HR4003 Assessment Task

DEADLINE: 16:00 (4pm) – Wed 20th December 2023 

Submit by uploading parts to turnitin link on Moodle HR4003

We request that you submit using a MS WORD document ONLY please (if this is a problem contact the ML well in advance of the deadline or your submission may not be accepted)

Submit to ONLY one link – the correct link – which will be shown by the name of your seminar tutor (if you accidentally submit to more than one link let us know in advance so we can delete the duplicates)

 Up until the deadline – as long as you only submit to ONE LINK ONLY – you can submit new versions if you need to make changes – old versions are automatically deleted as long as you use the same turnitin link

 IMPORTANT: You will be given an APPROVED RESEARCH LIST: Your citations MUST come from the approved list. You will not be permitted to use other sources of information in your report.

Part A – 2,000 words (90% Weighting)

You are a human resources management (HRM) consultant with organisational behaviour (OB) training. You have been hired by an investment company to prepare a HRM report on BREWDOG, a craft beer brewery, from Scotland. This company, as you will see when you research it, has grown massively and rapidly since it was founded in 2007. However, in recent years it has faced accusations of mistreatment of some of it’s staff and toxic leadership behaviours.

You must take a balanced approach – showing both positive and negative aspects of the company

You can choose whether you focus slightly more on positives or negatives, but both must be covered in a substantial and meaningful way

 This report is to contain the analysis on the following topics:

1.Introduce the report: Approx. 200 Words

 who, what, how, scope of report, introduction to company (short), main themes covered in main body & thesis statement

2.Leadership at Brewdog: Approx. 400 words

Suggestions (Do NOT do all the suggestions only choose the ones that you can best support with research):

• What styles of leadership do you recognise and how?
• Is it innovative / creative and in what ways is it effective?
• Are there recognisible elements of either Taylorism, Human Relations or Bureaucracy; or not?
• Is it ethical leadership?
• What type of power relations exist?

3.Organisational Culture: Approx. 400 words

Suggestions (Do NOT do all the suggestions only choose the ones that you can best support with research):

• How does Brewdog culture relate to theoretical organisational culture models (e.g. Handy or Deal and Kennedy models for example)?
• Brewdog has been accused of having a toxic culture – Can you find evidence that supports this claim?
• What are the dangers to employees and organizations of having a toxic culture?
• What are the positive sides of the Brewdog’s organisational Culture 

4.Diversity & Inclusion: Approx. 400 words

Suggestions (Do NOT do all the suggestions only choose the ones that you can best support with research):

•    What do Brewdog do to promote diversity and inclusion?
•    Is it a fully inclusive environment?
•    Does Brewdog appear to be a diverse staffed organisation?
•    Or are there common characteristics evident within dominant groups

   Are any groups (particularly in relation to protected characteristics in law, race, gender, sexuality, disability, age) treated unfairly?

5.Corporate Social Responsibility: Approx. 400 words

Suggestions (Do NOT do all the suggestions only choose the ones that you can best support with research):

• Explain the CSR ‘triple bottom line’ concept
• How to Brewdog perform in relation to?
• A) How they impact the environment
• B) How they treat their employees and stakeholders
• C) How they contribute to the community / philanthropy
• Do Brewdog do some parts of CSR better than others?
• Does Brewdog have a genuine desire to commit to good CSR behaviour or is it just a marketing ploy?
• What is B-Corp and why did they withdraw Brewdog’s B-Corp accreditation? 

6.Conclusions – Change management topic: Approx. 200 words

• What are Brewdog’s existing strengths?
• What needs to be changed (recommendations)?

The above 2 bullet points are key elements of the conclusion – the should NOT introduce any new information – as is typical of a conclusion they should relate only to issues you have already discussed in the main body of the report – you may also wish to address your thesis statement from your introduction if you have used one.

• How should change be managed?

 Part B – In Term Active Learning Tasks

(10% Weighting) 

• In term active learning tasks will be given to students in week 7 and week 9.
• There will be a collaborative element to these tasks but you may still be required to submit individually to get your marks.
• 5 marks will be awarded for successful completion and submission of each task (10 marks in total), as long as the task is completed to an acceptable standard.

In assessing HR4003 we will use the following criteria: