview’susefulness; and

3. Give several examples of situational questions, behavioural questions,and background questions that provide structure.

Topic Overview

This topic will cover types of interviews, things that undermine its usefulness,and designing and conducting effective selection interviews.



4.1 Basic Types of Interviews

4.2 Three Ways to Make the Interview

Useful

4.3 The Errors that undermine an

interview’s usefulness



Pearson.


Chapter 7, p 247.


Content Summary

4.1 There are two basic types of interviews: structured and unstructured –Unstructured or non-directive interviews generally have no set format.Structured or directive interviews generally identify questions and allapplicants are asked the same questions.

4.2 Interview content: Types of questions – Interviews can be classifiedaccording to the nature or content of their questions, such assituational interviews, job-related interviews, behavioural interviews,and stress interviews. Puzzle questions are also popular today, andthey are used to see how candidates think under pressure.


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4.3 How should we administer the interview?

Figure 4.1: The parties who can administer an interview

4.4 There are six situations which could lead to an interview’s usefulnessbeing undermined: (1) first impressions; (2) not clarifying what the jobrequires, (3) candidate-order (contrast) error and pressure to hire;(4) non-verbal behaviour and impression management; (5) effectsof personal characteristics – attractiveness, gender, race of theinterviewers and (6) interviewer’s behaviour – telegraphing, whichrefers to the interviewer inadvertently evoking the expected answers.

4.5 Designing the structured situational interview procedure is as follows:Step 1 – Job analysis; Step 2 – Rate the job’s duty; Step 3 – Create

interview questions; Step 4 – Create benchmark answers; and Step 5 – Appoint the interview panel and conduct interviews. Web-basedapplications are available to help interviewers design and organisebehaviour-based selection interviews.

Study Questions

1. You are the HR officer for Selasih Company. You receive a requestfrom the Finance Department to hire a secretary for their department.They also request you to assist them in designing interview questions inorder to avoid negligent hiring. Which type of interview would yourecommend? Why? Design four interview questions which are related to

the position.

2. In your opinion, how can personal interviewer behaviour underminethe usefulness of an interview? Justify your answer by using researchfindings.


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Topic 5: Training and Performance Appraisal

Learning Outcomes


1. Summarise the purpose and process the employee orientation;

2. List and briefly explain each of the five steps in the training process;

3. Describe and illustrate how you would identify training requirements;

4. List and briefly discuss four management development programmes;

5. Define performance management and discuss how it differs fromperformance appraisal; and

6. Develop, evaluate and administer at least four performance appraisal

tools.

Topic Overview

This topic deals with increasing your effectiveness in training employees,including orienting employees, the training process, analysing training needs,and implementing training and development programmes. Also, we will learnabout the performance appraisal process, appraisal methods, performanceappraisal problems and solutions, performance management, and theappraisal interview.



5.1 Orienting and Onboarding NewEmployees

5.2 The Purposes of EmployeeOrientation/Onboarding

5.3 Overview of the Training Process

5.4 Implementing Training Programme

5.5 Managing Organisational ChangeProgrammes

5.6 Evaluating the Training Effort

Dessler, G. (2012). Human resourcemanagement . United Kingdom:Pearson.

Chapter 8, p 270.







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5.7 Basic Concepts in Performance

Management and Appraisal

5.8 Techniques for AppraisingPerformance

5.9 Dealing with appraisal and

interviews Problems




Content Summary

5.1 Training and Developing Employees

The purpose of employee orientation/onboarding – Employeesshould receive print or Internet-based employee handbooksoutlining benefits, policies and safety measures.

The orientation process:

(a) Conducting the training needs analysis

(b) Strategic training needs analysis

(c) Current training needs analysis

(d) Task analysis: Analysing new employees’ training needs

(e) Performance analysis: Assessing current employees’training

Designing the training programme – Designing means planning

the overall training programme including objectives, deliverymethods and programme evaluation. This involves seven steps.

On-the-job training (OJT) – Having a person learn a job byactually doing the job. It involves preparing the learner, presentingthe operation, doing a tryout and conducting follow-up.

Apprenticeship training – A structured process by which peoplebecome skilled workers through a combination of classroominstruction and on-the-job training.

Informal learning – Learning through day-to-day unplannedinteractions between the new worker and his/her colleagues.

Job instruction training – Teaching a new employee the logicalsequence of steps in a job.

Lectures – Quick and simple ways to provide knowledge to largegroups.


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Programmed learning – A step-by-step self-learning method thatinvolves three parts: 1) Presenting questions, facts or problems tothe learner; 2) Allowing the person to respond; and 3) Providing

feedback on the accuracy of the answers.

