Human Resource Management Research

This assignment delves into the field of Human Resource Management (HRM) by examining various research studies. It focuses on understanding innovative research methods used in HRM, analyzes insights from bounded rationality theory regarding pension communications within organizations, and explores the link between employees' competencies and their perception of HRM service value. Additionally, it investigates the role of HRM in multinational corporations, particularly in knowledge transfer and subsidiary absorptive capacity. Lastly, it considers the impact of training and development investments on learning and innovation within organizations.

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Task 1...............................................................................................................................................3
P1 Explaining the purpose and the functions of HRM that are applicable to workforce planning
and resourcing of Aldi.....................................................................................................................3
P2 Explaining the various strengths and weaknesses of the different approaches related to
recruitment and selection of Aldi....................................................................................................4
P3 Explaining the benefits of HRM practices both for the employers and employees with Aldi...6
P4 Evaluating the effectiveness of different practices of HRM that helps in increasing the profit
and productivity of Aldi...................................................................................................................7
Task 3...............................................................................................................................................8
P5 Analysing the importance of employee relations that helps to influence HRM decision
making for Aldi................................................................................................................................8
P6 Identifying the important elements of employment legislation and its impacts on the HRM
decision-making...............................................................................................................................9
Task 4.............................................................................................................................................10
P7 Illustrating the application of HRM practices in the context of work by providing specific
examples from Aldi.......................................................................................................................10
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................11
Reference List................................................................................................................................12
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Introduction
Human Resource Management is an important part of an organisation because HR performs the
task of recruitment and guides the employees in the right way that helps in bringing positive
results for the organisations. HRM practices are not an easy task to perform, as there are large
numbers of responsibilities of the organisation upon HR. The HR has to supervise the work of
the employees of the organisation and if the HR finds any faults in the employees’ work then he
or she can guide the employee to work according to the requirement of the organisation. They
have to be very friendly and amicable in their words so that the relation of HR with the
employees and top management remains good. This will help in maintaining a proper workplace
in the organisation and employees will work with great enthusiasm. In order to get the proper
understanding of HRM practices, the HRM practices of Aldi, the leading supermarket chain in
UK, is discussed in the given context.
Figure 1: Logo of Aldi
(Source: Aldi.co.uk, 2017)
LO1
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P1 Explaining the purpose and the functions of HRM that are applicable to
workforce planning and resourcing of Aldi:
Purpose of HR
HRM practices are very useful for the organisational growth and in meeting the targets of the
organisation that helps in bringing huge benefits for the organisation. Tzabbaret al. (2017, p.135)
stated that an effective HR has the power of bringing magical results for the organisation so it is
the duty of the HR to work with great care within the organisations. Aldi is a big organisation of
UK and it is considered as a leading grocery sector in the supermarkets. Due to this, the HRM
practices of the organisation have to be very effective so that it can result in increasing its sales
every year.
Function
The HR has numerous functions like retaining employees of the organisation, meeting the
various needs of the customers, providing training to the employees, planning the various tasks
within the organisation and finally recruiting the new candidates in the workplace (Christina et
al. 2017, p.502). The HR of Aldi performs the duty within the organisation, which helps the firm
to function properly in the global market (Aldi.co.uk, 2017).
P2 Explaining the various strengths and weaknesses of the different
approaches related to recruitment and selection of Aldi
What is recruitment?
The recruitment and selection process of every organisation have to be very efficient so that no
wrong candidates can be selected within the organisation, which can bring devastating effect for
the organisation (Brookes et al. 2017, p.20). The employees of the organisation have to be
constructive because the growth of the organisation depends directly on the performance of the
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employees in the workplace. There are numerous processes of recruitment within the
organisation like internal recruitment and external recruitment (Guerci et al. 2017, p.70).
How it is done?
Recruitment and selection process has various strengths and weaknesses and every point need
to be taken into consideration before recruiting in the organisation.
