Master of Business Administration- MBA Semester 1

MB 0043 / MBF 106 Human Resource Management

Roll No: 1302011493

Question 1: Explain the scope or functions of Human Resource Management.

Answers 1: Functions of Human Resource Management are follows:
HRM in Personnel Management: This is typically direct manpower management that
involves manpower planning, hiring (recruitment and selection), training and
development, induction and orientation, transfer, promotion, compensation, layoff
and retrenchment, employee productivity. The overall objective here is to ascertain
individual growth, development and effectiveness which indirectly contribute to
organizational development.
It also includes performance appraisal, developing new skills, disbursement of
wages, incentives, allowances, traveling policies and procedures and other related
courses of actions.
HRM in Employee Welfare: This particular aspect of HRM deals with working
conditions and amenities at workplace. This includes a wide array of responsibilities
and services such as safety services, health services, welfare funds, social security
and medical services. It also covers appointment of safety officers, making the
environment worth working, eliminating workplace hazards, support by top
management, job safety, safeguarding machinery, cleanliness, proper ventilation and
lighting, sanitation, medical care, sickness benefits, employment injury benefits,
personal injury benefits, maternity benefits, unemployment benefits and family
benefits.
HRM in Industrial Relations: Since it is a highly sensitive area, it needs careful
interactions with labor or employee unions, addressing their grievances and settling
the disputes effectively in order to maintain peace and harmony in the organization.
It is the art and science of understanding the employment (union-management)
relations, joint consultation, disciplinary procedures, solving problems with mutual
efforts, understanding human behavior and maintaining work relations, collective
bargaining and settlement of disputes.
The main aim is to safeguarding the interest of employees by securing the highest
level of understanding to the extent that does not leave a negative impact on
organization. It is about establishing, growing and promoting industrial democracy to
safeguard the interests of both employees and management.

Question2: (A) Define Wage & Salary. (B) What are the factors affecting wage
administration?
Answers 2: (A) The term wage is commonly used for those employees whose pay is calculated
according to the number of hours worked. Thus, the weekly pay check will fluctuate as the number
of hours actually worked varies. The word salary applies to compensation that is uniform from one
period to the next and does not depend upon the number of hours worked.
Salaried often implies a status distinction, because those who are on salary are generally whitecollar, administrative, professional, and executive employees, whereas wage-earners are designated
as hourly, non-supervisory, or blue-collar. Wage-earners in some organizations do receive full wage
if they are absent for such reasons as sickness, whereas salaried employees, especially at the lower
levels, often receive overtime pay when they work over the standard work week.

A job is defined as the collection or aggregation of tasks, duties, and responsibilities that, as
a whole, is regarded as the reasonable assignment to an individual employee
(B)

Factors affecting wage administration are as follows

The organizations ability to pay -Wage increases should be given by those organizations which can
afford them. Companies that have good sales and therefore high profits tend to pay higher wages
can retain their employees.
Supply and demand of labour -If the demand and certain skills are high and the supply is low the
result is rise in the price to be paid for these skills.
The living wage -Employers feel that the level of living prescribed in workers budget is opened to
argument since it is based on subjective opinion.
Job requirements -Jobs are graded according to the relative skill responsibility and job conditions
required.
Trade unions bargaining power -Trade unions do affect the rate of wages. Generally the stronger
and more powerful trade union, higher the wages.
Productivity -Productivity is another criterion and is measured in terms of output man-hour. It is not
due to labour efforts alone. Technological improvements, greater ingenuity and skill by the labour
are all responsible for the increase in productivity.
Prevailing market rate -This is also known as comparable wages or going wage rate. Reason
behind this is competition demand that competitors adhere to the same relative wage level.

Question 3: What are the different types of on the job & off the job training?
Answers 3: Types of on the job & off the job training are as:
Online Job Training
Job Rotation: The trainee receives job knowledge and gains experience from his
supervisor or trainer in each of the different job assignments. Though this method of
training is common in training managers for general management positions, trainees
can also be rotated from job to job in workshop jobs.
Coaching: The trainee is placed under a particular supervisor who functions as a
coach in training the individual. The supervisor provides feedback to the trainee on
his performance and offers him some suggestions for improvement.
Apprenticeship: Apprenticeship is a formalized method of training curriculum
program that combines classroom education with on-the-job work under close
supervision. The training curriculum is planned in advance and conducted in careful
steps from day to day.
Committee Assignments: Under the committee assignment, group of trainees are
given and asked to solve an actual organisational problem. The trainees solve the
problem jointly. It develops team work.
Offline Job Training
Classroom Lecture: In lecture method trainers used to communicate with spoken words which they
want the trainees to learn, it is primarily one way communication of learned capabilities from trainer
to audience. It is least expensive and least time consuming way to present large amount of
information efficiently in organized manner.
Audio visual training: Audio visual instruction includes overheads, slides and video. Video can be
used for improving communication skills and customer service skills, it can also illustrate how
procedures can be followed.
Case Studies: This method involves studying cases from all perspectives, analyzing the various
options available to the company for solving problems or address issues and arriving at most suitable
answers
Role Play: The trainees act out a given role as they would in a stage play. Role players are informed
of a situation about the respective roles that they have to play. Role playing basically covers topics
such as employee-employer relationships, hiring, firing, conducting a post-appraisal interview.

