1. The Personnel Managers’ Dilemma
Speaking & Listening
The Personnel Managers’ Dilemma

2. The Personnel Managers’ Dilemma
UNIT CONTENTS
Introduction Slides 3 - 8
Meet the Candidates Slides
Additional Information Slides

3. The Personnel Managers’ Dilemma -
Introduction
CONTENTS
Introduction Slide 4
Speaking & Listening Slides 5 - 6
The Task Slides 7 - 8

4. The P.M.s’ Dilemma - Introduction
In this unit we will be working on a speaking and listening task. The task is called “The Personnel Managers’ Dilemma”.
In this task, you will be playing the role of personnel managers. You will be working in groups to decide how you can save money for your company.
The task requires you to listen carefully to the other members of your group, and to work together to come to the best decision.
After you have made your choice, you will be asked to justify what you have decided.

5. The P.M.s’ Dilemma - Introduction
Speaking & Listening
There are various skills that you will need to demonstrate during this work, to show your abilities in both speaking and listening. Here is a list of some positive ways of being involved in the task:
Take a full part in the discussion.
Offer positive, relevant ideas, information and opinions.
Involve other people by asking questions.
Listen carefully to what other people have to say.
Help the group find a ‘direction’ in their discussion.
Keep the group enthusiastic and positive about the task.
Keep the discussion moving forwards.
Help to solve any conflicts or tensions that arise.

6. The P.M.s’ Dilemma - Introduction
Speaking & Listening
As well as making a positive contribution to the task, you must also try to avoid taking a negative role in the work. Here are some of the things that you should avoid:
Being too dominant or aggressive with your ideas.
Talking too much, trying to ‘take charge’ of the group.
Talking too little, and leaving others to do all the work.
Moving away from the topic that you have been set.
Distracting or disrupting the other members of your group.
Becoming negative about the task you have been set.
Being negative about other people’s ideas.

7. The P.M.s’ Dilemma - Introduction
The Task
Now let’s look at the task in detail. On the next slide you will find a memo, which has been sent to the team of Personnel Managers working for Widget Manufacturing Plc, a company making Widgets. (Widgets are a type of fictional tool that your company manufactures.)
Personnel Managers take care of the staff of a company, and are also responsible for sacking people or making redundancies.
In this scenario, these people are not being sacked for misconduct. However, the company does need to decide which of them to make redundant, and it is never a good thing to lose your job.

8. The Task CONFIDENTIAL MEMORANDUM Widget Manufacturing Plc
The P.M.s’ Dilemma - Introduction
The Task
CONFIDENTIAL MEMORANDUM
Widget Manufacturing Plc
To: The Personnel Management Team
From: The Managing Director
As you are aware, there has been a drop in UK demand for the tools that our company manufactures. Because of this, I have decided that we will need to make some staff redundant. I need to save at least £50,000 a year. Attached you will find a list of the possible candidates for redundancy. Please discuss the options, ready for our meeting next Tuesday.

9. The Personnel Managers’ Dilemma -
Meet the Candidates
CONTENTS
Introduction Slide 10
Candidate One Slide 11
Candidate Two Slide 12
Candidate Three Slide 13
Candidate Four Slide 14
Candidate Five Slide 15
Candidate Six Slide 16

10. Meet the Candidates
Introduction
On the following slides, you will find the attachment to the Managing Director’s memo. Each slide gives you details of one possible candidate for redundancy.
Make notes on each of the candidates, ready for your group discussion. You might like to spend some time as a whole class, talking about your opinion of each candidate.
Remember - you should try to think laterally. It could be that there are several possible solutions to the problem of saving £50,000. As long as you can justify your ideas, the Managing Director will be happy to listen to you.

11. Candidate One Name: Jenny Richards Age: 21 Position: Widget Maker
Meet the Candidates
Candidate One
Name: Jenny Richards
Age: 21
Position: Widget Maker
Salary: £8,500 plus productivity bonus
Length of Service: 5 years
Qualifications: 8 G.C.S.E.s
Work Record: Jenny has been with the Company since she left school. She works shifts and is known to be an excellent worker, although she seems tired at times.
Personal Details: Jenny is a single parent with a young son. She lives in a rented flat. Her mother helps her out with childcare.
CONFIDENTIAL

12. Candidate Two Name: Nathan McKay CONFIDENTIAL Age: 29
Meet the Candidates
Candidate Two
Name: Nathan McKay
Age: 29
Position: Development Manager
Salary: £28,000 plus company car
Length of Service: 2 years
Qualifications: Engineering Degree
Work Record: Nathan has worked very long hours since he joined the Company. He has invented two new products which have sold well.
Personal Details: Nathan is married and has two young daughters. His wife cares for the children. He has a large mortgage. He moved to the local area specifically for this job.
CONFIDENTIAL

13. Candidate Three Name: Peter Charles CONFIDENTIAL Age: 24
Meet the Candidates
Candidate Three
Name: Peter Charles
Age: 24
Position: Widget Salesman
Salary: £7,500 plus commission
Length of Service: 2 years
Qualifications: 4 G.C.S.E.s
Work Record: Peter was ‘Top Widget Salesman’ last year, making £15,000 commission from his sales. He is well liked by both staff and customers.
Personal Details: Peter is single and lives in rented accommodation.
CONFIDENTIAL

14. Candidate Four Name: Anna Kominsky CONFIDENTIAL Age: 58
Meet the Candidates
Candidate Four
Name: Anna Kominsky
Age: 58
Position: Office Manager
Salary: £26,000
Length of Service: 27 years
Qualifications: Diploma in Office Studies
Work Record: Anna has been with the Company since it first started business. She recently took a month’s sick leave, but is now back at work.
Personal Details: Anna has been married for thirty years and she has two grown up children and four grandchildren. Her husband is retired.
CONFIDENTIAL

