Chapter 3 – The employee life cycle

The employee life cycle refers to the stages an employee goes through during their tenure at a company. These stages typically include attraction, recruitment, onboarding, development, retention, and separation.

Personnel planning ensures that an organization has the right number of employees with the right skills at the right time, involving forecasting future needs and developing strategies to meet those needs.

1. Current Staffing Level: Number and qualifications of current employees.

2. Future Staffing Level: Projected future employee count and qualifications.

3. Current Staffing Requirements: Number and type of employees needed now.

4. Future Staffing Requirements: Projected number and type of employees needed in the future.

1. Quantity: How many employees are needed.

2. Quality: The qualifications required for the job.

3. Time: When these employees are needed.

4. Place: Where these employees are needed.

5. Influence Factors: Natural turnover and further training of employees.

1. Purpose: To define the number and qualifications of employees needed to meet the company's future production and service goals.

2. Factors include:

   • Quantity

   • Quality

   • Time

   • Place

1. Production Program: Type and size of the production.

2. Customers: Quality and quantity of customer demands.

3. External Factors: Economy, politics, labor laws.

4. Internal Factors: Organization and absenteeism.

1. Determine future quantitative staffing requirements: Based on current workload or forecasts.

2. Determine future staffing level: Based on known and expected inflows and outflows.

Gross Staffing Requirements: Total number of employees needed.

1. Adjust by:

   • Subtracting current staffing levels.

   • Accounting for known exits and inflows.

2. Positive Net Requirements: Need to increase the workforce.

3. Negative Net Requirements: Need to reduce the workforce.

Calculate net staffing requirements using:

Net Staffing Requirements = Future Needs - Current Staff + Expected Outflows - Expected Inflows

Employer Branding involves creating a positive image of the company as an employer to attract and retain employees by promoting the company’s values, culture, and benefits. It includes developing an employer value proposition (EVP) and using consistent messaging to build a strong brand.

1. Recruitment: Short-term actions to meet staffing needs.

2. HR Marketing: Medium-term communication to support recruitment and retention.

3. Employer Branding: Long-term strategy to build a desirable employer brand.

   
   

1. Employer Branding: Creating a brand associated with the employer that is authentic, trustworthy, consistent, and attractive.

2. Employer Value Proposition (EVP): Unique benefits offered by the employer to employees and applicants, distinguishing the company from others.

1. Adaptation of marketing concepts to HR, focusing on recruitment.

2. Tasks: Labor market research, attracting potential employees, and supporting current employees.

1. Definition: Reviewing and positioning the company positively in the labor market to attract, select, and develop employees.

2. Measures: Strengthening company awareness, collaborating with universities, and addressing applicants through various channels.

1. Requirement Profile: Define needed qualifications and skills.

2. Job Advertisement: Attract candidates.

3. Selection: Filter for the most suitable candidate.

4. Contract: Sign with the chosen candidate.

5. Onboarding: Integrate the new employee into the company.

1. Methods:

   • In-house job ads.

   • Promoting current employees.

   • Transferring employees within the company.

2. Advantages:

   • Lower selection risk (candidates are known).

   • Shorter recruitment process time.

   • Lower training costs (employees are familiar with the company).

   • Signals job security and career growth opportunities.

Disadvantages:

• Limited selection options.

• Potentially higher training costs if suitable skills are lacking.

• Risk of disappointment among internal applicants not selected.

• May lead to "automatic promotion" perception, reducing performance motivation.

• Methods:

  • Job ads on company website and online job portals.

  • University recruiting.

  • Headhunters and employment agencies.

• Advantages:

  • Brings new ideas and reduces operational blindness.

  • Lower training costs if exact skills needed are found.

  • Provides information about other companies' behaviors.

  • Increases motivation for further training among current employees.

• Disadvantages:

  • Higher selection risk.

  • Higher procurement and selection costs.

  • Higher training costs due to lack of company-specific knowledge.

  • Risk of new hires leaving if expectations are not met.

1. Internal Recruiting Advantages:

   • Lower risk, faster process, lower training costs, and signals career growth.

2. External Recruiting Advantages:

   • New ideas, competitive knowledge, and potentially lower training costs.

3. Internal Recruiting Disadvantages:

   • Fewer options, higher potential training costs, possible disappointment.

4. External Recruiting Disadvantages:

   • Higher risk, costs, and training needs, with potential for unmet expectations.

1. Definition: Deployment refers to the assignment of employees to jobs within a company.

2. Goals:

   • Best possible match between job requirements and employee skills.

   • Increasing motivation to perform.

   • Preserving individual ability to perform.

