SMU

ASSIGNMENT
SEMESTER – 1
MBO027

Human Resource
Management

SUBMITTED BY:
SIDHARTH RAMTEKE
MBA
ROLL NO.-
520918813
ASSIGNMENTS- MBA Sem-I
MB0027 – Human Resource Management

Q.1 Write a short note on Hawthorne Studies.

Frederick Taylor, who died in 1915, did not live to see the employee motivation
studies that were conducted at Western Electric’s Hawthorne plant, near
Chicago, Illinois, from 1927 to 1932. However, the founder of the scientific school
of management would have no doubt been interested in the results. The
Hawthorne studies undercut a core pillar of Taylorism--the notion that workers
were motivated purely by economic gain.
Researchers from Western Electric and Harvard University led the Hawthorne
studies. (General Electric originally contributed funding, but they withdrew after
the first trial was completed.) The studies were intended to examine the
influence of environmental variables on a group of production workers. The
group of workers was divided into two subgroups: a test group, which would
undergo environmental changes, and a control group. The members of the
control group would work under normal, constant environment conditions.

The researchers began by manipulating the lighting of the test group. When
lighting for the test group was increased, their productivity increased--but the
productivity of the control group increased, as well. This result was somewhat
unexpected, since the lighting at the workstations of the control group had not
been altered.

The researchers then decreased the lighting at the test group’s workstations.
Surprisingly, both the test group and the control group continued to improve
their productivity. There were no decreases in productivity until the light was
reduced to the point where the workers could barely see. The researchers
concluded that light did not have a significant impact on the motivation of
production workers. This led General Electric, a light bulb manufacturer, to
withdraw their funding.
The next experiment utilized a mainstay of scientific management: incentive-
based, piecework system. The researchers expected, according to the
conventional wisdom of the day, that this would inspire the employees to
dramatically increase their pace. However, rather than working as fast as they
could individually, the workers calibrated themselves as a group. Employees who
worked more slowly than average were derided as “chiselers.” Employees who
attempted to work faster than the group were called “rate busters.” In other
words, any significant deviation from the collectively imposed norm was
punished.
These results were, of course, a major blow to the position of scientific
management, which held that employees were only motivated by individual
economic interest. The Hawthorne studies drew attention to the social needs as
an additional source of motivation. Taylor’s emphasis on economic incentives
was not wholly discredited, but economic incentives were now viewed as one
factor--not the sole factor--to which employees responded.

Q.2 Trace the growth of Trade Union Movement from Factories Act 1881
to Factories Act 1948.
The growth of trade unions in India started way back in 1850 when the economic
conditions of labor was poor, The industry was dominated by the Capitalism, and
the industrialists were more concerned about the productivity. Long working
hours, Low wedges, poor living conditions and exploitation by the management
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was common in the industry. Slowly in many parts of the country the workforces
united and Factories Act 1881 was incorporated with a ban on Child labor, and
conditions in working hours and improved working conditions.
In next phase many trade unions were incorporated in the country under the
leadership of Mahatma Gandhi in other parts of the country like West Bangal,
Ahamdabad, Punjab and others. All India trade union federation was formed.
After independence this took the shape of Indian Factory Act 1948 with
regulation on working conditions, working hours, and other facilities at
workplace.

Q.3 Elaborate the HR planning System

Human Resource planning can be defined as a process by which an organization
ensures that it has the right number and kinds of people, at the right place, at
the right time, capable of effectively and efficiently completing those tasks that
will help the organization achieve its overall objectives or in other words HRP can
be defined as planning for the future personnel needs of an organization, taking
into account both internal activities and factors in the external environment.
Need and Importance of HRP
Human resource Planning translates the organization objectives and plans into
the number of workers needed to meet these objectives. The need and
importance of HRP is as follows:
 HRP helps in determining the future manpower requirements and avoids
problems like over staffing or understaffing in the organization.
 HRP helps in tackling with the factors like competition, technology,
government policies etc. that generates changes in the job content, skill
requirements and number and types of personnel required.
 Now a days there is a demand of exceptional intellectual skills while the
existing staff becomes redundant, the HR manager has to attract and retain
qualified and skilled personnel and also required to deal with issues like career
development, succession planning for which he takes the help of HRP.
 A proper and realistic human resource plan is needed to ensure equal
employment and promotional appointments to the candidates fro weaker
sections, physically handicapped and socially and politically oppressed citizens.
 HRP provides valuable and timely information for various designing and
execution of personnel functions like recruitment, selection, transfers,
promotions, layoffs, training and development and performance appraisal.
 It helps the organization to anticipate imbalance in human resources, which in
turn will facilitate reduction in personal costs.
 HRP facilitates planning for future needs which will help in better planning of
assignments to develop managers and to ensure the organization has a steady
supply of experienced and skilled employees.
Factors affecting Human Resource Planning
HRP is a dynamic and on going process. The process of updating is not very
simple, since HRP is influenced by many factors, which are as follows:
 The type of organization determines the production process and number and
type of staff needed.
 The human resource needs of an organization depend on the strategic plan
adopted by it. For e.g. the growth of a business calls for hiring of additional labor,
while mergers will need a plan for layoffs.
 Organization operates under different political, social environment and has to
carefully formulate the HR policies and so the HR manager has to evolve suitable
mechanism to deal with uncertainties through career developments, succession
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planning, retirement schemes etc.

