Safe Shoes Management - Term Paper Example

1. Background HR management at Safe Shoes has been neglected for years but this appears to be the practice as retail in the UK is not considered a profession (Cabinet Maker, 2006). The retailers just want someone to stand on the floor instead of recruiting someone trained and someone who enjoys the job. At Safe Shoes too, customer service is not emphasized upon and hence the sales staff is not active in promoting new products to customers. The staff lacks training and development as they are not aware of the latest market trends, the products. Turnover in the retail industry is an epidemic (Marquez, 2005). Staff turnover at Safe Shoes is also very high and it has been increasing. The Regional HR staff is supposed to be conducting exit interview but very few actually get interviewed. Hierarchy and favouritism are the two main issues responsible for the staff leaving in the first few months of the job. The recruitment process needs to be streamlined as the Store Managers have been asking for a greater say in the final selection. Recognition and motivation is lacking among the staff. They find the job dull with little oppurtunity for career progression. The Store Managers lack training because they do not provide recognition and motivation to the staff. Because of an inefficient staffing approach, Safe Shoes has been attracting more female staff that prefers non-managerial positions with low pay. The company does have a process to invite employee feedback on the management but once a year has not been considered sufficient to identify the weaknesses and strategies of the employees (Connell & Nolan, 2004). Low job satisfaction and poor relations with the line managers, in addition to no oppurtunities for career progression are some of the concerns of the employees. Thus the main HR issues that need immediately attention at Safe Shoes include training and development, career progression, motivation, recruitment and selection and performance management. 2. Possible solutions Safe Shoes need to understand that high staff turnover only translates into high costs of recruitment. Moreover, employee skills are a key driver of effective performance and productivity (Hart et al. 2007). Training is a critical issue at Safe Shoes and e-learning is one such solution as Nike has been implementing (Marquez, 2005). The company could offer an online training program to the staff on sales, on customer relations, as well as keep them updated about the latest market trends and products. Class-room training is not cost-effective especially as retailers have stores scattered throughout the country. Retailing has a poor image as a career choice (Hart et al. 2007) and hence the company needs to project an image that would attract the right people. This is an important part of the recruitment process. School-leavers and students in tertiary education are attracted to part-time jobs are not looking for long-term employment and hence do not take their jobs seriously. The brand image has to be enhanced to attract and retain talented staff. Retailing is a people-intensive business and as people are the key strategic resource, the corporate strategy should be built on a human-resource foundation (Knee, 2002). Having the right store manager is essential to reduce the staff turnover (Hart et al). Strong management and leadership skills are essential because it affects the productivity at the stores due to low motivation of the staff. Hence recruitment process should also consider recruiting higher calibre managers such as graduates and those with professional qualifications. The retail sector is attracting more of part-time workers which is the reason that Safe Shoes has more of female staff. The company would also be reluctant to invest on training for part-time workers but in the process turnover increases and productivity suffers. Exit interviews enable the company to reflect on its strategy, culture and people operating system (Dunn, 2002). The legal difficulties could be minimized in the process as most problems could be solved face-to-face. Instead of merely using the HR department to conduct the exit interviews, they should use the IT and knowledge management experts like IBM does. It should be an open-ended communication where the employee is not hesitant to voice his opinions. Performance management has become a business tool and this should be implemented in such a way that the individual goals are in alignment with corporate vision and objectives (Connell & Nolan, 2004). Each individual employee is responsible and accountable to make it a success. Regular performance appraisal would help the managers to identify the individual training needs. Once the weaknesses of the strategies are identified quick corrective action can be taken. At Safe Shoes pay is not related to performance but this should be incorporated as this is the biggest incentive. The appraisal system also needs to be modified. 3. Proposals for change 3.1 Training and Development Change in an organization is inevitable and this change warrants regular training. Training and development has been found to be a top talent retention tool (Pace, 2010). Retailers need to look at the talent requirement of the future. Safe Shoes should have sufficient number of computers with internet connection at their retail stores. In addition, the e-learning module should be accessible to the staff from their home computers so that they can take the lessons as per their convenience. The training programme should consider soft skills, customer relationship, and even educate them on the latest products introduced/planned to be introduced by the company. Training has to be an ongoing process and people should be provided appropriate training at the appropriate level (Vermeulen & Crous, 2000). It should also take into account the future needs of the organization. Safe Shoes should also review the training process regularly. This would help to determine if the training objectives are being met. The relevance of training and the work environment are great determinants of the success of the training program. Training too can be outsourced like recruitment but the most effective training is when managers train their own employees. Outsourcing has its own benefits because it brings in new ideas and methods to the organization. Once the employees are motivated they would project a positive image of the company. 