Unit 1

Introduction to Human Resource Function of Management

Q1) Define the meaning of human resource management. Also state the objectives of human resource management.             5

A1) Human Resource Management (HRM) is the term used to describe formal structures devised for the management of people inside an organization. The responsibilities of a human resource manager fall into three primary areas: staffing, employee compensation and benefits, and defining/designing work.

The National Institute of Personnel Management (NIPM) of India has defined human resource/personnel management as “that part of management which is concerned with humans at work and with their relationship within an enterprise. Its purpose is to deliver collectively and boost into an advantageous employer of the men and ladies who make up an organization and having regard for the well-being of the persons and of working groups, to enable them to make their best contribution to its success”.

The primary objective of HRM is to ensure the availability of right people for right jobs so as the organisational goals are achieved effectively. The objectives are-

1. To help the organisation to attain its goals effectively and efficiently by providing competent and motivated employees.

2. To utilize the available human resources effectively.

3. To increase to the fullest the employee’s job satisfaction and self-actualisation.

4. To develop and maintain the quality of work life (QWL) which makes employment in the organisation a desirable personal and social situation.

5. To help maintain ethical policies and behaviour inside and outside the organisation.

6. To establish and maintain cordial relations between employees and management.

Q2) Discuss the functions of human resource management.            8

A2) Human resources (HR) professionals conduct a wide variety of tasks within an organizational structure. A brief review of the core functions of human resource departments will be useful in framing the more common activities a human resource professional will conduct. The core functions are discussed below:

Figure: Functions of HRM

a)     Staffing

This includes the activities of hiring new full-time or part-time employees, hiring contractors, and terminating employee contracts. Staffing activities include:

1. Identifying and fulfilling talent needs (through recruitment, primarily)
2. Utilizing various recruitment technologies to acquire a high volume of applicants (and to filter based on experience)
3. Terminating contracts when necessary
4. Maintaining ethical hiring practices and aligning with the regulatory environment
5. Writing employee contracts and negotiating salary and benefits

b)    Development

On-boarding new employees and providing resources for continued development is a key investment for organizations, and HR is charged with maintaining a developmental approach to existing human resources. Development activities include:

1. Training and preparing new employees for their role
2. Providing training opportunities (internal training, educational programs, conferences, etc.) to keep employees up to date in their respective fields
3. Preparing management prospects and providing feedback to employees and managers

c)     Compensation

Salary and benefits are also within the scope of human resource management. This includes identifying appropriate compensation based on role, performance, and legal requirements. Compensation activities include:

1. Setting compensation levels to match the market, using benchmarks such as industry standards for a given job function
2. Negotiating group health insurance rates, retirement plans, and other benefits with third party providers
3. Discussing raises and other compensation increases and/or decreases with employees in the organization
4. Ensuring compliance with legal and cultural expectations when it comes to employee compensation

d)    Safety and Health

Achieving best practices in various industries include careful considering of safety and health concerns for employees. Safety and health activities include:

1. Ensuring compliance with legal requirements based on job function for safety measures (i.e. hard hats in construction, available counseling for law enforcement, appropriate safety equipment for chemists, etc.)
2. Implementing new safety measures when laws change in a given industry
3. Discussing safety and compliance with relevant government departments
4. Discussing safety and compliance with unions

e)     Employee and Labor Relations

Defending employee rights, coordinating with unions, and mediating disagreements between the organization and its human resources is also a core HR function. Employee and labor relations activities include:

1. Mediating disagreements between employees and employers
2. Mediating disagreements between employees and other employees
3. Considering claims of harassment and other workplace abuses
4. Discussing employee rights with unions, management, and stakeholders
5. Acting as the voice of the organization and/or the voice of the employees during any broader organizational issues pertaining to employee welfare

Q3) Write the distinctions between HRM and HRD.        8

A3) The differences between HRM and HRD are highlighted below-

Q4) Explain briefly the functions of human resource development. 8

A4) Some of the significant functions of human resource development are discussed below-

Figure: Functions of HRD

1. Performance Appraisal:

Employees’ performance appraisal or merit-rating is an important function of the HRD. This is necessary for the HRD to assess the relative efficiency of various workers as reflected in their performance of their jobs. While job evaluation is concerned with the rating of the job to be performed, performance appraisal or merit-rating is concerned with the rating of the workers on their jobs. HRD has to perform this function to analyse and classify the differences amongst the workers vis-a-vis job standards.

