THE HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT

1- Understand the HR Planning Process

Human resources (HR) planning is part of an organization’s strategic planning. The HR
planning process is a systematic approach of matching the internal and external supply of people
with job openings anticipated over a specified period of time. Specifically, it includes three
major elements:
(1) forecasting HR requirements: The demand for employees is matched against the supply
of employees.
(2) forecasting HR availability: the number of employees with the required skills and at the
required locations is determined. The needed employees may be found internally,
externally, or a combination.
(3) comparing HR requirements with HR availability: a situation of surplus workers may
exist. This surplus can be handled through various reduction methods such as restricted
hiring, reduced work-hours, encouraging early retirements, mandatory layoffs, or even
downsizing the department or the company.

Downsizing, also known as restructuring and rightsizing, is a reduction in the number of

people employed. It occurs for several reasons, such as offshoring; outsourcing; closing or
relocating plants, offices, and warehouses; or restructuring the organization to meet or beat
competition and to increase efficiency, productivity, and profitability.
 Positive aspects of downsizing include increased efficiency, productivity, and
profitability, and meeting competition.
 Negative aspects of downsizing include:
(1) cost of termination and severance pay for laid-off employees,
(2) employees seeking better job opportunities elsewhere due to low morale, loss of
loyalty, and job insecurity,
(3) loss of controls, culture, institutional memory, and knowledge,
(4) difficulty in getting promoted due to few layers of management left,
(5) more work is spread among few remaining employees, resulting in stress,
(6) higher costs to bring back former employees as independent contractors when sales
are increasing, and
(7) increased number of discrimination lawsuits if a disparate treatment is proved in
courts due to race, age, and gender violations, unless protected by employee
performance evaluations.
2- Understand the relationship between job analysis and job descriptions:
Job analysis is the systematic process of determining the skills, duties, and knowledge required
for performing a specific job.
Job analysis is conducted after the job has been designed, an employee has been trained to do
the work, and when that employee is performing the job (i.e., working).
Job design is the process of determining the specific tasks to be performed, the methods used in
performing these tasks, and how the job relates to other jobs in an organization.
Job analysis is performed on four occasions:
(1) when a job analysis program is initiated for the first time in a company,
(2) when new jobs are created,
(3) when current jobs are changed due to new technologies, procedures, or systems, and
(4) when the nature of a job is changed.
The job description document contains essential functions performed and tasks, duties, and
responsibilities required of the job.
The job specification document contains the minimum acceptable qualifications (e.g., skills,
education, and experience) an employee should possess in order to perform a specific job.
Major reasons for conducting job analysis and developing job descriptions and job
specifications Include:
(1) providing input into the HR planning process,
(2) providing input into employee recruitment and selection process,
(3) planning employee training and development programs,
(4) conducting employee performance appraisals,
(5) setting employee compensation systems,
(6) developing employee health and safety programs,
(7) handling employee and labor relations in terms of promotion, transfer, or demotion
Four job design approaches are as follows:
1. Job simplification focuses on task efficiency by reducing the number of tasks an employee
must do. Tasks must be designed to be simple, repetitive, and standardized.
2. Job rotation is moving an employee from one job to another, thereby exposing him to a
variety of jobs and to their complexity.
3. Job enlargement is increasing the number of tasks a worker performs, with all of the tasks
completed at the same level of responsibility.
4. Job enrichment is change in the content and responsibility level of a job so as to provide
greater control and challenge to the worker. Job enrichment leads to employee recognition,
opportunities for learning and growth, decision-making, motivation, and job satisfaction.

3- Understand the recruitment methods and alternatives:

Recruitment is the process of attracting qualified individuals on a timely basis and in sufficient
numbers to fill required jobs, based on job descriptions and job specifications.

4- Understand the employee selection process

Employee selection is the process of choosing the best individual from a group of applicants
who are well suited for a specific job.
Applicant pool is the number of qualified applicants recruited for a particular job.

5- Understand employee selection tests & Their characteristics:

Additional selection tests are needed to supplement traditional selection tools in order to
determine how employees fit the job and the organization’s culture.

