Review - Introduction to Human Resources Management

Developmental Uses of Performance Appraisals

- Identifying training needs - Motivating employees to improve - Providing feedback - Counseling employees - Spotting performance deficiencies - Identifying and acknowledging strengths

Promotion (Internal)

- Internal employees are more qualified and better prepared for the responsibilities of job - Employees are likely to feel more secure and loyal to an organization - Less expensive than outside promotion

Job Evaluation

- Jobs are formally evaluated, then grouped into classes or grades and arranged in order of importance, with ranges of pay being established - Provides the basis for developing a network or configuration of pay rates that make up a rewards structure

Straight Ranking

- A superior lists the subordinates in order from best to worst, usually on the basis of overall performance - Useful in small organizations - Becomes difficult to discern difference in the performance of incumbents in large organizations

Paired Comparisons

- Compares each employee to another incumbent, two at a time on a single standard, to determine which is better - Rank is determined by counting the number of times an individual is selected as better - Forces the assessor to compare the performance of each incumbent to all other incumbents

Learning Organization

- Culture reflects the values, attitudes, and basic operating assumptions that are widely shared among organizational participants - Members recognize the importance of learning at all levels, learning is a continuous process that runs parallel to work - Focus on creativity and innovation - Rewards individual and group learning and development

Forced Distribution Method

- Designed to overcome a frequent complaint leveled against the various ranking methods that it is hard to differentiate between two employees - The superior must assign only a certain proportion of subordinates to each category with respect to each other

Benefits of Learning Organization

- Provides members an organizational identity - Facilitates collective commitment - Promotes system stability - Shapes behavior by helping members make sense of their work environment

Alternative Ranking

- Puts the best subordinate at the head of the list and worst subordinate at the bottom, then selects the best and worst from the remaining subordinates - Efficiently used by supervisors as well as subordinates

Narrative Essay

- Rater describes the employee's strengths and weaknesses and suggest methods for improving performance - Comparisons within a department or across departments can be difficult - Only provides qualitative and not quantitative data

Transfer of Training

- Requires the the appropriate resources be available - Have conditions in the training program identical to those in the job situation - Teach principles for applying the behaviors learned in the training program to the job situation

Administrative Uses of Performance Appraisals

- Salary increases or decreases - Demotions - Layoffs - Promotions/Transfers - Terminations

Peer-appraisal

- Valuable when superiors lack access to some aspects of the subordinate's performance - Useful when teamwork and participation are part of the organization culture - Validity is reduced if the reward system is competitive, based on performance, or there is a low level of trust

Implied-contract Exception

An exception to the employment-at-will doctrine stating that a legally binding agreement is created between an employer and employee based on their actions, and not on a formal contract

Internal environment

Factors that organizations control as they interact in the global marketplace, such as culture, product development, and strategy

Simple Linear Regression (Statistical)

A projection of future demand is based on a past relationship between the organization's employment level and a variable related to employment, such as sales. A linear regression shows how these measures are connected

Data Gathered During Evaluation Phase

1. Determine if a change took place in the behaviors, knowledge, skills, attitudes, or motivation level of training program participants 2. Demonstrate that the observed changes were a result of the training program rather than by some other factor

Three Goals of Needs Assessment

1. Determine whether a training need exists 2. Determine where in the organization the need exists 3. Determine the nature of the required training

Four Phases of HRP

1. Gathering, analyzing, and forecasting data to develop an HR supply and demand forecast 2. Establishing HR objectives and policies and gaining approval and support for them from top management 3. Designing and implementing plans and action programs in such areas as recruitment, training, and promotion that will enable the organization to achieve its HR objectives 4. Controlling and evaluating HRM plans and programs to facilitate progress toward HR objectives

Four Implicit HR Objectives

1. Improve productivity 2. Improve quality of work life 3. Ensure legal compliance 4. Foster ethical behavior

Six Trends Influencing HRM

1. Increased competition 2. The costs and benefits associated with HR utilization 3. Productivity changes 4. Increasing pace and complexity of social, cultural, legal, demographic, and educational changes 5. The symptoms of dysfunction in the workplace 6. Societal trends of the 21st century

