Dissertation Viva: Impact of HRM Practices on Nepalese Civil Services

This document presents a comprehensive record of a student's dissertation viva, focusing on the impact of Human Resource Management (HRM) practices on the restructuring and performance of civil servants in Nepal. The viva covers a range of topics, including the research questions, methodology, and key findings. The student discusses the motivation behind the research, the main issues and debates in the subject area, and the specific challenges faced by HRM in the Nepalese civil service. The student also addresses the ethical implications of the work, the theories underpinning the research, and the novelty of the claims. The viva explores the research decisions, the chosen methodology, and the alternatives considered. The student explains how the findings were evaluated and how they relate to other research and practitioners. The student also summarizes the key findings, their contributions to knowledge, and the potential for future research. The document provides valuable insights into the student's research process, conclusions, and the implications of the work for both researchers and practitioners. The document is available on Desklib for students to enhance their learning.

DISSERTATION
(VIVA)

TABLE OF CONTENTS
VIVA QUESTIONS........................................................................................................................1
1. Can you start by summarizing your thesis?.............................................................................1
2. Now, can you summarize it in one sentence?..........................................................................1
3. What is the idea that binds your thesis together?....................................................................1
4. What motivated and inspired you to carry out this research?..................................................1
5. What are the main issues and debates in this subject area?.....................................................1
6. Which of these does your research address?...........................................................................1
7. Why is the problem you have tackled worth tackling?............................................................2
8. Who has had the strongest influence in the development of your subject area in theory and
practice?.......................................................................................................................................2
9. Which are the three most important papers that relate to your thesis?....................................2
10. What published work is closest to yours? How is your work different?...............................2
11. What are your claims to novelty?..........................................................................................2
12. What theories underpin your work?......................................................................................3
13. What are the most recent major developments in your area?................................................3
14. How did your research questions emerge?............................................................................3
15. What were the crucial research decisions you made?...........................................................3
16. Why did you use this research methodology? What did you gain from it?...........................3
17. What were the alternatives to this methodology?..................................................................3
18. What would you have gained by using another approach?...................................................3
19. How did you deal with the ethical implications of your work?.............................................4
20. How has your view of your research topic changed?............................................................4
21. How you have evaluated your work?....................................................................................4
22. How do you know that your findings are correct?................................................................4
23. What are the strongest and weakness part of your work?.....................................................4
24. What would have improved your work?...............................................................................4
25. To what extent do your contribution generalise?..................................................................4
26. Who will be most interested in your work.............................................................................4
27. What is the relevance of your work to other researchers?.....................................................5
28. What is the relevance of your work to practitioners?............................................................5

29. Which aspects of your work do you intend to publish and where?.......................................5
30 Summarise your key findings?...............................................................................................5
31. Which of these findings are the most interesting to you? Why?...........................................5
32. How do your findings are the most interesting in your field?...............................................5
33. What are the contribution to knowledge of your thesis?.......................................................5
34. How long term are these contributions?................................................................................6
35. What are the main achievements of your research?..............................................................6
36. What you have learned from the process of doing your Ph.d?..............................................6
37. What advice would you give to a research student entering this area?.................................6
38. You propose future research. How would you start this?......................................................6
39. What would be the difficulties?.............................................................................................6
40. What you have done that merits a Ph.d?................................................................................6

