1. Outline the problem

After reading the case study it is clear that there are several issues that have been noticed. Firstly there is a lack of factory managers to properly manage the 500 employees. Westfarmers would need about 35 managers instead the current 15, as research shows the average staffs to manger ratio is 7-10:1 (Anders, 2008). Secondly the CEO was aware of Johns accounting background and that he did not have all the required experience in HR management, but failed to provide him with adequate training. John was not given sufficient time to settle into the new position and solve existing staff problems, as he was given new tasks to do. Lastly there is an issue with the employees approximately half of the staff he has inherited do not ‘make the numbers’ in performance and some do not ‘live the values’. The staff seems to be unmotivated, undervalued and not properly managed.

2. Advise John about the practical aspects of theories that you think are relevant (e.g. best practice, best fit, RBV) in relation to building and growing people and improving business performance;

An appropriate theory that would be useful to John in building and growing people and improving business performance is the RBV. The importance of this theory is on achieving sustainable competitive advantage by means of effective and efficient use of the resources of an organisation (Barney, 1991). Resource-based theory directed to a change in strategic management thinking from an `outside-in’ approach with an emphasis on external, industry-based competitive issues (Porter, 1980) to an `inside-out’ approach (Baden-Fuller and Stopford, 1994), in which internal resources constitute the starting point for understanding organisational success (Barney, 1991). This theory could assist John in resolving his staff issues as it just focuses on internal resources which include the