Personnel Administration

Answer : Among the various aspects of personnel administration, the training comprises the most important part. After the theoretical knowledge which provided academic qualification of change the paradigms of subjective growth. But professional education demands the practical skill because of the empirical (public relation) connection with the environment especially socio-cultural environment.

Practical training provides the ground reality of social situation and transforms the theories into practical form. Training also provides artificial environment, which is necessary for a professional to deal with it. And further try to produce psychological perfection to the real cultural environment.

A well laid but training policy is always essential for suitable working of personnel administration. In the changing dynamics of Administrative Studies, the training occupies all the more important role. The advantages of training in any organisation are as follows:

1. Training helps in increasingthe efficiency of employees by sharpening their skills and performance.
2. Training helps in increasing the effectiveness of organization as it raises the level of performance of employees.
3. The training facilitates the process of accustomation ofemployees with outside changes as it makes them more dynamic and flexible.
4. Training trends to develop the efficacy of use of available resources. Infact, training helps in overcoming the mistakes of recruitment process.
5. Training helps in broadening the visions of the employees as it makes them more people-oriented, goal-oriented and result-oriented. Training helps in reducing the obsession of employees with rules and make them more value-oriented.

Thus, the good as well as quality training must occupy an important role in any modern day organisation.

Answer : The human relation movement was the result of anger against the mechanistic model given by the classical thinkers. They have neglected the human aspect of the organization and they did not took case of human emotions and values. The human relations movement under Elton Mayo broke that myth by stating and providing that human being are not machines and they are also driven by emotion and values.

This was a path-breaking discovery. The human relation movements have changed all the notions that were prevalent about the personnels. It gave a new direction of thinking and research. The human relation put the foundation for behavioural revolution that followed it.

In the field of personnel administration the human relations movement said that the organization is not a mechanistic model but it is a social system, where it is the social and psychological factors at the workplace and not the physical conditions that decides the output. If the motivation and morale is high the output will also increase. This was the most important finding.

It discovered that along with the economic incentives, the non-economic incentives also boost the morales of the workers. Workers are not inert or isolated, unrelated individuals. They also feel motivated when they receive non-economic incentives like feeling of responsibility, reorganization, appraisal etc.

Another important finding was that the workers form small informal groups of like minded people which do not necessarily follows the formal groups. These informal groups are very strong and sometime they are even more stronger than the formal groups. The informal group provides the opportunity to the workers to share their emotions with each other. This also helps them to remove or settle their grievances and sometimes even the personal problems like about the family.

The leadership, style of supervision, communication and participation also plays a central role in worker’s behaviours satisfaction and productivity. The finding of informal groups was one of the most important which led the management to take the workers seriously. The management wanted to increase the efficiency and output of the organization. The human relations that mainly concentrated on the personnel aspect of the organisation gave them a new vision and way to improve the output.

These discoveries were pioneer in the way that these were entirely new and these aspects were always ignored prior to this movement. Even today the personnel administration draws heavily from the human relations movement. Now the stress on the development of human beings and a new concept has arisen which is called the “Human Resource Management”. Actually the human beings are now seen as a resource and this concept has its deep roots in ‘Human Relations Movement’. The stress is on developing human beings and preparing them by giving training to enhance the productivity and efficiency of human resource as well as of organisation. The Human Relation School although was the result of excessive mechanization of human aspect but later it provided the very foundation of new human resource management which is central to the organization of new era.

Answer : A proper and systematic classification of personnel in government is very essential for the management of civil service in the modern state.

The system of classification is also known as the duties classification. It involves the grouping of positions on the basis of duties, responsibilities, and qualifications. In other words, a position is classified in accordance with the nature of job rather than the person holding the position.

‘Position’ or ‘post’ is the lowest basic unit in this system of classification. A position connects a set of duties and responsibilities assigned to an employee. A distinction is made between a position and the incumbent of the position. The position at any given time, may be occupied or vacant, and is immaterial for the purpose of classification. Further, an employee’s status and salary depends on his duties and responsibilities.

