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ASSIGNMENT
HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
IN CONSTRUCTION
This assignment discuss about the Human Resource management
in construction industry. This case has a brief discussion on the
motivation of the persons to work on remote place of dangerous
and hazardous conditions without basic amenities on the work
place. Due to that the work is going delay. This case study
suggest about the motivational factors for the persons to
complete the work on time.

Hemant Sharma
MAHAN Aluminium
9/29/2009
 ASSIGNMENT ON

CONSTRUCTION PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT

(COURSE NO: PGPM 13)

MODULE –55.

SUBMITTED BY: HEMANT SHARMA

REGISTRATION NO – 29-08-31-7412-2111
SUBMITTED TO: ____________________

CENTRE OF DISTANCE EDUCATION

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF CONSTRUCTION

MANAGEMENT AND RESEARCH
25/1 BALEWADI, N.I.A POST OFFICE
PUNE - 411045

Assignment : I am a project manager on a site where work for 3 Km. long

tunnel has been undertaken. The site is remote and takes about 2 days
travels to nearest town. Supervisors, Technicians & skilled workers are
engaged in dangerous/ hazardous work. Absenteeism due to sickness,
quarrels, drinking are adding to less out of the work and chances of accident
on the site are increasing. Management as urge to do something so that time
target can achieved. Discuss how will tackle the problem and increase the
output of the work.

Human resource management in

construction.
The working conditions of the site

The site a remote place and which takes the 2 days travels to the nearest
town. The work at the site is for constructing the tunnel of the 3 K.M. long
which is in a very dangerous and hazardous with the unpredictable weather.
It does have any necessary amenities for living at the site also due to very
far from town it doesn’t have any communication at the site.

Main Problem at the Site

The main problems at the site are as following:

1. Less output is at the site.

2. The delay in the work is occurring and work progress not meeting the
work schedule.

3. Working condition of the site is dangerous and hazardous due to that

sickness and chances of the accidents are increasing.

4. Absenteeism

5. Decreasing of the interpersonal relation between the workers.

6. Morale of the workers is decreasing due to cut from the society.

The basic needs of the persons

The human is a self oriented animal which need some basic thing which are
essential for living like house, food, enjoyment, personal satisfaction. After
fulfill of these basic need he thinks about feels of family & social relations,
status in the society, pride, recognition, growth, opportunity and
achievements, work to earn thing for comfort.

Without fulfill of these need the human can be frustrated and he will not able
to work efficiently and due to that his morale and concentration on the work
decreases.
The social needs of the persons
The human is social animal which live in the group. In that group there are
different types of the persons and he has an relationship with the persons
which are near to him (Family) and having the common interest. That group
of the people called the society. The human need socially interaction
between the peoples, communication, sharing of the feeling, and recognition
in the society. He wants to enjoy and share his personal fling with the people
of the society. Without these he found himself alone and the work goes
hampered. If he does get any personal relation with the people of his
common interest the interpersonal relationship tends to decrease and
quarreling start between, Which is not good at work site and it effect the
work condition of the site which could be more dangerous with adding to the
work at dangerous and hazardous site.

Reasons of various problems

The site is a remote place and doesn’t have the basic need able things on
the site. Also the work environment is dangerous and hazardous. The
absenteeism is increasing due to that the output at work place is less and
work is not meeting so that work schedule work is delaying. The reasons for
these problems are as follow.

1. The site is remote due to that it doesn’t have any connection with
rest of the world.

2. There’s communication & traveling facility is very poor due to that

they are not able to take care of their family.

3. The site doesn’t have basic need able thing at the site to live.

4. The site doesn’t have the good housing & food arrangement.

5. The site condition is not hygiene.

6. The work place hasn’t stimulated properly and the working

conditions are not safe.

7. The site condition is dangerous and hazardous adding of bad

weather conditions increasing the chances for the accident are
more.
 8. The sickness in the workers increasing due to unavailability of the
good medical facility.

9. The interpersonal relations between the workers are decreasing and

due to that cases of the quarrel are increasing.

10. The persons are getting tired and not refreshed because of very
tight schedule due to that they are getting frustrated.

11. There is a lack of control on the workers due to that they are not
doing the work properly like dinking of the workers increases the
absenteeism, quarrel and chances of the accidents.

12. The surety about the job is not there after completion of the
work.

Needs and their fulfillment on the site

The site is a remote place and which takes the 2 days travels to the nearest
town. The work at the site is for constructing the tunnel of the 3 K.M. long
which is in a very dangerous and hazardous with the unpredictable weather.
It does have any necessary amenities for living at the site also due to very
far from town it doesn’t have any communication at the site. So it is
necessary to provide the basic need able things and facility on the site which
are as following:

1. Stimulating the work site.

2. Taking care of all the safety for the workers on the job.

3. There should be good housing arrangement on the site so that after

the long period of the work when the workers can refresh and get a
good relief.

