HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

ASSIGNMENT ON
HUMAN
RESOURCE
MANAGEMENT

BY RAHUL GUPTA
Q.1 Mention and briefly explain different sources of
recruitment?

Recruitment:
Recruitment refers to the process of screening, and selecting qualified people for a job at an
organization or firm, or for a vacancy in a volunteer-based some components of the
recruitment process, mid- and large-size organizations and companies often retain
professional recruiters or outsource some of the process to recruitment agencies. External
recruitment is the process of attracting and selecting employees from outside the
organization. The recruitment industry has four main types of agencies: employment
agencies, recruitment websites and job search engines, "headhunters" for executive and
professional recruitment, and in-house recruitment. The stages in recruitment include

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 1

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

sourcing candidates by advertising or other methods, and screening and selecting potential
candidates using tests or interviews.

Headhunters:
A "headhunter" is industry term for a third-party recruiter who seeks out candidates, often
when normal recruitment efforts have failed. Headhunters are generally considered more
aggressive than in-house recruiters or may have preexisting industry experience and
contacts. They may use advanced sales techniques, such as initially posing as clients to
gather employee contacts, as well as visiting candidate offices. They may also purchase
expensive lists of names and job titles, but more often will generate their own lists. They
may prepare a candidate for the interview, help negotiate the salary, and conduct closure to
the search. They are frequently members in good standing of industry trade groups and
associations. Headhunters will often attend trade shows and other meetings nationally or
even internationally that may be attended by potential candidates and hiring managers.
Headhunters are typically small operations that make high margins on candidate placements
(sometimes more than 30% of the candidate’s annual compensation).

In-House Recruitment:
Larger employers tend to undertake their own in-house recruitment, using their human
resources department, front-line hiring managers and recruitment personnel who handle
targeted functions and populations. In addition to coordinating with the agencies mentioned
above, in-house recruiters may advertise job vacancies on their own websites, coordinate
internal employee referrals, work with external associations, trade groups and/or focus on
campus graduate recruitment. While job postings are common, networking is by far the
most significant approach when reaching out to fill positions.

• Passive Candidate Research

Firms / Sourcing Firms:
These firms provide competitive passive candidate intelligence to support company's
recruiting efforts. Normally they will generate varying degrees of candidate information
from those people currently engaged in the position a company is looking to fill. These
firms usually charge a per hour fee or by candidate lead. Many times this uncovers names
that cannot be found with other methods and will allow internal recruiters the ability to
focus their efforts solely on recruiting.

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 2

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Process:
Job Analysis
The proper start to a recruitment effort is to perform a job analysis, to document the actual
or intended requirement of the job to be performed. This information is captured in a job
description and provides the recruitment effort with the boundaries and objectives of the
search. [2] Oftentimes a company will have job descriptions that represent a historical
collection of tasks performed in the past. These job descriptions need to be reviewed or
updated prior to a recruitment effort to reflect present day requirements. Starting a
recruitment with an accurate job analysis and job description insures the recruitment effort
starts off on a proper track for success.

Sourcing
Sourcing involves

1) Advertising, a common part of the recruiting process, often encompassing multiple

media, such as the Internet, general newspapers, job ad newspapers, professional
publications, window advertisements, job centers, and campus graduate recruitment
programs

2) Recruiting research, which is the proactive identification of relevant talent who may not
respond to job postings and other recruitment advertising methods done in #1. This initial
research for so-called passive prospects, also called name-generation, results in a list of
prospects who can then be contacted to solicit interest, obtain a resume/CV, and be
screened.

Screening and selection

Suitability for a job is typically assessed by looking for skills, e.g. communication, typing,
and computer skills. Qualifications may be shown through résumés, job applications,
interviews, educational or professional experience, the testimony of references, or in-house
testing, such as for software knowledge, typing skills, numeracy, and literacy, through
psychological tests or employment testing. In some countries, employers are legally

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 3

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

mandated to provide equal opportunity in hiring. Business management software is used by

many recruitment agencies to automate the testing process. Many recruiters and agencies
are using an Applicant tracking system to perform many of the filtering tasks, along with
software tools for psychometric testing

Onboarding
Onboarding refers to the overall process of acquiring, accommodating, assimilating and
accelerating new team members, whether they come from outside or inside the
organization. The prerequisite to successful onboarding is getting your organization aligned
around the need and the role[3]. Some think of onboarding as what follows recruitment.
Some think of onboarding as something to include in the recruitment process for retention
purposes. How you think of it is far less important than that you do think of it as you're
thinking about recruitment.

