Comprehensive Analysis of HRM Practices and Strategies at Barclays PLC

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of Human Resource Management (HRM) practices at Barclays PLC. It begins with an introduction to HRM, its purpose, and scope, specifically within the context of Barclays. The report then delves into the specifics of recruitment and selection processes, evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of various approaches, including internal and external recruitment methods. It also explores the benefits of different HRM practices, such as training and development, payment and reward management, and flexible working options, for both employees and the employer. The report examines the effectiveness of these practices in terms of organizational profit and productivity. Furthermore, it emphasizes the importance of employee relations and the influence they have on HRM decision-making, alongside a discussion of key elements of employment legislation and its impact on HRM. The analysis extends to the practical application of HRM practices in a work-related context, culminating in a conclusion that summarizes the findings and provides insights into the overall effectiveness of HRM strategies at Barclays PLC, supported by relevant references.

Human Resource
Management

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................3
P1. Purpose and function of Human resource management...................................................3
P2. Strengths and weaknesses of different approaches to recruitment and selection.............5
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................6
P3. Benefits of different HRM practices within an organisation for both employees and
employer.................................................................................................................................6
P4. Effectiveness of different HRM practices in terms of raising organisational profit and
productivity.............................................................................................................................8
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................9
P5. The importance of employees relations in order to influencing HRM decision making. 9
P6. Key elements of employment legislation and its impact upon HRM decision making. 10
TASK 4..........................................................................................................................................12
P7. The application of HRM practices in a work related context........................................12
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................13
REFERENCES .............................................................................................................................15

INTRODUCTION
Human resource management is the strategic approach to the effective management of
people within an organisation. It is responsible to recruiting, selecting, training, motivating the
employees so that they can help in the company's growth. This assignment is based on Barclays
Plc, it is a British multinational investment bank and financial services company. It is founded in
1690 and headquartered in London. This company deals in personal banking, wealth
management, investment banking and corporate banking. Further in this report will be discussed
about the purpose and scope of HRM and the effectiveness of key elements of HRM in an
organisation. Internal and external factors that create impact of HRM decision making will be
explained along with various laws of employment legislation. The application of HRM practices
in a work related context will be defined and the effectiveness of employees’ relation or
applications of HRM practices that influence decision making in a company will be described
(Al Ariss, Cascio and Paauwe, 2014).
TASK 1
P1. Purpose and function of Human resource management
In Barclays, human resource management is the process of managing employees and help
in gaining competitive advantages of the business. It can involve the process of hiring, selecting,
training, motivating and firing employees. According to Mathis and Jackson, HRM is the
effective use of Human resources and organisation through the management of people related
activities.
Nature and Scope of strategic HRM

Human resource management is fully integrated with the strategy and the strategic needs
of the company and the policies of it cohere both across policy areas and across hierarchies. The
scope of HRM is wide for all such as personal, industrial and welfare aspect. It conducts
recruitment, selection, promotion, transfer and others or provide benefits to employees of the
company at personal aspect. For welfare, it can provide, transport, health and safety, medical
services etc. It covers understanding the employment relations, joint consultations, maintaining
work relation and disciplinary procedures in industrial aspects. There is the wide scope for the
development of Barclays at different aspect and increase its profit and productivity. By analysing
all these aspects, the company can provide several benefits to its employees and securing the
highest level of understanding of them (Albrecht and et. al., 2015).
Workforce Planning- It is a continual process that can be used by company to align the needs
and priorities of the organisation with the help of its workforce. In Barclays, it ensures that it can
meet the company's regulatory, legislative, service and production requirements or organisational
objectives (Alfes and et. al., 2013).
Functions of HRM and their purpose
There are various functions of HRM in Barclays and they are associated with various
purposes. They are as following:
Training and development- It is the indispensable function of HRM and in Barclays, it is used
by the management department to organise and conduct training and learning sessions to the
employees. So that they can make improvement in its current and future performance by
increasing their abilities. The main purpose of this function is, improving and increasing the
skills and knowledge of the employees by providing them training, learning, motivational and
development sessions. So that they can help of the organisation to manage its workforce or
reduce the turn over and achieving organisational growth. The purpose of HRM is provide
training to its employees so that they can improve their skills and work for the organisational
growth.
Managing employees relations- It is the another function of HRM which help in the
organisational growth. Employees are the pillars of any company and the employees’ relation is
the broad concept or one of the important function of HRM. In Barclays, the company provide a
friendly work environment to its employees so that they can do their work properly and develop
good employees’ relation. The main purpose of this function is to provide a healthy a workplace

