Xaviers Institute of Business Management Studies

Human Resource Management

(i) There are three Sections A and B and C.

(ii) Attempt any three questions each from Section A and B. All questions carry 10 marks each.
(iii) Section C is compulsory for all and carries 40 marks.

SECTION A

1. Define and differentiate between Job Analysis, Job Description and Job Evaluation. Select
an appropriate job evaluation method and create a plan for evaluating jobs of scientists in
different grades.

Solution: Job Analysis and Job Evaluation are the two important functions of Human Resource
Management to know the characteristics of a particular position. An expert, to provide pertinent
information about the two, performs both the tasks. Job Analysis is a process, which determines job
requirements while Job Evaluation ascertains the value of a job in relation to other jobs.

Job Analysis is performed with an objective of obtaining relevant facts and details related to the job. On
the flip side, Job Evaluation aims at systematically assessing the various job, in order to identify their
respective worth in the organization. Evaluation of job is based on the job content and position as per
their performance.

Job analysis is the process of identifying and determining in detail contents of a particular job, thereby,
clearly defining duties, responsibilities, accountabilities, and skills associated with the job. An important
aspect of job analysis is that the analysis is conducted of the job, and not of the person. The process of
job analysis results in two sets of data:

1. Job description - It is a written statement containing complete information about what all a job
involves including job title, duties, tasks and responsibilities related to job, working conditions
and hazards, reporting relationships, tools, machines and equipment’s to be used, and
relationships with other positions.
2. Job specification - It provides particulars about capabilities that an individual should possess to
perform the job efficiently. This includes educational qualification, experience, training,
appropriate skills, knowledge, and abilities required to perform the job.

Job evaluation, on the other hand, specifies the relative value or worth of each job in an organization.

Definition of Job Analysis

The term Job Analysis refers to a very deep examination conducted in an organized way, to collect
information about a particular job. It is a process that aims at exploring information regarding the
nature and major requirements of a specific job through observation, research and, study. The job
analysis gives an answer to three major questions which are:

1. What are the tasks performed by the job?

2. How they are performed?

3. What are the qualities required, in the effective performance of the job?
It determines the working conditions, tasks, responsibilities, duties, authorities, skills and abilities of the
concerned job.

Definition of Job Evaluation

Job Evaluation is an objective and logical process, which determines the comparative usefulness of
each and every job of the organization. The basic purpose of job evaluation is to find out an appropriate
base for salary, to remove the disparities in the wage system and to implement a consistent and a
justified wage differential in the organization.

There are certain pre-requisites of the job evaluation like:

1. It rates the job, not the jobholder.

2. The criteria selected for rating should be easily explainable.

3. It criteria should cover major aspects of every job to avoid clashing.

4. Participation of foreman in rating the job.

5. Points are only required to be discussed with the foreman, any discussion regarding money
should be avoided.

Job evaluation may help in setting a uniform and rational wage structure in the industry, which will help
in eliminating various shortcomings of the wage management and administration in the organization
like deciding the wage rate on the basis of seniority and completely ignoring merit, an increment in the
salary of the persons who does not justify it, inequitable wage payment due to discrimination e.g.
caste, gender, color, etc.

Job Evaluation process for scientists in different grades.

An organization can appoint internal HR Specialists or take service of an HR Consulting Firm to carry out
the project of job analysis and evaluation with the aim of hiring scientists in different grades. However,
external HR Consultants are beneficial for their expertise and independent views.

The systematic process of job analysis and evaluation followed by the firm includes:

 Identifying concerned job (Scientist in this case).

 Selecting/appointing a team or an individual to conduct project.
 Defining main outcomes required.
 Identifying main participants in the work process, including the ones in the job/role as well as
reporting authorities.
 Prepare a list of the participants, by name and position, in work analysis chart.
 Keep track of work process, documents and other related information present with participants.
 Information can also be gathered from previous job analysis and evaluation reports.
 When job/role is new in organization, then information for the same may be obtained from other
similar organizations having such job/role, and by understanding the reasons for creating that
job/role from the concerned authority in the organization.
 Analyze the collected information.
 Make proposals regarding the new or changed job, role or pay structure.

The various methods by which an HR Consultant can obtain the information for job description and job
specification are:

 Observing the employee.

 Carrying out individual/group interviews.
 Having brainstorming sessions between groups of employees.
 Performing desk audit by carefully examining documents used and tasks executed by employee.
 Using questionnaires.
 Asking employees to jot down all their tasks and duties as and when they perform them.
 Interviewing employees for any critical incidents that may have occurred.
 Keeping a video recording of employee on duty.
 Reviewing all the necessary documents present in organization.
 Referring to previous job analysis and evaluations done in organization.
Job evaluation is done by any of the following methods:

 Points rating - Different levels are accorded to the various elements of jobs and then the points
allocated to different levels are totaled to get point score of the jobs which forms the basis of
pay structure.
 Factor comparison - A comparison of various independent factors of jobs is done and points are
given to each factor rank of individual job. These points are then totaled to rank the jobs.
 Job ranking - Job is not broken into factors or elements, rather it is evaluated as a whole and is
compared with other jobs to be ranked accordingly.
 Paired comparison - Jobs are compared with each other and allocated points depending on being
‘greater, lesser or equal’. These points are added to create rank order of jobs.