2. Employee Training:

The next function of the HRD is to provide proper training to its employees or workers. Training is the act of increasing the knowledge and skills of an employee for doing a particular job. Training is considered to be the corner-stone of sound personnel administration. The employees could be systematically and scientifically trained, if they are to do their jobs effectively and efficiently.

3. Executive Development:

Another important functions of the HRD is to provide for executive development in the organization. Executive development is the programme by which executive capacities to achieve desired objectives are increased. Programme must be related to development of various inter-related matters, factors and needs.

Executive capacities involve different individual abilities of present and prospective managers at different levels of management. The desired objectives include objectives of the concern, its executives and the persons to be managed.

4. Career Planning and Development:

The next function of HRD is career planning and development. Career planning is a systematic process by which an individual selects his career goals and the path to these goals. From the organisation’s point of view, career planning means helping the employees to plan their career in terms of their capacities within the context of the organisation’s requirements. Career planning and development involve formulation of an organizational system of career improvement and growth opportunities for employees from the time of their appointment in the organization to their retirement time.

5. Successful Planning and Development:

The HRD is also required to perform the function of planning and development of the business of the organization in successful manner. For this purpose, it has to plan every aspect of its organization and develop the same successfully.

6. Organisational Change and Development:

Another main function of the HRD is the organizational change and development. It involves organizational diagnosis, team building, task force and other structural and process interventions such as role development, job enrichment, job re-designing etc.

7. Involvement in Social and Religious Organisation:

The HRD manager should arrange for social and religious programmes and enable the employees to learn from each other. Such programmes enable the employees to interact closely with each other, open up their cognitions, share the strengths etc.

8. Involvement in Quality Circles:

Quality Circle is a self-governing group of workers with or without the supervisors who voluntarily meet regularly in order to identify, analyse and solve problems of their work field. This process of solving problems voluntarily enables the workers to learn decision-making and problem-solving skills from each other.

9. Involvement in Workers’ Participation in Management:

The participation of workers in management enables the representatives of both the management and the workers to share and exchange their ideas and view-points in the process of joint decision-making in the organization. The joint decision-making process creates a plat-form for mutual learning and development. Therefore the HRD managers should encourage the workers to participate in the management of the organisation.

Q5) Define the meaning of human resource planning. Also discuss the functions of human resource planning.         2+8

A5) Human resource planning (HRP) is the continuous process of systematic planning ahead to achieve optimum use of an organization's most valuable asset—quality employees. Human resources planning ensures the best fit between employees and jobs while avoiding manpower shortages or surpluses. Human resource planning is a process via which the right candidate for the right job is ensured. For conducting any process, the foremost vital task is to develop the organizational objective to be achieved via conducting the said process.

Nature of human resource planning

The nature of HR planning are discussed below-

I. Assessing Future Personnel Needs:

Whether it is surplus labour or labour shortage, it gives a picture of defective planning or absence of planning in an organization. A number of organizations, especially public sector units (PSUs) in India are facing the problem of surplus labour. It is the result of surplus labour that the companies later on offer schemes like Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) to eliminate surplus staff. Thus, it is better to plan well about employees in advance. Through HRP, one can ensure the employment of proper number and type of personnel.

II. Foundation for Other HRM Functions:

HRP is the first step in all HRM functions. So, HRP provides the essential information needed for the other HRM functions like recruitment, selection, training and development, promotion, etc.

