Human Resource Management Case Study: Thames Building Society Issues

This assignment presents a comprehensive case study analysis of human resource management practices at the Thames Building Society in the UK. The analysis examines the objectives and purpose of HRM, identifying strategic directions and proposing a revamped HR framework. It delves into the challenges of poor sales figures and employee performance, offering recommendations to improve recruitment, training, and compensation strategies. The study also explores methods to enhance organizational effectiveness by improving work culture and employee-management relationships. Furthermore, it highlights two significant violations of UK employee legislation by the Thames Building Society, discussing their potential consequences. The assignment provides actionable insights for the Thames Building Society to improve its HRM practices and overall organizational success.

Running head: HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT – CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
Human Resource Management – Case Study Analysis
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT – CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
1. Objective and Purpose of Human Resource Management.......................................................2
1.1. Identification of Thames Building Society Strategic Direction........................................3
2. Understanding how HRM can Improve Poor Sales Figures and Poor Employee
Performance at Thames Building Society...................................................................................4
3. Understanding how Organizational Effectiveness can be Improved or Enhanced by Human
Resource Management at Thames Building Society.......................................................................6
4. 2 Significant Violations of UK Employee Legislation by Thames Building Society – An
Analysis...........................................................................................................................................8
Conclusion and Recommendations................................................................................................10
References......................................................................................................................................11

2HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT – CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
Introduction
Human resource management refers to the strategic approaches that are undertaken for
effectively managing people or human resources in an organization or company. Human
resource managers work in a manner that enables a company to gain competitive advantage over
its rivals in the market and in the industry in which it operates. This assignment analyzes a case
study on the Thames Building Society in the United Kingdom that has been attractive negative
attention because of its unfair treatment of employees (Noe et al. 2017). The assignment outlines
the objectives and purpose of human resource management, and in doing so it prepares a human
resource management framework for the Thames Building Society. The assignment also
analyzes how HR practices can be utilized to improve the employee sales figures at Thames
Building Society which have been so disappointing of late, recommends the ways by which HR
can improve employee turnover rate and enhance organizational effectiveness, and finally
discusses two of the legal violations that the Thames Building Society is guilty of under UK
employee legislation, and the penalties it would be imposed because of this.
1. Objective and Purpose of Human Resource Management
The purpose and key objectives of human resource management are to ensure primarily, the
availability of a workforce that is competent and skilled and which is characterized by the
willingness necessary for fulfilling the goals and objectives of the organization (Cascio 2015).
Specifically, human resource management objectives can be placed into four distinct
categories, namely, societal objectives, functional objectives, personal objectives and
organizational objectives. The social objectives of human resource management involve being

3HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT – CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
socially and ethically responsible to the challenges and needs of the organization, while
minimizing at the same given time, the negative effect that business demands and challenges can
have on an organization. The organizational objectives of HR entail playing an active role in
bringing about, enhancing and ensuring organizational effectiveness. The human resource
management or HR department of an organization is one that exists to assist with the services
and the goals of the organization, making sure that all objectives of the organization are duly and
timely met. The functional objectives of HR are to ensure that the manpower of the organization
is utilized to the fullest and to avoid the wastage of resources in any given way (Albrecht et al.
2017). The human resource department offers levels of service that are well tailored for the type
of organization for which it is working. The personal objectives of human resource management
involve enabling employees and assisting employees in achieving the personal goals or targets
that they set for themselves at the organization. In order carry out its social objectives, a few of
the key functions performed by the HR department are legal compliance and the maintenance
of good union-employer relations (Bratton and Gold 2017). To fulfill organizational
objectives, key functions performed by HR are selection and recruitment of candidates,
planning the appraisal and placement of employees, assessing employee performance and
ensuring good relations among employees. The fulfillment of functional objectives of HR
involves carrying out tasks such as assessment, appraisal, as well as placement. For fulfilling
the personal objectives of HR, key functions carried out by HR are compensation, training
and development, assessment, placement and appraisal (Stewart and Brown 2019).

4HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT – CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
1.1. Identification of Thames Building Society Strategic Direction
The HR department at Thames Building Society needs to be revamped at the earliest and there
are a number of key functions that the HR department must perform, which it is not doing so at
present. While training and development measures are provided for employees at the society,
these appear to be inadequate for meeting organizational objectives. The HR department
concerns itself with pay and benefits administration and it is entrusted with the task of looking
into and dealing with employee issues and with the recruitment of skilled employees. Yet there is
no formal trade union that can come to the aid of distressed employees and while there is a staff
association in place, it is completely devoid of negotiation rights. The HR management at
Thames Building Society has to be reorganized to ensure greater negotiation rights for staff
association, establish formal relations with a trade union for employee benefits, and adopt a
greater and more organized approach to recruitment and training of employees (Noe et al. 2015).
2. Understanding how HRM can Improve Poor Sales Figures and Poor
Employee Performance at Thames Building Society
The Thames Building Society is an organization that has been plagued by poor employee
performance of late, and because of this sales figures have dropped considerably low. Upon in-
depth investigation and analysis it was found that the staff of the Thames Building Society is
inadequately trained, they lack the skills needed to perform the jobs that they have been recruited
for and are found to constantly complain about being paid lower wages compared to their peers
and counterparts working in other companies or organization (DeCenzo et al. 2016). What is also
quite disturbing about human resource affairs as seen to exist at the Thames Building Society is
the fact that there is a significant gap between the pay of male employees and female employees.

5HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT – CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
Employee turnover is therefore something that is quite high for the Thames Building Society,
with employees not hesitating to resign at the drop of a hat in order to go and work for
organizations that offer better and more equal pay and better working conditions on the whole
(Ahmad 2015).
The human resource management at Thames Building Society can play an active role in
improving the sales figures at Thames Building Society and in getting the organization to
perform far more effectively than what it is able to at the moment. To begin with, the HR
department needs to focus on recruiting skilled and apt people for the job roles that are offered
at the Thames Building Society. Freshers or experienced individuals who are recruited into the
organization need to be equipped with both the knowledge and the skills that are needed to
perform the duties and responsibilities that will the organization to achieve its business
objectives (Reiche et al. 2016). The recruitment and selection procedure at Thames Building
Society therefore has to be conducted with greater care and precision so that the right people are
employed to perform the right jobs, and do not feel like fish out of water once they arrive at
work. HR management at Thames Building Society can for instance focus not only on degrees of
candidates but also their ability to withstand pressure and apply themselves in an organization, to
decide whether they are worth recruiting into the organization or not. Secondly, the HR
department at Thames Building (Guest 2017).
Society needs to propose raising employee wages by a fair degree if sales figures are to
go up and if the organization’s performance and effectiveness in the industry is to witness an
improvement. It is found from reading the given scenario that the wage rates offered for
employees at Thames Building Society are incredibly low and that employee turnover is high
because of this. The HR management must assess employee performance and appraise

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employees accordingly, hiking their pay scale so that they have an incentive to stay back and
serve the organization over a long period of time (Brewster 2017).
The gap that exists in the pay of male and female employees is something that has to be
addressed by the Thames Building Society immediately, if sales figures are to go up and
performance improved. The pay of male and female employees must be equalized by the
HRM immediately as a gap in pay in this respect encourages gender disparity which in turn
creates unequal and difficult conditions at work, with female employees migrating to
organizations where they are likely to be treated with a greater degree of fairness (Collings et al.
2018). Female employees are going to lack motivation and interest in the work that they do for
the Thames Building Society if they are not paid as well as men are, and that too for performing
the same jobs. They are going to feel severely discriminated against, which is not something that
should be allowed at any organization in the UK let alone the Thames Building Society
(Brewster 2017).
3. Understanding how Organizational Effectiveness can be Improved or
Enhanced by Human Resource Management at Thames Building
Society
To improve organizational effectiveness at the Thames Building Society, the human
resource management must train and develop employees better. Employees need to be
subjected to advanced training and development programs conducted by experts in the field,
equipping them with the skills and additional knowledge they need to do a better job at the
workplace (Noe et al. 2017). Employees can for instance be exposed by the HRM at Thames
Building Society to regular webinars and online training sessions that are conducted by experts

7HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT – CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
of national or international acclaim, which in turn will give them an understanding of how well it
is that they are expected to perform at the workplace. A significant benefit associated with
training and development sessions that are imparted in the form of webinars is the fact that these
can be accessed from remote locations. Employees can attend such webinars while at home, or
from the comfort of their office space without having to travel to a physical space or location for
this purpose (Cascio 2015). Training and development via webinars are also far less burdensome
on the resources of a company, especially for an organization like the Thames Building Society
which is already on the financial down low because of its under-performing employees (Noe et
al. 2017).
Another key way by which the HR at Thames Building Society can bring about an
improvement in organizational effectiveness is to establish a good work culture within the four
walls of the organization. It is the duty and the responsibility of human resource management
professionals to ensure that employees at an organization get along well with one another and
that issues pertaining to trust and honesty do not prevail among employees as this can interfere
with good work culture by a considerable degree. The human resource management at Thames
Building Society should consider dividing the employees at the organization into teams, with
each team being given a goal or a target to achieve by the end of a week or by the end of a
month. The pursuit of common goals and objectives will bring team members together which in
turn will facilitate employee bonding, getting them to understand each other and get along well
with one another all in all generating positive vibes at the workplace. A positive work
environment and a healthy work culture at Thames Building Society will go a long way in
enhancing the productivity of the employees at the organization (Noe et al. 2015).