Internet Recruitment / Websites

Such sites have two main features: job boards and a résumé/curriculum vitae (CV) database.
Job boards allow member companies to post job vacancies. Alternatively, candidates can
upload a résumé to be included in searches by member companies. Fees are charged for job
postings and access to search resumes. Since the late 1990s, the recruitment website has
evolved to encompass end-to-end recruitment. Websites capture candidate details and then
pool them in client accessed candidate management interfaces (also online). Key players in
this sector provide e-recruitment software and services to organizations of all sizes and
within numerous industry sectors, who want to e-enable entirely or partly their recruitment
process in order to improve business performance

• Types of Recruitment:

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 4

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Internal Recruitment Process Weaknesses

The Internal Recruitment Process does not have just benefits, this process has some
disadvantages as well. The Internal Recruitment Process is a very powerful tool, but it can
be misused in hands of some employees and managers. The Internal Recruitment Process is
not a process to steal the best employees from their departments. These employees should
be treated as a very scarce resource and the internal recruitment procedures should work
differently for them. The managers use the internal recruitment process as a tool to transfer
their own issues to the other departments. This is very dangerous as other managers will not
trust the internal recruitment process and will block the ambitions of employees to be
transferred. The employees can misuse the internal recruitment process, when there are no
clear rules and procedures applied. The organization can support internal rotations of
employees, but the rules must be clear about the length of the stay of the employee in one
department. The employee can enjoy the benefit of quick internal job hopping and the
results achieved are very difficult to be recognized by the organization. No manager is able
to make a full performance appraisal as the whole year in one department is unique then.
The employee is just focused on his or her promotion in the organization and the salary can
be increased in every step.

These include filling up a vacancy using a person who is already in the company’s payroll.
The vacancy is advertised within the company and on the basis of responses from within the

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 5

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

company, a selection is made. This type of recruitment has many advantages. The company
is able to obtain accurate information about the candidate as he has already been working
with them. It boosts the morale of the workforce who sees that the company is able to
provide them with opportunity for future growth. The cost of recruitment is relatively less.
The employees being acquainted with the company already do not require job training.
However, this method of recruitment has a few disadvantages as well. The choice of
candidates is greatly limited. Selection of a candidate over others results in ill feeling
among those who were not chosen. The selection of the candidate involves a great deal of
subjectivity amongst the superiors and hence may not always be transparent.

External Recruitment Process Key Issues

The external recruitment process is a very complex HR Process, which involves many
parties and the clear follow up of the individual process steps is essential. The HRM
Function is responsible for setting and defining the external recruitment process and it has
to be sure to solve several success factors in the external recruitment process.

The HRM Function has to push the managers to deliver clearly defined job profiles of the
vacancies and the job profile cannot be changed during the recruitment process. Or, the
change of the job profile cancels the search and starts a new one again. The hiring manager
has to know the rules. When the job profile changes during the search, it changes the focus
of the recruitment agency and brings a lot of job candidates unsuitable for the job position.

The hiring manager can be a very weak point in the recruitment process. The hiring
manager has to agree with the job profile and the hiring manager has to agree to decide
quickly about the final job offer for the winning candidate. The hiring manager has to be
aware of the danger of being late with inviting the job candidates and the late decision
taken.

The good contract with the recruitment agencies is a basis for the efficient cooperation, The
recruitment agency has to know about the conditions given and the fees given for not
meeting them. The recruitment agency has clearly agree with the KPIs from the contract
about the delivery of candidates, expected quality of candidates and basic competencies,
which has to be met. The recruitment agency is a tool for the preselection of the job
candidates and it has to be able to meet the basic expectations to reduce the time needed
from the HRM employees. The recruitment agency has to receive very clear brief about the
vacancy in the organization. The HRM Function and the hiring manager have to define the
best job profile and the description of the ideal candidate to navigate the recruitment agency
in the external recruitment process. The HRM Function has to make a description of the
team, the decision process in the department to allow the recruitment agency to find a
candidate with the best fit. The communication during the selection process is very crucial.

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 6

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

The resumes have to sent to the one single email address in the HRM Function and the
organization has to provide the basic feedback very quickly. The recruitment agency has to
follow all the resumes sent to the organization as it can provide the candidates with
additional information.

The external sources are those sources of recruitment that are found outside the
employment.

1. Advertisement: This is a common method of recruitment. The advertisement usually

appears in a newspaper, website or magazine. It is important that the company pays
attention to how the advertisement is drafted. For the advertisement to draw the right
candidates, it has to be drafted properly with clarity and should present a favorable picture
of the company and the working culture.

2. Campus recruitment: There are some cases where recruiters contact educational
institutions such as colleges and universities for a list of prospective candidates. The
campus recruitment has the advantage of meeting all the candidates at a single place and
hence saves time and effort. While campus recruitment may be attractive, it suffers from the
limitation that it is suitable only for filling “entry level” positions.

3. Unsolicited applicants: Many candidates send their resumes to company without any
explicit request. Companies usually file these resumes and refer to them when the need for a
position arises.

4. Websites: With the advent of the Internet, searching for candidates has acquired a whole
new dimension. Web portals dedicated to finding jobs have been setup. The candidates key
in their details and post their resumes. Employers have to just browse through these
resumes or use the site search engine to list out people with specific skills.

5. Employee referrals: Some companies also encourage current employees to refer their
friends or acquaintances for positions in the organization. This system has the advantage
that the new employees also have a fair idea about the organization and its culture. The
downside is that this system tends to create nepotism and allows cliques of friends and
relatives to form in an organization.

6. Placement Agencies: Placement agencies maintain database of resumes from prospective

candidates. Companies in need of personnel contact these agencies with their profile. The
agencies provide them with a list of potential candidates. The placement agencies can also
assist in the recruitment process.

External sources of recruitment have many advantages. They enable fresh talent and new
ideas to enter the organization. Since the selection is made from candidates from a wide
area, the choice of candidates is widened.

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 7

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Q.2 Write a note on guided and unguided interview?

