Hoctief research

Hoctief

Impact of employee turnover on the overall performance of Hoctief Construction Company Ltd.

Research By Andy Price

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CONTENTSResearch topic..........................................................................................................................1

Contents...................................................................................................................................2

1. TITLE.....................................................................................................................................4

2. INTRODUCTION & BACKGROUND.............................................................................................4

3. RESEARCH CONTEXT.............................................................................................................4

3.1 Context and Rational..........................................................................................................4

3.1.1 Problems Faced by Hoctief Group......................................................................4

3.1.2 Purpose for the Research....................................................................................5

3.2 Research Question .............................................................................................................5

3.3 Research Aim....................................................................................................................... 6

3.4 Research Objectives..............................................................................................................6

3.5 Research Hypothesis.............................................................................................................6

4. PRELIMINARY LITERATURE REVIEW..........................................................................................6

5. METHODOLOGY......................................................................................................................8

5.1 Chosen Methodology.........................................................................................................8

5.2 Evaluation of Methodology..............................................................................................10

5.3 Limitations of Methodology.............................................................................................10

6. APPROACH To CONCLUSIONS..........................................................................................11

6.1 Research Design................................................................................................................. 11

6.2 Data Collection.................................................................................................................12

6.2 Data Analysis....................................................................................................................14

7. RESOURCES AND TIME SCALE............................................................................................14

7.1 Resources ..........................................................................................................................14

7.2 Time Scale..........................................................................................................................15

8. SECONDARY & PRIMARY DATA ANALYSIS..........................................................................16

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8.1 Analysis of Secondary Data Findings................................................................................16

8.2 Analysis of Primary Data Findings.....................................................................................18

8.2.1 Analysis of Quantitative data.............................................................................18

8.2.2 Analysis of Qualitative data...............................................................................27

8.3 Evaluation of Methodology..............................................................................................29

9. CONCLUSION......................................................................................................................29

10. RECOMMENDATIONS..........................................................................................................30

REFERENCES........................................................................................................................... 31

APPENDIX

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RESEARCH PROPOSAL

1. TITLEImpact of employee turnover on the overall performance of Hoctief Construction Company Ltd.

By definition (Kevin et al, 2004) Structured organizations maintain and retain employees by investing a lot in terms of inducting, developing and training their employees. Therefore, management should control high rates of employee turnover at all costs.

There is no particular or specific paradigm for knowing that what actually is the turnover process as a whole rather there are various factors that contribute while understanding employee turnover. Controlling employee turnover is great challenge for managers of all organizations therefore, managers must fully be aware of the causes of employee turnover and should than develop appropriate strategies minimize turnover.

2. INTRODUCTION & BACKGROUNDThis report presents the reasons for the employee turnover at Hoctief Group and its effect on the overall performance and productivity of the company.

The report initially presents descriptive study and analysis of the reasons and importance of employee turnover. Although there are numerous factors that can lead to higher rates of turnover but our report shall focus on the following research variables including organizational commitment, an employee’s satisfaction level with the salary, organizational working environment, motivational factors, management’s attitude while dealing with employee behaviours, workload and stress, and training and development opportunities. Results were analyzed graphically and descriptive analysis was applied.

There is a discussion about Hoctief Group that the company is facing difficulty in getting out the desired level of productivity due to high level of employee turnover. A triangle of methods are used in this research. The research adopts the mix-method research methodology of both the quantitative and qualitative approaches.

In order to minimize employee turnover the data collection & analysis techniques are designed accordingly. All findings are well briefed and strategies are recommended with a well defined methodology.

3. RESEARCH CONTEXT

3.1 Context and Rational

3.1.1 Problems Faced by Hoctief GroupAccording to Hoctief, the building and construction is a tough job and it requires expertise, both physical and mental strength and ability to stay focus in their work. Due to high risk of work hazards at construction sites the motivational level of individual workers would

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definitely be high. The health of employees is also at stake and dangerous accidents can happen if they do not obey with company rules and regulations provided by the company.

Some of the employees who work on sites have de motivation and having job dissatisfaction as they complain that they work in unhealthy environment considering the heat and rain, dust and other chemical substances that they can inhale, stress and pressure of project deadlines, lack of proper accommodation during assignments and insufficient meals medicines and first aid on sites.

According to employees who work on sites food and allowances for their basic hygiene and necessity should also be taken in consideration so that they can sleep well during night and so that their conditions for the next day will be reinforced.

The company’s strategy and performance in the long term can be affected by persistent de-motivation amongst employees. Employees may seek alternatives and it will increase turn over. This can be worth thinking as company spends lots of time & costs in training employees and it’s really hard to find quality resources in current competitive market.

