HR Performance Enhancement and Development Strategies

The essay delves into strategies designed to enhance Human Resource Management (HRM) within organizations, focusing on improving employee productivity and organizational success. Key areas include the implementation of performance appraisal systems to assess and motivate employees effectively, fostering a work environment conducive to increased productivity through proper management techniques. It also discusses the importance of diversity in HR policies to combat issues like workplace discrimination and bullying, while promoting equal opportunities across different demographics. Conflict resolution strategies are highlighted as essential for minimizing disputes that can hinder organizational progress. Additionally, it examines how negotiating awards and contracts can motivate employees by aligning their compensation with performance outcomes. Effective training programs are emphasized as crucial for equipping employees with the necessary skills to perform optimally. The essay further explores risk management strategies in HRM, particularly concerning operational risks associated with workplace conflicts and diversity challenges. Lastly, comprehensive performance management practices that integrate employee engagement and continuous improvement processes are advocated to ensure sustained organizational growth.

Running head: MANAGE EMPLOYEE RELATIONS
Manage Employee Relations
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author note:

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Table of Contents
Section A: Skills Activity...........................................................................................................2
Section B: Knowledge Activity.................................................................................................6
Section C: Performance Activity.............................................................................................13
References................................................................................................................................15

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Section A: Skills Activity
Answer 1:
Recently, I am working with a multinational organization as a human resource
manager. My job responsibilities include; setting up employee benefits and performance
appraisals, maximizing the opportunities and others. In any company, a human resource
manager plays a major role in binding the staff members together. In my office, I undertake
several activities to strengthen the bonds among the staff members and manage the employee
relations. In addition to this, organizing get together and small gatherings is also a part of my
job duties. It is beneficial for the office environment, as it plays a major role in building up
the employee relations (Bach, 2012).
Answer 2:
Human resource management is often linked with employee relations. The term refers
to the management of human resources of an organization. The department is concerned with
the management of the people within organizations by focusing on their systems and
strategies. The human resource department is being designed in order to maximize the
performance of the employees, which in turn benefits the company. The department of
human resource is hugely responsible for designing employee benefits, performance
appraisal, recruitment of the candidates, employee training programs and their development
as well, maintaining industrial relations and others. It mainly focuses on maximizing the
productivity of the employees.
The human resource professionals are responsible for managing any organization’s
human capital by implementing policies and procedures. They specialize on training,
recruiting and selection of the candidates, designing employee benefits and relations. In the

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early twentieth century, human resource was a product of human relations movement.
Initially, it was dominated by works like payroll as well as benefits administration. However,
due to globalization and technological advances, the human resource department now focuses
on initiatives like talent management, industrial relations, labor relations, diversity, mergers
and acquisitions and more. Efficient and effective human resource managers can benefit any
company to a huge extent.
In small companies or start ups, trained and experienced professionals may perform
the duties of the human resource department. In bigger companies, there is an entire group
who performs the duties and responsibilities of the human resource management team.
Human resource departments make sure that the organizational teams are functioning well.
Moreover, with the competitive environment, the organizations are becoming more diverse.
The human resource management team must ensure that the organization have diversity
policies and procedures. The department of human resource strives to offer better benefits to
the workers, therefore, reducing the risks in business (Beardwell & Thompson, 2014).
Answer 3:
Employee relations help in maintaining good relations with the staff members, which
reduces workplace conflicts, increases overall productivity and raises staff morale. There are
various ways of improving the relations and help in making the workplace more constructive
and efficient. Improving communication among the members can prove beneficial for the
company. Moreover, it is important to encourage and motivate the staff members to voice
their opinion, whenever necessary. It helps in reducing the conflicts among the members and
raises productivity as well. In addition to this, gathering feedback from the employees
regarding the workplace environment as well as interacting with them can raise the
workplace morale and improve relations (Bellé, 2013).

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Answer 4:
An organization is going to implement diversity in their policies. In order to
implement it, developing a plan or strategy is highly required. Firstly, the organizational
leader must make relevant decisions before imposing any rules or regulations. Existing
employees may not be comfortable with the new set of rules. Therefore, the planning must be
done strategically. Diversity trainings or programs must be conducted, in order to make them
aware of the issues. Secondly, the plans and policies must comply with the legislative
requirements. Thirdly, while communicating with the staff members, it is to be kept in mind
that the organizational leader sounds supportive. The staff members must be encouraged to
voice their opinion fearlessly, in a professional manner. Fourthly, the problems must be
identified and proper plans must be implemented in order to deal with them (Chelladurai &
Kerwin, 2017).
Answer 5:
Diverse culture in any organization brings in high values and it is a reflection of the
changing marketplace. However, after gathering data and feedback, it is seen that the issues
can be improved more. Proper diversity trainings must be conducted in the organizations to
make the existing employees aware of the issues. If any employee faces any issue he/she
must feel free to communicate his/her problems to the higher authority. In addition to this,
he/she can take legal actions against the organization. The employees mindset of, “we have
always done it in this way”, needs to be changed. It is high time organizations take diverse
work groups seriously (Deyoe & Fox, 2012).
Furthermore, arranging events and social gatherings will help the employees open up.
They must be given the opportunity to speak their heart out and voice their opinions on such
occasions. It is to be kept in mind that their feedback is highly beneficial for the company’s

