HR business

• treating staff as an asset

  Treats employees as the most important resource of the business to gain a competitive advantage
• What are businesses that see employees as an asset more likely to do:


  - provide good rummeration packages

  -give reasonable holiday and sick pay

  -invest in working conditions for the workers

  -provide job security

  -see training as an important investment

  -delegate responsibility

  - take care in developing policies that motivate staff
• Treating employees as a cost


  treat employees as simply another resource of the business.

  How many do we need?

  How much will it cost?

  How do we get them?
• Treating employees as a cost means that

  - pay workers minimum

  -provide the minimum legal sick and holiday pay

  -provide basic working conditions

  -find ways to maximise output while minimising staff costs

  -see training as unessecary costs and one of the first things to be cut in financial difficulty

  -centralise decision making

  -Give little thought to employee motivation
• Flexible working


  Where a business uses a number of different working practices in order to suit the job in hand and the needs of employees intern it motivates them and productivity increases
• Examples of flexible working


  multiskilling

  Outsourcing

  Part time and temporary contracts

  Flexible hours and homeworking
• advantages and disadvantages of flexible working

  + Allow businesses to respond to short term changes in demand

  +specialist jobs can be done by experts who do not have to be permanently employed

  +Easier to manage staffing costs

  -employees may not feel committed to the company if they don't have a permanent contract

  -communication can be a problem

  -Outsourced work may be of a lower quality
• multiskilling


  allows employees to develop skills in a wide range of tasks through ongoing training.

  - can increase costs

  + improves employee motivation

  +can cover for staff that are sick

  + increase retention as employees are more motivated
• Outsourcing


  A decision by a corporation to turn over much of the responsibility to another business for production or another part of the business to independent suppliers.
• Job security


  protection against the loss of employment
• Dissmisal


  when employment is ended against the will of the employee, usually for not working in accordance with the employment contract
• redundant


  Where the employees contract gets ended because there's not enough work, no work or the position no longer applies. sometimes employees receive voluntary redundancy and will receive a pay out
• Employer-Employee Relations


  the relationship between the two parties which can sometimes be a contract (written) or verbally
• Employee Representation


  This is a system where the employee's voice is representation and so this can aid communication within the business.

  Gives a voice via a recognised body and the elected voice must have a clear remit and objective to do so.
• Trade unions


  an organisation established to improve and protect the economic working conditions of workers.

  
  

  - they focus on negotiations through collective bargaining

  -Represent members at industrial tribunals and give workers advice on employment issues

  -focus on pay and cinditions

  -prominent in the public in this sector

  -there has been a decline in members of trade unions over the last 20 years
• Works councils


  A forum within business where workers and managers meet to discuss issues relating to pay, conditions and training.

  
  

  - members are elected by the workforce from the workforce

  -builds co-operation with managers

  -allows the workforce tp be heard without trade union representation

  -involves employees in key decisions
• Employee committee


  A group of employees meetings meeting together to focus us on specific issues within the workforce unlike work councils they are not attended by managers

  
  

  - informal groups set up by workers to focus on a specific aspect of work

  -focuses on employee social events, safety and working conditions

  -Employee committees may influence decisions made at works councils
• What are the three ways of representation

  works councils

  trade unions

  employee committees
• Collective bargaining


  negotiation of wages and other conditions of employment by an organized body of employees including trade unions

  
  

  + workers have more power
• individual bargaining


  a process where individual workers negotiate with their employer directly about pay or conditions .

  
  

  - agreements may differ from one employee to the next
• What influences employee representation

  the nature of the work carried out by employees

  hostly of the business

  leadership style of the boss

  employment legislation
• Recruitment


  the process through which the organization seeks applicants for potential employment involves advertising
• selection


  Choosing from among qualified applicants to hire into an organization
• human resource flow


  The movement of employees through an organisation, starting with recruitment
• job description


  a written description of the basic tasks, duties, and responsibilities required of an employee holding a particular job
• person specification


  A detailed list of the qualities, skills and qualifications that a successful applicant will need to have
• internal recruitment


  when a role is filled by an employee within an organisation

  
  

  +cheaper

  +managers know their employees off by heart so there iOS less risk

  +may require less training

  + promotion opportunities are good for staff motivation and retention
• External recruitment


  Bring new employees into a business. potential employees may be found using job adverts employment agencies and government training schemes plus headhunting

  
  

  + may attract a wider range of applicants to choose from

  +brings in new skills and ideas

  +helps increase capacity within the business
• induction training


  Training aimed at introducing new employees to a business and its procedures

  
  

  +employee will feeler valued

  +Saves time

  +employee will become more efficient and productive faster

  - while being trained quality of service/product may not be up to standard so waste is higher

  -have to take an employee away from work to train them
• on-the-job training


  training that takes place in the work setting as employees perform their job tasks

  
  

  +output continues while employee is working as learning is through doing actual job

  +easier and cheaper to organise

  -disruptive for others and mistakes are possible
• Off-the-job training


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

  
  

  + mistakes are reduced at training is not on site

  + safer

  +more motivating as employee feels valued employer has aid for them to go away on a training course

  -might be costly

  -may not always be relevant if not directly linked to the job
• benefits and costs of training

  + better motivated workers

  +higer levels of productivity

  +Reduces anxiety in employees so feel more confident in their job and increases their potential for promotion

  +customers receive better quality products and service

  
  

  - costly

  -productivity may decrease while training is taking place

  -employees may leave the organisation after trained to go elsewhere so investment is lost
• organisational structure


  Refers to the levels of management and division of responsibilities within an organisation
• chain of command


  the line of authority that moves from the top of a hierarchy to the lowest level
• span of control


  the number of subordinates who report directly to a manager
• Authority


  the power or right to give orders, make decisions, and enforce obedience.
• levels of hierarchy


  The number of layers of management and supervision existing in an organisation
• subordinate


  lower in rank or position
• delegation


  transferring responsibility to a person for a specific task
• centralisation.


  Keeping all of the important decision-making powers within head office or senior mangers

  
  

  + works well where standardisation is required

  +appropraite for situations where emnagers have knowledge and workers and low skilled

  +. suited to authorities leadership styles

  + More suitable in times of crisis

  + effective for cost minimisation and achieving economies of scale