Wednesday, August 7, 2019
Any work of art in Baltimore Museum of Art or Walter's Museum Research Paper
Any work of art in Baltimore Museum of Art or Walter's Museum - Research Paper Example The artist here worked skillfully to make the viewer share these feelings. The artist was inspired by the work and ideologies of modern theologians, who implored the faithful to recognize with Christ in his torment. This painting was intended to point to Christ’s torment by depicting him hanging greatly with bowed head and bleeding wounds. A swarm of other statures forms the backdrop of the cross, and they are frequently notable for their expressiveness. From the artwork, the Virgin Mary weeps piteously in the foreground. Other hosts of statures are in oriental dress just gaze at Christ as if he has somewhat enthused them. These figures reflect a shift from style, but it also permeates the scene with enhanced reality, which in effect makes the episode more available to virtuous rumination (MacArthur 12-25). In this German art, episodes from the Passion have made the concentration of greater independent picture. This approach by the artist bought new probabilities for artists a s well as virtuous viewers. The artist seems to have been influenced by the spirit of Transformation, which is why he worked deftly to involve the emotions in meditation of Christ’s suffering and death. His painting dispenses with details of tales and environment and so compels the observer into undeviating engagement with the body of Christ. He has achieved this by showing Christ’s suffering with categorical realism at close proximity to the observer. â€Å"His style is nothing but a striking demonstration of the potency of artistic custom in the service of expressive effect.†2 The compacted configuration and superlative costumes of the statures both demonstrate the artist’s experience and emphasize the scenes reality (MacArthur 25-28). The Catholic Church reconfirmed the value of images in Christian devotion and the significance of the emotions in religious experience. These judgments warranted that the Church would persist to stimulate commissions for Italian painters, and that the life of Christ would retain its significance in art. Many paintings of the passion of Christ were commissioned for a Church. The body of Christ hanging on the wooden cross pertains to the image of a powerless, undressed tormented man, and many observers of the artwork recognize the culture of crucifixion. The nuisance of Christ’s crucifixion tale on the artwork is somewhat a type of defacement, which is, engraving a sophisticated narrative of sin and consecration onto the body of someone powerless, converting the maimed body of another into a symbol. The painter has used figures and environments in a life-like manner to make the scenes appear existent and the message convincing. Christ is the innermost stature in the painting. The painter has adroitly utilized the symbols and tales of Christianity to narrate the happening in the artwork, shaping how the violence is viewed and understood. â€Å"Christ’s crucifixion endeavors to make conse quential the suffering of another, but still stimulates another desecration.†3 Superimposing a Christian tale on a worshipper’s suffering to provide that suffering meaning in terms of the individuals causing that suffering thinks a narrative of triumph, salvation, where there is none
Tuesday, August 6, 2019
Servicing customers in Global market Essay Example for Free
Servicing customers in Global market Essay Servicing customers in Global market Introduction            Marketing communications are the channels used by businesses in the endeavor of persuading, informing and reminding clients about their brands that they sell. Firms can use different promotional tools to reach clients either directly or indirectly. Marketing communication can involve non-personal or personal communication channels. Marketing communication enables firms to acquire new clients for their products by encouraging trial and building awareness. It also enables them retain their clients by supporting their purchase activities by offering supplementary information regarding brand benefits. The rationale of this paper is to compare and contrast different tools of communication and how they use consumer behavior theory successfully to achieve their objectives.            There are several items of communication such as website, TV advert, poster, direct mail brochure, billboard and magazine advert. I will focus on television advertising and web marketing. Website is very vital firms marketing policy. Websites help clients to find firms and advertisers brands from those firms. Marketing through website will enable firms to improve their customer care through e-commerce website. Website is a medium where many customers spend a lot of time especially due to technology advancement. Through websites, firms can reach national and international clients in a cost effective manner (Juon Buerkle, 2011). On the other hand, television advertising is another effective tool in a firm’s marketing strategy. Television is a medium where clients spend most considerate time. Report indicates that the average television viewing lasts for about five to six hours. This elaborates why it is used as a gigantic advertiseme nt instrument.            Television is a significant marketing tool because it offers the greatest possibility for creative advertising. Web advertising and television advertising has a lot of similarities in common, and they also share some differences. They are the marketing strategies that a firm can use to reach large audiences, low cost of advertising, and it is easy to reach a targeted audience through these two approaches. Website advertising is less expensive as compared to television advertisements. In addition, websites can be created with the aim of targeting a particular audience than TV commercials. The two items of marketing are effective, but the one that best fits a given firm will rely on their goals and target market. Firms can also use more than one items of marketing since they support each other. I chose these two items of marketing because they are a giant in advertising media and also giant in advertising costs as well. They have proven thei r capacity to control human activities over and over. Television advertising is mostly used in outbound marketing where firms direct marketing activities at the client. On the other hand, websites are used in inbound marketing where clients search for brands that can meet their needs (Carroll, 2006).            Firms place their marketing in websites so that clients can find out more regarding brands and services. Website advertising has more flexibility as compared to TV commercials. Television advertising has one objective of convincing clients to buy products, but websites can help firms to reach clients easily as they enjoy other entertaining and educational services. The crucial message to the advertisers willing to use website and television advertising is that they should choose the strategy that matches their goals and their target market. Both website and television advertising are crucial to the firms, and they can be used interchangeably. In other instances, either of the items can help and support other digital strategies used by a firm (Percy, 2008).            It is very vital for firms to understand their customers’ psychology so that they can be able to come up with appropriate strategies that will help them realize their objectives. Consumer behavior is the conduct of clients in regard to using, disposing and acquiring services, experiences, ideas, and products. Consumer behavior also includes use and acquisition of information. Therefore, communication with clients and getting response for them is a vital part of consumer behavior which is every firm’s greatest interest. Consumer psychology is the study of client’s mental processes and behavior. Understanding of theories of customer psychology will help businesses to learn different types of customers. There are various reasons as to why businesses should understand customers. First, customer behavior is very crucial in daily living because people mostly spend a lot of time shopping. Secondly, consumer behavior is signif icant in decision making. For example, while setting prices, firms must consider their clients. In other cases, business decisions might be influenced by expected actions or behavior (Hoyer MacInnis, 2010). Application of consumer behavior            Consumer behavior research can help firms increase their success rate because they will understand their customer’s needs that will enable them to realize profits. Understanding customer behavior will enable businesses to evaluate their strategies because they will be able to understand customer feedback regarding their latest products and services (Hoyer MacInnis, 2010).            Marketing application areas of consumer behavior is in; market-opportunity analysis where the firm examine conditions and trends in the marketplace to discover client needs that are not being fully fulfilled. Target market selection is whereby firms wish to discover different groupings of consumers who have exceptional needs. It also involves the assortment of sections that merges firm’s potency and offer enhanced opportunities. The third area of application is marketing-mix determination. It involves creation and implementation a strategy that will ensure delivery of an appropriate combination of need-satisfying characteristics to clients within the target market. Marketing mix involves price, place, promotion and product. Understanding of customer behavior is also required in tactical marketing operations. Successful regulatory strategy in regard of marketing practices calls for an extensive knowledge of consumer behavior.            Social marketing also calls for an extensive understanding of customer behavior. Social marketing is where firms apply marketing tactics and strategies to create or alter behaviors that have constructive impact to the target audience or the society in general. Social marketing through websites and television is conducted in endeavors of encouraging environmental friendly behaviors, reduce smoking, encourage timely vaccination of children, reduce activities likely to cause AIDS, reduce substance abuse, encourage charitable organizations among other substantial activities.            Personality is a factor that affects people’s feedback regarding advertisements. It can also happen the other way round where messages from marketing can affect people’s attitudes. Behavioral approach is a strategy which focuses on the measurable and observable features of human conduct. Human behavior can only be analyzed through their reaction, actions and how they conduct themselves. Behavioral approach maintains that personal behavior is affected by their environment. Cognitive behavior assumes that if researchers wish to understand human conduct, they should focus on the internal processes of their mind. Cognitive approach examine how people treat the information they receive and how their treatment result to feedbacks.            In determining which item to apply for marketing, firms will apply behavioral approach where they will analyze how clients think about either television advertisement or websites. On the other hand, firms will apply cognitive approach while determining how clients will react when they receive messages through television or websites (McLeod, 2007).            In conclusion, there are several items of marketing communication such as website, television advertising, billboard, poster, magazine advert and direst mail brochure. Television advertising is habitually used in outbound marketing where businesses direct marketing activities at the client. On the other hand, websites are commonly used in inbound marketing where clients search for brands that can meet their needs. These two items are very vital in marketing strategy of a firm since they will reach a great number of their target audience at lower cost. Firms should understand customer behavior which will enable them to choose the marketing tool that will fit their customer’s needs. Through appropriate marketing, firms will be able to retain customers, attract new customers by notifying them with the latest information regarding their brands. Firms can also choose to use various items of marketing communication since they help and sup port other marketing mix strategies. There are two approaches in analysis of consumer behavior; behavioral approach and cognitive approach. References Behavioral Approach Behavioral Psychology Psychologist World. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.psychologistworld.com/issues/behavioralapproach.php Carroll, J. (2006). Television. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press. Cognitive Approach | Simply Psychology. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.simplypsychology.org/cognitive.html Hoyer, W. D., MacInnis, D. J. (2010). Consumer behavior. U.st: South-Western Centage Learning. Juon, C., Greiling, D., Buerkle, C. (2011). Internet marketing, start-to-finish. Indianapolis, IN: Que. Percy, L. (2008). Strategic integrated marketing communication: Theory and practice. Amsterdam: Butterworth-Heinemann. Source document
