Psychometric tests are used by Sainsbury’s to find out the skills and qualities of people applying for jobs, which benefits Sainsbury’s as it means that they can find appropriate people to work in certain areas and can find suitable staff.
A psychometric test can also be used to measure intelligence and aptitude and aspects of the taker’s personality.
Psychometric tests are used by a number of businesses all over the work and are used in the recruitment process to select the best possible candidate for the job. After taking the psychometric test it shows that I am a good leader and that my personality involves being a strong ideological 33 + 23 + 21 leader and a participative leader, showing that I have good team skills, and am imaginative and strong-willed. This shows that I would make a good store manager, as on the Sainsbury’s website it says that store managers must “need to be adept at not only meeting performance targets, but implementing change and ensuring your close-knit team are always up to speed.” This shows that I would make a good store manager as I am a strong leader, I am good with working with teams and I am good at implementing change.
However, if I applied for the job now, I would not get it as I am only 15 years of age, and therefore too young. Also, I am in-experienced at working, as I have never had a job, which would mean that Sainsbury’s would not hire me as they usually hire people with past experience at the job they are applying for.
Moreover, the advantages of using psychometric tests include the ability to decide whether a person is suitable for a job through looking at their personalities and skills and deciding if they have the appropriate skills in order to fill the needs of the store.
However, the disadvantage could be that people may not necessarily answer honestly, and could just answer how they feel Sainsbury’s will want them to, for example, a person might lie about certain things so that Sainsbury’s will find them suitable, when realistically they may not be. This could result in Sainsbury’s losing money and customers, and ultimately not meeting their aims and objectives.
Moreover, a psychometric test can be expensive to set up, and if Sainsbury’s end up not finding they right person for the job they could end up losing lots of money.
In conclusion, psychometric tests are beneficial for Sainsbury’s as they can help Sainsbury’s find suitable people for the job, and find the best candidate. They can help to find people with the best suited skills and find people who will help Sainsbury’s meet their criteria.
Question 3 – Explain the different training (on the job and off the job) that is offered to employees at Sainsbury’s.
Training is the process of improving and increasing knowledge and skills of the workforce, to help them do their job efficiently and to the best of their ability.
Sainsbury’s offers two types of training for their staff, on the job and off the job.
On the job training is the method of training employees at the company itself, and letting them see the job they are being hired for done first hand. Sainsbury’s uses this method mainly for checkout operators and store managers, jobs which do not involve as much skill as others. Moreover, on the job training is the cheaper method of training staff, which is another reason why Sainsbury’s mostly use it for the less skilled jobs, because these jobs do not need as much skill, and therefore do not need much money to be spent on training the staff for them. However, Sainsbury’s will also use this method of training for the higher jobs in the hierarchy so that they can also experience their job first hand, and be trained to do the job specifically to Sainsbury’s needs.
On the job training involves different things which the employees do, for example - job rotation, mentoring and job shadowing. All of these help trainees to see how to do their job well and efficiently, and see how each person fits into the Sainsbury’s store way of working.
Job rotation is when Sainsbury’s train staff to do a number of jobs, such a stacking shelves and working the checkout. This is mainly used for shop floor workers as because they are on the shop floor there is going to e lots of things which they will need to be doing. The advantages of job rotation is that it means trainees can learn to do a variety of jobs and can be more useful around the store, which will mean that Sainsbury’s can run more efficiently and smoothly.
However, a disadvantage of this is that it means if some staff, which are training the trainees, are not working very efficiently or doing their job well, they could end up teaching the trainees wrongly, and Sainsbury’s could end up losing money from unhappy customers and inefficient working.
Moreover, Sainsbury’s also use the technique of mentorship’s to help train their staff. This means that they get staff which have been at Sainsbury’ for a long time, and are skilled and resourceful in doing their job, to train the trainees how to do their specific job well and to be competent. This means that Sainsbury’s do not have to pay professionals to train the staff, but instead already have well-organised, and resourceful staff to train the beginners for them, which means that Sainsbury’s are being cost effective and can save money. However, the disadvantages of this is that the trainees might not learn everything they need to learn, or might learn the wrong skills if they get a bad mentor, or do not get along with their mentor. This could cause Sainsbury’s to make a loss, and lose customers if the store is not run efficiently. An example of this is from the Sainsbury’s website, (...) saying “This will involve playing a central role in everything from providing leadership and coaching to managers and colleagues to reviewing in-store procedures and activity on an ongoing basis.”, which shows how Sainsbury’s use staff to train and review other employees work and efficiency.
