Core HR Knowledge for Professionals II

Needs Assessment and Analysis

Describes methods for obtaining the information necessary to make decisions that will best accomplish an organization's goals. Measures the needs in any area of businessThe common steps involved are: Describe the objective: "Where do we want to be?" Define the current situation: "Where are we now?" Conduct a gap analysis: This will compare the objective to the current situation and results in a list of people, actions, or items needed to attain the objective described in step 1. Set priorities: Prioritizing identifies the gaps most crucial to achieving the primary objective and focuses on closing them first. Investigate and develop options: "What is the most effective way to fill this gap?" Evaluate options, and determine budget impact: Determine which of the possible options will be the most effective way to fill the gap. Recommend solutions: Document the reasons for selecting a particular solution

Third-Party Contract Management

A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between 2 or more parties in which all parties benefit in some way. In a third-party contract, some part of the transaction is provided by an entity other than those who have signed the contract. Example of a third-party contract: an agreement w/a temp agency A critical factor for a successful contractor relationship is a clear understanding of the product or service to be provided, along with clearly defined expectations for quality and service levels. This is best communicated through an RFP (request for proposal) A well constructed RFP serves as the basis on which the product or service is obtained, a guide to ensure that the delivery meets the organization's requirements, and a means of evaluation at the end of the project An RFP provides vendors with a format to follow when submitting proposals

The following things on a proposal make it easier to compare and evaluate them: Executive Summary Vendor Qualifications Project Management Plan Project Team Roles and Responsibilities Delivery Schedule Pricing Information Once the proposals have been submitted the following can be done: Proposal Evaluations Vendor Selection Contract Negotiations Execution of the Agreement Project Evaluation

Communication Skills and Strategies

An effective employee communication strategy provides opportunities for top-down communication by management and bottom-up communication from employeesIt must balance management's need to ensure the confidentiality of sensitive company info with the employee's need to know, understand, and feel a part of what is going on with the companyIt also delivers the same information in several waysThe following questions can help determine which delivery method is most appropriate for communications: What information will be provided? Who is the intended audience? Who will provide the information? Is the information time sensitive? What is the organization's culture?  (Is it formal or informal?) What is the employee base? (Is the workforce computer savvy or are they accustomed to receiving information from their managers in small group meetings?) Bottom-up communications help employees feel their concerns are heard or addressed

Examples of Top-Down Communication: Intranet Public address system announcements Posters Newsletters Individual letters to employees Flyers Bulletin board postings Examples of Bottom-Up Communication: Open-door policy All-hands meeting Staff Meetings Brown-bag lunches One-on-one meetings Email Webcasts

Documentation Requirements

Documentation Requirements fall into 2 categories: EMPLOYMENT RECORDS- such as, application forms, tax documents, and benefit records EMPLOYMENT ACTIONS- such as, documenting performance issues Documenting Records & Actions:The maintenance of employment records and actions are important for 2 basic reasons: Some are required to be maintained to comply with federal, state, or local employment laws Some provide information necessary for effective management of the organization Documenting Performance Issues:Two key considerations for documenting performance concerns: Timeliness: managers should address performance issues when they occur in order to effectively manage the employees who report to them Creating and maintaining written documentation for disciplinary action taken as appropriate and warranted based on the seriousness of the performance issues The following are typical disciplinary actions that can be administered (pg.31): Verbal Warning First Written Warning Final Written Warning Decision-Making Day Suspension Termination of Employment Including a disciplinary process in an employee handbook can void the "at-will employment" doctrineWith a published disciplinary process, employers are vulnerable to claims of discrimination if the process isn't followed in all casesSome employment attorneys recommend that the disciplinary process be used as a guideline for managers to follow in addressing performance issues but that it not be published in an employee handbook

Adult Learning Processes and Styles

Edward Lindeman (1920's)Developed the concept that adult learning styles differed from those of children His concept was later expanded by Malcom KnowlesHis work (along with Knowles) is the basis for the study of how adults learn, which is known as andragogy Andragogy-is defined as education in which the learner participates in decisions about what will be taught and how it will be delivered (this is today's definition) Pedagogy-the opposite of andragogy..is the study of how children learn, which is defined as education in which the teacher decides what will be taught and how it will be delivered The following five characteristics form the basis of andragogy today (explanations on page 33): Self-concept Experience Readiness to learn Orientation to learning Motivation to learn The following are the three types of learners (explanations on page 33): Auditory Visual Tactile/Kinesthetic All learning styles are represented in the workforce so it's important to incorporate elements of each style when designing training

Leadership Concepts

Behavioral Theories:During the 1940's, researchers moved to a new concept:that leadership could be taught: thus anyone could become a leader w/the right information However, the research focus shifted from personality traits to what leaders did to inspire people to follow them Two Aspects of behavior became apparent from research: Behavior that focused on the structural elements of the job, such as establishing rules and guidelines for employees Behavior that considered the needs of employee, such as standing up for them and explaining decisions There are leadership characteristics that weren't explained by behavioral theories such as, how or why a given behavioral aspect worked in one situation but not others thus leading to situational theoriesSituational Theories:Seeks to explain leader effectiveness in different situationsLooks at how the leader and followers interact and how the work is structuredWell-known theories that fall into the above category are (See the "Situational Theory" Mind Map for further review): Blake-Mouton Managerial Grid (1968) Path-Goal Theory (1971) Hersey-Blanchard Theory (1977) Situational theories are criticized for being two-dimensional & not allowing for multifaceted situations that occur in the real world of businessAlso, these theories don't account for differences in culture & gender in explaining leadershipContingency Theories:Fred E. Fiedler developed a model known as Fiedler's Contingency Theory to address the shortcomings of situational theoriesUsed a method known as LPC (least preferred co-worker) where leaders identify a co-worker with whom they had the most difficulty working with and rate them on a scale of 1-8 on a series of measures a high LPC score indicates that the leader has a greater concern for people than for tasks a low LPC score indicates a greater concern for tasks these scores could be used to predict the situations in which a leader would have a better chance for success Fiedler describes situations in terms of 3 aspects (pg. 41) Leader-Member Relations Task Structure Position Power Leadership Styles (pg. 42): Authoritarian or Directive - tells employees what to do; this style is best when productivity is concerned Democratic - involves employees in the process; this style is best when relationships in the work environment are concerned Laissez-faire - abdicates responsibility and leaves employees to figure things out w/o guidance or support; this style is best when employees are highly motivated and can work independently Coach - prepares employees to take on additional responsibility Transactional - focuses on getting the job done and seeks to do this by offering a reward in exchange for accomplishing organization goals Transformational - focuses on the relationships in  the group, building them to achieve organization goals; acts as role models; works w/individuals

Project Management Concepts

Project management describes the process of initiating, planning, executing, controlling, and closing an assignment that is temporary in natureThey are short-term assignments that will result in a program that will become part of the organization's operations when it's complete, but the process of designing the program isn't an ongoing operation There are five phases of a project life cycle: Initiation: project requests are evaluated and selected for implementation Planning: led by the Project Manager; lays out how the project will be accomplished Executing: the project plan is implemented; a project team is created and other resources are acquired Controlling: the project manager keeps the project on course and on budget by comparing accomplishments to the original plan and making course corrections as needed Closing: the sponsor/customer acknowledges achievement of the project goals A list of HR projects that can occur in any of the functional areas can be found on page 43