An interview is a conversation between two or more people (the interviewer and the interviewee)
where questions are asked by the interviewer to obtain information from the interviewee.

Guided Interview:
When the aim of an enquiry is to gather information about the opinions of a particular
person (an expert, a representative member of a group) in order to gain qualitative insights
into a problem, guided interviews are used. Guided interviews contain only open-ended
questions, and the questionnaire is only used as a guideline for the interview, the
conversation between interviewer and interviewee does not have to follow it strictly.
Guided interviews generate qualitative data, which is why the number of interviews usually
is limited, and quantitative conclusions cannot be drawn.

Interviewing key individuals in one of the main technique used in the development studies.
Participatory methods have contributed to adjusting the interview to make it more
conversational while still controlled and structured, resulting in semi-structured interview.
In this interview, some of the questions are pre-determined, whilst majority of the questions
are formulated in the interview. Questions asked according to the checklist and not from a
formal questionnaire.

Types of Interview Characteristics Strengths Weakness

A. Informal Questions emerge Increases the salience Different responses
Conversational from the immediate and relevance of collected from
Interview context and are asked questions. Interviews are different people with
in the immediate building on and emerge different questions.
course of natural from observations. The Less comprehensive if
things. There is no interviews can be certain questions don’t
predetermination of matched to individuals arise naturally. Data
questions wordings. and circumstances. analysis and
organization can be
quite difficult.
Requires maximum
attentions by the
interviewer.

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 8

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

B. Interview Topics and issues to The outline increases n Important and salient
Guide be covered are asked comprehensiveness of topics may be
Approach in advance. the data and makes the inadvertently omitted.
Interviewer decide data collections Interviewer flexibility
the working of the systematic for each in asking questions
questions in the respondent. Interviews resulting in
interview itself. remain fairly invariability of
conversational and responses.
situational
C. Standardized The exact wording Respondents answers Little flexibility in
Open Ended and sequence are the same questions thus relating the interview
Interview determined in increase the to particular
advance. All comparability of individuals and
interviewers ask the responses. Reduce circumstances.
same basic questions interviewer bias when
in the same order. several interviewers are
used.
D. Close Questions and Data analysis is simple. Respondents must fill
Quantitative response categories Responses can be their experience and
Interview are determined in directly aggregated and feelings into the
advance. Responses compared. Many researcher’s
are fixed; Respondent questions can be asked categories; may be
chooses from these in a short time. perceived as
responses impersonal,
mechanistic and
irrelevant. Can distort
what respondent really
men or experienced.

The Unguided Interview is not planned or structured. The applicant determines the process of the
interview by controlling the conversation and doing the most talking. Questions asked by the
interviewer will usually follow on from the applicant's own statements.

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 9

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Q.3 Discuss the techniques to motivate employees?

 Introduction:
Learn how to identify causes of low morale, then apply proven techniques to motivate
employees, prepare individual action plans to solve on-the-job problems and improve
overall employee behaviors. The Process of Motivating Your Employees

• Understanding Motivation
• Assessing Your Approach
• Identifying Manager's Role
• Applying Techniques
• Measuring Success

 What to Expect:
Motivation is one of the primary concerns and challenges facing today's manager. This
Business Builder will help you learn techniques for creating a proper motivational climate.
You will learn how to apply proven techniques for motivating employees, prepare
individual action plans to solve on-the-job problems, and identify causes of low morale and
techniques for improving overall employee behaviors.

 Why Do You Need To Know About

Motivation:
• Your employees are the key to your successful business.
• Motivation affects employee performance, which affects organizational objectives.
• Satisfied employees lead to satisfied customers.
• Motivated employees make your job easier.

 Criteria for Success:

To be a successful manager/motivator you must first understand that you cannot motivate
anyone. You can only create an environment that encourages and promotes the employee's
self motivation. Someone once said that motivation is getting people to do what you want
them to do because they Want to do it. The challenge is to give them a reason to want to do
it; doing it will satisfy a need they have. You have to tune in to their need, not yours.
Secondly, you must also know what kind of behavior you want the employee to
demonstrate. In other words, what do you want the employee to do differently?

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 10

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

 Goals:
• Set a major goal, but follow a path. The path has mini goals that go in many directions.
When you learn to succeed at mini goals, you will be motivated to challenge grand goals.
• Finish what you start. A half finished project is of no use to anyone. Quitting is a habit.
Develop the habit of finishing self-motivated projects.
• Socialize with others of similar interest. Mutual support is motivating. We will develop
the attitudes of our five best friends. If they are losers, we will be a loser. If they are
winners, we will be a winner. To be a cowboy we must associate with cowboys.
• Learn how to learn. Dependency on others for knowledge supports the habit of
procrastination. Man has the ability to learn without instructors. In fact, when we learn the
art of self-education we will find, if not create, opportunity to find success beyond our
wildest dreams.
• Harmonize natural talent with interest that motivates. Natural talent creates motivation,
motivation creates persistence and persistence gets the job done.
• Increase knowledge of subjects that inspires. The more we know about a subject, the
more we want to learn about it. A self-propelled upward spiral develops.
• Take risk. Failure and bouncing back are elements of motivation. Failure is a learning tool.
No one has ever succeeded at anything worthwhile without a string of failures.

Watch Out For There is no quick fix. Changing

employee behavior takes time and patience. You
will find that what works well for one person may
not work for another. You may have to use "trial
and error" until you identify and match the right
method to the appropriate people.

