The Purpose of HRM

The Purpose of HRM

Subject: Business    / Management
Question

DeVry MGMT410 Week 1 Discussion 1 & 2 Latest 2017 January

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The Purpose of HRM (graded)

Human Resources Management (HRM)—what a mouthful! Class, this term, I will introduce you to the concepts of HRM—what it is, what it does (typically), what it can do (optimally), and what it should do (strategically). To start, let’s work on a few introductory questions.

What purpose does HRM serve in an organization?
What role does HRM serve in your organization (or your previous organization)?
What does “strategic” HRM sound like it means, in your opinion?

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The Functions of HRM (graded)

What are the four basic HRM functions? How exactly do these functions assist the organization in reaching its goals?

DeVry MGMT410 Week 2 Discussion 1 & 2 Latest 2017 January

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EEO Laws (graded)

Class, since the passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964, more employment legislation in the area of equal employment opportunity (EEO) has become the law of the land. Pick one of the following acts and tell us its major provisions.

Civil Rights Act of 1964
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA)
Pregnancy Discrimination Act
Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

Do not simply copy and paste information into your post from the EEOC or other websites. Paraphrase and explain the following concepts about the law: who does it protect, from what kind of behavior, and from whom? Why was the law implemented, and do you agree with its necessity? Explain. If you or someone you know has been sued or filed suit using one of these laws, feel free to tell us about it if you want to do so!

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Social Media, E-Mails, and Privacy (graded)

Over the last few years, companies have begun relying significantly on technology to assist employees in handling their day-to-day operations. As a result, the work/home life has blurred, and people handle personal items (e-mail, Facebook, etc.) on company computers and company work (e-mail, texting, instant messages) on their personal devices (iPhones, Droids, laptops, tablets, etc.)

With this blending has come serious concerns by companies about their private company information falling into the wrong hands (customer lists, trade secrets, etc.), and employees have concerns about their privacy being invaded at work, by coworkers, and by their IT departments. Further, HRM handles immense amounts of personal information on employees, including home addresses, personnel records, pay information, SSNs, and more.

Therefore, privacy concerns comprise a two-way street. Laws have been passed (and are being passed and considered every day) by states and Congress to protect both parties. As an example, Illinois recently passed a law making it illegal for potential employers to require people to give them their social network passwords during interviews. Soon thereafter, other states passed similar laws.

What are some other technology privacy laws that apply to workers and employers in the United States? How do they protect employees from privacy invasion and how to they actually allow employers to invade the privacy of their employees? Is your personal e-mail safe at work if you use your company computer to read it? How about your personal phone calls on the company phones? Pick a concept and let’s get started.

DeVry MGMT410 Week 3 Discussion 1 & 2 Latest 2017 January

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Interviewing (graded)

Interviewing methods are extremely varied so this thread should be quite exciting. Please bring into this thread your depth of information and experiences, and feel free to share the good, bad, and ugly interviewing situations you have experienced, both as interviewer and interviewee.

To start, here are a few questions. Pick one or two and provide your answer, along with any experience that you may have had. Feel free to find information online about interviewing skills, tactics, or questions to assist you this week. Cite your sources!

What types of interviewing styles are there, and which do you prefer using (or being used on you?)
Have you experienced a group interview? If so, explain how that went. If not, research it and explain how you might set one up as an HR manager.
Have you ever been part of any of these: stress interview, STAR interview, situational interview, or panel interview? If so, explain one of them and provide your experience, good or bad. If not, research and provide information about how you might prepare to be interviewed in this manner.

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Recruitment and Selection (graded)

Effective recruitment and selection help organizations gain competitive advantages. This discussion will help us review some best practices. To start, pick one of these questions, and provide a well-reasoned, supported response to it. Be sure to provide text, Web-based, life experience, or scholarly source(s) to support your ideas (and cite them, if needed). Assume that we have solid job descriptions for the positions we are filling and now we need to find the perfect people to fill those seats.

