Placement:

When once the candidate reports for duty, the organisation has to place him initially in
that job for which he is selected. Immediately the candidate will be trained in various
related jobs during the period of probation of training or trial. The organisation generally
decides the final placement after the initial training is over on the basis of the candidate's
aptitude and performance during the training/probation period. Probation period generally
ranges between six months and two years. If the performance is not satisfactory, the
organisation may extend the probation or ask the candidate to quit the job. If the
employee's performance during the probation period is satisfactory, his services will be
regularised and he will be placed permanently on a job.

Employee Placement Process:

Placement is the determination of the job to which an accepted candidate is to be

assigned and his assignment to that job. It is a matching of what the supervisor has reason
to think he can do with the job demands, it is a matching of what he imposes and what he
offers in the form of pay roll, companionship with others, promotional possibilities etc. It
is not easy to match all the factors to the new employee who is still unknown to many.
So, the new employee is placed as a probationer until the training period is over.

Problems in Placement: As stated earlier, placement is a crucial task. Placement

needs a clear-cut match between the employees' skills, knowledge, value systems,
aptitude and attitude to the description and job specification. Though the HR manager
takes all possible precautions, some problems in placement crop up. These problems
include.

•Employee expectations: Employee expectations from the job is the main source for
the problems in placement. If the employee expects high salary, independent and
challenging work and the job offers low salary, dependent and routine work, the
employee finds himself misfit to the job.

•Job expectations/description: Sometimes, the expectations from the employee are

more than the employee's abilities or skills. Then the HR manager finds the
mismatch between the job and the employee.

•Change in technology: The technological changes bring radical changes in job

description and specification. These changes result in mismatch between the job
and the employee.

•Changes in organisational structure: The business grand strategies like mergers,

acquisitions, downsizing, de-layering etc., result in changes in organisational
structure and thereby changes in the jobs. These changes result in misfit between
the employee and the job.

•Social and Psychological factors: The social and psychological factors involved in
team work or group formation sometimes results in mismatch.

How to make Placement Effective:

•Job rotation: The techniques of rotating the employee among different jobs in the
department/organisation enables the employee to satisfy his aptitude for
challenging work and finds the match between himself and the job.

•Teamwork: The recent trand of job design is team building. The teamwork allows
employees to use their skill, knowledge, abilities etc., and it minimises the
problems in placement.

•Training and Development: Continuous employee training and management

development help the employee to acquire new skills and knowledge, based on
the redesigned jobs. This practice solves the placement problems.

•Job enrichment: Job enrichment provides the challenging work and decision-
making authority to the employees. It gives the opportunity of utilising the varied
skills of the employees and minimises problems in management.

•Empowerment: Employee empowerment relating to the job makes the employee to

exploit his potentialities and make use of them. This technique reduces the
problems in placement.
 INDUCTION
Introduction: Introducing the new employee who is designated as a probationer to the
job, job location, surroundings, organisation, organisational surroundings and various
employees is the final step of employment process. Some of the companies do not lay
emphasis on this function as they view that this function will be automatically performed
by the colleagues of the new employees. This is more so in educational institutions. This
process gains more significance as the rate of turnover is high among new employees
compared to that among senior employees. This is mainly because of the problem of
adjustment and adaptability to the new surroundings and environment. Further, absense
of information, lack of knowledge about the new environment, cultural gap, behavioural
variations, different levels of technology, variations in the requirements of the job and the
organisation also disturb the new employee. Further, induction is essential as the
newcomer may feel insecure, shy, nervous and disturbing. This situation leads to
instability and turnover. Hence, induction plays a pivotal role in acquainting the new
employees to the new environment, company rules and regulations.

Definition: "Induction is the process of receiving and welcoming an employee when he

first joins a company and giving him the basic information he needs to settle down
quickly and happily and start work."

