What Drives Job Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment - Assignment Example

? What Drives Job Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment? RESEARCH STUDY EXPERIMENT SUMMARY: Hypothesis H1: Employee attitude is much more related to turnover intensions than organizational attitude. H2: Organizational attitude is a greater determinant of job performance than organizational commitment. Rational of Hypotheses The theoretical framework utilized in this study originated from research that suggest that attitude towards a job and an organization often have a greater influence on deciding whether to remain with an organization or quit. This, argues Greenberg (2013), has fur much influence than specific attitudes towards a job. This theory also suggests that job attitudes are linked to job outcomes. Consequently, organizational attitudes are linked to organizational outcomes (Greenberg, 2013). Background Organizational behavior is a key determinant of how an organization should be managed and led, with the aim of increasing organizational effectiveness. As such, Organizational Behavior Units provide insight and knowledge that advances the understanding of how to manage and lead an organization, with the aim of increasing personal or organizational effectiveness (Ali et al., 2009). Encompassing aspects of sociology, psychology, communication and management, the course has its roots in Industrial and Organizational Psychology (Locke, 1976). This is because organizational behavior determines the effectiveness, hence success of the organization. The factors that affect the general conduct or behavior of an organization should, therefore, be brought in to perspective and manipulated to targets the achievement of ideal results. Indeed, a lot of research has been conducted to try to establish the factors that affect the work outcome in an organization. In particular, the attitude of employees has been deemed an essential variable in these studies. In assessing this variable, many researches have primarily focused on job satisfaction as the key measure of employee attitude (Ali et al., 2009). However, recent researches have delved in to the role of organizational commitment in determining employee attitude and intensions (Greenberg, 2013). The purpose of this study was to establish the factors that drive job satisfaction and organizational commitment at Subway Restaurants. As such, it assessed two variables: job performance and turnover intensions. Job performance has often been related to Job satisfaction more than organizational commitment, with studies establishing mixed results. While some studies have shown a strong correlation between the two, others argue that this correlation is negligible (Ali et al., 2009). However, almost all of the studies conducted establish a negligible correlation between organizational commitment and job performance. On the other hand, turnover intensions are primarily a factor of organizational commitment. Indeed, studies have shown significant association between the two. However, these studies also show a considerable amount of correlation between turnover intension and Job satisfaction. In fact, studies of facet satisfaction have established significant association between turnover intensions and satisfaction with the job itself, and pay and promotions (Greenberg, 2013). However, combined comparisons of job satisfaction and organizational commitment with turnover intensions have established a greater correlation between turnover intensions and organizational commitment than with job satisfaction (Greenberg, 2013). These findings form the basis for my hypotheses in this research study. Research Questions The participants in this study were primarily the restaurant’s staff in the U.S. and included 2 Restaurant Managers, 3 part time Hospitality Employees, 2 full time Chefs, 2 part-time Administrative Assistant, and a full time Retail Clerk. They were required to answer ten research questions based on their level of agreement with the suggestions as follows: Strongly Agree (5) Agree (4) Most likely/Not sure (3) Probably not (2) Disagree (1) Question 5 4 3 2 1 1. The restaurant’s working environment is conducive. 2. The restaurant offers appropriate incentives to employees. 3. Administration effectively supports employees to achieve organizational success. 4. Employees offered social privileges. 