Marks and Spencer: HRM Practices Report - Leadership, Training

This report examines human resource management (HRM) practices at Marks and Spencer, a British multinational retailer. It focuses on three key areas: leadership development, strategic training and development, and performance management. The report explores the significance of leadership development, highlighting its impact on growth, innovation, employee satisfaction, and customer interaction. It details frameworks like the S-CURVE, career-based, and leadership development frameworks used by Marks and Spencer. The analysis further investigates strategic training and development, emphasizing its role in enhancing employee competitiveness, improving company performance, and reducing absenteeism. The report discusses the benefits of these practices, supported by relevant models and theories, offering insights into how Marks and Spencer manages its human resources to achieve its business objectives.

Managing People

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3
Leadership development.............................................................................................................3
Strategic learning, training & development................................................................................6
Performance management...........................................................................................................9
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................11
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................12

INTRODUCTION
Human resource management is an effective practice of managing people in order to
enhance their performance and attain objectives as well. In addition to this, it is the procedure of
hiring and selecting the right people who has the capability to perform the activities in an
appropriate manner which leads towards growth and success as well. This department has also
developed policies considering the benefits and satisfaction of employees (Burgess 2019). There
are various human resource management practices that is training and development, employee
relation, performance management, leadership development and many more. In the present
report, Marks and Spencer is chosen as a base company. It is a British multinational retailer that
was established in the year 1884 and its head office is located in England, UK. The organisation
specialise in selling food products, clothing and home products. The company has more than 960
stores globally which shows the company has high market presence. The report will cover three
human resource management practices that is leadership development, strategic training &
development and performance management. In addition to this, some of the theories and models
of these HRM practices is elaborated in relation to chosen organisation.
MAIN BODY
Human resource management is the procedure of inducting staff members, providing
training and development, recruiting and selecting, motivating employees, deciding
compensation, maintaining effective relationship with staff & trade unions and many more. It is
significant for the HR manager to perform all this practices in a proper manner as it helps in
enhancing performance and achievement of objectives within time period. In relation to Marks
and Spencer, its HR manager adopt practices such as training and development, performance
management and so on with an objective to increase performance and profitability of company
(Day, 2020). The human resource management practices is described below in relation to
respective organisation:
Leadership development
The transformation of an employee to a leader is accomplished by giving the employee
leadership training and conducting effective leadership development programs for the welfare of
both the employee and the organisation. Leadership development covers all the various training
and development strategies performed with the aim of improving and enhancing leadership skills

in employees (Ramanathan, 2020). Leadership development plays a vital role in the success of
an organisation. The accuracy and ability of an organisation to create and possess a great leader
in their organisation generates a path which leads the corporation towards perpetual and
exceptional growth. The significance of effective leadership development in context of Marks
and Spencer programs is provided below: Increases stable growth rates: The implementation of an efficient leadership
development program helps the company increase their profitability and attain stable
growth through the presence of a competent and focused leadership. The presence of an
effective leader is immediately reflected by the increase in amount of employee outcome
and positive financial gains. In the context of the respective enterprise the leadership
development programs conducted at their stores improved the customer services
experiences of many consumers and resulted in providing the company profit for their
food department despite despite setbacks from the coronavirus pandemic. Good leadership promotes innovation: Competent leadership development programs
provide the organisation leaders with innovative skills and inspiring presence which
motivates their employees to think creatively and provide out of the box solutions. This
helps the company gain competitive edge over their rivals with their unique products or
services and use their talented workers to their highest potential. In the context of the
retail corporation Marks and Spencer, innovative ideas related to the marketing
production of their clothing lines has helped the organisation become synonymous with
fashionable clothing and increased their brand equity (Riley, 2018). This is possible due
to efficient execution of functional leadership development strategies.
 Improves employee satisfaction and retention: The ability of a company to hire and
sustain talented employees is increased by implementation of fruitful leadership
development programs. A constructive leadership program not only provides the
employee with an encouraging and inspiring leader but also helps them improve their
leadership skills ,this increases worker retention, and satisfaction. The leadership
development programs driven by the organisation has improved employee engagement
and helped the company identify and sustain employees passionate for fashion and
clothing, and will give all of their energy to grow along with the company.

