People Management and Development May 2013 - CIPD

People Management and Development 

EXAMINER'S REPORT 

May 2013 

Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development 

Professional Development Scheme 

People Management and 

Development 

May 2013 

7 May 2013 13:50-17:00 hrs 

Time allowed - Three hours and ten minutes 

(including ten minutes’ reading time) 

Answer ONE question from Section A and SEVEN of the ten 

questions in Section B. 

Please write clearly and legibly. 

Questions may be answered in any order. 

Equal marks are allocated to each section of the paper. 

Within Section B equal marks are allocated to each question. 

If a question includes reference to ‘your organisation’, this may be 

interpreted as covering any organisation with which you are 

familiar. 

You will fail the examination if: 

• you fail to answer seven questions in Section B and/or 

• you achieve less than 40 per cent in any section. 

Registered charity no: 1079797 

413306

PEOPLE MANAGEMENT AND DEVELOPMENT 

Examiners Report 


SECTION A 

Answer ONE question from this section, making sure that you write your 

answer in the form of a report, a talk, or whatever you are required to do in the 

question. You are expected to draw on research and contemporary practice 

where possible. 

1. You have been asked to make a presentation to some final year business 

studies students at the local college of further education. The title of your 

presentation is: 'How effective People Management and Development 

(PM&D) strategies can contribute to improved performance, job satisfaction, 

employee motivation and employee loyalty in organisations.' 

Drawing on research, draft what you will say and justify what you have 

written. 

2. Your new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) wants to promote an evidencebased 

approach to HR issues in your organisation. To help HR staff build up 

their research skills, he has asked you to write an internal position paper on 

'Research methods used for collecting HR information and data.' 

Draft this paper: 

a) identifying and explaining what these research methods are 

b) indicating where each of them is best used 

c) outlining any possible limitations that each of these methods has in 

practice. 

3. You have been asked to critically review the HR strategy of your 

organisation. You are expected to show the extent to which the strategy 

contributes (or does not contribute) to improved organisational performance 

and customer service. 

Drawing upon any relevant examples to illustrate your answer, indicate how 

the HR strategy might be improved. 

4. You are leading a team of students in the annual debate with local HR 

professionals organised by the local CIPD branch. Your team is proposing 

the motion: 'PM&D work is too important to be left to line managers.' 

Drawing upon research and current practice, outline the arguments that your 

team will make and how these arguments can be made convincing and 

relevant to your audience. 


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SECTION B 

Answer SEVEN of the ten questions in this section. To communicate your 

answers more clearly you may use whatever methods you wish, for example 

diagrams, flowcharts, bullet points, so long as you provide an explanation of 

each. 

1. You have received the following email from a colleague: 'I've got to make a 

presentation to a management development course at the local university 

on the functions of trade unions and what management gets from 

recognising them in the workplace. Please give me some guidance on how I 

can respond to this question.' 

Drawing on current practice, draft a response to this request and justify what 

you have written. 

2. You have received the following email from your Chief Executive Officer 

(CEO): 'Tell me what the main ethical principles underpinning People 

Management and Development (PM&D) activities are. Please provide me 

with some examples of where these principles might conflict with 

organisational objectives.' 

Draft your considered reply to this request, drawing upon research to inform 

your answer. 

3. You have received the following email from a colleague: 'I've heard of the 

term "vertical integration" in relation to HR practices but don't understand 

what it is. Please explain to me what vertical integration means, why it is 

important, and whether it is difficult to achieve in practice.' 

Drawing upon research, respond to this request. 

4. There have been various critiques of 'best-practice' human resource 

management (sometimes called 'high-commitment' or 'high-performance 

work systems') in recent years. 

Drawing upon research, discuss some of the major concerns regarding the 

claim that best-practice HRM leads to improved organisational performance. 

PLEASE TURN OVER 

5. You have been asked to make a short presentation to a group of managers 

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in your local management club of which you are a member. The topic is: 

'Why employers outsource some of their PM&D activities and the criteria 

used in selecting outsourcing providers.' 

Drawing upon research and current practice, what will you say and why 

6. Drawing upon research, select one model of the PM&D function, outline its 

main features and explain its relevance for managing people in your 

organisation. 

7. A colleague has left a message on your voicemail. She asks: 'I'd like to 

know more about assessment centres and their contribution to effective 

selection. Specifically, there are two issues that I'm particularly interested in: 

a) What are the claimed advantages of assessment centres 

b) Under what conditions is an assessment centre for selecting 

employees likely to work to best effect' 

Drawing upon research, draft what you will say and why. 