Internal recruitment
Strengths of recruitment are that recruitment helps in job posting and maintain a good contact
with the candidates. The internal process of recruitment helps in making strong and loyal
connection with the organisation (Meijerink et al. 2016, p.220).
In Aldi, the employees are required to change their position after a period. As a result, the
employees can get the chance of relocating their positions.
External recruitment
External recruitment helps to bring new, fresh candidates for the organisations as a result, the
work techniques for the organisations are changed a lot (Brewster et al. 2016, p.600). In Aldi, the
external recruitment has brought a great change in the working environment because fresh talents
deliver greater quality of work. Moreover, external recruitment has wide span area and
candidates recruited by this technique helps in removing favouritism of the employees of the
organisation.
Agent recruitment
External recruitment process should have to be practised more in Aldi so that the organisation
can recruit from pool of candidates. As per Wilson (2014, p.123), external recruitment too has
some weakness as by recruitment the candidates externally is expensive and time-consuming
process.
Other recruitment sources Weaknesses and strengths for each of them
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There are some weaknesses of recruitment and selection process of the organisation like
inefficiencies of the HR, narrow thinking of the HR and time-consuming process (Sung and
Choi, 2014, p.400).
When HR recruits, they spend time in this process by using some recruitment elements. Quality
candidates are not recruited by this technique and as a result; the organisation suffers huge
losses. Aldi HR also uses this technique of recruitment, which should be removed from the
organisation. When the HR of Aldi recruits internally, the HR does not get in touch with better
quality candidates and the organisation fails to get the opportunity of getting skilful candidates
for their organisation.
When Aldi recruits internally, the screening process of the candidates has to be done properly so
that the top management of organisation can get the better idea about the recruited candidates.
Moreover, Aldi recruits by using an online process, which is very clumsy and the organisation
may or may not get proper quality candidates by this technique.
LO3
P3 Explaining the benefits of HRM practices both for the employers and
employees with Aldi
The HRM practices are beneficial for both employers and employees because HR is a mediator
between employees and top management of the organisation. Minbaeva et al. (2014, p.39)
mentioned that HRM practices have to be efficient so that both employees and employers does
not have any issue regarding HR. One of the major advantages of rewords system is to motivate
employee at workplace. HR should not discriminate between employees of the organisations and
this makes the manpower feel good while working in such kind of work environment (Caligiuri,
2014, p.65). The HR of Aldi always uses fair means while dealing with every employee of the
organisation and this makes the employees give their best performance in every task of the
organisation. The top management of the organisation feels that the total responsibility of the
workplace is placed in the right hands when the HRM practices are effective (Gooderham et al.
2015, p.720).
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Bučiūnienė and Kazlauskaitė (2012, p.10) opined that HR should have to be efficient in
answering the questions of the top management, which is an essential responsibility of the HR
towards the organisations. The HR of Aldi knows the information of every employee of the
organisation and as a result; the HR becomes successful in gaining the faith of the top
management of the organisation. Thus, the HRM practices need to be productive so that the
organisation can increase the profit margin in the global market (ALDamoe et al. 2012, p.76).
P4 Evaluating the effectiveness of different practices of HRM that helps in
increasing the profit and productivity of Aldi
The HRM practices have proved to be effective for the organisations as the productivity and
profit margin of the organisations has increased at a rapid rate (Dysvik and Kuvaas, 2012,
p.652). In Aldi, the HRM practices have brought the huge change in the company revenue and
the organisation has now become the most recognised grocery retailer in the global market. The
HRM practices in Aldi are just as required for the better running of business in the future. The
HR of Aldi is very much work concentrated so that the organisational goals are fulfilled which in
turn brings immense turnover for the organisation.
The employees of Aldi follow to what the HR instructs them and work with much concentration
so that there remain no flaws while delivering the products to the customers. Thite et al. (2012,
p.255) stated that an HR needs to be very effective in moving employee by his or her words
because it helps the HR to gain the loyalty of the employees.
