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People and Organization 2

Introduction

The management of resources in businesses and organizations is one of the major factor that is deemed important in the contemporary corporate world. Above all, the management of human resource has remained on top of the agenda among these businesses and organization organizations. Notably, the human resources in the contemporary corporate world are some of the determining factors on whether a company or organization would rise or fall. In connection to this, it is important to note that the management of human resources begins from the recruitment of talent, to training and equipping them with different knowledge and skills which will enhance the capability of these employees to handle challenges that arises on a daily basis in their respective fields or rather department. In reference to Silzer and Dowell (2010, p.3), for good or ill, people make the decisions and takes the actions that result in success or failure of their organizations.

This report will therefore focus on some of the major issues which are considered when by companies in selecting the appropriate personnel. Notably, whereas education was a major factor which was considered in recruiting personnel in businesses and organizations, this has changed. Arguably, there are many other factors which are considered as important which must be considered to assist businesses and organizations across the globe to gain a comparative advantage over their peers in a particular industry. According to Mullins (2005, p.35), people bring their own perceptions, feelings and attitudes towards the organization, systems and styles of management, their duties and responsibilities, and the conditions under which they are working. In other words, education is not the only factor that matters in the selections process of personnel for a company. Therefore, among the issues which will be considered are; individual personality/attitudes: motivation, group and team behavior, organizational design and conflict resolution.

Consequently, this report will focus on other factors apart from education in the analysis of the approaches that a company can use to select appropriate personnel, their effectiveness and finally on their shortcomings. Armstrong (2000) asserts that the recruitment strategy should explore methods not only of recruiting the number of people required, but also of finding staff who have the necessary skills and experience, who are likely to deliver the sort of behavior required and will fit into the organization’s culture readily. Therefore, the aim of examining the selection process would be to determine how effective a particular method is and some of the weaknesses which are reflected in the method. In addition to examining the effectiveness and weaknesses of selection processes, this report would also scrutinize the ideal profile of sales representative in a company that produces and sells cosmetics.

Apparently, education is the major determinant of whether a person would be recruited by a company or not. However, this is not the case. Note that apart from education, there are other factors that increase the chances of a person being recruited. On the other, it is also assumed that all employees in a particular position must possess certain similar skills to be recruited in this department. However, this is a misleading perception since different employees have different tasks which require different knowledge and skills in different companies. For instance, a sale’s person in the motor industry needs different skills and knowledge from the one in the cosmetics industry. In line with this, a specific profile which is fit for a sales person in a company that produces and sells would be analyzed. In addition, the best selective method of a sales’ representative would also be analyzed. Needless to say, the method that is employed to select personnel determines by a large percentage whether such an employee would an asset or a liability to the company. In line with this, there are different selection methods that have been identified in the corporate world.

Selection Approaches Used in Selecting Personnel

There are numerous approaches which have developed over time which are used to select appropriate employees who will increase the level of competitive advantage of the particular company or organization. In this respect, the hiring team is required to understand the context under which these approaches can be utilized and the factors to consider under each approach. The understanding of these factors determines by a large percentage whether the recruitment process would a success or would fail from the onset of the recruitment process. According to the Leading experts from Baker & McKenzie lawyers and the Macquarie Graduate School of Management (2009), the recruitment and selection process must consider three main activities, namely; defining needs, attracting candidates and selecting candidates (p.218). In this regard, the selection processes are composed of various approaches. These include; individual personalities/attitude, motivation, group and team behavior, organizational design and conflict resolution.

Individual Personality/Attitudes

To begin with, the selection approaches to selecting appropriate employees who would raise the standards of the company or organization is utilizing individual personality and attitudes approach. In consistent with this, it is important to mention that individual personalities and attitudes are some of the most important factors which define the perspectives of the employees towards the available vacancy. In reference to Robbins (2009, p.108), factors such as job demands, the degree of required interaction with others, and the organization’s culture are examples of situational variables that moderate the personality –job performance relationship. In relation to this, individual personality and attitude plays a vital role in determining whether a person would be able to deliver results when employed.

Remarkably, there is a difference between personality traits of a person and his or her overall skills for a particular job position. However, it is important to understand that the personality and attitude of a person determines the decisions which are made by the employees when faced with certain tasks. For instance, when a person is employed in the customer care department, the approach that such a person uses to deal with customer can easily be influenced by the attitude and the personality of a person. Therefore, a person can either be rational or irrational due to influences by his or her attitude and personality character.

Consequently, whereas personality can determine the way employees respond to issues at the workplace, there effect is less influential. In regard to this, the use of personality as a way of determining whether an applicant is the right one for the job or not does not allow companies and organizations to recruit effectively. According to Kusluvan (2003, p.438), one does not need to modify style or curtail certain aspects of unique personality to be successful. This is irrespective of the fact that personality tests are critical in helping companies and organizations to understand individuals while at the same time helping these individuals to understand themselves. Therefore, whereas this is an important aspect in helping employees to realize some of their strengths and weaknesses, it has a lot of limitations in the sense that a good personality does not necessarily means that a person would be successful and vice versa.

