Report on Developing Individuals, Teams, and Organisations at M&S

This report examines the HR practices of Marks & Spencer, focusing on the development of individuals, teams, and the organization as a whole. It begins by outlining the necessary professional knowledge, skills, and behaviors for HR professionals, emphasizing the importance of continuous professional development (CPD) in enhancing employee skills and achieving organizational goals. The report then delves into the concept of personal skills audits, illustrating how they can identify strengths and weaknesses to inform individual development plans. It further explores the differences between organizational and individual learning, training, and development, highlighting the need for continuous learning to drive sustainable business performance. The report also analyzes how High-Performance Work (HPW) contributes to employee engagement and competitive advantage within a specific business context. Finally, it evaluates different approaches to performance management, providing a comprehensive overview of HR strategies for fostering a high-performing and engaged workforce within Marks & Spencer.

Developing Individual, Teams
and Organisations

Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
P1 Appropriate professional knowledge, skills and behaviour which is necessary for HR
professionals................................................................................................................................1
P2 Personal skills audit to identify appropriate knowledge, skills and behaviours and develop a
professional..................................................................................................................................3
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................6
P3 Difference between organisational and individual learning, training and development........6
P4 Need for continuous learning and professional development to drive sustainable business
performance.................................................................................................................................7
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................8
P5 HPW contributes to employee engagement and competitive advantage within a specific
business situation.........................................................................................................................8
TASK 4............................................................................................................................................9
P6 Different approaches of performance management...............................................................9
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................11
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................12

INTRODUCTION
In modern world, market competition is increasing day by day. So, all organisations are
looking for those tools and techniques which can help them in enhancing their financial profit as
well as productivity. Business managers can accomplish its goals and objectives only by
developing their individual, teams and organisation. By doing this, they can lead company to
high level of success. This project report is based on Marks & Spencer Plc which is one of the
leading company of this era (Beckhard, 2010). It is specialised in Designer cloths and domestic
goods. In present time, this organization is focusing on development of its individual and teams
so that it can maximise its profit. In this report, Knowledge, skills a behaviour of its employees
has been analysed by its HR professionals. Those factors have also been evaluated which should
be considered while implementing and determining inclusive learning and development program.
Apart from this, it has determined that how HPW contributes to employee's engagement and
competitive advantage. At last, Different approaches of performance management has been
evaluated so that HR professional can improve existing performance of their workers.
TASK 1
P1 Appropriate professional knowledge, skills and behaviour which is necessary for HR
professionals
In present time, all organisations are looking for those tools and techniques which can
help them in enhancing their financial profit as well as productivity. Also, they want to build
strong corporate image within market place so that they can survive in such competitive
marketplace. All this can be possible if business managers will manage their individual, teams
and organization in most effective and systematic manner. By doing this, they can operate
organizational functions in best manner which will results in high financial profit.
Moreover, all business enterprises hire high skilled Human Resource managers so that
they can manage and control employees in most effective and systematic manner. They have to
play various roles and responsibilities so it is highly important for them to have high knowledge,
skills, abilities (Aguinis, and Kraiger, 2011). HR managers of M&S have the core responsibility
to increase work performance of workers so that they will perform their assigned tasks in most
effective manner. Human resource managers can take help of Continuing Professional
Development (CPD) technique to enhance the level of working performance and quality within
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work place. It is that systematic process which helps in identifying and evaluating current skills
and abilities of employees. Without improving and developing existing performance of worker
company cannot accomplish its desired results and also cannot lead to high level of success as
well. So, it is highly essential for HR managers to develop individual, teams and organization so
that they can get various benefits. Some of benefits are follows as under:
 With the help of Continuous professional development company can increase existing
skills and abilities of its work force which will assist them in achieving desired
organisational goals.
 High skilled workers can produce quality products and services which will provide high
satisfaction to customers. This can influence huge positive impact on organisational
image.
 CPD can assist Marks and Spencer Plc. In creating positive working environment which
will provide enough satisfaction to employees and also will improve their working
conditions (Watkins and Marsick, 2015).
 Continuous improvement in employee's position can lead him to new and higher post
within organization which can improve his personal as well as professional life.
 Also, it increases motivation and confidence level within worker which helps him in
fulfilling his assigned tasks in most effective and systematic manner.
Hence, these are some major benefits of Continuous professional development technique.
By evaluating above mentioned points it can be determined that this concept can help HR
managers of Marks and Spencer in improving current knowledge and skills of their human
resources. For better growth and development, it is necessary for its managers to make a team of
high skilled members so that desired results of organization can be achieved in most effective
and systematic manner.