A number of similar positions put together form a class. To quote Stahl “a class is a group of positions, sufficiently alike in respect to their duties and responsibilities, to justify common treatment in various employment process. Thus a class is a group of positions which have identical duties and responsibilities with similar levels of difficulty. All positions which are covered in a class have the same classification, the class is the operating unit.

Thus, it is correct to say that “if position are the raw material of classification, the class is operating unit”.

Answer : Every organization has a system of assessment of performance of its employees periodically for determining the output of that employee as well as for deciding on his promotion. Public organisation evaluate employee’s performance to achieve many hidden purpose. In every organization all employees work to achieve the common aims and objectives of the organisation. But all employees do not have same capacities and qualities. The individual’s qualities differ from person to person. All are not equally efficient and able. But all have to work together. In order to keep their morale high, it is necessary to inform them from time to time, about their own level of performance in the organization. This can be done by adopting a fair system of performance of the performance Appraisal. This is why public organisations follow employee’s performance evaluation method, from time to time.

Performance Appraisal helps to improve the organizational health, viability and growth through optimal utilization of the human resources for the interest of the organization. Individual employee gets feed back which enables him to develop himself to meet the objectives of the organization. Performance is thus a means and not an end by itself. Performance Appraisal system is necessary not ‘only for individuals’ work improvement but also for the overall improvement of the organisation. It is necessary for the adoption of a fair and impartial promotion policy, which can keep the employee’s morale high.

It is also necessary to assess the usefulness and capabilities of a person in terms of his contribution towards the achievement of the goals of the organisation. It is also needed to develop the potentials of an employee to prepare him to accept more responsibilities of the higher post, which he aspires through promotion. It helps not only in improving the viability and health of the organisation but also pinpoints the shortcomings of the employees. By informing the shortcoming to the concerned persons, the superior officers can secure better utilization of services either through correction or position-charge. Performance Appraisal is thus, a very important activity of modern personnel management.

Different methods of performance appraisal are adopted in different countries. Usually it is used as a control mechanism and an instrument for giving incentives or punishment. Promotions are usually based on performance appraisal system. Since 1956 the Government of India has been following a system of grading the performance in the following ‘five’ grades: (i) outstanding (ii) very good, (iii) good, (iv) fair and (v) poor.

The work of grading is done by a departmental promotion followed by ‘very good’ and ‘good’ grades.

Individual performance of the employees is usually assessed on the basis of a Annual Confidential Report given by the superior about the subordinate based on a form.

Next, for performance appraisal it is necessary to determine the efficiency with which an employee perform his several duties in the day-to-day working. This is done through service-rating or efficiency-rating methods.

It is thus evident that different methods are followed for the purpose of performance appraisal in different countries.

Answer : Recruitment is the most important process in the administrative system. The tone and caliber of the civil servants is decided by the process of recruitment. The usefulness and relevance of the government and administration to the society depends upon a sound system of recruitment. If the recruitment policy is faulty and wrong, the dull, incompetent and inefficient persons will get into civil services which will make administration permanently weak and inefficient. Even the best policies of training and promotion cannot improve the faultily recruited persons and make them bright and efficient. It is, therefore, necessary that the recruitment policy should be sound and it should be implemented impartially and efficiently.

Recruitment is the entry point of the person in the civil services. It is key to a strong public service. In the modern times, due to technological progress, administration has become more and more complicated and complex. It requires the best, the talented and the most efficient. It is, therefore necessary that the recruitment policy should be sound and it should be implemented impartially and efficiently.

Recruitment is the entry point of the person in the civil services. It is key to a strong public service. In the modern times, due to technological progress, administration has become more and more complicated and complex. It requires the best, the talented and the most efficient persons to run the administration. Moreover civil service has become the most important career service in the present times. No element of career service is more important than the recruitment policy. If recruitment policy is not good then incompetent and unqualified persons will enter the civil services and they will spoil the administration of the country. It is therefore, essential that the recruitment policy should be well planned and sound. Thus, Recruitment is the backbone of public administration.

