Role of HR in Sports Direct International

This document provides an overview of the organization Sports Direct International and its mission, vision, and core values. It discusses the purpose and key roles of the HR function, including training, staffing, compensation, benefits, and law compliance. It also explores the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches for recruitment and selection. Additionally, it covers different HRM practices such as recruitment and selection, flexible working practices, and performance appraisal, and evaluates their effectiveness.

HUMAN RESOURCES
MANAGEMENT

TABLE OF CONTENT
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
LO1..................................................................................................................................................3
An overview of organization.......................................................................................................3
P1Purpose of the HR function and it’s key roles and responsibility...........................................4
P2 Strength and weaknesses of different approaches for recruitment and selection...................6
LO2..................................................................................................................................................8
P3 Different HRM practices........................................................................................................8
P 4 Effectiveness of different HRM practices.............................................................................9
LO 3...............................................................................................................................................10
P 5 Importance of employee relations.......................................................................................10
P 6 Key elements of employment legislature............................................................................12
LO 4...............................................................................................................................................13
P 7 Human resource management practices in a work..............................................................13
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................15
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................16

INTRODUCTION
Human resource refers as a strategic approach which is used by organization to manage
number of people within workplace and encourage them to meet it’s objectives over the time.
HRM management is an integral part of the company which perform various functions such as
planning and organizing, implementing and executing, motivating and training, reward and
punishment, recruitment and selection within organization. Human resource plays different roles
i.e. planning, organizing, processing, controlling and coordinating. The main objective of the HR
management to introduce specific strategies which improves, productivity, performance and
growth of company in the business market. in addition, they deal with issues which is related to
the employee recruitment, selection. Conflicts, training and development, communication and
administration. There is an example of an Sports direct international company which helps to
understand role of HRM for its premise. The brief study of the report provides understanding
about the organization like it’s mission, vision and it’s core values. It includes purpose of HR
function and it’s key roles and responsibilities of the HR operations.
LO1
An overview of organization
Sport’s Direct International plc is UK based organization which is headquartered in
Shirebrook, England. It is public limited type company which offers wide variety products in the
global market. it is British retailing company which is established by Mike Ashley in 1982. It is
UK’s largest sports-goods retailer organization which is operates across the world by the 170
stores. Organization has wide product line i.e. Sporting goods, fashion clothing, shoes & boots,
accessories, cosmetics, homeware, electricals, furniture, gifts and toys. Organization formerly
known as Sports Direct International but now it is famous as Frasers Group plc.
Mission: Mission statement of the Fraser Group plc. is to lead sports and lifestyle retailer and
delivers sustainable growth for shareholder in term of customer satisfaction by offering high
quality leading brands.
Vision statement: Vision statement of the organization is to become international leader in
sports, luxury apparels and lifestyle.

Core values:
 To give value people, customers, shareholder and third-party brand partners.
 To offer high quality branded products along with innovative style which meets
customers expectation (Our values and our business. 2019).
 To long run in global market which leads profitability in brand position.
 To retain highly talented workers and employees who can give high quality services to
the customer.
P1Purpose of the HR function and it’s key roles and responsibility
There are several purpose of HR functions which is included into roles and responsibility
of HR.
Training
There is training which have to be given to the employees which are coming in or even to the
old staff of the organization so that the standards of the organization are met. Old staff would not
want changes which are why the human resource must know the right way and measures to take
so that they can easily implement the changes (Sun, Liu and Chen, 2018). Communication and
spreading the importance of the change is very important and before implementing the changes
the knowledge and training has to be given to the employees of the company so that they can be
implemented. The new employees have to be trained so that they can meet with the expectations
and standards of the organization which is going to make the company have better market share.
Staffing needs
It is primary responsibility of HR to seek for suitable employee as per workplace
requirement. Management conducts hiring and selection approach to select eligible employee for
vacant seat. The main purpose of the responsibility to lead high productivity of employees so that
can take competitive advantage in workload period. Initially HR analyse which position is vacant
and which type skill can suit for the job position (Foiji, Hoque and Khan, 2019). Then manager
recruit’s employee for the job position by giving description about job position and specify
enlisted skills, qualification which is essential for the vacant position. They elect number of

