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HRM3704 SG QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
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- University Of South Africa (Unisa)
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HRM STUDY GUIDE QUESTIONS AND ANSWERSSTUDY UNIT 1
Question two
Describe the present ways in which HR professionals can be successful.
The answer to this question can be found in the section ‘‘The new role of HRM’’. In your
answer you should have addressed the following:
The role of HR professionals has changed dramatically over the last few years. HR
professionals are becoming more involved with decisions in organisations and their role
as functional experts is no longer the only role they should play. They should also share
accountability for organising work to be performed as well as where it is performed.
They have made a number of changes in an attempt to become more successful. You
may describe these changes.
Question three
Give a definition of the new psychological contract.
The answer to this question can be found in the section ‘‘The new employee-employer
relationship’’. In your answer you should have addressed the following:
A psychological contract is an unwritten contract that defines the employment
relationship and manages mutual expectations. In the past employees had a lot of job
security. However, this has changed in the new environment where change is inevitable
due to the changing economic environment.
There are a number of key aspects which define the new psychological contract. For
example, there is no job security and the employee will be employed as long as he or
she adds value to the organisation. The employee is personally responsible for finding
new ways to add value. In return the employee has the right to demand interesting and
important work, has the freedom and resources to perform it well, receives pay that
reflects his or her contribution and gets the experience and training needed to be
employable at the current employer or elsewhere.
Question four
Give four reasons why virtual teams have become important.
The answer to this question can be found in the section ‘‘Self-managed work teams’’. In
your answer you should have addressed the following:
Virtual teams have become important due to the fact that organisational structures
have become flat or horizontal and previous hierarchies have been substituted with
,flatter structures. Environments have emerged that require inter-organisational
cooperation and also competition between different departments in the same
organisation. Workers’ expectations regarding their involvement in organisations have
also changed and organisations’ activities and trade in general have globalised.
Question six
Give a brief explanation of the evolving role of HRM during the four periods of
organisational change as described by McKee
The answer to this question can be found in the section ‘‘The origins of HRM’’. In your
answer you should have addressed the following:
McKee described the evolving role of human resources during four periods of
organisational change. These periods are the mechanistic period, the legalistic period,
the organistic period and the strategic period. Each period and the evolving role of
human resources must be discussed.
Question eight
Discuss the employee-employer relationship in the new work environment.
The answer to this question can be found in the section ‘‘The new employee-employer
relationship’’. In your answer you should have addressed the following:
To understand the employee-employer relationship in the new work environment one
needs to understand the previous relationship and the old way of doing business.
Organisations that want to be successful and competitive will be those that are able to
turn their strategies into actions quickly, manage their processes efficiently and
maximise their employees’ contributions and commitment. For this to be possible the
old way of doing things must be abolished and new practices implemented. This can
take place through re-engineering, restructuring, downsizing and other activities.
These changes will result in employees being dismissed, not only those working in
factories, but also those who were traditionally offered a long-term career in the
organisation. Thus, the psychological contract – what employees and employers want
and expect from each other – will change dramatically in the new work environment.
The question now is: what will this new contract look like? Describe the new contract
and the two types of violations of the psychological contract that can occur.
Question nine
According to Mahlon Apgar IV, a number of options are available for the alternative
workplace to tailor work arrangements to your own needs. Discuss these options
. The answer to this question can be found in the section ‘‘Alternative workplace’’. In
your answer you should have addressed the following:
The first option is to place workers on different shifts or travel schedules. By doing this
you will enable them to share the same desk and office space. A second option could be
to replace traditional offices with open-plan space. Thirdly, the concept of ‘‘hotelling’’
can be implemented. This means ‘‘hotel’’ spaces are furnished, equipped and supported
with office services needed which can be reserved per hour, day or week instead of
,permanently assigning the space to one person. Additional assistance may be supplied
to provide employees with travel and other logistical support. The fourth option is to
create satellite offices. This implies that large centralised facilities are broken up into a
network of smaller workplaces that can be located close to the customer or even the
employee’s home. The last option, according to Mahlon Apgar IV, is to introduce
telecommuting or virtual offices. This is a widely used phenomenon where employees
who telecommute perform work electronically from any location. The idea is that this
would rather supplement than substitute the current arrangements.
