JOB CHANGES IN AN ORGANISATION

Submitted by:Pratik Mehra

Student of BBA (B&I), SEM-V0071221808

Delhi College of Advanced StudiesB-7, Shankar Garden, Vikas Puri

New Delhi-110018

Objectives of Study

In light of today's competitive, technological, and demographic forces, no

organization can escape change. The best-practice organizations profiled in

Realizing Change: Knowing When and How to Successfully Change began

their journeys toward change with different needs and objectives, explored

various paths in search of success, and achieved diverse outcomes.

Nevertheless, each has successfully managed large, complex change with

dramatic results.

Employees are constantly moving within companies, sometimes outside

factors like completion of college leads employees to a different employer

and higher pay. With high turnover it basically means people are leaving the

company fairly quickly. When people leave the company normally someone

else changes positions to fill that vacant position leaving their position open

to another person or a new employee.

The key for great companies is finding talented people and being able to

retain those people within the organization for a long period of time.

There are often overlaps in these, but generally each individual employee

will have their own particular set of reasons for changing job - some will be

related to corporate environment and may be shared with others driving

higher turnover, and some will be unique to them - either internal to job (e.g.

relationship to manager, remunerations etc) and some will be external

(personal circumstances and general personal development goals).

the reasons for individual employees to change jobs are varied. In any

company, there will always be some people who move on to other jobs.

There will usually also be people who stay as they are getting what they

want and need from the job.

This report details best practices in identifying the need for change,

implementing change, managing the human side of change, and

understanding the impact of change on the organization.

Research Methodology

Type of Data Collected

There are two types of data used. They are primary and secondary data.

Primary data is defined as data that is collected from original sources for a

specific purpose. Secondary data is data collected from indirect sources.

Primary Sources

These include the survey or questionnaire method, telephonic interview as

well as the personal interview methods of data collection.

Secondary Sources

These include books, the internet, company brochures, product brochures,

the company website, competitor’s websites etc, newspaper articles etc.

The type of data used in this study is secondary data.

Introduction

A job is a regular activity performed in exchange for payment. A person

usually begins a job by becoming an employee, volunteering, or starting a

business. The duration of a job may range from an hour (in the case of odd

jobs) to a lifetime (in the case of some judges). If a person is trained for a

certain type of job, they may have a profession. The series of jobs a person

holds in their life is their career.

Types of Jobs

There are a variety of jobs: full time, part time, temporary, odd jobs,

seasonal, self-employment.

People may have a chosen occupation for which they have received training

or an degree.

Someone may pursue a vocation but support themselves financially with a

day job. Those who do not hold down a steady job may do odd jobs or be

unemployed.

Job changes

Transfer

Job transfers generally fall into one of two categories: those initiated by

management or those made in response to an employee’s request. Transfers

initiated by the employer may be necessary because of temporary workload

imbalances; the need to rotate employees to limit exposure to harmful

conditions; corporate restructuring; dislocations caused by job elimination or

reductions in force; and demotions in response to disciplinary or

performance problems. Employees may initiate a transfer because they want

new or broader experience; there is friction among coworkers; they want to

better use their skills; or they need accommodation for disabilities or family

care responsibilities. Either way, transfers may be temporary or long-term,

depending on the organization’s business needs.

Purpose

To provide information on the types of transfers and the process for

transferring a classified staff employee.

Policy

It is the policy of the organization to provide fair and equitable guidelines in

transferring a classified staff employee; whether a voluntarily or

involuntarily cation has taken place.  This policy also details the processes

for completing a voluntarily or involuntarily transfer.

Types of Transfers:

Lateral Transfer:

The following conditions constitute a Lateral Transfer:

An employee is transferred to another area or department with the

same title, or the same salary range, if the title is different.

No immediate salary action is to be taken. The base salary of the

transferred employee will be reviewed during the normal common

review process. 

Voluntary Transfer:

The following conditions constitute a Voluntary Transfer:

When an employee voluntarily elects to apply for a position and is

selected for the job which has a lower salary range than their current

position.

When an employee actively volunteers to accept an open position in a

lower salary range because of a position elimination or Departmental

reorganization.

The employee’s base salary should be established within 10% of the

new job’s salary range, not to exceed the salary range maximum of

the new position.

Involuntary Transfer:

The following conditions constitute an Involuntary Transfer:

The employee’s current position is eliminated due to a restructuring or

reclassification and is transferred to a position in a lower salary range.

The employee will maintain his/her current base salary and follow the

normal common review process. 

