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Derby Business School

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Developing and Managing Performance

6. The Role of the Line Manager

By the end of this session you will be able to:

Discuss the devolution of people management to line managers Analyse the importance of line management in performance management Critically evaluate the ability and motivation of line managers to manage

people effectively and the opportunities provided to them to do so.

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The evolving role of the line manager in people management

Causes:New ‘strategic’ role for HRIntegrated/shared responsibility for people management (partnership)Proximity to employeesTechnological advancesTeam briefing, appraising etc – direct management initiatives rather than channelling through trade unionsDecentralisation, financial autonomy and responsibilityCost cutting

Results:“…an IRS survey (2006) found that in six in ten organisations’ FLMs had taken on more responsibility in the past three years and in a recent CIPD survey of HR/training specialists almost three quarters of respondents reported that line managers had increased involvement for learning and development activities in the last two years (CIPD 2007c)” (Purcell et al 2009:62)

Growing responsibility for people management

Implementation:AppraisalAttendance managementRecruitment and SelectionCommunicationTraining and developmentDisciplinary and GrievanceCareer DevelopmentReward decisionsAdministration

Design:

“The CIPD learning and development survey finds that 51 per cent of respondents claim line managers have some involvement in determining learning and development strategy, and 4 per cent say the main responsibility rested with line management (CIPD 2007C) (Purcell et al 2009:63)

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Why are line managers so important? 1. Implementation: Rhetoric v Reality

“While some HR practices may have an impact on employees directly, most rely on line manager action or support…Employee perceptions of HR practices are therefore likely to be influenced by how their managers implement and enact these HR practices, or ‘bring practices to life’” (Purcellet al 2009:65)

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Intended HR practices

ActualHR practices

Experienced practices

Line manager enactment

The HR causal Chain model

e.g. Enactment of Reward Policy and Practice(Purcell and Hutchinson 2007)

The line manager mustSet and communicate standard of performance/behaviourClarify the aims of reward schemesAssess performance levelsCommunicate assessment decisions to stafDefend decisions

But….Difficulties differentiating between staffLack ownership of the processFind it time consuming and bureaucraticPoor appraisal skills to assess performanceDislike holding difficult conversations

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Ability and skill

Motivation and

incentiveOpportunit

y to participate

Front line management - implementing - enacting - leading - controlling

Organisation commitment

Motivation

Job Satisfaction

Discretionary Behaviour

Performance outcomes +

Involvement

Communication

Teamworking

Training and development

Performance appraisal

Career opportunity

Job security

Recruitment & selection

Pay satisfaction

Work – life balance

Challenge/ autonomy Why are Line

Managers so Critical?(Purcell et al 2003)

• Making choices in the way jobs are done (e.g. speed, care, innovation, style of job delivery)

• Hard to define monitor/control the effort/innovation and productive behaviours required

• Everyday behaviours that the employer wants but relies on the employee to deliver

• Can be conscious or unconscious

• Can be withdrawn, reciprocal, individual or collective(“breaching the contract”)

Why are line managers important?2. Discretionary Behaviour?

Why are line managers important?3. Relationships

“Social exchange theory…emphasises the important of leadership behaviour and tell us that a reciprocal relationship exists between employees’ perceptions of the degree of support the organisations provided to meet their expectations and their own behaviour” (Purcell et al 2009:64)

Leader-Member Exchange Theory: LMX (Uhl – Bien et al 2000)

Subordinate effort Subordinate commitment Subordinate loyalty and support Open communication Assistance with administrative duties Organisational citizenship behaviour

(OCB) Less use of pressure tactics to

influence the leader Higher satisfaction Better performance

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‘Agents’ of the organisation(Hutchinson 2013)

To what extent do you trust

your senior management to look after your best interests?%A lot 25Somewhat 34Only a little 23Not at all 18

(Guest and Conway, CIPD 2004)

“the immediate supervisor plays a critical role as a key agent of the organisation through which members form their perceptions of the organisation” (Liden et al 2004)

“employees’ views of the organisation can be shaped by the overall quality of their relationship with their line manager” (Hutchinson 2013:73)

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Line managers’ ability to handle people management

(Milsome 2006, cited in Hutchinson 2013:82)