Monday, August 5, 2019
Case study of fostering team in nuneaton
Case study of fostering team in nuneaton The background to your involvement I am currently on placement with the fostering team in Nuneaton which has in excess of seventy five carers in and around the Nuneaton/Bedworth area. The fostering team consists of 4 full time social workers, whose role encompasses assessment work along with supervisory responsibility of foster carers in line with the Department for Children, Schools and Families Working Together to Safeguard Children March 2010 which sets out how organisations and individuals should work together to save and promote the welfare of children and young people in accordance with the Children Act 1989 and the Children Act 2004 ( (DCSF, March 2010) and to identify placements for children being accommodated under various sections of the Children Act 1989. While on placement I shadowed a social worker involved in supporting 14 yr old Philips foster carers to deal with particular behavioural issues that had led to his placement breaking down. The foster carers have 3 foster children currently in their care, Phillip 14, James 15 and David 16. The 2 foster carers Mike 49 and Jane 46 live in a 4 bedroom house in Hinckley. Philip had left the house and was refusing to return, stating that his foster carers did not like him and that he wanted to live on his own. Bed and breakfast accommodation was arranged for him for a few days while the situation was re-assessed and a meeting with the foster carers arranged. Fundamental to all relationships and particularly the interaction between Philip and his mother, Philip and his foster carers and social worker and foster carers, communication is a central component. Analysing how effective communication plays a vital part in this clients circumstances will form the basis of this discussion. Good communication skills are a principle component of effective social work practice. They include active, attentive and empathetic listening, recognition of verbal and non verbal communication and general formal and informal interview techniques, as Payne has suggested, the application of communication theory gives practical help in controlling and understanding relationships and interactions with clients and a technology of interviewing and interpersonal skills (Payne, 2005, pg 178). Over recent year the children looked after by foster carers have included an increasing proportion of distressed adolescences along with the disruption rate for these placements as being high (Farmer et al 2003). One of the aims of the fostering social worker is to conduct detailed assessments of parenting approaches and strategies used by the foster carers looking after a teenager in a long term placement and how these strategies can change and develop during the course of the placement. Research has been conducted into fostering task with adolescents by Farmer et al (2004), found that they were concerns about the behaviour and well being of children when they move into a new placements. The findings in this case study highlighted a number of factors that contributed to the breakdown in the relationship with the foster carers and Philip and finally the placement. In this situation I had found out the Philips social worker had not communicated the nature and context of behavioural issues associated with him to the foster carers social worker so that foster carers could have been better informed. Following the placement breakdown the foster carers had reflected on their own lack of knowledge and experience at dealing with young people with behavioural problems had highlighted the need for specific training in this area for foster carers. Part 2 Using the material from part 1, critically analyse the challenges in ensuring good practice in communicating with this service user/s or carer/s What theory underpins your interaction? Modern social work theory incorporates social psychology and social construction theory to understand the way groups in society relate to each other and create and maintain social identities. Social psychology has influenced social work practice specifically with concepts from role theory and communication theory. Role theory offers a viewpoint in sociology and also within social psychology that includes most of everyday activities to be the acted out of socially defined categories such as mother, supervisor, and lecturer. Each defining social role comes with a set of rights, duties, expectations, norms and behaviour a person has to be able to fulfill. Communication theory uses a range of concepts from the scientific to the humanistic, to help us understand how people conduct themselves in creating, exchanging and interpreting messages (Farrell, 1987). These concepts help us to understand patterns of language and identify how people construct their social world.helping them to recon struct the world by using language differently to identify possibilities for change (Payne, 2005, pg 161). Communication theory is concerned with a range of ideas that can explain how individuals, groups and organisations communicate with each other. Linguistically, in the form of the spoken and written word and other mediums, and non verbal forms, such as body language and the way we speak, including tone, pitch, intonation and speed. Communication is more than the mere transmission of facts, as has been suggested information might be facts, or other things that might be learned, such as emotions, memories, bodily sensations or an idea about how someone feels about you (Payne, 2005, pg 171 or 178) and furthermore that language informs the way we think, the way we experience, and the way we interact with each other. Language provides the basis of community, but also the grounds for division (Thompson 2003:36) This suggests that communication networks are inextricably linked to social identity, ethnicity, culture and class. As Payne suggests, networks of communication build up and how we communicate and with whom, becomes part of our culture and social relations, for example, ethnic and class division are marked by separation in communication networks and patterns of communication often express power, domination and subordination. Communication may, therefore, help us to identify oppression and inequality (Payne, 2005, pg 171). If we use language, along with the capacity to communicate, to form our lives and to relate to others, then social workers need to be sensitively aware how their choice of words and mode of communication in intensely personal and emotional charged situations, can increase and decrease oppression in their interactions with young people. For example, use of professional jargon without explanation may alienate a client by creating a language barrier between social work er and the service user or carer. Where a child is suspected of being in need of protection the social worker must balance the needs of the young persons safety along with the potential of breaking up the family. The social worker that I shadowed believed that the needs of young people in foster care could be met through meaningful, consistent and positive relationships with the foster carer whilst on the other hand you have child care policy which is primarily about safeguarding, outcomes and accountability. A crucial time for young people spans 12-19 years, this is when they ask themselves: Who am I? Where do I want to be? During this period they are also concerned with how they appear to others and what groups and networks they identify with. Erikson terms this psychosocial stage as the Identity versus Role Confusion period (Beckett, 2002 ). Attachment theory Attachment theory offers an understanding of personality development and behaviour in close relationships and provides an account of the difference in peoples emotional and relationship styles. (Howe, 2000). John Bowlby is considered to the psychiatrist that developed the attachment theory. Bolwby suggests that when children are separated from their parents or care giver they suffer loss because of the attachment between them. I can see how Philip may have felt when he thought the he had to leave his home for a second time having already lost the home of his birth mother, it is thought by the social worker and the foster carers that one of the reason that Philip does not want to return is because he does not want to suffer loss again. This has had an obvious affect of Philips behaviour, the tenets of this theory is that close relationships or attachments have a direct effect on the emotional and social development across a lifespan (Howe 2000). Avoidant Attachments Howe (2009) describes avoidant attachments as children and young people whom display avoidant attachments as having parent(s) that are either indifferent whom have their own trauma going on or are emotionally rigid or completely rejecting of their childs needs. Although parents will react well when their child is happy and content that soon changes when the child needs change for instance when their child is in distress and is need of comfort. Howe suggest that attempts at intimacy only seem to increase parental distance, even rebuff, this communicating to the child that they are not wanted. Attachment to home and a safe place is a primary ways in which people preserve self-identity. the way in which people identify and become attached to places, buildings, objects, and how this attachment can contribute to personal well-being or how we feel about ourselves (Low et al 1992). To look at why these places, building and objects become important provides us with insight into what happens when people have to move and the dilemmas that they may face. Attachment is an emotional relationship that provides reliability, continuity, care and comfort. John Bowlby writes in his research relating to the concept of attachment, describing it as a lasting psychological connectedness between human beings (Bowlby, 1969, p. 194). Bowlby held the psychoanalytic view that early years experiences of a child has an important propensity toward development and behaviour later in life, most attachment styles are formed in the early years of childhood developed through the relationship with the care -giver. Mary Ainsworth during the 1970s built on the work of Bowlbys work in her study called Strange situations which looked at children where they were left alone for a short period of time then quickly comforted by the care giver/mother (Ainsworth, 1978). These help her to formulate the attachment classification system, which examine specific differences in a childs use of attachment figures as a constant and reliable base from which they can then explore the environment. Change requires personal adjustment, and some change can be more stressful than others. When facing a move fears of adjustment and a change in familiar environment and living conditions can be seen as a major problem for young people. Philip was reluctant to move out of the area that he lived at with his foster carers, he felt that if he had to move to supported lodging that it would be in an are where he has had problems in the past. Care Management involves assessing needs and keeping a watchful eye over a number of services that are provided by workers other than the social worker, the role of care manager is not new to social work and has existed for many