Eight Characteristics of a Strong HR Professional

1. Knowledge of the business and industry 2. Greater understanding of economic phenomena 3. Analytical abilities 4. Leadership and influence 5. Propensity for action 6. Engagement 7. Political awareness 8. Customer focus

Three Levels of Needs Assessment

1. Organizational Level - to look at vision and future direction and determine workforce needs of the future 2. Task Level - the skills and knowledge necessary to do particular tasks are examined, looking for current or potential gaps when compared to workforce capabilities 3. Person Level - Focus on the individual employees and how the job is being performed

Six HR Competencies

1. Provide transformational leadership 2. Collaborate and resolve strategic challenges within the firm 3. Encourage real employee involvement 4. Empower and facilitate learning as well as change and decision-making 5. Design process and performance systems 6. Maintain a global business perspective

Three Challenges to Validity

1. Rating errors 2. Incomplete or inaccurate information 3. Poor Communication

Three Elements of Affirmative Action Plan

1. Reasonable self-analysis 2. Reasonable rationale for taking affirmative action 3. Reasonable affirmative action

Purpose of HR Planning

1. Reduce costs by helping management anticipate shortages or surpluses of human resources and correct imbalances before they become unmanageable and expensive. 2. Provide a better basis for planning employee development that makes optimum use of workers' strengths. 3. Improve the overall business-planning process. 4. Provide more opportunities for women and minority groups in the future growth and strategic plans of the organization. 5. Promote greater awareness of the importance of sound HRM throughout all levels of the organization. 6. Provide a tool for evaluating the effect of alternative HR actions and policies.

Five Areas of Understanding for an HR Generalist

1. Training and Development 2. Compensation and Benefits 3. Employee and Labor Relations 4. Recruiting and Selecting Employees 5. Health Safety and Security

Employment At-will

A common-law rule for employment contracts that presume an employer can generally hire, fire, or promote an employee for any reason at any time. In addition, employees can leave for any reason at any time

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)

A federal agency created by the Civil Rights Act of 1964, tasked with formal enforcement of employment discrimination law

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

A federal law requiring covered employers to provide employees with job-protected and unpaid leave for qualified medical and family reasons

Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA)

A federal law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability; ensures equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities in all aspects of employment as well as in other public services

Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA)

A federal law that prohibits the use of genetic information in employment decisions and restricts employers from requesting, requiring, or purchasing genetic information

Nominal Grouping Technique (Judgmental)

A group process involving problem identification, solution generation, and decision-making

Promotion-within Policy

A policy in which the employer states a commitment to consider current employees for new or replacement job opportunities before hiring candidates from outside the organization

Delphi Technique (Judgmental)

A method of group decision-making and forecasting that involves successively collating the judgments of experts

Title VII

A part of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin

Job Matching

A systematic effort to identify people's knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) and match them to job openings

Ultimate Criterion

A theoretical construct or abstract idea that can never actually be measured

Variable Compensation

Links employee pay to employee and organizational performance; bonuses may be impacted by the organizational performance as a whole

Public-policy Exception

An exception to the employment-at-will doctrine stating that an employer can not terminate an employee for reasons that would violate public-policy interest or statute

Implied Covenant-of-good-faith-and-fair-dealing Exception

An exception to the employment-at-will doctrine stating that each party in an employment relationship has made an implied promise to treat the other in good faith and fairness

Halo Effect

Allowing one positive characteristic of an employee to overshadow all other characteristics of the employee

Multiple Linear Regression (Statistical)

An extension of simple linear regression analysis. Multiple variables are used; may produce more accurate forecasts

Job Posting (Internal)

An open invitation to all employees, through prominent display of notice, to apply for a job vacancy

Nation of Origin Employment Discrimination

An unfair or harmful employment decision on the basis of where a person or their ancestors are from, or on the culture or people that a person associates with

Affirmative Action

Any action taken by an employer to overcome discriminatory effects of past or current practices or policies that create barriers to equal employment opportunity. Focuses on assisting historically disadvantaged groups in employment