 HRP also depends on the time periods and accordingly the short and long-
term plans are adopted. And this time span is based on the degree of
environmental uncertainties.
 The type and quality of information used in making forecasting is an important
factor influencing HRP. Accurate and timely human resource information system
helps in getting better quality personnel.
 HRP is required to ensure that suitable candidates should be appointed at the
right kind of job.
So these are some of the factors that affect the human resource planning.
Limitations of Human Resource Planning
 It is very difficult to ascertain future manpower requirements of an
organization, as future is always uncertain.
 It is more relevant to the countries that face the problem of scarcity of human
resources.
 It is a time consuming and costlier process.
 It is beneficial in the organizations that adopt a professional approach and at
the same time are conscious about the changing environment.
 HRP is beneficial where adequate skilled manpower is available. .
 HRP is also made difficult in the organizations that have a very high labor
turnover.

Q.4 Discuss the Multiple Person Evaluation Methods.

The above-discussed methods are used to evaluate employees one at a time. In
this section let us discuss some techniques of evaluating one employee in
comparison to another. Three such frequently used methods in organization are
– ranking, paired comparison and forced distribution.

Ranking method

This is a relatively easy method of performance evaluation. Under this method,

the ranking of an employee in a work group is done against that of another
employee. The relative position of each employee is tested in terms of his
numerical rank. It may also be done by ranking a person on his job performance
against another member of the competitive group. The quintessence of this
method is that employees are ranked according to their levels of performance.
While using this method, the evaluator is asked to rate employees from highest
to lowest on some overall criterion. Though it is relatively easier to rank the best
and the worst employees, it is very difficult to rank the average employees.
Generally, evaluators pick the top and bottom employees first and then select
the next highest and next lowest and move towards the average (middle)
employees. The longstanding limitations of this method are:

 The ‘whole man’ is compared with another ‘whole man’ in this method. In
practice, it is very difficult to compare individuals possessing varied
behavioral traits.
 This method speaks only of the position where an employee stands in his
group. It does not tell anything about how much better or how much worse
an employee is when compared to another employee.
 When a large number of employees are working

, ranking of individuals becomes a tosticating issue.

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 There is no systematic procedure for ranking individuals in the

organization. The ranking system does not eliminate the possibility of snap
judgments.

In order to overcome the above limitations a paired comparison technique has

been advanced by organizational scholars.

Paired comparison method

Ranking becomes more reliable and easier under the paired comparison method.
Each worker is compared with all other employees in the group; for every trait
the worker is compared with all other employees. For instance, when there are
five employees to be compared, then A’s performance is compared with that of
B’s and decision is arrived at as to whose is the better or worse. Next, B is also
compared with all others. Since A is already compared with B, this time B is to be
compared with only C, D and E. By this method when there are five employees,
fifteen decisions are made (comparisons). The number of decisions to be made
can be determined with the help of the formulae n (n-2). Ranking the employees
by the paired comparison method may be illustrated as shown in the Table 10.7.

For several individual traits, paired comparisons are made, tabulated and then
rank is assigned to each worker. Though this method seems to be logical, it is
not applicable when a group is large. When the group becomes too large, the
number of comparisons to be made may become frighteningly excessive. For
instance, when n=100, comparisons to be made are 100 (100-2) = 100 (98) =
9800.

Trait: ‘Quantity of work’

Table: Employee Rated

As compared to A B C D E

A + – + –

B – + – +

C + – + –

D – + – –

E + – + +

Forced distribution method

Under this system, the rater is asked to appraise the employee according to a
predetermined distribution scale. The rater’s bias is sought to be eliminated here
because workers are not placed at a higher or lower end of the scale. Normally,
the two criteria used here for rating are the job performance and promotability.
Further, a five point performance scale is used without any mention of
descriptive statements. Workers are placed between the two extremes of ‘good’
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and ‘bad’ performances. For instance, the workers of outstanding merit may be
placed at the top 10% of the scale. The rest may be placed as – 20% —good,
40% —outstanding, 20% —fair and 10% —fair. To be specific, the forced
distribution method assumes that all top grade workers should go to the highest
10% grade; 20% employees should go to the next highest grade and so on.

Job performance as the criterion apart, another equally important factor in this
method is promotability. Employees may be classified according to their
promotional merits. The scale for this purpose may consist of three points –
namely, quite likely promotional material, may/may not be promotional material
and quite unlikely promotional material.

