ALLAMA IQBAL OPEN UNIVERSITY, ISLAMABAD

(Department of Business Administration)

Course: Human Resource Management (527) Semester: Autumn, 2010

Level: MBA

CHECKLIST

This packet comprises the following material:

1) Text book
2) Assignments # 1 & 2
3) Course outlines
4) Assignment 6 forms (2 sets)
5) Assignment submission schedule

Note: In this packet, if you find anything missing out of the above-mentioned material,
please contact at the address given below: -

The Mailing Officer

Mailing Section, Block # 28
Allama Iqbal Open University,
Sector H/8, Islamabad.
Tel: (051) 9057611, 9057612

Mohammad Majid Mahmood Bagram

Course Coordinator
 ALLAMA IQBAL OPEN UNIVERSITY, ISLAMABAD
(Department of Business Administration)

WARNING
1. PLAGIARISM OR HIRING OF GHOST WRITER(S) FOR SOLVING
THE ASSIGNMENT(S) WILL DEBAR THE STUDENT FROM AWARD
OF DEGREE/CERTIFICATE, IF FOUND AT ANY STAGE.
2. SUBMITTING ASSIGNMENTS BORROWED OR STOLEN FROM
OTHER(S) AS ONE’S OWN WILL BE PENALIZED AS DEFINED IN
“AIOU PLAGIARISM POLICY”.

Course: Human Resource Management (527) Semester: Autumn, 2010

Level: MBA Total Marks: 100
Pass Marks: 40
ASSIGNMENT No. 1
(Units: 1–4)
Q. 1 Why HR is called the most important asset and competitive advantage of any
organization in the world? (20)

Q. 2 (a) What is meant by job analysis? Explain how you would conduct a job
analysis? And how can you make use of the information it provides? (10)
(b) Describe the types of information typically found in job specifications. (10)

Q. 3 Do you think job rotation is a good method to use for developing management
trainees? Why or why not? (20)

Q. 4 Describe the significance of on-the-job and off-the-job training methods in

organizations with examples. What major benefits each of these training methods
provide to employees and organization? (20)

Q. 5 If an organization is going in profits then why there is a need of performance

management. Discuss with arguments. (20)

GUIDELINES FOR ASSIGNMENT # 1

The student should look upon the assignments as a test of knowledge, management skills,
and communication skills. When you write an assignment answer, you are indicating
your knowledge to the teacher:
 Your level of understanding of the subject;
 How clearly you think;
 How well you can reflect on your knowledge & experience;
 How well you can use your knowledge in solving problems, explaining
situations, and describing organizations and management;
 How professional you are, and how much care and attention you give to what you do.
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To answer a question effectively, address the question directly, bring important related
issues into the discussion, refer to sources, and indicate how principles from the course
materials apply. The student must also be able to identify important problems and
implications arising from the answer.
For citing references, writing bibliographies, and formatting the assignment, APA format
should be followed.

ASSIGNMENT No. 2
(Units: 1–9)
This assignment is a research-oriented activity. You are required to obtain information
from a business/commercial organization and prepare a report of about 1000 words on
the topic allotted to you to be submitted to your teacher for evaluation.

You are required to select one of the following topics according to the last digit of your
roll number. For example, if your roll number is P-3427180 then you will select topic # 0
(the last digit): -

Topics:
1) Collective bargaining in an organization
2) Career planning
3) Performance management
4) Job evaluation
5) Labor market conditions
6) Training needs analysis
7) Designing training programs
8) Compensation strategy
9) Issues in labor management relations
10) Employee recruitment and selection process

The report should follow the following format:

1) Title page
2) Acknowledgements
3) An abstract (one page summary of the paper)
4) Table of contents
5) Introduction to the topic (brief history & significance of topic assigned)
6) Practical study of the organization (with respect to the topic)
7) Data collection methods
8) SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities & threats) relevant to the
topic assigned
9) Conclusion (one page brief covering important aspects of your report)
10) Recommendations (specific recommendations relevant to topic assigned)
11) References (as per APA format)
12) Annexes (if any)