to employees where they can operate their responsibilities properly and help in achieving
business objective of Barclays. The main purpose of HRM is to make better relation between
employees and employers so that they can share their view with each other and achieve the
vision and mission of the company.
Hard and soft HRM approaches
 Soft HRM is an employee management system in which employees are treated as an
important resources. In Barclays, the employees are most important resources to run the
business of the company and help in gaining competitive advantages. The management
department of Barclays focus on the needs of the employees such as rewards, motivation
etc. so that they can for it and collect resources to provide motivational programs and
session to them (Buller and McEvoy, 2012).
 In Hard HRM, the management department of Barclays simply treats employees as
business resource, like building and machinery. This HRM focus on identifying
workforce needs of the business such as hiring, selecting and firing. This help in
managing resources and developing plan for the management of employees.
P2. Strengths and weaknesses of different approaches to recruitment and selection
Recruitment and selection
Recruitment- It is the process of identifying, searching, selecting, choosing and hiring the best
and most qualified or skilled candidate for a vacant position. In Barclays the management
department of the company organise or conduct this process to finding a best applicant for filling
the vacant posts (Cascio, 2015). For recruiting the candidates, the management department of the
company use various methods to provide notification regarding the vacancies such as through
social media, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter newspaper, posters etc. There are two types of
recruitment, they are as following:
Internal recruitment- In Barclays, it is the process of filling vacancies within the
company through existing workforce. For this the firm can use various methods such as
promotions, transfers and employee referral etc.
Strengths Weaknesses
 If the company use the method of internal recruitment such as promotion, it is cost and
time saving process because the employees are hired internally so there is no need to
provide notification and organised recruitment process.

 Increase morale and retention because it
provides growth opportunities to the
employees. Internal recruitment stop
the new talent or ideas to enter in the
organisation which can be helpful in the
business growth of the company.
 There are limited choice to select best
candidate for the vacant position.
External recruitment- it is the process when the company hire the candidates from
outside of the company by various methods of recruitment. The management department of
Barclays hiring candidates thorough media advertisement, direct recruitment, campus placement,
walk-Ins and others (Daley, 2012).
Strengths Weaknesses
 It can bring new talent and fresh skills
from outside of the company which can
be helpful in the organisational growth.
 With the help of external recruitment
such as social media advertisement, the
company can get a pool of eligible
candidates and qualified ones can be
choose easily.
 There is high chance of wrong
selection.
 It is consume more time and cost
because the company conduct
recruitment process to hire employees.
And provide notification through
various methods such as social media.
Selection- In Barclays, it is the process of choosing or picking the right and talented candidate
who is most suitable for the vacant position. The HR manager of the company use several
methods such as interview, ability test, aptitude test, personality test etc. to select candidate for
the vacant position (Gatewood, Feild and Barrick, 2015).
Strengths Weaknesses
 By this process, the company can get
correct information because it uses
 It is time consuming process because
the management department of

important methods like interview.
 The company can get skilled applicant
because there are number of candidate
for comparison.
Barclays use various methods such as
interview, aptitude test etc.
 The information can be fall in to wrong
hands.
TASK 2
P3. Benefits of different HRM practices within an organisation for both employees and employer
Different HRM practices
Learning, development and training practices- It is the important HR practice that can
be helpful for the growth of the organisation. Under this practice, the company can conduct
training, learning and development programs and sessions for improving the skills and
knowledge of the employees. By this, the employees can have clear information about the vision
of the firm and work according to them or help in achieving the business objective of the
company.
Payment and reward management- It is an another HR practice which help Barclays to
increase the profit and productivity of the business. Basically, it is based on the work
performance of the employees because if the employees perform better and achieve their task in
given period of time, the company rewarded them for their good work (Hoye and et. al., 2012).
This provide motivation to the workers and they do their work with their more effectiveness and
abilities or help in increasing the sales of the company that increase profit.
Flexible working option- This HR practice is important for the organisational growth of
Barclays because if the company provide flexible working option to its employees, it can reduce
the workload (Jackson, Schuler and Jiang, 2014). With the help of this HR practice, the firm can
provide various options such as part time hours, compressed hours, flexitime, annualized hours
and staggered hours or work from home etc. The management department can provide these
options to their employees whenever they are not able to come to office and want to do work. It
reduces the workload and help in the organisational growth.
HR practices Benefits to employees Benefits to employers
Learning, development and
training practices
It is beneficial for the
employees because it helps in
improving their skills and
It is also beneficial for the
employers because when the
management department of the

