Human Resource Management Practices in Retail Industry-A Study

The world of retail merchandising has come a long way. There is a movement now from the unorganized to the organized sector. The whole concept of shopping has altered in terms of format and consumer buying behavior, ushering in a revolution in shopping in India. Retailing is India's largest industry, accounting for over 10 percent of the country's GDP and around 8 percent of the employment that is about 35 million people. Availability of trained personnel and retaining the human resources is a major challenge for these food & grocery retailers. Given that experienced retail professionals in India are still a scarce commodity, and also the fact that they play a significant role in the entire retailing process of value creation and brand building. Only better HR practices can retain experienced personnel in the outlets. HR practices of organized Food & Grocery retailing are in a nascent stage. This empirical study makes an effort in studying the current HR practices prevailing in organized food and grocery retailing, which include recruiting, selection, training, motivation, compensation and evaluation.