MANAGING

DIVERSE
HUMAN
RESOURCES
OBJECTIVES
01 IMPORTANCE OF HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

02 HUMAN RESOURCE CAPABILITIES

03 KEY ASPECTS OF GETTING THE RIGHT PEOPLE IN THE RIGHT JOBS

04 EFFECTIVE METHODS FOR JOB CANDIDATES

05 EFFECTIVE SOCIALIZATION AND TRAINING

06 METHODS PROVIDING FEEDBACK S ON THEIR

PERFORMANCE
07 TO DISCUSS VARIOUS
COMPENSATION AND REWARD
SYSTEMS USED
 HUMAN RESOURCE
MANAGEMENT
OBJECTIVE 2 OBJECTIVE 4
In most organizations, the human However, the reality is that while the
resources department has a special human resources department plays an
and specific role relative to these important role, managers implement
activities and execute these activities.

OBJECTIVE 1 OBJECTIVE 3
activities focuses on planning for managers are the ones who actually
staffing needs, recruiting and selecting assess employee performance. Thus,
employees, orienting and training staff, although it is important for you to
appraising their performance, providing understand the role a company’s human
compensation and benefits, and resource department plays, it is even
managing their career movement and more important for you as a future
development. manager to understand how to manage
human resources well.
 MANAGERS
How can you manage your human resources
effectively?

RECRUIT AND SOCIALIZE AND EVALUATE REWARDS AND

SELECT TRAIN PERFORMANCE PROMOTION
 HUMAN RESOURCES
AND STRATEGY
FORMULATION

Traditionally, people have looked at human resources

as a department not involved in strategy formulation.
However, this perspective is changing.8 Increasingly,
executives are looking at their people and their present
and future capabilities to determine what the company’s
competitive strategy ought to be.
HUMAN RESOURCES
AND STRATEGY
FORMULATION
 HUMAN RESOURCES
AND STRATEGY
FORMULATION

Exhibit 7.1 incorporates these various perspectives into

a strategic framework of HRM. As the figure illustrates,
specific human resource activities (planning, job
analysis, recruiting, selecting, socialization and training,
job design, performance appraisal, compensation, and
development) exist within the context of the firm’s
strategy and environment. The fit of these human
resource activities with the firm’s strategy and
environment leads to competitive advantage for the
organization and for the individual manager.
 HUMAN RESOURCE
MANAGEMENT
ACTIVITIES THAT GET
THE RIGHT PEOPLE

There are two main HRM goals: (1) getting the

right people and (2) maximizing their performance
and potential. Although many activities are related
to these two general categories, all managers
need to get the right people into the right place at
the right time and then help them maximize their
performance and future potential. However, it is
important to appreciate that someone who is right
for one organization might not be right for another
 HUMAN RESOURCE
MANAGEMENT
ACTIVITIES THAT GET
THE RIGHT PEOPLE

However, that same person might be the wrong fit

for an organization that competes through cost
leadership and low prices. You cannot hire the
right people without an understanding of a firm’s
HRM activities and aligning them with its corporate
strategy.12 While each of these activities is
discussed separately, it is important to remember
that they are related and that success or failure in
one activity can significantly influence the success
or failure of another
PLANNING

