Problems Causing the High Staff Turn Over - Essay Example

A Case study on Human Resource management Human resource is one the most important asset in any organization. Human resource management is a key activity in any organization. Effective human resource management allows the organization to attain its objectives. It is the function of the human resource managers to make sure that employees in an organization are handled well in order to enable them be productive. One of the most important functions of human resource is recruitment, selection and staff turns over functions. This paper will look at a case study of an organization, which is experiencing high- staff turns over. The paper looks at the solution, which should be used to solve the problems in the organization leading to the high staff turnover and poor matching of new employees Human resource recruitment and selection are methods used by human resources in the organization to ensure that they get the right candidates for the required positions. The best recruitment process in the organization ensures that the organization gets the most appropriate candidates. These candidates bring value to the organization. Recruitment as a human resource management activity is one of the activities that is very essential in an organization. The strategy used in human resource recruitment process determines the performance of the organization. Poor recruitment processes affect the performance of an organization negatively and limit its goal achievement. This is one area where most organizations fail as they take long to identify and implement new and effective hiring strategies. Acquiring and retaining high- quality talent is very critical to the success of an organization. There is a need for organizations to be more selective in their recruitment process. Poor recruitment produces long time negative effects. Among the effects that result due to poor recruitment choices include, poor performance and high- staff turnover as has been experienced in the organization. This affects the morale of the staff, the level of productivity of the organization and in most cases the organization fail to achieve its objectives. The recruitment process provides organizations with a highly qualified staffs to fill vacancies in an organization. Successful recruitment starts with proper employment planning and forecasting (Boxall & Wright 2007, p.276). This is where the human resources management in an organization comes with a plan on how to undertake recruitment based on the current and the future needs of an organization. The organization should use a strategy, which will assist it to get the best candidates for its pool of human resources. (Cooper, Robertson & Tinline 2003, p.6-7).The process should start with proper planning in employment and forecasting. There is a need to formulate plans to fill or eliminate job openings based on a critical analysis of the future needs of the organization both inside and outside the organization. The human resource should also analyze the current and anticipated resources, which can be used to attract and retain the talents in the organization. Another aspect of the recruitment process is that the strategies used should help the human resource manager identify and make a selection of the best candidates into its pool of human resources. Base entry-level positions require a minimum level qualification. Employees’ recruitment forms a major part of organization overall resourcing strategies. This helps in securing people who are needed in order for the organization to survive and attain its objectives. The recruitment and selection process should be responsive to the prevailing situations. This brings a need for the human resource to be able to select the best candidates in all levels of the organization. The recruitment strategies should put into consideration the urgency of coming up with a fast solution to offer a solution to the problem in the organization. In order to be effective in the human resources initiatives there is a need to put a structure, which has sound job design, personal specifications and a versatile selection process. There should also be human resource policies, which should include the employment relations and employee engagement strategies. In the recruitment process, it would be important to consider the internal and external factors that may have influence on the resourcing of the organization. It advisable to consider the requirements to develop, motivate and retain employees. Another strategy that should be employed in the recruitment and selection process is to align and integrate the whole process with the overall objectives of the organization. In the first place, it is important to understand the meaning of talent before selecting the best strategy to use in order to meet the objectives of the organization. A period in which the recruitment should take place should be developed. In this case, internal recruitment would provide the most cost effective pool of employees. There is a need to enhance their talents through trainings and use performance enhancing activities for instance, performance appraisal, succession planning and also establish a developmental centre which would review performance and asses employees developmental needs in the organization. The talents within the organization should be tapped. This should be done using a holistic approach and by understanding the skills of the staff beyond the limit, they have in their current job functions (Cieri 2007, p.434-436). This will help eliminate the narrow view about the talents of the staff, which the organization has. The narrow view has made the staff be stagnant and has led to under utilization