5. You love your job at the restaurant. 6. You are satisfactorily remunerated. 7. You would commit the next 10 years to the restaurant. 8. The Restaurant’s performance is above per. 9. Customers give positive feedback often (satisfied). 10. The restaurant has realized significant profit over the last 5 years. Analysis of Results Based on hypothesis 1 that stated “Employee attitude is much more related to turnover intensions than organizational attitude,” the results obtained approved the hypothesis. Additionally, hypothesis 2 that stated “Organizational attitude is a greater determinant of job performance than job satisfaction” was also approved. The first set of results was as expected but the second set, based on hypothesis 2, were a surprise even to me. This is because it is widely assumed that individual performance in every aspect of life is often strongly related to the attitude of the individual towards what it is they are doing. For instance, it is more likely that a student who is passionate about a course they are pursuing would achieve success in the course, regardless of the structure and attitude of the institution in which they were pursuing the course. Therefore, job satisfaction ought to have taken center stage in determining job performance, as opposed to organizational commitment. The data used was obtained through questionnaires distributed to the staff members involved in the study, in printed copies of MS word documents. The participants independently filled the questionnaires then submitted them to the researcher. No further interviews were conducted with the participants for fear of contradiction. The data obtained were then entered in to MS excel spreadsheet and graphical representations drawn from them for ease of analysis. RESULTS PAGE Hypothesis 1 that stated “Employee attitude is much more related to turnover intensions than organizational attitude,” the results obtained approved the hypothesis. Additionally, hypothesis 2 that stated “Organizational attitude is a greater determinant of job performance than job satisfaction” was also approved. Of the ten research questions, questions 1 – 7 are probably the most relevant in assessing the influences that organizational attitude and job satisfaction have on turnover intentions, while questions 8-10 best assesses the effect of the two on job performance. 1. The restaurant’s working environment is conducive. Of the 10 members of staff interviewed, seven agreed that the working environment at Subway Restaurants is conducive while three were indifferent. The seven included the 2 Restaurant Managers, 3 part time Hospitality Employees, and the 2 part-time Administrative Assistant. On the other hand, the three included the 2 full time Chefs and the full time Retail Clerk. For instance: Is the restaurant’s working environment conducive? Job Position 5 4 3 2 1 Restaurant manager 1 x Restaurant manager 2 x Hospitality employee 1 x Hospitality employee 2 x Hospitality employee 3 x Chef 1 x Chef 2 x Administrative Assistant 1 x Administrative assistant 2 x Retail clerk x This was simplified in to a percentage table as follows: Percentage of Responses Response No. of Responses Percentage of Responses Strongly Agree 5 50% Agree 2 20% Not sure 3 30% Probably not 0 0% Disagree 0 0% Graphical Representation 2. The restaurant offers appropriate incentives to employees. Of the ten respondents, 5 agreed that the organization offered appropriate incentives to employees while the other 5 disagreed. The agreeing five included the 2 Restaurant Managers, the 2 part-time Administrative Assistant and the full time Retail Clerk. On the other hand, the disagreeing five included the 3 part time Hospitality Employees, and the 2 full time Chefs. For instance: Does the restaurant offers appropriate incentives to employees? Job Position 5 4 3 2 1 Restaurant manager 1 x Restaurant manager 2 x Hospitality employee 1 x Hospitality employee 2 x Hospitality employee 3 x Chef 1 x Chef 2 x Administrative Assistant 1 x Administrative assistant 2 x Retail clerk x This was simplified in to a percentage table as follows: Percentage of Responses Response No. of Responses Percentage of Responses Strongly Agree 2 20% Agree 3 30% Not sure 0 0% Probably not 3 30% Disagree 2 20% Graphical Representation 3. Administration effectively supports employees to achieve organizational success. Of the ten respondents, 4 agreed that the organization