3.1.2 Purpose for the ResearchSome of the staff at Hoctief Group has performance issues as they are de motivated due to a few reasons and it will affect the company’s organizational objectives in the long run. Our research will help the company to achieve its strategic objective and keeping the employees morale high, so that they become high performance employees that will ultimately increase the company’s performance. Reasons for employee turnover affecting company’s performance from the study of most literatures are as follows:

Employee turnover is more likely to be minimized when organizations maintain a conventional work environment (Zuber, 2001).

Lower turnover rates of staff are enjoyed by organizations with strong communication systems (Labov, 1997).

Job performance increases with an employee’s high morale which eventually increases company performance (Bowles and Cooper, 2009).

If higher turnover rates are not managed and controlled appropriately than the organizations profitability can be seriously affected. (Hogan, 1992; Wasmuth and Davis, 1993; Barrows, 1990).

As per expectancy theory the impact of monetary incentives to decrease turnover (Armstrong, 2009).

3.2 Research QuestionWhat is the impact of employee turnover on the overall performance of the company?

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3.3 Research Aim To study the impact of employee turnover on the overall performance of the

company.

3.4 Research Objectives To determine the current causes of employee turnover.

To measure the effects of employee turnover on company’s performance.

To investigate the measure’s to minimize employee turnover in order to increase the company’s performance.

3.5 Research HypothesisIf turnover is related to the overall performance of the company, then minimizing the employee turnover will increase the performance of the company.

4. PRELIMINARY LITERATURE REVIEWWhen an employer loses employees it is termed as employee turnover. Turnover can be voluntary and involuntary.

Price(1977), Mobley(1982) and Reggio(2003) states that “Turnover is defined as the cessation of membership in an organization by an individual and their movement out of an organization. Voluntary and involuntary turnover are commonly distinguished”.

According to them if an employee is asked to leave the company by the employer it is termed as involuntary turnover in which the employee himself is not desirable to quit the company, whereas when an employee leaves a company by his own desire it is called voluntary turnover. Voluntary turnover can impose financial burdens to the employer not just be losing a valuable employee but also increasing the recruitment and training cost of another new hire. Companies who develop policies and strategies to cope up with employee turnover can excel financially and can increase their performance by retaining best employees with the company for a longer time. Job dissatisfaction is considered as the primary factor of voluntary turnover.

Dalton and Todor(1979) and Bluedorn(1982) have convincingly stated that turnover can effect the performance of an employee in a negative way . According to Dalton and Todor(1979) “Turnover is referred to as a clear cut act of behavior that has potentially critical consequences for both the organization and the person”.

Nevertheless, “turnover of employees disrupts teams, raises costs, reduces production, and results in lost knowledge” as according to Mustapha and Mourad (2007). They stated that a major problem company’s face as a result of higher turnover rates is increase in training and recruitment of newly hired employees which give rise to a lot of work place problems which may disturb the ongoing key activities and projects

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Argote and Epple (1990), Nelson and Winter(1982), Polanyi(1966) states that turnover can result in “the loss of an employee’s accumulated experience”. According to their research when an employee initiates to leave, the company might not suffer economically that much but may lack an employee who can add a lot to the overall productivity and performance of the organization.

In contrast to the above views, Roseman (1981) has given positive point of view about employee turnover. He is of the view that turnover gives rise to a change process which is beneficial for the organization in the terms that new people bring in fresh and innovative ideas along with them that can lead a company to a different dimension.

In his study Roseman(1981) stated that” The movement of employees in and out of an organization is however able to revitalize an organization”. According to him when old employees leave the company, they are replaced by employees with enhanced and improved skills and knowledge, bringing in new and innovative ideas. The most obvious positive consequence is replacement of better performers in the organizations. Turnover may also be able to reduce cost by eliminating or merging vacant positions as high-priced talent may be traded for lower-priced talent with equal capabilities”.

After reviewing different literatures, the arguments presented by Dalton and Todor(1979) and Bluedorn(1982) can be agreed. In my opinion employee turnover can impose serious impacts on the workplace environment and employee relationships.

Another research conducted by McGarvey(1997) states “Turnover also helps to clear out the deadwood”. Besides only imposing negative effects turnover can also be helpful in getting rid of employees who are not adding any value to the company productivity and are just there in the company to add to its financial burden.

Abelson and Baysinger (1984), Mowday(1982) and Staw(1980) also present their views in favor of employee turnover. They have suggested that organizations can actually benefit from the innovative thinking and increased motivation and zeal that new employees bring along with them to perform any particular job that can ultimately add to the overall performance of any organization.

Similarly Staw (1980) also claims that turnover can be used as a tool for conflict resolution, it can actually help to resolve various tough conflicts amongst employees which otherwise can cause serious problems for employers.

I also favor Abelson and Baysinger (1984) point of view that newer employees bring in energy and zeal to boost up company performance.

