Role of Information Technology in Workforce Management: A Case Study of Marks & Spencer

Case study
Contemporary
Management issues

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
TASK...............................................................................................................................................3
Using relevant theories and models, critically evaluate the role and impact of information and
communication technology on the management of workforces in organisations..................3
Evaluation of existing policies in context with talent acquisition , learning and development
and change management process to compete with Covid19 effectively................................4
Discuss the role of leaders of Marks & Spencer in terms of implementing the new initiatives
................................................................................................................................................5
Recommendation to Marks & Spencer regarding new initiatives to survive in New Normal6
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................6
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8

INTRODUCTION
Every business organization has to face some negative impact of external environment
factors and Covid19 is a major issue among them. Businesses had to suffer a lot in terms of
profitability , workforce management and customers' behaviour due to the pandemic. Many
businesses are able to cope up and compete with the pandemic by using digital transformation
and technology advancement. But still they need to bring more efficiency to the process to be
back to the new normal position (Maupong, Lebogang and Tabona, 2022). The following report
will discuss about the measures taken by Marks & Spencer to face the impact of Covid19. It is a
multinational public limited company in retail sector headquartered in UK and dealing in
clothing , home and food products. The report will cover the role of information technology on
its workforce management and its policies of talent acquisition and learning & development. It
will also cover the role of leaders in implementing the new initiatives and change management
process.
TASK
Using relevant theories and models, critically evaluate the role and impact of information and
communication technology on the management of workforces in organisations
When the automation is adopted in routine operations, it helps in bringing efficiency in
the organization and productivity in the work of employees. As use of technology provides the
opportunity to employees to work from home, it facilitates more productivity. To face the
covid19 pandemic, many companies adopted computerized systems to manage the workforce at
different locations. For avoiding physical interaction due to covid19, businesses enhanced the
use of email communication, conducted virtual meetings to discuss the operations of company.
The workforce management of Marks & Spencer had following technological impact :
 Marks & Spencer has introduced a new workforce management software to transform the
work scheduling. It has introduced an automated scheduling system that provides
convenience to its managers to execute weekly based solution. It will facilitate the staff
and members to focus on customer service for increasing efficiency in the business.
 Businesses should use the technology in providing training and development to the
workforce. As Marks & Spencer is a multinational organization, it has a very large
workforce across its stores in different countries. So, technology adoption will facilitate