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Assignment No. II

Programme Name : MBA Semester: II Credit: 3

Course Title : Human Resource Management Course Code:MBA606

Submitted Date: 21st July, 2021 Last date of Submission: 21st July, 2021

Max. Marks: 30 Weightage: 15 Marks

Instructions:
 Sec-A is compulsory which consists of Ten Short Answer Questions (1 mark per
question). Answer length should be approximately 100 words.
 Attempt any Five questions from Sec-B out of Seven questions (4 marks per question).
Answer length should be approximately 800 words.

Section –A (10 Marks)

1. Define Human Resource Management.

2. Define Job Analysis.
3. List one point of difference between Job description and job Specification
4. Why is Selection called as negative process?
5. List one point of difference between training and development?
6. How is Career Planning different from Succession Planning
7. Explain Balance Scorecard?
8. What is meant by Golden Handshake?
9. Define Green Human resource management
10. What is Employee Grievance

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Answers of Section A
1). Human resource management (HRM) is the practice of recruiting, hiring, deploying and
managing an organization's employees. HRM is often referred to simply as human
resources (HR). A company or organization's HR department is usually responsible for creating,
putting into effect and overseeing policies governing workers and the relationship of the
organization with its employees. HRM is employee management with an emphasis on those
employees as assets of the business. In this context, employees are sometimes referred to
as human capital. As with other business assets, the goal is to make effective use of employees,
reducing risk and maximizing return on investment (ROI).

2) Job Analysis: Determining the fundamental requirements of the jobs at your business can
help you hire the right people, establish competitive pay ranges, develop standards to measure
employee performance and make sure your business is running as efficiently as possible. This
process of defining jobs is commonly known as job analysis.
Job analysis process an important pre-employment step, but it’s also important to routinely
conduct an analysis of the roles that are already filled at your company to make sure you’re
offering the right professional development opportunities and setting employees up for success.

3) Job Description: Measures the responsibilities and tasks of the job profile. This statement
helps in avoiding confusion to the workers about their individual duties.

Job Specification: Measures the hard and soft skills along with domain-specific knowledge
of the candidate. This statement helps the management take decisions about the growth of each
individual in the company.

4) Selection called as negative process: Yes, as selection is choosing from among the
candidates the ones, who best meet a position’s requirements and eliminating the ones who are
not suitable. To achieve this target, candidates are required to take a series of tests and interviews
in different stages. At each stage, many candidates are eliminated and only a few candidates
move to the next stage.

The process of elimination continues till the right ones are finalised. The above scenario clearly
establishes the fact that selection is the process, through which unsuitable candidates are rejected
and suitable ones are chosen. Therefore, it is regarded as a negative process.

5) Training is the process by which companies augment the skills of incoming employees in
order for the new hire to perform the specific job for which they are hired. Development, on the
other hand, refers more broadly to the subtle changes that enhanced education, mentoring, and
ongoing professional development that serves to position employees for the leadership roles of
tomorrow within your organization.
Training is a short-term process that is developed by the organization with the aim of offering
technical knowledge and expertise to its non-managerial employees in accordance with their job
requirements. In contrast, development is a long-term process through which those in the

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managerial post acquire conceptual and theoretical knowledge that helps them achieve overall
growth and development.

6) Their major point of difference between Career Planning and Succession Planning is
provided below.

 Career planning is an individual decision, while succession planning is an organization’s

decision.
 Career planning is the process where an individual identifies her/his skills, interests,
strengths and weaknesses and decides on a career path, whereas in succession planning
the organization searches for the best suitable candidate to fill in a vacant position.
 Career planning is an ongoing, continuous process which spans almost over the entire
working life of an individual, while succession planning is a process, that is done to fill in
the vacant position in an organization and keeps in mind the long-term goals of an
organization.

7) The Balanced Scorecard (BSC) is a business framework used for tracking and managing an
organization’s strategy. The BSC framework is based on the balance between leading and
lagging indicators, which can respectively be thought of as the drivers and outcomes of your
company goals. When used in the Balanced Scorecard framework, these key indicators tell you
whether or not you’re accomplishing your goals and whether you’re on the right track to
accomplish future goals.

With a Balanced Scorecard, you have the capability to:

 Describe your strategy.
 Measure your strategy.
 Track the actions you’re taking to improve upon your results.