The HR of Aldi is very true by his or her words and delivers a proper instruction to the
employees in the case of performing tasks. The words spoken by HR need to be as such that it
does not hurt the employees’ ego and they possess the feeling of working properly within Aldi.
When the employee satisfaction is considered by the organisation, the employees, in turn, try to
deliver their best for their organisation.
As a result, the productivity of the organisation is increased at a rapid rate and the profit is
constantly maintained in the organisation. The HR has to maintain good relation with the labours
too so that they do not malfunction in the organisation (Stone, 2013, p.230). The HR of Aldi
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supervises the work of their labours weekly and they are given the power to speak freely to the
HR about their problems.
The HR resolves the disputes between the workers and as a result, the employees get the
determination to deliver their best performance for the organisation. This determination of
workers increases productivity of the organisation, which in turn, increases the profit of the
organisation.
The firm can provide various types of compensation for the employees so that they can remain
more inclined towards achieving goal of the organisations (Paik and Belcher, 2012, p.680).
Aldi’s HRM always arranges for compensation for the employees and this makes the employees
work more effectively for the organisation. The HR of Aldi arranges for training session of
employees when they do not properly function in the firm. Thus, Aldi has kept a great
competition in the market for its peers by increasing profit and productivity of the organisation.
P5 Analysing the importance of employee relations that helps to influence
HRM decision making for Aldi
Analyze the importance of employee relationship:
The HRM decision making should be done in a way such that employee can be retained easily in
the organisations, the conflicts among the employees should have to be decreased and the
recruitment within the organisation have to be increased (Saridakis et al. 2017, p.90). There are
internal and external factors, which affect the HRM decision making of Aldi and it is essential
for building up of strategy for the organisation. In order to deliver proper decision making of
HRM, the internal factors of Aldi need to be enhanced so that a great competition is provided to
the competitors. The HR of Aldi can adopt the external opportunities so that they can deliver
proper decisions for organisational growth. As per Allen and Vardaman (2017, p.601), the
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employees have the duty of following the organisational structure so that they can work properly
without any problems and the HRM decision making carried out effectively.
Explain what employee relationship important is:
In Aldi, the employees are sincere in their task and follow the decisions of HR accordingly. The
HR is satisfied with their work and they can make decisions that are beneficial for the
organisation. When there is any internal issue within the organisation regarding any technology,
the employee's work can be hampered and this, in turn, can affect the decisions of HRM.There is
huge competition in the market and the skilled workers are in demand (Vokić, 2016, p.40). The
HR has to focus on keeping good relation with the employees so that the workers are not affected
and in turn, the decisions of HR do not bring downfall for the organisation.
Benefit of good relation between employee:
The employee and the employers have worked collectively in the organisation and because of
this they have not faced any issue regarding the compatibility of employees with the employers.
The HR can deliver proper decisions only when the working conditions remain fine and the
employees do not have any grievances against the top management of the organisation (García-
Carbonell et al. 2016, p.270). The HR of Aldi always maintains good terms with employees so
that they can be satisfied with the HR and thus follows to the decisions of the HR properly. It is
essential that the HRM decisions should be as such that they bring upliftment for both the
organisation and the careers of the employees.
P6 Identifying the important elements of employment legislation and its
impacts on the HRM decision-making
The legislation is required to be followed in every section of society so that the components of
the society function properly and people can get the relief from any kind of wrongdoings
(Johnstone, 2016, p.62). In the business sector, there are various laws that help employees so that
that they can perform better in the organisation. Civil Rights Act of 1964 states that there must
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be no discrimination among employees of the organisation based on race, colour, religion and
sex. The employers cannot discriminate employees and due to this, they remain stress-free in the
workplace. The employers have no right to dismiss the employees from employment on the
above-mentioned ground. When the HRM decision is incorporated, the HR considers various
aspects of the legislation and then takes the decision for betterment of the organisation.
