Meaning, Purpose and Functions of HRM

This document provides an overview of the meaning, purpose, and functions of HRM. It discusses the role of HRM in managing the workforce and achieving organizational goals. It also explores different approaches to recruitment and selection, HRM practices, and their effectiveness in raising organizational profit and productivity. The document focuses on the case of Sainsbury's, a leading supermarket chain in the UK.

Human Resource
Management

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................3
TASK1 ............................................................................................................................................3
P1 Meaning, purpose and functions of HRM.........................................................................3
P2 Approaches to recruitment and selection..........................................................................5
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................7
P3 HRM practices...................................................................................................................7
P4 Evaluate the effectiveness of different HRM practices in terms of raising organisational
profit and productivity............................................................................................................8
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................9
P5 Study the values of employee relation with respect to influencing HRM decision making..9
P6 Key elements of employee legislation along with its impact on HRM...........................10
TASK 4 .........................................................................................................................................11
P7 Application of HRM practices........................................................................................11
CONCLUSION .............................................................................................................................14
REFERENCE.................................................................................................................................16
INTRODUCTION
In every business unit it is said that human resource management plays a vital role to
mange all function and activities of organisation which is either related with selection,

recruitment, training,development and performance appraisal of employee or planning,
organising, directing, stuffing and controlling functions of organisation. The company chosen in
this report is Sainsbury's. It was founded by John James Sainsbury in 1869. Which has the
second largest chain of supermarket in U.K This report is based on meaning, purpose and
function of HRM. Along with that it also discuss the importance and benefits of employer &
employee relations at a workplace. There is a explanation of Job description and job
specification of HR manger.
TASK1
P1 Meaning, purpose and functions of HRM.
Overview of company
Sainsbury has the second largest chain of supermarket in U.K, that was founded by John
James Sainsbury in 1869. its head office is located in London, United Kingdom. This company
becomes the largest retailer of grocery in 1922. They are globally present and have more than
1500 shops around whole world. They provides their products through supermarket, hypermarket
etc. They feature a good image of their brands in market and that is because of their employees
performance.
Meaning of HRM
HRM holds three words,Human, Resource and Management in which Human means
skilled workforce at organisation, Resources refers to scare or limited availability &
Management tends to effective utilisation of limited resources. It is a part of Management that
manages all functions and activities of organisation along with that they perform all roles and
responsibilities related to employee within firm(Wilton, 2016). It is a both science and arts in
nature and a continuous process to build team spirit and team work.
Purpose of HRM for planning and resourcing of subordinates within organisation:
Primary aim of HRM in Sainsbury organisation are follow as : Recruitment and selection- For managing structure of company HRM plays a important
role in which mangers conduct a process of hiring to select a capable candidate who have
potential to take company at heights. In context of HRM department of Sainsbury's they
uses this technique to recruit most suitable person for a peculiar position of thire
organisation.

 Maximize productivity and profitability- Main purpose of HR department is retentions &
reduction of employee turnover which can be overcome by motivating and encouraging
the performance of employee and that will directly or indirectly helps company in order
to maximize the productivity and profitability of company. With relation to Sainsbury
enterprise, they encourage & apprise the performance of their staff to accomplish the goal
and objective of organisation.
Function and activities of HRM
In Sainsbury's organisation, HR manger performs both Operative and managerial
functions which are obstinate below:
Managerial functions are manages by higher authorities of company to work effectively
and efficiently. Functions of Sainsbury are underneath: Planning : In this activity manger sets objective and makes strategies to accomplish that
goal. Top level mangers perform this activity to reach to their goal and they need to be
aware of environmental conditions. Organising: It involves allotments of human resources and designing of specific job as
well as duties that need to be performed(Armstrong and Taylor 2020). In context of
Sainsbury they allocate duties to their staff members in accordance of their knowledge
and specialisation. Directing: Herein, employees are motivated by their mangers for performing effectively
and willing their assigned task.
 Controlling: It compare performance of employees with standard plans in order to
analyse gap between performed and actual norms.
Operative functions are those duties and activities that are assigned to different
department of company. Sainbury's operative function are obstinate below: Procurement: HR manager recruit those candidates who posses knowledge and have
potential to perform particular job. In Sainsbury company they take pool of individuals to
select right person for right place. Performance appraisal: Managers of Sainsbury encourage and motivates their staff
members to reduce turnover rate and retention of employees.
 Employee relation: It is important to maintain good relationship in firm in order to run or
operate function smoothly. In context of Sainsbury firm they gives equal rights to their

