The Ultimate Guide to HR Planning: Strategies and Best Practices

Posted on Aug 15, 2024 in Psychology and Sociology

Essentials of HR Planning

The existence of a HR information system – HR inventory properly updated – The analysis of the structure of each unit: Departments, sections, plants, centers, offices. – The analysis of the jobs – Gather by functional activities: offices, manufacturing, warehouse, laboratory. – The analysis of the workload (tasks and activities) – Study of the production planning, ordering services. Details of schedules, working day, absenteeism, turnover.

Employee Turnover Rates

Computing turnover rates: The turnover rate reflects the number of people leaving an organization in a given period. It is interesting to have an index because the knowledge of employee turnover is becoming very important when the company becomes aware of the cost of new hires; a cost aggravated by the impact that leaves the rest of the work when a valued employee leaves.

Stability Rate

Also relevant is the stability rate, which reflects the proportion of workers who have served the organization for a year or more.

Employee Absenteeism Rates

Absenteeism can have very negative consequences for the productivity of the company. Therefore, we must always determine the causes of worker absences in order to find the solution from its origin. Knowing sick and temporary leave will allow the company to make reservations related to jobs and contracts or subcontracts subject to the reinstatement of the employee. If the company has an oversized staff, the action is easier.

To Sum Up: HR Planning Areas

  • Staff: How many employees, what qualifications, what works for.
  • Careers: How many workers are promotable to cover future needs.
  • Recruiting staff: How and where to get candidates in the future.
  • Training: Who must be trained, at what time, and for what.
  • Personnel costs: How much will the staff that we consider necessary due to forecasting cost.

What is Planning in Human Resources?

  • Short-term: Recruitment – Selection
  • Long-term: Training – Career

The reason for planning in human resources is the instability of demand. The need for HR is due to changes in:

  • Environment
  • Organization
  • Individuals

HR demand is satisfied by internal supply and external supply:

  • By internal supply: Freeze hiring – Establish policies to promote
  • External supply: Go to the labor market – Establish training policies

Planning: Time Periods

The time required for a particular action is different for each type of industry, as each industry has different objectives and plans in accordance with organizational circumstances. – Time projection is always necessary and allows defining periods of action. – The periods of time that elapse from when a measurement is taken until it begins to take effect are not identical for all organizations.

Variables that Determine Staff Needs

  • Program of production
  • Applied technology
  • Structure of the organization
  • Temporary situation
  • Degree of automation
  • The performance level of the workers
  • The working day
  • Rotation: dismissals, retirements, diseases, accidents

Forecasting the Supply of Employees: Internal Labor Supply Tools to Forecast

  • Staffing tables: Graphic representations of all organizational jobs, along with the numbers of employees currently occupying those jobs and future employment requirements.
  • Markov analysis: A method for tracking the pattern of employee movements through various jobs.
  • Skill inventories: Files of personnel education, experience, interests, and skills that allow managers to quickly match job openings with employee backgrounds.
  • Replacement Charts: Listings of current jobholders and persons who are potential replacements if an opening occurs.
  • Succession planning: The process of identifying, developing, and tracking key individuals for executive positions.

HR Organization and Strategic Planning

1. Job Profile

  • A job profile is a standard delimitation or generic description of a specific job: competencies that the occupant should have to be able to develop the work with efficacy, safety, and satisfaction.
  • The organization elaborates the job profile after having developed the job analysis, that is, the job description and the job specification of each post.
  • Job profiles are an organizational tool that joins different posts with similar content. They generate a manual of profiles for the organization.
  • Job profiles represent the future, not the past as it is the job description.

2. To Sum Up…

  • A job profile is a document drawn up by companies which comprises quantitative and qualitative qualities that a possible candidate should have to suit the company.
  • Essential elements:
    • Specific characteristics: Age, gender, place of residence, driving license…
    • Knowledge: Both theoretical and practical.
    • Aptitudes and personality characteristics: Skills or abilities that the individual must have and personality characteristics.
    • Motivation: Salary, job, career opportunities, authority.

