Career Counselling in Organizations

Career counselling is a process whereby an employee is guided by a manager in performance-related behavior. The employee is unable to perform the job satisfactorily. His work behavior is inconsistent with the work environment and organizational culture. It is manifested in fighting, stealing, unexcused lateness and absence.  Career counselling involves guiding of employee by a manager to overcome performance problems. The problem is desire-created based on unwillingness. Career counselling involves the following steps: Identification of the performance problem – The reason for poor performance should be identified. Specific job behavior should be objectively documented in terms of date, time, and what happened. The manager should have good listening skills to uncover the reason for performance problem. The manager should focus on job performance problems only, not the employee as a person. He should treat the employee objectively, fairly and equitably.  Make sure the employee owns up the problem – The Continue reading

Perspectives on Industrial Relations

Industrial relations is a set of phenomena operating both within and outside the workplace, concerned with determining and regulating the employment relationship. Scholars have described three major theoretical perspectives or frameworks, that contrast in their understanding and analysis of workplace relations. The three important perspectives on industrial relations are generally known as Unitarism, Pluralism and Marxism. Each offers a particular perception of workplace relations and will therefore interpret such events as workplace conflict, the role of unions and job regulation differently. The three major perspectives on Industrial Relations are; 1. Unitary Perspective In unitarism, the organization is perceived as an integrated and harmonious system, viewed as one happy family. A core assumption of unitary approach is that management and staff, and all members of the organization share the same objectives, interests and purposes; thus working together, hand-in-hand, towards the shared mutual goals. Furthermore, unitarism has a paternalistic approach where it Continue reading

Corporate Entrepreneurship (CE) and Human Resource Management (HRM)

Today’s economy is experiencing its ups and downs very quickly: rising competitiveness and fast changing technologies create pressure to the companies that want to stay at the top of their markets. This is not going to slow down, so the need for tools of success is arising. At the same time we are moving away from the belief that “entrepreneurs are born, not made”. That is why the wanting, believing, hoping, planning must be followed by doing. As already Confucius said: “When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached, don’t adjust the goals, adjust the action steps”. It is time for action and one form of it that suits different businesses nowadays is — Corporate Entrepreneurship (CE). Corporate entrepreneurship is the process whereby an individual or group of individuals, in association with an existing organization, create a new organization or instigate renewal or innovation within that organization. There Continue reading

The Alignment of Compensation and Business Strategies

Compensation is a key element in the success of any business. Although compensation plans were not always seen as a strategic business initiative, their huge impact on a company’s bottom line, recruiting, retaining and motivating people has led to compensation design being considered an important element to achieving success. Compensation and Business Strategies Alignment It is essential that a fair, competitive and attractive compensation plan is created in order to ensure the future success of the company. If the compensation plan is carried out properly it can improve organisational effectiveness, support human capital requirements of a business, and motivate and reward achievement of key corporate strategic and financial goals. It is thus essential that compensation plans are well thought out and effectively designed. Compensation is the answer to attracting, retaining and motivating employees who have the necessary competencies to carry out the business strategy and handle greater responsibilities. Managers must Continue reading

Non Traditional HR Approaches: Investment in Disabled Employees

Before we move on to the core of the issue, we must define what disability or being disabled means  “Someone who is disabled has an illness, injury or condition that tends to restrict the way they live their life, especially by making it difficult for them to move about.” Thus, the employee, who is working for the organization, will be termed disabled if he/she is suffering from an injury or illness which affects or restricts them from performing their job effectively. There can be two types of disabled employees 1. Disabled – while employed: i.e. the person was fit and sound during the start of employment relationship, however, during the tenure of his/her service he turned disable, which can be either: On-the-job: This is during the work hours while working at premises. Off-the-job: This is not at work premises, but surely after the start of employment relationship. 2. Disabled – Continue reading

Morale – Definition, Characteristics and Significance

Morale is the term usually applied to armed forces during wartime and to sports and athletic teams. It refers to team spirit and co-operation of people for a common purpose. Its importance has been realized by the management only in recent years. It is felt by the management that if the morale of the employees is high, production would be higher and vice-versa. Meaning and Definitions of Morale Morale represents the attitudes of individuals and groups in an organization towards their work environment. Morale is an indicator of the attitude of employees towards their jobs, superiors and their organizational environment. It is a collection of the employees attitude, feelings and sentiments. Various definitions of morale are; Flippo has described morale “as a mental condition or attitude of individuals and groups which determines their willingness to co-operate. Good morale is evidenced by employee enthusiasm, voluntary confirmation with regulations and orders, and Continue reading