Evaluating Employee Behaviour and Strategies for Woolworths (OB)

This essay delves into the critical role of employees in organizational success, focusing on factors that influence employee behavior, particularly within Woolworths Supermarkets. It explores the impact of leadership, work culture, compensation, work-life balance, and other internal and external elements on employee performance and motivation. The essay analyzes Woolworths' challenges, such as high employee attrition and workplace conflicts, and proposes five key strategies to improve employee behavior. These strategies include fostering a positive work environment, leading by example, hiring employees with the right values, monitoring employee behavior, and providing constructive feedback. By implementing these strategies, Woolworths can enhance employee engagement, improve customer service, and achieve its overall business objectives. The essay references relevant research to support its analysis and recommendations.

0 | P a g e
Organisational Behaviour

1 | P a g e
As the competition grows between corporations, it becomes important for them to
generate a competitive advantage over their competitors in order to ensure that they
sustain their future grows. Highly talented and skilled employees provide a competitive
advantage to companies which allow them to continue their growth even in adverse market
conditions (Albrecht et al., 2015). Employees play a crucial role in the success of an
organisation without whom it is impossible for a company to achieve its overall goals. Since
the employees play a significant role in the effectiveness of a corporation, it is important for
the management to effectively manage employee behaviour which keeps them motivated
to perform better. However, there are many factors which adversely affect the behaviour of
employees which leads to unproductivity of the workforce (Alfes et al., 2013). The objective
of this essay is to evaluate the role of employees in achieving success in a company and
evaluating factors that affect employee behaviour. An example of Woolworths
Supermarkets will be analysed in this essay to understand how employee behaviour is
influenced by the company. Five strategies will be given in this essay for Woolworths which
will assist the company in improving employee behaviour which leads to better
organisational performance.
Woolworths Supermarkets is the largest supermarket/grocery chain in Australia which is
owned by Woolworths Limited. The corporation has established 995 stores across Australia,
and it accounts for about 80 percent of the Australian retailing market along with its main
competitor Coles (Woolworths Group, 2019). The corporation has hired more than 115,000
employees who are responsible for running the day-to-day operations in the company.
These employees play a crucial role in the success of the company since they are ones who
directly deal with customers and provide them suggestions regarding which products which
they should purchase. However, the corporation is facing challenges due to high attrition
rate of employees since the company is finding it difficult to retain employees in the
company (Mitchell, 2016). Conflict between employees is a major issue in the workplace
which hinders the performance of all employees. For example, an employee of Woolworths
was jailed over workplace bullying at Moe store (French, 2015). The management of
Woolworths focuses on implementing relevant policies in order to address these issues to
sustain its performance even in adverse market conditions. However, there are many
internal and external factors which affect the employee behaviour in the company.

2 | P a g e
Lack of effective leadership plays a significant role in influencing the employee behaviour;
managers and leaders affect the employee behaviour in companies in either positive or
negative manner. The leaders are responsible for setting a direction for the team members.
In most cases, the employees did not prefer to go to the office when they have a strict boss
(Bello, 2012). Leaders are a strong source of inspiration for the subordinates, and if they did
not support the development of employees, then it negatively reflect on their behaviour.
Work culture is another factor which affects employee behaviour in organisations. It is
important the employees feel comfortable in the workplace to stay positive and happy
without which they cannot perform at their highest capacity. A hostile working environment
negatively reflects on the productivity of employees, and it leads to increasing conflicts
between employees and the management (Hutchinson and Jackson, 2013). Therefore, it is
important that the company take appropriate measures to ensure that the working
environment is positive.
Compensation and advancement are key factors which motivate employees to continue to
improve their performance and achieve desired goals. If the employees are not
compensated according to their contributions, then it discourages them from improving
their performance (Osibanjo et al., 2014). The Equity theory of motivation developed by
John Stacey Adams provides that individuals are motivated by fairness. If employees are not
compensated fairly as per their inputs, then it discourages them from improving their
performance (Osabiya, 2015). Career advancement is also a key objective for employees
without which they did not prefer to work in a particular organisation. If the corporation is
not able to provide career growth opportunities to its employees, then it negatively reflects
on their behaviour. It increases the rate of employee absenteeism and demotivation which
leads to decreasing the productivity of employees as well. As per Maslow’s hierarchy of
needs theory, the corporation should focus on fulfilling basic needs of employees first and
then move up in the hierarchy to continue to motivate them.
There are five basic needs which are identified by Abraham Maslow which include
psychological needs, safety needs, belongingness needs, esteem needs and self-
actualisation needs. The remuneration of employees plays a crucial role in the achievement
of the first two basic needs of employees which affect their behaviour as well (Jerome,
2013). Work and personal life balance are also important for employees to ensure that they