III. Coping with Change:

Changes in the business environment like competition, technology, government guidelines, global market, etc. bring changes in the nature of the job. This means changes in the demand of personnel, content of job, qualification and experience needed. HRP helps the organization in adjusting to new changes.

IV. Investment Perspective:

As a result of change in the mind set of management, investment in human resources is viewed as a better concept in the long run success of the enterprise. Human assets can increase in value as opposed to physical assets. Thus, HRP is considered important for the proper planning of future employees.

V. Expansion and Diversification Plans:

During the expansion and diversification drives, more employees at various levels are needed. Through proper HRP, an organization comes to know about the exact requirement of personnel in future plans.

VI. Employee Turnover:

Every organization suffers from the small turnover of labour, sometime or the other. This is high among young graduates in the private sector. This necessitates again doing manpower planning for further recruiting and hiring.

VII. Conformity with Government Guidelines:

In order to protect the weaker sections of the society, the Indian Government has prescribed some norms for organizations to follow. For example,  reservations for SC/ST, BC, physically handicapped, ex-servicemen, etc in the jobs. While planning for fresh candidates, HR manager takes into consideration all the Government guidelines.

VIII. International Expansion Strategies:

International expansion strategies of an organization depend upon HRP. Under International Human Resource Manage­ment (IHRM), HRP becomes more challenging. An organization may want to fill the foreign subsidiary’s key positions from its home country employees or from host-country or from a third country. All this demands very effective HRP.

Q6) What do you mean by job analysis? Also discuss the types of job analysis. 12

A6) Job Analysis is the starting point of recruitment and selection. It is a systematic process of collecting and studying information about the various jobs in the organisation.

Edwin Flippo defines "lob analysis is the process of studying and collecting information relating to the operations and responsibilities of a specific job,"

Job analysis consists of two areas:

• Job Description
• Job Specification

I. Job Description

Job description gives details of the job in respect of job title, duties and responsibilities, location of the job, working conditions, and other relevant details describing the job. It is an overall summary of job requirements. The job description describes every aspect of the job. Job description once prepared is reviewed periodically and revised in the light of changing conditions.

According to Edwin Flippo "a job description is an organised, Tactual statement of duties and responsibilities of a specific job. In wne, it should tell what is to be done, how it is done and why. It is a standard of function, in that it defines the appropriate and authorised content of a job."

Contents of Job Description:

1. Job identification:

It gives details relating to the job title, code number of the occupation, location, name of the division/department, location and the unit where the job exists. This part of job analysis helps to identify the job and to provide designation to job holder.

2. Job Summary:

It gives brief details of the job contents in terms of tasks or activities to be performed. Also, brief details are stated relating to the hazards and discomforts relating to the job.

3. Duties and Responsibilities:

It indicates the duties to be performed-what, how and why of a job. It also describes job responsibilities relating to custody of valuables and records, supervision and training of subordinates, and other responsibilities towards effective performance of the job.

4. Relationship with Other Jobs:

It indicates internal (within the organisation) relationship of the job with other jobs that are horizontal, vertical and diagonal. It also indicates external relationship such as relationship with customers, dealers, Government officials, trade associations, etc.

5. Machines and Tools:

It states the type of machines, tools and equipments that are to be used for the performing the job activities, Therefore, candidates who can handle the machines and tools properly are considered for selection.

6. Supervision:

It indicates the extent of supervision which the job is subject to from higher levels, and the extent of supervisions which the job holder has to exercise over subordinates. Designations of immediate superior and subordinates may also be stated.

7. Social Environment:

The social environment prevailing in the organization may be stated in the job description. Such description enables to job holder to adjust with the social environment at the work place

8. Working Conditions:

The working conditions are also a part of the job description. The working conditions include:

• Health hazards such as ventilation, illumination, nerve strain, eye strain, noise, heat, dust and other occupational hazards.
• Location such as factory/office, inside/outside, solitary team oriented, underground/on-ground, etc.
• Posture such as standing, sitting, lifting, walking, stopping etc.
• Rest Period such as the number of rest periods, and the duration of each rest periods or breaks.
• Speed of work such as fast or moderate or slow.
• Timings such as single shift, rotational shift, day, night, overtime, peak loads, etc.