One strong positive point in favor of the forced distribution method is that by
forcing the distribution according to predetermined percentages, the problem of
making use of different raters with different scales is avoided. Further, this
method is appreciated on the ground that it tends to eliminate rater bias. The
limitation of using this method in salary administration however, is that it may
result in low morale, low productivity and high absenteeism. Employees who feel
that they are productive, but find themselves placed in a lower grade (than
expected) feel frustrated and exhibit, over a period of time, reluctance to work.

Other methods of appraising performance include: Group Appraisal, Human

Resource Accounting, Assessment Centre, Field Review, etc. These are discussed
in the following sections:

Group appraisal

In this method, an employee is appraised by a group of appraisers. This group

consists of the immediate supervisor of the employee, other supervisors who
have close contact with the employee’s work, manager or head of the
department and consultants. The head of the department or manager may be
the Chairman of the group and the immediate supervisor may act as the
Coordinator for the group activities. This group uses any one of multiple
techniques discussed earlier. The immediate supervisor enlightens other
members about the job characteristics, demands, standards or performance, etc.
Then the group appraises the performance of the employee, compares the actual
performance with standards, finds out the deviations, discusses the reasons
therefor, suggests ways for improvement of performance, prepares an action
plan, studies the need for change in the job analysis and standards and
recommends changes, if necessary.

This method eliminates ‘personal bias’ to a large extent, as performance is

evaluated by multiple rates. But it is a very time consuming process.

Human resource accounting

HRA is a sophisticated way to measure (in financial terms) the effectiveness of

personnel management activities and the use of people in an organization. It is
the process of accounting for people as an organizational resource. It tries to
place a value on organizational human resources as assets and not as expenses.
The HRA process shows the investment the organization makes in its people and
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how the value of these people changes over time. The acquisition cost of
employees is compared to the replacement cost from time to time. The value of
employees is increased by investments made by the company to improve the
quality of its human resources such as training, development skills acquired by
employees over a period of time through experience, etc. When qualified,
competent people leave an organization; the value of human assets goes down.
In this method, employee performance is evaluated in terms of costs and
contributions of employees. Human resource costs include expenditure incurred
by the company in hiring, training, compensating and developing people. The
contributions of human resources is the money value of labour productivity. The
cost of human resources may be taken as the standard. Employee performance
can be measured in terms of employee contribution to the organization.
Employee performance can be taken as positive when contribution is more than
the cost and performance can be viewed as negative if cost is more than
contribution. Positive performance can be measured in terms of percentage of
excess of employee contribution over the cost of employee. Similarly negative
performance can be calculated in terms of percentage of deficit in employee
contribution compared to the cost of employee. These percentages can be
ranked to ‘Zero Level’ as shown in the Table below.

Rank Percentage of surplus/Deficit

Rating of contribution to cost of
employee
1. Extremely good performance Over 200
2. Good performance 150 – 200
3. Slightly good performance 100 – 150
4. Neither poor nor good 0 – 100
5. Slightly poor performance 0
6. Poor performance 0 to (— 50)
7. Extremely poor performance (—50) to (—100)

This technique has not developed fully and is still in the transitionary stage.

Assessment centre

This method of appraising was first applied in German Army in 1930. Later
business and industrial houses started using this method. This is not a technique
of performance appraisal by itself. In fact it is a system or organization, where
assessment of several individuals is done by various experts using various
techniques. These techniques include the methods discussed before in addition
to in-basket, role playing, case studies, simulation exercises, structured in sight,
transactional analysis, etc.

In this approach individuals from various departments are brought together to

spend two or three days working on an individual or group assignment similar to
the ones they would be handling when promoted. Observers rank the
performance of each and every participant in order of merit. Since assessment
centres are basically meant for evaluating the potential of candidates to be
considered for promotion, training or development, they offer an excellent
means for conducting evaluation processes in an objective way. All assessees
get an equal opportunity to show their talents and capabilities and secure
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promotion based on merit. Since evaluators know the position requirements

intimately and are trained to perform the evaluation process in an objective
manner, the performance ratings may find favor with majority of the employees.
A considerable amount of research evidence is available to support the
contention that people chosen by this method prove better than those chosen by
other methods. The centre enables individuals working in low status departments
to compete with people from well-known departments and enlarge their
promotion chances. Such opportunities, when created on a regular basis, will go
a long way in improving the morale of promising candidates working in less
important positions.

Field Review Method

Where subjective performance measures are used, there is scope for rater’s
biases influencing the evaluation process. To avoid this, some employees use the
field review method. In this method a trained, skilled representative of the HR
department goes into the ‘field’ and assists line supervisors with their ratings of
their respective subordinates. The HR specialist requests from the immediate
supervisor specific information about the employees performance. Based on this
information, the expert prepares a report which is sent to the supervisor for
review, changes, approval and discussion with the employee who is being rated.
The ratings are done on standardized forms.

Since an expert is handling the appraisal process, in consultation with the

supervisor, the ratings are more reliable. However, the use of HR experts makes
this approach costly and impractical for many organizations.

