HRM
Group has been defined as “an avenue through which group members experience mutual benefit” (Horn, 2011, p.214) and groups can be formal or informal. Teams can be specified as a specific form of group that aim to solve long-term problems and teams have a greater level of commitment to achieve common goals compared to groups. Therefore, it is important for managers to be transforming workforce groups into teams. Belbin’s Team Roles Theory specifies a set of different roles to be present in successful teams as plants, resource investigators, co-ordinators, shapers, monitors/evaluators, team workers, implementers, completer/finishers and specialists. Group behaviour can have positive, as well as, negative implications on the achievement of organisational goals. Positive implications of group behaviour on the achievement of organisational aims and objectives can be achieved through associating group identity with the achievement of those aims and objectives. In simple terms, in order to generate desirable group behaviour team loyalty to the achievement of organisational goals need to be increased through promoting relevant shared beliefs and improving overall organisational culture. Group behaviour can also have negative implications on a wide range of organisational processes. This can be expressed through resistance to change, lack of commitment to organisational aims and objectives and a range of other ways. It is critically important for organisational managers to adopt a proactive approach in terms of impacting group behaviour with positive implications on the achievement of organisational aims and objectives. References Horn, T. (2011) “Advances in Sport Psychology” Human Kinetics
There are set of factors that impact employee behaviour in direct and indirect ways. These factors can be internal to organisation such as work culture, leadership, job responsibilities relationships with colleagues etc., or external such as the extent of work-life balance, changes in personal circumstances, employee cultural background, the extent of interpersonal skills etc. Work culture can be defined as “applying the general characteristics of culture to the specifics of how people work at a point of time and place” (Moran et al., 2007, p. 30) and work culture is one of the major factors impacting employee behaviour. Work culture is usually set by founder(s) of organisation, but it can change over a course of time. In simple terms, in order to survive employees have to fit in the current work culture. The quality of organisational leadership has also great impact on employee behaviour in a way that effective organisational leaders can inspire and motivate employees for greater performance, at the same time when ineffective leaders can cause employee knowledge, skills and competencies not being fully utilised. Employee job responsibilities can be mentioned as important factor impacting employee behaviour because extensive range of roles and responsibilities can cause burnout for employees with all the negative consequences. In personal level, the extent of work-life balance of employees has direct and significant implications on their behaviour. Specifically, lack of work-life balance is most likely to have negative implications on employee behaviour and performance in various levels. Similarly, employee-specific factors such as cultural background and interpersonal skills and competencies greatly affect employee behaviours. Therefore, managers need to take into account these differences when dealing with each individual employee. References Moran, R.T., Harris, P.R. & Moran S.V. (2007) “Managing Cultural Differences: Global Leadership Strategies for the 21st Century” 7th edition, Routledge
There is a set of factors that could have negative implications in facilitation of organisational communication. These barriers include choice of the wrong communication medium, incorrect use of language, wrong type of message, inappropriate appearance of message, use of jargon, emotional barriers, and physical disabilities. 1. Choice of Wrong Communication Medium The choice of wrong communication medium is one of the most common communication barriers. The choice of communication medium need to correspond to the nature of the message. For example, giving negative feedback regarding any aspect of employee performance is better done through a verbal communication in a constructive way, rather than sending a letter or an e-mail. 2. Incorrect Use of Language Incorrect use of language can also be specified as one of the major barriers to effective communication and this may relate to grammar, punctuation, spelling and a range of other issues. 3. Wrong Type of Message Another significant barrier to communication may relate to inappropriate choice of the type of message. Complex instructions to employees need to be communication in written forms, whereas interpersonal and other conflicts are best resolved with oral communication. 4. Inappropriate Appearance of Message Ineffective appearance of the message can also prove to be a communication barrier in organisational settings. Inappropriate appearance of the message is usually caused by its poor expression associated with readability, light print, omissions, ineffective sentence structure and others. Ineffective organisation of ideas and poor choice of words in verbal communication can be specified as additional reasons of inappropriate message appearance. 5. Use of Jargon A range of occasions and reasons when jargons are used may relate to communicating with individuals within the same industry, unthinking use of jargons, attempts to impress the receiver(s) of message, altering the attention of receiver from…