If the employee’s salary exceeds the maximum salary rate of the new

position, the employee’s salary should be red-circled until the salary

range for that position is adjusted as part of the normal pay range

adjustment process.

Promotion

A promotion is the advancement of an employee's rank or position in an

organizational hierarchy system. Promotion may be an employee's reward

for good performance i.e. positive appraisal. Before a company promotes an

employee to a particular position it ensures that the person is able to handle

the added responsibilities by screening the employee with interviews and

tests and giving them training or on-the-job experience. A promotion can

involve advancement in terms of designation, salary and benefits, and in

some organizations the type of job activities may change a great deal. The

opposite of a promotion is a demotion.

Elements

A promotion can involve advancement in terms of designation, salary and

benefits, and in some organizations the type of job activities may change a

great deal. In many companies and public service organizations, more senior

positions have a different title: an analyst who is promoted becomes a

"principal analyst"; an economist becomes a "senior economist"; or an

associate professor becomes a "full professor". The amount of salary

increase associated with a promotion varies a great deal between industries

and sectors, and depending on what parts of the hierarchical ladder an

employee is moving between. In some industries or sectors, there may be

only a modest increase in salary for a promotion; in other fields, a promotion

may substantially increase an employee's salary.

The same is true with benefits and other privileges; in some industries, the

promotion only changes the title and salary, and there are no additional

benefits or privileges (beyond the psycho-social benefits that may accrue to

the individual). In some not-for-profit organizations, the values of the

organization or the tightness of funding may result in there being only

modest salary increases associated with a promotion. In other industries,

especially in private sector companies, a promotion to senior management

may carry a number of benefits, such as stock options, a reserved parking

space, a corner office with a secretary, and bonus pay for good performance.

The degree to which job activities change varies between industries and

sectors. In some fields, even after an employee is promoted, they continue to

do similar work. For example, a policy analyst in the federal government

who is promoted to the post of senior policy analyst will continue to do

similar tasks such as writing briefing notes and carrying out policy research.

The differences may be in the complexity of the files that the individual is

assigned to or in the sensitivity of the issues that they are asked to deal with.

In other fields, when an employee is promoted, their work changes

substantially. For example, whereas a staff engineer in a civil engineering

firm will spend their time doing engineering inspections and working with

blueprints, a senior engineer may spend most of their day in meetings with

senior managers and reading financial reports. In symphony orchestras,

when a musician such as a violinist is promoted to the position of

concertmaster, their duties change substantially. As a violin player, the

individual played the music as part of the violin section. As a concertmaster,

the individual plays solo parts, decides on the bowings and interpretation of

the music, and leads the violins during performances.

Different organizations grant the hiring and promoting managers different

levels of discretion to award promotions. In some parts of the private sector,

the senior management has a very high level of discretion to award

promotions, and they can promote employees without going through much

procedures or formalities such as testing, screening, and interviewing. In the

public sector and in academia, there are usually many more checks and

balances in place to prevent favoritism or bias. In many Western public

service bodies, when a manager wants to promote an employee, they must

follow a number of steps, such as advertising the position, accepting

applications from qualified candidates, screening and interviewing

candidates, and then documenting why they chose a particular candidate. In

academia, a similar approach is used, with the added safeguard of including

several layers of committee review of the proposed promotion using

committees which include members of other faculty and experts from other

universities.

Demotion

A demotion is a reduction in an employee's rank or job title within the

organizational hierarchy of a company, public service department, or other

body. A demotion may also lead to the loss of other privileges associated

with a more senior rank and/or a reduction in salary or benefits. An

employee may be demoted for violating the rules of the organization by a

behavior such as excessive lateness, misconduct, or negligence. In some

cases, though, an employee may be demoted as an alternative to being laid

off, if the company is facing a financial crisis. A move to a position at the

same rank or level elsewhere in the organization is called a lateral move or

deployment. The opposite of a demotion is a promotion.

Types

Within the continuum of disciplinary options available within most

organizations, a demotion falls in the middle range of severity. Minor

violations of rules, or the first violation of a rule will typically result in a

verbal or written warning or a suspension without pay. At the other extreme,

for severe violations of the rules, such as embezzlement or sabotage, an

employee will typically be fired and/or the company will file criminal or

civil charges. In sports leagues, when teams are transferred between

divisions, the worst-ranked teams in the higher division are relegated (or

demoted) to the lower division.

Conditions:

A demotion occurs when a classified employee (“employee”) is reassigned

to a position with a salary range that is lower than the salary range of the

former position.  A demotion may occur when:

1. An individual is assigned to a position that requires performing

accountabilities of significantly decreased complexity or responsibility. 

