Strategic HRM and Performance at Waitrose & Partners: A Report

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the strategic human resource management (HRM) practices at Waitrose & Partners, a UK-based supermarket chain. It begins with an executive summary and an introduction to the company, followed by an overview of Waitrose's performance in the UK market. The core of the report focuses on the role of HRM, performance management strategies, and the application of Guest's model and the flexibility model of HRM within the organization. The report further explores the impact of the flexibility model on Waitrose's joint venture with SPAR. It then examines the effects of organizational and cultural dimensions on management plans, utilizing Hofstede's model. The report concludes by detailing various approaches to employee engagement, including celebrating milestones, encouraging employees, building strong teams, implementing reward programs, fostering empathy, and communicating effectively. The report offers a detailed overview of HRM strategies and their implications for Waitrose & Partners.

Running Head: STRATEGIC MANAGEMNT OF WAITROSE AND PARTNERS
0
Strategic management of
Waitrose & Partners
Student details:

STRATEGIC MANAGEMNT OF WAITROSE AND PARTNERS 1
Executive summary
The following report highlights the role played by human resource department in an
organization. A detailed analysis is made over the strategies built by the Human resource
department and how these strategies are helpful in achieving goals and objectives of an
organization. Moving further the report gives an overview of the application of Guest’s model of
human resource management and Flexibility model of in a UK based organization. Later the
report highlights various approaches which can be used as employee engagement program.

STRATEGIC MANAGEMNT OF WAITROSE AND PARTNERS 2
Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Waitrose & Partners.........................................................................................................................3
Performance of Waitrose & Partners in UK....................................................................................3
Role of Human Resource Management/Manager (HRM)...........................................................4
Performance management strategies used by Waitrose & Partners................................................4
Guest’s model of Human resource management.........................................................................4
The model of flexibility...............................................................................................................5
Impact of the flexibility model of strategy over the joint venture of Waitrose & Partners with
SPAR...............................................................................................................................................6
Effects of organizational and cultural dimensions on the management plans.................................7
Different approaches for employee engagement...........................................................................10
Celebrate milestones either massive or small............................................................................10
 Strategy of Encouraging employees...............................................................................10
 Build engagement...........................................................................................................10
 Strong team building.......................................................................................................10
Reward Programs.......................................................................................................................11
 Providing Incentives.......................................................................................................11
Empathy towards employees.....................................................................................................11
 Providing Feedback structure..........................................................................................11
 Building trust...................................................................................................................11
Show them you pay attention.....................................................................................................11
 Communicating and understanding the needs of employees..........................................11
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................11
Bibliography..................................................................................................................................13

STRATEGIC MANAGEMNT OF WAITROSE AND PARTNERS 3
Introduction
The following report is constructed over Waitrose & Partners which is a chain of supermarket in
UK. Waitrose & Partners have established across 353 shops across United Kingdom and supply
products to almost 52 other countries. In this report critical analysis is made over the
development of Human Resource Management team in the context of hastily changing concepts
of international market. Herein the study is made with the help of Guest’s model and flexibility
model of Human resource management. The application and impacts of application of this model
in the Russian market is also explained critically. The joint venture is prepared in between
Waitrose & Partners and SPAR. SPAR is also a retail organization which was formed 87 years
ago in 1932. The report also gives recommendations about employee engagement techniques
which can be formulated in Waitrose & Partners in order to keep the employees.
Waitrose & Partners
Waitrose & Partners is a chain of British supermarket. It was founded by Wallace Waite, Arthur
Rose and David Taylor in the year 1904. The name Waitrose evolved in the year 1937 when
David Taylor left the business. Waitrose deliver services in more than 52 countries and has
established ties with various organizations worldwide. The company started as a street shop and
with the help of strategic planning the company has developed into a multinational grocery store.
Few years back the firm started the providing door step services (Kumar, et al., 2013).
Performance of Waitrose & Partners in UK
Waitrose is a well-known supermarket chain in UK. It has been described as upmarket by ‘The
Telegraph’ (reputed British newspaper). “Waitrose & Partners has received an increment of 1.2%
in the total revenue to £6.43 billion (€7.47 billion) in the whole year” (Waitrose, 2019). This
information was revealed by the parent organization John Lewis partnership. Waitrose has large
number of competitors which includes Tesco, ASDA, ALDI Einkauf, Argos, M&S, LIDL and
The fresh flower market. Therefore in order to remain ahead of these competitors it becomes
essential for Waitrose to develop proper strategy for the management of performance (Sullivan
& Gouldson, 2016).

