HRM599 Week
1 Discussion 1 & 2 Latest 2017 December
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WEEK 1: BENEFIT PLANS
1212 unread replies.6868
replies.
Employer-sponsored benefits reflect the culture
and business of the organization, and plans should be crafted and selected
accordingly. Think about your current (or former) organization’s benefit plan.
Did it help to improve the quality of your work, as well as your personal life?
Why or why not? Was it a generous benefits program or were there specific
benefits you felt should have been included?
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WEEK
1: BENEFIT PLANNING PROCESS
2121 unread replies.5959 replies.
As part of conducting a benefit plan needs
assessment, a human resource professional must consider the organization’s
business strategy, as well as its compensation philosophy. What do you think is
the next step that should be taken? What are some of the possible outcomes of a
benefit plan needs assessment?
HRM599 Week
2 Discussion 1 & 2 Latest 2017 December
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WEEK 2: ROLE OF GOVERNMENT
2626 unread replies.6464
replies.
Other than the mandates of the Internal Revenue
Code (IRC) and a few other ineffectual reporting and disclosure requirements,
benefit programs were practically unregulated by the federal government before
the major shift that came with the enactment of the Employee Retirement Income Security
Act (ERISA) of 1974, which was primarily aimed at traditional defined benefit
(DB) pension plans but applicable to other employer-sponsored retirement and
benefit programs. What is the government’s current role in regulating the
administration of employee benefits? Do you think there is too little or too
much government intervention? Why?
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WEEK
2: GOVERNMENT-MANDATED BENEFITS
2828 unread replies.7070 replies.
There are certain benefits that are
legislatively mandated and cannot be altered or dropped by an organization for
any reason other than the organization is closing its doors for good! Social
security and Medicare, unemployment insurance, worker’s compensation, COBRA,
and FMLA are all federal- and state-mandated programs. What do you think determines
the types of programs that the government chooses to make mandatory? Do you
feel these programs are efficient and effective? Why or why not?
HRM599 Week
3 Discussion 1 & 2 Latest 2017 December
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WEEK 3: HEALTHCARE COST MANAGEMENT
1010 unread replies.6565
replies.
Many Americans benefit from the investments in
healthcare; however, the recent cost growth, coupled with the economic downturn
and rising national deficit, has placed a great strain on the financial systems
used to finance healthcare, including private employer-sponsored health
insurance coverage and public insurance programs, such as Medicare and
Medicaid. What is the responsibility of individuals for the cost of their care?
Are health savings accounts and high-deductible insurance policies an approach
that should be expanded? What are the concerns for low-income individuals?
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WEEK
3: CONSUMER-DRIVEN HEALTHCARE
1111 unread replies.6464 replies.
Consumer-driven healthcare has become popular
over the past few years as employees seek tax advantages and cost savings on
healthcare. What are some of the key features of a consumer-driven healthcare
plan? Does your company currently offer any of these plans? If so, are you
taking advantage of them? Why or why not?
HRM599 Week
4 Discussion 1 & 2 Latest 2017 December
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WEEK 4: LIFE INSURANCE PLANS
88 unread replies.7070
replies.
A major concern for most employees is caring for
their families in the event of the employee’s death. Many employers provide
life insurance for employees. Does your organization offer a group insurance
policy? If so, what is the basic plan design of your organization’s life
insurance policy, and for how much are you covered? How do you value this
benefit in relation to the entire benefit package and why?
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WEEK
4: DISABILITY PLANS
1010 unread replies.6868 replies.
In addition to replacing household income when
an employee either retires or is no longer working, he or she may also carry
some type of income-replacement plan in the event they become disabled. Does
your current (or former) employer offer disability coverage for employees? What
are the specifics of your coverage? Do you feel the need to purchase
supplemental disability insurance? Why or why not? How do you value this
benefit in relation to the entire benefit package and why?
HRM599 Week
5 Discussion 1 & 2 Latest 2017 December
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WEEK 5: RULES AND REGULATIONS
2525 unread replies.6464
replies.
