Human resources manager

A critical assessment of the degree to which you are suited to a particular job.  The job chosen must be one that has been advertised in the period after May 1 2005 and be one you would have a realistic chance of applying for after graduation. You must provide a copy of the job advert as an appendix, with the date and source of the advert clearly given.  This assignment should be written in the first person this assignment
is about you as an individual so it seems appropriate to refer to yourself as I. But this does not mean that you should be completely informal in your style of writing so avoid the use of slang or contractions (such as doesn’t for does not).

  
    This essay seeks to provide a critical assessment of the degree to which I am suited to a graduate role of Human Resources Administrator at Cott Beverages Ltd.  I found the role searching the Internet for jobs at the Prospects Graduate Recruitment Website on 26th May 005.  As I am studying a Business Studies degree and have a keen interest in Human Resources this job appears to be in line with my career aspirations.
    The essay will firstly examine the definition of a critical assessment, then look in detail at the requirements of the role in terms of the job description and person specification, this will then be contrasted with my own skills, competences, work experience and interests, with a view to understanding my suitability, before concluding with a final assessment of how well suited I am to the role.
    A critical assessment according to Houghton Mifflin (2000), is the act of judging or assessing.  It is providing an overall appraisal of something and for the purposes of this essay the degree of fit.
Before looking in detail at the job role, it is important to understand what is meant by a job description and person specification. Mullins (1996) states that:
 
“A job description tells you about the total requirements of the job, exactly what it is, its purpose, what it entails, the duties, activities, responsibilities attached to it and its position within the formal structure of the organisation”
(Mullins, L (1996), Management and Organisational Behaviour, Pitman Publishing, pp 676)

