FY021: Strengths & Weaknesses of HR & Financial Strategies - Body Shop

This report provides an analysis of The Body Shop's human resource and financial management strategies, evaluating their strengths and weaknesses and determining which contributes most significantly to the company's business success. The report covers the role of HR and finance within the company, including talent acquisition, training, fund management, and financial reporting. It includes a SWOT analysis identifying the company's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Financial reporting documents such as the profit and loss account, balance sheet, and cash flow statement are discussed. The report concludes that both HR and financial strategies are vital for the company's success, enabling effective resource management, market analysis, and goal achievement.

Introduction to Business Studies
FY021
Analyse the strengths and weaknesses of the HR and financial
management strategies within The Body Shop. Which of these
do you feel contributes most significantly to their business
success?
Name:
H number:
Bucks ID:
Due date:
Word count:
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Contents
Introduction ..........................................................................................................................................3
Human Resource Strategies...................................................................................................................4
Financial Management Strategies.........................................................................................................4
SWOT analysis .......................................................................................................................................5
Strengths...........................................................................................................................................5
Weaknesses.......................................................................................................................................5
Opportunities.....................................................................................................................................5
Threats...............................................................................................................................................5
Evaluation .............................................................................................................................................6
Conclusion.............................................................................................................................................7
Reference list ........................................................................................................................................8
Appendices ...........................................................................................................................................9
Appendix 1: Balance Sheet................................................................................................................9
Appendix 2: Profit and loss account ................................................................................................10
Appendix 3: Cash Flow Statement...................................................................................................11
Appendix 4: Any other relevant attachments..................................................................................12
Individual Poster ................................................................................................................................13
Group Presentation Slides...................................................................................................................14
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Introduction
A business is basically an entity in which an individual or group of people are
engaged in different commercial, professional and industrial activities to earn profit(Cagin
and Senvar,2022). The following report is based on The Body Shop company which was
established in 27 march 1976 and the head quarters of the company is situated in London
Bridge, UK. The company deals in skin care, perfume and beauty products. The following
report is going to cover human resource and financial management strategies and the
importance of the financial reporting this report also cover the SWOT analysis of the
respective company.
Role of HR and finance within the company:-
HR Function:- the HR of the company hire skilful and talented person according to the need
of the different department and make sure that they effectively understand the mission and
goals of the firm.
Finance Function:- this function meet the capital requirement of the company and ensures
that the fund which was allocated by them has been effectively utilized.
Financial management and reporting within the organisation
The financial management deals in managing the fund for the business and help the
business in making decision related to the investment. Financial reporting of the organisation
is basically the disclosure of financial information of the company for their different
stakeholders(Rialti and et. al., 2022). The information is related to the financial position
and performance of the firm in the market.
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Human Resource Strategies
The human resource division of the company is being considered as that area which
find and recruit the employees for the company and then provide training to them. This
department of the company analyze the organization as well as the external environment.
The strategies which are made by the employees of this department provide directions to
their human resource management activities.
The employees of the human resource department is being considered as those set
of people who build up the workforce for the administration and develop training program to
them. Different types of benefits program has been developed by the this department for
their workers(Sarker and Datta,2022). An important role has been played by the HR
strategies as this help the business in dealing with dynamic business environment. This
department of the company carry out the task with utmost productivity and also help in
resolving the issues and conflicts which have arise between the employees within the
workplace. The human resource strategies are basically the business plan which are made
by this department in order to manage the human capital with in the firm and aligned their
objective with business objectives. Appraisal, compensation and many more are also in the
hand of this department.
In context to The Body Shop, the human resource department of the company is
responsible for recruiting the talented employees with in the organization and provide
training to them in order to evolve their skill and knowledge. Different types of social media
platform like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and many more are used by the respective
company for recruiting the employees. As the success of the firm is totally depend on the
training of the employees. They also provide training to their new employees so that they
perform the the given task with full productivity. Moreover to this, they also evaluate the
performance of the employees, by measuring their performance they fulfill the responsibility
of compensation and benefits.
Financial Management Strategies
The financial management may be defined as the process of procuring the capital
for the firm and utilized these funds for the business in a very effective manner. By
implementing the different principles of management to company's financial asset effective
financial strategies has been made by this department.
The finance management is being considered as that ares of business which concern
with profitability, expenses, cash and credit of the business. They make the business plan
to make sure that all the department of the company work on the track or towards the
success of the company (Yorke,Sefcik,and Veeran-Colton,2022). For managing the
finance, company need VP or CFO, which help the firm in making long terms goals and also
help in investing the money which give highest rate of return. Different functions like
estimating the fund requirement, determining the capital structure, procurement of fund and
many more has been performed by this department. Along with this, this govern the
company for the monthly financial closes and also ensure them to meet auditor and the tax
requirements.
In context to The Body Shop, this department of the company is responsible for managing
the funds for the company and preparing the budget. This department of the company
reserves some fund for the uncertainties. If any emergency has been arises in front of the
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company then this emergency fund help them at that time. The financial plan which have
been made by this department for the payback of its debts is being considered as the most
important action. The financial strategies of the company help the company in evaluating
their financial statements like cash flow, balance sheet, income statements and many more.
So it is very important for the company to make the financial management strategies.