“These conflicting views concerning the effects of turnover suggest that one must not view turnover as a monolithic concept, but rather as a contingent phenomenon. The relevant question thus becomes not whether turnover has positive or negative effects on performance, but rather under what conditions it is more harmful or beneficial to the firm” states Osterman (1987). I am also convinced by Osterman’s point of view that turnover is

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conditional it varies in different conditions but the underlying focus must be that company performance must not suffer.

I favor for Argote and Epple (1990), Nelson and Winter(1982), Polanyi(1966) that every employee is somehow adding value to the company and when an employee leaves a company it is a loss for the company as a new employee can be motivated and innovative but can lack the specialized experience as already gained by the departing employee.

‘Various studies have found out that the dimensions along which employee turnover’s impacts the company performance are as follows:

The organizational structure Level of turnover The departing employee’s tenure with the firm The degree to which turnover is voluntary for the worker Turnover predictability The degree to which the departing employee is respected by his colleagues who remain

with the firm’.

According to these research’s employee turnover has always been given great attention by managers and various researches have been conducted to find out the main causes of employee turnover, factors that lead to higher rates of employee turnover and strategies and measures required to minimize turnover in organizations. Many research’s have proved this that employee turnover can be a result of certain individual characteristics of employees, their jobs, market conditions, company policies or supervisor attitude etc. Policies and strategies have been developed by companied in order to minimize higher rates of turnover considering these individual characteristics.

These studies recommend that organizations must develop clear strategies in order to retain employees who are actually adding value to the company productivity.

All the literature reviews gives a clear understanding that turnover is a dependent behaviour on various environmental and organizational factors that shall be discussed in detail in our study. Some factors are directly associated with performance of the company. In this rapidly growing building industry in which Hoctief Group is operating, it is very essential that the company should retain employees as these are value addable resources for the company.

5. Methodology

5.1 Chosen MethodologyIn a study conducted by Hopkins (2000) he stated that quantitative research is all about measuring relationships between variables. Variables can be weight, performance, time etc. These designs are mostly used with the nature of the data is either descriptive or experimental.

Closed- ended information that reflects the attitude, behavior or performance instruments is included in quantitative data.

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In contrast, qualitative data consists of open-ended information that is gathered through interviewing some number of participants which answer these questions in their own particular way. Qualitative data may also be collected by observing participants or sites of research, gathering documents from any public or private source.

Denzin and Lincoln (1994) provided a generic definition of qualitative research, that is, "Qualitative research is multi method in focus, involving an interpretive, naturalist approach to its subject matter”.

Creswell (1998) stated that dissimilar procedural inquires and queries of various social and human problems can be investigated by qualitative research. This type of study is conducted in a natural setting by reporting the views of various participants, builds multifaceted, holistic pictures, and analyzes words.

Whereas mix method methodology is a wide-range approach which combines the strengths of both quantitative and qualitative methods and evades their weaknesses.

This methodology can provide more broad ranged answers to research questions, going beyond the limitations of quantitative and qualitative methods.

According to Caracelli and Greene (1997) “The mixing may be nothing more than a side-by side or sequential use of different methods, or it may be that different methods are being fully integrated in a single analysis”.

More pertinent and absolute results can be derived for our research questions by using a single methodology i.e. Mix method. But a disadvantage is that many complex and open ended questions cannot be answered easily.

According to Tashakkori and Teddlie(2001) that quantitative and qualitative methods have their own advantages and disadvantages and they being the first two paradigms had given rise to mix method paradigm which provides more relevant and clear answers to the researches. “They see this ‘third paradigm’ as being distinct from the positivist perspective of quantitative research, on the one hand, and the constructivist perspective of qualitative research on the other”.

Hence mix method methodology shall be used integrating both qualitative and quantitative research findings and recommendations shall be based on the triangulation of these research methods. As Hammersley(2000) sensibly points out ‘these (different forms of triangulation) are investigative strategies that offer evidence to inform judgements, not techniques that provide guaranteed truth or completeness.’

5.2 Evaluation of Methodology

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Mix method research is very useful as it can answer a broader and complete range of questions as the researcher is not just confined to a singular method of research. In this method a researcher can use the strengths of one method to overcome the weaknesses of the other method by using both in the study.

The problem faced by Hoctief group can best be described by this methodology as it will provide stronger evidence for a conclusion by substantiation of findings. Mixture of inductive and descriptive methods provides researcher an opportunity to produce complete knowledge and to even include understanding of the missed data which is essential to inform theory and practice.

In case of Hoctief Group mix method shall help us to find appropriate answers to our questions as to “what” impacts does turnover have on the overall performance of the company by adopting quantitative measures i.e. use of a measurable questionnaire and “Why” turnover is impacting the performance can be analyzed by qualitative measures by conducting focus group interviews. By integrating the findings of both the researches we can get more generalized results.

