6.1 Setting human resource objective notes. Flashcards
(32 cards)
What are human resource objectives?
They are the goals or targets that a business’s HR function or department seeks to achieve.
What are some HR objectives?
- Labour productivity
- The number and location of the businesses workforce.
- Labour turnover.
- Employee engagement.
Why is the number and location of a businesses workforce an objective?
Why is it essential?
- Labour needs for a business will change over time- business may grow, move overseas, replace employees with technology etc
- Each of these options- means business requires a different workforce.
- Essential- business needs to have sufficient employees to ensure that it can meet the needs of its customers and to provide the best-quality goods or services as possible.
What does having a workforce of the correct size and in the right place assist the business in providing?
Providing high-quality customer service!
What three dimensions does the CIPD believe employee engagement has?
Intellectual engagement: Thinking hard about the job and how to do better.
Affective engagement: Feeling positively about doing a good job.
Social engagement: Actively taking opportunities to discuss work related improvement with others at work.
What has The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) defined employee engagement as?
“Being positively present during the performance of work by willingly contributing intellectual effort, experiencing positive emotions and meaningful connections to others.”
KT: Employee engagement. What is this?
It describes the connection between a business’s employees and its mission, goals and objectives.
KT: Employee involvement. What is this?
Employee involvement: Exists in a business in which people are able to have an impact on decisions and actions that affect their working lives.
Employee involvement.
What does it seek to achieve?
What can it also be know as?
- Seeks to enable employees to contribute to the continuous improvement and performance of the business in which they are employed.
- Also referred to as “employee voice”
How can employee involvement be achieved?
- Considering employees’ ideas and opinions.
- Employee representatives.
Employee Involvement
- Considering employees’ ideas and opinions- How can this be achieved?
- Who is this between?
- What may this simply be? What has made this a simpler process?
- Using two- way communication channels or by establishing systems for employees to express their voice.
- Communication- directly between managers and employees.
- Use of suggestion schemes or regular meetings between managers and employees to gather employees’ opinions.
- Technological developments- electronic media- have made this a simpler process and communication often takes place through email.
What are some further HR objectives?
- Training
- Task development
- Diversity
- Alignment of values
KT: Training?
The process whereby the an employee gains job-related skills and knowledge.
Why is training an important HR objective?
What do learning and development policies set out?
- Improving work-related skills & knowledge of employees - effective way of improving employee performance.
- Set out the workforce capibilities, skills or competencies required and how these can be developed to ensure a sustainable, successful organisation.
KT: Talent development?
Refers to the development and guidance of outstanding or star employees who have the potential to make a major contribution to an organisation’s performance and success.
Talent development objctives
Why is there an increased interest in talent- what reasons ?
- Overcoming the pressures of succeeding in increasingly competitive global markets.
- Coping with shortages of certain skilled employees.
- Growing need for highly specialist and creative employees.
What will diversity as an HR objective aim to do?
What could employee diversity be based upon?
What other objectives may be alongside this?
- Aim to treat people as individuals and will value the benefits that diverse individuals and groups in a workplace may offer to a business.
- Gender, race and ethnicity, disability, religion, sexuality, class and age.
- Objectives for equality.
Diversity & equality objectives
The Equalities Act 2010- protected employees against what?
- Direct and Indirect discrimination.
- Harassment
- Victimisation
What are the benefits of setting HR objectives for equality and diversity?
- Drawing on all people- in local community when recruiting- offers the best opportunity to employ the most talented employees.
- This will enhance the performance of the business.
- Promoting most able employees, regardless of personal characteristics- secures greatest level of talent for the business.
- Diverse workforce- allows business- understand the needs of a market- comprised of diverse consumers. Will assist the organisation- meeting the needs of consumers more effectively.
- Business- good reputation of offering an effective diversity&equality policy- become attractive to potential employees- ‘employer branding’ - can help to attract highly skilled and talented employees.
HR objective- alignment of values. What is this?
What do they assist and support the business in?
A businesses core values.
- Can assist the business in establishing and maintaining a competitive advantage.
- Support the business in attempting to fulfil its vision.
What are the internal influences on HR objectives and decisions?
- Corporate or overall objectives.
- Attitudes & beliefs of the senior managers.
- Hard HR approach.
- Soft HR approach.
- Type of product.
Internal influences- HR objectives- corporate or overall objectives.
What must they assist the business in in achieving?
Achieving its overall objectives.
Internal influences- HR objectives- Attitudes and beliefs of senior managers.
- How do they influence decisions of human resource- what may they do if they consider the workforce to be a valuable asset?
- What if they consider the workforce to be a expendable asset?
- If managers consider the workforce to be a valuable asset- they may want a long-term relationship with employees & may set objectives such as developing the skills and of the workforce to their fullest extent.
- Alternatively- may see employees as an expendable asset to be hired when necessary and to pay the minimum rate possible.
‘Hard’ HR approach
What is the philosophy behind this?
They treat employees as a resource - and regard them to be another resource to be deployed as efficiently as possible in pursuit of strategic targets.