2. The employee was unable to perform satisfactorily in the higher-level

position.

3. The employee’s request for a demotion is approved.

4. As a result of disciplinary action.  

Process: 

1. All demotions must be discussed with Human Resource Services (HRS)

prior to communicating any information to employees.

2. If the demotion is at the employee’s request, a written letter from the

employee requesting the demotion action will be required if the position

wasn’t posted.

3. When considering a demotion, the department must ensure that there is a

valid budget line and/or position that the employee will be occupying.

4. All demotions must be approved by respective Director/Vice President

and HRS.

Separation

Employee Separation is one of the very important and crucial function /

process of HR Department. This process, if not handled in an efficient

manner, can lead to various legal complications.

Types of Separation

Resignation – This is the most common way of separation. Employee leaves

his job and employment with his employer to pursue better opportunities; a

better position at a better compensation package in a branded company (or

better known company) in a same city and country or in a different city or

different country. So, an employee resigns for:

1) Better compensation and benefits

2) Higher position / level

3) Challenging role

4) To move from an unknown or lowly branded company to a highly

branded and reputed company (Top 10 or 25 companies in the world etc)

5) For foreign or international assignments

Termination – Usually, this process is perceived negatively by employees.

In termination, an employer uses his right to terminate the contract of an

employment. There can be many reasons for an employer to terminate the

contract of employment but some of the common reasons are:

1) Non-Performance

2) Indiscipline

3) Misconduct

4) Insubordination

5) Theft and etc

Absconding – This is one of the most unethical, unexpected and

unprofessional way to terminate the contract of an employment. In this, on

one fine day an employee decides not to go to work. He does not care to

hand-over his stuff. In case an employee decides to abscond (or run-away), it

becomes very important to understand his motives and intentions.

Employees can abscond in either or all of the below mentioned

circumstances / situations:

1) After stealing the confidential information or documents or database from

the company.

2) If the intentions of an individual is to commit a crime.

3) If there is a work-pressure and stress and the individual is not able to

cope-up with it (as it happens in call-centers, BPO and other high-stress

industries).

4) If the employee has committed any crime outside the office and after

working hours (such as murder or getting involved in terrorist activities or

theft or any other civil crime).

5) Then, when priorities are different. Employee has asked for leave due to

some urgency at his home (or might be he is trying to escape from his work

responsibilities) and at the same time his team also needs him in the office

and his leaves are not approved.

6) If he has got some exceptionally good opportunity that requires him to

join immediately and he feels that the process of separation in his company

is a bit too complicated. He assumes few things and do not really try to face

the challenge.

7) Lastly, it is a personality issue. Employees that abscond have different

personalities. They are low in confidence. They are too weak to face the

reality and challenges of life. They feel that running away from the problem

is as good as solving the problem. They are cowards to take the problems

head-on.

The Process of Separation

Resignation

Once an employee gives his resignation to the department head or the

management, it is important for HR to schedule the first meeting with him.

Preferably the meeting should be scheduled within 24 hours or else it will

give an impression that “no one really cares”. Being a neutral department,

the meeting should be administrated by HR Manager (Employee Relations

Manager) or anyone senior to him to understand the root cause of separation.

1. If the root cause is an issue with the reporting manager of an individual;

or some conflict with a team-member or some other human issue, try to

address the same with the concerned person.

2. If the reason for resignation is better opportunity or a higher position,

explain to him the Performance Management System and Career

Management System of the company. If possible, show him his performance

records. Do not make any commitment that you might not be able to fulfill,

such as, “we will give you a promotion in this appraisal” or “will send you

overseas for an assignment” and etc.

3. If an employee has given his resignation because he is getting a better

compensation package, explain to him the grading system and compensation

package of your company and also share with him the minimum possible

increase that he might get in his next appraisal but do not give any hike

immediately. You might be required to repeat this exercise after another

couple of months. So, don’t show any blood to the lion.

Any other reason of resignation, such as policies of the company, benefits,

branding and positioning of the company, working hours and etc are beyond

the preview and scope of this discussion with HR. Such issues cannot be

changed to suit the needs, demands and requirements of one individual.

However, if more employees are leaving the organization for one specific

reason then the management should address the matter but this should not be

done for one specific employee.

After the meeting give your feedback to the department head and advise him

on whether to accept the resignation or not.

Once the resignation is accepted, issue the “letter of acceptance of

resignation” to the concerned employee and inform the IT, Payroll and

Finance Department.

