Human Resource Management: ASDA HRM Functions and Practices Report

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of Human Resource Management (HRM) practices within ASDA, a multinational retailer. It begins by defining HRM and outlining the core functions of the HR department, including recruitment, job analysis, planning, and organizing. The report then delves into various approaches to HRM, such as performance management, reward systems, workforce planning, and training and development, assessing their strengths and weaknesses. A case study illustrates how ASDA addressed challenges during a recession, implementing motivational theories and training programs to improve employee performance. Furthermore, the report explores employee relations and engagement strategies, emphasizing sociological approaches to build effective workplace relationships. The significance of employment legislation and its influence on decision-making are also discussed, along with the evaluation of HRM practices and technologies used to improve recruitment processes. Overall, the report highlights the importance of HRM in achieving organizational goals and maintaining a competitive advantage.

Human Resource
Management

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
1. Purpose of the HR function and roles and responsibilities.................................................1
2. Assessment of various approaches.....................................................................................3
3. Different methods used in HR practice with inclusion of case study................................4
4. Approaches and effectiveness of employee relation and employee engagement...............5
5. Key aspects of employment legislations............................................................................6
6. Evaluation of employee relation and employment legislations influence decision making
and meet business objectives..................................................................................................7
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................7
7. Application of HRM practices in a work-related context..................................................7
8. Evaluation of various sources which improved recruitment and selection process...........9
CONCLUSION .............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................11

INTRODUCTION
Human resource management is defined as an approach which is related with managing
and controlling the workforce within the firm. Furthermore, this department has responsibility to
hire best candidates for the organisation as it will be profitable for achieving competitive
advantage in the marketplace. It has also authority to terminate the employees who are not
performing well on the given task. The chosen firm for this assignment ASDA which is a
multinational retailer firm with headquarters in UK. This assignment will discuss about purposes
and functions of the HRM along with the use of tools and techniques that are used for enhancing
the contribution of workforce. Various kind of legislations and their importance in decision-
making process will also be included in this report. At last, report will discuss about the
technologies which can be used for improvement in the recruitment process.
TASK 1
1. Purpose of the HR function and roles and responsibilities.
HR department is liable for controlling and managing the employees who are working
within the firm so that predetermined goals can be achieved within the given time (GARG,
2017). There are various functions which have to be performed by the HR manager of ASDA so
that the goals of firm can be achieved in an efficient manner. Some of them are given as below:
Operative function
 Recruitment : HR manager of ASDA use this function for selecting a suitable candidate
who can fulfil the whole expectations of the organisation and also profitable for the firm
in management of activities in an effective manner. The main purpose of this function is
to attract a large pool of candidates so that vacant position in the firm can be fulfilled. It
also helps them in showing the present and future needs of the workforce in the firm.
 Job analysis and design : It helps the HR manager in defining the nature of jobs such as
required skills, qualifications, knowledge etc. so that the candidates who are coming for
the recruitment process can get aware regarding the job position. Whereas the job design
is used for defining roles and responsibilities to the employees so that desired goals can
be achieved within given time period. The main purpose of this function is to identifying
the current requirements of firm so that firm can chose right candidate from the large
pool of candidates.
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Managerial functions
 Planning :In this function, HR manager has to forecast the human requirements in the
firm and use the present human resource in effective manner so that the goals of ASDA
can be achieved within the given time period. The main purpose behind this function is to
recruit the able employees so that demand and supply of workforce can be maintained in
future (Wrench, 2016).
 Organising : Under this, tasks are given to individuals according to their skills and
strengths so that effective contribution can be taken by them for completing a task. Main
purpose behind organising is to bring together the whole departments of organisation so
that efficient coordination and management can be maintained at the workplace. It also
helps the HR manager in enhancing their communication skills through which they can
communicate their information in various departments of the ASDA in easy manner.
Role and responsibilities of HR function
HR manager of ASDA have several roles and responsibilities which are used by them for
performing their functions. They are given as under:
 Recruitment : The major responsibility of the HR manager is to attract a large number of
applicants and select a suitable candidate among them which will be fit as per their
expectation. They can use internal and external resources for performing this function.
 Training : They have also responsibility towards organising various training programmes
in the workplace so that the right skills can be implemented in the workforce of the firm.