Profile Study

1. Submission of Candidacy

  • Assessment of CV presentation
  • Analysis of cover letter
  • Check that candidates have 5/6 essential factors of the profile: Age, degree, training, experience.
  • Selection of suitable candidacy
  • Communication to rejected candidates

2. Preliminary Interview

  • It is important to remove unsuitable candidates.
  • Short
  • It serves to inform the candidate of the basic features of the workplace that they are opting for: salary, contract type, position to occupy, specific place.

3. Assessment and Psychometric Tests

  • Aim to measure the candidate in relation to aspects of their personality, skills, and knowledge.
  • Try to predict the future behavior of the candidate for a specific job.

4. Depth Interview

  • Submit the job and the company to the candidate.
  • Evaluate the real potential of the candidate to develop labor.
  • Evaluate opportunities for the future development of the candidate.
  • Report
  • See what the candidate did in the past in a similar situation.

5. Professional Practice

  • Propose to do a similar activity that has to be done at the specific job position.

6. Final Report and Proposed Candidates

  • Internally, we choose the final candidates.

7. Final Interview and Selection

Hiring: Welcome and Induction Phase

Objectives:

  1. Formalizing the contract
  2. Receiving, integrating the candidate:
    • Incorporation and integration program
  3. Evaluate the adequacy:
    • Evaluation report:
      1. Positive: Definitive integration
      2. Negative: Termination of contract

Graphology

  • It is based on the assumption that personality is reflected in writing unconsciously.
  • It can be considered an element of support to take into account, but it is not convenient to consider it as the only evidence itself.
  • Let’s get an idea of how the candidate is without necessarily seeing him/her.
  • Observes characteristics such as emotional potential, sociability.

Employment Test

An objective and standardized measure of a sample of behavior that is used to gauge a person’s knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics in relation to other individuals.

Selection Tests

  • Many jobs require skills, knowledge, or aptitudes which it may be difficult to test accurately in the interview, and within an interview, it is difficult to eliminate subjective judgments.
  • The use of tests can help to compare the candidate with the requirements of the job in a fair and objective way.
  • Most candidates may become nervous, exaggerate, or overact in an interview. Tests can balance the selection process. Selection tests should not be used as an alternative to the interview, but only as a supplement to it.
  • Examination or qualification certificates, or references may be useful sources, but the objectivity of references is often questioned.
  • Selection tests or exercises can provide evidence of whether a candidate does display the required abilities.

Selection Tools Test

Tests are classified as:

  • Simulation tests: Where the coach will stand in simulations of real situations to see how we react to different stimuli.
  • Assessment center test: It is a standardized selection method which uses a variety of different tests, interviews, and exercises to evaluate a candidate’s potential performance in a particular post. The assessment center program usually spans several days during which time the participants are observed, and at the end of which, they are given feedback on their performance. This selection method is extremely effective but costly. It is generally used when large numbers of candidates are being assessed.
  • Skills tests: Are used where candidates need to possess particular skills in order to perform the job: word processing, use of software packages, prioritizing workloads, driving a motor vehicle, operating a piece of machinery, laboratory equipment.
  • Psychometric tests: Interest test, tests of knowledge, personality tests. Through which it comes to discovering the capabilities and suitability of the candidate for the job. These tests may include: tests of general intelligence, verbal comprehension, reasoning, memory, attention, verbal fluency and reasoning, and management skills among others.

There are three types of psycho tests:

  • Knowledge tests
  • Personality tests
  • Interest tests

Psycho

  • The importance of the tests lies in the possibility of judging people for their skills, abilities, and knowledge, that is, by their own merits and not by their socioeconomic status, appearance, or by subjective judgment.
  • Aim to measure the candidate with regard to aspects of their personality, skills, and knowledge.
  • They try to predict the behavior of the candidate facing a certain job in the future.

We can distinguish 3 types of tests (Zerelli):

  1. Tests related to interests and preferences
  2. Tests of ability, aptitude
  3. Tests to measure personality

Tests of knowledge: Which assesses the degree of knowledge acquired through study or work practice.

  • They are addressed to measure the intelligent quotient or IQ.
  • Allow a classification based on an average of 100.
  • They use to measure: memory, reasoning ability, vocabulary, perception.

