Introduction Primark is a subsidiary company of the ABF (A.docx

Introduction
Primark is a subsidiary company of the ABF (Associated British
Foods) Group. The company was launched in 1969 in Ireland
trading
as Penny's. By 2000, there were over 100 stores across Britain
and
Ireland. By 2012 Primark had 238 branches across the UK,
Ireland
and Europe. Primark has become distinctive for offering
unbeatable
value while never losing its innovative, fashion-driven edge.
Like many retail fashion businesses, Primark does not
manufacture
goods itself. Its expertise lies in understanding its customers
and
working with its suppliers to produce goods to Primark’s
specification. It then gets the right goods to the right places at
the
right prices. Its profitability depends on sheer volume of sales.
Primark's value-for-money prices rely on low costs. These are

achieved in part through economies of scale and efficient
distribution.
Primark’s products are mainly sourced from suppliers in Europe
and Asia. Its key sourcing countries are China, India,
Bangladesh
and Turkey. Putting the manufacturing of garments into these
countries creates jobs. These are often at better rates of pay
than
other types of work on offer, improving overall standards of
living.
Primark has initiated a programme of activities which supports
its
corporate social responsibility (CSR) stance and ensures that its
trading meets the company’s values and ethical standards.
Underpinning its programme of activities is Primark’s Code of
Conduct which ensures that all workers making its products are
treated decently, paid a fair wage and work in good working
conditions. For more information please visit
www.primark-ethicaltrade.co.uk
This case study looks at Primark’s involvement in the
HERproject

(Health Enables Returns) which is raising awareness and
delivering
healthcare education to female workers in supplier countries.
What is CSR?
Businesses need to acknowledge and respond to factors in their
environment, for example, changes in available workforce or the
business’ impact on its local communities. Corporate social
responsibility represents the responsibility that a business has
towards all its stakeholders, not just to owners or shareholders,
to deal with their needs fairly.
Internal stakeholders include shareholders and employees.
Shareholders want a return on their capital and this depends
on making a profit. That in turn means by adding value.
Employees want job security, good pay and conditions and job
satisfaction. External stakeholders include customers, suppliers,
non-governmental organisations, workers and the local
communities where products are made. All of these have
different needs.

An organisation therefore needs to be able to respond and
demonstrate responsibility in different ways. This might include
activities as wide-ranging as encouraging employees to
volunteer in
community projects; sponsoring and supporting charity work; or
contributing time and money to improving its environmental
impact.
Beyond corporate social responsibility
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Curriculum topics covered: • Corporate social responsibility •
Business ethics
• Stakeholders • Supply chain
NEW PRIMARK 29/8/12 13:19 Page 2

www.thetimes100.co.uk
Why Primark embraces CSR
As an international business with a global supply chain and a
growing retail base, Primark believes that business has a
responsibility to act and trade ethically and that, by doing so, it
can be a force for good. Its business directly contributes to the
employment of more than 700,000 workers across three
continents. Ensuring that their rights are respected is key to its
continued growth.
Primark does not own the companies or factories that produce
its
goods, but it does have a responsibility to the workers in those
factories, to its customers and shareholders, to ensure that its
products are made in good working conditions. The HERproject
in
Bangladesh is an example of how Primark is actively seeking to
make positive changes in the lives of its supplier workforces.
In Bangladesh, over 50% of the manufacturing workforce is
made

up of women. The jobs available to women in garment factories
give them greater independence and help to reduce poverty.
However, these women often have little education and low
levels
of literacy as they drop out of education early to help their
families.
They also lack basic knowledge of health, hygiene and nutrition
and an understanding of how a woman’s body works. Poor
hygiene often causes persistent and painful infections.
Childbirth is
particularly hazardous and post-birth complications are
common.
There is little understanding of the symptoms of sexually
transmitted diseases (including HIV) or the means of preventing
transmission. Far more women than men are malnourished and
many women suffer from anaemia. These issues, often combined
with a lack of access to qualified medical advice, mean that the
female workforce is particularly vulnerable.
The HERproject uses education as the key tool against all these
interrelated problems. The programme aims not only to improve

the health of female workers through training and education, but
also to give them the tools to help them take charge of their
personal and working lives. These benefits in turn pass on to
their
families and help to enhance whole communities.
Making CSR happen
The HERproject is an initiative started by BSR (Business for
Social
Responsibility), a non-governmental organisation that works
with
over 250 companies on environmental, social and human rights.
The HERproject has so far helped over 50,000 women in
different
countries. It has done this through working with companies like
Primark, Primark’s suppliers and local health providers.
The HERproject is simple but surprisingly powerful:
• A small number of female staff in a factory (around 10%) is
selected to become health education trainers called ‘peer
group educators’.
• The local health service provider trains the peer group

