Chapter staffing: Staffing Application Questions | business studies Class 12 CBSE

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Chapter staffing: Staffing Application Questions | business studies Class 12 CBSE | ByteNotes.in

Application Question

Medium difficulty • Concept in a practical situation

Medium

Question 1

Applied Concept

A textile manufacturing company is planning to expand its operations to a new city. It needs to hire 200 workers, 20 supervisors, and 5 senior managers. Suggest appropriate sources of recruitment for each category of personnel and justify your recommendations.

For 200 workers, direct recruitment by placing a notice at the factory gate or using labour contractors is most appropriate, as workers can be hired on the spot for unskilled or semi-skilled roles at minimal recruitment cost.
For 20 supervisors, internal transfers and promotions from existing units would be economical and reliable since these candidates are known to the organisation and require no induction training; employment exchanges can supplement this for external candidates.
For 5 senior managers, management consultants or placement agencies specialising in middle-to-top-level executive placements, as well as advertisements in leading business newspapers, are most suitable as they reach qualified experienced candidates and ensure extensive screening.

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Application Question

Medium difficulty • Concept in a practical situation

Medium

Question 2

Applied Concept

The workers of a factory are unable to work on new computer-controlled machines installed recently. They frequently call the supervisor for help, making the supervisor overburdened. As the HR manager, what remedy would you suggest and why?

The appropriate remedy is to arrange a structured training programme for the workers focused on operating the new computer-controlled machinery, as the root cause is a skills gap between workers' existing capabilities and the requirements of the new technology.
Vestibule training would be particularly suitable here — workers can be trained on the same type of machines in a simulated environment away from the production floor, allowing them to gain proficiency without disrupting actual production or risking costly errors on live equipment.
After training, workers will be capable of independently operating the machines, reducing dependence on the supervisor, lowering overhead charges from frequent engineer visits, and improving overall production efficiency and quality.

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Application Question

Medium difficulty • Concept in a practical situation

Medium

Question 3

Applied Concept

A company manufacturing paper plates and bowls produces 1,00,000 units daily. Due to a local festival, it received an urgent order for an additional 50,000 units. What method of recruitment should the company adopt to meet this order quickly, and why?

The company should use direct recruitment by placing a notice on the factory gate specifying the need for workers; this method allows the company to select workers on the spot, which is essential given the urgency of the festive order.
Direct recruitment is best suited for casual vacancies of unskilled or semi-skilled jobs, which is precisely the nature of the additional requirement for manufacturing paper plates and bowls; selected workers can be deployed immediately on a daily wage basis.
This method is also very inexpensive as it does not involve any cost of advertising vacancies, making it economical for filling a temporary, urgent requirement without long-term commitment or significant recruitment expenditure.

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Application Question

Medium difficulty • Concept in a practical situation

Medium

Question 4

Applied Concept

An organisation providing security services needs candidates who are reliable and do not leak client secrets. What steps should be incorporated in the selection process to ensure this quality in selected employees?

The selection process should include rigorous reference and background checks — verifying the applicant's character, previous work history, and reliability through former employers, teachers, or known persons to uncover any history of dishonesty or information leakage.
Personality tests should be included in the selection tests to evaluate the candidate's emotional stability, maturity, value system, and integrity, as these tests provide clues to a person's overall personality and trustworthiness.
A detailed employment interview should probe the candidate's attitude toward confidentiality, past experience handling sensitive information, and commitment to professional ethics, with the contract of employment explicitly stating confidentiality obligations and the disciplinary procedure for violations.

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Application Question

Medium difficulty • Concept in a practical situation

Medium

Question 5

Applied Concept

Kaul Consultants launched a web portal exclusively for senior management professionals that lists genuine senior-level jobs through rigorous screening. Identify the source of recruitment highlighted and state four benefits of this source.

The source of recruitment highlighted is web publishing through a dedicated internet job portal; this falls under external sources of recruitment where job openings are advertised online for prospective candidates to view and apply.
Benefits include: wide reach enabling the organisation to connect with a large number of qualified senior professionals across regions quickly; the rigorous screening process on the portal ensures that only genuine and relevant candidates are presented, saving employer time; it allows matching of specific skills and experience with job requirements through advanced search and filtering; and it is cost-effective compared to traditional advertising and management consultants since multiple vacancies can be listed at relatively lower cost.
Additionally, both employers and job seekers can interact in real time, reducing the time-to-hire significantly, which is particularly valuable for senior management positions where vacancies can be costly to leave unfilled.

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Application Question

Hard difficulty • Concept in a practical situation

Hard

Question 6

Applied Concept

A newly appointed HR manager at a steel manufacturing company employing 800 persons must handle an expansion plan requiring 200 additional employees. What functions would she be expected to perform in this role?

She would need to first estimate the manpower requirements for the 200 additional positions — conducting workload and workforce analysis to determine the types and numbers of personnel needed at various levels, and preparing detailed job descriptions and candidate profiles.
She would then undertake recruitment through appropriate sources (internal promotions and transfers for suitable positions, and external sources such as advertisements, campus recruitment, and placement agencies for specialised or managerial roles) followed by rigorous selection through tests and interviews.
Post-hiring, she would be responsible for placement and orientation of new employees, designing and implementing training and development programmes, establishing performance appraisal mechanisms, managing compensation plans, handling employee grievances, and ensuring compliance with labour laws.