 While creating and developing an effective team it is highly important for all team
members to cooperate with other sections of company and also make good
understanding among them. They should choose best strategies and tools to perform their
given task and getting desired results.
 To develop good working environment within workplace and enhance organisational
efficiency it is highly important to implement new and unique policies, strategies and
plans within work place.
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 It is very much essential for human resource managers to have high level of skills and
abilities so that they can resolve business problems in an effective manner and also can
estimate future problems and their solutions as well.
 It is core responsibility of HR managers to resolve industrial disputes between employer
and employee so that they can work mutually. Along with this they should take serious
issues of salaries and wages.
 For developing teams and individuals, HR managers of Marks and Spencer should hire
those candidates who have great experience, knowledge, skills and abilities. There are
various activities of HRM section such as person specification, job description,
recruitment and selection which should be operated by human resource managers in
most effective manner.
P2 Personal skills audit to identify appropriate knowledge, skills and behaviours and develop a
professional
Personal audit is that concept which helps in determining own strengths, weaknesses,
opportunities and threats. Also, it assists in evaluating individual’s knowledge, capabilities and
intelligence. It is highly important for business enterprise to determine all these aspects of each
and every employee so that company can determine that how talented staff it have. In simple
words, it is highly important for business enterprise to evaluate existing performance of its
workers which are employed in it, because success and failure of any organisation largely
depends upon its work force and their working skills. Human resource manager of Marks &
Spencer also wants to do personal audit so that he can identify its existing skills and abilities, and
also can manage them in better way. They need high skills and abilities because they have to
perform various kinds of roles within work place and also have to maintain human resources so
that organisation can achieve its desired results. HR managers gives guidelines to workers so that
they will perform their assigned roles and responsibilities in most effective manner (Wang and
Ahmed, 2016).
It is not an easy task to manage and control human resource within work place. For this, HR
manager requires various skills and abilities such as appropriate knowledge of information
technology. In present time, all work gets done with the help of internet so it is highly important
for both employees and managers to have good knowledge of internet so that the can perform
their given task with smartness. Apart from this, communication skills are also highly required
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for individuals because without this they cannot cooperate with other members of company.
Also, this skill is required for transforming important information. With the help of good
communication skills, people can build strong relationships with other people. If there will be
goo bonding between all the employees and employers, then they can work together and also can
accomplish organisational goals in less time period. If there will be good communication
between employer and employees, then chances of industrial conflicts can be reduced. By
improving communication skills HR managers can motivate their employees to work in unity
(Griffith, Sawyer and Neale, 2011). Here is personal audit of Jane Cambridge through which his
different strengths and weaknesses can be determined.
Strengths weaknesses
 He has great knowledge of Microsoft
Office which helps him in operating
commuter system.
 His email writing skills is also very
good which can assist him while
writing important emails at formal
level.
 He has time management skills which
helps him fulfilling given task at given
time period.
 He has technical knowledge through
which he can resolve technical issues
within work place.
 His biggest weakness is that he has no
working experience and also he does
not have enough knowledge about data
base system.
 He has poor knowledge about
Microsoft excel spread sheet.
Hence, these are the major strengths and weaknesses of Jane Cambridge which can influence
positive as well as negative impact on its professional life (Ilgen and et. Al., 2017). To minimise
negative impact, he should overcome his all weak points. To remove his weaknesses, he can take
help of personal development plan which is follows as under:
S. No Learning
objective
Current
skilfulness
(good-5 2.5
Target
skilfulness
Development
possibility
Time period
4

average 1
week)
1. Communication
skills
3 5 With the help
of this skill
people can
make good
relationship
with others
and also can
create mutual
understanding
within team.
3 months are
required to
improve
communication
skills
2. Technical skills 3.5 5 In modern
world, it is
highly
difficult to
survive in
competitive
world. For
achieving
good position
I work place
it is highly
important to
have
technical
skills so that
individual can
resolve all
technical
issues.
It will take 2
months to
improve
technical skills
5

3. Interpersonal
skills
2 5 While
working
within
organisation,
it become
highly
important to
improve
interpersonal
skills so that
they
individual can
interact with
other persons
of company.
With the help
of this, one
can get high
position
within work
place.