3.2 Recruitment and selection As of now the company only uses the website to attract applicants. It is essential to make the employment oppurtunities known to qualified individuals where the job specifications are communicated (MDR, 1997). The desired employee qualifications should also be listed out so that unwanted applications need not be browsed through. The advertisement should also communicate the corporate objectives, the compensation benefits and the employment tenure. This would also enhance the brand image of the company, which is suffering. The right brand perception would help to attract the right candidates. In addition to the website, Safe Shoes should also use employment agencies and employee referral programmes as part of the external search for people. It is not possible to run the recruitment process single-handed and most organizations today outsource most of the recruitment and selection process (Ordanini & Silvestri, 2008). The final selection should rest with the management. The selection process at Safe Shoes entails an online aptitude test, a telephone interview and finally personal interview. Tests are necessary to eliminate candidates but only aptitude test is not sufficient. Personality tests and psychometric tests too should be conducted so that only the right candidates are employed (Barclay, 1999). Psychometric tests would have to be carried out by HR specialists and hence outsourced. Interviews are definitely the most appropriate method of selection but the interviews should be structured towards job-related questions (Barclay, 1999). Behavioural interview would also help to determine the past accomplishments of the applicant. How a candidate perceives failure is important. The interviewer too should be competent and allow a two-way communication instead of just gathering information. The current store managers have their self-interest in the recruitment and hence the final selection decision should rest at the regional level. Strong leadership is required at the regional and the store level and such positions should be filled in through internal promotions. The existing employees are aware of the organizational culture and also the strengths and weaknesses of the employees. The store managers could even be rotated across stores so that the ‘favouritism’ factor could be eliminated. 3.3 Performance Management Performance management should be a two-way communication instead of ratings. Appraisal demands daily attention and hence regular communication is an integral part of the performance management (Connell & Nolan, 2004). This would serve to motivate the individuals and also enhance their commitment towards the job and the organization. Those with high performance should be recognized and rewarded as this is the greatest motivator. Performance-related-pay (PRP) has become an important business toolkit as it helps to optimize human resources, which is vital in the face of competition. However, this has to be designed in the right manner because performance-related pay has been found to lack objectivity in its completion, has inappropriate timing of the review, and it lacks appropriate content (Lewis, 1998). Due to these factors, opinions differ but PRP helps the individual to give his best which in turn maximizes the firm’s productivity. It would help in increasing retention thereby leading to cost reduction. The managers at Safe Shoes tend to display favouritism. Moreover, managers are not aware of what rating to give to staff. They may tend to over-rate an employee, which could give rise to complacency among the employees (Belfield and Marsden, 2003). The workers could withdraw their efforts to put in their best. Under the circumstances, PRP would serve to keep the employees always at their best and avoid favouritism in rating. The right performance management could help the employees meet the demands of the market place while the key decisions are pushed down to the line managers. The feedback system also has to be in order at Safe Shoes. Employees are asked to rate the senior managers and they do come out with frank opinions. This information has to be acted upon. This gives an insight into the operations and the working by the store managers. The Regional and the Area managers need to take notice of the complaints and the feedback by the employees. The role of the managers has changed from an authoritarian to a friendly, all-encompassing role (Vermeulen & Crous, 2000). The feedback on the managers is very poor and the organization has to give importance to this. 4. Recommendations and conclusion The situation at Safe Shoes is not forward looking and managers have their self-interest involved. The first and foremost issue is the process of recruitment and selection. This should have a broader perspective and applications from diverse sources should be invited. The initial screening process should be outsourced to recruitment agencies and the final selection should rest at the regional level. This would eliminate the role of the store managers. The recruitment of the store managers should preferably be through internal search and internal promotions. The store managers should be rotated across different stores. This would widen their horizon, enhance their leaning and eliminate the chances of favouritism. Training is another essential function missing at Safe Shoes. Training is essential both at the staff and the managerial level. Managers have to function both as mangers and leaders. Strong leadership is necessary but without the authoritarian style of functioning. The distance between the managers and the subordinates has to reduce and the managers should be more of mentors than boss to their staff. The employee feedback brings in valuable information about the operations and administration but this information has to be utilized to bring about changes in the organization. The performance management has to undergo change and pay should be related to performance. This can serve to motivate the staff and increase their commitment towards the organization. Without incentive the staff tends to become complacent and the organization suffers in the process. Thus, the major issues that warrant immediate attention at Safe Shoes are training at all levels, recruitment and selection at al levels, and performance management. This implies that a major change in the HR department has to be introduced. References Barclay, J.M. (1999). Employee selection: a question of structure. Personnel Review. 28 (1/2), 134-151 Belfield, R., & Marsden, D. (2003). Performance pay, monitoring environments, and establishment performance. International Journal of Manpower. 24 (4), 452-471 Cabinet Maker (2006). Retail industry's staff turnover stays high. 9/8/2006, Issue 5504, p4-4 Connell, J., & Nolan, J. (2004). Managing performance: Modern day myth or a game people play. International Journal of Employment Studies. 12 (1), 43-63 Dunn, D.F. (2002). Gleaning Value from the Exit Interview. Association Management. 54 (6), 72 Hart, C., Stachow, G.B., Farell, A.M., & Reed, G. (2007). Employer perceptions of skills gaps in retail: issues and implications for UK retailers. International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management. 35 (4), 271-288 Knee, C. (2002). Learning from experience: five challenges for retailers. 30 (11), 518-529 Lewis, P. (1998). Managing performance-related pay based on evidence from the financial services sector. HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT JOURNAL. 8 (2), 66-77 Marquez, J. (2005). Faced with high turnover, retailers boot up e-learning programs for quick training. Workforce Management. 84 (8). MDR. (1997). Fifteen steps to a complete human resource program. 10 (1/2/3), 37-39 Ordanini, A., & Silvestri, G. (2008). Recruitment and selection services: Efficiency and competitive reasons in the outsourcing of HR practices. The International Journal of Human Resource Management. 19 (2), 372–391 Pace, A. (2010). Talent Management: Retail’s MVP. T+D. 64 (6), 16-17 Vermeulen W., & Crous M.J. (2000). Managing Service Quality. 10 (1), 61-67 Read More