London School of Business & Finance (LSBF)

Module Assignment Title Assignment Type Word Limit Weighting Student Intake Issue Date Submission Date Feedback Date Issued by (Assessor) Internal Verifier Plagiarism

Masters in Business Administration

INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Tesco PLC International and IHRM CHALLENGES Report 4000 words (+/- 10%) 50%. Intake 6 Friday 27 May 2011 Monday 4 July 2011 WC 22 August 2011 Sunita Kotta Kulbir Basra When submitting work for assessment, students should be aware of the LSBF guidance and regulations in concerning plagiarism. All submissions should be your own, original work. You must submit an electronic copy of your work. Your submission will be electronically checked.

Harvard Referencing

The Harvard Referencing System must be used. The Wikipedia website must not be referenced in your work.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this assignment you will be able to: Understand the changing international context of contemporary business and its implications for people strategies. Demonstrate an awareness of cross-cultural and culture specific issues that influence the development of people strategies and employment relation systems Enhanced ability to understand complex nature of this area of study and the ability to translate theoretical knowledge into practical contexts Critically analyse and evaluate a wide range of different international perspectives on issues of people management, develop holistic thinking, to inform evaluation of alternative in complex contexts Identify complex problems in the area of international employee relations/HRM, alternative courses of action, and provide appropriate solutions in a rapidly changing environment.

Scenario

International and IHRM challenges

Since the mid-90s, Tesco have been investing in new markets overseas, seeking out new opportunities for growth and ways of generating long term returns for shareholders. Today the Group operates in 13 markets outside the UK, in Europe, Asia and North America. It has also announced its entry into the Indian market last year, where they are establishing cash & carry business. Over 180,000 employees work for the international businesses, serving in 2,026 stores and generating 17.9 billion sales and over 700 million profit. Over half of Tescos selling space is now outside the UK. TESCOS International Strategy The full emergence of international retailing is not something that will happen overnight - it requires a long term approach. With more than ten years of experience overseas, Tesco has evolved a strategy based on six elements: 1. Be flexible - each market is unique and requires a different approach. In Japan, customers like to shop for small amounts of extremely fresh food, every day. Existing hypermarket formats don't meet the needs of local customers, so Tesco's entry into the Japanese market was through the acquisition of a discount supermarket operator. Act local - local customers, local cultures, local supply chains and local regulations require a tailored offer delivered by local staff. In Thailand, customers are used to shopping at traditional wet markets, interacting with vendors and rummaging through piles of produce to choose what they want. Rather than adopting the Western approach of neatly packaged, convenient portions, Tescos Rama IV store in Bangkok tries to meet local customers' expectations. Maintain focus it understands that customers want great service, great choice and great value. To become established as the leading local brand is a long term effort and is not about planting flags in map. Use multi-formats - no single format can reach the whole of the market. A whole spectrum from convenience to hypermarkets is essential and one needs to take a discounter approach throughout.

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Tescos experience of trading a mix of stores means they can now move to multi-format quicker and they have recently opened Express stores in Hungary and the Czech Republic. 5. Develop capability - it's not about scale, it's about skill - so it makes sure that they have the capability through people, processes and systems. Tesco believes that investing in people is the right way to live to their values and brings sound business benefits, too. Developing individuals at every level means that they have home-grown managers who understand its culture and can effectively develop Tescos business. Build brands - brands enable the building of important lasting relationships with customers. In China, Tescos first branded store called Tesco Legou opened in February 2007 and they have now completed re-branding of all stores.
Your Task

6.

You are an Entrepreneur or a HR manager of a Multinational Corporation, enterprise or organization which wants to enter into an understanding with Tesco and start in your chosen country. Answer the following challenges as an entrepreneur or HR manager you would need to know if you would want to start with Tesco: 1. How does the role of the HR manager operating within the purely domestic UK business environment differ from that of the international human resource manager operating within a global remit? You should be clear with your country chosen while supporting your arguments for the scenario. 2. What are the essential differences between the international, Euro and global manager? What are the implications of the differences between these three different types for the international human resource development manager for your business? 3. How important is an understanding of the role of culture to the international manager when devising staffing strategies for this overseas assignment?

4. Is it still necessary, in this global managerial environment where the concept of a posting may no longer be relevant, to think in terms of compensation packages for the international managers? 5. How would you devise an appraisal process for staff operating for this business? How would you ensure that whatever process you selected maintained the essential criterion of equity or at least the perception among those exposed to the process that equity was a paramount consideration?