The outputs of job analysis and evaluation are then aligned to the purpose of the project. This requires
the HR Consultants to interpret the changes required in the existing job/pay and suggesting the
improvements, as required. HR Consultants also advice on smooth incorporation of these changes to
enhance efficiency and effectiveness of the organization.

2. Discuss the role of indoctrination in organizations. How can Performance Appraisal, and
Training and Development be made an integral part of Human Resource Planning? Discuss.

3. Discuss the scope of Human Resource Audit. While auditing Reward systems for
employees in a manufacturing organization, which factors should be taken into account and
why? Explain with suitable examples.

4. Define and discuss the need for Human Resource Planning in an organization. Briefly
discuss various approaches to HRP

Solution: Human Resource Planning is a systematic process of forecasting both the prospective
demand for and supply of manpower, and employment of skills with the objectives of the organization.
It can also be termed as the method of reviewing the manpower necessities to ensure that right kind of
skills is made available to the organization.

The main purpose of HRP is to set the goals and objectives of the company. In other words, it is to have
the precise number of employees, with their skills matching the requirements of the organization, so
that the organization can move towards its goals. Chief objectives of Human Resource Planning are as
follows:

 Guarantee ample supply of resources, whenever there is a need for it.

 Make sure that the current manpower in the company is being used properly.
 To foresee the potential requirements of manpower at various skill levels.
 Evaluate excess or scarcity of resources that are available at a given point of time.
 Predict the impact of technological changes on the resources as well as on the kind of jobs they
do.
 Manage the resources that are already employed in the organization.
 Ensure that there is a lead-time available to pick and train any supplementary human resource.

Need for Human Resource Planning

The need of HRP may arise because of the following reasons:

1. In India, unemployment is a concern. Scarcity of manpower and that too with the required skill
sets and competence, has given rise for need of Human Resource Planning.
2. It comes handy for smooth and continuous supply of workers when a huge number of employees
is retiring, or leaving the company or maybe they are incapable of working due to psychological or
physical ailments.
3. There is a need for Human Resource Planning when there is an increase in employee turnover,
which is obvious. Some examples of this turnover are promotions, marriages, end of contract, etc.
4. Technological changes lead to a chain of changes in the organization, right from skill sets
product methods and administration techniques. These changes lead to an overall change in the
number of employees required and with entirely different skill set. It is here that the Human
Resource Planning helps the organization deal with the necessary changes.
5. Human Resource Planning is required to meet the requirements of diversification and growth of
a company.
6. There is a need for Human Resource Planning in downsizing the resources when there is a
shortage of manpower. Similarly, in case of excess resources, it helps in redeploying them in other
projects of the company.

Importance of Human Resource Planning

After the need for HRP, it is apt to discuss the importance of it. A few are mentioned below.

 It gives the company the right kind of workforce at the right time frame and in right figures.
 In striking a balance between demand-for and supply-of resources, HRP helps in the optimum
usage of resources and also in reducing the labor cost.
 Cautiously forecasting the future helps to supervise manpower in a better way, thus pitfalls can
be avoided.
 It helps the organization to develop a succession plan for all its employees. In this way, it
creates a way for internal promotions.
 It compels the organization to evaluate the weaknesses and strengths of personnel thereby
making the management to take remedial measures.
 The organization as a whole is benefited when it comes to increase in productivity, profit, skills,
etc., thus giving an edge over its competitors.

Human Resource Planning Process

In any Human Resource Planning model there are three key elements which the management should
adhere to:
1. Forecasting recruitment needs: There are a number of ways in forecasting your business
needs, to know the exact number of employees required to run the business. Factors to be
considered are the economical situation of any given country, internal and external factors of an
organization and the demand for the products.
2. Evaluate Supply: In estimating this, there are two aspects, one is the evaluation of the internal
resources and the other is the prospective or external resources. Among the two, external factors
require extra care, these include education, unemployment rate and law that is in existence.
Evaluating these factors very closely will help the organization in filling the right resources at the
right time with the right skill set.
3. Supply and demand balance: This element of Human Resource Planning is very important, as
striking a balance between these two forces will help the organization in understanding if there is
shortage or excess of employees available in a particular group. It also helps in understanding as
to the need of full time or part time needs of the organization.