Discuss some of the legislation that helps to
manage retirement plans. What are some examples of laws that have been put into
place to protect employees? What are these laws purposed to do?
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WEEK 5: RETIREMENT PLANS
4848 unread replies.6161
replies.
Why should an organization consider implementing
a company-sponsored retirement plan for its employees? What would be some of
the available options in choosing the right plan? Do you think employees would
favor a specific plan? If so, which plan would they favor?
HRM599 Week
6 Discussion 1 & 2 Latest 2017 December
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WEEK 6: PAID TIME OFF
2525 unread replies.6060
replies.
Some employers combine all paid time off, such
as vacation, sick leave, holidays, and personal days, into one large bank of
time, typically called paid time off (PTO). Discuss your organization’s current
paid leave program. Does your organization have a PTO bank or several
categories of leave accrual? What do you think would be the pros and cons of a
PTO bank versus a traditional leave plan, including sick time and vacation?
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WEEK
6: WORK-LIFE BENEFITS
4040 unread replies.5959 replies.
What are some of the flexibilities your
organization allows to assist employees with achieving a good balance between
work and life responsibilities? Do you think more can be done? If so, describe
your perspective on what specific work-life benefits you would like to see
implemented and how they would be beneficial to employees and the company.
HRM599 Week
7 Discussion 1 & 2 Latest 2017 December
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WEEK
7: BENEFITS COMMUNICATION
1212 unread replies.6262 replies.
Does your current (or previous) organization
have a strategy in place to communicate its benefits plan to employees? If so,
how effective is it, and what can be done to improve it? If not, what are your
thoughts on putting a benefits communication plan in place? Would it be
beneficial?
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WEEK
7: BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION AND COST CONTROLS
4343 unread replies.6161 replies.
Insurance providers and employers alike are
searching for techniques and strategies to help control their benefits costs.
Has your organization been able to find ways to improve your benefits program
or add new benefits without adding a heavy cost burden to your department or
your employees? Will your organization’s budget for employee benefits be
growing, staying the same, or potentially shrinking over the coming year?
HRM599 Week
5 Homework Latest 2017 December
Once you have located and read your article, please complete a review of the
article. The article review should consist of the following items.
- Write a summary of the article
(two to three paragraphs maximum). Why was the article written about the
topic at the current time? This should be completed in your own words and
should talk about the key points of the article. You should not repeat the
article in your summary. - How does this relate to the
learning for the week in class? What laws and concepts are covered that
would help you in the area of benefits? How could you further elaborate on
the concepts in the article? - Based on the article, what
recommendations would you provide to the business community (an employer)
from reading the article?
The article review must be completed in APA or
MLA format and utilize proper grammar. Points will be deducted for papers
without a references page (see the rubric for assignment criteria). The paper
should be 1,000–1,500 words, not including title or references pages
HRM599 All
Course Projects Latest 2017 December
OBJECTIVES
The Course Project is designed to provide you with a real-life
practical application of an organization’s human resource benefits program. You
will create a written analysis of a real-world organization’s benefit plan
design with suggested opportunities for improvement that use the concepts and
knowledge introduced in this course.
GUIDELINES
The Course Project must be comprehensive and must adhere to the
following analytical stages.
- There
are eight parts in this Course Project. Different parts are due during
Weeks 1, 4, and 7. - Papers
should be formatted according to APA or MLA guidelines (12-point font,
double-spaced, including a cover page, table of contents, introduction,
body of the report, summary or conclusion, and a works cited page). - Even
though this is not a scientific-type writing assignment and is mostly
creative in nature, references are still very important. Ten or more
outside resources or references are required (anonymous authors or web
pages are not acceptable). These sources should be referenced according to
APA or MLA guidelines. - Appropriate
citations are required following APA or MLA guidelines. - All
DeVry University Policies are in effect, including the plagiarism policy. - Please
post any questions about these papers in the Course Q & A Forum. - These
papers combined are worth 310 total points and will be graded on quality
of research topic, quality of paper information, use of citations,
grammar, and sentence structure (see the rubrics below).
