MIDTERM ASSIGNMENT

Q1 (case study 1)
From the case study, we can identify several competencies which is crucial for an airline reservation clerk’s
job. Firstly, the candidate must have excellent verbal communication skills which include effective listening
and good pronunciation which will be helpful in customer dealing. Secondly, the candidate should be good
at planning and organizing having adequate information related to alternative flights, alternative prices,
itinerary and different routings, so they can deal with the queries efficiently with respect to customer wants.
The last thing which is very important is to be tech-savvy (proper knowledge of using the telephone,
computer, and internet) because the candidate would be multitasking on the phone and computer most of the
time. Proficiency in data handling is also an important requirement to update online systems continuously.

Q2 (case study 1)
I will conduct two tests before the final interview which would give me an ideal candidate for this post. The
two tests would create a test battery.
The first test would be a short cognitive online test of 10 minutes in which the candidate would be asked
basic math (price and time differences) questions, situation-based questions along with basic general
knowledge about airports (arrival, departure, luggage, itinerary, etc.). This test would be conducted through
Socrative, Schoology, or any other suitable website which will give exact 10 minutes to every candidate and
generate online test results so it will not cause test fatigue. It would measure the mathematical ability,
problem-solving related to planning/organizing, information processing speed of the candidates and it will
also tell us about their aptitude. Apart from this, it would also tell us how the candidate performed under
pressure because of the time limit and whether they are used to technology/internet or not (as this will be a
computer-based test). In this way, the first test would test two competencies together, tech-savvy and
planning/organizing.
The second test would be the verbal aptitude test, conducted after passing the first test with 90% accuracy
(because the company needs efficient workers). In this test (consists of reading comprehension and listening
tests like in IELTS), candidates would receive an email which will have a 2 minutes telephonic audio
conversation track, a test paper (Multiple Choice Question) connected with Socrative, Schoology, or any
other website and a paragraph of 75 words. The candidate would be asked to conduct the paper test based on
an audio track and send a voice note of the paragraph. The second test would have 2 versions, one in English
and the other in Urdu as the flight operations would be in Pakistan. This will ensure that candidates are
effective listeners, have the ability to speak properly with proper pronunciation, basically testing their verbal
communication skills. After the specific date, recruiters would check the test results online and listen to the
audios of the candidates. 80% of the results would be necessary to pass this test and would make it to the
next round.

Q3 (case study 1)
I will take a one-to-one structured interview with the candidates because of the higher reliability, validity,
and consistency. The interview would be web-based considering the Covid-19 situation in our country. The
content of the interview would be a mixture of a situational interview and stress interview because I need to
see how well a candidate can perform in uncomfortable situations. This would show me their tolerance level
and how they would treat an angry customer shouting at them. The situational questions would ask the
candidates about the best alternative options for flights and itineraries for a customer whose flight just got
missed. Public dealing skills would become visible through these questions and how well a candidate
resonates with customer wants. The reason for conducting the interviews one-to-one is to make sure the
candidates don’t get anxious while answering the questions and mostly they will be dealing with customers
one-to-one as well.

Q1 (case study 2)

Each firm has their own strategies which they utilize to achieve the goals and objectives. Similarly,
corporate strategy is one of those strategies which helps a business acquire its motives that can be done
through HRM principles. For instance, if a company wants to geographically expand to Germany, they need
to hire customer support specialists who are German native so they will guide/respond the customers
efficiently and effectively. That is how corporate strategy aligns with Human Resource Management.
Human resource management creates a bridge between corporate strategy and the firm's objectives for
example as stated in the case study and the strategy map in the next answer, we can see how HR practices
such as employing energetic employees contributed to firm’s profitability.

Q2 (case study 2)