Unit 3 Managing Human Resources Assignment Copy

Unit 3 Managing Human Resources Assignment Copy

Introduction

In this Unit 3 Managing Human Resources Assignment Copy an analysis of the human resource management in the organisation is mainly highlighted. The first part of the report will give a glimpse of the GUEST model which has been related to the famous super market chain Tesco. Along with that the responsibilities of the line managers and the employees in the strategic planning is also focused. The second part of the report main emphasis is given on the flexibility where Tesco successfully implemented the flexibility in order to motivate the employees towards the productivity. The third part of the report will focus on the equal opportunities and diversity adopted by Tesco. The last part will showcase the employee’s welfare as an important aspect in the human resources management.

Task 1

1.1. Explain Guest’s model of HRM as applied to the organisation of your choice.

The HRM model of David Guest highlighted certain dimensions which are interrelated with each other. The strategy based on the human resources is the basic approach to create a road map for the HRM outcomes in an organisation. The financial situation or the results is solely depend on the HRM strategy which is mainly focused in the GUEST model.  The HRM strategy of Tesco can be related with GUEST model in the following way:

The policies of Tesco on the ground of employees skill development is mainly focused with the Training methods. Tesco used to follow both the On the Job and the of the job training policies. Coaching or mentoring policies will assist the employees to generate their required skills. Job rotation is also followed to make the employees flexible with different functions. Of the job training at Tesco gives emphasis on the communication, team building etc. External courses are there in Tesco for the employees. The Human resource outcome at Tesco can be analysed in the following way: (Banfield, 2012).

1. Commitment is one of the positive forces which are present on the employees at Tesco due to the strong motivation they used to get from the policies of Tesco.
2. Quality is the key attribute for Tesco which is very much high due to the sound policies implemented at Tesco. Due to the high quality the market share of Tesco is high in UK that is around 28.3%
3. Flexibility is there is Tesco where the employees are given opportunities to work for part time, fixed shift, job sharing, working from home etc. The flexibility is also there in the practices of the management to keep growing the market share
4. Strategic Planning at Tesco is based on the decision of the management which are undertaken frequently to motivate the employees, to satisfy the customers with online shopping, more employees at the shopper’s level to serve the customers effectively etc.

The Organisational outcome is also significant at Tesco where the shares have increased from 6.1% to 168p at UK. The staff turnover rate was also low which has helped Tesco to fetch more revenue at the month of Christmas 2015 (BBC, 2016). Thus we can observe from the GUEST model that HRM policies enhance the HRM outcomes and Organisational outcomes.  Thus integration is needed to combine all the dimensions as per the GUEST model to get a result that is desired by the top management.

1.2. Using an organisation of your choice, compare the differences between Storey’s definitions of HRM, personnel and IR practices.

John Storey claims that the HRM is the policy which is interrelated with the ideology and philosophy. The aspects which are considered by John Storey are the people management, implication of the line managers, relationship of the employees with the management etc. Storey also divides the HRM into two parts that are Hard HRM and Soft HRM.

• Hard HRM: In hard HRM the employees are given emphasis due to their performances which are interrelated with the objectives of Tesco. Apart from that wider participation of the employees are also granted for improving the work performance. The number of consumer’s complaints at Tesco is being measured to assess the performances of the employees of the particular shifts.
• Soft HRM: For soft HRM, the preference to the employees is given based on the equal opportunities by giving importance to each and everyone. Diversity in the workforce at Tesco is preferred due to the different background of the customers visiting the stores.

Based on the Storey definitions of HRM and Personnel and IR practices different views can be obtained which are differentiated based on the following ways: (Dessler, 2012).

1.3 Assess the implications for line managers and employees of developing a strategic approach to HRM for any organisation of your choice.

