Leading, Managing and Developing People

Gary Rees, Raymond French, Gary Rees, Raymond French

• Publisher: CIPD - Kogan Page
• Year: 2016
• ISBN:
  9781843984375
• Edition: 5
• Topic: Commerce
• Subtopic: Gestion des ressources humaines

Leading, Managing and Developing People is critical reading for all those studying the CIPD Level 7 Advanced module in Leading, Managing and Developing People as well as all HR and L&D practitioners. It provides extensive coverage of the aims, objectives and contribution of HRM such as the scope and nature of human resources, HR's role when organisations grow and how to ensure professionalism and ethical behaviour when managing people. This book also includes discussion of major contemporary themes in leading, managing and developing people including leadership development, flexibility, agile working and the psychological contract. This ensures that readers are fully prepared to lead, manage and develop staff in the new world of work. With rigorous academic underpinning and clear theoretical exploration, Leading, Managing and Developing People also includes practical advice on key activities including recruitment, job design, performance management, motivation and reward. Supported by online resources including an instructor's manual, lecture slides, international case studies, example essay questions and annotated web links, this is an indispensable guide for both students and practitioners.

PART ONE

LEADING, MANAGING AND DEVELOPING PEOPLE: AN OVERVIEW

CHAPTER 1

Introduction

GARY REES AND RAY FRENCH

LEARNING OUTCOMES

After reading this chapter, you should be able to:

• identify important themes within the area of leading, managing and developing people through an analysis of three case studies
• complete case study exercises which explore generic leading, managing and developing people issues
• familiarise yourself with the learning features within this book
• understand the structure of the book in relation to the CIPD Leading, Managing and Developing People unit (7002)
• locate or map the Leading, Managing and Developing People unit (7002) learning outcomes to particular chapters in the text.

1.1 OVERVIEW

Leading, managing and developing people forms a key part of everyday life in work organisations. While topics and issues covered in this book may fall within the formal remit of a specialist human resource management (HRM) function, there is equally a strong sense in which leading and managing employees infuses all aspects of working life.

In the previous edition of this book we focused upon recession and post-recession aspects of HRM and how these were manifested in practice. Whilst it is impossible to foresee the future and include every key aspect of leading and managing people, we start with a summary of the key findings of the CIPD Outlook Survey 2014/15:

1. Current and future priorities for HR functions include employee engagement (27%); managing change and cultural transformation (24%) (particularly public sector HR professionals); and leadership development and capability (21%) (the public sector citing this as a future priority).
2. How HR contributes to business performance, with 76% of HR professionals stating that they understand how business practices work, with the majority of both public and private sector professionals stating that ‘HR ensured the organisation has the right people capability’ (CIPD 2015a, p5).
3. Developing HR capability, by driving change, combining HR and commercial expertise.
4. HR’s use of data and metrics to demonstrate impact, with 63% of respondents agreeing that HR data informs business decision-making, and the majority agreeing that HR draws insight from data to stimulate change and organisational improvement.
5. The profile of HR departments, with reported stagnation in the size of HR departments, and downsizing of the HR function more likely in the public than private sector. Half of the HR departments stated that they had undergone structural change in the last two years, with cost reductions quoted for just over a third of these organisations.
6. Routes into the profession and career paths, with the rise of internships cited by a quarter of respondents, but the majority of HR professionals reported that their organisation did not offer specific routes into HR for young people.

There is little doubt that the future challenges facing HR professionals will be substantial, with the demands of leading and managing people (both upward and downward) in organisations becoming even more demanding and complex.

We hope that insights contained within this book will help you both to manage people effectively and support other managers with people responsibilities.

Individual chapters within this book identify and discuss the core topics that make up the study and practice of leading, managing and developing people. We have organised the chapters into discrete areas – for example leadership, managing the employment relationship and performance management. However, managing people is a broad area of work and day-to-day events and challenges are best understood and acted on by taking an overview which goes beyond any one subdivision of HR work. This can be seen in Case Study 1.1 below, which deals with a single theme, but one that has broader ramifications in leading, managing and developing people.

CASE STUDY 1.1

TREAD CAREFULLY BEFORE SAYING ‘BAH! HUMBUG!’