3 | P a g e
are able to give appropriate time to their work and their family as well. If the employees are
not able to give appropriate time to their family members, then they are restless all day, and
they are less likely to give their full attention to the work. Lack of family and even personal
time increases stress on workers, and it leads to irrational behaviour in the workplace.
These factors are necessary to be treated accordingly by corporations to ensure that they
build a strong relationship with their employees and continue to motivate them to achieve
common organisational goals (Sanchez-Vidal, Cegarra-Leiva and Cegarra-Navarro, 2012).
In the case of Woolworths, there are five key strategies which can be implemented by the
company in order to positively influence the behaviour of employees. The management of
Woolworths should take appropriate measure to create a positive working environment for
employees to ensure that they are able to deliver effective services to customers. The
primary job of employees in supermarkets is to help customers in their purchases by
providing them guidance and making the shopping process more efficient. However, a
negative working environment can be sensed by customers, and they are less likely to visit
the Woolworths Store. If the employees are fighting with each other or with the
management, then they are less likely to help customers as well. Since employees directly
engage with customers, it is important that a positive working environment is established in
the company by taking strict actions against discrimination and promoting of fair treatment
among workers. It will also enable employees to maintain a work and personal life balance
(King and Grace, 2012).
The second strategy is that the leaders and managers should set an example in the company
based on their behaviour. If the leaders engage in unfair practices, then it is likely to
negatively affect the behaviour of employees, and they are more likely to promote those
activities as well (Alfes et al., 2013). Therefore, the leaders should behave in the way which
they expect from the employees. The managers should also openly communicate about the
behaviour, and it should be documented properly in the policies of the company which will
encourage employees to comply with the same. The third strategy is hiring people with right
values and attitudes. The HR department of Woolworths should conduct a thorough check
on employees during the interview process to ensure that they hire candidates with right
values and attitudes. The HR managers should align the values of employees with the
corporate goals which will assist them in ensuring that only those employees are hired who

4 | P a g e
have good attitude (Rigtering and Weitzel, 2013). This strategy will also reduce the
encounters relating to negative employee behaviour.
The company should pay right compensation to employees that are fair and enough for
them to fulfil their basic needs which will allow them to remain positive in the workplace.
The fourth strategy is to become more observant by monitoring the activities and behaviour
of employees to look for key factors that negatively affect the behaviour of employees
(Albrecht et al., 2015). It is a continuous process, and it is the responsibility of the
management to keep the eyes and ears open to align the behaviour of employees with the
company. The monitoring will assist the managers in finding the cause of negative behaviour
of employees, and they are more likely to resolve such issues. The fifth strategy is
reinforcing the right behaviour of employees by directly providing constructive feedback to
the employees (Bysted, 2013). The managers should tell employees when they are wrong
and when they are right. Employees with positive attitude should be rewarded by the
company which will motivate them to perform better as per the Equity theory of motivation.
They should also receive career advancement opportunities which will retain them in the
company.
In conclusion, employees are a key part in the company without whom a corporation cannot
achieve its set goals. It is important for the management of Woolworths to address
challenges relating to employee behaviour to ensure that they remain relevant in the
market. There are many factors which negatively affect the employee behaviour in
Woolworths such as leadership, work-life balance, compensation and advancement and
negative work culture. Five strategies are given in this essay which can assist them in
addressing this issue which includes creating a positive work culture, hiring the right people,
setting an example, paying attention to their behaviour and communicating the right
behaviour. These strategies ensure that employees receive right compensation for their
performance and they are able to maintain a balance between work and personal life which
will assist the company in achieving its overall objectives.

5 | P a g e
References
Albrecht, S.L., Bakker, A.B., Gruman, J.A., Macey, W.H. and Saks, A.M. (2015) Employee
engagement, human resource management practices and competitive advantage: An
integrated approach. Journal of Organizational Effectiveness: People and Performance, 2(1),
pp.7-35.
Alfes, K., Shantz, A.D., Truss, C. and Soane, E.C. (2013) The link between perceived human
resource management practices, engagement and employee behaviour: a moderated
mediation model. The international journal of human resource management, 24(2), pp.330-
351.
Bello, S.M. (2012) Impact of ethical leadership on employee job performance. International
Journal of Business and Social Science, 3(11).
Bysted, R. (2013) Innovative employee behaviour: The moderating effects of mental
involvement and job satisfaction on contextual variables. European Journal of Innovation
Management, 16(3), pp.268-284.
French, R. (2015) Woolworths employee jailed over workplace bullying at Moe store.
[Online] Available at: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-11-25/woolworths-employee-
jailed-over-workplace-bullying-at-moe-store/6973828 [Accessed 23/01/2019].
Hutchinson, M. and Jackson, D. (2013) Hostile clinician behaviours in the nursing work
environment and implications for patient care: a mixed-methods systematic review. BMC
nursing, 12(1), p.25.
Jerome, N. (2013) Application of the Maslow’s hierarchy of need theory; impacts and
implications on organizational culture, human resource and employee’s
performance. International Journal of Business and Management Invention, 2(3), pp.39-45.
King, C. and Grace, D. (2012) Examining the antecedents of positive employee brand-related
attitudes and behaviours. European Journal of Marketing, 46(3/4), pp.469-488.

6 | P a g e
Mitchell, S. (2016) Woolworths: one step forward, two steps back. [Online] Available at:
https://www.afr.com/business/retail/fmcg/woolworths-one-step-forward-two-steps-back-
20160705-gpysqd [Accessed 23/01/2019].
Osabiya, B.J. (2015) The effect of employees motivation on organizational
performance. Journal of public administration and policy research, 7(4), pp.62-75.
Osibanjo, A.O., Adeniji, A.A., Falola, H.O. and Heirsmac, P.T. (2014) Compensation packages:
a strategic tool for employees' performance and retention. Leonardo Journal of Sciences,
(25), pp.65-84.
Rigtering, J.P.C. and Weitzel, U. (2013) Work context and employee behaviour as
antecedents for intrapreneurship. International Entrepreneurship and Management
Journal, 9(3), pp.337-360.
Sanchez-Vidal, M.E., Cegarra-Leiva, D. and Cegarra-Navarro, J.G. (2012) Gaps between
managers' and employees' perceptions of work–life balance. The International Journal of
Human Resource Management, 23(4), pp.645-661.
Woolworths Group. (2019). Woolworths Supermarkets. [Online] Available at:
https://www.woolworthsgroup.com.au/page/about-us/our-brands/supermarkets/
Woolworths [Accessed 23/01/2019].