Human resource planning involves assessing the

firm’s future human resource needs (demand),
determining the availability of the type of people
needed (supply), and creating a plan for meeting
those needs (fulfillment). At the organizational
level, human resource planning is sometimes a
shared responsibility among human resource
specialists and executives in other functional
areas of the firm, such as accounting, finance,
marketing, and operations
FORECASTING
DEMAND
Forecasting demand involves determining how many
and what type of employees the firm will need at some
future point (for example, in one or five years). This is
done considering the firm’s strategy and the general
business and economic environment. For example,
going into the recent economic recession, Netflix (the
by-mail and video-streaming movie rental company)
realized that demand for its services would actually
increase as people stayed home and rented movies as
a less costly form of entertainment. This meant Netflix
would likely need to hire more people.
 ASSESSING
SUPPLY
At the time, the supply of various types of
employees, including engineers, was good as many
firms experienced decline as a result of the
recession and had to lay off employees. However,
laid-off employees are generally not the top
performers, and it was the top performers that
Netflix really wanted to tap into
 FORMULATING
FULFILLMENT PLANS
To fulfill your employment needs, you may need to
consider the use of part-time or temporary
employees who can provide the flexibility to meet
temporary increases in demand for your product or
service. It also allows you to reduce your workforce
more easily if demand falls as well as to try out
employees before hiring them permanently if
demand remains strong.
JOB ANALYSIS
Job analysis is a critical but often overlooked human
resource activity. Job analysis is a process that
determines the scope and depth of a job and the
required skills, abilities, and knowledge that people
need to do the job.
RECRUITING
Recruiting is primarily concerned with determining
which candidates you want to attract and undertaking
activities to entice them to apply for specific positions
within the organization. Once you have identified what
your targeted candidates would find attractive in an
employment offering and believe you have a
compelling proposition, you need to generate actual
job candidates. There are a variety of methods for
this. Each method has its strengths and weaknesses
and, as a consequence, you should use them as the
situation dictates
JOB POSTING
Job posting is a popular internal recruiting method in which
a job, its pay, level, description, and qualifications are
posted or announced to all current employees Job postings
help ensure that all qualified employees have an opportunity
to apply for a particular job. Job posting can also help
current employees get a better idea of the types of jobs
available to them and the qualifications needed to be
successful in those jobs. This can allow them to plan their
careers. On the negative side, job postings can generate
responses from unqualified applicants who need to receive
explanations about why they were unqualified and did not
get the job.
 EMPLOYEE
REFERRALS
Managers often find current employees a great source for
job candidates.20 Current employees with tenure in the
organization understand the organization, its culture, and
often the particular job that needs to be filled. They usually
know something about an applicant as well: work history,
educational background, skills and abilities, personal
characteristics, and so on. Given that, to some degree, their
recommendation puts their own reputation on the line,
current employees tend to recommend individuals who they
believe will do well
SCHOOL PLACEMENT
CENTERS
School placement centers are also a popular source of job
candidates. Placement center offices can range from those
found in high schools, technical schools, and junior colleges
to universities and advanced degree programs. Given an
adequate amount of time and clear job specifications and
requirements, school placement centers can do much of the
prescreening for an employer, filtering out unqualified
candidates. This can save the firm time and money in the
recruiting process.
 INTERNET

Today’s high-tech world offers some interesting new ways

of finding the right recruits. For example, Elance.com,
highlighted in A Manager’s Challenge, “Elance.com
Survives and Thrives,” functions a bit like a cyberspace
matchmaker of freelance workers and the firms that employ
them. What do you think of this sort of high-tech approach?
As an employer, how likely would you be to search for talent
via this sort of mechanism? What types of jobs would fit this
and what type of jobs would not? Conversely, would you
likely seek out employment this way? If yes, can you see
yourself doing it for a long period of time or would it only be
as a temporary means of supplementing your income?
SELECTING
Successful selection is a function of
effective planning, analyzing, and
recruiting as well as applying
appropriate selection techniques. Even
with a good set of candidates,
managers must also determine which
one is best for the job

However, managers selected for

overseas assignments sometimes fail
and have to return home early at a cost
of about $150,000 per employee. This is
costly for employers, but it can also hurt
an employee’s career. These failures
are partly a function of poor
identification of the characteristics that
lead to success in an overseas
assignment and also a function of
limited use of effective selection
techniques to identify the right candidate
SELECTING
One of the key points to keep in mind
about any selection technique is that if
legally challenged, the organization
must be able to demonstrate that the
selection technique is valid. A valid
selection technique is one that can
differentiate between those who would
be more successful in the job and those
who would be less successful. For
example, educational background is
often used in selecting new hires
because knowledge typically has a
proven relationship with job
performance. That is, it is hard to
perform well in a job for which you do
not have the requisite education and
knowledge. There are a variety of
selection techniques; each has its own
strengths and weaknesses
INTERVIEWS
WORK SAMPLING
WORK SIMULATION
ASSESSMENT CENTERS
WRITTEN TEST
BACKGROUND AND REFERENCE
CHECK
INTERVIEWS
 HUMAN RESOURCE
MANAGEMENT
MAXIMIZING
PERFORMANCE