They can also provide guidance and supports to their employees so that they can make an
efficient workforce in the organisation.
Significance of HR
HR department is also essential in the workplace because it provide various kind of
profitability to the Managers of ASDA. Some of importance are given as under:
 They have responsibilities to handle all the process of recruitment of selection so that the
efficient candidate can be selected which will be helpful in enhancing the efficiency and
profitability of firm (Kerzner, 2017).
 HR manager is responsible for providing support to the finance department in making a
proper structure of salary which is given to the employees of firm. When employees gets
proper compensation of their work, then they perform their task in innovative manner
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2. Assessment of various approaches.
Some approaches of HRM along with their assessment are briefly discussed as under:
 Performance management- This is a process of creating a best working environment for
the employees so that the employees feels motivated and perform their task in effective
manner. For reviewing the performance, HR manager of ASDA can use an effective
approach which is given as under:
Attribute approach for measuring performance : It is used by the HR manager for
evaluating the performance of their employees which can be based on their problem-solving
skills, team work, communication skills etc. they can also use graphic and mix rating scales for
measuring the performance level of their staff members.
 Reward system - In this, HR manager have to evaluate performance and dedication of
the employees through which they can easily identify the lower and best performer in the
workplace. It is an internal process in which they have to provide rewards to the best
performer so that they will be motivated and perform their duties with enhanced
confidence level.
Total rewards : It is an approach which considers the demands and expectations of the
employees from the firm (Madlener, 2011). For fulfilling the expectations of employees, HR
manager have responsibility to provide rewards on the basis of financial and non-financial to the
best performer of the firm. In financially rewards they can enhance the basic pay, overtime pay
of the employees.
 Workforce planning – It is a process in which HR manager have to make roles and
responsibilities of the employees as per the expectations of firm. For this, they have to
properly define the duties to the employees so that they perform the given task in the
right way. Approach of assessment is given below:
Workload approach- By this approach, Managers of ASDA can easily determine the
required number of employees in the firm. It will defines the strategic input which can be used
by the managers in recruitment process. It also helps the company in creating an effective
structure at workplace.
 Training and development – It is also an effective responsibility of the HR manager to
provide training and development programmes to the lower performer and new joiners so
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that effective contribution can be gained from them. With the help of this, organisation
will easily achieve their desired objectives in predetermined time period.
Proactive approach- It is used for enhancing the productivity and profitability of firm.
In this, HR manager have to determine the wants and expectations of the employees in the
workplace of the firm. For this, Management of firm have to adopt effective technologies in the
workplace so that employees perform their duties in expected manner and desired task can be
completed in short time period (Alarcon, 2011).
 Recruitment and selection - Recruitment is a process of hiring skilled and well
experienced candidates. Whereas, in selection the Managers of firm have to chose the
right person among the large number of candidates who have all the skills and abilities
which are required by the firm.
Internal and External Approach – HR managers of firm can use various methods for
recruiting and selecting the right candidates such as mock test, aptitude test, interview etc. The
taken approach for this procedure is internal and external approach. In internal, candidates are
selected within the firm whereas in external, candidates are selected outside of organisation.
Strength Weakness
Internal This is very useful in saving
the cost and time for recruiting
candidates
It is based on old ideas due to
which changing in the needs
and demands of candidates are
not fulfilled in proper manner.
External It is very useful for hiring and
recruiting talented candidates
for the vacant job
It consumes huge cost and time
when candidates are recruited
from outside.
All approaches of HR management along with their assessment are very profitable for the
firm. Through these approaches, organisation can easily achieve their objectives and goals. It
also helps them in eliminating the conflicts and issues from the firm.
Evaluation of Effectiveness of HRM practices – As per the above discussion, it has
been identified that there are several HRM practices which are used by organisations in order to
increase efficiencies and performance level of their employees. Like through training and
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development process HR managers can gain effective efforts from their employees on the given
task so that organisational growth and sustainability can be maintained in marketplace. Whereas,
recruitment and selection practices are done by HR managers for filling vacant positions of the
workplace through hiring knowledgeable and experienced employees. Apart from that, providing
rewards on the basis of their performance level is beneficial because it not only increase moral
and confidence level of workforce but also it leads the firms towards increased profitability and
productivity. Hence, it can be said that all these HR practices are beneficial as it helps the HR
managers of ASDA in retaining their employees for longer period of time.
