HR

prepared by :
ESRAA

Q1
 1. What are the qualities and qualifications of a human resource
manager?

8 Key Qualities of an HR Manager

 Sympathetic Attitude
 Quick Decisions
 Integrity
 Patience
 Formal Authority
 Leadership
 Social Responsibility and motivation
 Good Communication Skills

# Here, we outline four essential qualities of a good HR

managers that one can develop in order to advance up the
career ladder.

1. Be Aware Of Ethical Responsibilities

 

Successful HR managers understand and embrace their role as the conscience of

their organizations. HR professionals are entrusted with many different types of
confidential information, and nothing less than the absolute security and protection of
that information from unauthorized disclosure is acceptable. HR professionals must
exhibit complete honesty and discretion when working with every member of their
organization.

While HR managers do work directly for the managers and owners of their company,
they have a duty to faithfully ensure that all actions towards employees and staff are
above board, legal, and fair. Understanding the organizational chart and chain of
command is essential to a good HR manager when potential ethical issues must be
addressed to the appropriate person or group in the event that any situation requires
disclosure to a responsible person. While this duty is often difficult, any organization
worth being part of will appreciate candor, honesty, and the highest ethical standards
from their HR professionals.

2. Be a Great Communicator
 

A core function of every HR professional is to act as an organization’s facilitator of

effective communication between employees and management/ownership. This role
requires quality written and oral communication skills. An HR manager’s audience
includes all current employees, prospective employees, managers, and ownership,
and the full spectrum of modern written communication methods (including social
media) should be properly put to use. Above all, communications from HR must be
open, transparent, caring, and trustworthy.

In order to build strong communication within their organization, a good HR manager

should be as personal as possible. Focusing on employee needs and their personal
lives when possible builds trust and believability. Always ask for feedback when
possible and be sure to actually listen and respond as needed.

3. Develop Outstanding Leadership and

Conflict Management Skills
 

One of the other top qualities of a good HR manager is full confidence in their
leadership abilities. Employees often look first to HR for answers and clarity on many
company issues. HR is typically considered the expert, and quality leadership on
delivering information and promoting employee satisfaction can and should be
handled at the HR level whenever possible. Leadership for HR professionals means
promoting friendly and helpful relations in all cases while maintaining company
objectives and policies.

4. Become an Expert in Organization and

Multitasking
 
Every HR department requires strong organization, and HR professionals need
personally strong work habits and time-management abilities to be successful. HR
offices should set an example for an entire organization, so sloppy filing or office
management should be avoided. Both employees and management expect timely
and proper handling of routine tasks, and effective organizational skills can help
keep things running smoothly.

An ordinary day for an HR professional includes a wide variety of tasks and duties,
including hiring, firing, recruiting, conflict resolution, and management meetings.
Self-discipline and multitasking are an essential part of the job.

Q2:

Supposing you have been appointed as the HR manager of a newly

established organization with more than 1000 employees of different
categories. Outline the policies you would put in place and give your
rationale for each.
Proposed policies for our organization
1) Employment policy
a)Recruitment
The recruitment of staff of the desired quality and in sufficient numbers is
a primary
requisite for the maintenance of a high standard of service to our clients,
in turn; the continued progress of the organization relies.
To ensure that the success of the organization is not hampered by lack
of suitable personnel, from time to time the
Human Resource Manager will recruit suitable personnel.
The policy outlines; recruitment procedures, advertising (internally &
externally) of vacant positions, Head hunting procedure, short listing,
terms of employment contract, Permanent terms or casual,
Qualifications and requirements e.g Certificate
of good Conduct, References, academic certificates etc.
b)Interview
Based on the large numbers to be interviewed, recommended on an
interview method of selection, whether to be individual, panel or
selection boards. The policy outlines the interview procedures e.g
who is to conduct the interview (internally or
outsourcing interviewing Co.), how the interviews are conducted-
aptitude test, oral
interview, email, telephone etc.
c) Selection & Posting (placement)
This policy outlines selection criteria for a suitable candidate and the
deployment procedure
2)Performance management Policy
a)Appraisals
i)Balanced Scorecard
ii)Performance contract
b)Work plans

3)Compensation Policy
It is the goal of any company to maintain levels of pay
and benefits that are competitive
with the average compensation of employers offering
similar employment and competing
in the same labour market. This is in the form of:-
i)Salary (remuneration)
ii)Overtime
iii)Commission
iv)Bonus
v)Promotion
vi)Certificate of recognition
vii)Reward in kind