8. You have been asked to write a short article for the monthly e-newsletter 

that is distributed to local managers. The title of this piece is: 'The benefits 

of 360 degree appraisal, compared with top-down appraisal.' 

Drawing upon research, draft this article and justify what you have written. 

9. A senior line manager has telephoned you about the roles of trade union 

learning representatives. He wants a written response explaining: 

a) what trade union learning representatives do 

and 

b) some of the limitations of this role. 

Drawing upon current practice and/or research, draft what you will say. 

Justify your response. 

10. Describe the main remuneration system in your organisation, Drawing upon 

research evaluate the extent to which it is effective in motivating all 

employees. 

END OF EXAMINATION 


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Introduction 

This report reviews the May sitting of the People Management and 

Development (PM&D) examination within the Professional Development 

Scheme (PDS). This is a mandatory standard within the PDS and these 

standards need to be met by all aspiring graduates of the CIPD. 

On this occasion, 36 candidates took this examination. Of these, 22 passed, 

giving a raw, pre-moderated pass rate of 61.1%. The overall breakdown of 

grades is shown below. 

May 2013 

Grade Number Percentage of total 

(to 1 decimal point) 

Distinction 0 0.0 

Merit 2 5.6 

Pass 20 55.6 

Marginal fail 0 0.0 

Fail 14 38.8 

Total 36 100.0 

The figures shown are simply calculations based on the number of candidates sitting 

the examination in May 2013, whether for the first or a subsequent time, and are for 

interest only. They are not to be confused with the statistics produced by CIPD 

headquarters, which are based on the performance of candidates sitting the 

examination for the first time. It is from these figures that the national average pass 

rates are calculated. 

Section A 

This section consisted of four questions and candidates had to answer one 

question only. The questions were drawn from across the Professional 

Standard and candidates had to give an in-depth response to the question 

answered. Where there was more than one part to a question, candidates 

were expected to cover all parts and provide a justification of their response 

where required. 

Question 1 

Knowledge indicator: 1.1 


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This question asked candidates to prepare a presentation to some final year 

business studies students at the local college of further education. The title of 

the presentation was: 'How effective People Management and Development 

(PM&D) strategies can contribute to improved performance, job satisfaction, 

employee motivation and employee loyalty in organisations.’ 

There are a variety of ways in which this question could be answered. For 

example, a number of classic studies have pointed out that a series of factors 

intrinsic to work, such as varied work, opportunities for development, 

recognition for doing a job well, act as motivators for workers. Current thinking 

on motivation is summarised by Steers et al. Later studies by Goldthorpe et al 

showed that factors such as job security and decent pay are also important. 

More recent research by Rose suggests that extrinsic factors for employees, 

such as employment security, pay and promotion prospects, are slightly more 

important than intrinsic factors such as the work itself, good relations with 

employees’ managers, and opportunity to use their initiative. Other writers 

have made similar observations. 

Much of the literature now examines job satisfaction and employee motivation 

through the lens of the psychological contract, such as the studies of 

Rousseau, Herriot, and Guest et al, and their analyses of the contemporary 

employment relationship between employer and employee. The concepts 

identified relate largely to issues of fairness and honesty, security and 

certainty, and recognition and opportunities for fulfilment. It is these and 

related issues affecting relations between managers and employees that need 

to be addressed in answers to this question. The underpinning point needing 

to be made is that PM&D strategies directed at matching the current 

expectations of employers and employees in their day-to-day working 

relationships are most likely to enhance a healthy psychological contract, by 

promoting efficiency and good performance at work and satisfied and 

motivated employees. 

This was a popular question. Most answers used the psychological contract 

as a framework for answering this question and good answers dealt well with 

job satisfaction and motivation. However, no real evidence was presented to 

demonstrate that students are familiar with current thinking on motivation. 

Question 2 


This question required candidates to write an internal position paper on 

'Research methods used for collecting HR information and data’: (a) 

identifying and explaining what these research methods are, (b) indicating 


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where each of them is best used, and (c) outlining any possible limitations that 

each of these methods has in practice 

A research method, as opposed to a research methodology, is any practical 

technique used by researchers for collecting data to enable them to test their 

theoretical and methodological assumptions. Whatever the research approach 

adopted, the techniques used to collect data are generally classified as 

observation, documentary, interviews, and questionnaires. 

Observation in its various forms is where researchers involve themselves in 

the topic they are studying, as participants or observers, where a balance 

between involvement and distance is required. 

Documentary evidence or data are collected by the researcher inspecting 

information provided by the organisation in a variety of forms. Care needs to 

be taken about the limitations of such data. Interviews are of three types, 

standardised, semi-structured and unstructured. One of the main critiques of 

interviewing as method of collecting data is bias, which can invalidate the 

research process. 

