Human Resource Management Practices at Kingfisher Plc.

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HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................................3
TASK 1..........................................................................................................................................................3
QUESTION 1: PURPOSE AND FUNCTIONS OF HRM..................................................................................3
QUESTION 2: INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL SOURCE OF RECRUITMENT......................................................6
TASK 2..........................................................................................................................................................9
QUESTION 3: BENEFITS OF HRM PRACTICES...........................................................................................9
QUESTION 4: EFFECTIVENESS OF HRM PRACTICE..................................................................................10
TASK 3........................................................................................................................................................12
QUESTION 5: IMPORTANCE OF EMPLOYEE RELATION IN KINGFISHER TO INFLUENCE HRM DECISION
MAKING.................................................................................................................................................12
QUESTION 6: KEY LEGAL ISSUES AND CONSTRAINTS.............................................................................13
TASK 4........................................................................................................................................................15
QUESTION 7: APPLICATIONS OF HRM PRACTICES.................................................................................15
CONCLUSION.............................................................................................................................................19
REFERENCE LIST.........................................................................................................................................20

INTRODUCTION
Human resource management is the process of recruiting, selecting, orientation and induction,
training, compensating, rewarding, motivating etc. to the employees. The human resource of
every company is treating like important assets because the operations of the company are
performed by the human. No single activity of the company is possible without human
resource. The activities of the human resource department are related to the people working in
the organization or for the organization that is responsible to manage the resources related to
employees (Bratton and Gold, 2017).
About Kingfisher Plc.
Kingfisher Plc. is a British multinational retailing company and its headquarter is in London.
Kingfisher Plc. has its subsidiaries in mainly three sectors i.e. DIY, electrical and general
merchandising. The company has its operation in more than 1300 stores in 10 countries across
Europe with more than 79,000 employees and more than 6 million customers. Apart from these
stores, the company also sells its product through online websites.

TASK 1
Human resource management is a function that deals in management and development of
employees in the company. In other words, HRM is the process of managing the employees in a
formal or structured way in order to achieve the organizational goal (DeCenzo et al., 2016).
QUESTION 1: PURPOSE AND FUNCTIONS OF HRM
Purpose of HRM
The main purpose of HRM is to successfully utilize the efforts of the workforce to achieve the
organizational objectives in an efficient and effective manner. Following are the purpose of
HRM in Kingfisher Plc.
1. Organizational objective
The aim of the HRM function is to achieve the Kingfisher Plc. objective by acquiring the right
employees at the right time and at the right place either by promoting, transfer, training or
development. Every company wants to achieve its target by effectively and efficiently utilizing
the available resources for increasing the overall productivity of the company (Bratton and
Gold, 2017).
2. Functional objectives
The HRM function performs so many functions for different departments of the Kingfisher Plc.
such as marketing, finance, purchasing department and others. The objective of the different
functional department depends on the skills and knowledge of the employee. The HR
department analyzes the overall cost of the employees; the cost of the employees should not
exceed the benefits received from the employees (Rees and Smith, 2017).
3. Personal objectives
The HRM function is also responsible for acquiring skilled employees. In the current scenario,
there is a shortage of talented employees. Employees are motivated to switch to other jobs or

competitors as they get a better job opportunity. It is the responsibility of the HR manager to
maintain, recruit, utilize, and develop the workforce in the company. This would be only
possible when the HR manager also helps the employees in achieving their personal goals
(Fernando, 2016).
4. Societal objective
The HRM department also looks at the legal, ethical, environmental issues for managing the
employees. The governments of every country have some legal regulations related to
employees such as equal opportunity, the minimum wage for employees, equal pay for equal
work and so on. The company has the responsibility to follow these regulations to sustain in
society. The societal objectives of Kingfisher Plc. helps to generate the employment
opportunity, serving the needs of customers are the social responsibilities issues (Van Berkel et
al., 2017).
Functions and responsibilities of the HR department
Day to day activities and functions of the HR department of Kingfisher Plc. are as follows:
 Best fit approach vs Best practice approach
Best fir approach says that the organizational strategies and HR strategies must be aligned.
The strategies of HR are developed according to business strategies. HR policies include the
planning future activities, performance objectives and the strategies required to reach the
corporate goals (Ay et al., 2019).
Best practice approach implies that there is a close connection between the HR practices
and organizational performance in reaching the competitive advantage regardless of
organizational setting (Wild, 2017).
 Hard and soft models of HRM