You also may have to face the unpleasant truth that no matter what you do, you might have
some employees who refuse to change their behavior. If that is the case, you will have to
"bite the bullet" and ask them to leave. It's very demotivating to employees some do not
cooperate perform according to agreed upon expectations.

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 11

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

 The Process of Motivating Your Employees:

Motivation falls into five categories

• Understanding the Concept of Motivation

• Assessing Your Approach to Employee Motivation
• Identifying Manager's Role in Motivation Process
• Applying Motivational Techniques (Creating the Environment)
• Measuring Success

 Understanding Motivation:
Can you motivate someone? The answer is an emphatic "NO!" Motivation comes from
within the individual prompting an action. Motivation is a function of individual will. We
do things because the outcome is appealing and serves as an incentive. Motivation is
directly related to morale, that is, the attitude of individuals and groups toward their work,
environment, management and organization as a whole.

 Assessing Your Approach:

You may find yourself puzzled by an employee's apparent lack of motivation. You pay a
decent salary so you can't understand why this person isn't grateful just to have a job. The
first step to real understanding is to accept that what motivates you may or may not
motivate your employees. Take a moment and rank the following motivating factors
according to what is important to you: Job security, Adequate compensation, Company
benefits, Pleasant physical working environment, Recognition for doing a good job, Loyalty
and fairness of management, Participation in decisions that affect me, Interesting and
challenging work, Opportunities for promotion and growth, Friendliness of people I work
with, Clear understanding of what is expected of me, Feeling of personal accomplishment

 Identifying Manager's Role:

At this point, you might be asking yourself, "What is my role as a leader in the motivation
process?" Your responsibility in motivating employees is to create the environment that
promotes motivation within the individual. Someone once said that good leadership is
getting people to do what you want them to do because they want to do it. Therefore, you
must first understand employees' needs and then show them the benefits of moving them
from where they are to where you want them to be. In other words, point out the

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 12

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

 Applying Techniques:
If you want to become an effective leader, use the following techniques to create an
environment in which people want to work:

Use Appropriate Methods Of Reinforcement. Rewards should be tied directly to

performance. If you have determined that delivering quality service is important, then the
employee's performance in delivering that service should be rewarded.

Provide People With Flexibility And Choice. Whenever possible, give employees a
chance to make decisions particularly when they affect them in some way. Choice and the
personal commitment that results are essential to motivation. People who are not given the
opportunity to choose for themselves tend to become passive and lethargic.

Provide Support When It Is Needed. One key characteristic of the achievement-oriented

person is the willingness to use help when it is needed. Employees should be encouraged to
ask for support and assistance; otherwise, they will become frustrated. Asking for help
should never be considered a sign of weakness; it should be considered a sign of strength.
When an employee comes to you for help, be careful not to turn him or her off with
comments such as "You still don't know how to do that? I thought I explained it to you."
Instead, ask, "Tell me where you are having problems. What can I clear up for you?"

Encourage Employees To Set Their Own Goals And Objectives. Let them participate
actively in the goal-setting process. People tend to know their own capabilities and
limitations. Also, personal goal-setting results in a commitment to goal accomplishment. In
setting sales goals, for example, ask your sales person to come up with a realistic monthly
goal and a plan to reach that number.

Then the two of you should sit down and evaluate the goal by applying the following
criteria:

• Is the goal specific? Write the goal so that anyone would be able to identify exactly what
you are going to accomplish. Is it measurable? Identify the deliverable.
• Is it agreed upon? All those involved must agree. In most cases, this means the manager and
the employee who make it happen.
• Is it realistic? Make sure that you have the appropriate resources (time, skills, equipment,
environment, money) to successfully meet the goal.
• Is it timebound? Set deadlines, interim reviews and target completion dates.

Think of an employee you would like to involve in the goal-setting process. Then outline how you
are going to approach him or her. What will you say to communicate the reasons you are asking the
employee to set his or her own goals? Are there any guidelines or parameters he or she should
consider?

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 13

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Establish A Climate Of Trust And Open Communication. Productivity is highest in

organizations that encourage openness and trust. Trust and openness are created by the way
we communicate. Do you use phrases that build people and get things started or ones that
destroy ideas and chloroform creative thinking? Review the following lists. Which do you
use more frequently?

• Killer Phrases
o "A great idea, but"
o "It won't work."
o "We don't have the time."
o "It's not in the budget."
o "We've tried that before."
o "All right in theory, but can you put it in practice?"
o "You haven't considered"
o "We have too many projects now."
o "What you're really saying is"
o "Let's put it on the back burner."
o "Let's discuss it at some other time."
• Igniter Phrases
o "That would be interesting to try."
o "I'm glad you brought that up."
o "Good work!"
o "You're on the right track."
o "That's the first time I've had anyone think of that."
o "I have faith in you."
o "I appreciate what you've done."
o "See, you can do it!"
o "Go ahead, try it"
o "I never thought of that."
o "I'm very pleased with what you've done."
o "We can always depend on you."
o "We can do a lot with that idea."

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 14

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Q.4 Explain in detail the disciplinary –Action Penalties?