4)Code of ethics & Conduct

a)Sexual harassment
b)Conflict of interest
A conflict of interest involves a conflict between duty as
a staff of an organization,and personal or private
interests. Conflicts of interest can also be perceived or
potential.
e) Working Hours
This policy states the time at which the employees
report to work in the morning and
leave in the evening. It also captures when an employee
is working overtime.
5) Discipline Policy and procedure
Discipline is generally administered when an employee
violates a company policy or falls
short of work expectations, and managers must act to
remedy the situation. Discipline usually progresses
through a series of steps- warning, reprimand,
probation, suspension,
disciplinary transfer, demotion, and discharge. This
policy will therefore spell out the
disciplinary procedure and punishment depending on
the case at hand.
6)Staff benefits
Staff or employee benefits and benefits in kind (also
called fringe benefits, perquisites, perks) are various
non-wage compensations provided to
Employees in addition to their normal wages or salaries
. Where an employee exchanges (cash) wages for some
other
form of benefit, this is generally referred to as a 'salary
sacrifice' arrangement. In most
countries, most kinds of employee benefits are taxable
to at least some degree.

7)Retirement Benefits policy

Conclusion
All these policies when compiled in one booklet may
be referred to as
staff manual.
Policies depend on the strategies of an organization.
These policies must be inline with the labour laws,
human rights and the
constitution.
The policies should also have a clause on how they
can be amended to
incorporate any changes.

Q3
What is career development? Explain the stages involved in it.

What Is Career Development?

Career development is the process of self-knowledge, exploration, and
decision-making that shapes your career. It requires successfully navigating
your occupational options to choose and train for jobs that suit your
personality, skills, and interests.
When you’re in the thick of building your career and figuring out what you want to
do with your life, the journey can seem very random and arbitrary. But whether
you realize it or not, you’re always moving through the following six stages of
career development.

Stage 1: Assessment
For most people, this stage begins after they graduate from college. You may know
a few things you enjoy doing, but you aren’t fully aware of your skill sets and what
you have to offer in the workforce.

At this stage, you should focus on self-awareness and getting feedback from other
people about your strengths and weaknesses. Taking self-assessment tests or
working with a career coach can help you move through this phase with more ease.

Stage 2: Investigation
At this stage, you start to become more aware of all of the options available to you.
If you’re feeling confused or overwhelmed, then you’re probably doing it right.

During this stage, you should begin networking and talking to professionals that
are a few years ahead of you. They can offer guidance on what worked for them
and the steps they took to identify their career path.

It’s important to have a positive attitude and keep an open mind during the
investigation stage. You may be surprised by the opportunities that sound
interesting to you.

Stage 3: Preparation
Once you reach the preparation stage, you’re working in your chosen profession
and beginning to gain more knowledge and skills. You’re also starting to set career
goals and think about your future.

This stage is one of the most exciting because you’ve finally gained some clarity
and are beginning to make forward momentum.
Many people at this stage realize that they still aren’t working in their ideal
position, but that’s normal. This stage is about building the experience you need to
move to the next point in your career.

Stage 4: Commitment
Once you reach the commitment stage, you’ve narrowed in on the type of work
you want to do and you have a specific action plan for moving forward. You’re
focused on finding new opportunities and taking on additional responsibilities at
work.

It’s important not to lose focus or become distracted at this point in your journey.
Instead, take the time to lean into your network and focus on career development.

Stage 5: Retention
By now, you’re a respected professional within your industry, and other people
look to you as a leader. Your knowledge and experience have made you a proven
expert within your field.

It feels great to reach the retention stage, but there are downsides as well. Many
people get comfortable at this stage, relax and stop trying to grow and progress
further.

It’s essential to keep growing, improving your skill sets and staying current with
industry standards. And you should continue looking ahead and anticipating future
career milestones.

Stage 6: Transition
Once you’ve become an expert in your field, you may reach a point at which you
conclude that you’ve gone as far as you can go within your current position or
industry. You may feel unsure of what your next steps are or what else you would
enjoy doing.
At this point, it’s time to transition to the next phase of your career. The transition
stage is an uncomfortable point to be at because it can feel like you are starting
over from scratch. Fortunately, you’ve already built the resiliency and self-
awareness you need to figure out what your next move is.

The process of transitioning will look different for everyone. It could involve
taking on another position in your industry or changing industries altogether.

Q4
1. Throw a debate for and against seniority vs. merit based promotion.

