Human Resource Management Report

This report examines the role of Human Resource Management (HRM) in Wasabi Sushi and Bento Restaurant, a Japanese food restaurant based in London, UK. It analyzes key HRM functions, including workforce planning, recruitment, selection, training, and employee relations, and their impact on the restaurant's profitability and productivity. The report also discusses the importance of employee relations in influencing HRM decision-making and explores the impact of key employment legislation on HRM practices. The report concludes by evaluating the recruitment and selection process for the position of head chef and provides a job specification, interview notes, and a justified decision for the selected candidate.

Human Resource
Management
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Table of Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................................................................4
P1 Purpose and function of HRM in Wasabi sushi and bento restaurant................................................4
P2 Approaches to recruitment and selection and explain their strength and weakness ........................5
P3 how different HRM practices benefit the management and employees of Wasabi restaurant..........7
P4 effectiveness of different HRM practices in terms of raising organisational profit and productivity. 8
P5 Analyze the importance of employee relations in influencing HRM decision-making........................9
P6 key elements of employment legislation and the impact it has upon HRM decision-making ..........10
P7 the application of HRM practices in a work-related context, using specific examples......................11
Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................16
References ................................................................................................................................................17
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Introduction
Human resource management is that department of a company which deals with staff
members so as to develop good work culture in business premises (Ng and Ng, 2017). Proper
management of employees is very essential for successful running and long term sustainability of
company. Hence this department must not be overlooked by management officials (Lawler and
Boudreau, 2015). The present report has thus made an attempt to study HR practices of a UK
based Wasabi Sushi and Bento restaurant. Emphasis has been given on purpose/function of
HRM, recruitment and selection techniques and other practices that give benefit to both
employees and employers. Focus has also been laid on studying key employee legislation that
must be adhered by the restaurant and discussing the selection process of Head chef for the food
business.
P1 Purpose and function of HRM in Wasabi sushi and bento restaurant
Introduction to Wasabi sushi and bento restaurant
Wasabi Sushi and Bento is a Japanese food restaurant based in London, UK. It was found
in 2003 by a Korean business person Dong Hyun Kim and since then it is specialized in serving
sushi and bento along with other dishes (Wasabi Sushi and Bento, 2018). Its Sushi is known to
be of high quality as it is made from fresh ingredients. The restaurant has a good name among
Japanese food lovers which is all possible on account of team efforts given by staff members.
The managers further focus on creating a positive and harmonious work culture. The skill set of
employees is also churned by provision of training sessions so that they can fulfill needs and
demands of consumers. As per the case study, there is a need to restructure food and beverage
department of Wasabi so as to aid in organizational change being implementation of new
technology in kitchen section. In this regard, various purpose and functions of HRM are present
with respect to workforce planning and resource within Wasabi restaurant. These are most likely
to aid in fulfilling objectives of company as well.
Purpose of HRM
The main purpose of HRM within Wasabi restaurant is to manage the employees and
create as well as implement HR policies with respect to recruitment, selection, training,
compensation etc. This purpose is in tune with objective of company which is to provide best
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Japanese food and beverage experience to consumers. The objective can only be fulfilled when
Human resource department is able to manages employees in best possible manner (Lei, 2015).
Function of HRM
In order to assist in technological changes in kitchen, the Hr. team is required to boost
morale of employees so that they can work in a more effective manner on the new technology.
With respect to workforce planning, there is also a requirement to forecast the number of
employees that will be required in kitchen section after implementation of new technology. The
supervisor of food and beverage department is thus required to arrange a meeting with HR team
and inform them about exact need with respect to kind and number of staff members required
(Boselie and Brewster, 2015). The hr. manager can then recruits or train new employees as per
budget of restaurant. This strategy is most likely to fulfill the objective of providing best
consumer service and sushi food to the guests. This is as proper number of staff who is also well
trained ones can only provide best service and food to consumers.
The HR team will also perform the task of properly designing structure of kitchen
department by setting of proper communication channel and assigning supervisor to monitor
workflow of employees (Lu and et.al., 2015). This function will not only led to optimal use of
resource but also ensure that staff members deliver good work so as to be in tune with objective
of Wasabi which is to increase sales and revenue.
