CSR Strategies and Policies: A Study of Boots Company's Approach

This report provides an analysis of the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) measures implemented by Boots Company, a prominent pharmacy chain in the United Kingdom. The study examines Boots' approach to health and safety, emphasizing their commitment to protecting employees, customers, and visitors through robust safety measures, risk assessments, and a culture of safety. The report also delves into Boots' strategies for managing equity and diversity in the workplace, highlighting their commitment to creating an inclusive environment where all employees are treated fairly. The company's policies and practices, including the "Dignity at Work" policy and diversity and inclusion initiatives, are discussed in detail. The report further explores the strategic effects of these CSR measures, considering both internal and external factors that influence the company's reputation and performance. Overall, the report offers a comprehensive overview of Boots' CSR efforts and their impact on the organization and its stakeholders.

Running head: MANAGEMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES
Management of Human Resources
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author Note:

2
MANAGEMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES
Executive Summary
The following study has aimed to determine the different CSR measures of Boots Company
which is a pharmacy company headquartered in Nottingham district of United Kingdom. The
CSR measures and the different policies and programs undertaken by the management of the
organization have been provided in this particular study. The study undertakes a detailed analysis
of the approach of them management of the company towards the health and safety of the
workers as well as their equity and diversity. The detailed description of these elements helps the
study to be larger in scope and presents a much broader concept to the approach of the Company
towards CSR.

3
MANAGEMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES
Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................4
Boot’s Approach to Health and Safety............................................................................................4
Boot’s Approach to Managing equity and Diversity in the Workplace..........................................8
Strategic Effect and its effect on the Internal and External factors...............................................11
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................13
References......................................................................................................................................15

4
MANAGEMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES
Introduction
The following essay has studied the different CSR measures that are adopted by the
management of Boots, a well known pharmacy company of the United Kingdom. To be very
precise in nature the company is a pharmacy chain that has its branches in UK, Ireland, Norway
Thailand and many other nations of the globe. Headquartered in Nottingham in the UK, the
company employs more than 70,000 people in UK and Ireland (www.boots.com 2018). As
mentioned earlier the essay has been formulated to evaluate and determine the different types of
the approaches that are undertaken by Boots Limited to ensure the health and safety as well as
the equity and diversity in the workplace (Yang and Matz-Costa 2017). The study has
determined all the elements that relates to the different measures taken by the management of the
company to ensure safety and diversity of all the employees of the company and increase their
reputation.
Boot’s Approach to Health and Safety
The management of the mentioned company considers the health and safety of the
customers and the employees to be their topmost priority. The management considers this more
because they believe in the trust that is endowed on them by the customers, visitors as well as the
employees of their store (Dony and Smith 2017). The main strategy of the following business
organization is to thus constantly keep an update of the market and make the necessary
amendments in their business approach and business structure. The management constantly
changes them and fits into new roles to adapt to the changing demands and wants of the market
as well as the customers (Yang and Matz-Costa 2017). The following measures of the
management of the business are adopted by implementing some robust measures that helps to

5
MANAGEMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES
make the safety of the people more strong than ever. Some of the main safety measures followed
by the management of the mentioned pharmacist company are as follows;
 Protection of the colleagues, customers and visitors- The main task of the management
is to make sure that they maintain the health, security and safety of the employees. This is
done to provide the employees with a better workplace and ensure that they work with a
totally free mind (Singh 2018). On the other hand providing the customers and other
visitors with the assurance of a cent percent security helps them to create trust and mutual
understanding which in turn ensures profitability for the business organization.
 Principles of the Approach- The safety and security principles are maintained and
managed by the organization through the management of a number of different principles
and regulations that are formulated by them and are a must follow for the organization
(Shea et al. 2016). Some of the main characteristics of the policies and regulations are as
follows;
1. The office, stores and the production center must be equipped with firefighting devices
2. The employees must be trained to act smartly and efficiently during the times of crisis
3. The customers must be treated in a proper and calm manner, use of rough and
arrogant behavior must be avoided
4. There is a zero tolerance policy for the employees who attempt or commits any form of
arrogant and unwanted behavior towards the customers or any other employees as well
as the supervisors and the managers
5. The customers must be given the highest preference and the management must ensure
that the customers are provided with the perfect quality of products and services along
with expert advice on the best methods and best techniques of remedy

