Man versus Machine in the Workplace: Investigating the role of Artificial Intelligence in the Increasing Levels of Unemployment
Current Understanding:
Even though there has been so many arguments for and against the possibility of a man losing out completely in the scheme of things when Artificial Intelligence is applied to the job, researchers seem to be divided about its effect – the increasing level of unemployment produced.
For example, Wiener (1948), (known as the father of cybernetics), predicted that the combination of “production machinery with computing machines would soon lead to… factory without employees” (as cited in Bailey, 2013, p. 48). One who takes a cursory look at the continuous advancement in technology may argue that not only did the predicted mass unemployment did not occur, but also that number of employed workers seem to be increasing globally.
However, MIT Sloan School of Management professor and his colleague, Brynjolfsson & McAfee (2012) argue that over the last 10 to 15 years, the ongoing advances in computer technology are largely responsible for the slow employment growth ( p. 10). Rather than help lay the dust to rest, Columbia and Boston Universities economists Sachs & Kotlikoff lend their voices to the “debate” when they ask, “What if machines are getting so smart, thanks to their microprocessor brains, that they no longer need unskilled labor to operate” (as cited in Bailey, 2013, p. 48)?
Relevance of the topic:
There is no denying the fact that the workplace is becoming more and more reliant on smart machines. It is therefore important to understand the role(s) (if any) that smart machines play in the workplace and its contribution (or non-thereof) to the increasing level of unemployment. This research will not only give insights into the future of robotics and of jobs but also contribute to the numerous existing body of knowledge regarding Human Resources Management, Business Administration, Robotics, and manufacturing, and perhaps help lay to rest the issue of how susceptible jobs are to computerization. I aim to consult academic journals, magazines, textbooks, newspapers, internet, and libraries while carrying out the research.
Questions:
Questions which this research will try to seek answers to (among others) are: Are smart machines taking away our jobs? How can we conduct thorough research to help businesses and industries understand the ROI of applying AI to their businesses? Man against machine in the workplace: Are workers losing the war? What do existing literature say about these? These and many other questions are what the research will seek to find answers to.
References
Bailey, R. (2013, February 8). Were the Luddites right? Smart machines and the prospect of technological unemployment. Reason, 45(1), 48.
Brynjolfsson, E., & McAfee, A. (2012). Technology’s influence on employment and the economy. In Race against the machine: How the digital revolution accelerates innovation, drives productivity, and irreversibly transforms employment and the economy (p. 10). Lexington, MA: Digital Frontier Press.
Place this order or similar order and get an amazing discount. USE Discount code “GET20” for 20% discount
An organization’s culture explains how one is expected to behave within an organization to shape the perception of employees, their understanding, and behaviors. Throughout the history of most organizations, organizational culture has played a vital role in influencing decisions by the members and the way members accept or reject the initiated decisions. Significantly, culture exhibited in an organization determines its next point of action and the relationship needed within the premise to revamp output. According to Di Stefano, Scrima & Parry, E. (2019), behaviors in an organization are the most potent determinants for real change. However, organizational culture is usually plagued with essential dysfunctional dynamics that have stemmed from various dysfunctional personalities that evaluate the environment. Therefore, to work efficiently and effectively within the dispensations of one’s culture, it is essential for one to adequately understand it to make his or her workplace safer and accommodative. Organizational culture has a significant impact on the behavior of employees within the workplace. This paper focuses on examining the experience of delivering and designing a specific change that organizational culture has had for the growth and development of companies. It also captures the importance of understanding corporate culture for the transformation of workplace behaviours.
The most significant issue to collegiate organizations is creating a robust organizational culture. The culture should purposely aim to boost employees’ correlations in working together effectively and cohesively for transformational organisational changes. However, to ensure that these organizational cultures are credible and able to address different issues about the organisation’s success, it is necessary to explore all associated problems. Similarly, the workplace should be sound, and all assumptions built to deal with any form of jeopardy that might be realized (Di Stefano, Scrima & Parry, 2019). In most cases, the culture exhibited by managers and the employees within an organization determines workplace behaviour. Leadership and management have been regarded as an essential part of the organization regardless of the position and progress of the organization outlined within a firm’s missions, visions, and objectives. Failure of these integral parts to work towards a common goes usual renders the company passive. Similarly, in power dispensation and distribution, the chronological approach must be introduced to allow each member to work within his or her might. As a result, through the continuous application, it makes the organization stable and coherent in its services.
According to Idowu (2017), understanding organizational culture and its influence on workplace behaviors. Three major dimensions of corporate culture must be evaluated in determining the impact of such rationales in determining the intended outcome. For instance, the symbolic reminders that are based on visible artifacts, a mindset that is associated with shared beliefs and attitudes, and the keystone behaviors that are related to recurring acts with an organization. These behaviors remarkably act as the most potent determinants that can be used to fathom real change. Similarly, exposing workers to certain current cultural situations within an organization not only allows them to boost their potentiality but also ensures that all operations being carried out in the organization are towards a common goal (Such & Mutrie, 2017). However, studies also show that understanding the organizational culture of any organization is based on its nature of mission statement. The statement portrays the characteristics of the organization and acts as the baseline for interpreting the goals and strategies of an group. They also provide a starting point, through which organizations can create their cultural artifacts to communicate their values on a deep-rooted and personal level,
The nature of leadership exhibited in an organization also determines the workplace place. The body involves stakeholders and individuals who display authority in a way that internalizes and reinforces values of the premise (Idowu, 2017). Leaders must remain open to feedbacks while the organizations are making changes to react to future explorations. The efforts require the flexibility to the needs of the institutions while adhering to the terms of values. Leaders must also have a clear strategy in the types of restructuring and personal changes that are needed to create the environment. The collaboration between leaders and other individuals in the organization helps in validating the workplace behaviors. For instance, it is from the leaders that concrete plans can be initiated, especially those that aim at shaping the entire organization. The interaction and socialization n with the newcomers in an organization, which is usually done in stages, evaluate the relationship among employees. Anticipatory socialization, change, and integration determine the needed changes that accompany can make without interfering with other valuable components. As a result, it is worth noting that leadership in an organization determines the behaviors within the workplace.
Moreover, change organizational culture is an extremely gradual process. It must be done in stages to meet the required threshold with an organization. The stages determine the concepts needed for operations are within the mission statement of the organization. Although several variables, such as extreme resistance, may affect the efforts that are being invited to make the workplace accommodative. The behavior in the workplace also determines the coherency through which various actions are done. For example, a change in organizational culture requires the alignment of policies and structures, active participation, and consistent communication. According to Cross & Carbery (2016), the concepts analyze how members of an organization use the available resources to ensure the safety of their working environment. Workplace behaviors also show how different ideas and issues have been put together for a common goal. In every organization, the way they conduct their services and reach their customers acts as the link between them and their goals. It shows how work is being done on such premises, and the possible outcome is expected (Cross & Carbery, 2016). Research shows that organizations with a specific cultural catalyst, such as informal emotional approaches in influencing behavior, have had significant changes. However, working with specific current cultural conditions has adequately provided companies with natural advantages to shape up their working environments.
An influential organizational culture is a common denominator in most successful organizations. All have a higher position based on cultural priorities, and the values do not only focus on individuals but also on the organization and their goals. Most leaders in these companies live their cultures always and employ other methods to communicate their identities to prospective new hires and employees. It is also commonly maintained that workplace behavior is associated with mental shifts within an organization. This is why, in most cases, leaders with organizations usually try to change their mindsets by communicating their values and ensuring that they are followed. Trying to change organizational culture is always hectic and requires proper evaluation of all issues that are measurable within the premise. Some good examples of change in behavior that has been evident in most organizations reveal that behavior that is seen among members of the company originates from the interpersonal relationships exhibited in the institution.
Conversely, a productive organizational culture has a significant impact on the organization and its leadership. High turnover, disengaged employees, low profits, and poor customer relations are examples of the adverse effects of culture within an organization. Similarly, acquisition and merger are fraught with issues associated with learning. According to Sinha, Priyadarshi & Kumar (2016), all organizational cultures that have worked well may have dysfunctional cultures after the acquisition. Research shows that the failure of an organization depends on how cultural problems can be done to create a favorable condition—redefining and blending the cultures as well as reconciling the differences that existed between them while building a common platform for its future. Culture can also ensure an informal control mechanism, shared understanding between employees, and an uncommon sense of identification within an organization. Employees whose work has sharply defined cultures can justify their behaviors at work due to correlations between their behavior and culture. The company leaders play an integral role in sustaining and reshaping organizational cultures. Failure of executives to fit into an organization’s culture may make them entirely or fail due to their poor behavior. Overall, organization culture is a nebulous factor and is usually an undefined aspect in an organization that manifests itself to determine the practice in the workplace.
References
Cross, D. C., & Carbery, D. R. (Eds.). (2016). Organizational Behaviour: Introducing Organizational Behaviour; Michelle Hammond; 2. Personality; Jill Pearson; 3. Perception; Jennifer Hennessey; 4. Work-Related Attitudes and Values; Ultan Sherman; 5. Motivation and Stress in the Workplace; Collette Darcy; 6. Emotions and the Workplace; Deirdre O’Shea; 7. Groups and Teams in the Workplace; Christine Cross and Caroline Murphy; 8. Leadership; Ronan Carbery; 9. Power, Politics, and Conflict at Work; Christine Cross and Lorraine Ryan; 10. Communication in... Palgrave Macmillan.
Di Stefano, G., Scrima, F., & Parry, E. (2019). The effect of organizational culture on deviant behaviors in the workplace. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 30(17), 2482-2503.
Idowu, O. E. (2017). Understanding organizational culture and organizational performance: Are they two sides of the same coin. Journal of Management Research, 9(1), 12-21.
Sinha, S., Priyadarshi, P., & Kumar, P. (2016). Organizational culture, innovative behavior, and work-related attitude. Journal of Workplace Learning.
Such, E. & Mutrie, N. (2017). Using organizational cultural theory to understand workplace interventions to reduce sedentary time. International Journal of Health Promotion and Education, 55(1), 18-29.
Place this order or similar order and get an amazing discount. USE Discount code “GET20” for 20% discount
Workplace violence is an essential safety and health issue among employees. In most cases worldwide, health workers exposed to top workplace violence are at specific risks of experiencing significant impacts in their lives. Studies show that, though little information is available on the effects of workplace violence, the effect of other victims within health sectors, the threats associated with the concern is much more prevalent and lead to a reduction of operations within an organization. Workplace violence also varies depending on the type and the people involved in the incident and the accompaniment that is pertinent for its exploration. Notably, these threats also range from physical assaults to verbal abuses and even homicide. The effect can affect the entire workforce if not efficiently and adequately addressed within the most appropriate time. However, Lanctôt & Guay’s (2014) article, “The aftermath of workplace violence among healthcare workers: A systematic literature review of the consequences. Aggression and violent behavior,” the authors categorically address the consequences of workplace violence exposure in the health sector. Through various reviews, the authors categorised workplace violence into seven categories based on nature to the receptors. These include physical, emotional, work functioning, psychological, social, general, and financial issues.
