Page 10 - CIMA MCS Workbook August 2018 - Day 2 Suggested Solution

CIMA NOVEMBER 2018 – OPERATIONAL CASE STUDY

They can be responsible for:
• Problem resolution of employee issues and management.
• Employee benefits.
• Organising training sessions for our managers and employees, both in our gyms and at head
office.
• Guidance with selection of policies to develop an employee handbook.
• Ensuring workplace safety.
• Designing workflow and staffing analyses.
• Assistance with all facets of the employment life cycle, from interviewing and hiring to
employee discipline and termination.

Having a dedicated HR professional should also relieve burden at GymFit. As our business grows
and we continue to add employees and additional locations, it will become increasingly difficult to
micromanage each aspect of the business.

By adding an HR professional/ department, the directors won't need to be as directly involved in
time-consuming tasks such as recruiting, benefits administration and developing and
implementing personnel policies and procedures. Instead, you can focus more on big picture
items such as increasing revenues and gaining market share.

At GymFit, we must ensure that we comply with the large number of rules and regulations that
govern personnel relations and management. An HR professional will possess the expertise in
areas such as discriminatory practices and compensation laws. This prevents us from breaking
regulations that we might not have even known existed. In the process, we can avoid costly fines
and possibly even lawsuits while preserving the good reputation of our business.

Having HR being dealt with in a somewhat ad-hoc manner, as we currently do, could leave
employees feeling unsupported. Employees can go to HR with complaints about workplace
harassment, bullying and violence. HR can advise management on the best course of action and
conduct investigations. They can also answer employee questions about benefits enrolment and
support. In addition to this, an HR professional would be responsible for promoting a company’s
culture and keep employees engaged with it. This will have a positive impact on employee
attitudes and performance.

Recommendation

In summary, it will of course take time to successfully implement this new HR function and it will
mean that a certain element of control is to be relinquished by you as to how the business
operates. Another individual will have the responsibility for making important decisions in key
areas, including hiring and personnel relations. Having said this, in my opinion, the pros outweigh
the cons and I believe that having a dedicated HR professional at GymFit would be a step in the
right direction.

66 KAPLAN PUBLISHING