TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT AT TESCO

Training & Development at Tesco

Training & Development at Tesco

Executive Summary

This report reviews and discusses the Human Resource policies and practices at Tescos. The organisation has introduced a high commitment model which offers training and development to all employees. They have developed their culture through extending their logo every little helps to prove their commitment to employees as well as to customers. This has proved a world class model and very successful for the organisation.

Organisations are implementing strategic training & development as a change agent, not to replace an out dated personnel department. Although there is still evidence within the UK that once these interventions are implemented, they just replace the role of the personnel department. To be effective training & development belongs on the board of an organisation.

The organisation that will be reviewed is Tesco's; during the past decade they have introduced strategic training & development with increased training of employees. The role of training & development within the organisation has increased in importance. Their practice of training and the importance of training & development will be reviewed with the current theory.

The organisation is widely reported in news papers, this is due to the success of the business. They are rapidly expanding in the UK with the opening of their Metro stores and into new and foreign markets. This has taken a great deal of their resources in the planning and implementing stage of expansion. The core units need to remain focused, to retain the reputation they have built. Reinforcing the culture and values through training will focus employees on their roles.

Introduction: Tescos Training & Development Policy

Tesco was founded in 1924. Over the past 79 years the company has grown and developed as the retailing market has changed. In the last seven years alone, Tesco plc has moved from being the number three UK retailer to being one of the top three international retailers in the world with 2,318 stores and 326,000 people.

Tesco's profits have soared 20% in the last year, taking them to a record 2 billion and setting a new milestone for UK business. The company takes almost one of every three pounds spent in a supermarket, and more than one of every eight pounds spent on the High Street. The supermarket chain is Britain's biggest private employer with nearly 260,000 staff (Poulter, S. 2005).

The human-resource strategy at Tesco's revolves around work simplification, challenging unwritten rules, rolling out core skills to all head-office employees and performance management linked to achieving steering-wheel targets. This highlights the way in which Tesco's business measures are closely linked to performance management (Anonymous 2003).

Tesco ensures that each and every employee has the opportunity to understand his or her individual role in contributing to the Tesco core purpose and values. This requires an innovative induction programme that caters for different cultures, styles of learning and varying commitments to the job. The frontline employees are considered the ultimate reflection of Tesco to its customers, but all employees have a very important ...