Once the right people are in the right positions,

managers need to ensure that employees perform
well. What constitutes maximum performance and
potential is largely a function of the organization’s
strategy. For example, Google chooses to
compete on new product innovation and strives to
have the majority of its revenue come from
products that are less than three years old.
 HUMAN RESOURCE
MANAGEMENT
MAXIMIZING
PERFORMANCE

It therefore, needs employees who can think of

and test new ideas. For Google, maximum
performance and potential are largely defined in
terms of employee innovations. Based on this,
Google undertakes a variety of activities to
maximize employees’ creativity. Five specific
categories of activities can significantly influence
employee performance and potential
 SOCIALIZATION AND
TRAINING

Managers can use a variety of training methods to

enhance the performance and potential of
employees. We cover several here. Although early
career training is important, in today’s changing
environment, training and learning are likely to
become career-long necessities
 SOCIALIZATION AND
TRAINING

ORIENTATION The orientation period is one of the first

opportunities for an organization to shape the expectations
and behavior of new employees.36 Typically, orientation
programs provide a broad overview of the industry, the
company and its business activities; its key competitors; and
general information about working for the company (such as
key policies, pay procedures, and fringe benefits). Work-unit
orientation sessions are typically narrower and are generally
designed to help the new employee get up to speed on the
new job, co-workers, the work-unit’s policies, procedures,
and expectations. To maximize the effectiveness of
orientation programs, managers should consider doing the
following:
ORIENTATION

Keep paperwork to a minimum to avoid information

overload. Do include paperwork that must be completed
immediately
Include an informal meeting with the individual’s
immediate supervisor
Alternate heavy information, such as that related to
benefits and insurance, with lighter live or video
presentations from corporate officers

Provide a glossary of terms unique to the organization.

Match each new employee with a “buddy” (that is, an

experienced worker) based more on personality
compatibility than similarity of jobs.
ON-THE-JOB
TRAINING
TECHNIQUES
 JOB DESIGN

Job design focuses on the structuring or restructuring of

key components of a job. A job design typically includes
the job’s responsibilities. Thus, while job analysis
focuses on a job’s components, job design is the
process of determining which components ought to be
put together and how they should be arranged to
enhance performance.
 BEHAVIORALLY
ANCHORED RATING
SCALE
EVALUATING EMPLOYEES'
PERFORMANCE
 COMPENSATION

Although rewards and compensation can be

instrumental in getting the right people, their primary
function is retaining and maximizing the performance of
employees once they have entered the organization.
Rewards by their nature are designed to encourage
desired behaviors. As already discussed, desired
behaviors must be linked to the firm’s strategy. Thus,
reward systems also must be linked to the firm’s
strategy
Most firms establish a pay structure based on the level in the
company and type of position. A pay structure establishes a range
of pay for a particular position or classification of positions. The
most common element of any pay structure is the wage. Wages
tend to be structured on an hourly basis or as a fixed amount by
calendar year. When structured by calendar year, the wage is
typically referred to as a salary, and the most common calendar
division is annual, although payment of the salary is typically
divided and made monthly.
REWARDS AND
MOTIVATION
Although the human resources department holds
much of the responsibility for reward and
compensation systems, effective rewards are more
than the dollars paid out in salaries and bonuses or
the dollars tied up in health care and other benefits

it is important to point out here that employees are

often rewarded for doing one thing and yet expected to
do another
 EMPLOYEE
DEVELOPMENT

