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PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT

OBJECTIVES.

After having a thorough study of Personnel Management an administrator will

be able to:

- Get a broad over-view of various types of action, that constitutes

personnel management.

- Assess his/her role in personnel management whether specifically

changed with such responsibility or not.

- Identify major principles of action relating to main elements of

personnel management; and

- Analyse the major problems relating to personnel management and

evolve solutions.

1. Introduction.

1.1 Every manager/administrator deals with certain functions of personnel management.

Whether it is a school, college or an office, the administrator has to devote a fair

portion of his time and energy to the management of the personnel. Invariably the

success or otherwise of the manager is determined to a very great extent by his

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 capacity to maintain efficient, dedicated and co-operative staff. Hence the importance

of personnel management can never be over emphasised.

1.2 Personnel management is a specialized field demanding from the head of an office/

institution several important qualities both of head and heart. The purpose of this unit

is to give a broad overview of various types of actions that constitute personnel

management. Some of the management principles which contribute towards greater

efficiency in personnel management are discussed and explained in the following

lines:-

2. What is Personnel Management.

2.1 Briefly, Personnel management that aspect of management which deals with the

people who constitute an organization. All organizations consist of people who choose

to work primarily to satisfy some of their personal needs. These personal needs are not

necessarily *congruous with the needs and objectives of an organization. Sometimes,

they can even be conflicting. But ordinarily a person works for an organization as long

as the balance between his personal needs and those of the organization are favourable

to each other. Hence, one of the basic objectives of personnel management is to ensure

a fair balance between the personal needs of the employees and the needs of the

organization.

2.2 Personnel Management deals with the following aspects relating to the people working

in the organization ;

i. Job analysis and job description.

ii. Wages and Salary administration.

*
Similar

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 iii. Recruitment.

iv. Placement and promotion.

v. Transfers.

vi. Training and professional growth.

vii. Performance assessment and report (ACR).

viii. Discipline.

ix. Trade Union Relation.

x. Welfare.

Let us briefly discuss the content of each of these elements.

3. Job Analysis and Description.

3.1 Whenever an organization is established or expanded and new functions are assigned

to it, the first task is to determine how many persons are needed, of what skills and

qualifications and to do what. This criterion enhances organizational efficiency and

effectiveness. Efficiency demands that the least number of persons with the least

operational costs should do the work, while, effectiveness necessitates that the

objectives of the organization are achieved fully with the highest consumer

satisfaction.

3.2 Job analysis and job description is a process by which the personnel management

determines the number as well as the kind and qualifications of employees to be

recruited to an organization. The tasks to be performed are compiled and phased out.

Then those that requiring the same skill, qualification and experience are grouped

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 together. Each group of functions, which requires a person, constitutes a post. Job

analysis results in identifying the number of posts that an organization needs.

3.3 Job description is the phase when the qualifications required for a person to be

recruited to the post are worked out. Qualifications for a post range from age,

language, skills and educational level to experience in similar or related jobs. Some

qualifications are obligatory while some others may be specified as advantageous or

preferred. Job description begins with a statement of the functions, which based on job

analysis have been identified for the post concerned.

3.4 The net result of job analysis and description is a short document which is generally

called a ‘JOB DESCRIPTION. It contains the basic information to ;

a) enable a person interested in the post to assess himself as an eligible candidate;

b) enable the recruiting authority to determine that the person if selected is the

most suitable to perform the function of the post; and

c) provide a reference point for both the employer and employee as regards

expectations and obligations connected with the post.

4. Wages and Salary Administration.

4.1 Job evaluation results in fixing salaries and allowances etc. for the post(s) in an

organization. This is not a one-time job. Posts keep on changing according to growth

and functional transformation of an organization. Simultaneously inflation,

devaluation and rising costs are the outside factors, which also force for revision in

wages and salaries. Some times, new jobs are added. Old jobs are abolished or

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 modified. All these necessitate the continuing function of wage and salary

administration. However, it is mostly handled on centralized levels like Provincial or

Federal Ministries of Finance, Public Administration etc.

4.2 One of the more complex functions under this element is to authorize ad-hoc or

special allowance to persons doing some special work or working under certain

circumstances. The main difficulty here is that such allowances should not upset the

salary structure or create discontentment among others who handle similar work or

works under similar circumstances without the benefit of additional allowances (such

as " secretariat allowance" "unattractive area allowance" etc). The Task of personnel

management, in this respect, is to compensate the deserving persons without upsetting

the prevailing balance in salaries and allowances well in time.

