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Real-Life HRM Case Study
Real-Life HRM Case Study
Football Club
Introduction
On this battlefield of business and sports, where football is becoming more and more
professional, Best Ham United football club has managed to gain a prominent position
in the market, having built its identity among the fans and its considerable money
inflow. The soccer club may be proud of its growing reputation, but it should also realize
that the team is facing a plethora of human resource issues or the fact that it requires
timely intervention. This report talks about the root of this problem, like the
complications that it represents and the integral ways of solving it, for example, the
current HR problem in the organization. Through the identification of the strengths and
weaknesses of the present strategies and the creation of personalized
recommendations, it will be shown how to best suit the needs of the club both today and
in the future when the football industry becomes more dynamic (Gao, H., 2024)
The center of several issues for the HR department of Best Ham United can be pointed
out to be a complex case containing everything from pay and benefits differences to an
overall downfall in employee engagement and motivation. Trying to cut costs by
stopping hiring and limiting salary increases resulted in more tension among the
workers and consequently more people were leaving, and more injurious than formal
grievances were registered. Despite the lack of performance management practices
alongside failed attempts to meet the promotion commitments, there is an additional
reason for the employees’ low morale and low level of involvement. Also, inside the
management is the primary shortage of leading quality staff, coupled with external
pressures, such as trade union disputes and operating inefficiencies, which result from
ensuring some critical functions through undertrained and low-paid staff. (Cavanagh,
2024).
Current practices of the organization do not work for two reasons: they do not address
the roots of disharmony within the organization, and they do not improve
efficiency. Inadequate cost-cutting measures whicdeclinesnly of short-term effects and
poor communication within the workforce may lead to a bad image of the club society,
and eventually, the team performance decline. While these situations are demanding,
they can also manifest a huge nation-revitalizing chance.
Overall this report can be as a roadmap for Best Ham United Football Club to solve the
HR issues with greater success. With a holistic approach that focuses on the health of
employees, operational effectiveness, and stakeholder engagement, the team can sail a
boat toward sustainable success and be one of the main forces in the competitive realm
of European football.
HR Issues Identified
1. Compensation and Benefits Disparities: The choice to halt recruitment and
restrict wages to a 5% raise won’t change employees’ minds, especially with an inflation
rate of 10%. This was the case where the cost of consumption went beyond income
thereby leaving employees' finances in a constrained state which results in
discontent. The salary differentials between an employee in the organization and a labor
worker worsen the feeling of unfairness and low morale.
2. Employee Engagement and Morale Decline: Layoffs and cost cutting, as
well as the lack of recognition or incentives, caused employee engagement to go down
as the morale of those individuals. Employees think they are underpaid, and no one
cares about them, so they start to be less productive, more often absent, and shift jobs
more frequently. Lack of motivation of workers also negatively affects the provision of
customer services and is a setback to the performance of the organization (Gao, H.,
2024).
3. Workload Imbalance and Work-Life Balance: Workers indicate up to the ceasing
margin and the lack of possibility to have a healthy work-life integration. Through
arranging job opportunities that are restricted and unclear career paths this group
immediately feels they are stuck, and even if they wanted to move forward there is a
very small chance this would even happen. Not having enough career advancement
and work-life balance causes burnout among employees and, as a result, stress, and
dissatisfaction (Cavanagh, 2024)
4. Trade Union Disputes: About 40% of the club's staff members are composed of
a trade association that has rallied for their wages to increase by 10%, to match the
ever-increasing inflation rate. The strike might further angrily influence the organization
that is already facing this situation and increase its negative image; besides, the club
has active community outreach projects (Gao, H., 2024)
The concerns of HR lead to the intersection of and snowballing each other, in a toxic
workplace and disturbing performance. What is addressed here is the complex issue of
tackling these problems through the double-sided approach that starts within the
company and ends outside it. (Hidalgo, 2024)
4. Poor Communication and Broken Promises: Social capital loses its value
because of two main reasons: the absence of transparency on the communication
channels and the promises that aren’t apparent regarding career
advancement. Employees who had a career advancement opportunity and development
prospects after their new jobs have imagined their disillusionment and demotivation
because the advertised promotion is nowhere to be found. This communication gap
further exacerbates employee morale erosion and promotes a regressive trend of
mission obfuscation and collective disenchantment (Gao, H., 2024).
