Staffing, Leading, Controlling

Staffing

staffing
Staffing is a process of determining the quality and quantity of the human force needed for the organistion, making all necessary arrangements for acquiring it through recruitment and selection, maintaining them for longer periods of time by making and implementing suitable personnel policies and finally, developing their capabilities and potential to the maximum.

Staffing another definition

The managerial function of staffing is defined as filling, and keeping filled, positions in the organisation structure.

 This is done by identifying work-force requirements, inventorying the people available, and recruiting, selecting, placing, promoting, appraising, planning the careers of, compensating, and training or otherwise developing both candidates and current job holders so that they can accomplish their tasks effectively and efficiently.

 Many writers on management theory discuss staffing as a phase of organising. But some consider it as a separate managerial function.

Human resource management

HRM is a staff function. It includes seven basic activities: 1. Human resources planning 2. recruitment 3. selection 4. socialisation 5. training and development 6. performance appraisal 7. promotions, transfers, demotions, and separations.

HR Planning
It is designed to ensure that personnel needs will be constantly and appropriately met. It is accomplished through analysis of(i) internal factors, such as current and expected skill needs, vacancies, and departmental expansions and reductions, and (ii) factors in the environment, such as the labour market.

recruitment
It is concerned with developing a pool of job candidates in line with the human resource plan. Candidates are usually located through newspaper and professional journal advertisements, employment agencies, word of mouth, and visits to college and university campuses.

selection
It involves using application forms, resumes, interviews, employment and skills tests, and reference checks to evaluate and screen job candidates for the managers who will ultimately select and hire a candidate.

Socialisation (orientation)
Is designed to help the selected individuals fit smoothly into the organization. Newcomers are introduced to their colleagues, acquainted with their responsibilities, and informed about the organizations culture, policies, and expectations regarding employee behaviour.

Training and development

They aim to increase employees abilities to contribute to organizational effectiveness. Training is designed to improve skills in the present job; development programmes are designed to prepare employees for promotion.

Performance appraisal
It compares an individuals job performance to standards or objectives developed for the individuals position. Low performance may prompt coercive action, such as additional training, a demotion, or separation, while high performance may merit a reward, such as raise, bonus, or promotion.

Promotions, transfers, demotions and separations

They reflect an employees value to the organization. High performers may be promote or transferred to help them develop their skills, while low performers ma be demoted transferred to less important positions, or even separated. Any of these options will, in turn, affect human resource planning.

4 Cs Model
To evaluate the effectiveness of the HRM process within an organisation, the Harvard researchers have proposed the 4 Cs model : 1. competence 2. commitment 3. congruence 4. cost effectiveness.

 Competence is competence in their work. Do they need additional training? Commitment to work and organization. Congruence or agreement between the basic philosophy and goals of the company and its employees. Are HRM policies cost-effective in terms of wages, benefits, turnover, absenteeism, strikes and similar factors?

Managing change
Change is inevitable and, to some extent, desirable for the organisation. It is because every organisation has to succeed, develop and grow. Growth and development of the organisation will force it to change. An organisation that fails to change is sure to fail. Change is required not only for growth but also to help the organisation to maintain a relative degree of stability in its functioning.

 The survival and growth of the organisation depends on its capability to reconcile or adjust with the rapidly changing environment. In order to adapt to the changing environment, managers have to make changes in the existing structure, processes and goals of the organisation. These changes have a direct reflection on the entire corporate life.

Planned change
It is a systematic attempt to redesign an organisation in a way that will enable it to cope with the changing environment and achieve new goals. It is the deliberate design and implementation of a structural innovation, a new policy or goal or a change in the operating philosophy, climate or style.

 Planned change aims at preparing the entire organisation to change its process, structure, technology or goals to adapt to a changing situation. Planned change is always deliberate, systematic and rational in nature.

Forces of change
There are external forces as well as internal factors that necessitate change. External factors; Socio-cultural forces Economic forces Political and legal forces Technological forces Work environment forces (customers, suppliers, community, society etc)

Internal forces of change

Top management and its philosophy and corporate policy. Retirement, promotion, resignation and transfer of key functionaries of the organisation. Change in the perception, attitude, feelings, beliefs and expectations of the employees working in the organisation.
contd..

 Change in work schedule, allocation of duties, job content, duty hours. Change in the internal environment of the organisation.

Resistance to change - reasons

Insecurity, Change in status quo Communication gap Socio-psychological reasons Group pressure Loss of power and control Nature of change rigid organisational structure Past experience of employees.

Strategies to overcome resistance to change

1. participation and involvement 2. education and communication 3. leadership 4. facilitation and support 5. negotiation and agreement 6. timing of change 7. use of group pressure 8. use of power by a change agent or initiator.

Management of Change
It is necessary for the organisation to change for its successful growth and development. It is only through planned change and its efficient management can the organisation cope with the changing environment and may seek a profitable use of its resources.

Steps in the process of management of change

1. to identify need for change 2. to develop new objectives and goals 3. to determine type of change 4. to prepare a detailed plan for change 5. to implement the change 6. review and feedback.