Business Games: This method requires trainees to gather information, analyze it and make
decisions. Business games are primarily used for management skill development.

Question 4: What is the need for Performance reviews? What are the benefits of
carrying out performance appraisal in organisations?
Answers 4: Need for Performance Appraisal are follows:
Provide information about the performance ranks basing on which decision regarding salary fixation,
confirmation, promotion, transfer and demotion are taken.
Provide feedback information about the level of achievement and behaviour of subordinate. This
information helps to review the performance of the subordinate, rectifying performance deficiencies
and to set new standards of work, if necessary.
Provide information which helps to counsel the subordinate.
Provide information to diagnose deficiency in employee regarding skill, knowledge, determine
training and development needs and to prescribe the means for employee growth provides
information for correcting placement.
To prevent grievances and in disciplinary activities.

Benefits of carrying out performance appraisal in organisations are as follows:

Increase motivation to perform effectively

Increase staff self-esteem
Gain new insight into staff and supervisors
Better clarify and define job functions and responsibilities
Develop valuable communication among appraisal participants
Encourage increased self-understanding among staff as well as insight into the kind
of development activities that are of value
Distribute rewards on a fair and credible basis
Clarify organizational goals so they can be more readily accepted
Improve institutional/departmental manpower planning, test validation, and
development of training programs

Question5: Explain the impact of globalization on HRM

Answers 5: Impact of globalization on HRM
Globalization: Globalization is a polarizing subject that is not easily defined.
Globalization allows for increased competition, lifts barriers to entry for developing
countries, helps to promote economic growth and works to unify the world's
economies. However, with this unification of economies, comes interdependence.
Meaning, the negative events in major industrial nations such as the United States
has a significant impact on the economies in other countries. In addition, the
economic growth of one country can mean the economic contraction of another.
Recruitment: Globalization makes for a larger labour pool from which to choose, but
it also increases the possibility of language and cultural barriers in the recruitment
process. If the company does not address such barriers, it can make the recruitment
process increasingly time-consuming and difficult. Human resource managers must
adapt to the different customs and cultures when hiring employees in different
countries. Language barriers also may necessitate hiring bilingual employees and
adapting employee documents, such as employee manuals and training materials,
into different languages.

Labour Laws: Labour laws can differ greatly from one country to the next. With
increasing globalization, human resources managers must stay abreast of the labour
laws of the countries in which they operate to ensure that the company is not
inadvertently breaking these laws. Additionally, human resource management
should make certain that they are not taking advantage of labour laws that may be
more lax in other countries than those in their native country. For example, child
labour is illegal in the United States, but in different countries, this is not the case.
Human resources management should implement hiring and training practices that
are consistent for all countries in which the company operates.
Labour Force Implications: Globalization has a significant effect on the labour force
of a company. It allows for more diversity within the corporation as well as economic
growth for the countries in which the company is hiring. However, unless the
corporation is creating new jobs in different countries and not simply moving
existing jobs from one country to another, job growth for one country equals job
losses for another. Human resources manager should be aware of the negative
effect downsizing can have on employee morale because decreased morale often
leads to decreased production. Human resources should have proactive procedures
in place that address such morale issues.

Question 6: Ms. Swapna is the HR Manager of ABC Pvt Ltd. She wants to ensure
that employee discipline is well maintained. What are the important principles
that have to be observed in the maintenance of discipline?
Answer 6: Important principles that have to be observed in the maintenance of discipline
are as follows
As far as possible, all the rules should be framed in co-operation and collaboration
with the representatives of employees. If the latter have a share in formulating
them, will be much more likely to observe them.

All the rules should be appraised at frequent and regular intervals to ensure that
they are, and continue to be, appropriate sensible and useful.
Rules should vary with changes in the working conditions of employees. Those
framed for office employees, for example, may very well be different from those that
are formulated for workers in an industrial concern.
Rules should be uniformly enforced if they are to be effective. They must be applied
without exception and without bending them or ignoring them in favour of any one
worker.
Penalties for any violation of any rule should be clearly stated in advance. Employees
have the right to know what to expect in the event of any infringement of a rule or
regulation. For this purpose, it is better to publish them in the employees' handbook.
A disciplinary policy should have as its objective the prevention of any infringement
rather than the simple administration of penalties, however just it should be
preventive rather than punitive.
Extreme caution should be exercised to ensure that infringements are not
encouraged. This should be done as a matter of policy.
If violations of a particular rule are fairly frequent, the circumstances surrounding
them should be carefully investigated and studied in order to discover the cause or
causes of such violations.
Recidivism must be expected. Some offenders would almost certainly violate rules
more often than others. These cases should be carefully considered so that their
causes may be discovered.
Definite and precise provisions for appeal and review of all disciplinary actions
should be expressly mentioned in the employees' handbook for collective
agreements
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