Part 1: Select and Profile an Organization for the Benefit Plan
(40 Points)
There are a number of ways in which an organization and benefit
plan can be selected. You have the option of looking at your current employer’s
benefit plan, that of a previous employer, or one from a random organization of
your choice whose benefit plan has a perceived need for either a revision of
specific benefits, addition of needed benefits, or an overhaul of its benefits
program. Provide a clear profile of your chosen organization as well as the
organization’s current benefits program. Present key facts that are important
in understanding your chosen organization’s benefits program.
Part 2: Statement of the Issue (40 Points)
This section should present an analysis of the major benefits
issue or issues. It should include a statement of the specific benefit plan you
are addressing. Some questions to ask when formulating the statement of issue
include the following.
- Have
I identified the basic issue or am I dealing with the symptoms? - What
is the point of the paper? - If
I have identified more than one issue, are the issues separate or related?
There are several sources from which the issues can be determined.
They include business documents, such as employee surveys and competitive
analysis reports; assessment questionnaires that can be created to probe for
areas of benefit needs and employee desires; observations of how employees use
or do not use their current benefits; and interviews with key management and
selected employees to determine benefit issues.
Part 3: Literature Review (40 Points)
Address what was discovered in the search of relevant literature,
related articles, and the employee benefit text, as well as what was discovered
in Part 2. This means not only reviewing theories, concepts, and studies
discussed in the text or in class, but also reviewing websites and what other
writers have to say about benefit plans. Given the limited number of weeks that
a term provides and the number of steps involved in the Course Project
following the literature review, no more than 2 weeks should be spent reviewing
literature.
It is critical that those completing questionnaires, being
interviewed, or providing information in any other manner be assured that their
responses will be kept in the strictest of confidence and will not be discussed
in whole or in part to any member of the organization or outside the boundaries
of the classroom. It is recommended that you begin your literature search by
accessing Keller’s Online Library. While you may use information obtained from
HR-related websites, you must also obtain information from current scholarly
journals, business publications, and newspapers. Ten or more outside resources
or references are required.
Part 4: Issue Analysis (40 Points)
Here we are bringing Parts 2 and 3 together. This section should
provide a detailed analysis of the benefits issue that was identified in Part
2. A major objective is to clearly illustrate how the concepts of the course
and gained knowledge of benefits are being used, as well as to show what was
learned from the literature review. Show that you are applying course material.
Part 5: Issue Solutions (40 Points)
Create a developmental strategy. Offer several solutions or
options that are appropriate for the benefits issue or issues. The solutions
should follow logically from the analysis. The expected outcomes, positive and
negative, should be addressed.
Part 6: Solution and Its Implementation (40 Points)
This segment should outline your recommended solution to the
identified issue. The solution will be one or a combination of the solutions
provided in Part 5. This part should be specific, stating what benefit plans
are recommended, timing for implementation, and in what sequence. It includes
not only what should be done, but also how it should be
done. A specific solution should indicate what benefit is most appropriate for
the issue and how it will be implemented in the organization. Some questions to
keep in mind when writing the solution section include the following.
- Has
an awareness of the problem of implementation been addressed? - Have
you been too general? - Do
the solution and implementation address the issues identified earlier? - Does
your solution take into account the identified pros and cons? - How
will you evaluate the effectiveness of the implemented benefit plan? - What
process checks or procedures will you put in place to institutionalize the
improvement? - Was
the realism of your proposed action plan assessed? For example, are there
adequate time, money, and other resources for your solution?
Part 7: Justification (40 Points)
This section of your analysis should, using course knowledge and
concepts, tell why your solution and implementation would work. A major
objective is to clearly show how you are applying course concepts and content
to arrive at a workable solution and implementation for the issue identified.
Some questions to ask when writing your justification segment include the
following:
- Have
you applied the appropriate course material? - Do
you support your conclusions and recommendations with appropriately
referenced facts, quotes, readings, and class activities? - Does
your justification recognize the pros and cons identified earlier?