Uses of Job Description:

• It facilitates job grading and classification.
• It provides the base for preparing job specification, thus facilitating recruitment and selection.
• It enables the newly appointed candidate's decision to accept or reject the job.
• It ensures proper orientation to the newly selected employees.
• It enables proper placement of employees on the job.
• It facilities proper performance appraisal.
• It enables promotion and transfer of employees.
• It enables employees to adopt health and safety measures.
• It helps to develop work procedures.
• It assists in career planning and development of employees.
• It facilitates employee counselling and guidance.
• It enables the organisation to design compensation and incentive plans.
• It helps to develop effective training and development programmes.
• It helps to avoid or minimise accidents.
• It helps to reduce employee grievances.

II. Job Specification

It gives details of the candidate who is supposed to do a particular job with reference to qualities, qualifications, experience, gender, family background, etc. It is an overall written summary of employee requirements. Job specification provides a standard of an employee for possessing the required qualities and qualities to perform the iob efficiently and effectively.

Edwin Flippo defines "job specification is a statement of the minimum acceptable human qualities necessary to perform a job properly."

Contents of Job Specification

Figure: Contents of job specifications

1. Mental Characteristics – It includes general intelligence, aptitude, mental alertness, ability to concentrate, analytical reasoning, logical reasoning, creativity and innovativeness, etc.
2. Personal Characteristics- It includes age, gender, education, work experience, leadership qualities, pleasing personality and manners, communication skills, dispute solving skills, technical skills, conceptual skills, etc.
3. Physical Characteristics - includes height, health, hearing, vision, voice, poise, motor coordination, physical stamina, etc.
4. Social and Psychological Characteristics – It includes emotional stability, cooperativeness, human skills, conversational skills, social relations, introvert/ extrovert, social citizenship behavior, etc.

Q7) Explain in brief the role of human resource planning in an organisation.  8

A7) The role of human resource planning in an organisation are discussed below-

Figure: Role of HRP

I. Assessing Future Personnel Needs:

Whether it is surplus labour or labour shortage, it gives a picture of defective planning or absence of planning in an organization. A number of organizations, especially public sector units (PSUs) in India are facing the problem of surplus labour. It is the result of surplus labour that the companies later on offer schemes like Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) to eliminate surplus staff. Thus, it is better to plan well about employees in advance. Through HRP, one can ensure the employment of proper number and type of personnel.

II. Foundation for Other HRM Functions:

HRP is the first step in all HRM functions. So, HRP provides the essential information needed for the other HRM functions like recruitment, selection, training and development, promotion, etc.

III. Coping with Change:

Changes in the business environment like competition, technology, government guidelines, global market, etc. bring changes in the nature of the job. This means changes in the demand of personnel, content of job, qualification and experience needed. HRP helps the organization in adjusting to new changes.

IV. Investment Perspective:

As a result of change in the mindset of management, investment in human resources is viewed as a better concept in the long run success of the enterprise. Human assets can increase in value as opposed to physical assets. Thus, HRP is considered important for the proper planning of future employees.

V. Expansion and Diversification Plans:

During the expansion and diversification drives, more employees at various levels are needed. Through proper HRP, an organization comes to know about the exact requirement of personnel in future plans.

VI. Employee Turnover:

Every organization suffers from the small turnover of labour, sometime or the other. This is high among young graduates in the private sector. This necessitates again doing manpower planning for further recruiting and hiring.

VII. Conformity with Government Guidelines:

In order to protect the weaker sections of the society, the Indian Government has prescribed some norms for organizations to follow. For example, reservations for SC/ST, BC, physically handicapped, ex-servicemen, etc. in the jobs. While planning for fresh candidates, HR manager takes into consideration all the Government guidelines.