5.3 Limitations of Methodology

There are demonstrated benefits of using mixed method but it has several limitations and challenges as well. A disadvantage commonly expressed is the loss of profundity and flexibility that occurs when qualitative data are quantified.

It can be a little time consuming method as the diagnostic process of combining qualitative and quantitative data is prolonged and a need to be done with a little more care than individual methods.

The mix method methodology requires training in both the qualitative and quantitative methods, so it can be expensive.

Problems can occur while integrating the results of qualitative and quantitative methods and researchers are often unclear how to link both the results to present one clear perspective. (Creswell and Tashakkori, 2007) Use of this methodology might require a research team as for large pool of data it might not be possible for a single researcher to carry out both qualitative and quantitative researches concurrently.

As according to Sechrest and Sidana (1995), mixed method has the potential to reduce most of the problems associated with singular methods, by utilizing qualitative and quantitative methods at the same time within the same framework can really provide constructive findings and recommendations for Hoctief Group.

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Although mix method has the above listed limitations but still we will select this methodology to evaluate appropriate findings for Hoctief Group as this method of research will help to bridge the quantitative and qualitative research (Onwuegbuzie and Leech, 2004).

6. APPROACH TO CONCLUSION

6.1 Research Design

Stage 1: Studying correlation statistically

It is believed in our research that employee turnover and overall company performance are statistically correlated, so a detailed study shall be conducted in order to find the correlation level between the two variables.

Stage 2: Develop a formalised questionnaire

The questionnaire will be developed keeping in view the factors that lead to employee turnover and the factors that can motivate employees which can help them to be convinced to show their committed with the company that will ultimately be beneficial for increasing the company’s performance.

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Stage1: Studying Correlation Statistically

Stage2: Develop a formalised Questionnaire

Stage3: Distribution of questionnaire amongst the selected sample of employees

Stage4: Focus Group Interviews conducted with the selected sample of employees

Stage5: Collecting and analyzing quantitative data

Stage6: Collection and analyzing qualitative data

Stage7: Data Interpretation and Recommendations

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Stage3: Distribution of questionnaire amongst the selected sample of employees

The questionnaire shall be distributed amongst the selected sample of onsite employees and they shall be given 3 days to return the completed questionnaire.

Stage4: Focus Group Interviews conducted with the selected sample of employees

Focus group interviews shall be conducted at this stage of research with a selected sample of onsite company employees. A set of specific questions shall be designed and will be asked to the sample group in order to gauge their respective and individual perception about the research topic.

Stage5: Collecting and analyzing quantitative data

At this stage of research questionnaire shall be collected back from the sampled employees and quantitative data will be analysed using statistical tools which will help us to conclude our findings and to present our recommendations based on those findings.

Stage6: Collection and analyzing qualitative data

Descriptive analyses shall be conducted at this stage from the findings of the focus group interviews performed with a sample of employees. Qualitative data will be analyzed at this stage in order find the impact of turnover on company performance.

Stage7: Data Interpretation and Recommendations

Data collected from quantitative and qualitative researches shall be integrated to draw interpretations and based on the conclusions from the integrated data recommendations shall be given in order to benefit the company in the longer run.

6.2 Data CollectionSources of data

For quantitative research we have selected a sample size of 35 on site employees and another sample size of 30 on site employees have been selected for qualitative research. We had chosen simple random sampling because every element in the population has an equal chance of being selected as a subject.

Co-relational study of statistics

Our assumption is that employee turnover and overall company’s performance are related variables. The results from both, the completed questionnaires and the focus group interviews shall be analyzed to find out the impact of employee turnover and company’s performance. The impact will in return help us to find the level of correlation between the two variables.

Data collection for Quantitative data

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A formalised questionnaire is used as a means of quantitative data collection. Questionnaire is a standardised way of gathering data and data collected by this source is measurable, quantifiable and unbiased. Questionnaire shall be distributed to the selected sample population based on demographics, the filled questionnaire shall be collected after three working days. A sample size of 35 on site employees has been selected. Employees shall be randomly selected for the quantitative analysis. The results collected for questionnaire shall be statistically analyzed. The questionnaire used is attached in Appendix.

Data collection for Qualitative data

Focus group interviews shall be used as a means of qualitative data collection. This source of data collection shall help us to understand and explain the meanings and beliefs of individual employees. This method is really suitable when the sample size is small and the researcher is able to capture the opinions of all the individuals who are part of focus group interviews. Thorough focus group interviews the selected employees will have the opportunity to explain better that what are reasons that lead them to decide to leave and company and what are the common factors that de motivate them. A sample size of 30 on site employees shall be selected. On average 3-4employees from each department shall be selected. Two focus group sessions shall be conducted with 15 employees in each session. This focus group interview sessions are scheduled for October 21st and 22nd, 2011 at 5.30 pm. Thematic analysis shall be used to further analyze the results of focus groups. Three thematic themes shall be made based on the most common and linked answers extracted from the questions asked in both the focus groups. The following questions shall be asked to employees:

1. What are employee’s characteristics, which help them, develop organizational

commitment?

