Rewards and Intrinsic Motivation - Dissertation Example

Introduction Many organisations the world over and especially multinationals, are being faced with increasing need to develop sophisticated operations and management strategies that aim at pushing the businesses to the next level. The international business arena has become increasingly competitive thus requiring organisations to hire highly qualifies staff who would be up to the task. Among the strategies that organisations are being forced to come up with are those that relate to human resources and related issues. Human resources departments are involved with tremendous tasks of managing and ensuring that all aspects in regards to human resources are running smoothly (Armstrong 2006). These aspects include the recruitment processes, remuneration, dispute resolutions, appraisals and many more. This paper therefore aims to look into various aspects of human resources management in respect to Tesco and in the process terms common in human resources shall be looked into. This information shall be sort from the various publications that are there on the company, the company website and gathering information from these sources. Tesco is a company that has been operating in UK for almost a century now and has gained a huge market share over the years. The company is involved a great deal in grocery business and has also ventured in general merchandising. The company has become one of the world’s giants and in no doubt the largest supermarket chain in Britain. The company has experienced tremendous growth and now boasts of having more than nine hundred stores and has a workforce of more around 240000 (Tesco 2010). The company has ventured into the international market in countries like Ireland, Taiwan, Poland and many more. It is also important to note as much as it has expanded the market cover, the company has also diversified in the range of products it is involved in. Currently the company is dealing in products such as home entertainment e.g. DVD renting, electrical items, toys and sports equipment and many more (Morgan et al. 2009). All these have seen the company make huge profits and more efficient. Task 1 Personnel management and human resource management Human resources management and personnel management are two different types of management although their difference is sometimes subjective depending with the organisation. Small organisations which have small departments do not differentiate the two as they are conducted by the same group of people or person. In big organisations and in this case Tesco, these are two different terms in theory and in practice. Human resources management is quite broader in scope as it aims at considering the tasks of personnel management and developing them and it facilitates team operations that enhance organisational general performance (Köster 2007). Therefore human resources departments are to ensure that all workers maximise efficiency in conducting their duties. On the other hand personnel management involves administrative tasks and deals with issues as they arise which limits its scope as compared to human resources management which involves wider strategies to manage the workforce. In considering the above contrasts it is therefore conclusive enough to deduce that human resources management is more integrated in company’s functions than personnel management. Historical development The two concepts have been changing in many ways over time in respect to names, definition, scope and applicability. Human resources management for example has changed many times in history due to factors prevailing in the economic and social circles. It is back in 1833 when there started to be supervision in factories which was part of industrial welfare initiative. 45 years later the hours that women and children worked were regulated by legislation that stipulated a maximum of sixty per week (Aswathappa 2005). During the First World War there developed the need to involve girls in various assignments. During the Second World War there was a greater need to have a workforce that is more organised and this need came about as a result of inadequacies witnessed in the 1st World War (Schuler and Jackson 2007). At this time there were more sophisticated procedures of recruiting, selecting and training people. There were also wage policies that came up, need for discipline and enhancement of safety of workers as well as their health status. In the mid 20th century there was increased interaction and negotiations between the management and the workforce which resulted into having specialists in these aspects thereby expanding the personnel function. In the latter decade of that century there emerged the trend of part-timers and on contract work arrangements that made it necessary to change the traditional recruitment approaches. In the 21st century internet has come to change a great deal in the field of workforce management as people are able to work round the clock for companies while at the comfort of their homes. This has brought about e-recruitment, online short-listing and training among others that are quite new and thus require more strategising to bring effectiveness and efficiency in all operations in an organisation. Role, tasks and activities of a human resource practitioner These roles are different from one company to the next. In Tesco roles like those of pension administration have been outsourced left with operational roles that encompass handling disputes and disciplinary measures – this is more so with the line managers who deal one on one with the employees while monitoring their performance to assess their efficiency and effectiveness (Kandula 2006). They are also involved in transactional service delivery while also being in the strategic formulation processes for the senior HR managers. Role and responsibilities of