Methods of Training:

(a) Audiovisual-based training

(b) Vestibule training

(c) Electronic performance support systems (EPSS)

(d) Videoconferencing

(e) Computer-based training (CBT)

(f) Simulated learning

(g) Interactive learning

(h) Internet-based training

(i) Improving productivity through HRIS: Learning management

(j) Mobile learning

(k) Virtual classroom

(l) Lifelong and literacy training techniques

(m) Team training

Strategy and development – Management development is anyattempt to improve managerial performance by imparting

knowledge, changing attitudes and increasing skills. The generalmanagement development process consists of (1) assessing thecompany’s strategic needs, (2) appraising the manager’s currentperformance, and (3) developing the manager. Successionplanning is part of this process and is the process through which acompany plans for and fills senior-level openings.

Managerial on-the-job training methods include job rotation,coaching/ understudy approach and action learning.


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Off-the-job management training and development techniquesinclude case studies, outside seminars, management games, roleplaying, behaviour modifications, corporate universities and

executive coaches.

What to change – When organisations are faced with the need tomanage change, there are five different aspects that can betargeted, including strategy, culture, structure, technologies andattitudes/skills.

Lewin’s change process – The most difficult part of implementingorganisational change is overcoming employees’ resistance to it.Psychologist Kurt Lewin formulated a classic explanation of howto implement change in the face of resistance. His changeprocess consists of three steps: 1) Unfreezing; 2) Moving; and3) Refreezing.

Training effects to measure – Four basic categories of trainingoutcomes can be measured: 1) Reaction; 2) Learning;3) Behaviour, and 4) Results.

5.2 Performance Management and Appraisals

The performance appraisal process – Stripped to its essentials,performance appraisal always involves the three-stepperformance appraisal process: 1) Setting work standards;2) Assessing the employee’s actual performance relative tothose standards, which usually involves some form of rating; and3) Providing feedback to the employee with the aim of helping him

or her to eliminate performance deficiencies or to continue toperform above par.

Why appraise performance? For several reasons: 1) Manyemployers still base pay, etc. on employee appraisals;2) Appraisals play an integral role in the employer’s performancemanagement process; 3) The appraisal lets the boss andsubordinate develop a plan for correcting any deficiencies, andreinforce those things the employee does correctly; 4) They servea useful career planning purpose; and 5) Appraisals play a role inidentifying training and development needs.


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Who should do the appraising?

(a) The immediate supervisor

(b) Peer appraisals

(c) Rating committees

(d) Self-ratings

(e) Appraisal by subordinates

(f) 360-degree feedback – Ratings are collected from theemployee’s supervisors, subordinates, peers, and internal orexternal customers.

There are 12 techniques for appraising performance.

There are also seven technical problems that can affect the

fairness of the process.

Guidelines for effective appraisals – Appraisal problems can bemore effective by following these five tips: a) Know the problem; b)Use the right appraisal tool; c) Keep a diary; d) Get agreement ona plan; and e) Be fair.

How to handle a defensive subordinate – Recognise thatdefensive behaviour is normal; never attack a person’s defences;postpone action; and recognise your own limitations.

Study Questions

1. In your opinion, for which position would you apply 360-degreeevaluation? Why?

2. Due to globalisation issue, the top management of Selasih Companydecided to improvise their work related guidebook. The most significantchange is to implement the concept of 5S. This is to cultivate safetybehaviour among the employees. Based on your observation, this ideawill not be easily accepted by the employees. By applying Kurt Lewinmanagement change process, explain the process that you will use toimplement the idea smoothly.


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Topic 6: Managing Employees

Learning Outcomes


1. Describe a comprehensive approach to retaining employees;

2. Explain why employee engagement is important and how to foster suchengagement;

3. List and discuss the four steps in effectively coaching an employee; and

4. List the main decisions employers should address in reachingpromotion decisions.

Topic Overview

In this topic, we will learn how to effectively improve employee retention,employee engagement, career development, coaching employees andpromotions. This topic also highlights issues in career management.



6.1 Managing Employee Turnover and

Retention

6.2 Employee Engagement

6.3 Career Management



Pearson.

Chapter 10, pp 348–352.

Chapter 10, pp 352–353.

Chapter 10, pp 353–359.

Content Summary

6.1 Costs of turnover – There are tangible and intangible costs associatedwith turnover. Reducing turnover requires identifying and managing

the reasons for both voluntary and involuntary turnover.

6.2 Managing voluntary turnover – Voluntary turnover occurs for manyreasons including job dissatisfaction, poor pay, lack of promotionopportunities, work-life balance issues and inadequate health carebenefits.


