Principles of Effective Workforce Planning
The report is based on the London based chain of restaurant-“Hell’s Kitchen”. The restaurant has 8 stores located at different places in England. The owners of the restaurant currently plan to expand its business and add another 12 stores under its belt. Though the owners have taken such a decision it will be a difficult task to implement it as because “Hell’s Kitchen” has suffered severe loss in the last year. The researcher had tried to prepare an effective plan that will be necessary for the turnaround of the restaurant.
Workforce Planning is one of the most important HR process that involves the HR to pick up his performance that over exceeds the expectations of the organization and helps to build an effective strategy for the future success of the business organization. Research have clarified that workforce planning is very much effective in structuring the complex set of strategies prepared by the management and give a perfect shape to it. The implementation of the structured plans stepwise will help the organization to gain success. The research conducted on ‘Hell’s Kitchen’ on the very subject found out that the mentioned restaurant was doing much less as compared to their claims of organizing its workforce. It was seen that the workforce in the eatery were mainly concentrating on talent or succession planning rather than concentrating their efforts on the entire workforce of the organization. The failure to organize a proper planning to develop the skills of the employees.
The focus of Hell’s Kitchen must be on recruiting employees that comes from key and niche areas. Hell’s Kitchen must follow the example of other organizations as 5 out of 10 organizations in UK have developed in house talents and used different media and technology to recruit new employees The mentioned eatery must focus on retaining its employees rather than recruiting new talents as such an initiative will help the organization to save time and money involved in the recruitment process as well as to ensure sustainable environment for the business.
The decision of UK to leave European Union will surely have an impact over the business and thus the management of the mentioned eatery must provide greater emphasis on development of the existing staff in the restaurant. A survey has shown that most of the people think that the management of the restaurant must emphasis on greater communication among the staffs and them to ensure that they do not leave the restaurant.
Resourcing and Talent Practices
It is high time for Hell’s Kitchen to put renewed focus on improving their brand name and increasing their organizational values. Hell’s Kitchen must create mobile applications and maintain a proper website to be able to attract more and more customers to their outlets.
Hell’s Kitchen must calculate the labour turnover costs which help the restaurant to retain its staffs. The mentioned calculation helps the organization to get an idea about the performance of the employees and accordingly retains them.
The case study on the mentioned eatery has pointed out to some serious issues that need to be solved at the earliest. The present picture clearly shows the absence of a proper HR planning within the organization. The plan to expand its business at such a crucial juncture will surely be a gamble played by the management of the company (Mowday et al. 2013). The restaurant uses traditional networking system that has not helped its cause. The management calculations and daily operations are recorded manually, which makes it hard for future references. “Hell’s Kitchen” must have some clearly mentioned objectives to implement strategic planning;
- The management of the eatery house must appoint the best people who perfectly suits the desired job profile and are able enough to implement the strategies of the organization
- To make sure that the strategies of the business are in line with the demands of the customers
- The HR must ensure that the demand for people numbers, skills, values and behaviours are met accordingly
- To make sure that the concerns of the people are at the centre of the strategy which helps the customers
- Respecting the demands of the people
Organizations must follow some basic rules and regulations with compliance the legislations before terminating or retiring the employees. The employers while telling a person to retire citing his age, dismissing a worker, making a worker redundant must follow the equality law. The equality law applies to all the organizations irrespective of ;
- The size of the organization
- The type of work that they are involved in
- The strength of the workers whether it is a single person or lakhs of persons working in the company
- Using formal and complex process while taking decisions
The equality law thus helps to ensure the safety of the employees from different types of unjust discrimination. The law is equal to each and every employee of the organization which may include the managers or the lower level employees. Reluctance to implement such laws can invite strict regulations and penalties either from the government or from the governing bodies. Other laws that can be effectively used to stop discrimination include Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and many more as such.
The process by which the management of the company chooses selective people from within the organization is referred to succession planning and benefits. Succession planning helps the organization to identify the potential leaders of the organization who will fill the key positions in the future (Jakubik et al. 2016).