4. There should be good food facility for the workers.

5. There should be a good communication system.

6. There should be emergency travel arrangement by which in case of

any injury they can reach at the nearest hospital within the time.

7. Developing the hygiene conditions on the site so that cases of the

sickness on the site can deceases.
 8. Providing the facility for recreation activities & enjoyment of the
workers like movies, games, and internet, participations in the
various activities.

9. Proving the good medical facility on the work site with the life
saving medicines.

Suggested method for hygiene factors and the

motivational factors
The following method can be use for improving the hygiene condition and to
motivate the workers at the site.

Stimulate the working site

The work site should be properly stimulated and the hygiene conditions
should be developed at the site so that the persons at the site could get a
better environment for the work. The work place should be safe so that
during the work workers should not get injured. The housing arrangement
and good food facilities and availability of basic amenities could improve the
working efficiency of the workers. Also providing a good medical facility can
reduce the cases of the sickness of the workers helping in the reducing the
absenteeism and the required team members for the work will be available.

Fulfilling Social needs of the persons

The persons are not able to take their family to site, due to that they are not
in contact with them. He always thinks about them and the concentration on
the work will not be continued. To fulfill these requirements of his
attachment with the family and for social responsibility they should get work
off of leave to meet the family and for completing his social responsibilities.

Developing interpersonal relationship

By training and organizing other events and competition, the interpersonal

relationship can develop between the workers. This can help in improving
team work, by that the output will increase than the output by the individual.
This can also help in developing a helpful environment for the workers. By
creating open communication between the workers can help in
strengthening the interpersonal relationship between the workers.

Providing Opportunity for the Professional Growth

By making then feel that after completing this project, the professional
growth for them will be much higher than the other who are engaged at
another work place of its less difficult. They may get a job security on the job
and they can be promoted & transferred on the basis of their performance.
By providing chance for the interesting and challenging work the opportunity
for the growth can be provided to them. Also technical training and on the
job training can increases the level of the knowledge, this could help in
increasing the working efficiency of the workers.

Tangible rewards

By giving the tangible rewards for the better work performance on the site,
this could help in motivating the peoples for doing the better job. For that
extra wages and awards can give to increase their morale.

Senior management support & management assistance in

problem solving

The continuous support by the management and assistance to the workers

time to time increase the morale of the persons involved in the work at the
site. If any problem arises at the site which is beyond the authority of the
supervisors the management could take decision can solve the problem
within time. They think that if anything happens the management can take
care of them and the problem could solve within the time effectively. Also if
there any grievance between the supervisory and workers level this could
solve by the management so that the working environment could be develop
in an efficient work place. The management can recognize and appraise their
work of the god performance, this help in increase the morale of the workers
and faith in the organization.

Cultivating strong skills in delegation

Delegation includes conveying responsibility and authority to supervisors

and workers so they can carry out certain tasks. However, leave it up to the
workers and supervisors to decide how they will carry out the tasks. Skills in
delegation can free up a great deal of time for managers and higher
management. It also allow them to take strong role in job, which usually
means more fulfillment and motivation in their job, as well.
Recommendations to the management
Motivating employees so that they feel secure on the job is not easy,
especially since a project has a finite lifetime. Also if a project is at such
place where the basic amenities are not available to live it become the more
difficult to motivate the employee to work at those site. Since the project
manager or management cannot motivate by promising material gains, they
must appeal to each person’s pride. The project manager should take care
and give personal assistance to the supervisors, technicians, workers and the
persons whose are working under him for achieving the target. There are
several ways for motivating project personnel. Some effective ways include
are followings:

Professionally stimulating work environment

The work conditions on the site are not so good and there is a lack of basic
facilities and amenities. The management should arrange the basic
requirement of the persons at the site like housing, food, recreation centre,
games. Also management should make work site be safe so that anyone can
work without fear and give his best output. The management should provide
a good medical facility and the travel arrangement in the case of emergency.

Letting the people know why they are, where they are

The people are engaged at work should know that they are there because
they know that how to do that work. How much they are important for the
work and for the organization. They should know that where they are and
why, because this make them feel them important for the organization.
Making the individual feel that they belong where they are. Let the people
know that how their efforts fit into the big picture of the project and how this
project will benefits their future growth and career development. Employees
often feel strong fulfillment from realizing that they are actually making a
difference. This realization often requires clear communication about
organizational goal, employee progress towards those goal and celebration
when the goal are met.