of skills in the organization. This has caused the rise of staff turn over, as many staffs have been moving in search of better opportunities. It is important to develop central skill repository, which creates an overall picture of the organization competence. The central skills repository also helps to identify skills gap across the organization and subsequently tailor recruitments and work to support the organization plans. By capturing it in a consistent, measurable form and designed against the organization requirement it creates a picture, which is clearer for internal recruitment and optimizes the existing talent pool in the organization. A skills database is very essential in the operations of the human resource. This tool would help the organization to adapt to its new requirements especially at the moment when there is dynamism in human resource. The central skills repository creates an overall picture of the organization competence and can be used to identify skills gaps in the organization. Identification of the skills gap across the organization works to support the organizations overall plan and add its competitive advantage. It would be necessary to make sure that the strategy is agile to enhance quick adaptation to any environmental changes. It is also important to introduce a strategy where people understand and exploit its brand throughout the process of recruitment. The organization will develop its language, images and key business information. This helps to create a positive image of the organization as an employer of choice both to the internal and external candidates (Nankervis & Compton 2009, p.58-60). This brings a need to develop the organization technology system so that it portrays the image of the organization in a more positive and effective way. The organization website needs to be crafted in a way that it shows the organization in its best light. Its job link should embed the brand. This is because most of the job seekers have more focus on online sources when seeking new work positions. Web recruitment would assist the organization extend the net and tap talents which would not be accessible using other means. It reduces time to hire and gives quick responses to the candidates. This enhances their experience and overall view of the organization. During the recruitment, it is necessary to focus on the critical skill requirements and tangible sifting criteria identified when undertaking the recruitment plan. This will help to save time used in the whole recruitment process (Cooper, Robertson & Tinline 2003, p. 6-7). It is also necessary for the organization to change its staff recruitments process. This is because the organization has never used any specific approach or method in staff selection. This brings a need for development of a new approach and strategies in the selection process. The selection process should entail matching the staff and jobs. The decision making process in staff selection should involve several interviewing and interviewers ratings. The selection should take the form of performance tests. In order to achieve this, organization will start using the behavioral interviewing or performance based interviewing which is the most reliable way of selecting applicants who have the competencies required. This strategy involves making an enquiry on the past behavior of a candidate and how they have handled certain situations in the past. Selection based on the behavioral interviewing requires identification of the critical competencies related to performing a job well and assessing the competencies that a candidate has according to the job they are applying. The problem, which has existed in the organizations, is that it has used a hiring system based only on technical qualifications and detailed discussions of job experience. In behavioral interview, the candidates are asked question based on their competency. The questioned are designed to enquire information on how the candidate has used the competency in the past. I believe that this approach will work for the organization, as it requires candidates to give answers based on what they have previously done rather than what they imagine they would do. The high staff turn over has existed because most of the staff selected came in the organization on imagining what they would do. After starting to work, they find the work experience different from what they had imagined. This makes them lose the morale of working and then decide to exit. When behavioral interviews are properly conducted they give in-depth information about the candidate motives, thought processes and behaviors as the employer is able to ask consequentive questions to have a clear understanding about the candidate. The candidates are also selected based on what they have done. This will reduce selection based on bias due to superficial and personal characteristics. The strategy would assist because the assessment of the candidate is more the same as the one gained through an assessment centre but the approach is much cheaper in cost. This approach also ensures that the organization gets employees who are result oriented. This is because it offers evaluation on the bases of accountability of the candidate. There is urgency in the organization to put changes in place as first as we can to reduce the staff turn over. The cost of staff turn over is very high both in direct and indirect cost. Direct cost includes outplacement fees, severance cost and outplacement fees. Indirect cost includes advertising costs, training cost and interviewing time. These are the costs that the organization has incurred due to high staff turnover experienced (Mathis & Jackson 2007, p.84-85). In order to solve the problem