The Module Human Resource Management - Essay Example

Comments After doing this report, I learnt practical approach of what I studied in the HRM. This report helped me understand what this course is all about, also it helped me learn about the practical application of what we studied during this module in HRM. After doing this report I am sure that whatever I have studied in this course will definitely help me in future and will help me become better manager. Hopefully, I will not be among those managers who regret later on and wish they had paid more attention to their theoretical courses during their years of studies. Also, this course has helped me learn what group work is about, how to manage conflicts and also how to delegate tasks and to whom. Thus, this course and this term report have helped me a lot and will continue to do so in future. Introduction This research paper is about showing my understanding of the module Human Resource Management. The assigned task is to assume myself in the role of an independent HR consultant who has been invited to tender for the role of specialist advisor to the UK Olympic committee for 2012 games. The major task that I am supposed to carry out is how to create team unity between thousands of casual and temporary staff and how technology may assist in improving effective communication. This report shall be a comprehensive report to senior board members to whom it must be made obvious why and how my strategies will be beneficial for the overall success of the game. This report will also show an understanding of scope, significance and legal framework of HRM in business organization. Moreover, it will identify the factors affecting human motivation in business organizations and how motivation affects standards of performances. As a specialist advisor, I will do my best to give the best possible solutions to the committee. Roles of an HR Manager As an HR Consultant, my role at Olympics, 2011 will be the following: (Bhagria, A., 2010) Setting daily goals for the committee Recruitment of employees Team building exercises Motivational speakers Rewards Appreciation Training Controlling costs Safety measures Setting daily goals for the committee It is important to set day to day achievable goals for every organization. In case of Olympics, it is extremely important. Being a specialist advisor I will have to set goals for all the teams working for the Olympics games. I will have to assign daily tasks to each team and will have to monitor what they are doing, whether they have achieved the task or not. Recruitment of employees Recruitment of employees is also very important aspect of an HR manager’s job. By recruitment it is meant that the HR manager has to hire and fire employees and has to keep a track on their performances as well. Team building exercises Since teams are necessary therefore team building exercise are also necessary during Olympics. Motivational speakers It has been observed that employees and work force needs to stay motivated. It is often advised to organizations to invite motivational speakers and arrange motivational speaking sessions. The motivational speakers might be people from the organization itself or they might be outsiders. Rewards Employees should be given rewards on their performance. For example, if someone has done well throughout the week or month that he or she should be rewarded accordingly. Appreciation Appreciation is a great motivational tool. People like it when they are appreciated. Appreciation at workplace is very important especially because it motivates employees to work and it gains their loyalty as well. At Olympics, when everyone is stressed out or is enthusiastic, appreciation energizes the employees and they are able to work more than what they did before. Training Employees should be trained for their work at Olympics games. Olympics is an event that happens once in quite some time which is why its strategies have to be different. Similarly employees need to be trained in order to function at their optimum level. Trainers should be hired or people from previous Olympics should be hired to give training to employees. Moreover, videos from previous Olympics can be used to get ideas and to train employees as well. Controlling costs Controlling costs is important at Olympics. There are so many expenses and even the budget allocated for Olympics is huge, but this does not mean that costs should be controlled or curtailed at all levels possible. Safety measures During Olympics, safety of employees is very important as there are so many activities going on which is why it is important that employees are kept safe and that safety measures are taken. There should be at least 2 ambulances at the ready all the time on Olympics games site. Team These days there is a lot of hue and cry about how two or more are better than one. This is true and can be proven by a lot of examples. Nowadays organizations focus on team building and team work because it has been observed that people tend to perform better in teams. There are many factors as to why teams function better than individuals. Teams bring people closer to one another and they start enjoying work. Teams also encourage healthy competition and conflicts. Obviously when people work together conflicts are raised, an effective team knows how to tackle conflicts and how to use conflicts for the good of the organization. (Human Resource at UC Berkeley) In order to be effective, it is essential that teams have unity and that there is a good communication structure in them. Most teams have leaders who become coordinators usually. Having a leader in a team can have both; positive and negative impacts. It is essential that the top level management keeps a check on teams otherwise there is a generation of conflicts that become difficult to be solved. Olympics needs teams but hiring these teams can be a hassle. There is a need of a huge number of volunteers during Olympics. In order to select the employees and volunteers there has to be a proper criterion of selection. The following are the steps that will have to be taken in order to have effective teams. Defining Criterion of selection Identifying number of employees/volunteers required Promotion of volunteer and employee requirement Application forms Interviewers’ panel Interview dates Selection panel Selection Orientation Formation of teams Team Leaders Monitoring Defining Criterion of selection First of all, a criterion for selection should be set. Selection cannot be made on random basis, but there has to be a proper criterion for selection of the employees. Identifying number of employees/volunteers required The organizing committee has to specify the number of employees it will hire. This can be done by taking statistics of previous Olympics or by making a proper plan as to how many employees will be needed for a certain task Promotion of volunteer and employee requirement Once number of employees is set, the committee should start promoting that volunteers and employees are required. They can send forms to colleges and universities to get as many volunteers as possible. Application forms After promotion, application forms should be designed according to the type of employees needed. There should be a