Motivation

Motivation is another aspect or rather approach that is used to recruit personnel in companies and organizations across the globe. In this regard, the contemporary corporate world has greatly shifted from just being a ‘dry’ workplace to an enhanced workplace where employees need to be motivated to increase their productivity. On the contrary, lack of motivation at the workplace may result in low productivity and incomprehension. Therefore, by considering employees with the capability to motivate others, companies and organizations can be able to select appropriate employees for different positions. However, this is valid to a certain limit. Accordingly, Grant (2004, p.212) argues that the motivation index determined for a candidate will likely reflect motivation during the early days of employment. One of the potential shortcomings of motivation is the fact that individual motivation is affected by the conditions which have been set by the company or organization and the corporate culture which has been fostered by the company or organization. Therefore, the dependability on this approach as a way of selecting appropriate personnel is limited.

Group and Team Behavior

Group and team behavior play a significant role in the increasing production of companies and enhancing their comparative advantage in its industry of operation. Basically, the ability of individuals to fit in a particular group or team in the company is an important factor or rather attribute in a prospective employee. More to this point, employees are also required to work in some situation on their own. Therefore, the employee selection team need to consider both the ability to fit in a group or a team and the also the ability to work on their own. Van Velsor, McCauley & Ruderman (2010, p.482) argues that some programs are structured specifically around small group activities, discussion, and personal reflection, whereas others offer hands-on opportunities through business simulations, artistic exploration. Team-building exercises, and new-skills practice. In addition, most members of the group learn through groups and teams.

Therefore, understanding the ability of a person to fit in a particular group or team is an important selection aspect that must be taken into account when recruiting personnel for companies and organizations. Selecting employees using their ability to either fit or manage groups and teams may not be some of the effective way of recruiting talent into companies and organizations. This is as a result of the fact that individuals are required to fit both in teams and groups as well as work on their own. There are various limitations which have been identified along the way in using this approach in the selection approaches of employees. To begin with, since most members learn through groups and teams while on the other hand receiving orders from group or team leaders, this may affect their ability to think rationally on their own since they have learnt to depend on the decisions which are made by the group as opposed to individuals.

Organizational Design

In reference to Chang (2010, p.92), the organizational design must be flexible to effectively serve the purpose at hand. Therefore, while recruiting employees into the company, the selection team must consider organizational design as a way of ascertaining whether the prospective employees would be able to fit in a particular organization design based on their qualification. Notably, organizational design defines the purposes of the organization to a particular limit and therefore, any new member who is brought on board must meet certain standards before being accepted on the personnel team. Chang (2010, p.92) organizational strategies refer to preparatory activities and tasks related to workplace design, job design, employee selection and development, employee rewards and recognition, and the introduction of applicable tools for serving customers.

Organizational design assists in selection of employees who are able to meet the targets which has been set by the organization or company in question. As a result of this, employers are able to acquire the exact talent that is required for their success. However, one of the weaknesses which have been noted lies in the fact that organization design changes with time. These changes have been found to affect the ability of some employees to perform in the company. This may affect the overall production of the company.

Conflict Resolution

According to Iyer (2000, p.8), it is clear that business principles differ across countries and these differences often translate into fundamental differences in employee selection and hiring procedures, conduct of business negotiations, information provided to consumers, pursuit of self-interest motive, to name but a few. Some of the issues which are considered are conflict resolution which falls under the ethical issues. Therefore, using conflict resolution as an approach in selecting appropriate employees is an important issue in positioning a company or organization to acquire comparative advantage.

For a company to recruit personnel effectively based on their skills and knowledge in conflict resolution, these employees need to have a background understanding of the ethical issues which have been formulated not only by the company but also by regulatory bodies in the country of operation and across the globe. Nonetheless, using conflict resolution approach in dealing with the selection process is a limited way of personnel selection approach. The weaknesses of this approach in employee selection is based on the fact different department have different needs. In other words, not all departments need people to be involved in conflict resolution based on the nature of work this department handles. In line with this, conflict resolution approach is not necessarily an excellent way of recruiting appropriate personnel in the businesses and organizations.

Sales Representative in a Company that Produces and Sells Cosmetics

The kind of environment in which one is working is an important determinant of the qualities which are needed by such person. In line with this, different professionals are required to acquire certain skills and knowledge to be able to work in a specified environment. In consistent with this, a Sales Representative in a company that produces and sells cosmetics must possess key characters or rather qualification for him or her to be deemed as the most appropriate employee for this company.

References

Armstrong, M 2000, Strategic Human Resource Management: a Guide to Action. Kogan Page Publishers.

Chang, CM 2010, Service Systems Management and Engineering: Creating Strategic Differentiation and Operational Excellence. John Wiley and Sons.

Grant, PC 2004, The law of escalating marginal sacrifice: explaining a plethora of heretofore unresolved motivation phenomena. Maryland: University Press of America.

Iyer, GR 2000, Teaching international business: ethics and corporate social responsibility. London: Routledge.

Kusluvan, S 2003, Managing Employee Attitudes and Behaviors in the Tourism and Hospitality Industry. New York: Nova Publishers.

Leading experts from Baker & McKenzie lawyers and the Macquarie Graduate School of Management 2009, Australian master human resources guide 2009. CCH Australia Limited.

Mullins, LJ 2005, Management and Organizations Behaviour. Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

Robbins, S.P. (2009). Organisational behaviour: global and Southern African perspectives. Cape Town: Pearson South Africa

Silzer, RF and Dowell, D 2010, Strategy-Driven Talent Management: A Leadership Imperative. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Van Velsor, E, McCauley, CD & Ruderman, MN 2010, The Center for Creative Leadership Handbook of Leadership Development. John Wiley and Sons.

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