WORKING WITH AND LEADING PEOPLE
Task 1
Scenario
PM company has come up with a decision to hire new staff. This report highlights the documentation used in the selection and recruitment of new staff, with recruitment being defined as the activity of identifying individuals with the characteristics required for a job within an organization (Buse, 2009) while selection being the process of picking candidates from a pool of applicants consisting of desirable attributes (Arthur, 1998).
The documentation provides a guideline and policy and any important information to be used during the recruitment and selection of new employees. It provides a set of instructions that guide the recruitment team members.
Guideline for the recruitment and selection process
Analysis of job requirements
This gives a brief analysis on the job description as per the job requirements. It gives the direction on the responsibilities that the jobseeker would be involved with in the company.
Authorization to recruit
This is an application from the human resources department for the permission to recruit the personnel to fill the vacant position.
Advertising the vacant position
This is the actual posting of the job advert on internal or external job posting sites in order to attract application to be considered for recruitment.
Compose the recruitment panel
This is mainly composing the people tasked with conducting the interview. The chairman or chair lady should notify the individuals best suited for the work in accordance with the human resources guidelines. The people chosen should represent a mix of gender and ethnicity so as to make the process free and fair from any form of biasness.
Selection of the candidates to appear for the interview
This is concerned with selecting the candidates deemed to have satisfied the minimum requirements, alerting them to appear for an interview. This will be done through the advertisement period before the close of the advertisement period. This stage will involve the short listing process and the invitation for the interview. In the short listing stage, each applicant should be assessed on how best he/she suits the advertised position, based on some criteria and specifications as will be determined by the company. The education qualifications should be checked to ensure that only those invited for the interview possess the desirable attributes and qualifications.
The interview
The interview should be carried out to enable the organization hire the best candidate suitable for the job. The panel should prepare in earnest to ensure that the process continues with minimal interference. The panel members should confirm their availability and attendance for the interview process with the chair expected to communicate on the date, time, and venue in advance to enable the company make logistical arrangements and other requirements including paperwork. During the interview, the panel should use a structured methodology to help ascertain the qualifications and attributes of the candidates. This can be done through the use of unstructured or structured questions, aimed at soliciting information about the candidate’s suitability and experience.
Appoint successful candidates
Successful candidates should be appointed based on a score criterion after the recruitment and selection process is completed, guided by a scoring system guide in order to allow the stakeholders of the company to make a judgment based on the guiding system. This is then followed by the offer where each of the candidates selected are given the job opportunity based on terms and conditions, thereafter they attend a compulsory probation period, with this being used to assess an employee (Kulakowski et al. 2006).
Notify the unsuccessful candidates
This ensures that all unselected candidates are notified of the panel decision and the interviewing team, as regards to their failure to impress the team. This should be done through email.
Introduce and induct newly recruited employees
The qualified and hired candidates should report to work on the first day with prescribed documents as guided by the human resources department, thereafter they will be introduced to the company’s operations, management structured, rules, policies and regulations to govern his or her conduct. In this stage, the hired candidate will be given a coach and a mentor to help him or her in the initial stages.
LO 1.1The importance of recruitment and selection process to organizations
Recruitment and selection processes enable companies to pick candidates that are more suitable for a vacant job in an organization. It enables the organization to ascertain the job applicant capabilities in the job, as well as the possibility of the candidate being satisfied with the job so as to reduce turnover rates but encourage retention (Philips, 2005). This ensures that suitable individuals matching the skills are chosen.
Apart from recruitment, selection assists the recruitment panel and the organization to assess some positive behavior attributes in potential candidates, which are desirable in the vacant positions. This also helps in learning and assessing the character traits, personality of the candidates so as to help in recruiting the best suitable candidate matching their skills in the workplace (Brock & Buckley, 2013).
This is to attract many candidates for a given position in order to pick from a pool of possible candidates for employment. This ensures that the organization selects competent staff with the capability of delivering services at the company.
The recruitment and selection process enables organization to increases the chances of recruiting the best candidate from a pool of potential candidates, hence giving the organization high chances of hiring the best candidate for a specific position (Muncherji et al. 2009).
A recruitment process that starts with advertisement gives the organization a wider bath in meeting demographic requirements in terms of demographic composition of the workforce.
This is because the process is likely to attract numerous application from different parts, hence the likelihood of filling the vacancies based on demographic parameters.