1. Questions:

   • How are employees assigned to jobs?

   • How is cooperation within the company organized?

2. Interfaces:

   • Determination of structural and procedural organization.

   • Determination of job profiles.

1. Questions:

   • How long do the employees work?

   • How is the issue of co-presence of several employees dealt with?

2. Interfaces:

   • Organization of work.

   • Information and knowledge management.

1. Questions:

   • Where do the employees work?

   • How is the workplace designed?

   • How are foreign assignments organized?

2. Interfaces:

   • Time and organization of work.

   • Information and knowledge management.

1. Questions:

   • To what extent can the needs of employees be met?

   • How are strains/burdens reduced?

2. Interfaces:

   • Organization, time, and place of work.

   • Health management.

   • Ergonomics.

Working time flexibility refers to arrangements that allow employees to control their working hours, deviating from the traditional 9-to-5 schedule and 40-hour workweek.

1. Rigid Working Time Variation:

   • Shift work.

   • Part-time work.

2. Working Time Flexibility:

   • Flexitime.

   • Trust-based working time.

   • Job sharing.

1. Increased personal responsibility.

2. Reduced absenteeism and tardiness.

3. Lower overtime pay.

4. Improved job satisfaction and work climate.

5. Extension of operating hours.

6. Attractiveness in the labor market.

1. Potential conflict over working hours.

2. Risk of abuse.

3. Implementation and administration costs.

4. Further training costs for managers.

1. Higher time autonomy.

2. Better work-life balance.

3. Coordination with transport.

4. Adaptation to individual bio-rhythms.

5. Improved training opportunities.

6. No unpaid overtime.

1. Need for self-organization.

2. Fewer social contacts.

3. Less overtime pay.

4. Increased work stress.

5. Blurred boundaries between work and leisure.

1. Advantages:

   • Humanization of work.

   • Potential reduction in unemployment.

2. Disadvantages:

   • Reduction in social simultaneity.

1. In 2021, almost 50% of employees worked from home at least partially.

2. Sector Differences: 34.7% in trade/transportation/news vs. 54.4% in metal/electronic/car manufacturing.

3. Education Differences: 15.7% with no occupational degree vs. 85.6% with a university degree.

4. Age Differences: 51.2% of 18-39 years vs. 41.8% of 55-67 years.

1. Reduced capital tied up in workplace equipment.

2. Lower absenteeism rates.

1. Need for monitoring/logging working time.

2. Increased information security requirements.

3. Difficulty in informal agreements and contacts.

1. Elimination of commuting time and costs.

2. Greater time autonomy and better work-life balance.

1. Blurred boundaries between private and professional life.

2. Tendency to self-exploitation.

3. Difficulty in informal agreements and contacts.

1. Into-the-job: Preparing employees for a profession or a new job.

2. On-the-job and along-the-job: Training that occurs directly in the workplace.

3. Near-the-job and off-the-job: Training methods close to the workplace, both during and outside working hours, are not tied to a specific workplace location.

4. Out-of-the-job: Preparing people to leave the workforce.

1. On-the-job:

   • Training on the job.

   • Qualification-promoting task design.

2. Qualification-promoting task design:

   • Trainee programs.

   • Scheduled instruction.

   • Use in assistant and successor positions.

   • Delegation.

   • Project work.

   • Special tasks.

   • Room for maneuver.

   • Request diversity.

   • Learning opportunities.

   • Job enlargement.

   • Job enrichment.

   • Job rotation.

   • Semi-autonomous working groups.

1. Learning laboratory.

2. Quality circle or project group assignment.

3. Project work.

1. Business game, cases.

2. Experience exchange groups.

3. Support groups.

4. Conferences.

5. Seminars.

6. Presentations.

7. Workshops.

8. Self-study.

9. E-Learning/blended learning.

1. Material Incentives (Remuneration):

   • Mandatory: Base salary.

   • Optional: Bonuses, fringe benefits.

2. Immaterial Incentives:

   • Working conditions and contents.

   • Company culture and image.

1. Motivation: Activating employees.

2. Information: Communicating what is important to the company.

3. Cooperation: Encouraging participation in company success.

4. Control: Offering bonuses for target achievement.

5. Selection: Attracting employees who accept a remuneration risk.

1. Absolute Pay: Fixed salary.

2. Bonuses / Relative Pay: Payments are dependent on individual, team, or company performance.

1. Degree of Requirements: Requirement equity.

2. Performance Level: Performance equity.

3. Qualification Level: Qualification equity.

4. Labor Market Level: Market conformity.

5. Social Aspects: Socially fair pay, ensuring livelihood, and statutory minimum wage.