An investigation into the retention policies and motivation strategies at Tesco
1.0: Introduction:
It is important for organizations to use methods to employ proper methods of retention and motivation strategies so that they will not suffer from the internal problems of turnovers amongst their employees. It is important for an organization to employ proper methods and policies so that key employees will not leave the organization. There are a lot of costs attached to the turnover of employees. Turnover of employees may be a problem but it is nothing compared to the high rate of retention which can occur due to the organization’s dependence on its employees which it is too dependent on. These problems often lead to stagnation and de-motivation in employees.
Tesco is one of the biggest supermarket chains in the UK. They have to draft a policy which motivates its employees and allows them to retain a large number of them so that they do not face any problems in the future. in order to generate more profits they have to make sure they are taking care of the needs of its employees.
Research objectives:
The proposed research seeks to achieve the following objectives:
- To review existing literature on retention and motivation strategies
- To identify how Tesco has drafted it’s HR policy to motivate it’s employees and retain them
- To investigate the effectiveness of Tesco’s HR policy
- To propose recommendation for improving Tesco’s Motivation and Retention policy
Research questions:
The proposed research seeks to achieve the following questions:
- What sort of motivation policy does Tesco have?
- What sort of strategy does Tesco employ to retain its employees and keep them motivated?
- Where has Tesco failed in its efforts to motivate it’s employees?
- How can Tesco improve its Motivation and retention strategy?
- What are motivation and retention strategies?
Background:
Tesco is one of the biggest Supermarket chains in the UK with an international presence in several countries. They are also one of the biggest retailing chains in the UK. They have the largest domestic market share as well as international market share with around �3 billion in revenue. They are one of the most competitive supermarket chains which have allowed consumers to get a wide variety of products. Tesco has such a huge range of products that they also sell electrical goods, clothing, CDs, DVDs as well as electrical products. They have also branched out into offering financial products i.e. Banking, credit cards, savings bonds, insurance, etc. They also offer Telecom products which have given them an edge no one has.
Tesco has a slogan which states that they are committed to a high quality service for their customers. They have also reduced their prices and increased the customer service for their customers so that they can get more. They make sure that their staff are aware of their motto and are reminded of it all the time during their training period. The organization aims to create more shareholder value through customer care and by giving the highest quality service to its customers. They also strive to give them value to their money: They are committed to giving customers great quality products at prices which can’t be matched by others . They rate their Customer Service motto as focusing on giving them unique first class service and achieving their loyalty through the promotion of the Club card; which rewards them for their loyalty by giving them redeemable points.
Tesco is one of the biggest retailers in Great Britain, with a market share of around 15 percent. They are one of the biggest success stories in the UK. They are one of the rare organizations which have managed to increase their market share and retail units over the years. The success of the organization can be attributed to their HR department. It may not be responsible for the entire success but it has played a huge role in it.
Literature Review
Tesco has managed to make a record number of profits over the last few years. Their profit numbrs have gone up by a large number in the last few years which have taken them past the record billion pound number. They have set a new milestone amongst the other supermarket chains as well as UK business. It has been estimated that they take one out of three pounds spent in a supermarket and around 1/8th of the amount spent on the high street. Tesco is also one of the biggest private employers in the UK with around 260,000 staff. They have a great human resource strategy which focuses on work simplification, challenging rules, passing on skills to employees and performance management to achieving targets. (Poulter, S. 2005).
The policy at Tesco is such that they make sure that all employees should grasp their role at the organization. The policy is such that it requires all employees to understand their role in contributing to Tesco’s core values and purposes. Tesco has an induction program which allows employees of different cultures to embrace different styles of learning and to be able to commit to their job. The employees which are on the forefront and play a huge role in customer services are a reflection of Tesco to its customers,. These employees play the crucial role of presenting the core image of Tesco to its clientele.
One of the biggest challenges faced by Tesco is to make sure that all of their employees whatever the size of their role or wherever they work should see how their actions affect the big picture of the business. The training is an intense period which allow employees to grasp the entire history of Tesco, the purpose of it’s establishment, to get a better idea of its values and goals, financial aims, marketing strategies etc. Tesco makes sure that its employees get more training than they did before.
Motivation strategy
Motivation is known as a factor which gives an individual a perception of their worth, role and work environment within a given organization. There are a number of common motivational factors which are shared by the employees. These motivational factors are able to lead to a number of levels of motivation. This also leads to both intrinsic and extrinsic rewards which motivate the employees if managed properly.