P2 Approaches to recruitment and selection and explain their strength and weakness
There can be a use of various recruitment and selection processes for new employees within food
and beverage department of Wasabi. These are as follows;
Approaches to Recruitment
Old school recruiting model - As per this model, the human resource team designs ads
and places it on website to attract prospects and asking them to send resume. The HR then
evaluates resume of every applicants and calls them for interview who are most suited to the
organization. The use of this model is cost effective as there is no need to spend money on online
recruitment agencies. The money saved can be used to train the recruits instead (Boselie and
Brewster, 2015). Bratton and Gold (2017) however feels that the model may not led to large pool
of applicants as very few people refer to a specific website while making a job search.
Recruitment process outsourcing model –
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Figure 1 Recruitment process outsourcing model
(Source: HRT solutions, 2018)
In this model, the company outsources entire process of recruitment to another consultant.
Wasabi restaurant can also use this process and contact with consultants who can help in
sourcing the applicants and scheduling them with the restaurant for Interview. The technique is
quite beneficial for the restaurant as it may save unnecessary time and efforts of management in
recruitment process. But Marchington and et.al (2017) further feels that process can get
backfired if the recruitment consultant is not able to understand the requirement of company with
respect to recruitment. Hence Wasabi should be very careful when it makes choice of
recruitment consultant.
Approaches to Selection
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Interview – This can be defined as asking question to a prospect in order to find out
whether he or she is suitable for job or not (Lawler and Boudreau, 2015). Wasabi manager can
utilize share model of interview technique. It can be defined as a use of Behavioral questions to
gauge overall strength of a candidate (Lu and et.al., 2015). This technique can be used by Wasabi
restaurant to assess overall personality of candidate by asking him a set of well-defined
questions. The strength of this technique is that it is convenient for both Wasabi manager as well
as food and beverage staff as it aids in two way communication thereby giving a chance for
resolving doubts. It also helps to get a detailed view as to whether the person is suitable for job
or not. However it is a very time consuming process and requires HR manager to reserve some
slots for taking interview. There can also be an involvement of biasness if interviewer knows the
applicant.
Psychometric test –These are defined as the ones that are used to judge suitability of
candidate for a given job role on the basis of personality type (Lei, 2015). This strategy is best
suited to select kitchen staff in Wasabi restaurant as there is lack of any human biasness which
leads to accuracy and appropriateness. Some authors however feel that the interpreter must be
thorough with the assessment criteria else a wrong selection can be made (Laschinger and Read,
2017). It is thus best to use this technique in combination with others so as to deliver good
results.
P3 how different HRM practices benefit the management and employees of Wasabi restaurant
There is a presence of different practices of HRM that are used in Wasabi restaurant. These are
beneficial to both employees as well as employers.
Strategic Workforce planning practice – it can be analysed that technique by which a
company aligns organizational needs with that of workforce to make sure that its objectives are
met (Mathiew and et.al., 2014). For example, Wasabi is in constant touch with team leads of
various departments to find if there is a need of any new staff or not. This technique is beneficial
for employees as they are saved from excess work load if staff members leave the organization
(Martin and et.al., 2016). Employers also get a benefit as they can appoint tasks to employees
well in advance. This helps to manage work flow in better manner thereby leading to absence of
unnecessary pressure on employees as well as Wasabi managers.
Recruitment technique – Another significant practice of HR manager which analysed
that, The company uses several practices to recruit the employees. These are in form of placing
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ads on website, notice board and also contacting with recruitment agencies. The practice is
beneficial for employees as they are well aware about ongoing vacancies in organization. They
can easily make their friends aware about the job opening. The technique also benefits
management of Wasabi they get a good pool of applicants to choose from. The best employee
can then be selected after comparing him with other applicants.
Selection –the company uses two rounds of interview. The first round is taken by HR
manager and second round by team lead of respective department. This is sometimes used in
combination with psychometric test. It analysed by study that, The technique is beneficial for
employee as he is able to judge whether his skill set matches with the job or not (Mitchell, 2017).
This helps in quick decision in terms of whether he should join the company or not. The
employer is also able to judge overall personality of employee from all possible angles which
reduces chances of wrong selection. Psychometric test also ensures that there is no biasness in
the process of selection.