years, historically the social worker would arrange a package of care, seek the views of the service user, engage with other professionals when collecting information relevant to the care package following that there would be an assessment then the social worker would engage appropriate services that met the need of the service user. Discrimination ,Inequality and oppression, Separation and Loss Solution focused (brief) theory Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT)is based on solution-building rather than problem-solving. SFBT explores the here and now and planned aspirations opposed to solving the current problems this method of working with young people can be practiced as well as other interventions. The theoretical underpinnings of solution-focused brief therapy have been developed out of philosophy as well as an appreciation of communicating positive outcomes through a creative process. Primary because the focus of this intervention is on future goals set by the young person, more importantly because with this method of intervention shows that problems are not limited by boundaries therefore neither the social worker (and other professionals) cannot be wrong the tends to lead to agreements being forged. This had been found to help build the relationship with David so that he felt that he was being heard through his verbal and non verbal communication. However whilst there is not a grounded understanding that identify the nature of the problem SFBT it creates problems in being able to measure efficacy. In this instance SFBT was used to build confidence, trust and capacity with David so that he would be prepared for his future with the current foster carers. Task centred practice Task Centred social work provides a clear framework for professional intervention, it deal with current (here and now) problems. It focuses on the problem and tries to negotiate and agree a method of dealing with the problem by identifying goals and setting timescales. There are 2 primary components of this approach which are Task Crisis intervention theories Outcomes Led Approach Child development Children do not have the same language skills or the emotional development of adults and therefore their attachment anxieties are triggered stopping them expressing themselves verbally and producing dysfunctional or attachment behaviours. Attachment behaviours can include minimising expressions of distress, that is the child knows that when their parent is shouting at them and the child is distressed this results in further parental rejection, so the child learns to minimise expressions of distress. The child acts happy even when frighten. In contrast the child express graet distress, especially when a parent is about to leave a type of attention seeking behaviour is communicating but not saying verbally show me you love me. Parenting a teenager in foster care can be vastly different from the ordinary parenting a birth child that is now a teenager. With the foster child there need to be a recognition and understanding of the young person background along with any previous placement breakdowns whether there are any disturbed and difficult behaviours. Foster carers must assist in adjusting the young persons defence mechanisms, developing attachments with the foster family whilst wherever possible maintaining links with the birth family. The foster carers felt that due to a recent argument with Philips birth mother he felt that no one liked him as his birth mother had chastised him for his language toward her. What skills are necessary? Report writing in accordance to the BAAF standards, work load and time management. Correspondence and record keeping Empathy is a dominant concept within social work. Recieving empathy enhances a clients feeling of self worth by communicating to them that they are understandable and are worth understanding. A social workers verbal and non verbal responses are crucial to communicating to the client they are being understood and entails skills to filter out and feedback themes and core messages in the client communication( ) Communications skills are essential in effectictive social work practice throughout the stages of assessment, planning, intervention and review. Questioning skills need to be employed to gain greater clarification concerning extremely personal issues and to constructively challemge client to recognised their responsibilities. For example, in the assessment process the accuracy of information is vital. However, the nature of this information is often sensitive and loaded with emotion and feeling from the past. If foster carers and young people are able to share this type of information they need to be convinced that there are being understood. What knowledge is required? In my interaction with service users and specifically in this case service providers (foster carers) human development theory influences my approach and form of communication. What techniques are appropriate? Interview formal and informal Assessment Reflection From my learning perspective, this case study highlights the complexities associated with working with children with behavioural issues. It was an opportunity to examine how social work can and does address thiese issues through the legislative and policy frameworks, along with our own knowledge and experience as well as the values and ethics set out in the National Occupational Standards. Your analysis should also include reflection on your skills and learning needs (500 words including 500 word description of an interaction with a service user) References Department of Children, Schools and Families (2010) Working Together to Safeguard Children: A Guide to Interagency Working ToSafeguard and Promote the Welfare of Children Nottingham: DCSF Publications. Thompson, N. (2003) Communication and Language: A Handbook of Theory and Practice. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. Low, S, Altman, I. (1992) Place attachment: a conceptual inquiry in Altman, I. and Low, S.M. (eds) Place Attachment, New York: Plenum Press. Thompson, N. (2005) Understanding Social Work, Preparation for Practice- Second edition. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. Department of Health (1991). Care Management and Assessment: a Practioners Guide. London: HMSO. Howe, D. (2000) Attachment Theory. In Davies, M. (ed). The Blackwell Encyclopaedia of Social Work. Oxford: Blackwell (pp 25-27). Howe, D. (1995) Attachment Theory for Social Work Practice. New York: Palgrave. Farmer,E.,Moyes,S.,Lipscombe,J, (2004) Fostering Adolescents Jessica Kingsley: London Farmer,E,. Moyers,M,(2003) Parenting skills adolescents: Skills and starategies, London School for policy Studies, University of Bristol: Bristol Care Management Care management is gathering information and seeking out how needs can be best met whilst enabling the service user to access services required, it also monitors service delivery ensuring that their services are continuing to meet the identified needs. The relationship between social worker and carer is a continually developing one whereby the negotiating with other professionals and giving and receiving information, this is all done in a non judgemental way enabling the carer to also develop their own skills of negotiating. I this case the carer was concerned with achieving a form of agreement or understanding as to the amount of foster children she could have at her home. It is important not to make the carer feel that care management is all about ticking boxes and ensuring that the correct piece of paper have been completed, if this where the case then there would not be the need for social work skills when manage care packages. Characteristics of Attachment Bowlby held that there were four characteristics of attachment: Proximity Maintenance The desire to be near the people we are attached to. Safe Haven Returning to the attachment figure for comfort and safety in the face of a fear or threat. Secure Base The attachment figure acts as a base of security from which the child can explore the surrounding environment. Separation Distress Anxiety that occurs in the absence of the attachment figure. (Bowlby, 1969). Care Management, involves overseeing the provision of a package of care services geared toward maintaining someone in the community who would otherwise need to rely on institutional provision (Thompson 2005 p69). Good care management encompasses a macro overview when completing the assessment, it should be completed in partnership with the service user and family paying regard to the strength and weaknesses as well as their ability to look at their life history and communicate the reason they find themselves in the current situation. Care Management is defined in government guidance as the process of tailoring services to individual needs (DOH, 1991:b).
Human Resource Outsourcing in the UK
Human Resource Outsourcing in the UK HUMAN RESOURCE OUTSOURCING: A GENERAL STUDY OF UNITED KINGDOM RETAILERS’ USE OF OUTSOURCED PERSONNEL, REASONS AND BENEFITS. ABSTRACT: Human Resource outsourcing is considered an important factor in today’s business world. It is constantly growing, especially in the global world where companies outsource not just within their country but across borders. This research concentrates on Human Resource outsourcing in the retail sector, including both small and medium size firms in the United Kingdom. The ultimate aim of this research is outlined below: To find out why companies outsource their Human Resource – their first and foremost reasons. To find out what benefits there are in this process. To find out if there are any control mechanisms linked to the process. To find answers to these questions, five retail managers were interviewed: three respondents interviewed were conducted face to face and two were phoned interviewed. Again, fifty questionnaires were sent out to recruitment agencies who are the suppliers of the Human Resource, to confirm if they share the same opinion with retail managers who are their clients. Out of the fifty questionnaires, 30 were retrieved and analysed. The results revealed that companies do not outsource all of their Human Resource functions. Recruitment is the key function outsourced for the simple reason of convenience and time saving. However, benefits are enormous including cost effectiveness, achieving higher core competency levels, greater flexibility and accessibility to expertise, reducing workload of staff etc. Results also depict two categories of outsourced staff, which are temporary staff and permanent staff with temporary staff being the majority. CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1.1There have been many issues surrounding outsourcing of Human Resource. It implications are wide and varied. Though there are many benefits, it is faced with challenges as well. Companies who have managed their challenges well have been successful others on the other hand have redrawn from the process. The topic was chosen because is an issue being discussed currently all over the globe and the retail sector is proving to be a sector that employs a greater percentage of the workforce. Chapter one gives a definition of outsourcing and discusses what outsourcing is all about. It gives relevant examples of those companies practicing Human Resource outsourcing and the results of their practice. Chapter two is the literature review. The literature review establishes concise framework and reveals various reasons why companies tend to outsource and its subsequent benefits. It also raises the issues of concern and the control outsourcers have over their suppliers. It discusses people’s opinion about the Human Resource outsourcing giving the pros and cons of the issue. Part two of chapter two gives the factors that drives the process Chapter three is basically about the retail sector and how it operates in the United Kingdom analysing the importance of the Human Resource in retailing. How data was collected is discussed in chapter four and further analysed. Finally findings are reported and conclusion with limitations given in the last chapter. 