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6.3 Retention strategies for reducing voluntary turnover – Any strategybegins with identifying the causes of turnover.

6.4 Job withdrawal is any action which places physical or psychologicaldistance between the employee and the organisation.

6.5 Careers terminology – “Occupational positions a person has had overmany years.”

6.6 Psychological contract – What the employer and employee expect ofeach other is part of what psychologists call a psychological contract.The psychological contract identifies each party’s mutualexpectations.

6.7 Sources of bias in promotion decisions – Women and people of colour

still experience relatively less career progress in organisations, andbias and more subtle barriers are often the cause.

6.8 Promotions and the law – Employer promotions must comply with allanti-discrimination laws.

6.9 Managing transfers – Transfers are moves from one job to another,usually with no change in salary or grade. The frequent relocation ofemployees has been assumed to have a damaging effect ontransferees’ family life. Transfers are also financially costly.

6.10 Managing retirements – Some employers are instituting formal pre-

retirement counselling aimed at easing the passage of theiremployees into retirement. A large majority of employees have saidthey expect to continue to work beyond the normal retirement age.Part-time employment is an alternative to outright retirement.Employers can benefit from retirement planning by becoming able toanticipate labour shortages.

Study Questions

1. How do you educate your employees about glass ceiling?

2. As the HR manager for Selasih Company, you notice that theperformance of your senior executive is decreasing. You decide toovercome this problem. List and discuss four suggestions to increasehis performance.


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Topic 7: Pay, Incentives and Benefits

Learning Outcomes


1. List the basic factors determining pay rates;

2. Define and give an example of how to conduct a job evaluation;

3. Discuss the main incentives for individual employees;

4. Describe the main incentives for managers and executives;

5. Name and define each of the main pay for time not worked benefits;and

6. Discuss the main insurance benefits, retirement benefits, and main

employees’ services benefits.

Topic Overview

In this topic, we will learn how to establish pay plan, job evaluationtechniques for finding the relative worth of a job and how to conduct onlineand offline salary surveys. Also, we learn how managers use performance-based incentives to motivate employees. These include employee benefitssuch as insurance, retirement and services benefits.



7.1 Basic Factors in Determining Pay

Rates

7.2 Job Evaluation Methods

7.3 How to Create a Market-

Competitive Pay Plan

7.4 Contemporary Topics inCompensation

7.5 Employee Incentives and

Recognition Programme

7.6 Incentives for Salespeople



Pearson.

Chapter 11, pp 378–380.

Chapter 11, pp 385–389.

Chapter 11, pp 390–400.

Chapter 11, pp 402–408.

Chapter 12, pp 422–426.

Chapter 12, pp 426–428.


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7.7 Incentives for Managers andExecutives

7.8 Team and Organisation-wideIncentive Plans

7.9 Types of Benefits

7.10 Pay for Time Not Worked

7.11 Insurance Benefits

7.12 Retirement Benefits

7.13 Personal Services and Family-Friendly Benefits

7.14 Flexible Benefits Programme

Chapter 12, pp 429–433.

Chapter 12, pp 433–437.

Chapter 13, pp 450–451.

Chapter 13, pp 451–458.

Chapter 13, pp 458–464.

Chapter 13, pp 464–468.

Chapter 14, pp 469–474.

Chapter 14, pp 472–474.

Content Summary

7.1 Employee compensation refers to all forms of pay or rewards going toemployees, which include direct financial payments and indirectpayments. Direct financial payments include wages, salaries,incentives, commissions and bonuses. Indirect payments includefinancial benefits like employer-paid insurance and vacations.

7.2 Employers use two basic approaches for setting pay rates: market-based approaches and job evaluation approaches.

7.3 Compensable factors – Factors that jobs have in common can beused to establish how the jobs compare to one another.

7.4 Job evaluation methods include:

Ranking – The simplest job evaluation method ranks each jobrelative to all other jobs, usually based on some overall factor like“job difficulty.” There are several steps in the job ranking method;obtain job information; select and group jobs; select compensablefactors; rank jobs; and combine ratings.

Job classification – This is a simple, widely used method in which jobs are categorised into groups; all the jobs in each group are ofroughly the same value for pay purposes. The groups are calledclasses if they contain similar jobs or grades, or if they contain

jobs that are similar in difficulty but otherwise different.


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Point method – It involves identifying several compensable factorsfor the jobs, as well as the degree to which each factor is presentin each job. Assume there are five degrees of the compensable

factor “responsibility” a job could contain. Further, assume youassign a different number of points to each degree of eachcompensable factor. Once the evaluation committee determinesthe degree to which each compensable factor (like “responsibility”and “effort”) is present in the job, the committee can calculate atotal point value for the job by adding up the corresponding pointsfor each factor. The result is a quantitative point rating for each job.