employees who are applicable for job based on the reference checks, written test and personal
interview.
Compensation
Human resource management is the foundation of organization because they take care of
overall function either external or internal which leads high profitability within company. It is
one of the main functions where they personnel evaluates and leads several kind of modification
in existing pay’s structure by researching compensation trends which are changed by the
government time to time. By the activity ensures staff that they get fair payment without any
discrimination at workplace. Fair treatment is basically dependent on the job performance of the
employees which they give at the workplace while dealing with large number of tasks. It is
another reasonability of human resource which has purpose to builds trust between employee and
management for the pay structure and performance. HR accesses policies and helps company to
meet with various norms of government which changed time to time in term of compensation i.e.
The Fair Labour Standard Act. The Act represents that if employee get low wage then they can
direct take action or if employee works overtime except working hours and doesn’t get overtime
compensation then can take direct action against company. So, human resource includes overall
terms and condition in the employment policy so that helps employee to understand it’s pay
structure and pay setup of business. The issues arise between management and employee when
HR is out updated for new terms and rules which are changed by government. Just because of
this have to face shortage of employee at workplace that directly gives impact on organization’s
profitability. Therefore it is essential function of the HR to keep knowledge about overall rules
relevant to employment and business policies which can help management to establish trust of
employee on company policies.
Benefits
The main goal of the HR to create effective recruitment and selection tools that attracts
highly skilled talent to apply for job and helps to meet organization objective over the time.
Manager offer different policies i.e. health insurance policy, compensation policy, retirement
plan and outsourcing which leads self-satisfaction in staff and their family as well for the job.
HR always looking for gather strategic information which helps to obtain better package of

benefits for the staff and reduces cost of employer. It is aligned in the responsibility of the HR
which has purpose to lead company as leader in the business market and raises goodwill as well.
The issue obtains when manager unable to implement effective decision for employee benefits as
result can’t attract the best talent for the job and can reduce employee wellbeing within company
for their job responsibility.
Law compliance
It is another but one of the most important function of HR because to operate business
legally in the business marker requires to give safety and fair treatment of their staff which leads
positive impact on the production, productivity and its operation. So, Human resource keeps
business update about overall rules and regulation so that can get advantage on organization
performance by removing their negative impact (Khan, 2017). HR gathers information from the
marketer through deep market research which helps to comply with law and leads extended
growth in business. It also helps human resource to deal with employee’s conflict bout their
salary issue, work pressure and job policies. Thus, manager maintains staff wellbeing with the
job responsibility at working place.
P2 Strength and weaknesses of different approaches for recruitment and selection
Recruitment process
Sports Direct International company which is currently known as the Frasers of the
House requires a HR who can lead change in organization by restructuring HR department. So,
senior HR management analyse need of employee for HR department which helps company to
meet it’s objective.
Job description
HR gives information about job position, and it’s relevant information like job structure,
salary, qualification, skills and competency so that suitable candidate can apply for job.
Recruitment:
Initially HR gives job description for HR with an accurate ad. This ad includes a proper detail
about job position, enlisted skill which must posses in candidates who will apply for job. Even

company gives direct access of its own website where they can direct apply for the job and can
gather information about company background. To attract best talent provides assurance for fair
treatment and asks them to give review annually based on the job description. The major strength
of the recruitment process is that it helps to recruit different talent which can lead high
profitability within company. Internal and external recruitment also apply by the organization
such as internal recruitment allows staff to upgrade their job position by applying for the job
position. While external recruitment process allows other candidates to recruit for job except
office staff. The weakness of the process is this most of the time candidates who don’t use online
media they unable to recruit for the job (Qadir and Agrawal, 2017). Internal recruitment causes
unable to get different talent for the job post which can lead high profitability within company.
selection process
Selecting
Organization initially screens those candidates who apply job on the basis of reference,
collects those form which are properly filled by candidates, Organization aligns staff recruitment
as well who apply for job position. To select appropriate employee for suitable job conducts
several processes of selection which is described below:
Aptitude test
Organization conducts written test which is based on the academic knowledge. It is quite
effective method of selection procedure because it helps to analyse candidate knowledge which
they gain in academic period. Organization screens several employees for further process.
Group discussion
It is second step of the process where provides a topic for debating purpose so that can
analyse it’s confidence level and convincing power while debating with their other people. Based
on the GD result screens employee for last process which directly lead for appointment.
Personal interview