There is a common belief that succession planning and replacement planning carries the same meaning and the same objectives. But the truth is that both the terms carry a different meaning altogether. Replacement Planning in an organization does not change over a given period of time. It is simply the creation of some individual back up in for different top-level positions. The replacement chart of the organization lists some people within the organization to indicate whether the persons listed are ready to accept their roles. Succession Planning and replacement Planning are thus totally different concepts. The present condition of Hell’s Kitchen needs a total replacement otherwise it will serve a huge blow to the organization’s plan of expansion and earning profits. The annual report of the restaurant shows that just two of its eight stores have been able to garner profits. This is one of the serious issues that clearly highlight the absence of a proper leader in the ranks of the organization. There are also other problems like;
- The employee retention skills of the organization has diminished a lot in the last year and a survey conducted by the organization has revealed that there has been a sharp rise in the departure of the employees
- The restaurant lacks in responding to sudden and unprecedented risks or loss that may arise. This is a big concern for the employee as because the management suffers in recruiting quality managers to lead the organization in absence of a proper system within the organization.
- The recent survey has revealed that the management faces serious issues while finding people who are ready to be promoted and also suffers to find people who are ready for accepting promotions when a post becomes vacant
Succession Planning and its Benefits
Every single business organizations must have an effective business succession planning that will help to ensure a smooth flow of business operations. One of the main reasons behind the current crisis situation of Hell’s kitchen is the absence of a proper succession planning. This can be done by implementing some basic planning like;
Vision- The present vision of the restaurant does not have a proper aim that can be effective for a successive planning. Therefore the primary step that needs to be done is preparing a long-term vision that will be surely bigger than the interests of a single individual and will preserve the interests of the restaurant as a whole. The management must jot down all the important points that describe the vision statement of the organization. Writing down the vision statement of the organization will help the employees to have a clear idea about the aims and objectives of the organization.
Training- Training is one of the most important steps of succession planning in business. The expansion of the mentioned restaurant in different cities of UK have taken a toll on the implementation of the training programs for the new joiners as well as some skill development workshops for the present set of employees. Hell’s Kitchen used to have one of the best training methods among all the restaurants operating in UK. The training program was carried out by skilled trainers employed by the restaurant and was personally supervised by the owners as well as the top level management of the company. As mentioned earlier the decision to open new stores at different areas made the management lose their concentration on the program which led to a sudden fall in the quality of the training program. As the case study briefs the readers about the restaurant’s plan to open more number of stores in and around UK, it will surely be a challenging job for the organization to implement succession plans. The mentioned organization must begin afresh and implement the training programs for its employees to make sure that the future leaders will be ready to fill up the vacant position left over by the old employees.
Systematize- Hell’s Kitchen has suffered mainly due to the absence of a proper system after the stepping down of the founders or the older employees of the restaurant. It would have been much easier for the employees to readily step over the shoes of their predecessors if a proper system would have been present in the organization. The presence of a proper organizational system is utmost necessary to make the task of the new employees easy. Making it easier for the other employees helps in the proper running of the business. The present owners of the mentioned restaurant must make it a point to integrate a proper system in the business to achieve long-term success.
Financial Condition- The current management of hell’s kitchen faces serious issues regarding finance. There are some cases that the restaurant is fighting against the non-payment of tax and debts. Before passing on the baton to the other individual or a group the outgoing management must ensure that all the finances of the organization are cleared (Rothwell et al. 2015). The new management of the company will find it easier to carry on the operations smoothly if the financial condition of the business is stable.