Use of questionnaires is attractive because of the relatively low economic 

costs involved and they can provide a large population of respondents. 

However, questionnaires are not easy to design, administer and interpret. It is 

essential to pilot questionnaires and use statistical packages for large groups 

of respondents. Given the nature of each different research method outlined 

above, the issue of triangulation of methods could be included in candidates' 

answers. 

This was not a popular question. However, better answers demonstrated a 

sound appreciation of research methods and indicated where they are best 

used. Only a few answers outlined possible limitations. Poor answers were 

not able to demonstrate an understanding of the range of research techniques 

available and therefore could not provide evidence of possible limitations. 

Question 3 


This question asked candidates to critically review the HR strategy of their 

organisation. They were expected to show the extent to which the strategy 

contributes (or does not contribute) to improved organisational performance 

and customer service. Candidates also had to indicate how the HR strategy 

might be improved 


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Candidate responses were contingent upon how the organisation structures 

its HR strategy, its relationship to corporate strategy and other internal factors. 

Identified measures or indicators of HR and organisational performance could 

justifiably be explored by candidates, as well as issues of vertical and 

horizontal integration. 

This was a very popular question and was generally well answered. Good 

answers described the HR strategy of the candidate’s own organisation, with 

most of them decribing the organisational context well and recognising the 

need to follow corporate strategy. Better answers provided sound examples of 

possible improvements but weak answers tended to ignore this part of the 

question. 

Question 4 


This question asked candidates to propose the motion: 'PM&D work is too 

important to be left to line managers.' Drawing upon research and current 

practice, candidates had to outline the arguments that their team would make 

in a debate and how these arguments could be made convincing and relevant 

to their audience. 

There were a number of ways of responding to this question, but candidates 

needed to demonstrate a reasoned justification for the content of their 

arguments and the contexts in which the arguments are presented. In outline, 

arguments to be raised might include that leaving too much to line managers 

risks these issues not being handled professionally and effectively, thus failing 

to give PM&D activities sufficient priority, inconsistency of managerial actions 

and behaviour, and lack of PM&D expertise. By retaining too much with 

PM&D specialists, HR problems risk not being owned by line managers. Other 

issues include lack of business focus with PM&D problems being ignored in 

organisations. 

This was not a popular question, with few good answers. Few students 

provided a reasoned argument for the motion and most did not demonstrate 

an awareness of possible role conflict or required skills and competences to 

devolve HR to line managers. 

Section B 

In this section, candidates had to answer seven out of the ten questions on 

the examination paper. These questions drew from across the Professional 

Standards. The majority of candidates were able to attempt seven questions. 


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Question 1 


In this question, candidates were asked to reply to the following email from a 

colleague: 'I've got to make a presentation to a management development 

course at the local university on the functions of trade unions and what 

management gets from recognising them in the workplace. Please give me 

some guidance how I can respond to this question.’ 

Analyses of the trade union function can be done in terms of their roles as 

collective bargaining agents on terms and conditions, regulators of workplace 

relations between managers and employees inside organisations, concern 

with health and safety issues, providers of individual services to members, 

political lobbying for workplace reform, their international activities. The 

benefits that management get from recognising unions for collective 

bargaining include cost-effective pay bargaining, legitimisation of joint 

decision-making through employee representation, agreed procedures for 

settling differences and disputes between the parties, and retaining control 

over the agenda of employee relations through power sharing. 

Over two-thirds of candidates answered this question, with a majority 

achieving a pass mark or better. Most candidates were able to identify the role 

and function of trade unions. However, a lot of answers focused exclusively 

on the collaborative features of employee relationships with the employer. 

Little information was provided on collective bargaining or conflict resolution. 

Question 2 


This question asked candidates to explain the main ethical principles 

underpinning PM&D. 

Ethical principles underpinning HR imply that HR specialists need to take 

account of the dignity and rights of employees when they take employment 

decisions in their organisations. These include clear and fair terms of 

employment, provision of healthy and safe working conditions, a fair 

remuneration policy, and enhancement of equal opportunities. Other ethical 

principles include encouraging employees to develop their skills, not tolerating 

harassment of employees, not discriminating against disadvantaged 

individuals and groups. Examples of conflicts with these principles were 

expected within candidate responses. 

About two-fifths of candidates answered this question. Good answers 

provided some information on employee rights, including protective legislation, 


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but most limited discussion to legal issues. Weak answers did not relate well 

to the notion of ethical principles underpinning HR. 

