Four HR Key Issues and Recommended Practices - Term Paper Example

Report on Four HR Key Issues and Recommended Practices Introduction/Background The report submitted by the senior management team specifically point out the high staff turnover and sickness absences on the evening shift but no detail provided except for the disinterest of line managers to know the content of the sick notes and the tendency of students (self-supporting part-time workers) to leave the company at the end of the academic year. Similarly, the evening shift according to the report often missed their targets in terms of number of calls taken and passed on and customer interaction. One of the reasons provided for this issue is the friendship between line managers and some team members who still missed their targets despite warnings. However, further examination of the report suggests that lack of clear and documented work objectives, action plan, and formal appraisal procedure in the evening shift seems more probable and convincing than friendship. Moreover, compared to the daytime shift, staff members in the evening shift are mostly inexperience, confined or restricted to telephone work, and not receiving bonuses for meeting their targets. In view of this information, the following sections evaluate the four key issues associated with the evening shift and offer recommendations that can help SeviceCo improve its existing practices. Evaluation of Key Issues Staff Turnover Some employee turnover is unavoidable and not all turnover is bad but when the cause of turnover is employee dissatisfaction then it is not desirable . The causes of this undesirable type of turnover according to are low job satisfaction, labour market conditions, and poor HR practices that include low compensation, little recognition, lack of career development opportunities, slow advancement, low employment security, and lack of fairness. Based on the information provided about the previous work structuring, ServiceCo’s decision was to have part-time workers (with or without telephone call centre experience) to staff the evening shift thus high turnover should be expected. This is because job-related attitudes and behaviours differ with part-time and full-time employees’ and turnover is more unpredictable among part-time workers . Based on a study, since part-time jobs are marked by low skill, low pay, few fringe benefits, and low productivity an average part-time worker stay at jobs in much shorter period than full-timers . Although a part-time workforce can give ServiceCo greater potential for scheduling flexibility, lower wage and benefit costs, the immediate consequences are low productivity and high turnover rate . Performance Management In theory, performance management is the integration of performance appraisal system aiming to align employees work behaviours with organisational goals . More importantly, according to it is an ongoing, interactive, and emotionally charge process designed to improve employee skills, increase employee motivation and performance, and develop positive employee attitudes towards the organisation. In contrast, the lack or failure of performance management can be upsetting, de-motivating, dissatisfying and therefore a likely reason for leaving ServiceCo. It is important to note that instead of considering the importance of formal appraisals, line managers on the evening shift ignored their role in the process, freely accepted the reality of high turnover, and adapted a mindset that part-time workers in the evening shift are expendable. Moreover, study shows that ineffective performance management practices alone can lead to decreased employee morale, decreased productivity, inability to achieve strategic objectives, increased employee turnover, and others thus consequences resulting to its absence may be more or greater. For instance, the reported noted 75% turnover in previous year, “constant changes” with inexperienced staff, students “virtually” will not stay after graduation and high sickness absence in the evening shift signifying the greater impact of lack of performance management. Note that aside from the fact that not all absences are caused by sickness, sickness absence is not solely an occupational health issue but lost production and high overhead related cost .. Similarly, high turnover (mainly the result of job dissatisfaction and lack of recognition) not only cost the organisation unnecessary expenses associated with employee replacement but also hurt its reputation as good place to work . Moreover, since line managers can either promote and make the company attractive to employees or can be the cause of high turnover then their lack of interest in performance management make them directly responsible to the high sickness absence and employee turnover. Sickness absence High sickness absence rate should trigger a formal response from management but line managers did little with the information and passed it on to the HR section. In the individual level, factors affective sickness absence include occupational status, job satisfaction, age, and others thus it is important for line managers to know and understand absence management. Similarly, employees need to know what is expected of them thus absence management policies and procedures must be clearly laid out, understood, and accepted by each employee . The levels of attendance at work according to is a reflection of what goes on within the organisation. In this case, it is the low morale associated with part-time employment, lack of performance and absence management, responsibility level holds by the evening shift staff toward their job, line managers’ misdirected mindset on expendability part-time workers, and inexperienced staff’s personal values and work ethics. Skills Development Decision to hire part-time workers is more likely motivated by the need to keep the cost down rather than increase productivity . The problem however is the fact that most part-time workers are not experienced thus restricted to telephone work with no skills development or advancement to expect . Note that unlike daytime shift workers, night shift staff according to the report are not allowed to do other types of work, no clear idea about their targets, receiving no formal appraisal for their performance, and constantly vulnerable to termination. Moreover, although part time employees are considered an essential segment of the workforce, they are more often ignored and given very little opportunity for advancement within the company . Recommendation In view of the above evaluation of four key issues associated with high turnover and sickness absence rate, and inability of the evening shift staff to meet their targets, the following are recommendations that can help SeviceCo improve its existing practices. a) Since high turnover rate is predominantly associated with, the nature of part-time employment it may be necessary to implement HR practices that can help increased motivation, job satisfaction, and commitment of the evening shift staff. HR practices such as retention oriented compensation and formalised training can improve organisational citizenship behaviour and discourages job-quit intent . Another is results-oriented appraisal that according to , improve employee performances and organisation commitment. b) Further analysis of causes of high turnover rate suggest that hiring inexperienced part-time workforce is detrimental to the company in terms of high turnover rate, production, and sickness absence thus changes in recruitment and selection practices is recommended. HR should recognise the impact of skills, experience on job performance, and hire people with appropriate levels of skills regardless of part-time or full-time employment .. The HR practice that may be adapted to boost employee productivity, limit sickness absence, and reduce employee turnover is selective hiring, a key practice that ensure hiring of the right people with desirable characteristics and knowledge, and with culture that fits the organisation . The use of numerical flexibility theory that assumes labour as a cost that should be minimised should be avoided including associated HR practices such as contingent, part-time, temporary, and contract employment to contain cost . This is because as experienced by ServiceCo, these practices entails reduced job security, intense supervision, lack of attention to training and development, and adverse perceptions that employees are disposable and easy to replace . c) Since savings from lower salary cost associated with part-time employees may not be achieved due to high rates of staff turnover and absence , it is necessary to employ HR practices that can positively impact employee engagement and performance. This is because studies conducted on HR practices reveal the correlation between engagement levels and various employee-related improvements such as productivity, employee retention, commitment, and low sickness absence rate ..In view of ServiceCo’s evening shift staff performance, this HR practice along with selective hiring, formalised training, result oriented appraisal and retention oriented compensation may be beneficial to line managers in terms of low absenteeism and meeting production targets, stress-free supervision of motivated, hardworking, and diligent staff, and working with people with sense of responsibility, credibility, and good communication skills . Conclusion Evaluation of the four key issues suggest that the high turnover rate, absenteeism, and low productivity are predominantly associated with the nature of part-time employment and line managers disregard to the importance of performance management and result-oriented appraisal. 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