Assignment- 1

Management concept & Organizational behaviour

Shivani Singh- MBA 1st year

1) Define Staffing. What is importance of staffing?

Staffing-
Staffing is the process of hiring eligible candidates in
the organization or company for specific positions. In management,
the meaning of staffing is an operation of recruiting the employees by
evaluating their skills, knowledge and then offering them specific job
roles accordingly. Let us find out more about what is Staffing and what
it entails along with its functions and characteristics.
Definition: Staffing can be defined as one of the most important
functions of management. It involves the process of filling the vacant
position of the right personnel at the right job, at right time. Hence,
everything will occur in the right manner.

It is a truth that human resource is one of the greatest for every

organization because in any organization all other resources like-
money, material, machine etc. can be utilized effectively and efficiently
by the positive efforts of human resource.

Therefore it is very important that each and every person should get
right position in the organization so as to get the right job, according to
their ability, talent, aptitude, and specializations so that it will help the
organization to achieve the pre-set goals in the proper way by the
100% contribution of manpower. Thus it can be said that it is staffing is
an essential function of every business organization
Following are some of the points of importance of staffing
1. Finding proper resources: Staffing performs a very important role
of finding the best resource necessary for conducting the day to day
operations of the business. In other words, staffing is the process of
finding out the qualified resources for performing the various
functions of the business.
2. Facilitates control: An organisation where the staff are well
trained in their respective jobs will result in better control and also
better performance for the organisation. This reduces deviations in
workflow and ensures smooth functioning of the business.
3. Improved performance: Since the staffing process is all about
selection of the right person for the right position, it greatly impacts
the business performance by reducing the turnaround time.
4. Provides motivation: By recognising the talent of the employee
various financial and non-financial incentives can be provided by
management. It will keep the employee motivated to provide the
best effort towards the improvement of organisational performance.
5. Reduction in cost of production: Staffing selects the appropriate
candidate for the job role which results in reducing cost of
production and also improves revenue of the organisation.

2) Difference between Selection and Recruitment.

Recruitment
A process of actively searching and hiring applicants for a
job role is known as recruitment.
Selection
A process of choosing suitable applicants from the
shortlisted candidates is known as selection. It is an
important process that helps the HR to identify the
difference between qualified and unqualified applicants.

Difference between Recruitment and Selection

S.No. Recruitment Selection

1 A process of actively searching A process of choosing suitable

and hiring applicants for a job applicants from the shortlisted
role is known as recruitment. candidates is known as selection.

2 It is an activity to boost the It is an activity to reduce the

candidate pool. candidate pool until we find the
ideal candidate.

3 It allows the candidates to apply This process allows the HR to

for a vacant place. proceed further with suitable
applicants, and reject the
remaining.
4 In recruitment, we advertise the Selection is the process in which
job role and encourage the we finally appoint the candidate for
candidates to apply. the particular job role.

5 It is the first step towards the It is the second step towards the
hiring process. hiring process.

6 This process is economical. The process is comparatively

expensive.

7 There is no contractual relation Selection involves a contractual

in the recruitment process. relation between the organisation
and employee.

Basis Recruitment Selection

The process of The process of

searching for identifying and choosing
appropriate employees the best person out of a
and encouraging them number of prospective
to apply for jobs is candidates for a job is
Meaning known as Recruitment. known as Selection. 

It is a negative process
It is a positive process as it eliminates more
as it stimulates people people than selecting
Nature to apply for a job. them.

It aims to ensure that

It aims to create a pool competent candidate is
Purpose of applicants. selected for a job.
 Basis Recruitment Selection

It is a simple process as It is a complex process

there are not many as there are many steps
Process steps or hurdles. or hurdles.

It starts before the It starts after the

Stage selection process. recruitment process.

It is the second step

It is the first step towards the hiring
towards the hiring process and comes after
Step process. recruitment. 

Economical/ It is an economical It is an expensive

Expensive process. process.

3) Define controlling. What are the different techniques of

control?

Controlling-
Definition: Control is a primary goal-oriented function
of management in an organisation. It is a process of comparing the
actual performance with the set standards of the company to ensure
that activities are performed according to the plans and if not then
taking corrective action.

Every manager needs to monitor and evaluate the activities of his

subordinates. It helps in taking corrective actions by the manager in
the given timeline to avoid contingency or company’s loss.

Controlling is performed at the lower, middle and upper levels of the

management.
Traditional Types of Control Techniques in Management

 Budgetary Control
 Standard Costing
 Financial Ratio Analysis
 Internal Audit
 Break-Even Analysis
 Statistical Control

Budgetary Control
Budgeting simply means showcasing plans and expected results using
numerical information. As a corollary to this, budgetary control means
controlling regular operations of an organization for executing
budgets.

