HRM333: Neutrends is a Local, Fast-growing Clothing Retail Brand: Performance Management Assignment, SUSS, Singapore

Assignment Details

The assignment will be based on the case study below.

Neutrends is a local, fast-growing clothing retail brand. Established in 2012, it had 10 stores in Singapore at the end of 2016. By the end of 2017, the company had 15 stores. The number of employees grew just as quickly, at 30% (from 300 to 400) in the first 6 months of 2017.

Many new players in the clothing industry work on the model of fast fashion – characterized by low prices and quick turnover of products. New trends are always created, rendering the previous trend obsolete. This tends to result in low-profit margins. There are multiple players in the industry and Neutrends faces steep competition, especially from online clothing retailers.

Neutrends’ business strategy is that of differentiation. The company focuses on affordable quality. Designs tend to be simple and evergreen but provide great comfort for everyday wear. They strive to develop products that are innovative and of high quality, yet functional and affordable. Neutrends also chose to focus on physical stores. Their strategy is to leverage the shopping experience – “we aspire to exceed customer expectations always & to constantly reinvent our clothing through technological advancements”.

Neutrends’ Company Values

• Customers are our priority
• Our employees matter to us
• Our employees enjoy challenges and constantly seek to improve
• We can change the world in an innovative & sustainable way

In 2018, as the company grew and established itself, the senior management decided it was time to strengthen their systems and processes, to ensure continued profitability and to strengthen their brand. Part of this effort was to introduce a performance management system (PMS). While the PMS was introduced for all the various departments and job types, this case study focuses only on the PMS for store assistants.

Store assistants are the face of the company. What they do makes an impression on the customers. Their role and actions are central to the business strategy and success of the company. However, the conduct and results of some store assistants are not in line with the expectations of the company. This has always been a problem but has been made worse by the company’s rapid expansion. The rapid expansion resulted in a continuous need for training and managing new employees in order to ensure that the store assistants who varied greatly in terms of seniority, competencies, previous experiences, and corporate culture all performed according to company expectations and values.

Assignment Question

Appraise the design and implementation of Neutrends’ performance management system (PMS) using course concepts. Based on the weaknesses identified, propose some recommendations to strengthen Neutrends’ PMS or how it could have been implemented better. Ensure that your recommendations are based on course concepts.

Tips:

• To help you, you may frame your answers using these perspectives: how the PM design and process support the purpose/goal of PMS, strategic alignment, best practices of implementation of a PMS, and performance measurement approaches.
• It is important to appraise. This includes discussing both strengths and weaknesses and the implications of these on employee and organizational outcomes.