8) Golden handshakes are contractual clauses that guarantee an executive a substantial

severance package should they lose their job due to restructuring or in some cases retirement.
The package tends to include a combination of cash, equity and beneficial stock options.
Only senior leaders who bear a high degree of personal risk for a company’s performance are
likely to receive a golden handshake. They’re used to attract high-calibre candidates who may be
reluctant to move to another company.

9) Green Human Resource Management: It refers to making efforts to improve energy

efficiency or reduce the pollution produced by our home, business, and general living habits.It
involves undertaking environment-friendly HR initiatives resulting in greater efficiencies, lower
costs and better employee engagement and retention, which in turn, help organizations to reduce
employee carbon footprints by the likes of electronic filing, car-sharing, job-sharing,
teleconferencing, and virtual interviews, recycling, telecommuting, online training, energy-
efficient office spaces, etc.

10) Employee grievance refers to the dissatisfaction of an employee with what he expects from
the company and its management. A company or employer is expected to provide an employee
with a safe working environment, realistic job preview, adequate compensation, respect etc.

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However, employee grievance is caused when there is a gap between what the employee expects
and what he receives from the employer. An individual grievance is a complaint that an action by
management has violated the rights of an individual as set out in the collective agreement or law,
or by some unfair practice. Examples of this type of grievance include: discipline, demotion,
classification disputes, denial of benefits, etc.

Section –B (20 Marks)

Q1. Discuss the functions of human Resource Management with relevant

examples?
Q2. Elaborate on the Process of Human Resource Planning?
Q3. What is meant by recruitment? Elaborate on the process of Recruitment?
Q4. Define Performance Appraisal? What are various Modern methods of
performance appraisal?
Q5. What are important employee training methods? Elaborate the various
training Methods?
Q6 The temporary staffing agency you use is in financial trouble as a result of
losing some clients. You wonder if this as an opportunity to get a better rate by
threatening to change agencies. What are the ethical issues in this case?
Q7. Discuss the model grievance procedure that is applicable in India. What are
the essential prerequisites of a grievance procedure.

Q1. Discuss the functions of human Resource Management with relevant

examples?

Functions Of Human Resource Management:-

1. Job design and job analysis

One of the foremost functions of HRM is job design and job analysis. Job design involves the
process of describing duties, responsibilities and operations of the job. To hire the right
employees based on rationality and research, it is imperative to identify the traits of an ideal
candidate who would be suitable for the job. This can be accomplished by describing the skills
and character traits of your top-performing employee. Doing so will help you determine the kind

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of candidate you want for the job. You will be able to identify your key minimum requirements
in the candidate to qualify for the job.

2. Employee hiring and selection

Recruitment is one of the primary functions of human resource management. HRM aims to
obtain and retain qualified and efficient employees to achieve the goals and objectives of the
company. All this starts with hiring the right employees out of the list of applicants and
favourable candidates.

An HRM helps to source and identify the ideal candidates for interview and selection. The
candidates are then subjected to a comprehensive screening process to filter out the most suitable
candidates from the pool of applicants. The screened candidates are then taken through different
interview rounds to test and analyse their skills, knowledge and work experience required for the
job position.

3. Employee training & development

Imparting proper training and ensuring the right development of the selected candidates is a
crucial function of HR. After all, the success of the organisation depends on how well the
employees are trained for the job and what are their growth and development opportunities
within the organisation.

The role of HR should be to ensure that the new employees acquire the company-specific
knowledge and skills to perform their task efficiently. It boosts the overall efficiency and
productivity of the workforce, which ultimately results in better business for the company.

4. Compensation and Benefits

Benefits and compensation form the major crux of the total cost expenditure of an organisation.
It is a must to plug the expenses, and at the same time, it is also necessary to pay the employees
well. Therefore, the role of human resource management is to formulate attractive yet efficient
benefits and compensation packages to attract more employees into the workplace without
disturbing the finances of the company.

The primary objective of the benefits and compensation is to establish equitable and fair
remuneration for everyone. Plus, HR can use benefits and compensation as a leverage to boost
employee productivity as well as establish a good public image of the business.

5. Employee performance management

The next activity on HR functions list is effective employee performance management. Effective
performance management ensures that the output of the employees meets the goals and objective

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of the organisation. Performance management doesn’t just focus on the performance of the
employee. It also focuses on the performance of the team, the department, and the organisation
as a whole.

