Human resources management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Human resources management - Essay Example It would be a mistake to assume that human resources alone can provide a source of competitive advantage, this theory only holds true when the following four conditions are met: Human Resource must add value to the firms production process Skills sought by the firm must be rare, A firm’s combined human resource investments cannot be imitated A firm’s human capital should not be replaceable by technology The need for effective Human Resource Management is evident in the case of Uni-Bank, which suffers from a multitude of Personnel related problems. The bank’s personnel problems can be solved by devising a carefully thought out Human Resource Strategy and implementing effective employee motivation, development and retention techniques. Human Resource Strategy It is of primary importance for firms to develop effective Human Resource Strategies as it will guide the way the firm develops and deploys deploy human, social, and organizational capital to enhance its compe titiveness. The goal of an effective Human Resource Strategy is to develop a workforce which is motivated, trained, adequately rewarded and performs towards pursuing a firm's objectives Past theorists (Snell, Youndt and Wright 1996) noted that in the past executives tried to â€Å"take human resources out of the strategy equation by substituting capital for labor where possible, and by developing organizational structures where there is a dividing line between those who think from those who do the work. As (Quinn ,1992) noted, â€Å"with rareexceptions, the economic and producing power of the firm lies more in its intellectual and service capabilities than in its hard assets; land, plant and equipment†. However, there is no one theory that fits all, every organization’s need differs and so does their required strategy. It is quite difficult to achieve a correct balance between motivating and employee, developing and rewarding them, as there is always a fear of employe e turnover. Firms should be careful not to over-invest in their employees, similarly, they should avoid under-investing in their employees as well, as this leads to poor motivational levels and in turn affects performance. UniBank, needs to reassess its human resource strategy, as it seems the current one is not effective. The Company suffers from low employee morale, (which is their primary problem), skill-gap, low employee involvement and performance. The Company seems to be unable to meet its human resource needs with the needs of the changing environment; as a result, it cannot satisfy either. An effective strategy can be devised through 3 key steps: Diagnosis: Conducting a comprehensive and systematic evaluation of the current practice and performance to identify where improvement is required and where policies are working well. In the case of UniBank, the diagnosis stage will identify the following improvement areas: Employee job security Employee Development Employee Motivati on Employee Remuneration Employee Recruitment Employee involvement and decision making ability Aspiration: A vision of effective Human Resource practices, producing outcomes that contribute to achieving the firm’s strategic objectives. For UniBank, an aspiration outcome will be where its employees are motivated, adequately trained and positively contribute to the change to Online Banking. Developmental: A plan to progress and bring about change in the future. Uni Bank should focus on long term

Multiple intelligence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Multiple intelligence - Essay Example For example, linguistic intelligence is primarily the ability to read, write, and speak effectively, which is of prime importance in career fields such as teaching, journalism and psychology. Similarly, each type of intelligence is the fountainhead of certain specific skills and abilities, which point towards definite career options.The author then goes on to illustrate how the Multiple Intelligence theory can be used in the teaching-learning process and proceeds to highlight the benefits of the use of Multiple Intelligence teaching practices in helping to make students meaningful learners. The Multiple Intelligence theory pre-supposes that each child has his or her own strengths and his or her own way of learning. This makes the Multiple Intelligence theory better suited to individual needs upon implementation. Accordingly, a child with superior kinesthetic intelligence must be taught with more hands-on activities, while a child with better spatial intelligence will learn faster and better with maps, diagrams and other visual inputs. He cites the example of the New City School in St Louis that has applied this theory successfully. The school keeps Multiple Intelligence in mind while developing its curriculum, during classroom instruction and finally at the time of assessment. It has been found that these students average good scores in subsequent standardized tests. The author then gives us a brief glimpse of how he plans to implement the Multiple Intelligence theory in agricultural education. Agricultural education being multifaceted, the possibilities are endless. The author would like to instruct his students through presentations, speech contests, quiz bowls and the like. Lastly, the author discusses the limitations of this theory and also touches briefly on the implementation problems that the theory might pose for educators. Critique The theory of Multiple Intelligence presents interesting possibilities in classroom application. In fact, it "opens up eight different potential pathways to learning" (Armstrong T). It suggests that teachers present their lessons in a wide variety of ways using music, cooperative learning, art activities, field trips, role play, pictures, multimedia etc. This will help teachers to reach out to students who have different types of intelligence to go beyond conventional linguistic and logical methods and choose the learning tool they want. Gardner's theory of Multiple Intelligence helps teachers, school administrators and parents' to understand the learners better. However, only the very conscientious of teachers will be able to apply it on a regular basis. A teacher will have to be truly and deeply interested in children to understand how their minds are different from one another's. Anne Guignon, in her article on Multiple Intelligence, refers to Linda Campbell, who has outlined five ways in which the Multiple Intelligence theory can be implemented. These are: - Lesson design. In this the teacher may even focus on his or her own intelligence strengths. Interdisciplinary units. Here two or more units may be combined. Student projects. Students can initiate and execute their own projects depending upon their individual abilities. Assessments. Assessments ca be devised to test Multiple Intelligence. Students can be allowed to devise the way they want to be assessed. Apprenticeships. Apprenticeships will enable students to work with their specific abilities. One cannot discount the use of technology in the classroom, as one of