Lecture, handbook, film, group seminar are used to impart the information to new
employees about the environment of the job and the organisation in order to make the
new employee acquaint himself with the following heads:

1.About the company's history, objectives, policies, procedures, rules and regulations,
codes etc

2.About the department and

3.About the superiors, subordinates etc.

(i) About the Company:

•History, growth, organisation and management, products, market, customers etc., of

the company.
•Basic conditions of employment-- hours of work, shift, holidays, retirement benefits.
•Pay, allowances, deductions.
•Sickness rules, information, pay, sick leave.
•Leave rules --casual, special, earned --holidays, vacation.
•Work rules, work-load, use of materials, equipment, machine.
•Disciplinary rules and procedure.
 •Grievance procedure.
•Career path, promotion channel.
•Unions, negotiating machinery.
•Education, training and development facilities.
•Health, safety, medical care arrangements.
•Canteen and restaurant facilities.
•Social benefits and welfare measures.
•Telephone calls and correspondence.
•Travelling and subsistence expenses.
•Uniforms, clothing.
•Various employees--Their designations_ position in the organisation.
In addition to using various routine measures, the personnel manager personally explains,
clears doubts and queries of the new employee about the company.

(ii) About the Department: The departmental head concerned introduces the new
employee to the important employees and describes briefly about the department and the
job. Then the supervisor concerned introduces the employee to the employees in the
section/unit, describes in detail the job or work, material, machine, equipment with which
the worker has to work, process of the production, place of the employee's job and its
significance in the process of production, his position in the departmental organisation
structure, work distribution, assignment, working hours, shift, quality/standard to be
maintained, customers/users of the product/service etc.

(iii) About the Superiors, Subordinates etc. :

•Introduce the new employee to the superior to whom he should report.

•Introduce to other superiors with whom his work is indirectly related.

•Introduce him to his subordinates with whom he has to work.

•Introduce to the subordinates who will report to him.

•Introduce to his colleagues.

Objectives of Induction: While introducing the new employee, the supervisor of

manager should aim at:

•Putting the new employee at ease.

•Creating interest in his job and the company.
•Providing basic information about working arrangements.
•Indicating the standards of performance and behaviour expected of him. Making the
 employee feel that his job, however small, is meaningful, that he is not a cog in
the vast wheel.
•Informing him about training facilities.
•Creating the feeling of social security.
•Minimising the reality shock which would be caused due to incompatibility caused
between the employee expectations and actually what the company
provides/offers regarding pay, benefits, status, working conditions, responsibility,
opportunity for growth, innovations, ceative ideas etc.
Advantages of Induction:

•First impression matters a good deal and results in less turnover.

•Newcomer adjusts himself to the work quickly, and it saves the time of the
supervisor.
•Reduces employee dissatisfaction and grievances and
•Develops a sense of belongingness and commitment.

TRAINING
Introduction: Organisation and individual should develop and progress simultaneously
for their survival and attainment of mutual goals. So, every modern management has to
develop the organisation through human resources development. Employee training is the
most important sub-system of human resources development. Training is a specialised
function and is one of the fundamental operative functions for human resources
management. Now, we study this chapter in the following lines.

Meaning: After an employee is selected, placed and introduced in an organisation he/she

must be provided with training facilities in order to adjust him to the job. Training is the
act of increasing the knowledge and skill of an employee for doing a particular job.
Training is a short-term educational process and utilising a systematic and organised
procedure by which employees learn technical knowledge and skills for a definite
purpose.

Definition: "Training is the organised procedure by which people learn knowledge

and /or skill for a definite purpose".

____Dale S. Beach

Importance of Training: The importance of human resources management to a large

extent depends on human resources development and training is its most important
tachnique. As stated earlier, no organisation can get a candidate who exactly matches
with the job and the organisational requirements. Hence, training is important to develop
the employee and make him suitable to the job. Training works towards value addition to
the company through HRD.