Eventually, it can be highlighted the approach of the club, namely Best United Football
Club has proved to be a non-successful way that provided a solution for solving the
challenges recognized as the shortage of human resources existing in the
organization. By reducing workforce benefits and employees rather than putting more
emphasis on improving employee well-being, workers, and engagement, the
organization is simply cutting costs that are harmful to long-term productivity in the
club. To solve these issues, the club must change its way of thinking and start treating
employees as human beings, or, in other words, it must switch to more humanized and
employee-oriented strategies in HR management, paying attention to the creation of the
culture of openness, communication, and constant evolution. (Hidalgo, M.A., 2024)
Review completely the compensation package and benefits and see if they
reflect the market standards. This can include comparing industrial standards
with our own and salary studies, uncovering areas of disadvantage, and targeted
adjustment.
Think about installing a reward system based on the results and bonuses to
honor the best results and push people forward to be productive.
In addition, providing flexible work arrangements, like the possibility of remote
work or flexible schedules would be an excellent option. This could effortlessly
improve work-life balance and call for talented people for the jobs. (Verónico,
2024)
Make the door open for employees so they won't feel embarrassed to come to
the managers or HR representatives if they have anything to ask or any
suggestions or complaints. Encourage free expression of opinion and
truthfulness in the communication process.
Make Ensure employees are constantly informed about the organization
through regular bulletins, newsletters, or town halls that provide updates and
signal changes. Adjust the mechanisms of data distribution so that they are
fast and clear. (Stokes, 2016)
Carefully share the obstacles and boundaries of the utility company, for
example, financial restrictions or even hidden internal malfunctions, with its
employees. Transparency in delivering the facts of the given situation makes
the employee more credible in the eyes of the leadership and thus gains trust
and support for management decisions.
Enter productive dialogue with worker’s representatives and trade unions to listen
to their problems and work out advocate joint endeavoring to the benefit of both
parties. Engage with compromises that perceive employees` and employer`s
fears and anxieties.
Seek to implement equitable and sustainable solutions to address trade union
concerns. Partially reflects upon the club’s ability to finance and maintain its
competitiveness in the long term. Consider worthwhile ideas, for example, raising
the salaries gradually or rewarding the employees with bonuses based on their
performance. (Verónico, 2024)
Maintain your employees aware of the negotiation progress, and let them take
part in the decision, as much as you can. Through actively pursuing the
development of a continuous dialogue, which combines trust and downtime with
activities, a relationship of mutual respect between management and workers
can be taught.
By putting forward strategies as above, Best Ham United put in place a system to
manage its HR problems properly and thereby improve employee morale and,
eventually, the organization’s performance and competitiveness in the world of football.
To deal with the current situation and obstacles of the West Ham United Football
Club, it is advisable to carry out an all-embracing renovation of the HR management
system of the organization to deal with the basic problems causing the unrest of
labor and inefficiency of the organization. (Stokes, 2016) This includes revising the
existing compensation and benefits scheme that matches the prevailing market
tuning, reinstating performance evaluation, and know-how contracts, and through
facilitating open and productive dialog between the trade union representatives,
getting common understanding and agreement on resolving specific problems or
issuing common beneficial policies. Besides that, a club should rethink its
outsourcing strategy basing primarily on quality instead of costs, providing additional
training and development for the outsourced manpower as a way of improving the
service delivery in the club, and lastly, exploring the different forms of outsourcing
where possible. By envisioning the employees’ well-being, constructing a culture
based on transparency and communication, and tackling external pressures, the
club can improve the internal atmosphere, organizational performance, and in the
end the brand reputation in terms of the football industry. (Verónico, 2024)
Conclusion
However, the best approach to fixing these essential HR issues is immediate
attention. All this can be achieved by implementing a staffing model that gives
attention to workers’ requirements without compromising on financial aspects
thereby improving personnel satisfaction, the performance of the organization, and
its reputation within the football industry. As for the strategies, they should be
outlining and implementing such as revising the compensation packages, restarting
performance management practices, and using constructive dialogue with the trade
unions, these are the key points that will make addressing this issue effectively
possible. Moreover, reshaping the outsourcing policy in place and moving up the
ladder to prioritize quality shall also enhance service delivery and endow the
organization with the flexibility and resilience to adapt to changing
circumstances. Also, we can overcome these challenges by adopting a
comprehensive approach that starts with employees’ wellness and does everything
to promote employee happiness. It will allow Best Ham United to sail through the
crises of changing the football world and to become a much stronger and more
resilient club stayed the competition.
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