Human resource
Assignment #1
Value: 10% of your course mark
Assignment #1 has two scenarios and you are required to answer all the questions in each scenario.
Scenario 1: Taking over the Reins at Sportco5 marks (50%)
Scenario #2: HR Planning for Delifoods Inc. 5 marks (50%)
Scenario #1: Taking over the Reins at Sportco
John Hoskins was meeting with his son Brad this morning to begin planning a transition strategy for Brad to take over Sportco, the family’s golf club manufacturing firm in Calgary that John had started in 1985. Brad would become CEO within the next two years as John phased out his involvement entirely, spending increasing amounts of time away from the business. At 25, with a fresh business degree from Queens, 4 summers spent working in the business, and a keen interest in manufacturing and golf, Brad was the ideal successor every father hopes for. John felt satisfied the company would be going into safe and capable hands. Annual sales at Sportco hovered at nearly $20 Million and with 85 employees drawing bi-weekly paycheques, the stakes were high. All the same, Sportco’s growth had been slowing over the past five years and someone with high energy and strong business know-how would be needed to get sales headed skyward again. As the meeting got underway, Brad carefully presented his plans for the future of the company. After discussing various growth problems the company currently faced, he astonished John by saying that Sportco had huge potential to do business on a global scale, and that to support the next stages of growth, his first step would be to create a human resources department. John’s reaction to this proposal was swift and fierce: “Human Resources Department? Why on earth would you add more expense into the business when our sales are stagnant? Our supervisors do a good job of managing our people. I’m shocked you would even consider such a move!” No question Brad is on the “hot seat” and will need to provide convincing answers to implement this proposal.
Questions:
- Describe two ways and give two examples about how a strategic human resources department can add value to the Sportco’s existing and future strategic plans? 2.5 marks (25%); 1 page maximum
- As part of convincing Brad’s dad of the need for a human resources department, prepare an org chart (using PowerPoint, Visio, word or any other software or app) for the proposed HR department that shows the types and number of HR professionals that makes sense for Sportco,bearing in mind that Sportco is an organization with 85 employees. 2.5 marks (25%); 1 page maximum
Scenario #2: HR Planning forDelifoods Inc.
Jane Staples is very excited about her new position as the first Human Resource Manager for DeliFoods Inc., a specialty food importer and distributor located in Vancouver. When she was offered the job, the CEO made it clear that her role would be vital as the company completed its strategic planning process this year.“We’ve never had an HR manager before, so things have been hit and miss in planning ‘the people part’ of the equation. We will be counting on you to improve our accuracy in forecasting how many and what type of people we’ll need, and to help us get much better at figuring out from where those people will come. In addition to the usual turnover, we have some very exciting plans. We‘re expanding further into mainstream grocery stores next year, launching several new products and planning a new venture for 2012 – specialized retail outlets targeted at specific ethnic communities.” Jane has some experience in the process of HR planning, but she is a little nervous about exactly how she will guide Delifood’s managers through the forecasting process for such a complex chain of events. It also sounds like it could be difficult to source people for the many types of vacancies that appear to be on the horizon as a result of the CEO’s ambitious plans for growth. The CEO has asked her to begin by presenting an overall plan for the HR planning process, and how those plans will be implemented at the next Board meeting – a week from today.
Questions:
- If you were Jane, what steps would you recommend the company take to engage in a complete human resources planning process? 2 marks (20%); I page maximum
- Explain three ways you can go about estimating the internal supply of skilled people to cover normal turnover and to fill vacancies or new positions identified in the forecasting stage. 3 marks (30%); I page maximum
Instructions
- Use 5 spacing and 11-sized font
- One page maximum limit for each question will be strictly enforced. You have four questions from the two scenarios, so maximum total number of pages allowed is 4 pages. 10% mark reduction shall be applied for each page over the allowed one page maximum. For example, one page over limit attracts 10% mark deduction, 2 pages attracts 20% and so on.
- On the due date, the assignment due time is 6pm (18:00hours)
- See the course syllabus for the policy and penalty for late submissions.
