Introduction to Organisational Management: A Case Study of Grace Foods UK

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This report examines the key functions of human resource management and customer service within Grace Foods UK, a growing food distribution and wholesale company. It analyzes how these functions contribute to the company's success and explores the role of an effective organizational structure in achieving sustainable growth. The report utilizes a case study approach to provide insights into the practical application of organizational management principles.

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Introduction to Organisational Management
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Table of Contents
Part A............................................................................................................................................... 3
1.0 Introduction................................................................................................................................3
2.0 Critical Analysis........................................................................................................................3
2.1 Key Functions Of Grace’s Food UK..................................................................................... 3
2.1.1 Human Resource Management.......................................................................................3
2.1.2 Customer Service............................................................................................................5
2.2 The role of effective organisational structure can contribute to the company’s success.......6
3.0 Conclusion................................................................................................................................. 9
Reference List................................................................................................................................ 10
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Part A
1.0 Introduction
The operation of an organisation depends on the certain functional departments that act as a
catalyst to the organisational success. Effective operations of all the departments, which are
human resource management, finance, marketing and customer service is consequential so
that the companies gain a sustainable competitive in the steep market rivalry. In this context, the
aim of the report is to underpin the importance of any two key functions with an organisational
context and analyse their role in establishing a strong image of the company (Nanci, 2017). In
addition, the report further discusses the importance of a coherent organisational structure in
making a company successful. In order to gain a better of the organisational functions, the case
study of Grace Foods, which is a growing distribution and wholesale company of foods
headquartered in UK, situated in Sunderland.
2.0 Critical Analysis
2.1 Key Functions Of Grace’s Food UK
2.1.1 Human Resource Management
Human resource management is an important function to every organisation because with the
help of this department enterprise can manage its human capital and utilise them in an efficient
manner. Since employees lay the foundation of the overall operational process of an enterprise,
human resource management is an imperative function. In Grace Foods, the upper echelon of the
company pays great attention to the satisfaction and well being of its employee base so that they
remain loyal to the organisation. This is the reason due to which the attrition rate and employee
absenteeism are quite low. It has been further learnt from the case study that the company
focuses on acknowledging and recognising the contribution of each of its personnel. Due to this
reason, the salary slab of the organisation is slightly higher than the average industry standards.
In order to appraise the employees properly, the company has a good performance management
systems (Armstrong and Taylor, 2014). However, the case study has further highlighted that in
case the overall turnover of the company reduces that then the management have to be stricter in
case of performance evaluation.
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In this context, the case study has further shed light on the fact that in a recent board meeting,
Mr. Wright, the founder of the company have emphasized on the new approaches of HRM. Mr
Wright has stated that the overall budget of the organisation remain high as the remuneration
scale of the company is relatively high. Therefore the management need to be stricter while
rewarding and awarding the employees. This is important so that deserving employees are
appraised properly and those who are not performing well need not be appraised as they should
have an inclination to perform in order get appraised. The overall financial position of the
company is also getting affected because of the current performance management system. It can
be comprehended that the existing performance system is only benefitting the employees and not
the employer (ratton and Gold, 2017). Hence, the system has to be restructured so that the overall
human resource management of the company improves. The new performance management
system need to focus minutely on scrutinising the performance of the employees and their check
their contribution with the salary they are provided. Based on these analyses, personnel have to
be appraised.
The discussion has helped in understanding that human resource management is an important
function to Grace Foods as it has a huge role to play in promoting the brand image of the
company. As known, employees of the company are the building blocks of the company as
without their contribution the organisation can deliver its desired corporate performance.
Nevertheless, the lenient performance management system of the company is not allowing the
employees to give in their best performance since they are already being more than the industry
standards. Therefore with the improved performance system and effective remuneration n scale
the company will be able to boost the work inclination of the personnel. In this way, the
employees will be on their toes in delivering their best performance (Spigel, 2017). Improved
employee productivity will help the organisation to improve its customer service, which will
obviously help the organisation establish a strong brand image among the customer base.
With the help of the current performance management system the company is unable to identify
the core talent of the company who are actually productive and will help the company to be
sustainable in the long run. However with the improved performance management system the
company will be able to recognise the best performers and invest on them so that they put their
best foot forwards in making the brand more impactful in the market. The matter of customer
service is completely governed by the performance and working approach of the employees.
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Therefore, if the company gets more serious about the human resource management function
then it can improve its customer service (Carlson, 2017). The company will be able to provide
better delivery to its clients on time. Moreover, improve employee productivity will result in
better supply of raw materials and packaging huge range of fast food stores. This will eventually
make the company stand out in the competition and reach a niche in the market. Improved
human resource management will reduce the HR cost that can be invested by the company in
other important areas. Improved operations of the organisation will help in improving the
corporate performance thereby promoting a strong brand image in the industry.