2. What is the perception of employees about their psychological contract with the

organization?

3. How does employee perceive the onsite working conditions in the organization as

satisfying or dissatisfying? Are they able to maintain work life balance?

4. How does retention policy of the organization affect employee turnover?

5. How does effective training, retention and career development projects help to reduce

turnover?

6. What are the common motivation factors that can help the employees to stay with the company?

Data validity and reliability

The research shall be focused in order to find specific results and the validity and reliability of data will be given preference as we are using the best suited methodology for the research and the sources for data collection are the most appropriate for the study.

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Data fairness

The data shall be collected and represented fairly without any partiality to any unnecessary factor.

Ethical concerns regarding research

In the process of conducting this study the respondents were assured for their secrecy and the confidentiality of the data. The name/designation and other confidential data shall be protected.

6.3 Data AnalysisThe objective and aim of the research is to find that how employee turnover and company performance are related to each other and if turnover is assumed to be related to the overall performance of the company, then minimizing the employee turnover will increase the performance of the company.

The quantitative data collected from questionnaires will be statistically analysed by using Pie-Charts representation. Research Questionnaire was our tool to collect the data used for quantitative method so a closed ended questionnaire had been developed for collecting the data. A closed ended questionnaire was developed at four point Likert scale for this purpose. We used percentage analysis for the primary analysis of the data.

Scoring Scheme

The responses from the questionnaire were analyzed by using an appropriate scoring process that was given in questionnaire as follows: Strongly Agree: 4, Agree: 3, Disagree: 2,Strongly Disagree: 1.

Special questions shall be formulated for the focus group interviews that will help us to provide the employees perception about our research. Thematic analysis is used to assess qualitative data. According to Braun and Clarke (2006) “Data analyzed using thematic analysis for identifying, analyzing and reporting patterns (themes) within data. It minimally organizes and describes your data set in (rich) detail. However, frequently it goes further than this, and interprets various aspects of the research topic”.

Resources & Time Scale7.1 Resources

Resources needed in this research are

1. Library access for literature search

2. Computer and particular software required for Gantt Chart preparation

3. Internet for accessing online books, journals and articles

4. Computer package for data analysis

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5. Printer and A4 papers required for the printing of questionnaires.

6. Computer and particular software required for graphical representation of our findings for Hoctief Group.

7.2 Time Scale

ID

September October November

Sept 26 Oct 3 Oct 10 Oct 17 Oct 24 Oct 31 Nov 6

1

2

3

4

5

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Figure 7.2.1 Gantt chart showing activities and time lines

8. SECONDARY AND PRIMARY DATA ANALYSIS

8.1 Analysis of Secondary Data Findings

Theoretical and conceptual frameworks for measuring various aspects of employee turnover have been developed.

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Selection Of Topic

Literature Review

Research Methodology

Data Collection

Data Analysis

Conclusion & Recommendations

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Firstly the General Systems theory demonstrates that turnover can spread in the organization like feral fire and then can ruin the company productivity and effects company performance. It provides various facts determining that how and why turnover can negatively affect the company performance. In this theory organizations are considered as human beings with various components and parts and none of the components can work independently they all are interlinked and dependant on each other. This theory is based on the fact that if the components are not unified and effected by some external or internal factors that results in higher rates of turnover which can disturb the entire organization as all departments and sub departments are interlinked, which can disturb the environment of the overall system and can pose serious performance issues for the company.

Secondly the Deming System of Profound Knowledge theory by Dr. W. Edwards Deming promotes the term ”joy at work” among the employees. Employees who are satisfied and motivated with their jobs and work conditions wish to stay with the company for longer tenure rather than the ones who are dissatisfied. The theory focuses on the fact that employees are mostly motivated by intrinsic and extrinsic rewards. Organizations can increase performance and decrease costs by developing formalised systems of management and it’s the duty of the manager to foster a stress free environment where employees perform better. Deming also believed in the idea that continuous feedback from the employees can really help the management to make better policies and strategies to excel, actually he is emphasising that company’s should encourage an environment where two way communication is appreciated.

Thirdly the Gruning and Hunt Two-Way Symmetric Model can be used as a foundation for developing finest practices to get know how about the factors that add to turnover in an organization, and to minimize turnover. According to this theory the management must understand the needs and point of views of the employees and the employees must not forget the company policies and strategies in order to create a friendly environment for work and to create an environment where two way feedback is welcomed. The two way feedback can be put in place by conference meetings, employee surveys, questionnaires etc. This model emphasizes the significance of developing a common ground and sense of understanding, the two-way flow must be between employee and his manager in case of employee turnover.

