FACULTY OF BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT SCIENCES

ASSIGNMENT COVER SHEET

Name & Surname: ______________________ ICAS No: _________________________
Qualification: __________________ Year: _______ Module Name: HRM 731_ ____
Specialization: _________________________ Assignment Due Date: _______________
ID Number: __________________ Date submitted: __________ Semester: _______________

MARK EXAMINER’S MODERATOR’S

ASSESSMENT CRITERIA REMARKS
ALLOCATION MARK MARKS
MARKS FOR CONTENT
QUESTION ONE 25
QUESTION TWO 25
QUESTION THREE 25
QUESTION FOUR 15

TOTAL 90
MARKS FOR TECHNICAL ASPECTS
1. TABLE OF CONTENTS 2
Accurate numbering according to
the numbering in text and page
numbers
2. LAYOUT AND SPELLING 3
Font – Calibri 11
Line Spacing -1.5
Margin should be Justified
3. REFERENCE 5
According to the Harvard Method
TOTAL MARKS 10
TOTAL MARKS FOR ASSIGNMENT 100
EXAMINER’S COMMENTS

MODERATOR’S COMMENTS

Name of the Examiner : __________________ Name of the Moderator: __________________

Signature of Examiner: __________________ Signature of Moderator: __________________
Date : ___________________ Date: ____________________

1
Instructions and guidelines

NB: 1. Candidates are advised to read the guidelines in the study guide.
2. Assignment questions are on page 3 and 4.
3. For reference use prescribed, recommended books and other resources you may come
across.
4. Correct Harvard referencing carries (5 Marks).

The purpose of an assignment is to ensure that the student can:

• Use methods of enquiry and research in a disciplined field.

• Interpret and evaluate the text.

• Have a sound understanding of key principles and theories, rules and awareness.

• Solve unfamiliar problems using correct procedures as well as investigate and critically analyse
information and report thereof.

• Present and communicate information reliably and coherently.

Instructions and guidelines for writing assignments

1. Use the correct cover page provided by the institution.

2. All essay type assignments must include the following structure:
2.1. Table of contents
2.2. Introduction
2.3. Main body with subheadings
2.4. Recommendations and Conclusions
2.5. Bibliography
3. The length of the entire assignment must have a minimum of 10 pages. Typed with font size 11
Calibri. 1.5 spacing.
4. The quality of work submitted is more important than the number of assigned pages.
5. Copying is a serious offence which attracts a severe penalty and must be avoided at all costs. If
any student transgresses this rule, the lecturer will retain the assignments and ask the affected
students to resubmit a new assignment which will be capped at 50%.
6. Use the Harvard referencing method.
7. Please note that these guidelines do not apply to quantitative subjects like Accounting and
Statistics.

2
 CASE STUDY

READ THE CASE STUDY AND ANSWER THE QUESTIONS THAT FOLLOW

TALENT MANAGEMENT IN THE CHANGING RETAIL BUSINESS BANKING WORK ENVIRONMENT

As a result of globalisation, changing demographics, the global COVID-19 pandemic and the demand
of workers with the necessary skills and motivation, organisations worldwide are currently operating
in a highly volatile business environment. Such adversities, emphasize the need for the banking sector
to identify and address the significant practices that cause such effects.

Recruitment processes for organisations in the banking sector are, therefore, facing a new set of
challenges, such as a lack of talent and suitable qualifications, as well as fiercer competition, both from
within the banking sector and other sectors. In the context of the changing world of work, banks need
to develop dependable practices to recruit a competent workforce and ensure high retention of
talented employees. Thus, talent management (TM) has been identified as an appropriate technique
for achieving such.

The digital age is reshaping how organisations recruit, select and develop skills. Currently, to improve
organisational performance, Human Resources (HR) is offering digitised solutions for business and
employees, solutions that generate engagement and new experiences for employees. There is a
paradigm shift in the workforce demographics with a continued influx of the new generation
employees referred to as Generation Y employees”. In today’s world of working, employees are more
demanding, and lifestyle expectation has increased steadily, and it continues to rise.