Line Managers Tesco has many line managers who act as supervisors in the various supermarket chains and other outlets. These managers are charged with the responsibility of overseeing the employee’s work (Yeandle et al. 2003). They are also supposed to be aware of the working philosophy of Tesco which requires them to enhance flexibility in the working conditions and take HR manager’s advice on policy options available and ensure they are adhered to by the employees. These two aspects of their work call for them to be good planners and thinkers. They should further ask for justification in cases of recruitment of a person and give approval as to whether such a person is helpful in the department. Line managers in Tesco conduct the final interviews and are the ones who actually select the ones they feel suits best the position. This means that for all employees under them, they are responsible for each in the company. Task 2 Human resource planning In organisations there is need to come up with the needs that entail human resources. Tesco being the organisation to use as an example in this paper must come up with the various skills and competencies which they would require from their employees in order to attain the overall organisational goals. Therefore, the management should engage in human resource planning initiatives in order to ensure they have the workforce that is able to match these interests, talents and skills (Bandt and Haines 2002). It is therefore an important concept in human resources management in that the company will be able to concentrate on the qualitative aspect of an employee’s contribution towards achieving organisational goals. The question whose answer is to be sought in the planning process is - what are the skills and competencies required and how can they be obtained. Human resource planning helps in avoiding situations that result in overstaffing or understaffing as the number of employees should match the needs of the company (Zentes et al. 2007). The other importance is that of Tesco being able to retain its highly skilled and talented employees as it is able to evaluate what value an individual employee is adding to the company and by so doing hardworking employees are easily sorted. This is a huge problem that Tesco and many companies in the world are having as the same companies are seeking to poach these kinds of employees from competitors. The managers are also able to incorporate downsizing programs in an effective manner while trying to protect the interests of the company. Tesco is seen to always be recruiting and training people for the purposes of filling positions and addition of staff in food and non-food departments (Gale Group 2005). The planning process has various stages through which it runs and especially in respect to Tesco the first stage taken is that of setting the actual strategic direction. This is where the management comes up with the goals to be achieved that are in line with the organisation’s interests. The second one is designing the HRM system that entails the laying out of responsibilities that each person should be carrying out and the specific job hierarchy. Planning of the total workforce is the next stage that entails analysing the requirements of the workforce and how to achieve these requirements (Reddy 2005). This is followed by acquiring the needed workforce and the methods of doing so. After acquiring the human resources desired the human resources manager is to ensure the development of the workforce as well as monitor the performance. The last stage involves looking into the organisational performance and find out whether it is in line with the set goals and objectives. This is done in order for the management to come up with corrective measures if the results are not as desired and where they are as desired, they come up with sustainability strategies. Recruitment process Tesco does a thorough screening of applicants’ resumes and depending on the human resource planning objectives they find those that suit best the Tesco environment. After this the candidates are contacted to go and take interviews which are quite intensive as to try to find the required person or people with the required skills and competence. For the unsuccessful candidates regret letters are sent to them while the successful ones are invited again to attend assessment centre (Compton and Nankervis 2009). After the screening from the centre the ones who are successful are again invited to attend their second interview which is conducted by line managers as indicated earlier in this paper. It is after this that the ones who are successful are sent letters of job offer and employment contracts. Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) has a recruitment process that is similar to that of Tesco although not quite. With PwC one starts by attending assessment centres where verbal skills are tested as well as ones numerical reasoning. There are group exercises done and at times they are individual exercises. After this one is handed a questionnaire and an English language test that assesses ones competence in the language. After passing the aforementioned stages one is invited for their first interview. The ones to interview at this stage are managers or even senior managers in some occasions. When one is successful in this stage they are invited for the second interview. Of importance to note is that in the second and the last interview the interviewer in PwC is Director or a Partner while in Tesco it is a line manager who conducts this last interview (PwC 2010; Tesco 2010). The two companies have their positions and vacancies announced in the newspapers and in their websites. PwC also conducts graduate recruitment drives in universities in UK and this is a good avenue of acquiring the people who have the knowledge required. Interviews Interviews are conducted so