knowledge or they can achieve
their target and in given period
of time. If the employees of
Barclays have good knowledge
and skills, it helps them in
their personal and professional
growth.
company are organise training
and development session to the
employees. With it, they also
learn or gain knowledge
related to new technologies
and others. It helps them in
their personal and professional
growth.
Payment and reward
management
It is beneficial for the
employees because when the
management department of
Barclays rewarded their
workers and employees for
their good performance, they
feel motived. There are various
kind of reward such as send
employees on training from
outside the company, provide
extra vacations etc. outside
training can provide learning
benefits to the employees.
It is beneficial for the
employees because when they
conduct recruitment process
and the candidates perform
better, the employers are also
rewarded for their work (Jiang,
and et. al., 2012).
Flexible working option Under this practice, the
management department of
Barclays can provide flexible
working option such as part
time hours, work from home
etc. This HR practice is
beneficial for the employees
because when the workers are
not able to come to office, they
It is also beneficial for the
employers because if the
employees are absent, they can
do their work from home or the
mangers will save from the
load of work and will perform
their responsibilities well-fully
(Kehoe and Wright, 2013).

can do their work according to
flexible working option like
work from home.
P4. Effectiveness of different HRM practices in terms of raising organisational profit and
productivity
HR practices are planned approach that helpful for managing employees effectively or
according their performance. These practices are also beneficial for achieving the business
objectives and enhancing the productivity of the company. In Barclays, Flexible working option
is an effective practice to increase the profit and enhance the productivity of the company.
Because if the employer of the organisation provides an option of flexibility than the workers
who are not able to come to office, they can do their work from home and can reduce the load of
more work. So the employer will not be waste their time in manage the work of those employees
who are absent. They can use it in the growth of the company which increase the profit and
productivity of the company.
Learning, training and development is an another effective HR practice that help in
increasing the profit of the company. In Barclays, the management department of the company
can conduct training & learning sessions and programs that help in improving or increasing the
knowledge & skills of the workers (Luthans and Doh, 2012). With the help of these programs the
employees can learn and gain information about the new technologies and strategies which are
beneficial for enhancing the profit and productivity of the company. For example, Barclays
operate its business world wide and it hire the local people of that country where it run its
business. The company provide training and development sessions to those workers so that they
can easily understand the vision and policies of the company and work according to them. This
help the firm to increase the profit and enhance the productivity of the company.
Payment and reward management is an effective HR practice that help in raising the
profit and productivity of the company (Purce, 2014). The management of the Barclays can
conduct performance appraisal process and analysed the performance of the workers or rewarded
them according their performance. Reward provide motivation to employees and they can do
their work more effectiveness or with all their abilities which help in developing economic
condition of the company and increasing the productivity of the firm.

TASK 3
P5. The importance of employees relations in order to influencing HRM decision making
Employees relations- It is the behaviour and communication between the employees and
employers of an organisation. In Barclays, it refers to the efforts of the management of the
company to manage the relationships between employers and employees. If there are good
relation between employers and workers it creates positive impact on the HRM decision making
of Barclays. Every company with a good employees’ relations program provides fair and
consistent treatment to all employee so that they can committed with their jobs and loyal towards
the company.
Importance of employees relations
Employees relation is important for the proper running of the organisation. In Barclays, it
is related to the relationship of employees and employers, if they are maintaining good relations,
the organisation can create healthy and friendly work environment which is beneficial for the
personal and professional growth of every employee and employer. It creates positive impact on
the decision making because if the employees relations are good, the worker can share their
views and problems with their senior and get solution on time. If the employer will behave
friendly with their staff, they can generate open communication between them. With the help of
open communication, the employees can participate in decision making process and share their
effective and innovative ideas. For example, Barclays is going to launch a new software which
provide various beneficial services to customers (Renwick, Redman and Maguire, 2013). For
this, the management department of the company planned to conduct training program and the
manager of the company discuses with their employees that what kind of training they prefer like
online or offline. They provide decision making right and open communication to them which
create positively influence HRM decision making. With it they can provide a better working
environment to the workers and reduce the retention. The employees will be loyal towards the
firm and help in the organisational growth. Barclays use the strategy of organising CSR activities
to improve the employee engagement because in these kind of activities, there are not any kind
of competition. From this kind of activities, the company can do work fro the society and provide
loan and other services at less interest rate without gaining profits and thinking about the
business benefits. By which the organisational culture will be more smooth and the employees