Fair Labor Standards Act states that the wages of labour should be revised after some time-
period by the organisations. If the company do not follow this Act’s terms and conditions then
the organisation is answerable to the law. Under this law, if the employees are working overtime,
then they should be paid for that time(Maloney and McCarthy, 2016, p.561). HR of Aldi needs to
give the decision in such a way that the employees have to work according to the work timings
of Aldi. The employees thus, feel free to work in the workplace and they do not have to suffer
from any unfair act of the organisation.
Federal Family and Medical Leave Act help employees to get 12 weeks of non-paid leave in a
year in the case of serious health issues or any problems related to the family member. The
employees do not have to worry regarding their job when they will remain absent because the
organisation will protect the job of that particular employee. HR of Aldi provides this leave
period for every employee and when an employee takes leave on any health ground, the
organisation bears medical costs of the employee. This is really a great help for the human
resource of the organisation and this makes the employees motivated to work in a better way in
the company.
Genetic Information and Non-discrimination Act forbids the organisations to discriminate on the
basis of any genetic disorder. Saridakis (2017, p.87) stated that an HR has no right to be partial
with employees, who do not have any kind of genetic disorder. The HR of Aldi does not
discriminate between the employees of the organisation and that is why; the employees serve in a
better way for Aldi. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act helps in protecting
employee’s private information regarding any medical condition. It is the duty of the HR of Aldi
to consider this law and protect the information of employees on the medical ground.
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LO4
P7 Illustrating the application of HRM practices in the context of work by
providing specific examples from Aldi
HRM practices were mainly developed for better functioning of various stakeholders of the
organisation so that organisational goal is achieved collectively. Guerci et al. (2017, p.66)
mentioned that HRM practices should be designed appropriately because any flaw in the HRM
practice can bring a greater fall for the organisation. In Aldi, there are some examples where it
can be showed that proper practising of HRM lead to the achieving of organisational goal. For
Aldi, the main challenge is to manage the business across the borders and in case, if organisation
fails to meet the demands in the international market then it can bring downfall for the
organisation. For example, In Aldi, there is the great demand for grocery items and the
organisation had not enough employees in the retail stores, who could provide uninterrupted
service to the customers.
The employees felt hopeless and the customers were getting frustrated with the service of Aldi.
The HR of Aldi did not get panicked instead the HR motivated employees to work with more
determination and also stay for more timings in the workplace so that the customers’ demands
are fulfilled. The employees listened to HR and this brought magical results for the organisation.
The encouragement of HR made the employees work with more enthusiasm and they were ready
to stay more time in the retail stores until the customers’ demands were fulfilled. The
organisation was very pleased with the services of the HR and provided compensation for both
the HR and employees of the organisation. HRM practices should be safe so that it attracts
various large companies to start a joint venture with the company (Meijerink et al. 2016, p.220).
In Aldi, the HRM practices are very carefully followed, which makes the small organisations
attracts towards Aldi.
As a result, Aldi gets support from various other organisations, which are a great sign of growth
for Aldi. Moreover, in this organisation, the HR discusses with employees of the organisation
about various steps that can bring benefit to the organisation. The employees of Aldi know that
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they are an important part of the organisation and because of this, the employees work
collectively in Aldi in the case of fulfilling the demands of the customers. Aldi has maintained
the profit margin by using this type of HRM practices and it is now trying to improve the
practices so that every retail store of Aldi gets the supply of products according to the customers’
demand.
Conclusion
The HRM practices are useful for the organisations and in the business scenario, a proper HRM
practice should have to be followed so that the organisations can gain greater profit margin. It is
the duty of the HR to understand employees’ behaviour and act accordingly in order to make
decisions for the organisations. In the above study, the work of HR of Aldi showed what major
role HRM practices play in bringing growth for the organisation. Various legal considerations
have to be kept in mind before delivering any decisions for the organisations so that the goals
can be achieved in a smooth way. Along with these, the employee's satisfaction should have to
be considered by HR because the workers directly help in increasing productivity of the
organisation. Aldi is a famous grocery retail of UK and the organisation gained success by
following all these techniques.
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