VIVA QUESTIONS
1. Can you start by summarizing your thesis?
This thesis has focussed upon investigating the civil services of Nepal with respect to
analyse the impact of human resource management practices onto the restructuring and
performance of civil servants. It was with a major concern of studying the undertaken practices
of HRM to involve certain modernized methods to motivate the employees. Also, it has
attempted to research on the challenges that are being faced by the HRM in the restructuring of
civil servants as a way of improving their performance.
2. Now, can you summarize it in one sentence?
To evaluate the Impact of Human Resource Management Practices on the Re-organisation
and Performance of Civil Services in Nepal.
3. What is the idea that binds your thesis together?
The notion that binds this dissertation together is the idea of benefitting the civil servants
who work hard to represent the entire nation with no effective measures assisting them to
encouragingly carry out their job accountabilities. This being a significant consideration is
required to be addressed promptly and this study has intended to do the same.
4. What motivated and inspired you to carry out this research?
The topic is selected on considering the fact of restructuring and improving the
performance of civil servants, employed in Nepal where they are deprived of several number of
benefits.
5. What are the main issues and debates in this subject area?
The main issue that has been addressed in this research work is in regard to the challenges
that are usually being faced by the HR personnel of civil services in Nepal. This is also with a
vital concern of motivating them and undertake effective practices to keep them encouraged
towards the fulfilment of their set responsibilities. It is also important to encourage the civil
servants of Nepal by together promoting their interests as a way of comforting them to carry out
such difficult task of representing the entire nation.
6. Which of these does your research address?
This research has particularly addressed the challenges that are being faced by the HRM
department of civil services in Nepal to restructure and motivate their hired set of employees.
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7. Why is the problem you have tackled worth tackling?
The aforesaid problem was worth tacking on considering the fact of several HR related
issues that largely hinders the practice of building effective strategies to inspire the civil servants
of Nepal. This issue was needed to be resolved to the earliest possibility and thus has been taken
into consideration.
8. Who has had the strongest influence in the development of your subject area in theory and
practice?
The current state of Nepalese civil servants who are not at all motivated towards their work
and are operating with a very despondent sense of mind has largely influenced the development
of this specific subject area.
9. Which are the three most important papers that relate to your thesis?
Below are the 3 essential
Rodwell, J. J. Noblet, J. A. and Allisey, F. A., 2011. Improving employee outcomes in the public
sector: The beneficial effects of social support at work and job control. Personnel Review.
40(3). pp.383 – 397.
Rowland, C. and Hall, R., 2013. Perceived unfairness in appraisal: engagement and sustainable
organizational performance. EuroMed Journal of Business. 8(3). pp.195–208.
Rukhmani, K, Ramesh, M. and Jayakrishman. J., 2010. Effect of Leadership Styles on
organizational Effectiveness. European Journal of Social Sciences. 15(3). pp. 365-369.
10. What published work is closest to yours? How is your work different?
The closest published work is “Rodwell, J. J. Noblet, J. A. and Allisey, F. A., 2011.
Improving employee outcomes in the public sector: The beneficial effects of social support at
work and job control. Personnel Review. 40(3). pp.383 – 397.” In which, the measures of social
support have been investigated to improve the employee outcomes with a special reference to
public sector. Although, my study is specifically related to the HRM practices undertaken to
motivate the civil servants in Nepal.
11. What are your claims to novelty?
My claims to novelty is the undertaken approach to address the demotivated sense of work
in the civil servants of Nepal due to no effective strategical policies to benefit them and
encourage in efficiently carrying out their work.
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12. What theories underpin your work?
The main theories that are underpinning this work involves some profound theories of
motivation to strengthen the practices of HRM.
13. What are the most recent major developments in your area?
The most recent developments involve the use of several motivational theories that also
demonstrated the applicability of both process and content theories of motivation as a tool to
encourage the civil servants.
14. How did your research questions emerge?
The research questions emerged from the intended aims and objectives of this study and
with assistance of the variables as well as keywords chosen from the topic. Herein, each of the
objective has helped in the emergence of a research question.
15. What were the crucial research decisions you made?
The crucial decisions that has been taken in regard to the research involved the selection of
research methodologies. It is for instance to choose from some effective measures of data
collection, sampling, analysis and research design, etc., that are in turn evident to generate
effective outcomes at the end.
16. Why did you use this research methodology? What did you gain from it?
The chosen research methodology has depicted a qualitative investigation with thematic
analysis of the acquired findings. Also, it is due to the subjective nature of this study that has
helped me in gaining relevant outcomes to meet the proposed aims of this research.
17. What were the alternatives to this methodology?
There were several alternative measures to this particular methodology where I could have
chosen a quantitative method of analysis to conduct this study with accordant techniques of
collecting data and sampling, etc.
18. What would you have gained by using another approach?