6
MANAGEMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES
 Importance of both safety systems and behaviors- It is unproductive in nature to expect
the high alertness of all the employees during the time they spend at the workplace. Thus
it is the task of the management to formulate a systematic task and work their way
through each area and process in the workplace that may be considered as harmful to the
staffs and the employees of the organization (Shea et al. 2016). The management of
Boots performs this as a result of the risk assessment which considers on how effectively
the risk is identified and how they are managed and mitigated by the organization
effectively and efficiently. On the other hand most of the different behavioral outbursts
results in accidental unsafe mentalities. The behaviors of the employees must be managed
and regulated by the organization to ensure the acceptance of the company to the
customers.
 Strengthening the culture of safety- The management of the mentioned pharmaceutical
company is legally obliged towards the providence of a safe and secure place for the
work of the individuals. It is also necessary for taking care of the employees who
implement these safety measures as well as the customers of the organization (Shea et al.
2016). On the induction of a new employee into any department of the organization
involves making the particular employee aware of the safety guidelines and the people
who are in charge of implementing the different safety measures in the company. Apart
from the health and safety measures the management also;
a. Takes responsibility for the reasonable care and health of the employees and the
staffs by insuring them or providing them with safe working environment

7
MANAGEMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES
b. The company also provides necessary safety measures to those persons who may be
affected by the actions of the company while implementing the particular health
and safety measures
c. ensure that the employees must co-operate with the management to make sure that
they are not vulnerable to any kind of risks
d. make sure that the employees or any people in the management do not interfere
and try to change the existing safety system on his own and must not misuse with
the equipments that are provided for health, safety and welfare
e. To ensure that the employees does not provide any wrong advice or provide any
wrong medicine to the organization
 Ensuring we learn from other investigations- According to leading news daily, the
management of Boots is under tremendous pressure due to different kinds of issues that
have recently rose up in the Workplace. However the earlier records of the mentioned
pharmacist company have been has shown other trends. The company rarely makes any
form of mistakes in dispersing the medicines. It is estimated that the company dispenses
and delivers around 220 million items every year which is both massive and is unmatched
by any other similar companies in UK. However there are allegations on the packaging of
the medicines in amateur hands. Apart from these there are also allegations against the
management of the mentioned company on employing much less number of staffs than
originally required (Ross 2018). Thus such kind of unethical practices are barriers to
ensuring safe and sound practices in the workplace and must be removed at the earliest to
increase their acceptance in the company.

8
MANAGEMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES
 To seek ways to perfect the approach to health and safety- The management of Boots
ensures the presence of a perfect strategy that meets the health and beauty care
expectations of the people. The company encourages the managers and supervisors to be
innovative and find new ways for ensuring the safety and security of the organization.
The management has also to make sure that a regular communication is in place which
helps the employees and the people to stay coordinated in nature (Ross 2018). This in
turn helps to increase the productivity of the company.
Boot’s Approach to Managing equity and Diversity in the Workplace
The term diversity refers to the exploration of the different social, cultural, economical
and political differences in a safe and positive nurturing environment. It refers to the
understanding of one another by surpassing the simple level of tolerance to ensure the true value
of the people and their differences. Each of the different individual’s in the organization brings
with him a diverse set of perspectives, work and life experiences as well as different religious
and cultural differences (Rice 2015). The power of diversity can be unleashed and the benefits
can be reaped when all the employees learn to recognize the differences and respect the value of
each of the individuals. Such a difference will help the organization to be one of the very best in
the business. On the other hand Inclusion is an organizational effort and the practices where in
each group or the individuals who have a completely different background are culturally and
socially accepted and welcomed and are treated equally. The following differences can be both
self evident like national origin, age, caste, race, religion, gender and many more as such. The
successful inclusion performed by the management of the organization brings positive results to
the organization as because the employees have the feeling that the organization provides them

9
MANAGEMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES
with the necessary importance that they deserve (Rice 2015). This helps them to improve their
performance and makes them more motivated towards the organization.
Both Diversity and inclusion are a sizeable challenge to any of the organizations. The
challenge is more to such organizations which are seen to be previously less diverse in nature
and have earlier failed to attain the necessary goals to make the organization one of the best in
business (Rice 2015). Therefore the management of the business enterprises tries to treat each
and every of the employees fairly to make sure that the talent in each of them is utilized to the
full extent by implementing the corporate policies in the business structure. This helps to
establish a supreme diversity in the business.
The management of Boots has formed a number of different teams that are always
engaged to perform the different Human Resource related activities that includes the likes of
recruiting, retaining, selecting, promoting and engaging in leadership roles to help the company
achieve the right set of goals. These teams are appointed irrespective of any special choices or
groups and are mainly appointed to promote diversity and create a friendly workplace for the
employees (Maznevski Schneider and Jonsen 2016). The uniqueness of the company is the
dominance of the women in the each and every rank. It is that most of the teams in the company
have a large number of women in them with numbers ranging from more than 50%. Thus this
particular strategy to recruit and appoint more and more women in the workplace is a boon for
the management as because they have been able to support and promote women empowerment in
their offices.
The management has also introduced the “Dignity at Work” policy ensures that the
organization remains within the line of legislation. The following policy is envisaged with the

