Human resources
What's covered
Key facts
Communication in business
A formal meeting agenda helps keep discussion focused and on-topic: items are listed in advance, time is allocated.
Employment law
Age is one of the nine protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010: postcode, length of service, and smoking are not.
Motivating employees
A generous bonus scheme may fail to motivate creative workers because they often value autonomy and recognition more than money.
Organisational structures
A feature of a centralised business structure is that most decisions are made at head office: uniform policy, slow local response.
Recruitment and selection of employees
Businesses use assessment centres for senior hires because they test candidates with realistic job tasks together: group exercises, in-tray tasks, presentations, panel interviews.
Training
Businesses prefer apprenticeships for entry-level roles because they train staff to the firm's specific needs: tailored skills, loyalty, succession planning.
Communication in business
Good communication improves employee motivation because staff feel valued, informed, and listened to.
Employment law
A benefit to a business of following employment law fully is lower risk of costly tribunal claims: unfair dismissal awards and discrimination damages can be substantial.
Motivating employees
Performance-related bonuses are a financial motivator: extra pay tied to individual or team results.
Organisational structures
Chain of command describes the path orders follow down through a hierarchy: from senior managers to frontline staff.
Practice questions with answers
A taste of the 76 questions in this topic, answers marked. Sign up to practise the full set with spaced repetition.
Which is an example of written internal communication?
- •A phone call to an external supplier
- •A radio jingle promoting the brand
- •A television advert to consumers
- ✓An email between colleagues
Which UK Act protects against discrimination at work?
- •Employment Rights Act 1996
- ✓Equality Act 2010
- •Health and Safety at Work Act 1974
- •National Minimum Wage Act 1998
Which of these is a FINANCIAL method of reward?
- •Being given greater responsibility at work
- ✓Commission on the value of sales made
- •Job rotation between different tasks
- •Praise from a manager at work
What term describes the number of staff reporting to one manager?
- •chain of command
- •delegation ratio
- •management hierarchy
- ✓span of control
What is a job analysis?
- ✓An internal study of what a role involves
- •Just another name for the job description itself
- •The employee's signed contract of employment
- •The job advert that is sent out to applicants
What is induction training?
- ✓Training given to new employees when they start
- •Training given to staff after a poor performance review
- •Training given to staff on a day-release college course
- •Training given to staff when they are promoted
Three minutes a day. Knowledge that sticks.
Practise all 76 Human resources questions with spaced repetition, so what you revise today is still there in the exam. Free to use, no card needed.