Article Summary and Company Policy: Exposure to workplace violence in health sector workers lowers their comparability with the required output as well as the specific work outcome from their areas of operations. Lanctôt & Guay (2014), in their article, reveals that the health sector is predominantly at higher risk of workplace violence as compared to other public service organizations. Most of the acts that are being portrayed in the organizational setting not only expose workers to risk but also limit their efforts in progressing to higher positions. According to the numerous studies conducted by the authors, it is evident from the article that workplace violence in the health sector affects workers across the entire organizational setting (Lanctôt & Guay, 2014). Physically, workplace violence causes injuries to health workers such that instead of attending to the patients, they opt for self-service. The result from the article also reveals that workplace violence lowers operations within the organizational setting due to the psychological implications associated with among employees. Similarly, exposure to violence among workers within their work has increased turnover intentions and also impaired work functioning due to emotional implications that are common with them.
Code of Conduct:Organizational policies are guidelines that help employers in dealing with employee’s safety, health, accountability, as well as interactions within the workplace. According to Norton, Zacher & Ashkanasy (2014), the code of conduct is the most integral company policy they validates and analyses the behavior of people within the workplace. It outlines necessary procedures that both the workers and employers should adapt to for safety concerns within the organizational setting. Besides, it reiterates the valuable correspondences that ensure the safety of workers is adequately upheld. Concerning workplace violence, the policy outlines basic outlines that need to be followed by all workers to limit the incidence of either physical or emotional abuse (Norton, Zacher & Ashkanasy, 2014). It allows workers to know their limits categorically as well as respond to them based on the values that are valuable for such concepts. In most cases, organizational procedures and policies establish the rule and regulations of conduct within the company, outlining the roles of both employers and employees. As a result, it is worth noting that through explicit consideration of the valuable repertoires that are in the company’s code of conduct, the policy adequately responds to workplace violence and ensures that such issues are not common.
The code of conduct allows employees to validate their mistakes before a proper measure is taken against them. Employees conduct policies to establish the responsibilities and duties that each of them should adhere to base on the condition of employment. These policies are made available in the workplace where violence is prevalent to act as a guideline inappropriate the behavior of both employees and employers by outlining things like proper dress code, harassment policies, and workplace safety issues that can reduce incidences of conflict within the premise. Similar, the code of conduct policies outlines the procedures that can be adopted by the employer in disciplining inappropriate behaviors exhibited by employees without violating their rights. According to Pearson, Seyfang & Jenkins (2013), most companies are on the verge of attention to bullying behaviors and workplace violence as a serious concern that needs to be addressed appropriately. The policy, therefore, provides exceptional concepts that need to address in handling workplace violence.
Recommendations: Though workplace violence has remained to be a severe menace to organizational setting causing massive effects to both employers and employees, the adoption of proper company policy is essential to ensure that such vices are not realized in the future. Therefore, it can be maintained that for the success and peaceful workplace with all factors considered for the safety of workers, proper policies such as the code of conduct should be explicitly outlined and made available for workers to put in practice.
References
Lanctôt, N., & Guay, S. (2014). The aftermath of workplace violence among healthcare workers: A systematic literature review of the consequences. Aggression and violent behavior, 19(5), 492-501.
Norton, T. A., Zacher, H., & Ashkanasy, N. M. (2014). Organisational sustainability policies and employee green behaviour: The mediating role of work climate perceptions. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 38, 49-54. Pearson, R., Seyfang, G., & Jenkins, R. (2013). ‘I’ll tell you what I want…’: women workers and codes of conduct. In Corporate Responsibility and Labour Rights (pp. 5
Place this order or similar order and get an amazing discount. USE Discount code “GET20” for 20% discount
Workforce analytics requires human resource employee to provide the Chief Human Resources Officer with the best personnel in the market. The organization is established to attain a predetermined goal that requires specialized skills as well as diverse knowledge (Guenole, Ferrar, & Feinzig, 2017, chapter 3). Thus, assessing the workforce capacity help in establishing the best suiting skills either from within the company or outsourced from the job market by a recruiting agency. Workforce analytics involves collecting data to determine the capacity of employees in decision making, critical thinking, and the willingness to help other staff members.
Question 1
Hypothesis statements
Better capacity to think help employee to make good decisions (Guenole, Ferrar, & Feinzig, 2017, chapter 3)
Willingness to develop others among employee increase productivity (Guenole, Ferrar, & Feinzig, 2017, chapter 3)
The above hypothesis requires a set of data to test their plausibility. For instance, while measuring employee capacity to think, a data analyst needs to collect the following data; employee age, level of education, and creativity. On the other hand, to test whether an employee can cognitively engage others the following data is required; employee age, year worked in the organization, amount of remuneration as well as education level. These variables used in testing the two hypotheses require internal sources. This is because determining the capacity to think and willingness to develop others in an organization can only provide accurate data among workers. However, the data can be collected from a different group, but it is supposed to come from within the study population.
Question 2
Management is an integral part of managing the day-to-day activities of the workforce. An organization is established to accomplish certain predetermined goals (KPMG International, 2015). For this reason, management looks for specific skills in the job market to recruit their staff. The management of an organization is the main stakeholder that conducts recruitment, training, and monitoring of the achievement of workers. Therefore, the management is a key stakeholder in testing employee’s capacity to think and willingness to develop other.
The workers are the other stakeholders in testing the workforce’s ability. They play a vital role in the production processes in an organization. Therefore, it is prudent for the human resource department to ensure they have the best skills to achieve their goals. The data required for the measurement of the efficiency of an organization must emanate from the workforce. The staffs are the target group of study from which the management needs to invest its resources in improving the delivery of services and increasing its revenues.
Universities and colleges institutions are stakeholders that help determine the wellbeing of skilled labor. People go through school to learn and attain skills that can help them in their life. The skills impacted among students include financial literacy, critical thinking, creativity, and teamwork. Thus, it is easier to identify workers who have gone through school from lower levels to the highest level from the school that they passed through. Thus, determining the level of education by identifying employee education background help determine the capability and willingness to help among organization staff.
Question 3
In circumstances where there are no existing data for analysis, an organization can partner with other stakeholders to determine the best-suited skills in the market (Guenole, Ferrar, & Feinzig, 2017, chapter 13). For instance, an organization can reach out to the institution to inquire about the skills that they teach their students. Through this, a recruiting organization can look for graduates from an institution that impacts their required skills. As a result, one can recruit the best staff without conducting data analysis. Moreover, a recruiting company may request a learning institution to train a specified skill to its employee rather than seek for experienced workers. This saves on the cost of recruitment and improves the capacity of the company’s employee.
An organization can also consider looking for skills among its staff or within other competing organizations (Guenole, Ferrar, & Feinzig, 2017, chapter 13). Lack of expertise in conducting analytical study can prompt a company to outsource services from outside the company. Thus, in-house recruitment is a cost-effective and efficient mode of recruitment (Guenole, Ferrar, & Feinzig, 2017, chapter 13). This is because a recruiting firm chooses among the best-performing workers to take hold of new positions. This is done by the organization internal HR department rather than recruitment of agents to do the job for the company. Given that the processes are within the organization the company has an advantage of rewarding performers and thus entrenching a culture of hard work in the workplace.
In-source recruitment is not different from in-house recruitment. It involves using the company’s resources to recruit new staff. This may involve promoting an existing employee to a new position or hiring new staff known by the company either from among its stakeholders. In-source recruitment helps the company to sustain its culture and ensure a smooth transition process (Guenole, Ferrar, & Feinzig, 2017, Chapter 13). On the other hand, the company may find in-house or in-source recruitment limited in scope and demand for better recruitment processes. In this case, the company may opt to hire a competent agency to recruit a competent employee (Guenole, Ferrar, & Feinzig, 2017, Chapter 13). This prompt the firm to outsource recruitment services from qualified and registered agencies.
The best method of recruitment that assures of quality hire is outsourcing (Deloitte, 2017). Recruitment agencies dedicate their time, resources, and energy in finding the best skills in the market for a particular position. In addition, outsourcing presents a company with a varied choice of talent to choose from. Moreover, outsourcing saves organization resources by engaging a qualified expert to do their job while concentrating on production and service delivery (Guenole, Ferrar, & Feinzig, 2017). Through this, the company does not interrupt its operations and accord its employees the maximum time to deliver on their targets. Outsourcing model of recruitment is also scalable. The processes are conducted considering the peak and trough in the job market. Therefore, a firm is assured of skilled staff when opening for new departments.
For an organization to succeed, it needs competent staff to drive the agenda set out by the management. It requires a concerted effort by the Human Resource department and the management to have qualified staff for the job. The management of a firm has various ways through which it can conduct its recruitment mainly through workforce analytics, in-house recruitment, in-sources recruitment, and outsourcing recruitment. All these help a company gets skilled labor to fill in new positions. Among these, outsourcing is the best as it saves on the company’s resources and assures of the best skill in the market. A recruitment study of the employee to determine their capability is expensive and disrupts the processes in an organization. However, in-source and in-house recruitment motivate employee but deny the company of the best talent.
References
Deloitte. (2017). 2017 Deloitte global human capital trends.Deloitte University Press. Retrieved from https://www2.deloitte.com/uk/en/pages/humancapital/articles/introduction-human-capital-trends.html.
Guenole, N., Ferrar, J., & Feinzig, S. (2017). The power of people: Learn how successful organizations use workforce analytics to improve business performance. Cisco Press.
KPMG International. (2015). Evidence-based HR: The difference between your people and delivering business strategy. KPMG International. Retrieved from https://assets.kpmg.com/content/dam/kpmg/pdf/2015/04/evidence-basedhr.pdf.
Place this order or similar order and get an amazing discount. USE Discount code “GET20” for 20% discount
Workforce analytics requires the employee to provide the Chief Human Resources Officer with the best ways to recruit qualified personnel. The organization is established to attain a predetermined goal that requires specialized skills as well as other diverse labour force (Guenole, Ferrar, & Feinzig, 2017). Thus, assessing the workforce capacity help in establishing the best suiting skills either from within the company or outsourced from the job market by a recruiting agency. Workforce analytics also involves collecting data to determine the capacity of an employee in decision making, critical thinking as well as in determining the willingness to help another member of the staff.
Question 1
Hypothesis statements
Better capacity to think help employee to make good decisions
Willingness to develop others among employee increase productivity
The above hypothesis requires a set of data to test their plausibility. For instance, while measuring employee capacity to think a data analyst require to collect the following employee age, level of education, and creativity. On the other hand, test for employee capacity to think and ability to develop other [QAD1] requires one to collect the following data; employee age, year worked in the organization, amount of remuneration as well as education level. The variables for testing the two hypotheses requires internal sources. This is because determining the capacity to think and willingness to develop others in an organization can only provide accurate data among workers. However, the data can be collected from a different group, but it is supposed to come from within the study population.
Question 2
The management is an integral part of learning the day to day activities of the work force. An organization is established to accomplish certain predetermined goals (KPMG International, 2015). For this reason, management look for specific skills in the job market to recruit their staff. Thus, the management of an organization is the main stakeholder of the recruitment, training, and monitoring of the achievement of workers. Therefore, the management is a key stakeholder in testing employee’s capacity to think as well as a willingness to develop other.
The other stakeholders involved in testing the ability of the workforce are the employees. The worker plays a vital role in the production processes in an organization. Therefore, it is prudent for the organization human resource department to ensure they have the best skills to achieve their mission and goals. The data required for measurement of the efficiency of an organization must emanate of the workforce. The staff are the target group of study from which the management need to invest its resources to increase the delivery of services and increase its revenues.