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GUIDELINES FOR ASSIGNMENT # 2:
 1.5 line spacing
 Use headers and subheads throughout all sections
 Organization of ideas
 Writing skills (spelling, grammar, punctuation)
 Professionalism (readability and general appearance)
 Do more than repeat the text
 Express a point of view and defend it.
WORKSHOPS:
The workshop presentations provide students an opportunity to express their
communication skills, knowledge & understanding of concepts learned during practical
study assigned in assignment # 2.
You should use transparencies and any other material for effective presentation. The
transparencies are not the presentation, but only a tool; the presentation is the
combination of the transparencies and your speech. Workshop presentation
transparencies should only be in typed format.
The transparencies should follow the following format:
1) Title page
2) An abstract (one page summary of the paper)
3) Introduction to the topic (brief history & significance of topic assigned)
4) Practical study of the organization (with respect to the topic)
5) Data collection methods
6) SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities & threats) relevant to the
topic assigned
7) Conclusion (one page brief covering important aspects of your report)
8) Recommendations (specific recommendations relevant to topic assigned)
GUIDELINES FOR WORKSHOP PRESENTATION:
 Make eye contact and react to the audience. Don't read from the transparencies or
from report, and don't look too much at the transparencies (occasional glances are
acceptable to help in recalling the topic to cover).
 A 15-minute presentation can be practiced several times in advance, so do that until
you are confident enough. Some people also use a mirror when rehearsing as a
substitute for an audience.
WEIGHTAGE OF THEORY & PRACTICAL ASPECTS IN ASSIGNMENT # 2 &
WORKSHOP PRESENTATIONS
Assignment # 2 & workshop presentations are evaluated on the basis of theory & its
applicability. The weightage of each aspect would be:
Theory: 60%
Applicability (practical study of the organization): 40%

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PREPARE ASSIGNMENTS AS PER THESE GUIDELINES AND IT MAY BE
RE-EVALUATED BY THE QUALITY ASSURANCE CELL, DEPARTMENT OF
BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION, AIOU, ISLAMABAD AT ANY TIME.
HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Course Outlines (Code No. 527)
COURSE COORDINATOR:
Mohammad Majid Mahmood Bagram, Assistant Professor
Department of Business Administration, AIOU, Islamabad. Tel: 051-9057406

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course covers the current issues within human
resource management, and provides a complete, comprehensive review of essential
human resource management concepts and techniques. Considering the intensely
competitive nature of business today, this course focuses on both the theoretical and
practical aspects of the broad human resource functions that all managers can use to deal
with their HR-related responsibilities, while being able to defend their plans and
contributions in measurable terms.
The theoretical discipline is based primarily on the assumption that employees are
individuals with varying goals and needs, and as such should not be thought of as basic
business resources, such as trucks and filing cabinets whereas HRM is seen by
practitioners as a more innovative view of workplace management than the traditional
approach. HRM is also seen by many to have a key role in risk reduction within
organizations.
This course starts with introduction to the role of human resource management, and then
covers recruitment and placement, training and development, performance management
and appraisal, managing careers, compensation, labor relations and collective bargaining,
ethics, justice, and fair treatment in HR management and employee safety and health, and
managing global human resources.

BRIEF COURSE OUTLINES:

Unit # 1: Introduction – Human Resource Management
Unit # 2: Recruitment and placement
Unit # 3: Training and development
Unit # 4: Performance management and appraisal
Unit # 5: Managing careers
Unit # 6: Compensation
Unit # 7: Labor relations and collective bargaining
Unit # 8: Ethics, justice, and fair treatment in HR management and employee
safety and health
Unit # 9: Managing global human resources

DETAILED COURSE OUTLINES:

UNIT-1 INTRODUCTION – HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
The Strategic Role of Human Resource Management:
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  Importance of HR management
 Line and staff aspects of HRM
 The new HR manager proficiencies
 Need to know your employment law
 HR certification
 HR and technology
The Strategic Human Resource Management and the HR Scorecard:
 The strategic management process
 Types of strategic plans
 Achieving strategic fit
 HR and competitive advantage
 The HR Scorecard Approach:
- Creating an HR Scorecard
- Using the HR Scorecard approach