separate form for volunteers and employees. Interviewers’ panel After forms, interviews will be taken for which interviewers will be needed. Three or four interviewers’ panels should be made with at least 5 interviewers in each. Interview dates Interview dates should be sent to the selected applicants and interviews should be conducted. Selection panel Selection panel should be the interviewer panel as they know everything about the applicants so they will be better able to select employees and volunteers. Selection Once the panel has selected employees and volunteers, they should be notified with a date of orientation. Orientation Employees and volunteers should be called for orientation and should be informed about the plan and their jobs. (Randy, Werner & Harris 2005) Formation of teams On the day of orientation or later, teams should be made and they should be informed about their job description. (Randy, Werner & Harris 2005) Team Leaders Team leaders are necessary when it comes to working for such a big event. Every team must have a leader who should be selected with the team’s consent. Monitoring The teams should be monitored by a group of people. It is not the job of just one person to keep an eye on such a huge number of workers. Performance Appraisal Employees and volunteers should be evaluated and performance appraisals should be given to them, in fact when exiting the Olympics once it is done, employees should be given appraisals with details of how they were at work and what they achieved etc. This will be a valuable piece for them as it will help them in future. This is also a tool which keeps employees motivated. Technology in improvement of effective communication The air we breathe in is an air of technology; it is essential for success today and cannot be evaded no matter what we do. From drinking water to taking a bus to writing, everything we do is somehow related to technology. In such an environment, is it possible to evade technology at work? Absolutely not! Those who might not want to use technology might not be able to make a dime. Similarly, it is essential for organization to communicate properly these days. Organizations nowadays, focus a lot on communication as this makes the employees give better results and helps them in performing well. Given the above two phenomenon, we have come to deduce that both technology and communication are important in an organization. What if these were integrated and technology were used to make communication better. In Olympics’ case, this can be very useful as there are many employees and they have to stay connected for better results. These employees can be given cell phones or better yet, cell phones with internet usage. This will help them learn what needs to be done. The leader and the management can co ordinate well and will be able to deliver messages and instructions without having to meet up with the volunteers and employees. Moreover, informal groups can be made where suggestions, complains and requests can be written and shared. This can be very effective and can help the employees get closer to one another. Plus, it will help the management in learning more about the employees, their needs and their problems. Also, it helps the workers and employees to get to know each other’s location if that is required. They can also transfer pictures or videos of specific scenes in sight via blue tooth or MMS or email. Employees and volunteers can stay connected to each other which will bring them closer to one another and will help them in learning more about each other and how to work as a team. Even conflicts can also be resolved on these informal groups by polls or by discussions as well. Motivation Motivation focuses on several processes affecting behavior: Arousal or energizing Direction Persistence (Randy, Werner & Harris 2005) Following are the ways in which employees can be motivated at the Olympics games 2012: Give targets Some employees need focused goals on which they can work. Targets are important for such employees. This helps employees in setting goals. Also, once they have achieved these targets they feel the sense of accomplishment and if they get recognition on achieving these goals, they get even happier. Rewards and recognition Along with extrinsic rewards, intrinsic rewards are necessary too. These are high motivators because everyone likes recognition and being praised. This boosts employees’ morale and they enjoy their work and deliver more. Thus Olympics committee should recognize its employees’ efforts and should reward them both extrinsically and intrinsically. Personal grooming: In all fields of work personal grooming is very important because employees deal with customers so they should be groomed in order to deal with them in an effective manner. The uniform given to the volunteers and employees should be such that they enjoy it and feel comfortable with it. Daily motivation A lot of people say that motivation is temporary, which is why employees need to be motivated on a daily basis. The team leader and the managers should keep motivating employees on a daily basis while giving daily instructions. (Dale 2005) Employee of the month/week: Employee of the month and week titles should be awarded to employees working for Olympics. This should be done without any discrimination or else it would fail to meet the purpose, rather it will have negative effects. When such titles are given to employees they give their best and work really hard to get this title because it gives them a sense of achievement and also is a symbol of pride for them. Employee evaluation: It is very important to keep a check on who did what. It is also helpful in evaluating who the employee of the month will be. Surveys: Surveys should be conducted in order to learn what the needs of employees are. What the motivating and de-motivating factors for them are. What should be improved and how. (Dale 2005) Exit interviews: Exit interviews are effective tools for management because this is when the employee speaks the truth as he has no fear of getting fired or anything. Olympics committee should conduct exit interviews in order to know what motivated them during their work and if they are leaving beforehand then what it was that made them leave. Also they should ask what was it that they liked or disliked while at work. Conclusion Thus after reviewing everything regarding Olympics, 2012, it seems that it is crucial for the management to adhere to principles of Human resource Management and that hiring a specialist advisor will be the best thing to do and the foremost as well. It is also evident that employee motivation is essential for every organization. Moreover, technology can be used for better communication as well. References Bhagria, A., 2010. Role and Functions of the Human Resource Management. Young HR manager. [Online] Available at [17 July, 2011] Team Building. Human Resources at UC Berkeley. [Online] Available at [16 July, 2011] Desimone, R. L., Werner, J. M. & Harris, D. M., 2005. Human Resource Development. 3rd Ed. Bangalore, India: Eastern Press. Dale, M., 2005, The Art of HRD: Successful recruitment and selection: A practical guide for managers. Volume 1. New Dehli, India: Efficient Offset Printers. Read More