Important characteristics of properly designed selection tests include

1- Standardization is the uniformity of the procedures and conditions related to administering
tests.
2- Objectivity occurs when everyone taking a test obtains the same results.
3- A norm is a standard frame of reference for comparing an applicant’s performance with that
of others.
4- Reliability is the extent to which a selection test provides consistent results.
5- Validity is the extent to which a test measures what it claims to do, which should be job
related.

Six types of employment tests, that measure differences in an individual’s characteristics

related to job performance, include:
1- Cognitive aptitude tests determine general reasoning ability, memory, vocabulary, verbal
fluency, and numerical ability.
2- Psychomotor-abilities tests measure strength, coordination, and dexterity.
3- Job-knowledge tests measure specific knowledge items required of a job, derived from
job analysis.
4- Work-sample tests focus on doing some specific tasks (e.g., use of spreadsheets) required
of the job and these tests are valid and acceptable to applicants.
5- Vocational interest tests indicate the occupation a person is most interested in and the
one likely to provide satisfaction.
6- Personality tests are self-reported measures of traits, temperaments, or dispositions.

6- Understand the empolyement interview process:

The employment interview is a goal-oriented conversation between the interviewer and the
applicant to exchange meaningful information related to a job.
The focus of the employment interview is to assess whether an individual is willing to work
and can adapt to the organization culture and work ethics.
The first step in the employment interview process is interview planning in terms of time and
location. The interviewer then prepares a job profile based on the job description to use as a
checklist in the interview.
The next step is to decide on the content of the interview, including work experience, academic
preparation, interpersonal skills (getting along with others), personal qualities (e.g., appearance,
vocabulary, and poise), and organizational fit with the firm’s culture or values.
Three types of interviews exist: structured, unstructured, and behavioral.
Interviewing methods include one-on-one interview, group interview, panel interview, multiple
interviews, stress interview, and realistic job preview (RJP).
Potential interviewing problems that should be avoided include using inappropriate questions,
making premature judgments, interviewer domination, permitting non-job-related information to
be discussed, interviewer’s contrast (halo) effect, lack of interviewer’s training, and nonverbal
communication (body language) between the interviewer and the interviewee.

7- Understand the pre-empolyment screening process:

The pre-employment screening process starts after a job candidate completes an employment
application, submits a resume, takes the required selection tests, and undergoes an employment
interview. At this point, the candidate is being considered for the job and requires further work
prior to hiring.
Two types of pre-employment screening include background investigations and reference
checks.

8- Understand the empolyee training and development process:

The goal of training and development (T&D) is to improve employee competencies and to
increase organizational performance continuously. Competencies are a broad range of
knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs), traits, and behaviors that could be labeled as hard skills
and soft skills.
Training provides learners with the KSAs needed to perform their current jobs. Employee
training focuses on achieving short term goals.
Development involves learning and education that goes beyond the current job and prepares for
the future job(s). Employee development focuses on achieving long-term goals.
The T&D process consists of a series of steps, including:
 1- Determining specific T&D needs focuses on organizational analysis using corporate
mission, goals, and plans and HR plans; task analysis using job descriptions; and
individual analysis to strengthen the employees’ KSAs.
2- Establishing specific T&D objectives starts with defining the purpose and developing
specific learning objectives to achieve organizational goals.
3- Selecting specific T&D learning methods includes instructor-led courses, case study,
behavior modeling, role-playing, business games, in-basket training, on-the-job training
(OJT), job rotation, internships, and apprenticeship training.
4- Identifying specific T&D delivery systems includes corporate universities, colleges and
universities, community colleges, distance learning videoconferencing, vestibule systems,
video media, e-learning for online instruction, virtual reality, and simulators.
5- Implementing T&D programs is difficult, as it requires the cooperation of both
managers and employees. Managers must try to implement the T&D programs on an
incremental basis, meaning showing success rates in one area and extending them into
other areas of the company. Employees resist training because it implies a change.
Employee feedback and record-keeping are vital to correct and improve any gaps in the
program.
6- Evaluating T&D programs is even more difficult because it is a soft issue to measure
objectively. Various methods exist for evaluation, including
(1) soliciting the training participants’ opinions and suggestions,
(2) designing pre-test and post-test control group studies,
(3) requesting a 360-degree feedback from managers, employees, trainers, and
colleagues,
(4) assessing whether stated training objectives have been achieved and that they
have resulted in an improved job performance,
(5) calculating the return on training (ROT) investment, and
(6) benchmarking with other companies regarding training costs and ratio of
training staff to total employees in a department, division, or company.

