A Literature Review on Human Resource Management at Woolworths Group

This report provides a literature review of human resource management practices within the Woolworths Group. It examines the company's industrial relations, highlighting its strategies for managing relationships with stakeholders, including employees, customers, and suppliers, and the challenges faced in a competitive retail environment. The report then delves into Woolworths' employee retention and development programs, analyzing the factors contributing to employee satisfaction and turnover, including training, benefits, and organizational culture. Furthermore, it assesses the performance management system, evaluating its effectiveness in encouraging and managing employee performance and identifying areas for improvement. Key findings include the importance of a positive work environment, competitive compensation, and regular performance evaluations. Recommendations focus on enhancing employee development, improving employee retention, and refining the performance management system to maintain a competitive edge in the retail sector.

Running Head: Woolworths Group
Human Resource Management
Literature Review
System04104
5/31/2019

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Table of Contents
Literature Review.......................................................................................................................2
Industrial Relationships of Woolworths.................................................................................2
Retention and Development...................................................................................................3
Managing Performance in Woolworths..................................................................................3
Key Findings..............................................................................................................................4
Recommendations......................................................................................................................5
References..................................................................................................................................6

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Literature Review
In the global era, organisations are facing extremely strong competition in the retail industry,
where large numbers of retail players are competing with each other in terms of prices, quality, and
customer experience. However, in such a scenario managing good relationship in the industry is really
a tough target for any company. Woolworths is known for its best marketing strategies and best
services for providing a great customer experience to its end customers. Large numbers of people now
want to buy domestic households products on a retail store where they can buy all the products with
minimum efforts and great customer experience. Woolworth is continuously Woking on its industrial
relationship, which is the key of success in the retail sector.
Industrial Relationships of Woolworths
A largest grocery supermarket in Australia is known for its employee and customer
relationship polices. Industrial relation refers to a relationship of the organisation with the
other stakeholders of the organisation such as customers, suppliers, employees, government,
etc. Bailey, Price, Pyman, & Parker (2015) said in their article that the Woolworth is
responsible to manage the industrial relations in such a way that help the country to establish
a good relationship with the other stakeholders and gain control over the employees conflicts
and grievances. The organisational strategy of the company extensively deals with the
industrial relations and performance management. Farndale, Brewster & Poutsma (2014)
included in their work that strategic planning of the organisation includes formulation of
long-term plans and strategies that helps the company to establish a good relationship with
employees and other stakeholders of the company. The operational plan of the country is also
formulated in such a way that provides help to the company to improve the performance of
employees and motivate them towards the organisational success. However, Woolworths is
also facing problems related to changing pattern of jobs and facing competition for recruit
and hiring people for the organisation due to heavy competition in the Australian retail
market. Woolworths focuses on establishing long-term employee’s relationships that further
help the organisation to achieve its long-term objectives (Arli, Dylke, Burgess, Campus, &
Soldo, 2013). Woolworths is also focusing on improving the relationship with its existing
employees by providing them competitive salary and other benefits such as best
organisational work environment and culture.
Relationship with suppliers is also crucial when company wants to sustain and survive
in the retail market. In the era of heavy competition the Woolworths needs to establish a good

