Partial Fulfillment
SPSS
1
Walden Sports, Inc. Scenario
by
Michael A. Leonard
Submitted in Partial Fulfillment
Of the Requirements for the course
Job Attitudes, Measurement, and Change
Walden University
Introduction
Walden Sports Inc. is a competent sports company that has experienced a vast development concerning employer and employee relations. The latter has also affected its performance in various ways. The company has experienced both massive sales and significant loss during the twelve years of operation (Laureate Education, 2012a). However, the organization has not lost hope of emerging competent from the slide they have experienced. The progress can be attributed to positive work attitude and motivation. The success of the Walden Sports company, therefore, grew rapidly and exponentially. However, later, employee motivation fell, and with their CEO unprepared for such growth, a sharp decrease in the productivity of the company was noticed. The workers started skipping work, some unapproved leaves or sick days of their choice (Laureate Education, 2012a). These tendencies may depict how the disgruntled workers felt. They took the unapproved sick leaves possibly to avoid being in the environment of work. Unlike when they started working for this company, where they seemed motivated as depicted by the high sales volumes. There has been some change in job attitudes and thus job output. This change, therefore, needs to be identified, and the variables contributing to it measured and adequately addressed. Through further analysis of the elements of job satisfaction and the associated variables, we shall be able to identify the specific factors contributing to job satisfaction, the psychological aspects of this issue, the limitations of our findings, and provide the necessary recommendations.
Background
The Walden Sports, Inc. is a retail organization that specializes in products that are suited for adventure travelers such as tents, sleeping bags, maps, and travel instructional manuals (Laureate Education, 2012a). Concerning its workforce, the company employs many individuals both on a part-time and full-time basis. The workers are spread across the various departments within the firm. Such has been the tradition of the company since its inception twelve years ago. At first the company had just the products above, however, with time, it has expanded its services to include even insurance for the clients (2012a). In the recent past, they have also begun expanding their product base to include Earth Travelers. The Earth Travelers Service is a tour operated facility that specializes in the packaging of the vacation according to the taste and preference of the client (Laureate Education, 2012a). The acquisition of Earth Travelers gave Walden Sports, Inc. the opportunity to diversify their product and services and thus to bring in more revenue. An increase in the total sales and income from this project further promotes their ranking within the travel and tourism sector. Recent data after the acquisition of Earth Travelers have Overall showed an increase in the sales of vacation packages and insurance policies at Walden Sports Inc. (Laureate Education, 2012b).
Problem Statement
It is undeniable that Walden sports have come a long way in their respected industry. However, it has also been noticed that the company is experiencing some organizational challenges concerning the enterprise structure. An orderly arrangement with the workers has proved hectic. Job satisfaction and motivation among the workers coupled with low productivity levels and job absenteeism are some of the problems that this tourism giant is dealing with now. The employees have also stopped working extra hours as they did before the new management (Laureate 2012b). There is a general trend of laxity among the employees depicting the need for motivation. The absenteeism rates can also depict that the workers are not satisfied with their current working conditions and payment terms. In respect to this problem, this project shall entail the plausible way to deal with this situation and restore progress within the sports house.
Theoretical Framework
In addition to the attitudinal resentment of work, the employees’ may also be reacting to the preconceived trust issues in the organization and role conflict dilemmas. Perceived Organizational Support (POS) presents the best way to fill the void for the management of the organization to make the workers feel that their effort is appreciated (Shanock & Eisenberger, 2006). The company should consider the social, psychological, and economic needs of their workers. A technique for motivation and appreciation should also be developed within this firm. The recognition would help the workers work toward quality service that is in line with the company’s missions and universal values (Eisenberger, Huntington, Hutchinson, & Sowa, 1986). Furthermore, the company should rebuild its trust in the workers by having the managers honor the job promises that they make to the employees (Laureate Education, 2012b). At the entry level, most of the employees who were interviewed said that they were promised a pay rise and a flexible work schedule, however, these promises have not been honored by the management.
Purpose Statement
The goal of this paper is to study the effects of organizational change on the job attitudes of the workers at Walden Sports Inc. The understanding of how best to involve employees in all diameters of the work environment, enhance job satisfaction and motivation, and improve the trust and teamwork between the employees and the management is very essential. These goals can be achieved by working with the employees to give their comments and constructive feedback from both parties which can be used to find resolutions to the leadership challenges.
As an analyst and advisor to the company, I purpose to collect the right type of data for my analysis through observations, and sample surveys. Through random sampling across the employee population, we shall manage to find valuable data about job satisfaction and job attitudes. The data collection would also cover the treatment of the employees, the work schedule, the roles of both teams, and motivational issues. The observation and surveys would be mainly carried out by the retail outlets.
Literature Search Strategy
Literary data search of the relevant information on job attitudes was performed based on a six-year time frame from 2011-2017. The key aspects of the job approach under study include the level of; job satisfaction, job involvement, and organizational commitment. The primary database that we utilized in doing this research was the Walden University Library. The OPAC system of the library website gives room for an inter-library search of various academic materials presenting a vast output. Our search was however limited to the select timeframe. Also, we also used scholarly articles from the Internet, The Google Scholar, Walden University Library, Questia, the Journal of Applied psychology, and other relevant organizational documents. The main search options across the web and the other reference catalogs include such subjects as the attitude of workers, the commitment of Walden sports Inc., and team building at Walden Sports Inc. All these terms were meant to provide relevant information in line with the project. A complete such of data over the six years provided sufficient data that helped me understand the aspects of job attitude, measurement, and change based on employer-employee relation, employee’s position, and the level of job satisfaction. The library materials, however, came in very handy for the bibliography.