Q.5 Write a note on different theories for Managing Compensation [10]

Managing compensation throughout the different levels of the organization
. Workplace views of compensation are often tied to perceptions of quality of
life, security, status, workplace value, and fairness. Compensation is among
the most complex and heated topics in business settings. It is important,
therefore, that students examine methods by which compensation is
managed, or sometimes mismanaged, using workplace examples. This
perspective will be our classroom focus, as it will provide students with
tools and experiences that can be directly applied to the workplace. Managing a
compensation program initially requires an understanding of technical skills used
by HR professionals: Job Analysis, Job Evaluation, assessing pay grades,
salary surveys, et al. These skills will be developed over the term of this course.
However, far more than a quantitative study or a major expense to a
bottom line, compensation management also requires that professionals
make difficult strategic-level choices that can have tremendous impact on the
livelihood of employees, a company’s culture or its financial future.
Professionals who design and implement comprehensive direct and indirect pay
programs are often required to balance conflicting variables. These
variables include internal pressures for cost containment, the financial interests
of employees, external competition for talented employees, executives’ roles
in shaping organizational cultures, ethical considerations, the role of
government, and the influence of long-range business plans. During the term
of this course, the effects of these variables on compensation management
will be discussed and debated. While this course provides an overview of
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employee benefits programs (indirect compensation), the main focus will be

forms of direct pay.

Q.6 Write the advantages and limitations of Job Evaluation Method.

Answer:
Job Evaluation Methods
There are three basic methods of job evaluation: (1) ranking, (2) classification, (3) factor
comparison. While many variations of these methods exist in practice, the three basic
approaches are described here.
Ranking Method
Perhaps the simplest method of job evaluation is the ranking method. According to this
method, jobs are arranged from highest to lowest, in order of their value or merit to the
organization. Jobs also can be arranged according to the relative difficulty in performing
them. The jobs are examined as a whole rather than on the basis of important factors in
the job; and the job at the top of the list has the highest value and obviously the job at
the bottom of the list will have the lowest value.
Jobs are usually ranked in each department and then the department rankings are
combined to develop an organizational ranking. The following table is a hypothetical
illustration of ranking of jobs.
Table: Array of Jobs according to the Ranking Method

Rank Monthly salaries

1. Accountant Rs 3,000
2. Accounts clerk Rs 1,800
3. Purchase assistant Rs 1,700
4. Machine-operator Rs 1,400
5. Typist Rs 900
6. Office boy Rs 600

The variation in payment of salaries depends on the variation of the nature of the job
performed by the employees. The ranking method is simple to understand and practice
and it is best suited for a small organization. Its simplicity, however, works to its
disadvantage in big organizations because rankings are difficult to develop in a large,
complex organization. Moreover, this kind of ranking is highly subjective in nature and
may offend many employees. Therefore, a more scientific and fruitful way of job
evaluation is called for.

Classification Method

According to this method, a predetermined number of job groups or job classes are
established and jobs are assigned to these classifications. This method places groups of
jobs into job classes or job grades. Separate classes may include office, clerical,
managerial, personnel, etc. Following is a brief description of such a classification in an
office.

(a) Class I - Executives: Further classification under this category may be Office manager,
Deputy office manager, Office superintendent, Departmental supervisor, etc.

(b) Class II - Skilled workers: Under this category may come the Purchasing assistant,
Cashier, Receipts clerk, etc.
(c) Class III - Semiskilled workers: Under this category may come Stenotypists, Machine-
operators, Switchboard operators, etc.
(d) Class IV - Semiskilled workers: This category comprises Daftaris, File clerks, Office
boys, etc.
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The job classification method is less subjective when compared to the earlier ranking
method. The system is very easy to understand and acceptable to almost all employees
without hesitation. One strong point in favor of the method is that it takes into account
all the factors that a job comprises. This system can be effectively used for a variety of
jobs.
The weaknesses of the job classification method are:
* Even when the requirements of different jobs differ, they may be combined into a
single category, depending on the status a job carries.
* It is difficult to write all-inclusive descriptions of a grade.
* The method oversimplifies sharp differences between different jobs and different
grades.
* When individual job descriptions and grade descriptions do not match well, the
evaluators have the tendency to classify the job using their subjective judgments.
Factor Comparison Method

A more systematic and scientific method of job evaluation is the factor comparison
method. Though it is the most complex method of all, it is consistent and appreciable.
Under this method, instead of ranking complete jobs, each job is ranked according to a
series of factors. These factors include mental effort, physical effort, skill needed,
supervisory responsibility, working conditions and other relevant factors (for instance,
know-how, problem solving abilities, accountability, etc.). Pay will be assigned in this
method by comparing the weights of the factors required for each job, i.e., the present
wages paid for key jobs may be divided among the factors weighed by importance (the
most important factor, for instance, mental effort, receives the highest weight). In other
words, wages are assigned to the job in comparison to its ranking on each job factor.

