Soft HR planningThe assessment of four categories or areas:- Defining where the organisation is now- Defining where it wants to be in the future- Analysing its external environment, influences and trends (over which it hasno control)- Formulating plans to implement necessary changes.These four categories are important stages in the strategic planning process.Soft workforce planning is concerned with the formulation of the mission,goals, objectives and strategy of the organisation and how variables such asgrowth, product, life cycle, competitive advantage and HR development willimpact on its human resources

Hard HR planning

Finding the appropriate level of human resource.Hard workforce planning activities include:Forecasting: the number of employees required in the future to support thedemand for the organisation’s products and services. It also includes theassessment of the internal and external supply of human resources.Analysis: of how current employees are being utilised throughout theorganisation and how this impacts on demand.Monitoring and review: reconciling workforce plans with actual practiceand facilitating any amendments needed to plans

LearningBuchanan and Huczynski (2004) define learning as “the process of acquiring knowledgethrough experience which leads to an enduring change in behaviour.”Learning is a fundamental aspect of our psychological make-up and a vital part of eachperson’s physical, social and psychological development.Learning occurs through formal, systematic and structured activities at school, college,training centres and in the workplace – it also occurs through informal interactions withother people. However, a great deal of learning is self-managed, i.e., it is initiated bythe individual because the individual wants to learn. This is quite different from training,which is typically initiated by the organisation because there are things that theorganisation wants people to learn – whether they want to or not

DevelopmentThe (UK) Manpower Services Commission has defined ‘development’ as “the growth orrealisation of a person’s ability, through conscious or unconscious learning anddevelopment programmes, usually including elements of planned study and experience,and frequently supported by a coaching and counselling facility.”Essentially, development helps people (a) to prepare for future job roles, (b) to preparefor career advancement, especially into managerial positions, (c) to prepare for expectedchanges in the current job role, or (d) to promote ‘employability’, i.e., a range ofcompetencies that could be valuable in the future TrainingTraining is a specific way in which learning can take place within the organisation.Training can be viewed as a bounded activity focused on equipping employees with theknowledge and skills necessary to perform work roles and responsibilities to satisfactorystandards.The Manpower Services Commission has defined ‘training’ as “A planned process tomodify attitude, knowledge or skill behaviour through learning experiences to achieveeffective performance in an activity or range of activities. Its purpose, in the worksituation, is to develop the abilities of the individual and to satisfy the current and futureneeds of the organisation.”

EducationThe Manpower Services Commission has defined ‘education’ as “activities which aim todevelop the knowledge, skills, moral values and understanding required in all aspects oflife rather than a knowledge and skill relating to only a limited field of activity.”Education is concentrated on personal growth rather than occupational advancement,and may be associated with self-actualisation

Outline and justify the steps an employer can take to reduce employee absence.Based upon CIPD model:Formalise processes: Publish an absence management policy and procedure.Set targets: Set an absence rate as a target for teams, departments and theorganisation as a whole.Monitor absence: Gather absence data that is accurate, consistent and sufficientlydetailed to allow proper analysis. Distinguish between factors that push the employeeaway from coming to work (e.g. stress, harassment, lack of job satisfaction, jobinsecurity, long hours, poor organisational culture) and the pull factors e.g. domesticcommitments and travel difficulties). (There is usually more that can be done to addressthe push factors than the pull factors.)Review: Carry out a meaningful analysis of absence data.Concentrate on short-term absences: e.g. using the Bradford points system andtrigger points for initiating actionPublish data: Provide line managers with local absence data about individualsPublish analyses by unit so that comparisons can be made, but without allowing anyindividual to be identifiedCreate the right culture: Carry out return to work interviews (where the line manager isrequired to speak to the employee on their return to work).Act against poor attendance: Take decisive action.Restrict sick pay: As long as that does not encourage people who are genuinely sickfrom coming to workProvide alternatives: Short notice leave and other flexibilities for domestic crisesProvide professional occupational health support: Improve occupational health toprevent absence (e.g. the provision of counselling and anti-stress initiatives)Help staff to return to work: e.g. by allowing them to return gradually e.g. on reducedhours or on light duties

Employer brandingDefinitionEmployer branding is concerned with the image of the organisation and how attractive itis to work for. This will have a significant impact on the type of candidates who apply forjobs. Whilst all organisations have an employer brand, some have a very poor employerbrand image as a result of their treatment of existing staff, potential staff and theirgenerally poor reputation in the community.To improve its brand image, an organisation should establish the current image, identifythe unique selling points of its employment offering and then emphasise these points in advertisements and the recruitment process. The aim is to differentiate the organisationfrom its competitors in the labour market.Organisations have both an internal and an external brand. The internal brand is thatwhich is perceived by employees. The external brand is that which is perceived by thegeneral public.ValueOrganisations wish to position themselves as an ‘employer of choice’ to become moreattractive to certain sorts of candidates. This should increase the number and quality ofapplications. If it increases the number of unsolicited applications, a good brand may reduce recruitment costs.It also allows the organisation to maintain a low cost base e.g. an employeremphasising its ethical values and the care it shows to its employees, may find thatsufficient suitable people apply without needing to offer large salaries.The employer brand will also affect, positively or negatively, the more general brandimage of the company in its product markets.