effectively supported the employees to achieve organizational success, 1 was indifferent and the other 5 disagreed. The agreeing 4 included the 2 Restaurant Managers and the 2 part-time Administrative Assistant while the disagreeing five included the 3 part time Hospitality Employees, and the 2 full time Chefs. The full time Retail Clerk was indifferent. For instance: Does the administration effectively support employees to achieve organizational success? Job Position 5 4 3 2 1 Restaurant manager 1 x Restaurant manager 2 x Hospitality employee 1 x Hospitality employee 2 x Hospitality employee 3 x Chef 1 x Chef 2 x Administrative Assistant 1 x Administrative assistant 2 x Retail clerk x This was simplified in to a percentage table as follows: Percentage of Responses Response No. of Responses Percentage of Responses Strongly Agree 2 20% Agree 2 20% Not sure 1 10% Probably not 3 30% Disagree 2 20% Graphical Representation 4. Employees offered social privileges. Of the ten respondents, 3 agreed that the organization offered social privileges to employees, 3 were indifferent and the other 4 disagreed. The agreeing 3 included the 2 Restaurant Managers and the full time Retail Clerk while the disagreeing four included the 3 part time Hospitality Employees and one part-time Administrative Assistant. One part-time Administrative Assistant and the 2 full time Chefs were indifferent. For instance: Are employees offered social privileges? Job Position 5 4 3 2 1 Restaurant manager 1 x Restaurant manager 2 x Hospitality employee 1 x Hospitality employee 2 x Hospitality employee 3 x Chef 1 x Chef 2 x Administrative Assistant 1 x Administrative assistant 2 x Retail clerk x This was simplified in to a percentage table as follows: Percentage of Responses Response No. of Responses Percentage of Responses Strongly Agree 1 10% Agree 2 20% Not sure 3 30% Probably not 3 30% Disagree 1 10% Chart Representation 5. You love your job at the restaurant. Of the ten respondents, 4 agreed that they loved their jobs at the restaurant; one was indifferent while the other 5 disagreed. The agreeing four included the 2 Restaurant Managers and the 2 part-time Administrative Assistant. The disagreeing five included the 3 part time Hospitality Employees, and the 2 full time Chefs. The full time Retail Clerk was indifferent. For instance: Do you love your job at the restaurant? Job Position 5 4 3 2 1 Restaurant manager 1 x Restaurant manager 2 x Hospitality employee 1 x Hospitality employee 2 x Hospitality employee 3 x Chef 1 x Chef 2 x Administrative Assistant 1 x Administrative assistant 2 x Retail clerk x This was simplified in to a percentage table as follows: Percentage of Responses Response No. of Responses Percentage of Responses Strongly Agree 2 20% Agree 2 20% Not sure 1 10% Probably not 3 30% Disagree 2 20% Chart Representation 6. You are satisfactorily remunerated Of the ten respondents, 4 agreed that they were being remunerated well while the other six disagreed. The agreeing four included the 2 Restaurant Managers and the 2 part-time Administrative Assistant. The disagreeing six included the 3 part time Hospitality Employees, the 2 full time Chefs and the full time Retail Clerk. For instance: Are you satisfactorily remunerated? Job Position 5 4 3 2 1 Restaurant manager 1 x Restaurant manager 2 x Hospitality employee 1 x Hospitality employee 2 x Hospitality employee 3 x Chef 1 x Chef 2 x Administrative Assistant 1 x Administrative assistant 2 x Retail clerk x This was simplified in to a percentage table as follows: Percentage of Responses Response No. of Responses Percentage of Responses Strongly Agree 2 20% Agree 2 20% Not sure 0 0% Probably not 2 20% Disagree 4 40% Graphical Representation 7. You would commit the next 10 years to the restaurant. Of the ten respondents, 3 agreed that they would commit their futures to the restaurant; one was indifferent while the other six disagreed. The agreeing three included the 2 Restaurant Managers and part-time Administrative Assistant 1. Part-time Administrative Assistant 2 was indifferent while the 3 part time Hospitality Employees, the 2 full time Chefs and the full time Retail Clerk disagreed. For instance: Would you commit the next 10 years to the restaurant? Job Position 5 4 3 2 1 Restaurant manager 1 x Restaurant manager 2 x Hospitality employee 1 x Hospitality employee 2 x Hospitality employee 3 x Chef 1 x Chef 2 x Administrative