The strategic approach to the HRM at Tesco is very much flexible due to the competent workforce. The implications of a line manager and employees are different in Tesco due to the unstable business environment. The line managers play a significant role at Tesco where they used to link the top management with the employees. For instance at the time of declined sales the line manager implemented a strategy to keep more employees at the shopper’s level to satisfy the customers effectively.  For that the line manager implemented certain training methods which includes both the on the job training and of the job training for the employees. In this way the line managers used to contribute with his strategic approach for increasing the sales of Tesco. This has worked for Tesco in the last quarter of 2015 by an increase in sales around 1.3%. Apart from the line managers, the employees are also the important part of the organisation where they need to follow the designed strategy for achieving the individual targets and organisational targets. The remuneration, rewards, facilities, flexible working increases the motivation of the employees at Tesco. Employees used to give certain feedbacks to their line managers at the time of weekly meeting at Tesco where they used to share the reactions of the customers and accordingly the line managers used to transfer the information to the top management for formulating the new business strategy in order to attract more customers to the stores. Thus both the line manager and the employees are equally important for formulating the effective strategy for the organisation. Coordination between the top management and employees are done by the line managers in Tesco. Apart from that an atmosphere of involvement is there at Tesco due to the participative style that the line managers used to follow at Tesco to increase the motivation of the employees and to get certain information which is necessary for the management to formulate the strategy. (Martin, 2010). Wider integration of the line manager with the employees is mainly focused in Tesco to deliver satisfaction to the customers and also to increase the productivity level of the stores of Tesco.

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Task 2

2.1 Explain how a model of flexibility might be applied in your organisation.

Flexibility is one of the important parameters for an organisation to improve the level of the productivity. The objective of the organisation is to deliver quality value to its customers and in return of a profit. To fulfil this objective productivity is one of the important criteria for the organisation has to consider. The flexibility model developed by Atkinson can be related with the Tesco on the ground of flexibility. As per Atkinson there are four dimensions which are needed to be considered on the ground of flexibility which are as follows: (Torrington, Hall, Taylor and Atkinson, 2014)

• Functional: Functional flexibility can be related with the job rotation methods followed by the Tesco in order to make the employees more competent at any functions required by time. Apart from that Tesco has also outsourced some functions like payroll management, distribution system, stock replenishment to a firm named Xansa in UK and Ireland. (Shifrin, 2010).
• External: External flexibility refers to the recruitment of the employees for achieving the business objectives. Based on the strategy Tesco relaxes the recruitment and hiring policies due to the increased demand in the time of the Christmas.
• Internal: Internal flexibility is the working with leading flexibility that has been adopted by Tesco like part time, fixed shifts, job sharing, work from home etc. The employees can appeal for the flexibility after completing 26 weeks in Tesco.
• Financial: Financial flexibility refers to the reward and recognition structure along with the remuneration. Tesco provides extra incentives during the Christmas for motivating the staff to serve more customers in the stores. Certain discounts on the products, subscription option for the shares are financial flexibility at Tesco.

Thus we can observe the four aspects of Atkinson flexibility model is related with the flexible working practices at Tesco in UK.

2.2 Discuss the types of flexibility which may be developed by your organisation.

Flexibility at Tesco aims to provide a balance between the work life and personal life. Tesco believes that an employee must consider his/her personal life and also the professional life in a balanced way to give maximum productivity at both the ends. The policies of the flexible working in tesco are changed from one period to another based on the demand of the business. The approaches of the flexibility are adopted at Tesco in the following way: (Our Tesco, 2016).

• Fixed shift pattern: One of the employees at Tesco has to take care of his children due to the separation from his partner and for that he opted for a fixed shift that is suitable to maintain his personal life as well as professional life.
• Flexible days: One of the managers at Tesco used to work for four days and one day from home which helps her to maintain a balanced life.
• Part time working: The employees at Tesco are given opportunity to work for a part time basis. There are many students who are working for a part time basis in order to continue his/her studies.
• Job sharing model: Job sharing model is prevalent at Tesco where the employees can share their work with the colleagues in the time of certain emergency work.  

With this flexibility types the management of Tesco wants to ensure higher productivity in the organisation due to the employees’ supportive policies. The employees will be motivated to give their best performances due to the benefits given by Tesco in their working hours.