Responsibility of the Department Head: Now, the department head needs to

plan the process of handover of duties, projects and assignments to other

member(s) in the team.

1. Let the departing employee complete all the tasks and assignments he has

in hand.

2. Do not assign any new project or assignment to this employee.

3. If there is nothing to complete and proper hand-over is done, then relieve

the employee as soon as possible.

It is a proven fact that once an employee decides to leave the organization

and gives his resignation, they show less commitment, sincerity and

dedication in their work. Hence, it is important to relieve them as soon as

possible rather than them coming to the office and wasting the time of

people who are dedicated to their work and resources of the company.

Responsibility of the HR Department:

HR, on the date of acceptance of resignation letter, should instruct the IT

department to keep track on all the outgoing emails from the system of

separating employee. All IT permissions and rights should be withdrawn

from that employee and he should not be allowed to send any email to any

other email ID except the office email ID’s. He should not be allowed to

copy or edit or delete any file from his system.

HR should ask the concerned employee to obtain no-due letter from all the

concerned departments.

HR should calculate all the amount payable to that employee and the

payment should be made on the last working day of the employee. On his

last day, the company should also give him the relieving letter.

1. The immigration office of the concerned country about the company’s

disassociation with the employee;

2. The banker, healthcare insurance provider, landlord and other service

providers;(This is to ensure that these stakeholders shall not disturb the

company to recover any cost or loss due to its ex-expatriate employee.)

Termination

Termination can be challenged in the court of law. Hence, care must be

taken to document all the incidents that have led to the termination of an

employee.

In case of disciplinary action, the company should take care that the proper

procedure is followed. Warnings (oral and written) were issued to the

employee and the whole incident is properly documented.

In case of non-performance, the required documents must include:

a. Tasks given

b. Expected performance level

c. Evaluation criteria

d. Actual performance

e. Shortfall

f. Action required

Parties involved in the termination process include:

1) The Reporting Manager

2) The Department Head

3) The HR and/or

4) any other senior member of the department

Once the decision is taken to terminate the contract of employment, the

company should seize all the belongings of that employee – such as

computer, drawer, access cards, laptop, ID Cards, files and etc.

Employee should be given the letter of termination clearly specifying the

reasons of termination.

Based on the severity of the case, the company might decide to pay the

employee for the notice period. For example, in case of non-performance he

must be paid for the notice period but in case of any disciplinary action, theft

or misconduct, he should not be. The entire amount due to him must be

recovered.

Absconding Employee

This is one of the most complicated ways of separation.

In case of local employee:

If the employee did not come to the office and nor did he informed about his

whereabouts, try to contact him on his mobile phone.

If he is not answering his calls or his mobile phone is not working then try to

call him on his residence number. Even if that is not working then speak to

his friends in the office to assess the situation.

In case you are not able to get any information about the employee then

assume that he has absconded. As per the employment laws in various

countries, send him three official notices starting from the second day of his

disappearance and send every subsequent notice after every three days. If

there is no response from his side then strike-off his name from your payroll.

Scope of Study

While a job change may seem somewhat nerve-wracking and intimidating, it

is something that nearly every American worker will go through. Workers in

America are expected to change jobs at least ten times over the span of their

career - many will switch careers on at least one occasion.

It is important to note that there are some strong benefits that can come from

a job change. Those who make the move to study and master a new career

have plenty to gain both physically and emotionally. Understanding the

benefits of changing careers may help you to feel comfortable with a

potential career change of your own.

Avoiding a Dying Industry or Job Sector

Simply put, there are some careers, industries, and job sectors that are dying.

The individuals that are in these careers are going to be forced to make a

career change. Changing careers is a great way to avoid this end-of-the-road

issue. You can change your careers at the first sign of a dying industry,

avoiding the stress that comes when those jobs are finally lost.

Potential Money Gains

One of the major reasons for changing job is money; people are always

willing to work for a higher salary. Those who are serious about changing

careers may find that they will make more per year than they did with their

previous job. Career changes may also bring about greater benefits, which

can help to lessen the financial burden of an individual or family.

General Education

Those who have decided to change careers will generally need to take in

new information. While the new career may still be something in their field

of study, they will have to learn new actions and meet new expectations.

This general education that is formed through a career change will be

beneficial in the future. Individuals with a wider range of job experiences

and skill sets will be seriously considered for new job openings.

Future Job Security

Everyone is looking for job security, the knowledge that they will not be

without a job for an extended amount of time. Those who have a wide range

of careers under their belt will open up a new world of job security. Instead

of being proficient at one career path, you can be proficient with three. If

you lose your job, you can seek out jobs in three different career fields, as

opposed to one career field. Even if you lose your job, your chances of

landing a new job are greater than those who have simply held one career.