The steps involved in factor comparison method may be briefly stated thus:
* Select key jobs (say 15 to 20), representing wage/salary levels across the organization.
The selected jobs must represent as many departments as possible.
* Find the factors in terms of which the jobs are evaluated (such as skill, mental effort,
responsibility, physical effort, working conditions, etc.).
* Rank the selected jobs under each factor (by each and every member of the job
evaluation committee) independently.
* Assign money value to each factor and determine the wage rates for each key job.
* The wage rate for a job is apportioned along the identified factors.
* All other jobs are compared with the list of key jobs and wage rates are determined.
An example of how the factor comparison method works is given below:
Table: Merits and Demerits of Factor Comparison Method
Merits
Demerits
* Analytical and objective.
* Reliable and valid as each job is compared with all other jobs in terms of key factors.
* Money values are assigned in a fair way based on an agreed rank order fixed by the job
evaluation committee.
* Flexible as there is no upper limitation on the rating of a factor.
* Difficult to understand, explain and operate.
* Its use of the same criteria to assess all jobs is questionable as jobs differ across and
within organizations.
* Time consuming and costly.
Point method

This method is widely used currently. Here, jobs are expressed in terms of key factors.
Points are assigned to each factor after prioritizing each factor in the order of
importance. The points are summed up to determine the wage rate for the job. Jobs with
similar point totals are placed in similar pay grades. The procedure involved may be
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explained thus:
(a) Select key jobs. Identify the factors common to all the identified jobs such as skill,
effort, responsibility, etc.
(b) Divide each major factor into a number of sub factors. Each sub factor is defined and
expressed clearly in the order of importance, preferably along a scale.

The most frequent factors employed in point systems are:

I. Skill (key factor): Education and training required, Breadth/depth of experience
required, Social skills required, Problem-solving skills, Degree of discretion/use of
judgment, Creative thinking;
II. Responsibility/Accountability: Breadth of responsibility, Specialized responsibility,
Complexity of the work, Degree of freedom to act, Number and nature of subordinate
staff, Extent of accountability for equipment/plant, Extent of accountability for
product/materials;
III. Effort: Mental demands of a job, Physical demands of a job, Degree of potential stress.

The educational requirements (sub factor) under the skill (key factor) may be expressed
thus in the order of importance.
Degree Define
1. Able to carry out simple calculations; High School educated
2. Does all the clerical operations; computer literate; graduate
3 Handles mail, develops contacts, takes initiative and does work independently; post
graduate
Assign point values to degrees after fixing a relative value for each key factor.
Table: Point Values to Factors along a Scale

Point values for Degrees Total

Factor 1 2 3 4 5
Skill 10 20 30 40 50 150
Physical effort 8 16 24 32 40 120
Mental effort 5 10 15 20 25 75
Responsibility 7 14 21 28 35 105
Working conditions 6 12 18 24 30 90
Maximum total points of all factors depending on their importance to job = 540

(Bank Officer)
4 Find the maximum number of points assigned to each job (after adding up the point
values of all sub-factors of such a job). This would help in finding the relative worth of a
job. For instance, the maximum points assigned to an officer's job in a bank come to 540.
The manager's job, after adding up key factors + sub factors' points, may be getting a
point value of, say 650 from the job evaluation committee. This job is now priced at a
higher level.
5 Once the worth of a job in terms of total points is expressed, the points are converted
into money values keeping in view the hourly/daily wage rates. A wage survey, usually, is
undertaken to collect wage rates of certain key jobs in the organization. Let's explain
this:
Table: Conversion of Job Grade Points into Money Value

Point range Daily wage rate (Rs) Job grades of key bank officials

500-600 300-400 1 Officer

600-700 400-500 2 Accountant

700-800 500-600 3 Manager I Scale

800-900 600-700 4 Manager II Scale

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900-1,000 700-800 5 Manager III Scale

Merits and Demerits
The point method is a superior and widely used method of evaluating jobs. It forces
raters to look into all keys factors and sub-factors of a job. Point values are assigned to
all factors in a systematic way, eliminating bias at every stage. It is reliable because
raters using similar criteria would get more or less similar answers. "The methodology
underlying the approach contributes to a minimum of rating error" (Robbins, p.361). It
accounts for differences in wage rates for various jobs on the strength of job factors. Jobs
may change over time, but the rating scales established under the point method remain
unaffected.
On the negative side, the point method is complex. Preparing a manual for various jobs,
fixing values for key and sub-factors, establishing wage rates for different grades, etc., is
a time consuming process. According to Decenzo and Robbins, "the key criteria must be
carefully and clearly identified, degrees of factors have to be agreed upon in terms that
mean the same to all rates, the weight of each criterion has to be established and point
values must be assigned to degrees". This may be too taxing, especially while evaluating
managerial jobs where the nature of work (varied, complex, novel) is such that it cannot
be expressed in quantifiable numbers.