Channels of communication can be divided into four categories: nuturative, requisitive, directive, and emotive. Moreover, employees can also be divided into reactor, workaholic, persister, dreamer, rebel, and promoter categories. Pauley and Pauley (2009) correspond the utilisation of each of these channels to the types of employees in the following manner: Type Channel Reactor Nuturative Workaholic Requestive Persister Requestive Dreamer Directive Rebel Emotive Promoter Directive Source: Pauley and Pauley (2009) References Pauley, J.A. & Pauley D.J. (2009) “Communication: The Key to Effective Leadership” ASQ Quality Press
Verbal Communication Verbal communication is facilitated with the use of voice and words. Generally, the key elements of verbal communication include words, sound, languages, and the physical act of speaking. The majority of verbal communication account for casual exchanges with other people. In verbal communication there is a clear and personal communication link between senders and receivers. Challenges associated with verbal communication include poor choice of wording, physical disabilities, ineffective utilisation of communication techniques, and subjective opinions. The outcomes of verbal communication between managers and subordinates can be compromised in terms of achieving its objectives through the negative impact of certain factors. These factors include poor listening skills of managers, emotional barriers, use of inappropriate language. Non-verbal Communication The majority of communication is facilitated in non-verbal ways. Non-verbal communication can be divided into the following eight categories: facial expression, appearance, haptics, gestures, eye gaze, paralinguistics, proxemics, and body language and posture. One of the main differences of non-verbal communication from verbal communication can be specified in a way that in former form the communication can be done intentionally, as well as, unintentionally. In other words, when an individual is experiencing specific feelings such as boredom, excitement, or fear, his or her feelings can be communicated through non-verbal channels even when the individual does not aim to communicate them intentionally.
The origin of the term of ‘communication’ is linked to the Latin word of ‘communis’ that means common. There are many definitions of communication. One of the most comprehensive definitions of communication can be proposed as “the process of creating meaning between two or more people through the expression and interpretation of messages” (Cleary, 2008, p.xii). In simple terms, communication can be defined as a process in which a message is encoded by a sender and passed to receiver through certain channels, or order for the message to be decoded. Adppted from: Anthony Wanis-St.John’s “Communication and Negotiation” References Cleary, S. (2008) “Communication: A Hands-on Approach” Juta
Employee morale is “a composite of feelings and attitudes that individuals and groups have toward their work, working condition, supervisors, top level management, and the organisations” (Leonard, 2012, p.375), whereas motivation can be defined as “the process that determines the reinforcement value of an outcome” (Kalat, 2010, p.375). Strategies offered to Managing Director in terms of repairing employee morale and boosting motivation include determining the types of employee motivation, applying to the most immediate needs of employees, adopting an individualistic approach in employee motivation, using an effective combination of tangible and intangible motivational tools, and achieving equity in motivation. The rationale behind each of these strategies is discussed below in greater details. 1. Determining the Types of Employee Needs It is important to determine types of employee need in order to repair employee morale and boost the level of motivation at Company. McClelland’s Achievement Motivation (1965) can be used to deal with this task. McClelland (1965) divides employee needs into three groups: need for achievement, need for power, and need for affiliation. It has to be noted that all three types of needs – need for achievement, need for power, and need for affiliation can be possessed by any one individual; nevertheless, specific type of need generally prevails over others for each individual. Accordingly, managers need to engage in employee motivation taking into account their specific needs. For example, employees that have need for power can be effectively motivated by positions with greater level of responsibility. Motivation of employees with a greater need for affiliation, on the other hand, can be achieved through publicly acknowledging their contribution to the achievement of organisational goals in front of groups in general, and their immediate team members in particular. 2. Applying to the Most Immediate Needs of Employees Maslow’s Hierarchy of…