How does the size and location of your company impact how and where you will recruit your new employees?
Is it easier or harder to find good employees during times of high unemployment? Why do you say this? (Provide examples/statistics or research to back up your statement.)
How does the wording of your want ads (and placement of those ads) determine who applies for your job openings?
How does the current make-up of your organization dictate where you will look to fill your openings?

DeVry MGMT410 Week 4 Discussion 1 & 2 Latest 2017 January

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Employee Orientation (graded)

Employee orientation is handled differently in each organization. Let’s talk about this in both the theoretical perspective as well as in practical terms. Here are a few questions to get started.

Should companies offer formal orientation programs for all new employees, or should they be designed and run by each individual supervisor, manager, or department head? (Support your answer.)
Explain some purposes for having employee orientations.
Give an example from your own experience of the first weeks on the job, either with or without an orientation program, and how you felt orientation helped you settle in (or, if you didn’t have an orientation, how that impacted your view of that job).

Pick one or two of the above to get started, and we will discuss further throughout the week!

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Individual Development and Career Management (graded)

Review TCO 9 listed at the top of the page. Many of you may have or do work for an organization in which “career development” takes on a bit of a life of its own, and has a very invested HR department that assists with, motivates, and encourages employee career development.

Others of you may work (or may have worked) for an organization—where absolutely no career development occurs.

There is a dual mindset of how involved a company or HR should be in its employees’ career development, but ultimately of course, a person needs to take responsibility for his or her own career options.

This week, let’s focus on the multiple aspects by starting with these questions:

How important is career development to you?
How much do you want your HR department to involve itself in your career development?
How much, as a future HR person (if you plan to be one), would you want to be involved in your employees’ career development?

Explain your answers.

DeVry MGMT410 Week 5 Discussion 1 & 2 Latest 2017 January

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Performance Appraisals (graded)

What are the different performance appraisal methods? Pick two: the one you find to be MOST effective (and tell us why) and the one you find to be LEAST effective (and tell us why).

For the most effective, explain how it is effective in doing the following:

providing fair and reliable ways of differentiating employees;
targeting and rewarding those who most deserve it;
setting forth a fair and cost-effective plan for compensation; and
motivating and ensuring performance of employees.

For the least effective, explain how it interferes in the above four items.

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Methods of Job Evaluation (graded)

Compare and contrast the following methods of job evaluation: ranking, classification, factor comparison, and point method. Which of these do you feel is most useful and why?

DeVry MGMT410 Week 6 Discussion 1 & 2 Latest 2017 January

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Health and Safety (graded)

Who would have thought that OSHA and the IRS would be discussed in the same discussion topic of an HRM course? This topic will be a bit foundational, but also without as much precedential information as normal. First, we’ll start with OSHA. Visit the OSHA website at www.osha.org. Then, click on “More News” under the latest news area (http://www.osha.gov/newsrelease.html). Find your region and click the link. Review a recent news item about an OSHA violation from your region/area. Post a summary of the violation, the resulting fine (if any), the violation type (if provided), and what the company did wrong to cause the violation. Provide ideas for preventing such an accident or injury in the future, and the link to your news release.

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Striking for Benefits (graded)

Read the Application Case: STRIKING FOR BENEFITS at the end of Chapter 13. We will begin with the first question in that case and move from there while we discuss benefits, perks, employee motivation, and retention.

DeVry MGMT410 Week 7 Discussion 1 & 2 Latest 2017 January

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Employee Engagement (graded)

Employee engagement has become popular in HRM these days. Measuring it and determining whether a company’s employees are “engaged” are

actually vendor services for which companies pay through the use of anonymous surveying tools. The science behind employee engagement is not yet perfected—there are many different ways that employers can help their employees get engaged! We’ll talk about this throughout the week and your professor will bring in additional questions and thoughts. To get started, please do this: Provide your definition of employee engagement. Support your definition using a citation from a website, the textbook, or a scholarly article from the DeVry Online Library. Give one example of how you have been engaged in a job in the past, and how your employer assisted you in being engaged.
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Negotiating With the Writers Guild of America (graded)

Read the Application Case, Negotiation With the Writers Guild of America, at the end of Chapter 15. To start, answer Question 1 in the case. We will move through the case with more questions, and discuss more of the issues involved with the union issues.