VIII. International Expansion Strategies:

International expansion strategies of an organization depend upon HRP. Under International Human Resource Manage­ment (IHRM), HRP becomes more challenging. An organization may want to fill the foreign subsidiary’s key positions from its home country employees or from host-country or from a third country. All this demands very effective HRP.

IX. Having Highly Talented Manpower Inventory:

Due to changing business environment, jobs have become more challenging and there is an increasing need for dynamic and ambitious employees to fill the positions. Efficient HRP is needed for attracting and retaining well qualified, highly skilled and talented employees.

Q8) Discuss about the factors that influence in human resource planning in an organisation.                                                                                   12

A8) The factors that influence human resource planning are discussed under the following heads-

Figure: factors of HRP

External Factors:

i. Government Policies – Policies of the government like labour policy, industrial relations policy, policy towards reserving certain jobs for different communities and sons-of the soil, etc. affect the HRP.

Ii. Level of Economic Development – Level of economic development determines the level of HRD in the country and thereby the supply of human resources in the future in the country.

Iii. Business Environment – External business environmental factors influence the volume and mix of production and thereby the future demand for human resources.

Iv. Level of Technology – Level of technology determines the kind of human resources required.

v. International Factors – International factors like the demand for resources and supply of human resources in various countries.

Vi. Outsourcing – Availability of outsourcing facilities with required skills and knowledge of people reduces the dependency on HRP and vice-versa.

Internal Factors:

i. Company policies and strategies – Company policies and strategies relating to expansion, diversification, alliances, etc. determines the human resource demand in terms of quality and quantity.

Ii. Human resource policies – Human resources policies of the company regarding quality of human resource, compensation level, quality of work-life, etc., influences human resource plan.

Iii. Job analysis – Fundamentally, human resource plan is based on job analysis. Job description and job specification determines the kind of employees required.

Iv. Time horizons – Companies with stable competitive environment can plan for the long run whereas the firms with unstable competitive environment can plan for only short- term range.

v. Type and quality of information – Any planning process needs qualitative and accurate information. This is more so with human resource plan; strategic, organisational and specific information.

Vi. Company’s production operations policy – Company’s policy regarding how much to produce and how much to buy from outside to prepare a final product influence the number and kind of people required.

Vii. Trade unions – Influence of trade unions regarding number of working hours per week, recruitment sources, etc., affect the HRP.

Essentials of a Good Human Resource Planning

The essentials of good human resource planning are discussed below-

i. There should be a proper linkage between HR plan and organizational plan.

Ii. Top management support is essential.

Iii. Proper balance should be kept between the qualitative and quantitative approaches to HRP.

Iv. Involvement of operating managers is necessary.

v. Proper alignment between short-term HR plans and long-term HR plans should be there.

Vi. HR plan should have in-built flexibility in order to adopt environmental uncertainties.

Vii. Time period of HR plan should be appropriate to needs and circumstances of the organization.

Q9) Discuss the steps involved in job analysis. Also state the distinctions between job analysis and job description.                12

A9) The steps involved in job analysis process are discussed below-

Figure: Job analysis process

1. Determination of Uses of Job Analysis:

Job analysis begins with determination of uses of job analysis. Job analysis has variety of uses. Earlier it was used for recruitment and selection and later its coverage increased. Therefore, before analysing the job, the organization should define the uses of job analysis. Because, without knowing the purpose, required information cannot be collected. In large organizations, it is undertaken in comprehensive, systematic and in written form. But in small organizations the process is generally informal and is used for limited purposes.

2. Strategic Choices in Job Analysis:

There are certain strategic choices with regard to job analysis which are described below:

(a) Employees Involvement:

Before analysing the job, it is advisable to know the extent of employee’s involvement in the job, because a job holder knows better about the job and it is easy to collect the information about the job from job holders. But the question is whether job holder should be involved in the process as there are every possibilities of inflating the duties and responsibilities of his job by the job holder. If employees are not involved, they tend to become suspicious about the process undertaken by the organization. Therefore, extent of employees involvement in the job should be understood along with the adverse effect on employees before job is being analysed. Action should be taken to convince the employees, the object of conducting the job analysis programme and their co-operation should be sought.