Another method which Sainsbury’s uses to train staff on the job is job shadowing. Job shadowing is the approach of getting the apprentices to watch what other staff do on a normal day, and learn how to do their job through a “watch and learn” approach. An example of this could be a trainee watching a checkout operator to learn how to use the till, or a trainee watching a store manager to learn how to deal with tricky customers.
An advantage of this is this is that Sainsbury’s is saving money from using the staff they already have to train beginners instead of using professionals who could cost a lot of money, then again, Sainsbury’s could also make a loss from the staff who are training the new employees not training them properly and the new staff being ineffective.
Off the job training is the method of employees being trained outside of the business, in third party places such as other companies or colleges, or centres. They could also use apprenticeships at other places to train staff. Off the job training is used mostly for the jobs at Sainsbury’s which need more skill, such as managing. An example of this is from , saying “Managers would also receive further training such as off the job training such as conferences in order to gain greater skills and knowledge”, showing how Sainsbury’s uses off the job training to expand on the skills for the more important jobs in their store.
An advantage of off the job training is that trainees get to use better locations to improve their skills and become more efficient, which benefits Sainsbury’s as it means they can meet their yearly criteria and make a higher profit. However, a disadvantage is the cost which could be quite expensive, and could lead to Sainsbury’s making a loss if the employees they train do not do their job as well as Sainsbury’s hoped.
On the contrary, Sainsbury’s use different types of training for different levels of the hierarchy. For example, a checkout operator would receive on the job training because it is not a job which involves very much skill, and the advantage of training them on site means that they can witness their job being done first hand.
A checkout supervisor would most likely have both training methods and their job is more important than a checkout operator, and involves more skill, but not as important as a manager and does not need as much skill as a manager at Sainsbury’s.
A manager at Sainsbury’s would receive a combination of both methods as their job is very important and Sainsbury’s relies on it being done well. An advantage of this is that managers can get the best training possible and can do their job to the best of their ability, however this is quite expensive and can cost Sainsbury’s quite a lot of money.
Moreover, by using both methods of training, it benefits both staff and Sainsbury’s in many ways as it means that the staff at Sainsbury’s feel safer, happier and more confident in their job, and can lead to less absences so that Sainsbury’s can become more efficient and make more of a profit. It can benefit Sainsbury’s as it means that if staff are trained well the store is run more smoothly and effectively, and Sainsbury’s can achieve their aims and objectives. Also, it means that Sainsbury’s staff can be trained better than their competition, meaning that Sainsbury’s can gain more customers and therefore beat their rivals – shown in an article from The Independent – () saying “A company spokesperson declared “We do spend a lot of time and effort on training.” And “In effort to now lose more ground to its main rival Tesco, Sainsbury’s is sending hundreds of employees to a mystery business school” showing the effort Sainsbury’s makes to train staff.
In conclusion, I believe Sainsbury's is efficient in training their staff, and to an extent are very successful in their training, as it improves the skills and techniques used by staff and makes customers happy. Also, Sainsbury’s do different types of training to meet each employees needs, and the stores needs, and can make their store run more efficiently. However, as shown in the article by the Independent, Sainsbury’s are still struggling to keep up with their rival Tesco, and a reason behind this could be to do with the way in which they train staff. Another quote to support this theory is from , which says “The ideas and tips by Oliver in the companies adverts over the coming weeks are being sampled by all 153,000 Sainsbury’s staff so they can experience them first-hand and share their knowledge and ideas with customers”, and “more than 1000 managers from stores and central teams, including the board, are all going through a 2-day training course to change the way we run the business”, which show that Sainsbury’s are aware of the faults within the business’ training scheme, and are trying to change by using new campaigns to attract more customers, and are further training staff to make their business more effective and improve and enhance the way their stores work.
A further way for Sainsbury’s to improve their training strategy, is that they could find out how their rivals train staff and do the same, to make sure they aren’t behind or that their staff aren’t being under-trained, and Sainsbury’s could have conferences with all their staff to discuss the training methods and see if they can come up with any more efficient methods. This would benefit Sainsbury’s as it would mean that they can improve their training methods and gain more ground against rivals, which would mean they can get a bigger market share and make a larger profit.
Question 4 - Identify and explain the factors which motivate people at work. Judge whether Sainsbury’s are successful in motivating their employees. This should include reference to flexible working.
Motivation is the process of being desired (through monetary or non-monetary methods) to work harder. The more motivation provided, the harder staff will work. Motivation is very important to the success of Sainsbury’s; as if the staff are motivated it will allow Sainsbury’s to achieve their yearly aims and objectives.