Question ten
Briefly describe what you understand by talent management.
The answer to this question can be found in the section ‘‘Talent management’’. In your
answer you should have addressed the following:
Talent management can be seen as the use of an integrated set of HR activities to
ensure that the organisation attracts, retains, motivates and develops the talented
people it needs now and in the future.
The concept does not only enhance the value of outsiders, but also looks at the talent
the organisation already possesses. Although managing talent in organisations is not
new, the approach used, namely to bundle together the activities to produce a more
coherent whole that can be a vehicle for obtaining, developing and retaining talent the
organisation needs, is new. In your answer you also have to refer to the elements of
talent management illustrated in the figure ‘‘The elements of talent management’’.
STUDY UNIT 2
Question three
Explain the resource-based view paradigm and its application in interconnected firms.
Also refer to the motivation component of the HR assets as it relates to this paradigm.
The answer to this question can be found in the section ‘‘The resource-based
paradigm’’. In your answer you should have addressed the following:
This approach suggests that HR systems can contribute to a sustained competitive
advantage by facilitating the development of competencies that are company-specific.
However, one of the biggest problems facing the resource-based approach, especially
its human resources, is the possibility of employee turnover. Building competencies that
do not stay long can have a negative effect on the competitive advantage enjoyed by
the company. To limit the damage that can occur as a result of losses, companies can
design and implement turnover management strategies. Other approaches that can be
implemented include the allocation of a bigger portion of the profits to employees by
means of gain-sharing or share options. To further enhance this process, a culture of
belonging can also be created in the company.
Performance implications from an HR perspective thus go much further than the
knowledge/competencies the human resources have; it also involves their motivation.
, In your answer you also have to refer to the motivation component of the HR assets as
it relates to this paradigm.
Question four
Explain the best practices paradigm.
The answer to this question can be found in the section ‘‘The best-practices paradigm’’.
In your answer you should have addressed the following:
The best-practices paradigm implies that there is a direct relationship between
particular HR approaches and company performance. Some of the HR practices that
can be related to company performance are compensation, selection and training
activities. In more recent research evidence has shown that bundles or systems of HR
practices have more influence on company performance than individual practices
working in isolation. There is a lot of support for a best-practices approach to HR but
there are some differences as to what constitutes bundles of ‘‘HR best practices’’. The
focus is to enhance the skills base of employees through HR activities, for example,
selective staffing, comprehensive training and broad developmental efforts like job
rotation and cross-utilisation, the promotion of empowerment, participative problem solving
and teamwork. Another important aspect in the best-practices paradigm is the
creation of role behaviours which means that company strategies dictate certain
unique attitude and role behaviours from employees, and HR practices are the primary
means to make this happen. This is not necessarily a sustained competitive advantage
because of the fact that this can be duplicated.
When HR practices are matched with an organisation’s competitive requirements,
which are linked to the goals of the company, the impact of HR practices on the
performance of the company can be enhanced. This brings about the strategic
approach. In your answer you also have to include this approach where three
perspectives emerged, namely a universal approach, a contingency approach and a
configurational approach.
Question five
Explain the process paradigm.
The answer to this question can be found in the section ‘‘The process paradigm’’. In
your answer you should have addressed the following:
This approach is anchored in both the resource-based view and the best-practices
theory. The creators of this approach, Raphael Amit and Monica Belcourt, refer to HR
processes as the deeply embedded company-specific dynamic routines by which a
company attracts, socialises, trains, motivates, evaluates and compensates its human
resources.
Company-specific HR processes are established by developing and exchanging
information throughout the entire organisation. This process, sometimes called
organisation learning, creates, transfers and institutionalises knowledge throughout
the organisation, which increases its adaptability. HR processes in a company are
evolutionary, meaning that they are continuously evolving and adapting by drawing on
past experiences to refine the effectiveness of processes and to meet the changing
needs of the organisation. Thus, the HR processes can become one of the company’s
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