Job and organisational requirements are not static, they are changed from time to time in
view of technological advancement and change in the awareness of the Total Quality and
Productivity management (TQPM). The objectives of the TQPM can be achieved only
through training which develops human skills and efficiency as happened in Escorts and
Birla VXL. Trained employees would be a valuable asset to an organisation.
Organisational efficiency, productivity, progress and development to a greater extent
depend on training.

Need for Training:

Specifically, the need for training arises due to the following reasons:

•To Match the Employee Specifications with the Job Requirements and
Organisational Needs: Management finds deviations between employee's
present specifications and the job requirements and organisational needs. Training
is needed to fill these gaps by developing and moulding the employee's skill,
knowledge, attitude, behaviour etc., to the tune of the job requirements and
organisational needs as felt in Glaxo India, ICICI, Colgate-palmolive etc.

•Organisational viability and the transformation process: The primary goal of

most of the organisations is that their viability is continuously influenced by
environment pressure. If the organisation does not adapt itself to the changing
factors in the environment, it will lose its market share. If the organisation desires
to adapt these changes, first it has to train the employees to impart specific skills
and knowledge in order to enable them to contribute to organisational efficiency
and to cope with the changing environment. Core Health Care, Infotech
Enterprises and Polaris Software Lab provided training in order to ensure a
smooth trasformation process.

•Technological Advances: Every organisation in order to survive and to be effective

should adopt the latest technology, i.e., mechanisation, computerisation and
automation. Adoption of latest technological means and methods will not be
complete until they are manned by employees possessing skills to operate them.
So, the organisation should train the employees to enrich them in the areas of
changing technical skills and knowledge from time to time.

•Organisational Complexity: With the emergence of increased mechanisation and

automation, manufacturing of multiple products and by-products or dealing in
services of diversified lines, extension of operations to various regions of the
country or in overseas countries, organisation of most of the companies has
 become complex. This creates the complex problems of co-ordination and
integration of activities adaptable for and adaptable to the expanding and
diversifying situations. This situation calls for training in the skills of co-
ordination, integration and adaptability to the requirements of growth,
diversification and expansion.

•Human Relations: Trends in approach towards personnel management has changed

from the commodity approach to partnership approach, crossing the human
relations approach. So today, management of most of the organisations has to
maintain human relations besides maintaining sound industrial relations although
higher to the managers are not accustomed to deal with the workers accordingly.
So, training in human relations is necessary to deal with human problems and to
maintain human relations.

•Change in the job assignment: Training is also necessary when the existing
employee is promoted to the higher level in the organisation and when there is
some new job or occupation due to transfer. Training is also necessary to equip
old employees with the advanced disciplines, techniques or technology.
•Increse productivity
•Improve quality of the product/service.
•Help a company to fulfil its future personnel needs.
•Improve organisational climate.
•Improve health and safety.
•Prevent obsolescence.
•Effect personal growth.
•Minimise the resistance to change and
•To act as mentor.

The Training Process

The model below traces the steps necessary in the training process:
•Organizational Objectives
•Needs Assessment
•Is There a Gap?
•Training Objectives
•Select the Trainees
•Select the Training Methods and Mode
•Choose a Means of Evaluating
•Administer Training
•Evaluate the Training
How Training Beneficial to the Organisation:

•Leads to improved Profitability and/or more positive attitudes toward profits

orientation.
•Improves the job knowledge and skills at all leveles of the organisation.
•Improves the morale of the workforce.
•Helps people identify with organisational goals.
•Helps create a better corporate image.
•Fosters authenticity, openness and trust.
•Improves the relationship between boss and subordinate.
•Aids in organisational development.
•Learns from the trainee.
•Helps prepare guidelines for work.
•Aids in understanding and carrying out organisational policies.
•Provides information for future needs in all areas of the organisation.
•Organisation gets more effective in decision-making and problem solving.
•Aids in devleopment for promotion from within.
•Aids in developing leadership skill, motivation, loyalty, better attutudes and other
aspects that successful workers and managers usually display.
•Aids in increasing productivity and/or quality of work.
•Improves labour-management relations.
•Reduces outside consulting costs by utilising competent internal consulting.
•Creates an appropriate climate for growth and communication.
•Helps employees adjust to change.
How Training Beneficial to the Individuals/Employees:

