Strategic Human Resource Management and Employment Relations

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) and Employment Relations. It begins by defining SHRM and its link to organizational strategic goals, emphasizing the importance of aligning HR practices with business strategies. The report discusses vertical alignment and horizontal integration within organizations, and explores theoretical models of SHRM, including best fit, contingency, and resource-based views. It also examines performance management and reward practices, offering recommendations for improvement. The second part of the report focuses on employment relations, exploring the roles of various actors and the changing nature of these relationships. The report uses Sainsbury's as a case study throughout its analysis, providing practical examples and insights. The report concludes with a summary of key findings and recommendations for enhancing SHRM and employment relations within organizations.

Strategic Management Human
Resources

Table of Contents
Strategic Management Human Resources.......................................................................................1
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
Relationship between Business Strategies and HR strategies......................................................1
Vertical Alignment and Horizontal integration...........................................................................2
Basis and Model of SHRM..........................................................................................................3
Strategic perspective of best fit, contingency and resource based view......................................3
HR practices of Performance Management and Reward.............................................................4
Recommendation.........................................................................................................................5
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................5
Employment Relations.................................................................................................................5
Roles of the actors within the Employment Relationship............................................................6
Changing Nature of Employment Relations................................................................................8
Mechanism of Employee Participation and Employee Voice.....................................................9
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................11

Executive Summary
This report have included Strategic Human Resource Management in its first part. Strategic
Human Resource refers to link between organisational strategies and human resource practices.
Report further includes integration and alignment of strategies in vertical and horizontal basis.
Model of SHRM have also been included in this report and practices for performance
management and reward that organisations undertake and recommendation on its improvement
have been included in this report. In second part report included employment relations and its
related factors. Role of various actors in employment relations and how this relationship have
changed with time have also been included in this report.

Glossary
HRM- Human Resource Management
SHRM- Strategic Human Resource Management
ER- Employment Relations
PM- Performance Management
EP- Employee Participation