Leading
Every manager is a leader because he has to mobilise the efforts of people in the direction of achieving common goals. By exercising leadership qualities and human skills he establishes cordial interpersonal relations with the individuals working under him.

Leadership - definitions
It is the ability of influencing people to strive willingly for mutual objectives. Terry. It is a process of interpersonal influence by which executive or manager influences the activities of others in choosing and attaining given goals. McFarland. Managerial leadership is a process of directing and influencing the task related activities of group members.- Ralph M. Stogdill.

Role and functions of leadership

1. forming group 2. motivating members 3. morale boosting 4. support function 5. satisfying needs of members 6. accomplishing common goals 7. representing members

 8. creating confidence 9. implementing changes 10. resolving conflicts.

Motivation
Motivation refers to that set of wishes, desires, needs and drives that stimulate or activate individuals to behave or do the things they do. The term motivation has been derived from the word movement and in the context of management it is used in the sense of seeking desirable and effective movements among employees with regard to their performance and working behaviour.

Motivation definitions
It implies an emotion or desire which so conditions ones will that the individual is propelled into action. Stanly Vence It is the complex of forces starting and keeping a person at work in an organisation. Robert Dubin. Motivation is an inner psychological force that activates and compels a person to behave in a particular manner.

 Management is a result-oriented process. To get better results, employees are motivated to work efficiently. To motivate subordinates, managers need to understand what makes people to work, and how they can be inspired to work hard. Motivation is an inner psychological drive that compels people to work efficiently.

 Motivation is a force that makes the people ready to move towards achievement of predetermined goals. Motivation has a direct relationship with the level of performance. If other conditions remain the same, highly motivated employees would produce more.

 In traditional management, monetary incentives occupy central place while the human relations approach recognises the fulfilment of other higher order needs provides motivation. Modern views on motivation indicated that the motivation system consists of individual characteristics, job characteristics and characteristics of the work environment.

Hierarchy of needs
1. physiological needs. 2. security and safety needs. 3. affiliation or acceptance needs. 4. esteem needs. 5. need for Self-actualization.

Two factor theory of Herzberg

Maintenance factors interpersonal relations Quality of supervision Company policy and administration Working conditions Job security salary

Motivators Challenging work Achievement Growth in the job Responsibility Advancement Recognition.

Communication and controlling

Generally communication means an exchange of ideas, facts, opinions, information and understanding between two or more persons. in the context of organisation, it may be defined as the transmission and receipt of information on various organisational matters, either between two employees of an organisation or between two or more work units or departments. It may also occur between an organisation and outside parties

communication
The word communication is derived from the Latin word Communis, which means common. when we communicate, we are trying to establish a commonness with someone. ie. We are trying to share information, an idea or an attitude.

The communication process

The communication process basically consists of many elements including the sender, receiver, channel, message and feedback. The starting point of this process which is also known as the source is the sender of the message. He uses some channel or path to transmit a message to the receiver. Once the message is received, he acknowledges it through the process of feedback.

 The effectiveness of the managing process and the overall organisational functioning depend on the network of communications around the organisation. On the one hand, a manager needs to communicate with his subordinates to establish interpersonal relations with them. On the other, it supplements the smooth functioning of the organisation.

 The manager gets the required and relevant information to make sound plans, take factual decisions, maintain coordination through the communication network, communicate with subordinates, boost their morale, remove misunderstanding and create better human relations. It also helps in improving the public image and in reconciling with a changing business environment.

communication barriers
The communication process is very complex. It is a human process that involves the sender and receiver. Its effectiveness is affected by many factors such as language difference, noise, individual perceptions, emotions and inconsistencies between verbal and non-verbal communication and distrust.

Communication barriers contd.

1. differing perceptions. People differ in terms of background, knowledge and experience. These individual differences not only distort the message but vitiate the entire process. 2. lack of mutuality between sender and receiver. It occurs when gestures or symbols used by the sender to code a message may not be understood in the same way and given the same interpretation by the receiver.

barriers
3. language differences: for a message to be properly communicated, the words used must convey the same meaning to the sender and the receiver. Lack of clarity, use of jargon, lack of coherence, omission and commission in the process of constructing sentences and other deficiencies may possibly result in language differnces.

barriers
4. Noise: noise, in varying degrees, disturbs, confuses or interferes with communication. Due to a high level of noise in telephone connection, sometimes irrelevant information may be screened out and sometimes relevant information may be left out.

barriers
5. organisational barriers: traditional organisational structures that are based on authority relationship restrict free and frequent communication. Subordinates develop a tendency to communicate only those matters which please their superiors or superiors maintain a distance by not communicating those things that may have a direct reflection on their efficiency.

barriers
6. barriers due to resistance to change: resistance to change for preserving the status quo may cause another communication barrier. Although resistance to change is not considered healthy, it is a natural inclination on the part of the person who does not want to leave the existing environment in which he feels comfortable and well adjusted.

barriers
7.physical layout: the physical lay out of the workplace influence the communication pattern. The layout should be designed in such as way so as to facilitate frequent interaction and to maintain privacy that both contribute to effective communication.

barriers
8. Distrust: the receivers trust or distrust of a communication message also affects its effectiveness. It is based on the credibility of the sender in the mind of the receiver which is a factor of the integrity, honesty and reliability of the sender of the message.

barriers
9. Other barriers: there can be many more barriers which arise due to emotional reactions, deep-rooted feelings and prejudices, physical conditions, distance etc. All of these constitute serious barriers to effective communication. Unless they are known to the sender he cannot overcome them effectively.