1.2Background of study Outsourcing has been defined by Gupta and Gupta (1992) as ‘the concept of hiring outside professional services to meet the in-house needs of an organisation or agency’ another explanation is a managerial approach delegating non-core functions of the organisation to other specialist and efficient services providers. In recent times, many companies are considering outsourcing their Human Resource because it is becoming a viable option. In the United Kingdom (UNITED KINGDOM), the situation has been drastic, especially in the retail sector. Human Resource indeed is one of the major factors of production and cannot be ignored in anyway for a business success. Human Resource is constantly growing and keeping abreast with the dynamic business world, which relies heavily on the technology advancement and specialist skills. The term ‘Human Resource’ was once seen in companies operations as a department that issued policies, heard grievances and problems of it staff. As time went on, it then included various aspects of training that benefits administration and staffing. The focus however is gradually changing again, now as a strategic consultant to the main business, trying to match personnel and their skills with the corporate goals of the company with the view of achieving competitive advantage. Human Resource outsourcing is becoming popular due to the perceived numerous benefits with emphasis on cost effectiveness and adding value to the organisation. In the United Kingdom, the growth of Human Resource outsourcing stemmed from increased demand in the public sector but now the private sector is also expressing more interest. (Winkleman et al, 1995) explained: outsourcing is actually not a new concept because organisations have always hired outside providers services in assisting their operations, especially Information and Communication Technology (ICT). What makes it different today is the range of services organisations are asking for from suppliers and the extent to which it has become politically correct and responses to changing market and corporate conditions. The rationale for outsourcing is simple and compelling in that contracting part of the operation is seen to be cheaper than the company doing all by itself. (Hendry,1995) in his discussion states that outsourcing not only enable organisation to make gains but also allow them to focus more especially on those activities it can perform better in-house. Even though the cost factor is obvious, (Rubin, 1990) emphasized the point that it is more important to understand the managerial basis of decision-making. Aside its cost effectiveness, it also has a strategic dimension whilst organisations attempt to find the ‘right size to fit a new environment’. The reason why organisations decide to outsource is the seasonal demand swings where there may be need for more hands on board to meet customer demand. Analysing the diagram below†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦, outsourcing could be considered as a continuum in that at one point staff may be needed temporary and at some points may be taken on to perform complete responsibility. Timing is also a key factor in the process. Thus from the diagram, the short-term market exchanges at one point and the long-term relational exchanges at the other. Operational task to relieve capacity overload Consultancy, capacity augmentation skill providers (Stopper, 2005) reported British Petroleum (BP) in 1999 spent $600 million towards its global human resource administration and management, for a contract of seven years. In the year 2000 however, BP’s revenue increased to $22 billion, about 8% of the total amount spent on the Human Resource that year. BP reduced its ongoing operating costs by at least $15million a year and avoided more than $30million in capital expenditures as a result of outsourcing it Human Resource services. (Dell, 2004) in his research, reported a Conference Board survey of 122 large companies in 2003. The report revealed that 79% of top managers voted cost reduction as the motive for outsourcing Human Resource services. Other research proved among the reasons for outsourcing, the most prevalent, thus 42% voted providing better services to employees and 25% to improve efficiency, effectiveness or productivity. The motive of BP Human Resource outsourcing was to reduce cost but improve efficiency. EXULT, the supplier took total charge of BP’s total Human Resource process, leaving BP dealing with stuff that require more attention, such as their policy .Advocators of Human Resource outsourcing share their views on the grounds that Human Resource has an increasingly complex legal environment, and for succes s in mergers and or acquisitions, it requires special skills, knowledge and Human Resource attention. The question is ‘‘will the process work for everyone’’? Is it necessary for every company or an organisation considering outsourcing its Human Resource? There are therefore arguments in support of and against Human Resource outsourcing in this debate. This study seeks to answer the following questions finding out basically why companies will outsource their Human Resource and to what benefits there are for such companies. It also analyses the level of control the company has on the process. Contrarily to this opinion, (Morton, 2003) argued that Human Resource outsourcing is a faddish trend. His question is, ‘‘would the supplier know one’s business as well as the owner and can he really visualise the exact issue on the ground’’? Again, is it advisable for an outsider to take decisions on your behalf’’? His words are: ‘‘your people are your biggest resource. It is important to keep hold of power over them’’. Klaas, with his theoretical study on the impact of Human Resource outsourcing also believes that companies should not take things for granted but rather be well aware of the potential dangers of the process of Human Resource outsourcing before engaging in it. His concern, however, is on the variables of Professional Employer Organisations (PEOs). The PEO variables involve staff time cost, administration fees, HR outcomes and compensation cost. These however, vary from one company to the other. He therefore advised that companies should carefully research into these variables and consider whether to outsource or not. The word ‘trust’ is also very important in determining the relationship in any successful outsource. 1.3RESEARCH QUESTIONS: What drives the Human Resource outsourcing process? To what extent does Human Resource outsourcing help or hinder a firm’s success? 1.4AIM OF THE STUDY: The ultimate aim of this study is to establish the principal factor associated with the decision to outsource, and the benefits organisations derive from doing so. 1.5OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY: Explore the reasons for Human Resource outsourcing Examine and analyse the various benefits derived from outsourcing the Human Resource sector of a company Examine how successful Human Resource outsourcing has been Provide the essential keys to successful Human Resource outsourcing what aspect of the Human Resource function do companies outsource what category of staff do companies outsource 1.6 RATIONALE FOR THE STUDY: 1.6.1 History of Human Resource outsourcing in the United Kingdom. A research by Arthur Anderson concluded that 75% of the top 200 United Kingdom firms believed that personnel administration is a core function and should not be outsourced, 49% also assessed training as a core function whilst 39% agreed to payroll being a fundamental activity to the business. The study however identified a change in perception over the last four years. Functions previously seen as core and for that matter should not be outsourced are now considered eligible for outsourcing. One of the opinions that the human resource outsourcing has been mainly reactive rather than proactive since it deals with the consequences rather than being involved from the onset. Further argument on core competencies emphasises on the fact that the Human Resource function, importantly has more work to do with fewer resources. The recent development in technology creates more function for the human personnel department. This means that personnel need to work and learn the varying skills and knowledge needed to control such machines. In effect Human Resource professionals have moved away from the conventional way of Human Resource Management whilst they master new and different skills and competencies. They must therefore exhibit a better and broader understanding of organisational strategies and manage change. Having leadership skills, creatively and being innovative are very important skills in Human Resource outsourcing. Consultant seeking for business and top management who assure that as far as outsourcing has worked for Information Technology; it must also work for Human Resource. The human resource department in attempt to restructure the entire industries end up as formulators and implementers of downsizing and as targets of downsizing themselves. As a result, Human Resource managers in the United Kingdom trying to redefine their role from being a personnel and employee relations functions to become a â€Å"strategic partner†within the company. This will not stop them from delivering their usual good services to employees and shareholders. The human resource function is therefore under pressure to compete by being better, faster and more cost-effective. There is also pressure from employees as they seek accurate information and efficiency; again they take increasing responsibility for the choice and cost of various benefits as well as increasing their level of expectation. 1.6.2 The extent of Human Resource outsourcing in the United Kingdom A survey by magazine ‘Human Resource’ in May 2000 revealed the following results. There were 50 executive interviewees from the Financial Times Stock Exchange top 250. The findings were that despite a long history and noise on Human Resource Outsourcing, more than a third of companies in the United Kingdom does not outsource any of their human resource work. They solely perform all their human resource functions in-house. 58% of respondent retain their benefits work in-house whiles 46% their payroll and then 59% their pensions. It was noted that car fleet management seems to be the only service where large-scale outsourcing takes place. It employs about 46%, taking advantage of services provided by companies such as LEX. The study suggests that companies engaged in outsourcing do not even outsource the whole process out rather a portion of their main Human Resource functions. About 55% of respondents outsourced part of their recruitment function as compared to only 9% outsourcing it all. In the same way, 61% outsourced some of their training function but no one outsourced the entire function. The survey also suggested that the level of personnel especially the senior level was a major factor why companies outsource, for instance a third of companies outsource for their senior staff in terms of recruitment as well as training. The survey revealed that fleet management is most commonly outsourced in its entirety, next is pensions and then payroll, other functions partially outsourced are training, pensions, benefits, recruitment and payroll. Payroll and personnel –related outsourcing is well practised in the United States (US) and some analysts have predicted United Kingdom following suit but in a modified form sometime to come. The survey showed the figure below Outsourcing prevalence for different human resource functions in % Source: Human Resource HR survey May 2002 There are five competence factors influencing the outsourcing phenomenon downsizing rapid growth or decline restructuring increased competition globalisation Theorists Peter and Waterman (1982), promulgated the concentration on what companies â€Å"do best†and promoted the idea of sticking to the knitting. Hamal and Prahalad (1990) introduced the core competencies, which is the concentration on the company’s main strategies. In 1986 Miles and Snow initiate the concept of the network organisation, in this situation the core company focused on its major activities whilst contracting out and managing activities of third party. This theory was further developed by Reich in 1991 stating that western companies would have to concentrate their efforts on ‘knowledge based’ activities to form elements of an enterprise web. 1.6.3 Advantages of Human Resource outsourcing The main advantages of the Human Resource outsourcing are listed as: Enhances time management Provides better quality products / services Reduces fixed costs Better investments through technological advancement Support managers to focus in their communicating and integrating Human Resource policy Suppliers having dealt with different organisations always have new experience and approaches 1.6.4 Disadvantages of Human Resource outsourcing Main problems associated with Human Resource outsourcing are: Hidden cost is underestimated Inadequate knowledge and understanding by suppliers of core business Accountability of supports service provided Inability of suppliers to maintain quality of service Communication problems between the two parties 1.6.5 Limitation of Human Resource outsourcing Bill Carney in his article identified five key limitations Immediate cost savings Provider limitations Profit maximisation not guaranteed Limited customization Limited control Supplier management 1.6.6 Is Human Resource outsourcing right for everyone? Human Resource outsourcing is not the solution to all modern Human Resrource and administrative problems. Many companies do not consider the nature of their business to develop a comprehensive sourcing analysis framework. The underlying business needs of reducing cost often done through downsizing of staff may not be realised One significant disadvantage with the process is the potential misalignment of corporate and Human Resource strategies and priorities. Thus what seems beneficial to one Human Resource manager may not be same in the wider corporate context. 