Computerised job evaluations – Using quantitative job evaluationmethods such as the point method can be time-consuming.Computer-aided job evaluation streamlines this process. Most

computerised systems have two main components: structuredquestionnaires and statistical models. These elements allow thecomputer program to price jobs more or less automatically byassigning points.

7.5 The process to create a competitive pay plan involves the followingsteps:

Step 1 – Choose benchmark jobs;

Step 2 – Select compensable factors – The choice of compensablefactors depends on tradition;

Step 3 – Assign weights to compensable factors;

Step 4 – Determines the relative amount of each compensable factorthe job contains;

Step 5 – Convert percentages;

Step 6 – Define factor degrees;

Step 7 – Determine for each job, its factors’ degrees and assignpoints.

7.6 What is a competitive pay system? It is a pay system that aligns theorganisation’s pay with the relevant labour markets.


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7.7 Individual employee incentive and recognition programmes:

Piecework plans – Piecework involves paying the worker a sum

(piece rate) for each unit produced. Straight piecework entailsstrict proportionality between results and rewards regardless ofoutput. With a standard hour plan, the worker gets a premiumequal to the percent by which his/her performance exceeds thestandard.

Merit Pay as an incentive – Merit pay or a merit raise is any salaryincrease the firm awards to an employee based on his/herindividual performance. It is different from a bonus in that it usuallybecomes part of the employee’s base salary, whereas a bonus isa one-time payment.

Incentives for professional employees – Professional employees

are those whose work involves the application of learnedknowledge to the solution of the employer’s problems, such aslawyers, doctors, economists, and engineers. Making incentivepay decisions for professional employees can be challengingbecause such employees are usually paid well anyway.

Non-financial and recognition-based awards – Recognitionprogrammes usually refer to formal programmes such asemployee-of-the-month programmes. Social recognitionprogrammes are more informal manager-employee exchanges,including praise and approval. Performance feedback is similarbut provides quantitative or qualitative information on performancein order to change the performance or maintain it. Most employers

combine both financial and non-financial incentives to motivateemployees.

Online and IT-supported awards – There are many reasons to useInternet sites to manage awards programmes. The sites can offera much broader range of products than most employers couldcatalogue and offer by themselves. And perhaps most importantly,the whole process is expedited, so it’s much easier to bestow anddeliver the awards.

Job designs – Research has shown that job design is a primarydriver of employee engagement.

7.8 There are three approaches to design team incentives:

7.9 Profit-sharing plans involve employees receiving a share of thecompany’s annual profits. There are several types of profit-sharingplans: cash plans, Lincoln Incentive System and deferred profit-sharing plans.


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7.10 Scanlon Plan – This is an incentive plan developed in 1937 by JosephScanlon. The basic features of the plan include philosophy ofcooperation, identity, competence, involvement system, and sharing

of benefits formula.

7.11 Implementing a plan – The basic eight steps are; 1) Establish generalplan objectives; 2) Define specific performance measures; 3) Decideon a funding formula; 4) Decide on a method for dividing anddistributing the employees’ share of the gains; 5) Choose the form ofpayment; 6) Decide how often bonuses are to be paid; 7) Develop theinvolvement system; and 8) Implement the plan.

7.12 Benefits are indirect financial and non-financial payments.

7.13 There are seven categories of pay for time not worked:

Figure 7.1: Seven categories of pay for time not worked

7.14 Workers’ compensation refers to the sure, prompt income andmedical benefits provided in work-related accidents to the victims ortheir dependents, regardless of fault. Every state has its own workers’compensation law and administrative commission, and some run theirown insurance programmes. Most states require employers to carryworkers’ compensation insurance. Neither the state nor the federalgovernment contributes any funds for workers’ compensation.

7.15 Retirement benefits includes social security and pension plans.

7.16 Personal services are being provided by many companies. Optionsmay include credit unions, legal services, and counselling.


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7.17 The cafeteria approach – A cafeteria benefits plan, which is generallysynonymous with a flexible benefits plan, is where each employee isgiven a benefits fund budget to spend on whichever benefits he/she

wants once the employer limits the total cost for each benefitspackage and includes certain non-optional items. Flexible spendingaccounts let employees pay for certain benefits expenses with pretaxdollars. Core plus option plans establish a core set of benefits, whichare usually mandatory for all employees; then the employees canchoose from various benefits options.

7.18 Benefits and Employee Leasing – Many businesses do not have theresources or employee base to support the cost of employee benefits.Employee leasing firms assume all or most of the employee’s HRfunctions.