Universities and colleges institutions are stakeholders that help determine the wellbeing skilled labour. People go through school to learn and attain skills that can help them in their life. The skills impacted among students, include financial literacy, critical thinking, creativity, and teamwork. Thus, it is easier to identify workers who have gone through school from lower levels to the highest level by the way they conduct their activities. Thus, determining the level of education by engaging employee education background would help determine the capability and willingness to help among organization staff.
Question 3
In a circumstance where there is no existing data for analysis, an organization can partner with other stakeholders to determine the best suited skills in the market (Deloitte, 2017). For instance, an organization can reach out to university institution to enquire on the skills that they teach on their students. Through this, a recruiting organization can look for graduates from an institution that impact the skills that they require. Through this one can recruit the best staff without conducting data analysis. Moreover, a recruiting company may request a learning institution to train a specified skill to the employee rather than looking for experienced workers. This saves the cost of recruitment and improves the capacity of the company’s employee.
An organization can also consider looking for skills among its staff or within other competing organizations. Moreover, lack of expertise in conducting analytical study can prompt a company to outsource service delivery. In-house recruitment is cost effective and efficient mode of recruitment. This is because a recruiting firm chooses among the best performing workers to take hold of new positions. This is done by the organization internal HR determent rather than recruitment of new agency to the job for the company. Given that the processes are within the organization the company has an advantage of rewarding performers and thus inculcating a culture of hard work in the work place.
In-source recruitment is not so different from in-house recruitment. It involves using the company’s resources to recruit new staff. This may involve promoting an existing employee to new positions or hiring new staff know by the company may it from among its stakeholders. In-source recruitment helps the company to sustain its culture and a smooth transition process (Guenole, Ferrar, & Feinzig, 2017). On the other hand, the company may find it in-house or in-source recruitment to be limited in their demand for better skills. In this circumstance, the company may opt to high a competent agency to do a recruitment process and find a competent employee for the company. Thus, outsourcing involves an organization hiring recruitment agencies to work for them.
The best method of recruitment that assures of quality hire is outsourcing. Recruitment agencies dedicate their time, resources and energy in finding the best skills in the market for a particular position. In addition, outsourcing present a company with a varied choice of a pool of talent to choose from. Moreover, outsourcing saves an organization resources by engaging a qualified expert to their job while concentrating on production or service deliver (Guenole, Ferrar, & Feinzig, 2017). Though this the company does not interrupt its operations and accord it, employees, the maximum time to deliver on their targets. Outsourcing model of recruitment is scalable. The processes are conducted in view of the peak and trough in the job market. Therefore, a firm is assured of skilled staff when opening for new departments.
For an organization to succeed it needs competent staff to drive the agenda set out by the management. Thus, this requires a concerted effort by the Human Resource department and the management. The management of a firm has various ways through which it can conduct its recruitment mainly through workforce analytics, in-house recruitment, in-sources recruitment, and outsourcing recruitment. All these help a company gets skilled labour to fill in new positions. Among this outsourcing is the best as it saves on the company’s resources and assures of the best skill in the market. A recruitment study of the employee to determine their capability is expensive and disrupt the processes of the organization. Moreover, in-source and in-house recruitment motivate employee but deny the company of the best talent.
References
Deloitte. (2017). “2017 Deloitte Global Human Capital Trends.” Deloitte University Press. Retrieved from https://www2.deloitte.com/uk/en/pages/humancapital/articles/introduction-human-capital-trends.html.
Guenole,N., Ferrar, J., & Feinzig, S (2017). The power of people: Learn how successful organizations use workforce analytics to improve business performance. Cisco Press.
KPMG International. (2015). “Evidence-based HR: The Difference between Your People and Delivering Business Strategy.” KPMG International. Retrieved from https://assets.kpmg.com/content/dam/kpmg/pdf/2015/04/evidence-basedhr.pdf.
Human beings are slowly being replaced with machines in almost every sector as well as industry by technology revolution. Many people are permanently getting eliminated from their jobs as the work category and job assignments continue to sink even further. Jobs are also being restructured and others are disappearing because of the continuous adoption of technology. There is continued unemployment and according to findings, global unemployment is at its record high since the great depression back in 1930s. An estimated 800 million people are un employed and this figure could even rise further. Millions of graduates who are hopeful for employment opportunities, who are continually entering the work force are continually finding themselves jobless. It is now clear that the rising figures of unemployment indicates a short term adjustment to a market so powerful and powerfully driven by forces that drive the global economy towards a new direction. The global market is looking forward towards an exciting world of high tech automated production, abundant materials that are unprecedented, and booming world commerce. In the US alone it is estimated that 2 million people are being eliminated annually from their jobs by corporations. In return the jobs that are created are low paying low sector jobs. The worrying factor is that this transition is all over the world. Even the developing nations are increasingly eliminating employees with built state of art which tech facilities used for production (Bailey, 2013).
Technology has changed to the disadvantage of human labor. There is what is referred to as “Big Data” by scientists. This is the use of computers to thrive on information from the international website, barcodes are placed on nearly every product. More information is passed across the internet every second twice the total amount of information that was stored on the entire internet some 20 years back. Giving an example with Wall-Mart, the store is capable of collecting approximately 50 million cabinets of information from the customer’s transactions every 1 hour. This is far much the capability of a human if they were to be left to handle the transactions, according to Andrew McAfee and Erick Brynjolfsson, (2012). Computers can make sense of so much data than human beings.
It is true that the world is changing technologically and this the major force towards unemployment, because machines are replacing human labor but corporations are taking this as an advantage to gain Return on Investment. ROI refers to the capital invested in a company and the return realized from the capital based on then net profit of the business. It is important to understand that profit and ROI are two different things. Profit is used to measure the performance of the business. ROI is not necessarily the same as profit. However ROI can be used to gauge the profitability of the business. It is used to identify the past and potential financial returns of a business looked by the managers as a project. This is because it can portray how successful a business is expressed in ratios or percentages. It is also used to describe financial returns and increased efficiencies in the organization. It is also used to calculate the much of a value an investment is.
ROI has been used in line with Artificial Intelligence (AI). It worth knowing that it is customer demand that drives today’s business and the demand patterns varies from period to period. Because of these variables it has become very difficult for organizations to develop accurate forecasts, which refers to the process of estimating future events. Forecasting reduces uncertainty and used to provide benchmarks used to monitor performance. Combinations of AI and emerging technologies have been used to improve the accuracy of forecasts to contribute to organization enhancement. It is perceived that the use of machines to replace human labor is more effective and contributes to profitability and improved ROI. This has also fueled investors to replace human labor with machinery and computer software.
There is a saying that goes that whatever is measured gets done. Human nature can also be measured. It is true that many workers constantly re-prioritize their work activities. It is also worth understanding that not everyone in an organization will work towards a common goal, that is, the success of the organization. It is therefore important to measure performance against input. Metrics have the attention of both manufacturing and business leaders. It is important to measure sectors in business activities and provide improvement where necessary. The following are some of the manufacturing metrics utilized mostly by process, discrete, and hybrid manufacturers:
Improving customer expectations and responsiveness such as on time delivery and manufacturing cycle time, Metrics to improve quality such as yield, consumer rejects, material returns, supplier quality incoming, Metrics for improving efficiency such as capacity utilization, throughput, overall equipment effectiveness, schedule of production effectiveness, Metrics for reducing inventory like WIP Inventory/ Turns, Metrics on increased flexibility and innovation like rate of new product introduction, and Engineering change order cycle time. Metrics for Ensuring Compliance, Metrics for reducing maintenance like percentage planned, Metrics for cost reduction and increasing profitability like net operating profit, productivity in revenue per employee, energy cost per unit, productivity in revenue per employee, and manufacturing cost as per percentage of revenue.
Variables
Definitions
Metric
References
ROI
Return On Investment-this is a business term used to identify the past and potential financial returns. It helps to indicate how successful a business is.
Metrics on Improving Costumer Experience and Responsiveness-Manufacturing cycle time, On-time delivery to Commit
Bailey, R. (2013, February 8). Were the Luddites right? Smart machines and the prospect of technological unemployment. Reason, 45(1), 48.
AI
Artificial Intelligence-this is a computer science emphasizing on intelligent machines working and relating like humans.
Metrics on improving quality-Customer rejects, Yield
Brynjolfsson, E., & McAfee, A. (2012). Technology’s influence on employment and the economy. In Race against the machine: How the digital revolution is accelerating innovation, driving productivity, and irreversibly transforming employment and the economy (p. 10). Lexington, MA: Digital Frontier Press.
Metric
These are quantifiable measures used to assess the position and status of a venture.
Metrics on Improving Efficiency-effectiveness, Through put, Capacity utilization,
Grint, K., & Woolgar, S. (2013). The machine at work: Technology, work and organization. John Wiley & Sons.
Inventory
These are stock held by a business in form of materials or goods for the purpose of repair, resale, or raw materials waiting processing.
Metrics on Reducing inventory- Work in progress inventory turn
Sachs, J. D., & Kotlikoff, L. J. (2012). Smart machines and long-term misery (No. w18629). National Bureau of Economic Research.
WIP
Work In Progress- these are materials that are partly finished. They are materials that are already in the production process but have not yet turned to a fully finished product.
Metrics on Increased flexibility and innovation-Engineering change, Rate of new product introduction
Hart, M. (2013). Educating cheap labour’r. The learning society: Challenges and trends, 96.
Big Data
This is the use of computers to thrive on information from the international website, barcodes are placed on nearly every product
Metrics on Cost reduction and profitability-Productivity in revenue per employee, Net operating profit
The agricultural industry has seen numerous changes in the previous 100 years. Since the conception of the modern horticulture in 1900, we have pushed ahead to the period of computerized improved farming where everything that is carried out before seeding and up to after harvesting produces data that can be broke down or analyzed. Big Data officially changed the horticulture industry a ton and in the impending decade this will get to be unmistakable or visible in every aspect of farming in the Western world and progressively likewise in the Developed world. There are three ranges that will be influenced the most by the chances of big data: reduced costs of operation and improved efficiency, crop and animal efficiency and improved productivity, optimization of crop prices and mitigation of weather conditions (Grint, 2013).
In the agricultural industry, the internet of things and industrial internet are adversely affecting agricultural equipment such as sprayers, tractors, harvesters, milking machines and soil cultivators. Farmers are now capable of getting information thanks to the sensors that have been deployed in machines such as tractors, cow milking and several others. These machines offer information in real time 24/7 even in the absence of the farmer. These machines act as smart machine that are capable of talking and can coordinate with each other to give the farmer the overall condition of the farm. They can predict problems and even take action before adamage can be realized. The farmer can take action immediately he sees a problem dismayed by the sensors and if the problem is very serious, a service employee will visit the farm.
These sensors have led to increased productivity in many processes of agriculture. They also predict failure and maintenance and also safe the farmer fuel and energy for harvesting and transportation by optimizing the best driving conditions especially in large farm because they can predict shorter routes to drive and help save a lot of fuel. These computers are integrated and they pass information to each other making the entire process manageable by only 1 person. These machines are managed by diagnostics to make sure that optimal settings are in place. These data are passed to the farmer who will then analyze them to ensure continuity of effective operation now and in future. Big Data technologies are continually making precision agriculture interesting. This includes recognition, understanding, exploitation of information capable of quantifying variations in crops and soil. This has helped the farmers a lot especially in optimization of the crop productivity (Sachs, 2012).