A budget basically helps in understanding and expressing expected

results of projects and tasks in numerical form. For example, the
amounts of sales, production output, machine hours, etc. can be seen
in budgets.

There can be several types of budgets depending on the kind of data

they aim to project. For example, a sale budget explains selling and
distribution targets. Similarly, there can also be budgets for
purchase, production, capital expenditure, cash, etc.

The main aim of budgetary control is to regulate the activity of an

organization using budgeting. This process firstly requires managers to
determine what objectives they wish to achieve from a particular
activity. After that, they have to lay down the exact course of action
that they will follow for weeks and months.
Next, they will translate these expected results into monetary and
numerical terms, i.e. under a budget. Finally, managers will compare
actual performances with their budgets and take corrective measures
if necessary. This is exactly how the process of budgetary control
works.

Standard Costing
Standard costing is similar to budgeting in the way that it relies on
numerical figures. The difference between the two, however, is that
standard costing relies on standard and regular/recurring costs.

Under this technique, managers record their costs and expenses for
every activity and compare them with standard costs. This controlling
technique basically helps in realizing which activity is profitable and
which one is not.

Financial Ratio Analysis

Every business organization has to depict its financial performances
using reports like balance sheets and profit & loss statements.
Financial ratio analysis basically compares these financial reports to
show the financial performance of a business in numerical terms.

Comparative studies of financial statements showcase standards like

changes in assets, liabilities, capital, profits, etc. Financial ratio analysis
also helps in understanding the liquidity and solvency status of a
business.

Internal Audit
Another popular traditional type of control technique is internal
auditing. This process requires internal auditors to appraise
themselves of the operations of an organization.
Generally, the scope of an internal audit is narrow and it relates to
financial and accounting activities. In modern times, however,
managers use it to regulate several other tasks.

For example, it can also cover policies, procedures, methods, and

management of an organization. Results of such audits can,
consequently, help managers take corrective action for controlling.

Break-Even Analysis
Break-even analysis shows the point at which a business neither earns
profits nor incurs losses. This can be in the form of sale output,
production volume, the price of products, etc.

Managers often use break-even analysis to determine the minimum

level of results they must achieve for an activity. Any number that goes
below the break-even point triggers corrective measures for control.

Statistical Control
The use of statistical tools is a great way to understand an
organization’s tasks effectively and efficiently. They help in showing
averages, percentages, and ratios using comprehensible graphs and
charts.

Managers often use pie charts and graphs to depict their sales,
production, profits, productivity, etc. Such tools have always been
popular traditional control techniques.

4) What is planning? Explain the steps involved in planning.

Definition-
Planning is the fundamental management function, which
involves deciding beforehand, what is to be done, when is it to be
done, how it is to be done and who is going to do it. It is
an intellectual process which lays down an organisation’s objectives
and develops various courses of action, by which the organisation
can achieve those objectives. It chalks out exactly, how to attain a
specific goal.
steps involved in planning-

1] Recognizing Need for Action

An important part of the planning process is to be aware of
the business opportunities in the firm’s external environment as well
as within the firm.  Once such opportunities get recognized the
managers can recognize the actions that need to be taken to realize
them. A realistic look must be taken at the prospect of these new
opportunities and SWOT analysis should be done.

Say for example the government plans on promoting

cottage industries in semi-urban areas. A firm can look to explore this
opportunity.

2] Setting Objectives
This is the second and perhaps the most important step of the
planning process. Here we establish the objectives for the
whole organization and also individual departments. Organizational
objectives provide a general direction, objectives of departments will
be more planned and detailed.

Objectives can be long term and short term as well. They indicate the
end result the company wishes to achieve. So objectives will percolate
down from the managers and will also guide and push
the employees in the correct direction.
3] Developing Premises
Planning is always done keeping the future in mind, however, the
future is always uncertain. So in the function of management certain
assumptions will have to be made. These assumptions are the
premises. Such assumptions are made in the form of forecasts, existing
plans, past policies, etc.

These planning premises are also of two types – internal and external.
External assumptions deal with factors such as political
environment, social environment, the advancement of technology,
competition, government policies, etc. Internal assumptions deal with
policies, availability of resources, quality of management, etc.

These assumptions being made should be uniform across the

organization. All managers should be aware of these premises and
should agree with them.

4] Identifying Alternatives
The fourth step of the planning process is to identify the alternatives
available to the managers. There is no one way to achieve the
objectives of the firm, there is a multitude of choices. All of these
alternative courses should be identified. There must be options
available to the manager.