STRATEGIC MANAGEMNT OF WAITROSE AND PARTNERS 4
Performance Management Strategy refers to the ability to construct effective plans to ensure that
both the business and the employees have specific task to perform. The performance
management strategy also includes monitoring and gratifying the employees as per their
performance in the organization. The following strategy is developed by the human resource
management team whose main objective is utilization of workforce to meet the professional
goals (Noe, et al., 2017).
Role of Human Resource Management/Manager (HRM)
Human resource department is most important department in an organization. The department is
entitled to discharge services like hiring to talented and skilled people for the organization,
managing the policies and systems. All the business strategies are developed by the human
resource management team under the guidance of the directors and owners of the organization.
The performance management strategies are also developed by the human resource management
team. With the change in organizational structure and increasing competition among firms at
national, international and global level it has become necessary for every business organization
to have a team to manage its human resource. The division of work among different departments
has completely removed duplicity of work which has enabled the organizations to grow at rapid
rate (Jiang, et al., 2012).
Performance management strategies used by Waitrose & Partners
Guest’s model of Human resource management
The Guest’s model of performance management of HRM applied to Waitrose & Partners it
concedes a close relationship between HR strategy and overall business strategy. This model
majorly evaluates difference between the HR and personnel management (Guest, 2017). . The
management of Waitrose is following six dimensions of analysis which are listed below:-
HRM Strategy- The strategy developed by HRM of Waitrose bring motivation in the employees
to perform operations along with increasing their level of productivity. This strategy helps in
engaging the staff members to follow the ethos and values of organization.
HRM Practices- The major responsibility of allocation of specific department to the suitable
human force who has the caliber and skills to achieve the task relies over Human resource

STRATEGIC MANAGEMNT OF WAITROSE AND PARTNERS 5
department. Hence the HRM always hire people who meet the rudimentary skills to be a part of
the organization.
HRM Outcomes-HRM outcomes in Waitrose basically include commitment, quality and
flexibility. These say that the commitment should be there in the organization among the
employees and there should be flexibility in the operations and the quality standard should also
be match in the Waitrose (Guest, 2017).
Behavior Outcomes- The behavioral outcomes received after the implementation of the
following model in Waitrose. The behavior outcome includes the results which can be fetched up
with the assistance of cooperation, motivation, indulgence of an employee in the organization.
Performance Outcomes- The performance outcomes by application of guest’s model in HRM
of Waitrose organization brings positivity among the employees, quality of services, low rate of
absence, increased turnover and reduced ratio of conflicts.
Financial Outcomes-In financial outcome witnessed by Waitrose & Partners will be rise in the
revenue, high returns and increase in the net profits earned by the company (Guest, 2017).
The model of flexibility
The flexibility can be demarcated as the ability of a system to diverge its productivity within a
definite range and in an assumed time frame. Here both the employees and employer enjoy a
flexible nature of working. The model of flexibility can also be applied to Waitrose and Partners.
The following strategy developed by HRM of Waitrose has been adopted by various other
organizations (Bal & De Lange, 2015).
The distinct type of employment flexibility applied in Waitrose are part time employees, full
time employees, shift swapping employees, home working employees and job sharing
employees. This form of employment helps Waitrose in reaching to the people who are unable to
work due to minor reasons of imbalance between shift timings. There are various models of
flexibility which are applied in Waitrose are as follows-
Numerical flexibility- The technique is used when either the firm is unable to meet the staff
requirements or there exists a surplus of workers in the firm.