Marking Rubric
| Scenario #1, Question #1:Describe two ways and give two examples about how a strategic human resources department can add value to Sportco’s existing and future strategic plans? 2.5 marks (25%); 1 page maximum | ||
| Marks | Note | |
| 1. Way #1 explained: Your explanation – must demonstrate good understanding of strategic human resources (SHR), drawing from what you have learned in class, from the text, or from general HR knowledge – must align with the context of Sportco as described in the scenario |
15 marks | – Zero mark for not providing explanation/description – Deduction of marks for not demonstrating good understanding of SHR – Zero or deduction of marks for explanation that do not fit the context of Sportco |
| 2. Way #1 Example: – the example must follow logically from the explanation given – must demonstrate practical application of strategic human resource |
10 marks | – Zero mark for not giving an example – Deduction of marks for an example that does not fit the explanation given |
| Scenario #1, Question #2:As part of convincing Brad’s dad of the need for a human resources department and prepare an org chart (using PowerPoint, Visio, word or any other software or app) for the proposed HR department that shows the types and number of HR professionals that makes sense for Sportco, bearing in mind that Sportco is an organization with 85 employees. 2.5 marks (25%); 1 page maximum | ||
| 3. An Organization chart is inserted: An org chart is a visual representation; there is an example in the textbook | 10 marks | – Zero marks out of 25% if no org chart is included |
| 4. Org chart shows 1) types of HR professionals (Using Accountants, examples will include cost accountants, management accountants, tax accountants, auditors, etc.) 2) number of HR Professionals (1, 2, 3,10, 20, 40, etc.) |
15 marks | – Identifiestypes of HR professionals that make sense given Sportco’s situation (10 marks) – States the number of HR professionals that fit Sportco (5 marks) – Zero or marks deduction for types of number that do not align with Sportco’s situation |
| Scenario 2 Question #1:If you were Jane, what steps would you recommend the company take to engage in a complete human resources planning process? 2 marks (20%); I page maximum | ||
| 5. Steps outlined and explained | 20 marks | – Zero or marks deduction based on relevance, thoroughness, logic and clarity of the steps – Zero or marks deduction for outlining and explaining one, few, or all the required steps; goal is to outline and explain ALL the relevant steps |
| Scenario 2, Question #2:Explain three ways you can go about estimating the internal supply of skilled people to cover normal turnover and to fill vacancies or new positions identified in the forecasting stage. 3 marks (30%); I page maximum. | ||
| 6. Three ways explained | 30 marks | – 10 marks per method explained – Zero or marks deduction for 1) not explaining any method, 2) poor explanation, 3) not explaining up to 3 ways |
Overall the following table explains the continuum between lower to higher marks on essay questions:
| Criteria | Missing or Serious Problem | Below Expectations | Meets Expectations | Excellent Work |
| Relevance of answer to the question | The essay did not answer the question | Answer is incomplete. Excessive discussion of unrelated issues and/or significant errors in content | Answer is brief with insufficient detail. Unrelated issues were introduced and/or minor errors in content. | Answer is complete; sufficient detail provided to support assertions; answer focuses only on issues related to the questions; factually correct |
| Thoroughness of answer | None of the relevant details were included | Some Gaps in the basic details provided | Most of the basic details are included but some are missing | Deals fully with the entire question, with no gaps and providing relevant details |
| Organization and logic of answer | Weak organization; rambling sentences; ideas are repeated; disconnected logic and difficult to follow | Some problems of organization or logic; needs work on creating transitions between ideas; argument development not as strong | Clear and logical presentation; good development of an argument; transitions are made clearly and smoothly | N/A |
| Mechanics of writing: Clarity of prose, grammar, spelling, punctuation | Major problems with the mechanics of language; awkward sentence construction; poor or absent transitions; frequently difficult to understand | Frequent problems with mechanics of language; occasional awkward sentences and poor transitions; reduced readability | Clear, readable prose; good use of transitions; no problems with spelling, punctuation or grammar | N/A |