Festival and Special Event Management 4e

Chapter 8

Human Resource Management and Events

Background Thinking

• Have a look at the Comedy Festival Program – What level of staff would be needed?– What number of volunteers would be

required?

• Why do people volunteer to assist on Events?– How can you maximise the volunteers goals

while achieving your own event goals?

Learning Objectives

1. Describe the human resource management challenges posed by events

2. List and describe the key steps in the human resource planning process for events

3. Discuss approaches that can be employed to motivate event staff and volunteers

5. Describe techniques that can be used for event staff and volunteer team building

6. State general legal considerations associated with human resource management in an event context

Considerations associated with human resource planning

for events• ‘Pulsating’ organisational structures:

– Short-term nature of employment– Short timelines for hiring/selecting/training staff– Need to shed staff quickly

• Use of volunteers– Sourcing– Quality control– Supervision– Training and motivation

The human resource planning process for events

The human resource planning process for events

Human resource strategy and objectives• Strategy

– Cost containment– Improved quality– Improved organisational effectiveness– Enhanced performance (social and legal)

• Staffing– How many staff and volunteers– Skills/qualification mix– What stage are they required

The human resource planning process for events

Human resource strategy and objectives

• Job analysis– What tasks should be grouped to form a job– What should be looked for in applicants– What should the organisational structure be– What tasks should form a performance

appraisal– What training and development is required

The human resource planning process for events

Human resource strategy and objectives• Job descriptions

– Job title and commitment required– Salary/rewards/incentives– Job summary– Duties and responsibilities– Relationships– Know-how/skills/knowledge etc– Authority– Performance standards

The human resource planning process for events

Human resource strategy and objectives

• Job specification– Derived from the job description

– Identifies the experience, qualifications, skills, abilities, knowledge and personal characteristics needed for the job

The human resource planning process for events

Policies and procedures

• Reassure staff of fairness

• Help managers make quick and consistent decisions

• Give managers the confidence to resolve problems

The human resource planning process for events

Recruitment, selection and induction

The human resource planning process for events

Recruitment, selection and induction• Recruitment process:

– Use stakeholders– Write sponsorship agreements– Identify potential sources of volunteers– Second staff– Utilise programs for the unemployed– Gain assistance of media– Register with volunteer agencies

The human resource planning process for events

Recruitment, selection and induction

• Selection policy:– How will the suitability of candidates be

measured?– How will the people be sourced?– Who will be the decision makers?– What selection techniques will be used?– Organisational objectives– Equal employment policies

The human resource planning process for events

Recruitment, selection and induction

• Induction:– Basic information about the event– Tours of venues and relevant locations– Introductions to other staff and volunteers– Introduction to the organisational culture,

history and working arrangement– Overview of training programs

The human resource planning process for events

Training and professional development

• Training provides specific job skills/knowledge to perform a job or improve

• Professional development is the acquisition of new skills, knowledge and attitudes for future job responsibilities

• A training needs assessment determines the gap between current performance of staff and their desired performance

The human resource planning process for events

Supervision and evaluation

The human resource planning process for events

Termination, outplacement and re-enlistment

• Legal issues surround termination

– Fair Work 2009

– Various state acts

• Outplacement is the process of assisting terminated employees (or those who choose to leave) to find other employment

• Re-enlisting by staff for recurring events

Motivating staff and volunteers

Content theories

• Concerned with identifying people’s needs and relative strengths, and the goals they pursue in order to satisfy these needs

• Maslow’s hierarchy of needs

• Hertzberg’s two-factor theory

Motivating staff and volunteers

Content theories

Motivating staff and volunteersContent theories

Motivating staff and volunteers

Content theories

Motivating staff and volunteers

Process theories

• Equity theory

– Based on the premise that all employees/volunteers expect to be treated fairly

• Expectancy theory

– Based on the belief that by acting in a particular way a particular outcome will result

Building effective staff and volunteers teams

• McDuff’s formula for effective team building and maintenance:– Teams are a manageable size– People are appropriately selected – Teams leaders are trained– Teams are trained to execute their tasks– Volunteers and staff are supported – Teams have objectives– Volunteers and staff trust and support one

another

Building effective staff and volunteers teams

• McDuff’s formula for effective team building and maintenance:– Communication is vertical and horizontal– Organisational structure promotes

communication between volunteers and staff– Volunteers and staff have real responsibility– Volunteers and staff have fun – Recognition is given for contributions made– Volunteers and staff celebrate their success– Organisation promotes and encourages the

wellbeing of volunteer teams

Legal obligations

• Occupational health and safety

• Discrimination

• Employee dismissal

• Salaries/wages

• Working conditions

• Superannuation

• Workers compensation