As part of the Cott Beverages  job description there is a person specification that Mullins (1996) states is a blueprint of the “ideal person to do that job” including details on personal attributes, and qualities associated with successful performance in that job.  For example experience, technical skills, physical characteristics, health and appearance, motivation, intellectual ability, formal qualifications etc.
    This part of the essay will now look in turn at the different parts of the job description and critically review the extent to which I have the skills, qualifications, experience and personal attributes required.  It will begin at a broad level the overall HR field and my overall interest, followed by qualification requirements, perceived ability and competence to do the job and personal attributes required for the role. 
    On a high level the organisation is looking for someone who enjoys an office-based occupation, responding to queries from staff and external people, collating information, attending meetings, using the IT system, supporting team members, also dealing with overall HR employee and organisational matters.  Jewell (1996) states that human resource management is concerned with ensuring the optimum use of human resources to the mutual benefit of the enterprise, person and the community at large. 
First and foremost suitability is determined by whether someone has a genuine interest in the human resources field.  In relation to my suitability to the role, I have a strong interest in the area, evident by my choice in studying a business degree and human resource degree.  The human resources field really appeals to me in terms of meeting new people, solving people-related matters and looking at ways of training and developing people.  I also enjoy the office environment, which I gained exposure to through summer work.
    The job states formal qualification requirements - to have studied to degree level.  I am suited to the role since I will shortly be graduating with a Business Studies Degree and have specialised in human resources.  The modules have included employee re-sourcing, human resource management, people and organisations, employee relations and reward management. The degree provides me with a strong theoretical underpinning knowledge that could be valuable to the role.
The degree course has provided me strong IT skills.  I have skills in using Word, Excel, Databases, PowerPoint , the Internet and all the other main software packages, both in taught modules and in coursework.  Again this satisfies another element of the job description.
    In terms of being suited to the job tasks and duties of the role, the job description
states that this will involve: administration, handling enquiries, supporting team members with their office work and liasing with internal and external customers, and support to the HR function. 
    I have gained some valuable office work experience during a summer placement at Tulip Computers.  Here I was responsible for administration (raising invoices, answering telephone calls, responding to queries from staff) and general office based duties.  The experience provided me with an insight into the office environment, where I was principally involved working with internal customers, although there was some external contact with customers.  In my work appraisal I received good feedback about my ability to undertake the office duties.
I have not only built up good administration skills at work, but also in my degree course undertaking assignments, teamwork projects, presentations, research and general administration.  I have regularly obtained high marks throughout my course.
In terms of my suitability to the role, I would say that I have a moderate competency in office-based tasks gained through summer vacation work and university projects. 
    Practical skills in office based work, qualifications and key technical skills are necessary for the human resources administrator role, but just as important are personal qualities and attributes.  Mullins (1996) states that personality is key to the success of any given job role.  At Cott Beverages they are looking for cultural fit between the applicant and the organisation, in terms of similar values, beliefs and ways of doing things.  They are looking for someone who has the following personal attributes: highly organised, excellent interpersonal skills and team working skills, be able to deal with queries confidentially with tact and diplomacy, creative and highly motivated, good sense of humour and a flexible attitude. I will now consider each personal attribute in turn, and provide an assessment of my suitability. 
In terms of organisational skills I consider myself well organised.  In my degree I have been effective in planning my workload, ensuring that I made the best use of my time for all the different projects, balancing my university work with a part time job and other commitments.  Through structuring my weeks and days I have successfully met all my deadlines for assignments, and given priority to the most relevant tasks and activities.  I feel I have good skills in terms of planning and time-management, although I could be better at forward thinking through allowing more contingency time.
  At Tulip computers where I did some office work experience my organisational skills were often put to test in terms of organising meetings, managing administration and ensuring customer orders were successfully dispatched.  The demands in terms of workload varied by week, and on the whole I managed these successfully.
    With regards to the interpersonal skill attribute I see myself as a natural communicator, with an infectious self-confidence that enables me to deal confidently with people.  I am extroverted and enjoy meeting new people and can relate well to many types of people.  This has been evident at Univesity where I have mixed with a range of students, and also in the clubs and societies at Univesity that I belong.  I would say that there was a strong fit between my interpersonal skills and those required by the role.  Although, I have not had the opportunity to fully utilise my interpersonal skills in a business setting.
Related to my interpersonal skills I perceive myself to be a good team player.  I work well in a team and using Belbin (1993) team role classification I often take on a co-ordination role.  I am very good at clarifying goals, co-ordinating activities and delegating.    
    In recent University projects I have taken on this role, where I have been effective in discussing the goals of the project, examining the different activities of the project, and determining the roles and responsibilities.  I am good at co-ordinating group activities to completion, and also good at influencing and motivating team members towards group objectives. I enjoy understanding people and what motivates them. 
    I would admit in some team situations I could be better at creative problem solving.  I do have tendency to go forward with an idea or solution, without considering all the options available.  In comparison with others my strengths lie with listening, empathazing with people and I am not as effective at generating ideas and creative problem solving. 
Also, in teams I tend to follow the group decision and direction without challenging.  Although I work well with other people, I could be more effective at being assertive and stating my points of view and opinions more fully.
    A key strength that I have in group working is influencing people.  In a recent human resources module we were set a task to develop a recruitment and selection strategy for a well known organisation.  The project was for eight weeks duration and required a lot of work over that period, in terms of research, writing and team working.  During the project, there were a couple of members of the group who were struggling and found the work difficult.  I was really effective in listening to the group members in terms of understanding where they were facing difficulties, good at working with them to overcome these difficulties and influencing them towards greater involvement in the group’s activities.   My influencing skills and especially my skills in diplomacy were very valuable in team-working and would be well suited to the role. My approach to team members shows the characteristics of being an encourager .
The role specifically looks for someone who can communicate effectively with internal and external customers.  I consider myself to have strong oral and written communication skills.  I can communicate well, whether this writing a project, doing a presentation, or stating my view in debate or discussion.  These skills are well suited to the role advertised.
    In terms of my style of working, the organisation is looking someone who is focused and methodical in their work.  I would certainly say that I am someone who is very focused and good at achieving end results.  I try to follow a logical plan to my work, however I tend to take a non-methodical approach to reaching final outcomes have a preference to working on broader issues compared with finer details.  Thus I show a strong fit with the role advertised in terms of my ability to focus, and less suitability in terms of my style of working and approach to detail.
Building on this, I would say sometimes I am quite inflexible in terms of my attitude towards work.  I find it difficult sometimes to be flexible in taking on new ways of working and responding to differing demands and changes in working.   Hence in terms of the job role I am less suited in relation to this factor.
In terms of demeanour required for the role I feel I am very well suited.  I have a great sense of humour, energy and motivation.  I am strongly motivated and continually work towards the objectives I set myself, striving to improve my performance and the way I relate towards other people. My motivation has been evident in me working hard at University projects, regularly achieving high marks and my involvement in clubs and societies to which I belong.  Also, I have great sense of humour, I like to enjoy life and work, and do not mind entertaining when I have opportunity.  This demeanour means I can fit well with a number of people, be accepted and well liked.  The job role looks for a positive outlook and a sense of humour, which I feel I am well suited.
In the appendix I have reviewed the above analysis of my strengths and weakness across the different components of the job role.  Each area has been given a rating in order to arrive at an overall assessment of my suitability.  From the analysis I have determined that I am well suited in the following areas: I have a passion and interest for working in the Human Resources field, I have the necessary formal qualifications, and have a moderate level of the technical and functional skills: e.g. skills in IT, office based work and organisational skills.  In terms of the personal attributes required for the role I hold many of the attributes they are looking for: I am a confident communicator, with good interpersonal skills, good teamwork ability especially in co-ordinating, influencing and motivating people.  Finally, I have the right demeanour for the role with a sense of humour and strong levels of motivation.  
The analysis has shown that I am less suited to the role in the following areas: I have limited technical office experience, my team-working skills are good overall, however I am weaker in terms of idea generation and problem solving, and also less suited to the role in terms of my style of working and approach to work.
Given the analysis above and scoring matrix, on balance I would appear to be about eighty percent  suited to the role.  This is based on the perception of myself and a comparison with the person specification and job role.

Bibliography

Appendix

1.1 Job Description & Person Specification

2.1 Matrix Analysis of Suitability to Job Role

According to this analysis I am 80% suited to the job role.