9- Understand the management development process:

Management development (MD) is a broad term encompassing elements such as upgrading the
KSAs required for a manager or a professional to apply them either in the current job or in a
future job.
The MD programs can be conducted either inside or outside the company. The reasons for
conducting the program outside the company are that it brings new viewpoints, different
perspectives, and broad exposure to outside experts. The reasons for conducting the program
inside the company are that customized courses can be developed in less time and at a reduced
cost, the course content is controlled, teamwork is facilitated, and the company culture is known.
Five related concepts in the MD program include:
1- Mentoring is advising, coaching, and nurturing a protégé to enhance his career
development.
2- Reverse mentoring is where older employees learn from younger ones because the latter
group has some special skills that the former group does not have.
3- Coaching is the responsibility of the immediate supervisor, who provides assistance
much like a mentor. Coaching is more direct than mentoring.
4- Job rotation is a T&D method, which can also be used as a part of the MD program,
where new or current employees move from one job to another in order to broaden their
work experience and to increase their KSAs.
5- Delegation is a higher-level management right to transfer authority and responsibility to
lower level management, where the latter group develops managerial skills such as
problem solving and decision making and learns how to take responsibility and
accountability for achieving results.

10- Understand the organization development process:

Organization development (OD) seeks big change in the corporate culture either at the
organization level or at the division level. OD requires change in the organizational structures,
systems, and processes to achieve the desired goals.
Examples of OD intervention techniques include survey feedback, quality circles, team
building, and sensitivity training. These techniques together can achieve the OD goals.

11- Understand the career planning and development process :

Key elements of career planning and development include:
- A career is a general course that an individual chooses to pursue throughout his working life.
It is a sequence of work-related positions an individual has occupied during his lifetime,
whether with one organization or more than one.
- Individual career planning is an ongoing process in which a person establishes personal
goals and identifies the means to achieve them.
- Organizational career planning is the planned succession of jobs mapped out by an
organization’s management to develop its employees in order to take on increased
responsibilities.
- Succession planning is the process of ensuring that qualified individuals are ready to assume
key managerial positions once these positions are available to fill.
- A career path is the line of progression through which a person makes job changes within a
company or moves from company to company and from position to position in order to gain
greater knowledge and experience.
- Career development is a formal approach to ensure that employees with the proper
qualifications and experiences are available when needed.
- Individual career planning must start with a self-assessment of interests and match them
against the job requirements because self-assessment is the process of learning about oneself.
Tools are available to facilitate the self-assessment exercise, including identifying personal
strengths (assets) and weaknesses (liabilities) through a balance sheet approach, taking a
personal survey of likes and dislikes. etc.
- Organizational career planning must focus on increasing the talent pool of qualified men
and women who can take on increased opportunities in the future.
- Specific career development programs include attending colleges and universities for
specific courses or degree programs, educational workshops of short duration, trade seminars
and conferences, in-house or outside training courses, or earning professional certifications
with continuing education requirements.

12- Understand the employee performance appraisal process :

- Employees need to grow personally and professionally to reach their career goals and make a
positive contribution to the company they work for and to reach the company’s goals.
- Characteristics of an effective appraisal system include job-related criteria, performance
expectations, standardization, trained appraisers, continuous open communications, periodic
performance reviews, and due process to appeal appraisal results.
- Results from the employee performance appraisal process can be put to several good uses,
such as input into human resource planning, recruitment and selection, training and
development, career planning and development, compensation programs, employee relations,
and assessment of employee potential in the company.

360-degree feedback Method:

Individuals responsible for conducting the employee performance appraisal include self-
appraisal, immediate supervisor, senior managers, subordinates, peers and team members, and
internal and external customers, called a 360-degree feedback evaluation method. externally.