STRATEGIC MANAGEMNT OF WAITROSE AND PARTNERS 6
Place of work flexibility-The place of work stability refers to the leverage given to workers to
deliver services with the most apt location for them for instance the work from home condition.
Functional flexibility- The functional flexibility refers to the exercise of development of skills
and abilities of the employees. The particular segment of model helps the employees in
understanding the task they are required to perform.
There are different types of flexibility like part time, staggered hours, flexi-time, job sharing,
shift swapping, compressed working hours, annual hours, teleworking and career break
flexibility which are offered by Waitrose & Partners (Armstrong & Taylor, 2014).
Impact of the flexibility model of strategy over the joint venture of
Waitrose & Partners with SPAR
Both the models discussed above have made great impacts over the joint venture of SPAR and
Waitrose. It can be observed that during the establishment of Waitrose in Russia in joint venture
with SPAR the flexibility model will be much impactful.
The formation of a completely firm in a nation which has absolutely different ethos and values it
becomes important to evaluate the factors developed initially by HRM of the organization.
Therefore as per the study of both the models in reference to Waitrose it can be observed that in
order to establish a successful business venture in Russia Waitrose should apply the flexibility
model of working (Schaufeli & Taris, 2014).
 Advantages of implementation of flexibility model
 Reduced cost- The rotational shifts is beneficial for the companies as these days
most of the companies have adopted hot desking schemes. The same work station
is used by many people on different days. Thus the cost incurred by Waitrose &
Partners in the establishment of venture in Russia reduces slightly as the basic
requirement reduces.
 Increased productivity- It helps in bringing large number of human capital close
to the organization who faces certain challenges to get a job because of problems
related to time management. When large amount of people in Russia will join the
Waitrose & partners it increases its production (Kozica & Kaiser, 2012).

STRATEGIC MANAGEMNT OF WAITROSE AND PARTNERS 7
 Increased creativity- The happy and satisfied workers who enjoys working hours
flexibility are more productive and creative than those who have to work for
whole day.
 Attracting talent- The flexibility of working shifts even helps the students who
needs part time job after college or school. Thus young talent is attracted towards
the company.
 Improved well-being – It is the duty of HRM to ensure that the key people
should remain in the organization for longer period. Thus the bodily and mental
well- being of the employees is necessary (Buller & McEvoy, 2012).
 Disadvantages of implementation of flexibility model
 Improper working situations- The people who choose work from home do not
get a proper working environment which is essential to deliver best services to the
company. The employee does not get any motivation to excel his work as he/she
is in leisure.
 Unable to carry on activity at same pace- It can be noticed that the people who
use job sharing technique of flexibility model often face problems. This is
because every individual has different approach towards working another person
cannot carry forward the remaining work at same pace ( Gold & Bratton, 2017).
Effects of organizational and cultural dimensions on the management
plans
The human resource manager who desires to succeed in a dissimilar culture should discover the
extent of change in technique and procedure or application obligatory to meet any cultural
changes. This is because the atmosphere external to the organization for example educational
variables, economic variables, legal and political variables, socio-cultural variables and language
used by people of different region majorly affect management practices (Bock, et al., 2012).
In order to understand and analyze the organizational and cultural changes or the management of
change which is required by the employees the Hofstede’s model is used. As per the Hofstede’s
model these are the 6 dimensions:-

STRATEGIC MANAGEMNT OF WAITROSE AND PARTNERS 8
Image source: (Hofstede-insights, 2019)
Power and Distance- The respective dimension states that all the individuals in a society are not
equal hence there exists cultural inequality among people belonging to different area. “Power
Distance is defined as the extent to which the less powerful members of institutions and
organizations within a country expect and accept that power is distributed unequally.” Presently
Russia is scoring 93 whereas United Kingdom is 35. Thus it can be stated that the employees
working for Waitrose wishes that people should be treated equally on every ground. Company
should construct policies which will bring equality among the employees. The perspective of
employees working in UK is equal powers to all whereas employees in Russia do not give much
importance to such issues. They are more concerned about delivering services.
Individualism- “The fundamental issue addressed by this dimension is the degree of
interdependence a society maintains among its members.” The concept of individualism states
that in some countries, people are reserved whereas in some nations people are agitated. The
employees working in joint venture Waitrose & Partners with SPAR in Russia will be more
indulged in the work if they will get a familiar and homely environment at the work place. As the
data states the score of individualism in Russia is 39 which is far less from that of UK. The
people in Russia love to get indulged with new people, they are less reserved. Thus Waitrose
should take positive steps like conducting monthly or quarterly events in the organization which