•Helps the individual in making better decisions and effective problem solving.
•Through training and development, motivational variables of recognition,
achievement, growth, responsibility and advancement are internalised and
operationalised.
•Aids in encouraging and achieving self-development and self-confidence.
•Helps a person handle stress, tension, frustration and conflict.
•Provides information for improving leadership knowledge, communication skills and
attitudes.
•Increases job satisfaction and recognition.
•Moves a person towards personal goals while improving interactive skills.
•Satisfies personal needs of the trainer.
•Provides the trainee an avenue for growth and a say in his/her own future.
•Develops a sense of growth in learning.
 •Helps a person develop speaking and listening skills; also writing skills when
exercises are required.
•Helps eliminate fear in attempting new tasks.
Benefits in Personnel and Human Relations, Intra and Inter-group Relations and
Policy Implementation:

•Improves communication between groups and individuals.

•Aids in orientation for new employees and those taking new jobs through tranfer or
promotion.
•Provides information on equal opportunity and affirmative action.
•Provides information on other governmental laws and administrative policies.
•Improves inter-personal skills.
•Makes organisation policies, rules and regulations viable.
•Improves morale.
•Builds cohersiveness in groups.
•Provides a good climate for learning, growth, and co-ordination.
•Makes the organisation a better place to work and live.

Training Objectives:
Generally, line managers ask the personnel manager to formulate the training policies.
The personnel manager formulates the following training objectives in keeping with the
company's goals and objectives.
4.To prepare the employee, both new and old to meet the present as well as changing
requirements of the job and the organisation.
5.To prevent obsolescence.
6.To impart the new entrants the basic knowledge and skills they need for an
intelligent performance of a definite job.
7.To prepare employees for higher level tasks.
8.To assist employees to function more effectively in their present positions by
exposing them to the latest concepts, information and techniques and developing
the skills they will need in their particular fields.
9.To build up a second line of competent officers and prepare them to occupy more
responsible positions.
10.To broaden the minds of senior managers by providing them with opportunities for
an interchange of experiences within and outside with a view to correcting the
narrowness of outlook that may arise from over-specialisation.
11.To develop the potentialities of people for the next level job.
12.To ensure smooth and efficient working of a department.
13.To ensure economical output of required quality.
14.To promote individual and collective morale, a sense of responsibility, co-
operative attitudes and good relationships.
Training Methods: Trainings in an organization can be divided to two broad types.
They are on-the-job trainings and off-the-job trainings. These on-the-job trainings are
given to the employees while they are conducting their regular works at the same places.
In this way they do not lose time while they are training or learning. After a plan is
developed for what should be taught, employees should be informed about the details. A
time table should be establish with periodic evaluations to inform employees about their
progress. On-the-job training techniques include orientations, job instruction training,
apprenticeships, internships, assistantships, job rotation and coaching.

Off-the-job techniques include lectures, special study, audio visual conferences or

discussions, case studies, role playing, simulation, programmed instructions, and
laboratory trainings. Most of these techniques are too costly.

1. On-the-job Training Methods:

This type of training, also known as job instruction training, is the most commonly used
method. Under this method, the individual is placed on a regular job and taught the skills
necessary to perform that job. The trainee learns under the supervision and guidance of a
qualified worker or instructor. On-the-job training has the advantage of giving first hand
knowledge and experience under the actual working conditions. On-the-job training
methods are:

•Job Rotation: This type of training involves the movement of the trainee from one
job to another. The trainee receives job knowledge and gains experience from his
supervisor or trainer in each of the different job assignments. Though this method
of training is common in training managers for general management positions,
trainees can also be rotated from job to job in workshop jobs. This method gives
an opportunity to the trainee to understand the problems of employees on other
 jobs and respect them.

