Job and Rolemanagement

processBy sujith bhaskar R

RECRUITMENT is searching and obtaining potential job candidates in sufficient numbers and quality so that the organisation can select the most appropriate people to fill its job needs.

(Dowling and Schuler, 1990)

Whitehill (1991) describes the recruitment process as a positive one, ‘Building a Roster of Potentially Qualified Applicants’, as opposed to the ‘Negative’ process of selection.

SELECTION involves three distinct but not mutually exclusive stages:-

Recruitment

Selection

Placement

SELECTION METHODS

Application Blank

Biographic Data

Education and Past Experience

References

Selection Test

Interviews

Group Discussions

Business Games

Physical Examination

SELECTION TEST

Personnel selection is often based on tests. Individuals

are different in their job related abilities and skills

which can be adequately and accurately measured for

comparison. Many human abilities are complex and

interrelated. Selection tests facilitate in establishing

connection/co-relation.

SELECTION TESTS : KINDS

Achievement Tests

Aptitude Tests

Interest Tests

Personality Tests (Personality Inventories)

Intelligence Tests (IQ)

Emotional Tests (EQ)

SELECTION TESTS : DIMENSIONS

Performance v/s Paper-Pencil Test

Individual v/s Group Test

Time Bound v/s Free Test

Objective v/s Floating-Answers Test

SELECTION TESTS : OTHER ISSUES

Test Development and administration.

Advantages of Selection Tests.

Limitations of Selection Tests.

Precautions in using Selection Tests.

- Norms as a source of reference.

- People differ in their anxiety about tests.

- Tests to be validated keeping in mind organisaiton culture.

- Due/appropriate weightage be given and used as add-on to other procedures viz.. Interviews.

- Test administration, scoring and interpretation requires technical competence and training in testing.

INTERVIEW

Firmly established in first place - Most researched and carefully documented method - Research has been carried out on aspects viz. Physical setting, questions asked, process, validity and reliability measures.

Interview - Interaction between interviewer and applicant.

Interviews if properly handled - Powerful technique in achieving information.

If improperly handled - Source of bias, restricting / distorting communication.

INTERVIEW : KINDS

Preliminary Interview

Stress Interview

Depth Interview

EVALUATION OF CERTAIN FACTORS VIZ.

(1) Basic Character Traits

(2) Motivation

(3) Emotional Maturity

INTERVIEW PROCESS

Great care exercised - Before, During & After.

BEFORE - Critical areas for asking questions - Mock interviews - Understanding between interviewers, scrutinize information given in application form - Identify skills, incidents and experiences - Discussion to focus on experiences.

DURING - Applicant on ‘Guard’ - Possibly tense, nervous and frightened, tact and sensitivity useful, sense of ease, informality - uncover interviewee’s motivation, attitudes, feelings and temperament.

INTERVIEW PROCESS .... CONTINUED

DURING establishing rapport - putting interviewee at ease - asking soft questions on areas like weather, journey, stay etc. Thereafter questions can be focussed job related - follow a pattern - complex questions to be asked gradually, understanding interviewee’s point of view important, avoid leading questions, precise questions (easy to frame) to be asked.

AFTER - Interviewers should discuss amongst themselves - short notes on impression of candidates - Behaviour responses - Compatibility issues etc.

CHARACTERISTICS OF GOOD INTERVIEWERS PROFILE:

Knowledge of job and related areas.

Emotional maturity and stable personality.

Sensitivity to interviewee’s feelings and sympathetic attitude.

Extrovert behaviour and physical stamina.

PREFERRED - To have behavioural science background.

INTERVIEWS : CONCERNS1. Interview data v/s interviewers data. Interview information is channeled through interviewer. Often interviewer’s biases and responses interfere in evaluating interview per se.

2. Inconsistency - Lack of standardisation in interviewers’ behaviour.

3. Highly structured interviews permit Little Individuality.

4. Multiple interviewers lead to “Team Decisions”. Validity of Team Decision vis-a-vis Individual (single interviewer) predictions.

5. Great Subjectivity - Halo Effect - Leading Questions.

INTERVIEWS : CONCERNS ..... CONTINUED6. Intellectual ability of interviewers. Interviewer should

possess level of intelligence at least equal to interviewee.

7. Length of Interview - Investment in applicants. Studies reveal: 10 minutes per applicant (57% Interviewer, 30% Applicant and 13% Silence)

8. Interviewee often not provided information about job.

9. Qualitative Interview Data. Difficult to quantify.

10. Interviews often do not provide flexibility in understanding and is often procedure driven.

FAILURE OF INTERVIEWS

Overconfidence of interviewer

Unstructured interview (Too Much!)

Too Much expectations from interviews.

BUSINESS GAMES are decision making

exercise where participant is placed in a

hypothetical work situation and required to

act according to his position in the game.

ORGANIZING

Organizing is (1) the identification and classification of

required activities, (2) the grouping of activities necessary to

attain objectives, (3) the assignment of each grouping to a

manager with the authority (delegation) necessary to supervise

it, and (4) the provision for coordination horizontally (on the

same or a similar organizational level) and vertically (for

example, corporate headquarters, division, and department) in

the organization structure.

ORGANIZATIONAL ROLE

For an organizational role to exist and be meaningful to

people, it must incorporate (1) verifiable objectives, a major

part of planning; (2) A clear idea of the major duties or

activities involved; and (3) an understood area of discretion or

authority so that person filling the role knows what he or she

can do to accomplish goals. In addition, to make a role work

out effectively, provision should be made for supplying needed

information and other tools necessary for performance in that

role.

“Organization” is a word used loosely

Includes all the behaviour of all participants

Equate it with the total system of social and

cultural relationships

Refer to as an enterprise for e.g.. VMSB, DMC.