educators, who are then responsible for training the other
women based in the workplace, passing on the message and
helping to disseminate what they have learned.
The process emphasises mutual help and encouragement. The
women trainers are effective because they fully understand the
local culture. They are not seen as outsiders imposing strange
ideas. Instead, the trainers understand why the women may be
reluctant to seek help with issues that can be sensitive. They
can
build their self-confidence as well as their practical knowledge.
‘I didn’t have anyone to tell me how to look after myself, it
wasn’t taught at school. The trainers told me that many
diseases come from the unpurified water that I was taking
from the tap. This water can be the cause of sickness,
cholera and diarrhoea. At first my family said to me, how do
you know this stuff? You work in a garments factory! I told
them it’s what I have learnt from the HERproject. When I
began to give them advice they started to get interested in
the project. Everyone I have told now boils their water and

they don’t suffer like before.’
Umme Habiba (garment worker)
The HERproject is also helping others not directly involved in
the
project. Outside the workshops informal learning continues.
Women build supportive relationships and talk to each other out
of
work. This is reinforced by the project helping to set up factory
clinics and creating vital referral links to local hospitals.
Selina Kamal is a factory quality inspector and a peer educator
for
HERproject. Through her own training she is now more aware
of
the importance of cleanliness for herself and her children. They
all
now drink purified water and eat more vegetables. She has
already helped a friend, Shilpi, who is a school teacher.
‘I came to Selina after I had two miscarriages and irregular

periods. Selina advised me to go the doctor as she knew
something must be wrong. The doctor prescribed me
medication for my problem.’ Shilpi (teacher)
The value of the HERproject
Improving the health of women workers in Bangladesh and
helping to empower and educate the female workforce is an
important ethical goal in its own right. The benefits to
communities
can also been seen. Over time, initiatives like this can support
key
issues such as reducing infant mortality.
Factories in Bangladesh taking part in HERprojects have seen
healthy returns on the money invested by Primark in the
programme. This has been achieved through improvements in
productivity, a more stable workforce, lower absenteeism,
decreased labour turnover, improved quality and a reduction in
housekeeping costs. As an example, the managing director of
one
factory in Bangladesh found that absenteeism in the factory fell
by

55% during the first six months of the HERproject. Turnover of
female workers dropped from over 50% to around 12%.
Mrs Kaniz Fatema is the managing director of a medium-sized
factory in Dhaka, Bangladesh. When the HERproject was
introduced to her factory a year ago, she was unconvinced,
viewing it as ‘just another project’. However, just one year later
her
view has been transformed. Women's health is now high on her
agenda. A healthier workforce is literally paying dividends.
Absenteeism and labour turnover are down by a startling 50%.
Productivity is up and even internal staff communication is
more
effective. Mrs Kaniz Fatema now employs a female doctor and
has
set up a scheme to provide sanitary napkins to her female
workers, helping to embed a new culture within the factory and
allowing health education in the factory to continue after the
project ends.
‘HERproject has made a real difference in my factory. The
workers have increased their productivity as they are now

looking after themselves better. I have become a lot closer
to my female workers. I have also told other factory
managers about the success of the project at our factory.
The male workers are now asking when we will start a
similar project for them.’
Mrs Kaniz Fatema (factory manager)
Other benefits are harder to measure but are increasingly
recognised
by the factory managers. Getting women to communicate
effectively
on health matters builds trust and confidence. This feeds back
into
better communication with supervisors and managers. This, in
turn,
leads to improved teamwork and the motivation to accept more
responsibility and leadership roles in the community.
‘Workers now stay longer and are more productive. The
HERproject has also helped my relationship with the women
workers. They are not so shy to talk to me anymore. If there
are problems, I now hear about them.’

Mr Riaz (factory manager)
www.thetimes100.co.uk
This demonstrates the principles of the Hawthorne effect theory
of
motivation. Theorist Elton Mayo found that factory workers
with
long hours of routine work were motivated by someone taking
an
interest in them and their work. Feeling that they mattered as
individuals, they experienced a new connection with the job. As
a
result, productivity improved. In a similar way, by focusing on
the
women workers and their health issues, the HERproject is also
delivering improved motivation. See the HERproject video at
http://www.primark-
ethicaltrading.co.uk/ourwork/c/womens_health
‘Not only has HERproject given women the knowledge to
improve their health behaviour, it has empowered them to