Q.1 Mention and briefly explain different sources of recruitment

Every organisation has the option of choosing the candidates for its recruitment
processes from two kinds of sources: internal and external sources. The sources
within the organisation itself (like transfer of employees from one department to
other, promotions) to fill a position are known as the internal sources of
recruitment. Recruitment candidates from all the other sources (like outsourcing
agencies etc.) are known as the external sources of The recruitment.
Some Internal Sources Of Recruitments are given below:

1. TRANSFERS
The employees are transferred from one department to another according to
their efficiency and experience.

2. PROMOTIONS
The employees are promoted from one department to another with more
benefits and greater responsibility based on efficiency and experience.

3. Others are Upgrading and Demotion of present employees according to their

performance.

4. Retired and Retrenched employees may also be recruited once again in case
of shortage of qualified personnel or increase in load of work. recruitment such
people
save time and costs of the organisations as the people are already aware of the
organisational culture and the policies and procedures.
5. The dependents and relatives of Deceased employees and Disabled
employees are also done by many companies so that the members of the family
do not become dependent on the mercy of others.
Some external sources of recruitment are:
1. PRESS ADVERTISEMENTS
Advertisements of the vacancy in newspapers and journals are a widely
used source of recruitment. The main advantage of this method is that it
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has a wide reach.

2. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTES
Various management institutes, engineering colleges, medical Colleges
etc. are a good source of recruiting well qualified executives, engineers,
medical staff etc. They provide facilities for campus interviews and
placements. This source is known as Campus Recruitment.
2. PLACEMENT AGENCIES
Several private consultancy firms perform recruitment functions on behalf
of client companies by charging a fee. These
agencies are particularly suitable for recruitment of executives and specialists. It
is also known as RPO (Recruitment Process Outsourcing)

3. EMPLOYMENT EXCHANGES
Government establishes public employment exchanges throughout the
country. These exchanges provide job information to job seekers and help
employers in identifying suitable candidates.

4. LABOUR CONTRACTORS
Manual workers can be recruited through contractors who maintain close
contacts with the sources of such workers. This source is used to recruit labour
for construction jobs.

5. UNSOLICITED APPLICANTS
Many job seekers visit the office of well-known companies on their own. Such
callers are considered nuisance to the daily work routine of the enterprise. But
can help in creating the talent pool or the database of the probable candidates
for the organisation.

6. EMPLOYEE REFERRALS / RECOMMENDATIONS

Many organisations have structured system where the current employees of the
organisation can refer their friends and relatives for some position in their
organisation. Also, the office bearers of trade unions are often aware of the
suitability of candidates. Recruitment Management can inquire these leaders for
suitable jobs. In some organizations these are formal agreements to give priority
in recruitment to the candidates recommended by the trade union.

7. RECRUITMENT AT FACTORY GATE

Unskilled workers may be recruited at the factory gate these may be employed
whenever a permanent worker is absent. More efficient among these may be
recruited to fill permanent vacancies.

Q.2 Write a note on guided and unguided interview

Guided Interview

When the aim of an enquiry is to gather information about the opinions of a

particular person (an expert, a representative member of a group) in order to
gain qualitative insights into a problem, guided interviews are used. Guided
interviews contain only open-ended questions, and the questionnaire is only
used as a guideline for the interview, the conversation between interviewer and
interviewee does not have to follow it strictly. Guided interviews generate
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qualitative data, which is why the number of interviews usually is limited, and
quantitative conclusions cannot be drawn.

Q.3 Discuss the techniques to motivate employees.

It is a costly mistake to get lost in the false theory that more money equals
happy employees.Believing this is costing you valuable time, revenue,
employees...and even threatening your own job. Cash will always be a major
factor in motivating people and a solid compensation plan is critical to attracting
and keeping key personnel. But the key is that additional cash is not always the
only answer and in many cases not even the best answer.Too many bonus or
commission checks get cashed, spent and forgotten just that quickly. Grocery
stores and gasoline stations are among the necessary stops that
seem to get in the way of using your extra cash on something special for you.

1. Recognition/Attention. When your employees accomplish something they

have achieved something. Your recognition is appreciation for that achievement.
I believe that most managers don't give enough recognition because they don't
get enough. Therefore, it doesn't come natural to do it. If this applies to you, you
need to drop this excuse like a bad habit! Become a giver! Look at the price.
Recognition is free!

2. Training. Is training ever finished? Can you possibly overtrain? NO and NO.
For whatever reasons, too many people feel "My people have already been
trained" or "I've got good people...they only need a little training." But training
never ends. Schedule "tune- up" training sessions. These should be led by you or
by a supervisor with help from specific employees who show a particular
strength in the skills taught. I know this takes time, but these types of training
sessions will continually enhance the performance of your people and the
productivity of your business.

3. Good Work Environment. A recent industry study shows just how

inaccurate your results can be. Employers were asked to rank what they thought
motivated their people
and then employees were asked to rank what really did motivate them.

Employers felt "working conditions" was a nine (or next to last) in terms of
importance. What did the employees say? Number two! Working conditions are
very important to the way employees feel about where they work.

Cosmetically, does your office look nice? Are there pictures on the walls, plants
and fresh paint among other features that generally make people feel good
about their environment? Does their work space have enough room or are they
cramped in a "sardine can?" What about furniture? Is the desk the right size,
chair comfortable? Is there file space and do they have the miscellaneous office
supplies needed for maximum performance? Is the temperature regulated
properly so they don't feel they're in the Amazon jungle one minute and the
North Pole the next?

4. Leadership Roles. Give your people leadership roles to reward their

performance and also to help you identify future promotable people. Most people
are stimulated by leadership roles even in spot appearances. For example, when
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visitors come to your workplace use this opportunity to allow an employee to

take the role of visitors guide.

A great place to hand out leadership roles is to allow your people to lead brief
meetings. Utilize your employees' strengths and skills by setting up "tune up"
training sessions and let one of your employees lead the training. The best time
to do this is when new people start.

Or, assign a meeting leader after someone has attended an outside seminar or
workshop. Have them lead a post show, briefing the other employees regarding
seminar content and highlights.

Have your employees help you lead a project team to improve internal
processes.

5. Team Spirit. Have a picture taken on your entire staff (including you!), have
it enlarged and hang it in a visible spot. Most people like to physically see
themselves as part of a group or team.
When running contests in your area, try to create contests and affiliated activity
that are team driven. People driving to reach goals together definitely enhance
team spirit solely because they must lean upon others and be prepared to be
leaned on.
One very effective idea for me has been building a collage of creative ideas with
the "Team" theme. All employees are responsible for submitting a phrase
referring to TEAM on a weekly rotation. Each of these ideas (such as TEAM: Total
Enthusiasm of All Members or There is no I in Team) is placed on a wall, creating
a collage of Team-oriented phrases. Don't have one person responsible for
this...do it as a team.
6.Social Gatherings. Scheduled offsite events enhance bonding which in turn
helps team spirit, which ultimately impacts your positive work environment.
Halloween costume parties, picnics on July 4th, Memorial Day or Labor Day, and
Christmas parties are only some of the ideas that successfully bring people
together for an enjoyable time. Some others that I've used with equal success
are softball games (against other companies or among employees, depending on
staff size), groups going putt-putt golfing or movie madness.

7. Stress Management. There are many articles and books available on the
subject. Make this reference material available to your people. Make sure they
know it is available and encourage them to use it.

If possible, have an in-house seminar on stress management techniques. So that

production time is not lost, you might consider having a brown bag luncheon
with a guest speaker on this subject. Because stress is an ongoing concern,
anytime is a good time for a seminar like this to take place.

Be as flexible as you can with breaks during the course of the day.

Q.5 Explain the importance of grievance handling

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Maintaining quality of work life for its employees is an important concern for the
any organisation. The grievance handling procedure of the organisation can
affect the harmonious environment of the organisation. The grievances of the
employees are related to the contract, work rule or regulation, policy or
procedure, health and safety regulation, past practice, changing the cultural
norms unilaterally, individual victimization, wage, bonus, etc. Here, the attitude
on the part of management in their effort to understand the problems of
employees and resolve the issues amicably have better probability to maintain a
culture of high performance. Managers must be educated about the importance
of the grievance process and their role in maintaining favorable relations with
the union. Effective grievance handling is an essential part of cultivating good
employee relations and running a fair, successful, and productive workplace.
Positive labor relations are two-way street both sides must give a little and try to
work together. Relationship building is key to successful labor relations.

Precautions and Prescriptions

The management should take care of following aspects to develop a culture of

trust and confidence upon the employees.

1. Always ensure that the managers involved in the grievance handling

procedures have a quiet place to meet with the complainant.

2. Always ensure that managers have adequate time to be devoted to the

complainant.

3. Explain manager's role, the policy and the procedures clearly in the grievance
handling procedure.

4. Fully explaining the situation to the employee to eliminate any

misunderstanding and promote better acceptance of the situation complained of.

5. Try to let employee present their issues without prejudging or commenting

6. Do use a positive, friendly ways to resolve the crisis than punitive steps, which
disturb the system.

7. Do remain calm, cool, collected during the course of the meeting.

8. Always focus on the subject of the grievance than allied issues.

9. Don't make threats manage the grievances.

10. Never make use of allegations against personalities.

11. Be aware of the staff member's potential concerns to the possible

repercussions of raising a grievance.

12. Don't become angry, belligerent, or hostile during grievance handling

procedure.
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13. Do listen for the main point of arguments and any possible avenue to resolve
the grievance.

14. Listen and respond sensitively to any distress exhibited by the employees.

15. Eliminating the source of the irritation or discomfort being complained of.

16. Reassure them that the managers will be acting impartially and that your
hope is to resolve the matter if possible.

17. Don't "horse trade" or swap one grievance for another (where the union wins
one, management wins one). Each case should be decided on its merits.