There are some who will find solace in these benefits, and will look forward

to their pending career change. There are some others who will still be

somewhat intimidated by the idea of starting a new career. If you are starting

a new career, whether it be by force or by choice, you can be sure that you

have much to gain. You will be giving yourself the opportunity to extend

your education while putting yourself in a secure position in the workforce.

Case Study

Brenda and Martin

Brenda Batten was an ``exceptional employee ' of Blackhawk Aironics

when the company underwent a change that required more telecommuting

and positional autonomy in Brenda’s position. New responsibilities were

added to Brenda’s job description without any discussion of the

expectations by Brenda’s superiors. In spite of the fact that her

previous performance reviews were exemplary, Brenda’s manager, Martin

Eaton, was at a loss at how to evaluate Brenda after the changes had

been implemented. He was determined to evaluate her even though he was

unsure of her current job responsibilities or how her effort contributed

to the company as a whole. The evaluation of the newer responsibilities

of her job was less than satisfactory, even though she had been given no

guidelines.

.

Brenda and Martin can reach a satisfactory result, but only if both

are willing to compromise. Martin must realize that the criteria for

evaluating Brenda’s performance are no longer valid and must be updated.

The current performance review should only take the technical aspects

into account, as these are the only parts of Brenda’s job that he is

capable of evaluating. As Brenda has been a good employee in the past,

he should trust her to write out a description of the work she does

every day. Once Martin has a precise idea of Brenda’s job, he should

meet with her to explain his expectations for each part of her job

description. This process should be completed for all employees whose

job descriptions changed during the reorganization. He should inform

Brenda of the date of her next evaluation, so that she can be given a

fair opportunity to prepare.

.

Employees should only be evaluated on a specific job description,

not on the extra responsibilities they take on in order to keep the

company running smoothly. As the job description changes, employees

should be made aware of managers ' expectations long before the next

performance evaluation. In the interim, however, employees ' personal

competencies should be evaluated first by determining the overall

contribution to the whole. Managers should ask if the employee’s work

adds to the company’s bottom line, or if it keeps the company from

achieving certain goals. The next way to evaluate these personal

competencies is to observe how the employee works with others, their

time management skills , and client response.

.

Blackhawk Aironics can avoid this problem in the future by assigning

managers to keep up with changes in job descriptions. When the company

was reorganized, they should have considered that this would change job

descriptions and personal responsibilities. Every performance evaluation

should not only be used as an opportunity to check on the employee’s job

performance, but to address changes in job responsibilities. Managers

should keep in mind that not everything needs to be evaluated. They

should only be evaluating those tasks that are essential to the job

description.

Conclusion

There are many deeply personal reasons to change employment situation.

However, from a purely strategic point of view, there are four good reasons

to change jobs within the same (or similar) industry during employment:

1: Changing jobs gives you a broader base of experience: After about three

years, you've learned most of what you're going to know about how to do

your job. Therefore, over a ten year period, you gain more experience from

"three times 90 percent than "one times 100 percent."

2: A more varied background creates a greater demand for your skills: Depth

of experience means you're more valuable to a larger number of employers.

You're not only familiar with your current company's product, service,

procedures, quality programs, inventory system, and so forth; you bring with

you the expertise you've gained from your prior employment with other

companies.

3: A job change results in an accelerated promotion cycle: Each time you

make a change, you bump up a notch on the promotion ladder. You jump,

for example, from project engineer to senior project engineer; or national

sales manager to vice president of sales and marketing.

4: More responsibility leads to greater earning power: A promotion is

usually accompanied by a salary increase. And since you're being promoted

faster, your salary grows at a quicker pace, sort of like compounding the

interest you'd earn on a certificate of deposit.

Many people view a job change as a way of promoting themselves to a

better position. And in most cases, I would agree. However, you should

always be sure your new job offers you the means to satisfy your values.

While there's no denying the strategic virtues of selective job changing for

the purpose of career leverage, you want to make sure the path you take will

lead you where you really want to go.

References

http://www.therecruiterslounge.com/2009/02/19/employee-separation-

%E2%80%93-resignation-termination-and-absconding/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demotion

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Promotion

http://www.pvamu.edu/pages/1361.asp

http://admin.utep.edu/Default.aspx?tabid=39745

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_2005_Nov_4/

ai_n15776736/

http://www.linkedin.com/answers/Sustainability/energy-

development/SUS_ENE/630320-23177690