Human Resource Management Strategies of ZARA

This report analyses the Human Resource Management strategies of ZARA including changes in HR strategies, job design strategies, impact of environmental factors, HR model, hiring and firing strategies.

HUMAN RESOURCE
MANAGEMENT

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................3
Examining the changes in HR strategies by the firm..................................................................3
Analysing the job design strategies of the firm...........................................................................4
Analysing the impact of environmental factors on culture and HR plan of the firm..................5
Using a HR model to state how value was created by the firm...................................................6
Analysing what is being practised by the firm by using Storey’s 27 points of difference
between HRM and personnel management.................................................................................7
Stating the hiring and firing strategies of the firm.......................................................................9
Using corporate examples of firms using good HR practices and literature to justify our stand
...................................................................................................................................................10
Recommendations to employers regarding HRM practices to ensure that the organisational
performance is high...................................................................................................................10
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................11
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................13

INTRODUCTION
This report is based on ZARA, which is an apparel retail company founded in 1957 in Spain.
The company focuses on fast fashion products like clothing, shoes, perfumes, swimwear,
accessories, etc. The brand has around 2000 stores across the world. In this report, various
strategies of the firm will be examined. The changes in several HR strategies by the firm will
be analysed using the concepts of SHRM. Then, the job design strategy used by the firm will
be analysed. Further, an analysis of the environmental factors and their impacts on the culture
and HR plan of the firm will be conducted. The report will then outline a HR model and its use
in value creation in the firm. Then an identification of what is being used by the company in
terms of HRM and Personnel Management will be done using the storey’s 27 points of
difference between both these concepts. The hiring strategies and the firing strategies of the
firm will also be outlines. Some corporate examples that use good HR practices will be
highlighted in the report. Lastly, some recommendations and suggestions of HRM practices
will be given to ensure high performance of the organisation.
MAIN BODY
Examining the changes in HR strategies by the firm
Human Resource Strategies are the plans that businesses make to manage its workforce and
human capital to work in alignment with the business activities and also the workforce
practices that should be used or improved to achieve outcomes that will help the organisation
achieve its business goals and objectives(HR strategies, 2022). SHRM is the alignment of the
workforce and its activities with the strategic business goals to encourage innovation,
productivity, satisfaction, efficiency(Lopez-Cabrales and Valle-Cabrera, 2020). The main
Human Resource strategies are generally related to the assessing the current capacity of the
HR, forecasting of human resource demand and requirements, effective policies for purposeful
hiring and talent acquisition, employee retention by providing them with competitive salaries,
benefits and bonuses, ensuring frequent and transparent communication within the
organisation, fulfilling social responsibilities, etc. Forecasting the future requirements of HR is
necessary to timely recruit the employees as and when the need arises or even beforehand to

avoid shortage of manpower that could disrupt the company’s operations. Strategies related to
effective recruitment are necessary to ensure that the employees recruited are suitable for the
job and strategies related to job advertisements, designing of job descriptions, interviews, etc.
are a part of recruitment strategy(Strategic HRM, 2022). Also, strategies for effective
orientation and onboarding experience of the employees help to avoid dissatisfaction among
the new employees. Strategies related to the competitive salaries and benefits of the employees
help to keep the employees satisfied so they remain in the company and not shift to other
competitor companies. HR also has strategies to ensure effective communication in the
organisation to ensure that all the necessary information and decisions are conveyed to the
employees(Karman, 2020). The strategies of HR have undergone drastic changes in the last
few years due to the new generation of workers and technological advancements, this lead to
the workplace being more individualised and employee-focused. The HR strategies are moving
towards making the employees feel more valued in the organisation and also to fulfil the
company’s CSR. Thus, the strategies are on the path of Sustainable HRM that is beneficial in
the long run for the company, the employees as well as the society and environment(ZARA’s
strategies, 2022).
Analysing the job design strategies of the firm
Job design is the process of outlining all the aspects of a job including all the roles, tasks,
responsibilities and duties that an employee has to fulfil along with the systems, methods and
procedures to be undertaken and the qualifications required in an employee to take on the job
profile. The needs and desires of the employees should be analysed along with the needs of the
organisation to develop an effective job design strategy(Hamidi, 2020). A single strategy may
not always be effective in various situations, hence, there are a set of strategies adopted by the
company which can be adjusted according to the requirement of the situation. Some of these
strategies are – Job enrichment that focuses on creating opportunities for employees to improve
their satisfaction with their current jobs. Job enrichment is linked to all other job strategies of
the company as the main aim of the company is to keep the employees satisfied and motivated
for them to perform efficiently and in the best interests of the company(Job enrichment, 2022).
Another strategy is Job enlargement that focuses on adding more responsibilities to the
employee’s existing job role with a motive for employees to learn new skills and perform more
tasks related to their existing jobs which keeps them engaged longer(Job enlargement, 2022).

