Reference no: EM133044774

CASE STUDY

ForeverSmiles is a leading retailer with over 8,000 stores worldwide that continues to expand in Europe, North America and Australia. The ForeverSmiles brand is associated with value for money. Its stores provide customers with a wide range of high quality products and excellent value for customers. It works hard to keep prices low for its customers and buys large quantities of high quality products at the most competitive prices and the savings are passed on to customers.

ForeverSmiles places great importance on how it trains and develops its employees. Workforce planning is the process of finding out how a business will meet its labour requirements both now and in the future. ForeverSmiles, like other businesses, needs to predict its future staffing needs accurately. It needs to plan for both the number of workers it will require and the specific skills that the business will need in the future. The company can then recruit new staff if necessary. It can also ensure that it has training and development programmes in place to meet these needs. It identifies future training needs through an ongoing analysis of company performance in key areas at all levels. For example, the company monitors the availability of its products to the customer within its stores. If the level of availability drops below the targeted level then a programme of training on order accuracy would be undertaken. It also considers future developments within the business and within the grocery retail sector in order to predict both the total numbers of staff it will need and, more crucially, the skills and competencies that will be required. ForeverSmiles 's rapid expansion means that its current workforce cannot meet its future staffing requirements. The company will need to recruit more than 4,000 new members of staff within the next 12 months to meet the requirements of current exceptional sales growth and new store openings. To attract the best candidates, it offers industry-leading salaries at all levels.

Although ForeverSmiles expects new recruits to make an immediate contribution to the business, it also provides training so that they can develop their careers within the company. ForeverSmiles has entry levels for apprentices, store assistants, deputy managers, assistant store managers, trainee store managers and graduate trainee area managers. ForeverSmiles organises high-level training for recruits to all levels.

1. Fully explain with the use of examples the difference between training and development.

2. With the use of examples, explain why the company would be interested in using both 'on-the-job' and 'off-the-job' training for its staff.

3. Identify and discuss any (3) three methods the company should use to train entry level staff e.g. store assistants to order stock accurately and cashiers for maximum effectiveness.

4. Explain the importance of and (3) three benefits of using Succession planning and training for staff at Forever smiles?

5. Identify and briefly explain any 2 (two) types of training that you might include in the company's Managerial training programme to ensure awareness of legal compliance on certain issues in the organization.