2.3 Assess the use of flexible working practices from both the employee and the employer perspective.

Flexible working practices are adopted by the organisation to maintain a healthy working environment at the workplace. The use of the flexible working practices can be assessed if we consider the outcomes of the flexible working practices from both the employees and employers perspective in the following way:

2.4 Discuss the impact that changes in the labour market have had on flexible working practices.

The workforces are the strategy implementer in the organisation and the organisations have to depend on them for achieving the business goals. But certain changes in the labour market have influenced the organisation to implement the flexible working practices in the work process. The changes in the labour market drive the organisation to implement the flexible working practices. 97% of the workplaces in UK have adopted the flexible working practices. The size of the establishment is the important factor that influences the flexible working practices in UK as per the market research. Reducing the working time for a certain period has increased from the year 2008 to 2015. All the employees are entitled to apply for the flexible working practices after the completion of 26 weeks in the organisation. As per the market research, around 40% of the employees have claimed the flexible working hours to their employers. The refusal rate is very less for the employers that are around 9%. It has been observed that the request for the flexible working practices is fixed by the line managers who are very much aware of the current conditions of the business (Broughton, 2015). The employers at UK are inclining towards the flexible working due to the benefits they are getting like the increase in the motivation, relation of the employees with the management, reduction in the labour turnover rate etc. As a result the productivity level is increased. The policies of the Government are also changing the trends in the labour market like the encouraging the workers to pursue the vocational courses or the Apprenticeships that aims to make the people independent on his own feet. For these policies the management of the organisations are also designing their flexible timings for the employees to maintain a balance between the personal and professional life.

Task 3

3.1 Explain the forms of discrimination that can take place in the workplace using examples of recent discrimination cases which has made the news.

Discrimination is the differentiation done based on the caste, religion, race, gender etc. Discrimination is highly offensive in the eyes of the Government. The organisations are also establishing certain codes of conduct on the ground of discrimination. Having certain codes of conduct there is an incident of the discrimination that was happened recently in the store of Tesco at Maide Vale in the west London. It has been found that the shop assistant of that store forcefully detained one child in the back side of the store due to the mixed race as claimed by the mother of that child. Mixed is one of the ethnic groups in UK, comprising nearly about 1.25 million. After the incident the mother of that child made an appointment with the trade union GMB and they have advised to consult with the solicitor by claiming a race discrimination incident. With this incident the child was shocked and feared by the violent act done by the shop assistant at Tesco. The solicitor has lodge a complaint based on the race discrimination for which the authority have to pay 3, 000 pound to this family. Later the spokesperson of Tesco has apologised for the allegation and they have also taken this case seriously to prevent this sort of incident in future. (Finnigan, 2016). Thus from the discussion we have observed that discrimination based on the race is highlighted where the shop assistant has broken the rules and for which Tesco have to pay a penalty to the family. The negative impact is the damage of the goodwill for Tesco and the positive impact is the strictness in the administration where the child has got a justice.

3.2 Discuss the practical implications of equal opportunities legislation for an organisation.

The legislation of the Equal opportunities can be related with the Equality Act 2010 which aims to safeguard the employees based on the discrimination issues on the areas like gender, race, age, religion etc. Equality Act 2010 brings restrictions on the areas like recruitment, selection, transfer, training opportunities etc. Each and every employee will be entitled to give equal opportunities otherwise certain penalties are also there. The employees can approach the mediator to solve certain issues with the organisation or can seek help from the Equality Advisory Support Service (Gov. UK, 2016). Thus we can observe the limit of the equal opportunities in legislation. Tesco have to follow the guidelines of the Equality Act 2010 and have to make a fair judgement in the areas like recruitment, selection, training, transfers etc. Breaking the aspects contract law can damage the goodwill in the market and for that the competitors can take undue advantages. Other than that the employees will also feel low due to the discriminations done on them. The practical implications of the equal opportunities legislation can be understand by considering the positive and negative outcomes which is mentioned below: (Wilton, 2010).

3.3 Compare the approaches to managing equal opportunities and managing diversity. You should give examples from a selected organisation and discuss the similarities and differences in their approaches to managing equal opportunities and diversity.

The approaches of the Equal Opportunities and managing diversity are very much different. As per the need is concerned both the approaches are necessary in the organisation to create a healthy and positive environment in the organisation.

• Equal Opportunity is mainly focused to give protection against the discrimination. In Tesco a panel is created before the recruitment process starts. None of the member has a right to influence the recruitment process. The advertisement of the Tesco for the recruitment is given on their company’s website where there is clearly mentioned about the post, required skill, age, needed qualification etc. Apart from that the line managers are responsible to identify the skills needs of the employees. The skill gap is to be assessed by the line manager to design a training program for them. For the employees who have become disabled during the employment period will be taken care by the organisation and will do reasonable adjustments by taking suggestions from Occupational Health. Apart from that Tesco also started a help line number for the employees to register their complaints for the issues regarding the discrimination. In this way the organisation wants to treat the employees with equal opportunities.
• Managing Diversity is one of the important considerations for the organisations. Tesco aims to have a diverse workforce to serve the customers in an effective way. Respecting the individuals and giving importance are the ways that Tesco follows in the workplace. Tesco is also registered with the Equality Commission for monitoring the diversity. The employees are given training to make them more competent and also review in the policies is also done. (Our Tesco, 2016).