For practicing managers it means a formalized

intentional structure of roles or positions.

FORMAL ORGANIZATION

Formal Organization means the intentional structure of roles in

a formally organized enterprise.

Formal organization must be flexible. There should be room

for discretion, for advantageous utilization of creative talents,

and for recognition of individual likes and capacities in the

most formal of organizations. Yet individual effort in a group

situation must be channeled toward group and organization

goals.

INFORMAL ORGANIZATION

Informal organization is “a network of personal and social

relations not established or required by the formal organization

but arising spontaneously as people associate with one another.

Thus, informal organizations - relationships not appearing on an

organization chart - might include the machine-shop group, the

sixth-floor crowd, the Friday evening bowling gang, and the

morning-coffee “regulars.”

One aspect of organizing is the establishment of

departments. The word department designates a

distinct area, division, or branch of an organization over

which a manager has authority for the performance of

specified activities.

PRINCIPLE OF THE SPAN OF MANAGEMENTPrinciple of the span of management states that there is a limit to the number of subordinates a manager can effectively supervise, but the exact number will depend on the impact of underlying factors:-

Training of Subordinates

Clarity of Delegation of Authority

Clarity of Plans

Use of Objective Standards

Rate of Change

Communication Techniques

Amount of Personal Contact Needed

Variation by Organization Level

Other Factors

Innovation comes about because of some of the following situations:

1. The unexpected event, failure, or success

2. The incongruous - what is assumed and what really is

3. The process or task that needed improvement

4. Changes in the market or industry structure

5. Changes in demographics

6. Changes in meaning or in the way things are perceived

7. Newly acquired knowledge.

THE LOGIC OF ORGANIZINGOrganizing process consists of the following six steps:

1. Establishing enterprise objectives

2. Formulating supporting objectives, policies, and plans

3. Identifying and classifying the activities necessary to accomplish these

4. Grouping these activities in light of the human and material resources available and the best way, under the circumstances, of using them

5. Delegating to the head of each group the authority necessary to perform the activities

6. Trying the groups together horizontally and vertically, through authority relationships and information flows.

STRATEGIC BUSINESS UNITS (SBUs)

SBUs are distinct little businesses set up as units in a larger company to ensure that a certain product or product line is promoted and handled as though it were an independent business.

To be called an SBU, a business unit must meet specific criteria. An SBU, for example, must (1) have its own mission, distinct from the mission of other SBUs (2) have definable groups of competitors, (3) prepare its own integrative plans, fairly distinct from those of other SBUs, (4) manage its resources in key areas, and (5) have a proper size - neither too large nor too small. Obviously, in practice it might be difficult to define SBUs that meet all of these criteria.

POWER

Power is the ability of individuals or groups to induce or

influence the beliefs or actions of other persons or groups.

AUTHORITY

Authority in organization is the right in a position (and,

through it, the right of the person occupying the position) to

exercise discretion in making decisions affecting others. It

is, of course, one type of power, but power in an

organization setting.

BASES OF POWER Legitimate Power

Expert Power

Referent Power

Reward Power

Coercive Power

Legitimate Power arises from position and cultural

system, rights, obligation and duties.

Expert Power arises from the power of knowledge.

Referent Power arises from specialized knowledge

that people may have.

Reward Power arises from the power to grant or

withhold high grades.

Coercive Power arises from the power to punish - by

firing a subordinate or withholding merit increase.

SCALAR PRINCIPLE IN ORGANIZATION:

The clearer the line of authority from the ultimate

management position in an enterprise to every

subordinate position, the clearer will be the

responsibility for decision making and the more

effective will be organization communication.

FUNCTIONAL AUTHORITY

Functional authority is the right that is delegated to an

individual or a department to control specified

processes, practices, policies, or other matters relating

to activities undertaken by persons in other

departments.

Authority is delegated when a superior gives a subordinate

discretion to make decisions. Clearly, superiors cannot

delegate authority they do not have, whether they are board

members, presidents, vice presidents, or supervisors.

The Process of Delegation involves (1) determining the

results expected from a position, (2) assigning tasks to the

position, (3) delegating authority for accomplishing these

tasks, and (4) holding the person in that position responsible

for the accomplishment of the tasks.

PERSONAL ATTITUDES TOWARD DELEGATION

Receptiveness

Willingness to let go

Willingness to let others make mistakes

Willingness to trust subordinates

Willingness to establish and use broad controls.

PRACTICAL GUIDE TO FACILITATE DELEGATION

1. Define assignments and delegate authority in light of results expected.

2. Select the person in light of the job to be done.

3. Maintain open lines of communication

4. Establish proper controls

5. Reward effective delegation and successful assumption of authority.

ADVANTAGES OF DECENTRALIZATION

1. Relieves top management of some burden of decision making and forces upper-level managers to let go.

2. Encourages decision making and assumption of authority and responsibility.

3. Gives managers more freedom and independence in decision making.

4. Promotes establishment and use of broad controls which may increase motivation.

5. Makes comparison of performance of different organizational units possible.

6. Facilitates setting up of profit centres.

7. Facilitates product diversification.

8. Promotes development of general managers.

9. Aids in adaptation to fast-changing environment.

LIMITATIONS OF DECENTRALIZATION1. Makes it more difficult to have a uniform policy.

2. Increases complexity of coordination of decentralized organizational units.

3. May result in loss of some control by upper-level managers.

4. May be limited by inadequate control techniques.

5. May be constrained by inadequate planning and control systems.

6. Can be limited by the availability of qualified managers.

7. Involves considerable expenses for training managers.

8. May be limited by external forces (national labour unions, governmental controls, tax policies).

9. May not be favoured by economies of scale of some operations.