•Coaching: The trainee is placed under a particular supervisor who functions as a

coach in training the individual. The supervisor provides feedback to the trainee
on his performance and offers him some suggestions for improvement. Often, the
trainee shares some of the duties and responsibilities of the coach and relieves
him of his burden. A limitation of this method of training is that the trainee may
not have the freedom or opportunity to express his own ideas.

•Job instruction: This method is also known as training through step by step. Under
this method, the trainer explains to the trainee the way of doing the jobs, job
knowledge and skills and allows him to do the job. The trainer appraises the
performance of the trainee, provides feedback information and corrects the
trainee.

•Committee Assignments: Under the committee assignment, a group of trainees are

given and asked to solve an actual organisational problem. The trainees solve the
problem jointly. It develops team work.

Internship: Internship is one of the on-the-job training methods. Individuals entering

industry in skilled trades like machinist, electrician and laboratory technician are
provided with thorough instruction though theoretical and practical aspects. for
example TISCO, TELCO, and BHEL select the candidates from polytechnics
engineering colleges and management institutions and provide apprenticeship
training.

2. Off-the-job Methods:
Under this method of training, the trainee is separated from the job situation and his
attention is focussed upon learning the material related to his future job performance.
Since the trainee is not distracted by job requirements, he can place his entire
concentration on learning the job rather than spending his time in performing it.

•Vestibule Training: In this method, actual work conditions are simulated in a class
room. Material, files and equipment which are used in actual job performance are
also used in training. This type of training is commonly used for training
personnel for clerical and semi-skilled jobs. The duration of this training from
days to a few weeks. Theory can be related to practice in this method.

•Role Playing: It is defined as a method of human interaction that involves realistic

behaviour in imaginary situations. This method of training invlolves action, doing
and practice. The participants play the role of certain characters such as the
production manager, mechanical engineer, superintendents, maintenance
engineers, quality control insptectors, foremen, workers and the like. This method
is mostly used for developing interpersonal interactions and relations.

•Lecture Method: The lecture is a traditional and direct method of instruction. The
instructor organises the material and gives it to a group of trainees in the form of a
 talk. To be effective, the lecture must motivate and create interest among the
trainees. An advantage of the lecture method is that it is direct and can be used for
a large group of trainees. Thus, costs and time involved are reduced. The major
limitation of the lecture method is that it does not provide for transfer of training
effectively.

•Conference or Discussion: It is a method in training the clerical, professional and

supervisory personnel. This method involves a group of people who pose ideas,
examine and share facts, ideas and data, test assumptions and draw conclusions,
all of which contribute to the improvement of job performance. Discussion has
the distinct advantage over the lecture method, in that the discussion involves
two-way communication and hence feedback is provided. The particiapants feel
free to speak in small groups. The success of this method depends on the
leadership qualities of the person who leads the group.

•Programmed Instruction: In recent years, this method has become popular. The
subject-matter to be learned is presented in a series of carefully planned sequential
units. These units are arranged from simple to more complex levels of instruction.
The trainee goes through these units by answering questions or filling the blanks.
This method is expensive and time consuming.

CAREER PLANNING
Introduction: Individual career planning assumed greater significance with the
unparallel growth and speed of knowledge, phenomenal increase in educational and
training facilities and widespread increase in job opportunities. Similarly, organisational
career planning also gained importance with the change in technology, human needs,
values aspirations, increase in organisational size, complexity and number of openings at
different levels.

Meaning: A career pertains to all the jobs that are held during one's working life. Edwin
B. Flippo defined a career as a sequence of separate but related work activities that
provides continuity, order and meaning in a person's life. Douglas T. Hall defined a
career as "an individually perceived sequence of attutudes and behaviours associated with
work related experiences and activities over the span of the person's life."

