MB0043 - Q.1Trace the phases of evolution of human resource management.

The historical background to the management techniques of human resources are in vogue since ancient times. Its only in the past 100 odd years that the techniques and study of human behaviour at work has become formal and structured with certain basic practices established as core and a host of other practices left to each organization to design and implement as per their individual business driven practices. As per Fisher, Schonfeldt and Shaw, in their book titled Human Resources Management, they have characterised the history of HRM as having evolved through four broad phases, the Craft system, the scientific system, the human relations approach and the prevalent organizational science-human resources approach. The Craft system refers to early trends noticed in Egypt and Babylon, where skills based training was provided to people to ensure a steady flow of craftsmen required to build huge monuments. By the 13th century, subsequently the trend was noticed in Europe and later craft guilds evolved to ensure not only the skill acquisition but regulate the conditions of employment, level of skill and improved production techniques. Most relevant in the domestic industry where generations of skilled workers trained and became experts in a particular skill. The Scientific Management approach was a key part of the industrial revolution typical of the nineteenth and early twentieth century. It was instilled in the principles of mass production and organization of work simple work skills and supervisory/managerial skills. This rapidly emerged as the assembly line approach to managing workflow, which later Fredrick Taylor (1856-1915) pioneered based on the philosophy that employees wanted to be used efficiently and money being the primary motivator. Over a period of time this was proved wrong as employee dissent grew and union issues surfaced. It was during this phase that employee welfare as a key HR practice emerged which redressed employee issues like recreational facilities, medical program and employee grievance systems. The Human Relations approach was an outcome of the famous studies undertaken by US social scientist Elton Mayo and Fritz Roethlisberger at the Western Electrics Hawthorne plant in Chicago. The Hawthorne Studies: As described in virtually every book written about management, the human relations or behavioral school of management began in 1927 with a group of studies conducted at the Hawthorne plant of Western Electric, an AT&T subsidiary. Curiously, these studies were prompted by an experiment carried out by the companys engineers between 1924 and 1932. Following the scientific management tradition, these engineers were applying research methods to answer job-related problems. Two groups were studied to determine the effects of different levels of illumination on worker performance. One group received increased illumination, while the other did not. A preliminary finding was that, when illumination was increased, the level of performance also increased. Surprisingly to the engineers, productivity also increased when the level of illumination was

decreased almost to moonlight levels. One interpretation made of these results was that the employees involved in the experiment enjoyed being the centre of attention; they reacted positively because management cared about them. The reason for the increase in the production was not the physical but the psychological impact of the employees attitude towards the job and towards the company. Such a phenomenon taking place in any research setting is now called the Hawthorne effect. As a result of these preliminary investigations, a team of researchers headed by Elton Mayo and F.J. Roethlisberger from Harvard conducted a lengthy series of experiments extending over a six year period. The conclusions they reached served as the bedrock of later developments in the human relations approach to management. Among their key findings were the following: Economic incentives are less potent than generally believed in influencing employees to achieve high levels of output. Leadership practices and work-group pressures profoundly influence employee satisfaction and performance. Any factor influencing employee behaviour is embedded in a social system. For instance, to understand the impact of pay on performance, you also have to understand the climate that exists in the work group and the leadership style of the superior. Leadership Style and Practices: As a consequence of the Hawthorne Studies, worker attitudes, morale, and group influences became a concern of researchers. A notable development of the nature occurred shortly after World War II at the University of Michigan. A group of social scientists formed an organization, later to be called the Institute for Social Research, to study those principles of leadership that were associated with highest productivity. Finally the Organizational Sciences approach to human resources management has brought the focus to the scientific process within organizations that can impact employee experience, and less on just the individual. Todays organizations focus on building their processes and policies and compete to emerge as preferred employers (best employer). It is not uncommon for competing organizations to woo the employees through advertising more and better employee-friendly initiatives like work-from-home jobs, careers for married couples, global work assignments and internal job postings and world class workplace infrastructures from in-campus cricket grounds to gymnasiums for employee wellbeing. This is the HR that we now see around us.

Q.2 Explain the various techniques and methods used in selecting employees.

There is no shortcut to fair and accurate evaluation of a candidate. As mentioned earlier, the hiring procedures are therefore, generally long and multiple. Organizations are constantly evaluating the selections tools they use to hire and keep innovating to ensure they hire quality candidates. The following are popular methods commonly used: 1 Initial or preliminary interview 2 Application blank or blanks. 3 Check of references. 4 Skill / Psychological tests. 5 Employment interview 6 Approval by the manager. 7 Medical examination. 8 Induction or orientation. 1. Preliminary Interview: The more non-selective the recruitment programme, the more likely it is that a preliminary interview will be required. This initial interview is usually quite short and has as its object the elimination of the obviously unqualified. In many instances it is a over-telephone / short face-to-face interview conducted at a desk. The facts and impressions collected are of the type generally obtained in an initial interview. Many firms do not bother to initiate any paperwork at this early stage. If the applicant appears to have some chance of qualifying for existing job openings, he or she is given the application blank to complete. 2 Application Blank: An application blank is a traditional, widely accepted template for getting information from a prospective applicant. This enables the recruiter to qualify the candidate to the next level in the selection process and is used extensively subsequently during the selection process. The blank aids in the interview by indicating areas of interest and discussion. It is a good means of quickly collecting verifiable basic historical data from the candidate. It also is a excellent document to share with the manager and with the interviewers and is a useful device for storing information for, later reference. These templates generally carry information on biographical data, educational attainment, work experience, salary, personal items, and other items such as names and addresses of previous employers, references etc. 3 Check of References: The use of references is common in most selection procedures. It involves minimum of effort and time/money. The objective is to obtain evaluation of prior employers and professional colleagues, who have known the candidate in a professional capacity. Checks on references are made by mail or telephone, and occasionally in person, and by using a reference form. 4 Skill & Psychological Tests: The next step in the procedures outlined above is that of testing. The use of tests is common and most popular in the lower levels in an organization. It serves as a