One of the most powerful motivators for people to join

a firm and perform well is the opportunity to grow and
develop. Career and employee development systems
are designed to respond to that particular motivation
and to ensure that the human capabilities needed in
the organization are being developed.
 PROMOTION

PROMOTION Employees can and should

expand and improve their capabilities on the job.
This need not always involve a promotion.
However, for a large percentage of an
organization’s employees, part of the driver of
development is promotion to positions of greater
responsibility and pay
WORK FORCE
ISSUES
 SEXUAL
HARASSMENT
Over the last ten years, sexual harassment has become
a major workforce issue, especially given the significant
financial penalties that can be levied on organizations
where it occurs. Sexual harassment takes two basic
forms
The first is sometimes termed quid pro quo. It involves
requests or implied suggestions that sexual relations are
required in exchange for continued employment or benefits,
such as a promotion.

The second form involves actions that create a “hostile environment.” A

hostile environment can be created through jokes, touching, comments,
pictures, and other means of communicating unwanted sexual
innuendos. Sexual harassment suits have increased dramatically over
the last several years. As a consequence of the judgments (which are
often several hundred thousand dollars), companies are increasingly
offering training programs to try to help managers understand the law
and avoid such incidents
 SEXUAL
HARASSMENT
Because peoples’ good intentions to treat everyone
fairly regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, age, and
other differences are not always demonstrated in their
actions, an important set of established laws and
regulations have been put in place.
Keep in mind that the intent of most of the legislation and regulation in the United States is
designed to provide equal opportunity. This, however, does not prevent organizations from using
certain criteria that might be regarded as discriminatory, as long as the firm can demonstrate
that the criterion in question is a bona fide occupational qualification (BFOQ), or a qualification
that has a direct and material impact on job performance and outcomes.
Because the laws were intended to correct past inequalities, many
organizations have either voluntarily implemented or been pressured by
employees and other constituencies to implement an affirmative action
program to ensure that organizational changes are made. These
programs may involve such things as taking extra effort to inform minority
candidates about job opportunities, providing special training programs
for disadvantaged candidates, or paying special attention to the racial or
gender mix of employees who are promoted
 LAWS AND
REGULATIONS
AFFECTING HUMAN
RESOURCE
MANAGEMENT
LAWS AND REGULATIONS AFFECTING
HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Because peoples’ good intentions to treat everyone fairly regardless of gender,

race, ethnicity, age, and other differences are not always demonstrated in their
actions, an important set of established laws and regulations have been put in
place. Many of these have a significant impact on the management of human
resources. For example, a group of flight attendants for Delta Airlines filed suit
because Delta had weight limits for flight attendants. The attendants claimed they
experienced discrimination because although weight limits were applied to all
flight attendants, both male and female, there were no similar standards applied to
pilots. Delta first argued that the weight limits were legal because certain size
limitations were necessary for flight attendants to perform their jobs in the limited
space on planes. Despite this argument, Delta later dropped the weight
requirements for all flight attendants.
LEVERAGING THE
DIVERSITY OF
YOUR FIRM’S
WORKFORCE
LEVERAGING THE
DIVERSITY OF YOUR
FIRM’S WORKFORCE
Know yourself. How much exposure have you had to people
with different ethnic, racial, religious, educational, or cultural
backgrounds? How tolerant and understanding of those
differences have you been? How comfortable were you?
How curious were you?
Prepare yourself and your employees. How skilled are you and
your employees at listening, communicating, negotiating, and
resolving conflicts?

Provide support. Are there support groups for minority
employees to keep them from feeling unappreciated and
wanting to leave the organization? To what extent do
minority employees have mentors who can help them
understand and become an effective part of the
organization?
Guide behavior. Do you monitor the behavior of your
subordinates and peers? Do you consistently and positively
reinforce behaviors that foster tolerance and the effective
use of diversity? To what extent do you privately provide
negative feedback to employees who display intolerance or
other problem behaviors?
THANK'S FOR
WATCHING