Adopt a positive attitude

The management should adopt positive attitude towards the supervisors,
technicians and workers to complete the work on the time. The management
shouldn’t criticize the works for their less output at the work place due to
some unfavorable conditions at the work place. The management should
always motivate them for the better work performance. The management
shouldn’t make promises that cannot be kept. The management should give
each person the attention which he requires.

Placement of the persons in positions

The every people have some level of knowledge and experience. Anybody
cannot fit into every work. The efficiency can be maximum if right people in
right place in right numbers. The people at any level should have proper
knowledge for that position and properly trained. By giving proper training to
the persons at work place it could increase the work progress. This will also
help in further growth of the persons. The persons placed at various positions
should follow the hierarchy of the management. They should be follow the
instruction given by the higher person also the higher person should consider
the ideas of the lower persons.

Job Enrichment

The job enrichment is concerned with designing jobs that provide

opportunities for the achievement, recognition, growth, responsibility, a
greater variety of work content; requires a higher level of knowledge and
skills, give workers more autonomy and responsibility in terms of planning,
direction and controlling their work and provide the opportunity for personal
growth and meaningful work experience. The workers job may be enriched
by:

- Giving workers more latitude in deciding about such things as work

methods, sequence and pace or by letting them make decision.

- Encouraging the participation of subordinate and interaction

between workers.

- Giving workers a feeling of personal responsibility to their tasks.

- Giving feedback on job performance.

Appraisal & Rewards

The project has a very limited time and is of very specific in the nature. A
critical lesson for supervisors is to learn to focus on employee behaviors, not
on employee personalities. At time to time persons on the work gives their
best performance. For these best performances the rewards should be given
to the workers. This will encourage other workers for giving their best
performance. This could be in the form of extra wages or appraisal. The
rewards should be justified so that it should not harm the others
performance. Performance in the workplace should be based on behaviors
toward goals, not on popularity of employees. You can get in a great deal of
trouble (legally, morally and interpersonally) for focusing only on how you
feel about your employees rather than on what you're seeing with your
eyeballs.

Make of list of three to five things that motivate each of your

employees
Fill out the list yourself for each of your employees and then have each of
your employees fill out the list for themselves. Compare your answers to
theirs. Recognize the differences between your impression of what you think
is important to them and what they think is important to them. Then meet
with each of your employees to discuss what they think are the most
important motivational factors to them. Lastly, take some time alone to write
down how you will modify your approaches with each employee to ensure
their motivational factors are being met.

Work with each employee to ensure their motivational factors

are taken into consideration in your reward systems
For example, their jobs might be redesigned to be more fulfilling. You might
find more means to provide recognition, if that is important to them. You
might develop a personnel policy that rewards employees with more family
time, etc.

Have one-on-one meetings with each employee

Employees are motivated more by your care and concern for them than by
your attention to them. Get to know your employees, their families, their
favorite foods, names of their children, etc. This can sound manipulative --
and it will be if not done sincerely. However, even if you sincerely want to
get to know each of your employees, it may not happen unless you
intentionally set aside time to be with each of them.

Cultivate strong skills in delegation

Delegation includes conveying responsibility and authority to your
employees so they can carry out certain tasks. However, you leave it up to
your employees to decide how they will carry out the tasks. Skills in
delegation can free up a great deal of time for managers and supervisors. It
also allows employees to take a stronger role in their jobs, which usually
means more fulfillment and motivation in their jobs, as well.

Reward it soon after you see it

This helps to reinforce the notion that you highly prefer the behaviors that
you're currently seeing from your employees. Often, the shorter the time
between an employee's action and your reward for the action, the clearer it
is to the employee that you highly prefer that action.

Implement at least the basic principles of performance

management
Good performance management includes identifying goals, measures to
indicate if the goals are being met or not, ongoing attention and feedback
about measures toward the goals, and corrective actions to redirect activities
back toward achieving the goals when necessary. Performance management
can focus on organizations, groups, processes in the organization and
employees.

Establish goals that are SMARTER

SMARTER goals are: specific, measurable, acceptable, realistic, timely,
extending of capabilities, and rewarding to those involved.

Clearly convey how employee results contribute to

organizational results
Employees often feel strong fulfillment from realizing that they're actually
making a difference. This realization often requires clear communication
about organizational goals, employee progress toward those goals and
celebration when the goals are met.

Celebrate achievements
This critical step is often forgotten. New managers and supervisors are often
focused on a getting "a lot done". This usually means identifying and solving
problems. Experienced managers come to understand that acknowledging
and celebrating a solution to a problem can be every bit as important as the
solution itself. Without ongoing acknowledgement of success, employees
become frustrated, skeptical and even cynical about efforts in the
organization.
References

- NICMAR publication lesson books on Construction Personnel

Management
- Websites etc.