workers which neglects J factor and creates positive workforce environment(Marchington
and et.al., 2016).
P2 Approaches to recruitment and selection
Recruitment and Selection are essential functions performed by human resource
department for an organisation and it is related to procurement of eligible employees for vacant
positions.
Recruitment
It is a process which begins with, identification of needs of organisation related with a job
and it ends with meeting of prospective employee to company. It can be defined as the operation
of searching of potential employee and stimulating them to apply for the vacant position in the
organisation.
Type of recruitment:
There are basically two sources which can be used for hiring people:
Internal recruitment- It is the process of looking for fulfilling requirement for vacant
position within the existing set of employees. In relation with Sainsbury's, HR department use
this source of recruitment in order to save time and cost that was needed to invest in case of
external recruitment. This internal recruitment is done through several ways like promotions,
transfers, etc.
 Strength- Internal recruitment are beneficial for Sainsbury's in a number of ways, as, if
they opt for external hiring, they would have to occur a lot of expenses and also that
process will also be time consuming(Bratton and Gold, 2017). This time saved while
doing internal recruitment can be used elsewhere, which will contribute in improving
efficiency of organisation.
 Weakness- This source can cause feeling of dissatisfaction to both team members as well
as team leader. In case of team members, they can feel resentful if any fellow team mate
gets promotion, they also desired for and in case of team leader, they feel uncomfortable
if some good member is transferred or promoted from their team.
External recruitment- This is a process just opposite to what is done in internal source of
recruitment, this means, here, employees are searched outside the organisation. These potential
candidates are stimulated for applying for the vacant position. Thereafter, various tests are
conducted in order to select best fit for the job.

 Strength- In context of Sainsbury's, there are various tools of external recruitment. They
believe in extensive use of this source, as they see various benefits of this source(Syed
and Kramar, 2017). External recruitment is a source that focuses on bringing new talents
and new ability employees to the company. Weakness- Sainsbury's is a chain of supermarkets, therefore, it also has a complex
organisational culture, thus, a new recruit will take time to settle in the environment,
hence this increases on boarding time, which can be potentially reduced in internal
recruitment.
Selection
It refers to taking the final decision of hiring after conduction suitable tests and other
techniques. It evaluates and screens the options that are in the pool of candidates prepared at the
time of recruitment.
Approaches of selection
There are various techniques that can be used in selection, some of them are elaborated
below, along with their strengths and weaknesses:
Preliminary screening: This is a screening operation carried out on applications received
for vacant position. This screening is done on various basis, such as, minimum education
qualification, minimum age criterion,etc. Employees who do not match up with the required
criterion, they are rejected at this stage only(Sandhya and Sulphey, 2020).
 Strengths- This approach presents HR managers of Sainsbury's with a clear picture of
essential requirements that a new recruit should possess, moreover it saves time that
would be wasted in further steps on non qualified applicants. This process also
discourages those candidates who are trying to hide essential information under some
veil.
 Weaknesses- Sometimes, those potential candidates are rejected which are more capable
than those who are selected for further steps in selection process. This approach is
completely dependent upon Sainsbury's managers personal judgements, that can go
wrong also.
Personal interview- This approach evaluates level of knowledge and communication
skills of candidate. This process is carried out by interviewer who asks questions related to
candidates skill set and to judge behavioural pattern also.