Mitchell (1982) describes motivation as a psychological process which causes people to be aware of goal orientation. This is in contrast to Robbins(1993):55) who declares that the “willingness of employees to exert themselves towards achieving organizational goals, to satisfy their needs” is a motivational goal. This is a proper need in the framework which makes them desire a proper outcome. If the outcome is good then it looks quite attractive. There is a lot of unsatisfactory desire within the individual and create tensions if he/she is unable to motivate him/herself (Robbins, (1993)
According to the Maslow Hierarchy theory, managerial actions have a lot of complications and serious implications. Managers are supposed to create a proper atmosphere for their employees so that they can reach their full potential. If they fail to provide such an atmosphere it will lead to more frustration amongst employees and result in pathetic performance, extremely low job satisfaction, and internal detachment from within the organisation” (Steers & Porter, (1983)
Employees face a lot of stress at work which causes a lot of resentment and employees to leave. According to French and Caplan (1973) there are two different types of stress levels which can be measured in two ways, which are quantitative and qualitative. The quantitative stress level is defined as something which is too much to do while qualitative stress levels are described as work levels which are too difficult. Employees of all levels face a large number of work demands and will be unable to cope with it and leave as it is their only option. (French and Caplan 1973).
Recruitment
It is important to retain the right employees within an organization as they are one of the biggest assets. The most important fact is to recruit the right employees so that the company can retain them. This is an important process which gives long term value to the organization. Organizations need to be able to retain their key talent if they need to be a success. This allows them to have a competitive advantage. If the employees they hire are good enough then the organization will be able to sustain it. This is the main factor which leads to whoever is hired and how they are developed. (Sturman, M 2003).
It is important for organizations to begin their retention during the recruitment phase as it is crucial for organizations to select someone who will fit within the organizational culture and not not merely against the technical and skills requirements of a given job. Companies which have followed this policy for a long time have been able to assess their candidates’ abilities, interests, aspirations, etc so that these match their organisational culture.
Organizations have to face a huge amount of pressure so that they can recruit the right person for the job. There are a large number of economic costs associated with hiring and firing people. There are a number of factors which lead to the cultural change within organizations, legal problems, employment of the right candidate, etc. This is a reason why they have to get everything right and make sure its fair, reliable and valid
Retention
It is important for organizations to have a proper management training scheme so that they can retain the highest amount of their recruits (may they be normal workers or graduate recruits). A proper management training program ensures mutuality in career development and what is expected from them. A program is successful when an employee manages to develop his/her own career (Mullins, L. 2005).
Retention plans are essential for an organization as they can’t afford to let go off their key assets or high performers. According to Kets De Vries, high performers are like frogs in a wheel barrow, as they will not stay put for a long time (Kets de Vries )It is important for organizations to consider this factor and act upon it.
It has to create a master plan which leads to a proper retention strategy. This should lead to a proper labour turnover analysis and risk assessment. A well planned Retention plans should include proper pay and benefits, as well as a proper job description and management (Beardwell, I. et al 2004).
Global economic events can lead to complicated retention strategies. During this era of downsizing, it’s easy for organizations to lose top talent as well as their intellectual capital which is the factor to which organizations have a key competitive advantage. (Risher, H. and Stopper, W. 2002).
Organizations which recruit graduates make sure that they hire the right number of candidates. They have to take the size of their organization into check before they go ahead with recruitment. There has to be ample space for them to go ahead with career progression. It may not be the case in small or medium sized businesses. There are a lot of organisations which have a number of employees who may be a bit content but are also de-motivated.
It can be a very challenging task to retain productive employees and to get rid of poor employees. This is important for the long term health of the organization. There can also be problems such as selection, costs associated with the risks of turnover and the lack of skills. These hidden costs make retention a problem.
Employee reward payment, share schemes, bonuses, etc can lead to job satisfaction and allow employees to remain in the organization longer. This will motivate the employees who will be happy to remain with the organization for a longer period of time. This is what will let the organization run properly for a long period of time.
Research Methodology:
In order to conduct the research, it is important to choose a methodology which will make it easier for us to do the research. The research methodology is the part where all the research methods are drafted; research questions are either approved or disapproved. It is quite important to choose the questions which are relevant to the research intended. Research can never be conducted until the primary and secondary sources are finalized. The primary and secondary sources decide which information will be going in the research. In order to conduct the research it is crucial to choose a method which will set the path for the method. The researcher can opt to choose either the deductive or inductive method. The inductive method relies on the collection of data based on a theory while the deductive theory employs a method which allows data to be processed through a research strategy. The research conducted will employ a simple method of induction so that the data can be analysed properly.