(b) Level of Details of Analysis:

Job analysis may be made in-depth or it can be completed without going in to the details. It is therefore necessary to define the level of details of analysis. Generally, objectives and use of analysis determine the level of details of analysis along with nature of job. Job of routine nature with limited responsibilities requires fewer details whereas dynamic and non-repetitive job requires detailed analysis.

(c) Frequency and Timing of Analysis:

Frequency of job analysis and time during which analysis is to be undertaken is also another important factor to be considered while analysing the job.

Generally job analysis is conducted under the following circumstances:

(i) When an organization is newly established or new job is created in an organization or

(ii) When job restructuring and rationalization is initiated in the organization or

(iii) When there is no relation between job demand and remuneration or

(iv) When there is a change in technology, method & procedure of doing a job.

(d) Past Oriented vs. Future Oriented:

Generally job analysis is made on the basis of past performance. But due to rapid change in the technology a future oriented approach may have to be initiated depending upon the change in the nature of job requirements. Future oriented job analysis allows an organization to initiate the process of acquiring and developing employees in advance. For example in many organizations, typewriters are replaced with computers and organization have to prepare & develop their employees accordingly.

3. Information Collection:

The next step to be followed in the process of job analysis is information collection for job analysis which involves the following sub steps:

(a) Type of Information to be Collected:

In deciding the type of information to be collected, all details about the job need to be gathered. It may be related to description of work like why, when and how, task is performed, machines, tools, and equipment used, job contents, personal requirement of job holder etc.

(b) Method to be adopted to Collect the Information:

With regard to method to be applied to collect the data, there are several methods like observation, interview method, questionnaires, checklists, technical conference etc. Use of a particular method depends on type of information required for job analysis.

(c) Persons Involved in Information Collection:

Persons generally involved for gathering information are – trained job analysts, supervisors, job incumbents or job holders. Trained job analysts maintain objectivity, consistency in information collection and reporting but intrinsic factors of job may be missed by them. Supervisors ensure speedy collection of information and there will be better familiarity with job contents and contexts but they have time constraints and they lack skill required for job analysis. Job holders provide information with greater familiarity but their opinion may be biased and they lack skills in providing relevant information for job analysis. However, type of persons to be involved in the process of data collection ultimately depends on the purpose of job analysis and the nature of job to be analysed.

4. Information Processing, Job Description and Job Specification:

The last step in the process of job analysis is processing of information collected which involves editing and classification of information in to different relevant components which are helpful in the preparation of job description and job specification. Job description refers to the description of duties, responsibilities, and requirement of a particular job. Job specification is the statement that describes the minimum acceptable qualifications that a job holder should possess to perform the job successfully.

The differences between job description and job specifications are discussed below-

Q10) What is quality circles? State the functions and objectives of quality circles. 8

A10) Quality circle is a people building philosophy based on the premise that an employee doing a particular job is biggest expert of that field and thus is in a better position to identify, analyse and resolve the work related problems through their innovative and unique ideas. By solving their work related problems, the employees reduce the rejection rate, rework and thus their mental tensions are reduced, enabling them to work with total commitment and dedication. It is a voluntary group of employees, who are doing the same or similar type of job, meet together on a regular’ basis to identify, analyse and solve their work related problems leading to improvement in their work, performance and- enrichment of their work life. The number of circle members could vary from 5 to 15 but the ideal size of a circle is 7 or 8 members. The number of members should be such that the circle is effective.

Features of quality circles

1. People Building Philosophy – A quality circle is a homogeneous group. The number of employees in a quality circle is between six to ten and they generally come from a particular area. It consists of small group of persons who normally work at the same place and perform similar work. Every member and the management have the sincere desire to help others to grow and develop. They must look out for the development and growth of everyone working in the organisation.