INTRODUCTION
Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) refers to linking human resources with
strategic goals and objectives of organisation to improve business performance and develop
organisational culture and innovation and for that practice that is undertaken to attract, develop,
reward and retaining employees for organisational and individual benefits of employees. This
report discuss SHRM and business strategies and business strategies and vertical and horizontal
integration across the organisation. Report further includes discussion over theoretical models of
SHRM with explanation of best fit, best practice and resource based view from strategic
perspective. Strategic practices of performance management and reward have also been included
in this report. Further this report also includes employment relations and factors that are
associated with it like role of various actors of employment relations and how nature of
employment have changed with time. For this discussion and analysis study includes
Sainsbury’s, a British multinational retail organisation founded in 1869 and headquartered at
Holborn, London, UK.
TASK 1
Relationship between Business Strategies and HR strategies
Every strategy that business organisation develop their link with human resource is must
as they are going to implement and work op that strategies and HR strategies that organisation
make are required in such manner that can achieve objectives behind business strategies (Gupta,
2016). Business strategies are designed so that organisation can achieve its objectives in best
possible manner and these strategies are supported by HR and to allow HR to give their best
support in achieving business objectives which requires implementation and execution of
business strategies by HR. To achieve their business objectives company have to develop
suitable strategies for HR. For instance, business strategies of organisation includes increased
quality of their output then HR strategy related to recruitment will require recruiting efficient
manpower in the same manner if company needs to increase its quantity of output then company
will have to design its HR strategies in a way that company employs more number of employees
who can work ti increase quantity of output. In relation with Sainsbury’s it can be said that their
business strategies that include customer satisfaction and better quality product than they are
required to recruit employees on quality basis rather than quantity basis.
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Another important factor is that HR strategies are developed on the basis of business strategies.
Business strategies are strategies that enable organisational objectives' achievement and HR
strategies are how HR of the organisation can contribute to achieve those objectives. For instance
business strategies include that organisation is planing to upgrade its technology and in that case
employees of the organisation will be given training to work on that technology (Rees and Smith,
2017). In this advancement of technology was business strategy and giving training to employees
is HR strategy.
Vertical Alignment and Horizontal integration
Vertical alignment of strategies refers to a setting where strategies at different level of
organisation is aligned and when strategies of different areas working at same level are
integrated it is known as horizontal integration.
In business vertical alignment of strategies align goals and objectives on individual to teams'
goals then goals and objectives of teams' are aligned with departmental goals these are aligned
with overall business strategy and business objectives. In relation with Sainsbury’s when goals of
Sainsbury’s are aligned with its different stores and these are aligned with different departments
of the store. Vertical alignment of strategies ensure that strategies are directly related with
organisational mission, vision and values. These strategies are developed to ensure how company
will achieve its goals and objectives and then aligned with other strategies at different level to
ensure that strategies are properly implemented to achieve organisational goals and objectives.
This also considers that resources are used effectively to achieve success. Whereas, in horizontal
integration strategies of different functional area is aligned with each other. In this integration of
HR, finance, production, marketing, sales, research and development strategies of all these
departments are integrated with other to achieve organisational objectives and strategies.
Objective behind horizontal integration of strategies is that all the departments and their
strategies work together and not in competition (Sting and Loch, 2016). This is done looking at
big picture to ensure that strategies of one part of the organisation are not impacting
inappropriately other part of the organisation. For instance, production department willing to
increase production and inance department is willing to reduce budget allocation this will impact
production department negatively making it difficult for it to get adequate resources.
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Basis and Model of SHRM
5 P Model of SHRM suggest that % P's of organisation requires to be aligned together to
improve organisational performance and these 5 P's are as follows-
Purpose- Elements that constitute intention of organisation. These elements are mission, vision,
objectives, goals and strategies of organisation.
Principles- Guiding philosophies, assumption and attitude about operation of organisation and
its functions and how organisation should conduct its business. This includes integrity, value,
ethics and commitment that employees are required to make with organisation.
Processes- Organizational structures, systems, and procedures are included in processes. It
includes service that organisation provide and infrastructure that supports these systems and
procedures.
People- Refers to individual working for and in organisation and providing their service to
organisation according to procedure and principles. Active support of these is very important to
process organisation.
Performance- All metrics, measurement and expected results that indicate the status of
organisation and are used for criteria of decision making.
Sainsbury’s effectiveness and efficiency is based on how these factors are aligned with each
other and inefficiency of these actors may result in increased time and input and wastage of
resources.
Strategic perspective of best fit, contingency and resource based view
Best Practice Approach- This approach also known as Universalistic approach suggest that a
set of best practices that can be adopted by every organisation to improve their performance.
Practices are as follows-
 Employment Security
 Strategic Hiring
 Teams and their working are self managed
 High pay on company performance
 Proper training
 Status difference need to be reduced
 and Information Sharing
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this approach says that organisation that adopts these practices enables itself for high
performance and growth (Ridder and Baluch, 2017). In essence this practices are recruitment and
retention of talented and efficient employees. Those who can work in team and are highly
motivated to perform these are key factors that improves performance of organisation. Negative
side of this is that these practices are not aligned with organisational goals and objectives. This
approaches also do not consider management practices.
Best fit Approach- This approach says that there is no practice that is best for every organisation
and that is link with better performance of organisation. This approach instead suggest that
organisations need to adopt practices according to its business strategies. This way practices will
focus on achievement of organisational objectives and link HR activities with organisational
stage of development. This is why it is also known as contingency approach. Disadvantage of
this approach are lack of alignment with employee interest, compliance with legal requirements.
Resource based view- This approach look at humans and employees as resources and focus on
putting resources to input to achieve desired result. This approach says that like all the other
resources of the organisation this also requires to prepare strategy and dealt strategically. Human
resources are deployed and capability to perform task is developed and then they perform as
planned. This resource is able to be motivated, learn and apply expertise in task and their
performance.
HR practices of Performance Management and Reward
Performance Management refers to practice that is undertaken by organisation to manage
performance of its employees that starts with deciding organisational objectives and goals and
then dividing them in divisional goals and objectives and then deciding teams' and individuals'
objectives (McCann, 2016). It later requires to equip individuals with resources and then
monitoring their performance and giving them feedback. There are various other practices for