Answer : Training is an important component in professional education. After the theoretical knowledge which provided academic qualification of change the paradigms of subjective growth. But professional education demands the practical skill because of the empirical (public relation) connection with the environment especially socio-cultural environment.

Practical training provides the ground reality of social situation and transforms the theories into practical form. Training also provides artificial environment, which is necessary for a professional to deal with it. And further try to produce psychological perfection to the real cultural environment. Although skills and ‘attitude’ are the phenomena having highly subjective, and cognitive sense, which cannot develop in very short of time but exhaustive training is very helpful to modifying the skill.

‘Attitude’ may also be modified due to artificial environmental determinism and experiences of continuous training as the professional feels if it match to the job psychologically. Training of the professional prepares the professional for a perfect man of his work. And this theory is very much helpful to the professional’s future and he can contribute his skills, for the practical transformation of existing society, norms, values, and level of development.

Answer : The constitution of different countries guarantee certain fundamental rights to all the citizens irrespective of birth, caste, creed, colour or sex. The public servant are the citizens of the country, constitution empowers the states to regulate their rights and impose obligations on the public servants.

The public servants are first citizens and then employees. But they have special duty to maintain the structure of the states law and order. There is a special status of double status applicable to the employees as citizens and as public servants. Their position is closely related to the conception of democratic government, which expects employees to render faithful service to all the people, without the thought of their own interests. After the independence for example, the Government of India felt the importance of associations and consequently an article to this end, was incorporated in the draft constitution now the Indian constitution in force from 26 January, 1950. Provides for the right to form associations and unions” subject to public order or morality”. Employees (civil servant) enjoy this fundamental right as much as any other group of citizens and their right to form unions or associations is no different from workers outside the government. This article is a milestone in the development of staff associations and union in India as a whole.

The organization of employees was confronted with a number of problem during their growth and stabilization. The most crucial problem was the struggle to achieve the right to form Unions/Associations. The right to association is central to the concept of constitutional democracy. The constitution of India under Article 19(1)(c) guarantees the right to form association and union to its citizens. It is natural that government employees also resort to take up association type of activity for protecting their service conditions.

The right of political activities of the public servants in a democratic government is determined by the constitutional theory of government. Political neutrality of civil servants has been regarded as one of the cardinal conditions for the success of a democratic government. The parliamentary form of government demands from civil service not only neutrality and unimpeachable but also integrity and impartiality to conduct.

In U.S.A regulations are laid down on the political activities of public employees. While in India, the government servants, under the conduct rules are not free to indicate the manner in which they propose to vote or have voted. They are forbidden to canvass or use their influence in an election to any legislature or local authority. The governments are not expected to attend election meetings organized by any political party except in the official capacity. They cannot stand for election to the parliament or to state legislature. They are required to resign in order to contest elections. Thus, in India the civil servants are debarred from taking part in politics.

The employees of government should have, like other employees, the right to demonstrate in order to arouse public conscience about their grievances, and to secure public support for their redress, and they should have the ultimate sanction at a worker to withdraw his labour.

Answer : Performance appraisal is judgement of the characteristics, traits and performance of an employee. On the basis of these judgements, we assess the worth of the employee. These appraisals are made to facilitate administrative decisions such as selection, training, promotion, transfer, salary fixation, etc. Performance appraisal is a systematic and objective way of judging the relative worth or ability of an employee in performing his task. Where the performance in not of expected standards, the performance appraisal helps to identify the reasons for the shortfall, which further will provide guidance for evolving suitable remedial measures.

Performance appraisal is the process of measuring quantitatively and qualitatively an employee’s past or present performance against the background of his work environment and about his future potential for an organization. To quote Heigal, “Performance appraisal is the process of evaluating the performance and qualifications of the employees in terms of the requirements of the job for which he is employed, for purpose of administration including placement, selection for promotion, providing financial rewards and other action which require differential treatment among the members of a group as distinguished from actions affecting all members equally.” The primary purpose of performance appraisal is to help each man to is handle his current job better. It is the principle medium through which human talent in organizations may be most effectively utilized.