5. Recruitment.

5.1 Recruitment is the process of employing the most suitable person to fill a post.

5.2 Selection procedures are mostly designed for the purpose of recruitment based on

judicious criteria. Some times written test and examinations are used for this purpose.

Interviews are based on criteria such as personality, presentability communication and

language skills as the deciding factors. How much of these are feasible in educational

management depends upon the recruiting procedures/policy framed for the purpose.

Where the organizations may change their recruiting policy/procedure, efficiency and

effectiveness cannot be over looked.

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6. Placement, Transfer, Promotion and Removal.

6.1 After, recruitment is the function of placing the new recruit in his working situation.

This is often a formality if an individual is recruited to a particular post. But where a

batch of new recruits is selected for a number of identical posts then placement calls

for the settlement of criteria and assessment of each recruit against such criteria.

6.2 Transfer, promotion and removal are day-to-day operations of personnel management

and consume most of the time and energy. Transfers can be a very complex operation,

where institutions are far flung and most of them located in remote rural areas. These

transfers (of teachers) form a major management activity having enormous

administrative as well as political implications.

6.3 Promotion can be an equally difficult task in view of the large numbers involved and

the keen competition for the few jobs, especially on administration side, in the upper

slots. Seniority-cum-fitness is the appropriate criterion for the efficiency and

effectiveness of the organization.

7. Performance Evaluation and Reports (PERs) Annual Confidential Reports (ACRs).

7.1 Connected with transfer, promotion and removal is the functions of performance

evaluation and report. Every organizations has some mechanism for periodic

evaluation of employees performance, which is usually recorded in the form of an

‘Annual Confidential Report’. The system is to get the immediate supervisor to in seat

of such a report. Comment of next higher officers are then added until the final note,

which is by the appointing authority summarizes the assessment in terms of the

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 employees eligibility for promotion or otherwise. However, the adverse remarks if any

are conveyed to the employee. The employee has the right to protest wherever he feels

that the report is not fair or just.

7.2 The performance evaluation involves merit rating and to same extent personal

qualities which can influence his/her performance. It also contains targets achieved

during the year and whether that officer is fit for that post or not.

Administrator/Supervisor should not be biased or prejudiced while writing reports

based on facts, other wise remarks should only be given in the ACR, if and when the

employee had previously been warned about his inefficiency, misbehaviour or

slackness etc.

8. Training and Professional Growth.

8.1 Another very important aspect in personnel management relates to training and

professional growth. Usually trainings are of in two types:-

1. Formal training :

It consists of ;

i) Pre-service.

ii) Pre-promotion.

iii) In-service on the job training.

2. Informal Training :

It consists of ;

i) Study Tours, lectures, seminars, workshops etc.

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 ii) Correspondence programmes.

iii) Manuals and guides/technical literature.

All these activities contribute to staff development and increase in efficiency,

effectiveness and growth of an organization.

8.2 Where a variety of duties, responsibilities, skills and attitudes is involved as in

educational management, the training and retraining of the personnel is extremely

important for their professional growth, as they move upward from one stage to the

other. Besides, the rapid advances in concepts, methods and techniques demand for

continuous updating. What appear most important in educational management are

constant and regular informal training activities and opportunities for exchange of

knowledge and experiences, focusing on the aim of professional growth.

9. Discipline.

9.1 To maintain of discipline is another important function of personnel management

Every organization has its own rules and regulations for the conduct of its employees.

Such rules mostly explain the level of authority an administrator can exercise and the

level he needs obtaining approval of the higher authorities. These rules and regulations

make provision for punishing those who violate them. In addition, these rules and

regulations also provide the manner in which inquiries are conducted. Similarly, there

are also codes of conduct determined and enforced by the employees themselves.

These too provide for procedures of investigation. Efficiency and Disciplinary Rules

are there for maintaining Discipline in an institution, office or department.

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9.2 Like transfer and promotion, disciplinary procedures also consume considerable time

of the management. The natural justice demands that the

9.3 Accused is given every opportunity and a fair chance of defence. Appeals against

punishments are similarly provided for. A hierarchy of authorities, leading to judicial

courts and higher ups is connected with these appeals. Providing these authorities with

reports clarifications and justifications also create a significant load of work in

personnel management.