720-degree review Method:

It focuses on the big picture at the company level for all of its employees, not at the individual
employee level. The review is all about senior managers and their performance. The participants
in the review include senior managers, subordinates, customers, and investors. This is because
senior managers deal more with external parties such as customers and investors.

Problems associated with the performance appraisal process include appraiser discomfort,
lack of objectivity, halo/horn error, leniency/strictness effect, central tendency error, recent
behavior bias, personal bias (stereotyping), manipulating the evaluation, and employee anxiety.
 Strategic HR Planning
Strategic HR planning is an important component of strategic HR management. It links HR
management directly to the strategic plan of your organization. Most mid- to large sized
organizations have a strategic plan that guides them in successfully meeting their missions.
Organizations routinely complete financial plans to ensure they achieve organizational goals and
while workforce plans are not as common, they are just as important.
The strategic HR planning process
The strategic HR planning process has four steps:
 Assessing the current HR capacity
 Forecasting HR requirements
 Gap analysis
 Developing HR strategies to support organizational strategies
1- Assessing current HR capacity
- Based on the organization's strategic plan, the first step in the strategic HR planning
process is to assess the current HR capacity of the organization. The knowledge, skills and
abilities of your current staff need to be identified. This can be done by developing a skills
inventory for each employee.
- The skills inventory should go beyond the skills needed for the particular position. List all
skills each employee has demonstrated. For example, recreational or volunteer activities
may involve special skills that could be relevant to the organization. Education levels and
certificates or additional training should also be included.
- An employee's performance assessment form can be reviewed to determine if the person is
ready and willing to take on more responsibility and to look at the employee's current
development plans.
2- Forecasting HR requirements
The next step is to forecast HR needs for the future based on the strategic goals of the
organization. Realistic forecasting of human resources involves estimating both demand and
supply. Questions to be answered include:
 How many staff will be required to achieve the strategic goals of the organization?
 What jobs will need to be filled?
 What skill sets will people need?
When forecasting demands for HR, you must also assess the challenges that you will have in
meeting your staffing need based on the external environment. To determine external impacts,
you may want to consider some of the following factors:
  How does the current economy affect our work and our ability to attract new employees?
 How do current technological or cultural shifts impact the way we work and the skilled
labor we require?
 What changes are occurring in the Canadian labor market?
 How is our community changing or expected to change in the near future?
3- Gap analysis
The next step is to determine the gap between where your organization wants to be in the future
and where you are now. The gap analysis includes identifying the number of staff and the skills
and abilities required in the future in comparison to the current situation. You should also look at
all your organization's HR management practices to identify practices that could be improved or
new practices needed to support the organization's capacity to move forward. Questions to be
answered include:
 What new jobs will we need?
 What new skills will be required?
 Do our present employees have the required skills?
 Are employees currently in positions that use their strengths?
 Do we have enough managers/supervisors?
 Are current HR management practices adequate for future needs?

