lesson 1

Question 1

Define motivation.

Answer 1

Motivation is the force that energizes, directs and sustains behavior. High performance is achieved by well-motivated people who are prepared to exercise discretionary effort.

The three components of motivation are Direction, Effort, and Persistence.

Question 2

List and describe some motivational theories.

Answer 2

1. Reinforcement Theory – People learn from rewards and consequences.
2. Content Theory – Motivation comes from fulfilling needs (Maslow, Herzberg).
3. Process Theory – Motivation depends on expectations, goals, and fairness.

Question 3

What are the types of motivation?

Answer 3

1. Intrinsic Motivation – Comes from within, when work is meaningful and enjoyable.
2. Extrinsic Motivation – Comes from external factors like rewards and consequences.

Question 4

What is the link between motivation and job satisfaction?

Answer 4

Job satisfaction occurs when people have positive attitudes towards their work, influenced by motivation, supervision, relationships, and success.

High performance leads to higher job satisfaction.

Question 5

What are the factors affecting job satisfaction?

Answer 5

1. Job Content – Skill variety, autonomy, task significance, feedback.
2. Supervision Quality – Good leadership improves satisfaction.
3. Social Contacts – Being part of a group increases happiness.
4. Success or Failure – Achievements boost morale.

Question 6

Define commitment and its three characteristics.

Answer 6

Commitment represents the strength of an individual’s identification with an organization. The three characteristics are: 1. Strong desire to stay. 2. Belief in company values and goals. 3. Willingness to put in effort.

Question 7

What are the factors affecting commitment?

Answer 7

1. Strategic Level – Strong leadership and HR support.
2. HR Policies – Stable jobs, training, fair pay.
3. Workplace Environment – Teamwork, trust, and fairness.

Question 8

Define meaning of employee engagement.

Answer 8

Employee engagement is about how committed and enthusiastic workers are about their jobs. Engaged employees are fully invested, motivated to exceed job requirements, and emotionally connected to their organization’s goals.

Question 9

What are the drivers of employee engagement?

Answer 9

1. Job Challenge – More responsibility, growth opportunities.
2. Autonomy – Freedom to make decisions.
3. Variety – Different tasks and skills.
4. Feedback – Clear performance reviews.
5. Fit – Compatibility with the work environment.
6. Opportunities for Growth – Career development.
7. Rewards & Recognition – Acknowledgment for effort.

Question 10

What is burnout and how do we deal with it?

Answer 10

Burnout is a result of high stress from excessive job demands and unrealistic expectations. To deal with burnout: 1. Rest & Sleep. 2. Set Boundaries. 3. Manage Stress. 4. Stay Active. 5. Seek Support. 6. Reevaluate Priorities.

Question 11

What does employee resourcing mean?

Answer 11

Employee resourcing refers to workforce planning, recruitment, selection, and talent management to ensure the organization has the right people.

Question 12

Define workforce planning.

Answer 12

Workforce planning involves matching the demand for workers with the available supply over time, analyzing current workforce, predicting future needs, and identifying gaps.

Question 13

How is demand forecasting done?

Answer 13

1. Managerial judgement: Managers predict future needs.
2. Ratio-trend analysis: Looks at the relationship between activity levels and employees.
3. Work study techniques: Calculate time operations take.
4. Forecasting skill and competency requirements.

Question 14

List steps in recruitment and selection process.

Answer 14

1. Defining requirements. 2. Attracting candidates. 3. Sourcing candidates. 4. Screening applications. 5. Selection methods. 6. Interviewing. 7. Testing. 8. Assessment centres. 9. Assessing candidates. 10. Completing the process.

Question 15

How do we define the requirements?

Answer 15

Role profiles define the overall purpose of the role, while person specifications define the knowledge, skills, and abilities required.

Question 16

List ways of sourcing candidates.

Answer 16

1. Corporate websites. 2. Networking sites like LinkedIn. 3. Commercial job boards. 4. Recruitment consultants. 5. Social media sites. 6. National and local newspapers.

Question 17

What types of selection interviews do you know?

Answer 17

1. Structured interviews. 2. Competency-based interviews. 3. Strengths-based interviews. 4. Value-based interviews. 5. Unstructured interviews. 6. Telephone interviews. 7. Video interviews.

Question 18

What types of selection testing are used?

Answer 18

Selection tests include intelligence tests, personality tests, ability tests (verbal, numerical, spatial, mechanical reasoning), and aptitude tests.

Question 19

What are the characteristics of a good test?

Answer 19

A good test should have reliability and validity, consistently measuring the same thing and accurately predicting job success.

Question 20

Define talent management and talent pool.

Answer 20

Talent management ensures the organization has skilled people needed to achieve its goals. A talent pool consists of skilled people who can fill important positions quickly.

Question 21

Describe the process of learning and development and list its elements.

Answer 21

Learning and development ensures organizations have skilled employees. Elements include Learning, Development, and Training.

Question 22

Describe formal and informal learning.

Answer 22

Formal learning takes place in structured settings, while informal learning happens through experience and can be self-managed.

Question 23

What are the L&D strategies?

Answer 23

L&D strategies include creating a learning culture, organizational learning strategy, and individual learning strategy.

Question 24

List some characteristics of individual learning.

Answer 24

The six principles of adult learning include decision-making, using prior experiences, relevance to work, task completion, intrinsic motivation, and understanding the purpose of learning.

Question 25

Describe the 70:20:10 model.

Answer 25

The 70:20:10 model explains that learning is achieved by 70% from work experience, 20% from social learning, and 10% from formal training.

Question 26

Describe personal development plan and list its stages.

