Key challenges in attracting and retaining a workforce in retail sector

Running head: Human resource management
Human resource management
2018

Human resource management
(Essay on “Key challenges in attracting and retaining a workforce in retail sector”)
In today’s competitive world, each and every industry is facing enormous attracting and
retaining issues while hiring the workers. Employee attraction and retention is one of biggest
factors of the firm that helps in determining and analyzing the success and progress of the firm.
The primary motive of this task is to outline and explain that how retail sector faces ample of
attracting and retaining issues while appointing the candidates. Retail is a growing and leading
sector therefore various issues faced by the retail companies while conducting business functions
globally. At the end, it discusses that how retail companies handle and manage the key attraction
and retention issues at the workplace. Some strategies also have been explained to overcome on
these issues or challenges in the organization. More detail of the task has been elaborated below.
It is stated that retail sector is one of the dynamic and significant sectors to uplift
profitability and revenue. It also helps in increasing and enhancing effectiveness and efficiency
of the customers globally (Zanko, 2003). Retail sector provides ample of benefits to the
customers by rendering good quality of products and services to the customers across the world.
The sector is expanding and flourishing the business activities in a large extent therefore, ample
of attracting and retaining issues are being faced by workforce at the workplace (Zanko, 2003). It
is stated that attracting and retaining is significant for the success and growth of the company in
each and every industry. The high employee turnover and absenteeism put direct and adverse
impact on the loyalty and satisfaction of the firm. Therefore, it is necessary to implement new
and innovative strategies to deal with various attracting and retaining issues at the workplace.
These strategies are also essential to grow and survive the business functions and operations in a
large extent. To attract and retain the potential workforce in the retail industry, the top
management and leaders need to implement new and effective strategies such as reward,
compensations, bonus, incentives, and motivational strategies (Singh, Darwish, Costa &
Anderson, 2012).
Attracting talent is one of the biggest and typical tasks for retail sector in the competitive
market. In order to appoint talented and potential workforce, it is necessary for the healthcare
sector to attract workers by using ample of strategies and approaches (Nankervis, Baird,
Compton & Coffey, 2013). This includes handling queries of workers, using promotional
strategies and providing ample of dynamic opportunities to the employees at the workplace.
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Human resource management
Advertisement and promotions are done by retail industry to hire maximum number of potential
staff for performing roles and responsibilities in a hassle free manner. The retail sector cannot
fulfill its long term objectives and goals without hiring and retaining talented and qualified
workforce. It is significant for the retail sector to select and hire workforce having enough
knowledge, skills, talent and experience of retail sector for attaining desired objectives and
targets (Kramar & Parry, 2014).
On the other hand, retaining also plays a crucial role in enhancing and maximizing the
effectiveness and efficiency of the organization. It is a duty of the leaders or managers to retain
skilled and talented staff for performing tasks and duties in an effective way. To retain the
candidates, the organization needs to focus on ample of policies, approaches and practices at the
workplace. Along with this, enormous methods and strategies need to be used for retaining the
candidates towards the attainment of goals and objectives (Kramar, 2014).
It is seen in retail industry that there is shortage of skilled and potential employees.
Therefore, several challenged entertained by the companies while attracting and retaining right
and potential candidates for the vacant job vacancy. It is not an easy task for retail sector to
attract talented workforce from the different sources (Kramar, 2014). The retail sector faces
ample of key challenges in attracting and retaining workforce, some of the key issues are as
follows:
Due to lack knowledge, skills and talents, the retail managers have to entertain various
challenges while attracting the candidates. Knowledge, experience and skills are needed to
communicate with customers in the retail sector. Thus, it is quite typical for human resource
managers to find out persons having good and adequate knowledge, talent and potential. There is
high shortage of skilled and qualified people thus, it may affect the long term sustainability and
growth of the firm. As per Zanko (2003), attracting and retaining issues could affect the long
term revenue and outcomes of retail sector. It is essential to provide right and appropriate
information to the candidate while hiring them in a large extent. The information related to job
roles, salary packages, and work expectations need to be provided to the applicants. If applicants
are failed to get such kind of information then they would not able to perform tasks and duties
successfully. It will also affect level of satisfaction of the applicants at the workplace. Due to
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