For improving
interpersonal
skills 1 month
is required
TASK 2
P3 Difference between organisational and individual learning, training and development
With the help of organisation learning, business enterprise can enhance skills and abilities of its
existing employees so that they can accomplish organisational goals and objectives in most
effective manner. Also, it guides employees to choose best strategies and methods to operate
business activities and practices. So, it is highly important for all organisations to conduct
different learning events so that it can improve skills and abilities of its workers. Employee with
high skills and operate organisational functions in most effective manner and also can achieve
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desired results of company. Also, they produce quality products which helps in attracting huge
number of customers. Without high skilled workers, enterprise cannot increase its profitability
and productivity. On the other side, individual learning gives importance to a single person. In
this, company gives importance to its each and every individual so that they all can learn new
things and also can help in accomplishing organisational goals and objectives (West and Altink,
2011). There is huge different between organisation and individual learning which can be
determined by below mentioned table:
Organisation learning Individual learning
This learning style involves various activities
and practices which is operated by employees
so that they can enhance their existing skills
and abilities and perform their assigned roles in
most effective manner.
On the other side individual learning helps in
determining personal skills and abilities so that
individual can achieve desired goals of
company.
In this learning style working performance of
employees get improved so that they can
contribute more in organisational success.
In this learning style, individual enhance his
working skills by his own self by attending
lectures, meeting and conferences.
While working in a company it is highly
important to work in a team so that business
goals can be achieved in most effective
manner.
While working in a team an individual can
learn different new things which can help him
in his future professional life (Martins and
Terblanche, 2016).
In organisation learning employees can share
their mission and vision with other workers.
But in individual learning one single person
cannot share such things.
organisational learning it is highly important
to give importance to each and every
employee.
But in individual learning, person should make
good relation with his other colleagues.
P4 Need for continuous learning and professional development to drive sustainable business
performance
While working within a company it is highly important for all employees and managers to
improve their skills and abilities on continuous basis so that they can perform all their roles and
responsibilities, and also can resolve business problems on their level. So, there is huge need of
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continuous learning within work place. As, it helps employees in operating business activities
and practices in most effective manner. Also, it helps company in getting competitive advantage
within market place because, high skilled workers of company can help it in producing quality
goods and attracting huge number of customers (Harvey, Millett and Smith, 2012). To provide
continuous learning company can take help of various sources which are follows as under:
Conferences and seminars: This is known as most important method of continuous learning.
By attending various conferences and seminars people can learn such new things and also can
gain new knowledge which can provide them good position within work place. Also, it helps in
improving communication skills of employee because while attending seminars and conferences
then they get chance to interact and talk to other persons
Online learning: In modern world, use of technology is increasing very fast. Managers and
employees can take help of online sites to get knowledge about a specific topic. Marks and
Spencer can provide online leaning to its employees because this is most effective way of
continuous learning.
Training and development: Senior managers of M&S can provide various training and
development program to their employees so that they can enhance their skills and abilities. By
conducting this kind of programs, company can help workers by enhancing their knowledge and
existing performance (Davie and Nutley, 2013).
Hence, these are some most important sources which can be used by individuals for
continuous learning. These methods can assist them I enhancing their existing knowledge, skills
and abilities which can help them in their personal as well as professional life. With the help of
above mentioned methods, employees can do their professional development. All these concepts
help in improving and developing overall performance of Marks and Spencer.
TASK 3
P5 HPW contributes to employee engagement and competitive advantage within a specific
business situation
High performance working is that managerial process which is used by business enterprise
to improve skills and abilities of workers within work place. With the help of this, organisation
can achieve its desired results in most effective and systematic manner (Davie and Nutley, 2010).
This process helps in enhancing working performance of employees so that they can operate
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business activities and practices in appropriate manner. If workers of company will operate
organisational functions with high performance, then they can lead company to high level of
success. Also, it helps in establishing good brand image of enterprise within market place. HPW
helps organisation in creating a good working environment where employees can operate
business activities and practices in most effective manner.
Furthermore, high performance working is known as most important concept of business
enterprise as, it helps in managing and controlling employee’s performance within work place. If
company will hire high skilled workers, then it can get huge success because people with high
skills can operate organisational functions in most effective manner and also can help
organisation in increasing its current sales and revenue. Apart from this, it provides huge
competitive advantage to organisation. Skilled workers produce quality products and services
which creates good image of company within market and also make it more powerful as compare
to its market competitors. Hence, it can be said that high performance working contributed a lot
in employee engagement and achieving competitive advantage within different organisational
situations.
TASK 4
P6 Different approaches of performance management
Performance management is a process of collaborative working which helps managers
and employees both work together to monitor, plan, review and direct employee's objectives of
work and it also helps to set a target, so that their performance can be measured. It is continuous
process of assessing employee's development and objectives set for them. To ensure about their
performance, feedback is necessary and coaching should be given to improve their performance.