5. Write short notes on any three of the following:

(a) Training methods
(b) Value determinants of HRP: Some of the factors that influence human resource planning include;

Labor market: The labor market is basically the supply and demand of available workers in line with
work that is available. The organization may require skilled workers; however, the local labor market
may experience a deficit of such workers. Thus, for purposes of human resource planning, the
organization will be forced to source the skilled labor externally.

Labor policies: Existing laws both affect human resource planning internationally and locally in areas
where organizations operate. In this regard, the human resource planning process and expected goals
should adhere to set policies regarding interactions with the labor market. Such policies may be in the
form of; international labor laws, national labor laws and union policies depending on the industry or
line of work.

Technological advancement: Technical changes are expected to impact the human resource
planning process. This is because technological advancement creates a need for retraining of the
available workers or the employment of new workers capable of handling the developments.

Organizational changes: Organizational changes are also expected to impact human resource
planning. Organizations go through different situations, which necessitate changes in their need for
human resources. Expansion of the organization, for instance, may require an increase in the available
human resources to sustain normal/optimum operations.

(c) Human Resource accounting: Human resources are considered as important assets and are
different from the physical assets. Physical assets do not have feelings and emotions, whereas human
assets are subjected to various types of feelings and emotions. In the same way, unlike physical assets
human assets never are depreciated.

Therefore, the valuations of human resources along with other assets are also required in order to find
out the total cost of an organization. In 1960s, Rensis Likert along with other social researchers
attempted to define the concept of human resource accounting (HRA).

Definition

1. The American Association of Accountants (AAA) defines HRA as follows: ‘HRA is a process of
identifying and measuring data about human resources and communicating this information to
interested parties’.

2. Flamhoitz defines HRA as ‘accounting for people as an organizational resource. It involves measuring
the costs incurred by organizations to recruit, select, hire, train, and develop human assets. It also
involves measuring the economic value of people to the organization’.

3. According to Stephen Knauf, ‘ HRA is the measurement and quantification of human organizational
inputs such as recruiting, training, experience and commitment’.
Need for HRA: The need for human asset valuation arose because of growing concern for human
relations management in the industry.

(d) Labour Market Behavior

(e) Promotion and Reward Policies: Employees are motivated by both intrinsic and extrinsic
rewards. To be effective, the reward system must recognize both sources of motivation. All reward
systems are based on the assumptions of attracting, retaining and motivating people. Financial rewards
are an important component of the reward system, but there are other factors that motivate employees
and influence the level of performance. In fact, several studies have found that among employees
surveyed, money was not the most important motivator, and in some instances managers have found
money to have a demotivating or negative effect on employees. Today's emphasis on quality-
improvement teams and commitment-building programs is creating a renaissance for financial
incentive of pay-for-performance plans. Today financial incentives constitute less than 5% of the U.S.
worker's compensation. Organizations adopt alternative reward systems to increase domestic and
international competition. The competitive reasons for the growing emphasis on performance-based
compensation are companies cutting costs, restructuring, and boosting performance. To ensure the
reward system is effective and motivates the desired behaviors, it is essential to consider carefully the
rewards and strategies utilized and ensure the rewards are linked to or based on performance. To be
effective, any performance measurement system must be tied to compensation or some sort of reward.
Rewarding performance should be an ongoing managerial activity, not just an annual pay-linked ritual.

Strategies for rewarding employees’ performance and contributions include both non-financial and
financial mechanisms. Some of the primary ones are discussed below. The list is not exhaustive, and
individual units/departments may identify additional mechanisms that are appropriate for and support
their culture and goals.

 Praise/recognition from supervisors - Praise and recognition from supervisors is consistently found to
be among the most important motivators. Employees want to be recognized and feel their contributions
are noticed and valued. It is important that supervisors recognize the value and importance of sincerely
thanking employees verbally and/or in writing for their specific contributions.

 Challenging work assignments - Challenging/new work assignments are another mechanism

available to supervisors to reward good performance. Such assignments can provide employees
opportunities to develop new skills, expand their knowledge, and/or increase their visibility within the
organization. They also send an important message that employees’ contributions are recognized and
valued. In considering such assignments, supervisors should consult employees about the types of
assignments that would be most valued, and they should assess whether workloads will need to be
redistributed to ensure employees have adequate time to devote to new tasks.

 Professional growth and development opportunities- Supervisors may provide employees

opportunities to participate in educational programs or other activities that will expand their
skills/knowledge. Employees benefit by developing new skills, and the institution benefits from the
additional expertise individuals bring to the job. Nelson notes a recent survey found that 87% of
responding workers viewed special training as a positive incentive, and it appeared most meaningful to
employees with postgraduate education.

 Paid Leave - Supervisors may award employees up to 32 hours of paid leave annually in recognition
of meritorious performance

 Progression through the salary range - Employees may receive salary increases to recognize the
attainment of new and/or the enhancement of existing skills/competencies or for assuming increased
responsibilities within the scope of the current position. The salary increase represents a progression
through the salary range approved for the position.