HR business partnering is a process whereby HR professionals work closely with business leaders and/or line managers to achieve shared organisational objectives, in particular designing and implementing HR systems and processes that support strategic business aims. This process may involve the formal designation of ‘HR business partners’, that is HR professionals who are embedded within the business, sometimes as part of a wider process of restructuring of the HR function.However, it is important to note that many varying definitions of HR business partnering exist and, where HR business partners operate, there are wide variations in their role.The concept of HR business

partnering, or strategic partnering, emerged during the mid-late 1990s, around the time that US business academic Dave Ulrich set out his initial theories for the optimum delivery of HR. Subsequently, certain aspects of the Ulrich model have come to be depicted as a ‘three-legged stool’ or ‘three-box’ model for HR, although there is an ongoing debate over how his theories should be interpreted and put into practice. Ulrich has also reviewed and further developed his own theories on this issue in

subsequent work.

(i) Equal Opportunities (EO) is an organisational response to the growth in discrimination legislation. The coverage of legislation will vary between countries, but can include: sex and gender; race and ethnicity; disability; age; religion; and sexual orientation.EO initiatives typically have a concern with avoiding legal claims of discrimination. They tend to focus on disadvantaged groups, on target-setting, on positive action (for example, to deal with under-representation in certain jobs) and on seeking to remedy past discrimination.(ii) The CIPD (2008) defines diversity as ‘valuing everyone as an individual’, as opposed to the group focus of EO, and see managing diversity as central to good people management.Diversitymanagement recognises that the workforce is comprised of a diverse population of people consisting of both visible and non-visible differences. This includes not only differences covered by employment law, but others such as personality, social background and work style. If the organisation is able to harness these differences and create a culture where diverse talent is valued and can flourish that will enable organisations to maximise their human resources and enhance their competitive advantage. While there is some evidence to support this claim, it is recognised that more work is needed to prove the case

The individual employeeThe individual employee is expected to fulfil the terms of their contract of employment in terms of performance and conduct in order that the organisation is successful. They should cooperate with the employer, obey reasonable instructions and take responsibility for their and others’ safety.Where appropriate, they should take some responsibility for their own development

Line managerLine managers typically have the day-to-day HR responsibility for their staff which includes motivating employees to perform and behave in a way that will meet departmental and organisational objectives. Depending upon the organisation they may have involvement in a range of HR activities, including: the recruitment and selection process; participating in induction programmes; conducting grievance and disciplinary interviews (perhaps with the assistance of HR); monitoring absences; managing performance and conducting appraisal interviews. Line mangers need to assess the training and development needs of their staff. They also liaise with HR on many of these activities

The Human Resource specialistThe HR specialist is responsible for the design of policies and procedures which will help the organisation meet its business objectives.They need to assess the human resource requirements of the business and plan for any future changes.HR specialists should provide advice to, and support, line managers in the management of their staff, including staff training and management development.HR may also provide a range of specialist services, for example, occupational health and safety, retirement planning

On-the-job methods most relevant to the role identified in the question are: Demonstration (or ‘sitting with Nelly’) and One-to-One instruction. The former would involve the learner observing a more experienced person carry out the tasks required on the assumption that they will gain knowledge of the skills and techniques required, although the learner may not understand ‘why’ something is being done. To be successful, ‘Nelly’ would need to have some skills as a trainer, and there is the danger that the learner will pick up any bad habits. One-to-one instruction can improve understanding and speed-up learning through effective guidance by an experienced instructor who can provide explanations and feedback.

Relevant off-the-job methods include: Lectures; Role Plays; tailored In-Tray Exercises; and Programmed Instruction, including on-line packages. Lectures may be relevant where the need is to provide basic information. Similarly,

the growth in on-line learning allows information to be made available to learners and the packages can be accessed by employees at their time of choosing. While there may be limited feedback available to the learners both methods can be valuable, for example, to update learners’ knowledge of new procedures. Role plays and In-Tray methods are valuable since skills can be applied in an environment where mistakes can be made without any damage to customer relations, particularly for example, where learners are asked to deal with an aggressive customer. Candidates who identify coaching and mentoring methods will need to justify how the cost and time involved is relevant to comparatively low level positions, and to recognise the problem that it is unlikely that such resources can be allocated to all customer service staff.