of staff turn over in the organization there is a need to come up with various approaches that would rate a positive working environment to the employees. According to the exit interviews, conducted most of the staffs who leave the organization cite low level of job satisfaction as the major cause of their exit. Based on the analysis that I have done regarding the exit of staff from the organization, the organization has some influence in the decisions taken by the employees. This brings a need for the organization to consider the strategies and policies to reduce this high rate of staff turn over. The organization should determine the best way to intervene to reduce the employees turn over. Management of the turn over would have great benefit to the organization (Leap & Crino 1993, p.692). Establishment and maintenance of both practice and the impression of fair treatment can do this to all employees. This would enhance a positive work environment. The organization should incorporate the new employees into the organization and be able to manage their expectation. Many staffs who left have sited lack of a good socializing process for new employees as one of the areas the organization has limitation. This brings the need for the organization to develop an induction process to the new employees so that they are in a position to incorporate the culture of the organization. The organization will also start the use of mentors in the organization. The human resource department will develop a way where positive and constructive feedback will be given to the staff on a regular basis. The feedbacks will include job performance reviews and informal channels of communication with the staff (Budhwar & Debrah 2004, p. 199). Motivational programs will be established where the employees will be rewarded according to their performance. Human capital needs motivations in order to use their full potential. A motivated employee stays longer in an organization and is more productive. The organization should develop an approach in order to attend to the psychological and social needs of the employees. The organization will come up with good employment policies desirable to the employees. The workers should be treated fairly both in financial pay and other working conditions. The employees should be motivated by being allowed to participate in the day-to-day running of the organization (APA 2001, p.400). The human resource need to eliminate the manual methods of tracking the employees’ performance. The paper work method is cumbersome and time consuming. The human resource needs to develop an automated performance management system, which allows connecting the objectives of the organization to individual employee objective. This allows the human resource manager to know where the employees need improvements (Koontz & Weihrich 2006, p.236). This helps to set the areas where skills need to be improved among the staff. This also acts as a way of reducing the organization cost. For example: sacking employees who are not performing due to lack of skills. Instead, the organization will introduce skill development courses to enhance skill development. Another way to reduce staff turn over is the introduction of career development strategies in the organization. This will help the employees view their jobs with the same interest with their career courses. The organization needs to develop a top down succession approach so that the organization gives opportunities for employees to fill key positions in the organization. This makes the staff have a positive image of the organization because they find out that the organization has their interests at heart. They feel comfortable to work in the organization to acquire their career development. This prevents the organization to lose its staff to other organizations (Fried, Johnson & Fottler 2005, pg 13-16). As I had mentioned earlier, one problem that has been causing the high staff turn over is poor selection process where the organization had been hiring staff who had no previous experience in their specific jobs. They start working in the organization then leave after feeling unsatisfied with their new job. This will be reduced by using the behavioral interviewing approach where candidates will be selected according to their previous experience on similar jobs. The recruitment will no longer take the old form of employment where staffs have been employed with critical evaluation of their capability. References American Psychological Association. (2001). Psychological abstracts, 1st edition, Michigan, American Psychological Association publication, Michigan, USA. Budhwar, P & Debrah, Y 2004, Human Resource Management in Developing Countries, Vol 5, Routledge, New York, USA. Boxall, P & Wright, P 2007. The Oxford handbook of human resource management, Oxford University Press New York, USA. Cieri, H. (2007). Human resource management in Australia: strategy, 3rd edition, Mc Graw-Hill, Melbourne, Australia. Cooper, D. Robertson, I. & Tinline, G. (2003). Recruitment and selection: a framework for success, 3rd edition, Cengage, London, U.K. Cengage learning. Fried, B. Johnson, J. & Fottler, M. (2005) Human resources in healthcare: managing for success,2nd edition, Health Administration press, Michigan USA. Koontz, H. & Weihrich, H. (2006). Essentials of Management,7th edition, Tata publishers, New Delhi, India. Leap, T. & Crino, M. (1993). Personnel/human resource management, 2nd edition, Macmillan publishers. Mathis, R. & Jackson, J. (2007).Human Resource Management,12th edition, Cengage learning, London, UK. Nankervis, A & Compton, R. (2009) Effective recruitment & selection practice,5th edition, CCH Publishers, Australia, pg 58-60. Read More