 Improved consumer interaction: As the respective corporation deals in retail customer
interaction is part of daily operations conducted at the organisation. Various effective
leadership development policies enforced at the organisation has improved consumer
interaction by creating positive and motivating workplace environment. The strategies
implemented by an efficient leader creates employees with good customer support skills.
Organisations use several approaches and frameworks for effective leadership development some
of which are provided below with respect to British multinational retail corporation Marks and
Spencer: S-CURVE framework: This framework proposes all over development of a candidate
which enable them to effectively use their leadership skills for the benefit of the
organisation. This framework is implemented by the respective organisation to create
leaders with capabilities that assure presence of an effective supervisor and which
provide efficient guidance to the organisation in tough times (Ross, Ressia and Sander,
2017). This leadership development framework builds leaders by examining and
enhancing their unique abilities and the respective corporation uses this framework to
identify potential leaders and help them develop decision making skills in this ever-
changing business environment. The company puts their employees in situations which
help them enhance their leadership skills and help them learn ways to accurately use their
skills in the functions of the business. This framework has helped the organisation
construct able leadership which aligns themselves with the values of the company from
their present workforce. Career based framework: This approach is used by the respective organisation to fulfil
the need of an effective leadership at different levels of an organisation. The
implementation of this approach results in existence of good leader at every stage of their
operations. Since the organisation deals with online and offline shopping portals all
around the globe which require disciplined devilry and efficient marketing of their
various clothing categories, this leadership approach provides the organisation benefits in
the form of an effective supervisees competent at overseeing and leading various
functional areas of the organisation. This type of leadership approach also results in
increased employee engagement as they are given more responsibilities and they see
others get rewarded with leadership roles for their dedication. This approach has led to

the organisation winning several awards for their distribution process and this approach
contributes to growth of the organisation.
 Leadership development framework: This framework is used by the company as it slings
with transformational leadership style that is practised at the company. This leadership
style is focused on the continuous evaluation and development of the employee. This type
of leadership framework is concerned with individuality of the leader and the profiling
tools such as the leadership development profile use this framework to understand the
decision-making process and unique abilities of the employee that make them stand out
from the crowd. The objective of this approach is to build a leader which can use their
capabilities in all the functional areas of the company. This model is used by the
organisation as it revolves around perpetual growth of the employee and requires the
employee to attain valuable feedback from different sources which helps them improve
their skills for the growth of the organisation.
Strategic learning, training & development
Training and development are undertaken as one of the important human resource
management practice which directly impact on the performance and efficiency of employees in a
positive manner. It is a continuous procedure which is being provided to both the new employees
and existing employees with an objective to enhance their skills, capabilities and knowledge
level in an appropriate manner. It is determined that it also help companies to clarify all the
policies, responsibilities and authorities to the new employees so that they can work in a
systematic and proper manner.
Learning & development strategy outlines how a company develop its employee’s
competencies, skills and capabilities to retain successful. In addition to this, it is basically a key
aspect of the overall strategy. The main objective or purpose of providing strategic training &
development is to prepare staff members with the skills they require to finish the activity in both
effective and efficient manner which in turn help in attaining objectives effectively (Ferrari,
2018). It is analysed that strategic training and development usually take place when an
employee begins the step in the course associated tasks. This type of training mainly emphasis on
enhancing the quality of work and to make employees more competitive for long run. There are
various benefits that is gained by respective organisation for providing strategic training and
development, which are as follows:

More competitive employees: One of the major advantages of strategic training &
development is that organisation will have more competitive from the early stage at workplace. It
is determined that if employees know what they are need to perform then it assists in attracting
and retaining them in a proper manner. In relation to Marks and Spencer, it provides strategic
training to its employees so that their capabilities are enhanced to performing the activities that
leads to achievement of objectives and meeting of targets as well.
Enhance company performance: when employees know and understand the
expectations then they work accordingly which increase the performance of an organisation. It is
stated that poorly trained employees make mistakes, develop confusions and take longer time in
order to complete assigned activities. This impact negatively on the overall brand image and
performance of organisation (Ferrari, 2018). If it is talking about Marks and Spencer, providing
training clarifies employees about their responsibilities and activities they required to implement
so that they can meet with the targets. This transparency and clarity help in raising the efficiency
of staff members and impact on the overall performance positively.
Decline absenteeism and turnover: It is stated that providing strategic training and
development help in developing a connection with employees due to which they take interest in
performing activities assigned to them. In addition to this, it also assists in making employees put
high efforts to meet with the targets timely and properly. In relation to Marks and Spencer, such
type of training will help to know about the requirements of employees which is fulfilled by
them with an objective to motivate and retain employees for longer time period. It is determined
that training boost the morale of employees and also strengthen the relationship among higher
authorities and employees due to which they retain at workplace for longer time period.
The above discussion shows that strategic learning, training and development will help
respective organisation to enhance its performance level, implement activities systematically,
boost their morale and develop their skills as well as knowledge level which is important in order
to deal with customers, develop relationship with them and meet with the targets of company in a
timely and effective manner (Hatleberg, Lundgren and Ryom, 2017).
Effective training and development programs enable employees to continuously grow
within a company and provide them with a workforce which is capable of handling greater
responsibilities and adapt with changing business climate while efficiently perform their tasks
and achieving professional objectives. These sessions also improve employee engagement and

increase talent sustainability at the workplace. The British retail corporation frequently invests in
strategic training and development sessions to improve and enhance capabilities of their
workforce to achieve continuous success. The business-embedded model is used by the
multinational corporation to plan their training and development strategies. This model is
concerned with total alignment of development strategy with current organisational needs and
business atmosphere of the organisation. The organisation conducts on the job ad off the job
training of their employees based on their competencies and aim to use their skills to for the
benefit of their organisation. The procedure of giving regular feedbacks to their employees on
the evaluation of their training results is based on this model (Teodorczuk, Harwood and
Sampson, 2017). The responsibility given to all the employees are defined and require
accountability from them, this practice is key element of the business-embedded training model.
The employees face evaluation of their performance and progress after every six months, this
helps the company maintain the quality of customer service and provide their consumers the best
possible customer support. The organisation also focuses on regularly helping and increasing the
personnel growth of their employees, this is achieved by sharing inputs regarding their future
growth possibilities and formulating plans that help them exploit these possibilities. This practice
helps employee plan their own careers it gives them important insights about their
competency,available promotion options and the competition for these position. Training and
development practices conducted by the organisation help fill the gap in their skills which stop
them from securing a specific position which will help them move up their career graph. This
practice helps the employees grow along with the organisation. The training model utilised by
the organisation focuses on providing specific and individualistic solutions to the problems faced
by an employee when undergoing their training. This model requires the respective company to
efficiently communicate their goals, ambition, and ideals to their employees, every decision
made by an employee should be made after considering the core values and beliefs. The
organisation achieves this by informing their employees about their mission statement which is
to provide every customer easily accessible quality product, and forming their decisions based on
this statement. Complete alignment of an employee with these values ensures their
implementation at every stage and in every aspect of the organisation. Various versatile training
programs initiated by the respective enterprise is one of the key highlights of the business-
embedded training model. This diversification allows efficient training of employees with