7.19 Flexible work schedules include flexitime and compressedworkweeks.

7.20 Other flexible work arrangements – Job sharing can be useful forretirement-aged employees, allowing the company to retain theemployee, who experiences reduced hours. Work sharing is when awhole group reduces its hours to prevent layoffs. Telecommuters workat home and use phones and the Internet to conduct business.

Study Questions

1. Design a competitive salary scheme for HR executives. You arerequired to apply the steps listed for the process to create a competitivepay plan.

2. Compare and contrast the concept of flexitime and compressedworkweeks.


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Topic 8: Handling Work Related Issues

Learning Outcomes


1. Explain what is meant by ethical behaviour at work;

2. Discuss important factors that shape ethical behaviour at work;

3. Give a brief history of the US labour movement; and

4. Discuss the main features of at least three major pieces of labourlegislation.

Topic Overview

This topic will explain ethics, employee rights and fair treatment in HRM –matters essential for positive employee relations. It will also discuss dealingeffectively with unions and grievances.



8.1 Ethics and Fair Treatment at

Work

8.2 What Shapes Ethical Behaviour

at Work?

8.3 Using HRM Methods to Promote

Ethics and Fair Treatment

8.4 Managing Employee Discipline

and Privacy

8.5 Managing Dismissals

8.6 Why do Workers Organise?

8.7 What do Unions Want?

8.8 The Union Drive and Election

8.9 The Collective Bargaining

Process

8.10 Dealing with Disputes and

Grievances



Pearson.

Chapter 14, pp 486–489.

Chapter 14, pp 489–492.

Chapter 14, pp 493–494.

Chapter 14, pp 494–502.

Chapter 14, pp 502–511.

Chapter 15, pp 522–523.

Chapter 15, pp 523–524.

Chapter 15, pp 528–532.

Chapter 15, pp 535–542.

Chapter 15, pp 543–545.


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Content Summary

8.1 Ethics and Fair Treatment at Work

Ethics refers to “the principles of conduct governing an individualor a group.” Ethical decisions also involve morals, which aresociety’s accepted standards of behaviour. It would simplify thingsif it was always clear which decisions were ethical and which werenot. Unfortunately, it is not.

Ethics and the law – The law is not the best guide about what isethical because something may be legal but not right, andsomething may be right but not legal. “Don’t lie, don’t cheat, anddon’t steal.” We were all raised with essentially the same values.Ethics means making decisions that represent what you stand fornot just what is legal.

Ethics, justice and fair treatment – Experts generally defineorganisational justice in terms of its three components: distributive justice, procedural justice, and interpersonal or interactive justice.Distributive justice refers to the fairness and justice of thedecision’s result. Procedural justice refers to the fairness of theprocess. Interactional or interpersonal justice refers to “themanner in which managers conduct their interpersonal dealingswith employees,” and in particular to the degree to which theytreat employees with dignity as opposed to abuse or disrespect.

Ethics, public policy, and employee rights – Few employers relysolely on managers’ ethics or sense of fairness to ensure that they

do what is right by their employees. An employee may have theright to sue the employer under a number of differentcircumstances.

Using HRM methods to promote ethics and fair treatment

(a) Selection – Screening out undesirables can actually startbefore the applicant even applies, if the HR departmentcreates recruitment materials containing explicit referencesto the company’s emphasis on integrity and ethics. Theselection process also sends signals about the company’svalues and culture in terms of ethical and fair treatment.


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(b) Ethics training – Ethics training typically plays a big role inhelping employers nurture a culture of ethics and fair play.Such training usually includes showing employees how to

recognise ethical dilemmas, how to use ethical frameworksto resolve problems, and how to use HR functions in ethicalways.

(c) Performance appraisal – The firm’s performance appraisalprocesses provide another opportunity to emphasise acommitment to ethics and fairness. The appraisal canmeasure employees’ adherence to high ethical standards.

(d) Reward and disciplinary systems – Managers andorganisations need to reward ethical behaviour and penaliseunethical behaviour.

Fairness in disciplining – The purpose of discipline is to encourageemployees to behave sensibly at work. In an organisation, rulesand regulations serve about the same purpose that laws do insociety; discipline is called for when one of these rules orregulations is violated. A fair and just discipline process is basedon three pillars: Clear rules and regulations; a system ofprogressive penalties; and an appeals process.

Bullying and victimisation – This is becoming a serious problem inthe workplace and usually involves an imbalance of power,suggests an intent to cause harm, and occurs frequently. It canalso take many forms. These forms are discussed.

