Reference no: EM132384206

Unit title & code: Leading and Managing People SHR012-6
Assignment number and title: 1. Flexible Working & the Psychological Contract
Size or length of assessment: 1,400 words (+/_ 10%)

Unit learning outcomes

1. A critical awareness and comprehension of key and contemporary debates about theory and practice in the specific fields of high performance working, engagement, team management and motivation whilst assessing the importance of management and leadership through periods of organisational change

2. Be able to evaluate and analyse any given workplace scenario for evidence of effective people performance, leadership and management, and able to diagnose and identify appropriate solutions to issues or challenges limiting optimum work performance or affecting maximum application and utilisation of worker capability.

Task 1. Using BREO - located academic literature and practitioner-orientated material for support, briefly analyse the theoretical concept underpinning flexibility and the psychological contract, explaining what they are.

Task 2. Consider the existence and impact of flexible working and the psychological contract on your organisation and how it affects the performance of the business

Task 3. This section should initially answer your report objectives and draw together the main points from your analysis of literature and other discussion about your organisation. It summarises what has been learned from undertaking this research. It should also begin to weigh up the options available to the organisation and what would impede implementation of further action. It should reach an overall conclusion as to the extent and effectiveness of flexible working /psychological contract strategies on your organisation and begins to identify the way forward. No new information should be presented in the conclusions.

(Task1)
You need to demonstrate an excellent understanding of the ‘state of play' of alternative definitions / perceptions of ‘flexible working' and the ‘psychological contract' and the strengths and weaknesses of current research ‘evidence' from both an employer and an employee perspective. Excellent knowledge of the subject matter from an academic and practitioner perspective is shown. There is strong supporting reference in relation to related concepts such as ‘trust'; ‘zero hours'; ‘workforce resilience' which will be very well evaluated.

(Task 2)
The evaluation is excellent and uses many of the features defined as ‘good practice' (re flexible working / positive psychological contract) in the Task 1 evaluation when considering your own workplace. There will be reasonable evidence of citations based on company / organisation documentation: for example, employee feedback surveys / management action in relation to these. For higher A grades, any diagrams used will generally be annotated with the circumstances of the workplace.

(Task 3)
Conclusions tie to main discussion and are evidence based. Recommendations are very carefully chosen (no more than four) and linked clearly to any gaps / shortcomings re the practice of flexible working / psychological contract. There will be a clear, credible business case in support of all recommendations made. Appropriate citation consistently used to establish appropriate links between Task 3 and the earlier tasks.

Presentation and Persuasion

The report will be very well considered throughout & especially in the Recommendations section, for example there will be a balanced awareness of aspects of cost / complexity / timescales / acceptance by the workforce with (brief) suggested mitigations where relevant to aid implementation of them.

Overall, the impression given is of a highly knowledgeable perspective combined with a ‘hard to resist' logic built on a strong platform of high quality contemporary sources and in which the analysis in each task is closely linked to the preceding one.