Explain that there are different types of documents used for financial reporting that are used
in companies such as the Body Shop
Profit and loss account
The profit and loss refers to the financial statement of a company that shows the revenue
and expenses for a specific year. These statements provide information about a company's
ability to generate profit(Hamid, Muzamil and Shah, 2022). It helps the company to
compare the profit of previous year with that of current year and to check whether profit is
increasing or decreasing. In context of body shop, profit and loss account is very important
to check its income and expenses and overall net profit and net loss of the company.
Balance sheet
A balance sheet is also a financial statement that shows the company's assets and liabilities.
Balance sheet shows what the company owes and owns. Balance sheet is helpful in
calculating many ratios like debt equity ratio,acid test ratio etc. It is helpful in checking where
the company stands, how much assets company have and how much loan the company has
taken. In reference to body shop it is very important for owner to understand and interpret
the balance sheet. In short balance sheet shows a quick overview where the company
standing.
Cash flow statement
Cash flow is a financial statement that shows the amount of cash inflows and outflows. It
also helps in measuring the company performance over a period of time. This statement
shows how well a company generates cash and how well it manage its cash position. The
cash flow allows the investor to understand how a company operations are running,where its
money is coming from and how money is spent(Jones,2022). On the other hand cash flow
allows the creditors to determine how cash is available to the company for operating
expenses and how well company pay its debts. In reference to body shop it is very essential
statement as it shows the inflow and outflow of cash.
SWOT ANALYSIS
Strengths
 Their presence have reached in 60 countries with well designed stores which attract
the customers through their ambience. And they have 2200+ stores across the globe.
 It is a reputed brand and is socially responsible which makes them stand out from the
competition. Their campaigns talk about animal cruelty which closely connected with
people who thinks the same,helping them to create a good brand image.
Weaknesses
 There is lack of control by the proprietors as the body shop manages its stores
through a franchise system.
 In the initial stages founders thought that customers would pay a few bucks more for
their natural product and that worked that time but as time progresses competitor
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arose with same market and at competitive prices. It becomes difficult for the body
shop to compete with price(Morales-Urrutia and et. al., 2022).
 The body shop has a great supply chain in the UK but when it comes to store outside
UK they needs to be more efficient.
Opportunities
 Customers are hesitating to use cosmetics products because of chemical ingredient
in it. They need to work in that area and provide natural products.
 The body shop stores are crowded so they need to build more channels to sell their
product. They need to work on selling online through their website and apps
providing customers with the best experience.
Threats
 People are tending towards natural products and lessening their use of cosmetic
products. This tend might be a threat for the company.
 The company gathers the raw material across the globe so if there is some
disturbance in the producing company or in supply chain it may disturb the
manufacturing (Popescu,2022) .
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Evaluation
From the above discussion it has been evaluated that, in the success of the an
organization different types of strategies has been made by the department. For smooth
functioning of the business a significant role has been played by the human resource and
financial resource strategies. With the help of these strategies they can achieve all the set
objective of the company in a very effective manner. An important role has been played by
the marketing department of the company as they promote the goods and services of the
company in the market and spread the brand message of the company. The overall plan
behind developing these marketing strategies is to reach to their potential customers. It is
also very important for the company to perform their all business functions with corporate
social responsibility. So it evaluated that the success of the firm is totally depend on these
department.
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Conclusion
From the above report it has been concluded that the HR and finance depart of the
company is very important. The human resource department of the company fulfil the human
capital requirement of the company and financial management department help the
company in knowing their cash in flow and outflow. The strategies which have been made by
these department maximise the productivity of the company and help them in knowing their
position in the market. The respective company should have to adopt these strategies and
effectively analyse the market. By doing this they can set their goals and achieve them in a
very effective manner.
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Reference list
Cagin, N.G. and Senvar, O., 2022. Safety Management System and Business Continuity Planning
Considering COVID-19. In Handbook of Research on Key Dimensions of Occupational
Safety and Health Protection Management (pp. 92-121). IGI Global.
Sarker, I. and Datta, B., 2022. Re-designing the pension business processes for achieving technology-
driven reforms through blockchain adoption: A proposed architecture. Technological
Forecasting and Social Change, 174, p.121059.
Yorke, J., Sefcik, L. and Veeran-Colton, T., 2022. Contract cheating and blackmail: a risky
business?. Studies in higher education, 47(1), pp.53-66.
Hamid, Z., Muzamil, M. and Shah, S.A., 2022. Strategic human resource management. In Research
Anthology on Human Resource Practices for the Modern Workforce (pp. 1-16). IGI Global.
Jones, I., 2022. Research methods for sports studies. Routledge.
Morales-Urrutia, D. and et. al., 2022. Transfer of Knowledge and Technology to Ecuador’s Business
Network. In Developments and Advances in Defense and Security (pp. 479-487). Springer,
Singapore.
Popescu, C.R.G., 2022. Mindfulness at Work, a Sound Business Investment: Focusing on the
Employee Well-Being While Increasing Creativity and Innovation. In Handbook of
Research on Changing Dynamics in Responsible and Sustainable Business in the Post-
COVID-19 Era (pp. 1-34). IGI Global.
Rialti, R. and et. al., 2022. Digital technologies, sustainable open innovation and shared value
creation: evidence from an Italian agritech business. British Food Journal.
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Appendices
Appendix 1: Balance Sheet
Use this link for all three reports – take a screenshot and inset here as pictures
THE BODY SHOP INTERNATIONAL LIMITED filing history - Find and update company
information - GOV.UK (company-information.service.gov.uk)
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Appendix 2: Profit and loss account
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Appendix 3: Cash Flow Statement
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