Research Proposal: HR Approach Changes Post-COVID in UK Banking Sector

This research proposal investigates the changes in Human Resources (HR) approaches within the UK banking sector following the COVID-19 pandemic. It addresses the background and context of the project, highlighting the pandemic's impact on the banking sector and the necessity for HR to adapt. The proposal outlines the problem statement, research questions, and objectives, focusing on understanding the concept and significance of HR approaches in banking, identifying post-COVID changes, and examining the challenges faced by UK banks. It also details the research skills and subject knowledge needed, the required data (secondary information from government reports, articles, and WHO publications), and an outline of key literature covering HR approaches, changes in the UK banking sector, and associated challenges. The proposal mentions the methodology for data collection using secondary sources and addresses ethical and legal considerations, including privacy, consent, and reporting ethics. The research aims to identify how HR approaches have changed in the banking sector within the UK due to the pandemic.

Research Proposal

Contents
Research Proposal............................................................................................................................1
TITLE: How has HR approaches has changed post COVID in the banking sector in the UK.......3
1. Background/ Context of the Project ........................................................................................3
2. Statement of Problem OR Opportunity....................................................................................3
3. Research Question...................................................................................................................3
4. Research Objectives ................................................................................................................3
5. What Research Skills and Subject Knowledge do you personally need to develop to
complete this project? .................................................................................................................4
6. What information/data/knowledge needs to be generated to complete the project? .............4
7. Outline of the key literature in the area: .................................................................................4
8. How will you get your information/data? .............................................................................6
9. What Ethical and Legal Issues are raised by your project? ....................................................6
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8
HR Challenges in the Financial Services Industry, 2022[Online]Available
Through:<https://www.shrm.org/hr-today/news/hr-magazine/spring2021/pages/top-hr-
challenges-in-the-financial-services-industry.aspx>.......................................................................9

TITLE: How has HR approaches has changed post COVID in the banking
sector in the UK
1. Background/ Context of the Project
COVID-19 global pandemic has affected almost all the sector and one of the sector which is
highly impacted is banking sector. Due to COVID-19, the banking sector has changed its HR
approaches in order so that they can deal and cope with the changes (Innovative human resource
management strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic narrative review
approach, 2021). It is significant for leaders and managers of banking sector to understand the
HR trends and implement them in a proper manner so that the performance can be maintained.
Moreover, understand the HR trends such as remote working, change in the training process will
help in aligning the resources and adopting changes in an appropriate manner.
2. Statement of Problem OR Opportunity
Due to Covid-19, there are various human resource trends has changed and for this HR of an
organisation require to integrate and think so that an effective working is maintained at
workplace. In addition to this, the process of providing training which is the main practice or
approach of HR has changed after the pandemic (How the Coronavirus Pandemic Will Change
the Way We Work, 2020). There is also changes has taken place in the HR approaches such as
performance management, workforce planning and many more.
3. Research Question
 What is concept and significance of HR approaches in context to banking sector?
 What are the changes in HR approaches in the UK banking sector after Covid-19?
 What are the challenges faced due to changes in HR approaches by banking sector in
UK?
4. Research Objectives
 To know the concept and significance of HR approaches in context to banking sector.
 To understand the changes in HR approaches in the UK banking sector after Covid-19.
 To examine the challenges faced due to changes in HR approaches by banking sector in
UK.
Research aim:

“To identify how has HR approaches has changed post coved in the banking sector within the
UK”
5. What Research Skills and Subject Knowledge do you personally need to develop to complete
this project?
In order to complete this project, one of the skill that is required to develop is research skills
as it help in gaining knowledge about how to find as well as search the data as per the topic
which further leads towards development of valid and reliable outcome. Along with this, another
skill is data analytical skills which will help in analysing the collected data in an effective
manner (Research skills, 2021). Furthermore, analytical skill will be require to develop as it
assist in finding the solution of research problem and make concrete decision. All this skills will
help me to learn complete this project in a timely and systematic manner.
6. What information/data/knowledge needs to be generated to complete the project?
The data which is require to complete this project is secondary information. It is the
information which is collected through government reports, articles, WHO articles and so on.
The information require is HR approaches that is developed and adopted by banking sector after
the COVID-19. Along with this, the data required is the challenges faced by banking sector
while they execute nee approaches of human resource at workplace. Moreover, qualitative data
and relevant materials is required to be developed in order to complete the present project
effectively.
7. Outline of the key literature in the area:
Literature review is defined as an academic piece of writing that include the overview of
information on the specific topic. In addition to this, it is a secondary information which is
collected through books, journals, articles, online polls and so on. The main objective here is to
identify research gap and fulfil it with the help of developing research questions. The literature
review is given below:
Concept and significance of HR approaches in context to banking sector
Human resource management refers to the strategic approach to the effective and
efficient management of people in an organisation or company such that they help their business
in order to gain a competitive advantage. There are certain approaches of HR which includes