excellent qualifying criteria and in jobs that are dependent on a skill or a specific competency it is very useful. The objectivity of the test results make it especially popular and a fair assessment of the individual. Most organizations do not use psychological tests. However, there is a direct relationship between the size and firm and the use of such tests in hiring. Most of the larger companies that can afford to have a more detailed and accurate selection procedure do utilize some form of employment testing. It is the smaller company that frequently does not bother with tests, but places greater reliance upon the interview. 5 Interviewing: Interviewing is probably the most widely used single method of selection. A substantial amount of subjectivity, and therefore, unreliability, is to be expected from interviewing when used as a tool of evaluation. The interview consists of interaction between interviewer and applicant. If handled properly, it can be a powerful technique in achieving accurate information and getting access to material otherwise unavailable. Organizations aware of the challenges of using interviews have come up with a variety of ways to overcome the subjectivity. The use of multiple rounds of interview (even upto 8-10 rounds) and use of panel interviews are some common work-around. Four kinds of interviews for selection have been identified. These are: 1. Preliminary interview: These interviews are preliminary screening of applicants to decide whether a more detailed interview will be worthwhile. The applicant is given job details during the interview to afford him freedom to decide whether the job will suit him. This method saves the companys time and money. 2. Stress interview: Stress interviews are deliberate attempts to create pressure to observe how an applicant performs under stress. Methods used to induce stress range from frequent interruptions and criticism of an applicants opinion, to keeping silent for an extended period of time. The most important advantage of the stress interview is that helps to demonstrate important personality characteristics which would be difficult to observe in tension-free situations. However, stressinducing must be done carefully by trained and skilled interviewers. 3. Depth interview: Depth interviews cover the complete life history of the applicant and include such areas as the candidates work experience, academic qualifications, health interest, and hobbies. It is an excellent method for executive selection, performed by qualified human resources. 4. Patterned interview: Patterned interviews are a combination of direct and indirect questioning of the applicant. The interviewer has certain clues and guidelines to areas which should be probed deeply and the interview also encourages the candidate to express the relevant information freely. After the patterned interview is complete, the interviewer should evaluate the candidate on the basis

of practical experience. According to R.N. McCurry and others, certain factors lead to accurate predictions of the candidates suitability for a particular position. The factors are: (1) basic character traits, (2) motivation, and (3) emotional maturity. One advantage of a patterned interview is that systematic and chronological information is obtained, and hence this yields to statistical analysis. 6. Approval by the Manager: Following the outlined procedure, we should now be of the opinion that a candidate who has successfully completed all steps so far should be hired. In executing the recruitment unit screening functions, the emphasis tends to be more on formal qualifications and general suitability. When the manager takes over, the emphasis tends to switch toward more specifically job oriented worker characteristics such as training and relevant past experience. 7. Medical Examination: The medical examination is an employment step found in most businesses. It can vary from a very comprehensive examination and matching of an applicants physical capabilities to job requirements to a simple check of general physical appearance and well-being. In the selection procedure the physical examination has at least three basic objectives. First, it serves to ascertain the applicants physical capabilities. The second objective of the examination is to protect the company against unwarranted claims under workers compensation laws, or against lawsuits for damages. And the final objective is to prevent communicable diseases from entering the organization. 8 Induction: Induction is concerned with introducing or orienting a new employee to the organization. Organizations could have induction programs of duration of 1-3 days and even up to 1/3/6 months. Common objectives of an Induction program can be listed as covering: 1. Overview of the organization, its history, its heros and important stories in the life of the firm so far like mergers, acquisitions, JVs, expansion in new countries etc 2. Organization Vision / Mission and Objectives statement, its structure, hierarchy of the top and the senior management, structure of the teams/divisions, focus on the division the employee/s is/are joining 3. Overview of the HR policies and processes and introduction to the Facilities team, IT team and other relevant teams per the location of joining. 4. Handover to the manager and induction at a team level on specificities related to the job and its responsibilities. Organizations also build processes by which the new employee provides feedback on the on boarding experience and use this information to improve the Induction process. In as much as various firms report that over half of their voluntary resignations occur within the first 6 months, proper orientation can do much to reduce this problem and its accompanying costs

Q.4 Explain Thayer and McGhee Assessment of training requirement model.