as to have a one on one question, answer and discussion session with prospective candidates. According to Arvey and Renz (1992), through interviews the employer is able to analyse the candidate at a personal level. Papers and their documents many not give the best or true about the applicant’s character but an interview will, depending on the line of questioning. Therefore, the interviewer needs to have first studied the candidate’s documents properly and thoroughly so as to develop the most suitable questions for the applicant and those that will give the desired outcome. Other selection methods There are many other selection methods apart from interviews that can be employed. One of them is work samples whereby candidates take on mini-jobs which are duplicates of a real work situation. This method is known to be more reliable and it shows relatively high validity scores than most and in particular, than interviews and it includes group decisions, reports and presentations and these are done within set time frames where standard methods of scoring are applied (Rynes and Connerley 2005). The other one is assessment centres which were mentioned earlier in this paper. This method entails processes unlike place as the name suggests and the selection process is full of stages. It is based on the realisation that no one particular selection method is good enough and no one assessor is faultless. For this reason there are many methods incorporated as well as involvement of many assessors to come up with a more credible and reliable process and this makes this method one of the most expensive to use. The other method is graphology where trait psychology theory is used in deriving ones character from their handwriting. This method is however not popular with many employers due to its validity and reliability shortcomings. Selection practices and procedures Selection practices and procedures in Tesco are quite simple but have been well thought out. The company has policies that guide the line managers in analysing the various human resources needs. With this the company establishes the need to recruit which includes among others a vacant position after an employee leaves, establishment of a new post, suspension cases and sickness or leaves e.g. maternity leave (Reilly and Georgia 2006). In identifying the right person for the task the company has to consider various laid down practices. If a position exists out of a resignation then the management needs to look deeper into the post and see whether there is need to change the structure, design and work practices of that position. If vacancy is due to a leave of any nature, the route taken is to look into the organisation in order to get a person who will fit in the mean time and in this case additional payment is advanced. In areas that pose a huge challenge to recruit for example the management cadre, the existing managers are asked to multitask as the best fit is being sort. The above is applicable in PwC with minor differences like the issue of line managers giving their approval. In PwC the selections is more rigorous and take a great deal of time and resources. The reason for this is that PwC selection takes the assessment centres approach whose disadvantage is cost to the firm. Task 3 Job evaluation According to Armstrong (2005) for an organisation to have its different jobs ranked there is the need to conduct job evaluation which entails comparing the size various jobs. It is not used mostly to determine pay but how high one job is relative to another or others. All jobs may be taken and ranked which is whole job ranking or a point awarding system used where various individual job requirements like minimum education are allocated points. Factors determining pay Demand and supply is the first one whereby the scarcest labor in the market attracts higher wages and vice versa. The other is geographical location whereby areas’ cost of living and job requirements differ a great deal. The scenario mostly is that high living standard areas attract higher pay. The other is the individual company philosophy whereby a company can decide to pay higher than the sector’s average to retain its workers (Newman 2007). The other that is quite important is level of the required skills since a post that requires one who is highly skilled, experienced and educated will attract a higher wage (Armstrong 2005). Government policy is the other one whereby the government may set certain minimum rates through its regulations. Reward systems There are both intrinsic and extrinsic rewards which are used to come up with a motivated workforce. Intrinsic rewards are psychological and they involve uplifting an employee’s status, adding responsibilities especially supervisory and ensuring that they feel they are growing as the company grows. They need to have a sense of choice on how to do their work best. They also need to have a sense of competence, meaningfulness and a sense of progress. Extrinsic rewards on the other hand are mostly financial and are tangible. They are material and they include raising wages, increasing bonus and other allowances. Motivation theory and reward People work for various reasons financial being one in the many and for this reason it is important to incorporate all factors that enhance motivation while adjusting the rewards allocated to workers. Cameron (2006), states that a reward system is important in determining the morale of employees. The equitable theory of motivation clearly spells out that individual employees are supposed to be made to feel that their effort is equitably rewarded in relation to that of others. It is also true from this theory that the working conditions matter a great deal and that financial rewards although they form long-terms effects, are just but elements in the motivation aspect. Therefore, when discussing reward systems and initiatives