6. Managerial relations

Relationships in employment are normally divided into two parts — managerial relations and
labour relations. While labour relations is mainly about the relationship between the workforce
and the company, managerial relations deals with the relationship between the various processes
in an organisation.

Managerial relations determine the amount of work that needs to be done in a given day and how
to mobilise the workforce to accomplish the objective. It is about giving the appropriate project
to the right group of employees to ensure efficient completion of the project. At the same time, it
also entails managing the work schedules of employees to ensure continued productivity. It is
essential that HR handles such relations effectively to maintain the efficiency and productivity of
the company.

7. Labour relations

Cordial labour relations are essential to maintain harmonious relationships between employees at
the workplace. At the workplace, many employees work together towards a single objective.
However, individually, everyone is different from the other in characteristics. Hence, it is natural
to observe a communication gap between two employees. If left unattended, such behaviours can
spoil labour relations in the company.

8. Employee engagement and communication

Employee engagement is a crucial part of every organization. Higher levels of engagement

guarantee better productivity and greater employee satisfaction. Efficiently managing employee
engagement activities will help in improving the employee retention rates too. HRM is the right
agent who can manage the employee engagement seamlessly. Proper communication and
engagement will do wonders for the employees as well as the organization. The more engaged
the employees are, more committed and motivated they will be.

9. Health and safety regulations

Every employer should mandatorily follow the health and safety regulations laid out by the
authorities. Our labour laws insist every employer to provide whatever training, supplies, PPE,
and essential information to ensure the safety and health of the employees. Integrating the health
and safety regulations with company procedures or culture is the right way to ensure the safety of
the employees. Making these safety regulations part of the company activities is one of the
important functions of HRM.

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10. Personal support for employees

HRM assists employees when they run into personal problems which may interfere with the
workflow. Along with discharging administrative responsibilities, HR departments also help
employees in need. Since the pandemic, the need for employee support and assistance has
substantially increased.For example, many employees needed extra time off and medical
assistance during the peak period of the pandemic. For those who reached out for help, whether it
may be in the form of insurance assistance or extra leaves, companies provided help through HR
teams.

11. Succession Planning

Succession planning is a core function of HRMs. It aims at planning, monitoring, and managing
the growth path of the employees from within the organizations.

What usually happens is that promising and bright employees within the organization who have
excelled in their roles are handpicked by their supervisors and HRs, and their growth paths are
developed.

12. Industrial Relations

It’s usually the production lines and manufacturing units where this HR function is mostly used.
You see, Unions exist in factories and manufacturing units. And their responsibility is towards
the goodwill about the workers — in fact, they’re always vocal and upfront about.

Q2. Elaborate on the Process of Human Resource Planning?

Answer 2 .

The Human Resource Planning is a process of forecasting the organization’s demand for and
supply of manpower needs in the near future.

 Human resource planning (HRP) is the foremost task in human resource management.
 It enables organisation to have the right person, right number of person for the job, at
right place and right time.
 Human resource planning (HRP) begins with assessment of existing human resources
with the organisation and thereafter provides a layout regarding the future requirement of
human resources, design of programs related to hiring, placement and appraisal and
development of personnel.
Human resource planning is an essential part of every successful business. Unfortunately, many
managers neglect this vital practice for other, easier tasks because they don’t understand what
this type of planning requires.

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 Other times, managers may not understand how pivotal human resource planning is to their long-
term corporate strategy and the ultimate success of their business.
That’s where Sling can help. In this article, we define human resource planning, outline its
objectives, and provide a step-by-step guide to implementing this crucial practice in your
business.
Human resource planning (or HRP for short) is the ongoing process of systematically planning
ahead to optimize and maximize your business’s most valuable asset — high-quality employees.
When you incorporate HRP into every aspect of your strategy — functional, business,
or organizational — you streamline the process of creating the best fit between available jobs
and available employees. All while avoiding a shortage or surplus in your workforce.
As simple as that may sound, there’s more to human resource planning than setting up a system
and implementing it in your organization.

The objectives of HRP are very specific and can mean the difference between success or
stagnation. We’ll discuss those objectives in the next section.

