timed assessment 4hrs 1000words per question (2question, open book)

REWARD MANAGEMENT TIMED FINAL ASSESSMENT CMSE11175

Assessment Date: Thursday 9th December, 2021

From and To: From 10am to 2pm (UK GMT)

Please read full instructions before commencing writing

( Assessment information Answer the TWO questions, writing up to 1,000 words (+/- 10%) for each question These should take a total of two hours to complete. You are permitted to take longer if you wish. The completed assessment must be submitted within the 4-hour period. This is an open book timed assessment. You may consult books and papers, use the internet and other sources but are forbidden from consulting with or collaborating with other people (e.g., you may not discuss with your classmates). )

Answer BOTH of the following questions.

Question 1

You are HR Director in a company that has recently run a Pay Audit that has revealed marked disparities between the pay of male and female employees. You suspect that this may, in part, be due to some jobs in the company that are mostly held by women being undervalued as compared to other jobs held predominantly by men. As far as you can see, the best way forward would be to conduct a job evaluation exercise across the whole company and then use the results of that to adjust wages using this evidence-based approach.

To do this you require the backing of senior management. Write a report to senior management that explains the problems exposed by the Pay Audit and why your use of a Job Evaluation exercise might be the best way forward. Be sure to spell out the problems that might arise if they agree to approve of your plan and contrast these with the ‘do nothing’ alternative.

[50 MARKS]

Question 2

For many years, your organisation has run a defined benefit final salary pension scheme for all employees who wish to join. Currently the employer contributes 20% of wages and the employee contributes 10% of their wages respectively to the pension fund. Increased longevity of retirees and disappointing investment returns in the organisation’s pension fund investments means that senior management wishes to move away from the current pension offering to something less expensive. Otherwise, the contributions to the pension fund are going to have to increase dramatically.

You have recently joined the HR department from the University of Edinburgh’s MSc programme. As such, your team members in the HR Department have decided you are more knowledgeable on the topic of pensions than any of them is. Write a briefing paper for them that spells out the strengths and weaknesses of the present arrangement, how the pension fits into the organisation’s employee value proposition, and evaluate the alternative pension arrangements that could be offered to employees.

[50 MARKS]

[TOTAL MARKS: 100]