Workplace culture and productivity

This survey offers a means of defining workplace culture and measuring its relationship to productivity.. DEFINING WORKPLACE CULTURE, AND IDENTIFYING ITS ELEMENTSFor purposes of this pr

WORKPLACE CULTURE AND PRODUCTIVITY

By Alan Augustson

Survey and Questionnaire Design Harris School of Public Policy Studies

The University of Chicago

This survey offers a means of defining workplace culture and

measuring its relationship to productivity It is intended

to be used together with internal organizational measurements of productivity, in order to facilitate change among organizations interested in improvement

I INTRODUCTION

II DEFINING WORKPLACE CULTURE, AND IDENTIFYING ITS ELEMENTS

III INTRODUCTION TO THE SURVEY

A DESIGN AND TESTING

B APPLICATIONS

C ADMINISTRATION OF THE SURVEY

IV THE SURVEY

I INTRODUCTION

It should seem rather natural that human capital, and its development, are areas of particular interest to me After all, I have labored in about two dozen workplaces in

my lifetime, nearly all of them hopelessly dysfunctional One cannot study the world's best business practices, all the while subjecting himself to the world's worst, without

developing a fascination with workplace culture and its

relationship to productivity

With both public and private entities feeling the effects of adverse economic conditions that are likely to last for years, employers appear on the surface to be blessed with a buyer's market for labor However, these employers are themselves at the mercy of a shrinking consumer base, one that has been complaining of poor service for decades, and one that itself now seems to have a buyer's market

Corporations and bureaucracies cannot have missed this,

as many now are at least paying lip-service to a new, customer-centered service philosophy Indeed, an entirely new industry called Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

has emerged, bearing tools and practices that some believe can give flesh to that ideal

But can a change in philosophy have any meaning outside the boardroom? Can a firm "dumb down" its hiring standards and shortcut its training processes, in an effort to save on personnel costs, and then seek to provide a better consumer experience through "smart" software and scripted procedures?

Principal-agent theory suggests that this cannot happen, without substantial accompanying changes in the day-to-day operating environment in the proverbial trenches Without adjusting the balance of positive and negative reinforcement, the detachment between behavior and bottom line is maintained in the mind of the employee Given the same system of incentives to cooperate or defect, the employee will conserve his or her effort toward the customer, and neither will notice any change in the overall experience

II DEFINING WORKPLACE CULTURE, AND IDENTIFYING ITS ELEMENTS

For purposes of this proposal, I would like to define

"productivity" as the mean units of output per employee in a

workplace Although output will obviously take different

forms in different environments, it may still be possible to

compare one workplace to another using this definition Even

if this is not possible, one can still benchmark current

levels of productivity in a single workplace, and thereafter

test for improvements in a longitudinal study

I have identified (and seek to measure and test) the following factors that that can be described as "cultural"

in nature, and that I hypothesize will show a significant relationship to productivity:

• Opportunity: Granted, no one moves from the mail room

to the vice president's office anymore, if indeed people ever did Such scenarios are more the realm of bad fiction But to what extent do employees feel empowered to better their salaries, perks, and overall positions; through their own actions and within their current employment environment?

• Autonomy: With anarchy at one end of the continuum, and dictatorial micromanagement at the other; to what extent do employees feel empowered to make their own

moment-to-moment decisions and exercise their own

judgment within a given workplace?

• Security: To what extent does an employee feel replaceable, or irreplaceable, in his or her current job? This factor may assume any of a number of contexts For instance, is a job felt to be so undesirable that no one else would want it? Or, is a

workplace so inefficient that it actually takes an

effort to get oneself fired?

• Significance: This differs from security in that it takes into account the health and position of the company in the mind of the employee To what extent does a given employee sense the direct relationship between his or her efforts and the success of the organization? Can a job be perceived as so insignificant that it truly does not matter how well or how poorly it is done?

• Polarization: Does an "us versus them" relationship exist in the minds of employees, with respect to management? If so, then how often (if ever) does one of

"us" get promoted to one of "them"? Are new supervisors and managers developed internally, or are they almost always hired in from elsewhere? Do employees, who satisfy all current requirements, receive any training

or grooming for the next level? Are managers perceived

as competent, i.e., do they understand the processes that they manage?