seek leadership roles in their jobs and their communities.
The peer-to-peer model – with women teaching each other
about women’s health – has given them the confidence to
go against the grain in regions where the traditional role for
women is not as strong.’
Racheal Yeager (BSR HERproject Manager)
Conclusion
The industrialised countries of the world benefit from the lower
costs of labour in countries such as Bangladesh and India.
However, more consumers are now asking if this is ethical and
questioning its sustainability.
Some trade-offs between stakeholder needs are inevitable. CSR
does not come free. It involves a real commitment of resources,
management time and energy. On the other hand, as studies of
the HERproject in other countries have shown, each dollar
invested in the health of female employees can yield more than
three dollars in business benefits. In addition, the improvements
in

human well-being are incomparable.
Despite criticism of globalisation, business and trade can be a
force for good. This is increasingly recognised in the ways that
consumers assign values to brands. Primark is making progress
in
taking on wider responsibilities and devising relevant projects
that
work on the ground. It has done this with help from NGOs and
organisations such as BSR. Its approach with the HERproject is
not purely about business benefits, but focused on making a
difference to the lives of its supplier workers.
To date, 4,500 women in Primark’s factories have been trained
under the HERproject in Bangladesh. The project results have
shown such benefit that the project is being rolled out to
Primark’s
suppliers in China and India. Primark’s ongoing involvement
with the
women workers in Bangladesh and other supplier countries will
help
to provide it with a sustainable and ethical business model.
Primark | Beyond corporate social responsibility

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www.primark.co.uk
1. Describe what is meant by CSR. (2 marks)
2. Explain the basis for a company undertaking CSR
activities. (4 marks)
3. Analyse why the HERproject has been a business
success, over and above improving the well-being of
the workforce. (6 marks)

4. Evaluate to what extent you think Primark has been
able to reconcile the interests of its shareholders and
those of the employees of its suppliers. (8 marks)
Introduction
Virgin Media was created from the merger of NTL, Telewest
and
Richard Branson's Virgin Mobile and is a part of Liberty Global
plc,
the world’s largest international cable company. In the UK,
Virgin
Media is the first ‘quad play’ provider, meaning that they
provide
broadband, TV, mobile phone and home phone services. The
company has invested over £13 billion and owns the UK’s
largest
fibre optic network, making it the biggest privately built
network. In
the first quarter of 2013 Virgin Media had 4.49 million
broadband

subscribers.
As a forward thinking company Virgin Media is at the forefront
of
digital technology, with its engineers researching the
technologies
that could be possible 20 years into the future. As well as
investing in new technology Virgin Media continually invests in
the
people who work for the company, maintaining Richard
Branson’s
philosophy that engaged and motivated employees lead to happy
customers, which in turn leads to shareholder gain.
‘Great people, connected to delighted customers,
connected to great business results.’
The company believes that its employees need to both
understand
and believe in the journey of the business and the personal role
they
can each play in its success. This applies to all employees.
There
are a range of careers at Virgin Media from apprenticeships out
in

the field in areas such as installation and service to a variety of
graduate opportunities. Virgin Media’s apprenticeship
programmes,
which consist of light work using screwdrivers rather than
heavy
duty maintenance work, are attracting a growing number of
females
into its technician roles year on year. As well as work
experience
and traineeships there are a wide range of career opportunities
in
the three main business areas:
• Serve which includes roles in customer support and service
technicians.
• Growth which includes sales and retail.
• Support which includes roles in finance and health and safety.
Balancing business needs with the needs of its employees is
achieved through the company’s commitment to creating a fun
environment for its employees whilst they develop their careers.
‘Being Virgin Media means we don't just want to be proud
of what we do, we also want to love how we do it.’

The company’s values - Insatiable Curiosity, Heartfelt Service,
Delightfully Surprising, Red Hot, Smart Disruption and Straight
Up -
championed by the company’s Chief Values Officer, Red, act as
a
‘red thread’, underpinning the company’s story and guiding
decision making. This case study shows how Virgin Media
understands the impact motivated and engaged employees have
on its business’ performance.
What is motivation?
Motivation is the driving force behind actions and behaviour. It
leads individuals to take action to achieve a goal or to fulfil a
need
or expectation. Understanding what motivates employees at
work
Motivating and engaging employees for better business
P
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Curriculum topics covered: • Motivation • Taylor’s scientific
management
• Herzberg’s two-factor theory • Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
VIRGIN MEDIA 16/9/13 11:44 Page 2
www.businesscasestudies.co.uk
ensures that a business not only has employees that have the
knowledge, skill and ability to do the job, but who are also
committed to achieve a high standard of work. There are many
positive behaviours that indicate employees are motivated
including taking responsibility, helping colleagues, a
commitment
to achieving company targets and goals, as well as interest and
concern for the business. On the other hand negative behaviours
can be indicators of demotivated employees. These behaviours
include poor timekeeping, high levels of absenteeism, avoiding
responsibility and poor customer service all of which can
impact
on business performance.