18. Avoid usage of verbosisms like "it will be taken care of."

19. Ensure effective, sensitive and confidential communication between all

involved.

20. Take all possible steps to ensure that no victimization occurs as a result of
the grievance being raised.

21. The investigator or decision maker acts impartially, which means they must
exclude themselves if there is any bias or conflict of interest.

22. All parties are heard and those who have had complaints made against
others are given an opportunity to respond.

23. Try to look upon the problem on different angles for appropriate
understanding.

24. Ensuring that there is proper investigation of the facts and figures related the
problem under concern.

25. Consider all relevant information in the investigation process.

26. Ask the staff member their preferred resolution option, although it is
important to make it clear that this may not be a possible outcome.

27. Be aware of the limits of authority of the person who involved in the
grievance handling procedures.

28. If the manager feels that he/she is not the appropriate person (senior
manager) to deal with the issue refer the complainant to the appropriate person
as soon as possible.

29. Try to get a better idea of whether the alleged discrimination or harassment
happened or didn't happen.

30. Tell them exactly what they are supposed to have done, to whom and
explain, why this may be seen as discrimination/harassment or as inappropriate.

31. Grievances are preferably to be settled informally at the level of the

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employee's immediate supervisor.

32. Try the level best to involve team members to resolve the crisis at unit level
itself.

33. Avoid as far as possible the union involvement in conflict resolution situation
process.

34. Follow documentation the procedures, of all necessary steps taken to resolve
the problem/complaint.

Conclusion

To a great extend the aggravation of industrial problems depends on manager's

approaches and attitude in effective handling of employees grievances. Care
should be taken in the way managers approaches the problem and perceiving
the pros and cons of the situation. The conflict management approaches include
the win-win strategy that help in the healthy organisational practices and which
reflects the strong organisational culture. The cooperation from both parties is
the pre-requisite to handle the problem and effective settlement of the
grievances. Conscious use of professional self can help managers in the conflict
handling situations grievance redressal process.

1. Q.6 Explain Managerial Grid in detail?

Robert Blake, an eminent behavioral scientist deferential the leaders on the basic
of their concern to people and concern to task. He along with Jane mouton
conducted study on 5000 managers. He puts it on a grid called managerial grid as
follows.

High
Concern for

9 1,
8 9 9, 9
7
6
5 5, 5
4
3
People

2
1 1, 1 9, 1
Low 1 2 3 4 5 6 8 9 10 High
Concern for Results

The managerial grid model (1964) is a behavioral leadership model developed by

Robert Blake and Jane mouton. This model identifies five different leadership
styles based on the concern for people and the concern for production. The
optimal leadership style in this model is based on theory Y

As shown in the figure, the model is represented as a grid with concern for
production as the A- axis and concern for people as the Y – axis, each axis ranges
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from 1 (low) to 9(High). The five resulting leadership styles are as follows:

The impoverished style (1, 1) the different leader ( evade and elude):- .

In this style, managers have low concern for both people and production.
Managers use this style to avoid getting into trouble. The main concern for the
manager is not to be held responsible for any mistakes, which results in less
innovative decisions.

Features:-
Does only enough to preserve job and job seniority
Gives little and enjoys little.
Protects himself by not being noticed by others

Examples:-
“I distance myself from taking active responsibility for results to avoid getting
entangled in problems”.

The county club Style (1, 9) the accommodating leader (yield and
Comply):-
This style has a high concern for people and a low concern for production.
Managers using this style pay much attention to the security and comport of the
employees, in hopes that this would increase performance. The resulting
atmosphere is usually friendly, but not necessarily that productive.

Examples:-
“I support results that establish and reinforce harmony”,
“I generate enthusiasm by focusing on pleasing aspects of work”.

The produce or perish style (9,1) the controlling leader (direct and
Dominate):-
People who get this rating are very much task – oriented and are hard on their
workers (autocratic) there is little or no allowance for co –operation or
collaboration. Heavily task - oriented people display these characteristics.

Examples:-
“I expect results and take control by clearly stating a course of action”
“I enforce rules that sustain high results and do not permit deviation”,

The middle of the road style(5,5) the status – Quo leader ( Balance and
compromise ):-
Managers using this style try to balance between companies
Goals and workers needs. By giving some concern to both acceptable
performances

Examples:-
“I endorse results that are popular but caution against taking unnecessary risk”,

“I test my opinions with others involved to assure ongoing acceptability”.

The term style(9,9) the sound / team leader (contribute and commit):-

In this style, high concern is paid both to people and production.

As suggested by the propositions of theory Y, managers choosing to sue this style
encourage teamwork and commitment among employees. This method relies
heavily on making employees feel as a constructive part of the company
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Examples:-
“I Initiate team action in a way that invites involvement and commitment”,

“I explore all facts and alternative views to reach a shared understanding of the
best solution”.