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THE CONTAINER STORE CASE STUDY: HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

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Introduction
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Management of human resources refers to a variety of initiatives as well as policies that

considerably affect an organization, specifically in the operations such as talent acquisition,

training and support, and workplace diversity. This management affects the actions,

behaviors, as well as performance of the employees. (Noe et al., 2011).These techniques are

often used to give firms a competitive edge. The Container Store has developed to be the

United States' top retailer of storage and organizational products and the only statewide

retailer dedicated exclusively to the category.(The Container Store, n.d) The human

resources management is one department to be reckoned with at the Container Store as it

gained the organization a position in the Fortune 100 best companies to work for in America

(The container store, 2018)

Ways in which a happier workforce gives retailers a competitive advantage

The container store has been developed by mostly on the delightful belief that the staff

members are the main priority and the company’s greatest valued asset (The Container Store,

n.d). As their competitive advantage, the business uses professional development and

distinctive recruitment strategies. The commitment of the company to employee motivation

is a competitive strategy involving personnel management that is designed to promote

employee engagement with the business. During the 2008-2009 recession, the Container

Store faced financial challenges The company, however, resisted to lay off any employees,

unlike most of the businesses. Instead, to reduce expenses, it decided to freeze wages and

401(k) programs at the time and to motivate the staff members, it held sales contests instead

(Daniels Fund Ethics Initiative, 2011) The company was therefore capable of maintaining a

devoted sales team which assisted in the survival of the business during the financial crisis.

The Company is committed to providing staff a minimum of 50 percent more than they

could be paid in other retail stores and the average wage paid to full-time sales

representatives is 46,000 USD. Additionally, the part-time workers also receive healthcare
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benefits (Daniels Fund Ethics Initiative, 2011). Employee benefits are not just an excellent

way to retain staff, but also serve as an inspiration that encourages employee performance.

The Container Store utilizes the belief of “happy employee, happy clients”, which in turn

generates revenues and leads to increased shareholders' earnings (Daniels Fund Ethics

Initiative, 2011).

The effect of the Human Resource strategy on other areas of the company.

Organizations need to constantly implement excellent and well-thought-out strategic

goals for human resources which will be utilized in order to facilitate and channel efficiency

to their human resource (Khan, 2018). In the Container Store company, substantial training

of employees is an outstanding strategy that has a beneficial impact on other areas of the

company. The member of staff receives training of 185 hours during the first year of

employment, as compared to industry norm of 8 hours annually (Chopra & Chopra, 2012).

The hours have been boosted to 241 as they understand the company needs to work with the

well-prepared minds of the employees so that they can come up with a unique and efficient

solution (Chopra & Chopra, 2012). The organization uses the extensive training as a strategic

human resource practice that is known to improve a company’s performance (Khan, 2018).

An advantage of this is that the business trains the workforce for various roles and utilizes

employee skills for various career paths and the company gains employee effectiveness in all

the departments.

The human resource department at the Container Store company are consistently making

an effort to recruiting and retaining the best candidates available on the market, similar to

other retailers, much like all other retailers (Kennedy, 2017). The organization tailors

positions to suit skill sets, expertise, and abilities of its employees in different departments.

(Koch, 2001). By focusing on the skill set of the employee when hiring, the company gains
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the advantage of having the right people on the ground to maintain and improve the

performance of the store. It also saves the time and resources that would otherwise be used in

acquiring a more skillful replacement for the position. Their “fit to hire” human resource

policy helps them to consistently hire the most efficient individuals based on their skills and

abilities. In the context of the company’s performance, one of their primary principles states

that one great person is equal to three good people (The Container Store, n.d).

By focusing on the human resource policies and procedures, Container Store

accomplishes the company’s effectiveness and achieves the organizational goals in an

efficient way. The key areas of their policies such as the employee first culture, the benefits

and remuneration package and the employee recruitment and training, ensure that the human

resource management has a beneficial effect on other areas of the company and that this

effect leads to the continual business development. The organization generates staff loyalty

through offering significantly greater benefits and wages compared to other outlets,

appropriate training and feedback, and chance for committed staff members to advance in

their careers (Chopra & Chopra, 2012)

Conclusion

References

Chopra R., & Chopra, A., (2012) Innovative HR Practices for Competitive Advantage: a

Strategic Perspective. Retrieved from:

http://www.publishingindia.com/GetBrochure.aspx?query=UERGQnJvY2h1cmVzfC8x

MTgwLnBkZnwvMTE4MC5wZGY=
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Khan, Y. (2018). Strategic Human Resource Practices and its Impact on Performance

towards Achieving Organizational Goals. Business Ethics and Leadership. Vol 2. pp

66-73. doi:10.21272/bel.2(2).66-73.2018.

Noe, R.A., Hollenbeck, J.R., Gerhart, B., Wright, M.P., (2011) Fundamentals of human

resource management (4th ed.) McGraw-Hill Irwin.

The Container Store (n.d) About Us. Retrieved from:

https://standfor.containerstore.com/page/about-us

The Container Store (2018) Events & Celebrations Retrieved from:

https://standfor.containerstore.com/we-are-one-of-the-fortune-100-best-companies-to-w

ork-for

The Container Store (n.d) Our Employee First Culture Retrieved from:

https://standfor.containerstore.com/putting-our-employees-first/

Kennedy, R. (2017, December 27 ) How To Recruit the Best Talent in Retail Retrieved from:

http://standfor.containerstore.com/how-to-recruit-the-best-talent-in-retail

Daniels Fund Ethics Initiative, University of New Mexico (2011) The Container Store: An

Employee- Centric Retailer Retrieved from:

https://danielsethics.mgt.unm.edu/pdf/Container%20Store%20Case.pdf

Koch, J. (2001, February 28) Thinking Outside the Box at The Container Store. Retrieved

from: https://www.workforce.com/news/thinking-outside-the-box-at-the-container-store