Welcome to Managing People: Approaches to Staffing
Hi there! Welcome to one of the most interesting parts of your Business A Level. Think about any business you interact with—the local coffee shop, Amazon, or even your school. What makes them work? It's the people! In this chapter, we are going to look at how businesses "approach" their staff. Do they see them as valuable partners or just an expensive necessity? How do they organize them to stay competitive? Let’s dive in!
1. Staff: Asset or Cost?
Businesses generally fall into two camps when it comes to how they view their employees. This is often linked to Human Resource Management (HRM) strategies.
Staff as an Asset (The "Soft" Approach)
When a business treats staff as an asset, they see employees as a valuable resource that can help the business grow over time. They believe that if they invest in their people, the business will be more successful.
• Focus: Training, development, and long-term careers.
• Motivation: They use rewards and empowerment to make staff feel valued.
• Example: A tech company like Google provides amazing offices and constant training because they want to keep their "brains" happy and loyal.
Staff as a Cost (The "Hard" Approach)
When a business treats staff as a cost, they see employees as an expense that needs to be kept as low as possible to maximize profit. Staff are seen as "parts" of a machine.
• Focus: Minimum wage, limited training, and strict supervision.
• Motivation: Usually just a paycheck; there is very little "connection" to the company.
• Example: A fast-food chain or a warehouse might use zero-hours contracts to ensure they only pay for staff exactly when they need them.
Don't worry if this seems tricky at first! Just remember:
Asset = Investment (Treating staff like a fancy computer you want to keep forever).
Cost = Bill (Treating staff like the electricity bill—you want it as low as possible).
Quick Review Box:
Staff as Asset: High training, high pay, high loyalty.
Staff as Cost: Low training, low pay, high staff turnover.
2. The Flexible Workforce
Business is unpredictable! Sometimes it's busy (Christmas!), sometimes it's quiet. To survive, businesses use a flexible workforce. Here are the four ways they do it:
Multi-skilling
This means training staff to do more than one job.
Example: A waiter who can also work in the kitchen or handle the till.
Benefit: If the chef is sick, the waiter can jump in. It keeps things moving!
Part-time and Temporary Staff
Part-time staff work fewer hours than a full-time week. Temporary (or "temp") staff are hired for a specific period (e.g., three months).
Benefit: Businesses can hire extra help during the summer holidays without paying them all year round.
Flexible Hours and Home Working
This allows staff to choose when they work or to work from their living room.
Benefit: This makes staff happy (better work-life balance) and saves the business money on office space and heating!
Outsourcing
This is when a business hires another company to do a task for them instead of hiring their own staff.
Example: A primary school hiring a specialized catering company to provide school lunches instead of employing their own cooks.
Benefit: The business gets "experts" to do the job and doesn't have to worry about managing those employees.
Key Takeaway: A flexible workforce helps a business react to changes in demand quickly and can save a lot of money on fixed wages.
3. Dismissal vs. Redundancy
It’s important to know the difference between these two, as students often mix them up in exams!
Dismissal (Being Fired): This is about the person. It happens because the employee did something wrong (gross misconduct) or is simply not good at their job (incompetence).
Mnemonic: Dismissal = Discipline.
Redundancy: This is about the job. It happens because the business no longer needs that specific role. Maybe the business is closing a branch, or a machine is now doing the job.
Mnemonic: Redundancy = Role no longer needed.
Common Mistake to Avoid: Don't say someone was "made redundant" because they were late for work. That's a dismissal! Redundancy is never the employee's fault.
Did you know? If you are made redundant, the business often has to pay you a "redundancy payment" to help you while you look for a new job. If you are dismissed for being bad at your job, you usually get nothing!
4. Employer/Employee Relationships
How do bosses and workers talk to each other about pay and rules? There are two main ways:
The Individual Approach
The employee negotiates their own contract, pay, and conditions directly with the boss.
Who uses it? High-level managers or people with very rare skills (like a world-class software engineer).
Pro: You can get a deal that fits you perfectly.
Con: One person has very little power compared to a big company.
Collective Bargaining
Employees join together (usually in a Trade Union) to negotiate as a group.
Who uses it? Nurses, teachers, rail workers.
Pro: "Strength in numbers." It’s much harder for a boss to say "no" to 1,000 people than to one person.
Con: Negotiations can take a long time, and individuals might not get exactly what they personally want.
Step-by-Step: How Collective Bargaining Works
1. Workers join a Union.
2. The Union representatives meet with the Business Managers.
3. They discuss a pay rise for everyone.
4. If they agree, a new contract is signed for the whole group.
Quick Review:
Individual: One-on-one, good for specialists.
Collective: Group-based, uses Trade Unions, stronger power for workers.
Final Chapter Summary
• Businesses can see staff as Assets (invest in them) or Costs (keep them cheap).
• Flexibility (multi-skilling, outsourcing, etc.) helps businesses stay competitive and handle changes.
• Dismissal is for bad behavior; Redundancy is because the job is gone.
• Collective Bargaining gives workers more power than the Individual Approach.
You've got this! Understanding how a business treats its people is the first step to understanding why some companies succeed while others struggle.