HRP requires to pass through different stages/processes. There is no specific / hard and fast HRP
process that every organization needs to follow while preparing manpower planning.
But, some stages are definitely common to all organizations. HRP process/ stage variances occur
due to influence of some factors like nature of product produced / services rendered, financial
health of the organization, consumer’s market, international relations, global conflicts, legislation
etc. HRP process is a very complex and multi-step process.

1. Determining the Objectives of Human Resource Planning: The foremost step in every
process is the determination of the objectives for which the process is to be carried on. The
objective for which the manpower planning is to be done should be defined precisely, so as to
ensure that a right number of people for the right kind of job are selected.
The objectives can vary across the several departments in the organization such as the personnel
demand may differ in marketing, finance, production, HR department, based on their roles or
functions.

2. Analyzing Current Manpower Inventory: The next step is to analyze the current manpower
supply in the organization through the stored information about the employees in terms of their
experience, proficiency, skills, etc. required to perform a particular job.
Also, the future vacancies can be estimated, so as to plan for the manpower from both the
internal (within the current employees) and the external (hiring candidates from outside) sources.
Thus, it is to be ensured that reservoir of talent is maintained to meet any vacancy arising in the
near future.

3. Forecasting Demand and Supply of Human Resources: Once the inventory of talented
manpower is maintained; the next step is to match the demand for the manpower arising in the
future with the supply or available resources with the organization.

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 Here, the required skills of personnel for a particular job are matched with the job description
and specification.

4. Analyzing the Manpower Gaps: After forecasting the demand and supply, the manpower gaps
can be easily evaluated. In case the demand is more than the supply of human resources, that
means there is a deficit, and thus, new candidates are to be hired.
Whereas, if the Demand is less than supply, there arises a surplus in the human resources, and
hence, the employees have to be removed either in the form of termination, retirement, layoff,
transfer, etc.

5. Employment Plan/Action Plan: Once the manpower gaps are evaluated, the action plan is to be
formulated accordingly. In a case of a deficit, the firm may go either for recruitment, training,
interdepartmental transfer plans whereas in the case of a surplus, the voluntary retirement
schemes, redeployment, transfer, layoff, could be followed.
6. Training and Development: The training is not only for the new joinees but also for the
existing employees who are required to update their skills from time to time.
After the employment plan, the training programmes are conducted to equip the new employees
as well as the old ones with the requisite skills to be performed on a particular job.

7. Appraisal of Manpower Planning: Finally, the effectiveness of the manpower planning process
is to be evaluated. Here the human resource plan is compared with its actual implementation to
ensure the availability of a number of employees for several jobs.
At this stage, the firm has to decide the success of the plan and control the deficiencies, if any.

Thus, human resource planning is a continuous process that begins with the objectives of Human
Resource planning and ends with the appraisal or feedback and control of the planning process.

Q3. What is meant by recruitment? Elaborate on the process of

Recruitment?
Answer 3) The Recruitment is the process of analyzing the job requirements and then finding
the prospective candidates who are then encouraged and stimulated to apply for the job in the
organization. The Recruitment programme is designed to attract more and more applicants such
that the pool of candidates applies for the job, and the organization has more options to select the
best out of them.

Recruitment has been regarded as the most important function of personnel administration.
Unless the right types of people are hired, even the best plans, organisation charts and control
systems will be of no avail.
A company cannot prosper, grow or even survive without adequate human resources. Need for
trained manpower in recent years has created a pressure on some organisations to establish an

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 efficient recruitment function. It is not done wisely, every other management function suffers,
and costs increase and bottlenecks get worse.
Recruitment is the processes of finding the apt candidates and inducing them to apply for the job
in an organisation. The recruitment should be a sound one. If it is not so, the morale of the staff
will be very low and the image of the company will be tarnished.
The main purpose of recruitment is searching of suitable candidates for filling the vacancies of
the organization. It is a process of bringing together prospective employees and employer with a
view to stimulate the prospective employees to offer their services in the working organization.

1. Recruitment Planning: The recruitment process begins with the planning where in the vacant
job positions are analyzed and then the comprehensive job draft is prepared that includes: job
specifications and its nature, skills, qualifications, experience needed for the job, etc.
Here, the recruitment committee decides on the number and the type of applicants to be
contacted. The aim of any organization is to attract more candidates as some of them might not
be willing to join, or some might not qualify for the job position. So the company has a sufficient
number of candidates to choose amongst them. The type of candidates required for the job is
well specified in terms of the task and responsibilities involved in a job along with the
qualification and experience expected.