 Introduction:
Many employers might be surprised to know that, in addition to the right to claim unfair dismissal,
the Employment Act 2000 introduced the right for employees to claim that they have been unfairly
disciplined. This wide protection for employees means that employers must think carefully and act
fairly before taking any disciplinary action against members of their workforce. Otherwise an
employee could make a complaint to the Labour Relations Officer / Inspector and, if the Inspector is
not able to resolve the situation, take the matter further to the Employment Tribunal. What general
guidelines should an employer follow to avoid this situation? First, the disciplinary action taken,
whether it be a written warning, final written warning or suspension, should be able to be justified as
‘reasonable’. Secondly, the procedure involved to arrive at this outcome should be fair. In theory,
these two aspects should go hand-in-hand as the fairer the disciplinary procedure, the better
informed to make a reasonable decision the employer will be. In practice, daft decisions are not
always prevented by a scrupulously fair procedure.

 A Reasonable Penalty:
Various factors need to be considered in assessing what is a reasonable penalty. These include the
nature of the employee’s conduct and the damage caused by it, the duties and terms of the
employee’s contract, their length of service, previous conduct, the employee’s circumstances, and
how the employer has disciplined others in similar situations. How should an employer approach
these factors? Obviously, the more serious the conduct and greater the damage caused by it, the
harsher the penalty imposed can be and still be ‘reasonable’. Similarly, if an employee contravenes
one of their key duties or terms of their contract, then a harsher penalty may be appropriate. Taking
another example, an employer would be expected to be more lenient to a long service employee
with a good record than someone who has just joined. The factor of an employee’s circumstances
means that an employee’s explanation for their conduct should be considered e.g. a missed
appointment at work explained by a family emergency or, less justifiable, placing an IOU contrary
to company policy due to temporary financial difficulties. Finally, it is very important that an
employer needs to be consistent. A verbal warning to one employee followed by a written warning
to another employee for practically the same offence months later, will make it more difficult to
justify the reasonableness of the harsher penalty.

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 15

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

 A Fair Procedure:
At its absolute minimum, a fair procedure means that employees should be given a chance to
explain themselves before any decision to discipline is made. Ideally, this should be done in the
form of a hearing/ meeting between the employer and employee. The representative of the employer
should be (as far as possible) someone not closely involved in the circumstances leading to the
possible disciplinary action e.g. the manager subjected to the alleged curses of an employee should
not be holding the meeting. At the meeting, the purpose of it should be explained to the employee
and he or she should be informed of the allegations against them. The evidence should then be
indicated either in writing or by calling witnesses. The employee should then be allowed to ask
questions, call their own witnesses and put forwardtheir own arguments before any decision is
made. As a matter of good practice, it is usually better to split the above meeting into two parts to
avoid the obvious (and proper) request by an employee that they would like time to consider their
response to the allegations against them before proceeding with the meeting. Hence it is useful if the
allegations and (if available) written evidence against them can be given to the employee at this first
brief meeting. This will then enable the employee to consider and prepare their response in time for
the second meeting a few days later. After this second meeting, the employer should then adjourn to
consider their decision properly. (A decision given immediately after hearing the employee’s
response only encourages an employee to believe that their employer was merely ‘going through the
motions’.) A right of appeal should then be provided to the employee. Employers most often ‘trip
up’ when the issue seems very clearcut. If it is, then it does not take long to have this confirmed in a
fair manner by hearing the explanation (if any) of the employee as well as listening to any
mitigating circumstances. With the Employment Act 2000 recognising its importance, procedure is
now ignored at every employer’s peril. For example, should any dispute come before the
Employment Tribunal, it is unlikely that the Tribunal will warm to the employer who argues that
even if a fair procedure had been followed, the resulting disciplinary action would have been exactly
the same. Such a failing of procedure may allow a very undeserving employee in the employer’s
eyes to a ‘technical’ win and some compensation.

 Violation of act; disciplinary

action; penalties:
(1) The board may after hearing, by majority vote, take any or all of the following actions,
upon proof satisfactory to the board that any person or organization has violated the
Geologists Regulation Act or any rules or regulations adopted and promulgated pursuant to
the act:

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 16

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

(a) Issuance of censure or reprimand;

(b) Suspension of judgment;

(c) Placement of the offender on probation with the board;

(d) Placement of a limitation or limitations on the holder of a license and upon the right of
the holder of a license to practice the profession to such extent, scope, or type of practice for
such time and under such conditions as are found necessary and proper;

(e) Imposition of a civil penalty not to exceed ten thousand dollars. The amount of the
penalty shall be based on the severity of the violation;

(f) Entrance of an order of revocation, suspension, or cancellation of the certificate of

licensure;

(g) Issuance of a cease and desist order;

(h) Imposition of costs as in an ordinary civil action in the district court, which may include
attorney's fees and hearing officer fees incurred by the board and the expenses of any
investigation undertaken by the board; or

(i) Dismissal of the action.

In hearings under this section, the board may take into account suitable evidence of reform.

(2) Civil penalties collected under subdivision (1)(e) of this section shall be remitted to the
State Treasurer for credit to the permanent school fund. All costs collected under
subdivision (1)(h) of this section shall be remitted to the State Treasurer for credit to the
Geologists Regulation Fund.

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 17

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Q.5 Explain the importance of grievance handling?