Data Collection
Qualitative research is when data is collected and analysed by the researcher. This is based on information gathered from various individuals and is analysed through the interpretivist method. It also allows for insight into the mindset of the individuals.
Quantitative methods are where numerical data is analysed and collected. It employs the help of the positivist paradigm to analyse the data which could be mainly numerical data. It is important for the data to reliable and valid so that the information can be generalized for the whole population.
Research can be conducted through both primary and secondary resources. Primary information is gathered through the help of questionnaires and interviews. They are good tools as they allow the researcher to gather the information which is required. Close ended interviews are the best way of gathering information as the researcher will only get information which is relevant. Secondary information can be the information which is gathered from sources such as books, journals, magazines, etc.
Data analysis
The data analysis will be done through the help of contemporary desktop applications such as Microsoft Excel. It is important to use flowcharts and different pie charts to chart the data. This will allow the data to be analyzed properly and will make the research relevant.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
There are many philosophical methods such as positivism, realism, interpretivism, pragmatism, etc. Research is conducted in different ways and it is up to the researcher to find out which method is the most suitable. Two of the main research methods are the positivism and interpretivism methods. The Interpretivism method is where people and their institutions are different from the branch of natural sciences. It requires a lot of understanding of human behaviour in order to get things right. The positivism paradigm is mainly a philosophical paradigm where knowledge is based on logic. The theory is it based on states that everything exists in a way that can be observed and measured. This method requires quantitative research methods. The induction method is
The research would most likely use the interpretivist approach as it will mainly consist of qualitative data and be easier to understand. Critics of this method may feel that this method is flawed mainly because there are different interpretations of everything within a certain reality. The researcher will only interpret what he wants to know.
Research Time Frame
The research time frame is always an important factor when it comes to planning. There is always a limitation of time and it is quite important for the researcher to finish it on schedule as unnecessary delays can create a negative impact on the relevance of the project. Therefore a planned schedule of 24 weeks would be sufficient for me to finish my research on time in lieu of any setbacks to my work schedule.
No. Task Description Start Date Completion Date
1 Proposal Submission
2. Literature Review
3. Questionnaire Designing
4. Data Collection (Primary & Secondary)
5. Data Analysis
6. Drafting & Composing
7. Proof Reading
8. Submission
Ethical Consideration
Prelude to research being carried out; a researcher needs to follow certain guidelines before going ahead. It is absolutely necessary to follow principles or a code of conduct during the course of the research. The researcher needs to protect the rights and privacy of others during the research work. It is also mandatory for the researcher to get the consent of the organization and the people being interviewed. Confidentiality agreements are the best way to protect the researcher from any potential problems. It is also important to have an authentic source for information as inaccurate information would not bode well for the research.
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
At the end of the research it will be easy to understand how Tesco has developed its motivation and retention strategy for its employees. It will also allow me to come up with suggestions and recommendations so that I will know what initiative to take.
Bibliography
Beardwell, I. & Holden, L(1994) Human Resource Management.
Pitman Publishing, London.
French, J, & Caplan, R., (1973). Organizational Stress and Individual Strain, AMACOM, New York:
Anonymous (2003) Human resources deliver Tesco’s bright Future Human Resource Management International Digest, Bradford: Jul/Aug 2003 Vol.7, Iss. 4
Harrison, R (2002) (3rd Edition) Learning and Development: CIPD Publishing, London
Mullins, L (2005) (7th Edition) Management and Organisational Behaviour
Poulter, S. (2005) 2billion Tesco, Daily Mail. London (UK): Apr 13th 2005
Prentice Hall, Pearson Education, Edinburgh
Taylor, S. (2002) (2nd Edition) People Resourcing
Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, London
Ramlall, S. (2004) A Review of Employee Motivation Theories and their Implications for Employee Retention Journal of American Academy of Business, Cambridge Sep 2004.Vol.5, Iss. 1
Sturman, M 2003 Is It Worth It To Win The Talent War? Evaluating the Utility of Performance-Based Pay Personnel Psychology. Durham: Winter 2003.Vol.56, Iss. 4