 Merit increases - UT-Houston policy allows supervisors to give employees an annual merit increase to
recognize consistently meritorious performance or successful completion of a project that had a
significant impact on a department or the university. The reward may be in any amount up to 5% of the
employee's current base salary, subject to the availability of funds. Budgetary information regarding
fiscal year merit increases are issued annually as part of the budget process as soon as the institution's
fiscal position can be determined. To be eligible for a merit increase, employees must have been
employed for at least six continuous months and at least six months must have elapsed since the
employee's last salary increase, promotion, salary increase due to progression in the salary range,
demotion or transfer from another department.

 Lump Sum Merit - A lump sum merit is a one-time award, not added to base pay, that can be
awarded to an individual for meritorious job performance. Meritorious job performance is defined as
either consistently high level of job performance over a sustained period of time; or successful
completion of an assigned project that had a significant positive impact on the department or the
university.

An employee cannot be guaranteed in advance a payment of a lump sum merit for achieving
performance targets.

A lump sum merit award is not considered compensation for purposes of the overtime calculation for
FLSA non-exempt employees.

 A lump sum merit award is considered compensation for purposes of inclusion and contributions for
Teachers Retirement System (TRS) or Optional Retirement Program (ORP) per HB1545, Section 51.962
as amended.

Lump sum merit awards are included in the Tax Sheltered Annuity (TSA) calculation.

 A lump sum merit may be paid from any fund source. Payment from a grant fund will be up to each
individual granting agency.

 An important part of base pay management is the maintenance/monitoring of an employee's base

pay salary and progression through the salary range. HR strongly encourages managers to award the
regular merit increase as an additive to base pay if the employee's current pay is below salary range
midpoint and the permanent funding is available.

 Promotions and lateral moves - Promotions and lateral moves may be long term rewards that
recognize employees’ professional growth, expertise, and capacity to contribute to the institution in
new roles. Promotions are typically associated with an increase in salary, and the increase may be any
amount up to 5% of an employee’s current salary.

For employees with base salaries under $25,000, the increase may be any amount up to $1,250. The
new salary also must be within the salary range approved for the position, and employees are subject
to a 90-day probationary period following a promotion/lateral move to a new department.

 Administrative salary supplements- Employees who assume new/additional responsibilities on an

interim basis may receive administrative salary supplements that are paid in addition to the base
salary. The supplement is discontinued when the employee is no longer responsible for the additional
responsibilities.

 Informal rewards - When warranted, supervisors may choose to give employees informal rewards for
specific accomplishments/contributions. State law and institutional policy allow expenditures of up to
$50 of state funds and $100 of non-state funds per employee for informal non-cash rewards that
demonstrate the supervisor’s/institution’s appreciation. Supervisors can be creative in identifying
informal rewards that will be appreciated by the particular individual being recognized, but, in selecting
and purchasing rewards, supervisors must be sensitive to the institution’s responsibility to be good
stewards of public funds.

SECTION B

1. Define and discuss the objectives of Human Resource Planning at organizational level.
How does it help in determining and evaluating future organizational capabilities, needs
and anticipated problems? Explain with suitable examples.
Solution: The objectives of human resource planning within the organization are to assess and plan for
the organization's human resource needs, to create strategies to meet those needs through
recruitment, hiring, and training, to set human resources policy within the requirements of relevant law
and regulation, to create mechanisms to administer benefits, and to set policies on separation from
employment.

Not only does HR help to determine and evaluate an organization's capabilities, future needs, and
potential problems, planning for capabilities, needs, problems is in fact a crucial part of the HR
department's work, allowing it to administer to all employees competently and efficiently and to keep
the organization properly staffed at all times.

If the organization is not operating up to its potential capability, this is something that can be
addressed by human resources planning. For example, is the organization planning to expand? Human
resources must plan for this before the organization begins its expansion or there will be no employees
to work in a new or larger facility. Are there many people who are getting ready to retire? This must be
planned for, so there is no down time for replacements.

What also must be planned for is the nature, skills, qualities of the employees who might need to be
hired. There may not be a good pool of local candidates. There might be training needs. If there is
high turnover within the organization, human resources planning needs to account for that, as well as
needing to assess why there is such high turnover to begin with. Recruitment and hiring criteria must
be planned for, to assure the highest quality of candidate and selection. Once employees are hired,
there should be policies in place for operating successfully within the corporate structure. For example,
there should be a clear sexual harassment policy that dictates a complaint process, an investigation
procedure, and clear consequences. The administration of benefits must be planned for in compliance
with local, state, and federal law. All termination proceedings should be a function of clear policy and
procedure in accordance with laws, since termination may put the organization at risk for lawsuits.

