Human Resource Management in Saudi Arabia - Assignment Example

Q1. Which term is used (most) in your organization/country? The most commonly used term in our organization, Alrajhi Bank, Saudi Arabia, and other large organizations is, ‘Human Resources Management (HRM), which was earlier referred to as Personnel Management by most of the large organizations. However, many public sector organizations and the small and medium enterprises in our country still continue to use personnel management. Which term do you think best describes the activities associated with employment management/the management of people? Why is this? Of the two terms associated with management of people, Human Resource Management fits the description better because HRM process focuses on strategic alignment of organizational goals with expectations from employees in all functions and areas. Whereas, personnel management deals only with employees and relates to them through documented contracts, agreements and compensation provisions. Due to the holistic and more meaningful approach involved in HRM, it is considered to be better than personnel management. Q2. From your own work experience, or from your reading, to what extent should people management be performed by HR specialists or line managers? My experience indicates that people management should be performed by both, HR specialists and the line managers. Why do you think this? People management is a very complex and sensitive aspect and requires different dimensions of management in order to achieve desired results. Line managers work closely with employees and are aware of their attitudes, behaviors, performance, skills and areas of improvement. Therefore, line managers would be the best people to judge employees based on performance and behavior. However, at a broader level, strategic alignment of employees’ goals to the organizational goals and setting the right organizational culture can be achieved through policies and procedures framed for the purpose. Hence, HR specialists can help in people management by guiding the employees in the right direction, identifying and resolving issues related to other dimensions such as adherence to policies, pay issues, implementing change in policies etc. In this manner, both line managers and HR specialists have significant role in people management. What are the implications of people management activities being performed by two professional bodies (HR & line managers) within an organization? People management involves various activities starting from selection and recruitment of employees to retirement or attrition of employees, including employee performance evaluation, growth and development, building relationships, and leadership aspects. These activities are assigned to both HR specialists and line managers depending upon their responsibilities. HR Specialists are involved in recruitment and selection of employees, facilitating employee exit and other such activities. Line managers are mainly responsible for employee performance evaluation, employee recognition, growth and development, and leading employees to follow organizational culture. What influences how HR operates? Think of external/environmental factors, internal/organizational factors and individual/personal factors. Various operating factors including external/environmental factors, internal/organizational factors and individual/personal factors influence the manner in which HR operates. External factors that impact HR functions are: Government policies to be followed; availability of required talent in the labour market; changes in economic conditions of the nation; social customs and culture; and, competition in the market. Internal factors within the organization impacting HR functions are, financial situation of the organization depending on the revenue generated, kind of technology used, leadership and support from other functions, organizational culture and environment, superior-subordinate relations, job security and employee satisfaction, and equality and diversity management practices. Thirdly, individual/personal factors contributing to this aspect are, educational qualifications and skill set of employees, psychology and maturity of individuals, job security and employee satisfaction, and equality and diversity management practices. What are the similarities and differences between the models? Various models of HRM have been proposed by different people considering specific or all aspects of HRM. Some of these models are formed based on previously proposed models and others are completely different. For instance, Michigan model refers to ‘hard’ HRM, concerned with practices and approaches required for achieving the organizational goals. Harvard model refers to ‘soft’ HRM, concerned with commitment and behavior of employees, situational factors, interests of customers and employees, and HR policies. Guest Model is an enhanced version of Harvard model in which HRM strategies are defined through practices, outcomes, behavior, performance and financial impact. Warwick model is on the similar lines that of Guest Model. Storey’s Model emerged as a combination of all these models divided into four broad categories: beliefs and assumptions, strategic aspects, line management and HR procedures. Although these models seem to overlap each other, significant differences can be pointed in each of them. Like, Michigan model referring to ‘hard’ HRM, considers employees as work-producing resources whereas Harvard model considers employees’ behavior and learning aspects. Guest’s Model exclusively draws relationship between HRM practices and their impact on organizational and individual performance and growth. Warwick’s model specifically links impact of external factors and internal factors on HRM and organizational performance. Lastly, Story’s model exclusively focuses on defining the desirable or ideal type of HRM to demonstrate differences between personnel and industrial relations. Do they reflect HR in other countries, such as Africa, India and China? These models have been evidences in HRM practices of other countries such as Africa, India and China. For example, some large companies and brands outsourced their work to China with an intention to gain more profits by reducing costs taking an advantage of low labour cost in China. This process depicts Michigan model of HRM that is oriented towards optimum resource utilization and maximum profits. Q2. How might HR strategy be formulated? HR strategy should be formulated by developing human resources in line with systems used within the organization. In