Employability Skills Assessment and M&S Report Analysis

This report examines employability skills within the context of Marks & Spencer (M&S). It begins by defining employability skills and their importance, followed by an analysis of the roles and responsibilities of a front office assistant at M&S, including performance objectives and methods for assessment. The report then discusses strategies for improving employee performance, including training programs and motivational approaches like Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Furthermore, it presents job descriptions and specifications for key positions at M&S, such as marketing manager and sales executive. The report also addresses a work-based problem related to employee turnover in the sales department and proposes solutions, including staff recruitment, training, and time management strategies. Finally, it explores team roles and problem-solving approaches within M&S, providing a comprehensive overview of employability skills in a retail environment.

Employability Skills

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................2
1.1................................................................................................................................................2
1.2................................................................................................................................................2
1.3................................................................................................................................................3
1.4................................................................................................................................................3
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................4
2.1................................................................................................................................................5
2.2................................................................................................................................................6
2.3................................................................................................................................................6
3.1................................................................................................................................................6
3.2................................................................................................................................................7
3.3................................................................................................................................................7
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................7
4.1................................................................................................................................................7
4.2................................................................................................................................................8
4.3................................................................................................................................................8
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10

INTRODUCTION
Employability skills are generally termed as the soft proficiencies that individuals need to
have to compete with others at their workplace and perform their job in the most effectual way.
If skills like well knowledge of technology, effective communication, fast learning ability,
planning and organising, problem solving and teamwork would be there in an employee, to
perform with efficiency will become easy for them and set targets of company will be achieved
in the pre-determined manner (Lowden and et.al., 2011). In the present report, Marks and
Spencer (M&S) has been chosen in which I am currently working as a front office assistant.
Here, my responsibilities and performance will be determined. Along with that, there will be
discussion on development of interpersonal and transferrable skills of employees. Also,
dynamics of working with others along with strategies for problem solving will be developed
with respect to Marks and Spencer.
M&S is a British multinational retailer that is having headquartering in the city of
Westminster, London, UK. Company is dealing in selling of clothes, home products and luxury
food items. Michael Marks and Thomas Spencer in Leeds were the people who found this firm in
1884 and started their business with selling branded goods like Kellogg’s Corn Flakes. At
present, M&S is having 852 stores across United Kingdom itself. However, at international level
also, company is having its several stores like in Turkey, India, Greece, etc. Presently, company
is earning its maximum profits through selling food products and reasonable revenues are gained
through the clothing segment (Marks and Spencer, 2016). However, for a particular period of
time, business of this organisation went through crisis. But, since 2007, company is again
growing at a rapid rate and has become one of the leading retail firms in the UK market.
Marks and Spencer gives due emphasis on its employees and thus, various training and
development sessions have been organised by the firm to keep their skills, abilities and
knowledge enhanced as well as updated. Through this way, company is keeping its employees
happy, motivated and satisfied enough that helps in retaining them in the long run. Thus, M&S is
gaining the competitive advantage over others through taking benefit of the talent and skills of its
employees. Apart from that, goodwill and brand image of firm gets improved in the market
through satisfied workforce (Wilton, 2011). At present, M&S is planning to open a new flagship
stores for which different issues, solutions of the same along with strategies will be developed
and discussed in the report.
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TASK 1
1.1
Front office assistant needs to play different roles and responsibilities in order to fulfil the
goals assigned to them. Some of the responsibilities and performance objectives of front office
assistant in M&S are stated as below:
 Greeting guests – It is the responsibility of front office assistant only to greet guests in
a pleasant manner at the time of their arrival at the showroom. It makes them feel
valued and thus, they would like to repeat their visits again.
 Resolving guest’s issues – Also, if any customer of Marks and Spencer would have any
query or issue related with the business, front office assistant if the person who has to
resolve the same so as to keep them satisfied and retain them in the long run
(Wickramasinghe and Perera, 2010).
 Coordinating with the sales and marketing team – Apart from that, it is an important
responsibility being at the position of front office assistant that activities of sales and
marketing team will be coordinated. Thus, his role is to coordinate the efforts of
marketing and sales team so that the pre-determined targets can be effectually achieved.
 Promoting goodwill by being courteous – At the time of greeting customers, to be
courteous is essential as it impresses the clients that ultimately lead the firm to have
strong goodwill in the market (Rosenberg, Heimler and Morote, 2012).
Furthermore, front office assistant also has some specific performance objectives that he
needs to attain with a set timeframe. With respect to M&S, these are stated as below:
 To provide efficient trafficking by 80%.
 To improve the productivity by 30% till the year 2017 in M&S.
 To maintain office morale by keeping employees satisfied by 60%.