Human resources planning is central to the success of any organization, and is required to:
achieve the objectives of estimating potential human resources requirements; to cope with changing
requirements of the organization taking into consideration the changing technology; to make full
utilization of the existing and potential workforce of the organization; and [to facilitate] career planning
of employees.

In light of these departmental HR objectives, HR objectives at the organizational level include:

a) cost reduction by having the right people in the right numbers at the right places ant the right
times.
b) labor costs reduction through optimization of human resources.

c) managing costs on foreseeable human resources problems.

d) ensuring smooth cost-saving transitions by training employees and preparing managers for
"succession" through promotion.

2. Define and describe Job Analysis. Briefly discuss several methods in which information
about a job is collected and evaluated.

Solution: Though there are several methods of collecting job analysis information yet choosing the one or a
combination of more than one method depends upon the needs and requirements of organization and the
objectives of the job analysis process. Typically, all the methods focus on collecting the basic job-related
information but when used in combination may bring out the hidden or overlooked information and prove to be
great tools for creating a perfect job-candidate fit.

Selecting an appropriate job analysis method depends on the structure of the organization, hierarchical levels,
nature of job and responsibilities and duties involved in it. So, before executing any method, all advantages and
disadvantages should be analyzed because the data collected through this process serves a great deal and
helps organizations cope with current market trends, organizational changes, high attrition rate and many other
day-to-day problems.

Let’s discuss few of job analysis methods that are commonly used by the organizations to investigate the
demands of a specific job.
Most Common Methods of Job Analysis

 Observation Method: A job analyst observes an employee and records all his performed and non-
performed task, fulfilled and un-fulfilled responsibilities and duties, methods, ways and skills used by him
or her to perform various duties and his or her mental or emotional ability to handle challenges and risks.
However, it seems one of the easiest methods to analyze a specific job but truth is that it is the most
difficult one. Why? Let’s Discover.

It is due to the fact that every person has his own way of observing things. Different people think different
and interpret the findings in different ways. Therefore, the process may involve personal biasness or
likes and dislikes and may not produce genuine results. This error can be avoided by proper training of
job analyst or whoever will be conducting the job analysis process.

This particular method includes three techniques: direct observation, Work Methods Analysis and Critical
Incident Technique. The first method includes direct observation and recording of behaviour of an
employee in different situations. The second involves the study of time and motion and is specially used
for assembly-line or factory workers. The third one is about identifying the work behaviours that result in
performance.

 Interview Method: In this method, an employee is interviewed so that he or she comes up with their
own working styles, problems faced by them, use of particular skills and techniques while performing
their job and insecurities and fears about their careers.

This method helps interviewer know what exactly an employee thinks about his or her own job and
responsibilities involved in it. It involves analysis of job by employee himself. In order to generate honest
and true feedback or collect genuine data, questions asked during the interview should be carefully
decided. In addition, to avoid errors, it is always good to interview more than one individual to get a pool
of responses. Then it can be generalized and used for the whole group.

 Questionnaire Method: Another commonly used job analysis method is getting the questionnaires filled
from employees, their superiors and managers. However, this method also suffers from personal
biasness. A great care should be takes while framing questions for different grades of employees.

In order to get the true job-related info, management should effectively communicate it to the staff that
data collected will be used for their own good. It is very important to ensure them that it will not be used
against them in anyway. If it is not done properly, it will be a sheer wastage of time, money and human
resources.

These are some of the most common methods of job analysis. However, there are several other specialized
methods including task inventory, job element method, competency profiling, technical conference, threshold
traits analysis system and a combination of these methods. While choosing a method, HR managers need to
consider time, cost and human efforts included in conducting the process.

3. What is the purpose and process of recruitment function? Discuss various methods of
sourcing manpower.
Solution: The recruitment process is one of the most fundamental value added HR Processes. The
recruitment is especially critical for managers in the organization. The managers use the recruitment
process intensively, and satisfaction with Human Resources is mostly about the satisfaction with the
recruitment process.

The recruitment process is sensitive to the external and internal changes, and it can be used as the
best indicator for the future HR trends. By careful analysis of HR Recruitment Measures, the HR
Management team can predict the trends in the job market simply.

Main Recruitment Process Goals

The recruitment process is designed to staff the organization with the new employees, and it uses
many different recruitment sources to attract the right talent in the defined quality and within a defined
time.

The recruitment process has several goals:

a) Find the best talents for the vacancies

b) Manage the recruitment sources

c) Manage the vacancies in the organization

d) Run the internal recruitment process

e) Building the strong HR Marketing platform

f) Co-operation with local and international universities

g) Provide feedback about the trends in the job market

Most recruitment goals are not visible to managers directly, and they use just sourcing of the job
candidates as the main outcome from the recruitment process. HR has to use the other outcomes from
the recruitment process, as it is the source of valuable information.