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success. Organizations must promote diversity in the workplaces. Interactive sessions must
be conducted as it helps in knowing the staff members better, their wishes, choice and
demands. Valuing their opinions also make them feel that they are an important part of the
organization. Therefore, the management team needs to be more cautious regarding such
issues and workplace bullying must never be encouraged (Hamilton & Webster, 2015).
Answer 6:
Diverse workforce is responsible for bringing in high values to the organization. In
today’s competitive environment, a diverse number of employees are seen as a reflection of
the changing world. Diversity can be integrated into the workplace by providing the existing
employees with diversity trainings and mentoring programs. In my workplace, diversity
trainings are being provided to the employees in order to accept it in the workplace policies.
Moreover, the managers and supervisors are also very cooperative in terms of diversity
management. There does not exist any stereotypes or discrimination, which helps in
maintaining a safe and friendly workplace environment (Pieterse, Van Knippenberg & Van
Dierendonck, 2013).
Answer 7:
In order to deal with workplace conflicts the management team first needs to talk to
the person who is involved with this. It is important to focus on their behaviors as well as
events and not on the personalities. The management team must listen to the issues carefully,
without interrupting. He/she needs to point out the areas of agreement or disagreement, while
prioritizing the conflict areas at the same time. After hearing from them, he/she needs to
chalk out a plan for working on the conflict and follow through the plan. He/she can also take
legal actions, if necessary. In addition to this, the management team must set up a conflict
resolution method. This includes; arbitration, conciliation, mediation, negotiation,

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collaborative law, conflict resolution, dispute resolution, lawyer supported mediation and
others (Van Dooren, Bouckaert & Halligan, 2015).
Section B: Knowledge Activity
Answer 1:
Four possible sources are:
 Preparing employment records.
 Hiring, promoting, transferring and terminating employees.
 Training and development.
 Interviewing applicants and implementing new recruiting strategies (Hamilton &
Webster, 2015).
Answer 2:
It is very crucial to understand industrial agreements as it can affect the workplace in
a huge way. The industrial agreement is a formal document that consists of specific terms,
which is lodged formally by the authority. It is an agreement which can be inconsistent at
times. However, specific documents need to be finished before lodging an industrial
agreement. Failing to do so can cause severe penalties to the organization. Employees must
be provided with specific documents in order to make them become aware of their rights
before entering any organization. Such agreements help in outlining the terms and conditions
of the workplaces and make them clear to the employees.
The industrial agreement is not applicable on the awards and remuneration of the
employees. However, the basic pay rate mentioned in the agreement will not be less. There
award system may modify on the basis of their skills and abilities. The registered agreements

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are applicable until they are replaced or terminated. If the employees are not provided with
proper awards and recognitions, it may mar the progress of the organization and also hamper
its business structure. Employees must be protected from unlawful or unfair means of
termination. They must be provided with workplace safety and security and it is the duty of
the organization to ensure the wellbeing of both the employer and employee.
The industrial agreements are made between employers and employees along with the
chosen representatives. The industrial agreements include several matters like; safe employee
conditions, working hours, overtime benefits, pay rates, consultative mechanisms, dispute or
conflict resolution procedures and wage deductions for any purpose which is authorized by
the employee. Unlawful or unfair contents must not be included like; objectionable or
discriminatory terms. The workplace safety procedures totally depend on the organization’s
environment and their legal systems. If any organization lacks strategies and policies,
employees will not feel safe working with that company. Therefore, industrial agreements
must be made on the basis of these factors; otherwise, it may affect the workplace (Van
Dooren, Bouckaert & Halligan, 2015).
Answer 3:
Three key result areas:
 Customer satisfaction and ensuring delivery of good quality products within the
delivery time: Product Manager.
 Selecting, recruiting and hiring functions: Human resource manager.
 Product management, quality check and record keeping: Senior manager (Olanipekun,
Xia & Nguyen, 2017).
Answer 4:

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The organization’s department of human resource will be responsible for designing
employee benefits, performance appraisal, recruitment of the candidates, employee training
programs and their development as well, maintaining industrial relations and others. It will
focus on maximizing the productivity of the employees. The human resource professionals
must be responsible for managing any organization’s human capital by implementing policies
and procedures. They should specialize on training, recruiting and selection of the candidates,
designing employee benefits and relations. Effective and efficient human resource
management can benefit the company on a long run. The team must be able to provide the
new employees with proper trainings and induction.
The department of human resource must make sure that the organizational teams are
functioning well. It is the duty and the responsibility of the team to check the employees are
working by maintaining a well balanced life. The department of human resource strives to
offer better benefits to the workers, therefore, reducing the risks in business. Moreover, with
the competitive environment, the organizations are becoming more diverse. The human
resource management team must ensure that the organization have diversity policies and
procedures. If the company lacks diversity policies, the human resource department must
implement new strategies and plans for the organization’s benefits (Pieterse, Van
Knippenberg & Van Dierendonck, 2013).
Answer 5:
The organization has been able to provide its employees with a balanced professional
and personal life. The employers provides with several benefits in order to reduce the stress
factor. The project managers play a major role in this to let the employees have a balanced
life. Firstly, it is very crucial to maintain a structural consistency inside the organization. The
employees are less nervous if the organization is consistent in nature and they know what to

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expect. A steady as well as reliable working environment helps in reducing the stress of the
employees and in turn makes them feel like home.
Secondly, the employers can offer them with several opportunities related to
community engagement. This is another way of connecting the dots between the working
time and out of work time. This helps in engaging the employees to activities which are
meaningful as well as beneficial. For examples; fun activities between work, getting involved
into community causes and others. This will benefit the employees to a huge extent and
increase their productivity. At times, the employees must be given early paid leave as an
incentive to spend time with their families. Moreover, company must organize parties or
gatherings and invite the employees’ family members too.
Thirdly, every individual has a bad day; therefore, they must be given some lone time
or personal space, before engaging into work. The organization must have a quiet space for
the employees so that they can take a break when required. The space must be clean and free
of company’s materials and items. It should be filled with flowers and plants, comfortable
seating arrangements, soft music or light materials for reading. This would make the
employee feel better in a homely environment. The space should be filled with silence, so
that the employee can spend some time with himself/herself.
Fourthly, the organizations must have flexible schedule. In case of any emergency,
the employee must be given full right to schedule their time as per their choice. The
organization can however ask the employees to make up the deficiency later. For instance; if
an employee’s family member is sick, he/she can be given the opportunity of working from
home or may be he/she can go to office in the weekend and make up for the lost time. In such
ways, an employee will never have the fear of losing wages at times of emergency and at the
same time the company’s deadlines will be met (Olanipekun, Xia & Nguyen, 2017).

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Answer 6:
Five external organizational support services for the employees:
 Counseling and support.
 Online services.
 Trauma response.
 Financial assistance.
 Legal assistance.
Five internal organizational support services for the employees:
 On site counseling assistance.
 Advices related to industrial matters.
 Expert advice and support to deal with sensitive workplace issues.
 Workplace rehabilitation.
 Organizational advice (Pollitt, 2013).
Answer 7:
The performance measurement is referred to the results as well as their outcomes,
which are obtained from the processes, services and products permitting evaluation as well as
comparison relative to the goals, past results, standards and others. It can be expressed in
terms of finance as well as non finance. It helps in creating and managing the key
performance indicators and stimulates the most apt behavior. Successful measurement helps
in providing an unbiased performance assessment which leads to the success of the business.
The organization needs a balanced measurement generic measurement factors in order to
prevent delay in delivery and sacrificing quality. The performance metrics is used by the
organization as a part of performance measurement, which gives desired results. The

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behaviors of the consumers are also tracked in order to get benefitted (Nielsen & Nielsen,
2013).
Answer 8:
The organization provides its employees with work health and safety policies. The
organization’s workplace creates a safe and secured work environment for the employees. It
contributes in the long term benefit of the business. Workplace safety helps in retaining the
staffs and maximizes productivity. The organization assesses the risks as well as implements
various measures in order to control them. It ensures safe handling of substances and goods.
It provides the employees with insurance policies and worker’s compensation.
In addition to this, the organization provides equal rights to everyone, irrespective of
their culture, race, sex, diversity, gender and other factors. There are strict laws against
discrimination and workplace bullying. Strict actions are taken against those who perform
such offences. Anti discrimination laws help in focusing on the protection of the individuals
from any kind of harassment (Ireland, Hoskisson & Hitt, 2012).
Answer 9:
Staff development strategies include;
 Skill assessment plans: This includes some skill tests like personality ability tests,
aptitude tests, face to face interview and others.
 Training and development: Proper trainings and mentoring programs must be offered
to the employees on a daily basis.
 Resources: The employees must be offered with resources like books, software
programs, videos and others in their spare time, which will help them enhance their
skills and abilities.