The management of the restaurant must adopt a professional development program to enable the performance graph of its employees and make sure that they are always prepared to take up new positions and new challenges. Professional development programs of the mentioned restaurant will surely involve a group training where the employees will be trained as a group (Hall-Ellis 2015). It is utmost necessary to improve the knowledge and skills of the managers and the employees of the restaurant given the current state of affairs within the organization. The training will help them to;
Skills- Improve their present skills and sharpen them to be more productive
New Jobs-The training will help them to perform new jobs much easier which earlier might seem to be tough for them
Contemporary Methods- Changes in the traditional works
Multidimensional requirements- Additional requirements as specified by the organizational heads
There are many steps to implement professional development in the organization. The figure given below will show the steps involved in the process;
Figure 1- Steps involved in professional development
Source- (Jakubik et al. 2016)
The first and foremost aim of the restaurant will be to make sure that they have a proper set of goals that defines the aims and objectives of the restaurant. The presence of a proper set of goals helps the employees to have an understanding of the demand of the organization from them and thus helps them to work accordingly. The next process is to develop the methods that will be needed to achieve the goals. The restaurant might adapt some unique techniques to serve its customers or prepare some exquisite cuisine that may help to attract customers. It is the job of the management and the owner to give their approval on the same to proceed with the plan. The management must keep a sharp watch on the implementation process of the plans and then finally they must analyze whether the plan is a success or not. A successful plan leads to a celebration while an unsuccessful one makes the management again change the old method and try a different one. Finally it is the task of the restaurant to ensure that the successful method is implemented on a long term basis which would help to ensure sustainability to the business.
Figure 2- Nine Box Appraisal Model
Source- (Ghosh et al. 2013)
Figure 2 on the other hand provides the nine box appraisal model that can be implemented by the mentioned restaurant. Hell’s Kitchen can use the diagram to judge the performance levels of its workforce and accordingly categorize them under different boxes. For example a potential performer with a good workplace reputation and effective performance is ideally fit for the future leader while a employee having low performance can be kept under the underperformer box. The following model will surely help the restaurant to manage its human resource effectively.
Figure 3- Discrimination Model
Source- (Rothwell et al. 2015)
The discrimination model shows the ways by which the employees are discriminated on various grounds in an organization. Hell’s Kitchen must analyze the diagram to make sure that they can make their workforce happier which will ensure success for them.
The government of UK has recently levied some charges off the mentioned restaurant and has appointed a new committee that would be engaged in selecting a training program for the employees of the restaurant (Bryant and Allen 2013). The employees will be trained by the trainers as directed by the committee. The training cost will be provided by a renowned bank in UK. The training by the third party will surely help the restaurant management to save both time and cost and concentrate on their venture to open new business chains around UK.
The case study on the mentioned restaurant has revealed the problems that the restaurant faces on the underperformance of its employees. Underperformance of the employees has seriously hurt the cause of the restaurant as the employee turnover report has shown a downfall in the performance of the employees. The first step to be taken by the organization is to identify the problems like why the employees are not performing according to the organizational plans, why are they showing signs of laziness or why do they fail to understand the requirements of the specified job role. The second step should be to determine the seriousness of the existing problem or the time from when the problem has been there (Stikeleather 2016). The next step is to personally meet the employee and discuss with them the problems. The management must also hear the cause that is behind the problems. The owner of the restaurant must take a prompt call and quickly devise a solution to get rid of the problems (Johnson 2015). After this it is the duty of the management to assess the performance of each and every employee. Thus to round up the checklist for employers to manage underperformance in the organization are;
Awareness- Ensuring that employees are aware of the demands of the organization
Problems- Organizing a meeting with the employees to discuss about the problems they face
Timing- Providing adequate time to the employees for preparing
Presentation of Problems- Allowing the employees to present their case
Safety- Last but not the least conducting the meeting in a safe environment
The role of employees has certainly some links to the current crisis of Hell’s Kitchen. The restaurant must analyze the situation and downsize its employees. Some ways by which it can downsize its employees are;
- The restaurant must come clear to its employees and tell them about the present state of crisis existing in the organization. Hiding the facts and figures from the employees will lead to speculations within them and will affect their performance.
- The management must be honest with the employee citing him the reasons behind downsizing and not take any hasty decisions
- Treating the employees with respect helps the organization to part ways with the employees on a good note. Disrespecting the employee will send a wrong message to the other employees of the organization.
- The organization may text message the employee about the decision which might avoid a direct contact between the employee and the management and will also ensure that the other employees are least aware of such a development.