Finding the best talents on the job market

This is the most important goal of the recruitment process. The HR Recruiters are paid for delivering the
candidates to managers, who make the final decision about hiring a new employee.

The organizations are fighting for the best talents in the job market. HR Recruiters have to develop the
competitive approaches to make the attractive job offers. The candidates select the organization, which
is recognized for being modern and competitive. The job adverts and job offers have to reflect this.

The managers love to hire the best employees available on the job market. They love to interview
motivated job candidates. The role of HR is to describe the real need to the manager. Many times, the
best job candidate is not the appropriate job candidate.

Recruitment Sources Management

The recruitment sources management is an extremely significant goal of the recruitment process. The
recruitment sources deliver the candidates for the selection procedure in the organization. The better
the candidates are; the higher quality job candidates can be hired. The proper management of the
recruitment sources has a significant impact on the competitive advantage of the organization. The
better employees do not have to be more expensive, but the organization has to manage the
recruitment sources to attract the high quality job candidates.

4. How is monetary value assigned to different dimensions of Human Resources costs, investments, and
worth of the employees? Briefly explain Cost and Economic value approaches of measurement.

5. Write short notes on any three of the following :

(a) MBO
(b) Succession Planning
(c) Competency Mapping
(d) Job Evaluation
(e) H.R. Inventory
SECTION C

1. Quality control Department

Read the case given below and answer the questions given at the end.

Mr. Kapil Kumar and Mr. Abbas Ali were working in a scooter manufacturing public sector industry as
Senior Quality Control Engineers in 1988. One post of Deputy Chief Quality Controller has fallen vacant
due to the retirement of the incumbent and the management decided to recruit a qualified,
knowledgeable and experienced professional from outside so that the present quality standard may be
improved thus ensuring better marketability of their scooters in the face of stiff competition. Mr. Kapil
Kumar, who was a mechanical engineer with about 15 years experience in the Quality Control
Department dealing with mopeds and scooters, could have been promoted to fill the post on the basis
of seniority. However, the management was looking for a graduate in statistics with experience in latest
Quality Control (QC) techniques like statistical quality control, quality assurance and other related areas
rather than a mechanical or automobile engineer with the routine experience in quality control. As such
instead of promoting Kapil Kumar, the management advertised for the post of Deputy Chief Quality
Controller - since as per company rules it was DR (Direct Recruitment) vacancy also.

Selection of Outsider

Out of the applications received in response to the advertisement, six candidates were called for
interview including the two internal candidates, Mr. Kapil Kumar and Mr. Abbas Ali. The person selected
was an outsider, one Mr. Ratnam, who had over 12 years experience SQC, quality assurance etc., in the
two-wheeler private manufacturing industry. Mr. Ratnam joined within 2 months time expecting that in
his new position he would be the main controller for quality. However, after joining the organization he
came to know that he would be the second senior most person in the hierarchy for controlling the
quality and would be reporting to one, Kirpal Sing,. The Chief for Quality Controls. Mr. Kirpal Singh had
come up to this post by seniority and was basically a diploma holder in automobile engineering. He had
to his credit about 28 years of industrial experience, out of which 20 years were spent in Quality Control
Department of two industries. He joined the present organization in its Quality Control Department and
had 17 years experience in the organization and was due for retirement within the next 2 or 3 years. On
learning about the retirement time of Mr. Kirpal Singh, Mt. Ratnam had the consolation that he would be
able to take up the position of 'Chief Controller of Quality' very soon.

Interference from Top

Ratnam could not put forth many good suggestions (for quality control) because of the interference and
direct supervision of Kirpal Singh. He, however, could pick up a good deal of knowledge about the
working of the company, the nature-and tendency of different production department heads
particularly with regard to care for quality, organization for 'QC' in the company, the various
components required for assembly of the company's two-wheeler scooter and the expected quality
standards, drawback in the present system of quality controls. etc.

Right from the time the advertisement for the selection of Deputy Chief Quality Controller appeared,
the O.A. (Officers Association) of the organization had been pressing the management to consider the
case of Kapil Kumar for promotion to the above post based on his seniority in the organization.

Meanwhile, the management obtained a license in 1989 for producing Three-Wheeler Autos. As a result
of this and the pressure from O.A., Ratnam was transferred to look after the Quality Control Department
at the company's new Three-Wheeler plant, whereas Kapil Kumar was promoted as Deputy Chief
Quality Controller in the present two-wheeler scooter plant in 1990 (after creating one additional post of
Deputy Chief Quality Controller for the new Project).