addition to this, skill set of staff should be developed in order to meet or exceed organizational goals and the long-term organizational vision. How should/could HR contribute to corporate strategy formulation? HR contribution to corporate strategy formulation can be in areas of policy formulation, identifying skills required for specific jobs, manpower planning and recruitment according to organizational requirement, and recommending allocation of budget in projects for staff development. Q3. What are the relationships between the four key areas of HR? The four key areas of HR are aligned to the organizational goals and are interdependent on each other. All are involved in supporting the human resource planning to achieve high performance in every area, thus helping in achieving organizational goal. What other ‘people management’ activities might be included within the functions of an HR department? Other people management activities that can be included within the functions of HR department are providing good work environment, safety and security at workplace, implementing health care practices and benefits for employees and their families, and involve in conflict resolutions and other people issues through counselling and support. Q1. What factors are affecting the current labour market – whether local, national and/or global? The current labour market is being affected by different types of local, national and global factors. For example, political factors such as policies at a local level imposed by the government on work systems, nature of work, timing, imposition of taxes etc impact labour market. At a national level, the policies and procedures imposed by governments on systems of employment in other countries, and economic factors such as wage differentiation among native and foreign workers affect the labour markets. At the international or global level, scarcity of specific skilled and qualified labour are the affecting factors. How do these affect employment for women, graduates, older workers? These factors affect employment of women, graduates and older workers by reducing their chances to find suitable jobs. Due to these limitations, these groups of population are opting to develop other skills and exploring career opportunities in different fields. Q2. SME Case study: Books4U Please complete the activities associated with this case study, located on Blackboard under Resources. i) Given the current business situation, assess the need for succession planning and management development of your Team Leaders Succession planning aimed at achieving higher productivity at lower costs has to be the Team Leader’s goal in the present situation. This can be accomplished by employing part-time workers at lower pay scales. The older employees have to be motivated to perform better, and can be achieved through training them on new techniques employed by the company. The Team Leader can design a development plan for the older employees through guidance from a HR consultant. ii) Construct an HR plan for the next 3 years Expecting the company to grow two-fold in next 3 years, HRM planning should be aligned according to the expected growth. This planning should be in terms of number of employees to be recruited and assessment of required skill set and qualifications; development plans for existing employees must be designed and opportunities created; policies and procedures related to employee relationship have to be reframed by closing existing gaps, if any; planning and allocation of budget to every department after appropriate assessment; deciding the type of information and technology required; and finally, formulating a marketing design for the extended part of the organization. iii) Identify the HR implications of recruiting more staff Recruitment of more staff implies increased recruitment tasks for HR specialists, organizing more number of induction and training sessions, more challenges in terms of staff development and career succession plan for employees, and increased instances of issues and conflicts. HR department will have to be prepared to handle these challenges. Q3. Recruitment and selection How do you identify and recruit talent? Based on my experience at Alrajhi Bank, candidate skills have to be assessed appropriately, and this can be done through face-to-face interviews, administering tests based on desired skills for the job, and examining candidate attitude and behavior through interview and tests. The skill-assessment should be in accordance with skills required for performing the required job, and any unique skills possessed may also be noted. This type of skill assessment will help in selecting the right candidate based on behavior and attitude, and giving him/her the right responsibilities based on skills possessed. What are advantages and disadvantages of recruiting from the internal and external labour markets? Based on my experience, the advantages of recruiting from internal labour market include better and faster employee adaptability to the work environment attributed to their familiarity to the culture and environment; economically, standard pay scale can be achieved. Disadvantages of recruiting from internal labour market include lack of diverse skills and talent, thus limiting scope of thinking and innovation. Secondly, advantages of recruitment from external labour markets include advantage of diverse skills and expertise and potential to build positive competition among staff members besides inspiring staff to learn from each other. The disadvantages of recruiting from external labour market include increased unemployment levels in internal labour market and increased costs for the company in terms of higher pay scales, extra compensation costs such as those incurred on travelling, holidays etc. __________________________________________________________________________ Produce an up-to-date personal CV that you could send to a prospective employer. ____________________________________________________________________________ Name: Abdulelah ALKHOZAIM Address: Riyadh – Saudi Arabia B.o. Box 25429 Riyadh 11466 Call Number: 07545287655 E-Mail: abdo161616@hotmail.com Career Objective: To progress in the management cadre in an established organization that is oriented towards business and people through my exceptional team work, leadership and interpersonal skills. Academic qualifications: Bachelor’s degree in political sciences from King Saud University, 2002. Technical and other qualifications: • Computer diploma, (Alkhaleej institute 2005) • Certificate in business administration (middle east institute 