Question 3 


In this question, candidates were asked to reply to an email from a colleague: 

'I've heard of the term "vertical integration" but don't understand what it is. 

Please explain to me what vertical integration means, why it is important, and 

whether it is difficult to achieve in practice.’ 

Vertical integration can be explained in terms of the HR practices designed to 

support the achievement of corporate goals and objectives in an 

organisational context. It refers, in short, to the links between HRM and the 

wider business strategies and the socio-economic forces that shape and are 

shaped by organisations and their external fit. Basically, vertical integration 

enables the HR contribution to business effectiveness to be operationalised 

and it minimises the likelihood of communicating conflicting messages being 

delivered. Vertical integration is difficult to achieve in practice because 

champions are required with the energy and ability to lead these initiatives; 

many middle managers and supervisors often suffer from job overload and 

lack of explicit rewards for the HR aspects of their roles; and line managers 

often lack training to convert strategy into practice. 

Almost three-quarters of candidates answered this question. This set of 

answers provided a wide range of performances, with one distinction and 

several bad fails. Good answers demonstrated clear understanding of the 

need for vertical integration and provided examples of the support given to 

organisational goals. Weak answers provided little critical analysis and did not 

attempt to suggest possible difficulties in practice. 

Question 4 


This question asked candidates to draw upon research and discuss some of the 

major concerns regarding the claim that best-practice HRM leads to improved 

organisational performance. 

Some definition of best-practice HR was expected in responses, together with its 

claimed impact of performance. This needed to be followed by an outline of the main 

critiques of this model, as argued by Godard and Holman et al. Such critiques include 

issues about: the direction of the causality of the 'black box', lack of consistency of 

the HR practices included in the HR bundle, variations in the proxies used to 

measure high commitment HR, variations in the proxies used to measure 

performance, relying on the self-report scores of managers, doubts about how much 

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autonomy organisations have in decision-making in practice, and doubts about the 

universal application of high-commitment HR as an approach to HR strategy. 

Again three-quarters of candidates attempted this question, which was generally 

well-answered, with encouragingly some sound use of research evidence from good 

candidates. The critical analysis part of the question was less well answered, 

however, and there were few good answers dealing with improved organisational 

performance issues. 

Question 5 


In this question, candidates were asked to make a short presentation to a 

group of managers in a local management club. The topic was: 'Why 

employers outsource some of their PM&D activities and the criteria used in 

selecting outsourcing providers.’ 

The reasons for outsourcing selected PM&D activities include cost-efficiency, 

expertise not being available in the organisation, the changing strategic role of 

HR, and evaluations of HR's contribution to business effectiveness. Possible 

areas of outsourcing include recruitment and selection, learning and 

development, management development, health and safety, job evaluation, 

legal services. The criteria used in selecting outsourcers include having a 

justifiable reason for employing consultants, examining their previous work, 

making sure they can deliver what they say they will, ensuring assignment 

objectives are specified. 

Four-fifths of candidates responded to this question and there was a very 

consistent standard of performance of examination answers, with most 

candidates hovering around the pass mark. Outsourcing seems to be a policy 

choice that is well known to candidates. However, the reasons for choosing to 

outsource seemed to be better understood than the criteria for selection. 

Question 6 


This question asked candidates to draw upon research, select one model of 

the PM&D function, outline its main features and explain its relevance for 

managing people in their organisation. 

Any one of a number of well-known and established PM&D models could be 

suggested in responding to this question. These include Legge, Tyson and 

Fell, Storey, Shipton and McAuley, Wilkinson and Marchington, Ulrich and so 

on. The model selected had to be analysed and its relevance to the 

candidate's own organisation explained. 


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Two-thirds of candidates responded to this question. Good answers provided 

sound research evidence and appropriate descriptions of a suitable model, 

with some good appreciation of its relevance for managing people. A number 

of candidates, however, did not provide a suitable model of the HR function. 

Several of these focused on topics such as leadership style or procedures 

associated with HR techniques, which was not asked. 

Question 7 


This question asked candidates to respond to a colleague’s request to explain 

assessment centres and their contribution to effective selection. There were 

two issues that she was particularly interested in: (a) What are the claimed 

advantages of assessment centres (b) Under what conditions is an 

assessment centre for selecting employees likely to work to best effect 

An assessment centre consists of a combination of selection methods rather 

than one or two selection techniques. Assessment centres are built on a set of 

dimensions that are felt to be indicative of future performance. Typically an 

assessment centre uses written tests, one-to-one interviews, group exercises, 

and presentations. The advantages of assessment centres include that they 

draw upon a range of selection techniques, have a high validity than some 

other selection methods, and when they are properly administered they 

represent a cost-effective way of selecting employees. They are best used 

when selecting for leadership roles in organisations, when they are supervised 

by properly trained staff, and when they are effectively administered so that 

they are cost-effective. 