There are several approaches which helps in evaluating a performance, each approach has its
own result and affect, so organisation must select right approach to manage the performance of
their employee's in a better manner. Some of these approaches are:
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Figure 1Approcahes of performance management
(Source: Dey A., 2017)
The Comparative Approach: In this type of approach individual's performance is matching
with other's in the same group, and a rank is given to him based on his performance (Davie and
Nutley, 2010). There are many techniques by which performance can be compared: Straightforward Technique: In this technique employees are ranked simply, taking the
range from highest to lowest performer. Forced Distribution System: In this technique employees are ranked in a category; it
works similar to the grade system in universities. For example, if there are 100 employees
than 10% of 100 or say top 10 employees will be considered as a top performer, 40% of
100 or remaining top 40 employees will lie in average category, 30% of 100 that is top 30
employees down the average category are considered as good category and remaining
20% comes under low performer category and needs improvement.
 Paired Comparison: In this technique, individual's performance is measured in paired
factor by giving appropriate ratings, here ratings can be biased as different person has a
different opinion. And this technique is best suitable for large groups where no. of
employees is greater than 100.
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The Attribute Approach: In this approach, performance is measured not on the basis of
individuals work but on the basis of his traits like teamwork, judgement, innovation, creativity,
leadership skills, etc. There are 2 techniques in this approach: Graphic Rating Scale: In this technique performers performance is defined through
giving a number or rating based on his performance. This rating can be between 1 to 5 or
1 to 10 depends on evaluator.
 Mixed-standard Scale: In this technique, individuals performance is put in different
performance levels which is High, Medium and Low (Aguinis, 2015).
Moreover, these are some most important approaches of performance management which
can help HR professionals in managing, controlling and improving existing knowledge, skills
and performance of workers within work place. To survive in such a competitive marketplace, it
is highly important for Marks and Spencer and its HR professionals to use above mentioned
approaches to manage working performance of their human resources.
CONCLUSION
By evaluating this project report, it has been concluded that in present time all business
enterprises are trying to develop their individual, teams and workplace so that they can achieve
huge success. So, it is highly important for managers to select high skilled team members so that
they can perform their given tasks in appropriate manner. This project report s based on M&S
which is a international brand. In this report, it has been evaluated that by analysing employee
knowledge, skills and behaviours HR professional can develop them in appropriate manner.
Also, they can provide them some training and development programs to enhance their skills and
abilities. Apart from this, they can also take help of different approaches of performance
management to improve existing skills of workers.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Beckhard, R., 2010. Organization development: Strategies and models.
Aguinis, H. and Kraiger, K., 2011. Benefits of training and development for individuals and
teams, organizations, and society. Annual review of psychology, 60, pp.451-474.
Watkins, K.E. and Marsick, V.J., 2015. Sculpting the learning organization: Lessons in the art
and science of systemic change. Jossey-Bass Inc., 350 Sansome Street, San Francisco,
CA 94104-1310.
Wang, C.L. and Ahmed, P.K., 2016. The development and validation of the organisational
innovativeness construct using confirmatory factor analysis. European journal of
innovation management, 7(4), pp.303-313.
Griffith, T.L., Sawyer, J.E. and Neale, M.A., 2011. Virtualness and knowledge in teams:
Managing the love triangle of organizations, individuals, and information
technology. MIS quarterly, pp.265-287.
Ilgen, D.R., Hollenbeck, J.R., Johnson, M. and Jundt, D., 2017. Teams in organizations: From
input-process-output models to IMOI models. Annu. Rev. Psychol., 56, pp.517-543.
West, M.A. and Altink, W.M., 2011. Innovation at work: Individual, group, organizational, and
socio-historical perspectives. European Journal of Work and Organizational
Psychology, 5(1), pp.3-11.
Martins, E.C. and Terblanche, F., 2016. Building organisational culture that stimulates creativity
and innovation. European journal of innovation management, 6(1), pp.64-74.
Harvey, S., Millett, B. and Smith, D., 2012. Developing successful teams in
organisations. Australian Journal of Management and Organisational Behaviour, 1(1),
pp.1-7.
Davie, H.T. and Nutley, S.M., 2013. Developing learning organisations in the new
NHS. Bmj, 320(7240), pp.998-1001.
Davie, H.T. and Nutley, S.M., 2010. Developing learning organisations in the new
NHS. Bmj, 320(7240), pp.998-1001. Otley, D., 1999. Performance management: a
framework for management control systems research. Management accounting
research, 10(4), pp.363-382.
Aguinis, H., 2015. Performance management. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.
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Online
Dey A., 2017. [Online]. Available through:<
https://www.projectguru.in/publications/approaches-measuring-performance-
employees/ >. [Accessed on 24th October, 2017].
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