Employee privacy – The four main types of employee privacyviolations upheld by courts are intrusion, publication of privatematters, disclosure of medical records, and appropriation of anemployee’s name or likeness for commercial purposes.Background checks, monitoring off-duty conduct and lifestyle,drug testing, workplace searches, and monitoring of workplaceactivities trigger most privacy violations.

Termination at will and wrongful discharge – Termination at willmeans that without a contract, either the employer or theemployee could terminate at will the employment relationship.Wrongful discharge refers to a dismissal that violates the law orthat fails to comply with contractual arrangements stated or

implied by the employer, for instance, in employee manuals.


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Grounds for dismissal – There are four bases for dismissal. Indismissing an employee, the employer should take care to ensurethat all keys and company property are returned, Internet

passwords disabled and employee accounts inactivated.

8.2 Labour Relations and Collective Bargaining

Union security – The five types of union security are closed shop,union shop, agency shop, preferential shop and maintenance ofmembership arrangement.

The union drive and election involves five steps.

Figure 8.1: Five steps in the union drive and election


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How to lose an NLRB election – The four sure ways to losean election are: 1) Being asleep at the switch; 2) Appointinga committee; 3) Concentrating on money and benefits; and

4) Delegating too much to division or branches.

The supervisor’s role – Supervisors are the first line of defencewhen it comes to the unionising effort. Supervisors need somespecial training because they can discover the early signs ofunion activity or they can inadvertently take actions that hurt theiremployers’ union-related efforts. Supervisors must beknowledgeable about what they can and cannot do to legallyhamper organising activities.

In collective bargaining, good faith means that both partiescommunicate and negotiate, that proposals are matched withcounterproposals, and that both parties make every reasonable

effort to arrive at an agreement.

Bargaining items – Labour law sets out categories of items thatare subject to bargaining; mandatory, voluntary and illegal items.Mandatory items are items that a party must bargain over if theyare introduced by the other party. Voluntary (permissible) itemsare neither mandatory nor illegal; they become a part of thenegotiations only through the joint agreement of bothmanagement and union. Illegal items are forbidden by law.

Third party involvement – Three types of third-party interventionsare used to overcome an impasse: mediation, fact-finding andarbitration.

Sources of grievances – Employees may use just about any factorinvolving wages, hours or conditions of employment as the basisof a grievance.

Study Questions

1. Justify the reason employees join unions.

2. One of your employees decides to contest for a position in a union.What is your role as a supervisor in this matter?


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Topic 9: Safety and Global Issues

Learning Outcomes


1. Explain the supervisor’s role in safety;

2. Explain the basic facts about safety laws and Occupational Safety andHealth Administration (OSHA);

3. List and explain five ways to prevent accidents;

4. List the HR challenges of international business; and

5. Illustrate with examples how intercountry HRM differs.

Topic Overview

This topic provides the basic knowledge to deal with workplace safety andhealth issues. This topic will also show you how to improve effectiveness byapplying your HR knowledge and skills when global issues are involved.



9.1 Safety and the Manager

9.2 What Causes Accidents?

9.3 How to Prevent Accidents

9.4 Workplace Health Hazards:

Problems and Remedies

9.5 Occupational Security and Safety

9.6 Adapting HR Activities to

Intercountry Differences

9.7 Staffing the Global Organisation

9.8 Training and Maintaining

Employees Abroad



Pearson.

Chapter 16, pp 558–565.

Chapter 16, pp 565–566.

Chapter 16, pp 566–577.

Chapter 16, pp 577–587.

Chapter 16, pp 587–589.

Chapter 17, pp 604–608.

Chapter 17, pp 608–615.

Chapter 17, pp 616–621.


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Content Summary

9.1 Employee Safety and Health

Why is safety important? Safety and accident prevention concernmanagers for several reasons, one of which is the staggeringnumber of workplace accidents.

Management’s role in safety – Reducing accidents often boilsdown to reducing accident-causing conditions and accident-causing acts. Most safety experts would agree that safety shouldstart at the top.

What top management can do – The employer shouldinstitutionalise top management’s commitment with a safety policyand promote it.

The supervisor’s role in safety – Safety inspections should alwaysbe part of the supervisor’s daily routine.

Inspections and citations are how OSHA enforces its standards.The agency has limited funds so it tries to encourage cooperativesafety programmes as well.

Inspection priorities – Inspections in order of priority are:1) Imminent danger situations; 2) Catastrophes, fatalities andaccidents that have already occurred (employers must reportwithin 48 hours); 3) Valid employee complaints of alleged violationof standards; 4) Periodic special-emphasis inspections aimedat high-hazard industries, occupations or substances; and

5) Random inspections and re-inspections. OSHA conducts aninspection within 24 hours for immediate danger complaints, andwithin three working days when a serious hazard exists. OSHAresponds within 20 working days for a non-serious complaint filedin writing by a worker or union.

