Strategic HRM Analysis: Workforce Planning in Asda Company

This report provides an analysis of Human Resource Management (HRM) within Asda Company, a prominent UK supermarket chain. It covers key aspects such as workforce planning, the benefits of online technology in recruitment, internal vs. external recruitment strategies, essential competencies, and training and development programs. The report highlights Asda's focus on low pricing, workforce planning strategies to meet current and future needs, and the use of online platforms to attract and recruit talented candidates. It further discusses the advantages of online recruitment in terms of speed, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness, as well as Asda's commitment to employee training and development for enhanced performance and organizational success. The role of human resource management in aligning workforce capabilities with organizational goals is emphasized, making it a valuable resource for understanding HRM practices in a large retail organization.

Running Head: Human resource management
Human resource management

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Executive summary
Human resource management is an important aspect that should be taken into consideration by
every organization. HRM is related with the personnel department of an organization that deals
in recruiting and training of the employees. HRM is considered as a key function of every
organization. It takes into consideration workforce planning, recruitment and selection, training,
motivation and employee recognition. It is related with the development and managing the
relationships between the management and employees. Human resource department of the
organization plays a great role to perform human resource management and also it takes into
consideration various labor laws and employment standards of recruitment. So, in this report the
discussion is made on the Asda Company as it is one of the largest supermarkets in the UK’s.

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Contents
Executive summary.....................................................................................................................................1
Introduction.................................................................................................................................................1
Workforce Planning.....................................................................................................................................2
Benefits of Online Technology....................................................................................................................3
Pros and cons to recruit internally...............................................................................................................7
Competencies..............................................................................................................................................8
Training and development...........................................................................................................................9
Conclusion.................................................................................................................................................11
References.................................................................................................................................................11

Human resource management
Introduction
The main objective of this report is to give main focus on the working pattern of Asda
Company. The company is one of the largest food retailers. The company offers wide variety of
products like food and apparel, music videos and books. Asda has 259 stores located worldwide
and the share of the company is 16.4 percent. The company also takes into consideration the
dairy products that were acquired by the Wal mart stores in 1999. It is considered as one of the
renowned company in the food industry. There are many services and products that are offered
by the company. It is a British business firm that has a large distribution channel. Headquarter of
the company is situated in Leeds, England. Asda is involved in marketing of grocery and also the
services that are concerned with the company. The slogan of the company is: - “British lowest
priced super market”. The company considers the promotional activity that is based on the low
pricing strategy. The diversification and expansion of the company took place in 1949. In this
report workforce planning, training and development is discussed. The low pricing strategy has
enhanced the company goodwill and also the profitability of the organization. The strategy that is

Human resource management
adopted by the company has given success and the purpose of the company is to offer goods and
services at reasonable price to the consumers.
Workforce Planning for Asda
The workforce planning is a process that is taken into consideration to analyze the needs
and priorities of the organization by involving the workforce of the organization. Human
resource management is considered as one of essential function of the organization. The human
resource management consists of various elements like workforce planning, training, motivation.
The workforce planning is an essential part of every organization. If the workforce planning is
effective enough then it can be easy for the organization to achieve goals and objectives in
effective manner.
Workforce planning helps the organization to achieve its goals and objectives in efficient way.
The reason for Asda to conduct the workforce planning is to take into consideration audits that
help to establish the workforce requirements in the present and in future (Wilson, 2014). The
workforce planning is essential for the company as it also assist in problem solving and
prevention. The work environment that consists of high level of stress causes many challenges.
The workforce planning is a process in which analysis is done of the needs and wants of the
people in terms of data and skills. The main aim of the workforce planning in Asda is to set the
requirement which is necessary for the new workforce in the organization.
The policy of the organization is to conduct a right proportion of the recruitment that is essential
for the organization. It is very important for the company like Asda to make plans that improves
the performance level of the workforce. The company is trying to set up the requirements that are
essential for the new recruiters. Executive and non-executive positions are taken into
consideration. In the previous year the company maintained their trade development in which the
company requires more that 1800 new managers. So the company can make adjustment in the
employment levels and can appoint the people where required (VT and Shenoy, 2016).
The company is looking to fill more vacancies within the organization that will give
enhancement in the working operations of the business. If the employees are appointed
accurately then there is a possibility for the company to achieve success and growth in effective
manner. By this the recruitment process is maintained and conducted in a viable manner.