Not just yields and crops can be enhanced with huge information, additionally the farm animals will gain from enormous information innovation. Having sensors in the sheds will allow input on the states of the animals. Sensors can consequently measure the animal’s weight and conform bolstering if needed. Contingent upon the conditions in the shed or the states of the creatures, sustaining can be balanced too. The creatures will get the right nourishment and the perfect sum at the right minute. There are also chips inserted on the animals that can monitor their health conditions. Sick animals can receive medication through the food there are given and conditions of the sheds adjusted in any case they are affecting the animals. The heard can also be traced via the smart phone with the help of the chips placed on them. These sensors also display the mental health of the animals. Big Data flips around the customary horticulture industry. Despite the fact that the ventures can be significant for ranchers, the potential advantages of applying huge information advancements on the field are gigantic (Hart, 2013).
I used both primary and secondary data collection methods to collect data. Under primary data collection, I collected the data myself by through qualitative and quantitative methods. I used observations, interviews, focus group interviews and questionnaires.
The following were the sourced of data I used:
Primary Data: interviews-I will use forms that the respondents will complete. Interviews are better for complex questions that I will be asking even though being expensive than questionnaires. Questionnaires: these are forms that are completed and returned by respondents. I will use this method of data collection because it is cheaper and they allow the respondents humble time to give feedback to the questions asked. Focus group interviews: I will identify a group of particular group of people especially the farmers and people employed in the agriculture industry and conduct an interview on them. Observations: I will use direct observation to collect data. I will try and find observer programs to help me with the exercise.
Secondary data sources: Previous researches: I would use previous researches on how smart machines are affecting employment in Agriculture industry; official statistics: statistics published by government agencies or other public agencies on economic and social development and environment; Mass media products: data from media houses on development in the Agricultural and horticultural industry and how machinery is affecting employment in the industry; Government reports: the government publications and reports on Agricultural Industry and how smart machinery and Big Data is affecting employment; Web Information: searching the international network for data on Big Data and smart machinery and how they are affecting employment in Agricultural industry; Historical data and information: the history of smart machinery and Big data.
References
Bailey, R. (2013, February 8). Were the Luddites right? Smart machines and the prospect of technological unemployment. Reason, 45(1), 48.
Brynjolfsson, E., & McAfee, A. (2012). Technology’s influence on employment and the economy. In Race against the machine: How the digital revolution is accelerating innovation, driving productivity, and irreversibly transforming employment and the economy (p. 10). Lexington, MA: Digital Frontier Press.
Grint, K., & Woolgar, S. (2013). The machine at work: Technology, work and organization. John
Wiley & Sons.
Sachs, J. D., & Kotlikoff, L. J. (2012). Smart machines and long-term misery (No. w18629).
National Bureau of Economic Research.
Hart, M. (2013). Educating cheap labour’r. The learning society: Challenges and trends, 96.
Place this order or similar order and get an amazing discount. USE Discount code “GET20” for 20% discount
Performance appraisal is an extensively recognised process and many organisations in the public and private sector are increasingly using employee performance appraisal systems where the organisations evaluate employee performance based on the judgments and opinions given by colleagues, supervisors, the managers and subordinates. This process has been identified as one of the key contributors to successful human resource management since performance appraisal has a strong relationship with organisational performance (Ahmed et al 2010).
Employee job satisfaction still remains a very important topic in the facet of organizational behaviour. Realization that a satisfied employee is highly likely to perform better than unsatisfied counterparts has made social scientists to attempt establishing the factors that lead to higher employee job satisfaction and performance appraisal has become one of the areas that have found specific focus. In addition, it is important to establish the relationship that subsists between a particular variable and employee performance appraisal. Such variables include employee retention, organisational commitment, employee promotion or demotion, salary review and employee satisfaction among other factors.
Study aims
This study aims to assess the impact of employee job evaluation systems in China with a focus on a cross-sectional approach on Chinese industries. The study develops an explorative analysis by focusing on organisations across the industries in China. By taking this approach the study will:
• Enhance knowledge and understanding about the impact of using performance appraisals at work place or in organisations in China
• Identify and discuss factors that are correlated with performance evaluation in Chinese industries
• Identify barriers to the efficiency of performance appraisal systems in Chinese Industries
• Define and describe current strategies used in choosing and implementing employee performance evaluation systems in Chinese industries
• Recommend interventions designed to improve implementation of performance appraisals in the Chinese industry
• Complement existing bodies of research on the impact of employee job performance appraisals in public and private organisations
Research Study Questions
The following questions are formulated to aid in achieving the objectives and aims of the study:
What is the impact of performance appraisal on employee job retention, satisfaction, salary review, employee promotion and demotion?
What factors play role in an organisation’s choice of employee job appraisal systems in industries in China?
What factors hinder the efficacy of performance appraisal systems in Chinese Industries?
Literature review
Purpose of Performance appraisals
A number of studies have delved into highlighting the purpose of performance appraisals in private organisations as well as public sector bodies. For instance, Picket, (2003) points out that while performance management, in its widest context, is a managerial undertaking that creates a link between corporate objectives, performance yardsticks and assessment, to which performance appraisals are often applied, performance appraisals are brought into the organization for multiple purposes.
In another study, Bartlett and Kang (2004) underscored a number of objectives of performance appraisals and these include aspects like improving the use of resources and function as a basis for actions taken by personnel. The study by Cleveland et al (2003) provided four purposes of performance appraisals. The first purpose highlighted is to make distinctions amongst people. Secondly, the researchers observe that performance appraisals serve the purpose of setting a distinction between an individual employee’s strengths and their weaknesses (Cleveland et al 2003). It is also used to assess and implement human resources systems in the organisations. Lastly, the authors point out that performance appraisals are used in documenting document personnel decisions.
There has also been evidence that PA help organisations in making between-persons decisions such as using them as basis for promotions (Cleveland et al 2003) or in termination decisions (Bartlett & Kang 2004) or even in salary administration (Ahmed, Hussain, Ahmed and Akbar 2010). All these research studies provide evidence that performance appraisals are vital tool in organisations for achieving wide-ranging purposes. Moreover, despite the documented myriad of purposes of PA systems, Ahmed et al (2010) note that the success or efficacy of these systems depends on the degree of fairness incorporated into the system.
Employee Job Satisfaction and Job Performance
Linking employee job satisfaction and employee job appraisal has been the focus of a number of studies. Judge et al (2001) for instance observed that job satisfaction can be defined as “the employee’s pleasurable or positive emotional state as a result of the appraisal of one’s job and job experiences” (Ahmed et al 2010, p 63). This definition links employee job satisfaction with the way they perceive performance appraisal of their jobs and therefore it highlights the importance of employees having or developing long term positive perception about the PA since if they see no added value in the appraisals then this is likely to have a negative impact on their satisfaction with their current jobs. Nevertheless, Levy and Williams (2004) argue that PA should be used as a vital tool by the management to boost their effectiveness and help in increasing the employees’ feeling as being part of a greater team. According to Yang and Bartlett (2004) performance appraisal has an impact on employee turnover intention since it helps in building employee organisational commitment.
While harnessing employee motivation and empowerment are essential elements of ensuring effective management and improved performance in employee productivity, achieving these aspects of workplace dynamics can be a great challenge to the manager in several ways. One of the challenges that relate to harnessing employee motivation is the fact that managers will require employing satisfiers to boost employee motivation hence performance; yet these motivators might produce either satisfaction or dissatisfaction. It might also generate both at the same time. This is illustrated in the Herzberg Two-Factor theory (Steel & König 2006). Another factor that complicates this challenge further is the diverse nature of psychological processes that might cause arousal needed for motivation to be achieved in each individual employee given the diversity of human behaviour. For instance, consider Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs. According to this theory, individuals have five categories of wants that have to be satiated starting with the most basic at the base of the pyramid to the most luxurious at the tip.
Each employee will thus have their own needs that when satiated find motivation in whatever they are doing. Achieving this for each individual employee should be a very tough challenge for the manager (Steel & König 2006). Thus, the manager has a great responsibility and duty of clearly understanding the behaviour of the entire workforce yet this might not be a pragmatically achievable feat in practice. For these reasons, the manager is further challenged with the task of not only understanding what motivates the employees but also about the diverse theories that have been developed to help in deciphering employee motivation. Gottschalg and Zollo (2007) also point out that engaging the workforce also goes alongside motivation and empowerment and doing all these helps in aligning the interests of the employees with those of the organisation and helps in achievement of greater competitive advantage.
The Reward System and Performance Appraisal
Saiyadain M. S (2003) contends that there is sufficient evidence, which suggests that an organizational reward system is a significant contributor and determinant of employee job satisfaction and further argues that an organization that frequently conducts employee performance appraisals helps in boosting the morale and motivation of the employees and these two aspects are directly related to employee job satisfaction. The reward system includes the pay and other monetary benefits that accrue to the employees. Studies (e.g. Barriball et al 2009) have showed that organizational reward system has a relationship to the employee job satisfaction.
The organization’s method of dealing with payment of benefits, how it distributes promotions, both determine the levels of satisfaction of the organization’s employees (Quinlan et al 2009). Research studies have pointed to the positive relationship between fair reward system and the employee satisfaction. The employees perceive the fairness of the organizational reward system in terms of the level of the compensation they receive, and the method the organization uses to distribute the pay.
Saiyadain (2003) argues that the top management in the organization is more responsive to the relationship between their satisfaction and the pay they receive. However, as indicated earlier from the findings of the Hawthorne studies, not all research studies have come up with evidence to support a strong positive correlation between job satisfaction and the pay or salary. Even the Hawthorne researchers concluded after conducting their studies that the employee salary or monetary benefits are not necessary for the employee job satisfaction. Some other studies have also indicated that the two variables (salary and employee job satisfaction) do not have any relationship (Saiyadain 2003). Therefore, more research needs to be carried out in this area as the already available literature does not offer sufficient evidence for drawing up a conclusion.
METHODOLOGY
Research Design
Accordingly, the proposed research will apply a mixed research design, to get better results since each design complement another. As noted by Creswell (2003), the mixed approach offers more insights in the aspect being researched. Creswell (2003) adds that qualitative method gives verbal data instead of numerical values. Therefore qualitative method does not use statistical analysis, but rather uses content analysis to describe and understand the research findings. Using this method, the research will use inductive reasoning and not deductive. Hewitt and Cramer (2007) explain that the key aspect projected through quantitative methods is the validity of the measurement and its reliability. Using these two aspects, the researcher can generalize the findings and have a clear predication of the cause and effect.
Primary data
The proposed study will deal with primary data which will be obtained through qualitative and quantitative methods. For example, qualitative methods include interviews while surveys constitute quantitative techniques.
Data collection methods
Interview
The study will use interviews and survey questionnaires. As noted by Sekaran (2003) interviews are carried out to determine important information as well as clarification on aspects that the questionnaires failed to capture.
Telephone interview method will involve 20 carefully selected respondents (managers) across the industry in China. The researcher will mainly use semi-structured interview questions as guide during the interviewing process. This approach will be used to make sure that questions asked are same, and the information sought is similar hence make the qualitative part of the analysis easier. In addition, semi-structured interview will help both the interviewer and the respondents to be focused, while it will allow a level of freedom and flexibility in obtaining the required information. Sekaran (2003) informs us that the by selecting key people with information and knowledge of the issue being researched reduces response error and this principle will be used as the main philosophical basis for selecting managers.