Pamela K.Blum and Vanessa Q. Tremarco (2008) conducted a comprehensive research and analysis on the factors that contribute to the employee turnover and suggested the best practices for preventing the loss of key talent that can be an asset for the company. A survey was conducted to identify the largest obstacles that company’s face in the search of growth.

Factors Rating

Difficulty of recruiting top talent 67.8%

Short term thinking of clients 21.2%

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Job Satisfaction Turnover

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Difficulty of retaining top talent 18.7%Source: The Holmes Report: September 2007 Electronic Roundtable

According to the research conducted retention factors include market competitive salaries, appropriate work-life balance, and room for personal development, commitment from the company, empowerment and flexible work options. Below is the graphical representation of the factors that can affect the motivational level of the employees which in turn will enhance their job performance.

Another study conducted by Becker, DeGroot and Marschak (1964) is the human capital theory. A graphical representation of which is:

This theory links the independent variables with the dependant variables. The conceptual framework of human capital theory states that organizations develop resources internally and invests in human capital only if it claims to increase company productivity. HRM practices and Job satisfaction are negatively correlated with turnover, it means turnover can be minimized by increasing the impact of these variables. In order to meet employees job satisfaction the organizations need to put in place the HRM practices.

According to the above mentioned theories it’s hence concluded that HR practices thus influences employees commitment and his satisfaction to perform well. Thus organizations should focus on determining strategies to put HR practices in place.

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HRM Practice

Supervision

Job Training

Pay Practices

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8.2 Analysis of Primary Data Findings

8.2.1 Analysis of Quantitative DataThe questionnaire used in our study consists of 15 questions. The questionnaire focuses on the factors that can lead to turnover and how does this effect company performance.

Q1. I feel I am committed with Hoctief Group

Strongly Agree (1) Agree(2) Disagree(3) Strongly Disagree(4)

13% 27% 27% 33%

Reason: The first question is designed to measure the employee’s level of commitment with the company. The responses from the employees are shown below.

Figure 8.2.1.1 Pie-Chart Q1

Table 8.2.1.2 Table showing responses for Q1

Majority Answers: 33% of the employees strongly disagree that they are committed to the organization and are willing to leave the company. This percentage is an alarm for Hoctief group as the employees are really demotivated and want to quit the company.

Conclusion: According to researches organizational commitment is a better predicator of employee turnover than job satisfaction. So Hoctief group should really take into consideration the problems being faced by employees working on sites.

Q2. I feel satisfied with the retention policy of the company

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Reason: The second question identifies that how many employees are satisfied with the current retention policy of the company. The responses from the employees are shown below.



13% 27% 27% 33%


16% 26% 37% 21%


Majority Answers: Only 16% of the employees strongly agree that the the retention policy of the company is satisfying.Hoctief group should take into consideration market competative strategies for retention in order to control this high percentage of dissatisfaction.

Conclusion:Company’s retention policy is a broader aspect including competative compensation and benefits, pleasant working environment, employee development etc. This high percentage of dissatifaction amongst the employees regarding retention policy needs immediate attention from Hoctief’s management.

Q3. I feel that the Hoctief Group is providing Development opportunities.

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Reason: The third question was designed in order to identify that how employees relate developmental opportunities with their job performance. The responses from the employees are shown.



41% 29% 19% 11%


Majority Answers: 41% of the employees strongly agree that the company is providing effective employee developmental opportunties.

Conclusion: Developmental opportunities includes appropriate on job trainings, defined career paths and defined job descriptions etc. So this satisfactory percentage shows that employees are quiet satisfied with developmental opportunities.

Q4. Does the company provide proper safety, first aid and health guidelines and facilities to employees?

Reason: It is very important to know that to what extent employees are motivated by healthy work environment, safety measures and first aid facilities provided by the company. The responses from the employees are shown.


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27% 13% 34% 26%


Majority Answers: 34% of the employees dis agree that they are not happy with the work environment, safety measures and first aid facilities provided by the company.

Conclusion: Providing healthy work environment with proper safety , first aid and health facilties is the primary concern of onsite employees. Hoctief group should take immediate steps to provide employees with suitable work environment.

Q5. Are the deadlines provided for any particular project stressful for the employees?

Reason: The next question identifies the effect of stressful project deadlines on employee performance. The responses from the employees are shown.



42% 28% 17% 13%

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Majority Answers: 42% of the employees strongly agree that the project deadlines set for the employees are unrealistic and employees feel pressurized and stressed while performing their jobs.