2. Strategy Development: Once the comprehensive job draft is prepared, and the type and the
number of recruits required are decided upon; the next step is to decide a strategy that is adopted
while recruiting the prospective candidates in the organization. The following strategic
considerations should be kept in mind:

 Make or Buy Employees, which means the firm either decides to select less skilled employees
and invest in training and education programmes or hire skilled professionals.
 Methods of Recruitment, the firm decide on the methods used for recruiting the individuals.
Such as the internet provides detailed information about the prospective candidates and helps in
shortlisting the best-qualified individuals.
 Geographical Area, the next decision is related to the area from where the candidates shall be
searched. The firm looks for those areas where the handful amount of qualified employees is
concentrated, with a view to curtailing a search cost.
 Sources of Recruitment, there are two sources of recruitment: Internal source (within the
organization), external source (outside the organization). The firm must decide the source from
where the candidates are hired.

3. Searching: Once the strategy is prepared the search for the candidates can be initialized. It
includes two steps: source activation and selling. The source activation means, the search for the
candidate activates on the employee requisition i.e. until and unless the line manager verifies that
the vacancy exists, the search process cannot be initiated.
The next point to be considered is selling, which means the firm must judiciously select that
media of communication that successfully conveys the employment information to the
prospective candidates.

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4. Screening: The screening means to shortlist the applications of the candidates for further
selection process. Although, the screening is considered as the starting point of selection but is
integral to the recruitment process. This is because the selection process begins only after the
applications are scrutinized and shortlisted on the basis of job requirements. The purpose of
recruitment here is to remove those applications at an early stage which clearly seems to be
unqualified for the job.
5. Evaluation and Control: Evaluation and control is the last stage in the recruitment process
wherein the validity and effectiveness of the process and the methods used therein is assessed.
This stage is crucial because the firm has to check the output in terms of the cost incurred.
The recruitment is a costly process as it includes the salaries of recruiters, time spent by the
management, cost of advertisement, cost of selection, a price paid for the overtime and
outsourcing in case the vacancy remains unfilled. Thus, a firm is required to gather all these
relevant information to evaluate the performance of a recruitment process effectively.

Q4. Define Performance Appraisal? What are various Modern methods of

performance appraisal?

Answer 4) . Performance Appraisal is defined as a systematic process, in which the personality

and performance of an employee is assessed by the supervisor or manager, against predefined
standards, such as knowledge of the job, quality and quantity of output, leadership abilities,
attitude towards work, attendance, cooperation, judgment, versatility, health, initiative and so
forth. It is also known as performance rating, performance evaluation, employee assessment,
performance review, merit rating, etc.

Performance Appraisal is carried out to identify the abilities and competencies of an employee
for future growth and development. It is aimed at ascertaining the worth of the employee to the
organization, in which he/she works.

Objectives of Performance Appraisal

 To promote the employees, on the basis of performance and competence.

 To identify the requirement for training and development of employees.
 To provide confirmation to those employees who are hired as probationary employees, upon
completion of the term.
 To take a decision regarding the hike in employees pay, incentives etc.
 To facilitate communication between superior and subordinate.
 To help employees in understanding where they stand in terms of performance.

Five Modern Performance Appraisal Methods

1. Management by Objectives (MBO)

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In this method, managers and employees collaborate together to identify, plan, organize, and
communicate objectives. This is usually for a specific appraisal period and objectives are
validated using the SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic & Time-sensitive)
method.
After setting clear goals, managers and employee interact periodically to discuss the feasibility of
achieving set objectives and the progress made. These measures of progress help analyze the
contributions of an employee at the end of the review period. Success is rewarded with appraisals
like salary hike or promotion, whereas others are re-evaluated for further training.

Pro: Success is measured on tangible and measurable goals with constant interaction between
manager and employee.
Con: Intangible aspects like interpersonal skills are not considered.
Ideal for: Businesses of all sizes, evaluation for top-management positions like directors,
executives, etc.
Used by: Retail giant Walmart extensively uses the MBO method for managing the performance
of its employee across all levels.