• Morale: Given that different organizations have differing abilities to compensate, promote, etc.; to what extent do employees feel valued for their performance and contributions in their current roles?

Is input ever solicited from employees prior to making

a substantial change (e.g in benefits, procedures, etc.) that directly affects them?

• Resources: Do employees feel that they have the tools and information needed to do their jobs and make correct decisions? Is information consistent across different channels? Is policy and procedure followed and enforced evenly between different employees and different departments? Do employees have to defer decisions that they feel quite capable of making themselves? Is effort wasted on redundant or duplicative tasks, made necessary by current procedures

or policy?

These (and, I'm sure, other) factors constitute the

elements of workplace culture that I believe will show a

significant direct relationship to productivity

III INTRODUCTION TO THE SURVEY

A DESIGN AND TESTING

I have designed a comprehensive survey that will

measure the cultural factors within a subject workplace

Using this survey, I would hope to make contact with human resources professionals at private firms and at government agencies, interested in measurement and improvement of productivity (as they all claim to be) Surveys would be administered under conditions of anonymity, and the results maintained along with the organization's own benchmark measurements of productivity (as defined above)

If the organizations chosen for study are sufficiently similar in terms of the work being done (e.g call center work), then the units-of-output-per-employee measure should produce no great differences of scale Analysis of multivariate regression could then be used to identify the extent to which the above factors contribute to productivity Data can also be analyzed for similarities and differences between public- and private-sector workplaces

Again, if said organizations are very dissimilar, and

if the differences of scale are too great, meaningful results can still be obtained internally by using a longitudinal study Those firms who perceive areas for

workplace improvement may choose to develop programs to that

end, and measure both productivity and morale again after a specified period of time The percent change between

"before" and "after" measurements would transcend differences of scale, and multivariate regression becomes useful again

B APPLICATIONS

I would like to use this research and these results to illustrate organizational behavior to researchers and other students, and in advising firms and government agencies bent

on meaningful change I am confident that this study, and others like it, would contribute to the growing body of knowledge on the behavior of workgroups

C ADMINISTRATION OF THE SURVEY

For best results, this survey should be administered via the Web This will preserve the anonymity of respondents Consent is assumed as a condition of proceeding with the survey However, for purposes of this written copy, the survey will appear in a format such as would be used in

an oral interview Respondents are not to have access to

surveyor instructions Said instructions will appear [IN

BOLD CAPS] wherever needed in the text of the survey.

IV THE SURVEY

[SECTION 0 DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION]

[CODING: RECORD ALL CHECKED RESPONSES USING THE CODE

APPEARING NEXT TO THE CHECKBOX DO NOT ENCODE ANY

NON-RESPONSES; LEAVE THEM BLANK.]

Respondent: This first section is not part of the survey, but the demographic information will help to ensure that different groups are receiving equal treatment on the job Please check the box next to the most correct answer Please check only one answer per question

0.1 What is your age group?

[1] up to age 24

[2] 25-39

[3] 40-54

[4] 55 or greater

0.2 What is your sex?

[F] Female

[M] Male

0.3 What do you consider to be your race?

[B] Black, African

American, Afro-Caribbean, or other American of African ancestry

[H] Hispanic, Latino, or

other Spanish-speaking American not originating

directly from Spain

[I] Native American,

American Indian, or other non-Spanish-speaking American aboriginal

[A] Asian or Pacific

Islander, including persons from the Indian

subcontinent

[W] White, Caucasian, or

other American deriving from Europe (including Spain),

from the Mediterranean Rim (including Arabic-speaking Northern African nations), or from the Middle East

[O] Other, or none of the

above

0.4 What is your highest educational level completed?

[1] Did not complete high

school or a GED

[2] High school or GED [3] Bachelor’s degree

[4] Master’s or

professional (JD, MD, MBA) degree

[5] Doctoral (Ph.D.)

degree

[SECTION 1 OPPORTUNITY]

[CODING: MARK A “1” OR A “0” DEPENDING ON THE CODE YOU SEE NEXT TO THE CHECKED RESPONSE.]

