Task

Select an organisation or industry as the case study for your report. Identify some of the key challenges for recruiting the workforce for this organisation/industry, and recommend strategies to address these challenges. Your report should make reference to factors such as labour supply/demand, organisational image, demographic issues (such as an ageing workforce, generations, diversity etc), as well as recruitment strategies such as employer branding and types of advertising.

You should be familiar with concepts outlined in Modules 3, 6, 7 and 8, and related chapters of your textbook Human Resource Management in Australia (5th Ed.) by Kramar et al. You should also engage in extensive research within the academic literature to develop an argument with appropriate theoretical discussion and references. You must cite at least ten (10) relevant peer reviewed journal articles (absolute minimum requirement). You can cite
other academic references such as books, conference papers, and book chapters but these will NOT be counted as part of the 10 journal articles.

Purpose

This assessment will assist students to develop skills in analysing an organisational/industry environment, identifying specific issues, and suggesting practical solutions. It will give students the opportunity to enhance their research, analysis, critical thinking and written communication skills; particularly in the areas of argument development and report writing. Before starting this assessment, please read the marking criteria (at the end of this
document), and refer to the course Moodle site for additional news and video guidelines.

Format

Report style

Title page: The title page of a report should be brief and precise. It contains the following information: the name of the report, who prepared the report, for whom the report was prepared, the nature of the report, the date the report was prepared.

Executive summary (ideally be approx. 100 words): The executive summary is a one page (or less) statement of a report’s purpose, findings and recommendations. It is more detailed than a couple of sentences, enabling the reader to see the “big picture” without getting absorbed in technicalities.

Table of contents: List the page numbers for headings and sub headings of the report. Introduction (ideally be approx. 100 words): The introduction consists of two or three paragraphs in which the aims, structure and methodology of the report are outlined. It states clearly the purpose or main task of the report and what the reader can expect to obtain from it. Important background information is included, such as why the report was initiated in the first place. Please include a thesis statement that clearly mentions the main purpose of the report. The introduction may mention previous reports and research projects if the present report builds on, or challenges them.

Body of report with Headings and Subheadings (ideally approx. 1600-1700 words): The content of the report’s main body should be formatted into logical sections by topic. It may be appropriate to format into sections according to major topics or questions and then outline logical sub-topics with sub- sections (if needed). Headings and sub-headings can be used to organise arguments, to reflect your answers to the assessment questions. Present evidence
to support your arguments. All answers to the assessment questions should be based on arguments and sources from research findings (references).

Conclusion and recommendations (ideally approx. 200 words): The conclusion is a brief section (less than a page) in which the writer analyses the significance of the report’s findings and reiterates the main points of the report. These findings must derive logically from material presented in the report. A generalisation is then drawn from the specific findings of the research. New information is not included in the conclusion.