Advantages of Promotion based on Seniority

1. Seniority is an objective basis for promotion and so each
employee is sure of getting promotion.

2. It develops a sense of loyalty among the employees and

the morale of the employees will be higher.
3. It limits the scope for favoritism, casteism, nepotism, etc.

4. It avoids disputes among employees regarding promotion.

5. It encourages the employees to work hard and efficiently.

6. If seniority is accepted as the basis for promotion,

management can’t abuse their privilege of selecting the best
man.

Disadvantages of Seniority based promotion

1. Since the employees are sure of getting promotion, it makes
them lethargic in performing their duties.

2. New brilliant employees will be left with no motivating factor

for improving their performance, if eligibility for better jobs
depends just upon their length of service. This leads to
greater labour turnover. As a result, overall production of the
concern will be very much affected.
3. Talented and average workers are considered alike.
Promotion is made by giving weightage only to seniority, and
efficiency of the workers is not at all considered.

Advantages of Promotion based on Merit

1. Since efficiency and talents are rewarded, it encourages the
employees to increase their knowledge in maintaining a
high level of productivity.
2. It helps in putting the most productive and competent person
for specialized jobs.

3. New employees are also encouraged to improve their

performance as promotion is made on the basis of competence,
capability and efficiency.

4. It results in overall improvement of the organization.

Disadvantages of Merit based promotion

1. It may result in partiality, nepotism, favoritism, casteism,
etc., by the management.
2. Senior employees in the organization may become
unsatisfied and they may indulge in certain activities that may
lead to industrial unrest, strikes, lockouts, etc.

3. Merit as a basis of promotion is normally opposed by workers

and their representatives. They give more importance to the
seniority factor.

4. Promotion of employees on the basis of merit requires proper

method of performance appraisal or merit rating. But, normally
formulation of correct method of performance appraisal may
not be done.
From the above discussion, it is clear that each one has its own
merits and demerits. The best method of promotion should be
one which is a combination of both i.e., Seniority and Merit.
Merit should be given primary importance but together with
merit due weightage should be given to seniority of the
employees also. Seniority should be considered only where the
merit of competing employees is substantially equal. But, when
the qualifications are different, only efficient one should be
promoted.

1. Q5
How to retain and control people in the organization?

Employee retention strategies for

increasing job satisfaction
1. Onboarding and orientation — Every new hire should be set up for success
from the start. Your onboarding process should teach new employees not only about
the job but also about the company culture and how they can contribute to and thrive
in it. Don’t skimp on this critical first step. The training and support you provide from
day one, whether in person or virtually, can set the tone for the employee’s entire
tenure at your firm.

2. Mentorship programs — Pairing a new employee with a mentor is a great

component to add to your extended onboarding process, especially in a remote work
environment. Mentors can welcome newcomers into the company, offer guidance
and be a sounding board. And it’s a win-win: New team members learn the ropes
from experienced employees and, in return, they offer a fresh viewpoint to their
mentors.

3. Employee compensation — It’s essential for companies to pay their employees

competitive compensation, which means employers need to evaluate and adjust
salaries regularly. Even if your business can't increase pay right now, consider
whether you could provide other forms of compensation, such as bonuses.

4. Perks — Perks can make your workplace stand out to potential new hires and re-
engage current staff, all while boosting employee morale.

5. Wellness offerings — Keeping employees fit — mentally, physically and

financially — is just good business.

6. Communication — The pandemic helped underscore the importance of good

workplace communication..

7. Continuous feedback on performance — Many employers are abandoning the

annual performance review in favor of more frequent meetings with team members.
In these one-on-one meetings, talk with your employees about their short- and long-
term professional goals and help them visualize their future with the company..

8. Training and development — As part of providing continuous feedback on

performance, you can help employees identify areas for professional growth, such as
the need to learn new skills.

9. Recognition and rewards systems — Every person wants to feel appreciated

for the work they do. And in today’s “anywhere workforce,” an employer’s gratitude
can make an especially big impact.

10. Work-life balance — What message is your time management sending to

employees? Do you expect staff to be available around the clock? A healthy work-life
balance is essential to job satisfaction. People need to know their managers
understand they have lives outside of work — and recognize that maintaining
balance can be even more challenging when working from home. Encourage
employees to set boundaries and take their vacation time. And if late nights are
necessary to wrap up a project, consider giving them extra time off to compensate.

11. Flexible work arrangements — As business offices reopen after the pandemic
forced their closures, many companies are preparing for the fact that some of their
employees will still want to work remotely, at least part time. In fact, a Robert Half
survey found that 1 in 3 professionals working from home would look for a new job if
they were required to return to the office full time.