As Abraham Maslow’s theory of motivation shows (pictured below left) the hierarchy of needs is often portrayed in the shape of a pyramid, with the largest and most fundamental levels of needs at the bottom, and the need for self-actualization at the top. Sainsbury’s uses this to motivate staff into feeling more secure and wanting to work harder, so that the store can meet its needs and their employees are happy.
Moreover, what I spoke to the manager of Sainsbury’s, he said “The motivational needs of staff is of up most importance, as it means that the store can run smoothly, calmly and to the best of everyone’s ability.” This shows how Sainsbury’s consider staff motivation to be important, and motivate their staff in ways to suit the staff and help them work harder.
Staff can be motivated through monetary and non- monetary methods. Examples of these include non- monetary methods such as pension schemes, healthcare, childcare, additional training and additional responsibility, and monetary methods such as additional pay, bonuses and commission to motivate staff. The problems with monetary methods, however, are that is means higher costs for Sainsbury’s, and that if the store target is not met and staff cannot be paid the extra money, they will be de-motivated and not want to work.
These methods of motivation can be used to target certain staff and specifically make them work harder, for example, by giving a checkout operator more responsibility they will feel more useful and happier in their job, but by giving a manager more responsibility it could potentially de-motivate them and make them feel more stressed out, as their job is already full of responsibility. The motivation for a manager would most likely be a monetary motivation, to help them feel more comfortable in their job.
Flexible working is very beneficial to Sainsbury’s, its when workers will work varied hours, which means that Sainsbury’s can have more skills within their store, it is also beneficial to Sainsbury’s as it means they can hire staff during busy periods, for example, Christmas when they are usually low staffed and have lots of customers, they can overcome these problems as they can hire more staff.
After speaking to a member of staff at Sainsbury’s, I believe that flexible working hours for staff is beneficial to the store as it helps them overcome problems during busy periods, and it means they have varied skills within the store which can help them meet their aims and objectives. A member of staff at Sainsbury’s said “Varied work hours help me a lot, as it means I can spend time with my kids, and work, and it means I’m less stressed out at work and feel happier there!”
Moreover, Sainsbury’s also uses appraisals to motivate staff and help staff stay focused. Appraisals are meetings between staff and management, which occur every six months – yearly, in a business. Appraisals are usually about the work of the staff in the business, telling them how they are doing, what they are doing well, and not so well and yearly targets that they need to meet. Appraisals can be motivating for staff as it gives them goals that they want to achieve, and motivates them through telling them what they are doing well, and how they need to improve. Peter Drucker believed that management was very important for businesses, and if staff are treated well they will work harder as they are assets to be business, not problems, and will be more motivated if treated well.
Appraisals are very helpful to Sainsbury’s as they give regular feedback which can help improve the way in which staff as Sainsbury’s work, and make Sainsbury’s more efficient. This means that Sainsbury’s can make their stores more efficient and make a higher profit.
Moreover, appraisals can set future goals for staff to achieve, and can motivate staff into working harder and feeling better and more secure in their job. Appraisals help to make sure that both Sainsbury’s and employees are meeting the terms of their contracts, and ensure this by showing them what employees need to improve, and what they are doing well. This helps Sainsbury’s to meet their aims and objectives as it encourages staff to work harder and do their jobs to the best of their ability, ensuring that customers are happy and likely to keep coming back and help Sainsbury’s make a profit and build a bigger market share.
To conclude, if appraisals are used often enough they can make sure that Sainsbury’s do well and can be a good way of communicating between staff about future goals and can help Sainsbury’s to identify who is working well and who is not doing their job as well as they can.
Furthermore, appraisals keep staff motivated, which in my opinion is very important as it encourages staff to work as hard as they can and can potentially be the rise or fall of a business, as if staff are working well, customers are happy and keep returning, and more customers are attracted to the store, whereas if staff do not work well, the customers will shop at rival stores and Sainsbury’s could lose some of their market share.
Moreover, a member of staff at Sainsbury’s, Sally, says "I have formal meeting with the deputy manager every 6 months to discuss the progress of both myself and the department. I really like this opportunity because it gives me a chance to discuss any issues I have and also because the meetings are really positive, which makes me feel good about my job. We have spoken about training possibilities for the future if I wish to move up within the company.” This shows how appraisals can make staff feel welcomed and more secure, which is important as it encourages staff to show up for work each day so there are less absentees.