1.6.7 Effective organisational entry practices To have an effective entry practice, depends on good analysis throughout the sequential process. should an error happen, the whole sequence may be affected and prove more costly to employers, not only in terms of financial loss but will also disrupt the progress of work. This process might also de-motivate established staff and loose out to the competition. The diagram below shows the stages in the organisational entry process. Basic stages of the organisational entry process ANALYSIS RECRUITMENT Assess the best way to attract the candidates matching the selection criteria Determine how the company wants to present itself to recruits Link recruitments strategy to the information the company needs to gain in the selection process Assess the performance of previous recruitment drivers Evaluation of knowledge, skills and abilities required in the short term Long-term planning on how job profile may change Evaluation of organisational culture/strategy and how it may change ANALYSIS Review / feedback from each stage of the process to raise the efficiency SELECTION Determine which tools to use to assess if a candidate matches the required criteria/competencies Determine the level of flexibility the company can afford in the terms offered to attract the best recruits Link selection strategy to information about corporate culture Determine what the new employee needs to know to work effectively and fit in as soon as possible INDUSTRIAL Source: Market tracking international ltd ( MTI) A survey conducted by the DDI (1991) involving 1000 HR directors from leading United Kingdom companies depicts that ‘hiring the right people’ was rated as the most important issue people may face. The next one is â€Å"motivating and retaining employees†with regard to staff turnover costs, the result of the survey showed that 10% of firms incur costs in excess of  £5million per annum; and more worryingly, 69% of firms do not bother to calculate the cost of staff turnover. Further research showed that the 1980s and the early 1990s recession contributed to cost-cutting, downsizing and restructuring in a number of industry sectors. This led to the change in the employment market and altering the recruitment and selections strategies of organisations. It again suggests that new job opportunities are more likely in the service sector, commonly among highly skilled. Also there has been an increase in the part-time, temporary and contract-work as companies strive to achieve flexibility in order to cope with changing market demands. The graph below shows how United Kingdom employment sectors are affected by staff shortages 1.6.8 Types of Human Resource outsourcing Researchers have grouped outsourcing into the following groups: Total outsourcing: outsourcing is considered as total outsourcing when a company decides to outsource about 70%-80% of a particular function to a single supplier with the aim of concentrating on the company’s core competencies. This â€Å"hundred percent†of a personnel service has generated into argument. First of all, it is argued that a major portion of personnel work is so central to the strategic objectives and the culture of the organisation. For this matter the company itself can only effectively carry out the personnel work. The second argument is certain situations are hard to predict but may require immediate responses example is industrial dispute. For this reason it becomes difficult to contract out such tasks to a supplier who can not guarantee the proper action needed. Further arguments suggest that they have not yet discovered a significant Human Resource supplier for 100% total outsourcing. There exist only few suppliers who are able to take on a complete personnel service. Multiple / selective outsourcing: companies negotiate with numerous suppliers so as to keep them in a state of healthy competition under short-term contracts. It has an aim of retaining suppliers on larger-term contracts. Joint venture / strategic: it refers to partnering with other suppliers in executing a particular project so as to share risk and rewards. The outsourcing is the risk factor to the company (client) and the same time maintain strong ownership and control Temporary outsourcing partnership: is a short-term contract usually 1-2 years for the smaller companies who cannot justly handle external consultancy. Transformational outsourcing (Information Technology Information System applications): it is an application within the technology / information system field. Business process outsourcing (BPO): is considered as the sharpest end of the outsourcing spectrum, it involves outsourcing critical important business processes such as finance and accounting, internal audit and procurement etc. it is actually a rapidly growing area. Insourcing: this could mean reclaiming of application that had previously been outsourced; it is done in two ways, either hiring consultants to re-engineer the in-house department or through conventional in-house bidding. Partial outsourcing transfer: is the partial transfer of services and associated resources, it involves outsourcing fairly routine and well established practices such as pay roll and at the same time retaining newer systems in-house. The company remains the managers of the process and takes most decisions. Asset purchasing: is where the supplier decides to buy the entire set of physical assets from the clients company. It is also a form of cash flow to the company for selling its assets. There is also transfer of personnel from the company to the supplier; however the place of work does not change. (Lee, 2002) also categorised Human Resource outsourcing into three aspects: Professional Employers Organisation (PEO) – Application Service Provider (ASP) Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) PEOs have a duty of managing a company’s human resources, take charge of employee’s legal issues and undertake basic Human Resource functions as recruitment and selection including performance appraisal. In most cases PEO form partnership with other suppliers. The PEO concentrate on the Human Resource aspect of the business, the company on the other hand handles the other aspect. Sometimes due to the nature of Human Resource, the company may decide to enter into strategic alliance or joint venture in order to have some level of control over the Human Resource management. Within the context of Human Resource outsourcing, organisations specific needs and processes vary. Some organisations tend to outsource virtually all of it Human Resource Processes whilst others concentrate on specific areas of the process such as staff recruitment, staff training, payroll or resources. About 9% outsourced all of it recruitment function while about 55% of respondents outsource part of their recruitment function. Amstrong (2001) introduced a list of Human Resource areas that are often outsourced. These are: Training, Payroll Management, Health and Safety Monitoring and Advice, Recruitment and finally Employee Welfare and Counselling activities. More so Workplace Employee Relations Survey (WERS) in 2004 revealed that Training, Payroll and Resourcing of temporary positions are the most common component that companies seek to outsource. It is noted that very few organisations such as British Telecom, Boots the Chemist, Procter Gamble have outsourced their entire Human Resource functions and the most recently is Unilever. ASPs: Application Service Providers focuses on software applications. They deal with software processes and rent to users. They have standardised off-the shelf applications and the customised Human Resource software development. It is designed to manage payroll, benefits among others. BPO: this refers to Business Process Outsourcing, which focuses on outsourcing managerial and operational functions in Human Resource. BPO is also in charge of monitoring the latest information systems. In the United Kingdom, a change in political ideology after 18 years of conservative government rule is seen as a driver of the outsourcing, as a means of reducing cost and raising efficiency, the use of outsourcing was promoted. This really showed in the public sector through the introduction of market-based instruments and the formation of internal market as in the health service Different authors have classified outsourcing drivers. According to (Winkleman et al, 1993) there are two basic drivers for outsourcing success; these are cost reduction and strategic shift in how organisations operate. (Grupter et al, 1992) added two more drivers as market forces and technical considerations. (Hiemstra et al, 1993) also indicated four drivers, which are cost, capital, knowledge and capacity. (Beulen et al, 1994) suggested five main drivers for outsourcing: quality, cost, finance, core-business and cooperation. 1.6.9 Drivers for outsourcing: ( Beulen et al; 1994) outlines the following general drivers for outsourcing: Quality: actual capacity is temporarily inefficient to comply with demand. The quality motive can be subdivided into three aspects: increased quality demands, shortage of qualified personnel and outsourcing as a transition period. Cost: outsourcing is a possible solution to control increasing costs and its compatible with a cost leadership strategy by controlling and decreasing costs, a company can increase its competitive position. Finance: a company has a limited investment budget. The funds must be used for investments in core business activities, which are long-term decisions. Core-Business: core-business is a primary activity with which an organisation generates revenue. To concentrate on core-business activities is a strategic decision, all subsequent activities are mainly supportive and should be outsourced. Cooperation: cooperation between companies can lead to conflict. In order to avoid such conflict those activities that are produced by both organisations should be subject to total outsourcing. However these factors cannot be in isolation, they are not sufficient enough as attention needs to be given to the context in which such decisions are taken. Consideration should be given to the internal and external environment within which the organisation operates. The organisation’s objectives and most importantly its culture may effect the implementation and sustainability of the policy, once made. Considering the factors that drives and influence outsourcing decisions, Chris Fill in his research established three key emerging issues: the contextual factors represented by an organisation’s particular internal and external conditions the strategic and structural aspects associated with an organisation’s decision to reconfigure the costs associated with the process or activity under review It is very necessary for managers to consider these