adequacy and cultural differences. The detailed and effective training method conducted by the
organisation provides the organisation capable workforce with space to improve, grow and take
accountability for their mistakes, this has helped the organisation maintain their credibility and
reach new heights of success.
Performance management
Performance management is defined as an ongoing procedure of communication among
the employee and supervisor which take place in order to support and attain strategic objective of
the company. The main objective is to develop a culture where employees can perform best and
above of their capabilities to develop the highest quality work in more efficient and effective
manner. It is a process of effective planning, coaching & reviewing staff member performance. It
is determined that HR plays an important role in performance appraisal that is developed the
entire appraisal process, make process clear & transparent to employees, review higher
authorities to ensure appraisals are done on time period and employees get benefits.
There are some of the necessary elements that is required for effective performance
management that is given below in relation to Marks and Spencer:
Goal setting: It is important for the higher authorities and HR manager to set the goals
first and then decide the activities required that is implemented in a proper manner (Hughes,
Robert and Arroyos, 2019). In addition to this, setting goals will help in comparing the actual
performance of employees in a proper manner that leads to improvement within the performance
and productivity.
Transparent communication & collaboration: It is determined that every employee
want that their leaders and managers to be authentic & open with them. In addition to this, real-
communication assist in developing effective and healthy relationship with managers and
colleagues. This will directly lead to continuous feedback & honest discussion at the time when
situations are complex and uncomfortable. It is determined that transparent communication will
help employees to clearly execute the activities that help in achieving setting objective.
Regular feedback: Another element that is associated with the performance management
is regular reviews and feedback. It is stated that the more precise and rapid feedback, the more
increase in employee performance. In relation to Marks and Spencer, it provides regular
feedback to its employees that help in maintaining the performance of employees at any period
of time.

Employee recognition and development: It is determined that an effective performance
management system should ensure employee rewards & recognition. The higher authorities of
Marks and Spencer provide rewards to employees of their good performance and in front of all
the members of company. This make employees feel valued & important at workplace because
of which their performance and productivity is enhanced.
Tools & techniques for performance management:
There are various tools and techniques used which help company to become more
successful & remain in competition as well. Some of the techniques used by Marks and Spencer
to review the performance is given below:
360-degree feedback: It is also known as multi-rater feedback system and herein, staff
members receive anonymous reviews from people or colleagues who perform as well as work
around them (Leroy, 2018). It involves managers, direct reports, peers and so on. With reference
to Marks and Spencer, its higher authorities make use of this method that assist employee to
know about their strength and weakness from others perspective that is required to be improved
in order to gain both personal as well as professional growth. One of the main advantages of
using this technique is it help in identifying the development opportunity and it also emphasis on
the core competencies.
Management by objectives: It is considered as an effective technique and a strategic
management model which aim is to enhance performance of business entity by specifying and
clearing the objectives which are agreed by employees and management both. In relation to
Marks and Spencer, its higher authorities ensure that all the activities are clear in the mind of
employees that further help in systematic and proper execution. It assists respective organisation
to compare the actual performance of staff members with the set objective that help in making
improvements in more appropriate and effective manner.
Reward and recognition programmes: It is stated that when staff members feel that
their performance is unrewarded and unrecognised, their motivation and confidence level is
declined that impact on the performance and productivity in a negative manner. Reward &
recognition programmes are therefore a significant aspects of performance management system.
In context to Marks and Spencer, the company provide both financial and non-financial benefits
to its staff members such as bonus, health insurance, holiday packages and so on (Psychogios

and Prouska, 2019). This help in raising the performance of employees that has positive impact
on on the growth of respective organisation.
By analysing the above concept and other related aspects, it is determined that
performance management is an effective human resource management practice that help
company to overview and focus on employee performance so that the improvements take place
timely and effectively. Moreover, this also leads to raise in performance and profitability of the
respective organisation in an appropriate manner.
CONCLUSION
From the above study, it has been concluded that human resource management practices
help an organisation to enhance its performance level and achieve objectives on time period. In
addition to this, it is significant to make use of appropriate leadership style at workplace as it
help in instructing, motivation, guiding as well retaining employees for longer time period.
Furthermore, it is determined that performance management is an ongoing procedure which is
used in order to know the performance of employees in present and the objectives set for the.
There are various tools as well as techniques used by company in order to analyse the
performance of employees such as 360-degree feedback, reward and recognition programme,
management by objective and so on.