The new generation of employees has experienced events such as the emergence of technology, the
internet, and economic liberalisation, the popularity of social media, the growth of environmental
awareness and the rise of terrorism. Despite the shift in workforce dynamics, there is no significant
change in HRM practices which are less appealing to the millennial employees, causing higher attrition
rates. The massive competition across the sectors and lucrative offers from competitors have instigated
the urgent need for retention.

Talent management practices need to be aligned with the business strategy to enhance organisational
performance and motivate employees. The demographic changes refer to the younger generation
(generation Z) of quantitative analysts who are joining the banking sector, thereby suggesting that the
bank should change the way they have done things and how they have managed their talent
previously. The changes should be from how the bank attracts the talent, onboarding, development
plans, succession planning, performance management, retention, and off-boarding.

Due to changes in the working environment and the banking industry, some processes and jobs have
become redundant and have led to some positions being optimised or being performed by the robotics
systems. For example, in retail banking the role of a branch administrator (BA) has been automated in
most banking institutions and other institutions are still in the process of automating the BA role by
the end of 2020. According to research conducted by Deloitte Consulting in 2019, banks should use
modern technology to replace the routine work that is normally left to human beings.

HR actively works with all facets of the organisation, incorporating the company's culture, tools, and
environment to create a great place to work. One of the targets for this retail business banking

3
environments’ 2020 goals is to ensure they are the most admired bank and a great place to work and
bank. The fast-evolving technologies, fierce global competition, climate change, political uncertainties,
economic instability and natural disasters are becoming the defining features of the present business
environment. Hence, finding talented people is one the most important managerial preoccupations
for this decade.

The retail business banking sector organisations are confronted with the intensifying competition for
talent. Some organisations are using several strategic initiatives like expansion, integration and
consolidation. However, one factor that emerges as a constant and inevitable one is the need for an
appropriate, trained and skilled, motivated and above all pro-actively talented workforce. It is evident
from the World Bank Report, 2016 that all banks struggle to hire and retain quantitative analysts;
therefore, across the major five banks in South Africa, there are approximately over 50 quantitative
analyst vacancies every month.

According to one of the biggest banking institutions RBB Business Review Report (2018), there is higher
turnover in the analytics team such that every month, there will be a resignation. It is for this reason
that talent management has received a lot of preferential and greater attention in the retail business
banking environment. However, there is scant academic attention on the specific talent management
issues in the RBB sector, how they define talent, and how successful they are in their battle for talent.

Yet, talent has become the key differentiator for human capital management and for leveraging
competitive advantage (Sahai & Srivastava, 2012). It is important to understand that the recent talent
which is the millennial employees like to be kept engaged and supported throughout the employee
life cycle from on-boarding to off-boarding. Commercial banks often spend a substantial amount,
carefully training and developing employees but do little or nothing to retain the quality workforce
that has been groomed and seasoned by the organisation and this has become an emerging priority.

According to Thebyane (2018), all commercial banks have similar resources but the main thing that
distinguishes a bank from its competitor is talent; he further mentions that the only thing that
differentiates the banks from one another is the culture and the people. The challenge for talent in
quantitative research is extremely competitive and banks are finding it harder to recruit and retain
them. The future requires agility in all banks especially if they want to attract the rightful talent since
there is war for talent in the market. The future is agile, simpler, faster, and more connected.

SOURCE: (Xulu, 2022)

https://researchspace.ukzn.ac.za/bitstream/handle/10413/21594/Xulu_Londeka_Ignatia_2022.pdf?s
equence=1&isAllowed=y

QUESTION 1: 25 MARKS

Analyse the provided case study and highlight the underlying challenges in talent management
experienced by the changing retail business banking working environment. Further, recommends to
the South African retail business banking environment a critical talent management process that can
be applied to regulate the entry and exit of talented staff in the organisation.

4
QUESTIONS 2: 25 MARKS

Performance management is an integral component of talent management that is aimed at ensuring

that organisational goals are being met effectively and efficiently. Critically identify the key features
of a traditional performance management process and further examine the importance of adapting
the continuous performance management process.

QUESTIONS 3: 25 MARKS

Analyse the most effective approach to performance measurement for the provided case study
including performance measures criteria for effective performance management systems.

QUESTIONS 4: 15 MARKS

Examine the numerous approaches that can be applied to employees’ development with applicable
examples.