Managers’ inspection guidelines fall into three categories: initialcontact, opening conference and walk-around inspection.

Safety issues at work place include basic industrial hygiene, andexposure at work – There are four major sources of occupationalrespiratory diseases: asbestos, silica, lead, and carbon dioxide. Ofthese, asbestos has become a major concern. Other hazards

include infectious diseases, air quality, alcoholism and substanceabuse, stress, burnout and depression.


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Burnout is the total depletion of physical and mental resourcescaused by excessive striving to reach an unrealistic work-relatedgoal. Some suggestions for alleviating burnout include breaking

your patterns; getting away from it all periodically; reassessingyour goals in terms of their intrinsic worth; and thinking about yourwork.

Violence at work – Violence against employees, includinghomicide and robbery, has become an enormous problem at work.

9.2 Managing Global Human Resources

The manager’s global challenges include deployment, knowledgeand innovation dissemination, as well as identifying anddeveloping talent on a global basis. Complicating these decisionsare the cultural, political, legal and economic differences among

countries and their peoples.

Cultural factors – Countries differ widely in their cultures, which arethe basic values to which their citizens adhere. Cultural differencesfrom country to country necessitate corresponding differences inmanagement practices among a company’s subsidiaries becauselocal cultural norms can undermine an employer’s attempts tohave uniform codes of conduct.

Economic systems – Differences in economic systems translateinto differences in HR practices. Differences in labour costs aresubstantial.

Offshoring – Having employees abroad perform jobs that the firm’sdomestic employees previously did in-house is growing by leapsand bounds.

Management values and international staffing policy –Ethnocentric -run firms staff foreign subsidiaries with parent-country nationals because they believe that home countryattitudes, management styles and knowledge are superior to thehost country. Polycentric -run firms staff foreign subsidiaries withhost-country nationals because they are the only ones that canreally understand the culture and the behaviour of the hostcountry’s market. Geocentric -run firms staff foreign subsidiarieswith the best people for key jobs regardless of nationality because

they believe that the best manager for any specific positionanywhere in the world may be in any of the countries in which thefirm operates.


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Repatriation: problems and solutions – Some common repatriationproblems are fearing that out of sight is out of mind; returning tomediocre or makeshift jobs; returnees are taken aback when the

trappings of the overseas job are lost upon return; beingoverlooked for promotions; and experiencing culture shock. Somepossible solutions are written repatriation agreements, sponsors,career counsellors, open communications and reorientationprogrammes.

Study Questions

1. As a HR managing director, you realise that 40% of your internationalassignment among your staff fail. Your top management requests youto justify and provide a solution to this issue. Prepare a report to justify

the reasons and list and discuss four suggestions to solve this issue.

2. Due to a recent accident which has caused the death of one employee,your company will be inspected by OSHA. Discuss your role in handlingthis visit.


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Topic 10: Managing HR in Small and EntrepreneurialFirms

Learning Outcomes


1. Explain why HRM is important to small businesses and how smallbusiness HRM is different from that in large businesses;

2. Give four examples of how entrepreneurs can rely on the Internet andthe government to support HR efforts;

3. List five ways entrepreneurs can use their small size to improve theirHR processes; and

4. Discuss how you would choose and deal with a professional employeeorganisation.

Topic Overview

This topic will help you apply what you know about HRM to running a smallbusiness includes the small business challenge; using the Internet andgovernment tools to support the HR effort; leveraging small size withfamiliarity, flexibility, fairness, and informality; using professional employerorganisations; and managing HR systems, procedures, and paperwork.



10.1 The Small Business Challenge

10.2 Leveraging Small Size

10.3 Managing HR Systems,

Procedures and Paperwork



Pearson.

Chapter 18, pp 632–640.

Chapter 18, pp 640–647.

Chapter 18, pp 649–651.


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Content Summary

10.1 Managing HR in small firms is different for four main reasons: size,

priorities, informality and the nature of the entrepreneur.

10.2 Implications – The differences listed above result in potentialimplications: 1) Small business owners run the risk that their relativelyrudimentary HR practices will put them at a competitive disadvantage;2) There is a lack of specialised HR expertise compared to larger firmsthat have a full range of HR functions; 3) The smaller firm is probablynot adequately addressing potential workplace litigation. Most smallbusiness owners are well aware of the threat of employment-relatedlitigation; 4) The small business owner may not be fully complying withcompensation regulations and laws; and 5) Duplication and paperworkleads to inefficiencies and data entry errors. For small businesses,

employee data often appears on multiple HR management forms.