Conclusion: Working under stress and pressure can be a major reason for employee turnover. Relaxed work conditions and realistic project deadlines must be worked out so employees enjoy their work.

Q6. Does my manager appreciates and gives recognition for my work. Reason: In this question the employee recognition and appreciation for their job duties has been analysed. Employee recognition is an important indicator for employee motivation. If the employees are admired and recognized for the work they perform creates a feeling of zeal and enthusiasm within them to perform better. The responses from the employees are shown.


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Majority Answers:33% of the employees strongly disagree to the fact that supervisors and managers recognize and appreciate them for their job duites. This is fairly a large percentage so managers should really think to encourage their employees for their ruotine tasks.


17% 23% 27% 33%

Conclusion: The management of the Hoctief group need to focus on this issue and address it as soon as possible as this can be really be a demotivating factor for the employees who can then think of leaving the company.

Q7. Am I rewarded for my work?

Reason: An employee should have a clear understanding of how their rewards are calculated so they can align their jobs accordingly. The seventh question is designed to know that are the employees happy with the current reward schemes, level of empowerment and recognition by the company management. The results are shown in the figure below.


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26% 29% 31% 14%


Majority Answers: 31% of employees completely disagree they receive appropriate encouragement for their work. The employees are quite unsatisfied with the current rewarding system of the company as according to them the rewards and allowances are not timely and appropriate.

Conclusion: Company management needs to revise the empowerment strategies and should focus on devising such situations where the employees feel that they are empowered and recognized for their work. Benefits provided to the employee should be categorized properly and should be given timely as this is a great motivating factor one employee always compare what he is getting with the other employee and lack of encouragement benefits can really effect his job performance.

Q8. The training provided was in the area/skills I felt lacking.

Reason: Companies who invest in developing and grooming the skills of their workers tend to encounter lower rates of turnover. The eighth question was designed to get ideas that are the employees satisfied by the training procedures of the company. The results are shown in the figure below.


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42% 31% 17% 10%


Majority Answers: 41% of the employees feel that the on job training provided to them match their area of work.

Conclusion: Hoctief group needs to devise a standardized and formalised policy and procedure to provide on job training to employees at all levels.

Q9. I am satisfied by the compensation policy of the company and I feel secure about my job.

Reason: Monetary factors can impose massive effect on increasing the turnover rates. This question identifies that the whether the employees feel that they are being payed and benefited according to the market and whether taking this factor into consideration they feel secure about their jobs. The results are shown in the figure below.


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39% 27% 21% 13%


Majority Answers: 39%of the employees strongly agree that the current compensation policy is market competitive and they have lesser number of employees have issues regarding their pay matters. Competitive salaries give an employee a sense of security.

Conclusion: Sense of security can really help the employees to increase their job performance which ultimately helps to add more to the company’s productivity.

Q10. Am I adding value to the company in order to increase company’s productivity and performance?

Reason: Value addition is an important aspect while measuring the company’s productivity and performance. Company management have to take into considerations who are the key players for the company performance. This question was designed to know employee perspective that are they satisfied with what they are doing and are they adding any value to company’s productivity. The results are shown in the figure below.


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62% 21% 11% 3%


Majority Answers: Only 3%of the employees think that they are not adding any value to the company, the major reason for this might be that they think they are doing repetitive work. Otherwise 62% of the employee’s rate motivated in this aspect that the tasks that they perform is increasing the company’s performance directly or indirectly.

Conclusion: Increasing company’s performance and productivity is the main aim of any company’s management. If the management will make sure to keep the employees motivated they will not face problems of turnover or declining company performance issues.

8.2.2 Analysis of Qualitative DataThe impact of employee turnover is one of the most costly and difficult challenges that Hoctief group is facing. “The organizations that consistently invest in people are the ones that will enjoy ongoing success” (Galloway, 2007).

Thematic analysis is used to assess qualitative data in our study with the help of themes and patterns. The purpose of focus group interview was to identify the factors that lead towards increased employee turnover, and a high turnover rate means that there are some underlying issues with the company. The following themes were used in focus group study:

8.2.2.1 Theme1: Working conditions/ work life balance a factor to turnover

This theme was one of the factors that shall highlight the reasons of employee motivation or de motivation.

Some of the responses are listed below which are relevant to this theme:

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“The on-site working conditions are not satisfactory. We work till late hours but there is no encouragement from the management for this”.

“We work all day in stress and pressure but are no rewards for us hard work”.

“Employees in our main offices work in excellent working conditions but we are deprived of healthy working environment, health and accommodation facilities on sites”.

“We work on fortnightly basis so our work life balance is effected badly”.

“Although it is the demand of our work that we stay on sites but certain controllable working conditions needs immediate attention of the management”.