 Strengths: Sainsbury's is a supermarket chain, here employees need to establish direct
relation with customer, thus, they do not take chance of hiring any incapable person.
Thus check on communication skill is necessary.
 Weakness: A category of introvert people lack this skill of communication, but they do
possess some skills which makes them better performers than those who can
communicate well, and this quality cannot be judged during a short span of interview,
hence, it may lead to some well capable candidate(Banfield, Kay and Royles, 2018).
TASK 2
P3 HRM practices
These are the activities performed by HR mangers in order to achieve healthy relations
with the employees. These practices are beneficial for both employers and employees.
Reward management: It is the process of management of all type of remuneration,
compensation and benefits availed to employees. These rewards are of two types- Extrinsic and
Intrinsic rewards. Extrinsic rewards refers to a tangible or physical reward given whereas,
intrinsic refers to intangible reward such as recognition as best employer of the year. Rewards act
as a motivational factor as determined in Maslow's theory of motivation.
 Benefits to employee- There is a fair policy related to compensation in Sainsbury's, this
results in satisfaction of employees, which further turns in lower turnover rate. Proper
reward policy is followed in case of good performance of employees.
 Benefits to employer- Equal compensation practices helps Sainsbury's to attract more
qualified and capable candidates and it also helps them to gain better efficiency from
employees. Maslow's theory of motivation clearly defines that rewards are a efficient tool
of motivation, and above organisation is effectively following the concept.
Performance management: It is a uninterrupted process of communication between
management and its employees, so that there is continuous check over employees and proper
direction is being given to them. This process is done in order to accomplish objectives of
organisation and also aligning individual goals with company's goals. There are various methods
followed by management for this process, examples are, MBO, 360-Degree
management,etc.ssss(DeCenzo, Robbins and Verhulst, 2016).

 Benefits to employees- With the help of this procedure, employees gets a clarity about
their roles and responsibilities, they become clear about to whom they are answerable and
accountable to. This activity also helps them to get job satisfaction as they are getting
regular feedbacks.
 Benefits to employers- Performance management helps employer to retain their good and
capable employees by being in contact with them on a regular basis. It removes barriers
of communication between superiors and subordinates. It also helps in attaining
maximum productivity from employees.
P4 Evaluate the effectiveness of different HRM practices in terms of raising organisational profit
and productivity.
HRM practices refers to all those activities of management which are done in order to
enhance welfare of employees. It can be also defined as all those practices which are done to
convert human resource into those asset which generate revenues for Sainsbury's. Following are
some of the main practices followed in Sainsbury's:
Training and Development
It is the procedure of making employee familiar about their job roles and also with the
way of performing these roles. This is a task of management to make new employees adjust with
the work culture of organisation and it is done through training and development. This is done
with the basic purpose of aligning employees skill set with organisational goals (Meyer and
Smith, 2000). This is a very important tool which contribute in generating profits and also
enhancing productivity of Sainsbury's. As training makes employee well familiar with the
organisational goals and also about assigned role, thus, it results in improving productivity.
Reward management
It is a procedure of formulating formulas according to which compensation will be given
to its employees. Basis of these strategies is to provide employees with fair compensation
according to their contribution in the organisation. This is an effective tool which helps in
achieving desired goals. Every employee comes for job with primary motive of earning money,
if this motive of employees is completed with full satisfaction, than they will work with full
dedication and which will ultimately results into increased productivity. Effective reward
management strategies also helps managers of Sainsbury's in retaining good and capable
employees as it will provide them job satisfaction.

Performance management
It is a iterative process carried out in Sainsbury's in order to align individual's objectives
with organisational goals. This is tool which consists of basic four components and those are
goal setting, communication, observation and evaluation. These all tasks are performed in order
to assist management in evaluation performance of employee and organisation as well(Donohu,
2020). If there is continuous check on performance than, it will result into better formulation of
strategies that will lead into increased productivity of organisation.
TASK 3
P5 Study the values of employee relation with respect to influencing HRM decision making.
Successful efforts made through any organisation to make healthy relation between
employer and workers under go employee relation. For development of any company it is
important and essential to maintain positive and healthy environment of workforce. Employee
relation comes in HRP which designs and plan the activity for workers so that they will be able
to meet mission of organisation. In context of Sainsbury they posses this quality to maintain goof
relationship among employees and employer. It helps them to resolve issues and disputes of
workers. Some of employee relation are discussed below:
Grievance- This approach helps manger in resolving conflicts, fights and disputes of
employee. Sainsbury adopts this method and make good & strong grievance which reduces time
of resolving conflicts(Denisa, 2018). Workers have right to talk and discuss about their problem
to mangers. They took feedback of their employee related to issue faced by them while
performing any task or projects, that helps them to resolve their problem. This helps to remove
barrier in between employee and manger.
Collective agreement- Sainsbury gives various rules and regulation to manage activity or
actions of worker. It helps manger to give direction to keep trade union and conflicts of
employee. It bring coordination and collaboration among employees.
There are many approach to handle employee relation of staff members, one is
encouragement of flexibility towards changes of working hours and environment enhance
productivity that leads to make higher contribution. Another is developing good, strong bond and
healthy relationship in subordinates, will help them to reach their objective.
Values of employee relations