1.2
For attaining the performance objectives, to identify that whether all assigned roles and
set targets have been achieved in the pre-determined manner or not is important front office
assistant. Thus, for ensuring customers are greeted in a well manner, he took feedback from them
and as per the responses gained, corrective measures were taken. Through this, it has been
known that customers are satisfied with the services gained from front office department of
Marks and Spencer. Apart from that, it has also been known that customers are happy with
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getting their issues resolved on time related to the products and services of firm. By conducting
survey in marketing and sales team with using the tool of questionnaire, it has been assessed by
front office assistant that both the departments are working in a coordinated manner and attaining
their respective set targets in the pre-determined manner (Stoner and Milner, 2010). However, it
was also found that there are some members of both the teams who are de-motivated due to
stress and workload. So, some effective measures needed to be taken for motivating them.
1.3
In Marks and Spencer, it has been found from the feedback that complete staff of front
office department is not performing in an effectual manner. There are some members who are
not rendering superior services to the customers which is making them dis-satisfied and thus,
they are switching over to other competitor firms (Baker and Henson, 2010). This is the reason,
it becomes the responsibility of front office manager to arrange training sessions based on IT
(information technology) by calling some professionals in which employees will be trained
enough to deal with the customers in such a way that they would become satisfied and happy
with the services offered through digital techniques. It will help M&S to retain its existing
customers and attract the new ones through social media marketing. Thus, training would prove
to be beneficial for both; employees as well as the customers (Saunders and Zuzel, 2010). It is so
because; firm will have efficient employees and customers will gain high quality services for
what they are paying to the firm.
1.4
Quality of performance of employees in Marks and Spencer can be improved through
various ways. There are some theories and approaches given by different authors so as to
motivate the employees of organisation. With respect to Marks and Spencer, Maslow’s hierarchy
of needs theory would prove to be the best as through this the level to which employees are lying
in terms of their needs can be easily identified. As per this approach, at first, employees need
their basic requirements to be fulfilled like food, shelter, clothes, etc. After that, there comes
their safety needs in which they desire to have security in terms of job (De Guzman and Choi,
2013). After fulfilment of the same, workforce requires social needs to get satisfied which states
to having friends, family, group and healthy relations with superiors, colleagues and peers at the
workplace. Then comes the esteem needs in which an employee expects to have high status,
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promotion in job, appreciation, etc. Last but not the least; when all needs get fulfilled, employee
needs self-actualisation which means he just want respect and love from others to live a
satisfactory life. Thus, in order to motivate the workforce, it is important for Marks and Spencer
to assess the level of needs to which an employee falls so as to satisfy the same (Zaharim and
et.al., 2010). It will help in making the workforce motivated and willing to work that will
increase the productivity of business.
TASK 2
For the opening of new flagship store of Marks and Spencer, new staff will be required
among which job description and person specification of two positions, that is, one from
management level and other from staff level, are stated as below:
Job Description of Marketing Manager
Organisation Name: Marks and Spencer
Job designation: Marketing manager
Location: London
Reporting to: Head of department
Responsibilities:
 Researching and reporting on external opportunities
 Developing the marketing strategy and plan
 Understanding current and potential customers
 Making customer focused decisions, etc.
Job Specification
Educational Qualifications: Post Graduation in Marketing (MBA in Marketing)
Employment terms and conditions:
 Probation period of 3 months
 6 days a week of working
 Salary will be based on negotiation
 Work experience: Minimum 3 years
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Job Description of sales executive
Organisation Name: Marks and Spencer
Job designation: Sales executive
Location: London
Reporting to: Sales Manager
Responsibilities:
 Building relationship
 Researching the market and related products
 Negotiating terms of an agreement and closing sales
 Attending team meetings and sharing best experience with colleagues
Job Specification
Educational Qualifications: Minimum degree of graduation is required
Employment terms and conditions:
 4 months of probation period
 6 days of working
 250-300 pounds.
 Work experience: No work experience is required
2.1
Marks and Spencer is currently facing a work-based problem, that is, increased rate of
employee turnover in sales department due to high workload in terms of given targets to them.
Sales team of the firm is in stress due to given targets which they are unable to achieve within
specified time period. Thus, in order to resolve this issue, it is important to recruit more number
of staff in the sales department with required skills so that work of existing employees can be
delegated in such a way that every member of the team can attain set targets to him ( Benson,
Morgan and Filippaios, 2014). Also, training sessions would prove to be effective based on time-
management strategies so that employees can manage their time by prioritising their work. For
these training sessions, professional can be called who would make employees understand the
concepts in a more clear way.
