Human Resources in Healthcare and Employee Socialisation - Essay Example

? Final Examination 2. Healthcare is a purely service-driven industry...our product is our peoples. Healthcare organizations cannot provide top-quality, leading-edge health service without attracting and retaining qualified professionals who are dedicated to providing the best patient care possible. Please discuss how healthcare organizations go about designing a recruitment program. The advantages (and disadvantages) of internal vs. external candidates, and alternative selection tools that are employed. From a retention standpoint, discuss the factors related to employee turnover and the steps an organization can take it improve retention. Recruitment involves the generation of a pool of applicants qualified for a specific job. As defined by Fried and Fottler (2008), it refers to a set of processes used by organisations to attract individuals qualified for a given job in a timely fashion and in sufficient volumes and to promote their application of jobs available in the organisation. The human resource plan informs the approach to be used in designing the recruitment processes. This would guide on the recruitment strategies to use, the kind of applicants needed for the organisation to achieve its intended objectives and the process of recruiting and hiring. The designing process starts with analysing a job to determine the knowledge, skills, abilities and tasks associated with the job and therefore develop the qualifications that applicants should meet. Further, it would entail scanning the external environment to determine the supply for potential candidates and their competitiveness for the given job. This would include establishing compensation from competitors and available external recruitment sources. A review of past recruitment process for a similar position, if not the same position, guides on where to improve. This would lead to querying the human resources information system to evaluate the skills, experience, training and education of current employees. It also provides data of previous applicants, the cost of recruitment and information on the performance and retention of employees. This results in a well-defined and objective recruitment process. Internal candidates are already known to their organisation, including their performance and potential, thus the ability to make accurate decision on their fit for the job. Because these candidates are aware of the processes and procedures of the organisation, the start-up time for them is minimal. Additionally, providing internal candidates with arising opportunities boosts morale among workers, encouraging the productive ones to remain in the organisation. However, the movement of an employee to another position could create a disruptive ripple effect to the entire organisation. It has also been noted that internal candidates could be promoted to greater positions without necessarily meeting the required aptitude, especially among clinical staff in healthcare organisations. Therefore, an organisation could prefer to acquire external candidates who bring with them new perspectives and ideas. It also gives the organisation the ability to target candidates with specific knowledge and skills on the given job. These candidates are perfect for organisations marred with politics as they are not restrained by such politics. Even so, these external candidates could fail to fit in the organisation’s culture. Their abilities and skills are also uncertain as no primary data exists on their performance. Finally, orientation of these candidates consumes time. This has caused organisations to adopt other selection tools such as recruiting part-time workers, employee referral and engaging executive search firms or employment agencies. Organisations seek to adopt retention strategies to have employees stay with them. Job satisfaction and sensitivity to staff welfare determine staff turnover. Therefore, to curb high staff turnover, organisations aim at making their compensation competitive including giving loans at favourable conditions, signing bonuses, fringe benefits and premium pay. They also make their job structures appealing including creating autonomy and making working hours flexible. Another strategy involves hiring a brilliant supervisory and management team. Lastly, they increase the availability of career growth opportunities. 3. Organizational development and training are important in increasing an organization's effectiveness, leading to higher productivity, profitability, and employee satisfaction. Please discuss the different types of training that are offered _management - related, position-specific, and intervention, and the kinds of material that are covered in each. What are some types of on-the-Jon and off-the-job training, and what are the advantages of each? Since training doesn't stop in the classroom or meeting room, explain the formal and informal orientation processes by which employees are socialized into the organization. With training playing a critical role in promoting employees’ satisfaction and improving effectiveness and productivity, various types of trainings are available in healthcare setting. Management-related training involves training managers on the skills appropriate to effectively lead an organisation. These include quality improvement, anti-harassment, diversity, orientation of new employees and disaster preparedness. Secondly, position-specific training refers to training offered on specific fields in the healthcare organisations. Examples include patient-centred care, patient safety, use of a specific technology or equipment and leadership. Finally, training could also be offered to deal with a specific problem observed in an organisation, referred to as intervention training. This includes team-building, coaching, conflict resolution, adoption to change and customer service. Off-job training enhances concentration among the trainee employees. Role playing gives a realistic scenario, hence enabling learners to develop a set of skills necessary for the completion of a task. Lectures are useful when dealing with large groups or when information is being disseminated. For smaller groups, group discussion would be appropriate; an approach that allows sharing of thoughts and views among participants and suitable for idea generation. Finally, simulation entails a fictitious or even real situation which encourages working in groups to come up with solutions as groups evaluate each other. On the other hand, on-the job training involves job shadowing where an employee gets attached to a colleague or supervisor to learn from their daily activities in a given position. This approach has been noted to be beneficial when rapid transfer of knowledge is required or in the case of a complex position. Coaching could also be used as it provides timely correction and information to the trainee. Fried and Fottler (2008) observe that this approach requires the existence of mutual trust between the coach and the learner and also effective and tactful feedback. Employee socialisation occurs through orientation which could be formal through engaging the employee so as to form future expectations with the organisation or informal through being indoctrinated by other employees (Fried & Fottler, 2008). Employee socialisation starts informally when one researches from literature or website or consulting a former or current employee on an organisation. During the interview, the candidate gains more knowledge on the organisation. Orientation of new employees provides an opportunity for the employee to have questions regarding the organisation and the specific job answered. Organisations customise their orientation to realise maximum effectiveness. It informs on the structure, processes, practices, standards, policies and expectations of the organisation. It also gives detailed information on information related to the employee, including compensation, benefits, job duties, facilities, career planning and a tour of various departments. Furthermore, organisation-specific information gets to be relayed, including employee relations, community activities, policies and procedures, organisational overview and safety. Organisations adopt various strategies to make new employees feel welcomed and celebrated as this increases the rate at which such employees adopt into the culture of the organisation. Even so, Fried and Fottler (2008) advocate for provision of orientation in small bits so as to cause greater job satisfaction and cause the employee to remember more. Reference Fried, Bruce J. & Fottler, Myron D. (2008). Human resources in healthcare: Managing for success (3rd ed.). Arlington: Health Administration Publishers. Read More