On the other hand, the recruitment and selection process is influenced by ethical, legal and regulatory implications, with some being labor laws that exist in the country and would likely to have some impacts in the overall process.
| Fair | Good | V. Good | Excellent | |
| Job seeker A | ✓ | |||
| Job seeker B | ✓ | |||
| Job seeker C | ✓ | |||
| Job seeker D | ✓ |
LO 1.2 Legal, Regulatory, and Ethical implications on the recruitment and selection.
The company will need to make ethical considerations in regard to a well laid down code of ethics, which will guide the process. This would encourage equal treatment where prospective job seekers would be treated equally, without disregarding other based on some factors.
Ethical considerations would require that the selection process is fare and transparent without any malpractice in the process (Deckop, 2006). The company would also make sure that there is no discrimination based on the origin of the applicant, race, gender, age, sexual orientation, and political views. This will ensure that a level playing ground is given to all job seekers without considering such elements. The company needs also to peg their selection and recruitment process based only on job-related information, which also should dictate the company’s hiring process, other than internal factors that are biased.
On the other side, the company should consider values such as impartiality, openness, and integrity during the process. In addition to this, the company should also ensure that a favorable climate is there so as to facilitate the process of obtaining information by the recruitment team. This is to prevent unfair practices and elimination of a jobseeker.
The company needs to consider certain legal implications in order to minimize adverse implications such as legal suits from social groups due to violation of laws (Gibson & Flood, 2015), prevailing around the location of the company. The legal implications could be the number residents that could be considered in the available vacancies. This could affect the selection process, especially when the surrounding people do not possess the right skills needed for the particular job. The company should not publish the advert in a way that it disregards other peoples beliefs, marital status, origin, color and other attributes deemed to be discriminating which could lead to legal implications.
In most cases, the company should comply with legal requirement along the recruitment process. The recruitment panel should ensure that only legal questions are asked during the process, in order to ensure that only acceptable questions that are job related are asked. This prevents complication that may arise as a result of discriminatory hiring practices.
The regulations of the country could interfere with the recruitment and selection process of the company. This is because the employment laws of the country could advocate for different groups of employees such as disable employees, which may hinder a competent job seeker from acquiring a job, especially when certain jobs are only reserved for disabled people. Other regulations in the country could also tilt the scale in the recruitment process, especially when certain job seekers are favored by regulations, in cases where an expatriate may be sought for a particular position within the company.
LO 1.3 The part of the CEO in the selection process
On the other hand, the C.E.O of the company also plays a role in the restructuring process to ensure that the company has a lean workforce (Boggs, 2006). The roles of the C.E.O will include the following during the recruitment and selection process.
The CEO of the company would be involved in the immediate assessment process of senior middle-level managers who would be in charge of critical sections. The CEO would do an assessment based on reports compiled regarding the candidates that have applied for senior positions. This is to ensure the hiring of right candidates who are relevant in regard to the advertised positions.
At the initial stages of the recruitment process, the CEO will ensure that the recruitment team is well composed so as to avoid biasness during the recruitment and selection process. The CEO will ensure that the selection board is in place, as well as ensure that the company is using the correct recruitment methodology so as to select the best candidates for the positions. The CEO will also evaluate the whole process of recruitment with other senior managers of the company in order to evaluate it and ascertain whether all the guidelines were effectively used to hire the employees.
LO 1.4 Evaluating the contribution of the CEO in the selection process
It is established that a well-constituted panel of interviewers is essential for a smooth recruitment process, and hence, the participation and inclusion of the CEO in the process is of importance, towards the recruitment and selection of good candidates. Therefore, the CEO would also ensure that the recruitment policies and guidelines are followed in order to prevent possible legal implications. This is because guidelines and policies are used to establish a correct mechanism to be followed which ensures that job seekers are accorded their rights towards a recruitment process. The CEO would ensure that job seekers are fairly treated during the hiring process, despite their physique, origin but based on qualifications and competencies.
The CEO being a key stakeholder in the process will ensure that appropriate controls are in place so as to facilitate a smooth process. The controls, which the CEO will use to evaluate his /her contribution in the process, will include the use of feedback charts, score sheets, and reports of each applicant.
However, recruiting and selecting the best candidates will depend on the laid down strategies. This will also be indicated by how best the company has achieved its goals towards recruiting the best talent. This will therefore be evaluated by looking into the crop of employees that have been hired, and whether their performance meets the set recruitment targets. The positive nature of the process will indicate a positive contribution, while a negative one will indicate a failure of the process.