2.1.2 Customer Service
Customer service is the most consequential functions of Grace Foods. It is that function which
has a direct and evident impact on the overall sustainability of the organisation. It is obvious that
the main purpose of the organisation is to keep the customer satisfied so that the existing
customers can be retained and the prospective ones can be attracted. In order to fulfil this aim,
Grace Foods focuses on improving its customer service function. The case study has highlighted
that the industry in which the company is operating is experiencing the influx of new entrants
who are offering low process for their service. However, the quality of the delivered products is
not up to the mark neither the products are delivered on time. These pitfalls of the competitors
are used as an advantage by the company in improving its customer service function. The
company sets justified prices against its service and ensure superior quality products and on time
delivery which has helped the organisation to keep its customers satisfied (Bratton and Gold,
2017). In order to gain a competitive advantage against the rivals, the company has designed its
individual customer service strategies so that it can sustain longer in the competition.
The upper echelon of Grace Foods contemplated on keeping its break even margin higher than
the competitors because it aimed at deliver quality service which helped the company to have a
greater market share. The company takes its customer service function quite seriously as it aim at
winning the trust of its customer base so that they do not ponder upon switching to other brands
so quickly. In order to reduce the overall business cost, the company does not compromise with
its raw materials or packaging, which has helped the company to establish a good will among the
customers.
The customer service and the human resource management departments are working hand – in –
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hand in Grace Foods UK. The key function of human resource management department is to
recruit and select the most appropriate human resource for the organizational roles, followed by
effective management of the selected human resource through proper training, development and
supervision, so that the workers can meet the organizational needs, which are developed aligning
with customer’s needs. On the other hand, the key role of customer service department is to help
the customer to be familiar with the organizational environment. It is also the responsibility of
Grace Foods UK to address any kinds of concern faced by the organization’s customers (Grace
Foods UK, 2018). In this context, it has been revealed that it is the responsibility of the
employees to understand the requirement and deliver the service to the customers accordingly.
Similarly in case of Grace Foods UK, the HRM team shapes the performance and capabilities of
the employees, so that they can meet the customer’s needs and expectations. Further, in case of
retailing, the organizational customer service executives come into contact with the final
consumers and collect feedbacks from them. For doing this, the team includes CRM software for
managing and storing consumer data, which are shared with the HRM unit. If there are any kinds
of disputes identified in the consumer’s feedback regarding the service or employee behaviour,
the HRM team undertakes adequate action to improve the same.
2.2 The role of effective organisational structure can contribute to the company’s success
Organizational structure is a key aspect in the business, which has significant contribution in
shaping the organizational culture, performance of employees as well as the overall
organizational success. Therefore, the organizations select and align appropriate organizational
structure with the corporate objectives as well as all the functions of the organization, to
contribute in organizational success. Similarly, Grace Foods UK has also designed appropriate
organizational culture and integrated it within the organizational activities. It is required by the
organization to ensure that the organizational human resource is enough capable of meeting the
increased or changing market demand. Further, Shafritz et al., (2015) claimed that effective
organizational structure is actually helping in establishing a network of transparent and effective
communication. It also promotes the managers to recognize and utilize organizational talents in
the most effective way. Therefore, Grace Foods UK needs to design effective organizational
structure, which focusing upon the key elements related to it. As a result, the power of decision
making and control of all the organizational activities could be delegated properly. It would lead
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towards proper management of the workforce as well as meeting the customer’s needs through
effective performance of the organizational workforce.
Being a subsidiary of Grace Kennedy, the company is having several strings to its bow. The
organizational structure is focusing upon establishing multi- category sales, marketing, import
and manufacturing business, which efficiently offering unrivalled access to the UK and
European wholesale, retail along with food service markets for both its own brand as well as the
partner brands. The organization is consisting a functional organizational structure, where the
organizational structure is diving the organizational activities based on the crucial and specified
functions. In this context, it is noteworthy that the Grace UK’s organizational structure is
focusing upon sales, marketing and distribution teams, which are dedicated to build the image of
the brands, which are run under this organization, for ensuring the high growth potential of the
brand in the global foods marketplace (Goetsch and Davis, 2014). The key advantage of this
organizational structure is that the staffs are grouped through their expertise and skill set as well
as function, which thus allows the staffs to emphasize upon their collective energies for
executing their own actions as a functional unit. Although, lack of inter- departmental
communication is a challenge of this organizational structure for most of the organization, but in
Grace Foods UK, effective communication and collaboration has been established, which is
promoting the organizational growth and success, along with the satisfaction of the staffs. This
effective communication structure is promoting the organizational structure of Grace Foods UK
in several ways.