Hard models of HRM treat the employees as resources such as machinery or equipment. The
HRM function is to identify the needs of the workforce and then to take actions such as hiring,
firing, moving etc.
Soft models of HRM treat the employees as the most important assets of the business and a
source to gain a competitive advantage. The HRM function is to focus on the needs of
employees such as reward, roles, motivation etc. (Kapoutsis et al., 2016).
 Workforce planning
Workforce planning is a tool to analyze the current and future requirement of employees in the
Kingfisher Plc. It helps in filling the gap between the present employees and the required
employees. The HR department of Kingfisher Plc. is responsible to calculate the number, skills
and experienced employees required in the organization (Addicott et al., 2015).
 Types of a labor market
The labor market also is known as the job market in which the demand and supply of labor
arises. The employee generated the supply of labor and employer generates the demand for
labor in the labor market. The labors are classified into three categories
i. Physical and mental labor- The work that requires physical strength and physical
labor is physical labor and mental labor is when the brain is applied more than
physical fatigue.
ii. Skilled and unskilled labor- Skilled labor is one that requires particular skills or
knowledge to perform the work. While on the other hand, unskilled labor is one
where learning or training is not required to perform the work
iii. Productive and unproductive labor- Productive labor is one that adds some value to
the product. While unproductive labor does not add value to the product.
 Recruitment and Selection
The process of recruitment and selection is used to select the best candidate from the
external or internal source. The selection process of Kingfisher Plc. is considered to be the

most critical process because finding the right candidate for the organization is a very
difficult task (Cristia and Aracena, 2017).
QUESTION 2: INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL SOURCE OF RECRUITMENT
The internal source of recruitment
The internal sources of recruitment of Kingfisher Plc. are as follows:
1. Promotions
Promotion is shifting the person to a higher position with more responsibility, prestige and
more pay. This is suitable when the higher position of the company becomes vacant. This is the
best source to recruit for a higher position (Rahman et al., 2015).
2. Transfer
A transfer is the shifting of a person from one job to other similar jobs without any change in
position, pay or responsibility. The Kingfisher Plc. has the option to fill the vacant position by
transferring the candidates within the organization (DeVaro, 2016).
Strengths of the internal source of recruitment
1. The internal source of recruitment is time and money saving as well as reliable.
2. It increases the morale of present employees. They are motivated to work hard for a
higher position and higher pay.
3. The employees feel loyal as they feel secure on account of advancements.
Weaknesses of the internal source of recruitment
1. It may be possible that an internal candidate does not have the skill that is required to
fill the vacant position.
2. The chances of conflict can increase. It also decreases the morale of those employees
who did not get a chance of being promoted.
3. For the requirement of an innovative or creative post, this type of recruitment is not
possible.

The external source of recruitment
Some of the external sources of recruitment are as follows:
1. Employee referrals and recommendations
It is the most important source of external recruitment. The current employees of the
Kingfisher Plc. suggest someone who is suitable to fulfill the current position of the
organization (Nilsson and Löjdqvist, 2016).
2. Employee agencies
There are different employment opportunity that provides the details of the job seekers. This is
suitable for professionals and technical personnel. This type of recruitment is cost effective and
time-saving.
3. Campus recruitment
The Kingfisher Plc. offers opportunities to educational institutions to hire young graduates.
Some organizations also offer the names of graduates that fulfill the requirement of the
company. It saves the time of HR manager of the company.
There are several other methods for recruiting employees outside the organization.
Strengths of external recruitment
1. The cost of advertising is very low as it is a direct method of recruitment.
2. External sources provide lots of choices to the manager of Kingfisher Plc. It becomes
easy for the manager to select the candidates that possess the required skills and
knowledge.
3. The Kingfisher Plc. gets the opportunity to bring new ideas in the organization by hiring
the people outside of the organization.
Weaknesses of external recruitment

1. When the vacant position is filled by an external source, the present employees feel
demoralized because there are no chances of promotion.
2. Hiring the employees from outside the organization is expensive because the company
has to spend on advertising, conducting interviews etc.
3. It may be possible that a new employee takes longer time or did not able to adjust to
the environment which increases the problem of labor turnover.