15. Candidate Five Name: Awin Nazir CONFIDENTIAL Age: 27
Meet the Candidates
Candidate Five
Name: Awin Nazir
Age: 27
Position: Business Manager
Salary: £27,500 plus company car
Length of Service: 4 years
Qualifications: Business Degree
Work Record: Awin has worked hard for the Company. She has encouraged Widget Manufacturing to develop new markets for its products, and has good contacts with European buyers.
Personal Details: Awin is married with a young baby and a toddler. Her husband, who was a teacher, cares for their daughters.
CONFIDENTIAL

16. Candidate Six Name: Billy Kennedy CONFIDENTIAL Age: 53
Meet the Candidates
Candidate Six
Name: Billy Kennedy
Age: 53
Position: Widget Maker
Salary: £9,200 plus productivity bonus
Length of Service: 25 years
Qualifications: None
Work Record: Billy had an unblemished record until his wife left him a year ago. Since then he has taken a total of five weeks’ sick leave.
Personal Details: Billy is divorced and lives in a rented studio flat. He has one grown up son.
CONFIDENTIAL

17. The Personnel Managers’ Dilemma - Additional Information CONTENTS
Introduction Slide 18
Company Perks Slide 19
Redundancy Packages Slide 20
Other Company Information Slide 21

18. Additional Information
Introduction
On the following slides, you will find some additional information that you might need during your discussion. This is information that the Personnel Team would have available to them in any company.
Again, remember to think laterally when you are discussing this task. You have been asked to save £50,000, but it is up to you how you do it. You might find that you can save the money in other ways, apart from making people redundant.
When working in your group, you might find that you have one person who is particularly good at maths. Take advantage of this if you can!

19. Additional Information
Company Perks
Company Car - Staff who are offered a company car can choose not to take it, and to take a £5,000 ‘car allowance’ instead.
Sales Commission - The company pays sales staff 10% commission on the sales that they make.
Productivity Bonus - The company pays a bonus to top widget makers of 10% of their salary.

20. Additional Information
Redundancy Packages
Redundancy Package - Staff who have worked for the Company more than two years must be given a redundancy package. They are paid 10% of their salary for every five years’ service for the Company that they have completed.
Redundancies - The Company likes to take an ethical approach to making staff redundant. They would prefer not to make someone redundant if it would mean hardship for them.

21. Other Company Information
Additional Information
Other Company Information
The Company Building - The lease on the building now has only six months to run. The building costs the Company £10,000 a year to lease. Because of the downturn in sales, there is now spare capacity in the building.
The Canteen - The Company runs a canteen for its staff, and this is used mainly by the widget makers, because they work shifts. The Company spends approximately £50 a head for each member of staff to run the canteen.

22. The Personnel Managers’ Dilemma -
Working on the Task
CONTENTS
Instructions Slides
Evaluation Slide 25
Positive Roles Slide 26
Negative Roles Slide 27
Evaluation Form Slide 28

23. Working on the Task
Instructions
Now you are ready to start work on the task. Follow the instructions below:
Work in a group of between three and five people.
Discuss all the information you have been given before you start to make any decisions.
Keep detailed notes about what you decide. You might like to take it in turns to write these notes.
Once you have come to your decision, write out a report to discuss with the Managing Director.

24. Working on the Task
Instructions
Once you have finished the task and your report is ready, you should try out the meeting with the Managing Director.
Ask one member of the group to act as the Director, and present your findings to him / her. If you have time, take it in turns to play the Director. When you have finished acting as the ‘Director’, let your personnel managers know what you think of their presentation.
If you have decided to make redundancies or cuts, you will need to have meetings with the people affected. Again, run these meetings with members of your group playing the staff. After you have finished, discuss how well the Personnel Manager(s) did.

25. Working on the Task
Evaluation
When you have finished the task, it is important to evaluate your work, and that of others. Remember, this task is about your speaking and listening skills, and you should focus on these during your evaluations.
Remember, when you are evaluating, you should try to make positive comments about the work that you did, and the work that other people did. If you do feel that a particular aspect of your / their work could have been improved, you will need to say exactly how this improvement could have been made.
Let’s look again at the positive and negative roles that you and others might have taken during the activity.

26. Working on the Task
Positive Roles
Look at the list of positive roles below. Which of these did you demonstrate and how? And the other people in your class / group?
Take a full part in the discussion.
Offer positive, relevant ideas, information and opinions.
Involve other people by asking questions.
Listen carefully to what other people have to say.
Help the group find a ‘direction’ in their discussion.
Keep the group enthusiastic and positive about the task.
Keep the discussion moving forwards.
Help to solve any conflicts or tensions that arise.

27. Working on the Task
Negative Roles
Now think about the less positive aspects of your work, and that of others. Remember, when you are making criticisms, you should always say how things could have been improved.
Being too dominant or aggressive with your ideas.
Talking too much, trying to ‘take charge’ of the group.
Talking too little, and leaving others to do all the work.
Moving away from the topic that you have been set.
Distracting or disrupting the other members of your group.
Becoming negative about the task you have been set.
Being negative about other people’s ideas.

28. Working on the Task
Evaluation Form
Now it is time to evaluate the work that you did on this task, and the work of others in your group / class. Copy out the headings below to help you do this.
Speaking Skills: ………………………………………..
Listening Skills: ………………………………………..
Group Work: ………………………………………..
Ideas: ………………………………………..
Attitude: ………………………………………..