Tests of Personality and Interests

  • Inventory: Limited time, lists of questions, answer yes/no.
  • Projective: Designed to investigate the interest of the candidates for certain professions or activities.
  • Preferences or interests: Limited time, few standardized situations that allow unlimited answers, trying to find internal conflicts.

Projective Tests

  • The projective tests use color spots, drafts of figures, scenes representing two.
  • Used to measure personality and interests.
  • They can be different types: Rorschach test, Coch test, graphological test, thematic apperception test, Lüscher color test.

Professional Practices

Written and Presentations

Presentations are often used to assess the qualities of candidates applying for posts which require a complex of skills, together with specific. By asking candidates to prepare and deliver a presentation on a given subject, and in some cases to participate in a discussion afterward, selectors can see an example of the individual’s skills of written and oral presentation, analysis and reasoning, as well as gaining some evidence of their professional knowledge and of their attitudes.

Case Studies

As with presentations, case studies can be a valuable way of assessing candidates’ knowledge of a particular subject area, and their likely approach to handling a particular situation. This selection method is sometimes used for candidates for managerial posts, or for posts requiring knowledge of specific procedures, regulations.

Group Selection Methods

Group selection methods are most frequently used to assess candidates’ leadership qualities and their ability to express themselves clearly and get on with and influence colleagues. The types of exercise which are used include: leaderless group discussions, command, group problem-solving. Group exercises are time-consuming and, therefore, costly.

Special Test

1. Group Dynamic

  • Pose a problem and observe the behavior of the participants: way to interact, introversion, extroversion, consistency.
  • Competitive behavior can be adopted, as they feel observed.

2. In-Basket

  • We place the candidate in a scenario and face them with the real problems of the company.
  • There are tray tables with different tasks.
  • Verify their ability to make decisions, delegate, prioritize, and give orders.
  • As the exercise progresses, we introduce new variables/problems.
  • The aim lies in identifying the documents that must be used in the future workplace.
  • Each document must be valid to identify any skill.

3. Assessment Center

  • Simulation techniques are used to study the capabilities and behavior of candidates facing real situations similar to those of a normal working situation. Thus arises a situation or problem in a group of participants, which must reach a joint solution.
  • Problems usually arise from compels type that does not have a unique solution.
  • Evaluators observe and write down in detail the behaviors and skills of each candidate.
  • Evaluators analyze all the processes of group dominance, cooperation, communication, motivation, participation, conflict resolution.
  • Can be seen quite easily, how different personalities emerge: the leader, the withdrawn person.

Employment Interviews

Why the Interview is so Popular

  • It is especially practical when there are only a small number of applicants.
  • It serves other purposes, such as public relations.
  • Interviewers maintain great faith and confidence in their judgments.

Interview

  • What is it? Technique most used, key factor in taking decisions.
  • What does it consist of?
    1. Strengths: Facilitates the exchange of information, meeting face-to-face personal, technique can be learned.
    2. Weakness: Difficult to predict its statistical reliability and validity.
  • What is its objective? Provides information on the position and the company, receive information on the candidate; evaluate the future professional development of the candidate.

Objectives of Interview

  • Get information
  • Inform
  • Motivate

Interviewing Methods

1. Non-Directive Interview

  • The applicant determines the course of the discussion, while the interviewer refrains from influencing the applicant’s remarks.
  • The interviewer has to be experienced.
  • Subjective conclusions were extracted: attitudes, emotions, opinions.

2. Structured Interview

  • An interview with a set of standardized questions and also an established set of answers.
  • Flexibility is not allowed to the interviewer.
  • The interviewee cannot extend down to his/her answers.

3. Mixed Interview

  • Planned questions but released by the interviewer to modify or broaden.
  • The interviewee may increase his/her answers.

4. Behavioral Description Interview (BDI) or Critical Incident Interview

  • An interview in which an applicant is asked questions about what he or she actually did in a given situation.
  • An interview in which an applicant is given a hypothetical incident and asked how he or she would respond to it.

5. Panel and Sequential Interview

  • An interview in which a board of interviewers questions and observes a single candidate.