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2.2
In every firm, there are three levels of management and thus in M&S as well. These
levels of management are strategic (higher), tactical (middle) and operational (lower). At every
stage, communication takes place in a different manner. At higher level, formal communication
is mainly done in M&S through the way of meetings, conferences, seminars, e-mails, etc. Major
task of this level of management is to formulate the policies and plans for future prospects. At
middle level, informal communication is mainly done in between the departments through using
the ways like group discussion on some specific topic. Along with that, at lower level also,
informal communication is used in Marks and Spencer (Belt, Drake and Chapman, 2010). Here,
superiors are needed to make their workers understand the way to perform their tasks for which
generally one to one interaction takes place.
2.3
Marks and Spencer can use several effective time management strategies to make staff
understand the way to manage their work and attain targets within specified timeframe. As sales
staff of M&S is facing the issue of delay in completion of tasks, it can use scheduling method in
which proper list of tasks is framed that have to be completed within specific time. Then,
prioritisation can be done, that is, giving numbering to the tasks to be accomplished first as per
their importance (Time Management Strategies, 2014). With the help of these, chances of chaos
and confusion will be reduced to a high extent as well as targets will be achieved on time.
3.1
In Marks and Spencer, in a team, there are different roles of team members that they play
to together achieve the shared goals. First person in the team is resource investigator who finds
ideas to bring back to the team and he is explores opportunities and develops contacts. Other
members is the team worker who help his team by using versatility and take initiative to
complete task on the behalf of others. One member in the team is co-ordinator who focus on
team’s objective and delegate the work among all in an appropriate manner (Merchant, 2014).
Plant is that team member who is highly creative and efficient enough to solve the problems in
the most unconventional way. Monitor is that individual in the team who provides a logical eye
and make impartial judgements. Along with that, there is specialist who brings in-depth
knowledge of a key area and helps other members to understand the same for attaining the
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common set goal. Shaper provides necessary drive to ensure that team will keep moving. Apart
from that, implementer is also there who need to plan a workable strategy and implement it in the
most efficient manner (Ju, Zhang and Pacha, 2011). However, last person in the team of M&S is
completer finisher who polishes and scrutinises the work to assess errors and gain highest
standards of quality control.
3.2
In Marks and Spencer, team dynamics play a significant role as being in the retail
industry, if teams would not perform effectually, attaining sales target will not be possible for the
firm. For this purpose, high coordination is required that will be helpful in increasing the
productivity and ultimately, the profits of company. Apart from that, gaining trust and loyalty of
employees is important for the success of business in the long run. Also, it is essential that team
members would trust each other and attain the objective of team in an effectual manner
(Maxwell and et.al., 2010). It will lead to create a positive and healthy working environment at
the workplace and thus, Marks and Spencer will be able to attain its targets in the desired
manner.
3.3
To achieve the team goals and complete tasks in Marks and Spencer, there are some
alternative ways as well. First and foremost, making the assigned roles clear in the minds of staff
would prove to be effective. It will help in decreasing the chances of chaos, confusion and
conflicts that may occur due to misunderstanding in between staff members. Thus, issue of non-
attainment of tasks on time and delay in work will be reduced to a high extent. On the other
hand, hiring experts and specialists will also help in attaining the set objectives of M&S. These
people through their specialised skills will help in achieving the set targets at a fast pace and in
an effectual manner at low cost (Andrews and Russell, 2012). Last but not the least; training and
development sessions will be effective to enhance the existing skills, abilities and knowledge of
employees which would support the staff to work effectually and attain the pre-determined goals
within set timeframe.
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TASK 3
4.1
Marks and Spencer is facing the issue of less manpower for its new flagship store. Thus,
company is required to hire more employees who can run the activities of this store. Apart from
that, M&S is also going to start their online business in the future for which it would need staff
as well. Thus, firm can conduct aptitude and psychological tests to check the IQ of candidates.
After that, personal interviews can be taken on the basis of which candidates as per their
qualification, skills and experience will be selected for new flagship store. In addition to this, for
recruiting staff from online business, company can give applications on their website and invite
people for vacant positions (Jones, 2013). By getting CVs of people, M&S can call for the
interview to those who will be suited with requirements of the respective positions. On the basis
of last round of personal interview, people can be finally selected for the online business.
4.2
To run online business, an appropriate strategy will be required as without the same,
gaining positive results and making it successful will not be possible for Marks and Spencer.
This is the reason; after start-up of online business, there are chances that the website would be
hacked (Lowden and et.al., 2011). It may incur huge losses for the organisation as through that,
confidential data of company will be leaked. So, to protect itself from the people who can take
undue advantage from the same, it is important for M&S to adopt strict security measures. For
this purpose, rational decision making would prove to be highly effective for which IT experts
will be required (Wilton, 2011). Therefore, firm will has to hire these people to make the system
well secured. Apart from that, making change in the technology is also an effective way by
which this issue can be resolved and confidentiality of company’s data will be maintained.