strategic approach, management approach and system approach as well. In context to banking
sector, human resource approaches are very important because it helps in terms of reinforcing,
developing and changing the culture of an organisation. There are certain parameters covered by
human resource management which includes performance management, training and
development, recruitment and on boarding and reinforce the values of the business as well
(Importance of human resource management). So in the banking sector these approaches support
in terms of contributing towards better management of back-end employees which encourages
banks with international business operations in order to handle the responsibilities into proper
manner. These approaches of HR also support in terms of determining how HR processes work
into the bank and also ensures about the alignment with the goals of organisation. These
approaches of HR also important into the banking sector because it also contribute into the
context of management of risk as well.
To understand the changes in HR approaches in the UK banking sector after Covid-19.
As per Global Banking M&A Outlook H2 (2022), The impact of COVID-19 has highly
generated crucial instability as well as intense volatility within the banking sector of the United
Kingdom. The changes in the HR approaches include that after the pandemic situation of the
covid 19, there were changes in the interest rate which is reducing the core profitability of the
banking sector in mature markets within the respective nation. Such approaches of the HR within
financial institutions are now shifting towards commission-based income from the likes of
payments as well as tech business (COVID 19 Impact On Banking Sector, 2022). Within present
time, there is a contraction in the economic activity within the country in respect to banking
sector which has negative influence on credit quality because the strategies of HR of the banks
are based on enhancing loan loss provisions. Although, after this epidemic, COVID 19 may
result in the crisis within the actual economy as there was high impact on the HR approaches of
banking sector as well as on the bank- customer relationship management which can also be
referred to positive discontinuity for the purpose of digitization on the receptive sector along
with the ability to provide an excellent customer experience.

To examine the challenges faced due to changes in HR approaches by banking sector in UK
According to the views of human resource management is considered as backbone of
banking sector which helps in precise management of employees. It is major role of human
resource management to identify various issues and challenges that arise in banking sector. The
conflict management is one of the key issues faced by an organisation in banking sector which
happens due to clashes between employees. Management of workplace in a precise and
systematic manner is also one of the key challenges faced by HRM in banking sector (HR
Challenges in the Financial Services Industry, 2022). As per the views of the culture and its
management in the organisation is also one of the key issues which needs to be addressed by
human resource management. In the recent times, training and development related issues also
arise at the workplace which put a key emphasis on human resource management. As per the
views of , in the era of stiff competition between companies, it is essential role of human
resource management to deal with ethics and integrity in employees which is also a major issue.
8. How will you get your information/data?
The data or information will get collected through the secondary methods of data
collection. The secondary methods of data collection refers to the approach in which the data is
being collected by the other persons instead of the actual user (Altimir and Jimenez, 2020).
There are various methods of collecting the data from secondary sources and some of them
include Magazines, Books, Journals and many others. The data collected from such sources may
be in the form of published or unpublished. In order to collect the data on the topic regarding
banking sector within the United Kingdom, I have made use of various books and magazines that
have provided assistance to me in the process of collecting the information regarding the banking
sector within the respective country. The data collected from the newspapers and journals
enables the investigator in order to make well-informed decisions about the information that is
available as well as also to understand the process in which it is helpful the information (Dutton,
J., 2021). It will provide assistance in the process of carrying forward the work of research on the
banking sector of the UK.
9. What Ethical and Legal Issues are raised by your project?
In the existing project, ethical consideration means the collection of various principles and
values which is followed by the investigator in order to gather data from the society. Ethics and
legal make sure that the act or action of the individual does not harm the sentiments and emotion

of the other individual (Podgorica and et.al., 2021). Through this vicious conduct are being
reduced in order to get information. Some of the ethical and legal issue raised in the above
project are as:
Privacy: The foremost issue that is faced in the project is making the private information
private and confidentially. It is very important to secure the private information of the individual.
If it is not maintained that this will create problem and confidentiality cannot be made.
Consent of research: Another issue which is encounter is getting consent from the
participants. So that they can enter into the research in freely manner and can give valuable
information. It is very important to get consent from the respondent before entering into the
research.
Reporting ethics: Some of the ethic which need to be followed are voluntary participants,
transparency, openness and many more. It is very vital for the researcher to obey this because
this helps in attaining the aim and objective as per the need of the community.

REFERENCES
Books & Journal
Altimir, C. and Jimenez, J.P., 2020. Walking the middle ground between hermeneutics and
science: A research proposal on psychoanalytic process. The International Journal of
Psychoanalysis, 101(3), pp.496-522.
Dutton, J., 2021. Basics of a research proposal• WHAT will be done?.
Podgorica and et.al., 2021. A systematic review of ethical and legal issues in elder care. Nursing
ethics, 28(6), pp.895-910.
Online
Research skills, 2021 [Online] Available through; <
https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/research-skills>
Innovative human resource management strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic: A
systematic narrative review approach, 2021 [Online] Available through;
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405844021013360
How the Coronavirus Pandemic Will Change the Way We Work, 2020 [Online] Available
through; https://www.shrm.org/hr-today/news/hr-magazine/summer2020/pages/how-the-
coronavirus-pandemic-will-change-the-way-we-work.aspx
The impact of Covid-19 on human resource management: avoiding generalisations, 2021
[Online] Available through; https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/businessreview/2020/05/22/the-
impact-of-covid-19-on-human-resource-management-avoiding-generalisations/
Importance of human resource management, 2019 [Online] Available
through:<https://www.gisma.com/blog/the-importance-of-human-resource-
management/>
COVID 19 Impact On Banking Sector, 2022[Online]Available
Through:<https://home.kpmg/xx/en/home/insights/2020/07/covid-19-impact-on-
banking-m-and-a-2020.html>
HR Challenges in the Financial Services Industry, 2022[Online]Available
Through:<https://www.shrm.org/hr-today/news/hr-magazine/spring2021/
pages/top-hr-challenges-in-the-financial-services-industry.aspx>