Respondent: Please mark only one answer, “True” or “False”, for each statement below as it applies to you

1.1 I have received at least one promotion while in my

current job

[1]True [0]False

1.2 I have received at least one noticeable raise in pay

in my current job

[1]True [0]False

1.3 I have had to change employers at least once in the

past, because it was the only way to get a promotion

[0]True [1]False

1.4 I have had to change employers at least once in the

past, in order to make more money

[0]True [1]False

1.5 I believe I will probably have to change employers

sometime in the future, if I ever want to be promoted

[0]True [1]False

1.6 I believe I will probably have to change employers

sometime in the future, if I ever want a noticeable raise in pay

[0]True [1]False

[SECTION 2 AUTONOMY]

[CODING: MARK A “1” OR A “0” DEPENDING ON THE CODE YOU SEE NEXT TO THE CHECKED RESPONSE.]

Respondent: Please mark only one answer, “True” or “False”, for each statement below as it applies to you

2.1 I make my own decisions on the job

[1]True [0]False

2.2 My superiors know that I know my job, and they trust

me to do it well

[1]True [0]False

2.3 Sometimes I feel that policies get in the way of me

getting my job done

[0]True [1]False

2.4 On at least one occasion with this employer, I have

had a superior order me to “look busy”

[0]True [1]False

2.5 I feel that I am watched or monitored almost

constantly while working

[0]True [1]False

2.6 I have to get permission or approval to do very

routine things on the job

[0]True [1]False

[SECTION 3 SECURITY]

[CODING: MARK A “1” OR A “0” DEPENDING ON THE CODE YOU SEE NEXT TO THE CHECKED RESPONSE.]

Respondent: Please mark only one answer, “True” or “False”, for each statement below as it applies to you

3.1 The work I do requires special skills and personal

qualities

[1]True [0]False

3.2 Almost anyone could do my job

[0]True [1]False

3.3 It seems nearly impossible to get fired from this job

[1]True [0]False

3.4 I push myself to excel, specifically because I like

this job and want to keep it

[1]True [0]False

3.5 I have co-workers whom I really feel should have been

fired long ago

[1]True [0]False

3.6 We have a high turnover in this workplace; people are

coming and going all the time

[0]True [1]False

[SECTION 4 SIGNIFICANCE]

[CODING: MARK A “1” OR A “0” DEPENDING ON THE CODE YOU SEE NEXT TO THE CHECKED RESPONSE.]

Respondent: Please mark only one answer, “True” or “False”, for each statement below as it applies to you

4.1 The success of this organization depends on me doing

my job well

[1]True [0]False

4.2 It really doesn’t matter how well or how poorly my job

is done; we’ll do fine either way

[0]True [1]False

4.3 Almost everything I do at work feels important

[1]True [0]False

4.4 I don’t recommend our product or service to close

friends

[0]True [1]False

4.5 It’s absolutely vital that my job is done right the

first time

[1]True [0]False

4.6 The training program for this job is very demanding

[1]True [0]False

[SECTION 5 POLARIZATION]

[CODING: MARK A “1” OR A “0” DEPENDING ON THE CODE YOU SEE NEXT TO THE CHECKED RESPONSE.]

Respondent: Please mark only one answer, “True” or “False”, for each statement below as it applies to you

5.1 I have rarely, if ever, seen one of my co-workers get

promoted to a supervisory or managerial position

[1]True [0]False

5.2 Managers around here have a very good understanding of

their employees and what they do

[0]True [1]False

5.3 New managers here are almost always brought into the

company from outside

[1]True [0]False

5.4 As long as I meet all the requirements, I have just as

good a chance as anyone else for a big promotion

[0]True [1]False

5.5 In this workplace, they start grooming people to “move

up” and assume new responsibilities as early as

possible

[0]True [1]False

5.6 Sometimes I perceive a distinct “us versus them”

attitude between labor and management

[1]True [0]False