4.3
If the above suggested strategy will be implemented in Marks and Spencer, there will be
a huge impact of the same on business as chances of failure of system will be reduced to a high
extent and firm will smoothly run their online business. Thus, through highly secured online
marketing system, company can earn higher profits with gaining a competitive edge over others
(Wickramasinghe and Perera, 2010). Through successful online business, M&S will gain a large
customer base as well as its goodwill in market will be increased. In addition to this, time of firm
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will be saved that earlier spent on dealing with customers face to face as well as higher
productivity at less cost will be gained. However, some limitations of the strategy are also there
like without experts, this system cannot be executed and if it would stop for a while, huge losses
will be there in business (Rosenberg, Heimler and Morote, 2012). Overall, it can be said that the
suggested strategy is having both positive as well as negative impacts on the business of Marks
and Spencer.
CONCLUSION
From the above report, it can be articulated that employability skills play a vital role in
justifying the employment of an individual. In today’s era, if an employee desires to perform
with higher efficiency and wants to beat the competition with others, it is important for him to be
well skilled, able and knowledgeable. Thus, it can be said, to perform in an effectual manner and
attain the set organisational goals, to have employability skills is important for an individual.
Apart from that, report has shown that to open a new flagship store, Marks and Spencer is
required to employ new staff for which effective communication and different time management
strategies are required by the firm to keep in consideration for gaining successful results. Last but
not the least; it has been assessed that with the use of effective training sessions, requirements of
new staff can be solved in an effectual manner.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Andrews, G. and Russell, M., 2012. Employability skills development: strategy, evaluation and
impact. Higher Education, Skills and Work-Based Learning. 2(1). pp.33-44.
Baker, G. and Henson, D., 2010. Promoting employability skills development in a research-
intensive university. Education+ Training. 52(1). pp.62-75.
Belt, V., Drake, P. and Chapman, K., 2010. Employability skills: A research and policy
briefing. London, UK Commission for Employment and Skills.
Benson, V., Morgan, S. and Filippaios, F., 2014. Social career management: Social media and
employability skills gap. Computers in Human Behavior. 30. pp.519-525.
De Guzman, A. B. and Choi, K. O., 2013. The relations of employability skills to career
adaptability among technical school students. Journal of Vocational Behavior. 82(3).
pp.199-207.
Jones, E., 2013. Internationalization and employability: the role of intercultural experiences in
the development of transferable skills. Public Money & Management. 33(2). pp.95-104.
Ju, S., Zhang, D. and Pacha, J., 2011. Employability skills valued by employers as important for
entry-level employees with and without disabilities. Career Development for Exceptional
Individuals. p.0885728811419167.
Lowden and et.al., 2011. Employers’ perceptions of the employability skills of new
graduates. London: Edge Foundation.
Maxwell, G. and et.al., 2010. Employers as stakeholders in postgraduate employability skills
development. International Journal of Management Education. 2(8). p.11.
Rosenberg, S., Heimler, R. and Morote, E.S., 2012. Basic employability skills: a triangular
design approach. Education+ Training. 54(1). pp.7-20.
Saunders, V. and Zuzel, K., 2010. Evaluating employability skills: Employer and student
perceptions. Bioscience education. 15(1). pp.1-15.
Stoner, G. and Milner, M., 2010. Embedding generic employability skills in an accounting
degree: development and impediments. Accounting Education: an international
journal. 19(1-2). pp.123-138.
Wickramasinghe, V. and Perera, L., 2010. Graduates', university lecturers' and employers'
perceptions towards employability skills. Education+ Training. 52(3). pp.226-244.
Wilton, N., 2011. Do employability skills really matter in the UK graduate labour market? The
case of business and management graduates. Work, Employment & Society. 25(1). pp.85-
100.
Zaharim, A. and et.al., 2010. April. Practical framework of employability skills for engineering
graduate in Malaysia. In IEEE EDUCON 2010 Conference. pp. 921-927. IEEE.
Online
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Marks and Spencer. 2016. [Online]. Available through: <www.marksandspencer.com>.
[Accessed on 5th November, 2016].
Merchant, P., 2014. What Are the Nine Types of Team Roles?. [Online]. Available through:
<http://smallbusiness.chron.com/nine-types-team-roles-15566.html>. [Accessed on 5th
November, 2016].
Time Management Strategies, 2014. [Online]. Available through: < [Online]. Available through:
<http://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/articles/2014/01/23/3-simple-
strategies-for-better-time-management>. [Accessed on 5th November, 2016].
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