2005) • Certificate of computer using (Horizon computer centre 2002) • Certificate of English Language, (Berlitz 9 months 2009) Brief work experience: • Human Resource Supervisor at Alrajhi Bank. May 2007- till date. • Computer Operator with Locheed Martin middle east services. May 2003- May 2005 • Administration specialist with Alsalam Aircraft Company. May 2005- May 2007 Skill-set: • MS Office proficiency. • Languages known: Arabic (mother tongue), English (second language) References: Available upon request ______________________________________________________________________________ Q4. Equal opportunities and diversity Whose responsibility is it to ensure fair employment practices? Potential for risk of biasness and injustice exists in employee relations with managers at all levels. Hence, fair employment practices have to be formulated by the HR manager that can act as control mechanisms to avoid bias and favoritism, and in turn promote equal opportunities and diversity. Is it acceptable for managers to discriminate against certain employees? Discrimination against certain employees is unethical and can divert employee’s focus from goal achievement. Thus, employees and organizations will fail to achieve their goals. Have you have ever been discriminated against in the workplace? How did you feel? How was it resolved? I faced discrimination at my workplace from my manager in the form of biasness, which made him prefer staff members who had graduated from the same University that he had attended. This made me feel demotivated, and as a result I expressed my concern to the General Manager about the issue. I requested him to transfer me to another department. My concern was addressed by transferring me to the desired department. Q1. To what extent does the shift from T&D to HRD parallel the move from personnel to HRM? Shift from personnel management to HRM entails shift of focus from employees as resources to organizational progress through employee development. Achievement of this shift of focus involves intermediary processes of developing human expertise through Training and Development along with motivating employees towards high performance through Organizational development. Hence, for organizational success, HRD and HRM are equally important. How important (strategic) is learning and development for an organization? Learning and development is very important for an organization as it prepares employees to handle challenges such as constantly changing technology, changing customer demands, changing markets, fluctuating economies and increasing employee expectations. In total, learning and development can help organization sustain its competitive edge in the market in all aspects such as finance, customer, operational efficiency and growth and development. What are the differences between learning, training, education and development? All these activities are processes of acquiring knowledge. Education is the knowledge acquired through academic courses at School and University level; training is knowledge acquired on specific technical aspects of work; learning is knowledge acquired through work experience, skills and behaviors; and, development refers to overall knowledge acquired through all these processes. Whose responsibility is it to improve skills – the individual, the organization, the government/state? Improvement of skills results in higher performance and better results on desirable outcomes. Hence, it is the responsibility of all three, the individual, the organization, and the government/state, to contribute to improvement of skills or knowledge. However, the individual must take the initiative of acquiring knowledge and improving skills that will help in better performance and overall development. Q2. Employee development What forms of employee development exist in your organization/organizations generally? My organization provides ample training and orientation to job for one month, which will help the employee to understand how to perform different tasks involved in the job. In addition to this, it also provides sponsorship programs to pursue other courses, professional and technical, with conditions attached. Apart from these, training programs to enhance soft skills, communication skills, computer skills are also conducted. Who is responsible for/involved in these? Providing employee development programs should be the responsibility of HRM and line managers based on assessment of required skills for every individual. Other departments like Finance department and the IT department can support the HRM in facilitating these programs. Are these activities effective? Why? These activities and programs will prove very helpful as they help in enhancing the skills required to perform the job more efficiently. Thus, they help in achieving higher performance and exceed the goals or targets. Overall, they indicate improved organizational performance. Q3. Management development What is the purpose of MD in your organization/organizations generally? The purpose of MD in my organization (Alrajhi Bank) is to achieve high level of staff and organizational development in order to achieve high profitability through high performance. Generally, MD’s main aim is to achieve organizational goal through high-performing employees and the best organizational systems. Who has management development? Usually, management development is implemented in large and international organizations which aim to achieve high profits, good customer satisfaction, best employee performance and overall growth and development. To what extent are the following effective for management development? Action learning Action learning is effective in preparing people to face challenges according to the situation. As the challenges vary with situation, it cannot be learnt through courses or academic degrees. Coaching and mentoring Coaching and mentoring are effective only in certain situations depending on the target audience or the recipients of these methods of learning. Learning through coaching and mentoring is most effective when done in the right way, to the right people and at right time. Projects and secondments Working and learning through projects and secondments are very effective in terms of learning from other’s experiences, learning to work in a team, and think differently. It provides an opportunity to share ideas and receive feedback or criticisms; analysing or reflecting upon the feedback and criticism will further enhance learning process. Thus, a lot can be learnt through team activity. Outdoor management development Outdoor management