Human Resource Strategy: A People-Centered Approach

Human Resource Management (HRM)

The acquisition, evaluation, retention, and development of human resources are necessary for organizational success. Moved from a support staff function (personnel) to a more strategic role in organizations.

Human Capital

All present and future workforce participants who need to develop to their full potential as valuable assets to organizations.

A General Model for Human Resource Management

People-centered organizations enjoy a competitive advantage because of people-centered practices:

Protection of job security

Rigorous hiring process

Employee empowerment

Compensation linked to performance

Comprehensive training

Reduction of status differences

Sharing of key information

The Selection Process and Employee Rights

The ultimate goal of recruiting is to generate a pool of qualified applicants for new and existing jobs.

Recruiting for diversity: To generate through many different sources a pool of qualified applicants who are demographically representative of the population at large. Social networking via the Web is rapidly becoming the tool of choice for both recruiters and job seekers.

The Employee Selection Process: Still’s PROCEED Model

The Selection Process

Step 1: Prepare

Step 2: Review

Step 3: Organize

Step 4: Conduct

Step 5: Evaluate

Step 6: Exchange

Step 7: Decide

HR analysts commonly compare the screening and selection process to a hurdle race.

Job Analysis

The process of identifying basic task and skill requirements for a specific job by studying superior performers

Job Description

A concise document that outlines the role expectations and skill requirements for a specific job

Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO)

EEO and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

In virtually all aspects of employment, it is unlawful to discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, age, national origin, disability, or veteran status. Selection and all other personnel decisions must be made solely on the basis of objective (job-related) criteria such as the ability to perform or seniority.

Affirmative Action Program (AAP)

A plan for actively seeking out, employing, and developing the talents of those groups traditionally discriminated against in employment

—  Active recruitment of women and minorities

—  Elimination of prejudicial questions on employment application forms

—  Establishment of specific goals and timetables for minority hiring

—  Statistical validation of employment testing procedures

From Affirmative Action to Managing Diversity

—  The managing diversity movement promises to raise the discussion of equal employment opportunity to a higher plane.

—  Diversity issues include age, education, background, and personality differences

—  Diversity advocates want to broaden the message of inclusion to make it globally applicable in multinational organizations

Accommodating the Needs of People with Disabilities

Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA)

Requires employers to make reasonable accommodations to the needs of present and future employees with physical and mental disabilities

ADA Policy Guidelines for Employers

Audit the workplace to eliminate barriers and bias. Train all managers in ADA compliance and all employees to be sensitive to others with disabilities. Do not hire anyone who cannot safely perform the basic duties of a particular job with reasonable accommodation.

Recruitment and Selection

Employment Selection Tests: 

 Any procedures used in the employment decision process such as:

—  Pencil-and-paper tests

—  Unscored application forms

—  Informal and formal interviews

—  Performance tests

—  Physical, education, or experience requirements

—  Must be unbiased, statistically valid, and reliable predictors of job success

Effective Interviewing

Interviews are the most common selection tool.

Shortcomings of unstructured interviews:

—  Highly susceptible to distortion and bias

—  Highly susceptible to legal attack

—  Legally indefensible if contested

—  Apparent but no real validity

—  Not totally job-related and possibly invasive of privacy

—  Highly inconsistent in application as selection tool

—  Subject to interviewer bias (e.g., cultural bias)

—  No feedback about selection errors

—  There is an unsubstantiated confidence in the traditional interview.

Structured interviews: 

A set of job-related questions with standardized answers

Question types used in structured interviews:

—  Situational

—  Job knowledge

—  Job sample simulation

—  Worker requirements

Behavioral interviewing: 

 Asking candidates detailed questions about specific behaviors in past job-related situations. 

Types of Structured Interview Questions

Performance Appraisal

Performance Appraisal is evaluating individual job performance as a basis for making objective personnel decisions.

Making Performance Appraisals Legally Defensible

Use job analysis to develop the appraisal system. Check that the appraisal system is behavior-oriented, not trait-oriented. Have evaluators follow specific written instructions when conducting appraisals. Have evaluators review results with the ratees.

A Good Performance Appraisal

Alternative Performance Appraisal Techniques

—  Goal setting (MBO)

—  Written essays

—  Critical incidents

—  Graphic rating scales

                  —  Behaviorally anchored rating scales (BARS)

—  Weighted checklists

—  Rankings and comparisons

—  Multirater appraisals

—  360-degree review

Training: The Ingredients of a Good Training Program

Using guided experience to change employee behavior/attitudes

Training facts are:

• —      The majority of today’s training is remarkably low-tech
• —      There is no one-best training technique
• —       Ideally, training content and delivery should be tailored to the individual

The Content and Delivery of Today’s Training

The Content and Delivery of Today’s Training

The Ingredients of a Good Training Program

Maximize similarity between the training and the job. Provide as much experience as possible. Provide a variety of examples. Label or identify important task features. Make sure general principles are understood. Reward trained behaviors and ideas. Design training content for obvious applicability. Use questions to guide trainee’s attention.

Skill Versus Factual Learning

Effective skill learning ingredients

—  Goal setting

—  Modeling

—  Practice

—  Feedback

Effective factual learning sequence

—  Goal setting

—  Meaningful presentation of materials

—  Practice

—  Feedback 

Training Program Evaluation: The Kirkpatrick Model

Four levels of Program Evaluation:

1.      Reaction – Did the trainee enjoy the program and find it useful or relevant?

2.      Learning – Did the trainee acquire the knowledge and/or skills intended?

3.      Behavior – Did the trainee perform the newly-acquired behaviors on the job?

4.      Results – Were the trainee’s newly acquired behaviors responsible for measurable improvement in key outcomes?

Discouraging Sexual Harassment

Sexual harassment: Unwanted attention that creates an offensive or intimidating work environment, unwanted physical contact, gestures, displays, joking, and language. It is the manager’s job to be aware of and to correct cases of harassment. Ignorance of such activity is not a valid legal defense.

What can the victim do?

—  Live with it

—  Fight back

—  Complain to higher-ups

—  Find another job

—  Sue the employer

Victims win their suits when harassment is

—  Severe

—  Witnesses are present

—  Supporting documentation exists

—  Management had been notified but failed to take action.

What can the organization do?

Practice prevention and remediation

Garner organization-wide commitment to eliminate sexual harassment. Issue a clear sexual harassment policy statement. Provide appropriate awareness training. Establish a grievance procedure for reporting incidents of harassment.

Controlling Drug and Alcohol Abuse

Alcoholism: A disease in which alcohol disrupts one’s normal life. Health care costs for alcoholic employees and drug abusers are 300 percent higher than for non-alcoholics and nonabusers.

The Legal Side of Workplace Substance Abuse

Recovering drug addicts and alcoholics are covered by the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Employers with federal contracts exceeding $25,000 must comply with the Federal Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988.

Referral and Rehabilitation

How to assist an abusing employee

Don’t accuse the employee; offer help after the employee self-admits the problem.Don’t “play doctor.” Refer the employee to an employee assistance program (EAP) or community resources for rehabilitation.