Activity assessed Handled well %

Handled badly %

Handled adequately %

Absence management 15.4 46.2 38.5Appraisal and performance management 18.6 20.9 60.5Discipline 20.0 20.0 60.0Employee engagement 16.7 22.2 61.1Flexible working 43.8 6.3 50.0Grievances 16.7 83.3Performance pay 16.7 20.8 62.5Personnel records 33.3 50.0 16.7Recognition of employee performance 9.1 30.3 60.6Recruitment 33.3 16.7 50.0Selection 34.6 15.4 50.0Team briefing 25.7 18.8 55.4Team development 21.3 34.4 44.3Training-induction 47.4 10.5 42.1Training – on going 28.2 28.2 43.6Employee welfare 2.5 12.5 75

Why do line managers fail?(Review Hutchinson 2013 pgs 83-89)

Ability

Motivation

Opportunity

Competence of line managers to undertake some of the tasks (skills and knowledge)

Feeling of line managers – they don’t need training – its common sense

Faddish nature of PM&D interventions – seen it all before. Line management disdain for HRM/PM&D work Not a ‘rewarded’ or recognised element of their job Competing work pressures – not seen as a priority Perceived as too difficult Benefits not understood

Heavy workload, lack of time Lack of support, recognition and rewards for undertaking

HR? ‘It’s not my job!’

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The role of the line manager in reward“Respondents viewed the costs of IPRP as significantly outweighing its benefits. The amount of managerial time it subsumed, the conflicts it could create and the potential for decisions that decreased rather than increased levels of employee trust were seen as more likely to lead to adverse consequences than positive outcomes” (Harris 2001 p1191)

Lack of involvement in reward design – Line managers felt schemes were imposed (therefore lack of ownership)

Perceived size of compensation pot too small – “for such a small amount it is not worth the hassle involved” (p1186)

Taking up growing amounts of managerial time Criticism of associated bureaucracy and paper work – the paper trail

becoming and end in itself Too great a focus on individual targets – negative impact on flexibility

and creativity “Unworkable in periods of significant internal restructuring and should

be discontinued” (p1188) Priority on reinforcing managerial trustworthiness leading to ‘abdication

management’

Hidden Agendas impact on IPRP effectiveness(Harris 2001 p1184)

Hidden AgendaChange the culture

Remove complacency

Make managers manage

Save salary costs

Reduce staffing levels

Increase work loads

More control

Focus on under performance

Greater compliance

Stated ObjectivesIncrease employee commitment

Improve individual motivation

Better communications

Greater feedback

More employee flexibility

Focus on business objectives

More responsibility to line managers

Fairer reward systems

Identify and reward good performance

Perceived OutcomesIncreases stress and anxiety

Focus on control

Growth f uncertainty

Protection of individual territory

Reduced employee flexibility

Erosion of commitment

Distrust of management

Feelings of unfairness

Loss of goodwill

Motivates high performer in short term

The need for line manager support(Review Hutchinson 2013 pgs 89-93)

Education on the reasons for introducing HR policies and practices

Training on how to implement them Well-designed, consistent and

appropriate HR policies for management to “apply”

Involvement of line managers in policy design

People management objectives Recognition and reward of people

management activities Realistic workloads Senior Management support

“The picture we have of the FLM role, therefore, is one of increasing responsibilities, work overload, role ambiguity and dilemmas concerning competing priorities. Line managers often have other more immediate business priorities than managing the people working for them, and consequently people management may be taken less seriously” (Purcell et al 2009:62)

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Partnership Working

Further Reading

Harris L (2001) Rewarding employee performance: line managers’ values, beliefs and perspectives, International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol 12 No 7 pp11820-01192

Purcell J, Hutchinson S (2007) Front-line managers as agents in the HRM-performance causal chain: theory, analysis and evidence, Human Resource Management Journal, Vol 17, No 1, 3-19

Purcell J, Hutchinson S (2007) Rewarding work, The vital role of line managers, London, CIPD Available at http://www.cipd.co.uk/hr-resources/research/rewarding-work-vital-line-managers-role.aspx

Renwick D (2003) Line manager involvement in HRM: an inside view, Employee Relations, Vol 25 No 3: 262-280

Whittaker S, Marchington M (2003) Devolving HR responsibility to the line, Threat: opportunity or partnership?, Employee Relations, Vol 25, No 3 245-261

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