Concept of Corporate Governance docx

Running head: ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Executive Summary
The concept of Corporate Governance can be essentially described as the means which are
generally adopted by the organization to deal with the different aspects relating to the employee
and social welfare. In regard to this, the report is aimed towards understanding the different ways
in which the employees at ASDA have been undergoing issues relating to the fact that many
employees have complained about discrimination and inequality scenarios. Therefore, by
following a systematic structure, the paper is dividing into different sections whereby the
Introduction, Literature Review, the Research methods and the Discussion and Analysis has been
presented. This is then followed by the Conclusion and the Recommendations of the study.

2ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................4
Literature Review............................................................................................................................6
The concept of Corporate Governance........................................................................................6
Agency Theory............................................................................................................................6
Stewardship Theory.....................................................................................................................7
Stakeholder Theory......................................................................................................................7
Discrimination.............................................................................................................................8
Discrimination at the Workplace.................................................................................................8
Employee Rights..........................................................................................................................9
Employer Accountability.............................................................................................................9
Considerations.............................................................................................................................9
Theories of Discrimination........................................................................................................10
Discussion of secondary and primary research undertaken...........................................................13
Overview....................................................................................................................................13
Secondary research undertaken.................................................................................................13
Primary research undertaken.....................................................................................................14
Summary....................................................................................................................................15
Critical Review of the Results.......................................................................................................16
Overview....................................................................................................................................16

3ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Primary research results.............................................................................................................16
Secondary research results.........................................................................................................27
Discrimination at ASDA............................................................................................................27
Impact on the performance of employees..................................................................................28
Corporate governance at ASDA................................................................................................28
Triple bottom impact.................................................................................................................29
Strategic initiatives for ASDA...................................................................................................30
Conclusion and Recommendations................................................................................................34
References......................................................................................................................................35
Appendix........................................................................................................................................38
Questionnaire.............................................................................................................................38

4ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Introduction
Corporate Governance can be correctly comprehended to be a set of rules and regulations
which are required to be utilized by the organization in engaging into various operations. The
Corporate Governance of a company needs to be such that it is successfully able to cover all the
operations of the organization and in line with this has the overall capacity to certify that it will
successfully be able to guide the organization towards the right steps which are required to be
undertaken by it. In line with this, according to Yermack (2017), the corporate governance
encompasses of the overall interest in a company`s stakeholders which comprise of the
customers, suppliers, governmental regulatory bodies which go a long way in supporting the firm
to attain its objectives. In line with this, the corporate governance of an organization is greatly
impacted by the overall external as well as the internal forces which govern the overall
operations of the enterprise. The primary aim of the report lies on the corporate governance of
the ASDA in UK. The subject of the Corporate Governance can be comprehended to be vast in
nature and in line with this, it can be considered to be the overall duty of the firm to certify that,
they are being successfully able to apply and include all the aspects which are related to the
concept of the Corporate Governance. After research, it was identified that, the Corporate
Governance issue which is relevant in the case of the ASDA can be comprehended to be the
Discrimination and the accusation of the staff members against the management stating that they
are not being treated adequately. With respect to this, the staff members have reported that
although the firm has the equality as a concept in its Corporate Governance, however, the firm
has not been taken it very seriously and in reality the different staff members have been
subjected to a huge level of discrimination and there have been various accusations from the side
of the staff members stating how they were actually being treated in the firm.

5ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
The ASDA Stores Limited can be comprehended to be a British Supermarket retailer
which has its headquarters in the Leeds, West Yorkshire. The company was found in 1949 and
expanded its overall operations to the South of England during the years 1970 and the 1980s.
The company was also listed on the London Stock Exchange until 1999 and later on it was
acquired by the American retail giant Walmart (Asda.com 2019). The ASDA can be
comprehended to be the second largest supermarket chain in Britain between the time period of
2003 and 2014 by the virtue of market share and since the fourth month of 2019, the firm has
been able to regain the second position but is still behind Tesco and ahead of Sainsbury`s
The paper will follow a comprehensive format with reverence to which the Introduction
chapter will provide a brief overview on the subject which will then be followed by the
Literature Review on the same. This will then be trailed by the research procedure that will be
adopted and the findings of the research. The last section of the research will provide certain
recommendations which can be largely adopted by the firm in order to improve the current
scenario.

6ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Literature Review
The concept of Corporate Governance
The corporations have become increasingly powerful and a dominant institution. In
regard to this, it is vital for a firm to certify that it is successfully able to manage all the existing
aspects of a business which range from the influences, the capabilities and the size. Their
governance and the way in which the dissimilar actions are usually managed tend to be
influenced by the economies and the social landscape scenarios (Tichy 1981). Therefore, due to
the changing nature of the different firms, it has been observed that, the different shareholders
are losing out on the trust and the market value of the firms is being affected considerably. In
line with this, it is integral to certify that, the firm is being able to see to it that the organizations
are putting this lack of governmental control to good use and thereby stress on the overall
importance of the accountability in the organizations. Therefore, the corporate governance has
become a vital aspect of the enterprise and thereby assists in ensuring that the current global as
well as the complex environment can be well managed (Sparrow, Brewster and Chung 2016).
The literatures in the domain of the Corporate Governance tend to provide some meaningful
form of information and governance aspects but tend to fall short on the aspect related to
governance and there remain many interpretations to the concept of Corporate Governance in the
firm. The different theories which are related to the field off Corporate Governance can be
comprehended to be the Agency theory, Stewardship Theory and the Stakeholder Theory.
Agency Theory
The agency theory is deemed to have its roots in the economic theory which states that
there lies a considerable association between the principals, shareholders and the other agents.

7ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
The shareholders are the individuals who generally tend to hire these people to perform certain
functions for them and assist them in ensuring that they are successfully able to perform good
work and manage the organization on their behalf. The theory can be comprehended to be a
conceptually simple theory which suggests that the different managers are not required to be self-
centered and instead work towards ensuring that the overall goals and objectives of the firm can
be met with and the society as a whole tends to benefit from this (Triana, Jayasinghe and Pieper
2015). The main problem which lies in this theory can be related to the fact that there needs to
exist a differentiation between the ownership and control. Hence, In this case, it is seen to it that,
the agents are required to function with principal made rules and aim to maximize the
shareholder value.
Stewardship Theory
The Stewardship theory can be comprehended to have the roots of the firm registered in
the psychology as well as the sociology and concentrates on the fact that a steward tends to lie
with the focus of ensuring that the wealth of the firm can be maximized accordingly through the
performance and also because it is the overall duty of the steward to do so (Cascio 2015). Unlike
the agency theory, the stewardship theory does not stress on the perception of individualism but
rather stresses on the top management being the stewards of the firm who motivate the overall
victory of the firm (Tricker and Tricker 2015). It relies on ensuring that the returns of the
stakeholders are maximized and hence, the performance of the enterprise can directly have an
influence on the perceptions of their individual performance. As per this theory, the agency costs
have to be minimized so as to see to it that, the interests of the shareholder are safeguarded in a
better manner.

8ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Stakeholder Theory
Another theory related to the domain of the Corporate Governance can be comprehended
to be the Stakeholder theory. This theory states that, any group of persons who can mark or are
greatly influenced by the achievement of the firm`s overall operations can be successfully
attained by unifying the organization`s objectives and by seeing to it that the managers of a firm
work with the stakeholders as well (Vickers 2016). According to this theory, it is not only the
shareholders of the firm who have a crucial role to play in the fulfillment of the objectives of the
firm, but it is also the stakeholders who deserve to receive equal importance. In addition to this,
this perspective tends to broaden the overall outline which states that the network of various
groups tend to affect the overall processes and outcomes which take place in a firm and impact
the different stakeholders of the organization at large.
Discrimination
The discrimination can be described as a treatment or the consideration of an individual
by making discrimination towards a particular individual, group, class or category from where a
person generally belongs. The discrimination can include discrimination relating to the age,
caste, criminal record the disability of the individual, the family status, gender identity as well as
the nationality and the related social class and orientation of a person. Under discrimination a
person is usually treated worse than the normal behavior. This often tends to lead to the
exclusion of the individuals and is generally based on irrational decision making (Eng and Mak
2003). There exist various discriminatory traditions and policies along with various practices and
laws which exist in various countries as well as institutions and are generally looked down upon.
In some of the countries, there often takes place controversial attempts to see to it that the

9ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
discriminated class or group is benefited and this is known as reverse discrimination (Williamson
1988).
Discrimination at the Workplace
The discrimination in the workplace has become very common. The primary reason
behind this can be contributed to the increase in the cultural as well as the gender diversity in the
workplace which keeps the employee obligated from various ethnicities as well as circumstances
to work together and meet the aims of the firm (Drucker 2016). However, this difference which
takes place between the various people often has a tendency to bring about mix-ups and
generally results in conflicts and discrimination. The managers are believed to have a
responsibility towards their workers and engage in fair practices. The different discrimination
activities which often take place at work can be taken to be as follows:
Employee Rights
The employees generally possess the right to file a protest against their manager if there
has been an incident whereby they have been dishonestly discriminated alongside or harassed at
a workplace (Wright and McMahan 1992). If any discriminatory behavior is faced by the
employee then it is the overall duty of the employer to mitigate the situation and to protect the
employee from any further harm. In line of this, the employee may ask the help of the anti-
discrimination authorities.
Employer Accountability
The employer is required to protect the workers from all types of discrimination as well
as the harassment which takes place at work. It is integral that they undertake proper measures to
put an end to the unwanted harassing behavior (Bresler and Stake 2017). If there exists a failure

10ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
to do this then it can result in criminal consequences against the organization. The different
employers are accountable for the creation of the accommodations for various employees in case
of a special service is received.
Considerations
Although the different employees possess various anti-discrimination rights, they will be
required to certify that they are required to be responsible for their own safety (Dimopoulos and
Wagner 2016). They are required to respond the employers in case of any discrimination which
takes place and if they would require accommodations within the workplace. Moreover, they can
be held responsible to protect themselves from the additional harm in any scenario. This supports
the claim that the employers who are unaware of the employee needs cannot support them in any
manner.
Theories of Discrimination
In the field of literature, the different theories of the discrimination which are largely
available can be comprehended to be the structuralism, performance identity, the masculinities
theories and other such theories which focus on the professional work environment.
The Structuralism Approach to Discrimination
The structuralism theory focuses on the behaviors which take place within the place of
work and may seem to be uncontrollable in any scenario which exists outside the workplace. The
theory seeks to link the societal forces like the conscious with employers and the responsibility
that the societal discrimination does not need to be managed by the employer (Yermack 2017).
According to Bratton and Gold (2017), the structural discrimination can be comprehended to be
a rather complex and subtle form of discrimination whereby it is destructive at first generation

11ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
because, it tends to foster a pattern of interaction among the various members of the group
whereby the non-dominant groups are ultimately excluded. Examples of this may include the
undermining of women`s professed capability and freezing them out of the social
communications or permitting the behavior which generally tends to depart from the various
stereotypes about the sexual orientation. According to Denis and McConnell (2003), an
employer is required to set up various structures through a strong corporate culture and is
engaged to perform well.
Performance Identity Theory
On one hand, the structuralism approach tends to focus on the employer and tends to
focus on the manner in which the employer practices have an impact on the employees (Delery
and Doty 1996). The intersectionality approach to the discrimination tends to focus on the
various ways in which the people with the multidimensional identities often tend to face the
discrimination and how the racism as well sexism tend to interact as well as engage in the
creation of workplace dynamics which affect the overall intersection. The performance identity
theory focus on the race or ethnicity which is viewed as something which is performed and is
considered to be more than a fixed concept and indeed relates that, the discrimination in the
workplace can be stated to be relating to the dialectical procedure which is generally shaped by
the work culture of the employee (DeCenzo, Robbins and Verhulst 2016). The dialectic is a
concept which is shared by the structuralism theory along with the Performance identity theory
and states that although the racial and gender undercurrents exist in the society in a general
manner but in the place of work, it exists in a specific way. The performance identity theorists
tend to present an argument that, the anti-discrimination law should just be exploring the
dynamics in the employer and employee relationship which further contributes to the costs,

12ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
limitations as well as the choices of the different employees. Much of these theories relating to
the structuralism and performance identity aspects relate to the white collar and professional
settings. According to Council (2007), the question of incentives, the choices and the limitations
are crucial in the low wage settings as well whereby the statistical discrimination tends to offer
for the employers and assists them to create reliable, stability as well as the willing workforce
(Clarke 2004). The theory also states that in scenarios where the worker is required to cope with
the different stereotypes which exist or work harder to overcome the negative stereotypes then in
such a scenario this can be stated to be discrimination in the workplace and hence, the employers
would be required to undertake the initiatives which prevent this workplace issue (Drucker
2016).
Masculinities Theories: The Effects of Coping Mechanisms
The masculinity theories can be comprehended to be the theories relating to the
discrimination which were developed in regard to the various narrative theories whereby the
gender has a bigger role to play in the civilization (Bratton and Gold 2017). The masculinity
refers to both the individuals and the collective or other managerial practices. It can also be
defined as the manner in which one conforms to the expectations which have been set for them
in the masculine role. On an directorial level, it generally focuses on the manner in which the
structure of an organization or related practice is undertaken on a masculine role (Chelladurai
and Kerwin 2018). On an organization level there usually exists a male dominance in the
workplace. The masculinity theories generally underline the desire which the employer possess
for the efficiency and generally comes from the homogeneous workforce. In the scenario, there
takes place the gendering of the work and some jobs are simply reserved for the manly man and
all other sexes are locked out of the tasks (Dipboye 2016). Hence, it can be rightfully

13ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
comprehended that the masculinity theorists aim to focus on both the structures and other
narratives based on the workplace and solidifies the hierarchical structure which the employers
has established because they tend to generally supply the worker with purpose and worth which
is generally not present in a low wage pay scale.
Discussion of secondary and primary research undertaken
Overview
To understand the different problems which are essentially being faced by ASDA, it is
critical to certify that, the view point of the different employees who have suffered from
discrimination is essentially taken. This assists them in seeing to it that, they are being able to get
a real view point of the different employees as this would be helpful in gaining an understanding
of the outcomes of the study (Bresler and Stake 2017). Along with the viewpoint of the
employees which is required to be collected, it is essential to take the information from various
secondary sources as this would be helpful in defining the manner in which the theories have
been centered on the discrimination aspects and related to this, discussion can be centered on the
basis for discrimination at ASDA.
Secondary research undertaken
As the study will be incorporating both the secondary and the primary research
techniques, the following section will be analyzing the method in which the data was collected in
the secondary research and the means in which the data will be investigated accordingly
Data collection method

14ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
The data for the secondary research will be composed from varied sources which
comprises of journals, reviews, business reviews, newspapers, books and other such sources. The
main purpose of the data collection in the secondary technique is to underlie the important
theories which are present in the study and to determine the way in which the study will be
incorporating the different theories in order to find the problem which takes place at ASDA and
to form the basis of the theory so that adequate recommendations can be provided (Mackey and
Gass 2015). Hence, the annual reports of the firm along with the business journals have been
made use of in directive to determine how the study is highlighting theory and linking it with the
primary findings.
Data analysis method
The data which will be composed from the different secondary sources like the journals
and various reviews will be analyzed with the help of a thematic analysis (Kumar 2019). A
thematic analysis can be taken to be the systematic division of the different themes which are
essentially involved in the study and on the basis of these themes, the findings of the study will
be presented. The different themes which have been designed for this study relate to the
Discrimination, impact of discrimination of the employees and other sections like Discrimination
at ASDA. By undertaking this initiative, the firm will be able to determine the manner in which
the study will be able to present a theoretical framework of the corporate governance concept.
Additionally aspects like the strategic decision making will be examined with the help of the
tools like the PESTLE and Porters Diamond theory.

15ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Primary research undertaken
The study will also focus on conducting the primary research and in regard to this; the
primary research which has been accepted for the study is the survey methods.
Data collection
A set of 10 questions were designed for the different employees and each of them were
asked to scale their responses. The scaled ranged from 1 to 5 depending on the severity of the
question and the scenario (Silverman 2016). Hence, initially the study aimed to find the
responses from 100 such employees, however, responses from only 80 respondents could be
collected and presented in the study. The questionnaire was distributed to the employees in a
mail and this questionnaire was collected from them and they were asked a variety of questions
pertaining to their time at ASDA and any discrimination faced by them. Additionally, other
corporate governance initiatives which are generally taken by the employees were also defined
by these employees. Through the primary data collection method, the research was able to find
the shortcomings of the firm based on real experience of the employees and was able to assess
the method in which the enterprise is being able to meet these shortcomings (Quinlan et al.
2019).
Data analysis
Once the data was collected from the 80 respondents, in such a case, initiatives were
undertaken to represent this data in the form of various tables and charts so as to determine the
manner in which the responses of the different staff could be presented (Schuler and Jackson
2008). They were presented in the form of bar charts which assisted in representing the
percentage of the employees who were in favor of a particular response. After representing the

16ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
data in the form of bars and the charts, the data was analyzed so as to find the ways in which the
employees felt about the firm.
Summary
These research methods have been very useful in conducting the study in the right
method and to find the overall relationship which exists between the factors leading to
discrimination in a firm. However, a drawback of the study can be acknowledged as the fact that
the time fame for the research was limited and the authenticity of the responses in terms of
biasness and their viewpoint could not be essentially identified.
Critical Review of the Results
Overview
As the Data has been composed from both the primary as well as the secondary
techniques, the study will derive information from both techniques and utilize it for the purpose
of the research and to find the condition of the discrimination and corporate governance which
takes place in the ASDA.
Primary research results
The given graphs and tables represent the data which has been collected from the primary
survey from 80 respondents who have been associated with the ASDA at one point of time
during their careers. Their response has been analyzed critically.

17ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Q1. Time frame at ASDA?
Option
Response
count
Less than one year 30
1-5 years 40
More than 5 years 10
Less than one year
1-5 years
More than 5 years
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45
Time at ASDA
Figure 1
From the given analysis, it can be agreed upon that more than 40 employees have been
involved in the firm for a span of more than 1 year and relatively had been in the firm for a
longer time frame which assisted them in assessing the manner in which the firm was involved in
the organization and experienced all its related aspects.
Q2. Do you believe that ASDA is able to engage in employee welfare?

18ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Option
Response
count
Strongly believe 30
Believe 20
Neutral 10
Do not believe 13
Strongly do not
believe 7
Strongly believe
Believe
Neutral
Do not believe
Strongly do not
believe
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Employee welfare
Response count
Figure 2
The given graph mentions that they strongly believe that ASDA is able to engage in
employee welfare. 30 out of the 80 employees who were surveyed believe that the firm does
have a scope of performing well and assisting the firm in its various initiatives.
Q3. ASDA promotes equality

19ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Strongly believe
Believe
Neutral
Do not believe
Strongly do not
believe
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45
Equality
Figure 3
Option
Response
count
Strongly believe 40
Believe 10
Neutral 13
Do not believe 10
Strongly do not
believe 7
From the image, it can be comprehended that, 50% of the employees do not believe that
ASDA tends to promote the equality in the organization. In regard to this, the organization is
prone to discrimination and in relation to this, it has to be rightfully comprehended that, it needs
to undertake initiatives to engage in long term success

20ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Q4. The employees at ASDA are subject to humiliation
Strongly believe
Believe
Neutral
Do not believe
Strongly do not
believe
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
Subject to Humiliation
Figure 4
Option
Response
count
Strongly believe 35
Believe 15
Neutral 7
Do not believe 9
Strongly do not
believe 14
From the image, it has to be comprehended that, 35 out of the 80 employees are under the
belief that, the different employees at ASDA are exposed to considerable humiliation, however,

21ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
this should not be the case for the firm and instead, the firm needs to be supporting the different
employees in the firm to perform considerably well.
Q5. The different employees in the organization are subject to discrimination
Strongly believe
Believe
Neutral
Do not believe
Strongly do not
believe
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Employee Discrimination at ASDA
Figure 5
Option
Response
count
Strongly believe 60
Believe 10
Neutral 5
Do not believe 3
Strongly do not
believe 2

22ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
When the different employees were asked whether there exists a considerable level of
discrimination at the workplace, and then with respect to this, more than 70% of the different ex-
employees state that, they were strongly under the belief that there exists considerable
discrimination in the organization and the different employees tend to be subject to large scale
discrimination.
Q6. You left the firm due to discrimination
Yes
No
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
Individual Employee Subject to
discrimination
Figure 6
Option
Response
count
Yes 50
No 30

23ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
When the different ex-employees at ASDA were asked about whether they had left the
organization due to the discrimination or not, then to this, 50 out of the 80 employees responded
that, the different employees at the firm were subject to discrimination and regarding to this, it
can be reflected that there exists high scale discrimination at the firm which would then persuade
the employees to leave the firm.
Q7. How would you rate the CSR at ASDA?
Excellent
Good
Neutral
Poor
Very Poor
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
CSR
Figure 7
Option
Response
count
Excellent 50
Good 20
Neutral 5
Poor 3
Very Poor 2

24ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
The different employees were also questioned about the extent of the CSR at the firm to
which the different employees responded that, they believed that it was very poor in nature.
Q8. Does HRM assist the employees?
Option
Response
count
Strongly believe 40
Believe 20
Neutral 15
Do not believe 3
Strongly do not
believe 2
The perception of the ex-employees about the HRM was positive in nature which brings
to the conclusion that although the HRM in the firm was supportive, it was the senior
management who engaged in discrimination and the unequal treatment of the various employees.

25ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Strongly believe
Believe
Neutral
Do not believe
Strongly do not
believe
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45
Extent to which HRM supports the
employees
Figure 8
Q9. Does the discrimination affect the employee performance and productivity?
Option
Response
count
Strongly believe 25
Believe 35
Neutral 15
Do not believe 3
Strongly do not
believe 2

26ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Strongly believe
Believe
Neutral
Do not believe
Strongly do not
believe
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
Impact of discrimination on
productivity
Figure 9
From this, it can be reflected that, the discrimination had a very strong impact on the
productivity of the organization and hence, it is recommended that discrimination should not be
engaged in by the organization in case the firm would like to enhance the productivity of the
firm.
Q10. Are employee rights protected?
Option
Response
count
Yes 45
No 35

27ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Yes
No
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50
Protection of employee rights
Figure 10
When asked whether the employee rights were protected or not, a majority of the
employees believed that their rights were protected and that it was the management who was not
undertaking the adequate steps and procedures which would enable them to perform well.
Secondary research results
Discrimination at ASDA
According to Fisher (2018), there have been several instances of discrimination at ASDA.
The most common concern of the discrimination which takes place in the place can be
mentioned to be that of the groups and mistreatment of the employees by the senior employees.
The different senior employees at the workplace are essentially required to see to it that they are
being able to meet with the wishes of the new employees in the organization and assist them
throughout their work life at ASDA. Additionally, it was also the duty of the management to
assure that the different employees are being able to feel comfortable at the workplace and that
they do not feel any inconvenience. However, these aspects only go true in case of the annual

28ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
reports and the values of the company, however, in reality this is not the case and the employees
are being mistreated throughout their working hours (Gonzales et al. 2015). Furthermore, there
have been various instances of the glass ceiling which is difficult to avoid by the women and
hence, the discrimination on the basis of the gender is also evident. This argument was further
strengthened by the responses of the different respondents who confirmed about the different
cases of discrimination which take place at ASDA and how they are not essentially respected at
the workplace.
Impact on the performance of employees
Hence, it can be reflected that this discrimination which takes place at the workplace
tends to have a long term impact on the enactment of the different personnel who are there at the
workplace (Hart 1995). This means that as the different employees are being mistreated and are
not being given their rightful place in the firm. The employees are not engaged actively into the
different operations of the organization and very often there have been several instances of
groups, this has had an influence on the performance of the employees by demotivating them and
discouraging them to attend to their work (Humphries 2017). Additionally the in activity of the
different members of the administration has also had a negative impact on the performance of the
different employees and there have been several customer complaints regarding the way in
which the employees were not being able to provide them with sufficient assistance and other
related issues (Leighday.co.uk 2019).
Corporate governance at ASDA
The Corporate Governance can be essentially described as the manner in which the
organization carries out its regular functions. In regard to this, it might be considered essential to
understand that, the corporate governance of the firm needs to be such that the different

29ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
employees will be essentially able to perform well and that they will be able to improve the
operations (Independent.co.uk 2019). Although the annual reports and other such website of the
firm have described that the value of the firm is to look out for the needs of the different
employees and the various customers, however, in reality this is not the case and the corporate
governance which is at ASDA can be taken to be very poor in nature (Fisher 2018). Therefore,
this hints that ASDA would be required to undertake certain measures with the help of which the
firm will be essentially able to assure that the corporate governance activities of the firm can take
place effectively (Theguardian.com 2019).
Additionally, the senior management at the firm needs to undertake critical steps and
processes with the help of which, they will be able to assure that, they are effectively being able
to look out for the needs of the different employees and they are being able to look out for the
different instances of the discrimination which has been taken place at the work and in regard to
this, this would allow them to engage in a successful relationship with the different patrons as
well as the employees of the organization will be able to prosper (Independent.co.uk 2019).
Triple bottom impact
The Triple Bottom Line is a framework which guides the different companies so that they
remain focused on the social as well as the environmental concerns of the business and also
focus on the profit aspects. The Triple Bottom Line tends to posit that instead of a single bottom
line, the business should be ideally focusing on the different bottom lines which comprise of the
Profit, the people and the planet (Jones et al. 2017). The TBL is a measure of the overall
contribution of a firm towards the corporate governance and the corporate social responsibility.
The triple bottom line insists that the different organizations need to focus on the various aspects
like the social as well as the environmental issues which measure the entire cost of conducting

30ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
the business (La Porta et al. 2000). It is imperative for a firm to understand that apart from the
different aspects which are generally related to the profits and other financial measures of the
business, the company needs to examine the way in which it has been interacting with the
different customers as well as the employees of the organization as this will enable the firm to
take appropriate decisions as possible.
 Profit: The firm needs to measure the traditional measure of the corporate profit and
focus on the profit and loss account to understand the bottom lines.
 People: The people aspect comprises of the measures of the manner in which an
organization is socially active and the way in which the various workers of the firm are
treating the different personnel present in the firm (Mondy and Martocchio 2016).
 Planet: This looks out for the environmentally responsible aspect of the organization.
Hence, by focusing on these aspects, the firm’s goals can be achieved as well as promoted
adequately. In this case, it can be stated that ASDA has not been indulging in the overall
profitability from the perspective of the people but only focusing on the profitability aspect.
Strategic initiatives for ASDA
In this section, the strategic environment of the firm will be assessed so as to examine the
manner in which the firm has been performing (Noe et al. 2015). This would contribute towards
understanding whether the firm is being able to match up to the external environment
expectations of the firm or not.
Pestle
Political environment

31ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
The political environment aspects which the firm is required to consider will be the
national as well as the international regulations which affect aspects relating to the employment,
legislation, taxes and consumer rights. Additionally, the war and instability aspects also impact
the decision making of the firm. Additionally, ASDA generally benefits from the stable political
environment in the United Kingdom.
Economic environment
Asda is governing in the grocery industry and therefore, would be required to govern the
different factors such as the pay level, competitive pressures, the supply and demand of the labor
and the energy prices (Noe et al. 2016). This is integral to consider because, the pricing strategies
of the firm needs to be considered effectively.
Social environment
The social environment aspects which the organization would be required to consider can
be mentioned to be the corporate governance aspect, lifestyle offering, the new products and
services in the market and along with this, the manner in which the firm is dealing with the
aspects relating to the discrimination and aspects related to equality need to be considered.
Technological environment
The technological environment comprises of various factors like the growing
technological advancements, use of mobile applications and other related technology, which the
firm would be required to consider in order to certify that, the enterprise is being able to meet up
with the expectations of the different individuals.
Environmental environment

32ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Aspects like the Green economy, carbon footprint, pollution and hazardous waste are
essential for ASDA and as the different individuals these days are aware of the impacts which
the firm has on the environment, the different companies would be required to operate in an
environmental friendly manner and reduce their carbon footprint on the environment.
Legal environment
The Legal aspects which the firm would be required to consider can be taken to be the
aspects like the various regulations and rules of the countries in which the firm operates.
Additionally, aspects like the minimum wage rates and related aspects are also required to be
covered/
Porter diamond
The Porters Diamond strategy focuses on the aspect related to the reason why certain
firms are internationally competitive and why there are firms which are not competitive
internationally. The given factors acts as a part of the completive environment of the firm and
with this purpose, the ASDA would be required to base its corporate governance on various
aspects related to the Factor conditions, the strategy of the firm, the rivalry in the organization
and the demand conditions of the market. Hence, if the factor conditions along with the
supporting industries are managed well. He firm will be able to attain competitive advantage.
Therefore, the discrimination and equality aspect of corporate governance needs to be managed
accordingly so as to certify that, the different factors of the firm are managed strategically.

33ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Figure 11: The Porters Diamond Model
(Source: Chelladurai and Kerwin 2018)

34ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Conclusion and Recommendations
Therefore, from the analysis as undertaken in the previous section, it could be
comprehended that, as the globalization has been advancing and the different firms have been
employing the different employees from various parts of the world. In relation to this, there have
been several issues which have been arising like the discrimination and inequality. Hence, in
regard to this, when the various employees present in the firm are subject to such discrimination,
it reflects on their overall wellbeing and in line with this it also impacts their productivity at the
workplace. The report was based on the overall performance of the ASDA and the corporate
governance issue which was being faced by the organization relating to the employee
discrimination. Hence, this project was set out to find the manner in which the different
employees were being discriminated against. Hence, it can be mentioned that, ASDA needs to
undertake certain steps which will assist it in ensuring that it will successfully be able to deal
with the different discrimination aspects. The various recommendations provided to the firm are
as follows:
Engage in Anti-Discrimination committees: Through the anti-discrimination committees, ASDA
would be able to undertake considerable steps through which it would be able to assist the
various employees who are facing discrimination. This committee will look out to ensure that the
different employees and their grievances are being met with in the right manner and considering
this, the employees are assisted throughout. Additionally, they must be allowed to express
themselves easily and no biasness needs to take place while decision making.
Work on employee feedback: Just collecting the feedback is not the key; instead the firm would
be required to commence an analysis of the way in which this feedback must be utilized by the

35ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
firm to improve employee conditions. The employee feedback should be taken positively and
hence, through this, the administration needs to encourage conversations between the various
hierarchy levels. As the employees who are in the supermarkets deal directly with the various
customers, they are more rooted to their needs and it can be dealt with accordingly.
Consider intercultural employee engagement: It is crucial that ASDA is successfully able to
engage in intercultural employee engagement as this will assist in ensuring that the different
employees belonging from different races will be able to interact with each other and will be able
to encourage the different people to become more tolerant. Globalization has opened various
opportunities for the various firms and only be encouraging intercultural employee engagement,
will the firm as well as other companies in the industry be able to encourage a competitive yet
ethical business corporate governance and culture.
References
Asda.com 2019. Annual Reports [online]. Available at: https://corporate.asda.com/media-
library/document/income-tracker-report-feb-2018/_proxyDocument?id=00000162-714d-d297-
a77e-734df4240000 (Retrieved on: 10 October. 2019)
Bratton, J. and Gold, J., 2017. Human resource management: theory and practice. Palgrave.
Bresler, L. and Stake, R.E., 2017. Qualitative research methodology in music education.
In Critical Essays in Music Education (pp. 113-128). Routledge.
Cascio, W.F., 2015. Managing human resources. McGraw-Hill.
Chelladurai, P. and Kerwin, S., 2018. Human resource management in sport and recreation.
Human Kinetics.

36ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Clarke, T., 2004. Theories of corporate governance. The Philosophical Foundations of
Corporate Governance, Oxon.
Council, A.C.G., 2007. Corporate governance principles and recommendations.
DeCenzo, D.A., Robbins, S.P. and Verhulst, S.L., 2016. Fundamentals of Human Resource
Management, Binder Ready Version. John Wiley & Sons.
Delery, J.E. and Doty, D.H., 1996. Modes of theorizing in strategic human resource
management: Tests of universalistic, contingency, and configurational performance
predictions. Academy of management Journal, 39(4), pp.802-835.
Denis, D.K. and McConnell, J.J., 2003. International corporate governance. Journal of financial
and quantitative analysis, 38(1), pp.1-36.
Dimopoulos, T. and Wagner, H.F., 2016. Corporate Governance and CEO Turnover
Decisions. Swiss Finance Institute Research Paper, (12-16).
Dipboye, R.L., 2016. discrimination as high risk behavior in the workplace. In Risky
Business (pp. 199-226). Routledge.
Drucker, K., 2016. Avoiding Discrimination and Filtering of Qualified Candidates by ATS
Software.
Eng, L.L. and Mak, Y.T., 2003. Corporate governance and voluntary disclosure. Journal of
accounting and public policy, 22(4), pp.325-345.
Fisher, K., 2018. Asda rolls out new mental health policy. Occupational Health &
Wellbeing, 70(5), pp.22-22.
Gonzales, E., Marchiondo, L., Ran, S., Brown, C. and Goettge, K., 2015. Age discrimination in
workplace and its association with health and work: Implications for social policy. Boston, MA:
Boston University, Research Brief, 201502, p.4.
Green, C., 2018. Using Case Study Methodology to Explore the Role of Discrimination in
Workplace Incivility. Journal of National Black Nurses' Association: JNBNA, 29(1), pp.22-29.
Hart, O., 1995. Corporate governance: some theory and implications. The economic
journal, 105(430), pp.678-689.
Humphries, B., 2017. Re-thinking social research: anti-discriminatory approaches in research
methodology. Routledge.
Independent.co.uk 2019. Asda [online]. Available at:
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/asda-shopfloor-workers-win-equal-pay-
case-court-of-appeal-gender-a8756221.html (Retrieved on: 10 October. 2019)

37ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Jones, K.P., Arena, D.F., Nittrouer, C.L., Alonso, N.M. and Lindsey, A.P., 2017. Subtle
discrimination in the workplace: A vicious cycle. Industrial and organizational
psychology, 10(1), pp.51-76.
Kumar, R., 2019. Research methodology: A step-by-step guide for beginners. Sage Publications
Limited.
La Porta, R., Lopez-de-Silanes, F., Shleifer, A. and Vishny, R., 2000. Investor protection and
corporate governance. Journal of financial economics, 58(1-2), pp.3-27.
Leighday.co.uk 2019. Asda [online]. Available at: https://www.leighday.co.uk/Employment-
discrimination/Equal-pay-claims/Asda (Retrieved on: 10 October. 2019)
Mackey, A. and Gass, S.M., 2015. Second language research: Methodology and design.
Routledge.
Mondy, R. and Martocchio, J.J., 2016. Human resource management. Pearson.
Noe, R.A., Hollenbeck, J.R., Gerhart, B. and Wright, P.M., 2015. Human resources
management. Instructor, 2015.
Noe, R.A., Hollenbeck, J.R., Gerhart, B. and Wright, P.M., 2017. Human resource management:
Gaining a competitive advantage. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education.
Quinlan, C., Babin, B., Carr, J. and Griffin, M., 2019. Business research methods. South Western
Cengage.
Schuler, R.S. and Jackson, S.E., 2008. Strategic human resource management. John Wiley &
Sons.
Silverman, D. ed., 2016. Qualitative research. Sage.
Sparrow, P., Brewster, C. and Chung, C., 2016. Globalizing human resource management.
Routledge.
Theguardia.com 2019. Asda [online]. Available at:
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/jan/31/asda-shopworkers-win-landmark-ruling-
equal-pay-dispute (Retrieved on: 10 October. 2019)
Tichy, N.M., 1981. Strategic human resource management.
Triana, M.D.C., Jayasinghe, M. and Pieper, J.R., 2015. Perceived workplace racial
discrimination and its correlates: A meta‐analysis. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 36(4),
pp.491-513.

38ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Tricker, R.B. and Tricker, R.I., 2015. Corporate governance: Principles, policies, and practices.
Oxford University Press, USA.
Vickers, L., 2016. Religious freedom, religious discrimination and the workplace. Bloomsbury
Publishing.
Williamson, O.E., 1988. Corporate finance and corporate governance. The journal of
finance, 43(3), pp.567-591.
Wright, P.M. and McMahan, G.C., 1992. Theoretical perspectives for strategic human resource
management. Journal of management, 18(2), pp.295-320.
Yermack, D., 2017. Corporate governance and blockchains. Review of Finance, 21(1), pp.7-31.

39ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Appendix
Questionnaire
Q1. Time frame at ASDA?
Less than 1 year
1-5 years
More than 5 years
Q2. Do you believe that ASDA is able to engage in employee welfare?
 Strongly Believe
 Believe
 Neutral
 Do not believe
 Strongly disbelieve
Q3. ASDA promotes equality
 Strongly Believe
 Believe
 Neutral
 Do not believe
 Strongly disbelieve
Q4. The employees at ASDA are subject to humiliation
 Strongly Believe

40ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
 Believe
 Neutral
 Do not believe
 Strongly disbelieve
Q5. The different employees in the organization are subject to discrimination
 Strongly Believe
 Believe
 Neutral
 Do not believe
 Strongly disbelieve
Q6. You left the firm due to discrimination
Yes
No
Q7. How would you rate the CSR at ASDA?
Excellent
Good
Neutral
Poor
Very Poor

41ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Q8. Does HRM assist the employees?
 Strongly Believe
 Believe
 Neutral
 Do not believe
 Strongly disbelieve
Q9. Does the discrimination affect the employee performance and productivity?
 Strongly Believe
 Believe
 Neutral
 Do not believe
 Strongly disbelieve
Q10. Are employee rights protected?
Yes
No

42ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

43ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

44ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

45ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

46ASDA CORPORATE GOVERNANCE