three aspects when deciding to outsource. A framework illustrates the process A composite outsourcing decision framework Outsourcing Management Consideration And judgement Contextual factors Strategy Structure Transaction Costs Source: Management Decision vol. 38 No.1, (2000) CHAPTER TWO 2.1 LITERATURE REVIEW: The most important and cherished asset of any company is its Human Resource – the staff. Even with all the most current technology, personnel are first because without manpower, nothing gets done. The success of every organisation depends on the quality of staff employed. On the other hand it could be disastrous if the right decision is not taken in choosing the right people with the right skills in the right position. The kind of skills employed makes a vast difference between a business success and it failure. In the business environment, some companies may employ solely skilled personnel, others require both skilled and semi skilled personnel and others unskilled labour force. In the retail sector for example, the nature of the work demands both skilled and semi skilled staff with the semi – skilled dominating. The skilled staff basically are managers such as the marketing and advertising managers, accounting managers, purchasing and supplier managers and general ov erseers. The challenge is how to get those people into the right places in order not to under utilise or over utilise their services. For instance, it might not be necessary to employ a professional who is to be paid as a sales assistant to be serving customers, but rather have a responsibility of planning and strategising how to win customers and be ahead of it competitors. In order to make the best decision, t Human Resource Outsourcing in the UK Human Resource Outsourcing in the UK HUMAN RESOURCE OUTSOURCING: A GENERAL STUDY OF UNITED KINGDOM RETAILERS’ USE OF OUTSOURCED PERSONNEL, REASONS AND BENEFITS. ABSTRACT: Human Resource outsourcing is considered an important factor in today’s business world. It is constantly growing, especially in the global world where companies outsource not just within their country but across borders. This research concentrates on Human Resource outsourcing in the retail sector, including both small and medium size firms in the United Kingdom. The ultimate aim of this research is outlined below: To find out why companies outsource their Human Resource – their first and foremost reasons. To find out what benefits there are in this process. To find out if there are any control mechanisms linked to the process. To find answers to these questions, five retail managers were interviewed: three respondents interviewed were conducted face to face and two were phoned interviewed. Again, fifty questionnaires were sent out to recruitment agencies who are the suppliers of the Human Resource, to confirm if they share the same opinion with retail managers who are their clients. Out of the fifty questionnaires, 30 were retrieved and analysed. The results revealed that companies do not outsource all of their Human Resource functions. Recruitment is the key function outsourced for the simple reason of convenience and time saving. However, benefits are enormous including cost effectiveness, achieving higher core competency levels, greater flexibility and accessibility to expertise, reducing workload of staff etc. Results also depict two categories of outsourced staff, which are temporary staff and permanent staff with temporary staff being the majority. CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1.1There have been many issues surrounding outsourcing of Human Resource. It implications are wide and varied. Though there are many benefits, it is faced with challenges as well. Companies who have managed their challenges well have been successful others on the other hand have redrawn from the process. The topic was chosen because is an issue being discussed currently all over the globe and the retail sector is proving to be a sector that employs a greater percentage of the workforce. Chapter one gives a definition of outsourcing and discusses what outsourcing is all about. It gives relevant examples of those companies practicing Human Resource outsourcing and the results of their practice. Chapter two is the literature review. The literature review establishes concise framework and reveals various reasons why companies tend to outsource and its subsequent benefits. It also raises the issues of concern and the control outsourcers have over their suppliers. It discusses people’s opinion about the Human Resource outsourcing giving the pros and cons of the issue. Part two of chapter two gives the factors that drives the process Chapter three is basically about the retail sector and how it operates in the United Kingdom analysing the importance of the Human Resource in retailing. How data was collected is discussed in chapter four and further analysed. Finally findings are reported and conclusion with limitations given in the last chapter. 1.2Background of study Outsourcing has been defined by Gupta and Gupta (1992) as ‘the concept of hiring outside professional services to meet the in-house needs of an organisation or agency’ another explanation is a managerial approach delegating non-core functions of the organisation to other specialist and efficient services providers. In recent times, many companies are considering outsourcing their Human Resource because it is becoming a viable option. In the United Kingdom (UNITED KINGDOM), the situation has been drastic, especially in the retail sector. Human Resource indeed is one of the major factors of production and cannot be ignored in anyway for a business success. Human Resource is constantly growing and keeping abreast with the dynamic business world, which relies heavily on the technology advancement and specialist skills. The term ‘Human Resource’ was once seen in companies operations as a department that issued policies, heard grievances and problems of it staff. As time went on, it then included various aspects of training that benefits administration and staffing. The focus however is gradually changing again, now as a strategic consultant to the main business, trying to match personnel and their skills with the corporate goals of the company with the view of achieving competitive advantage. Human Resource outsourcing is becoming popular due to the perceived numerous benefits with emphasis on cost effectiveness and adding value to the organisation. In the United Kingdom, the growth of Human Resource outsourcing stemmed from increased demand in the public sector but now the private sector is also expressing more interest. (Winkleman et al, 1995) explained: outsourcing is actually not a new concept because organisations have always hired outside providers services in assisting their operations, especially Information and Communication Technology (ICT). What makes it different today is the range of services organisations are asking for from suppliers and the extent to which it has become politically correct and responses to changing market and corporate conditions. The rationale for outsourcing is simple and compelling in that contracting part of the operation is seen to be cheaper than the company doing all by itself. (Hendry,1995) in his discussion states that outsourcing not only enable organisation to make gains but also allow them to focus more especially on those activities it can perform better in-house. Even though the cost factor is obvious, (Rubin, 1990) emphasized the point that it is more important to understand the managerial basis of decision-making. Aside its cost effectiveness, it also has a strategic dimension whilst organisations attempt to find the ‘right size to fit a new environment’. The reason why organisations decide to outsource is the seasonal demand swings where there may be need for more hands on board to meet customer demand. Analysing the diagram below†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦, outsourcing could be considered as a continuum in that at one point staff may be needed temporary and at some points may be taken on to perform complete responsibility. Timing is also a key factor in the process. Thus from the diagram, the short-term market exchanges at one point and the long-term relational exchanges at the other. Operational task to relieve capacity overload Consultancy, capacity augmentation skill providers (Stopper, 2005) reported British Petroleum (BP) in 1999 spent $600 million towards its global human resource administration and management, for a contract of seven years. In the year 2000 however, BP’s revenue increased to $22 billion, about 8% of the total amount spent on the Human Resource that year. BP reduced its ongoing operating costs by at least $15million a year and avoided more than $30million in capital expenditures as a result of outsourcing it Human Resource services. (Dell, 2004) in his research, reported a Conference Board survey of 122 large companies in 2003. The report revealed that 79% of top managers voted cost reduction as the motive for outsourcing Human Resource services. Other research proved among the reasons for outsourcing, the most prevalent, thus 42% voted providing better services to employees and 25% to improve efficiency, effectiveness or productivity. The motive of BP Human Resource outsourcing was to reduce cost but improve efficiency. EXULT, the supplier took total charge of BP’s total Human Resource process, leaving BP dealing with stuff that require more attention, such as their policy .Advocators of Human Resource outsourcing share their views on the grounds that Human Resource has an increasingly complex legal environment, and for succes s in mergers and or acquisitions, it requires special skills, knowledge and Human Resource attention. The question is ‘‘will the process work for everyone’’? Is it necessary for every company or an organisation considering outsourcing its Human Resource? There are therefore arguments in support of and against Human Resource outsourcing in this debate. This study seeks to answer the following questions finding out basically why companies will outsource their Human Resource and to what benefits there are for such companies. It also analyses the level of control the company has on the process. Contrarily to this opinion, (Morton, 2003) argued that Human Resource outsourcing is a faddish trend. His question is, ‘‘would the supplier know one’s business as well as the owner and can he really visualise the exact issue on the ground’’? Again, is it advisable for an outsider to take decisions on your behalf’’? His words are: ‘‘your people are your biggest resource. It is important to keep hold of power over them’’. Klaas, with his theoretical study on the impact of Human Resource outsourcing also believes that companies should not take things for granted but rather be well aware of the potential dangers of the process of Human Resource outsourcing before engaging in it. His concern, however, is on the variables of Professional Employer Organisations (PEOs). The PEO variables involve staff time cost, administration fees, HR outcomes and compensation cost. These however, vary from one company to the other. He therefore advised that companies should carefully research into these variables and consider whether to outsource or not. The word ‘trust’ is also very important in determining the relationship in any successful outsource. 1.3RESEARCH QUESTIONS: What drives the Human Resource outsourcing process? To what extent does Human Resource outsourcing help or hinder a firm’s success? 