STRATEGIC MANAGEMNT OF WAITROSE AND PARTNERS 9
will bring employees closer to each other. The reduction of individualism is required for the
employee in UK as people there are less interested in interaction and forming relations.
Contradictory to the view point of employees working UK , the employees in Russia develop
relations with other employees. (Dirani, et al., 2015).
Masculinity – “Masculinity stands for a society in which social gender roles are clearly distinct:
Men are supposed to be assertive, tough, and focused on material success; women are supposed
to be more modest, tender, and concerned with the quality of life.” As per the Hofstede’s model
masculinity score in Russia is 36 whereas in UK it is very high i.e. 66. This states that the
employees of Waitrose & Partners working in UK need the society and organizations to provide
equal opportunities to female employees as well. Not only Waitrose & Partners but the
government of UK should take effective measures to abridge the gap. The workforce in UK
considers male gender more productive and focused towards work. The workforce in Russia
gives equal importance to both the genders .
Uncertainty avoidance- “The extent to which the members of a culture feel threatened by
ambiguous or unknown situations and have created beliefs and institutions that try to avoid
these are reflected in the score on Uncertainty Avoidance.” The score over Uncertainty
avoidance in Russia is 95 which means that the people in Russia are more curious and concerned
about the unforeseen threats or pressure which can be faced by them in the future whereas the
score of UK is only 35 which is far less. This indicated the people in UK are not as much of
concerned about the future. The employees working in Waitrose in UK can suggest a change in
the management regarding increasing the concern of company regarding unforeseen risks
(Hofstede Insights, 2019).
Long term orientation- The long term orientation refers to the plan of an organization has to
stay linked with its own past, present and the future. Herein is can be noticed that in Russia
people have pragmatic approach, they encourage making decisions keeping the past experience
in site. The score over long term orientation in Russia is 81, whereas the people in UK hold
idealistic approach. The score of long term orientation in UK is 51. Thus the employees working

STRATEGIC MANAGEMNT OF WAITROSE AND PARTNERS 10
as a part of Waitrose UK can suggest the management to develop policies and plans in regard to
the pragmatic approach.
Indulgence- “This dimension is defined as the extent to which people try to control their desires
and impulses, based on the way they were raised”. The people in Russia are extremely restricted.
They hold a score of 20 which states that people are less interested in socializing as they face
restriction from social norms. Completely contradictory situation exists in UK where people are
fun loving and leaves no opportunity to live their lives as per their desires. Hence the human
resource management should organize events and get together for employees working in
Waitrose (Russia) this will help them in socializing. Apart from this people will know each other
better which will help in increasing the coordination among them (Garavan, et al., 2012).
Different approaches for employee engagement
In every organization either of retail sectors or any other sector the HRM develops a strategy to
keep the employees indulged in the work and to attract new people with skills and new approach
towards work. Thus the HRM develops strategy which will be beneficiary not only for the
employees but also for achieving company objectives. These are some of the strategies proposed
to be followed by Waitrose while developing engagement plans for its employees in Russia (Bal,
et al., 2013).
Celebrate milestones either massive or small
 Strategy of Encouraging employees
Waitrose and Partners should try to encourage the employees to be responsible towards work
assigned to them. The firm should make efforts to help the employees in recognizing their
strengths and overcoming their weaknesses. Waitrose should explain the employees about the
policies which are beneficial for the employees.
 Build engagement
Waitrose and partners should show that the company is sincerely concerned about its employee’s
opinions. The firm can keep the employees engaged in the firm with the help of social media
(Truss & et al., 2013).

STRATEGIC MANAGEMNT OF WAITROSE AND PARTNERS 11
 Strong team building
The team building is essential component for a firm to make progress at national, international
and global level. Thus the firm should build a strong team of employees who is cooperative and
supportive enough to achieve the company objectives.
Reward Programs
 Providing Incentives
One of the most effective ways of keeping the employees indulged in the organization is
providing them good incentives. These incentives are granted on the basis of performance of the
employees. Hence, this will help in motivating the employees which will enhance their overall
performance (Mone & London, 2018).
Empathy towards employees
 Providing Feedback structure
Waitrose & Partners should generate a policy of giving and taking feedback instantly.
 Building trust
Building trust among the employees is one of the key factors for Waitrose to engage the existing
employees and to attract new people towards the organization. Thus in order to get talented and
productive people hired the firm should make every possible effort to build good reputation in
market.
Show them you pay attention
 Communicating and understanding the needs of employees
Waitrose & partners should develop a familiar relationship with it employees. The well-being
and comfort of the employees working with the firm is essential to get productive results. Hence
the firm should analyze the problems faced by employees and try to eradicate them as early as
possible. Waitrose can conduct a survey regarding the problems faced by its employees for
example if the employees face problem in commutation, Waitrose can help them by providing
transportation facility (McManus & Mosca, 2015).
Conclusion
As per the study made above it can be concluded that Waitrose and partners have witnessed an
immense rate of growth in past two decades. The growth, development and progress made by a

STRATEGIC MANAGEMNT OF WAITROSE AND PARTNERS 12
firm in market are a result of the performance management strategies developed by the human
resource management team of Waitrose. The role an importance of HRM department within an
organization is also explained. Herein two different models of regulating management of an
organization are discussed. The application of guest model and flexibility model within the
Waitrose and SPAR can give unexpectable positive results. These models will help in increasing
the productivity of the workers along with this revenue generated by the firm will also increase.
In this report recommendations are also proposed regarding how keep employees indulged in
working and the ways to attract new people towards the organization. Later in the report with
the help of Hofstede’s model it is explored that difference between the wishes of employees
working Waitrose of Russia and United Kingdom.