The similarity is the enforcement of the equal opportunity and managing diversity is done by the top management in the organisation for having a healthy and positive working environment which will maximise the productivity level. 

Task 4

4.1 Select an organisation you work or have worked for, identify and compare the performance management methods used.

Performance management is one of the activities under monitoring and controlling functions. The objective of Tesco is to provide quality values to the customers and for that performance management is one of the important tools which can give direction or trace about the current situation. To achieve the objective certain targets are designed for the department and the supervisors used to break the departmental targets into the individual targets. Based on that, the performances are being monitored at Tesco. The line manager can detect the situation whether it is favourable or unfavourable and accordingly certain remedies are taken to meet the crisis. The approaches that are mainly followed in Tesco are:

1. Performance Appraisal approach is being followed where the performances of the employees are being measured by the feedbacks taken from the colleagues, customers, seniors etc based on certain parameters. After analysing the points the scores for the employees are calculated. Feedbacks are then given to the employees by the immediate senior. The partiality in this approach can be reduced due to the involvement of several respondents. (Molefe, 2010)
2. Observation, monitoring of the performances are also followed at Tesco by the supervisors or the floor managers of Tesco. Direct observation will help the managers to analyse the performance of the employees. But there is a chance of biased feedbacks due to the extent of relationship with the seniors.
3. All the employees in the store are taken into consideration while taking any decision. Thus inviting the employees for sharing their opinions or views are done which motivates the employees to give better performances. In the meetings also the issues faced by the employees are also shared to the managers to bring a positive working environment.

Thus we can observe that performance management includes both the monitoring and also encouraging the employees to give their best performances for the organisation.

4.2 Assess the approaches used to managing employee welfare in your organisation

The basic objective of the employee welfare is to increase the motivation among the employees towards the productivity. All the benefits provided by the organisation towards the employees is to make a feel that the organisation is there for taking care. It is the employees who are the strategy implementer of the organisation and to increase the motivation employees welfare schemes are mainly designed. Employees welfare schemes are also there in Tesco in order to manage 4, 80, 000 employees across the world. Share Ownership schemes are there which invites all the employees to be the part of the organisation by giving certain shares based on the performances. After the six months all the employees will receive discounted product from the stores they are working. Retirement Saving Plan is also there where the contribution of the employees will get around 7.5% of the interest after the retirement which is much high. (Tesco, 2016). The positive outcome of the employee’s welfare schemes is the motivation to the employees which will increase the productivity level of the organisation. The image of the organisation Tesco will also increase. The sense of security and physiological needs are getting fulfilled by the schemes of Tesco which will encourage the employees to give their productive performances. But the negative outcome can be the excessive cash outflow can adverse the situation during the crisis. Paying an interest of 73.5% during the crisis can lead to the loss.

4.3 Discuss the implications of health and safety legislation on human resources practices

Health and Safety Act 1974 of UK specify certain framework for establishing secure and safe environment at the workplace. The reduction of the accidents, hazards, assessment of the risk is the key features of the Act.  The organisation in UK has to follow the guidelines as per the Health and Safety Act 1974 at their workplace. Other than that Reporting Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) is needed to be followed for reporting the accidents to the concerned authority by filling a form F2508. Manual handling practices are also having certain restrictions in pulling or else lifting the loads. Apart from that assessing the risk is also there where the organisations has to identify the possible risk and hazards at their workplace. After that precautions are needed to be taken to safeguard the life of the employees or the customers to establish safety measures in the workplace (McCarthy and Rose, 2010). Human resource practices have greater implications on the health and safety legislations. A committee is needed to be formed who will look after the safety issues in the organisation. Training to the employees about the precautions is also given for creating the awareness. The quality team of the organisation will check the raw materials or the products of the suppliers before it is showcased for the customers. Thus human resource practices are vital to establish a secured environment at the workplace for the employees which will motivate them to give their best performances without any fear.