To reduce the biases level and increase reliability of the interview, the researcher shall contact the 20 managers in advance to set convenient dates for the interview. In addition, interview questions will be sent to these managers to examine prior to the interview date. The objective of undertaking these steps will be to make sure that details and correct information is collected within the shortest time possible. The interview will be short and it is slotted to last between 10 and 15 minutes. Recording of the responses will be done for later analysis.
Questionnaire
According to Malhorta (2006) quantitative research mainly requires questionnaires as a data collection tool. The proposed research will therefore also use questionnaires to collect its data for the quantitative part of the study. In the proposed study, the researcher will formulate questionnaires for the survey (Comely 2007). The questionnaire will be accompanied by a cover letter to provide the guidelines of answering the questionnaire. The cover letter as well will explain the ethical aspects of the survey.
Sampling Strategy
According to Gupta (2011) sample selection has to be in line with the research objectives, and should as well consider practicability of the study. Considering that the proposed study will achieve its objectives through a mixed method approach, two methods of sampling will be used. For the questionnaires, random sampling will be used while for the interview careful selection will be applied.
Normally, there are two methods of determining a sample size (Ayelet, et al., 2008). This can be done through setting a random size based on the limits of the budget, or by calculating the best sample size based on a desired degree of accuracy and cost, and putting into consideration the standard error method (Ayelet, et al., 2008). For the proposed study, the researcher will use the first method of selecting a random size. Accordingly, a size of 120 (20 for interview; 100 for questionnaire) respondents will be sampled out for participation.
Validity and Reliability
A critical aspect of good research is making sure that the measurement scales used in the questions are reliable and valid (Gupta 2011). According to Hewitt and Cramer (2007) data collected using empirical design will add no value if it is not reliable and valid. Hewitt and Cramer (2007) go on to state that reliability of measurement is needed, though it is not adequate to establish validity. Similarly, Gupta (2011) asserts that valid results are worthless in case the data measures lacked reliability.
To ensure that these important scientific tenets are not violated, this research used questionnaires that had open-ended questions which were meant to analyze belief-founded measures of predictor variables (for example, attitudes and perceived behaviour). As suggested by Ayelet, et al (2008) that it is imperative to cover many predictor variables, the researcher will endeavour to cover more predictor variables through inclusion of many items that indirectly analyze those variables to ensure that validity of the final results is guaranteed.
As Hewitt and Cramer (2007) explain single-item measures normally result in unreliable responses and significant measurement error. However, multi-item measures seem to result in increased reliability and reduced measurement error. Thus, to achieve reliability and eliminate measurement error, this research will use multi-item measures.
Proposed Analyses
As pointed out already, the research design for the study will be mixed method design. For this reason, data analysis will be done using both descriptive method and statistical approaches. The information obtained from the interviews will be analysed using descriptive approach, while data obtained from the survey questionnaires will be analysed quantitatively.
The integration of various data types that formerly comprised qualitative and quantitative data will be achieved through data merging where the analysis of quantitative data and the analysis of quantitative data are carried concurrently and a relationship drawn out within the analysis (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2011). Data analysis will be performed in order to transform the collected data into information for decision-making. Tabulation and presentation of data is performed through the use of statistical packages such as Excel, with analysis through SPSS 16.0. Data is tabulated into graphs and tables in order to enable analysis to be performed, and the analysed data presented through numerical, graphical and explanatory models.
All categorical items with reference to customer perception toward country-of-origin effect were converted to an ordinal scale ranging from the smallest value (for instance, “Strongly Disagree”) to the maximum value (for instance, “Strongly Agree”). Items or questionnaires that did not receive response were coded as missing values. Scale values were therefore to be calculated as the average or mean of the single items. All items are assumed consistent with characteristics of a normal distribution. Nevertheless, all questionnaires were successfully filled.
The qualitative data is coded appropriately to allow for possibility of handling it using quantitative techniques. For this reason, appropriate segments are demarcated within the qualitative data and then coded. Highly structured data (for example, open-responses from respondents) were coded without subjecting it to any further segmentation. Open responses were witnessed in the recorded interviews. This makes such data analysable using both qualitative and quantitative techniques (Denzin & Lincoln, 2000).
Descriptive statistics and correlation analysis will be performed to evaluate whether there is significant relationship between performance and the various factors that are identified in the introductory section. The relationship between the various variables will be measured through the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients (Grinnell & Unrau, 2007). The questionnaire to be used in the study will use simple correlation analysis in the interpretation of the interview transcript and the questionnaires. Graphs and charts will also be used in the analysis of the information gathered as they convey a clear picture during the interpretation of data (Gupta 2011). All p-values were two-tailed. P-values less than 0.05 will be considered significant given that the significance level will be 0.05 or 5%. The values will be given as mean and standard deviation and the data will be calculated using SPSS Version 16 and Microsoft Excel.
Further to this, the objectives of the study shall be achieved by amalgamating the data using triangulation design through the convergence model as explained by Creswell and Plano Clark (2011); who point out that triangulation mixed methodology is a design that can be explained as a single-phase research design where both qualitative and quantitative methods are implemented within the same time frame. While the triangulation design has various approaches, the convergence triangulation model is employed when it is desired that the quantitative and qualitative data should be merged concurrently (Morgan, 2007). This approach allows for thorough comparison of data hence brings out a better understanding of the phenomenon being investigated. Proposed Timeframe
For the timeframe of the proposed study, the Gantt chart below provides the activities and the time period in which they will be carried out.
ID
Task Name
April-Dec
2014
January-December 2015
January-December 2016
Jan- April 2017
April-Aug
Sep-Oct
Nov-Dec
Jan-April
May-Aug
Sept-Dec
Jan-April
May-Aug
Sept-Dec
Jan-March
April
1
Literature review, PhD plan
2
Refining research questions
3
Determining methodology
4
Training researchers
5
Contacting government agencies
6
Piloting of research tools
7
Analysis of research tools
8
Obtaining data from respondents
9
Analysis of primary data obtained
10
Supplementary literature review
11
Final report writing
Bibliography
Ahmed, A., Hussain, I., Ahmed, S., & Akbar, M. F. (2010) Performance Appraisals Impact on Attitudinal Outcomes and Organisational Performance; International Journal of Business and Management Vol. 5, No. 10: 62- 68
Ayelet, K., Lingard, L., and Levinson, W., (2008) “Critically Appraising Qualitative Research” British Medical Journal; 337:a1035: DOI: 10.1136/bmj.a1035.
Balabanis G. & Souitaris V. (2007) “Tailoring Online Retail Strategies to Increase Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty” Long Range Planning, Volume 40, (2): 244-261.
Bartlett, K. R., & Kang, D. (2004). Training and organisational commitment among nurses following industry and organisational change in New Zealand and the United States. Human Resource Development International, 7 (4), 423–440.
Biazi M., (2007) “Employee Empowerment Study” Royal Roads University:
Bruce, A. (2002) Building a high morale workplace. ISBN 0071406182, McGraw-Hill Professional:
Cleveland, J. N., Mohammed, S., Skattebo, A. L., & Sin, H. P. (2003). Multiple purposes of performance appraisal: A replication and extension. Poster presented at the annual conference for the Society for Industrial and Organisational Psychology, Orlando, FL.
Cooke, W. N., (2003) “Multinational companies and global human resource strategies” Greenwood Publishing Group:
Creswell, J.W. (2003). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative and mixed method approaches. (2nd. ed.). Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.
Creswell J. W., & Plano Clark, V. L. (2011) Designing and Conducting Mixed methods research. (2nd ed.) Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
Hewitt, D. and Cramer, D. (2007) Introduction to research methods in Psychology, Harlow: Pearson Education. Houston
Diaz-Serrano, L. & Vieira, C. J. A. (2005) ‘Low Pay, Higher Pay and Job Satisfaction within the European Union: Empirical Evidence from 14 Countries’, IZA Discussion Paper No. 15558, IZA, Bonn, Economic Review, 68: 135-142.
Fisher D. (2000) “Mood and emotions while working: missing pieces of job satisfaction?” Journal of Organizational Behavior 21,: 185-202
Gagne, M., and Deci, E.L., (2005)’Self-determination theory and work motivation’, Journal of Organizational Behavior, vol. 26, (4): 331-362
Gottschalg, O., & Zollo M. (2007) Interest Alignment and Competitive Advantage; Academy of Management Review 32 (2): 418–437
Grinnell, R. M. & Unrau Y. A. (2007) Social work research and evaluation. London. McGraw-Hill
Gupta S., P. (2011) Statistical Methods. Sultan Chand & Sons Educational Publishers: New Delhi, India
Judge, T. A., Thoresen, C. J., Bono, J. E., & Patton, G. K. (2001). The job satisfaction-job performance relationship: A qualitative and quantitative review. Psychological Bulletin, 127 (3), 376–407.
Kacel, B., Miller, M. & Norris, D. (2005) “Measurement of nurse practitioner job satisfaction in a Midwestern state” Journal of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners, 17 (1), 27-32.
Kuvaas, B. (2006). Performance Appraisal Satisfaction and Employee Outcomes: Mediating and Moderating Roles of Work Motivation. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 17 (3), 504-522.
Lee, C.H., & Bruvold, N.T. (2003). Creating value for employees: investment in employee development. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 14 (6), 981-1000.
Lin, H-F., (2007) ‘Effects of extrinsic and intrinsic motivation on employee knowledge sharing intentions’, Journal of Information Science, vol. 33, no. 2,: 135-149.
Moulds R., (2009) Kimberly M. Oman, and Kim Usher “Professional Satisfaction and Dissatisfaction Among Fiji Specialist Trainees: Implications for Preventing Migration” Qualitative Health Research, Vol. 19, No. 9, 1246-1258
Olsen, S.O. (2002) “Comparative evaluation and the relationship between quality, satisfaction, and repurchase loyalty”, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Vol. 30 (3)
Pickett, L. (2003). Transforming the Annual Fiasco, Industrial and Commercial Training. MCB Up Limited, 35 (6), 237-240.
Pink, H. “The Surprising Truth About What Motivates” Us New York, NY: Riverhead: 2009
Poon, J. M. L. (2004). Effects of Performance Appraisal Politics on Job Satisfaction and Turnover Intention. Personnel Review, 33 (3), 322-334.
Sachau, D.A., (2007) ‘Resurrecting the Motivation-Hygiene Theory: Herzberg and the Positive Psychology Movement’, Human Resource Development Review, 6, (4): 377-393.
Schmidt, S. W. (2007). The relationship between satisfaction with workplace training and overall job satisfaction. Human Resource Development Quarterly, 18 (4), 481–498.
Steel, P. & König, C. J. (2006). Integrating Theories of Motivation. Academy of Management Review, 31, 889-913.
Willcoxson & Millett, B. (2000) “The management of organizational culture” Australian Journal of Management & OrganizationalBehavior., Volume 3, No. 2, 91-99
Place this order or similar order and get an amazing discount. USE Discount code “GET20” for 20% discount
The Impact Of Positive Organizational Behavior In The Workplace
Introduction
The comprehension of organizational behavior has been an integral part of the success or wellbeing of any business. It is often defined as any behavior that results from the culture and structure of the organization. For quite a long time, the value of positive organizational behavior had been relegated to the periphery. However, recent times have seen renewed interest in the significance of positivity as a key focus area for research, theory building, as well as application in organizational behavior and psychology. Positive Organizational Behavior (POB) was envisaged by Fred Luthans in early 2000s. Luthans, together with his colleagues, acknowledged that a large number of organizational researchers had concentrated on negative elements of the workplace and ignored the positive ones such as psychological capabilities and strengths of the employee (Luthans et al, 2005). Luthans and colleagues examined self-efficacy, optimism, hope and resiliency as the psychological capabilities that result in positive organizational behavior. However, questions emerge as to the impact that positive organizational behavior (POB) in the workplace has on the performance and productivity of individuals (Luthans et al, 2005). Volumes of literature have been written on this front, trying to explain the impact of POB on productivity and performance in the workplace. These works of literature will be examined, and their findings outlined to answer the question.