Another research approaches like deductive seemed to be incompatible to this subject
matter where the chosen method, i.e., inductive is effective in terms of enlarging the overall
scope of this study and thus, it has been applied to this research work.
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19. How did you deal with the ethical implications of your work?
In terms of maintaining the ethical consideration, I have referred to the foremost ethics of
not forcing the respondents to contribute in the study and rather make a willing participation in
the investigation.
20. How has your view of your research topic changed?
The view of my research topic changed in terms of undertaking effective HRM practices
by together applying pertinent tools of motivation to encourage the civil servants of Nepal.
21. How you have evaluated your work?
The work was evaluated on the basis of strong and weak arguments made in the literature review
chapter. Further on the basis of conclusion work is evaluated.
22. How do you know that your findings are correct?
In order to identify that findings are correct or not I have compared it with the secondary
research findings which help in getting valid outcome.
23. What are the strongest and weakness part of your work?
Strongest part of my work was conducting of the secondary research in an effective manner
while weakest part of the research is framing questionnaire for survey.
24. What would have improved your work?
The present work has improved my knowledge related to the Impact of Human Resource
Management Practices on the Re-organisation and Performance of Civil Services. Along with
this my time management skill was also improve while conducting this research.
25. To what extent do your contribution generalise?
At limited extend my contribution was generalising and most of the part of the research was
specific which help in making research stronger.
26. Who will be most interested in your work
Carrying out primary research was most interested in my work because I learn way of preparing
questionnaire and the way of conducting survey in an effective manner.
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27. What is the relevance of your work to other researchers?
My work will help other researcher to gain knowledge related to the Impact of Human Resource
Management Practices on the Re-organisation and Performance of Civil Services. they can easily
understand the area where improvement is required and effectiveness of my work.
28. What is the relevance of your work to practitioners?
Practitioners can use my work while carrying out their activities practically it will help in
providing to them knowledge related to the of Human Resource Management Practices and they
can make changes in their way of working accordingly.
29. Which aspects of your work do you intend to publish and where?
Findings of my work I would like to publish on internet as because it will be helpful for both
practitioners as well researcher while carrying out further research on similar topic.
30 Summarise your key findings?
It is summarized that to have effective development, harmonious working relationship
between members is significant so that goals and objectives must be accomplished. Further,
performance appraisal is also advantageous for performance improvement among members so
that strength and weakness of individual can be determined in appropriate manner.
31. Which of these findings are the most interesting to you? Why?
These findings are more interesting for me because it helps in developing understanding related
to the performance appraisal methods and the way company can use it in effective manner.
32. How do your findings are the most interesting in your field?
The findings are most interesting in my filed because it helps in gaining deeper knowledge
related to the human resources practices impact which I can applied further while working in an
organisation.
33. What are the contribution to knowledge of your thesis?
This thesis can address small gaps within saturated research area. From this research, readers will
be able to enhance their comprehensive understanding regarding the significance of human
resource management.
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34. How long term are these contributions?
From this knowledge, readers and human resource managers can understand the significance of
human resource management practices on re-organization and performance of civil services to
prolonged period.
35. What are the main achievements of your research?
The main achievements of this research were that it was completed on time with valid
findings. Along with this, scholar was able to provide various recommendation on the basis of
primary and secondary results.
36. What you have learned from the process of doing your Ph.D.?
I have learned many new things from the process of doing Ph.D. such as the way to
conduct secondary research, framing aim and objectives etc.
37. What advice would you give to a research student entering this area?
At the time of entering this area I will advise students to select the topic which is specific
for the research. Along with this, deep research is required to be conducted on time. Further I
will ensure that they know the procedure of framing each activity in Gantt chart which will help
in developing conducting research successfully.
38. You propose future research. How would you start this?
In order to start future research firstly I will try to understand problem in detail. Then I
will understand issues which company is facing and prepare aims and objectives. Along with this
before conducting research it is important to consult with supervisor for proper guidance.
39. What would be the difficulties?
Difficulties can be faced at the time of taking permission from company on which research is
conducted. Further it is not easy to conduct survey because it is a time consuming process and
may be information received was inappropriate.
40. What you have done that merits a Ph.D.?
To merit my Ph.D. I have conducted extensive research study in civil service of Nepal analyzing
core issues and evaluated the impact of HRM practices in order to enhance my understanding
and knowledge.
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