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Workforce planning helps the organization to conduct its operations smoothly. The performance
level of the employees can be enhanced if proper plan is considered by the organization. If the
employees of the organization are motivated enough then it can be simple to attain the goals of
the organization.
Workforce planning is conducted by the company so that the recruitment can be done in
effective manner, and the candidates who are capable enough can attain the objectives. For
enhancing the level of performance of the employees the company should consider it, as it is
beneficial for the organization to sustain in the market. The company should recruit only the
candidates that are capable enough to be appointed in the organization. If the recruitment is
conducted in effective manner then the company will be able to attain the objectives and goals
efficiently. The workforce plays an important role to implement the ideas and also in operating
the tasks of the company.
If the employed workforce is efficient enough then there can be enhancement in the
profitability of the organization. The company should make plans that gives and enhances the
level of motivation and performance of the employees who are working in the organization. The
company gives main focus on the recruitment and selection process which is beneficial to the
organization. Human resource is an asset for the organization and if it is efficient enough then
the profitability can be easily attained of the company. By considering the worker planning the
organization can easily set the standard to appoint new workforce in the organization. It is the
responsibility of the human resource manager to appoint or recruit those candidates that possess
the skills to be there in the organization. If the skills of the workers are good then the company
can easily attain its objectives in effective manner. The company gives main focus on the skills
of the candidates that they are appointing in the organization. The company should conduct its
operations in such a manner that it not only attain the objectives but also enhances the motivation
level of the workers (Purce, 2014).
Benefits of Online Technology that enhance effectiveness of Asda
In the high level of competition in the market, there are many benefits that are attained by
the Asda Company for using online technology at the time of recruiting new employees in the
organization. The career opportunities of the company are promoted by taking into consideration

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the websites that are concerned and based on career. At the time of recruitment the main focus is
given to attract and retain the talented candidates who are eligible for the job. The candidates are
attracted towards the company when the salary package is attractive.
There are various other benefits that are given to the candidates like share save scheme
or the discounts vouchers. The company has achieved various benefits by taking into
consideration the online technology (Passmore, 2017). With the help of the online technology the
recruitment are conducted by the company. It has enhanced the speed and efficiency of recruiting
more candidates in the organization. The recruitment process has also helped the candidates to
attain the applications in an easy way. By visiting the site, the candidate can apply for the
application form. It saves time of the company as well as of the candidate who are interested
towards the organization.
By taking into consideration the online technology it is seen that it also assist the
company to complete the selection process in a speedy way. It helps to select the candidate in
effective way by saving time and cost. The best candidates are selected by making application
form available online; the pools of customers are attracted towards the organization. It makes the
process simple and profitable for the organization. The company advertised 27,000 jobs in the
last year and it has received 1.5 million applications concerned with the job opening in the
company. The company takes into consideration various social media channels like linkedln and
also gives emphasis on the recruitment firms like Remploy to attract the candidates that
possesses skills and are potential for the job post. The job vacancies attract more candidates
towards the job.
Online technology has made the process easy to advertise the job opening; by this the
candidate gets the information and applies for the job opening in the organization. Asda is
considered as one of the largest employer that gives various opportunities to the candidates. The
company provides work experience to apprenticeship and also the training in many areas. Now
days the level of competition is increased and there are many opportunities for the candidate to
do the job.
So, the recruitment is done by advertising on the website or on the social networking
sites. This is considered as the best way to aware about the job opening in the company. It helps