Developing HR strategies to support organizational strategies

There are five HR strategies for meeting your organization's needs in the future:
 Restructuring strategies
 Training and development strategies
 Recruitment strategies
 Outsourcing strategies
 Collaboration strategies
1. Restructuring strategies
This strategy includes:
 Reducing staff either by termination or attrition
 Regrouping tasks to create well designed jobs
  Reorganizing work units to be more efficient
- If your assessment indicates that there is an oversupply of skills, there are a variety of
options open to assist in the adjustment. Termination of workers gives immediate results.
Generally, there will be costs associated with this approach depending on your employment
agreements.
- Your analysis may tell you that your organization may have more resources in some areas of
the organization than others. This calls for a redeployment of workers to the area of
shortage. The training needs of the transferred workers needs to be taken into account.
2. Training and development strategies
This strategy includes:
 Providing staff with training to take on new roles
 Providing current staff with development opportunities to prepare them for future jobs in
your organization
Training and development needs can be met in a variety of ways. One approach is for the
employer to pay for employees to upgrade their skills. This may involve sending the employee to
take courses or certificates or it may be accomplished through on-the-job training. Many training
and development needs can be met through cost effective techniques.
3. Recruitment strategies
This strategy includes:
 Recruiting new staff with the skill and abilities that your organization will need in the
future
 Considering all the available options for strategically promoting job openings and
encouraging suitable candidates to apply
For strategic HR planning, each time you recruit you should be looking at the requirements from
a strategic perspective. Perhaps your organization has a need for a new fundraiser right now to
plan special events as part of your fundraising plan. However, if your organization is considering
moving from fundraising through special events to planned giving, your recruitment strategy
should be to find someone who can do both to align with the change that you plan for the future.
4. Outsourcing strategies
This strategy includes:
 Using external individuals or organizations to complete some tasks
Many organizations look outside their own staff pool and contract for certain skills. This is
particularly helpful for accomplishing specific, specialized tasks that don't require ongoing full-
time work.
Some organizations outsource HR activities, project work or bookkeeping. For example, payroll
may be done by an external organization rather than a staff person, a short term project may be
done using a consultant, or specific expertise such as legal advice may be purchase from an
outside source.
When deciding to outsource to an individual, ensure you are not mistakenly calling an employee
a consultant. This is illegal and can have serious financial implications for your organization..
Each outsourcing decision has implications for meeting the organization's goals and should
therefore be carefully assessed.
5. Collaboration strategies
Finally, the strategic HR planning process may lead to indirect strategies that go beyond your
organization. By collaborating with other organizations you may have better success at dealing
with a shortage of certain skills.
Types of collaboration could include:
 Working together to influence the types of courses offered by educational institutions
 Working with other organizations to prepare future leaders by sharing in the development
of promising individuals
 Sharing the costs of training for groups of employees
 Allowing employees to visit other organizations to gain skills and insight

Possible HR planning strategies to meet this organizational strategy are:

 Develop a recruitment and retention strategy based on discussions with the social
workers. Items to consider are: flexible work arrangements; contracting with a counselor
for the social workers on an as-needed basis (give them someone to talk to about the
stresses of the job); provide professional development opportunities that give them
increased skills for dealing with the issues their clients face.
 Tie the pay scale of the social workers to the pay scales of social workers working for the
municipality (the appropriate percentage to be determined. For example, the pay of social
workers in the organization may be tied at 90% of the pay at the municipal level).
 Provide placements for social work students and show them that ABC Social Service
would be an excellent employer after graduation.
 Decide the unique strategies that you will use to position yourself as an employer of
choice, based on needs of your employees and potential candidates.
 Implementing the strategic HR plan
Once the HR strategic plan is complete the next step is to implement it:

1- Agreement with the plan

Ensure that the board chair, executive director and senior managers agree with the strategic HR
plan. It may seem like a redundant step if everyone has been involved all the way along, but it's
always good to get final confirmation.

2- Communication

The strategic HR plan needs to be communicated throughout the organization. Your

communication should include:

 How the plan ties to the organization's overall strategic plan?

 What changes in HR management policies, practices and activities will be made to support the
strategic plan?
 How any changes in HR management will impact on staff including a timeframe if appropriate?
 How each individual member of staff can contribute to the plan?
 How staff will be supported through any changes
 How the organization will be different in the future?

It is impossible to communicate too much (but all too easy to communicate too little), especially
when changes involve people. However, the amount of detail should vary depending upon the
audience.

3- Legislation and mandate

Ensure that the actions you are considering are compliant with existing laws, regulations and the
constitution and bylaws of your organization.

4- Organizational needs

Whether you are increasing or reducing the number of employees, there are implications for
space and equipment, and on existing resources such as payroll and benefit plans.

5- Evaluation
HR plans need to be updated on a regular basis. You will need to establish the information
necessary to evaluate the success of the new plan. Benchmarks need to be selected and measured
over time to determine if the plan is successful in achieving the desired objectives.
 Build Your HR Strategy
- Once you have identified key people, you can effectively develop and implement an HR
strategy to ensure that you have the right people with the right skills doing the right things in
those jobs that are important to the successful execution of the business strategy.
Remember that studies of HR strategy suggest that there are some best practices,
including:
• Recruiting large pools of applicants that enable you to be more selective.
• Using valid selection tests to assess the skills of the applicants.
• Performing regular appraisals to distinguish levels of performance.
• Giving regular formal and informal feedback.
• Providing substantial training to upgrade or maintain skill levels.
• Offering competitive pay packages.
• Tying monetary incentives (merit increases, bonuses, etc.) to high performance.
• Providing information on the company’s performance, competitors and industry.
• Allowing employees to participate in decisions

