IBPS SO Professional Knowledge - HR / Personnel Officer (Scale I) Syllabus

Define performance appraisal.

Performance appraisal is the systematic, periodic evaluation of an employee's job performance and potential against defined standards, used for feedback, rewards, promotions, and development decisions.

What is 360-degree feedback?

360-degree feedback is a multi-rater appraisal where an employee receives performance feedback from all directions: superiors, subordinates, peers, self, and sometimes customers/clients, giving a well-rounded view of behaviour.

Compare 180-degree, 360-degree, and 540-degree feedback.

180-degree includes self plus supervisor (and sometimes peers); 360-degree adds subordinates, peers, and self; 540-degree extends further to external stakeholders such as customers and suppliers.

Name common traditional and modern methods of performance appraisal.

Traditional: ranking, paired comparison, graphic rating scale, checklist, forced distribution, confidential reports. Modern: MBO, BARS (Behaviourally Anchored Rating Scales), 360-degree feedback, assessment centres, and the critical incident method.

List common errors (rater biases) in performance appraisal.

Halo effect, horn effect, central tendency, leniency/strictness error, recency effect, similar-to-me bias, and stereotyping.

Differentiate career planning from succession planning.

Career planning is employee-centred, matching individual aspirations with organisational opportunities over a career; succession planning is organisation-centred, identifying and developing internal talent to fill key/critical positions when they become vacant.

What is a career anchor (Edgar Schein)?

A career anchor is the self-perceived cluster of talents, motives, and values that guides and stabilises a person's career choices, e.g., technical/functional competence, managerial competence, autonomy, security, and entrepreneurial creativity.

Define talent management.

Talent management is the integrated, strategic process of attracting, identifying, developing, engaging, and retaining high-potential and high-performing employees critical to organisational success.

What is employee engagement?

Employee engagement is the emotional commitment and involvement an employee has toward the organisation and its goals, reflected in discretionary effort, enthusiasm, and willingness to stay and contribute.

What is the difference between wage and salary?

Wages are usually paid for manual/hourly or daily work on an hourly/piece-rate basis (variable), while salary is a fixed periodic (usually monthly) payment to white-collar/managerial employees.

Distinguish financial incentives from non-financial incentives.

Financial incentives are monetary rewards (bonus, commission, profit-sharing, piece-rate pay); non-financial incentives are non-monetary motivators (recognition, promotion, job enrichment, status, participation, job security).

What is the difference between time-rate and piece-rate wage systems?

Under time-rate, pay is based on time spent at work regardless of output; under piece-rate, pay is based on the number of units produced, directly linking earnings to output.

Define industrial relations (IR).

Industrial relations is the study and management of the relationships among employers, employees, trade unions, and the government, aimed at maintaining industrial peace, cooperation, and productivity.

What are the main functions of a trade union?

Collective bargaining, protecting members' rights and interests, securing better wages and working conditions, handling grievances, providing welfare, and giving workers a collective voice.

What are the three main approaches/perspectives to industrial relations?

Unitary (organisation as one team with common goals), Pluralist (multiple legitimate interest groups managed through negotiation), and Marxist/Radical (conflict rooted in class divisions of capitalism).

Define collective bargaining.

Collective bargaining is the process of negotiation between employers (or their representatives) and a group of employees (usually through a trade union) to reach a mutually acceptable agreement on wages, hours, and working conditions.

Name the main types of collective bargaining.

Distributive (win-lose over fixed resources like wages), Integrative (win-win problem solving), Productivity bargaining (gains linked to productivity), and Composite bargaining (covers wider issues like welfare and safety).

Define a grievance and outline a typical grievance handling procedure.

A grievance is an employee's real or perceived feeling of dissatisfaction regarding employment. A typical procedure escalates step by step: immediate supervisor, departmental head, grievance committee, top management, and finally arbitration if unresolved.

What is the difference between discipline and a domestic enquiry?

Discipline is orderly conduct and adherence to organisational rules; a domestic enquiry is the formal, quasi-judicial internal investigation conducted to establish charges of misconduct before imposing punishment, ensuring natural justice.

What are the principles of natural justice in a domestic enquiry?

The accused must be given a charge sheet and notice, a fair opportunity to be heard and defend, the enquiry must be unbiased (no one a judge in their own cause), and the decision must be based on evidence on record.

List the key stages of disciplinary action against misconduct.

Issue of charge sheet, employee's explanation/reply, appointment of enquiry officer, domestic enquiry, findings, show-cause notice, and the final order of punishment (warning, suspension, dismissal, etc.).

What is the difference between a strike and a lockout under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947?

A strike is a cessation or refusal of work by a body of employees acting together; a lockout is the temporary closing of a place of work or suspension of work by the employer to pressure employees.

Name the authorities/machinery for settlement of disputes under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947.

Works Committee, Conciliation Officers, Boards of Conciliation, Courts of Inquiry, Labour Courts, Industrial Tribunals, National Tribunals, plus voluntary arbitration.

Under the Factories Act, 1948, what are the standard limits on working hours?

A maximum of 48 hours per week and 9 hours per day for adult workers, with a rest interval after no more than 5 hours of continuous work, and weekly holidays; overtime is paid at twice the ordinary rate.

Under the Payment of Wages Act, 1936, what are the wage payment timelines?

Wages must be paid before the 7th of the next month for establishments with fewer than 1,000 workers and before the 10th for those with 1,000 or more; the wage period must not exceed one month.

State the key eligibility and rate provisions of the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965.

Applies to factories/establishments with 20 or more employees; covers employees drawing wages up to the prescribed ceiling; minimum bonus is 8.33% and maximum is 20% of salary/wage for the accounting year.

State the eligibility and formula for gratuity under the Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972.

Payable after 5 years of continuous service (not required on death/disablement). Formula: (Last drawn salary x 15 x number of completed years of service) / 26, where salary = basic + DA.

Compare Maslow's hierarchy of needs with Herzberg's two-factor theory.

Maslow proposes five ascending need levels (physiological, safety, social, esteem, self-actualisation). Herzberg splits factors into hygiene factors (prevent dissatisfaction, e.g., pay, conditions) and motivators (create satisfaction, e.g., achievement, recognition, growth).

What do McGregor's Theory X and Theory Y assume about workers?

Theory X assumes employees dislike work, avoid responsibility, and need control and coercion; Theory Y assumes employees are self-motivated, seek responsibility, and can be creative if given the right environment.

Name the stages of group development in Tuckman's model.

Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, and Adjourning (added later).

What is Organisation Development (OD) and name common OD interventions?

OD is a planned, organisation-wide effort to increase effectiveness and health through behavioural-science-based interventions. Common interventions: survey feedback, team building, sensitivity (T-group) training, process consultation, and management by objectives.