Employee turnover is a common part of any business entity, which is highly associated with the costs when the companies are in control of the turnover. The turnover that is involuntary in nature is under the control of the company and the decision makers within the company let the employees to quit due to their poor performance within the organization. The turnover that is voluntary in nature is divided in to two parts, which are known as functional and dysfunctional (Ghosh et al. 2013).
The dysfunctional turnover does not hurt the company in any way and the costs that are incurred exceed the potential benefits that are associated with it. The employees who leave the company might be a good performer, which will create an impact on the ability to make profits for the company (Steingold 2017). The employees that have better skills are shifting to different organizations, which will cost the company more, as it will be difficult for the company to find those skilled employees in the market. The members of the minority group also affect the turnover process of the company as they create a diverse atmosphere within the workplace. Thus, when company loses most of its employees, the cost involved in employing and training new members are very high from the point of view of the organization (Du Caju et al. 2015).
The turnover that is dysfunctional in nature can be avoidable or unavoidable, where the unavoidable circumstances, which do the employees such as family issues cite and relocation can be considered within the organization over which the company has no control. The avoidable circumstances are under the control of the company, where the employees may opt out due to better job opportunities or due to the dissatisfaction within the current workplace. These turnovers happen when the pay structure within the company is poor or there is no opportunity for progress within the company (Hancock et al. 2013).
The turnover that is functional in nature does not hurt the company largely. The employees that select to leave the company are mostly part-time employees and are not highly skilled. Therefore, these losses do not affect the company, as the poor performers within the company can be replaced with better performing employees so that the profit of the company can increase largely. The company stands a chance to replace the cost that has been incurred through the employee turnover by replacing them with better quality of employees (Mowday, Porter and Steers 2013).
The employee turnover depends of different companies because of the services that they provide in the market. For example, the criteria in a restaurant for employee turnover depend on the salaries and the perquisites that they receive on the profits that are being made by the company. The companies that are dealing with flammable products have a employee turnover that is based on the health and safety issues that are being provided within the company (Steingold 2017).
From the given case study, Hell’s Kitchen needs to adopt the strategies that are present with respect to recruitment, retention and performance of the employees. The recruitment strategies that need to be taken up by the restaurant is that they need to have better managers in the human resource department, which can identify the best talents that are available within the locality. The company needs to make the employees believe that the place is the best place to work in, as it has a friendly environment, which will help the employees in performing better. The company needs to recruit skilled laborers so that they can help in training the other employees during the process of work. This will help the unskilled employees to operate in an efficient and in a faster manner (Armstrong and Taylor 2014).
The retention of the employees within the company has to be based on the various pay structures. The products that will be supplied by the suppliers have to be noted, so that the employees cannot steal the products as given in the case study. This has to be done with the use of technological advancements so that the loss of goods from the company can be prevented. The employees need to be trained so that they become skilled and can manage their work within the restaurant in an efficient manner (Hancock et al. 2013). These practices will help the restaurant in saving the extra costs of training new employees if the old employees leave the company. The company needs to increase the pay structure so that the employees can be interested in the work process. This will act as a motivation for the employees along with the incentives that they would receive if the company can achieve more than its monthly target. The restaurant needs to maintain a flexible hours of work so that the employees can balance themselves between life and work. The managers also need to be aware of the other restaurants that offers competitive pay structures and should match their structure so that the employees do not leave their company (Thunnissen, Boselie and Fruytier 2013).
The measurement of the performance of the employees needs to be monitored and evaluated by the company. This will help the company is assessing their employees in a better manner and identify the weak employees so that they could be supervised by the managers. This will give an opportunity to those employees to increase their work within the company, which will act as a motivational factor for them. The stakeholders of the restaurants such as the customers must be given utmost priority and their feedbacks need to be analyzed and taken in to account by the company. This will help the restaurant in serving according to the tastes and preferences of the customers, which will help in increasing the profits of the company. The evaluation of the employees will help the company in setting short-term objectives for the employees, which can be achieved by them so that the long-term goals of the restaurant can be met in an effective manner (Bryant and Allen 2013).