It is last stage of selection process where owner directly takes interview of potential
employee who clarify above level. Thus, The Fraser of House hires suitable employee for the
vacant job on the basis of result.
The major strength of the selection approach is to lead compatible talent which can lead
high profitability within company. This type selection criteria raises organization image in the
business market because it represents organization standard within in market (El-Kassar and
Singh, 2019). The approach has weakness as well because it is quite long process or time-
consuming process. Sometimes company loose potential skill due to aptitude test because most
of the people who doesn’t have good academic knowledge but has other skills like self-
managing, leader, creative mind which can lead profitability in organization performance.
LO2
P3 Different HRM practices
Human resource plays various functions like recruitment-selection, planning- organizing,
compensation-benefits, controlling-coordinating which helps company to meet it’s objective and
leads sustainability in the business market.
Recruitment and selection
Hiring and selection is the primary role of the HR which they perform in organization.
The main purpose of the function to fulfil staff needs for the specific job position at the
workplace. It is most important approach of HR practice which helps company to recruit talented
employee for vacant seat. This practice is performed by HR to lead benefits for company.
Flexible working practices
It is another practice of the HR which is adopted by HRM to lead benefits for employer
and employee. Manager flexible with time which reduces pressure on employee for the job and
leads productivity in their working profession (Latorre and et.al 2016). Even flexible working
hours gives chance to employee to spend with their family. On the other hand, organization gets
large number of tasks by individual before deadline along with good working that makes
company sustainable to long run in the market.

Performance appraisal
It is another function of the HR but e4ssential for company and employee because it is
not helping company to grow it’s business in wide scale but also supports staff to improve their
personality at workplace. The main mission of the function to boost individual employee to give
high efforts in their performance which helps company to meet it’s objectives and gets chance to
the staff to be part of reward and appraisal strategy. Human resource performs equitable
practices while implementing appraisal system that is dependent on promotion, retention and
termination of individual within company. By the appraisal system perform specific role by the
HR to motivate individual employee for giving productive performance which leads short term
goals and long-term goal as per time requirement (Ahmed, Majid and Zin, 2016). It is important
practice of HR and highly sensitive for employee because if HR doesn’t keep transparency or
keep discrimination in promotion policies and rewards as result demotivate employee and
reduces wellbeing of employee. So, it is important to keep transparency in promotion policies,
rewards and decision-making process by the HR because it helps to builds trust of staff on the
company’s policies and motivate them to be part of employee benefits by offering honest
performance at workplace. it is not helps organization to build good relation with employee but
also leads high engagement of them in the business activity.
Benefits of employees and managers
From the above discussion of HRM practices can be analysed that it helps employees to
maintain their wellbeing with company and improves their working performance effectively.
While managers benefit from employees working because they enable to achieve short-term and
long-term goal of the company in predefined period.
P 4 Effectiveness of different HRM practices
There have to be right candidates which are going to be hired in the company so that
Sports Direct can have a better productivity and functioning for themselves which is going to be
very good for the company. The competition in the market is increasing and the greatest
competitors for Sports Direct are Adidas, Reebok, Nike, etc. The company will have to have a
better functioning and productivity so that they can satisfy the customers and improve the market
share for a long run in the market (Goldbach, Barbu and Bidireanu, 2018).

 Hiring the right candidates
There is a requirement in Sports Direct to hire the right candidates for the right work in the
company so that the quality of the product is not being compromised upon. Hiring the right
employees will increase the productivity of the company as well and the demands of the
customers will be met from time to time which is a very essential factor for the company
(Ribeiro and Gomes, 2017). There is a ability and commitment which comes in the organization
with getting new employees in the organization which has to be done by the human resource
department for the betterment of Sports Direct. The company will have to get innovation and
creativity to get a competitive advantage which can come in the company with the help of new
employees and that is going to be very helpful for the company.
 Security to the employees
The employees of the company need a safety and security insurance by the organization so
that they can continue to work for the organization. There is a family security which is given by
Sports Direct for the employees so that the employees feel more wanted and safe in the
organization which is going to be very good for the company (Khan, 2018). The employees stay
in the organization for a long run if they are given this facility which makes them motivated to
give their best and the skills of the employee is developed which can be very beneficial for the
company as well as of the employees of the company which are going to give their best.
 Fair treatment
All the employees must have a fair treatment in the organization so that they can work in a
healthy and safe environment to work in. There has to be no negativity in the internal
environment of the organization because that can impact on the outside of the organization and
reduce the market share which is not good for a long run in the market. Employees of the
organization have to be motivated so that they can give their best in the organization which is
going to be very helpful for the company for a long run (Benitez, Cruz-Castro and Sanz-
Menéndez, 2016). There is a long vision of organization and the employees are the backbone in
achieving those objectives which is going to be very helpful for the company.
Affect productivity and profitability Sportdirect

