SQA Higher Business Management Management of People: a complete overview of recruitment, training, motivation, employee relations, legislation and technology

What Management of People actually demands

Management of People is the functional area about a firm's most valuable asset, its staff. The SQA expects you to follow the employee life cycle, from planning and recruiting the right people, to training and motivating them, to managing relations with them and complying with the law, all increasingly shaped by technology. The recurring skills are comparing approaches (internal versus external recruitment, on-the-job versus off-the-job training, autocratic versus democratic leadership) and discussing both sides.

This guide walks through the whole area, then sets out how the SQA examines it. Each topic has a matching dot-point page with practice questions; this overview ties them together.

Recruiting and developing people

Workforce planning forecasts the staff a firm needs and finds the gaps. Recruitment then attracts candidates, internal (cheaper, quicker, motivating) or external (fresh skills, wider choice), using a job description (the post) and person specification (the ideal candidate), and selection chooses the best through interviews, testing, assessment centres, practical tasks and references. Training and development then build skills through induction, on-the-job and off-the-job training, CPD and appraisal, balancing the cost of training against gains in skills, productivity, motivation and retention.

Motivating, managing and protecting people

Motivation uses financial (bonuses, commission, profit sharing) and non-financial (recognition, promotion, job enrichment) methods, informed by theories such as Maslow's hierarchy of needs, and is shaped by leadership style (autocratic, democratic, laissez-faire). Employee relations covers trade unions, resolving disputes (negotiation, ACAS, arbitration, works councils) and industrial action and its consequences. Employment legislation (equality, health and safety, minimum wage) must be obeyed, with compliance bringing both costs and benefits. Technology (e-recruitment, e-learning, HR databases, remote working) runs through all of these.

How Management of People is examined

A typical SQA profile for this area:

• Compare approaches. Internal versus external recruitment, on-the-job versus off-the-job training, autocratic versus democratic leadership.
• Discuss both sides. The costs and benefits of training, compliance and technology; the consequences of industrial action.
• Use a theory. Maslow's hierarchy to explain why pay alone is not enough.
• Link to performance. Show how motivation, leadership and good relations affect productivity and retention.

Check your knowledge

A mix of recall and explanation questions covering Management of People. Attempt them, then check against the solutions.

1. Distinguish between a job description and a person specification. (2 marks)
2. Distinguish between on-the-job and off-the-job training. (2 marks)
3. Name two non-financial methods of motivating staff. (2 marks)
4. Name the three main leadership styles. (3 marks)
5. Distinguish between conciliation and arbitration. (2 marks)
6. Name two areas of employment legislation a firm must follow. (2 marks)