Answer 26

Personal development planning organizes self-directed learning. Stages include analyzing current situation, setting goals, preparing action plan, formal training, and implementation.

Question 27

How do we identify the learning needs?

Answer 27

Identifying learning needs involves gap analysis, analyzing corporate plans, surveys, role analysis, skills analysis, and performance management processes.

Question 28

List 3 categories of digital learning and give some examples.

Answer 28

1. Formal digital learning -- Online degrees, virtual classrooms. 2. Informal digital learning -- Online forums, social media groups. 3. Blended learning -- Flipped classrooms, hybrid courses.

Question 29

Describe training.

Answer 29

Training involves structured instruction to develop skills, covering hard skills, soft skills, compliance, and organizational knowledge.

Question 30

What types of training do you know and what is more effective in your opinion?

Answer 30

Types of training include On-the-Job, Classroom, Hands-On, E-Learning, and Blended. Blended learning is often the most effective.

Question 31

Define performance management.

Answer 31

Performance management is a set of activities to improve employee performance, involving goal setting, planning, reviewing progress, and developing skills.

Question 32

What is the purpose and aims of performance management?

Answer 32

The purpose is to provide a framework for managing performance effectively, identifying learning needs, and administrative functions.

Question 33

Define performance management.

Answer 33

Performance management is a set of activities to improve employee performance. It involves setting individual/team goals aligned with the organization's strategy, planning to achieve those goals, reviewing progress, and developing employees' skills.

Question 34

What is the purpose and aims of performance management?

Answer 34

Managerial: To give managers a framework to manage performance effectively. Developmental: To identify and meet learning and development needs. Administrative: To provide data for managing performance pay and talent systems.

Question 35

What factors affect performance management?

Answer 35

The organization's context greatly influences performance management, including culture, people, employee relations climate, and structure. The choice is between a formal performance management system or relying on line managers as performance leaders.

Question 36

How can managers manage performance?

Answer 36

Set clear expectations, revise them in real-time, provide daily informal feedback, check in regularly, and coach employees to solve problems.

Question 37

What are the features of performance management?

Answer 37

Formalized performance management systems structure typical management processes—planning, executing, reviewing, and corrective action—into a procedure for both managers and employees.

Question 38

Define 360 degree feedback.

Answer 38

360-degree feedback is an assessment of an individual's performance by multiple people, including managers, subordinates, colleagues, and sometimes customers.

Question 39

What are the specific performance issues in performance reviews and ratings?

Answer 39

Performance reviews can be infrequent and subjective, often relying on feedback from just one source. Performance ratings can stigmatize employees and should focus on improvement, not past labels.

Question 40

What does the concept of performance leadership state?

Answer 40

Leadership is about influencing, guiding, and inspiring people to achieve goals, while management is about efficiently using resources to achieve results.

Question 41

What are the skills of performance leadership?

Answer 41

Inspire and motivate others, clarify tasks, communicate purpose, drive action, conduct meaningful conversations, and coach individuals.

Question 42

What is most important in providing feedback?

Answer 42

Build feedback into the job, provide real-time feedback, focus on describing behaviors, and ensure feedback leads to actionable improvements.

Question 43

What is the basis of reward management?

Answer 43

Reward management is the process of rewarding people based on guiding principles and a reward system, impacting organizational performance by attracting and retaining quality employees.

Question 44

Define reward system.

Answer 44

Reward management involves designing, implementing, and maintaining reward systems that address job valuation, pay structures, performance recognition, and employee benefits.

Question 45

List aims of reward management.

Answer 45

Support organizational goals, attract and retain talent, motivate employees, reward based on value created, ensure good ROI in rewards, and align practices with employee needs.

Question 46

What does the reward policy cover?

Answer 46

Reward policy provides guidelines for decision-making, covering level of rewards, external competitiveness vs. internal equity, and segmentation.

Question 47

Describe financial rewards.

Answer 47

Financial rewards include job-based pay, person-based pay, employee benefits, and financial recognition schemes.

Question 48

What types of non-financial rewards do you know?

Answer 48

Recognition, career growth, work-life balance, extra benefits, and better work environment.

Question 49

What is the reward strategy?

Answer 49

Reward strategy focuses on policies and practices needed to recognize and reward the value of people and their contributions to achieving goals.

Question 50

Describe market pricing and its importance.

Answer 50

Market pricing sets pay structures based on external salary data, helping determine base pay and creating pay structures.

Question 51

What is job evaluation?

Answer 51

Job evaluation is a formal process to determine the relative value of jobs within an organization, ensuring internal pay equity.

Question 52

Describe grade and pay structure in detail.

Answer 52

A grade structure categorizes jobs of similar size or value, while a pay structure defines pay ranges tied to each grade, ensuring equity and transparency.

Question 53

What is employment relations?

Answer 53

Employment relations is the way employers and employees work together, characterized by trust, fair treatment, and clear rules.

Question 54

Why is employee communication important?

Answer 54

It helps workers understand their roles, changes in the company, and their rights, leading to better teamwork and higher job satisfaction.

Question 55

What is employee wellbeing?

Answer 55

Wellbeing is feeling happy, healthy, and safe at work, supported by a safe workplace, fair pay, and supportive colleagues.

Question 56

Why does health and safety at work matter?

Answer 56

It protects employees from accidents and sickness through risk assessments, audits, and proper training.

Question 57

What are key HR practices?

Answer 57

HR's job is to ensure fair treatment and support for employees, including equal opportunities, clear rules, and training policies.

Question 58

What is international HR management?

Answer 58

International HR management involves managing employees in different countries, facing challenges like cultural differences and expatriate handling.