Maybe he chooses an innovative alternative hoping for more efficient

results. If he does not want to experiment he will stick to the more
routine course of action. The problem with this step is not finding the
alternatives but narrowing them down to a reasonable amount of
choices so all of them can be thoroughly evaluated.
5] Examining Alternate Course of Action
The next step of the planning process is to evaluate and closely
examine each of the alternative plans. Every option will go through an
examination where all there pros and cons will be weighed. The
alternative plans need to be evaluated in light of the organizational
objectives.

For example, if it is a financial plan. Then it that case its risk-

return evaluation will be done. Detailed calculation and analysis are
done to ensure that the plan is capable of achieving the objectives in
the best and most efficient manner possible.

6] Selecting the Alternative

Finally, we reach the decision making stage of the planning process.
Now the best and most feasible plan will be chosen to be
implemented. The ideal plan is the most profitable one with the least
amount of negative consequences and is also adaptable to dynamic
situations.

The choice is obviously based on scientific analysis and mathematical

equations. But a managers intuition and experience should also play a
big part in this decision. Sometimes a few different aspects of different
plans are combined to come up with the one ideal plan.

7] Formulating Supporting Plan

Once you have chosen the plan to be implemented, managers will
have to come up with one or more supporting plans. These secondary
plans help with the implementation of the main plan. For example
plans to hire more people, train personnel, expand the office etc are
supporting plans for the main plan of launching a new product. So all
these secondary plans are in fact part of the main plan.

8] Implementation of the Plan

And finally, we come to the last step of the planning process,
implementation of the plan. This is when all the other functions of
management come into play and the plan is put into action to achieve
the objectives of the organization. The tools required for such
implementation involve the types of plans- procedures, policies,
budgets, rules, standards etc.
 5) Define training and Development. What are the five steps in
the training and development process?

Training and Development-

An organisation adopts a training and development process to
improve skills, gain knowledge, clarify concepts and change
professional attitudes. Organisations can do this with the help of
structured education to enhance employee productivity and
performance. It involves a structured education system that focuses
on enhancing the skills, methodology and content required to
improve productivity and encourage high performance. The process
includes training employees under constant monitoring to develop
their skills and overall personality, which may directly affect the
overall growth of the organisation.

Training Process-

Below are the steps involved in the training process:

1. Needs Assessment
2. Defining Training Objective
3. Designing a Training Program
4. Implementation of the Training Program
5. Evaluation and Follow up

Needs Assessment-
The first step in the training process is to assess the need for training
the employees. It analysis what are the long term requirements of
the organization and what does the organization expects from the
employees.

If there is a mismatch between the skills and knowledge required, it

means there is a learning gap. To assess this learning gap below
three elements is closely examined.
 1. Organization analysis: The objectives of the organization are
studied. The end result that a company wants to achieve is
examined in context to how it uses its resources to achieve
the same. Organizations’ internal and environment is also
considered.

2. Operation Analysis: A job requires a combination of different

activities for successful completion. Operation analysis
focuses on the needs, skills, knowledge, and attitude
required to efficiently complete the job.

3. Person analysis: In-person analysis the focus is on the

employee who has to perform the job. It is analyzed whether
the performance of the employee is satisfactory and he is
being able to achieve the organizational goal.

Defining Training Objective-

After deriving the learning gap organizations should define the
learning objective. Goals and objective of training becomes the
foundation of the training initiatives.

Hence determining the training objectives gives a direction to the

entire learning program.

Designing a Training Program

Once the objective of the training program is determined, it is time
to analyze the factors that need to be considered while designing a
training program.

1. Who will be the trainer: As per the skill and knowledge

required for effective training; it should be decided upon
who will conduct the training program. It can be a supervisor,
university faculty, Industrialist, HR staff, consultants, etc.

2. Who needs to be trained: It is to be decided who all needs to

be trained to fill the learning gap. It can be on the basis of
self-motivation, recommendation by supervisors of HR
 department itself.

3. Training Methods: Trainer should have complete information

about the participants and their profile so that he can choose
the learning methods that best suits their requirements. The
training content is prepared based on the specific areas that
need development.

Implementation of the Training Program-

Refers to putting the training plan into action. There should be a
proper environment created which is conducive to learning. It should
be preferably a participative approach and trainer should promote
role-playing and interactive games to keep the trainees involved

Evaluation and Follow up-

Training evaluation is done to check whether the goals and
objectives of the training have been achieved or not. Feedback needs
to be taken from the participants on the training results.

A follow up can be done by asking the supervisors whether the

participants are applying the skills learned in the learning program on
their day to day job.