As a “group of European countries that participates in the world economy as one economic unit and operates under one official currency, the euro” (Investopedia, 2013) European Union (EU) has specific measures, rules and regulations that govern employment relations and human resources management aspect of businesses in its territory. The most significant themes related to employment issues in EU include specific characteristics of Euro HRM, EU social charter, employment issues and rights within EU, and European employment law. Specific characteristics of Euro HRM relate to legislative framework, trade union and consultation, and pattern of ownership among other issues and these points need to be taken into account by expatriates with assignments within the EU. Moreover, there are certain differences in HRM practices within the among the EU countries as well. It has to be stressed that “the differences in HRM within European countries stem from national factors, namely cultural values and norms, societal structure and language, from company factors, including size, ownership and geographical scope of companies and also from regional factors, such as north/south or east/west divide” (Nikandrou et al., 2006, p.178). European Social Charter as an important treaty adopted in 1961 deals with human rights and freedom issues associated with employment relations. The Charter has been revised in 1996 and it has been ratified by all members of EU. The fundamental employee rights have been specified in the Charter and the most significant points include the freedom of movement, freedom of association, protection of health, equal treatment of both genders, social protection etc. European Social Charter as an international labour law within EU has made significant contribution to dealings with expatriates not only within EU but also to a global scale to a certain extent. This contribution relates to the fact that expatriates coming to EU countries are…
Team life cycle to consist of the following stages: forming, storming, norming, performing, adjourning. All of these stages were passed by the team during the course of preparing the presentation and presenting it. 1.Forming. Five team members were identified. All of the members of the team had known each-other before the team project, however, team presentation had given team members a chance to know each other closer. 2. Storming. There were some arguments within the team at the beginning of the project when the team members were dividing the project into parts and distributing these parts to the team members. Moreover, opinions within the team differed about what company needed to be selected. However, disagreements were not serious, without any emotions attached, and came as a natural part of the project. 3. Norming. Towards the end of the first group meeting major points of argument were settled, company for the presentation was selected, and roles and responsibilities were divided among team members with everybody’s consent. 4. Performing. The team had several meetings and during each meeting a specific part of the work was completed according to the plan that has been formulated during the first meeting. Specifically, in this stage areas within the practice of Viva managers were formulated that needed to be improved as a result of the training and development program. Also, various training and development methods were reviewed to identify which of them were the most suitable to be integrated into Viva training and development program. As a result of the analysis and heated discussions within the team, it was identified that time management and team working were the skills that needed to be developed in Viva supervisors and managers. Accordingly, relevant training and development elements were selected presentation materials have been prepared. Roles within the…
Viva is a leading provider of risk, savings and investment management products based in UK, with operations also in France, Germany, Netherlands, USA, Gulf and India. Being established in 1836, the company serves nearly seven million customers worldwide. Viva has organised its foreign operations efficiently, taking into account local specifications. For example, the company offers Takaful products in Gulf countries, that is financial products that have been devised according to Sharia Islamic laws, due to the fact that local customers are very sensitive about these issues. Also, Viva has engaged in joint-ventures in India with Bank of Baroda, and Andhra Bank. This article briefly introduces Viva Company and discusses the various elements of development scheme that group has proposed for the company in the form of presentation. Moreover, additional development elements are included in the article, and the rationale behind the choice of each element is explained in detail, listing their advantages, as well as disadvantages. Training and Development Schemes for Viva Initially the purpose of training and development scheme for Viva managers have been identified. The primary purpose for the scheme has been found as equipping Viva managers with necessary skills and knowledge so that they can manage the business globally in the most efficient manner. Moreover, the following purposes of training development as proposed by Beardwell et al (2004) were planned to be achieved for Viva as a result of the project: a) Maximising productivity and service provision for the company b) Developing the adaptability for the workforce c) Developing the Viva as an organisation as a whole d) Increasing job satisfaction, motivation and morale of Viva workforce e) Improving standards and safety at work f) Promoting the Better utilisation of other resources g) Standardisation of work practices and procedures Wood (2009) divides trainings methods into two categories: traditional…