performance management that Sainsbury’s can undertake to manage performance of its
employees these are- Define and Communicate company's goals
To manage performance clear communication of organisational objectives and goals is
must as these are treated as performance standards and their achievement ensures performance of
organisation and its employees. This is also important because without its clear knowledge
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employees may have ambiguity about what are expected from them to do in the organisation.
This works as basis of performance.
Offer frequent performance feedback
Employees must be offered frequent feedback on their performance this help the to
improve their performance whose performance is according to standards it helps them to remain
motivated and continue their performance at same level of excellence. This also enables
organisation to decide if they are required to provide any kind of training to employees for
improving their performance.
Reward Practices
performance based rewards- Rewards of the organisation need to be linked with
performance of employees this differentiates between performers and non performers and those
who are performing as per expectation are motivated (Bussin, 2018). It also motivate those who
are not performing according to expectation this makes them feel that if they will perform better
they will also be rewarded.
Recommendation
It is recommanded that in Sainsbury’s practices for performance management must
include development along with performance as most of the employees seek to develop
themselves when in organisation and their individual performance is equally important for them
just as their growth and development in organisational context.
Reward practices must consider what motivates employees and reward given to
employees must be according to that. This is big concern as when employee is expecting
monetary benefits from improved performance and they are given non monetary rewards then
the reward that is given to employees will remain of no value for them and their motivation may
also decrease for future performance.
TASK 2
Employment Relations
Employment relations are relations that emerge naturally when employees are hired to
work in an organisation. This relations exist between employee and employer and between
employee and employee (Boselie, 2016). This relation exist in collective and individual form.
Collective relations exist when parties are namely employee and employer represent them
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through group and association. Individual employee and employers' relations are known as
individual form on employment relations. Employment relations are governed and managed
through legal machinery and employment laws and regulations. These laws provide all the
necessary direction about how employers are supposed to treat their employees and what are the
expectations that employee is required to fulfil in employment relations and in organisation.
Nature of employment relations can be explained as follows-
Employment relations result in employee-employer relations in industry.
 Collective relations of employment are equally important as individual relations in
employee and employer.
 Concept of employment relations is complex and critical and do not limit itself to
employee association and employer but also extends to government.
 This relation is not static and is dynamic and developing and keep changing with the time
and changes and industrial environment and changing regulations of employment also
affect these relations.
 Trust, commitment, mutual respect and appreciation is must for building a good and
positive employment relations.
 Employment relations must be positive and favourable to industry so that employee and
employer ca take advantage of it without harming and affecting other party's interest and
to achieve organisational objectives and mutual objectives.
Some theories have been developed to discuss about Employment Relation, which are-
Unitarism- This theory considers that for the survival of organisation employment relations are
must and workplace conflicts are inevitable in this relationship (Antonova, 2016). This considers
that managers and employees are working for organisational survival.
Pluralism- This theory discuss and suggest that business organisations are complex social
structure that is made of different interest groups with their different values and objectives.
Marxism- This theory suggest that conflict in organisation is because of class different between
employees who are employed to produce goods services and other class is owner and ruling class
that seeks to gain profit from those goods and services that are being produced by labourers.
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Roles of the actors within the Employment Relationship
Employment relations that means relations of employee and employer and other
important actor in this relationship is government when it comes to their roles which are as-
Employees
Most important actor in Employment relations is employees without which no
relationship as employment relationship can exist (Dekker, Ding and Groot, 2016). Role of
employees in this relationship is-
 To secure better terms and conditions for employment for them and their members.
 To achieve improved status for workers.
 To encourage collective mode of decision making.
 To take advantage of collective bargaining o employee-employer by way of collective
workers.
 Along with this in regular relationship of employment employees are also required to
obey code of conduct that has been developed by employer.
Employer
Second important party of employment relations is employer. They are in form om
management or directly owners in case of small enterprise. Role of employer in relation to
employment relationship is as follows-
 Creating and maintaining employee motivation.
 Increasing commitment of employees by undertaking employee friendly practices.
 Improving better output by employing higher level of efficiency.
 Negotiating terms and conditions of employment with employees or their representatives.
Government
It would have been very easy for employer to exploit employees when they are in weak
stage and for employees to do whatever they think appropriate in condition employer is in weak
stage. To avoid this situation government plays an active role and decide how employment
relations need to be for betterment of both the parties. For this government design and develop
employment regulation that are mandatory to be followed by employer and employees during
their employment relations.
In Sainsbury’s which is a retail organisation and status of their employees is different from
employees of industrial organisations (Williams, 2017). Though there are any similarities like
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employees of every organisation seek to improve their status at organisation and outside
organisation through resources provided by organisation. In favour of Sainsbury’s it is important
that both the parties employee and employer maintain their relationship according to
employment regulations and have respect for each other with an element of trust.
Changing Nature of Employment Relations
Time changes everything and employment relations are no exception. In present time
employment relations have changed in various forms. Various factors that are associated with
employment relations have also changed. The factors that affect and change nature of
employment relationship are-
Expectations of Workers
Earlier pay and adequate pay was the only thing workers and employees use to expect from their
employers and organisation. Presently expectation of employees have changed to a great extent
which includes expectations such as improved working condition, better and positive
organisational culture, flexible and friendly policies and growth opportunities individually and in
organisation all this have changed nature of employment relationship.
Nature of Work
First and foremost change is visible in form of nature of work that have changed nature of
employment relations (Croucher, 2016). In context with nature of work earlier manual and
clerical work was higher in proportion and with technology advancement nature of work requires
to have intellectual capabilities and intelligence and employees with these qualities demand
better everything.
Expectation of Employer
With changes in nature of work employers' expectation have also changed and employer'
expectation have also changed and employers' expect their employees to work effectively
individually and in team. Employees are required to generate and develop innovative practices to
work and increase its efficiency.
Retention
Decreased retention rate and increasing importance of retention of employees this factor of
employment relations have also changed causing change to nature of employment relations.
Employees seek to work where they get more monetary and monastery benefits and employers
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