Human Resource Management
Human resource management
This domain covers workforce planning, recruitment and selection, training, appraisal, motivation and the legal framework of employment. Exam questions often ask you to evaluate a motivation or retention problem, not just list theories.
Core rules and concepts
- Human resource planning forecasts demand for labour and compares it with current supply, identifying gaps, surpluses and skills shortages.
- Recruitment attracts candidates; selection chooses among them. Internal recruitment is cheaper and motivating but limits fresh ideas; external recruitment widens the pool but costs more and carries uncertainty.
- Training can be induction, on-the-job or off-the-job. Appraisal provides feedback and links development to objectives; it fails when criteria are vague or feedback is absent.
- Motivation theories: Taylor's scientific management links pay to output; Maslow's hierarchy moves from physiological to self-actualisation needs; Herzberg separates hygiene factors (pay, conditions) from motivators (achievement, responsibility). Financial and non-financial rewards affect retention differently.
- Labour turnover = number of leavers ÷ average number of employees × 100%. High turnover raises recruitment and training costs and can signal poor management.
Worked example
A call centre has 240 employees on average and 60 leavers in a year. Turnover = 60 ÷ 240 × 100% = 25%. Exit interviews show leavers cite repetitive work and poor supervision. A pay rise might reduce dissatisfaction temporarily, but Herzberg suggests pay is a hygiene factor; it prevents dissatisfaction rather than creating motivation. Job rotation, clearer targets and supervisor training address motivators and are more likely to improve retention. The reasoning connects the metric to cause before choosing a remedy.
Traps that cost marks
Do not treat Maslow's hierarchy as rigid; people may pursue several needs at once. Do not equate dismissal with redundancy: redundancy arises because a job disappears, not because of misconduct. Do not assume high pay guarantees motivation. Do not ignore employment law on contracts, working time, discrimination and unfair dismissal.