Different type of HRM practices like fair treatment, security to employees and
recruitment of right candidates improves productivity of employees within Sportdirect. Sufficient
turnover of employees at the workplace creates innovative working environment which leads
profitability in the business in term of competitive advantage, sells revenue and others.
LO 3
P 5 Importance of employee relations
It is very essential for the human resource managers and the team to have a healthy
understanding of the employees and share a professional and personal level relationship.
Employees are the backbone of the organization which is why the human resource department
has to make sure that everything is being done for them. There are a lot of changes which come
in Sports Direct for the employees of the company and for the customers as well which have to
be followed so that the company can have a competitive advantage. Motivation and
communication are the two keys for the human resource when the changes have to come in the
company. There are right leaders in Sports Direct which have been hired so that the work of the
human resource can reduce for the employees of the company and there is a better direction
which can be given to the employees of the organization (Flamini and Gnan, 2019).
 The employees of the company are given rewards , incentives, etc for motivation so that
they give their best to the organization when there are changes which are coming in. it is
very important for the human resource to implement the changes which are being done by
the management of the company. There has to be something in return so that the
employees of the company give their best in the organization. Path goal theory of
leadership is one innovative theory which can be applied in Sports Direct which is to
improve the productivity there has to be motivation and communication (Khan, 2017). By
having a friendly environment in the organization which has to be done by the human
resource of the company only then the employees will be able to give their best in the
organization.

 Satisfaction of the employees is a very important factor otherwise the organization can
have a high turnover of employees which is going to make the productivity and quality of
the products reduce. To increase the innovations and creativity in the company the
employees have to be included in the decision making so that the company can get more
ideas which they can work on so that the competitive advantage of Sports Direct can
improve.
 There has to be a safe and clean environment for the employees to work in so that there is
no negativity which can be reflected in the work of the company’s performance
(Shehadeh and Mansour, 2019). Satisfaction of employees and customers is a very
important factor which can be maintained if the employees of the company are satisfied.
There are changes which are coming in the company for the customers but the employees
are being motivated by the leaders and the human resource department all the time so that
they can give their best in the organization.
P 6 Key elements of employment legislature
The rules and regulations are taken seriously in Sports Direct because that is a guideline
for the human resource department for the employees so that they can have a better
understanding and make the employees give their best. There are a lot of legislature laws which
are being followed in the organization for the employee’s safety and security as well as the safety
of the customers (Chowdhury and Miah, 2016). There are equal opportunities given to all the
employees of the organization so that all the employees can give their best in the organization.
Wages and extra privileges are being given to the employees who deserve it so that everyone can
have a motivation to get that as well and everyone can give their best in the business which will
make the productivity of the organization better. This is going to help Sports Direct to have more
profit margins in the market which is going to be very helpful for a long run in the industry. The
details of the products is also written on the packet and the employees give the full detail of the
products to the customers so that they do not feel unsatisfied with the organization which is a
very important factor for the company (Shafeek, 2016).
Employees of the company are also given medical and other advantages from the
company so that they can feel comfortable working in the organization and they can remain