 Introduction:
In their working life, employees do get dissatisfied with various aspects of working may be with the
attitude of the manager, policy of the company, working conditions, or behavior of colleagues.
Employers try to ignore or suppress grievances. But they cannot be suppressed for long. Grievance
acts as rust which corrodes the very fabric of organization. An aggrieved employee is a potent
source of indiscipline and bad working. According to Julius, a grievance is “any discontent or
dissatisfaction, whether expressed or not, whether valid or not, arising out of anything connected
with the company which an employee thinks, believes or, even feels to be unfair, unjust or
inequitable.”Maintaining quality of work life for its employees is an important concern for the any
organization. The grievance handling procedure of the organization can affect the harmonious
environment of the organization. The grievances of the employees are related to the contract, work
rule or regulation, policy or procedure, health and safety regulation, past practice, changing the
cultural norms unilaterally, individual victimization, wage, bonus, etc. Here, the attitude on the part
of management in their effort to understand the problems of employees and resolve the issues
amicably have better probability to maintain a culture of high performance. Managers must be
educated about the importance of the grievance process and their role in maintaining favorable
relations with the union. Effective grievance handling is an essential part of cultivating good
employee relations and running a fair, successful, and productive workplace. Positive labor relations
are two-way street both sides must give a little and try to work together. Relationship building is key
to successful labor relations.

 Forms of Grievances:
A grievance may take anyone of the following forms:

A) Factual: A factual grievance arises when legitimate needs of employees remain unfulfilled, e.g.,
wage hike has been agreed but not implemented citing various reasons.

b) Imaginary: When an employee’s dissatisfaction is not because of any valid reason but because
of a wrong perception, wrong attitude or wrong information he has. Such a situation may create an
imaginary grievance. Though management is not at fault in such instances, still it has to clear the
‘fog’ immediately.

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 18

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

c) Disguised: An employee may have dissatisfaction for reasons that are unknown to him. If he/she
is under pressure from family, friends, relatives, neighbors, he/she may reach the work spot with a
heavy heart. If a new recruit gets a new table and almirah this may become an eyesore to other
employees who have not been treated likewise previously. The importance of grievance handling in
an organization requires am effective approach and attitude on the part of the grievance handling
authority. It reflects healthy organizational practices and strong organizational culture. The failure
of grievance handling will affect the harmonious environment of the organization

 Causes:
Grievances may occur for a number of reasons:

a) Economic: Wage fixation, overtime, bonus, wage revision, etc. Employees may feel that they are
paid less when compared to others.

b) Work Environment: Poor physical conditions of workplace, tight production norms, defective
tools and equipment, poor quality of materials, unfair rules, lack of recognition, etc.

c) Supervision: Relates to the attitudes of the supervisor towards the employee such as perceived
notions of bias, favoritism, nepotism, caste affiliations, regional feelings, etc.

d) Work group: Employee is unable to adjust with his colleagues; suffers from feelings of neglect,
victimization and becomes an object of ridicule and humiliation, etc.

e) Miscellaneous: These include issues relating to certain violations in respect of promotions, safety
methods, transfer, disciplinary rules, fines, granting leave, medical facilities, etc.

GRIEVANCE HANDLING PROCEDURE

As already discussed, there are valid reasons to have the grievances processed through Machinery or
a procedure.

Objectives of a Grievance Handling Procedure

Jackson (2000) lays down the objectives of a grievance handling procedure as follows:

• To enable the employee to air his/her grievance.

• To clarify the nature of the grievance.
• To investigate the reasons for dissatisfaction.
• To obtain, where possible, a speedy resolution to the problem.
• To take appropriate actions and ensure that promises are kept.
• To inform the employee of his or her right to take the grievance to the next stage
Of the procedure, in the event of an unsuccessful resolution.

The Benefits of a Grievance Handling Procedure

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 19

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

According to Jackson (2000), further benefits that will accrue to both the employer and employees
are as follows: It encourages employees to raise concerns without fear of reprisal, It provides a fair
and speedy means of dealing with complaints. It prevents minor disagreements developing into
more serious disputes, It saves employers time and money as solutions are found for workplace,
Problems and It helps to build an organizational climate based on openness and trust.

 Process:
The details of a grievance procedure/machinery may vary from organization to organization. Here, a
four phase model (Figure 1) is suggested. The first and the last stages have universal relevance,
irrespective of the differences in the procedures at the intermediate stages. The four stages of the
machinery are briefly discussed here: The level at which grievance occurs: The best opportunity to
redress a grievance is to resolve it at the level at which it occurs. A worker’s grievance should be
resolved by his immediate boss, the first line supervisor. The higher the document rises through the
hierarchy, the more difficult it is to resolve. Bypassing the supervisor would erode his authority.
When the process moves to a higher stage, the aggrieved employee and the supervisor concerned
may shift their focus to save face by proving the other wrong. The substantive aspect of any of the
grievances may thus be relegated and dysfunctional aspects come to the fore thus making it more
difficult to settle the issue. In a unionized concern, the first stage of the procedure usually involves
three people: the aggrieved employee, his immediate boss and the union representative in the shop/
department. It is possible to involve the union in laying down the framework of the grievance
procedure and thereafter restrain union involvement in the actual process, at least in the first two
stages.