Positive Organizational behavior is manifested in various ways including sharing knowledge, good mannerisms and communication, consideration of obstacles as challenges, being empowered and working independently, maintenance of excellent interpersonal relationship among workers, exhibition of enthusiasm and initiative, as well as concentrating on intangible benefits alongside tangible ones (Luthans et al, 2005). In addition, it would involve exhibition of integrity and ethics in the workplace among other things (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000).
Scholars have acknowledged that a positive organizational behavior promotes a culture of openness and learning that allows individual employees to keep abreast and be updated on their skills and expertise, awareness, as well broaden their experience (Isen, 2003). Positive organizational behavior dictates that employers and their employees disseminate information, as well as share knowledge informally and informally with each other (Luthans et al, 2005). Scholars note that employees in such an environment would apply their brains to pondering and thinking above board and beyond the limits (Luthans et al, 2005). There is the cultivation of the culture of challenging every other assumption irrespective of the rank while respecting the variations in opinion, something that results in the emergence of new ideas (Wright, 2003). In this environment, the employees would communicate openly, freely and sincerely with each other, thereby providing for positive reinforcement. POB is a deviation from the common one-upmanship as it involves a situation where competition revolves around the addition to an individual’s intellectual base (Isen, 2003). The employees in such an environment look at obstacles as challenges that should be overcome and, therefore, become risk takers and innovators (Wright, 2003). In instances where they fail, the employees look at setbacks and failures as opportunities for learning and becoming better people than they were. It goes without saying that an individual’s reaction and perspective of failure determines how he handles it in the future, as well as the steps taken to avert their occurrence in the future (Luthans, 2003). Scholars note that the employees in such environments would react to failure and setbacks by examining the predisposing factors for its occurrence and trying to come up with strategies that would avert the possibility of their occurrence in the future, rather than resorting in witch-hunting and vendetta (Luthans, 2003). Researchers note that such an environment is synchronized with the knowledge-based economy of today, where intellectual capital and knowledge brought by human resources in an enterprise or organization are the fundamental drivers that propel the organization to higher heights of glory (Wright, 2003).
In addition, positive organizational behavior (POB) is known to set the standards for reinforcing actions where employees follow these standards voluntarily without cajoling and prompting (Wright, 2003). This underlines the fact that positive organizational behavior is manifested or exhibited via proactive behavior, where employees face challenges head-on, have the big picture in mind when taking, acting or making something, and take the appropriate action or remedy at the appropriate time (Wright & Cropanzano, 2004). This environment, therefore, allows employees to plan ahead, identify areas from which problems may potentially emanate from and nip them in the bud instead of reacting to situations and attempting to solve them after they happen (Luthans & Youssef, 2007). It is worth noting that, employees who have proactive behavior offer the organization the much needed energy and vitality with which they surge ahead and are propelled to greater heights of glory (Luthans et al, 2006). Needless to say, such organizations that are known to encourage employees to undertake proactive behavior have efficient and seamless systems that go beyond the restrictions or limitations of bureaucracy, and leads to better support and service to customers (Luthans & Youssef, 2007). This behavior then sets the standards for the reinforcing actions, which the employees follow voluntarily without pressurization or prompting. Scholars have underlined the fact that employees would only exhibit proactive behavior when they are empowered. They are able to make decisions on their feet without following the restrictions that come with bureaucracy (Zhao & Seibert, 2006). It is worth noting that bureaucracy is often limiting and may reduce customer satisfaction in the services of the organization, something that may reduce the profitability and overall sustainability of the organization (Wright & Cropanzano, 2004). This is what happened to the Southwest Airlines, which allows its employees irrespective of their rank in the organization to make decisions rather than stick to bureaucracy and procedures set in the organization and shift the work to their supervisors (Luthans & Youssef, 2007). This reduces the backlog and allows for higher efficiency, which result in better performance and profitability (Wright & Cropanzano, 2004).
Moreover, positive organizational behavior ensures that every stakeholder in the workplace is provided with his or her due, thereby safeguarding equity in the workplace. It is also known to enhance organizational justice where good initiative and performance attracts rewards while disruptive and unbecoming behavior attracts punishment (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000). Positive organizational behavior allows for inculcation of a sense of fairness and consistency in every employee, thereby allowing for internal equity (Luthans & Youssef, 2007). For example, in instances where a decision has to be made, the decision maker would ensure that the decision satisfies various filters including fairness to all the stakeholders, legality, and the effects of the decision on the decision maker’s conscience (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000). Managers who apply the filter in making decisions, for instance, pertaining to layoffs may realize that eliminating employees is only a temporary solution to a symptom of an underlying problem (Luthans et al, 2006). In essence, he would apply positive organizational behavior and face the challenge by identifying other avenues or techniques of eliminating the problem, as well as seek other opportunities in the modified scenario (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000).
Scholars note that the positive workplace experience and relationship fostered by the positive organizational behavior has a bearing on the quality of services offered to clients, and, therefore, customer satisfaction (Luthans et al, 2006). It is worth noting that satisfied employees carry out their duties and tasks with enhanced commitment, motivation and vigor, resulting in happier customers. Scholars note that customers have the capacity to point out dissatisfied employees thanks to the lackadaisical attitude that they exhibit (Vancouver et al, 2002).
Positive organizational behavior allows for incorporation of ethics, which ensures that every stakeholder gets his or her due (Wright, 2003). Organizations that are made up of individuals with inadequate regard for ethics and ethical considerations often have too much inequality (Isen, 2003). This, in turn, results in the breakdown of communication, bureaucratic hurdles, and one-upmanship techniques in which the customer is not prioritized (Vancouver et al, 2002). In such instances, no one would be willing to take responsibility for any action, which results in a dysfunctional organization (Luthans & Youssef, 2007). It goes without saying that positive organizational behavior ensures that employees inculcate superior performance and enhances deliverance of results, thereby allowing for the modification of organizations into learning environments that are built on internal fairness and equity for all the stakeholders (Vancouver et al, 2002). The learning environment would allow for personal growth of employees, something that ensures that they give their best and safeguards the flexibility of the organization (Luthans et al, 2006).
On the same note, positive organizational behavior allows for the development of certain traits such as group support, respect, encouragement and trust, as well as constructive feedback. This mainly takes place via the effects of the positive social influences that establish a can-do attitude that results in psychological arousal (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000). Scholars note that the psychological arousal promotes the growth of positive emotions, as well as cognitions that can enlarge or broaden an individual’s range of potential actions. They would also assist in the establishment of physical, intellectual, psychological and social influences that have been directly associated with productive work (Zhao & Seibert, 2006). In essence, the establishment of positive organizational behavior promotes the establishment of a supportive organizational culture that enhances productivity of individuals.
In conclusion, there has been increased interest in positive organizational behavior, in the recent times. However, questions emerge as to how it impacts on the workplace and the overall productivity or performance of individuals in the organization. Research shows that positive organizational behavior allows for the growth of ethics in the organization, which ensures that every stakeholder gets what is due to him or her (Luthans et al, 2005). In addition, it fosters the growth of certain traits such as group support, respect, encouragement and trust, as well as constructive feedback, all of which have a bearing on productivity of the workers (Zhao & Seibert, 2006). On the same note, scholars have acknowledged that a positive organizational behavior promotes a culture of openness and learning that allows individual employees to keep abreast and be updated on their skills and expertise, awareness, as well broaden their experience. Positive organizational behavior (POB) has also been seen to set the standards for reinforcing actions where employees follow these standards voluntarily without cajoling and prompting (Wright & Cropanzano, 2004). This underlines the fact that positive organizational behavior is manifested or exhibited via proactive behavior, where employees face challenges head-on, have the big picture in mind when taking, acting or making something, and take the appropriate action at the appropriate time (Vancouver et al, 2002). It goes without saying that positive organizational behavior allows for the establishment of conducive environment for growth of employees and the enhancement of the organization’s profitability, thanks to enhanced employee performance (Luthans & Youssef, 2007).
I acknowledge that the research done by the authors of the literary works consulted may be limited in terms of data or even the methods that they used. However, it is worth noting that they are authored by experts and scholars in the fields of management, in which case they have authority in the respective fields.
Author’s summary
As much as there may be loopholes in the research done, I agree with the research findings, and the conclusions reached. I have always acknowledged that the productivity of the workers is directly tied to the environment within which they work, as well as the how well they are allowed to own the organization. It goes without saying that positive allows employees to have the initiative and satisfaction in their work, thereby allowing for enhanced productivity.
References
Zhao, H., & Seibert, S. E. (2006). The big five personality dimensions and entrepreneurial status: A meta-analytical review. Journal of Applied Psychology, 91: 259-271.
Luthans, F., Avolio, B. J., Walumbwa, F. O., & Li, W. (2005). The psychological capital of Chinese workers: Exploring the relationship with performance. Management and Organization Review, 1, 249–271.
Luthans, F & Youssef, C.M (2007). Emerging Positive Organizational Behavior. Journal of Management 33:3. pp. 321-349;
Wright, T. A., & Cropanzano, R. (2004). The role of psychological well-being in job performance. Organizational Dynamics, 33: 338-351
Seligman, M. E. P., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology. American Psychologist, 55, 5–15.
Vancouver, J., Thompson, C., Tischner, E., & Putka, D. (2002). Two studies examining the negative effect of self-efficacy on performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87: 506-516.
Wright, T. A (2003). Positive organizational behavior: an idea whose time has truly come. Journal of Organizational Behavior 24, 437–442 (2003)
Luthans, F. (2003). Positive organizational behavior: implications for leadership and HR development and motivation. In “Motivation and work behavior” (pp. 178–195). New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.
Luthans, F., Avey, J. B., Avolio, B. J., Norman, S. M., & Combs, G. M. (2006). Psychological capital development: Toward a micro-intervention. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 27, 387–393.
Isen, A. M. (2003). Positive affect as a source of human strength. In “A psychology of human strengths: Fundamental questions and future directions for a positive psychology”. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Place this order or similar order and get an amazing discount. USE Discount code “GET20” for 20% discount
The effects of workplace diversity on performance management system in the United Arab Emirates
Abstract
Workplace diversity is one of the challenges that most organizations’ human resource professionals face, in effectively managing its employees’ performance (Christian, Moffitt, and Porter, 2006) . New ideas have evolved concerning the performance management of diverse cultural environment within organizations. The modern work force (unlike the earlier workforce) is very varied in terms of composition due to changes in demographic factors like economic globalization and immigration (Ibid, 2006). This study aims at exploring the effects of workplace diversity on performance management of multinational organizations operating in UAE. The study will take into account the different definitions of diversity as defined in modern literature, and investigate the challenges encountered by the multinational corporations in the UAE, in their efforts to effectively control and manage their diverse human resources. This research will take a descriptive approach in investigating the relationship between workplace diversity and performance management among multinational organizations operating in UAE, using semi-structured interviews and self-administered questionnaire. This study hopes to contribute to the existing body of literature relating to performance management and workplace diversity, and hopefully give suggestions to organizations on how to effectively manage the performance of its diverse workforce.