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the candidate to apply for the job and also to seek information related to the company. Online
technology is beneficial for the company as it is the easy way to reach to a pool of candidates
(Moye, Mueller‐Hanson and Langfred, 2017). The company can easily attract more candidates
towards the organization by advertising the job opening or the requirement of the candidates on
the online websites. It is beneficial for the company as there are many applications which are
registered under the Asda company recruitment system. Then by registering it help the human
resource team to shortlist the candidates easily. It also helps the human resource team to choose
the eligible candidates for the next step or for the interview.
There are many people who are using internet to solve each and every problem that are
prevailing in their lives. The teenagers or the youngster tries to search for the best job by surfing
on internet. There is many other website available for the candidate that offers various jobs and
opportunities in every sector (Nobrega, 2014).The online technology helped the organization to
advertise about the company and also helped to attract a pool of candidates towards the
organization. By this the company has many options to choose from many candidates.
The best candidates are offered job in an effective manner. By this the growth of the
company can also be achieved. By conducting online recruitment the company goodwill is
enhanced which helps the organization to expand its operations in the market. Youngsters are
more attracted towards the company by seeing the advertisement post concerned with the job
opening or the requirement of eligible candidates (Morgan-Thomas and Veloutsou, 2013).It
helps the organization to select best and eligible candidate from a group of many candidates.
Online technology assists to promote the services in an effective manner. Online technology
spreads the information in the vast areas; it helps to attracts more and more candidates towards
the job opening.
Online recruitment helps or assists the company to take into consideration the recruitment
and selection process of the candidates. It assists the candidate to apply for the job opening, and
it is only the source by which the candidate in huge number comes to know about the job
opening in the company. The online recruitment process includes various tools like pre-
employment screening, personality assessments and to assess the candidates who match the
values and culture of the organization with less human interaction. There are many software
packages which offer various benefits and which meet the needs and eligibility criteria of the

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company. The company gives specific job advertisements on the website of the company. It
helps the candidate to know about the specific job opening. The process of application which is
conducted online consists of verbal, numerical and personality (Goetsch and Davis, 2014).
The candidates who are eligible for the job post are called for a face to face interaction or
for a personal interview. The application that is introduced on the website is completed online or
by visiting an asda store. Asda is taking into consideration present and future manpower
requirements that organizes with the planning and job analysis activities. The online recruitment
process helps the organization to make selection and recruitment process simple and easy. By
conducting recruitment with the help to online technology the company saves time to reject the
candidates that are not capable or eligible for the job post. Online recruitment covers a larger
targeted audience; the candidates are attracted for specific skills (Russell and Brannan, 2016). It
allows or helps the employers to find the candidates with certain skills and also attract passive
candidates who are not looking for the employment.
The employment level is also enhanced by offering various jobs opening on the
websites. The main benefit for the company is that the recruitment cost is considered as the
highest expenses. Recruiting candidates not only includes the actual costs of hiring a candidates
but also consist the training and retention cost. Each employee needs training and orientation to
conduct its job in effective manner. Online recruitment takes into consideration less human
interaction and also it reaches a large audience. It also gives the records of the file or selection
tools electronically. The cost of storage is reduced as well as if the employees are taken into
consideration. The cost of the employees is essential to maintain the recruitment and selection
process (Ashraf, Thongpapanl and Auh, 2014).

