Human Resources Planning - Assignment Example

Human Resources Planning Human Resources Planning Question In order to forecast its supply and demand, the organization must understand the nature of the market and the services that are demanded out there. The demand forecasting takes many techniques, including informal methods such as quantitative methods and educated guesses. The company relies on the sales data and demand projected from the test markets to make pricing decisions. The assessment is important to make future decisions and formulate a suitable HR strategy. The forecasting strategy adopted by the organization aims to estimate the future market and HR demands in order to minimize forecast error. The factors that influence the demand for products and services, as well as skills competencies are put into consideration and how these factors may continue to influence demand. The company’s supply chain boosts for lower inventories, smoother production plans, reduced stock-outs, and improved customer service as a result of better forecasting techniques. The supply technique adopted by the organization is effectively done to ensure that production is done for the right quantities and the right time. For this reason, the suppliers of YWCA Niagara have always strived to find ways to match demand and supply in order to achieve optimal levels of cost, customer service, and quality that guarantees a competitive advantage with other suppliers, especially in the HR market (Armstrong, 2007). The YWCA Niagara supply chain is designed in such a way that problems that affect delivery may have ramifications throughout the chain. Demand and supply in the human resource department are done by reviewing the data available in the HR audit and projections made for future HR demand and supply. The internal labor force in the organization may be affected by temporary factors such as leaves and permanent factors such as deaths. One of the core methods used by the company to forecast the future HR supply is trend analysis. The method is based on the assumption that past ratios and trends in the movement of employees is stable and is a reliable indicator of the future trends and the necessary ratios of employee movement (Belcourt, & Belcourt, 2012). The company makes use of the information collected in HR audit and employment data analysis to identify the labor patterns. The examination of past trends enables the HR department to predict the effect of similar activities in the future of the organization since the HR department makes the assumption that the factors will remain stable and unchanged. Although trend analysis is not used alone, it is considered as the most necessary step in understanding the current workforce and the assumptions that the HR department can make. For instance, the review of the historical employee data of the organization has revealed that every year, a significant number of employees retire, others resign, and a small number is dismissed. The trend analysis technique allows for the future forecast of the HR supply based on the assumption that an average reduction of HR supply of a certain percentage occurs every year. The HR demand technique used by YWCA Niagara is the competency/ skills model. This involves building on the inventory of skills available and the required skills. The HR performs the duty by matching the right competencies required for each job with the competencies and skills available within the organization. Unlike the other techniques that make the prediction based on the head count, the skills technique aims to identify the skills demand of the organization and the skills supply in the labor market. The latter helps in the focusing of future recruitments, retentions, selection of the suitable candidates, and competency demand and supply within the organization (Reece, 2012). At the same time, YWCA Niagara’s HR department forecasts the skills needed for the success of the organization. Sometimes, the demand for the skills is created based on supply and the nature of the competitive market. Presently, YWCA Niagara has moved away from focusing on skills as a demand technique to focusing on competencies. This is with the goal of recruiting employees with the right set of behavior, abilities, knowledge, and personal attributes (Saks, Haccoun, Belcourt, & Belcourt, 2010). When skills are focused alone, YWCA Niagara may end up with a workforce with strong technical skills but with low personal attributes and qualities. Therefore, although the other models are still being used in the organization, the competency technique of forecasting HR demand has been the most preferred because it enables the organization to get the right employees (YWCA Niagara Region, 2015). The HR considers the skills and competencies available in the organization and the competency gaps that need to be filled. This is followed by advertisement of the suitable candidates with the identified skills which are then interviewed, and the most competent is chosen. An interview work sample will assess the following: (1) the academic qualifications of the candidate to fill the position [example question: what is your highest level of education?]; (2) the work experience of the candidate [example question: for how long have you held similar positions and how are the positions related to the current position?]; (3) ability of the candidate to deal with challenges associated with the position applie for [Sample question: how will you deal with challenges in this position?] Question #2: One of the job positions that need to be filled