Intermediate Stage: If the dispute is not redressed at the supervisor’s level, it will usually be
referred to the head of the concerned department. It is important that line management assume prime
responsibility for the settlement of a grievance. Any direct involvement by personnel department
may upset balance in line-staff relations. At the intermediate level, grievance can be settled with or
without union involvement. Excessive reliance on supervisor at this stage can jeopardize the
interests of the employee and affect the credibility of the procedure.

Organization Level: If a grievance is not settled at the intermediate level also, it will be referred to
the top management. Usually, a person of a level not less than General Manager designated for the
purpose will directly handle the issue. By now, the grievance may acquire some political importance
and the top leadership of the union may also step in formally, if the procedure provides for it and
informally, if the procedure prohibits it. At this level it is very difficult to reconcile the divergent
interests.

 Precautions and Prescriptions:

1. Always ensure that the managers involved in the grievance handling procedures have a quiet

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 20

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

place to meet with the complainant.

2. Always ensure that managers have adequate time to be devoted to the complainant.

3. Explain manager's role, the policy and the procedures clearly in the grievance handling procedure.

4. Fully explaining the situation to the employee to eliminate any misunderstanding and promote
better acceptance of the situation complained of.
5. Try to let employee present their issues without prejudging or commenting

6. Do use a positive, friendly ways to resolve the crisis than punitive steps, which disturb the
system.

7. Do remain calm, cool, collected during the course of the meeting.

8. Always focus on the subject of the grievance than allied issues.

9. Don't make threats manage the grievances.

10. Never make use of allegations against personalities.

11. be aware of the staff member's potential concerns to the possible repercussions of raising a
grievance.

12. Don't become angry, belligerent, or hostile during grievance handling procedure.

13. Do listen for the main point of arguments and any possible avenue to resolve the grievance.

14. Listen and respond sensitively to any distress exhibited by the employees.

15. Eliminating the source of the irritation or discomfort being complained of.

16. Reassure them that the managers will be acting impartially and that your hope is to resolve the
matter if possible.

17. Don't "horse trade" or swap one grievance for another (where the union wins one, management
wins one). Each case should be decided on its merits.

18. Avoid usage of verbalisms like”it will be taken care of."

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 21

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

19. Ensure effective, sensitive and confidential communication between all involved.

20. Take all possible steps to ensure that no victimization occurs as a result of the grievance being
raised.

21. The investigator or decision maker acts impartially, which means they must exclude themselves
if there is any bias or conflict of interest.

22. All parties are heard and those who have had complaints made against others are given an
opportunity to respond.

23. Try to look upon the problem on different angles for appropriate understanding.

24. Ensuring that there is proper investigation of the facts and figures related the problem under
concern.

25. Consider all relevant information in the investigation process.

26. Ask the staff member their preferred resolution option, although it is important to make it clear
that this may not be a possible outcome.

27. be aware of the limits of authority of the person who involved in the grievance handling
procedures.

28. If the manager feels that he/she is not the appropriate person (senior manager) to deal with the
issue refer the complainant to the appropriate person as soon as possible.

29. Try to get a better idea of whether the alleged discrimination or harassment happened or didn't
happen.

30. Tell them exactly what they are supposed to have done, to whom and explain why this may be
seen as discrimination/harassment or as inappropriate.

31. Grievances are preferably to be settled informally at the level of the employee's immediate
supervisor.

32. Try the level best to involve team members to resolve the crisis at unit level itself.

33. Avoid as far as possible the union involvement in conflict resolution situation process.

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 22

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

34. Follow documentation the procedures, of all necessary steps taken to resolve the
problem/complaint.

 Conclusion:
To a great extend the aggravation of industrial problems depends on manager's approaches
and attitude in effective handling of employees grievances. Care should be taken in the way
managers approaches the problem and perceiving the pros and cons of the situation. The
conflict management approaches include the win-win strategy that help in the healthy
organizational practices and which reflects the strong organizational culture.

Q.6 Explain Managerial grid in detail?

The managerial grid model (1964) is a behavioral leadership model developed by Robert
Blake and Jane Mouton. This model originally identified five different leadership styles
based on the concern for people and the concern for production. The optimal leadership
style in this model is based on Theory Y. The grid theory has continued to evolve and
develop. Robert Blake updated it with (?) in (?) (Daft, 2008). The theory was updated with
two additional leadership styles and with a new element, resilience. In 1999, the grid
managerial seminar began using a new text, The Power to Change.

The model:
The model is represented as a grid with concern for production as the X-axis and concern
for people as the Y-axis; each axis ranges from 1 (Low) to 9 (High). The resulting
leadership styles are as follows:

• The indifferent (previously called impoverished) style (1,1): evade and elude. In this style,
managers have low concern for both people and production. Managers use this style to
preserve job and job seniority, protecting themselves by avoiding getting into trouble. The
main concern for the manager is not to be held responsible for any mistakes, which results
in less innovative decisions.

• The accommodating (previously, country club) style (1,9): yield and comply. This style has
a high concern for people and a low concern for production. Managers using this style pay
much attention to the security and comfort of the employees, in hopes that this will increase

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 23

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

-performance. The resulting atmosphere is usually friendly, but not necessarily very
productive.