10
MANAGEMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES
laws and regulations of United Kingdom and is dedicated to serve the common population of
United Kingdom who are the customers of the following pharmacy (Martin 2014). The company
also celebrates a diversity and inclusion day that makes it different from the others in the block.
The workshop day also helps the management of the enterprise to identify the topmost priorities
of the business by discussing with all the people who are concerned. This includes;
a. The introduction of a diverse e-learning package
b. The delivery of a work experience program that are traditionally hard to reach by the
company
c. The program also chalks out different types of career enabled programs for the
employees of the company that helps in the proper organization of the company.
The woman centric approach of the company is also highlighted in its recent appointment of
women in the IT networking team. According to the management of the organization the
organization appoint the women in the team to open the floodgates for the women to venture into
this particular sector as well as empower them (Martin 2014). The following strategy also aims
to reduce the gender inequality present in the cosmopolitan society. The company also carries
out different surveys to analyze and determine the impact that is made by the organization on
implementing the different types of equity and diversity rules of the company. The race for the
benchmarking of the progress is important for the success of the business as it helps the business
to identify its progress in terms of diversity and ensure a smooth and efficient workplace.
Therefore the agreement of the company to the particular point has shown;
 Understanding diversity and becoming more aware of the following as an area of the
opportunity

11
MANAGEMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES
 By thinking about diversity in the recruitment, development and talent and also by the
development of an effective communication.
Strategic Effect and its effect on the Internal and External factors
It is important for the management of all the different business organizations to exploit the
meaning of the existing market of the enterprise. The consideration of the industrial organization
and the resource based views in the literature of the strategic management (Martin 2014). The
successful human resources strategy complements the mission and goals of the company. This
factors that influences the different tactics or strategies of the human resource are not static in
nature. The management of the mentioned pharmacist of UK continuously monitors and keeps
regular vigil on the internal and external factors that have a clear impact on the strategies of the
organization. The internal and external factors of Boots consist of;
 Competition- The competition in the modern business industry is extremely high and
there is no place of slackness. Presence of both large and medium scaled companies in
United Kingdom has made life tougher for Boots. Some of the main competitors of Boots
are 3M Health Care Ltd., Allen and Hanburys Ltd., Abbott Laboratories Inc and many
more as such. On the other hand the company does not have to publish advertisement in
each case when the organization recruits candidates as because the candidates will visit
the website of the organization on their own accord and search for any such recruitment
drive(Madsen and Nielsen 2017). The Human resource of boots has a tough task in hand
as because they have to select and recruit the best and expert candidates to make sure
they have the competitive edge over their rivals in the market.

12
MANAGEMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES
 Compensation- The labor supply in boots drives the amount of compensation that it
offers to attract and retain the employees of the business. The amount of compensation is
generally less in markets where unemployment is high and a lot of candidates are
available for recruitment (Loeppke et al. 2015). The mentioned pharmacy company
applies this policy in oversaturated markets like Thailand. The HR management of the
business must continuously evaluate the compensation structure so that they stay
competitive and retain the best employees of the market (Hammer et al. 2015). The HR
must make sure to focus on the internal compensation structure and the demographics of
the region.
 Employee Relations- The different policies and procedures have a clear impact on the
Human Resource policies of the organization. The different legislative bodies have the
task cut out to maintain the organizational development. Ensuring a sound and safe policy
for the maintenance of the employee relations is utmost important for the business
enterprise. The policies and regulations of the organizations should be maintained in such
a way that it helps to create a sustainable and friendly workplace with the presence of a
diverse range of employees (Lay et al. 2017). The strategy of the organization thus has a
huge impact upon the business as because it helps in the growth of a proper trust and
relationship. Apart from this the HR manager must also monitor the employees and find
out whether anyone is esteemed to leave the organization or someone is bound to retire
and many more as such.
 Legislations- Legislations has a great deal of impact on all the HR activities of the
organization. The different laws and regulations of UK have to be followed by the
mentioned company (Harvey and Allard 2015). The maintenance of the different records,