Sales Incentive Plan

Applies to salespeople and managers; pay is received in the form of commissions, which is a percentage of sales revenue generated by the employee

ADDIE Model

Assessment, Design, Development, Implementation, Evaluation - Upper-level managers provide input on the vision of the organization and how this relates to future needs for talent - Middle-level managers advise on resources available for training, specific performance problems in their areas, and employees that are targets for training programs - Training managers assesses whether potential programs are aligned with strategy - Subject matter experts (SMEs) are experts on the nature of tasks that need to be performed more effectively

Reference Checks

Calling, visiting, or writing to individuals whose names are provided by the applicant; assume that performance in the past is a predictor of future performance

Civil Rights Act of 1964

Comprehensive civil rights legislation, signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson, which prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin

Blueprint

Consists of the goals, objectives, and evaluation tasks that must be developed and sequenced

Employment Agencies (External)

Deal with skilled and professional workers; provide applicants that employers would have difficulty finding otherwise

Job Profile

Detailed job description and specifications

Gender Identity Discrimination

Discrimination against an individual because that person is transgender, lesbian, gay, or bisexual

Standard Hour Plan

Employees are guaranteed a standard pay rate based on time per unit of output

Piecework Plan

Employees are guaranteed a standard pay rate for each unit of output

Content Validity

Estimates or judges the relevance of a predictor as an indicator of performance, without collecting actual performance information; for example, a typing test

Best Practices in Recruiting

Forward Thinking - Continually look into the future to identify the types of employees the organization will need. Societal Needs - Recruiting must consider the needs of the society and the individual Benefits - Make employment seem more desirable and feasible for the applicant; provide conditions that support a high quality of work life Recruit Internally - Employees who are already trained and have a proven track record tend to be the most cost-effective to recruit Embrace Diversity - Can provide various viewpoints and encourage creativity and innovation

Redundancy Planning

HR planning associated with the process of laying off employees who are no longer needed

Job Analysis

Identifying the essential job dimensions and worker qualifications; leads to the development of selection devices

Trade Associations (External)

Important sources for recruiting in certain industries such as the construction industry; provide newsletters and other communication channels to advertise job openings, such as job fairs

Indirect Compensation (Non-monetary Rewards)

In addition to direct compensation, rewards that employers pay for other employee services such as health insurance benefits, paid time off, retirement plans, education, etc.

Empirical Validity

Refers to how much a predictor relates to a criterion (measure of job success); for example, an applicant who passes a welding test should perform successfully as a welder

Background Checks

Include reference verification, criminal history, credit history, legal status, driving records, drug tests, military records, and employment records

Walk-Ins (External)

Individuals become applicants by walking into an organization's employment office

Candidate Profile

Information regarding the candidate's experience or skills related to specific jobs

Human Resource Planning

Involves forecasting the human resource needs of an organization and planning whatever is necessary to meet those needs

Training and Development

Learning-based activities that attempt to improve an employee's current or future performance by increasing his or her ability to perform through the improvement of KSAs (knowledge, skills and abilities)

Succession Planning (Supply)

Long-term, more developmental and flexible; emphasizes the characteristics of managers and downplays the characteristics of positions to which managers may eventually be promoted

Managerial Estimates (Judgmental)

Most common method of estimating HR demand; typically made by top management

Development

Refers to improving knowledge for the future

Interviewing

Most popular method of obtaining information; useful for gathering factual background information about candidates

Training

Refers to improving skills needed to perform better in the current job

Fixed Pay

Non-discretionary compensation independent of performance; ie. an hourly wage or yearly salary

Horn Error

Occurs when a poor rating in one area unjustly affects ratings in other job performance areas

Error of Central Tendency

Occurs when a rater "plays it safe" and evaluates employees as average, even when performance varies

Error of Strictness

Occurs when either inexperienced raters, raters who are attempting to impress their own superiors by their strict standards, or raters who are trying to settle accounts with employees are involved in the evaluation process

Spillover Effect

Occurs when past performance appraisal ratings, whether good or bad, are allowed to unjustly influence correct ratings

Similarity Error

Occurs when raters evaluate more positively those whom they perceive to be similar to themselves