As Christmas approaches, thoughts turn to the annual office bash. But given the tough economic climate, it is not surprising that many organisations look to cut costs. We consider whether an organisation that has always paid for a staff Christmas party, covering the cost of the venue, meal, entertainment and bar, can suddenly forego paying for this and instead ask employees to make an individual contribution.

If the employees of an organisation have received a fully subsidised Christmas party for many years, then it could be argued that it has become an implied form of the contract of employment (see Chapters 7 and 11) through custom and practice. Although it might seem a rather strange thing to become an implied term, many employees will see the Christmas party as a valuable benefit, particularly given their own outgoings at this time of year.

In this situation, the organisation may wish to consult with employees about ways of reducing Christmas party costs, for example by using a less expensive menu or some other cost-saving measures.

When the organisation really cannot afford to pay for it at all, it will need to consult with employees as this will be a variation of contract. Such a variation can only be achieved through mutual agreement. Employers should also be aware that imposing the change without agreement might lead to an employee resigning and then claiming constructive dismissal (where a worker resigns due to perceived breaches of contract). This scenario is unlikely and any claim may not succeed, but is possible nonetheless.

Source: HR-inform (2012)

A survey conducted on Christmas and New Year working arrangements in 2012/13 identified other implications of special events at that time of year.

These included the following questions:

• Do you have a behaviour policy for the work Christmas party?
• Do you give advice on getting home after the Christmas party?
• Did any problems arise at the last work party/meal and, if so, what were the consequences of these?
• Can employees opt out of arranged celebrations if they do not celebrate Christmas?
• Can members of non-Christian faiths mark their own religious festival in the workplace?

Source: XpertHR (2012b)

We see here how Christmas parties can legitimately be viewed as a people management issue. As a result it may be that work organisations decide to devise a robust policy covering such events.

Even if there is such a policy managers will need to exercise discretion and there are unlikely to be many ‘right’ answers. Managers should be prepared to be subtle and creative in seeking solutions: managing people is rarely viewed as a hard science. In this book we will show that in many areas of HR, one size definitely does not fit all. At the same time, there is a need to be fair and equitable, and policies can act as a useful way of working towards these aims.

Finally, HR managers wish to nurture their talented or key workers (whether we believe this term applies to everyone who makes a contribution, or just to a named subgroup of workers). Employees will often seek to work for a ‘good employer’ and being treated shabbily – at least in their own perception – might adversely affect their psychological contract; this is a term we go on to explore in Chapter 7, but is essentially the mental picture a worker has of how their input in an organisation relates to what they receive from it. If employees experience negative feelings (in this case about Christmas parties) they may come to see this as a sign that they do not, after all, work for a good employer, with all the consequences that such a feeling can lead to.

Questions

1. Summarise arguments for and against holding work Christmas parties in the context of people management. On balance, would you recommend they take place? Give reasons for your conclusion.
2. How would you seek to avoid talented workers of non-Christian faiths becoming disaffected by Christmas work celebrations?

1.2 INTRODUCTION

This chapter introduces the purpose, content and structure of the book. This fifth edition has been adapted to meet the requirements of the Leading, Managing and Developing People unit (7002). We have updated the book to include new research and survey report findings and have also devised newly relevant and topical reflective activities and case studies.

A consistent rubric has been developed for each chapter which includes the following key features:

• a set of learning outcomes
• an overview
• an introduction
• short reflective activities
• critical reflection
• a conclusion
• case studies
• key learning points
• review questions
• explore further (suggested further reading and references).

The text introduces a balance of theory and practice, drawing upon major research work, including theoretical and conceptual models through to major survey research findings. A combination of learning activities, including reflective activities, case studies, vignettes and links to relevant articles, are intended to bring the subjects to life and offer you scope for self-reflection. See 1.3 ‘The structure of the book’ for more details.

Leading, managing and developing people is fundamentally a topical area and can draw debates and actions from every possible aspect of a business environment, from strategic decision-making to the number of car parking spaces that are available to staff and customers. Case Study 1.1 addressed the potentially light-hearted issue of the Christmas party, but the unintended consequences of such a singular event could be considerable, and employers need to consider their duty of care to employees. Case Study 1.2 continues the theme of employers managing well-being (and exercising duty of care) by addressing resilience in the workplace.

Constant and relent...