Good Example Of Metropolitan Transit Authority Report

Background and the Expansion Initiative

Business growth is an inherent part of many business organizations. After incorporation and commencement of activities in the market, a majority of organizations embark on expanding the scope and scale of their operations and strategies. The objective is to ensure that they utilize the available opportunities to the maximum and command a significant percentage of consumer loyalty. Business growth and expansion are an important for the internal and external aspects of the organizations. Internally, it is an indication that the organization will continue to opportunities of career growth to the employees that it currently has. It is also a reassurance to the stakeholders that it will continue to fulfill the obligations it owes them. Organizations must ensure that they increase the wealth of the shareholders and generate revenue based on their investment through the payment of dividends. Shareholders have faith that growth and expansion will increase the benefits they derive from the organization.
In this context, the report focuses on the case of Metropolitan Transit Authority. The organization is a transit commission under the joint ownership of the Merritt Ville and St Augustine municipalities. These municipalities are located in the County of Frontenac, and they are 10 kilometers away from each other. The municipalities share several aspects in terms of their economies given that most of the organizations connect to the communities in both regions in various ways. The market outlook is encouraging for many of the business firms in the area that has an approximate population of 325000. The population in the cities is dense, which encourages the establishment and growth of the business. Over the years, the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) has provided the necessary transit services to the residents of the city. The region’s industrial park is well developed, which guarantees that the transit business will continue to have a ready market of the workers that need to attend to the industrial park.
MTA was established nearly fifteen years ago after the councils of the Merritt Ville and St. Augustine municipalities agreed to come up with a transit service jointly. Prior to the joint agreement, the St. Augustine had a transit service in place although it was too small to meet the needs of the joint market. It only had three routes serving the region and a special service offered to the customers with disabilities. The municipality had run the service for nearly seven years, and it laid the foundation for the establishment of a bigger and complex service.
Recently, the municipal councils of both regions agreed that it was necessary to expand the transit business to meet the growing demands of the market. The decision was to expand the services of the Commission to a new route connecting the municipalities to Kingston. The new connections to Kingston will benefit the regions greatly by fostering the growth and development of the cities’ economies. If the Metropolitan Transit Authority expands its services to Kingston, it will expand the area in which the residents of the regions can access opportunities of employment without the need to own a car. They can reach their places of work using the commission’s buses. In additions to the opportunities of employment, a majority of the students in the municipalities will have an opportunity to study at the Royal Military College, Queens University, and the St Lawrence College. Lastly, the expansion of the of the transit services will enable the residents in both regions to visit the places they prefer within the municipalities. They will be able to carry out activities such as shopping and recreational activities. It will also enable intercultural exchange that enhance political peace and coercion.

The Expansion Concept

The approved concept of expansion featured three routes. Each of the three routes served the cores of the downtown in each of the cities. These cores of the downtown in each city connected to a main hub in Kingston. The final route connects the industrial park found between the cities with the hub in Kingston. The new routes imply that MTA needs to grow and expand its staff and the resources allocated to each organizational tasks to meet the incremental demands imposed on the transit authority. In my capacity as the human resource manager of the organization, my objective and duty is to facilitate the effective expansion of the firm into the new market.

The Role of Human Resource Management in the Expansion Plan of MTA

Human resources are the most important aspects of business that center on the provision of services to the people. They enable the organization to meet its targets in terms of the actual deliverables that the customers expect. The organization’s staff is responsible for the interpersonal relations with the customers, which implies that it has a direct effect on the organization’s performance. All organizational projects such as expansion depend on the input of the staff because they are the people on the ground tasked with the management of all the duties and activities of the project. Project activities affect human resources in terms of motivation, allocation of duties, growth, and relationship with the management. As the HR manager, I have the primary duty to ensure that MTA can use the available human resources and any additional staff kit may need effectively to attain its goals of expansion.

Approaches to Help in HRM amidst Expansion at MTA

Effective human resources management has a cumulative effect on the organization when the business is in its growth stage. Two important approaches are usable for understanding the growth of the business. These approaches shed light on the elementary role played by effective human resource management together with the human resources. In the first approach, the organization must model its life cycle and manage the challenges that stem from the process of transition. Essentially, the idea is that the organization will face some challenges as it seeks to expand, and it must overcome all these challenges if it aims to have a successful transition process.
The second approach usable in assessing the importance of human resource management in business growth focuses on the contributory element of HRM. It draws on the activities done under the Resource-Based Review (RBV) of the organization. At the center of the RBV rubric, the underlying assumption is that organizational, physical, or human resources can be a vital source of competitive advantage in the case where the organizations can fulfill certain conditions. For instance, if the organization can motivate its employees and make them have a positive attitude towards the process of change, then it will enable the organization to enjoy an advantage over firms that are unable to achieve similar levels of motivation.