3. Different methods used in HR practice with inclusion of case study.
During the recession time, the operational activities of the ASDA was influenced
negatively which reduces their sales figures and profitability in the marketplace. Due to this, a
large number of employees whose needs are not considering by the managers have resigned from
the firm. For this, management of ASDA have decided to adopt some methodologies for
enhancing the performance level of their employees. Some of them are given as under:
 Management have adopted some motivational theories like contingency, Maslow's
hierarchy of needs for increasing motivation among the employees. For this, they have to
measured the needs of their employees and fulfils them on time (Verbyla, 2013). There
are two kind of employees in which first kind of employees wants increment in their
salaries, and second one were wants recognition of their performance.
 In order to increasing the sales figures and revenue of the firm, HR managers has
provided effective training programmes to their staff members so that right kind of skills
and ability can be gained by them and they perform their duties in effective manner.
4. Approaches and effectiveness of employee relation and employee engagement.
Employee relations : In this , HR manager of the firm have to make effective relations
with their employees so that effective efforts can be gained from them. Creating effective
relation with the employees are very essential because it helps the managers in recovering from
the critical situations and reduce the chances of conflicts in the workplace. There are some
approaches which can be used by the HR managers of ASDA for making effective relations with
their employees. Some of them are given as below:
Sociological Approach - This approach of employee relations says that there are various
kind of employees who are from different backgrounds and due to this conflicts arises between
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them. For this, the HR manager has duty to provide guidance to their staff members for
performing the task in a similar way so that the productivity can be enhanced and effective
relations can be created among the employees and HR managers of ASDA.
Effectiveness of employee relations : These relations are very essential for enhancing
the profitability of firm. Through making effective relations with the staff members, HR
managers of ASDA will easily encourage them for performing the given task. They have to make
some kind of policies for encouraging their employees such as proper leaves in a year, flexibility
in working hours etc. With the help of this, firm will easily achieve their preset goals and
objectives in a limited time period (Roper, 2014).
Employee engagement
This is used for reducing the turnover, improving the productivity and efficiency of the
employees so that they can be retained for a long time period. There are some kind of approaches
of employee engagement are given as under:
 Approaches : Motivation is an appropriate approach for enhancing the engagement of
employees in the work. For this, HR managers of firm can provide financial and non
financial rewards to their employees so that their motivation level will be increased and
they provide maximum contribution for achievement of organisational objectives.
 Effectiveness of employee engagement : HR managers can use Employer of choice for
enhancing the engagement of their employees. It also encourage the working force for
doing the task in an effective manner so that task will be completed within the given time
period. It also reduces the employee turnover rate which will be helpful for the firm in
retaining their employees for a long time period.
Effectiveness of such approaches are that it provides flexibility to the managers in each
process of organisation when the employees will come at any time but given task will be
completed in the given time period. It is also known as flexible working practice in which the
managers or superiors have no right to given pressure on the staff members for following the
rules. Through this, the firm can become employer of choice among the workers of ASDA.
5. Key aspects of employment legislations.
Legislations are defined as laws and acts which are formulated by the government for
governing the employment within the firms. There are some kind of legislations which have to
adopt by the ASDA firm for protecting their employees. Some of them are given as under:
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 Working time regulation 1998 – According to this law, the management should
implement flexible working hours in their workplace so that employees can be retained
for a long time period (Moore, 2016). If the managers of ASDA will not consider this law
then the employees will not retained in the workplace which influences negatively on the
decision-making.
 Health and safety Act 1974 – In this, management have to implement effective
equipments such as fire extinguisher, emergency exit gate, first aid box in their
workplace so that the employees can perform their task without taking any stress about
their health and safety. If the management will implement such legislation in the
workplace then employees will perform their duties without performing any harmful
activity due to which their motivation level will be enhanced.
6. Evaluation of employee relation and employment legislations influence decision making and
meet business objectives.
Healthy relations with the employees provides growth and success to the firm. For
achieving the goals of firm in allotted time period, Managers of ASDA should make effective
relations with their staff members so that they feels motivated and perform their task in proper
manner. With the help of this, the chances of conflicts among the employees will be decreased
which will helps the managers in enhancing productivity and sustainability in the marketplace.