As mentioned earlier Hell’s Kitchen have adapted to new and innovative strategies to retain its employees. The strategies adapted by them have both positive as well as negative factors.
Selection-The selection of local people by the managers have an added advantage as local people are well aware of the area and thus they can help the restaurant to identify markets to buy the raw materials in cheap prices as well as they can advise the management on making some special food items that is quite famous in the area.
Training- Training the employees helps the organization to deliver certain critical skills to the employees which makes the employees be loyal to the organization.
Pay Structure- The increase in the pay structure is certainly one of the positive aspects of the organization as because such increment helps the employees to be loyal towards their work.
Performance Levels- Evaluating the employees based on performance levels will surely help the restaurant to assess the condition of its workforce and will help them to achieve their goals.
Local people can sometimes sabotage the restaurant. They may use unfair means and advantages to establish their authority over the other employees in the organization. Sometimes new trainees leave the organization after working for a short period of time which is a main problem for the restaurant. The restaurant will incur a loss in such case as the training funds get totally wasted. The increase in pay structure is always done based on the performance levels of the employees. This is a serious problem as because other employees may feel de motivated which will affect the individual as well as the operational performance of the organization. Last but not the least the evaluation of employees based on the performance levels will create a rift among the employees that may hamper the workplace environment.
References
Armstrong, M. and Taylor, S., 2014. Armstrong’s handbook of human resource management practice. Kogan Page Publishers.
Bryant, P.C. and Allen, D.G., 2013. Compensation, benefits and employee turnover: HR strategies for retaining top talent. Compensation & Benefits Review, 45(3), pp.171-175.
Du Caju, P., Kosma, T., Lawless, M., Messina, J. and Rõõm, T., 2015. Why firms avoid cutting wages: Survey evidence from European firms. ILR Review, 68(4), pp.862-888.
Ghosh, P., Satyawadi, R., Prasad Joshi, J. and Shadman, M., 2013. Who stays with you? Factors predicting employees’ intention to stay. International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 21(3), pp.288-312.
Hancock, J.I., Allen, D.G., Bosco, F.A., McDaniel, K.R. and Pierce, C.A., 2013. Meta-analytic review of employee turnover as a predictor of firm performance. Journal of Management, 39(3), pp.573-603.
Mowday, R.T., Porter, L.W. and Steers, R.M., 2013. Employee—organization linkages: The psychology of commitment, absenteeism, and turnover. Academic press.
Steingold, F.S., 2017. The employer’s legal handbook: Manage your employees & workplace effectively. Nolo.
Thunnissen, M., Boselie, P. and Fruytier, B., 2013. Talent management and the relevance of context: Towards a pluralistic approach. Human Resource Management Review, 23(4), pp.326-336.
Jakubik, L.D., Eliades, A.B. and Weese, M.M., 2016. Part 1: An overview of mentoring practices and mentoring benefits. Pediatric nursing, 42(1), p.37.
Rothwell, W.J., Jackson, R.D., Ressler, C.L., Jones, M.C. and Brower, M., 2015. Career Planning and Succession Management: Developing Your Organization’s Talent—for Today and Tomorrow: Developing Your Organization’s Talent—for Today and Tomorrow. ABC-CLIO.
Hall-Ellis, S.D., 2015. Succession planning and staff development–a winning combination. The Bottom Line, 28(3), pp.95-98.
Stikeleather, B.R., 2016. When do employers benefit from offering workers a financial reward for reporting internal misconduct?. Accounting, Organizations and Society, 52, pp.1-14.
Johnson, R.R., 2015. Police organizational commitment: The influence of supervisor feedback and support. Crime & Delinquency, 61(9), pp.1155-1180.
Mowday, R.T., Porter, L.W. and Steers, R.M., 2013. Employee—organization linkages: The psychology of commitment, absenteeism, and turnover. Academic press.
Order an Essay Now & Get These Features For Free:
Turnitin Report
Formatting
Title Page
Citation
Outline