Staffing Demand and Supply

In this expansion project, it is inherent for the Metropolitan Transit Authority to allocate additional resources to the initiative. The organization will require ten additional buses and 20 drivers to meet the demand of the new route to Kingston. The organization will maintain its current plant breakdown structure. There will be no need for additional supervisors although the organization will have to employ five additional mechanics. The mechanics will be assigned to the twenty buses such that each one of them deals with four buses serviced and maintained at different intervals to mitigate the workload. In the case of an emergency, any of the available mechanics may be called in to assist resolve the emergency and restore the normal operations at the firm. The company must increase the number of drivers and buses because of the additional number of customers on the new route. It also needs five more mechanisms because of the incremental repairs. The additional materials handlers will deal with the increased supplies of tools and raw material used for the maintenance of the new buses.

Additional Financial Resources

Acquiring the additional buses and employees will compel the organization to allocate more money to the process of expansion. The company has adequate resources to meet all the demands of the process of expansion. The following table is an extract of the trading profit and loss account showing the money to be spent on the buses and additional employees.

Current Job Descriptions

The following are the job descriptions of the all the individuals after the expansion process. Their roles will not change after the process of expansion. The staff will have to deal with a higher amount of workload because of the extended operations to Kingston. The process engineer will have an additional five mechanics and two materials handlers to oversee. The operations supervisor will also have an additional 20 drivers to oversee because of the new route requirements to Kingston. Two drivers will be allocated to each bus and they will work in shifts of 8 hours. They will also have routine weekends off and stand-in for each other during these breaks.
General Manager -he or she is responsible for all the operations and profitability levels of the plant. The individual is the highest-ranking official in the organization, and all the heads of organizational departments report to him or her.
Project Engineers-It is a group of staff charged with the task to monitor the processes of production. They include managers and other subordinate staff that adjust the processes of operation to guarantee that the products released to the market are quality and fit for use by the consumers. In this case, they ensure that the buses operating on the various routes are in good condition and worthy to operate on the roads. They ensure quality control through a subordinate and supervisory system of operation.
Environmental Engineer- he or she takes has the responsibility to ensure that the effects of the firm’s operations on the environment are monitored closely to minimize pollution. Specifically, this officer recommends the measures to be taken following the assessment of the extent of contamination caused by the operations of the plant.
Lab Technicians- they work together with the environmental engineer to collect and assess samples from the areas around the plant. They test the samples to evaluate the chemical processes affecting the soil, air, and water resources around the plant to support the responsibilities of the environmental engineer.
Operators- it comprises a group of the junior, senior, and the general staff who account for the routine operations pf the organization’s plant. They also maintain the equipment used in the process of production and operate the machinery to produce the desired product. For instance, they replace the damaged parts of the buses whenever there is a need for major repairs.
Trades Maintainers- they have the responsibility of repairing the equipment of the plant. They include plumbers and electricians.
Materials handlers- at the plant, there are purchases and sales made. There must be individuals charged with the movement of the materials being traded. Material handlers receive goods, send them out, or store. These goods are used in the plant for various purposes such as lab supplies, raw materials for production, and the tools used in the repairs of the buses.
Human Resources -Currently, the roles of the human resources manager, is to staff the employees at the plant, manage the staff, and coordinate all their activities through the allocation of duties. As the human resource manager, I work closely with the supervisors in the management of staff as they carry out their routine duties.
Accounting and Finance-they account for the financial affair of the plant. Their duty is to receive funds, allocate them to various uses at the plant, and record the transaction using specific accounting policies and procedures. They manage the expenses and revenues of the firm and offer advice with respect to the manner in which the firm should manage its expenses.
Custodial Staff- the custodial staff also ensures the maintenance of the premises of the plant. They maintain order and cleanliness at the plant by collecting and disposing of garbage, cleaning the offices and the equipment used in the plant.

Plant Staffing Breakdown

The Demographics of the Staff
The following table contains data regarding the demographic attributes of the staff in the current state at the organization. The expansion of the business operations at MTA will affect the demographics. As the human resource manager, the unionized employees have an effect of the demographics because they are the priority to fill the new 20 positions. The unionized employees who work as the custodial staff may be promoted to the position of drivers as long as they have the qualifications. Hiring the additional 20 drivers will begin internally by considering the unionized workers before considering the external candidates. I will also consider the age of the candidates hired such that their age should not be close to the retirement limit so that they can serve MTA for a long period.

Current Staff Demographics Table

Employee Turnover Rate
Since the expansion process affects the operations department, the hiring process must be aware of the high rate of resignations in the department in 2012 and the possible causes of the resignations. However, the rate declines in the subsequent years and the department matches the other sectors. As the HR manager, I expect that the hired employees in the capacity of drivers will be retained at the company due to the low rate of employee turnover.

