BU4

• What is workforce planning

  deciding how many and what types of workers are required now, and in the future
• Why may businesses require new staff


  employees may be promoted and have to be replaced,

  workers move to another job,

  workers may decide to quit
• How can businesses have a planned approach to workforce planning


  Identifying the current number of employees in their workforce,

  
  

  Using the most appropriate selection methods to recruit the best staff,

  
  

  Future demand for specific roles in the organisation,

  
  

  Analyses the potential demand for its goods/services and decides how many staff are needed and what skills are required to meet this demand
• Internal recruitment


  means that the vacancy is advertised and filled by someone already working in the organisation (existing employee)
• External recruitment


  means the vacancy is advertised and filled by someone out with the organisation (new employee)
• Internal recruitment advantages


  Vacancy filled fairly quickly,

  
  

  Cheaper than external as not required to do any external advertising (reduced advertising costs),

  
  

  The person is already known which eliminates the risk of hiring the wrong person,

  
  

  The organisation can save the costs of induction and training new employees,
• Internal recruitment disadvantages


  The number of candidates will be greatly reduced (a narrow pool),

  
  

  A better person for the job may exist in the external pool,

  
  

  Opportunity for new workers to bring new ideas and skills to the organisation is missed,

  
  

  Internal promotion creates another vacancy to be filled Internal promotions can cause tension between staff
• External recruitment advantages


  Wider pool of candidates to choose from,

  
  

  Possibility of new ideas and skills being introduced to the organisation,

  
  

  An advert can be placed on a job website, giving access to a wider pool of candidates,

  
  

  Avoids jealously in the workplace as colleagues aren't prmoted over each other
• External recruitment disadvantages


  Larger pool of candidates, so may take longer to select,

  
  

  External recruitment is expensive (more expensive to advertise externally),

  
  

  Can demotivate employees as management positions filled with new staff,

  
  

  Introducing new staff will take up production time on induction training,

  
  

  Unknown employees are hired which is risky
• Methods of selection


  CV,

  Application Form,

  Interview,

  References,

  Testing
• Types of testing for selection


  ▪ Psychometric tests - personality tests, there is usually no correct answer!

  ▪ Aptitude tests - might include literacy and numeracy tests

  ▪ Attainment tests - skills tests e.g. ICT skills or touch-typing skills

  ▪ Medical tests - to ensure you are fit enough to perform the duties of the job
• Methods of recruitment


  national press, local press, trade press, interactive media, word-of-mouth, personal and professional contacts, internal promotion.
• What's an application form


  a series of questions for a potential employee to answer, so that the business can learn more about them. It often includes a section for applicants to write about themselves and why they are the best candidate for the role.
• Application form Adv


  Every applicant answers the same question, making it easier to compare their answers with other applicants,
• Application Form disadvantages


  Time consuming and difficult to make,

  Costs in producing and sending them out,

  Lengthy forms can be off putting for applicants.
• What's a CV


  A CV is a two page document listing a person's work experience, qualifications and personal experience.
• CV advantages
• CV disadvantages


  People may lie,
• What are references


  People other than family members who can speak about your work ethic and your character.
• References advantages


  Gains insight into a candidate's work history and job performance from a third-party perspective,

  Verifying the candidate's qualifications and job-related skills,

  Learning about a candidate's strengths and weaknesses
• References disadvantages


  Bias negative or positive,

  May be dishonest
• What's a job interview


  Designed to compare the applicant's response to questions set against criteria. Take various forms: with a manager (one-to-one), with a single manager but our manager after another (successive), in front of number of people at the same time (panel).
• Interview advantages


  - Talking face to face can provide evidence of candidates' skills, personalities and interpersonal styles

  - They provide a means to check the accuracy of information on the applicant's résumé or job application
• Interview disadvantages


  -time consuming

  -patient may feel uncomfortable

  -items may be omitted
• Benefits of training


  Well trained staff are motivated to do a good job and be loyal to the organisation,

  
  

  It is easier for the organisation to meet its objectives with well trained and highly skilled staff,

  
  

  The organisation will find it easier to attract new employees if they have a reputation as an employer who invests in it's employees,

  
  

  This may lead them to receive awards such as Investor in People which is good for their reputation,

  
  

  Help to improve the quality of products/service,

  
  

  Reduces the number of workplace accidents
• Costs of training


  The training may not be effective for some employees,

  
  

  An organisation with its own training department will incur additional employment costs,

  
  

  Training can be costly to an organisation if outside training providers

  are used,

  
  