1.4AIM OF THE STUDY: The ultimate aim of this study is to establish the principal factor associated with the decision to outsource, and the benefits organisations derive from doing so. 1.5OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY: Explore the reasons for Human Resource outsourcing Examine and analyse the various benefits derived from outsourcing the Human Resource sector of a company Examine how successful Human Resource outsourcing has been Provide the essential keys to successful Human Resource outsourcing what aspect of the Human Resource function do companies outsource what category of staff do companies outsource 1.6 RATIONALE FOR THE STUDY: 1.6.1 History of Human Resource outsourcing in the United Kingdom. A research by Arthur Anderson concluded that 75% of the top 200 United Kingdom firms believed that personnel administration is a core function and should not be outsourced, 49% also assessed training as a core function whilst 39% agreed to payroll being a fundamental activity to the business. The study however identified a change in perception over the last four years. Functions previously seen as core and for that matter should not be outsourced are now considered eligible for outsourcing. One of the opinions that the human resource outsourcing has been mainly reactive rather than proactive since it deals with the consequences rather than being involved from the onset. Further argument on core competencies emphasises on the fact that the Human Resource function, importantly has more work to do with fewer resources. The recent development in technology creates more function for the human personnel department. This means that personnel need to work and learn the varying skills and knowledge needed to control such machines. In effect Human Resource professionals have moved away from the conventional way of Human Resource Management whilst they master new and different skills and competencies. They must therefore exhibit a better and broader understanding of organisational strategies and manage change. Having leadership skills, creatively and being innovative are very important skills in Human Resource outsourcing. Consultant seeking for business and top management who assure that as far as outsourcing has worked for Information Technology; it must also work for Human Resource. The human resource department in attempt to restructure the entire industries end up as formulators and implementers of downsizing and as targets of downsizing themselves. As a result, Human Resource managers in the United Kingdom trying to redefine their role from being a personnel and employee relations functions to become a â€Å"strategic partner†within the company. This will not stop them from delivering their usual good services to employees and shareholders. The human resource function is therefore under pressure to compete by being better, faster and more cost-effective. There is also pressure from employees as they seek accurate information and efficiency; again they take increasing responsibility for the choice and cost of various benefits as well as increasing their level of expectation. 1.6.2 The extent of Human Resource outsourcing in the United Kingdom A survey by magazine ‘Human Resource’ in May 2000 revealed the following results. There were 50 executive interviewees from the Financial Times Stock Exchange top 250. The findings were that despite a long history and noise on Human Resource Outsourcing, more than a third of companies in the United Kingdom does not outsource any of their human resource work. They solely perform all their human resource functions in-house. 58% of respondent retain their benefits work in-house whiles 46% their payroll and then 59% their pensions. It was noted that car fleet management seems to be the only service where large-scale outsourcing takes place. It employs about 46%, taking advantage of services provided by companies such as LEX. The study suggests that companies engaged in outsourcing do not even outsource the whole process out rather a portion of their main Human Resource functions. About 55% of respondents outsourced part of their recruitment function as compared to only 9% outsourcing it all. In the same way, 61% outsourced some of their training function but no one outsourced the entire function. The survey also suggested that the level of personnel especially the senior level was a major factor why companies outsource, for instance a third of companies outsource for their senior staff in terms of recruitment as well as training. The survey revealed that fleet management is most commonly outsourced in its entirety, next is pensions and then payroll, other functions partially outsourced are training, pensions, benefits, recruitment and payroll. Payroll and personnel –related outsourcing is well practised in the United States (US) and some analysts have predicted United Kingdom following suit but in a modified form sometime to come. The survey showed the figure below Outsourcing prevalence for different human resource functions in % Source: Human Resource HR survey May 2002 There are five competence factors influencing the outsourcing phenomenon downsizing rapid growth or decline restructuring increased competition globalisation Theorists Peter and Waterman (1982), promulgated the concentration on what companies â€Å"do best†and promoted the idea of sticking to the knitting. Hamal and Prahalad (1990) introduced the core competencies, which is the concentration on the company’s main strategies. In 1986 Miles and Snow initiate the concept of the network organisation, in this situation the core company focused on its major activities whilst contracting out and managing activities of third party. This theory was further developed by Reich in 1991 stating that western companies would have to concentrate their efforts on ‘knowledge based’ activities to form elements of an enterprise web. 1.6.3 Advantages of Human Resource outsourcing The main advantages of the Human Resource outsourcing are listed as: Enhances time management Provides better quality products / services Reduces fixed costs Better investments through technological advancement Support managers to focus in their communicating and integrating Human Resource policy Suppliers having dealt with different organisations always have new experience and approaches 1.6.4 Disadvantages of Human Resource outsourcing Main problems associated with Human Resource outsourcing are: Hidden cost is underestimated Inadequate knowledge and understanding by suppliers of core business Accountability of supports service provided Inability of suppliers to maintain quality of service Communication problems between the two parties 1.6.5 Limitation of Human Resource outsourcing Bill Carney in his article identified five key limitations Immediate cost savings Provider limitations Profit maximisation not guaranteed Limited customization Limited control Supplier management 1.6.6 Is Human Resource outsourcing right for everyone? Human Resource outsourcing is not the solution to all modern Human Resrource and administrative problems. Many companies do not consider the nature of their business to develop a comprehensive sourcing analysis framework. The underlying business needs of reducing cost often done through downsizing of staff may not be realised One significant disadvantage with the process is the potential misalignment of corporate and Human Resource strategies and priorities. Thus what seems beneficial to one Human Resource manager may not be same in the wider corporate context. 1.6.7 Effective organisational entry practices To have an effective entry practice, depends on good analysis throughout the sequential process. should an error happen, the whole sequence may be affected and prove more costly to employers, not only in terms of financial loss but will also disrupt the progress of work. This process might also de-motivate established staff and loose out to the competition. The diagram below shows the stages in the organisational entry process. Basic stages of the organisational entry process ANALYSIS RECRUITMENT Assess the best way to attract the candidates matching the selection criteria Determine how the company wants to present itself to recruits Link recruitments strategy to the information the company needs to gain in the selection process Assess the performance of previous recruitment drivers Evaluation of knowledge, skills and abilities required in the short term Long-term planning on how job profile may change Evaluation of organisational culture/strategy and how it may change ANALYSIS Review / feedback from each stage of the process to raise the efficiency SELECTION Determine which tools to use to assess if a candidate matches the required criteria/competencies Determine the level of flexibility the company can afford in the terms offered to attract the best recruits Link selection strategy to information about corporate culture Determine what the new employee needs to know to work effectively and fit in as soon as possible INDUSTRIAL Source: Market tracking international ltd ( MTI) A survey conducted by the DDI (1991) involving 1000 HR directors from leading United Kingdom companies depicts that ‘hiring the right people’ was rated as the most important issue people may face. The next one is â€Å"motivating and retaining employees†with regard to staff turnover costs, the result of the survey showed that 10% of firms incur costs in excess of  £5million per annum; and more worryingly, 69% of firms do not bother to calculate the cost of staff turnover. Further research showed that the 1980s and the early 1990s recession contributed to cost-cutting, downsizing and restructuring in a number of industry sectors. This led to the change in the employment market and altering the recruitment and selections strategies of organisations. It again suggests that new job opportunities are more likely in the service sector, commonly among highly skilled. Also there has been an increase in the part-time, temporary and contract-work as companies strive to achieve flexibility in order to cope with changing market demands. The graph below shows how United Kingdom employment sectors are affected by staff shortages 1.6.8 Types of Human Resource outsourcing Researchers have grouped outsourcing into the following groups: Total outsourcing: outsourcing is considered as total outsourcing when a company decides to outsource about 70%-80% of a particular function to a single supplier with the aim of concentrating on the company’s core competencies. This â€Å"hundred percent†of a personnel service has generated into argument. First of all, it is argued that a major portion of personnel work is so central to the strategic objectives and the culture of the organisation. For this matter the company itself can only effectively carry out the personnel work. The second argument is certain situations are hard to predict but may require immediate responses example is industrial dispute. For this reason it becomes difficult to contract out such tasks to a supplier who can not guarantee the proper action needed. Further arguments suggest that they have not yet discovered a significant Human Resource supplier for 100% total outsourcing. There exist only few suppliers who are able to take on a complete personnel service. Multiple / selective outsourcing: companies negotiate with numerous suppliers so as to keep them in a state of healthy competition under short-term contracts. It has an aim of retaining suppliers on larger-term contracts. Joint venture / strategic: it refers to partnering with other suppliers in executing a particular project so as to share risk and rewards. The outsourcing is the risk factor to the company (client) and the same time maintain strong ownership and control Temporary outsourcing partnership: is a short-term contract usually 1-2 years for the smaller companies who cannot justly handle external consultancy. Transformational outsourcing (Information Technology Information System applications): it is an application within the technology / information system field. Business process outsourcing (BPO): is considered as the sharpest end of the outsourcing spectrum, it involves outsourcing critical important business processes such as finance and accounting, internal audit and procurement etc. it is actually a rapidly growing area. Insourcing: this could mean reclaiming of application that had previously been outsourced; it is done in two ways, either hiring consultants to re-engineer the in-house department or through conventional in-house bidding. Partial outsourcing transfer: is the partial transfer of services and associated resources, it involves outsourcing fairly routine and well established practices such as pay roll and at the same time retaining newer systems in-house. The company remains the managers of the process and takes most decisions. Asset purchasing: is where the supplier decides to buy the entire set of physical assets from the clients company. It is also a form of cash flow to the company for selling its assets. There is also transfer of personnel from the company to the supplier; however