Performance management – the company makes use of Attribute Approachto measure
performance of staff members. This can be defined as judging employee on a set of predefined
traits such as team work, quality, creativity, IT skills, communication, and time management
among others (Muratbekova-Touron and Galindo, 2018). The technique is beneficial for
employees as they are able to judge there performance in various areas and receive appropriate
feedback. It has been observed or analysed that, There is also a lack of non-biasness which
makes the employee have trust over management. Employers of Wasabi also regard this
approach as a beneficial one because it aids in carrying out a 360 degree review of employees.
Training sessions can then be arranged to improve work productivity of employee as well as
restaurant (Wood and Kispál-Vitai, 2014).
P4 Effectiveness of different HRM practices in terms of raising organisational profit and
productivity.
It has been analyses that, The above mentioned Hr practices used in Wasabi Sushi and
Bento restaurant have played a quite effective role with respect to increasing profit and
productivity. These have been discussed below.
Use of strategic workforce planning within Wasabi has ensured that the work flow is
managed in a proper manner. This has been quite beneficial during the peak hours when
consumer flow is too much. For example, during the evenings and lunch hours ample number of
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employees are available to serve the employees. Acording to analyses This has led to more
serving of consumers in peak hours that has led to an increase in overall sales revenue and profit
figures of firm (Merrimann and et.al., 2016). Not only this, the employees are able to serve
consumers in a better manner that has made them quite satisfied with services offered by
company. This is also clear from the rating given on trip advisor where the restaurant has been
given 4 stars in consumer service section (Trip advisor, 2018). As ample number of employees is
available during lunch and dinner time hence staff productivity has also been increased followed
by less turnover rate. These aspects clearly show that the restaurant is running in a highly
productive as well as profitable manner (Ng and Ng, 2017).
The effectiveness can be seen in area of recruitment and selection as well. This is as the
strategies adopted by Wasabi manager has led to selection of good candidates who are
hardworking, punctual as well as committed towards work. For example, a research study carried
out by Perkbox has stated that there has been an overall decrease in employee turnover by 13
percent (Perkbox, 2018). It analysed by the company that, The employee retention has thus led to
decrease in training and induction session to be given to new employees. The low turnover is on
account of the fact that recruits are awarded task depending on their capability. The finances can
now be used in other departments. The saved finance has thus increased profitability of company
and presence of old staff has enhanced productivity.
Performance management approaches used by Wasabi Sushi and Bento restaurant aids in
boosting up overall morale of employees. For example, use of attribute approach ensures that
there is no biasness in the process and hence they can expect a reward or promotion on the basis
of work done by them. This thus helps to improve overall work culture of restaurant and reduces
negativity to a great extent. The employees work with full zeal and energy which ultimate
increases productivity of employees and profit figures of the restaurant (Němečková, 2017).
P5 Analyze the importance of employee relations in influencing HRM decision-making.
Employee relations can be defined as the set of efforts taken by company to manage
relationship that exist between employer and staff members (Mitchell, 2017). They need to talk
to which other and carry out discussions for betterment of organisation. The importance of
employee relations in Wasabi restaurant and how they influence Hr decision making is as
follows;
Good employee relations eases work load
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The presence of healthy employee relations in Wasabi often leads to less work load on
employees which then increase productivity of entire restaurant. This influences HR decision
making as they are required to make choices with respect to team building. The need on their
part is to divide members into respective teams as per there relation with other employees so that
work can be completed on a timely manner.
Decrease in conflict in team members
Presence of good employee relations in employees of Wasabi restaurant often leads to
less conflicting situation. This is as employees start trusting each other and also assist others in
completion of organizational goals and objectives (Boselie and Brewster, 2015). Human resource
department is thus required to take a decision with respect to maintaining stability in the business
operations by channelized onto attaining higher efficiency. Moreover as productivity increases
HR is able to take better decisions for employees with respect to maintaining good work culture.
Increase in employee loyalty
it has been analysed that HR manager is responsible for maintaining good employee and
employer relations lead to development of better work culture that this helps in creation of loyal
staff base. The employees feel motivated to work in Wasabi restaurant and are ready to take up
additional work responsibilities if the need arises. Their efforts lead to increased profits and
returns for the company. In this regard, the Hr. has to take decision with respect to promoting the
staff members to higher positions or increasing their pay. This decision is most tough if all
employees work with increased zeal and energy. Other than this, they also have to decide on
ways by which organizational culture can be maintained in the company.