The responses illustrates that employees really feel motivated if they get a satisfactory working environment and a proper work life balance. So in order to minimize turnover and increase company performance the working conditions whether on site or off site must be improved.

8.2.2.2 Theme 2: Effect of recognition, empowerment and reward system factors of employee retention

The second theme was to analyze the effect of employee recognition, empowerment and reward system on retaining an employee. The major problem that Hoctief group is facing is due to either of these factors. Some employee responses are as follows:

“Money is the striving factor for all employees here but the company’s reward system is not well designed.”

“Our project deadlines are unrealistic but even if I and my team members are able to complete a project on time we are not recognized for this, and it’s really de motivating.”

“For little issues I have to get back every time to my team leader and get his approval which consumes a lot of time....we lack empowerment”.

The responses illustrates that Hoctief group needs to make rewards more timely and appropriate and need to focus on employee empowerment and recognition in order to reduce the turnover rates. Murray (2007) stated “People don't quit jobs, they quit relationships”.

8.2.2.3 Theme 3: Professional development a key to employee satisfaction

Many employees like to stay with their current employers as they are keen and committed to the jobs that they are performing. “A lack of opportunities to learn and grow often leads workers to move on to other employment” (Withers, 2002).

In this theme we will illustrate that how professional development can lead to employee satisfaction which in turn increases employee job performance.

“Company has always given me on job training specific to my job.”

“Our job descriptions are clearly and well defined by the management, I am happy for this”.

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The three themes illustrates that all the above mentioned factors can help the company to minimize the factor of turnover from the company in order to strive for greater and increase work performance.

8.3 Evaluation of Methodology The mix-method research methodology was chosen for this research. The methodology was best suited for this research as we have analyzed both quantitative and qualitative data, to get the best appropriate findings and results to make this research productive. A detailed analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data’s was performed to get the insights and in depth knowledge of the impact on the company’s performance. The triangulation gave us accurate results.

In order to further improve the findings and results of this research we can adopt the sequential mix method form which involves collecting data in an iterative process and whereby the data collected in one phase contribute to the data collected in the next phase which can help the researcher to reduce the time consumed earlier and to provide better and more accurate in depth insights to the research.

9. CONCLUSIONThe results indicate that there is general dissatisfaction with the job which results into high turnover which in turn impacts the company’s overall performance. The aim of this research was to measure the impact of employee turnover on company’s performance. The results of quantitative method i.e. questionnaire proved that the employees working on site are generally committed to the company but have problems regarding the work environment which is not up to their standard i.e. health and safety issues. There are minimal opportunities for training and the training provided is not effective denying further career development or growth and stress during the work , these factors leads to turnover. The employees are confident of the fact that each one of them is individually adding value to the company’s performance but yet they are not rewarded for their work due to which they feel

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de motivated which in turns effect their performance which ultimately effects the overall company performance.

The results of qualitative study i.e. focus group interview reflected that employees are the key strength of the company if they are de motivated this can effect their job performance which ultimately decreases company performance. The questions asked during focus group session clearly reflected that lack of organizational commitment of employees leads to turnover. The dissatisfaction with the job and the poorer the psychological contract with the employees is all factors of higher turnover. The employees are de motivated due to lack of proper motivational and empowerment strategies, employee developmental programmes and a need to improve the working conditions for onsite employees.

Thus it can clearly be concluded by the above mentioned findings that management of Hoctief group need to focus on issues of employee working on sites. They need to take into consideration that in order to maintain and improve their company performance they need to keep their employees motivated by listening to their problems and finding solutions to these problems in order to keep them motivated. Motivated employees will remain with the company and will strive to add value to company performance.

10. RECOMMENDATIONSAs mix method approach is time consuming, collection of data from quantitative and qualitative approaches takes a little longer, but our research has a constraint of time so it was completed in a short period of time. Due to time constraint a smaller sample size was selected and the sample size was only limited to the onsite employees so it is recommended to conduct a further in-depth analysis for this research by increasing the sample size and also including employees who are on desk jobs in order to get a broader perspective of how turnover impacts the company’s performance and what according to them are the factors that can motivate them. The effects of intrinsic as well as extrinsic motivation needs to be explored further in order to study in detail that how retention policy of the company can be improved in order to minimize turnover and benefit the company’s performance for a longer run. An important aspect of stress management should also be taken into consideration in case of a further analysis as stress management concept is really gaining momentum and for employees it’s a non- monetary motivator.

Formalised exit interview system should be put in place immediately in order to know the exact factors leading to higher rates of turnover.

Various internal and external surveys related to compensation and benefits should be conducted in order to gauge the market competitiveness.

By understanding the nature of the turnover problem targeted retention initiatives should be adopted, for example at particular sites or groups of employees, or to manage overall levels so that there is sufficient labour.

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Transcript of Hoctief research