the place of work does not change. (Lee, 2002) also categorised Human Resource outsourcing into three aspects: Professional Employers Organisation (PEO) – Application Service Provider (ASP) Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) PEOs have a duty of managing a company’s human resources, take charge of employee’s legal issues and undertake basic Human Resource functions as recruitment and selection including performance appraisal. In most cases PEO form partnership with other suppliers. The PEO concentrate on the Human Resource aspect of the business, the company on the other hand handles the other aspect. Sometimes due to the nature of Human Resource, the company may decide to enter into strategic alliance or joint venture in order to have some level of control over the Human Resource management. Within the context of Human Resource outsourcing, organisations specific needs and processes vary. Some organisations tend to outsource virtually all of it Human Resource Processes whilst others concentrate on specific areas of the process such as staff recruitment, staff training, payroll or resources. About 9% outsourced all of it recruitment function while about 55% of respondents outsource part of their recruitment function. Amstrong (2001) introduced a list of Human Resource areas that are often outsourced. These are: Training, Payroll Management, Health and Safety Monitoring and Advice, Recruitment and finally Employee Welfare and Counselling activities. More so Workplace Employee Relations Survey (WERS) in 2004 revealed that Training, Payroll and Resourcing of temporary positions are the most common component that companies seek to outsource. It is noted that very few organisations such as British Telecom, Boots the Chemist, Procter Gamble have outsourced their entire Human Resource functions and the most recently is Unilever. ASPs: Application Service Providers focuses on software applications. They deal with software processes and rent to users. They have standardised off-the shelf applications and the customised Human Resource software development. It is designed to manage payroll, benefits among others. BPO: this refers to Business Process Outsourcing, which focuses on outsourcing managerial and operational functions in Human Resource. BPO is also in charge of monitoring the latest information systems. In the United Kingdom, a change in political ideology after 18 years of conservative government rule is seen as a driver of the outsourcing, as a means of reducing cost and raising efficiency, the use of outsourcing was promoted. This really showed in the public sector through the introduction of market-based instruments and the formation of internal market as in the health service Different authors have classified outsourcing drivers. According to (Winkleman et al, 1993) there are two basic drivers for outsourcing success; these are cost reduction and strategic shift in how organisations operate. (Grupter et al, 1992) added two more drivers as market forces and technical considerations. (Hiemstra et al, 1993) also indicated four drivers, which are cost, capital, knowledge and capacity. (Beulen et al, 1994) suggested five main drivers for outsourcing: quality, cost, finance, core-business and cooperation. 1.6.9 Drivers for outsourcing: ( Beulen et al; 1994) outlines the following general drivers for outsourcing: Quality: actual capacity is temporarily inefficient to comply with demand. The quality motive can be subdivided into three aspects: increased quality demands, shortage of qualified personnel and outsourcing as a transition period. Cost: outsourcing is a possible solution to control increasing costs and its compatible with a cost leadership strategy by controlling and decreasing costs, a company can increase its competitive position. Finance: a company has a limited investment budget. The funds must be used for investments in core business activities, which are long-term decisions. Core-Business: core-business is a primary activity with which an organisation generates revenue. To concentrate on core-business activities is a strategic decision, all subsequent activities are mainly supportive and should be outsourced. Cooperation: cooperation between companies can lead to conflict. In order to avoid such conflict those activities that are produced by both organisations should be subject to total outsourcing. However these factors cannot be in isolation, they are not sufficient enough as attention needs to be given to the context in which such decisions are taken. Consideration should be given to the internal and external environment within which the organisation operates. The organisation’s objectives and most importantly its culture may effect the implementation and sustainability of the policy, once made. Considering the factors that drives and influence outsourcing decisions, Chris Fill in his research established three key emerging issues: the contextual factors represented by an organisation’s particular internal and external conditions the strategic and structural aspects associated with an organisation’s decision to reconfigure the costs associated with the process or activity under review It is very necessary for managers to consider these three aspects when deciding to outsource. A framework illustrates the process A composite outsourcing decision framework Outsourcing Management Consideration And judgement Contextual factors Strategy Structure Transaction Costs Source: Management Decision vol. 38 No.1, (2000) CHAPTER TWO 2.1 LITERATURE REVIEW: The most important and cherished asset of any company is its Human Resource – the staff. Even with all the most current technology, personnel are first because without manpower, nothing gets done. The success of every organisation depends on the quality of staff employed. On the other hand it could be disastrous if the right decision is not taken in choosing the right people with the right skills in the right position. The kind of skills employed makes a vast difference between a business success and it failure. In the business environment, some companies may employ solely skilled personnel, others require both skilled and semi skilled personnel and others unskilled labour force. In the retail sector for example, the nature of the work demands both skilled and semi skilled staff with the semi – skilled dominating. The skilled staff basically are managers such as the marketing and advertising managers, accounting managers, purchasing and supplier managers and general ov erseers. The challenge is how to get those people into the right places in order not to under utilise or over utilise their services. For instance, it might not be necessary to employ a professional who is to be paid as a sales assistant to be serving customers, but rather have a responsibility of planning and strategising how to win customers and be ahead of it competitors. In order to make the best decision, t
Sunday, August 4, 2019
The Magnificent Mary Leakey Essay -- Exploratory Essays Research Paper
The Magnificent Mary Leakey Mary Leakey died on December 9, 1996. She loved to smoke Dutch cigars, as if everyday were some kind of celebration; strong tobacco was one of her vices. Hers was a life of constant commencement. She never attended colleges, though she did receive numerous honorary degrees in Britain and America: "I have worked for them by digging in the sun," she said. She first gained recognition in 1948 for discovering a 16 million year old fossilized cranium of a hominid thought to be the missing link, one she called "Proconsul". But she only found it and named it. "I never felt interpretation was my job," she said. "What I came to do was to dig up things and take them out as well as I could. There is so much that we do not know, and the more we do know, the more we realize that early interpretations were completely wrong. It is good mental exercise, but people get so hot and nasty about it, which I think is ridiculous." She really was a no-nonsense woman, one who was perhaps more preoccupied with nonsense than she realized. As an explorer of concrete material, her primary and determined pursuit of fossils, bones, and human origins antagonized the speculative nature of her profession. She found beauty in the tangible history of human ancestry. "What was it like?" was simply not a question she entertained. More important was the question "What was it?" Once, three "man-apes," as Leakey called them, traversed a plain, accidentally leaving some of the most formidable scientific data we have about our ancestor-cousins. Is that how it happens? Is our universe a continuum of chaos out of which we construct a simplicity that is both pleasing and functional? And is ours a reality by these attemptsâ€â€or perhap... ...familiarity. Embarkation begins with a choice, and choice is a product of self-consciousness. We have been alive for so long, as has love and anger, resolve and obsession. With the million and one options that fight for our attention in a hyper-society like our own, reluctance can cost us everything. As a society, as a species, progress is our handle, the drive toward better and more hopeful situations is our enterprise. But the drive is also a specific one, localized and partitioned in every individual to find the next best condition. For senior preschoolers to senior graduate students to senior citizens transitioning into eternity, the origin of our motions are the same: the inescapable need to move on as where we are no longer suits us. Who were these individuals? Who were these three who walked together in the rain? The answer is simple and magnificent. The Magnificent Mary Leakey Essay -- Exploratory Essays Research Paper The Magnificent Mary Leakey Mary Leakey died on December 9, 1996. She loved to smoke Dutch cigars, as if everyday were some kind of celebration; strong tobacco was one of her vices. Hers was a life of constant commencement. She never attended colleges, though she did receive numerous honorary degrees in Britain and America: "I have worked for them by digging in the sun," she said. She first gained recognition in 1948 for discovering a 16 million year old fossilized cranium of a hominid thought to be the missing link, one she called "Proconsul". But she only found it and named it. "I never felt interpretation was my job," she said. "What I came to do was to dig up things and take them out as well as I could. There is so much that we do not know, and the more we do know, the more we realize that early interpretations were completely wrong. It is good mental exercise, but people get so hot and nasty about it, which I think is ridiculous." She really was a no-nonsense woman, one who was perhaps more preoccupied with nonsense than she realized. As an explorer of concrete material, her primary and determined pursuit of fossils, bones, and human origins antagonized the speculative nature of her profession. She found beauty in the tangible history of human ancestry. "What was it like?" was simply not a question she entertained. More important was the question "What was it?" Once, three "man-apes," as Leakey called them, traversed a plain, accidentally leaving some of the most formidable scientific data we have about our ancestor-cousins. Is that how it happens? Is our universe a continuum of chaos out of which we construct a simplicity that is both pleasing and functional? And is ours a reality by these attemptsâ€â€or perhap... ...familiarity. Embarkation begins with a choice, and choice is a product of self-consciousness. We have been alive for so long, as has love and anger, resolve and obsession. With the million and one options that fight for our attention in a hyper-society like our own, reluctance can cost us everything. As a society, as a species, progress is our handle, the drive toward better and more hopeful situations is our enterprise. But the drive is also a specific one, localized and partitioned in every individual to find the next best condition. For senior preschoolers to senior graduate students to senior citizens transitioning into eternity, the origin of our motions are the same: the inescapable need to move on as where we are no longer suits us. Who were these individuals? Who were these three who walked together in the rain? The answer is simple and magnificent.
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