As individuals we are all different and therefore are motivated
by
different factors at work. Virgin Media considers the welfare of
its
employees a priority and understands that engaging and
motivating its people benefits its customers, the business and
also
the individuals involved. Virgin Media has also worked to
understand the key drivers of engagement for its people; those
areas which have the greatest engagement impact. This has lead
to targeted engagement practices business wide.
‘It is impossible to win the loyalty of customers without first
winning the loyalty of employees.’
Virgin Media understands there is a direct link between
motivated
employees and customer satisfaction. Customer satisfaction is
measured using a monitoring and measurement tool called Net
Promoter® which measures and scores customer experience
data.
Customers rate their experience out of 10. Customers giving a
score of 9 or 10 are advocates that are likely to talk positively

about Virgin Media. The data is then used to improve both the
customer and employee experience.
The following sections explore some of the key theorists who
have
contributed to our understanding of motivation in the
workplace.
Taylor’s scientific management
In the early 19th century Frederick W Taylor’s book The
Principles
of Scientific Management was published which changed the way
organisations, in particular manufacturing organisations,
worked.
Taylor believed that work activities could be broken down into
tasks by using a scientific method to find the most efficient way
of
performing a job. He advocated that work should be reduced to
a
series of routine, predictable and standardised tasks. Taylor
assumed that workers were motivated by money so he
introduced
payment on a piecework basis, as an incentive which would

increase productivity. The phrase ‘a fair day’s pay for a fair
day’s
work’ was used by Taylor to motivate workers to work harder.
Although we can still find evidence of Taylor’s scientific
management, his approach was widely criticised for discounting
the human element and behaviour in the workplace. Although
money is still an influencing factor in motivating people at
work,
individual differences mean that we are motivated by other
factors
in the workplace as well as money.
Although recognised as not a key driver of engagement, Virgin
Media recognises that reward is one of many motivating factors
for a lot of its people and offers competitive salaries. It also
offers
bonus schemes, such as its ASPIRE field pay and reward
scheme. The scheme rewards every Net Promoter® score (NPS)
of
9 or 10 with £10. However, as a forward thinking business it
understands the importance of different motivational factors. It
offers additional benefits including private health care, life

assurance, company pension scheme and staff saving schemes.
The opportunity to progress within the company is also an
important factor, for example, Benjamin joined Virgin Media in
2011 and went from apprentice to service technician and then
network engineer in just 18 months. As he says:
‘Six months after gaining my apprenticeship I moved up to
a new role. I think this shows how the company is
supporting my ambitions.’
In this way, Virgin Media’s approach to engaging with its
employees is more in line with the human relations theorists
who
had opposing views to that of Taylor. One theorist whose
studies
became influential is Elton Mayo who carried out research at
the
Hawthorne plant of the Western Electric company in Chicago in
the 1930s. The research was intended to find the optimum level
of

lighting needed at the plant to maximise productivity. However,
Mayo found that productivity increased amongst the workers
whether the lighting was increased or decreased. He realised
that
it was the attention the workers were receiving during the
research
that was affecting their performance. Mayo’s research
concluded
that motivating factors include recognition, a sense of belonging
and involvement, as well as social aspects of the workplace.
Virgin Media use a variety of strategies to recognise the
achievements
of its employees. One method used is its NPS Hero
Championship
scheme where employees receive a personalised letter
congratulating
them on a perfect 10 score. Virgin Media’s successful online
peer to
peer recognition scheme, SHOUT, provides a simple way by
which
individuals right across the business can be thanked for living
the

Virgin Media values in their work. The employee forum VOICE
is
another way the company engages with its employees.
‘Within a large organisation it is important to create a
culture where everyone feels they can be heard, not just
about the big things but about the everyday things that
make the working environment a great place to be.’
In 2009 Virgin Media introduced a fleet of fun, movie themed
super-vans. The new vans were inspired by vehicles used in
films
including Thunderbirds, Disney’s Herbie and The A-Team. The
vans were specially designed for the company’s top performing
engineers as a reward for consistently delivering exceptional
customer service.
Herzberg’s two-factor theory
Research undertaken by Frederick Herzberg in the 1950s has
broadened our understanding of motivating factors and job
satisfaction in the workplace. From his research he concluded
that
employees have two sets of needs in the workplace. He