LO 2.1 Skills and Attributes Needed for Leadership
There are skills and attributes needed in leaders with this being financial analytical skills, communication and problem-solving skills. Financial analytical skills help leaders to be able to interpret financial documents and at the same time give them the capability of giving a direction in instances where the company is experiencing financial constraints. Financial skills gives leaders the capabilities to implement financial procedures that are strategic enough to enable the company spend wisely regarding strategic projects and goals.
Communication skills is also an important skill that leaders should have in order help them communicate effectively with employees concerning their grievances, including periods in which the company is struggling in its operations. A leader should have good communication skills to allow him or her to communicate in an appropriate and diligent manner as per different circumstances in order to win and establish a mutual working relationship with employees. This would also help leaders foster a culture of perseverance especially when the company cannot meet all demands on the workers.
A leader should also possess good problem-solving skills. Problem solving skills allow leaders to be able to solve companywide problems by giving a solution in instance where there is a problem in the company. On the other hand, a leader should be able to inspire. This skill would be appropriate in instances where the company is initiating projects that are strategic in nature. The ability to inspire enables leaders to be able to inspire the team towards attaining the longer vision and objective of the company, and at the same time motivating employers when their morale has declined, enabling them to be focused towards achieving goals.
Other than leadership skills, leaders also should posses attributes to enable them propel, steer and navigate a workforce positively. Leaders need to be proactive and reactive at the same time (Blank, 2001), adaptable, open to change, rewarding and initiative. A leader who is proactive or reactive in nature can avoid problems by looking into the future. This attribute enable leaders to be centered in offering immediate solutions when they occur. Another leadership attribute leaders need to poses is adaptability. Leaders need to be adaptable in every circumstance they are facing at a particular moment of time. Adaptability skills give leaders the capability to adapt in unexpected situations and environments, and at the same time providing solutions regarding the circumstances.
Leaders also need rewarding attributes that can enable them to recognize and reward any positive course of action. This would enable them to motivate employees as well as create a culture of motivation to sturr employees facing problems. Other than that, leaders need to be open minded and initiative (Cadwel, 2004). Being open minded would enable leaders to be able to discuss with operational managers on ways to improve issues especially when team work is needed. Besides this, being open-minded is a critical attribute that leaders need to poses. It involves having a mind that is adaptable to change especially in new dimensions focused on improving the company, such as ability to plan new ideas and implement them, initiating projects and policies aimed at uplifting problems within the company.
LO 2.2 Difference between Leadership and Management
There is however a difference between leadership and management, with leadership being the process of directing and aligning people towards achieving a given course (Gundling et al. 2011), While management being the process of organizing, controlling, planning and leading various elements of an organization (Amstrong, 2006). In an instance where the company is having financial, operational and cultural problems, different styles of leadership is important so as to help the management of the company respond to problems facing the company. The management and leadership principles need to be applied, while on the other hand the leadership style could be effective as the management would be in place in case an appropriate leadership style is used. Not only does leadership involve giving direction and leading, but also involves influencing the strategic vision of a company towards the attainment of goals and visions. It is a challenging role that mainly is overseen by senior managers of the company, and plays an important role in steering the company forward.
Management as a role on the other hand is involved with managing the various attributes, operations and units of a company, with it inter twining with some elements of leadership in order to get accomplish the day to day operations of the company.
LO 2.3 Comparing leadership styles for different situations
There are some leadership styles that can be employed in different situations, with this being situational and transformational leadership. Situational leadership is the type of leadership driven by the kind of situation the company is currently facing (Johnson, 2009), while transformational leadership is the type of leadership used to bring about radical changes with the aim of making an enterprise to be profitable (Hacker & Roberts, 2004).
Situational leadership can be used in circumstances where there is a need to empower and coach employees as the company re-invents itself due to operational problems it is facing. This type of leadership assesses the capability of the employees to performing their tasks in relatively bad circumstances. The style is used to establish a mutual relationship with employees under undesirable circumstances, which enables the leader to be able to adjust and win the employees towards a course of action. The leadership style is based on two elements, the ability to recognize a situation, and the ability to steer the employees towards the organizational goals in that situation.
Situational leadership is used in problem solving, where the company is in dire need of solution that can navigate it from the challenges and problems it is currently facing.