4.4 Evaluate the impact of another topical issue on human resources practices.

The important topical issue that we often observed in the organisation is the organisational culture. The culture of the organisation plays an important role in the productivity level of the employees. For instance in Tesco the culture they are following are as follows:

1. Team work is appreciated
2. Respecting each other with trust is the essence of a team work
3. Listening to the customers, supporting them, thanks them are expected from the employees
4. Sharing the knowledge and the experience is there in Tesco

So we can observed that Tesco follow certain culture in their workplace which gives emphasis on the employees and also the customers equally. The unity in the workforce can help the organisation to achieve the business goal. Thus focusing the team work is there in the culture of the team work. To create a team which is familiar to work is focused in the culture due to the high level of productivity. Tesco believes in the diversity of the structures culture as there are no restrictions based on the discrimination on the ground of cultural background, gender, race, religion etc. For that employee’s participation in the discussion, membership with the trade unions are followed which will give empowerment to the employees at Tesco. All these will create a positive impact in the productivity level due to the motivation or inspiration from the management of the Tesco. But if we observe from another side that too much empowerment can bring confusions among the staffs which will result to the conflicts. There is also an exception where Tesco has broken the cultural norms by discriminating the customers in a store at west London for which they have to pay a penalty to the customers. Thus monitoring is required to observe each and every aspect of the organisation. (Edgar, 2010)

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Conclusion

So in this Unit 3 Managing Human Resources Assignment Copy we have come to know several aspects of the human resource management. We have observed that a HR strategy is responsible to give an outcome for both the organisation and financial as per the Guest Model is concerned. Along with that the responsibilities of the line managers and the employees in the strategic planning is also focused in this report. The part of the report has also given emphasis is given on the flexibility where Tesco successfully implemented the flexibility in order to motivate the employees towards the productivity. Along with that equal opportunities and diversity adopted by Tesco are also highlighted. The topical issue that has been selected in this report is organisation culture which determines the productivity level of the organisation.

References

Banfield, P. (2012). Introduction to Human Resource Management. 2 Edition. Oxford University Press, USA.
BBC. (2016). Tesco sales rise 1.3% over the Christmas period. [Online] Available: http://www.bbc.com/news/business-35309508 , Accessed as on 29.6.16
Broughton., A. (2015). Flexible working remains a mainstay of the UK labour market. [Online] Available: http://www.employment-studies.co.uk/news/flexible-working-remains-mainstay-uk-labour-market, Accessed as on 29.6.16
Edgar H., S. (2010). Organisational Culture and Leadership. John Wiley and Sons
Finnigan., L. (2016). Tesco pay out £3,000 race discrimination claim after shopper is stopped and searched. [Online] Available:  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/05/03/tesco-pay-out-3000-race-discrimination-claim-after-shopper-is-st/, Accessed as on 29.6.16
Martin, J. L. (2010). Human Resource Management. SAGE Publications Ltd.
McCarthy., J. and Rose., P. (2010), Value Based Health and Social Care. SAGE   Publication Ltd
Molefe., N. (2010). Performance measurement dimensions for lecturers at selected universities: An international perspective. SA Journal of Human Resource Management. 
Our Tesco. (2016). Equal Opportunities and Diversity Policy. [Online] Available: https://www.ourtesco.com/working-at-tesco/people-policies/expenses/equal-opportunities-and-diversity/equal-opportunities-and-diversity-policy/ , Accessed as on 29.6.16
Our Tesco. (2016). Flexible Working. [Online] Available: https://www.ourtesco.com/working-at-tesco/people-policies/expenses/flexible-working/ , Accessed as on 29.6.16
Price., A. (2011). Human Resource Management. Cengage Learning.
Shifrin., T. (2010). Tesco extends outsourcing contract with Xansa in £18m deal. [Online] Available: http://www.computerworlduk.com/news/it-vendors/tesco-extends-outsourcing-contract-with-xansa-in-18m-deal-3602427/ , Accessed as on 29.6.16

Unit 3 Managing Human Resources Assignment Copy an analysis of the human resource management in the organisation is mainly highlighted, We are posting Locus units solutions so scholars can explore the our Assignment Help in UK and get review the quality of our work.