Job simplification is yet another strategy that the company might follow whenever needed.
This strategy is to reduce the responsibilities and tasks from the job role to make it more clear
and specific so that employees can become more focused and productive towards the particular
tasks if in case they were overburdened earlier. Another one is Job rotation where the
employees are moved to different jobs within the organisation to enable them to develop new
skills and new roles that help them in their career advancement(Hochdörffer, Hedler and
Lanza, 2018). Job loading is a strategy that focuses on adding decision-making authority to the
employee’s current job role. The strategy or combination of strategies adopted by the firm
should be in accordance with the aim of motivating and satisfying the employees with the job
that are in alignment with the variety of skills of the employees, the identity and significance of
the tasks, etc.
Analysing the impact of environmental factors on culture and HR plan of the firm
There are various factors that affect the culture of the organisation and the HR plans. The
environment is basically classified into two categories- internal environment which is within
the organisation and external environment which is outside the organisation. The internal
policies of the organisation in terms of promotions, employee relations, etc. also impact the
culture and plans of HR(Tur-Porcar, Roig-Tierno and Llorca Mestre, 2018). There are several
factors in the external environment that also affects the internal environment including the
strategies, culture, plans, etc. of the company. Some of these factors and their affects are –
 Technological advancement and innovation – Due to the rapid technological changes
and advancement, the need for technical personnel has been increasing in the
organisations which leads to changes in the HR plans as they need to acquire more
technically skilled employees to meet the changing job requirements(Kaur and Kochar,
2018).
 Changing demand for employees – The innovations and new technology change the
employee requirements and demands of the organisations as they need more employees
with new skills and knowledge and that can work and adapt to the changing situations
to cope with the new changes.

 Economic Factors – The external factors have direct impact on the financial health of
the firm. Favourable economic conditions improve the profitability of the company in
several ways(Environmental factors affecting HR plan, 2022).
 Labour Market and Supply – The labour supply and demand are not always necessarily
same and thus impact all the related aspects and activities. Thus impact all the related
aspects and activities, majorly the compensation as when demand of qualified
candidates exceeds supply, the amount of compensation offered to them has to be
higher for them to join the organisation as many other competitors might also be trying
to recruit them(Raimo and et.al., 2021). Hence, the compensation and recruitment plans
of the HR might have to be changed to offer competitive wages to the candidates for
attracting them to their organisation.
 Legislation and legal factors – There are various laws and legislations both federal and
state that control the activities of the organisation and also their human resource(Wang
and et.al., 2021). These also have direct impact on the organisation as a slight change in
these also has to be implemented in the HR plans and activities.
Using a HR model to state how value was created by the firm
HR model or HR framework states the division of responsibilities between the employees in
Human resource and the HR units. It also describes the important tasks or HR are completed
and delivered and will also state who will have the accountability for the completion or
delivery of the task. HR model also defines the strategies and schemes of the organisation that
are developed to coordinate and monitor all the functions of the business regarding human
capital(Dong and Zhu, 2021). Companies create HR models to manage their workforce and
human resource is the most effective and efficient ways with a motive to achieve the
organisation’s goals and objectives. One of the most popular HR model is the 5P’s model that
was developed by Randall S. Schuler in 1992. This model focuses on the five constitutional
aspects which are purpose, principles, people, processes and performance(Shahi and Neloy,
2020). This model states that balancing and aligning these five Ps will help the company
achieve its objectives and move towards success.
This framework defines the 5Ps as –
 Purpose – which is the mission, primary objective and vision of the organisation