UNIT-2 RECRUITMENT AND PLACEMENT

Job Analysis:
 The nature of job analysis
 Methods of collecting job analysis information
 Writing job descriptions
Personnel Planning and Recruiting:
 Planning and forecasting
 Know your employment law
 Internal and external sources of candidates
 Recruiting a more diverse workforce
Employee Testing and Selection:
 Basic testing concepts
 Types of tests
Interviewing Candidates:
 Types of interviews
 Designing and conducting the effective interview
UNIT-3 TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT
Training and Developing Employees:
 Orienting employees
 The training process:
- The strategic context of training
- The five-step training and development process
- Training, learning, and motivation
 Training methods:
- On-the-job training
- Off-the-job training
 Evaluating the training effort

UNIT-4 PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT AND APPRAISAL

 Basic Concepts in Performance Appraisal and Performance Management:
- Comparing Performance Appraisal and Performance
Management
- Why Performance Management?
- Defining the employee`s goals and work efforts
 An Introduction to Appraising Performance:
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 - Why appraise performance?
- Realistic appraisals
- Steps in appraising performance
- Graphic rating scale method
 Appraising Performance: Problems and Solutions:
- Potential rating scale appraisals problems
- How to avoid appraisal problems
 The Appraisal Interview

UNIT-5 MANAGING CAREERS

 The basics of career management:
- Careers today
- Career development
 Roles in career development
 Managing promotions and transfers:
- Making promotion decisions
- Handling transfers
 Career management and employee commitment:
- The new psychological contract
- Commitment-oriented career development efforts

UNIT-6 COMPENSATION
 Establishing Strategic Pay Plans:
- Steps in establishing pay rates
- Pricing managerial and professional jobs
- Competency-based pay
 Pay for Performance and Financial Incentives:
- Money and motivation
- Employee incentives and recognition programs
- Incentives for managers and executives
- Team/group variable pay incentive plans
- Organization-wide variable pay plans
 Benefits and Services:
- The benefits picture today
- Pay for time not worked
- Insurance benefits
- Retirement benefits
- Flexible benefits programs

UNIT-7 LABOR RELATIONS AND COLLECTIVE BARGAINING

 The labor movement:
- Brief history
- Why do workers unionize?
- What do unions want?
 Unions and the law
 The collective bargaining process:
- What is collective bargaining?
- What is good faith?
- The negotiating team
- Bargaining items
- Bargaining stages
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 - Bargaining hints
- Impasses, mediation, and strikes
- The contract agreement

 Grievances:
- Sources of grievances
- The grievance procedure
- Guidelines for handling grievances
 The union movement – today and tomorrow

UNIT-8 ETHICS, JUSTICE, FAIR TREATMENT IN HR MANAGEMENT AND

EMPLOYEE SAFETY AND HEALTH
 Ethics and Fair Treatment at Work:
- The meaning of ethics
- Ethics and the law
- Ethics, fair treatment, and justice
 What Shapes Ethical Behavior at Work?
- Individual factors
- Organizational factors
- The Boss`s influence
- Ethics policies and codes
- The organization`s culture
 The Role of HR Management in Fostering Ethics and Fair Treatment:
- Why treat employees fairly?
- HR ethics activities
 Safety laws
 Management commitment and safety
 How to prevent accidents?
 Work-place health hazards – problems and remedies

UNIT-9 MANAGING GLOBAL HUMAN RESOURCES

 HR and the Internationalization of Business:
- The HR challenges of international business
- How inter-country differences affect HRM?
 Global differences and similarities in HR practices:
- Personnel selection procedures
- The purpose of the performance appraisal
- Training and development practices
 Staffing the global organization:
- International staffing: home or local?
- Off-shoring
- Values and international staffing policy

RECOMMENDED BOOKS (LATEST EDITIONS)

 Human Resource Management by Gary Dessler; Pearson/Prentice-Hall
Pub. ISBN: 0-13-144097-7.
 Legge, Karen. Human Resource Management: Rhetoric and Realities,
Anniversary Edition, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 1-403-93600-5.
 A Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice, Armstrong,
Michael, London: Kogan Page. ISBN 0-7494-4631-5.
 Managing Human Resources by Wayne F. Cascio (International Edition).
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 Organizational Success through Effective Human Resources Management by
Ronald R. Sims, Publisher: QUORUM BOOKS, Westport, London