The traditional system of confidential reporting every year mostly after the financial year is over is adopted by various departments in the Government in respect of Class I and Class II officers. The format contains personal information on the individual such as name, designation, duties, and responsibilities, service in the particular post, age, qualification, salary details, etc. The assessment part talks about personality traits and character of the individual which includes his indebtedness, disciplined behaviour with the subordinates and superiors, etc. The actual performance evaluation deals about his application to work, his contribution in assignments taken and general performance, his leadership and organizational ability, exemplary and noteworthy events/incidents substantiated by event description and records.

Also rating in respect of the above items in grades A to E, going from excellent to non-satisfactory or fair is provided for. Reviewing authority who is normally an immediate superior is expected to give his objective evaluation of the individual and recommend further growth advancement, training and lateral movements. Areas of specialization in which the reportee could be trained and fitted in has also to identified. In such a system, the officer who is reported on is given a chance to give a resume of his activities and also areas he would like to take training in for personnel development. There will be a first reviewing authority and all second reviewing authority who may agree on disagree with the appraiser or further augment with his own appraisal. Normally average and not satisfactory reports are fed back to the officer reported on with a view to get his explanation and help improvement on his performance. The officer can totally repute and demand substantiation for the biased reported.

In addition to the confidential reporting system, a system of maintaining a personal file for each individual officer exits. Besides recording availability and availing of various kinds of leave due to the employee, his growth in the organization as well as consume and commendation are also recorded. Normally, either it is maintained in each department or centralized in a personnel department if there be a common one and the feedback from this is given to the appraiser. This personal record has also linkage to the confidential report. For appraising performance of an officer, both the personal record as well as the annual confidential report provides the basic inputs.

The two common defects that are inherent in many performance appraisal systems and one noticeable in the current-systems are (i) error of central tendency and (ii) error of leniency. The first one arises because of the tendency to use inflexible scales of judgement and using too many scales in the process. The other one, viz. error of leniency is caused by the management fighting shy of proper rating of higher ranks because of personal contacts and stricter rating of the lower ranks due to lack of objectivity. The assessment is sometimes erratic because of the ‘halo effect’ in which a particular member of the staff, due to some special traits such as aggressive projection of personality and subordination to management dictates gets a higher rating than one whose performance is in higher order.

Viewed from the above points, reporting system adopted in the Government require improvement making it participations, transparent and objective with an orientation towards motivating and assessing effective and productive performance of the officer in a given work environment. Also it should assess his effectiveness in taking responsibility and exercising lower, authority and delegation. As leadership and partnership are inter-related, assessment by peers and subordinates can augment appraisal by the superior.

Performance objective setting should be participated. Such mutually agreed objectives should then be used for evaluating performance. Periodic review and updating of these objectives are essential in view of the shift in objectives on account of the democratic process. A six monthly or even a quarterly review of achievement of the set targets in a meeting of appraiser and appraisee will set the tone for year-end objective evaluation.

Some of the latest developments are steps forward in performance appraisal among senior level employees. They are asked to do self-appraisal indicating their strengths and weakness, success and failure during the year and scrutiny. Another change is inferring the employee in case of adverse report.

Any system can be as effective as a person who operates it. However, much a performance appraisal system can be designed to be objective, in the appraiser lacks intellectual honesty and always gives a biased – reporting, it will not serve its purpose. The system obtained in the Government has proved to be an effective tool in the hands of these who wants to employ them not only for rewarding officers but also for punishing them. So long as it is not used as a weapon to beat a subordinate into submission, it can be a good instrument for performance measurement and feed book to the employees on his strength and weakness. Assuring system requires continuous review and improvement depending upon the current needs and environment, performance appraisal system adopted by the Government also would need a redbook and modification.

Answer : Public personnel administration comprise the public services of the country. The public personnel administration has certain characteristics which are different from the private administration in many ways. Public personnel have to cater to the needs of larger of people and are engaged with the supply of varied services. Public personnel administration does not exist in a vacuum. It is the product of basic public policy, it operates under public scrutiny, it mirrors general social and economic conditions, and it has a continuous impact upon the general welfare. The government is dependent on the public personnel system for the implementation of its programmes, without proper utilization of human services, no policy, programme or rule can be made successful.

