Role of HRM in Achievement of Organizational Objectives - Wal-Mart - Case Study Example

Student’s Name Professor’s Name Subject Code and Name Date Submitted Role of HRM in Achievement of Organizational Objectives Executive Summary This report focuses on the role of the human resource management when it comes to achievement of organizational objectives. This has been conducted in reflection of one of the most recognized retail companies the Wal- mart stores Inc., specifically the supercentre located in New York. HRM is responsible for making sure that the needs of the employees are taken care of and that they have adjusted well to the working environment. The employees in this case are highly focused on as they are the direct link in making sure that the set objectives are achieved (Armstrong 29). The customers are considered to be the most important people when it comes to business but the employees are directly linked to the consumers making them equally important in achieving the set objectives. The report focuses on training and employee motivation as the main roles of the HRM. This is in relation to the fact that training introduces the employees to the business environment and the motivation enables them to stay in the environment and improve their performance. Introduction The human resource management deals directly with the employees of an organization. Considering the role of the employees in the organization, it is quite evident that the HRM is very important in making sure the organization achieves its objective goals. Human resource is given different approaches and at times is referred to as the lighter aspect of management. However, it applies strategic focus to ensure effective practice is maintained and the people resources can be able to achieve the organizational goals (Goldings 26). The organizational goals are mainly used to determine the success of the company and the employees are given most of the responsibility in making sure that the goals are attained. The HRM on the other hand is responsible for making sure that the employees have the necessary resources to achieve the set objectives. Different leading organizations are recognized for their strategic human resource management application in their achievement of their goals. The Wal- Mart stores are one of the organizations that have made a big impact on the corporate environment. The application of HRM in achieving the objective goals has been highly effective over the years judging by the position occupied by the organization in the economic market. Therefore, this paper is going to look at the role of Human Resource Management in achievement of organizational objectives, with application of the Wal- Mart stores as reference. Organizational Background The Wal-Mart stores Inc. are highly recognized for their increased success despite the global economic crisis. According to research, the organization was among the top companies that were able to bear the difficult economic strains and gain profit despite the failing economy (Frank 1). This is evident in the fact that they surprisingly gained more consumers during the period and they were able to gain a reasonable amount of profit. The Wal- Mart stores are spread across the continent and have gained respectable ground on the international scenes. The focus on the Wal- Mart supercentre located in Albany, New York. The history of the organization is based on the principles installed by the founder Sam Walton, when he founded the organization in 1962 (Goldings 33). The Wal- Mart supercentre is one of the largest stores that the organization has. It was recently developed as part of the infrastructure growth plan of the organization. However, the results that have been achieved so far by the supercentre are quite distinguishable. This is witnessed in the response received from the customers (Frank 1). The consumers are enjoying the fair pricing and the treatment that they get at the organization. The company specializes in the retail industry is famous for having the best prices on goods as they have a policy where they always have to reduce prices despite the economic state. The mission of the organization is to save people money by setting reasonable prices for the goods and services they offer. Hence, the work conducted by the employees is to make sure that they achieve satisfied customers by providing them with the best services available. In terms of the corporate affairs and the human resource management, the wal- mart supercentre does not have a clean slate on the issue because there have been negative attributes established over the years. However, what has been highly noted is that the organization has been able to achieve its objective goals and this is being conducted through the employees indicating that the HRM is applying strategic focus on the prospect. The business structure and departments present are quite many as the store is quite diverse. The departments are made up of a full service supermarket; there is also meat, poultry and baked goods, in general the food department is highly diverse and this highly attracts the consumers. The supercentre aims to serve all purposes and have a wide variety under one roof to make it more convenient for the consumers. The diverse nature of the store is mainly to serve the customers as they are top priority but it also gives the organization competitive advantage (Frank 1). The low prices set by the organization sets a high bar for other competitive organizations and it also serves the purpose of satisfying the consumers. Looking at the organizational structure of the organization, their primary focus is directed to the customers. This makes the role of the employees to be highly appreciated as they deal directly with the customers, catering to their needs and making sure that they leave the stores highly satisfied (Official Site 1). The HRM is obligated to make sure that the employees are able to perform their duties accordingly so as to achieve the organizational goals. Analysis Wal- mart supercentre is New York is highly capable of providing the employees with the necessary resources to ensure that they are conducting their work accordingly. However, the HRM places their focus on the training and motivation of the employees. It is highly important that the employees are equipped with the appropriate skills so that they can be able to serve the customers appropriately. The employees acquire the skills during their training sessions and learning is a constant attribute at the store so the employees are always learning from their leaders. It is evident that the employees are well trained and they have a particular routine that they observe. When one walks into the store, they are immediately approached by a friendly employee who is willing to direct you to where you want and provide you with the necessary information regarding the products that one is interested in. all the actions of the employees indicate that they are well trained and have an understanding of the positions that they occupy in the organization. The training of the employees is credited to the HRM; the recruitment is conducted according to merits presented by the candidate. The employees are given the term associates so that they feel like they belong to the family and immediately after their recruitment, they go through orientation. The orientation process gives the associates an idea of what the wal- mart family represents and how it feels to belong. They do not only take on the role of the employee during the orientation but they are made to play the role of the customer on various occasions. This enables them to understand the customer more and enable them to build a relationship with the customers out of