A company can motivate its employees through:

• Performance-based opportunities.
• Leadership.
• Hiring diverse and talented people.
• Flexibility.
• A values-based climate.
Ideas for Motivating Your Employees
1. Support new ideas. When employees come to you with an idea or a solution to a
problem they believe is for the betterment of the company, it’s a sign that they care.
Supporting new ideas and giving an individual the chance to ‘run with it’ is motivating,
whether or not it works out in the end.
2. Empower each individual. Every single individual contributes to the bottom line.
Empowering them to excel in their role, no matter how large or small, creates a sense of
ownership that will lead to meeting and exceeding expectations.
3. Don’t let them become bored. I get bored easily, so I assume my employees also have a
short attention span. Host a cupcake bake-off, plan a happy hour, start a push-up contest
in the middle of the office on a Wednesday, or allow a different person to run the weekly
meetings to break up the monotony.
4. Celebrate personal milestones. About seven years ago, as a company of fewer than 10
people, we celebrated each employee’s birthday, work anniversary, engagement, and
even personal milestones. Today, as a company of over 100, we still celebrate these
milestones. It never gets old.
5. Acknowledge professional achievement. Everyone wants to be recognized. The
acknowledgement of a job well done coming from upper management or the owner of the
company will mean more to an employee than you think.
6. Listen. This is probably the easiest thing you can do for an employee; yet, it can also be
the most difficult. Carving out some time each day to listen to anything from concerns to
ideas will not only make your employees happy, it will also provide you with much-
needed insight on your business from the people who help keep it running.
7. Encourage friendly competition. A competitive environment is a productive
environment. Encouraging employees to participate in competitions or challenges is
healthy and may actually lead to increased camaraderie.
8. Allow pets at work. My two dogs come to the office every day, and all of my employees
are welcome to bring their pets to work. Pets make people happy and bring a sense of
companionship to the office.
9. Reward accomplishments. When a pat on the back or a high five just won’t do,
monetary incentives always seem to hit the spot.
10. Create attainable goals. Setting goals are important, but ensuring they aren’t set too
loftily by the employer or employee will help determine whether or not the goal is
achieved come year-end evaluations.
11. Be clear with expectations. Don’t leave too much to be determined. Set clear
expectations so you can plan for specific results.
12. Encourage individuality. Everyone is different. Encouraging individual personalities to
shine through will not only help create a diverse and dynamic culture, it will also foster
an open and accepting work environment. We have a lot of characters here at JBC – the
more the merrier.
13. Be a leader worth following. This point falls in my lap alone. If my employees don’t
perceive me as a worthy leader, how can I expect them to believe in our mission and help
to achieve it?
14. Set an example. Or two or three. I can’t expect my employees to do anything that I
wouldn’t do. I always ask myself if the expectations that I set for my employees are
comparable to the expectations that I would set for myself.
15. Make things interesting. Shaking things up every now and then is a good way to break
up the day-to-day routine of the work schedule.
16. Encourage learning new skills. Times are changing. Ensuring that every willing
employee has the opportunity to learn a new skill or brush up on an old skill will benefit
everyone involved.
17. Foster creativity. A creative environment is a thriving one. Encourage creativity and
watch your business flourish as thinking outside of the box becomes the norm.
18. Give credit where credit is due. Although employees come to work to complete their
appointed tasks, it’s still an accomplishment if they do it well. Recognize their hard work
by shouting them out to the entire company.
19. Create a career path. Having an idea of what lies ahead is the ultimate motivation.
Employees who have a path set before them that may lead to promotion can work
towards a goal. This will lead to increased commitment to their current employer.
20. Start a tradition. Our annual Thanksgiving potluck is so greatly anticipated that some
employees hold off on vacation to participate and attend the event with their work family.
Every holiday season, we host a toy drive for a school in the Bronx. Employees from
across the U.S. fly in to partake. Start a tradition and keep it going.
21. Get personal. This one is tricky because there is a fine line that cannot be crossed.
However, showing concern and interest in the lives of each employee goes a long way.
22. Keep an open mind. I’m always open to new ideas and new methods. Anything new is
worth exploration and consideration.
23. Encourage laughter. Laughter is contagious, so help spread the joy.