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Application Question

Medium difficulty • Concept in a practical situation

Medium

Question 7

Applied Concept

A BPO company selects candidates primarily on the basis of their extrovert personality and English-speaking ability. What additional training must these selected candidates undergo before being placed on the job, and why?

Even though the candidates are selected for their extrovert personality and English-speaking fluency, they must be trained in the relevant business processes handled by the BPO, as knowledge of specific client workflows and industry-specific procedures is essential for effective customer service.
Telephone conversation etiquettes and diction adaptation training are also necessary — candidates must learn how to handle professional conversations, follow calling protocols, manage difficult customers, and adapt their accent or speech pattern as per client requirements.
This training is essential because the employee's experiences during orientation and placement form the 'first impression' of the organisation; without this structured preparation, even talented recruits may underperform or feel unprepared, affecting customer satisfaction and attrition rates.

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Application Question

Hard difficulty • Concept in a practical situation

Hard

Question 8

Applied Concept

A major insurance company is struggling to recruit qualified candidates because competitors are attracting most of the skilled workforce in the market. As an HR manager, how would you resolve this recruitment challenge?

The company should diversify its recruitment sources to include campus recruitment from insurance and finance institutes, web publishing on dedicated job portals, and engagement with placement agencies specialising in the insurance sector to access a wider and more targeted candidate pool.
Since candidates have the necessary soft skills but lack hard technical skills, the company should implement a structured training and development programme to bridge the skills gap, making the job offer attractive by highlighting career growth, training investments, and learning opportunities that competitors may not offer.
The company should also strengthen its employer branding by improving its compensation packages, employee referral programmes, and working conditions to become a preferred employer; creating an attractive organisational culture and offering competitive pay hikes for high performers would help retain existing talent and attract new recruits even in a competitive job market.

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Application Question

Medium difficulty • Concept in a practical situation

Medium

Question 9

Applied Concept

With reference to the staffing process, explain what happens when a company is found to be overstaffed in one department and understaffed in another.

When workforce analysis reveals overstaffing in one department, the organisation should consider employee transfer — the horizontal movement of surplus employees from the overstaffed department to the understaffed one, without a substantive change in responsibilities or pay.
This transfer addresses the understaffing problem without the costs and time involved in external recruitment, while simultaneously reducing unnecessary labour costs in the overstaffed department and preventing under-utilisation of existing personnel.
If the employees to be transferred lack the skills required for the new department's jobs, training should be arranged before or after the transfer; this ensures that the transferred employees can perform effectively, maintaining productivity in the receiving department.

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Application Question

Hard difficulty • Concept in a practical situation

Hard

Question 10

Applied Concept

Infosys, a knowledge-intensive company, includes human resources on its balance sheet. How does this reflect the importance of the staffing function in maintaining Infosys's competitive position?

By including human resources on the balance sheet, Infosys acknowledges that its employees represent collective expertise, innovation, leadership, entrepreneurial, and managerial skills — all of which are critical non-financial parameters that determine long-term corporate success beyond traditional financial measures.
This recognition drives Infosys to invest heavily in the staffing function — attracting, retaining, and developing its IT talent through a culture of empowerment, wealth-sharing with employees, and consistent leadership — because in a knowledge-based industry, human assets can easily walk away to competitors.
The staffing function at Infosys thus directly sustains its competitive advantage: the quality of the people recruited, trained, and retained determines the quality of the services delivered to clients, making staffing not merely an administrative function but a core strategic business priority.

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Chapter sections

Chapter staffing: Staffing | Application Questions

A textile manufacturing company is planning to expand its operations to a new city. It needs to hire 200 workers, 20 supervisors, and 5 senior managers. Suggest appropriate sources of recruitment for each category of personnel and justify your recommendations.

The workers of a factory are unable to work on new computer-controlled machines installed recently. They frequently call the supervisor for help, making the supervisor overburdened. As the HR manager, what remedy would you suggest and why?

A company manufacturing paper plates and bowls produces 1,00,000 units daily. Due to a local festival, it received an urgent order for an additional 50,000 units. What method of recruitment should the company adopt to meet this order quickly, and why?

An organisation providing security services needs candidates who are reliable and do not leak client secrets. What steps should be incorporated in the selection process to ensure this quality in selected employees?

Kaul Consultants launched a web portal exclusively for senior management professionals that lists genuine senior-level jobs through rigorous screening. Identify the source of recruitment highlighted and state four benefits of this source.

A newly appointed HR manager at a steel manufacturing company employing 800 persons must handle an expansion plan requiring 200 additional employees. What functions would she be expected to perform in this role?

A BPO company selects candidates primarily on the basis of their extrovert personality and English-speaking ability. What additional training must these selected candidates undergo before being placed on the job, and why?

A major insurance company is struggling to recruit qualified candidates because competitors are attracting most of the skilled workforce in the market. As an HR manager, how would you resolve this recruitment challenge?

With reference to the staffing process, explain what happens when a company is found to be overstaffed in one department and understaffed in another.

Infosys, a knowledge-intensive company, includes human resources on its balance sheet. How does this reflect the importance of the staffing function in maintaining Infosys's competitive position?

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