Select an organisation with which you are familiar to be the focus for your case study. This could be:

• Your current employer
• A previous employer
• An organisation that you have or have had contact with, possibly through work experience or through a family member or close friend, or
• An organisation you have an interest in that has readily availableinformation on its structure, the ways in which they manage their staff and how the company organises its HRM activities and functions.

The size and the structure of your chosen organisation is not important since all organisations employ people and, therefore, manage their „human resources? in some way. What is important, however, is that you have some knowledge and understanding of the approach the company uses to strategically manage HRM to recruit, retain and manage their staff and how they organise their HRM activities and functions.

You will use this knowledge to produce a 3000 word report [+ 10%] in which you will critically assess existing HRM practices within the organisation, making recommendations as appropriate to those who run the business on where and how improvements can be made. It is strongly suggested that each task represents a sub-section of your report and that you also include a brief introduction to the organisation, conclusion and recommendations.

Task 1

Critically analyse the internal and external environment for your chosen organisation, making reference to appropriate literature sources.

Task 2

Using appropriate concepts and models of strategic Human ResourceManagement critically evaluate a variety of human resource policies and procedures.

Task 3

Make recommendations relating to the attraction and retention of talent to support the future performance of your chosen organisation. This may be the adoption of new approaches to HRM or new methods of managing the human resources of the organisation. In this section you should also demonstrate awareness of barriers to implementation which may include cultural differences alongside different working practices and legislation.

Guidance

Complete all the tasks in order. Consult with your tutor if you are uncertain about any aspect of the assignment.

Instructions on Assessment:

You will need to research appropriate literature and make use of both lecture and seminar input. Use examples and in particular any organisational comparisons that may be appropriate. Always reference your work using the correct conventions.

Word limits for assignments

The word count is to be declared on the front page of your assignment. The word count does not include:

• Title and Contents page
• Executive Summary
• Glossary
• Reference List
• Bibliography
• Appendices
• Appropriate tables, figures and illustrations

Summarising and compressing the information in your assignment into the word limit is one of the skills that students are expected to acquire, and demonstrate as part of the assignment process.