Public Personnel System aims at fulfillment of the goals of government – personnel system, for that matter any system must have a purpose which has to be related to the objectives of the organization. In the case of public personnel administration in India, its basic aim is the facilitation and fulfillment of the goals of government. This is the rationale for creating government services. Once the goals have been formulated, the public personnel system must rise to implement the programmes and achieve the qualitative and quantitative targets by judiciously harnessing the available resources, keeping two dimensions in view, time and cost. For this purpose, public personnel system is involved with the function of recruitment, selection, placement, training, health, safety, performance rating, promotions and general welfare of the employees.

Increase in Development Function: The government has assumed the larger responsibility of achieving security and well-being of all citizens. Implementation of these changes is not an easy task. The skills and experience of public service is required for this purpose. The public service is an essential social instrument; it bridges the gaps between legislative content and its fulfillment. Public service can help to establish and strengthen the minimum conditions required for economic development.

Growing Number of Public Personnel: Due to increase in the social and economic functions of the government, the number of public personnel is increasing at a very fast rate. As the tasks of the government are increasing, the need for personnel to perform these tasks is also growing. A large number of new departments, corporations, commissions and boards are now being set up.

Thus, at last it can be said that, no Administrative System can function properly unless and until its personnel are honest, hard-working, and efficient, unless they are properly recruited, trained and promoted and unless they enjoy certain benefits in the organization.

Answer : Recruitment provides the basic framework on which an organization runs. Through this process the nature of Human Resource in an organization is settled. Thus, for a organization the most important part is its employees which further are inducted through the recruitment process.

The recruitment learns through the training and gains experience. This experience is vital because if it is properly communicated to the newer recruit can shape the entire organization according to its goals. Bentham’s dog law says the same i.e. providing or communicating with the newer recruits by the experiment ones which gives the organization innovativeness, stability and unity of direction.

For any organization as we see during the recruitment experience makes the most important classification. This experience is of no use if it is not communicated. The learning through training gives the recruits the necessary input for induction in an organization but if this learning is communicated to the newer recruits then the organization will be more effective and stable.

Answer : The public personnels in any organization develop some unique quality which is the result of their year long experiences. In this regard they count themselves as an unbreakable part of the organization. They work in a manner that it becomes virtually impossible for them to separate apart from the organization. And if in this situation the new staff comes, it becomes very difficult for them to understand the procedures, say norms of that organisation. There are many reasons because of which it is said that the new staff must be expert enough to adapt new situations.

The public personnels are so involved in the organizations that they develop a series of subspecialities and techniques that over the years combines and produces an organizational subsystems. This subsystem is the result of experience of personnels. The environment in which they become so familiar that it becomes like a second home. They know all the dimensions and procedure of their work. They are so much adapted to their organizational subsystem that they devise new ways and norms for their work. This turns in the development of a unique work ethic and culture. This culture is the final result of all the conditions and emotions of the public personnels of that organization.

The new staff if not an expert then he will find himself in very difficulty. Because it will not be easy for him to adapt to this unique environment and follow the new culture. The prediction power of the public personnels become very strong. They become proactive in their organizational subsystem and device new unique way of resolving problems. The decision making process for them becomes easy and ofroutine type. Because they know all the dimensions of the organizations, the decision making is more effective. They are so much adapted to their environment that they develop a subspecialityand expertise that is just fine for their work.

Regarding all this it can be said that only experts can match them in these organizations. Because the public personnels set so much high norms that is become impossible for the ordinary officials to work in these organization. The ordinary workers do not develop that sense of actions which is the result of year long experience. They will have to take time for adapting in the new culture and environment. This would mean that the working of organization will not be as rapid as it would have been if the expert had staffed in organization.

The public personnels sets such high standards that is can be matched only by experts and the ordinary officials can not achieve them in short span of time.