Transformational leadership is a leadership style that mainly involves turning loss-making entities into profitable units. It counts on everyone, including operational employees. This style motivates team and encourages them by strengthening the employees towards achieving their goals, by encouraging team optimism, enthusiasm, and commitment among team members. On the other hand, this type of leadership style encourages productivity among all team members. Besides that, the transactional style can help in retaining the workforce by implementing enthusiastic measures, which gives employees morale of better things in the future.
Laissez-faire leadership style is on the other hand based on the happenings in the company. This style enables leaders to monitor performance through controls and feedback systems in order to reduce and prevent operational lapses. It is used together with controls and system checks in order to improve the company operations. In instances where a company may be in need of talent, the leadership style uses a set of team members who are skilled, experienced and has a self-direction in order to navigate the company towards achieving its goals.
Laissez-faire leadership style plays a role in the recruitment process of hiring and retaining employees. It plays a key role in coaching, developing talent, and cultivating an environment that support employees’ goals. This helps companies to retain talent as workers feel appreciated in a way.
LO 2.4 Ways to motivate staff to achieve objectives in the organization
Management and leadership style play an important role in cultivating a conducive environment to motivate employees. Employees can therefore be motivated in a number of ways with this increasing retention levels. One of the ways motivation can be employed in the organization is through the use of reward schemes, which are programs used to appreciate an effort employed by an employee towards some given course of action. The use of reward schemes will give employees morale of putting more input. Besides this, job satisfaction and proper communication can increase productivity in employees hence directly impacting on the recruitment, selection and retention programs of a company. Staff can also be motivated by getting them involved in various team building activities as well as using a mentor worker approach so as to foster the right attitude and thinking towards various jobs in a company. Team building in a company will ensure that employees are released of their boredom at work by encouraging their participation in various trips in other areas, meeting, and discussing with other personnel from other companies. Mentor employee approach will also increase motivation especially when a mentor uses the best approach to change the reasoning attributes of an employee towards certain situations. Employees that are well mentored are likely to be motivated since the develop life skill attitudes which help them cope with different situations within the company.
Despite employing proper management and good leadership styles, the PM Company would still require a lot especially from employees, who may be required to cooperate by working in teams in order to meet the organizational objectives. PM Company will benefit from teams developed among employees, with these known to enhance conflict resolution, encourage risk taking, build trust, improve morale and to foster creativity.
Task 2
LO 3.1 Benefits of team-working for an organization
FM Company could make use of teamwork to foster an environment where the administration can resolve conflicts as a result of delayed salaries to its employees. Given that not all employees may be so much aggrieved by the company’s administration, some employees could be put with another team member to try to communicate the problems facing the company among the employees. This would be used to reduce and prevent resentment, which may occur within the company.
FM Company would use teamwork to establish a strong relationship among employees. The trust would then be used to establish a communication channel where employees can communicate with the administration concerning some issues. This can be used by the organization to solve petty problems that may lead to resentment. This especially can work at FM Company when the company has a representation among the teams where every team communicates to the management through its leader.
FM company could use teamwork to improve morale among employees in the company. This would enable employees to become responsible in decision making since they are also tasked with decision making in the operations of the company, and as such may feel part of the company hence would get involved in many aspects of the company, and thus would increase their morale.
FM Company can use teams in order to enable creativity to thrive. This would happen in instances where the organization would be open minded about inviting ideas on how to improve or prevent the operational lapses the company is facing. Team members when allowed to give divergent views, may help the company by giving solution-centered initiative aimed at improving the problems in the company.
On the other hand, teamwork is known to enhance knowledge. FM Company could use knowledge among the members of the teams to implement skills that can be of value to the management and operations in the company.
FM Company would use team to increase productivity of the employees. This for instance would work when teams have assigned team leaders who would be tasked with monitoring and coaching team members towards achieving the company goals. This would happen since every team would like to be associated with an objective that they would like to achieve.
LO 3.2 Leading the team as a member to attain goals as well as deal with situations
Teams are an essential component in companies since they help in steering the performances of individuals and of the company as a whole. They form a critical segment of companies so as to make things work. Team leaders on the other hand are individuals with leadership and management attributes, who understand the goals and vision of companies, hence they are important in giving the teams direction.