Recency Error

Occurs when recent behaviors or outputs are weighted more heavily than they should be due to a rater's inability to pay attention to an employee's performance for the entire period

Primary Effect

Occurs when special attention is paid to the first information logged or remembered

Contrast Effect

Occurs when the evaluation or observation of one subordinate's performance is affected unjustly by an earlier evaluation or observation of another's performance

Leniency

Occurs when, to avoid conflict, a manager rates subordinates higher than they should be rated

Stock Option

Opportunity for a manager to buy an organization's stock at a later date, but at a price established when option is granted

Civil Rights Acts of 1866, 1870, and 1871

Prohibit employers from discriminating against minorities

Temporary Help Agencies (External)

Provide applicants for part-time positions to individuals that find it preferable to work less than a forty-hour week; gives temporary employees the chance to work in a variety of organizations

Cash Plan

Provide for payment of profit shares at regular intervals, typically monthly or yearly

HR Generalist

Provide guidance, support management, and serve as a source of help and information on human resource matters

Validity

Refers to how accurately and precisely a measure assesses an attribute

Religious Discrimination

Religious discrimination is the unfavorable or unfair treatment of a person on the basis of that person's religious beliefs

Construct Validity

Requires demonstrating that a relationship exists between a selection procedure and a psychological trait or measure; for example, a university entrance exam

HR Specialist

Responsible for specific human resource management functions within the organization such as recruiting, training, or compensation

Human Resource Management

Responsible for the recruitment, selection, training, and motivation of the organization's employees

Application Blank

Seeks information about the applicant's background and current situation; often referred to as resumes, curriculum vitae (CVs,) or biographical information

Wage-dividend Plan

Sets the percentage of profits paid to employees according to the amount of dividends paid to stockholders

Technical and Educational Institutions (External)

Sources of recruits for most organizations dependent on the type of applicant; may include high schools, vocational/technical schools, and colleges and universities

SWOT Analysis

Strengths - a company's core competencies, abilities, and capacities that provide an advantage when meeting the needs of target customers Weaknesses - the limitations a firm faces when seeking to deliver value to customers Opportunities - favorable conditions and trends in the external environment Threats - conditions, trends, and barriers in the external environment that hinder firm performance

Reliability

The consistency or stability of a selection instrument

Criteria

The evaluation norms used to measure things such as performance, aptitudes, or skills

Performance Appraisal

The formal structural system of measuring, evaluating, and influencing an employee's job-related attributes, behaviors, and outcomes

Actual Criterion

The measurable factors that constitute a successful person

Direct Compensation

The money paid directly to employees in exchange for their work, including wages, salaries, bonuses, commissions, and tips

Moral philosophy

The principles, rules, and values that individuals use in deciding what is right or wrong

Selection

The process of gathering information about job applicants to determine who should be hired for an available position

Orientation

The process of introducing the employee to the work environment

Quality of work life

The quality of life experienced by employees in their work environments

Recruiting

The set of activities and processes used to obtain sufficient numbers of qualified people so that an organization can select the most appropriate candidates to fill its job needs

Attraction

The shift from a traditional organizational structure to one that includes greater self-determination, more employee participation in workplace decisions, bottom-up as well as top-down communications, recognition of employee rights, an emphasis on intrinsic rewards, and emphasis on quality of work life

Diversity

The similarities and differences between individuals, accounting for numerous aspects of personality and individual identity

Gender (Sexual) Discrimination

The unfavorable treatment of someone (an applicant or employee) on the basis of their sex

Business ethics

The values and principles that are used to evaluate whether the collective behavior of an organization's members is appropriate

Transfers (Internal)

Transferring of current employees between departments within the organization (typically without promotion)

Replacement Planning (Supply)

Uses charts that show the names of the current occupants of positions in the organization and the names of likely replacements

Job Rotation (Internal)

Usually temporary; used to expose management trainees to various aspects of organizational life and to relieve job burnout for employees in high-stress occupations

Employee Referral Programs (Internal)

Word-of-mouth advertisements that generally involve rewarding employees for referring skilled job applicants to an organization