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Pros and cons to recruit internally
The advantage and disadvantage to recruit employees from the internal sources are many.
If the company takes into consideration internal recruitment then the main advantage is that it
saves time and is quick to conduct its operations. The time consumed in recruiting candidate is
less if the candidate is hired from the internal recruitment. This means that the time consumed in
advertising the job, analyzing the C.V. of the candidate and interviewing the candidate is less if
compared with external recruitment. If the company recruits 70 percent of its leaders internally
then there are many benefits that are attained by the company (Storey, 2014). For company the
entire process will take less time and saves the money also. The company will not have to give or
pay for the job advertising and for the agency fees. If company recruits internally then the actual
cost is less and the time is also saved of the company. In that time the company can conduct
many other operations. By this goals and objectives of the organization is accomplished and
achieved in effective manner.
The internal recruitment process is less risky as compared to external recruitment
process. The candidate that is recruited externally is considered and the records will also reflect
its full information (Muscalu, 2015). The rules and regulations are also known by the candidates

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in effective manner and if we recruit the candidates from internal source then whole process is
discussed again to the candidate. When company hires the candidate from internal source there
is enhancement in the employer brand (Marchington, Wilkinson, Donnelly and Kynighou, 2016).
There are many disadvantages of the internal recruitment that the company can face. There can
be internal conflict in the organization if the job opening is done by taking into consideration the
employees of the organization. If one of the candidates is selected from the internal recruitment
then it will give negative impact on the other employees of the organization or the morale of the
employees is affected (Ford, 2014).
The candidates who wish to apply for the internal recruitment feel demotivated. If the
company conducts internal recruitment in the organization then it is seen that the employees
working in the organization can feel motivated and inspired. It is also essential to bring some
new talent in the organization so that fresh ideas can be gathered in effective manner. It is very
important to conduct the external recruitment as it gives benefit to the organization. Also the
main disadvantage to the company is that it is limiting its options. As it is considered that
recruitment is conducted to give employment and if we access the vacancy internally then the
company is limiting the options (Derous and Fruyt, 2016).

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Competencies taken into consideration by Asda
The growth and success of the organization depends to acquire the right number of staff
with the accurate skills. Recruitment is concerned with taking into consideration organizational
practices that will attract more and more candidates towards the company who are willing to
apply for the job opening in the organization. Asda keeps the procedure simple for the candidate
to apply for the job opening in the organization. The company also takes into consideration the
applications that are submitted by the candidates are seen by the correct or right person. The
main aim or the objective of the company is to take into consideration and retain that person that
has best talent and skills.
At the time of recruitment the company focuses to acquire the capable number of
employees and also to enhance the employees who possess the skills to complete the task with
the best quality. If the company considers and selects quality employees then there can be
expansion of the business and company can easily attain its goals and objectives in effective
manner. The company tries to identify the eligible candidate for the job opening in the
organization (Beardwell and Thompson, 2014). Asda always considers those candidates who are

Human resource management
capable enough to complete their task in effective manner. The candidates with the solid
experience and with the new ideas are considered by the company. The company considers the
present and future manpower needs to coordinate with planning and job analysis activities or
task. The candidate who are focused towards their work and who possess the skills are
considered by the company at the time of selection. To achieve the objectives and goals of the
organization the company should take into consideration the candidate who possesses the skills
and qualification that are essential for the job post.
The company offers its employees a wide range of opportunities for the career
development. This consists of assisting and investing in the employees to gain the qualifications
that will enable the next generation of the leaders (Bartram and Tippins, 2017). The company
only recruits those employees who have the capability to resolve each and every conflict of the
company (Osman and Hwang, 2016). The customer satisfaction is an important element for
every organization. The organization focuses on maintaining and enhancing the satisfaction level
of the customers in efficient manner (Armstrong and Taylor, 2014).
In this the Pestle analysis can be also taken into consideration:
Political factors: It is seen that the taxes are enhanced as a part of conservatives’ alcohol policy.
The concern of alcohol has risen earlier also but the reduction is the best policy which prevents
the supermarkets from taxes enhanced on alcohol.
Economic factors: The high rate of competition has taken place. Asda competitors like tesco
have accused of tax avoidance that result in depriving the home of farmers. There is high rate of
pressure on the conservative government to take into consideration strict approach through which
the companies can be controlled in effective manner.
Social factors: The demands for the food and non-food products are affected by the change in
the social trends. The company started to recruit the employees who are very old in this industry
so that the labor can be enhanced in effective manner. The population also gives direct impact on
the demand of both food and non-food products like medicines.