6. What different staffing strategies are available to you as an international manger or entrepreneur in conjunction with an international HR specialist when staffing established overseas operations? 7. Consider the importance of language in its broadest sense for the global manager when communicating with colleagues, business partners and competitors within your chosen global business environment. Identify at least three different situations where the failure to communicate can be attributed to a dearth of appropriate skills and competences in managing a particular situation.

8. With reference to the above question, what can you as an IHRM or entrepreneur, with line responsibility for overseas staff, do to overcome the problem that you have identified?
Guidelines

You must answer all the 8 tasks in order to pass. Your report must not exceed 4000 words with an approx of around 300 words minimum for each task. Your report should include the following for the purpose of assessment: Research (20%) Students are encouraged to read as widely as possible as credit will be given for the research undertaken. All sources of reference should be properly acknowledged and all forms of plagiarism should be avoided. Please follow Harvard referencing. Presentation (20%) Work should be presented in a professional and scholarly fashion. It should be word processed, and sections should be properly headed. Credit will be given for accurate spelling, correct use of punctuation and the avoidance of grammatical errors. Structure (20%) All good pieces of writing have a beginning, middle and an end. The various components of the work should he arranged in a logical sequence, and fit together into a coherent whole. It can include Introduction, Underpinning knowledge, applied knowledge and conclusion. Knowledge and understanding (40%) Students should use this exercise to acquire knowledge and understanding of the subject. All terminology used should be thoroughly and clearly explained. Further guide lines: Use a standard report structure on A4 paper and include the cover page, table of contents, any tables/ figures, graphs if needed, references etc---.. Word-process the report. Use Normal script. Use Harvard referencing system. Produce an academic report, detailing above issues with word limit of 4000 words. Answer all the questions for the purpose of the assignment. You should answer all the tasks in order to pass. Complete the title page and sign the statement of authenticity.

 Submit the document in a folder in the form of a file on the date specified in the plan. Submission should be a soft copy and a hard copy. Your report must be handed in electronically no later than the date specified .Late submission could result in failure. Collusion and Plagiarism must be avoided and will be marked as fail. Note that plagiarism is a serious offence and your submission will be electronically checked. Start each answer on a new page. Highlight each question clearly. Pages should be numbered. Bibliography at the end of the assignment. All work should be comprehensively referenced and all sources must be acknowledged fully, as books and journals, websites etc--.Try to give the page numbers, publishers details and year of publication with the authors support. Use a common format for the questions as - Introduction (analyze the question.) - Underpinning Knowledge (write about the relevant theory/points) - Applied knowledge - Conclusion (summarizing the whole scenario keeping in view pass, merit, distinction criteria.)

London School of Business & Finance (LSBF)

Module Assignment Title Grade 70%+

Masters in Business Administration INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT TESCO PLC INTERNATIONAL AND IHRM CHALLENGES Description of Achievement

The Harvard Referencing System has been both used and applied correctly. All parts of question answered well. Displays originality in attempting the case scenario to support main arguments. Very high standard of critical analysis using appropriate conceptual frameworks Excellent understanding and exposition of HR issues Clearly structured and logically developed arguments Good awareness of nuances and complexities Substantial evidence of well-executed independent research Excellent evaluation and synthesis of source material Clear linkage between theory and practice and properly referenced The Harvard Referencing System has been used and applied, but with minor errors. High standard of critical analysis using appropriate conceptual frameworks Clear awareness and exposition of HR issues Clearly structured and logically developed arguments Awareness of nuances and complexities Evidence of independent research Good evaluation and synthesis of source material Relevant data explored and properly referenced The Harvard Referencing System has been used and applied but some mistakes have been made. Uses appropriate conceptual frameworks Attempts analysis but includes some errors and/or omissions Shows awareness of issues but no more than to be expected from attendance at classes Argument reasonably clear but underdeveloped Insufficient evidence of independent research Insufficient evaluation source material Some good use of relevant data , but incompletely referenced The Harvard Referencing System has been used and applied but major mistakes have been made. Adequate understanding of appropriate conceptual frameworks Answer too descriptive and/or any attempt at analysis is superficial, containing errors and/or omissions Shows limited awareness of issues but also some confusion Arguments not particularly clear Limited evidence of independent research and reliance on a superficial, repeat of class notes Relatively superficial use of relevant data, sources
The Harvard Referencing System has been used and applied sporadically but major mistakes have been made. Plagiarised The Harvard Referencing System has not been used. Plagiarised.

60%-69%

50%-59%

40%-49%

30%-39% Below 0-29%