2. 360-Degree Feedback Method

Considered a multidimensional method of performance appraisal, 360 degree feedback is gaining
popularity lately. The method focuses on collecting feedback from everyone an employee
interacts with like managers, customers, peers, etc. When data is collected from multiple sources,
the chances of a manager’s bias affecting the appraisal are eliminated. Plus, it offers a clearer
picture of the employee’s competence in terms of work.
Businesses understand that employees seek unbiased and objective feedback on their
performance to stay motivated and engaged. A continuous 360 degree digital feedback method
opens additional channels of feedback for the employee. The objective evaluation is seen as a
fair evaluation and encourages the employee to improve their performance based on the
appraisal. In fact, 8.9% greater profitability is seen when managers are offered feedback on their
strengths.
Pro: Gives a clearer and unbiased review of the employee’s performance.
Con: Outside sources like customers may not understand how to provide constructive feedback.
Ideal for: Is suitable for businesses of all types. The private sector can especially benefit from
this method.
Used by: RBS, G4S are some of the top companies employing 360 degree feedback system for
appraisal.

3. Assessment Center Method

Introduced by the German Army in the 1930s, the concept of assessment center has been
revamped to suit the current business scenario. The employees are assessed based on their
performance like social-stimulating exercises like role-playing, decision-making, informal
discussions, etc. The assessment evaluates the performance of employees to identify future
leaders and managers.
The effectiveness of the Assessment Center Method allows employees to get a clear picture of
their own performance and how others observe them. The impact of other’s perspective on their
performance can also be realized from these exercises. It is easier to evaluate the current
performance of an employee and also predict future performance.

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Pro: The method can be tailored according to need, role, position, or objectives and give insight
into an employee’s personality.
Con: Can be costly and, time-consuming.
Ideal for: Manufacturing, service-oriented, educational and consulting firms.
Used by: Philips and Microsoft use assessment center method to identify future leaders in their
organization.

4. Human Resource Accounting Method

Also known as Human Resource Cost Accounting Method, it is used to evaluate an employee’s
performance as per the monetary benefits they yield from the organization. This means the
performance of an employee is compared against the salary & other costs the company pays to
the employee.

The cost of retaining an employee in regard to their contribution is evaluated to get the cost of
that employee for the organization. This method of performance appraisal considers factors like
work quality, overhead cost, unit-wise average service value, interpersonal skills and, so on. The
idea is to analyze how the contributions compare with regard to cost (recruiting, hiring, training
and development) benefit the organization. In this method, the company appraises employees on
the basis of cost to the company and the value they offer.

Pro: It is effective to measure the value an employee brings to the organization.

Con: There are no certain guidelines to define the cost and value that an employee offers. It may
vary for each evaluator.
Ideal for: Startups & small businesses where each individual employee’s contribution holds
significance for the company.

5. Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scale (BARS)

In this modern method of performance appraisal, both the qualitative and quantitative aspects of
an employee are evaluated. BARS compares an employee’s performance with specific
behavioral examples that are assigned a numerical rating. As per employee’s role and job-level,
BARS has a set of predetermined standards called BARS statements. These statements are used
as yardsticks to measure the performance on each BARS scale level.

BARS sets typical workplace behaviors as per a job role and evaluates an employee’s
performance in comparison to these set standards. How an employee should behave in any given
situation (critical incidents) is measured as per the expected behavior. The performance appraisal
with BARS provides more accurate and unbiased results.

Pro: BARS sets clear standards and provides accurate and consistent performance evaluation
that includes both the qualitative and quantitative aspects of an employee.
Con: Can be time-consuming if the process is not automated with a performance management
system.
Ideal for: Businesses of all sizes and depth for evaluating entry-level to top management
performance.

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Q5. What are important employee training methods? Elaborate the various
training Methods?

Answer 5) The best training methods target all three learning styles, but it's also important to
get to know what works best for your learners, and tailor the material to them. Here is a list of
the eight most effective employee training methods:

1. Technology-based learning
2. Simulators
3. On-the-job training
4. Coaching/mentoring
5. Instructor-led training
6. Roleplaying
7. Films and videos
8. Case studies

1. Technology-based learning

With the development of technology, computerized training is becoming more prevalent. It's
sometimes referred to as computer-based training (CBT) or e-learning, but it essentially refers to
the same thing with one key difference: e-learning is hosted completely online, while computer-
based training encompasses any kind of training that takes place on the computer.