Introduction
Past studies that have attempted to explore the connection between workplace diversity and performance management (e.g. Cox & Blake 2010; Van Knippenberg & Schippers, 2007) have argued that workplace diversity determines organizational effectiveness, has an impact on the organization’s ability to attract and retain qualified human resources, has an impact on organizational innovation and creativity among other issues.
As Christian, Moffitt, and Porter (2006:14) quote it, “Workplace diversity is one of the central elements that are common, ongoing in modern management and organizational performance”. New ideas have evolved concerning the performance management of diverse cultural environment within organizations. This concept has been characterized by challenges, especially how to effectively manage these diversities within the working environment. Workplace diversity phenomenon has captured corporate world’s attention given the fact that it is often characterized by socio-political and human resource administration’s patronage.
Research Problem
Majority of the big companies operating in the UAE employ a workforce that comprises of UAE nationals and expats from around the world, characterized by mixed age groups, gender, and race, which presents a challenge to the human resource management domain. For this reason, multinational organizations devote much of their resources to diversity training as a way of increasing the productive capacity of the organization through embracing workplace diversity (Guzzo, & Dickson, 2006). Therefore, this study will attempt to answer the central question: What are the effects of workplace diversity on performance management systems of multinational organizations operating in the United Arab Emirates?
This research will also be guided by the following sub-questions:
What fundamental changes are required in an organization operating in the UAE’s performance management system in order to take advantage of diversity in the workplace?
What are the possible disadvantages of employing a diverse workforce?
Research Interest
The study is very interesting because various past studies have demonstrated and showed that workplace diversity has a multifaceted effect on organization’s functions and processes. For instance, Steel and König (2006) note that harnessing employee motivation and empowerment are essential elements of ensuring effective management and improved performance in employee productivity, and achieving these aspects of workplace dynamics can be a great challenge to the manager in several ways, specifically, with consideration to the more culturally diverse nature of the modern workforce. The aspect of globalization and the spirit of global village have integrally played a major part in defining many aspects of modern organization management, yet they are relatively young. Workplace diversity in the United Arab Emirates has grown relatively fast in over a short period of time. Many companies have been very creative in introducing human resource policies to cater to its diverse workforce. Having worked and lived in the Middle East now for the past 7 years, I have seen and experienced so many HR practices from different companies that promote diversity in the workplace, while others maintain a one size fits all HR policies to its diverse workforce. Therefore, it is worth investigating how these realities interplay to influence human resource management practices of multinational organizations in the UAE.
Theoretical Framework
The underlying literature on the performance management within workplace diversity mainly entails two major bodies of work that focuses on the advancement of the conceptual frameworks for comprehension of diversity and its corresponding effects on the organizational behavior and performance. Workplace diversity is normally depicted as a more multifaceted, controversial and corresponding political portents (Roberson, 2013). It is normally conceptualized from numerous perceptions. Wang and King (2009) states that the concept of diversity ought to be constrained to particular cultural categories, namely race and gender. Diversity is mainly based on the race, ethnicity and corresponding gender that cannot be comprehended within the similar men in line with the diversity of the governmental functions, capabilities and cognitive locations (Wang and King, 2009). Moreover, the main issues that pertain to diversity are contemporary because of discernment and the segregation of the cultural groups from old-fashioned organizations (Konrad, 2006).
Karsten (2006), explains that empirical assistance for the prevailing assumption stipulates that all existing dimensions pertaining to diversity results to negative impacts thus confirming the emphasis of the social categorization, which depicts the resemblances and dissimilarities that lead to the classifications thereby favoring individual’s in-group to the harm of the out-group social.
Underlying empirical evidences, notwithstanding the controversy of the positive association amidst workplace diversity and organizational performance, pertains to the evidence for managing workplace diversity possessing antagonistic implications (Konrad, 2006). Assessment of the effect of diversity upon businesses raise question concerning the presence of any connection amidst workplace diversity and occupational performance. The underlying business benefits of the workplace diversity have been extensively contested because of the apprehended idea (Karsten, 2006).
Demographic factors such as immigration coupled with economic factors especially globalization, have played a major part in influencing organizational policies of multinationals operating within UAE. As United Arab Emirates has grown into an important economic hub in the Middle East region and in the world, immigration of workers has played a major role in bringing in people from various regions of the world to work in the multinational organizations that have increased their presence in the Gulf nation. Simons and Rowland (2011) conducted a study to investigate how diversity in multinational organizations impact the performance of its workforce in the Emirates, and note that one of the greatest challenges is the lack of clear distinction between functional and non-functional types of diversity. The authors further point out that functional diversity within the multinational organizations in the UAE has led to increased effective functional or employee innovation (Ibid, 2011).
Research Methodology
The study will offer an explanation of the type of data to be included in the study. It will define the research population and desired study sample. In addition, methods of data collection, analysis, and sampling techniques will be discussed in details.
The study will adopt a qualitative research design to achieve the intended research objectives. In addition, it will adopt a case study approach by focusing on HSBC Bank in United Arab Emirates. Semi-structured interviews will be used to achieve the data collection objective. Under this research design, data and relevant information will be collected using semi-structured interview administered to carefully selected managers of HSBC Bank in UAE (Jehn, &Bezrukova, 2004).
The participants for this study will be drawn from HSBC Bank, which is a multinational banking institution operating in United Arabs Emirates. The participants will be workers and managers of these selected multinational corporations. A total of twenty participants will interviewed in the semi-structured interview, and will be randomly selected. The sample selection process will depend on the population size, cost, degree of precision, sample media, and homogeneity (Van Knippenberg, &Schippers, 2011). The random sampling method will be preferred because it gives equal opportunity to all the participants to form the final sample for the study (Khan, 2011). Secondly, random sampling will be desirable given the fact that it is economical.
This study will rely on both primary and secondary data. Secondary data that entail already made available information pertaining to the subject of the study will be collected from secondary journals, books, company websites, internet, newspapers, among other secondary data sources that are perceived as reliable and credible (Stergaard, Timmermans, &Kristinsson, 2011). Primary data on the other hand will be collected through self-administered questionnaires and interviews schedules. This method of data collection is preferred over the rest since it aids in the provision of primary data that are more effective and reliable for the study (Khan, 2011).
Since this study is qualitative and quantitative, inferential and descriptive statistics will be used to analyze the collective data. Qualitative data collected in the study will specifically be analyzed using grounded theory methods. Open coding will be used to categorize and name the data, while selected code will be used to develop a more generalized framework to the study (Schneider, &Northcraft, 2009). Quantitative data on the other hand will be analyzed using SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) version 21 (Pitts, et al. 2010). The relationship will be presented using regression, correlation, and measures of central tendency. Besides, the data collected through self-administered questionnaires, and the results of the interview schedules will be classified on the basis of common attributes and then tallied to obtain statistical frequencies. The data will be presented using tables, graphs, and charts. The research hypotheses will be tested using a regression model between the dependent and independent variable and also using t-statistics to determine the acceptance or rejection rule (Khan, 2011).
Informed consent and privacy measures
Data collection will be performed through face to face means and therefore bringing in the issue of face to face contact with the respondents. For this reason, assurances will be made to ensure that the identity of the individuals are not revealed, since the names and other demographic aspects of the respondents will be based on general limits, such as age groups. Similarly, the responses to the questionnaire will be used for academic purposes and for this survey only. The responses to the questions will also be based on the perceptions of the individuals and not a representation of the views and reality at the HSBC Bank. As a result, any assertions based on this study should be considered under the existing parameters in order to validate their reliability. When carrying out any type of research study, the researcher has to take into account the ethical matters concerning the study’s participants and their rights. For this proposed research study, the researcher shall take the indispensable precautions to guarantee that participants’ rights are not violated. As it is always a standard for most scientific undertakings of the nature similar to the proposed project, the researcher shall obtain informed consent from all participants before proceeding with the study. A consent form will be made part of every data gathering instrument used and such as surveys and interviews or questionnaires; parental consent will not be applicable because all the respondents expected to take part in the study shall be sampled for age above 18 years. The principle rationale of the consent form will be to clearly describe the objective and benefits of the research being carried out. The form will make it clear to the participants that by giving consent; the respondents will be volunteering to be part of the research study, although they will also be informed that they may terminate their contribution at any time based on any grounds without consequence. In addition, the participant-approval forms will inform the participants concerning their discretion and privacy, risks and merits of the research study, and whom to get in touch with for answers to enquiries regarding the research undertaking and participants’ rights. For the above highlighted reasons, the following shall be vividly stressed throughout the study:
This research ensures anonymity of respondents by asking them not to give personal details. They are free to ignore any question they think can compromise on this
The data will be kept under safe conditions so that it can be protected as much as possible
All respondents will be of the age of consent
Respondents can withdraw from the research at any time of their choice
Based on these understandings, the following consemnt form is formulated for the purpose of the study data collection process:
Dear participant, I am a Masters student undertaking a study to investigate The effects of workplace diversity on performance management system in the United Arab Emirates and I have chosen your organization for the purpose of fulfilling data collection exercise. This study is essential for me to accomplish my education and academic aspirations and therefore your participation is highly appreciated. I take this early opportunity to assure you that your participation in the data collection exercise is absolutely voluntary and you can opt out of it at any stage of the exercise without giving reason or notice. I also guarantee that the information collected from the study will be treated with utmost confidentiality and will only be used for academic purposes. no personal information will be collected. Thank you for your participation.
Reflection
There are a number of conceptual obstacles relating to this proposed study. One of my concerns is the size and access to my sample, which may not a representative of all the multinational organizations operating in the UAE. In addition to that, limited time is also one of the obstacles I have now, as I am pressured to finish my MBA program before the first quarter of 2015, which is the deadline for me to complete the program. Another important practical and empirical obstacle that I can identify is validating the data and the skills that I need acquire/learn in a fairly short time for the data analysis.
The self-administered questionnaire may be advantageous in that they sometimes provide privacy to encourage more honest responses. However, there might be some issues of accuracy and truthfulness associated with the use of self-administered questionnaire, which have been discussed in past studies. Since I will be sending the self-administered questionnaire to my contacts on linked & emails, where I do not have any means to know whether it was the intended person or not who completed the questionnaire, is definitely an area of concern for me. To address these issues, I intend to select people that I know quite well, and get referrals from friends and family of people who are willing to participate in the survey. Additionally, in order to generate more truthful answers, I also intend to construct similar questions that are repeated at different places in the questionnaire or that indirect and follow-up questions be used where required. Furthermore, questions in the survey can also be wrongly understood or interpreted by the respondent. It is proposed to use proven questions on the performance management, employment equity and senses constructs, which have been used in previous studies to avoid language and interpretation issues. Similar to past studies, I also intend to carry out a pilot survey to verify the correct understanding of the questions and layout of the questionnaire prior to the actual distribution of questionnaires.
Another possible issue is the potential bias introduced by the use of non-probability sampling methods such as convenience sampling. Secondary and primary data sampling are proposed to address the ethics of research as far as possible. It is to be noted that a low response rate for a probability sample can also add bias to the data since the sample no longer represents the target population.