However, a member of staff at a Leamington branch named Gareth says “I have never had a proper appraisal really. I have informal chats with my supervisor on the checkouts if there is any problems etc. But we don’t discuss areas where I can improve or what opportunities are available for me. To be honest though it doesn’t really bother me because this is only a part time job and I plan on going to university when I’ve finished. I know we have a HR manager that I met on my first day and she did some of the introduction training but I haven’t spoken to her since, but that’s probably because it’s a very big store with a lot of people.” This shows how Sainsbury’s don’t always make appraisals as important as they should be, and shows that without appraisals staff can become de-motivated and not care about the job that they are doing, which means that that branch can lose lots of profit from unhappy customers and lack of efficiency, and Sainsbury’s can lose their good reputation.
I believe that this proves how Sainsbury’s are can use appraisals to their advantage by making staff happier and giving them goals to achieve to keep them focuses, and also discovering who needs to improve and letting them know, so that Sainsbury’s can carry on being efficient and keeping customers happy. However, Sainsbury’s don’t always use appraisals, which leads to unhappy customers and staff, and a loss of profit and customers. To improve, Sainsbury’s should make weekly or monthly appraisals to motivate and encourage staff which would lead to a better and more efficient store.
Question 5 – Evaluate the role of USDAW in helping Sainsbury’s and its employees meet their contractual obligations, work together to keep staff motivated and help Sainsbury’s meet their aims and objectives.
USDAW is one of Britain's largest trade unions with over 406,000 members nationwide. They aim to recruit, organise and represent workers in the retail, distributive, manufacturing and service sectors for the purpose of securing the best possible terms and conditions and providing support and protection at work.
USDAW helps Sainsbury’s and its employees to meet their contractual obligations and work together to keep staff motivated by offering protection to Sainsbury’s employees and making sure that both parties of the contract fulfil their duties, which motivates staff as it makes them feel safer and more secure in their job.
Recently USDAW teamed up with Sainsbury’s to help improve the way that staff are treated. Mark Coker, an employee of Sainsbury’s said: "I am so pleased that my colleagues have taken advantage of this great opportunity to learn and develop themselves, and that this partnership has given them the chance to develop their self-confidence."
Moreover, an article on says that the new deal offers “The improved agreement, Getting it Right, includes: Automatic trade union recognition, more union reps per store from a minimum of two to a maximum of four depending on the store’s size and induction facilities for new starters prior to the store opening, improvements to the regional and national consultative structures, improved training and development facilities for union reps, and the opportunity to influence improvements to pay and benefits.”
This shows that USDAW work to help staff at Sainsbury’s get the best out of their jobs, and make them feel happier and safer where they work.
Furthermore, USDAW helps staff at Sainsbury’s feel more secure by making sure that Sainsbury’s gives the staff everything stated in their contract. This means that staff are happier and more likely to turn up to work, benefiting both staff and Sainsbury's ’s it means that Sainsbury’s staff are not unpredictable, but work efficiently and help Sainsbury’s achieve their aims and objectives, and it helps staff as it means that they can be sure in their job that they get everything they deserve and are treated fairly.
Besides, USDAW helps Sainsbury’s achieve their aims and objectives by giving the staff everything they need and want in work, and helping motivate them by letting staff know that if something goes wrong USDAW will protect and help them find justice. This means that staff are more motivated at work and work more efficiently, so that Sainsbury’s can meet their aims and objectives.
In conclusion, USDAW works with staff and Sainsbury’s to help both parties get what they want out of each other, and work together to be efficient and help staff feel safe and happy at work.
Question 6 – Evaluate the research methods that you have used to complete your controlled assessments to conclude how valid and reliable the conclusions that you have made are.
Research methods are the ways in which a person finds out information that they need in order to answer a question or find out more to do with a certain subject.
The research methods I used were found over the internet, and through asking members of staff at Sainsbury’s.
I believe that these are trust-worthy methods as they are methods that I have supervised first hand.
However, finding information on the internet is not always trustworthy as some sites may contain information that is exaggerated or false.
I tried to avoid such websites by using sites that are connected with Sainsbury’s, such as the official Sainsbury’s website, and news sites.
I also believe that the conclusions I have made are valid, as from the many sources I have used, and the research I have done I have come to these conclusions using a broad and open mind, and using all my notes, and many other people opinions and views to narrow down the facts and create a conclusion that is the most likely, and most effective.
Moreover, the ways in which I researched were in quiet, examination conditions, meaning I was on a computer, with no talking allowed, finding information to help me with this exam. This helps my research as it means I haven’t spoken to other students and found my conclusions and my sources on what they have said, but I have done the research myself and read each article to find relevant information and make my conclusions.
Overall, to evaluate I believe my research methods are reliable as I have made sure that I only used relevant information, by asking the current staff of local Sainsbury’s stores, and reading information on the official Sainsbury’s site, to ensure that the sources and conclusions I use and make are true, and use reliable and relevant facts.
by
baagingersheep (student)