An important benefit of technology-based learning is that it allows trainees to work through the
material at their own pace, and removes the need for an in-person facilitator. This type of
training often mimics traditional classroom-style teaching by providing a voiceover with visuals
that support the content. Oftentimes, resources such as videos and additional reading accompany
the material to aid in the training process.

Another major advantage of technology-based learning is its scalability. Whether it's five or 500
people, any number of individuals can take CBT courses at one time and at their own pace. Some
learners may need more time to thoroughly work their way through the material, while others
may want to move onto more advanced curriculum. In either situation, CBT benefits the learner.

Computer-based training does come with its challenges too. One major challenge is the fact that
trainees are left unmonitored. Because CBT courses are unmonitored, it's difficult to know
whether your employees are engaging with the material. A wonderful way to ensure that trainees
are engaged is to incorporate quizzes and interactive modules into the digital classroom. This
will ensure that they are paying attention, as well as inform you about which concepts were
communicated effectively.

2. Simulators

Simulations are an effective training technique for fields that require a specific set of skills for
operating complex machinery, such as in the medical or aviation industries. Successful

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simulations reflect actual work situations, and allow trainees to solve issues that they will likely
face on the job.

3. On-the-job training

On-the-job or hands-on training jumps straight to the practical skills necessary for the job. New
hires begin working immediately with this training method. In some cases, it may be beneficial
to incorporate an employee shadowing component. This will allow new hires to gain a little
insight into the context and job requirements before trying it on their own.

4. Coaching/mentoring

Though a structured curriculum has its place in training, there are many benefits to mentorship
and coaching. Implementing a mentorship program at your company, along with other training
methods, creates employee development opportunities as well as develops relationships that help
new employees feel welcomed and supported.

Mentorship is invaluable, but it does come with its challenges. Your best employees will be
asked to take time away from their work to train and grow newer staff members. Though it
proves to be beneficial in the end, it will require a little sacrifice.

5. Instructor-led training

Classroom-style training is the most traditional and popular training method for employees. This
method mimics other classrooms in that an instructor prepares and leads the experience, usually
using a lecture-style presentation with a visual component.

This style of training has many benefits, one of which being that trainees can interact with their
trainer. Questions are asked that might otherwise go unaddressed in other training methods. It
also allows for relationship building between the trainer and the trainee as well as among the
employees that are going through the training together.

A major challenge for instructor-led training is the inability to scale it. If the classroom is too
large, it can inhibit instructors from interacting one-on-one with the students. Additionally, in-
person monitoring is required throughout the entire training. Trainees are unable to move at their
own pace in this environment.

It's important to keep energy high if you're using this training method. Allow students
opportunities to take breaks and move around, and encourage engagement to avoid trainees from
losing interest.

6. Roleplaying

This technique is usually executed with a trainee and a facilitator (or trainer), where each is
allowed to act out different potential work scenarios. This method is most effective in industries

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that require client or customer interaction, as it allows employees to practice handling difficult
situations.

7. Films and videos

Video has quickly gained popularity as an effective training technique. It aids companies in
training employees more quickly and efficiently. Many employees prefer it to reading materials.
There are several approaches to training videos. Some companies choose one approach
depending on the material, while others combine a few approaches into one video seamlessly.
The approaches include:

Animation: This style allows complex topics to be explained through visual illustrations. If a
topic is difficult to record, animation is probably the best method.

Live action: Live action videos are more demonstrative and are great for showing appropriate
and inappropriate interactions through role-play scenes.

To-camera: This approach features a narrator that is speaking directly to the viewer. Typically,
the narrator is communicating the information through a more lecture-style format.

Screen recorded: This method features a recording of things happening on the computer screen.
It's perfect for showing employees how to use new digital tools through a step-by-step process.

Videos can make difficult material more interactive, engaging and demonstrative. Additionally,
like computer-based training, the material is easily accessible. An in-person facilitator is
unnecessary and employees can revisit the information whenever they need.

Though making videos is relatively affordable, it can be time-consuming. It may be beneficial to

partner with a training video agency to save yourself valuable time and frustration.

8. Case studies

When you're hoping to develop analytical and problem-solving skills, case studies could be the
best training technique. Trainees are given scenarios, either real or imagined, that depict common
work situations. Either independently or in a group, the employees are then asked to analyze the
case and come up with ideal solutions and scenarios.

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