Guidelines for effective communication

1. to reduce and remove perception barrier, the sender of a message should attempt to know the background knowledge of those with whom he is communicating. When the subject is not clear, asking questions becomes critical for effective communication. 2. language differences can be handled by explaining the meaning of unconventional or technical terms in simple language.

 3. emotional reactions can be tackled by accepting them as a part of the communication process. These should be analysed properly when they create problems. If subordinates are talking aggressively, it is necessary for the manager to understand their reaction; only then he may be able to improve the situation. The manager should also think about his own moods and must know how they influence others.

 4. Organisational structure, its rigidity and line of command also create a problem that can be solved by de-emphasising authority relations and making more use of informal relations for communicating messages. 5. the manager has to learn three important skills, viz. skills of listening, talking, writing and conducting a meeting.

 6. an atmosphere of mutual trust and good will is to be created in an organisation to make the communication process more effective. 7. the channels of communication should be direct, short and straightforward to reduce delay and distortion in communication. 8. the communication system of an organisation should consist of both formal as well as informal networks.

 9. there should be two-way communication channels to provide the necessary feedback essential for its effectiveness.

Concepts and principles of controlling

Controlling is often regarded as a core of the management process. This is because the process of management begins with planning, followed by organising, staffing, and directing, and comes to an end with controlling. Control is a process of taking the necessary preventive and corrective actions to ensure that organisational objectives are achieved as effectively as possible.

 Controlling may also be considered as a process of ensuring that actual activities conform to planned activities and have been performed in a planned manner. It is through controlling that managers ensure execution of plans and achievement of objectives. Lack of effective control may create delay in performing the work which leads to more wastage of effort and resources.

 Thus, controlling implies, to make things happen, to obtain desired results and to take corrective action to command the situation. Control also means order and discipline. This is because it not only affects events to occur but also regulates and checks undesirable tendencies in the working behaviour of employees. It forces them to fall in line with predetermined standards of performance and behaviour.

Nature of control
1. control is a basic function of management. 2. it depends on and contributes to other functions of management. 3. control relates to people, things and actions. 4. control is all pervasive. 5. control is a continuous process. 6. the controlling process aims at taking corrective measures.

Basis of control process

1.It helps plans to be implemented effectively. 2. facilitates coordination in organisational functioning by reducing diversity. 3. encourages high morale on the part of employees. 4. ensures order, discipline and obedience on the part of subordinates.

 5. helps the organisation to preserve and promote its distinct identity against environmental changes. 6. Ensures order, discipline and obedience on the part of subordinates. 7. enables the organisation to keep a watch on the external environment and to command it.

 8. promotes integration between short-term and long-term objectives, corporate goals and departmental goals and between an enterprise and the environment.

Elements of a controlling process

1. setting of standards of performance. 2. Monitoring and measuring performance. 3. Comparing performance standards. 4. Analysing causes of deviation. 5. taking corrective action.

Types of control
1. post control. 2. current control. 3. pre-control or feed forward control.

Post control
This is also known as feedback control or after the event control. Post-control includes the collection of information about the completed activity, the evaluation of information and the taking or corrective action to improve performance.

Current control
Also known as real time control, because it is more concerned with the present rather than the future or the past. In a current control to keep the system or process on track, attempts are made to evaluate and analyse performance as quickly as possible and initiate prompt corrective action.

 As the process starts operating, the activities are continuously monitored to ensure that they are being performed as per standards.

Pre-control or feed forward control

This is also known as pro-active or preventive control. In this type of control, the main emphasis is placed on preventing the performance of the system to be deviated from standards. For this purpose, the functioning of system is watched closely with constant alertness to discover likely problems or disturbances so that advance action can be taken to avert them.

 In feed forward control, a lot of forecasting is involved. It implies active anticipation and prevention of problems and disturbances rather than passive reaction. It does not allow deviation to occur and averts the disorder or disturbance by taking suitable action in advance. It calls for close monitoring and analysis of inputs and processes so as to make necessary adjustments before output is produced.

Essentials of a good control system

1. it must be understandable. 2. control must be flexible. 3. control must be economical. 4. control system must point out corrective action. 5. it must be appropriate to suit the requirements of the organisation. 6. It must be forward looking.

 7. it must be interactive in nature. 8. it must be focussed on the objectives. 9. it must concentrate on serious and major deviations. 10. it must aim at taking remedial action to improve performance.