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relationship with customer. As suppliers have good command in the retail market, support of
Woolworth to suppliers in terms of advance payments and coordination with their work will
help the organisation to easy access of raw materials. The relationship of the Woolworth with
suppliers determined its success and growth because they decide the flow of raw material in
the organisation. According to Keith (2012), in order to establish a good industrial relation
policy and ensure the success of industrial planning process, the organisation need to utilise
the contingency planning process and approach where the key goal of the organisation should
be clarify to every stakeholder in initial stage. The next step in making the industrial relation
planning process is to decide the time duration for each activity in the organisation. The
industrial relation plan of the organisation should be in such a way that helps the organisation
to analyse the potential risks of the organisation and that further help the organisation to
achieve its key objectives (Horwitz, 2012). However, the relationship with other stakeholders
such as governments is also essential. However, if an organisation fulfils all the obligations
towards the government and taxations to the government, it will really help the organisation
to establish a good industrial relationship with Australian federal government.
Retention and Development
Woolworths is almost depends on its best staff for its best retail business operation in
Australia. The quality of staffs and their skills are the primary requirement to work in this
Australian retail giant. However, the company is known for its best employee retention and
development programs. The low employee’s turnover and high employee’s satisfaction is the
sign of a great retention and development programs of Woolworths. Woolworths uses the
latest technology for the employee’s performance management. The company also enhance
the employee participation in its decision-making and though process and especially in those
decision which are directly related to the employees interest. Bloom & Van Reenen (2010)
included in their work that the employee empowerment policy and involvement of employees
provide a great opportunity for the employees for their confidence and motivation, which
helps the company to retain its employees for the long-term. The Maslow’s need of hierarchy
theory states that every people have five motivational factors such as physiological needs
(such as food, shelter, clothes, etc.), Safety needs, belongings need (love, affection, and
family), self-esteem needs (name-fame, social status, power etc.) and self-actualisation needs.
Woolworth is known for providing best motivation factors to its employees, which results in
high retention rate of employees. However, the companies also provide a post-retirement
benefits, healthcare plans, and educational assistance through training and scholarships. The

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Woolworths also provide death and funeral cover to its employees. However, the training and
development plan of the company needs to be more sharpen as people needs to be evolve
their skills and knowledge, which is crucial for the organisation (Richards, Lawrence, Loong,
& Burch, 2012).
The Woolworths always focuses on providing all the facilities to its employees to
encourage them towards longer stay in the organisation. According to the Smith, Heley, &
Stafford (2011) the high salary packages, extra benefits, better organisational environment,
and other facilities help the organisation to maintain an adequate level of employee’s
turnover in the organisation. However, in the past, the Woolworths has had to deal with very
high employee turnover issues before its move towards greener pastures in the organisation.
The management of Woolworths always try to find the ways through which the employee can
be satisfied and retain in the organisation for the long time. The Woolworths also provides
time-to-time regular training and development programs to its people as it enhance the skills
and knowledge of employees in the organisation and helps the organisation to achieve its
organisation goals in effective and efficient manner. The development of employees not only
helps the organisation to not only provide best customer experience to its customers, it also
improves the brand image of the company in the mind of people (Troshani, Jerram & Rao
Hill, 2011).
Managing Performance in Woolworths
According to King and Thobela (2014) a high performance of employees is the key of
the success of the Woolworths. Woolworths always believe in encouraging and managing the
performance of employees and the management also provide rewards for the excellent and
extraordinary performance of employees. Woolworths also believe in nurturing the talent and
skills of its employees, which requires to fulfil the future career aspiration of employees. This
performance management system not only establishes a great relationship with the
management, rather it allows the organisation to fulfil the future organisational posts from the
employees who are eligible for promotion and for that designation (Ferguson, 2011).
Woolworth has an excellent talent management system and where the employees of the
organisation will be evaluated and analysed based on their knowledge, skills, experience, and
performance. Hattersley (2013) said in his work that Woolworths performance management
tool is highly underdeveloped as human resource department is lacking in proper
performance appraisal system despite being using the best technology in the performance

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management system (Price, Bailey, & Pyman, 2014). The company is providing annual basis
information about its employee performance and it is really bad for the organisation.
However, the manager in the organisation plays an important role in improve the
performance of employees and provide guidelines and motivation that how they can improve
the performance. However, the company needs a regular or quarterly basis performance
evaluation and analysis report that helps the employees to find out the existing gap between
the actual and real performance standards (McGraw, 2014).
Peretz & McGraw (2011) said in their work that the manager can also manage the
employees to provide rewards and recognition to high performing employees that help to
motivate other employees who do not perform as per the required standards. However, the
role of top management in managing the performance of employees is also crucial as they can
provide them liberty to take their own decision in order to achieve the organisational goals.
The key of this performance technique of the organisation is that it helps in increasing the job
satisfaction of employees and enhances their participation in the organisational operations.
Managing the performance of employees is really a tough challenge in the organisation when
the data related to employees are not timely available for taking the decision regarding the
employees performance. The performance management system can also be enhanced by
providing training and development programs to employees. However, the retail sector is
known for its flexible work environment and retail sector is also one of the changing
ventures; the Woolworth will have to ensure that the organisation is prepared for accepting
the future challenges and issues in the performance management system (Nenycz-Thiel,
2011).
Key Findings
From the above analysis of the human resource functions of Woolworths, the key findings
are as follow:
1. Woolworth has very good industrial relations with its stakeholders such as customers,
suppliers, employees, government etc. However, the company needs to focus on
providing best organisational work environment to its employees that will leads to a
great relationship with its employees. However, relationship with customer is still a
problem for the Woolworth as the retail giant faced many blames about the poor

