Research Proposal and Survey Design

Industrial Relations 731 PROF. SCOTT ADAMS Research Proposal and Survey Design General American Steel Inc. - Job Satisfaction Survey Hung – Gilman – Mejia – Karpinski - Schetter 10/6/2009 General American Steele looks highly upon employee productivity and believes that productivity is directly correlated with job satisfaction. With productivity declining in a few of our departments we aim to determine the roots of this cause and develop ways to increase productiveness throughout our organization. Executive Summary The Human Resources department at General American Steel Inc. is fully committed to ensuring that employees are completely satisfied with their current employment. It is our belief that to spur continuous growth and to increase employee output, continuous evaluation of job satisfaction is key. To ensure the company continues to move in the proper direction it is the HR department’s goal to investigate the sources of turnover, tardiness, and absenteeism. It is our belief that these issues are tied to job satisfaction levels. With productivity declining we aim to determine the origins of this cause and develop ways to increase productivity throughout our organization. General American Steel Inc. will be conducting a survey for all of our employees within each department, including Executive, Operations, IT, and HR, in order to quantify statistically the primary cause of areas with low productivity. We will be asking for data from all of our employees regarding demographics, career development, employees’ relationships with management, the working environment, compensation and benefits, and the status of the employees at General American Steel. We will then take the data and identify the factors of each job that are causing employee dissatisfaction. Our goal is to identify specific trends, or lack there of, and use this information to create the necessary changes to increase satisfaction levels. General American Steel Inc. is only as strong as our employees. Using this idea as the guiding principle of this survey it is our hope that all employees will participate and help identify the areas in need of positive change. Problem Statement GENERAL AMERICAN STEEL INC. (GAS) has noticed a decreased level of productivity over the last year among all employee groups. John Doe, HR Manager, has been tasked to determine whether the cause of the decreased productivity is due to low job satisfaction and to report his findings to senior management. The basis of the current survey is to determine employee satisfaction levels among GAS’s employees. The survey will be presented to all employees in each job function, including management. This will allow John to determine if employees within different job functions share overall satisfaction levels. John will design the survey to gather information in the following areas:  Determine the percent of employees that identify themselves as satisfied versus unsatisfied with their job.  Identify the factors of each job that cause satisfaction or dissatisfaction, such factors include job tasks, co-worker relationships, supervisor management styles, pay and benefits, career development, working environment, and work life balance.   Determine whether there is a trend in certain job aspects that are identified as dissatisfying. Determine whether there is a correlation to the decreased productivity rate and job satisfaction for each job function and the levels of satisfaction in the measured factors. This survey will provide the company with a clear answer as to whether employees are satisfied with their jobs. If job satisfaction is determined to be low, the company will be poised to act on improving aspects of the job identified by employees as the cause of their dissatisfaction. The survey will have identified the areas that employees within each job function are unsatisfied with. If a correlation is found between satisfaction levels and productivity levels there will be specific aspects of each job identified for the company to improve upon. The Human Resource department with senior management can then take appropriate action to address areas of low satisfaction. If the survey determines that job satisfaction among employees is not the clear cause for the decreased productivity the company will have gathered information that can be used to market the company to potential employees. The company will further gain insight into the aspects of each job functions that are identified as satisfying. Finally, this survey, once created, can be administered on a regular basis (determined by the HR Department) to gauge changing satisfaction levels. Research Design Sample Questionnaire: The Human Resource department determined a Questionnaire (Paper-based) would be the most efficient method to collect data from a large number of employees. In order to acquire the information needed to judge job satisfaction, the survey was presented (see appendix A) to all employees at the firm. The following paper survey will act as a tool to measure the current level of job satisfaction for the employees of General American Steele. This survey will be distributed to all employees of GAS through scheduled meetings in which each employee will be able to privately ask any questions before given time to fill out the survey. The completion of surveys will be tracked and monitored. Moving forward the Human Resource department will administer the survey on a bi-annual basis to monitor change. Strict confidentiality will be used in the administration and coding of the surveys. All the documents will be sealed after completion and immediately sent to Human Resource department. Data Analysis: Upon receiving the completed surveys, the Human Resource department will compile and analyze the data. The surveys have been pre-coded, with a minimal number of questions that will need to be post-coded. Data will be entered into a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet so the data can be calculated and analyzed. Employee job satisfaction percentages and statistically significant percentages and correlations will be noted. The survey results and recommendations will be presented to the executive committee in a report format with the data graphically illustrated to visually display the results that were found. Schedule Job Satisfaction Survey Tasks week Definition of problem Part I Research proposal and Survey Design Implementation of the Survey Coding of the survey data Part II Data cleaning and preliminary analysis Data analysis/hypothesis testing Reporting of the results Part III Interpretation and presentation of the results September 2 3 4 1 October 2 3 4 1 November 2 3 4 December 1 2 3 Appendix A GENERAL AMERICAN STEEL INC. Job Satisfaction Survey hr@gas.com The following questions compose an important company survey to track job satisfaction. Please take time to honestly answer the following questions to the best of your ability to aid GAS in gaining a better understanding of your viewpoint and allow GAS to provide you the utmost level of satisfaction in your profession. This survey will remain strictly confidential and at no time will your individual responses be seen by your supervisor or immediate manager. Brief introduction – objective of survey A. Demographics Please mark with X the number which best describe you. 1. Gender Female Male 1 2 20 - 29 30 - 39 40 - 49 50 - 59 60 or more 4. Marital Status Never married Married Separated/Divorced Widowed 2 3 4 5 6 1 2 3 4 3. Children living at home Yes No If yes, age group 0-5 5 - 10 11 - 15 16 - 18 18 or more 1 2 1 2 3 4 5 2. Age Group Under 20 1 B. Career Development  Please mark with X the number from the scale to show how much you agree or disagree with each of the follow statement. Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree 5. I receive the training I need to perform my job effectively 6. I am given the freedom to develop and implement more efficient processes to complete my work 7. I think that there are opportunities for vertical movement within GAS 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 5 1 2 3 4 5 8. I have a supervisor/mentor who encourages my development 9. I have the freedom to create my own processes 10. I have enough knowledge about of the reimbursement programs that the company offers to its employees 1 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 4 5 5 5  Please mark with X the number from the scale to show how often the following statements have happened in the last year. Always Often Sometimes Rarely Never 11. I have the opportunity to learn new skills 12. I would like more recognition when I do a good job 13. I wish I had more development opportunities 14. I have opportunities for advancement 15. I am involved in decisions that impact me 16. I have used the benefit programs of the company 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 C. Relationship with Management Strongly Agree Strongly Disagree  Please mark with X the number from the scale to show Agree Neutral Disagree how much you agree or disagree with each of the follow statement. 17. My manager/supervisor is supportive and encourages me to perform and achieve at high levels. 18. My manager/supervisor is proactive in creating a positive atmosphere within the department. 19. My manager/supervisor provides me with continuous positive and negative feedback. 20. My manager/supervisor makes use of my skills and abilities 21. I feel that my manager/supervisor values my opinions 22. I am satisfied with communication between management and staff 23. I am given the freedom to develop and implement more efficient processes to complete my work 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5  On a scale from 1 to 5, being 1 poor and 5 excellent, how you would grade the following aspects of your relationship with your immediate manager/supervisor. Poor Indifferent Excellent 24. Communication top - bottom 25. Communication bottom - top 26. Management Feedback 27. Incentives and rewards by Management 28. Support in front high level managers 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 5 5 D. Work Environment  Please mark with X the number from the scale to show how much you agree or disagree with each of the follow statement. Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree 29. I have been made aware of our company’s overall business strategy. 30. I am familiar with our organization’s mission statement 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 5 31. I have the appropriate information I need to perform my job 32. I work in a safe work environment 33. Our company understands the importance to employees of a good work/life balance 1 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 4 5 5 5  Please mark with X the number from the scale to show how often the following statements have happened in the last year. Always Often Sometimes Rarely Never 34. Too much work is expected of employees in my area 35. The workload is fairly distributed 36. I Feel that we have too many rules to follow 37. There is cooperation between my department and other departments we work with 38. My department receives help and support from other areas of the business. 39. I find it difficult to balance work and family 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 5 5 5  Please mark with X the number from the scale to show how much you agree or disagree with each of the follow statement. Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree 40. I am satisfied with my colleagues who are willingly give their time help me about work-related problems 41. I am satisfied with my colleagues adjust their schedule to accommodate colleagues’ requests for time off 42. I am satisfied with my colleagues give up time to help me about non-work problems 43. I am satisfied with my colleagues assist me with my duties. 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 4 5 5 5 44. Overall, I am satisfied with the relationship with my colleagues. 45. My colleagues and I work well as a team  Please mark with X the number from the scale to show how much you agree or disagree with each of the follow statement. Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree 46. I clearly understand the requirements of my position 47. I clearly understand my job responsibilities and what is expected of me 48. I clearly know employment rules and procedures are followed uncompromisingly 49. I am allowed to make decisions that affect my job 1 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 4 5 5 5 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 45. Management decisions are ad hoc and lack professionalism 46. My position requires me to perform duties outside of my job description 47. I do work that is interesting to me 48. I have the chance to make use of my abilities and skills 49. Overall, I am satisfied with my current position E. Compensation and Benefits  Please mark with X the number from the scale to show how much you agree or disagree with each of the follow statement. Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree 50. I am paid fairly for the work I do 51. I understand how my pay is determined 52. I am satisfied with how pay raises are determined 1 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 4 5 5 5 53. In comparison with people in similar jobs in other companies, I feel my pay is okay 54. I feel that benefits package I get at ABC is fair and competitive 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 5  On a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being of no value to you and 5 being very valuable to you, please rate the following benefits. (Note that some of the benefits on the list are currently NOT provided by XYZ.) RATING: 1 to 5 (1 = NO VALUE, 5 = VERY VALUABLE) BENEFIT Health insurance Dental insurance Optical insurance Flexible Spending Program Holidays Life Insurance RATING COMMENTS BENEFIT Short term disability insurance Long term disability insurance Employee Assistance Plan (EAP) Sick pay Vacation Personal days Jury duty pay Bereavement pay 401(k) Profit sharing Development support (seminars, external meetings, other training) Tuition Reimbursement Flex time Exceptional Attendance Awards RATING COMMENTS Length of service/Anniversary gifts Free coffee, tea and hot chocolate Company holiday party  Please mark with X the number from the scale to show how much you agree or disagree with each of the follow statement. Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree 55. I am satisfied with the medical benefits 56. I am satisfied with the conveyance allowance 57. I am satisfied with the retirement benefits 58. I am satisfied with the reimbursement of the expenses as per the eligibility 59. I am satisfied with the holiday (vacation) eligibilities 60. Overall, I am satisfied with the company’s compensation 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 5 5 1 package 2 3 4 5 F. GAS’s Statists 61. Based on your Job Description what department do you work in? Manufacturing Operations Human Resources IT Finance Sales & Marketing Executive 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 63. Which option best describes your role? Salary Hourly 1 2 62. How long have you worked for GAS? Less than 2 years 2 – 5 years 6 – 10 years 11 – 15 years 16 years or longer 1 2 3 4 5