Assessment of Training Requirement: Given the investment that organizations make in

training it is critical for organizations to ensure that the money is rightly spent. Training needs consider both the organizations demands and that of the individuals. Diversification of product lines, new technology, and hence a new kind of job, or a shift in organizational culture or ways of conducting business are common organizational needs that cover most employees in the company.
On the other hand demands that pertain to individuals growth and development, including induction training for new hires, or training necessitated by job rotation due to an organizations internal mobility policies are examples of individual need based training.

The model we shall examine here is the Thayer and McGhee model. It is based on the following three factors: 1. Organization analysis 2. Task analysis 3. Individual analysis 1 Organization Analysis: Total Organization Analysis is a systematic effort to understand exactly where training effort needs to be emphasized in an organization. It involves a detailed analysis of the organization structure, objectives, human resources and future business plans, and an understanding of its culture. The first step in organization analysis is establishing a clear understanding of both short-run and long-run business and people goals. Long-term objectives are the broad directions in which the organizations would move over a long duration. These long-term objectives are then broken down into specific strategies and short-term goals for each of the units/departments. In an organization, the cumulative effect of all these would ultimately lead to the long-term goal. Short-term goals are constantly in need of adaptation to the changing environment, both external and internal. For an organization analysis, there are three essential requirements: (1) an adequate number of employees available to ensure fulfilment of the business operation; (2) that employee performance is up to the required standard; and (3) that the working environment in their units/departments is conducive to fulfilment of tasks. In order to ensure the first two requirements a human resource inventory needs to be made. Data regarding positions, qualifications, vacancies, replacements and training time required for replacements have to be worked out. Job standards must also be worked out.

Various efficiency and productivity indexes, or ratios such a productivity ratios, cost per unit etc, can be worked out to determine not only efficiency but also adequacy, in terms of undermanning or over-manning, of the workforce. An important dimension of organizational need-based analysis, is the diagnosis of the state of the organization "climate" or culture. While rules, procedures, systems and methods all contribute to the making of the environment, much of it is also determined by the attitude that the "people" have in the organization-for instance, the attitude that top management has towards its subordinate staff and the attitudes that members have towards work, Managers and company procedures. These attitudes are learnt, they result from the persons experience both within and outside the organization, and training inputs could be used to effect changes of attitude and consequently of the organizational climate. In analyzing the organization climate, both direct and indirect methods could be used. Direct methods are observation, use of questionnaires, and interviews. Reliance or indirect methods would not give a clear understanding of the attitudes and predispositions of employees. In fact, factors such as low absenteeism and low turnover are not by themselves indicators of positive or negative attitudes, and high or low morale. It would be better to make a careful analysis and study each indicator in a particular situation in conjunction with more direct methods like attitude surveys. Analysis and interpretation of the data may give clear clues not only to attitudinal training needs but possibly also to kill training needs. 2. Task Analysis: This activity entails a detailed examination of each job, its components, its various operations and the conditions under which it has to be performed. The focus here is on the "task" itself and the training required to perform it, rather than on the individual. Analysis of the job and its various components will indicate the skills and training required to perform the job at the required standard. Standard of Performance: Every job has an expected standard of performance (SOP). Unless such standards are attained, not only will inter-related jobs suffer, but organizational viability will be affected, and so will the expectations that have been set for that particular job itself. If the standards set for the performance of a job are known, then it is possible to know whether the job is being performed at the desired level of output or not. Knowledge of the "task" will help in understanding what skills, knowledge and attitudes an employee should have. Methods: If an employee is asked to perform a job, the exact components of the job and the standard of performance must be known. Task analysis entails not merely a simple listing of the

various job components, but also of the various sub-tasks. Conventional methods of job analysis are usually suitable for task analysis. They are: 1. Literature review regarding the job. 2. Job performance. 3. Job observation, 4. Data Collection regarding job interviews. For blue-collar employees, more precise industrial-engineering techniques, like time and motion studies, could be used, and for white-collar employees, work sampling observation, interviews, and job performance data analysis could be employed. The focus in task analysis approach to identifying training needs is with the clear objective of enhancing the performance standard of a given task. This information is then utilised to establish the training programme for the employee. It helps identify the skill required, either in terms of education or training, to perform the job, knowledge, and finally attitudinal pre-dispositions such as the attitudes, towards safety, or interpersonal competence that will ensure that the job is performed optimally. 3 Individual Analysis: Individual analysis is the third component in identifying training needs. The focus of individual analysis is on the individual employee, his abilities, and the inputs required for job performance, or individual growth and development in terms of career planning. The common source for this needs analysis usually forms parts of the performance assessment process. Clues to training needs can also come from an analysis of an individuals or a groups typical behaviour. The primary sources of such information are: (1) Observation at place or work, examination of job schedules, quantum of spoilage, wastage, and clues about interpersonal relations of the employees; (2) interviews with superiors and employees; (3) comparative studies of good vs. poor employees, to identify differences, skills and training gaps; (4) personnel records; (5) production reports; and (6) review of literature regarding the job and machines used. Job-knowledge tests, work sampling and diagnostic psychological tests also provide information about employees.