Revision notes written to the specification, with examiner tips and the required practicals. Every point here has flashcards in the Stickwise app.
Organisational structures
An organisational structure shows how a business arranges its staff into levels of hierarchy. It sets out the chain of command, the line of authority running from senior management down through each level to junior employees, showing who reports to whom.
Span of controlSpan of control is the number of subordinates a manager is directly responsible for and directly supervises.
Tall structureA tall structure has many levels of hierarchy and a narrow span of control.
Flat structureA flat structure has few levels of hierarchy and a wide span of control, which gives faster communication.
Delayering means removing a level of hierarchy from an organisational structure. Businesses use it to cut management costs and speed up communication, although it can leave the remaining managers with a wider span of control.
🎯 Examiner tip: Span of control and chain of command are easy to muddle. Span of control counts how many people one manager supervises directly, while chain of command describes the line of authority running through the whole business from top to bottom.
Recruitment & selection
When a vacancy arises, a business can recruit internally or externally.
Internal recruitmentInternal recruitment fills a vacancy from existing staff. It is faster and cheaper than recruiting externally, and the candidate is already known, which can also motivate other staff through the chance of promotion.
External recruitmentExternal recruitment fills a vacancy with someone from outside the business. It reaches a wider pool of candidates and brings new ideas and skills, though it is slower and more expensive than recruiting internally.
A job description lists the duties and responsibilities of a role, while a person specification lists the skills and qualities needed in the ideal candidate.
A permanent contract has no fixed end date, lasting until the employee resigns or is dismissed, while a temporary contract lasts only for a fixed period.
🎯 Examiner tip: A question that asks a business to recommend internal or external recruitment for a particular vacancy wants a judgement based on the case study, for example how quickly the post must be filled or how much new expertise is needed, rather than a general list of advantages and disadvantages.
Motivation & retention
Motivation is the desire or drive an employee has to work hard and put in effort, which can improve productivity and reduce staff turnover.
Financial methodsExamples include wages or salary, commission and profit sharing. Explain how the method could motivate employees in the business described.
Non-financial methodsAQA includes job rotation, job enrichment, autonomy and fringe benefits here. Consider what employees value and how the method affects motivation.
🎯 Examiner tip: AQA 8132 does not name Taylor or Maslow. The two paragraphs below are background that can support an explanation, but exam answers are marked on the financial and non-financial methods above and on how they would motivate the employees in the case study.
Taylor believed that workers are motivated mainly by money. He argued that jobs should be broken into simple, repetitive tasks and that workers should be paid by piece rate for the amount they produce.
Maslow ranked human needs as a pyramid known as Maslow's hierarchy of needs. From the bottom, these are physiological needs such as food and warmth, safety, social needs, esteem, and self-actualisation at the top, with needs met roughly in that order.
🎯 Examiner tip: A question that asks a business to recommend a method of motivation wants a justified choice, not a list of methods. A strong answer links the method to the business in the case study, for example whether its staff seem motivated mainly by pay or by more challenging work, and ends with a clear recommendation.
Training
Induction training is given to a new employee when they start a job. It introduces them to the business, its policies and procedures, health and safety, and their role.
On-the-job trainingOn-the-job training happens at the workplace while the employee keeps working, for example shadowing a colleague.
Off-the-job trainingOff-the-job training happens away from the workplace, for example at a college. Employees learn from specialist trainers and gain wider, transferable skills, but it is more expensive, and the employee is away from work, losing production time.
🎯 Examiner tip: Longer questions on human resources, often worth the most marks on the paper, are marked in levels rather than as a checklist. Marks are available for explaining the relevant theory, for applying it to the business described in the question, and for a final judgement. An answer that stops at advantages and disadvantages, without a conclusion, cannot reach the top level.
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