Staffing and Human Resources

Staffing and Human Resources

Name:

Institution:

Staffing and Human Resources

Once Hired

In the event that an employee is hired to the labor force of the organization, HR needs to collect personnel files from the new recruit as basis of shielding the organization from lawsuits. Personnel files should always be up to date and maintained for applicability of any legal or disciplinary proceedings against the employee. In this, the documents should always contain complete records, names, addresses, dependents, level of education, former employment, data of hire, wages and job assigned. It is even not rare to find organization including meals in personnel records. Personnel files should equally encompass periodic employee evaluations such as employee commendations and notices of raises. Therefore, demotions, promotions, appraisals and transfers are also included in the files.

Orientation Tips (Smith 1984)

Contemporary organizational orientation methods follow the Adult Learning Theory by D. Knowles (1913-1997) that states an individual establishes his time perspective alterations from one deferred application of knowledge to propinquity of application. In essence, as one grows, learning moves away from subject focus to one of problem experience. In this, orientation is sequential as fashioned by Smith (1984) starting from the basic introduction to the company, review of policies, review of benefit services, enrollment to the benefit plan, completion of documents, evaluation of employer expectations, setting or worker expectations, introduction to fellow workers, facilities and finally to the assigned job.

Training

Training as a process of inducing employee engagement takes many forms dependent on managerial objectives, available resources, and skill level in the employee base. However, no single form of training is sufficient to ascertain complete function thus managers leverage several types of training simultaneously as seen below.

Adult Training

This is a form of quality empowerment where the employee learns for immediate skill use or solving of a problem.

Group Training

The process entails empowering of employee teams in order to improve decision-making, team development skills, and problem solving capabilities to achieve managerial goals. Organizational restructuring or inclusion of new personnel necessitates group training.

On the Job Training

This form of skills training incorporates proficiencies necessary to see a task or job to successful completion. It entails preparing the worker with the present operation and evaluating and following up on his or her performance.

The objectives of training are to reduce time spent in skill perfection, avert accidents, damage to equipment and property. Training equally promotes understanding and co-worker cohesion given employees a sense of achievement.

Job Breakdown

The HR activity simply refers to the detailed fragmentation of a job structure to teach the employee the steps (what needs to be done) and key points (how it is to be done). The Job Breakdown process acts as an instruction guide so that nothing is left out during work. It is equally a function of risk management as it facilitates aversion of work errors.

Performance Evaluation

Performance evaluation is imperative in employee development as it provides a fair and balanced narration of a worker’s output. In essence, it measures the degree of task accomplishment in accordance to agreed goal measures. The HR activity allows management to communicate concerning work progress, thus facilitates the setting of objective for professional development. In meaning, evaluation results determine job competence, training required and alterations to job expectations. Performance evaluation serves all organizational employees starting from executive management to the janitor. The primary objective of the activity is to lean output thus lower operational costs while improving per unit/employee output.

Performance Evaluation Techniques

There are numerous techniques in performance measurement in contemporary HRM. Most organizations employ unique techniques fit to their culture and structure, but we focus primarily on two classes namely Management by Objectives (MBO) and Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scale (BARS)

Management by Objectives (MBO)

Under this, management agrees on objectives and intervals of periodic assessments. Therefore, management evaluates on the degree of objectives achieved.

Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scale (BARS)

The class is referred to as the best and most effective because of its ability to measure specific behaviors identified for unique performance levels per task.

Errors in Evaluation

HR belief is that there is nothing like a perfect world as humanity is prone to faults and individual bias. Below are some of the errors probable to occur during performance evaluations.

Rating Errors

Signal that the method was either too strict or lenient in its measures. The method might also have been too easy or harsh on the employee.

Halo Error

The fault occurs from the inability to discern amongst divergent dimensions or assumptions that are important to the final analysis. Therefore, the test subject evaluation is distorted by the lack of inference.

Central Tendency Error

Occurs when management fails to consider the divergences in their employee base thus employs a common rating system for all of them.

Recency of Events

This flaw in performance evaluation arises when the evaluator relies on the most recent depictions of the applicant’s behaviors or latest occurrences. The reliance means the rating has bias.

Promotions and Transfers

A promotion in the simplest sense is the increase in wage amount and professional responsibility given to a worker. For promotions to occur, the employee is subject to several criteria including merits in performance audits and seniority. Job transfers on the other hand are lateral or horizontal movements of a worker from one job, department, position or organization to another where the salary, responsibility and status remains the same. Management leverage job transfers to improve employee satisfaction.

Discipline

HR is responsible for ascertaining employees remain disciplined. In the case that set measures fail to restrain undesired employee behaviors, HR disciplines the subject employee. For HR to see this function through, rules must be fair, clear and under frequent review. The disciplinary approach entails advanced warning, immediacy of action, consistency of regulation at each infraction and impartiality. Discipline targets behaviors and not the person.

Demotion/Separation

If an employee does not change adverse behaviors, he or she is subject to demotions or separation with the organization. Demotions are compulsory reductions in status and rank thus necessitate corporate reorganization. Separation may be voluntary or involuntary but all result in employment termination. Resignation is the most common form of voluntary resignation while firing and dismissals the most common forms of involuntary separation. HR must have viable reasons for involuntary termination such as failure to perform duties.

Grievances

Grievances refer to causes for protest or complaint arising from unfair treatment. When dealing with such cases, a manager must have more than basic awareness of the workplace climate and complaint situation. In avoidance of grievances, management must always be prepared for problems thus must frequently assess employee dissatisfaction points. Staff must always be informed of changes in order to allow identification of interest points and inclusion of improvement suggestions.