The Relevant Organizational Structure

The following is the relevant organizational structure. It shows how the current structure works in terms of managing the bus operations on the routes. In the structure, the additional employees hired for the new route are also included to show the immediate managerial staff that will be tasked with their supervision.

Hiring Drivers

Twenty drivers and no supervisors are required for the additional ten buses. For this reason, the process of hiring these drives will be significant to the company and its business operations. The twenty drivers will take shifts in the operation of the ten more buses to prevent issues of fatigue and to overwork of the hired employees. Before the actual hiring process, the company will have to determine effective ways of managing the extra employees, without understaffing the existent employees, especially the supervisors who will be tasked with promoting the hired drivers along the Kingston route. The main element in the management of the additional employees without overworking the existent supervisors will be the effective management of the scheduling of the supervisors as well as the new drivers through effective time management.

Management of Additional Employees

First, scheduling of the additional employees will be an important aspect of the company. For this reason, the supervisors will have to be trained prior to the hiring process on the effective skills of time management to avoid the elements of under-scheduling or over-scheduling of the additional drivers. The effective scheduling of the employees as regards the introduction of extra employees in the company is a balancing act, and will have to be done effectively and properly to avoid issues such as employee resentment and excessive of hours of overtime. The training of the supervisors prior will prevent this aspect to the actual hiring of the twenty drivers.
Time management and scheduling of the employees will encompass the maintenance of open communication between the employees and the supervisors. For this reason, the supervisors will have to understand that each or most of the employees will have some non-work issues that they may need to handle outside the workers. Without the proper coordination of these issues and the work, there are possibilities of the emergence of scheduling conflicts, especially when the supervisors do not agree with the employees. For this reason, as the Human Resources Manager, one of the essential tasks will be to ensure that the supervisors develop good relationship with each of the drivers, especially because they will be working in shifts, to understand them and learn how to schedule them on various tasks in line with their social life.
One of the elemental approaches to remedy the issue is through the establishment of clear and effective communication channels. As such, the supervisors could create working schedules a week or two prior to the actual tasks to avert the potential conflicts. In addition, the supervisors will inform and require the drivers to ask for time off in advance to afford them enough time of finding replacements. In addition, the supervisors will encourage the employees to talk to them or approach the Human Resources Manager as soon as possible when they have issues.
Alternatively, the company can utilize the scheduling software to manage the extra employees without additional supervisor employees. Due to the emergence of and increasing technological advancements, it will be essential to coordinate the extra employees without the need for additional supervisory employees. There is a variety of types of scheduling software that the company can employ to simplify the employee management process and simplify the probable conflicts. The use of these technological advancements will allow for the electronic posting of weekly or monthly schedules and break the shifts to an hourly basis. The use of this software will also for the notification of the employees about their coming schedules. The employment of the software can also provide the employees with the options of swapping hours, as long as they meet the shift requirements. This type of program will notify the employees and their supervisors of the suggested swaps, and either the employee or the supervisor can reject or approve it.
The use of this software in managing the extra employees will be elemental because it encompasses warnings of schedule conflicts, allows for monitoring of the employee performance, allows for the managing of the employee skill sets and information, enables the tracking of times when the employees report to work and when they leave and allows for the tracking of the labor costs. The scheduling software will be ideal because it allows for easy making of changes as new situations and circumstances arise. The tool and software can be of great help to the supervisors and the human resource department in terms of time management in managing and coordinating the extra employees. Printed reports from this technology can assist in the gaining of deeper insights into various trends that can assist in the future maximization of efficiency.

Requirements and Changes

Appropriate schedules of management will play a significant role in the company’s success, especially with the hiring of new employees to operate on the Kingston route. For this reason, the company will have to change some of its practices to realize benefits from management of employees using these approaches. As such, the company will have to alter its leadership structure slightly to be more centralized and team-based. This type of leadership structure will allow for proper organization of the system and operations in the company. Without the appropriate organization, it is easy for conflicts or chaos to occur, which affects the productivity of the employees. The company also requires additional resources to purchase or install some of the scheduling software to aid in the management of the extra employees without the need for additional supervisory employees.

Approaching Recruiting Firm

The company can approach a recruiting company for consultancy. Nevertheless, should the costs of approaching the recruiting company is high, the company will need to employ its recruiting procedures and approaches through the human resources department. Developing recruiting procedures and approaches will be elemental because the company will save on financial resources that would have otherwise been spent on paying the recruiting company. These resources can then be channeled into the purchase of other essential areas such as the purchasing and installation of the scheduling software. Nevertheless, the hiring process will be of great significance to the company. The effectiveness and approach of the hiring process will determine the results in terms of the target employees required for the operation on the Kingston.