development can be effective if learning is to be achieved within specified time, or on specific project or area, and in case of inability to conduct this learning process within due to lack of time or expertise. Q 4. E-learning What is the purpose of e-learning? The main purpose of e-learning is to impart training and enhance skills without requiring the need to travel from one place to another, and to save time. This helps in easy and quick learning. To what extent is it used in your organization/organizations generally? Why? Usage of e-learning in my organization is limited to few employees who are eligible to avail the facility based on their nature of job. Employees involved in customer interaction usually work longer hours and has very little time to spend on e-learning. Most of the established organizations derive effective benefit from e-learning owing to the simplicity in its use and requirement of low investment. It helps to develop the skills of employees with ease and is time-saving. What are the factors influencing e-learning? Different factors influencing e-learning are technology, finance (investment required), level of qualification and time required for e-learning. What are the benefits and drawbacks? E-learning has proved to be beneficial in terms of extent of usage, with no limitations of time and/or distance, flexibility and user-friendly nature, and low investment required. On the other hand, its drawbacks may be found in terms of limitations to level of learning, level of control and difficulty in comprehending and resolving questions that arise during the course of learning. Explain the following dimensions of the employment relationship: • Economic: Economic dimension of the employment relationship refers to impact on employees and organizations based on salaries, allowances, incentives and other benefits such as insurance cover; in addition, it also refers to sub-total impact of all these on the community. • Political: Political dimensions of the employment relationship refers to compliance with the laws and regulations imposed by the government with respect to business and employment. • Legal: This dimension dictates two-way adherence to all contracts between organization and staff, organization and customers and share holders. • Psychological: This element of ER indicates healthy and satisfying work experience for the employees and their families free from all kinds of physical, mental and emotional trauma or stress. • Social: This dimension points at maintaining cordial social relationship between the staff inside and outside the organization at all levels. • Ethical/moral: These aspects relate to the development of employee relations with others based on the right principles and values; all employees have to be treated with respect and dignity; all employees must observe integrity at all times. In short, all employees have to demonstrate right behavior What are the differences between the formal employment contract and the ‘psychological’ contract? Formal employment contract refers to the written and signed legally bound contract between the employer and the employee concerning terms and conditions of the employment; all rules and regulations mentioned in the contract are meant to be mandatory for both employer and the employee. On the other hand, psychological contract is formed informally between employee and employer, or between two employees at same or different levels without the presence of any form of documentation, and is not legally bound by any means. This is formed on the basis of psychological emotions like empathy, confidence, emotional bondage, trust and faith. Identify some sources of conflict in organizations? Some sources of conflict in organizations are: • The conflict between the employee and employer caused due to differences in ideologies, ego, and values. • The conflict between staff and managers caused due to differences in ideologies, ego, values, money, lack of information etc. • The conflict between managers caused due to differences in ideologies, ego and values. • The conflict between staff caused due to differences in values, attitude, maturity and understanding, lack of information etc. • The conflict between departments within the organization caused due to differences in ideologies, goal alignment, selfishness etc. Is conflict a good thing? Why/why not? Conflict can be good or bad depending on the intention and outcome of conflict. For instance, if a conflict of approaches is resulting in improved performance or enhances development of staff and company systems, then it may be regarded as good and beneficial. However, if the conflict results in undesirable outcome, like attainment of selfish motives and personal interests against organizational goals and interests, it is bad for the employees and the organization. What are the differences between grievance and discipline? Discipline is the practice or policy regulating employee behavior towards co-workers and superiors, employees and their job; and, it governs the relationship between employees at all levels, and with the organization. In situations of conflicts, grievance procedure ensures continuity in the relationship between the employees and the organization through justifiable and peaceful resolution along with strict compliance to organizational policies and procedures. What is the line manager’s role in grievance and discipline? Grievance and discipline can be driven by line managers because they are responsible for critical mass population of the organization, i.e. staff members. They have to be vigilant of violation of discipline and have to take strict action against the violators at the earliest. Their active involvement in grievance procedures, unless the grievance is against themselves, will help in better resolution of issues and restoring normality in lesser time. What is HR’s role? HR is responsible for formulating policies and regulations related to employment and work in accordance with nature of work and organizational requirements. HR is responsible for designing safe and secure work environment for the staff. In addition, HR is involved in designing fair and justifiable performance measurement system. HR plays a significant role in inspiring employees to abide by the regulations and establishing discipline along with conflict resolution. Have you ever been involved in a grievance or disciplinary? How was this resolved? Yes, I have expressed grievance in one instance related to pay hike in my previous organization, Alsalam. I joined this organization in the middle of the calendar year and my yearly performance