understanding but not based on sheer need. This is referred to as business simulation where the new associates are able to understand the customers’ expectations and develop ways to fulfil them. The second part of the orientation continues with the associates being familiarized with the history and the culture of the wal- mart organization. The environment and expectations of the store are relayed to the associates to improve their understanding and make them aware of what they are expected of them (Armstrong 33). HRM is responsible for making sure that the new associates are partnered with some of the experienced leaders. The store exercises servant leadership which extends to their customers and the employees as well. When the associates are trained with experienced individuals they stand a chance of gaining the same experience and providing a better performance than what was initially expected of them. Understanding the unique trend of the retail will enable the new associates to improve work performance. The organization wants the employees to feel at home and adjust to the new environment at a fast rate so as to save on time. Most organizations do not look forward to the training process as it is time consuming and at times could be costly. Hence, they let their employees work while they are trained so as to save on both factors. However, training is considered to be an investment since the employee is a valued asset in the organization (Official Site 1). The wal- mart supercentre recognizes the value of the employees at an early stage and makes sure they invest in them at an early stage (Frank 1). However, the main strategy that they apply is to make sure it is not costly but at the same time serves the same purposes of producing reliable employees. The third part of the orientation involves a unique audio discovery tour, which is the last part of the process. This training mainly involves listening where the associates go through an exercise by listening to the voices of the customers and their interaction with the associates through headsets (Frank 1). Although this is the last part of the orientation, the training process at the store is a continuous process where the associates are learning on a daily process. The new associates are provided with the necessary resources and are surrounded with the best associates so that they can be able to reach their potential (Armstrong 49). One of the unique traits that the organization has is that the trained associates are provided with Assistant Management Training (AMT) (Goldings 46). This is a program that provides the trained associates with an opportunity to improve their skills and services they offer the customers. There is also a leadership training program that enables the employees to understand that they can be able to attain high positions in the organizations if they are qualified. Employee Motivation Working in a retail organization could be quite tiresome especially to the employees who are assigned to particular stations. The employees require constant motivation from the leaders so that they can be able to work effectively. Motivating employees can be conducted based on different aspects depending on the principles of the organization. Financial incentives are quite common in many organizations where they are offered to the employees as assurance (Frank 1). The main understanding applied when offering financial incentives to motivate the employees is that the employees have needs and they should be met accordingly. The employees are conducting their duties mainly because they are looking forward to their payment at the end of the agreed time. Therefore, using the same motivation by making a better offer is likely to achieve better results. The HRM of wal- mart approaches the subject of financial incentives by offering rewards to the associates whose efforts are easily noticed. This creates an internal competition for the employees and in turn improves the workplace performance. This is a healthy strategy as the employees are competing among themselves in order to gain the rewards, the recognition by the leaders and the rest of the associates are very important to the associates as well (Official Site 1). Another unique trend observed by the supercentre is the morning cheer that all the associates and the leaders engage in every morning. The morning cheer just like most of the policies was created by Sam Walton and it is supposed to motivate the associates and create a sense of union among them (Official Site 1). Motivating the employees every morning using a cheer and making it a routine will likely help them get through the day. Maintenance of high performance is the main reason why the organization follows some of the employee motivation scales (Official Site 1). The main aim is to serve the customers effectively and this will not be possible if the employees are not motivated. Most of the employees work to maintain their positions and avoid problems with the supervisors but motivating them indicates that the organization cares for the associates. Thus, the organization makes the associates aware of the organizational goals and also provides them with some of the rewards that will be open for the associates once the goals are achieved. Hence, most of the associates will be working to achieve the goals so that they can enjoy the rewards later. Application and Conclusion The HRM model that can be applied in this organization can be analysed in the form of a structure. The environmental analysis is followed by the organizational mission and goals and analysis, then the analysis of the organizational strengths and culture and finally the analysis of organizational strategies (Chowdhury 2). This model is highly applicable to the wal- mart supercentre since their organizational goals are set according to the mission, which is fulfilled by the work conducted by the employees (Armstrong 53). Analysis the strengths and culture of the organization will be able to determine the weakness of the system and develop ways in which it can be highly improved. The organizational strategies will be set according to the strengths of the organization and the abilities of the employees (Chowdhury 7). Conclusion In general, the HRM is the centre of the organization when it comes to achieving the set organizational goals. This is attributed to the fact that the employees mainly take on most of the responsibility when it comes to achieving the set objectives and the human resource management is responsible of making sure the employees have all the necessary resources. The wal- mart supercentre in New York handles the needs of the employees accordingly so that they can be able to handle the needs of the consumers accordingly. The organization is mainly focused on providing the customers with the best services and products possible and this is conducted through the employees. Hence, training the employees and motivating them is considered to be an investment as it eventually benefits the organization through the achievement of the organizational goals. Works Cited Armstrong, Michael. A Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice (10thed.). London: Kogan Page, 2006. Print Chowdhury, Subhir, The Strategic Human Resource Management Model, Chapter 1. Web. 20 Sep 2011. http://highered.mcgraw- hill.com/sites/dl/free/0070951764/447763/Chapter01.pdf Frank, Timothy, A Brief History of Wal- Mart, The Washington Monthly. 1 April 2006. Web. 29 Sep 2011. Golding, Nicholas. Strategic Human Resource Management in Human Resource Management: A Contemporary Approach, FT: Prentice Hal, 2010. Print Wal- mart Official Site. Corporate: Stores Training & Development. Web. 29 Feb 2011. http://walmartstores.com/Careers/7740.aspx Read More