2. Voluntary Group – No coercion or pressure is brought on any member to join or not to join. Nor can any member be barred from joining quality circles. Quality circles are voluntary associations of persons having common cause. Members must understand that quality circles are formed for their benefit—they are completely free to take or not to take advantages of it.

3. Participative Program – Quality circles represent collective effort. Every one working in the organisation must get a chance to say what is in his mind. Everyone should have interest and value for the projects chosen for quality circles. The circle as a whole should receive recognition for any achievements accomplished by it.

4. Supportive Management – Quality circles need the encouragement to grow and mature. Management must be willing to give support, advice and also some commitment in the beginning. Members normally meet once in a week for about one hour in consultation with the manager. Each quality circle is managed by an elected leader and the manager/supervisor may act as the leader.

5. To Improve the Performance – Collective and participative efforts must result in the improvement of quality, productivity and performance. Cost and wastage must be reduced as a result of quality circles. The whole organisation must gain both quantitatively as well as qualitatively.

6. Enrichment of Work life – Apart from team culture and attitudinal changes, the quality circles must result in improved working environment, happier relations and greater job satisfaction.

7. To Identify and Resolve Work Related Problems – Members of quality circles identify their problems through brainstorming sessions. Then they start analysing the problems through statistical quality control techniques and problem solving methods. A unique feature of Quality Circles is that they do not pass on the decision without interacting with other levels of functional agencies.

8. The focus is on quality related problems.

Objectives of quality circles

(i) To develop, enhance and utilise human resources effectively;

(ii) To improve quality of products/services, productivity and reduce cost of production per unit of output;

(iii) To satisfy the workers’ psychological needs for self-urge, participation, recognition etc., with a view to motivating them. Accomplishment of this objective will ensure enhancement of employee morale and commitment;

(iv) To improve various supervisory skills like leadership, problem solving, inter-personal and conflict resolution; and

(v) To utilise individual imaginative, creative and innovative skills through participation, creating and developing work interest, including problem solving techniques etc. Achievement of these objectives effectively requires the use of certain techniques.

(vi) To make use of the knowledge and skills of the workers.

(vii) To develop good relations between workers and managers and create cordial industrial relations.

Q11) Explain briefly about the qualitative and quantitative dimensions of human resource planning.                                 8

A)    A11) Quantitative dimensions of HR planning

Variables Determining the Quantity of Human Resources:

1. Population Policy:

Some population policies operate by influencing the factors responsible for growth such as fertility, marriage and mortality. These are known as population influencing policies. Another category of policies known as responsive policies are implemented to adjust to observed population trends with the help of programmes like health, nutrition, education, housing, etc. The aim of population policies is to achieve an optimum population for enhancing the country’s development.

2. Population Structure:

The structure or composition of the population is determined by two factors, sex composition and age composition.

(i) Sex Composition:

Sex ratio is the ratio of males to females in the population. It is the basic measure of the sex composition of the population of any area. Higher the number of females, higher will be the population growth rate in future.

(ii) Age Composition:

It is the distribution of population by age groups. Age composition is the result of past trends in fertility and mortality. The supply of labour depends on age composition as economically active population falls in range of 15-65 age groups.

3. Migration:

Net migration is another factor which causes changes in the population. Age and sex composition determine the natural growth in population, but for calculating the overall changes in population it is important to consider net migration also.

Net migration = total immigrants – total emigrants

A positive net migration will lead to a rise in population growth rate while negative net migration will reduce the growth rate of population. Migration can be both inter­regional and international.

4. Labour Force Participation:

The population of any country consists of workers and non-workers. The workers are the people, usually in age group of 15-65, who participate in economically productive activities by their mental or physical presence.

These include:

i. Employers,

Ii. Employees,

Iii. Self-employed persons, and

Iv. Those engaged in family enterprises without pay.