are more engaged with each other or the sales and revenue of the company will increase. This
influence the HRM decision making in positive manner (Vaiman, Scullion and Collings, 2012).
P6. Key elements of employment legislation and its impact upon HRM decision making
Employment legislation
It is an act that governs employment within the workplace with everyone who works.02
This legislation is a set of laws that deals with the rights of employees and responsibilities of
employer. It covers a wide range of issues related to pension plans and retirement, occupational
safety and discrimination in the workplace. It is a protection body that provide protection to the
employees from illegal and ethical activities or behaviour that perform by their employers
towards them. There are various legislations such as disability discrimination, data protection
act, health and safety laws, equality laws and others. These laws create positive or negative
impact upon HRM decision making, employees relation and provide several benefits Barclays.
Equality Law, 2010- This act is developed by UK government and came into force on 1
October 2010 (Equality Act 2010, 2019). It is developed by the government to protect people
from discrimination in the workplace and in wider society. The primary purpose of this act is to
provide protection to employees from discrimination, harassment etc. at workplace. Barclays
operate its business according to this law and provide protection to them from workplace
harassment or unethical activities from their employers. The company provide a healthy and
friendly work environment to its employees which create positive impact on the decision making
of HRM. Cause of following this law, there will not arise conflicts and work related problems so
the company achieve its business objective on time which help in increasing profit and
productivity of the company (Wright, 2018).
Data Protection Act, 1998- It is a UK Act of Parliament which is designed to protect
personal data stored on computers or in an organised paper filling system. There some principle
of this act such as personal data shall be obtained only for one or more specified and lawful
purpose and shall not be further processed in any manner incompatible with that purpose or those
purposes. Personal data shall be accurate and where necessary, kept up to date. For Barclays, it is
necessary to all theses principle of this act because Barclays is a bank and there are need to
provide protection to the personal data of the customers. For providing protection, the company
can use various software which are able to protect data and it can be stole or hack by anyone. If
the organisation will not follow this act, it can be face various issues such as if the personal data

of any customer hack. It create negative impact on the trust of the consumers and also influences
the HRM decision making and decisions of the management such as the HR design strategies
and policies according that. The HR of the company will provide training and told their
employees that when they are communicate with the client, they asked question in a limit so that
they can reduce the chances of leak the personal data (Jiang and et. al., 2012).
Health and safety Law,1974- This is also developed by the UK government to govern
workplace health and safety. This law make provision for securing the healthy, safety and
welfare of persons at work and protecting them against risks to health and safety in connection
with the activities of persons at work or workplace. In Barclays, the management department of
the company follow this act and provide protection to the employees and employer. For this, the
company provide various types of health and safety policies such as health insurance, retirement
plans and various others. These all provide them protection against health and safety issues and
create positive impact on HRM decision making such as reducing turnover, retention and
workplace safety.
Anti-discrimination Act,1991- This act is developed by the parliament of Queensland to
provide protection against unfair discrimination, sexual harassment and objectionable conduct. In
Barclays, Under this act, everyone should be equal and have the right to equal protection and
equal benefits of the law without discrimination. In Barclays, the management department of the
company do work according this act and provide all those rights and benefits which are
maintained under this act such as equal payment rights for those employees who are working on
same position and various kinds of benefits like health insurance, accommodation etc. If
company will provide all the rights and benefits to its employees according to the law, this create
positive impact on the decision making of the company. They will do their work more
effectiveness so the management department of the company will not be more focus on them
and will not organise training or motivational sessions. If the company provide all these kind of
rights, the employees help in increasing profit and productivity of the organisation (Noe, R. A.
and et. al., 2017).
TASK 4
P7. The application of HRM practices in a work related context
Job specification document and five interview questions for a HR manager position