 To developed good bond between employee & employer
 To maximize productivity and probability of company
 To hold positive healthy and good relation among employee at workplace
P6 Key elements of employee legislation along with its impact on HRM
Employee legislation includes those laws which are related to employment such as labour
relations, workers compensation, pay equity, wages, working hours, etc. it forms a bond between
employee – employer(Vermeeren, 2017). Its holds all rights of employee. Some employee
legislation of Sainsbury are discussed below:
Equality act 2010: This law was proposed in order to provide protection to each and
every employee of public and private sector from any sort of harassments and discriminations.
This law maintain consistency and fairnesses among employee. In context of Sainsbury, its
mangers ensures that all subordinates are getting equal rights, opportunists and benefits which
are provided to them through company.
Health and Safety law 1974 : According to this law it is responsibility of HR manger to
provide safety and healthy environments to their employee within company. It helps organisation
in reduction of employee turnover as they have health insurance safety and more engaged
towards their task. Sainsbury company ensures that all workers feel secure and positive while
working in their organisation. They provides welfare and safety to employee for their security.
Data protection act 1998: This law is designed to protect data of each subordinates who
are working in an organisation. There will be no leakage of personal data & individuals
information(Davidov and et.al. 2018). In Sainsbury organisation it is the duty of HR manger to
secure data of each employee by assuring them that there will not be any leakage of their private
information. It will be confidential.
Its impacts on HRM decision making-
For enhancing productivity and probability of an organisation it is important to maintain
employee relation among all workers. There are several methods of employee legislation which
helps company to maintain positive and healthy environment and that increase the efficiency and
effectiveness of staff members. The above obstinate employee relation is native by Sainsbury
organisation to maintain good workplace environment. It will negatively impacted on devising of
decision and creates conflicts in workers of firm if relationship betwixt employee and higher
authorities are not good.

TASK 4
P7 Application of HRM practices
(A) Advertisement of job for designing and placing.
Sainsbury's department of Human Resource management is used Job advertisement for filing
vacancy of HR manger.
Job Advertisement
Required Human resource manger
HR department
Applications are required for position of HR manger
Essential skills needed for interested candidates:
 Graduation with above 60%
 Work experience of 1-3 years
 Have management skills as well as excellent communication skills
 Posses good leadership style to manage workforce
Time scale
Invitation of applications 20-25 August,2020
Scrutinising of applications 26 August,2020
Date of interview for shortlisted candidates 1 Sept, 2020
Job description:
Important requirements for empty position of job is follows as:
JOB DESCRIPTION
Name of organisation: Sainsbury's
Department: Human resource management
Designation: HR manager
Job summery
A capable candidate who have potential to mange all roles and responsibilities assigned by HR
manager. Directing & controlling of team for a specific task. Proper utilisation of leadership
quality to take subordinates of team along with them.

Role :-
 Guiding and management of staff members
 Analysis of employee requirements
 Ability to solve conflicts
 Problems solving skills
Person's Specification
Specification of person
 position: HR manager
 Division: Human Resource Management
 keys:
(A) :Application form, (I): Interview, (R):Role
Attributes Requirements Desired
Experience & qualifications  Graduation with
minimum 60%
 Specialist in human
resource.
 Experience of 1-3
years
 Management of team
for a specific project.
Qualities  Fluent English
 ability to resole
conflicts
 Posses a good
leadership quality.
(B) Curriculum vitae:
David Peter
Address: 13/256, SYZ Street, London, UK.
Contact Details: 00647- 99857
Email Id: [e-mail]
Career Objective: To work with a well abolish organise where I can show my skills and
knowledge and help the organisation to reach their business success.