I have created a timescale for this study which will guide & remind me on what to complete between now and until February 2015.
I intend to conduct my study in accordance to the code of ethics in academic research. A non-disclosure of identity agreement will be distributed to all participants of the study. I will also ensure that I will not distort or influence the answers of participants in the interview or survey at any time.
In spite of that many possible obstacles of this study, I am still positive that, since my topic, I believe, is a well-researched area, it should help me in gaining adequate information for the research, and be able to produce a study that may still add to the existing body of literature on workplace diversity and performance management.
Conclusion
Current demographic and economic trends around the world have contributed to a very diverse workforce in the United Arab Emirates and the resulting workplace diversity has without doubt affected many management processes of the multinational organizations operating in the country. Among these processes, performance management is very vital. Understanding the relationship between workplace diversity and performance management has the potential to reform the multinational organizations in ways that will allow the human resource domain to get workplace diversity to work to the advantage of the business. The significance of workplace diversity in determining many aspects such as the organization’s ability to attract and retain qualified human resources, organizational innovation and creativity among other issues provides strong philosophical support and justification for the study.
Timescale research planning
August – October 2014
Write my dissertation proposal/one to one session w/ dissertation tutor on blackboard/ one to one session with tutor arranged by Stafford Dubai
01-15 November 2014
Literature review/Gather references/Note taking
16-25 November 2014
Design and creation of interview questions and self-administered questionnaire
26-31 November 2014
Send out invitation/book appointment for interview /Pilot test questionnaire and interview
01-15 December 2014
Amend interview questions/questionnaire/Send out invitation/Book appointment for interview and get confirmation from respondents/ Send out & self-administered questionnaire
16-23 December 2014
Collection of questionnaire results/ Interview people who confirmed their participation/Re-send some more questionnaire if necessary/
23-30 December 2014
Collection of additional results/Work with results and start writing the dissertation paper
01-30 January 2015
Write dissertation paper
01-15 February 2015
Write dissertation paper
16-28 February 2015
Submission of dissertation paper
References
Brickson, S. (2010). The impact of identity orientation on individual and organizational
outcomes in demographically diverse settings. The Academy of Management Review, 25 (1), 82-
101.
Christian, J., Porter, L. W. & Moffitt, G. (2006). Workplace diversity and group relations: An
overview. Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 9 (4), 459-466.
Clegg, S., & Cooper, C. L. (2009).The SAGE handbook of organizational behaviour.Volume 2,
Volume 2.Los Angeles, SAGE.
Cox, T. (2013). Cultural diversity in organization theory, research, and practice. San Francisco,
Calif, Berrett-Koehler.
Cox, T. H., & Blake, S. (2010). Managing cultural diversity: Implications for organizational
Competitiveness.Executive, 5 (3), 45-56.
Friedrich, T. L., Mumford, M. D., Vessey, B., Beeler, C. K., & Eubanks, D. L. (2010). Leading
For innovation: Reevaluating leader influences on innovation with regard to innovation type and
Complexity.International Studies of Management & Organization, 40 (2), 6-29.
Guzzo, R. A., & Dickson, M. W. (2006). Teams in organizations: Recent research on performance and effectiveness. Annual Review of Psychology, 47 (1), 307-338.
Hoboken, N.J., J. Wiley & Sons.Hasenfeld, Y. (2009). Human services as complex
Organizations. London, SAGE.
Horwitz, S. K. (2005). The compositional impact of team diversity on performance: Theoretical
Considerations.Human Resource Development Review, 4 (2), 219-245.
Jehn, K. A., &Bezrukova, K. (2004). A field study of group diversity, Workgroup context, and
Performance.Journal of Organizational Behaviour, 25 (6), 703-729.
Karsten, M. F. (2006). Organizational practices and individual strategies for women and
Minorities. Westport, Conn. [U.a.], Praeger.
Kiedrowski, P. Jay (2009). “Performance Management System for MN.”Unpublished notes.
Khan, J. A. (2011).Research Methodology. New Delhi, APH Publishing Corporation, 65-130.
Konrad, A. M. (2006). Cases in gender and diversity in organizations. Thousand Oaks,
California, Sage.
Konrad, A. M. (2006). Handbook of performance management within workplacediversity.
London [u.a.], Sage Publ.
National Performance Management Advisory Commission. (2010). “A Performance
Management Framework for State and Local Government: From Measurement and Reporting to
Management and Improving,” June, 2010, 1-73.
Pitts, D. W., Hicklin, A. K., Hawes, D. P., & Melton, E. (2010). What drives the implementation
Of diversity management programs?Evidence from public organizations.Journal of Public
Administration Research & Theory, 20(4), 867-886.
Roberson, Q. M. (2013). The Oxford handbook of diversity and work. New York, Oxford University Press.
Schneider, S. K., &Northcraft, G. B. (2009). Three social dilemmas of workforce diversity in
Organizations: A social identity perspective. Human Relations, 52 (11), 1445-1467.
Stahl, G. K., &BjöRkman, I. (2006).Handbook of research in international human resource
Management.Cheltenham, UK, E. Elgar Pub.
Stergaard, C. R., Timmermans, B., &Kristinsson, K. (2011). Does a different view, create something new? The effect of employee diversity on innovation.Research Policy, 40 (3), 500-509.
Van Knippenberg, D., &Schippers, M. C. (2007). Work group diversity. Annual Review of
Psychology, 58 (1), 515-541.
Wang, V. C. X., & King, K. P. (2009).The fundamentals of human performance and training.
Charlotte, NC, Information Age Pub.
Appendix: Interview Questions for Workplace Diversity and Performance Management Implementation in United Arab Emirates
1. Kindly indicate your Age bracket
18 – 25 2. 26 – 35
3. 36 – 45 4. 46 – 55 5. 56 and above
2. Your gender
Male 2. Female
3. Do you test your assumptions about workplace prior to acting on them?
Yes
No
4. Do you believe there is only one right way of doing things, or that there are a number of valid ways that accomplish the same goal?
Yes
No
5. If yes in 4 above, do you convey that to staff?
Yes
No
6. Rate your relationships with each staff member you supervise based on the scale below and based on their cultural background
1. Extremely Honest
2. Very Honest
3. Honest
4. Somewhat Honest
5. Not Honest At All
7. Are you comfortable with each of the staff members you supervise?
Yes
No
8. Do you know what motivates them, what their goals are, how they like to be recognized?
9. What role do you play in ensuring the organization embraces values of a diverse workforce?
10. What are some of the skills you need to achieve the role above?
Place this order or similar order and get an amazing discount. USE Discount code “GET20” for 20% discount
Healthy relationships form the basis for a positive workplace. When staff are engaged in their jobs, supported by one another, and feel a sense of security in their work, healthy relationships among staff members will flourish. Nurse managers can assess the workplace for healthy relationships by observing the interactions among staff members. Are trust, respect, and collegiality evident, or might some staff members display toxic or dysfunctional behaviors toward one another? When toxic or dysfunctional behaviors are evident even among the smallest cohort of staff, nurse managers must take steps to foster positive interactions. In fact, all other efforts to establish a positive workplace will likely fall short if they are not built on the foundation of healthy interpersonal relationships. In this Discussion, you examine the interactions between employees at your current organization or one with which you are familiar. You also explore positive psychology, a theory of well-being that has helped many workplaces to increase positivity and foster healthy relationships among staff members.
To prepare
Review Chapter 2, ?Cultivating the Leadership Relationship? in the course text, From Management to Leadership: Strategies for Transforming Health Care. Examine how leaders cultivate healthy relationships among all staff members.
Review the article, ?Using Positive Psychology to Engage Your Staff during Difficult Times.? How can positive psychology foster healthy workplace relationships and increase staff engagement? Reflect on the interactions you see in your own organization or in one with which you are familiar. What relationships do you observe across different job categories, such as RNs, LPNs, techs, and nursing assistants? Do relationship disparities exist between shifts, departments, or members of different disciplines, such as nursing staff and physicians?
Identify environments where unhealthy relationships most commonly occur. What leadership strategies might you use to build healthy relationships among these specific staff members? Furthermore, how could you apply positive psychology to increase positivity in this environment?
Post an explanation of at least two leadership strategies you could implement to build healthy relationships among staff members in the workplace you selected. Cite specific examples in your explanation by identifying the staff members you would target and explaining how your strategies would foster healthy interactions among these staff members. In addition, suggest at least one positive psychology strategy you could employ to increase the ratio of positive to negative interactions in your workplace; explain your rationale.
Read a selection of your colleagues? responses and Respond to at least two of your colleagues on two different days using one or more of the following approaches:
Validate an idea with your own experience and additional research. Share a strategy your health care setting used to build healthy workplace relationships. Provide additional insights into how positive psychology could help to increase positivity in a colleague?s workplace.
Required Readings
Lussier, R. N., & Hendon, J. R. (2016). Human resource management: Functions, applications, & skill development (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Chapter 14, ?Workplace Safety, Health, and Security? (pp. 526?558) The authors analyze the many factors that contribute to and affect workplace safety. They provide techniques for stress management and how to handle violence in the workplace. Manion, J. (2011). From management to leadership: Strategies for transforming health care (3rd ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Chapter 1, ?Leadership: An Elusive Concept? (pp. 1?30) Chapter 1 provides a thoughtful comparison between the functions of management and leadership. It highlights leadership best practices and leaders as change agents.
Chapter 2, ?Cultivating the Leadership Relationship? (pp. 31?68) This chapter explains how effective leaders cultivate healthy relationships with staff members. The author discusses key leadership characteristics as well as the four essential elements of a healthy leadership relationship: trust, mutual respect, support, and communication.
Chapter 4, ?Communicating with Clarity? (115?179) Chapter 4 describes the many aspects of communication and how each can affect relationships within the workplace. It includes common forms of miscommunication and tips for becoming a more effective communicator and listener.
Chapter 7, ?Coaching and Developing Others? (pp. 295?307 only) The selected pages from Chapter 7 examine the misconceptions many leaders have about individual motivations. The author discusses workplace and work-life factors that influence employee motivation. Achor, S. (2012). Positive intelligence. Harvard Business Review, 90(1/2), 100?102. Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.
This article explores the theory that happiness precedes success. The author discusses three basic strategies that people can use to improve their mental well-being and performance at work. Morse, G. (2012). The science behind the smile: Interview with Daniel Gilbert. Harvard Business Review, 90(1/2), 84?90. Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.
In this interview, Daniel Gilbert discusses how happiness affects productivity at work. He also explains what makes people happy and how people can achieve it. Muha, T. M., & Manion, J. (2010). Using positive psychology to engage your staff during difficult times. Nurse Leader, 8(1), 50?54. Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.
Muha and Manion address the vacancies left behind by aging baby boomers and a poor economy. Hospitals must create a positive work environment for the younger nurses who will fill those vacancies. University of Pennsylvania. (2007). Positive Psychology Center. Retrieved from http://ppc.sas.upenn.edu/ At the Positive Psychology website, you can explore the foundations of the positive psychology movement. Required Media Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2012). Fostering a positive workplace. Baltimore, MD: Author.
Note: The approximate length of this media piece is 11 minutes.
Nurses can engage in many strategies that will motivate and foster happiness in their workers. This week?s media reviews these strategies and highlights how nurses can encourage retention efforts in health care settings.
Place this order or similar order and get an amazing discount. USE Discount code “GET20” for 20% discount