healthy. An employee’s of the company is not asked to work for more than 9 hours without
breaks which is the policy for Sports Direct so that the employees of the company feel satisfied
and comfortable with the organization at the same time. The locals of the country are given
special advantage for hiring because they are locals and they will be able to improve the
standards of living of the country by helping the people and this is a help for the government of
the country as well to improve the employment rate in the country (Perufo and et.al., 2018). The
employees have to be paid according to the work and efforts they are putting in the organization
so that there is a better functioning which is going to make the organization have a better
functioning for a long run in the market. The employees of Sports Direct had this problem that
the employees gave their best but did not get the equal wages or incentive which was expected
which can make the company have a bad growth. There were a lot of employees which left the
organization and the skilled employee’s loss made the organization have a bad impact in the
market share. Contracts are made by the company so that the company is not at fault at any step
and the employees have to sign that for joining the company which is a very important factor for
the organization.
LO 4
P 7 Human resource management practices in a work
Job Specification
Job Role
Requirement for a manager in human resource department in Sports Direct.
Timing
There are flexible hours provided to the manager of HR but they have to complete at least 50
hours per week in the office.
Reporting To
The human resource manager will be reporting to the management which is Michael James Wallace
Ashley who is the owner of the organization.
Qualifications
The candidate must have the following qualifications which are a degree and masters in human

resource field and any other degree related to this field will be appreciated.
Hard skills
 The supervising control of the candidate on the employees should be good so that the
company can achieve their objectives from time to time. Control on the employees has
to be strong in Sports Direct so that the company can have better productivity.
 The changes which are coming in the company for the betterment of the company
should be implemented by the candidate effectively so that the company can function
effectively and maintain their standards in the market.
 Candidate must be able to see the bigger picture of the company so that the company
and time management to achieve those is a very essential factor which the manager of
this department must have so that the company can achieve their aims.
Soft Skills
 Having a healthy internal environment is a very important factor for the company
which has to be maintained by the candidate by getting a friendly environment for the
employees to work in.
 Understanding the employees is important so that they can get in the changes and the
employees can get flexibility and feel accepted in the company.
 To have a sense of direction to work in for the employees the manager of human
resource has to make sure that they are being able to communicate the right
information to the employees from time to time so that they can be achieved.
 Having a smooth functioning requires experience in this field which the candidate must
have so that they can allot the work to the employees accordingly which can make the
productivity and quality of the products improve.
CV
Name: Ellis Smith
Address: #14, Elizabeth Apartments, London
Email: [e-mail]
Education
 Graduated from University of Leeds in 2013
 Master’s in human resource management from the same University in 2015

 Diploma in business studies
Work Experience
 Interned with Sports Direct in the year 2018 for 5 months to have a better
understanding of the company and the department.
 I have also worked in a start up as the member of the human resource department so
that I can understand the field better and that experience made me learn a lot of facts
about this field and developed me over all.
Skills
 Rules and regulations by the government are followed by me very strictly for the
benefit of the company and the employees as well so that the productivity of the
organization is not compromised upon.
 Can use Microsoft programmes which are the basic requirement in the human resource
department for the functioning of the department to take place smoothly.
 I can guide the people as and when required by the company as per the decisions which
are being taken by the management.
 The organization will be able to achieve their goals and objectives from time to time
because I have a time management skill in me which am going to make the
productivity and the quality of the organization be maintained.
Questions of the interviewer
 What are the experiences and challenges which are faced in this field?
 What is the knowledge of the competitors in this industry and how can you make it better
for the company?
 Methods and techniques which are going to be used for training and development of the
employees in the organization so that the objectives can be met?
 With how many people have you worked before this and how did you handle them in a
situation like conflict?
Selection Procedures
On the bases of the past experience, principles, knowledge and work ethics will the hiring
depend upon so that the right candidate can be hired as the manager of the human resource
management. The soft and hard skills of the candidate should match the expectations of the Sport

Direct so that the performance of the employees is improved and the company can get high profit
margins (Sukoco and Prameswari, 2017). As a team the human resource should be good and the
communication skills should be excellent so that the employees willingly want to listen to the
manager of the company which can make the company have a better functioning.
CONCLUSION
From the above report it can be concluded that human resource manager has a lot of roles
and responsibilities which can make the functioning and the reputation of the organization
improve in the market. The objectives and goals of the organization can be met by getting the
right candidate in the organization and by motivating the employees from time to time so that
they can meet the demand and needs of the customers. There are a lot of methods and techniques
which are used by the human resource so that the performance level of the company can improve
and the internal environment of the company can be maintained.
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Online

Our values and our business. 2019. [Online] Available Through:- <
https://www.sportsdirectplc.com/our-values-and-our-business.aspx >