An Analysis of Human Resource Management at Marks and Spencer

This report provides a detailed analysis of the human resource management (HRM) practices at Marks and Spencer (M&S). It begins by outlining the purpose and functions of the HRM department, emphasizing workforce planning, recruitment, training, and development. The report then explores the strengths and weaknesses of M&S's recruitment and selection approaches, including internal and external recruitment methods, as well as personal interview processes. Furthermore, it examines the benefits of HRM practices, such as reward policies, employee recognition programs, and flexible working hours, and how these initiatives contribute to employee motivation and retention. The report also evaluates the effectiveness of these HRM practices in enhancing productivity, creating a positive brand image, and attracting talented employees. It concludes by highlighting how these practices provide M&S with a competitive advantage in the market. The analysis is supported by references to relevant literature.

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Human Resources
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Activity-1
Overview
Marks and Spencer (M&S) is a British multination retailer which was founded in 1884; the
headquarters of the company is situated in Westminster, London. The company operates in
the retailer sector by offering a wide range of clothing options for its customers which
includes men, women and children. The company has hired around 78,597 employees in
order to manage its operations globally; M&S currently operates in 1,463 locations
(Sabanoglu, 2019).
HRM purpose and functions
The main purpose of the HR department of M&S is to make sure that right employee is
appointed at the right post. One of the key purposes of HRM to ensure workforce planning in
order to make sure that a company hires an adequate number of staff members to conduct its
operations. Without workforce planning, it becomes difficult for companies to determine how
many employees they require to perform organisational tasks and their qualifications and
skills requirements (Obeidat, 2012). M&S hires employees that are capable enough to deliver
high quality services to its customers which enable the company to create a positive brand
reputation. Some of the key HRM functions of M&S include planning, directing, organising,
controlling, training and development, recruitment, performance appraisal, and job designing
and analysing, and others. The company implements policies for attracting, recruiting and
selecting talented employees that work dedicatedly to achieve its goals (Ahammad, 2017).
The company hires employees from all across the globe and it attracts employees by using
different promotional methods such social media advertising, recruitment consultancies,
receiving online job applications on its website, walk-in interview and others. M&S has
introduced “Plan A” initiative for learning and development of its employees which is
targeted towards providing them equal career growth opportunities and enables them to
develop their competencies for further enhancement of their career (M&S, 2020). This
training program builds communication, leadership, management and customer engagement
skills of employees which are suitable for achieving business goals. Rewards and recognition
is also common at M&S for recognising employees based on their hard work and dedication
by providing them intrinsic and extrinsic rewards.

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Strengths and Weaknesses
Different recruitment and selection approaches are used by M&S for screening its job
candidates and selecting them for particular positions. The company recruits employees from
both internal and external sources. For internal recruitment, it announces opening of job
position on staff notice board, monthly newsletter, spread it through word-of-mouth. The
advantage of this approach is that it is cost effective and it motivates employees. However, its
disadvantage is availability of limited number of candidates. For external recruitment, the
company promotes job vacancies through advertisement for example newspapers and job
consultancy agency (Zide, et al., 2014). It also has an online recruitment selection in which
candidates submit their CVs and they are screened by HR managers. Advantage of this
approach is availability of large number of job candidates; however, it is expensive and time
consuming process. For selection, the company uses personal interview approach in which
candidates go through different levels of interviews before they are selected. The final
decision is made by senior HR manager and candidates have to give various communications,
technical and psychological tests in these interviews (Kiyonaga & Egner, 2013). Advantage
of this approach is thorough evaluation of candidates and effective understanding of their
skills and knowledge; however, it is a time consuming process.