Ensuring employee equality through good communication
it observed that, The presence of effective communication on account of good relation
with employees ensures that there is lack of any discrimination by restaurant management. This
makes the employees feel more empowered and motivated and hence they perform in better
manner to attain goals of restaurant. The management of Wasabi is thus required to take
decisions with respect to how communication can be maintained and further improved in
restaurant. It also needs to focus on different forms of communicating with employees so as to
avoid any issues.
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Employee Welcoming : In order to analye that, Employee relation influence the decision
making approach of HR manager. At the time of entring new employee, HR manager should
focused on their welcoming functions. So that, they all feel great and lovable and happy. That
programe should be conducted at the conference room in order to make sure the formal
behaviour and comany standards. Overall it has been observed that HR needs to be very updated
to introduce new activities for employee relations.
Encouraged participation : it also analysed that HR manager are also responsible for
taking participation of all employees in order to maintained proper working enviorbnment. Such
as HR manager is responsible to arrange employee breaks, manage their rotine schedule etc.
P6 key elements of employment legislation and the impact it has upon HRM decision-making
Employee legislation can be defined as the law that focuses on employment of a person
in an organization (Mitchell, 2017). There is a presence of much legislation that has been laid by
the UK government. These put a significant impact on the decisions taken by HR.
Equal pay act 1970 – as per this legislation the employees employed on same position
must get same pay irrespective of their gender or class. The impact of this legislation on HR
decision making is that the team members in human resource department has to decide on pay
scales to be given to employees. They must not make any kind of discriminating in the same or
this may led to legal penalty.
Disability Discrimination Act 1995 – It states that no discrimination should be practiced
with employees if they are suffering from a disability. The decision making of is impacted as
they have to make sure that all employees are aware of this law and there is no harassment or
bullying on account of the disability. Human resource team must also decide on salary and work
profile to be given to employee irrespective of his or her disability (Boselie and Brewster, 2015).
Data protection act, 2018– as per this act the management must be transparent with
respect to how the employee data is being used. In this regard, Hr. has to decide on how the data
should be protected; what kind of encryptions should be used and who should have access to the
information.
Health and safety legislation – this law states that all employees are entitled to work in
environment where risk to their health and safety is controlled. Decision making is influenced as
they have to make employees aware about the health and safety hazards present in the restaurant.
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They must further decide on steps to be taken to avoid any injury. For example, if there is a
presence of faulty equipment in kitchen then it must be repaired. Also employees under the age
of 16 should not be allowed to do hazardous task such as handling grinders, mixers and meat-
processing equipment. Hr. has to decide on laying guideline for the same.
P7 the application of HRM practices in a work-related context, using specific examples
1. The design of a job specification for one of a number of given positions in Wasabi Sushi
and Bento restaurant
Job specification can be defined as a statement of employee traits and qualifications that is
required to deliver a satisfactory performance within organization (Mitchell, 2017). In
present case, the job position of head chef has been selected who will be working in kitchen
department of wasabi restaurant. The job specification for head chef is as follows;
ESSENTIAL PERSON SPECIFICATION DESIRABLE PERSON SPECIFICATION
A working knowledge of English NVQ Qualification
Expertise in handling Japanese cuisine Experience in kitchen budget control
An enthusiasm for cooking by use of fresh
ingredients
Training staff members
Ability to work in under pressure Experience in stock taking, menu costing and
recruitment
Previous experience of delivering good
supervision skills and effective coordination
with team members
contract catering experience
Good oral communication with staff and
management
Experience in menu planning
Basic knowledge of MS word, excel and
PowerPoint
Intermediate food hygiene certificate
PERSONAL TRAITS
Willing to work in flexible timing
Good oral and written communication skills
Advanced in use of food technology
Polite and courteous with staff members
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2. CV for position of head chef
Curriculum Vitae
Kim Sharma
26 Old Gloucester Street, London
Home: 000-000-0000 | Cell: 000-000-0000
[e-mail]
Professional Summary
An experienced and talented head chef having an expertise in preparing and supervising all food
and beverage items. Skilled in managing waiters and servers in order to make them cook and
present food stuff.