Steps in the Hiring Process

The company will employ a variety of steps to come up with the required employees for the new Kingston route. The hiring will be both internal and external. First, the company will identify the vacancies and the required number of employees after the internal rounds. As such, the company will be creating new positions for the required employees. These new positions will include 20 drivers, five mechanics, and two material handlers. After the determination of these new positions, it will be elemental for the company to understand and consider its strategic goals as well as those of the human resource department. As such, the company will be seeking to identify any possible upcoming changes that may have an impact on these created roles. In addition, while creating these new positions, the company will need to conduct and analysis of the core competencies to determine whether there are gaps, the core skills missing from the human resource department, and to evaluate the core skills required for the new operations in the Kingston route.
The second step in the hiring process will be to develop the description of these newly created positions. The description of the positions is fundamental to the successful process of recruitment. With this position description, the company will develop the interview questions, the evaluations of the interviews, and the questions of reference check. The position description will articulate clearly the qualifications and the responsibilities required to attract a variety of candidates. The description will also provide the value propositions for the intended roles of the new employees. The position description will act as a documentation to assist the prevention, defense against the complaints of discrimination through the provision of written evidences, which form the foundation of the employment decisions based on the rational needs of business.
Under the development of the project description, there will be the identification of the duties and responsibilities. Under this segment, the hiring manager will identify the general information, the position purpose, essential functions, minimum requirements, and the preferred qualifications. For the general information, there will be the need for the identification of pay information and basic position to aid in the development of the description and classification of the jobs. General information will encompass the payroll titles, the pay step or grade, the working title, the department name and head, the supervisors’ names, the title codes, and the special conditions and requirements. The purpose of the position will describe the functions of the departments, the functions of the units, the organizational unit functions.
The essential job functions will describe the responsibilities and the duties of the positions. Job functions will be deemed essential when the determined performance of the functions is the purpose for the positions. That is, essential functions occupy an elemental amount of time of the employees and require specialized skills to execute. By describing the essential functions of the positions of the jobs accurately, the employees will have a clear understanding of the roles and the expectations of the company. Development of the recruitment plan will also be another significant step of the hiring process. Each of the required job positions will require a documented plan of recruitment that is approved by the company’s organizational unit. The company will structure the recruitment plans that will map out the strategies for attracting as well as hiring the most qualified candidates and assist in the ensuring of an applicant pool that will include a diversified scope of applicants. Elements of the recruitment plan will include the posting period, which will provide the timeline for the recruitment, the placement goals, the advertising resources, the diversity agencies, and the resume banks.
The selection of the search committee will be another step of the hiring process. The selection committee will be formed to ensure that the applicants selected for the interviews and more individuals examine the final considerations to minimize the possibilities for personal bias. The human resources department though the hiring manager will identify the members who will have both direct and indirect interactions with any of the applicant. The hiring manager will appoint a search committee tasked with representing a diversified cross section of the existent staff. One member of the selected search committee will be appointed as the Compliance Liaison and Affirmative Action to monitor the aspects of the affirmative action of the selected search committee. The Under-represented groups will have equal opportunities to serve on the search committee, and efforts will be made to encourage their participation.
Reviewing of the applicants and the development of the shortlist is another significant step that the company will go through in the course of the hiring. Following the posting of the position through advertising, the candidates will have the opportunity to apply. The applicants will be those candidates who will apply during the initiatory period of application. All the applicants will be reviewed as well as considered for the positions. The candidates who will apply after the initiatory period of application will be deemed expressions of interest, and the search committee will not be obligated to view them. All the members of the search committee will review all the applicants to ensure assessment of the qualifications by more than one individual to prevent issues of biases or individual opinion. At least two members of the committee will be required to review all the applicants for the recruitment in which there are extensive pools of application to best narrow the scope of the pool. Alternatively, the Human Resources Manage may perform this task. Each member of the committee will provide comments to the qualifications of each applicant in relation to the minimum requirements of the positions created.
Conducting the interview will be another fundamental step in the course of the hiring. Conducting the interview will encompass the preparations for the interview, the panel interviews, the virtual interviews, and the interview questions. Last, the company will perform the select hire where once the interviews will have been completed, the selected search committee will meet to evaluate the interviewees. The members of the committee will have the opportunity to assess the extent to which the interviewees met the selection criteria.

Union, Internal Hiring Rounds and Timeline

Since the company is unionized, it will be elemental to approach the union in the course of hiring. The union will outline the various required procedures in the hiring of the workers. The company will approach the union to understand the laws governing the hiring of employees. In addition, since the company is unionized, it will engage in talks with the union to clarify issues involving the duty of fair representation, collective agreement, certification, and the labor legislation. Since the company will hire both internally and externally, three internal rounds will be conducted to determine whether some of the already existing employees qualify for the position. After the identification of potential candidates as well as the volunteers, the company will then post the available job positions through advertising. The timeline for this exercise will vary. Nevertheless, for the internal rounds, the timeline is expected to be in three weeks, one in every week.