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In addition to boosting healthy relations among employees at the organization, the human
resource management should also aim at establishing good and healthy relationships between the
employees of the organization and their managers or supervisors (Bratton and Gold 2017).
Employees cannot feel intimidated or scared of their supervisors or hate them if they are to work
productively and efficiently for the entire length of the year. Every effort should therefore be
made on the part of the human resource managers at Thames Building Society to cultivate good
relations between the organization’s employees and those who hold positions in the top level
management, giving people at the organization a more secure and happy environment in which
to do their work in (Brewster 2017).
4. 2 Significant Violations of UK Employee Legislation by Thames
Building Society – An Analysis
The Equality Act of 2017 which falls within the purview of UK Employee Legislation states
that companies that have 250 or more employees are to report gender pay gap at the end of every
year. Both public and private bodies need to report the same. Unlimited convictions and fines
can be imposed on companies that fail to report such a pay gap, and who more importantly, fail
to address the gender pay gap in the event that it exists in the company (Redley et al. 2019). The
Thames Building Society does not pay its male and female employees equally as is evident from
the given scenario. It is also clear from the given scenario that the fact that such a pay gap exists
implies that the company has not been reporting its gender pay gap annually, as is required to be
done quite clearly under the Equality Act of the UK as of 2017. The organization is therefore
violating UK employee legislation as it is not reporting the discrepancy in the pay that is meted
out to male and female employees, and which in turn, is causing female employees to leave or

9HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT – CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
resign from the organization in large numbers to seek better and more equal opportunities
elsewhere (Redley et al. 2019).
Paying workers less than the minimum wages for specific jobs in specific industries is illegal
in the United Kingdom. Employers who are found to paying their employees, wages which are
lower than the minimum wages as established under the National Minimum Wage Act of the
country can be penalized heavily in the form of fines and other types of compensation. Clearly,
from reading the case study that has been provided, the Thames Building Society is one that has
been doing a very poor job of paying its employees adequately. Employees are leaving the
organization in large numbers to go and work for other organizations which pay them more for
doing the same job (Fidrmuc and Tena 2019). This implies that Thames Building Society is an
organization that is violating the provisions under the National Minimum Wage Act, by under
paying employees and compelling them to seek better opportunities at other related organizations
in the UK. If this matter is taken to court, the organization could find itself to be in serious
trouble. The court can not only force the company to clear all dues pertaining to unequal wages
for its employees but it can also impose some very hefty fines on the company, the financial
burden of which can cause the organization to collapse. All individual workers who are
underpaid at the Thames Building Society will have to be compensated for their dues if the
matter of unequal wages reaches the court room. Over and above the penalties that can be
imposed on the organization, the Thames Building Society could also be liable to being named
and shamed publicly in the UK, which in turn will act as a deterrent for prospective employees,
keeping them from applying for jobs at the organization and looking elsewhere in the UK to do
the type of work that they would have done at the Thames Building Society (Fidrmuc and Tena
2019). The need of the house is for the HR department of the company to come together and

10HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT – CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
make the management at the company aware of the fact that the organization is committing a
number of gross and unacceptable legal violations, which if made public can result in the
company shutting down for good. It is the duty and the responsibility of HR to gather the facts
on this matter and make an urgent presentation before the company’s top level management,
imploring them to take the steps needed to bring such legal violations to an end, for the
betterment of the company and its employees.
Conclusion and Recommendations
Thus, it is clear from the points that have been discussed above that the Thames Building
Society is an underperforming organization in the UK market, performing poorly in the
department of marketing and sales, and being serviced by unskilled and unhappy employees.
What is worse, the company is violating UK employee legislation by not paying its workers
adequate wages and by not reporting the gender pay gap that is found to exist in the organization.
The human resource management at Thames Building Society must be revamped and
restructured to improve organizational efficiency, enhance sales and take the steps needed
to ensure that the company does not commit any violation of UK employee legislation, and
only then can it keep the company from going downhill and help it to survive in the market over
the long term.

11HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT – CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
References
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Albrecht, S.L., Bakker, A.B., Gruman, J.A., Macey, W.H. and Saks, A.M., 2015. Employee
engagement, human resource management practices and competitive advantage: An integrated
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Bratton, J. and Gold, J., 2017. Human resource management: theory and practice. Palgrave.
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DeCenzo, D.A., Robbins, S.P. and Verhulst, S.L., 2016. Fundamentals of Human Resource
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