Core Qualifications
 Hands-on experience in meal preparation and management.
 Ability to prepare menu card as per ongoing demand in market.
 Good interpersonal skills for giving instructions and providing training to staff members.
 Creative and innovative presentation of food and beverage items.
 Ensuring towards optimal utilization of resources in kitchen without affecting quality.
Experience
Head Chef
2/10/2009 – Present
London Inns
London, UK
 Prepared menu card for corporate events and other occasions.
 Providing training sessions to other chefs and supervised on training given by trainees.
 Ensured proper preparation and presentation of recipes.
 Communicated with accounting team for stock and finances
Education
Master’s Degree in Hotel Management, 2006
Universityof Birmingham, UK

3. Preparatory notes for interviews, interview notes based on selection criteria and a justified
decision of the candidate selected.
Preparatory notes for interview in form of questions
 Tell me about your last job profile.
 How do you differentiate between a winter and spring menu?
 How do you control the quality of the food?
 What do you do when a consumer requests for change in ingredients?
 How you handle specific dietary requirement?
 Describe your approach to train staff?
 Have you ever fired someone? If yes, why?
 How would you improve our food and beverage section?
Interview notes based on selection criteria
Candidate name: Panel member:
Selection criteria Notes
Educated to degree level, NVQ
qualification, food hygiene certificate
Expertise in handling Japanese cuisine and
menu planning
An enthusiasm for cooking by use of fresh
ingredients
Significant experience in personnel
management
Basic IT skills
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Strong interpersonal skills in English
language
supervision skills and coordination with
team members
Able to communicate well both orally and
in writing
Justified decision of the candidate selected
The selected candidate had a good experience in handling Japanese cuisine and is also
enthusiastic to use fresh ingredients in his food and beverage item. He has also taken training of
staff members and supervised a small team of chefs. Most importantly, the candidate has been a
head chef before which further justifies the decision for his selection.
A job offer to the selected candidate
Name:
Address:
Date:
Dear:
We are pleased to confirm that you have been selected to work for Wasabi Sushi and Bento
Restaurant as a Head Chef. You are responsible for the following:
Control and direct the process of food preparation; prepare menu list as per Japanese cuisine;
approve dishes before they reach the customer; order equipment’s or ingredients to assess
shortage; take training of kitchen staff; comply with health, safety and hygiene regulations; foster
a good work culture and coordination in employees.
Contract includes
 Reporting: Senior operational manager of Wasabi Sushi and Bento restaurant
 Basic salary: £20,000 to be given on a monthly basis.
 Work hours: 3 pm to 11 pm.
 Weekly off: A weekly off on any day of week except weekends.
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 Compensation and benefits: Free food; health insurance, transportation.
We are happy to send you this offer to be approved and signed by you so as to start job from 1st
November, 2018.
We look forward to join our restaurant in order to work with you.
Regards,
Hr. manager
5. An evaluation of the process and the rationale for conducting appropriate HR practices
The recruitment and selection process for the position of head chef was done by formulating a
job description and person specification that was posted on Facebook page/website of the
company. This method is apt so as to generate a lot of applications for the position which is most
likely to aid in selecting the best one. However, many applications that did not match person
specification were also received whose scrutinisation was very difficult. The selected applicants
were called for a panel interview taken by HR manager and operations manager of food and
beverage section. This helped to get a complete view about employee in just one interview
session which saved a lot of time and other expenses. Same strategy will be applied for other
posts as well. The selection was made after discussing the applicants with other team members.
Their view points were taken into consideration which led to an apt selection.
Employee relations were involved in this process as the need was to communicate with other
panel members and discuss viewpoints with each other. Focus was also given on avoiding
conflicts by paying due respect to viewpoints given by other team members.
Conclusion
It can be concluded from the report that HRM practices are very necessary for effective
functioning of Wasabi restaurant. This is on account of fact that company belongs to service
sector and consumers here are to be served in best manner. The possibility for same arises only
when qualified employees are recruited and trained by company. Other than this, the company
has been adhering with good employee relation practices so as to engage staff with the
organization. This is followed by focusing on employee legislations that govern the sector in
order to avoid any kind of penalties
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