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quality products and price modification issues. This problem has adversely affected
the relationship of Woolworths with its customers.
2. The high employees’ turnover was a major problem in the organisation. It was arise
because of poor work environment and support from the top management to the
employees. The HR department failed to improve the satisfaction level of employees,
as employees left the job. Apart from this, a good salary from the other retail giants in
the Australia such as Coles, Aldi, etc. are providing more benefits than Woolworths.
Apart from this, heavy competition in labour market to acquire the talent on high
prices also leads to a problem for the organisation. However, Woolworths provide all
the facilities to its employees abut need of motivation is steel absent in the
organisation that helps the employees to stay longer in the organisation.
3. The Woolworths performance management system is almost good and helpful in
analysing and evaluating the performance of employees. However, Woolworth is
failed to analyse the performance of its employees on short duration period, which is
helpful for the employees to find out the existing gaps between actual and expected
performance and required of skills.
Recommendations
Woolworth is known for its best retail business organisation in the Australian retail
market. However, the company is facing strong competition in the Australia, as there are
many retail organisations are operating their business in the country and looking for hiring
talent from the labour market with offering high salary and benefits. If the company wants to
gain competitive advantage over other retail player, the organisation needs to implement
following changes:
1. The company should provide a good work environment and conduct various
employee development programs that will help to establish a good relationship with
employees.
2. The management of Woolworths and human resource department should try to
improve the high employee’s turnover by providing extra benefits and a competitive
salary package to its employees. Apart from this, it can also empower its employees
for self-decision making in order to achieve the organisational goals. This will
enhance the job satisfaction among employees and it also leads to better job
performance.

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3. The organisation should focus on better performance management by analysing and
reviewing the performance of employees on quarterly basis. It will help the
organisation to fulfil the future positions and requirements in the organisations.

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References
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Walmart US: Best practices in supply chain collaboration. Journal of Economics,
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Bailey, J., Price, R., Pyman, A., & Parker, J. (2015). Union power in retail: Contrasting cases
in Australia and New Zealand. New Zealand Journal of Employment Relations, 40(1),
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Bloom, N., & Van Reenen, J. (2010). Why do management practices differ across firms and
countries?. Journal of economic perspectives, 24(1), 203-24.
Farndale, E., Brewster, C., & Poutsma, E. (2014). Coordinated vs. liberal market HRM: the
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management (pp. 20-39). Routledge.
Ferguson, R. (2011). The Brontes Went to Woolworths: The Bloomsbury Group. A&C Black.
Hattersley, L. (2013). Agri-food system transformations and diet-related chronic disease in
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Horwitz, F. M. (2012). Evolving human resource management in Southern African
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Keith, S. (2012). Coles, Woolworths and the local. Locale: The Australasian-Pacific Journal
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King, L., & Thobela, S. (2014). Woolworths farming for the future. International Food and
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McGraw, P. (2014). A review of human resource development trends and practices in
Australia: multinationals, locals, and responses to economic turbulence. Advances in
Developing Human Resources, 16(1), 92-107.

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Nenycz-Thiel, M. (2011). Private labels in Australia: A case where retailer concentration
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Smith, R. J., Heley, J., & Stafford, I. (2011). Woolworths and Wales: A multi-dimensional
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