Human resource management
Technological factors: The growth is seen in the company, as more and more people are using
internet now a days. There is a significant growth in the online shopping and also provision of
service through online.
Environmental factor: The store of the company is considered as an eco-friendly store. The
company is working with the suppliers to minimize the amount of carbon which is formed during
the manufacturing of their products.
Legal factor: Asda want to aware about the planning permission regulations and want to assure
that there should continuous expansion with the planning regulations. It will help to minimize the
disruption to the store expansion program by the local people.
Training and development
Training and development is a process that is very essential for the employees who are
working in the organization. If the training is given in effective manner to the employees, then it
is easy to attain the goals and objectives of the organization. Training helps the employees to
work in an effective manner and to complete their task which enhances the performance level of
the company. If the employees are trained properly, then it will be a great advantage for the
company. The working pattern is enhanced if the training provided to the employees is done
efficiently. Training is considered as a planned process that makes modifications in the attitude;
knowledge through learning that helps to enhance the performance in effective manner (Anitha,
2014).Training develops the abilities of the individuals and also satisfies the present and future
wants of the company. If there is lack of training in Asda then it can lead to a serious issue in the
organization. Lack of training is risky for chemical and other hazards related with health. The
company has attained the award which is concerned with the induction and which enhances the
speed of the organization.
Asda will help to grow and build up the career. The training program that is recently
introduced is divided into two parts. The first part is the service day and the second part is
concerned with the selling skills. The main objective of training and developing is to minimize
the wastage and the accident rates. It also enhances the level of satisfaction of the employees and
motivates workers to work effectively. Asda follows the method to train and develop the skills of
human. They hire candidates those who are trained and have a practical experience. The

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company has created many innovative and effective ways for the employees, so that they can
learn it in effective way. The training and development is done, so that the employees can give
their best towards the organization. Benefits and rewards are also given by the company so that
they work in effective way and attain the objectives of the company. The rewards cost more but
it is very essential for development. It enhances the employees to enhance their level of
performance. The company gives discount cards and bonuses to its employees who are working
in the organization. The company also gives the opportunity to employees to work in the
working hours in which the employee feels comfortable (Ehrhart and Kuenzi, 2017).
The pension plan is also introduced by the company for its employees. They offer the
pension plan to its employees at the time of retirement. The managers who are working in the
night shift are given extra wages as compared to the workers who are working in the day. The
rewards and benefits give encouragement to the employees to work in effective manner and also
to accomplish the goals and objectives efficiently. There are many benefits that are given to the
employees to give their best towards the work. If the employees work efficiently then the goals
and objectives of the organization is achieved effectively. If the company provides effective
training and development to the employees then it enhances the working pattern of the
candidates working in the organization. By proper training the employees can work with full
confidence and can also accomplish goals and objectives of the organization in effective manner
(Elnaga and Imran, 2013).
The employees of the organization can be retained if proper training is provided to all the
employees who are working in the organization. By proper training the employee learn the skills
and ability and try to give their best towards the work.
Conclusion
By taking into consideration this report it is concluded that the company should reduce
the employee turnover. The wages of the employees should also be enhanced in effective manner
so that organization can easily attain its goals and objectives. The employees of Asda Company
are allowed to grab the opportunities that are prevailing in the organization. In this report
discussion is made upon the training and development process that is taken into consideration by
the company. The growth of the company depends upon the employees of the organization. The

Human resource management
company also takes into consideration online training that helps to attract more and more
candidates towards the company. The company provides job application on the website which
assists the candidates to apply for the job post in effective manner. The candidates apply for the
job post by accessing the application form from the website. Then the eligible candidates are
selected for the interview round. It saves time of bot the company as well as of the candidate.
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