Effective communication system – Communication is a crucial aspect in terms of shaping the
organizational success. As highlighted before, lack of proper communication can lead to
ineffective management under the organizational structure, leading poor performance of staffs
and lack of compliance with the organizational objectives. The functional structure of Grace
Foods UK is indicating the importance of developing a transparent communication network
within the functional unit as well as among different functional units. It would reduce the
chances of errors in function. It would also promote the food company to enhance the business
relationships within employees, within employee and management as well as with the employees
and potential consumers. Effective communication is also enhancing the efficiency of the supply
chain and distribution functions of the organization, by reducing waste or error generated due
inadequate communication (Ashkenas et al., 2015). A two way communication among
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management and employees to make them to feed valued and engaged with organizational
decisions.
Meeting organizational needs – The organization Grace Foods UK is offering multiple ranges of
functions, including retailing, wholesaling, import as well as manufacturing function. Upon
identifying the needs of the customers and the market, all the functional units of the organization
must be aware of the organizational needs and must adhere onto it. In order to do this, the
collaborative organizational structure and culture are effective. As a result, the organizational
performance becomes effective and it promotes competitive advantage of the organization over
the others.
Reporting relationship – While operating the business under a functional organizational
structure, collaboration is crucial for the organization. In this context, it has been revealed that
information flow within these organizational units is crucial for reducing errors in function.
Thus, reporting relationship is also crucial for organizational success. It also promotes the
understanding of the employees regarding their roles and responsibilities (Nanci, 2017). Further,
it also helps the employees to identify any kinds of miscommunication or misinterpretation,
while enabling the person to know who is responsible for the issue, thereby undertaking
following steps. Therefore, reporting actions among workers would promote right direction for
managing employee’s actions.
Proper allocation and utilization of resources – Allocating and utilizing the resources properly
is also a key function of the organization, determined by effective organizational structure. For
instance, effective allocation of the resources would be helpful for the organization to reduce
waste generation and save cost. As Grace Foods UK also operates manufacturing services,
proper allocation and utilization of resources is crucial to reduce resource scarcity at any
situation as well as to run the business operations effectively. In order to do this, effective
collaboration and assessment of the resource needs in every organizational functional department
is essential, which needs to be done by the head of the department (Carlson, 2017).
Growth and expansion – It is the crucial purpose of the organizational structure and its
alignment with the corporate objectives as well as all the business functions. All the functional
units of Grace Foods UK are committed to their departmental goals, which have been developed,
aligned with the overall corporate objectives, mission and vision of the organization. Therefore,
commitment of the organizational units towards the corporate objectives ensure that the
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organizational structure is promoting is continuous growth and expansion.
3.0 Conclusion
Organizational management is a crucial aspect, determining the organizational success. In this
context, it is noteworthy that the organizational structure significantly influences the
organizational management to undertake adequate actions for improving the overall
organizational efficiency, leading towards success. In this regards, the collaboration among
different organizational function is also crucial. Considering this, the above assignment explored
the function and relationship between two crucial organizational units. Further, the role of
organizational structure of the selected organization in ensuring success has also been explored.
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Reference List
Armstrong, M. and Taylor, S., 2014. Armstrong's handbook of human resource management
practice. Kogan Page Publishers.
Ashkenas, R., Ulrich, D., Jick, T. and Kerr, S., 2015. The boundaryless organization: Breaking
the chains of organizational structure. John Wiley & Sons.
Bratton, J. and Gold, J., 2017. Human resource management: theory and practice. Palgrave.
Carlson, E.A., 2017. Three Books on Improving Organizational Functions. Orthopaedic
Nursing, 36(1), pp.67-70.
Goetsch, D.L. and Davis, S.B., 2014. Quality management for organizational excellence. Upper
Saddle River, NJ: pearson.
Grace Foods UK. 2018. Grace Foods UK | Enco Products | Funnybones Foodservice | Chadha
Oriental Foods | Specialty Food Distribution. [online] Gracefoodsukgroup.com. Available at:
http://www.gracefoodsukgroup.com/page/79/Brands.htm [Accessed 6 Aug. 2018].
Kumar, V. and Reinartz, W., 2018. Customer relationship management: Concept, strategy, and
tools. Springer.
Nanci, A., 2017. Ten Cate's Oral Histology-E-Book: Development, Structure, and Function.
Elsevier Health Sciences.
Shafritz, J.M., Ott, J.S. and Jang, Y.S., 2015. Classics of organization theory. Cengage Learning.
Spigel, B., 2017. The relational organization of entrepreneurial ecosystems. Entrepreneurship
Theory and Practice, 41(1), pp.49-72.
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Introduction to Organisational Management: A Case Study of Grace Foods UK

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