RECENT ASSIGNMENT

Assessment 2: Essay (35%)
Essay Question
Please answer the following question:
Utilitarianism argues that human happiness is an ethical goal.
How can HRM/CPM contribute to this goal?
Overview
“Human happiness in CPM and in HRM”
This essay is about CPM’s and HRM’s contribution to organisations, society, and humanity. It is designed to allow students to:
Explain the contribution of strategic HRM to organisations, and analyse why effective HRM is difficult
Describe the various ways that HRM can be pursued in a range of organisations
Develop analytical and communication skills appropriate for participating in people management in organisations.
Details
The ethics of contemporary people management and human resource management:
Chapter 15 of your textbook is about “Ethics and HRM” (pp. 524-552).
Do not sum up different versions of human ethics in your essay (this is not a report).
Do not discuss too many issues – focus on “one” key issue and discuss this in detail.
Do not have sub-headings in your essay.
Write “in essay format”: “your” introduction introduces the subject at hand (how to argue).
The ‘main body’ discusses three issues
Utilitarianism and the “Happiness Principle”,
what is HRM / CPM, and
how do both relate to each other;
This is followed by a conclusion that answers this question: ‘what can we learn from all this?’.
Your essay should contain three sections:
A theoretical perspective to discuss [Utilitarianism and the Happiness Principle Utilitarianism: Bentham: “the greatest pleasure for the greatest number- Your action should achieve pleasure. see: Klikauer 2010: 47-67 & Klikauer 2012: (pp.159-167)
What is HRM/CPM; and
How the two (a & b) can be reconciled, if at all.
Essential: You Must Read - Sources (excerpts are on vUWS): Bolton, S. C. & Houlihan, M. 2007. Searching for the human in HRM: theory, practice and workplace contexts, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
It is advisable to watch Moral Philosopher Peter Singer at the Sydney Opera House in 2015