Report on HRM Practices at Sainsbury: Functions, Benefits, and Impact

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of Human Resource Management (HRM) practices at Sainsbury, a leading UK supermarket chain. It explores the purpose and functions of HRM, including administrative, consultative, operational, and managerial roles. The report examines the strengths and weaknesses of different recruitment and selection approaches, such as internal, external, and third-party sourcing, and their impact on Sainsbury. It further discusses the benefits of HRM practices, including soft skills and career development programs, for both employers and employees. Finally, the report evaluates the effectiveness of HRM practices in raising organizational profit and productivity, highlighting the importance of employee relations and compliance with employment legislation. The analysis emphasizes how strategic HRM contributes to Sainsbury's success and competitive advantage in the retail industry.

HUMAN RESOURCE
MANAGEMENT

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...............................................................................................................................2
TASK 1..............................................................................................................................................3
P1 THE PURPOSE AND FUNCTIONS OF HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT...........................3
P2 STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION
APPROACHES FOR M&S..............................................................................................................6
P3 BENEFITS OF DIFFERENT HRM PRACTICES IN AN ORGANISATION FOR BOTH THE
EMPLOYER AND EMPLOYEE........................................................................................................9
P4 EFFECTIVENESS OF DIFFERENT HRM PRACTICES IN TERMS OF RAISING ORGANISATIONAL
PROFIT AND PRODUCTIVITY.....................................................................................................11
Task 2.............................................................................................................................................13
P5 THE IMPORTANCE OF EMPLOYEE RELATIONS IN RESPECT TO INFLUENCING HRM
DECISION MAKING FOR THE SAINSBURY.................................................................................13
P6 IDENTIFY THE KEY ELEMENTS OF EMPLOYMENT LEGISLATION AND THE IMPACT IT HAS
ON HRM DECISION MAKING.....................................................................................................16
P7 APPLICATIONS OF HRM IN SAINSBURY...............................................................................18
CONCLUSION.................................................................................................................................22
REFERENCES...................................................................................................................................23

INTRODUCTION
Human resource management is the life bold of an organization that is really important for the
growth and success of the organization. the main function of this department is to hire the
capable and skilled employees for the job. In this assignment, we will be discussing Sainsbury
which is a UK based company which is the second largest chain of supermarket in the UK. It is a
retail industry which deals in groceries and supermarket and hypermarkets (Foster, 2014). This
department provides training and development to the new employees for their growth. The
human resource department plays a vital role in the success of an organization because with
the help of HR department a company can select accurate and knowledgeable employees for
the organization which will be helpful for the company's growth.
The HRM practices are really important for the effective decision making of the organization. it
will develop a healthy working environment in the company which will enhance the motivation
of employees. The HRM functions are also helpful in maintaining the good relationship between
the manager and employees of the company.

TASK 1
P1 THE PURPOSE AND FUNCTIONS OF HUMAN RESOURCE
MANAGEMENT
The main functions of HRM include hiring and recruitment of skilled employees, provide them
training and development, encourage and motivate them towards work, and evaluate the
performance of the employees for developing their skills and knowledge. The HRM department
plays a vital role in the effective functioning of the organization (Chelladurai, and Kerwin, 2017).
Workforce planning is the most important part of human resource management which is
beneficial for the organization to make effective strategies and planning which will be helpful in
attaining desired goals of the organization. The main functions or purpose of Sainsbury are as
under:
Maintain quality of work
Improve quality, services, innovation, and loyalty with the customers
Suitable positioning of employees
Accurate and strong decision making for the growth of the organization
Select capable and skilled workers and employees for the company’s growth
The workforce plays an important role in the development and growth of the organization. it is
the main responsibility of the HR department to handle and solve the problems and issues of
the employees which are faced by them in the workplace. Provide them with a healthy working
environment and fulfil their needs and requirements for maintaining satisfaction level.
There are 183, 600 employees are working in Sainsbury and they all are working in the different
department like marketing, finance, HR, and operations. The management gives them
responsibilities and works according to their knowledge and skills (Marchington, et al. 2016).
The main functions of human resource management in Sainsbury are as follow:
Administrative functions
Consultative functions
Operational functions

Managerial functions
ADMINISTRATIVE FUNCTIONS
The administrative functions are helpful in achieving the goals and objective of the
organization. it is a continuous process which helps the employee to perform effectively. The
administrative functions are helpful in developing innovative strategies for achieving the
desired goals of the organization.
CONSULTATIVE FUNCTIONS
These are the functions which play an important role in maintaining the good relations between
the employees and subordinates (Reiche, et al. 2016). In this function of HRM, the leader or
manager provide motivation and encouragement to the workers and employees to perform
with full of potential. In this function, the workforce is guided towards the improvement of
work.
Figure- HRM functions

Source- (https://keydifferences.com/difference-between-personnel-management-and-
human-resource-management.html)

OPERATIONAL FUNCTIONS
The HRM functions include the operational functions which maintain the recruitment and
selection process of the employees (Story, et al. 2014). In this function, the employees are
assigned by the management according to their skills and capability of work. The operational
functions maintain effectiveness in the work performance of employees.
MANAGERIAL FUNCTIONS
The managerial functions are the basic and most common functions of HRM which help the
company to run properly. These functions include planning, directing, controlling, staffing, and
organizing which is helpful in conducting all the activities and actions smoothly.