DeVry MGMT410 Week 2 Case Study Latest 2017 January

Case Study: Social Media Policies: Are They Legal?

Here are several tips for successfully completing this case study.

You should incorporate information from the textbook, the lectures, and maybe the discussions to support your position. In other words, tell me more than just your opinion. Provide some relevant facts from the course material to support your position.
Utilize the LexisNexis database in the DeVry University Online Library to help you research this project. Try the Advanced Search area and look up laws, news, and law reviews using combinations of keywords likesocial media, Facebook, NLRB,andconcerted activity.

The Internet also has a wealth of information on this topic, and you should use these sources to supplement your assignment if you desire. In the Webliography section of the course (top, far-right tab) is a number of websites that you can use to help you complete this assignment. If you research your own Internet sources, be cautious about your sources. Make sure that the site is from a reputable organization. There is an expectation that at least some citations and references are used for all assignments.

Week 2 Case Study: Social Media Policies, Concerted Activity, and HR Management

In the last few years, companies have begun initiating and implementing social media policies for their employees to follow. These policies range from encouraging employees to utilizing social media for marketing purposes, to restricting the use of social media for employees in order to ensure that they do not hurt the company image. As these policies become more widespread, both the Society for Human Resource Management and the NLRB (National Labor Relations Board) have become concerned about the limits on speech and activity that employers are imposing on their workers. Further, in some states, laws are being passed to protect employees and potential employees from being required to disclose social media passwords during job interviews or after hire. Finally, many ethical concerns are being raised about the use of social media as a method of doing quick, informal background checks on potential hires or current employees.

For your homework this week, research the following questions and provide your findings in answers that are long enough to sufficiently answer the questions (about 2–3 good paragraphs each). Provide citations in APA style for each of your answers. Use APA formatting in your Word document that you submit to the Dropbox. Save your file with your last name in the filename, please. Let your professor know if you have questions!

Questions to Research and Answer

The NLRB has made findings regarding the use of employee posts on social media sites to discipline or terminate those employees. Typically, these cases occur when an employee posts negative information about his or her current employer or boss. Sometimes, these are public, and other times, the employer uses spies or fake friending to see the Facebook page of the employee.

1. Find at least one case or article online regarding this topic, and briefly explain the facts of the case, and the determination of the NLRB as to whether the employee was properly or improperly disciplined or terminated as a result of his or her use of social media to complain about, criticize, or publicly bash his or her company or boss. Provide the citation to the article that you discover. (Use the termconcerted activityin your query or search to help you find one of these cases.) (25 points)

2. Do you agree with the decision of the NLRB or court in the case that you described in Question #1 above? Why or why not? (1–3 paragraphs). (10 points)

3. Assume that this case happened at a place where you have worked in the past, or where you work now (or want to work.) Give an example of how the decision in the case above could lead to better or worse employee relations in your company. (15 points)

4. Explain how you would communicate this decision to your employees or supervisors (depending on the decision you have selected) to ensure that situations like this do not occur again. In your answer, determine whether or not you feel a social media policy is a good method. If so, list at least three things you would include in your policy and why you would include them. If you do not feel a social media policy is appropriate, explain why you would not implement one (give at least two valid reasons). (3–4 paragraphs) (15 points)

To ensure that your paper isn’t flagged in Turnitin.com, do NOT copy and paste the questions into your paper. Instead, set up headings for each section where you answer the questions, using good APA form. Please title your assignment with your last name and week number (for example, Smith Week1.docx).

Submit your assignment to the Dropbox, located at the top of this page. For instructions on how to use the Dropbox, read these.equella.ecollege.com/file/8ff9f27a-3772-48cf-9855-4bec4e6706bf/1/Dropbox.html”>step-by-step instructions.