Work experience:
 Minimum experience of 2 year in the HR field.
 6 months training or internship under a human resource manager.
Qualification Required:
 Bachelor’s degree in Business administration
 Masters degree in Human Resource.
(D) Interview question :
On the basis of interview process selection of capable candidate is carried out after
screening and scrutinizing of candidate's. For this formulation of some related question is
necessary to conduct interview that helps in detailed analysis of applicants.
1. Tell me something about yourself apart from details given in CV?
2. What are your strength and weakness that help you to play HR manger functions?
3. What is biggest motivation for you in an organisation, monetary incentives & workplace
reignition ?
4. How will you manage workplace conflicts along with internal issues of employee, if you are
a HR manager?
(D) Job offer:
It comes after selection of appropriates candidate. After receiving confirmation of
selection, offer letter will be sent to chosen candidate.
Offer letter of job
Mr/Ms,Last Name
Address
City, State Zip Code
Dear Mr./Ms. Last Name,
we are glad to inform you that you have been selected for the designation of HR manger. You
have completed your each interview round successfully and have been charted for HR manger
of Sainsbury's. Thus we are offering you an opportunity to serve your knowledges and skills in
our company.

Role & Responsibilities:
 Designing and planning of recruitment process for different vacancies
 Performing all activities of HR manger
 Support main HR manger along with HR executive to manage HR role.
Date of joining : 5 sept, 2020
working Hours : 10:00AM to 7:00 PM
Salary : $ 15000 per month
Compensation benefits: Accommodation, conveyance facilities, food facilities and medical
insurance. If you made your mind to accept this offer letter then kindly reply us on given mail
with your signature and a confirmation mail. If you have any queries then feel free to ask on
given number or you can mail us your queries
HR department
Sainsbury's
Signature______________________
Date---------------------------------------
CONCLUSION
From above report it is concluded that in every organisation HRM plays a significant role
to mange all functions and activity related to employees and company. They need to designed
and planed effective strategies to meet their organisational goal and objective. For maintaining
positive and healthy workplace environment they need to manage good relationship between
employee and higher authorities. They will be able to face any challenging and difficult task if
they all are together. Several employee legislations and rules are proceed to maintain good
working environment. For developing innovation and creativity, they motivates and appraise
performance of their workers which aid them in increasing productivity and profitability of
enterprise.
REFERENCE
Books & Journal

Wilton, N., 2016. An introduction to human resource management. Sage.
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practice. Kogan Page Publishers.
Bratton, J. and Gold, J., 2017. Human resource management: theory and practice. Palgrave.
Banfield, P., Kay, R. and Royles, D., 2018. Introduction to human resource management. Oxford
University Press.
DeCenzo, D.A., Robbins, S.P. and Verhulst, S.L., 2016. Fundamentals of human resource
management. John Wiley & Sons.
Donohue Jr, R.H., 2020. Shades of Blue: A review of the hiring, recruitment, and selection of
female and minority police officers. The Social Science Journal. pp.1-15.
Denisa, A., 2018. New Approaches Regarding The Recruitment And Selection Of The
Employees. Management Strategies Journal. 42(4). pp.7-14.
Vermeeren, B., 2017. Influencing public sector performance: studying the impact of ability-,
motivation-and opportunity-enhancing human resources practices on various performance
outcomes in the public sector. International Review of Administrative Sciences. 83(4).
pp.717-737.
Sandhya, S. and Sulphey, M.M., 2020. Influence of empowerment, psychological contract and
employee engagement on voluntary turnover intentions. International Journal of
Productivity and Performance Management.
Marchington, M. and et.al., 2016. Human resource management at work. Kogan Page Publishers.
Syed, J. and Kramar, R., 2017. Human resource management: A global and critical perspective.
Macmillan International Higher Education.
Davidov, E. and et.al., 2018. Cross-cultural analysis: Methods and applications. Routledge.