Human Resources — AQA GCSE Business
Human resources is about recruiting, organising, training and motivating the people who work in a business.
Organisational structures
A business is organised into a structure, often shown as an organisation chart:
- Hierarchy — the levels of management.
- Chain of command — the line of authority from top to bottom.
- Span of control — the number of people a manager is directly responsible for.
- Tall structures have many layers (long chain of command); flat structures have few layers (wider spans of control).
- Centralised decisions are made at the top; decentralised decisions are delegated.
Recruitment and selection
- Internal recruitment — filling a vacancy from within (cheaper, quicker, motivating, but no new ideas).
- External recruitment — hiring from outside (new skills/ideas, but slower and more costly).
The process uses job descriptions and person specifications, then applications, shortlisting, interviews and other selection methods.
Training
- Induction training — for new employees, to settle them in.
- On-the-job training — learning while working.
- Off-the-job training — learning away from the workplace (courses).
Training improves skills, productivity and motivation but costs time and money.
Motivation
Motivated staff are more productive and stay longer (lower staff turnover). Methods of motivation:
- Financial — pay, bonuses, commission, fringe benefits.
- Non-financial — job rotation, enrichment, praise, responsibility, good working conditions and teamwork.
Exam tips
- Define chain of command, span of control, and compare tall vs flat structures.
- Compare internal vs external recruitment.
- Learn the three types of training (induction, on-the-job, off-the-job).
- Distinguish financial and non-financial motivation methods.