See the Syllabus section “Due Dates for Assignments & Exams” for due date information.

DeVry MGMT410 Week 3 O*NET Homework Latest 2017 January

Web Navigation Steps

Familiarize yourself with O*NET by reviewing the information provided on the About O*NET page: (http://www.onetcenter.org/overview.html).

From the About page, click the Content Model link, and review the conceptual model underlying this project: (http://www.onetcenter.org/content.html).

Review the O*NET Online Desk Aid found in Doc Sharing.

Go to the My Next Move page (http://www.mynextmove.org/), and enter an occupation with which you are familiar (e.g., one you have held or hope to hold) in the keyword search box, or use the Industry Search feature or Tell Us What You Like to Do options if you prefer.)

Select the Search, Browse, or Start buttons.

Select the occupation that best matches what you are looking for (or use other search terms until you find something that interests you) and review all of the data provided for that position.

Use the O*NET interest profiler (http://www.mynextmove.org/explore/ip) to determine your skills and O*NET’s suggestion for a match of those skills.

After completion of these navigation steps, proceed to complete the assignment by discussing the learning questions below.

What were two occupations O*NET found that fit your skills, interests, and experience level desired? Provide the details regarding the following.

Name of the occupations (5 points each, 10 total)

Do you agree that you would be good at or like either of them? If yes, why? If no, why not? Explain using your skills, experience, likes, and interests as support for your answer. (15 points)

What states offered above-average opportunities for the position? (List up to three.) (3 points)

What was the average salary listed for the occupation? (2 points)

As an HR professional, how could O*NET be useful in conducting a job analysis? Explain specifically how you would use the data from this site to assist your organization. (15 points)

Name two things you learned about job analysis and/or the job you reviewed that you did not know before reviewing this website. (10 points)

Will you utilize this website in the future when looking for jobs or hiring employees? Why or why not? (10 points)

Some Tips for Doing Well on This Assignment

Set aside up to 3 hours to complete this exercise.

Explore the site fully.

Answer each question by fully exploring your thoughts. More than yes or no or one-word answers will be needed for full points on Questions 1(b), 2, 3, and 4.

Avoid copying and pasting information. Give your interpretation of the information you find.

APA formatting is required. Use the template in Doc Sharing, the APA handbook, and tutorial links in the Syllabus, the online librarians, and Tutor Source, or the APA guide video in THElHUB.

Submit your assignment to the Dropbox, located at the top of this page. For instructions on how to use the Dropbox, read these step-by-step instructions.

See the Syllabus section “Due Dates for Assignments & Exams” for due date information.

DeVry MGMT410 Week 5 Homework Latest 2017 January
Homework

Review the Case application: APPRAISING THE SECRETARIES AT SWEETWATER U at the end of Chapter 9 of your textbook. Review the three questions at the end of the case. Think about how you might answer those questions. Now, answer these questions:

Do you think that the experts ‘recommendations will be sufficient to get most of the administrators to fill out the rating forms properly? Why? Why not? What additional actions (if any) do you think will be necessary?
Do you think that Vice President Winchester would be better off dropping graphic rating forms, substituting instead one of the other techniques we discussed in this chapter, such as a ranking method? Why?
What performance appraisal system would you develop for the secretaries if you were Rob Winchester? Defend your answer.

Answer each question fully, and include relevant citations to your textbook or other articles, the lecture, or online research. Be sure to use no more than 25% copy and paste. Include your own opinions, thoughts, examples, and experiences as support for your ideas, as well. Expect to write about 2–4 pages, double-spaced, excluding references and the title page. Submit at the end of the week to the Dropbox.

Submit your lab to the Dropbox, located at the top of this page. For instructions on how to use the Dropbox, read these.equella.ecollege.com/file/8ff9f27a-3772-48cf-9855-4bec4e6706bf/1/Dropbox.html”>step-by-step instructions.

See the Syllabus section “Due Dates for Assignments & Exams” for due date information.