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Activity-2
Benefits of HRM practices
M&S has adopted different HRM practices for both employer and employee that are targeted
towards increasing productivity of employees which contributes to promoting overall
effectiveness of an organisation (Johari, et al., 2012). Some of the key examples include
benefits and reward policies adopted by M&S to motivate its employees by rewarding them
for their hard work. The company offers M&S corporate gifts to its employees for rewarding
them which improves their relationships with them. These corporate gifts include monetary
rewards, gift cards and bonuses which are given to employees based on their performance.
The company has launched “Living the Values” app in which employees can post their
messages for other colleagues and managers to show their appreciation towards them which
improve employer and employee relationships (Calnan, 2015). Another key element of HRM
is recruitment for which M&S has adopted both internal and external recruitment approaches
and its combination allow it to quickly fill necessary positions while also building a diverse
workforce globally. The company has won the award of “Supermarket of the Year 2017” and
“RAD Awards for Best Career Site 2017” which shows its dedication towards its employees
and the community (M&S, 2020). Along with a competitive salary package and lucrative
bonus scheme, the company also offer flexible working hours to its employees that increases
their job satisfaction level and allow them to choose shift timings which choose their needs.
HRM practices effectiveness
The HR practices implemented by M&S assist the company in raising its profits and
productivity which provides it a competitive advantage. The motivation which M&S provides
to its employees with corporate gifts encourages them to reach their weekly and monthly
targets which positively influence the productivity of entire organisation. Employees not only
receive monetary rewards but they are also appreciated and recognised in front of others
when their colleagues post positive comments about them in Living the Values app. The
recruitment and selection approach of the company allows it to attract and retain talented
members in the workplace (Caligiuri, 2014). Due to its contribution towards community and
employees, M&S has received many rewards which create a positive brand image of the
company resulting in increasing its sales. Salary packages and flexible working conditions
attract many qualified and talented candidates to M&S which allows it to hire them and build

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high performance team that delivers effective customer services. These HRM practices
adopted by M&S are highly beneficial for the firm since they are highly effective in
achieving the goal of increasing its overall profit and productivity which generates a
competitive edge for M&S in the market (Lin, 2012).

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References
Ahammad, T., 2017. Personnel Management to Human Resource Management (HRM): How
HRM Functions?. Journal of Modern Accounting and Auditing, 13(9), pp. 412-420.
Caligiuri, P., 2014. Many moving parts: Factors influencing the effectiveness of HRM
practices designed to improve knowledge transfer within MNCs. Journal of International
Business Studies, 45(1), pp. 63-72.
Calnan, M., 2015. Marks and Spencer takes a mixed approach to staff motivation. [Online]
Available at: https://employeebenefits.co.uk/issues/may-2015/marks-and-spencer-takes-a-
mixed-approach-to-staff-motivation/
[Accessed 5 April 2020].
Johari, J. O. H. A. N. I. M. et al., 2012. Promoting employee intention to stay: Do human
resource management practices matter. International Journal of Economics and
Management, 6(2), pp. 396-416.
Kiyonaga, A. & Egner, T., 2013. Working memory as internal attention: Toward an
integrative account of internal and external selection processes. Psychonomic bulletin &
review, 20(2), pp. 228-242.
Lin, Z., 2012. A study of the impact of Western HRM systems on firm performance in China.
Thunderbird International Business Review, 54(3), pp. 311-325.
M&S, 2020. AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS. [Online]
Available at: https://careers.marksandspencer.com/why-work-here/awards
[Accessed 5 April 2020].
M&S, 2020. WHY WORK FOR US?. [Online]
Available at: https://careers.marksandspencer.com/why-work-here-old
[Accessed 5 April 2020].
Obeidat, B. Y., 2012. The relationship between human resource information system (HRIS)
functions and human resource management (HRM) functionalities. Journal of Management
Research, 4(4), pp. 192-211.

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Sabanoglu, T., 2019. Number of employees of Marks & Spencer worldwide 2014-2019.
[Online]
Available at: https://www.statista.com/statistics/872828/marks-and-spencer-number-of-
employees-worldwide-uk/
[Accessed 5 April 2020].
Zide, J., Elman, B. & Shahani-Denning, C., 2014. LinkedIn and recruitment: How profiles
differ across occupations. Employee Relations, 36(5), pp. 583-604.