was at 90%, which made me eligible for 5% rise in salary according to the HR performance policy. But, this hike was not provided to me. When I approached my manager, I was told that I was not eligible for the hike. After that, I approached the HR Manager, who listened to my grievance and discussed the situation with my manager. Post this discussion, I was assured of the 5% rise in my salary. To what extent should employees be involved in an organization’s decision-making? Employee involvement in decision-making should be decided by their respective managers depending upon their role and skill set. The decisions made must be evaluated thoroughly before being implemented. In one instance, my manager empowered the employees to decide the best possible way to complete the work at the earliest. He also coached some high-performing employees with good communication skills to perform manager’s work during his absence. This provided good opportunity to learn and motivated other employees to perform well. What is the role of trade unions in today’s organizations? Trade unions are informal groups formed in an organization with an intention to focus on issues bothering the staff and the organization. This group tries to solve the issues through mutual cooperation and understanding between the two parties involved. They also act as a medium of communication between management and general staff of the organization and are involved in voicing opinions of both these parties to each other. Is there still a need for trade unions? Why/why not? In my opinion, trade unions are necessary to foster cooperation between staff and management. The members of trade union will be in a better position to understand issues from both the perspectives and help in achieving win-win resolution for all the people involved. What is performance? Performance refers to the way employees deal with their job, the kind of process undertaken and actions performed, and the kind of results or outcomes produced. Desirable outcomes in accordance with the goals indicate good or high performance and undesirable outcomes that do not match the goals indicate bad or low performance. What is the relationship between job motivation and performance? Generally, job motivation and performance go hand-in-hand; i.e., good job motivation results in high performance and vice versa. What internal and external factors influence individual and organizational performance? The internal factors that influence individual and organizational performance can be listed as work environment, employee relationships, incentives and compensation benefits, staff skill set and qualifications, training, job security, technology and customs and beliefs. The external factors that influence individual and organizational performance are government rules and regulations (specific to work timings, taxation laws, organizational or corporate legislation), competitiveness in the market, quality of labour, sociocultural customs, economic condition of the nation, nature and intensity of unemployment, etc. Q2. Performance management What is the role of appraisal? The role of appraisal is to evaluate employee performance with respect to the targets and goals and provide appropriate recognition or feedback to the employee based on performance. Appraisal system is meant to encourage employees to work better and contribute to the performance of the organization. How does it help measure, monitor and improve performance? Appraisal helps to measure, monitor and improve performance through evaluation of employee performance with respect to their individual goals and departmental goals. It also helps in assessing employee satisfaction and identification of underlying issues or concerns. These issues and concerns can then be addressed, thereby improving employee motivation. Improving employee motivation will directly enhance employee performance. It also acts as a source to coach and develop staff on other skills that can help them progress their career within the organization. Have you ever been appraised? What was your experience? Yes, I was appraised two years ago while working in HRM department, by the O&D Manager. I was rewarded with 95% performance level. Through this process, I was able to recognize my strengths and learnt the areas I had to improve in order to enhance my performance to 100%. We both identified the skills I required in order to achieve this performance. I learnt about the activities that I had to perform in order to gain better knowledge of my work. How could you measure the ‘performance’ of a professor, professional footballer, call centre operator and a manager? Performance measurement of any professional has to be done with respect to the goals to be achieved. A professor’s performance can be measured based on examining his presentation skills, teaching abilities, techniques used and testing students for their level of understanding in the specific curriculum. Professional football player’s performance is measured in terms of number of goals made, number of times his team achieved the required results, and his special contribution to team or individual performance in the form of coaching and guiding other players or the team. Call centre operator’s performance can be measured in terms of number of calls answered in specific period of time, the number of resolutions provided to customers, quality and politeness of speech, number of instances he was absent or on breaks etc. Manager’s performance can be measured in terms of team’s performance with respect to departmental goals, customer satisfaction, employee motivation, number of disciplinary issues and grievances reported, absenteeism and turnover of employees. Do you think this is the same for everyone? Why/why not? No, performance measurement cannot be same for every one. It has to be based on the job roles and responsibilities, and according to the goals assigned. If the measurement system is kept same for everyone, then performance measurement cannot be justified and will not project correct picture of performance. Hence, improvement plan suggested based on performance may also be in the wrong direction. What has motivated you do study for this Masters degree? The motivating factor driving me to opt for this Master’s degree is to expand my knowledge about business and management, and then try to achieve a promotion or good position in my organization which will give me more learning along with responsibilities and a rise in pay. Besides all these, I can attain an international Master’s degree from U.K which will be valued by all organizations. Read More