  Once trained, staff may seek employment elsewhere and will need to be replaced which takes time and is costly,

  
  

  Training can lead to lost production time
• What's an apprenticeship


  Generally an entry point job for someone without

  qualifications e.g. joiner, electrician are common examples, however

  more employers are offering these to attract school leavers who

  don't want to go to university e.g. accountants, administration roles

  
  

  The employer supports the employee to learn the job and work

  towards a qualification, often at college
• What are corporate training schemes


  Provided by organisations to employees. The employee may or may not

  have a degree and may or may not work towards a professional

  qualification while training

  
  

  The employee will rotate around the various departments within the

  organisation to gain experience in each area

  
  

  At the end of the training the employee will decide in which area they

  want to specialise in and develop their career
• What's a work based qualification


  Work based learning enables employees to work while the learn
• Advantages about a work based qualification

  ▪Minimum time away from the workplace

  ▪ The use of employees' work projects for assessment

  ▪ Bothe employer and employee benefit from completion of assignment projects

  ▪ Increases employee confidence making them more effective in the workplace

  ▪ A qualification is awarded after a period of study
• What is CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT (CPD)


  Refers to the process of tracking and documenting the skills, knowledge

  and experience that you gain both formally and informally as you work,

  
  

  It is a record of what you experience and how you apply it to improve your

  work performance,

  
  

  CPD undertaken will often be part of the appraisal process
• Appraisal benefits


  • Feedback is given on recent employee performance

  • employees will have a better understanding of how to do their job

  • training needs can be identified which will lead to a higher standard of work

  • targets can be set for employees which will lead to increased motivation and purpose

  • good practice can be identified and shared across the organisation
• Appraisal costs


  • time consuming to carry out appraisal with all members of

  staff

  • having a formal meeting may be stressful for some employees

  • negative appraisals can lead to demotivated staff

  • employees may feel under pressure during an appraisal and take on

  too many development tasks
• What's one-to-one appraisal


  Face-to-face with direct line manager

  
  

  A regular review of an employee's job performance which is documented and evaluated

  
  

  Review and discussion of last year's targets takes place

  
  

  Targets may be set about future performance

  
  

  Takes place annually (often mid-year appraisal can happen in addition to year end appraisal)

  
  

  There is an opportunity during this appraisal to identify training needs and future career plans

  
  

  May be linked to pay review and/or bonus
• Objectives of appraisals for organisation


  ▪ Identify future training needs

  ▪ Provide feedback and constructive criticism to the employee to help them improve their performance

  ▪ Identify individuals who have the potential for promotion or who have additional skills that could be utilised now or in

  the future

  ▪ Review pay and bonuses

  ▪ Discuss CPD undertaken by the employee
• What's appraisals


  main method used to establish an employee's training and development needs,

  
  

  Appraisals can also be used for other reasons, e.g. linked to pay rises, bonuses and to measure objectives,

  
  

  An appraisal is usually a meeting between employee and manager,

  
  

  The focus is of the meeting is to discuss and ensure performance in their job and agree on goals for the forthcoming year
• What's peer-to-peer appraisal


  This type of appraisal excludes an employee's line manager.

  
  

  Other workers in the same or similar position are asked to provide

  feedback on specific aspects of an employee's performance

  
  

  More informal than with direct line manager

  
  

  Encourages effective buddying
• What's 360 degree appraisal


  This is an evaluation of an employee's performance that considers feedback and opinions from: line managers, peers, subordinates, the employee themselves (self-evaluation)

  
  

  Benefit of this is it allows for a more rounded evaluation of your performance

  
  

  Each person asked to take part in a 360-degree appraisal will be given a set of identical questions about the employee

  
  

  The answers will be used to compare and analyse how the employee is performing.▪ This will help them with self-evaluation and improvement

  A 360-degree appraisal allows for different viewpoints to be considered when reviewing your performance and identifying future training needs
• Appraisal costs


  • can be time consuming to carry out appraisal with all members of

  staff

  • having a formal meeting may be stressful for some employees

  • negative appraisals can lead to demotivated staff

  • employees may feel under pressure during an appraisal and take on

  too many development tasks

  • some staff may resent that appraisal leads to other staff (and not

  them) getting a pay rise/bonus
• What are graduating training schemes


  Aimed at University graduates who have completed their degree

  
  

  The employee will be supported by a period of in-house training over 1-2

  years to equip them to perform their job

  
  

  Often the employee will study for a professional qualification at the same

  time (paid for by the employer) e.g. accountancy or actuarial work