described
these as hygiene and motivator factors. Hygiene factors
(satisfiers)
include salary and working conditions. However, these factors
on
their own do not lead to job satisfaction and can lead to
dissatisfaction if pay and conditions are poor. Motivators are
factors such as recognition, responsibility, achievement and
opportunities for progression. Herzberg found that a
combination
of these factors increased motivation and improved individual
performance.
Virgin Media has a variety of programmes that support this
theory.
Its established apprenticeship scheme recruits apprentices based
on their behaviour as well as their ability, looking for people
that
show potential as it offers successful candidates mentoring,
coaching and training. The company recently opened a new
office in
Birmingham where all apprentices are trained. Role play is an

important part of the training and actors are hired to perform the
role of the customer with apprentices. This approach creates a
safe
environment for the apprentices to learn, ensuring they are
qualified
before meeting Virgin Media customers. The training suite,
designed
to simulate a customer’s home, gives the apprentice the
opportunity
to see how their role is seen by the customer through watching
footage back to analyse their performance.
Within Virgin Media, support, training and development is an
on-
going process for all employees. For its field based staff, the
company has an online portal, IGNITE, which can be accessed
remotely from home. This forms a training record for colleagues
including apprentices.
www.businesscasestudies.co.uk
‘The ability to login from home provides an engagement

factor through personal development opportunities which
would otherwise be either costly or logistically impossible.’
Another example of recognition at Virgin Media is its annual
apprentice graduation. The event is an opportunity to celebrate
the
hard work of the apprentices as they successfully complete their
training programme and progress their career with Virgin
Media.
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
In 1943 Abraham Maslow published his theory of a hierarchy of
needs. Maslow identified that as individuals we have five sets
of
needs as shown in the diagram.
At the first level, basic needs are those of food, water, warmth
and
shelter with wages that meet those needs. Safety needs include
protection from danger, for example health and safety at work
as well
as job security. Social needs include a sense of belonging in
work
teams. He identified esteem needs as those of self-confidence,

feeling useful and needed by other people. Maslow proposed
that
having satisfied all the lower needs an individual would then be
able
to realise their own potential for self-development.
Although Maslow’s theory has been widely criticised, because
he
believed that one set of needs had to be satisfied before moving
on to the next, it has nonetheless contributed to the
understanding of motivation in the workplace.
Involving and listening to employees views is essential in
creating a
sense of belonging to the company. Using its annual employee
engagement survey, Virgin Media values have been developed
with employee input. Each year, an employee opinion survey
asks
all employees to answer questions from categories such as
training, development and career, strategy and way of working.
In
this way everyone at Virgin Media is able to contribute to
making

the company a place in which they all love to work. The
company
has seen year on year improvement with the 2012 results
showing
82% of Virgin Media’s workforce is engaged.
All Virgin Media technicians are managed through the ‘Your
Story
Framework’ for career progression. This includes regular
meetings
to discuss performance, review progress against set objectives
and develop plans which offer a clear career ladder to enable
progression within the company. This approach ensures fairness
and consistency and also offers opportunities for progression in
salary. This framework directly supports Maslow’s higher order
needs. As Francis, a female apprentice says:
‘First, it's not all about the job. Second, you're really well
looked after. Third, Virgin Media are genuinely interested in
your future development.’
Virgin Media has a culture of ‘doing the right thing’ and
believes
that creating a fun workplace where people feel happy makes

for
a better business. Its commitment to corporate social
responsibility ensures its employees have access to
opportunities
to meet their self-actualisation needs. For example, each year a
day is dedicated to raising money for charity.
Conclusion
Understanding the factors that motivate employees helps a
business to determine the ways in which it should engage with
its
people. From valuing their views and opinions, providing
opportunities for training and career progression, as well
providing
a great environment to work in are all motivating factors. The
level
of motivation and satisfaction amongst employees can have a
direct impact on meeting and exceeding customer expectations
and overall business performance. Virgin Media’s engaged
employees are committed to the company’s values and to
providing excellent service to its customers.

Virgin Media | Motivating and engaging employees for better
business
E
xam
-style q
u
estio
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s
www.virginmedia.com
1. Explain the term motivation. (2 marks)
2. Describe two motivation theories. (4 marks)
3. Analyse the relevance of employee motivation in
achieving customer satisfaction. (6 marks)
4. Evaluate the effectiveness of Virgin Media’s employee
engagement strategies. (8 marks)
Self-actualisation
Personal growth
and fulfilment
Esteem needs
Status, responsibility, reputation,

respect and confidence
Social needs
Belonging to a group, trust
and acceptance
Safety needs
Security, structure and stability
Physical needs
Shelter, warmth, food and drink
Maslow’s hierarchy
of needs

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