QUESTIONNAIRE Jalpa Patel and Niti Lalpuria students of Indu Management Institute (IMI) affiliated to Gujarat Technological University (GTU) have been permitted for Comprehensive Project on “Human Resource Management (HRM) Practices and its impact on firm’s performance with reference to firms registered under Vadodara Chamber of Commerce & Industry (VCCI)”.

Section 1: Human Resource Management Practices (HRM Practices)

Please CIRCLE the levels of agreement in each of the items below with

regards to nine criteria of Human Resource Management (HRM) Practices of your firm.

Level of

Agreement

Strongly Disagree

Disagree

Neutral

Agree

Strongly Agree

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1. Human Resource Planning (HR Planning)

Firm forecasts personnel requirements on a timely basis. 1 2 3 4 5 Firm has spent a great amount of money on selecting staff. 1 2 3 4 5 A large number of people are involved in HR planning in firm. 1 2 3 4 5 Structured and Standardized interviews have been used in firm. 1 2 3 4 5 2. Staffing Practices

Firm adopts selectivity in hiring. 1 2 3 4 5 The focus of staffing in firm is for a) Manual and Physical skills 1 2 3 4 5 b) Technical skills 1 2 3 4 5 c) Problem solving skills 1 2 3 4 5 3. Incentives Practices

Firm has favorable incentive practices to encourage employees to achieve the firm’s objectives.

1 2 3 4 5

Firm has very fair incentive practices, aimed at rewarding people who accomplish their goals.

1 2 3 4 5

Firm has incentive practices which really recognize people who contribute the most to firm.

1 2 3 4 5

4. Performance Appraisal

Firm uses performance based appraisal. 1 2 3 4 5

Firm uses employee’s self-ratings on performance. 1 2 3 4 5 Superiors in firm frequently discuss performance with subordinates. 1 2 3 4 5 5. Training Program

Extensive training programs are provided for employees in firm. 1 2 3 4 5 Employees normally go through various training programs every year. 1 2 3 4 5 Firm provides formal training to promote skills to new hires as well as to promoted or existing employees.

1 2 3 4 5

6. Team work

Firm always gets team’s opinion and ideas before making any decision. 1 2 3 4 5 Firm forms focused groups to solve problems. 1 2 3 4 5 Teams are extensively provided with sufficient power and resources to solve problems.

1 2 3 4 5

7. Employee Participation

In firm, employees are allowed to make many decisions. 1 2 3 4 5 Employees are often asked by their supervisors to participate in decisions. 1 2 3 4 5 Employees are encouraged to suggest improvement in the way jobs are done.

1 2 3 4 5

Supervisors keep open communication with employees in firm. 1 2 3 4 5

Section 2: Operational Performance

Please CIRCLE the level of achievement on each of the items below with

regard to four dimensions of firm’s operational performance.

Level of

Achievement

Very Low

Low

Neutral

High

Very High

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1. Product Quality

Rate the level of - a) Firm’s high performance products.

1

2

3

4

5

b) Non-defective rate of firm’s products. 1 2 3 4 5 c) Product Serviceability, Durability & Quality. 1 2 3 4 5

2. Product Cost

Rate the ability to reduce - a) Product Inspection

1

2

3

4

5

b) Inventory cost involvement 1 2 3 4 5 c) Overhead Cost 1 2 3 4 5 d) Product Cost 1 2 3 4 5 3. Delivery

Rate the level of - a) Products on-time delivery to customers

1

2

3

4

5

b) Short lead time from order to delivery 1 2 3 4 5 c) Cycle time (From Production to final product) 1 2 3 4 5 4. Flexibility

Rate the level of ability to - a) Adopt changes in product mix.

1

2

3

4

5

b) Handle difficult/non standard orders. 1 2 3 4 5 c) Make product according to order. 1 2 3 4 5 d) Adjust capacity quickly. 1 2 3 4 5 e) Scale production up and down quickly. 1 2 3 4 5

Section 3: Firm Performance

Please CIRCLE the level of achievement on each of the items below with

regard to firm’s performance.

Level of

Achievement

Very Low

Low

Neutral

High

Very High

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1. Non-Financial Performance

Compared to past year, rate the level of - a) Increase in employee productivity.

1

2

3

4

5

b) Reduction in employee absenteeism. 1 2 3 4 5

2. Financial Performance

Compared to your competitors what is firm’s - a) Sale Growth Rate.

1

2

3

4

5

b) Market Share Percentage. 1 2 3 4 5

Section 4: Business Operations Modes For the following questions, please CIRCLE one of the boxes according to the degree of achievement or adoption of firm. There are two sides of each factor, left & right. Respondent should choose one between the left & right and rate with five degrees, ranging from 1,2,3,4 to 5 which means (5) Very High, (4) High, (3) Moderate, (2) Low & (1) Very Low. If the level of achievement or adoption of firm between 2 sides (left & right) makes no difference or is currently not adopted, then please CIRCLE zero (0) number. 1. Centralization versus Decentralization Firm transfers responsibilities 5 4 3 2 1 0 1 2 3 4 5 Firm transfers responsibilities to higher level. �����������to lower level. Communication among 5 4 3 2 1 0 1 2 3 4 5 Employees have greater employees is not extensive. �����������communication among them. 2. Trust versus Distrust Employees only understand 5 4 3 2 1 0 1 2 3 4 5 Employees understand their own behaviours. �����������each other’s behaviour. Employees care about their 5 4 3 2 1 0 1 2 3 4 5 Employees feel sense of own responsibilities only. ����������� responsibilities for each other. 3. Proactive Culture versus Reactive Culture Decision making is late to 5 4 3 2 1 0 1 2 3 4 5 Decision making is fast take any action & in �����������to take action & in conservative manner. innovative manner. Firm is unresponsive to 5 4 3 2 1 0 1 2 3 4 5 Firm is responsive to change in business �����������change in business environment. environment.

Section 5: Company Information 1. Number of employees: �less than 50 �50 to 100 �101 to 150 �151 to 200 �More than 200 2. Class of firm: �Local �Foreign/Export �Joint Venture Oriented 3. Years of Operation: �less than 5 �5 to 10 �11 to 15 �16 to 20 �More than 20 4. Firm’s Sale Volume: ______________________ (Rs.)

5. Industry Type: �Manufacturing �Service �Bank �Others, please specify_______________________________ 6. Major Products (Atleast one product): _______________/_______________/_____________

Section 6: Personal Information 1. Sex: �Male �Female 2. Age: �less than 30 �30 to 40 �41 to 50 �51 to 60 �More than 60 3. Education Level: �Bachelor �Master �Doctor � Others, please specify_______________________________ 4. Position/Title: �Entrepreneur �Employee �Supervisor �Manager �President & Vice President � Others, please specify_______________________________ 5. Seniority: ______________________years Thank you very much indeed for your time and effort filling in this questionnaire. We wish you good health and luck. We would like to inform you that this questionnaire is anonymous. Your personal information will never be disclosed to outsiders.