Three-quarters of candidates responded to this question and most of these 

were able to provide a sound description of the selection techniques available. 

Good answers discussed validity and reliability of methods used. Poor 

answers tended to be descriptive without any critical analysis. 

Question 8 


This question asked candidates to write to write a short article for the monthly 

e-newsletter that is distributed to local managers. The title of this piece was: 

'The benefits of 360 degree appraisal, compared with top-down appraisal.’ 

360 degree feedback has become popular in recent years because it fits in 

well with notions of employee involvement and staff empowerment. 360 

degree appraisals describe the all-encompassing direction of feedback 

derived from a combined rating from peers, subordinates, supervisors and 

customers. In flatter organisations, it is difficult for any single manager to 


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appraise a large number of staff. In responding to this question candidates 

need to consider whether more openness in the appraisal process is more 

effective than 'top-down' appraisal. Traditional top-down appraisal provides a 

single viewpoint that may be influenced by factors subject to personal bias or 

prejudice. Consideration also needs to be given whether managers find 

comments about their behaviour useful and constructive, thus enabling them 

to change it. 

This has been a popular topic in past examinations and most students seem 

to expect a question in this area at some time or other. Most candidates 

answered the question well, providing a sound description of the process of 

360 degree feedback. Good students provided a sound comparison with top 

down appraisal. Poor answers did not provide any critical comparison of the 

main features of 360 degree appraisal or any appropriate research evidence. 

Question 9 


In this question, candidates were asked to explain the roles of trade union 

learning representatives in terms of (a) what trade union learning 

representatives do and (b) some of the limitations of this role. 

The role of trade union learning representatives includes generating the 

demand for learning amongst their members, advising about learning, 

identifying the learning needs of their members, negotiating agreements 

incorporating learning objectives and programmes, setting up joint training or 

learning committees. Other roles include working with employers to introduce 

and monitor learning initiatives that benefit members, taking joint ownership of 

employee development schemes, and liaising with providers of training to 

support workplace learning. Some of the difficulties encountered include 

reaching a wide range of members/employers, employer resistance where 

unions are recognised, a limited role where there is no union recognition, 

problems of small and medium size enterprises. 

This was not a popular question, with only about a quarter of candidates 

attempting it. Only one candidate achieved a pass standard of performance. 

There was only limited evidence of understanding of the role and function of 

union learning representatives. Few examples of current practice were 

provided. And little research evidence was used to inform the answer. Also 

the limitations of the role were not considered. 

Question 10 



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This question asked candidates to describe the main remuneration system in 

their organisation, drawing on research, and to evaluate whether or not it is 

effective in motivating employees. 

This question gave candidates the opportunity to discuss a system of pay in 

their organisation and to explain why it is or why it is not effective in motivating 

employees. In determining whether or not this pay system is motivational, 

candidates typically need to examine its possible impact on recruitment and 

retention, fairness and equity, employee commitment, employee performance, 

employee relations, and labour costs. 

About fourth-fifths of candidates attempted this question. Most responses 

were around the pass mark, with a few good and really weak answers. 

Although descriptions of remuneration systems within particular organisational 

contexts were provided by most candidates, little research evidence was 

used. There was no critical evaluation provided in weak answers. 

Conclusion 

The pre-moderated pass rate was a reasonable one of 61.1%. But this meant 

there was a long tail of fail scripts of around 39%. Like previous examinations, 

this one provided a good test of topics across the indicative content and a fair 

test of candidate knowledge, understanding and application of knowledge 

within this professional standard. 

The following general observations can be summarised: 

1. In Section A, Question 3, followed by Question1, were the most popular 

questions in Section A. Generally poor answers in this section did not use 

research evidence to support their arguments and tended to be descriptive 

in content. The answers to Section A were generally better than those in 

Section B, with a pass rate in Section A of approximately 68%. 

2. In Section B, three candidates failed to attempt seven questions and 

therefore failed automatically. There continues to be a consistent pattern of 

poor critical analysis and lack of research evidence from weak candidates 

in Section B too. 

3. Generally, results across all centres were disappointing, with the overall 

pass rate containing only two merits. As indicated above, weak candidates 

are not using appropriate research evidence and they prefer to describe 


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processes rather than critically assess how they can be applied in an 

organisational setting. 

The markers of this examination diet were Alan Peacock and myself. 

Professor David Farnham 

Chief Examiner 


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