It would be beneficial when the company includes team leaders who would be tasked with coordinating the aspects of teams as well as acting as a point of reference with the management of the company. Team leaders in every team would help in ensuring that the company objectives are implemented in each team, and on the other hand would also ensure that each team contributes towards the objective of the company. In other instances, team leaders can also be able a to foster a proper working relationship among team mates, an attribute which would be very critical towards ensuring unity among teams and at the same time dealing with divergent perceptions which may bring about conflict of interest in the company.
In spite of this, the company should adopt a proper methodology to help in the proper monitoring of a work performance in the organization. Some of the factors that are involved in measuring work performance include the organizational expectations, skills, and knowledge levels of the employees.
LO 3.3 Effectiveness of the Teams in Achieving the goals
Team collaboration would ensure that each team is coordinating with the organization towards attaining a specific goal. Other than that, the teams would also remain focused on the goals of the company, which would transform it back to profit, as well as reducing operational problems that are encountered.
Apart from team roles, delegation in various teams is a critical element in order to ensure that various individuals are responsible towards achieving the goals of the company. Delegation plays an important role since it enables the team members to remain focused in their areas of expertise in order to ensure that the whole organization meets its goals through the use of these small teams.
The use of teams in a company is very essential since its enables the company to achieve the goals since every team member specialized in a specific skill puts it into use within the organization, as well as building the skills of other teammates. This improves work performance, effectiveness, as well as attainment towards a specific goal. Low skilled employees may benefit from teams since well-experienced teammates in groups can be able to nurture their skills and overly uplift the performance of the company towards achieving their goals.
LO 4.1 Factors involved in planning the monitoring and assessment of work performance
This affects the planning, monitoring and assessment of work performance in an organization. Organizations have expectations that need to be fulfilled by its employees. However, this depends on the plans of the organization in meeting its quarterly objectives, in order to assess an individual’s effort towards achieving a particular goal. This affects the monitoring and assessment of work performance since organizations need to cultivate a conducive environment to enable its employees achieve the company goals
This affects the planning, monitoring and assessment of work performance, in that more skilled and knowledgeable workers are likely to perform better than their counterparts who may have inadequate skills regarding a job.
LO 4.2 A Plan and deliver the assessment of the development Needs of Individuals
These elements guide the various units of the organization towards achieving their strategic goals. It is also important to cultivate a favorable climate where the various developmental attributes of team member as well as employees can be nurtured pertaining knowledge and skills of work. This therefore calls for an assessment technique so as to ensure that employees various needs are well catered for in order to develop their work skills. The assessment process will consist of various elements such as the use of feedback systems, surveys, and work questionnaires. The use of feedback systems will help the company to gauge its effectiveness towards meeting the developmental needs of the employees. This will be used to gather first hand information concerning their attitudes and what they think the company needs to improve in order to meet their goals. The company shall also use questionnaires and surveys to gather data as regards work performance.
On establishing baseline information, the company shall plan for specific skill set activities in order to address the shortfalls in the company. This may include on job training to address issues of poor performance or the need to perform better past the achieved targets, periodic training of employees in order to better their skills. Planning and delivering the assessment in order to develop the employees will be based on feedback collected from employees. The company will use this to create a schedule as per the needs of employees in order to help nurture them.
LO 4.3 Evaluating the success of the Assessment process
Evaluation and assessment will depend on the data, which has been gathered from employees by the management. The data gathered through the feedback systems, questionnaires as well as the surveys would be used as an informational tool in order to assess the whole process. The number of responses, either classified as either negative or positive will be used to make a decision as pertains the process, as positive responses will indicate a positive progress, while on the other hand, where instances of negative responses exceed positive feedback, the evaluation will indicate a poor performance which will initiate a response in order to improve things in the company. The feedback systems will also enable the company to improve areas, which resulted to a reduced performance.
Monitoring and assessing teams that are well composed is likely to give positive feedback and results of an assessment. On the other hand, teams that work in a work environment that is conducive is likely to gain more, compared to other teams consisting of members who are deficient in knowledge and skills.
FM Company can benefit by ensuring that the team members are working effectively, while on the other hand ensuring that team dynamics are looked into. This can be ensured by cultivating an environment where trust prevails, enabling a spirit of commitment among team member, ensuring that there is a democratic process in each team with each member focused on learning, and on the other hand formulating tasks and roles to guide each member
The company can benefit from the teams and members, especially when they are composed in an appropriate manner. This will enable the company to navigate through administrative and operational problems encountered.
On the other hand, it is important that the company lay down an appropriate methodology in the recruitment, selection, and retention of employees.
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