Need for Career Planning: Career planning is necessary dut to the following reasons:

•To attract competent persons and to retain them in the organisation.

•To provide suitable promotional opportunities.
•To enable the employees to develop and make them ready to meet future challenges.
•To increase the utilisation of managerial reserves within an organisation.
 •To correct employee placement.
•To reduce employee dissatisfaction and turnover.
•To improve motivation and morale.

Process of Career Planning and Development: Steps in career planning and

development include:

15.Analysis of individual skills, knowledge, abilities, aptitudes etc.

16.Analysis of career opportunities both within and outside the organisation.
17.Analysis of career demands on the incumbent in terms of skills, knowledge,
abilities, aptitude etc., and in terms of qualifications, experience and training
received etc.
18.Relating specific jobs to different career opportunities.
19.Establishing realistic goals both short-term and long-term.
20.Formulating career strategy coverning areas of change and adjustment.
21.Preparing and implementing action plan including acquiring resources for
achieving goals.

Career Development Actions:

22.JOB PERFORMANCE: Employee must prove that his performance on the job is
to the level of standards established, if he wants career progress.

23.EXPOSURE: Employee's desire for career progress should expose their skills,
knowledge, qualifications, ahcievements, performance etc., to those who take the
decision about career progress.

24.RESIGNATIONS: Employees may resign the present job in the organisation, if

they find that career opportunities elsewhere are better than those of the present
organisation

25.CHANGE THE JOB: Employees who put organisational loyalty above career
loyalty may change the job in the same organisation, if they find that career
opportunities in other jobs in the same organisation are better than those in the
present job.

26.CAREER GUIDANCE: Counselling provides information, advice and

encouragement to switch over to another career or organisation, where career
opportunities are better.
Advantages of Career Planning and Development:
Advantages for individuals:

27.The process of career planning helps the individual to have the knowledge of
various career opportunities, his priorities etc.
28.This knowledge helps him select the career which is suitable to his lifestyles,
preferences, family environment, scope for selr-development etc.
29.It helps the organisation identify internal employees who can be promoted.
30.Internal promotions, upgradation and transfers motivate the employees, boost up
their morale and also result in increased job satisfaction.
31.Increased job satisfaction enhances employee commitment and creates a sense of
belongingness and loyalty to the organisation.
32.Employee will await his turn of promotion rather than changing to another
organisation. This lowers employee turnover.
33.It improves employee's performance on the job by tapping their potential abilities
and further employee growth.
34.It satisfies the employee's esteem needs.

Advantages for Organisations:

A long-term focus of career planning and development will increase the effectiveness of
human resources management. More specifically, the advantages of career planning and
development for an organisation include:
35.Efficient career planning and development ensures the availability of human
resources with required skill, knowledge and talent.
36.The efficient policies and practices improve the organisation's ability to attract and
retain highly skilled and talented employees.
37.Proper career planning ensures that the women and people belonging to backward
communities get opportunities for growth and development.
38.The career plan continuously tries to satisfy the employee's expectations and as
such minimises employee's frustration.
39.By attracting and retaining the people from different cultures, enhances cultural
diversity.
40.Protecting employee's interest results in promoting organisational goodwill.

Recent Trends in Career Planning:

•Organisations started using career planning as a technique of retaining employees.

Career planning should be designed such that it not only provides multiple
alternatives, but also helps them have their skills and widen their knowledge base.

•Organisations started viewing career plan as an opportunity because a well designed

 career planning system will offer a gamut of alternatives to employees. Instead of
traditional corporate 'on-the-way-up' ladder, now there is this concept of multiple
career paths, where employees are shown plentiful lateral opportunities and
employees are involved in their own career plan.

•In addition, organisations rather than planning the career of the employees.
Concentrate on contract staff from employee leasing firms and body shoppers.