10.3 Employment planning and recruiting – Internet resources can makesmall business owners almost as effective as their large competitors atwriting job descriptions and building applicant pools. Small businessowners can use online recruiting tools to post positions on popularInternet job boards.

10.4 Employment selection – For a small business, one or two hiringmistakes could wreak havoc.

10.5 Employment training – Although small companies cannot compete

with the training resources of larger organisations, Internet training canprovide, at a relatively low cost, the kinds of professional employeetraining that was formerly beyond most small employers’ reach.

10.6 Employment appraisal and compensation – Even small employersnow have easy access to computerised and online appraisal andcompensation services. Lack of easy access to salary surveys oncemade it difficult and time consuming for smaller businesses to fine-tune their pay scales.


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10.7 Employment safety and health – Without HR managers or safetydepartments, small businesses often do not know where to turn foradvice on promoting employee safety. OSHA provides free on-site

safety and health services for small businesses. The OSHA Sharpprogramme is a certification process through which OSHA certifiesthat small employers have achieved commendable levels of safetyawareness.

10.8 Flexibility in training – Small companies typically take a moreinformal approach to training and development. Smaller firms alsotend to focus any management development training on learningspecific firm-related competencies.

10.9 Four-step training process – The process involves writing a jobdescription, developing a task-analysis record form, developing a job

instruction sheet and preparing a training programme.

Study Questions

1. You own a salon and you have five employees. In order to increasetheir performance and skills, you decide to design a training module foryour employees. List four modules that you think will enhance their skillsand subsequently will lead to better performance. Explain the reason forselecting each module and how it will increase your business.

2. Explain the role of selection in determining small business performance.


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Appendices

Appendix A: Learning Support

Seminars

There are 15 hours of face-to-face facilitation, in the form of FIVE seminars ofthree hours each. You will be notified of the date, time and location of theseseminars, together with the name and e-mail address of your facilitator, assoon as you are allocated a group.

Discussion and Participation

Besides the face-to-face seminars, you have the support of onlinediscussions in myVLE with your facilitator and coursemates. Yourcontributions to online discussions will greatly enhance your understanding ofthe course content, and help you do the assignment(s) and prepare for theexamination.

Feedback and Input from Facilitator

As you work on the activities and the assigned text(s), your facilitator willprovide assistance to you throughout the duration of the course. Should youneed assistance at any time, do not hesitate to contact your facilitator anddiscuss your problems with him/her.

Bear in mind that communication is important for you to be able to get themost out of this course. Therefore, you should, at all times, be in touch withyour facilitator, e-facilitator and coursemates, and be aware of all therequirements for successful completion of the course.

Tan Sri Dr Abdullah Sanusi (TSDAS) Digital Library

For the purpose of referencing materials and doing library-based research,OUM has a comprehensive digital library. For this course, you may use thefollowing databases: InfoTrac, ProQuest and EBSCO. From time to time,materials from these databases will be assigned for additional reading andactivities.


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Appendix B: Study Tips

Time Commitments for Study

You should plan to spend about 12 hours of study time on each topic, whichincludes doing all assigned readings and activities. You must also set asidetime to discuss work online. It is often more effective to distribute the studyhours over a number of days rather than spend a whole day studying onetopic.

Study Strategy

The following is a proposed strategy for working through the course. If youhave difficulty following this strategy, discuss your problems with yourfacilitator either through the online forum or during the seminars.

(i) The most important step is to read the contents of this Study Guidethoroughly.

(ii) Organise a study schedule (as recommended in Table 2). Take note ofthe amount of time you spend on each topic as well as the dates forsubmission of assignment(s), seminars and examination.

(iii) Once you have created a study schedule, make every effort to stick toit. One reason learners are unable to cope with postgraduate courses isthat they procrastinate and delay completing their course work.

(iv) You are encouraged to do the following:

Read the Study Guide carefully and look through the list of topicscovered. Try to examine each topic in relation to other topics.

Complete all assigned readings and go through as manysupplementary texts as possible to get a broader understanding ofthe course content.

Go through all the activities and study questions to betterunderstand the various concepts and facts presented in a topic.

Draw ideas from a large number of readings as you work on theassignments. Work regularly on the assignments as the semesterprogresses so that you are able to systematically produce acommendable paper.


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(v) When you have completed a topic, review the Learning Outcomes forthe topic to confirm that you have achieved them and are able to dowhat is required.

(vi) After completing all topics, review the Learning Outcomes of the courseto see if you have achieved them.

study guide bmhr5103 human resource management

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