Workforce planning at Tesco

Workforce planning is one of the important tasks in the hands of managers; it identifies the number of employees required for organization in near future. Tesco maintains a workforce planning table and reviews it for every three months so that it can meet the demand for staff continuously.

As Tesco entered into new product categories and opened stores in different countries, various new jobs were created. Tesco controls its organization at six different work levels such as interacting with customers directly, heading the staff, maintaining operating unit, recommending changes in strategy, improving performance and developing new goals and objectives for organization; each of this level requires people with different qualifications and abilities. 

Providing job description and specifications are necessary while starting recruitment process. Job description includes what is the designation and what are the role and responsibilities of it. Specifications include skills and qualification required for particular job. While recruiting, Tesco first conducts an internal talent plan that means it prefers own employees for higher positions. Encouraging talented staff is one of the aims of conducting internal talent plan. If there are no suitable people, then Tesco goes for external recruiting. Tesco created a separate website “www.tesco-careers.com” for advertising the vacancies and it welcomes online applications for particular positions. Selection process includes identifying the best candidate suites for particular position, Screening all the applications, calling the suitable candidates for interview, Conducting second level of interview if necessary and Sending offer letter to the person is the selection process used at Tesco.

Employment legislation must be followed by every organization while recruiting and maintaining staff. Gender, race, nationality and religion discrimination must be avoided while recruiting people into organization. Minimum wages, safety and health are other important legal aspects in maintaining staff. Safe procedures, equipments and machinery must be provided for employees at work place. Tesco provided safe working environments and it also trained their staff on "how to tackle with dangerous situations". Tesco is paying minimum wages to daily checkout staff based on number of hours and days worked. 

Thus, workforce planning creates a clear picture of future human resource need for an organization. Recruiting right number of candidates at right location and at right time is the main motive of workforce planning. A use-friendly recruiting and selection process of Tesco helped them in meeting the demand for staff.