TASK 2
QUESTION 3: BENEFITS OF HRM PRACTICES
The ultimate goal of HRM practice is to increase the productivity and performance of the
employees to achieve the organizational objectives. Following are the benefits of HRM practices
for the Kingfisher Plc. and the employees:
1. Training and development
The employees of Kingfisher Plc. require training either they recently join the organization or
they are an old one. This is because every business differs from each other; therefore the
employees require training at one point of time to fulfill the requirement of the organization.
This is one of the most important functions of HRM, to provide the training and development to
the employees for increasing their productivity. Training and development activities include soft
skills development, time management, technical skills and so on. Training and development
methods help the employees to identify their weakness by communicating with the leaders and
help to improve their performance (Larsen, 2017).
2. Job and workplace design
Workplace design is a process of designing the practices that best improve the performance of
the employees. The organizational work culture and the environment greatly affect the
performance of the employees. The employees are looking for health and safety issues while
working in the organization.
Job design is the job analysis i.e. the steps involved in completing work. It describes the task,
roles, responsibilities and duties to be performed by the individual. It also includes the methods
and responsibilities one has to possess to successfully complete the task. The type of work also
affects the effectiveness of employees (Veitch, 2018).
3. Types of payment and reward system

The third important practice for the benefits of the HRM is the payment system. The duties of
HRM include paying fairly to the employees and also providing incentives matching to their
efforts. The HR manager prepares the pay scale of every employee and regularly monitors the
performance of the employees for providing the incentives. The payment and reward system of
the company helps in employee retention, satisfaction, motivation and attracting the quality of
the workforce. The fair pay system of the company also lowers the number of labor turnover.
Reward system has a positive effect on workplace dynamics such as it motivates the employees
to improve their performance and increase the sale and built loyalty towards the organization.
4. Performance management and methods used to monitor employee performance
The large organization's profitability generally depends on the performance of the employees.
Therefore, the performance of the employees is managed by performance management.
Performance management prepares the strategies to monitor the employee’s performance.
The effectiveness of performance management is achieved through leadership, constructive
feedback, and the relationship between the employees as well as with the leader. The
performance of employees can be measured through performance appraisal, productivity test,
360-degree feedback, self-evaluation, checklist, management by objectives and many more.
QUESTION 4: EFFECTIVENESS OF HRM PRACTICE
Following HRM practices brings the effectiveness for the employer as well as the employee:
1. Training and development
Training and development function helps to improve the performance and increase the
performance of the employees. The type of training in the Kingfisher Plc. depends on the
nature of work. The training is executed when the employee joins the organization. The nature
of the business of Kingfisher Plc. also focuses on providing the training to its new employees
because of the requirement of different technical skills to complete the task. The training and
development of employees help in the personal development of employees as well as
Kingfisher Plc. is also able to achieve the target effectively and efficiently (Henry et al., 2017).
2. Job and workplace design

The HRM practice of job and workplace design enhances the effectiveness of both the
Kingfisher Plc. and its employees. The job and workplace design of Kingfisher Plc. affects the
reputation of the company. Skilled and experienced employees always want to be part of the
organization that treats the employees as an asset not like the machinery. The existing
employees also are happy to work with the organization, this practice help to retain the
talented personnel in the organization.
3. Types of payment and reward system
Employees reward and payment remind the employees that their efforts and contribution are
not only recognized by the management but they also appreciate their efforts by giving them
rewards. The reward system of Kingfisher Plc. motivates the employees for putting extra efforts
in achieving the targets. The reward system not only encourages the employees to improve
their performance but also the Kingfisher Plc. gets the opportunity to increases its overall
productivity of the company.
4. Performance management and methods used to monitor employee performance
The performance management and methods used to monitor employee performance help in
increasing the profitability of Kingfisher Plc. Some methods of employee performance take a lot
of time and the management considers that there is no value of measurement of employee's
performance. But Kingfisher Plc. believes that performance management is helpful in increasing
the productivity of employees and the profitability of an organization.