In 1991, the State Government, which controlled the company in question, changed the Managing
Director. During the regime of this new Managing Director, Kapil Kumar was promoted as Chief (Quality
Controls) next year, when Kirpal Singh retired. This decision was based on the recommendations of
Kirpal Singh and partly attributed to pressure from O.A., for further promotion of Kapil Kumar based on
his vast experience in the Quality Control function of this industry. Abbas Ali rose to the position held
earlier by Kapil Kumar.
Allotment of Company Quarters

The Company had its own township near the factory. Its quarter allotment scheme was based on the
length of service, i.e., date of joining. Ratnam had asked for a suitable quarter at the time of interview
and was thus allotted a tile quarter meant for the Senior Engineer's cadre. He learnt about this, after
occupying the quarter. Ratnam asked for a change of Quarter - preferably a RCC-roof quarter, - but his
request was turned down, since he had put in only few months of service whereas many others senior
to him, on the beds of their longer length of service in the Company (having over 10 years service),
were staying in tiled-roof quarters and were awaiting a chance for a RCC-roof quarter. Kapil Kumar and
Abbas Ali were residing in RCC-roof quarters. Soon after Kapil Kumar's promotion to the post of Chief
(Quality Controls), he was allotted a bungalow.

The management's decision in this case must be viewed in the context of the downtrend in the demand
for scooters and three-wheeler autos during 1993 following complaints from dealers about the
deteriorating quality of components as also their short life. Notably the complaints had risen ten-fold in
that year as compared to that in 1988.

Questions

(a) Was the management justified in taking a decision to recruit a qualified and experienced
person from outside as Deputy Chief Quality Controller?

Solution: As per the case study, the need of the hour was to have a graduate in statistics with
experience in latest Quality Control (QC) techniques like statistical quality control; quality assurance
and other related areas rather than a mechanical or automobile engineer with the routine experience in
quality control. The push to have the latest trends in technology and quality control measures justifies
the management’s decision to recruit a qualified and experienced person from outside as Deputy Chief
Quality Controller

(b) Was it in the interest of the organization to transfer Ratnam to the new auto-wheeler plant and
promote Kapil Kumar? What could have prompted the management to take this decision?

Solution: The management was already under too much of pressure owing to an external recruit from
the O.A. (Officers Association) of the organization, who had been pressing the management to consider
the case of Kapil Kumar for promotion to the above post based on his seniority in the organization. This
build up prompted the management to take this decision.

(c) How do you view the role of O.A.s in supporting only the local and internal candidates and
overlooking the interests of direct recruits even when they were family members of the Association,
particularly at a time, when the industry needed professionally qualified persons to fill key technical
posts?

Solution: The basic functioning of any OA is to safeguard the interests of the members rather than the
organizational interests. In this case, as well the employee’s benefits were prioritized over employers.
The direct recruits are the new joiners for the association as well and things get compromised for the
tenures associates.

(d) How would you react to the management's scheme for quarter allotment and why?

Solution: The management’s scheme is similar to several employee-based scheme across the globe
where houses are allotted based on tenurity in the service as a loyalty bonus. My views are with the
company as they were just playing safe on the employee retention strategy.

2. Pearl Engineering
Pearl Engineering Company was a large heavy-engineering unit. It attached great importance to the
recruitment and training of its senior supervisors. Apart from selecting them from within the
organization, the company recruited, every. Alternate year, about ten young engineering graduates and
offered them training for a period of two years, before they were appointed as senior supervisors. Such
appointments were made to about 40 per cent of the vacancies of senior supervisors that occurred in
the organization. This was considered necessary by management as a planned programme of imparting
vitality to the organization. Besides, many of the old-timers, who had risen from the ranks, did not
possess the necessary academic background with the result that they could not keep pace with the
technological changes. Management also believed that in the rapidly changing conditions of industry, a
bank of technically competent supervisors played a pivotal role, besides serving as a pool from which to
select future departmental managers.

Engineering Graduates were selected from amongst those who applied in response to an all-India
advertisement. For the selection of one engineer, on an average, eight applicants were called for
interview. A selection committee consisting of the General Manager, the Production Manager, the
Personnel Manager and the Training Officer interviewed and selected the candidates. The selection
interview was preceded by a written test and only those who secured 40 per cent marks qualified for
interview.

The engineers thus selected had to undergo a two year intensive theoretical and practical training. A
well-staffed and equipped Training Institute was directly responsible for the training of the graduate
engineers, besides training trade apprentices and operatives required by the company. Lectures on
theoretical subjects were given at the Training Institute and practical training was imparted in all the
works departments under the guidance of qualified and experienced instructors. A few lectures by
senior officers of the company were also arranged to acquaint them with the company policies on
different matters. During the last quarter of their two-year training programme they were deputed to
work fulltime to familiarize themselves with the conditions in departments where they were to be
absorbed eventually.

On successful completion of training, the graduate engineers were offered appointments, depending on
their performance and aptitude as revealed during training. On placement in the work departments,
however, most of them faced some difficulty or the other.