Assistant 1 x Administrative assistant 2 x Retail clerk x This was simplified in to a percentage table as follows: Percentage of Responses Response No. of Responses Percentage of Responses Strongly Agree 2 20% Agree 1 10% Not sure 1 10% Probably not 1 10% Disagree 5 50% Graphical Representation The above seven portrays the effects of organizational attitude and job satisfaction on the turnover intensions. It is noteworthy that individuals who agreed that the organization was supportive and offered appropriate incentives also said they loved their jobs at the restaurant. Additionally, individuals who said they loved their jobs at the restaurant were ready to commit their futures working there. However, the increased percentage of employees saying they would not commit their futures working at Subway restaurants points to a relatively poor organizational attitude. The following three research questions assess the effect of these factors on job performance. 8. The Restaurant’s performance is above per. Of the ten respondents, 4 agreed that the restaurant’s performance was above per; four disagreed while two were indifferent. The agreeing four included the 2 Restaurant Managers and the two part-time Administrative Assistants. The 2 full time Chefs, part time Hospitality Employee 3 and the full time Retail Clerk disagreed while part time Hospitality Employee 1 and 2 were indifferent. For instance: Is the restaurant’s performance above per? Job Position 5 4 3 2 1 Restaurant manager 1 x Restaurant manager 2 x Hospitality employee 1 x Hospitality employee 2 x Hospitality employee 3 x Chef 1 x Chef 2 x Administrative Assistant 1 x Administrative assistant 2 x Retail clerk x This was simplified in to a percentage table as follows: Percentage of Responses Response No. of Responses Percentage of Responses Strongly Agree 3 30% Agree 1 10% Not sure 2 20% Probably not 2 20% Disagree 2 20% Graphical Representation 9. Customers give positive feedback often. Of the ten respondents, 6 agreed that the customers often gave positive feedback, two were indifferent and two disagreed. The six included the 2 Restaurant Managers, the two part-time Administrative Assistants, and the full time Chefs. The full time Retail Clerk and part time Hospitality Employee 3 were indifferent while part time Hospitality Employee 1 and 2 disagreed. For instance: Do customers often give positive feedback? Job Position 5 4 3 2 1 Restaurant manager 1 x Restaurant manager 2 x Hospitality employee 1 x Hospitality employee 2 x Hospitality employee 3 x Chef 1 x Chef 2 x Administrative Assistant 1 x Administrative assistant 2 x Retail clerk x This was simplified in to a percentage table as follows: Percentage of Responses Response No. of Responses Percentage of Responses Strongly Agree 4 40% Agree 2 20% Not sure 2 20% Probably not 1 10% Disagree 1 10% Graphical Representation 10. The restaurant has realized significant profit over the last 5 years. Of the ten respondents, 5 agreed that the restaurant had realized significant profits over the last 5 years while the other five were indifferent. The agreeing five included the 2 Restaurant Managers, the two part-time Administrative Assistants and the full time Retail Clerk. The rest were indifferent. For instance: Has the restaurant realized significant profits over the last 5 years? Job Position 5 4 3 2 1 Restaurant manager 1 x Restaurant manager 2 x Hospitality employee 1 x Hospitality employee 2 x Hospitality employee 3 x Chef 1 x Chef 2 x Administrative Assistant 1 x Administrative assistant 2 x Retail clerk x This was simplified in to a percentage table as follows: Percentage of Responses Response No. of Responses Percentage of Responses Strongly Agree 3 30% Agree 2 20% Not sure 5 50% Probably not 0 0% Disagree 0 0% Graphical Representation It is widely agreed that the restaurant is performing good. However, those who are less satisfied with their jobs and the organization’s policies either still hold a negative view of this subject, or hold their reservations to it. The apparent good performance by the restaurants is a pointer to favorable organizational attitude. List of References Ali, T. et al. (2009). “Job Satisfaction of Faculty Members in Private Universities –In Context of Bangladesh.” Journal of International Business Research Vol. 2, No. 4. Greenberg, J. (2013). Organizational Behavior: the State of the Science. Routledge. Read More