P2 STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF
RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION APPROACHES FOR M&S
The human resource management includes various process and function in it for maintaining
the employee's performance. The recruitment and selection of skilled and capable employee
are one of the most important processes of HR department (Baum, 2016). As we know the
employees are the most important and valuable asset of the company by which a company can
attain success in the target marketplace. Sainsbury is having a large number of employees and
they are really helpful for the organization in achieving the targets.
Strength and weakness of an organization can be easily evaluated through the employee's
performance. Recruitment is the first stage which is done by the HR managers to hire the skilled
and suitable employees after that they train and develop the employees for achieving the
success of the organization. These are the method by which the Sainsbury can hire and select
the accurate employees such as:
Internal sourcing
External sourcing
Third party sourcing
INTERNAL SOURCING
This is the method by which the company can attract and select the employees for recruitment
and selection. In the internal sourcing, the main focus is on the existing employees which are
working in the company. The Sainsbury have done the internal recruitment by providing
benefits and advantage to the existing employees and motivate them towards their future
goals.
EXTERNAL SOURCING
External sourcing is including in the process of recruitment and selection. This process is a time
consuming and cost-effective process which is mostly done by the stable and financially strong
companies (Buettner, 2015). The process of external sourcing includes a huge level

advertisement and promotional activities. The Sainsbury can conduct a external sourcing for
hiring the new talent which will be helpful for the growth of the company.
THIRD PARTY SOURCING
This is also one of the effective processes of recruitment and selection which are adopted by
the company to select and hire the new and capable employee for the development of the
company. the Sainsbury have conducted this process of recruitment because it will save the
time and energy of the management and find out the right candidate for the right position.
(Figure- recruitment and selection process)
(Source- khan, 2010)

STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF THIS RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION APPROACHES TO THE
SAINSBURY
STRENGTHS
 Identification of the required skills for the specific job can help in dealing is the strength
of these recruitment and selection approaches
 Verbalize the active recruitment strategies can help to control the change in the
working.
 These processes help in selecting and hiring suitable candidates for a job and that is
beneficial for the company's growth
WEAKNESS
 The recruitment and selection process is cost-effective and time-consuming.
 The personal conflicts can be rises between the existing employees of the organization.
 It is problematic to select the suitable candidate for the job.
The recruitment and selection are the most important process for the success of an
organization which can be done by different methods such as internal sourcing, external
sourcing, and third-party sourcing which is helpful in finding the right candidate for the right job
(Buettner, 2015). The potentials and skilled candidates are the most valuable asset for the
organization to attain the desired goals and objectives. The recruitment and selection of new
employees bring innovation and creation in the organization which will help in enhancing the
productivity and improving the quality of work of the employees.

P3 BENEFITS OF DIFFERENT HRM PRACTICES IN AN
ORGANISATION FOR BOTH THE EMPLOYER AND EMPLOYEE
The Sainsbury is one of the leading chains of UK which is developing day by day with the help of
effective HRM practices. The HRM practices make the effective and developing environment in
the workplace which is good for maintaining the healthy relations between the employees and
employer (Pichler, et al. 2016). The Sainsbury use different HRM practices to motivate and
encourage employees towards the work and create efficiencies in the performance of work in
the organization. There are two main HRM practices which can be described as under:
SOFT SKILLS OF HRM
The soft skills HRM are used by the organization to maintain the quality of work and provide
support to the employees with their problems related to work. The soft skills of HRM state that
a person should be treated with respect in the organization for his dedication and performance.
The motivation and encouragement come under the soft skills of HRM which is useful for the
continuous development of employees the Sainsbury adopt the soft skills HRM by providing a
bonus, commutation, extra benefits, salary hike, and encouragement for work which will be
helpful for the growth of the organization.
CAREER DEVELOPMENT AND TRAINING DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
The career development programs are conducted by the organization to develop the skills and
knowledge of employees working in the organization. the career development programs are
helpful for the employees and employer because it will develop the knowledge of an individual.
The Sainsbury conduct career and development programs for the rapid growth and
development of the company (Guo and Al Ariss, 2015). If the employee work with his potential
and full of motivation it will positively affect the performance of an organization.
There are the different type of career development and training development programs which
is conducted by the Sainsbury for enhancing their knowledge and skills such as:
 Audiovisual training
 Formal training

 Informal training
 On-the-job training
 Off-the-job training
 Apprentice training
OPPORTUNITIES
All the employees working in a company need opportunities for growth and development. the
opportunities increase the morale of employee and motivate them to work with full of
confidence and potential. The Sainsbury provide the different type of opportunities to the
employees for enhancing their performance level and confidence towards the work.
HRM practices are really helpful for the employees and employer of the company to build the
healthy relationship between them and improving the performance level of the company.
Figure- HRM practices
Source- (https://bohatala.com/hr-practices-in-australia/)