STRATEGIC MANAGEMNT OF WAITROSE AND PARTNERS 13
Bibliography
Gold, J. & Bratton, J., 2017. Human resource management: theory and practice. 6th ed. London:
Plagrave and Mc millian.
Armstrong, M. & Taylor, S., 2014. Armstrong's handbook of human resource management
practice. 13 ed. London: Kogan Page.
Bal, P. M. & De Lange, A. H., 2015. From flexibility human resource management to employee
engagement and perceived job performance across the lifespan: A multisample study. Journal of
Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 88(1), pp. 126-154.
Bal, P. M., De Jong, S. B. & Kooij, D. T., 2013. How do developmental and accommodative
HRM enhance employee engagement and commitment? The role of psychological contract and
SOC strategies.. Journal of Management Studies, 50(4), pp. 545-572.
Bock, A. J. & et al., 2012. The effects of culture and structure on strategic flexibility during
business model innovation. Journal of Management studies, 49(2), pp. 279-305.
Buller, P. F. & McEvoy, G. M., 2012. Strategy, human resource management and performance:
Sharpening line of sight. Human resource management review, 22(1), pp. 43-56.
Dirani, K. M., Ardichvili, A., Cseh, M. & Zavyalo, 2015. 16. Human resource management in
Russia, Central and Eastern Europe. Cheltanham: Edward Elgar.
Garavan, T. N., Carbery, R., Ardichvili, A. & Zavyal, 2012. Human capital development:
comparative analysis of BRICs. European Journal of Training and Development., 36(2), pp.
213-233.
Guest, D. E., 2017. Human resource management and employee well‐being: Towards a new
analytic framework.. Human Resource Management Journal, 27(1), pp. 22-38.
Hofstede Insights, 2019. Hofstede Insights. [Online]
Available at: https://www.hofstede-insights.com/country-comparison/russia,the-uk/
[Accessed 28 July 2019].
Jiang, K., Lepak, D. P., Hu, J. & Baer, J. C., 2012. How does human resource management
influence organizational outcomes? A meta-analytic investigation of mediating mechanisms..
Academy of management Journal, 55(6), pp. 1264-1294..
Kozica, A. & Kaiser, S., 2012. A sustainability perspective on flexible HRM: How to cope with
paradoxes of contingent work. Management Revue, 23(3), pp. 239-261.

STRATEGIC MANAGEMNT OF WAITROSE AND PARTNERS 14
Kumar, M., Srai, J., Pattinson, L. & Gregory, M., 2013. Mapping of the UK food supply chains:
capturing trends and structural changes. Journal of Advances in Management Research, 10(2),
pp. 299-326.
McManus, J. & Mosca, J., 2015. Strategies to build trust and improve employee engagement.
International Journal of Management & Information Systems, 19(1), pp. 37-42.
Mone, E. M. & London, M., 2018. Employee engagement through effective performance
management: A practical guide for managers. 2nd ed. New York: Routledge.
Noe, R. A., Hollenbeck, J. R., Gerhart, B. & Wright, P. M., 2017. Human resource management:
Gaining a competitive advantage. New York: McGraw-Hill Education.
Schaufeli, W. B. & Taris, T. W., 2014. A Critical Review of the Job Demands-Resources Model:
Implications for Improving Work and Health. In: Bridging Occupational, Organizational and
Public Health. New York: Springer, pp. 43-68.
SPAR, 2019. SPAR. [Online]
Available at: https://spar-international.com/country/russia/
Sullivan, R. & Gouldson, A., 2016. Comparing the climate change actions, targets and
performance of UK and US retailers. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental
Management, 23(3), pp. 129-139.
Truss, C. & et al., 2013. Employee engagement, organisational performance and individual well-
being: exploring the evidence, developing the theory. The International Journal of Human
Resource Management, 24(14), pp. 2657-2669.
Waitrose, 2019. Waitrose and Partners. [Online]
Available at: https://www.waitrose.com/