The others in the population are the non-workers such as students, infants, elderly, beggars, retired people, inmates of jail or mental institutions, unemployed, etc. They do not contribute to any productive economic activity. It is the changes in the working population which affect the growth of human resources. The number of people who are unemployed but available for work also impacts the availability of labour.

Qualitative Aspects/dimensions of Human Resource Planning:

The quantitative dimensions help to ascertain human resources in numbers while the productive power of human resources is assessed by the qualitative dimensions. For example, there may be hundreds of applicants for 20 vacancies, but out of these only a few may meet the quality standards required for the job.

Factors which determine the quality of human resources are:

1. Education and Training:

The quantity and quality of education and training received by human resources impacts their knowledge and skills. Education and training are important for the upliftment of both individual and society. It can be of two types, formal and informal. Formal education is imparted through schools and colleges while informal education and training takes place through on-the-job training methods. Formal education stresses the transfer of theoretical knowledge, while informal education emphasizes on practical application of knowledge.

2. Health and Nutrition:

Health and nutrition along with education are vital for Human Resource Development. Health and nutrition impact the quality of life, productivity of labour and the average life expectancy. Health status is determined by:

(i) Purchasing power of people.

(ii) Public sanitation, climate and availability of medical facilities.

(iii) People’s understanding and knowledge of health, hygiene and nutrition.

3. Equality of Opportunity:

Not all segments of people comprising human resources get equal employment opportunities. There is bound to be some discrimination. The most common forms of discrimination are:

(i) Social discrimination – Discrimination on basis of gender, religion or social standing.

(ii) Economic discrimination – Discrimination based on financial positions or possession of wealth by the sections of workforce.

(iii) Regional discrimination – These are in form of discrimination between rural and urban population or between people belonging to different regions/ states.

Discrimination affects the quality and productivity of the human resources belonging to different sections of the population. The privileged classes get access to best education, nutrition and health facilities while underprivileged are deprived of their right share in the development process. For the overall, well rounded development of the country’s human resources, effective policies need to be implemented to deal with the problem of discrimination.

Q12) What is job analysis? What kind of tools and techniques are used for job analysis.                                            5

A12) Job Analysis is the starting point of recruitment and selection. It is a systematic process of collecting and studying information about the various jobs in the organization.

Edwin Flippo defines "lob analysis is the process of studying and collecting information relating to the operations and responsibilities of a specific job,"

The tools and techniques/ methods for job analysis are discussed below-

Figure: Tools and techniques of job analysis

1. Questionnaire:

This is a widely used method for collecting data pertaining to job. The questionnaire is structured in such a fashion that all data about nomenclature of jobs, description of duties, machines and equipment used, working conditions etc. can be collected. The questionnaire is filled both by employees/subordinates and supervisors. The questionnaire should be very clear, understand­able and relevant. If the questionnaire is not able to bring out responses of employees/managers, it should be discarded and fresh questionnaire should be made.

2. Written Narratives:

In this system, the employee keeps a daily record of major duties performed, marking the time when each task is started and finished. This forms the basis of narratives which become a tool in getting the information relating to different jobs. They may be incomplete and unorganized, thus you need to supplement it with interviews etc.

3. Observations:

In this method the job analyst personally observes the job while people are doing it. He checks the tasks performed on the job, the pace of work, working condition, job hazards involved etc. in any one work cycle. Based on these observations he makes a job analy­sis. This method has one major limitation. It is that the analyst has to be very careful about what information to observe and what not to observe. Also after observation, he should know how to analyse.

4. Interviews:

The analyst in this method personally interviews the employees while they are performing the job. A standard format is used to collect data collected from different employees. The analyst asks standard job related questions. These interviews are often used with observation tool to clarify all questions related to the jobs being analysed. In this analysis, employees may not always come out with the real information about job but an intelligent analyst has the ability to shift relevant information from irrelevant one.