Question

1. Briefly explain in TWO (2) ways how the pandemic of Covid-19 has affected the business structure.

2. Covid-19 has caused major changes on business discussions. Cultural elements, such as gift giving and hospitality custom are least likely due to lack of physical meetings. Assume that you are a business development manager at your organization. What will you do to woo the potential clients from countries where such elements are important? Suggest and explain any TWO (2) strategies.

3. Another impact of the pandemic is the increasing “work from home”. As an employer, identify FIVE (5) ways how work from home may negatively affect the organization’s productivity.

4. When designing its organization, a multinational corporation (MNC) must make a particularly critical decision that determines the level of autonomy, power and control it wants to grant its subsidiaries. Assume that you are working in an MNC. Advice your organization about centralize or decentralize decision making for the subsidiaries during this pandemic.

5. Discuss FOUR (4) factors that influence recruiting and selecting employees for international assignments.

6. The pandemic has also impacted business functions inside an organization. As a Human Resource manager, you are required to identify ONE (1) effect of Covid-19 and ONE (1) way to overcome the effect on the following:

i. Performance appraisal

ii. Staffing policy

iii. Compensation

iv. Training and development

Answer 1

1.COVID-19 has changed the world and its impact can be clearly seen on the business landscape as well. While it has gravely impacted the health and morale of the human race, the effects on businesses cannot be undermined. Some of the effects on the business structures are-

1. Overnight, the way businesses were conducted has changed. Businesses have moved from being office- based have moved to zero- physical contact, work from home mode. This has led to more flexibility in operations but also caused massive adjustment issues for organisations.There is also increased efficiency and risk management issues, where sharing of sensitive information has led to cyber security concerns.
2. Before the pandemic hit, organisations worked on more structured procedures of rolling out intiatives, forecasting requirements and hiring in accordance with those requirements. COVID-19 has changed the way businesses look at this structure with the increasing move to a more fluid project based approach highlighting and promulgating the freelance economy

2. While businesses have been impacted on the way they function by the pandemic, it has also affected often missed but extreemly integral part iof the company strategy- gifting culture. Two ways that gifting to clients can be continued during the pandemic are-

1. Act of kindness on their behalf - The company can donate to the needy- meals to orphanages or old age homes on behalf of the cleints and send a certificate signed by the NGO to the client to inform that this is a gift for them.
2. Free samples/service- Free samples of new products that the company is planning to launch or service such as free SEO for a week are some of the things that the company can give to clients in absence of a gift.

3. The five negative impacts of work from home during the pandemic are-

1. Threat to data security and confidentiality
2. Blending of work and personal life, thereby causing no relaxation to employees
3. Decreased Social life
4. Lack of motivation and loneliness due to the isolation
5. Increased distractions affecting efficiency and productivity

4.As COVID-19 hit the global economy, the way businesses operated has changed completely. While before the pandemic hit, organisations worked closely, and centralised decisions were easy to take and monitor, travel was easy and relationships amongst co-workers were stronger due to pysical proximity; COVID has emphasized the need fo decentralisation of operations and tactical decision making for organisations. This is because employees now work with different sets of stakeholders locally and the dynamics of the local ecosystem can be understood by them, equipping them to take decisions in accordance with these conditions.

5. Four factors affecting recruitments for international assignments are-

1. Job suitability and technical requirements of the job- The suitability of the candidate to perform technical and managerial roles required by the job. This brings into account the work experience, education and technical background of the candidates
2. Life Skills and suitability- Skills such as empathy, cross- cultural suitability and ability to work across diverse teams is an important consideration
3. Family conditions- The ability of an employees' family to adjust to international locations is an imprtant criterion. Sometimes families are not able to integrate into new environemnts, thus affecting the employees performance.
4. Political conditions- Political conditions in the host countries is important. Sometimes, the political situation is very volatile and this could affect the assignment

6

S No	Topic	Effect of COVID 19	Way to overcome the effect of COVID 19
1	Performance appraisal	Negative impact on performanced appraisal because of COVID. While employees were supposed to get raises, their paychecks have been substantially cut and massive layoffs have taken place	MAintaining transparency and communication channels open should be the priority of the management, while looking for ways to work together and find common avenues for growth of individuals and the organisations.
2	Staffing policy	Staffing has moved from structured roles to more fluid freelance, work from home roles where teh focus is not on fillinf requirements but on project requirements and tech savvy talent	Organisations need to instill confidence in the workforce and become more agile, focussing on training and development and process of onboarding will be completely digital
3	Compensation	Compensations have been cut drastically across the board	Companies must engage with employees and maintain transparency. Duirng this time, companies must focus on boosting morale of employees and non monetary benefits and recognition must be emphasized upon.
4	Training and Development	Training and development in the traditional set up has phased out and importance of virtual trainings is being realised	Employees must be upskilled and provided necessary trainings