it is important not to leave the motivation derived from each. Monitoring performance Organisations and in respect Tesco needs to have its performance monitored on regular basis so as to ensure that the set goals and objectives are met. Failure to do this will lead to inevitable collapse as results are not being matched with expected outcome. During monitoring necessary data is gathered and used to assess the success or failure of strategies implemented (Leech 2007). The approach to this monitoring needs to put in consideration the key performance indicators of the firm. Tesco being largely retail has three major indicators of performance. The first one is business development coupled with financial performance – this is well known through the use of various financial records like the sales revenues and cash flows of Tesco. The second is customer feedback and satisfaction – this is evaluated well through administering of questionnaires to customers where they are supposed to fill their suggestions and comments. This has proved to be quite important in analysing customer satisfaction. The third is evaluation of employees’ feedback on job satisfaction through the same process as that of the customers. There are also various meetings held by line managers and employees to analyse performance. Task 4 Exit procedures by organisations The exit procedures applicable in Tesco stipulate that one has to forward a written notice to the line manager while in Barclays bank one is supposed to give it to the immediate branch manager in the instances that they wish to leave voluntarily. However, in the case of resignation the contractual terms governing the same are applicable. In the two companies the duration of resignation notice varies depending on the rank of the employee. The line manager and the immediate human resource managers of Tesco and Barclays bank respectively must forward these letters to the human resource support centres (Barclays 2010). The two companies conduct interview procedures with exiting employees to ascertain the basis of their exit and this information is forwarded to head human resource personnel after every three months. After the interview the employee is bound to return all the property they hold belonging to the company and pension arrangements commenced where applicable (Armstrong 2006). Selection criteria for redundancy Tesco has clear selection criteria for redundancy whereby it ensures that there is no discrimination or bias in executing such measures. Tesco uses the time and attendance criteria whereby all the time that an employee has been working in a store or any other section is monitored carefully. Records filled in terms of time one enters in the morning or their shift are well analysed together with those of the other times like sick leaves, maternity leaves etc (Hammonds 2003). In Barclays bank for example employees are supposed to be at their counters of work at specific times and their computers record their punctuality and the time logged out (Barclays 2010). The other is capability where both companies set performance bench marks used to measure individual employee’s performance. The other is adaptability where appraisals are done in both companies to assess how fast and efficient one is in adapting to the company’s environment. Extra qualifications are also assessed to find out who is more skilled and therefore have the highest chance for promotion or being retained (Hammonds 2003). Disciplinary records and length of service are others that are predominately used to come up with the best employee. References Armstrong, M 2006, A handbook of human resource management practice, 10th edn, Kogan Page Publishers. Armstrong, M et al. 2005, Wood job evaluation: A guide to achieving equal pay, Kogan Page Publishers. Arvey, RD and  Renz, GL May, 1992, Fairness in the selection of employees, Journal of Business Ethics, vol 11, 5-6. Aswathappa, K 2005, Human resource and personnel management, 4th edn, Tata McGraw-Hill. Bandt, A and Haines, SG 2002, Successful strategic human resource planning systems, Thinking Press. Cameron, J 2006, Rewards and intrinsic motivation: Resolving the controversy, IAP. Compton, RL and Nankervis, AR 2009, Effective recruitment & selection practices, 5th edn, CCH Australia Limited. Gale Group, 2005, World market share reporter, World market share reporter, 6th edn, Gale Group. Hammonds, HE 2003, Redundancy, 3rd edn, CIPD Publishing. Köster, M 2007, Human resource management versus personnel management, GRIN Verlag. Kandula, SR 2006, Human resource management and organization development - practitioner readings, ICFAI Books. Leech, C 2007, Managing performance: Learning made simple, Butterworth-Heinemann. Morgan, K, Marsden, T and Murdoch, J 2009, Worlds of food: Place, power, and provenance in the food chain, Oxford University Press US. Newman, P August, 2007, Determining employee compensation take: These 5 factors into consideration when putting together a compensation plan for your employees, viewed 15 July 2010, . Reddy, MS 2005, Human resource planning, Discovery Publishing House. Reilly, RR and Georgia, TC Dec 2006, Validity and fairness of some alternative employee selection procedures, Personnel Psychology, vol 35, 1, pp. 1 – 62. Rynes, SL and Connerley, ML  January, 2005, Applicant reactions to alternative selection procedures, Journal of Business and Psychology, Vol 7, 3. Schuler, RS and Jackson, SE 2007, Strategic human resource management, 2nd edn, Wiley-Blackwell. Tesco, 2010, Company profile, viewed 15 July 2010, . Yeandle, S, Phillips, J and Scheibl, F 2003, Line managers and family-friendly employment: roles and perspectives, The Policy Press. Zentes, J, Morschett, D and Schramm-Klein, H 2007, Strategic retail management: Text and international cases, Gabler Verlag. Barclays 2010, viewed 14 July 2010, . PwC 2010, viewed 14 July 2010, . Read More