in the company is that of the Executive Assistant. Since every organization needs to develop a proper and suitable strategic plan, the position of an Executive Assistant is important based on the competency model of the position. The Executive Director is busy personnel who may be required to perform numerous roles and may not successfully deliver without the help of the assistant. In the succession management method, the HR department is required to develop a strategy for the succession of any job post within the organization with the right people who have the right education and experiences. In the case of the position of the Executive Assistant, its suitability in the organization is based on the aspect of the succession of roles. The Executive Assistant is also expected to liaise with community agencies and partners on behalf of the executive director and assist in the management of staff records. Similarly, being an assistant to the Executive Director, he or she is fit to perform any role performed by the Executive Director. In other words, based on the succession management and analysis of roles in the organization, it is clear that the Executive Assistant is a position that nurtures and ensures that the organization has sufficient talent pool to fill the position of a vacant Executive Director in the future. The deputation of the Executive Director roles by the Executive Assistant puts the assistant in a better position to fill the post in case the Executive Director is unable or unavailable to deliver to the organization. There is no need of looking for candidates from outside the organization since one has been recruited already. Another position that directly reports to the Executive Director and is, therefore, a potential talent pool for the position of the Executive Director is the Operations Manager. The position is designed in such a way that the manager can understand all the operations and activities taking place in the organization. This is also a requirement for the Executive Director. In this position, the Operations Manager is in a position to understand everything that he or she needs to understand as the Executive Director in the future. For instance, the Operations Manager is the custodian of the strategic plan. This means that he can also hold the position of the Executive Director directly from his position in the future. Although the position of Accounting Coordinator directly reports to the Executive Director, it is only involved with financial matters and not the entire operations of the organization. For this reason, the individual who filled this position may not satisfy all the requirements for the Executive Director post. He or she needs further exposure in other activities of general operations and management in the organization. In the second step of succession management after the identification of key positions, an interview is conducted with the skills and competencies of the personnel weighed against the available post. In this case, all the job descriptions given may be weighed for filling the position of the Executive Director post. The Executive Director is required to understand all the operations of the firm and all other managers report to him. Based on managers’ feedback, it is clear that the position of the Accounting Director does not satisfactorily suit that of the Executive Director. The Accountant needs further exposure in HR, Operations, Supply, and other departments that are crucial to the growth and development of the business. The assessment of the position of the Operations Manager also reveals that the manager is exposed to all activities and operations of the organization. Nevertheless, the operations that he or she is exposed to are general management and are not specific to those performed by the Executive Director. This implies that the Operations Manager requires further induction and training to fit in the post. The assessment of the skills required for promotion to the preferd position will be based on reports submitted by supervisors. For instane, the current Executive Diretor will be required to submit reports on the performance of the Executive Assistant. Such reports will be relied upon when selecting the suitable candidate for the management position. At the same time, self-nomination will also be used, especially when the candidate demonstrates the ability to perform in all dimensions. Based on the above assessment, it is clear that the organization has a large employee pool for filling the Executive position in the future. However, only the Executive Assistant best suits Director position since the role is directly related with that of the Executive Director. The Operations Manager may fill the position of the Executive Assistant in the future in order to learn the specific duties and roles of the Executive Director. Based on the job summary and descriptions as well as interviews and manager reports, it is clear that the organization has reserved talents to fill higher positions in the future. References Armstrong, M. (2007). A handbook of human resource management practice. London [u.a.: Kogan Page. Belcourt, M., & Belcourt, M. (2012). Strategic human resources planning. Toronto: Nelson Education. Reece, B. L. (2012). Human relations: Principles and practices. Mason, OH: South-Western, Cengage Learning. Saks, A. M., Haccoun, R. R., Belcourt, M., & Belcourt, M. (2010). Managing performance through training and development. Toronto: Nelson Education. YWCA Niagara Region, (2015). Retrieved April 3, 2015 from: http://www.ywcaniagararegion.ca/ Read More