10. Trade Union Relations.

10.1 Almost everywhere the employees of the organizations organize themselves into trade

unions or staff associations. Maintaining cordial relations with them are also an

important responsibility of personnel management. Employees have problems and

grievances, both individual and collective, for whose redress they make

representations through these trade unions.

10.2 An experienced personnel manager usually welcomes active trade unions in his

organization. These can be useful for policies and decisions affecting the staff. Their

advice can help him draw upon the maximum co-operation of the employees. Further

an atmosphere of mutual trust and understanding, once established between the

personnel office and the trade unions, is a useful asset.

10.3 Good relations with trade unions require not only a friendly attitude towards them but

also a serious effort to develop effective machinery for handling grievances. Joint

committees have proved to be effective in many organizations. Consultations with

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 representatives of trade unions on major decisions affecting employees have become a

common feature. In this democratic way through motivational process, there are

instances when trade unions voluntarily handle programme of training and

professional growth as well as staff welfare.

10.4 Two aspects of trade union relations demand skills of negotiation and tact, they are ;

1. Collective bargaining when terms and conditions of service are subjected to

negotiation with a view of evolving an agreed settlement.

2. Arbitration when disputes are to be resolved *quasi-judicial procedure.

However, in both these, the qualities of head of the official heart have great impact.

11. Welfare.

11.1 The last but not the least, important element of personnel management is welfare of

the employees. This include the provision and the administration of the following :-

1. Health and safety.

2. Housing.

3. Food and recreation.

4. Monitory aid at the time of distress.

5. Children education.

6. Pension and provident fund benefits.

7. Credit facilities.

*
Semi Judicial

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 Welfare of employees is not to be regarded as a social service or a charitable activity.

It is an investment in up holding the morale of the employees and enhancing the

efficiency and effectiveness of an organization.

12. Problems in Personnel Management.

12.1 We have so far discussed in some details the elements, which constitute personnel

management systems. However, these are certain problems also. These can be

summarized as follows :-

12.2 Inadequacy.

Inadequacy of attention paid to personnel management functions, which afterwards

affects adversely. Every administrator is expected to be a good personnel manager.

Without the qualities of head and heart and the skills of negotiation, tact and

sympathetic involvement in a democratic way most administrators fail in personnel

management.

12.3 Absence of a Human Relation Approach.

Personnel management is the real testing ground for principles of Human Relations.

Most grievances have a highly personal – hence emotional – touch. In handling them,

much can be gained and little can be lost by sympathetic listening, friendly persuation

and flexible attitude to rules and regulations.

12.4 Narrowness of personnel management function.

Personnel management is often confined to recruitment, transfer, promotion, discharge

and disciplinary action. The other important functions such as training and

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 professional growth and welfare do not figure at all. In the absence of a

comprehensive coverage of all functions, some of the more constructive aspects of

personnel management tend to be neglected.

12.5 Absence of Personnel Policies.

Over all personnel, policies are necessary for the administrators of different levels to

make multiforces decisions. In their absence, contradictory decisions which when

applied to individuals, give the impression of unfairness and discrimination is taken.

Apart from the adverse effect that they have on the morale of organization, remedial

action in the form of grievance handling and redress, also consume too much time and

energy of the administrators.

12.6 Inadequacy, inaccuracy and unreliability of personnel records.

As in the case of personnel policies, records have a major role in ensuring uniformity

of personnel decisions. When records are faulty, such action as appointment, transfer

promotion and disciplinary action can be founded on wrong foundation – resulting in

discontentment among employees. In wage and salary administration, in particular,

record plays an important role. *Retrievability of information for comparison is as

important as the accuracy of record. The use of modern techniques of record keeping,

for ready retrieval, cannot be over emphasized. Education Department has such a large

numbers of employees as to warrant the use of computers for this purpose.

Establishment of EMIS cell in the office is the needed of efficiency and effectiveness.

*
Re-produce

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12.7 Non-involvement of employees in decisions affecting them.

12.8 Particularly management has its greatest relevance to personnel management.

Employees want to know that the game is fair and the best way to let them know it is

to involve them in personnel to personnel decisions. This also means that co-operative

an attitude of mutual co-operation has to be adopted by the administrator towards trade

unions.

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