24. Embrace change. Fighting change is harder than embracing change. I have practiced this
more recently in regards to social media and living in the digital age. I also encourage my
employees to do the same.
25. Stir the pot. It’s not easy to keep things interesting every single day. Every now and
then, stirring the pot can help to liven things up. We recently switched from every-other
summer Fridays to weekly summer Fridays after a company-wide challenge set earlier in
the year. Employees were so elated at the opportunity to start their summer weekends a
day early that productivity has risen ever since.
26. Recognize strengths. Bringing out the best in people is a talent every entrepreneur
should strive to master.
27. Be available. It’s easy to get sucked into a CEO schedule, but it’s just as easy to take a
few minutes out of each day to talk to an employee who may not be on your calendar.
28. Manage everyone individually. Everyone is different, but some are so different that they
may require a personalized management style. Knowing your employees on an individual
basis is the only way to know how to manage them effectively.
29. Encourage ownership. The success of a business lies in ownership. When employees
feel invested in a company, productivity increases.
30. Promote unity. As much as each employee needs to be able to stand on his own two feet,
he must also be able to work in a team. Promoting unity will help achieve individual and
team goals.
31. Have patience. Entrepreneurs tend only to be interested in results. Patience will prevent
you from expecting too much too soon and will allow employees to complete tasks
properly.
32. Be flexible. Things don’t always happen as planned; when employees see that you are
open to going with the flow every once in a while, tensions ease up and productivity
remains constant.
33. Offer incentives. Knowing ahead of time that there’s a $500 prize on the line or extra
vacation days to be given away will make achieving goals that much more worthwhile.
34. Provide balance. A lively work environment promises a good time, but balance is just as
important to maintain levels of productivity — and the sanity of coworkers.
35. Welcome new methods. The digital age is changing life as we know it. Embracing,
rather than avoiding, new methods will ensure your business and employees stay ahead of
the competition.
36. Cultivate a positive work environment. There is no place for negativity if success is to
be achieved. A positive work environment is the result of positive leaders.
37. Give them a reason to come to work – every day. Showing up to work five days a
week, ready to exceed expectations, requires a level of loyalty that can only be achieved
if morale is high.
 Back to Globalization
- A world of increasing global competition is the backdrop for both the more differentiated
workforce and fewer resources to deal with it.
- International cultural and institutional differences will compound the need for more diverse
HR strategies.
- Even if HR principles remain the same, they’ll have to be translated into action differently
from country to country. But again, pressure to save money and use standardized HR
processes and shared information technology will be enormous. The double pressure of
creating more and more complex and diverse HR strategies and making them standardized
throughout your organization will create many conflicts for the foreseeable future.

International HR Issues
Compliance with International Laws
As businesses begin to expand into the global marketplace or as they hire employees
from diverse geographic and cultural backgrounds, they may have to adapt to new labor
laws and tax liabilities. Doing business in Europe, for example, will require the business
to pay value added tax.
Cultural Diversity
A salient issue in international HR is understanding and maintaining cultural diversity.
Working with people from different locations or from different cultural backgrounds
mean adapting the business's work style to new ideas, new ways of communicating and
unfamiliar social practices.
Benefits and Compensation
Benefits and compensation are the backbone of any HR strategy, but in international HR,
benefits and compensation are even more important in focusing on the work-life balance
of employees. The idea behind work-life balance is to provide employees with programs
and initiatives that improve both their personal and professional lives. This is considered
part of international HR, because many multinational companies have already
implemented programs such as flexible working time, paternity leave, extended holidays
and on-site childcare.
training and Development
Training programs typically encompass in-house seminars and meetings designed to give
employees on-the-job knowledge of skills that are important to doing business globally.
HR might offer language classes, for example. Professional development encompasses
the "extra" training that HR provides to its employees, such as allowing them to attend
networking events and conferences, global training seminars and other specific
competency-based programs.