According to management, some of the heads of departments, who were themselves not qualified
engineers, did not have sufficient confidence in these younger men. They preferred the subordinates
who came up from the ranks to hold positions of responsibility. A few discredited them saying that it
would take years before these youngsters could pick up the job. Besides, some of the employees,
whose promotional opportunities were adversely affected by the placement of graduate engineers,
tried their best to run down the latter as a class, sometimes working on the group feelings of the
workers. Some of the supervisors who were not graduate engineers also spoke derisively of them as
"the blue-eyed boys" of the organization. Management knew that many of the graduate engineers were
not utilized according to their capacity or training, nor was any attempt made to test or develop their
potentialities. They also knew that many of the graduate engineers were, therefore, dissatisfied with
their work life. Some of them who did not get equal promotional opportunities as their colleagues
placed in other departments, were looking for better jobs elsewhere.

On the other hand, according to management, the young graduate engineers were themselves partly
responsible for the hostile attitude of others in the organization. Some of them failed to appreciate that
a newcomer invited hostility in the beginning and it took time before he was accepted as a member of
the work-group. They did not realize that they would be fully productive only after gaining about five to
seven years experience in the organization. A few thought that they belonged to a superior cadre and
threw their weight around. They did not bother to understand and appreciate the problems of the rank-
and-file of employees who worked under them.

In spite of these drawback, the General Manager of the company felt that these men were a set of
disciplined supervisors. They had a sense of pride in their profession, and with the extensive training
they had received, they would be able to take up any responsible position in the organization in course
of time.

The General Manager could not allow the situation to continue especially when it was a difficult and
costly process to recruit and train young engineering graduates of the requisite type and caliber. He
knew that the prosperity of the company, to a large extent, depended on these young men. In addition,
a large number of lucrative employment opportunities were available to these young engineers
elsewhere and there was a systematic raid on them, He, therefore, called a meeting of all heads of
departments to review the situation.

Questions:
(i) Identify the issues related to manpower planning as evident in the case.

Solution: Some of the issues related to manpower planning as evident in the case are that as per the
senior management, some of the heads of departments, who were themselves not qualified engineers,
did not have sufficient confidence in the young engineering graduates. They preferred the subordinates
who came up from the ranks to hold positions of responsibility. A few discredited them saying that it
would take years before these youngsters could pick up the job. Besides, some of the employees,
whose promotional opportunities were adversely affected by the placement of graduate engineers,
tried their best to run down the latter as a class, sometimes working on the group feelings of the
workers. Some of the supervisors who were not graduate engineers also spoke derisively of them as
"the blue-eyed boys" of the organization. Management knew that many of the graduate engineers were
not utilized according to their capacity or training, nor was any attempt made to test or develop their
potentialities. They also knew that many of the graduate engineers were, therefore, dissatisfied with
their work life. Some of them who did not get equal promotional opportunities as their colleagues
placed in other departments, were looking for better jobs elsewhere.

On the flip side, according to management, the young graduate engineers were themselves partly
responsible for the hostile attitude of others in the organization. Some of them failed to appreciate that
a newcomer invited hostility in the beginning and it took time before he was accepted as a member of
the work-group. They did not realize that they would be fully productive only after gaining about five to
seven years experience in the organization. A few thought that they belonged to a superior cadre and
threw their weight around. They did not bother to understand and appreciate the problems of the rank-
and-file of employees who worked under them.

(ii) Discuss the strategies to tackle the percentage of internal promotion at the
organizational level.

Solution: We have observed that some of the employees, whose promotional opportunities were
adversely affected by the placement of graduate engineers, tried their best to run down the latter as a
class, sometimes working on the group feelings of the workers. Some of the supervisors who were not
graduate engineers also spoke derisively of them as "the blue-eyed boys" of the organization. These all-
strategic steps were taken to increase the percentage of internal promotion within the organization.

(iii)What type of additional training programmes should be imparted for direct entrants?

Solution: Management knew that many of the graduate engineers were not utilized according to their
capacity or training, nor was any attempt made to test or develop their potentialities. While revisiting
the entire training plan comprising of theory and practical, I feel that the personality development and
ethics training can be added to develop a strong ethical value system within the organization. This
should be included not just for the new entrants, but also for the tenured employees.

(iv) Suppose you are the head of the personnel division. What would be your suggestions in
the meeting - Which has been called by the General Manager?

Solution: After assessing the case and filling into the shoes of the head of the personnel division, I would
like to propose the below suggestions to the General Manager.
1. Develop a strong ethical value stream within the organization.
2. Break the cohesion of the existing teams in terms of tenurity and cross movements of employees across
the organizational sectors to reduce lobbying and political strategies against the organization.
3. Create a perfect blend of teams with a good mix of experience and skill-set. The new team formations will
infuse new energy and bonding amongst the employees. This will also solve for the proper guidance issue of
the new entrants.