• The dictatorial (previously, produce or perish) style (9,1): control and dominate. With a
high concern for production, and a low concern for people, managers using this style find
employee needs unimportant; they provide their employees with money and expect
performance in return. Managers using this style also pressure their employees through rules
and punishments to achieve the company goals. This dictatorial style is based on Theory X
of Douglas McGregor, and is commonly applied by companies on the edge of real or
perceived failure. This style is often used in case of crisis management.

• The status quo (previously, middle-of-the-road) style (5,5): balance and compromise.
Managers using this style try to balance between company goals and workers' needs. By
giving some concern to both people and production, managers who use this style hope to
achieve suitable performance but doing so gives away a bit of each concern so that neither
production nor people needs are met.

• The sound (previously, team) style (9,9): contribute and commit. In this style, high concern
is paid both to people and production. As suggested by the propositions of Theory Y,
managers choosing to use this style encourage teamwork and commitment among
employees. This method relies heavily on making employees feel themselves to be
constructive parts of the company.

• The opportunistic style: exploit and manipulate. Individuals using this style, which was
added to the grid theory before 1999, do not have a fixed location on the grid. They adopt
whichever behaviour offers the greatest personal benefit.

• The paternalistic style: prescribe and guide. This style was added to the grid theory before
1999. In The Power to Change, it was redefined to alternate between the (1,9) and (9,1)
locations on the grid. Managers using this style praise and support, but discourage
challenges to their thinking.

Description:
Leaders may be concerned for their people and they also must also have some concern for
the work to be done. The question is, how much attention to they pay to one or the other?
This is a model defined by Blake and Mouton in the early 1960s.

Concern for People High Country Club Team management

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 24

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

management

Middle of the road

Medium
management

Impoverished
Low Authority-compliance
management

Low Medium High

Concern for Production (Task)

Impoverished management:

Minimum effort to get the work done. A basically lazy approach that avoids as much work
as possible.

Authority-compliance:

Strong focus on task, but with little concern for people. Focus on efficiency, including the
elimination of people wherever possible.

Country Club management:

Care and concern for the people, with a comfortable and friendly environment and collegial
style. But a low focus on task may give questionable results.

Middle of the road management:

A weak balance of focus on both people and the work. Doing enough to get things done, but
not pushing the boundaries of what may be possible.

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 25

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Team management:

Firing on all cylinders: people are committed to task and leader is committed to people (as
well as task).

Discussion:
This is a well-known grid that uses the Task vs. Person preference that appears in many
other studies, such as the Michigan Leadership Studies and the Ohio State Leadership
Studies. Many other task-people models and variants have appeared since then. They are
both clearly important dimensions, but as other models point out, they are not all there is to
leadership and management.

The Managerial Grid was the original name. It later changed to the Leadership Grid.

Developed by the founders of our company, Drs. Robert R. Blake and Jane S. Mouton, The
Managerial Grid graphic below is a very simple framework that elegantly defines seven basic
styles that characterize workplace behavior and the resulting relationships. The seven managerial
Grid styles are based on how two fundamental concerns (concern for people and concern for results)
are manifested at varying levels whenever people interact.

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 26

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

The Seven Managerial Grid Styles:

I expect results and take control by clearly stating a course of action. I enforce rules that sustain high
results and do not permit deviation.

I support results that establish and reinforce harmony. I generate enthusiasm by focusing on positive
and pleasing aspects of work.

I endorse results that are popular but caution against taking unnecessary risk. I test my opinions with
others involved to assure ongoing acceptability.

I distance myself from taking active responsibility for results to avoid getting entangled in problems.
If forced, I take a passive or supportive position.

I provide leadership by defining initiatives for myself and others. I offer praise and appreciation for
support, and discourage challenges to my thinking.

I persuade others to support results that offer me private benefit. If they also benefit, that’s even better

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 27

 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

in gaining support. I rely on whatever approach is needed to secure an advantage.

I initiate team action in a way that invites involvement and commitment. I explore all facts and
alternative views to reach a shared understanding of the best solution.

Grid Relationship Skills:

The Grid theory translates into practical use through Grid style relationship skills that
people experience day in and day out when they work together. These relationship skills
depict the typical and vital behaviors for each style that make relationships effective or
ineffective. Some behaviors strengthen and motivate teams while others obstruct progress.

 Critique - Learning from experience by anticipating and examining how behavior and
actions affect results
 Initiative - Taking action to exercise shared effort, drive, and support for specific activities
 Inquiry - Questioning, seeking information, and testing for understanding
 Advocacy - Expressing attitudes, opinions, ideas, and convictions
 Decision-Making - Evaluating resources, criteria, and consequences to reach a decision
 Conflict Resolution - Confronting and working through disagreements with others toward
resolution
 Resilience - Reacting to problems, setbacks, and failure, and understanding how these
factors influence the ability to move forward

Grid theory makes behaviors as tangible and objective as any other corporate commodity. By
studying each of the seven Leadership Grid styles and the resulting relationship skill behaviors,
teams can examine, in objective terms, how behaviors help or hurt them. They can explore types of
critique that work best for them and why. They can openly discuss how to improve decision-making
and conflict resolution skills. These and other subjects usually considered "off limits" in terms of
productivity are the very subjects that usually impede productivity. The Grid approach makes these
subjects not only "discussable" but measurable in objective terms that generate empathy, motivation
to improve, and creativity.

RAHUL GUPTA, MBAHCS (1ST SEM), SUBJECT CODE-MBOO27, SET-2 Page 28