The Human Resource Function of a Retail Store

The Human Resource Function of a Retail Store

Introduction

Human Resource department is considered to be the heart for any organization. It brings the best man power to the organization that by dint of their knowledge and experience bring an unprecedented growth. It is the employees who take the organization to the sky in terms of its growth the purpose of her existence. Right person for the right job at the right time is the very aim for any organization's HR department. However, this aims sounds easy, but in real terms, a particularly hard nut to crack. It is the organization's strategy that defines its goals, and future labor force to cater human related needs. The function of strategic HR is to link the organizational strategy with human resource strategy and to come up with an amalgamated approach. To fulfill all these, it is highly significant for human resource department to adopt a proactive approach rather than reactive and to look the future from a broader perspective.

Role of HR Manager

As a matter of fact, retail store comes under the umbrella of services industry. One of the elements that differentiate retail/services sector is the presence of people - customers and employees. The response time for customers in the retail sector is very minimal, so it is truly important that appropriate sales service must be provided to retain the customer and to build long term relationships.

From human resource manager's point of view, the role of HR manager in the retail sector primarily involves having a pool of candidates for recruitment. Since the employee turnover in this sector is particularly high. So in the future, if there arises any need for additional labor force, it can easily make people available. In addition to this, managing, developing and motivating employees is as essential as any other aspect.

Human resource manager, from a retailing scenario, always strive to have people who can provide customers the desired level of service. Any gap between actual and ideal level of service can have a significant impact on customer loyalty.

Moreover, provision of functional and specialized trainings and systems for proper employee engagements and managing systems to promote regulatory compliance with employment and human rights standards is vital (Standberg, 2009).

HR Strategy for Retail Stores

Human resource managers a retailer's biggest controllable expense and look after its most critical success factor, that is, its ...