PART- A

 

1. What are the factors affecting and barriers to HRP?

2. Describe some methods and techniques of training?

3. Explain the various methods of performance appraisal

4. Briefly describe the sources of recruitment (internal as well as external)

5. Elaborate upon the various types of welfare activities rewards and describe the benefits that a company may gain from providing these.

 

PART- B

 

1. Management Development

2. Factors affecting Job Design

3. Performance Appraisal v/s Performance Management

4. HRM models

5. Selection as a source of competitive advantage

6. Employee induction and orientation

7. Accident Rates

8. Principles and types of Transfers

9. Approaches to IR

10. Challenges of repatriation

 

PART- C

 

1. Describe the purpose and methods of job evaluation

2. Briefly describe the components of Executive Remuneration and explain the various types of ESOP varieties available

3. Elaborate upon the various types of non-monetary rewards and explain the benefits a company may derive from providing employee benefits and services

4. Briefly describe the causes of Employee Separations and elaborate upon the various types o involuntary separations.

5. Elaborate upon the various causes of disputes ad their relative impact on the workings of the organization as a whole

 

 

CASE STUDY - I

Retention Challenges at Bharat Fertilisers

 

Ms. Swamy is the manager of the computer division of Bharat Fertilizers. It is one of the older Fertilizer companies in the country and is located sixty-three kms. from Hyderabad. In spite of a somewhat old technology it has been making profits consistently in the regulated Fertilizer market. Its turnover last year was Rs. 620 crores. It employs 2100 workers and staff and 297 managerial staff. Ms. Swamy is forty years old and has been working for the present company for the last sixteen years. She is presently a manager in M.I.S. department. She is a God-fearing lady and is liked by her colleagues and subordinates. Among her various responsibilities is the central data entry office. It has a sanctioned strength of ten grade GS-4 data entry clerks and one GS-5 supervisor. The starting salary of a trainee clerk is comparable to the compensation paid to clerks with little skills in other companies. However after nearly six months' job experience; most data entry clerks are able to get a substantial salary increase in other companies. It has become known in the market that Ms. Swamy has an excellent training programme for data entry clerks and her division has become a favourite poaching ground for nearby companies. As a result of all this Ms. Swamy has experienced more than 50% turnover over the last two years. A huge backlog of work has resulted. Even after replacements are recruited their productivity is low for many months and a disproportionate time of the supervisor and also of the manager is spent in training the new recruits. Within the data entry section there are three exceptions who have worked for Ms. Swamy for many years. In fact, they have been responsible for most of the work that has been turned out of the section. The GS-5 supervisor has been running the section for seven years. Yesterday, she informed Ms. Swamy that she has received another offer from an Engineering company in Hyderabad with larger and more challenging responsibilities and a substantial increase in pay and benefits. She has just now given the one-month's notice as required by her employment contract and requested leave starting from tomorrow.

Ms. Swamy is at her wit's end. She had once recommended that the clerks should be given two special increments on completion of six month's service, but the Personnel department had replied that the rules of the company did not permit increments before the completion of one year, that it could not be given en masse, and that any exception would have serious repercussions among the rest of the employees, and they had earlier turned down similar requests from other Divisions. In any case, the management had imposed a strict control on manpower cost. She had always felt that the supervisor should be upgraded to GS-6 and data entry clerks to GS-5. In fact, she had even mentioned it to her boss, Shiva Lamba. Unfortunately, the matter did not progress beyond that.

 

Questions:

 

Q1. Identify and explain some of the HR issues presented in the above case.

Q2. What would you do if you are Shiv Lamba, the boss of the M.I.S. department?

Q3. What can the company do to prevent such issues from arising in any other department?

 

 

CASE STUDY-II

Local Colour - Challenges at Global Operations

 

"We are not an American company. We are a Thai company." This is what C. William Carey, Chairman and CEO of Town and Country Corporation, the largest U.S. jewellery manufacturer and whole seller, said about his Thailand subsidiary, Essex International Company Ltd. Carey has built a successful business and on the basis of respect for native customs and cultural traditions. Carey proclaims" i don't believe in Americanizing them. You have to go to a place and understand its strengths and massage them." He goes on to say that people "don't want outside influences coming in that distort their values and work ethics." "If you take a cookie-cutter approach and stay open on a Buddhist Holiday workers will be resentful and feel you are disrespectful of their culture. They don't care if you are closed on the Fourth of July, but they do care if you're closed on the Queen's birthday in April." Carey's views are shared by a majority of CEO's, who feel that adapting to the local culture is the biggest problem of globalization. Carey has apparently accomplished the goal of cultural awareness to its fullest extent. When Town and Country established a subsidiary in Hong Kong, he spent $15,000 on fortune-tellers to tell the workers the fate of the company. Carey also gave all public holidays after his purchase of Little Switzerland, based in the Caribbean. Thailand is where Carey has proved to be most culturally sensitive. Essex enjoys being ranked in the top 5 of over 800 jewellery manufacturers in Thailand, with net annual sales of $19.4 in U.S. dollars. Carey chose Thailand which ranks second in the world in jewellery exports, because of the people's tradition in stone cutting, the low labour cost and the work ethics. Also, Thailand's pro-business attitude gave Essex a four-year tax holiday and permission to build a warehouse free of restrictions and duties. Carey's original goal was to make it acceptable to the people of Thailand, who are motivated by security and respect from their employer. Carey had to do many things to gain their confidence, including sitting cross-legged for a three and a half hour ceremony, inviting nine Buddhist monks to bless their seven-storey factory, and building a Buddhist spirit house at the factory for daily prayers and offerings. After using 115 expatriates to set up the company in the first year, Carey sent them all back and used a polycentric recruitment policy to fill all positions. Essex's initial 200 workers were between the ages of 17 and 22 and had previously worked rice fields. Essex lured women from 500 miles with rent-free dormitories and the opportunity to learn a trade and increase their standard of living. The women received on-site medical care and exams, three meals a day, and uniforms. Courses for high school equivalent diplomas are offered, as are classes in home economics and self-improvement. There is a library and a number of recreational facilities. These benefits are intended to both help the workers develop and keep them occupied. "We wanted to give them spirit de corps…to mould them in what we wanted by getting them to excel," Carey stated. These women, who at one time had nothing, were able to send money home, open bank accounts, and join the profit-sharing programmes. They were offered company stock in 1991, and these workers now own approximately 10% of the 30% publicly held stock. The total cost is hard to figure, but Carey estimates that these benefits add around $250 a month per employee. Recognition is another factor in Essex's success. There are both team and individual incentives. While at first people were reluctant about individual incentives, the recognition is now welcome. As their performance improves people can move up the line and earn even more money, relocate to semi-private dormitory, be named employee of the month, or receive a pat on the back in a public ceremony. Carey's cultural sensitivity knows no bounds. In the beginning stages of Essex, he allowed a work schedule that started much later than in the western world. After employees were comfortable with the company, he was able to slowly move up the time to 8 A.M.

 

To sum up, 95% of the employees have stayed, unlike the Thai average. There is a low level of absenteeism and a waiting list of job applicants. When there is a large order, Essex has no problem getting the workers to stay late. "The workers feel proud of the company," says Carey. "They are proud and appreciative of working in a company where they are recognized."

 

Questions:

 

1. What was the strategy of Carey for building a successful operation in Thailand?

2. What are the challenges of managing a cross-cultural workforce/organization?