 Principles – which are the operational protocols that are set to achieve the purpose
 Processes – these are the methods of operation, systems and architecture of the
organisation
 People – these are the key HR resources that perform the tasks in accordance with the
set principles and processes(5P’s of HRM, 2022)
 Performance – this is the result that has been achieved and can be measured using the
appropriate standards.
This model focuses on progress and long term continuity of the business. According to this
model, the performance of the organisation is directly dependent on its employees’
performance who are engaged in processes and are working towards the purpose of the
organisation in accordance with its principles(5P’s model, 2022). This model adds value to the
organisation as strategy helps the system, which then affects behaviour of the staff and this
behaviour in turn triggers their performance. Hence, the better the performance of the staff, the
better is the productivity of the overall organisation which adds more value to the firm.
Analysing what is being practised by the firm by using Storey’s 27 points of difference
between HRM and personnel management.
Personnel management and HRM are sometimes used interchangeably, but there are many
differences between both. Personnel management is focused on the workforce in terms of
hiring, training, arranging for the compensation of the organisation’s employees while HRM is
basically resource centered and a distinctive approach for management of employees of the
organisation(Storey’s 27 points of difference, 2022). Personnel management is an operational
function while HRM is more of a strategic function that focuses more on gaining of sustained
competitive advantage by the organisation.
The 27 points of difference between HRM and personnel management are –

According to the points of differences stated above, it can be concluded that ZARA practices
the approach of Human Resource Management as it does not get bound with the contract and
tries to push their and its employees’ performance to maximum capacity. The brand is also
focused on customers and their satisfaction and provides integrated initiatives for their
decisions. The decisions taken in the company are faster as it is a fast fashion brand and thus
taking quick decisions is an integral part of the brand’s success. The management follows

transformational leadership to keep the employees motivated and satisfied and also ensure their
maximum efficiency(Storey’s 27 points of difference between HRM and personnel
management, 2022). The communication in the organisation is also direct and open with
managers at general or business level. The company also ensures that the employees give their
best performance by providing performance related compensations. For such a fast fashion
brand where many aspects of clothing and fashion are to be taken care of along with
management of their business and operations, teamwork is very necessary. The company has a
diverse workforce as it operates in several different parts of the world and hence has a variety
of strategies for culture, personnel and structure of the organisation.
Stating the hiring and firing strategies of the firm.
The company follows a hiring strategy or recruitment process which has the following steps-
 Identifying the Job requirements – Analysing of the job roll which involves
identifying the duties and responsibilities of the employees that need to be fulfilled and
the qualifications that the candidates must possess to be recruited for the specific job
role(Hiring strategies of ZARA, 2022).
 Designing Job Description and Person Specification – After analysing the
requirements of the job role, a proper Job Description is designed by Zara that states all
the roles, responsibilities and duties related to the job role and a Person Specification
that states all the qualifications and skills needed in the candidates(Bhalla, 2019).
 Advertising the Job vacancy – Zara creates job advertisements that are appealing to
the candidates so that they get more number of employees and have options to choose
from.
 Shortlist Candidates – Zara receives applications and resume of the interested
candidates and then their applications are sorted and their resumes are analysed to
evaluate the candidates and the potential ones are shortlisted.
 Conducting Interviews – The shortlisted candidates are interviewed to identify the
suitable candidates for the job role. Then the best suited among them is finalised.
 Offering jobs to potential candidates – The best candidate or candidates selected
during the interview are then offered jobs through offer letters.