When employees performs their duties in well manner then the managers will also take effective
decision about their career growth and salaries.
As per the above question, employees legislations are essential to implement in the
organisation because it gave safety and security to the employees due to which they perform
their duties in right way. These legislations also provide help to the managers of ASDA in
implementing right kind of equipments which are related with the safety and protection of their
employees.
TASK 2
7. Application of HRM practices in a work-related context
In order to understanding the HR practices in effective manner, HR manager has prepared
job description and person specification and uploaded them on LinkedIn and identified two
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perspective applicants for the vacant position. They have take interview of them and provide
offer letter to them.
Job Description
Position: Sales executive
Department: Sales Department
Qualification requirements:
 MBA in HR and marketing B. Com from a recognised university or institution.
Experiences
 Minimum experience of 5 years in sales department Experience of 2 years in making of effective plans so that sales of firm can be enhanced.
Skills
 Having proper communication skills such as written and oral.
 Capability of working under pressure.
 Reactive and proactive skills Ability of handling multiple task in same time period.
Duties- Determine the demand of offerings in the marketplace and fulfils it accordingly.
Managing effective relations with the production head so that supplying of product will not
decreased in the marketplace.
The questions to be asked in job Interview:
 Briefly introduce yourself ?
 How will you increase the sales figures of firm ? Do you have the knowledge about the
marketing techniques ? Tell us one of them with proper explanation. Any specific reason behind joining in this firm ?
Person specification for the sales executive
Person specification
Skills and abilities
 Having proficiency in handling the conflicts and issues of team members.
 Having an excellent communication skills in English language.
 Having proper capabilities of making decisions under a pressure.
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Qualification
 MBA in HR and marketing
 Proper knowledge of Management theories
 Passed graduation with a first class should be preferred.
Experience
 Must have 2 years experience of working with MNC firms.
 Should have an experience of minimum 2 years with Multinational companies.
Expertise
 Ability to control and regulating the activities of team members.
 Ability of leading the team members.
 Capabilities of implementing innovative ideas under pressure.
Offer Letter
John
Contact no. : 9858684857
Email : [e-mail]
Date : 27.02.2019
Subject : offer letter for job
Respected Sir,
We are feeling very happy to inform you that you are selected by us for the post of Sales
executive in the ASDA. The documents regarding the information of salary, incentives etc. is
attached with the offer letter. Your services will be started in the firm from 10.03.2019.
We will stay in contact with you for the joining date and remaining documentation. we will very
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happy to solve your problems.
Yours sincerely,
XYZ
Human resource ASDA
8. Evaluation of various sources which improved recruitment and selection process.
Every firm behaves with their staff members as a valuable asset because without them
they can't get success and growth in the marketplace. Therefore, it is very essential for the ASDA
to make changes in their recruitment process so that they can reduce the cost and time of firm.
For this, they can use various resources which are briefly discussed as under:
 Technology : It is a wide concept which is used by the business organisations for
performing their functions in easy manner. It can also used in the recruitment process for
hiring right candidates in the firm (Durstine, 2016). For example- when firm is posted
their job advertisements at the websites then a large number of candidates are come for
getting the job.
 Social Media : This concept is become most popular form which is adopted by the
managers for recruitment process. Through this, they can easily identify the skills and
strengths of the candidates which is very beneficial than other technical forms. In this,
they can use video interview and profile at social media account of the candidate for
selecting the right candidate. It also saves the cost and time of firm.
The online resources and digital platforms are effective platforms through which the HR
managers can easily advertise the job vacancy in proper manner and knows about the past
informations, backgrounds, like and dislikes of candidates through checking their social media
accounts.
Positive impact of technology on recruitment and selection
Designing and placing job advertisements – It is the main advantage which can be
gained by ASDA through taking support of technology in recruitment and selection. Through
using digital platforms attractive job description will be framed by company which is beneficial
in attracting a large number of applicants for the vacant position of sales executives of firm.
Short-listing and processing applications – It is also advantageous for organisation
because through it, large number of applicants will be shortlisted as per the expectations of
vacant position.
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