The company’s firing strategy is designed in a way so that it does not leave negativity or
frustration in the employees. The company ensures open communication with the employee
where the necessary concerns are addressed(Firing strategies, 2022). The organisation always
avoids the element of surprise and enough time is given to the employee to gather his
belongings and say good bye to their colleagues. Zara also ensures that they do not humiliate
the employees and keep it respectful. Open communication and transparency is very crucial to
ensure that the employee who is fired does not have frustration and negative feelings towards
the employer or the company(Wierckx, 2021). All the essential points are covered by keeping
them specific and to the point. The company makes sure to follow all the rules and regulations
of the firing process.
Using corporate examples of firms using good HR practices and literature to justify our stand.
Some of the examples of companies that have good HR practices are –
 The Integer Group – The HR profession of the Integer Group states that “happy
employees keep clients happy”. This shows that the company tries to keep its
employees calm, focused and satisfied by providing them with fun outings, awards and
ample time off. Frequent group meeting and discussion are held to facilitate employees
to share their ideas(Examples of firms with good HR practices, 2022).
 FedEx Corporation – The company believes that the reason behind its success is the
efficient performance of the employees. The company also discovered that the company
grows and the employees produce good when they are treated well. Surveys are
conducted to track employee satisfaction and the employees meet the management to
address problems found during these surveys and decipher the solutions to these
problems(Boon, Den Hartog and Lepak 2019).
These examples show that all the successful companies believe that keeping their employees
satisfied and motivated is the key to the company’s growth and success and that the company
can only achieve its goals when it has efficient employees.

Recommendations to employers regarding HRM practices to ensure that the organisational
performance is high
The company has to ensure that the manpower or human resource of the organisation is well
maintained to ensure smooth functioning and success of the organisation(Recommendations for
best HR practices, 2022). If the human resource of the organisation is not efficient, the
performance and productivity of the organisation will ultimately decline. Some of the most
effective HRM practices that an organisation can adopt to ensure that its employees are
satisfied and motivated to perform their best in order to achieve the organisational goals and
improve the overall performance of the organisation are –
 Selective hiring - To ensure that the performance of the organisation is high, the
employer must ensure that they employees being hired are right and efficient for the
organisation and have the required skills and qualifications that are necessary for the
specific job role(Kumari and Dubey, 2018).
 Fair compensation and benefits- the employer should provide fair compensation to the
employees based on their job roles, skills and performance to keep them satisfied and
benefits should also be given to the employees with good performance to keep them
motivated(Easa and El Orra, 2020).
 Trainings and staff development – The employer should provide timely and frequent
training to the employees so that all the required skills in them can be developed. This
helps to ensure that the employees have all the relevant skills necessary to perform
effectively.
 Performance management – The organisation should also manage and evaluate the
performance of its employees to know their efficiency and manage the deviations in
case someone does not perform up to the mark(Tej and et.al., 2021).
 Effective communication – The communication in the organisation should be open and
clear so that the necessary information is easily accessible to everyone and the
decisions are conveyed to everyone on time.
CONCLUSION
The report made in context with ZARA highlighted the various strategies and the changes
made in these strategies in relation to the concepts of SHRM. It also outlined the job design

strategies like job enrichment, job rotation, job enhancement, etc. used by the firm. The report
then examined the various environmental factors and the affects they have on the culture and
HR plan of ZARA. Then, the 5P’s model was evaluated to examine how a firm can create
value using HR models. Storey’s 27 points of difference between HRM and Personnel
Management will be use to analyse what the company practices. Further, the strategies used by
the firm for hiring or recruiting and firing its employees will be highlighted. Then, some
examples of firms that use good HR practices were given to justify the report’s stand. At last,
few recommendations for effective HR practices like performance management, fair wages and
benefits, etc. that can be used to improve the performance of the organisation were given.

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