Literature Review
The work environment has advanced over the years thanks to the development of technology and the globalization (Attridge, 2009). Unemployment within America is often caused by the modifications in business due to the state of the economy. Mergers, franchises, and acquisitions are some of the leading causes of insecurity and unemployment among workers (Guerrero, 2014). Research suggests that nearly 75 percent of all mergers and acquisitions in the United States fail (Guerrero, 2014). Among such mergers, only 15 percent will achieve their financial and organizational goals (Guerrero, 2014). That the statistics for mergers are against those organizations who attempt it, but with precision, it can be accomplished.
Technological advancement and globalization of the market place have led to the quest for a varied skillset from the employees (Caldbick, Labonte, Mohindra, & Ruckert, 2014). The need for extraordinary skills is also perpetuated by the increase in the number of highly educated individuals. A worker, therefore, should have in addition to his or her academic certificates, immense talents, practical experience, and excellent character. A valuable worker would almost always be retained in such scenarios as a merger (Cascio, 2003). Such a worker would then prove almost indispensable when it is time for companies to downsize, form a partnership or outsource. The effects of being laid off from work due to such business misfortunes are often detrimental and at times result in mental breakdowns. The loss of employment is both tragic and worrying for the worker and the dependents on such a laborer.
The change in the management due to these necessary business changes result in fear among the employees who had been used to another boss. The central concern is the insecurity of not meeting the expectations of their new employer. At times, the employers might be a total opposite of their predecessors instilling fear among the employees. The workers are also unsure of the motives of this new management concerning their job security and roles. These developments that come with business reorganization creates a stressful atmosphere for the workers and thus altering their job attitude. A negative job attitude can then be noticed through decreased job satisfaction, reduced commitment, mistrust, and reduced sales (Cascio, 2003).
The Walden Sports Inc. made several unfulfilled promises at the onset of their tenure (Laureate Education, 2012b). Despite their promises, the following period was characterized by duplication of employee roles which led to confusion and in effect negatively affect the psyche of the workers (Laureate Education, 2012c). The new management, therefore, jeopardized their psychological contract with the workers leading to distrust and discontent (Palomino & Frezatti, 2015). This newly created job environment is therefore no longer appealing to the workers, which is causing them to rethink their positions and desire something new and different (Laureate Education, 2012b). A management that would keep their promises and even appreciate their efforts by motivating excellent work through pay rise (Cascio, 2003). The new management at Walden did not only fail to do this, but they were also inaccessible by the employees (Laureate Education, 2012c). There is no clear channel of communication and as a result, the workers were confused on who to report to, and once the supervision was noticed to be poor, then the laborers could sleep on the job or miss out on coming at all (Laureate Education, 2012b; Laureate Education, 2012c). At times, they could take advantage of the mismanagement to miss work and these behaviors could, however, be rectified through the creation a positive perception of the company. The process would require the partnership of both the workers and their direct supervisors.
Survey Instrument
The key measurement tool of job satisfaction, in this case, would be to the degree of organizational commitment. The use of the levels of organizational commitment to project the standard of job satisfaction is efficient. The choice is informed by the thin line that exists between engagement and progress. Take, for example, a worker who loves making candy in a factory. This employee would come in early every morning work with a beaming attitude throughout the day and leave in the evening with some degree of contentment and pride. The worker could even work extra hours if allowed by the management. Such attitude is what defines real commitment at the work place. The commitment of such an employee would go a long way in reducing the turnover while increasing productivity. The best model for measuring the commitment of an employee would be the Meyer and Allen Model of Organizational Commitment (Meyer & Allen 1991). This model was formed by the two authors based on the notion that a worker’s’ commitment traverses beyond the personal goals and values to their psychological obligation to the firm. The model further purports that attitudinal and behavioral commitment play a critical role in job attitudes (Meyer, Stanley, Herscovitch, & Topolnytsky, 2002). The model, therefore, presents three different levels (effective, continuous, and normative) upon which the employees’ commitment to the company can be measured. By assigning numerical values to different tastes and feedback, I would be able to access how much committed an individual is from his or her review of the company. Moreover, I choose to use this technique based on its high validity and coverage of all psychological aspects of employee commitment.
Methods
Participants
The key participants of this research include the Walden Sports Inc.’s management, the workers and former employees of the firm. By sampling various individuals and interviewing them, we can find out the reason why they left or are unhappy about the work conditions within the company. As for the management, we would initiate them into having a meeting with the other participants to help them find out what is the problem and find the best ways of dealing with the problems.
Measures
The various variables affecting the degree of job satisfaction within Walden Inc. include conflict, trust, and perceived organizational support. These variables form the basis upon which we shall base our measurements. The company has experienced poor job performance that is characterized by absenteeism from work, unsupervised leaves, uncalled for misadventures and reduced profitability levels. These actions point towards a company with employees who are unmotivated and dissatisfied with the work environment. An analysis of each of the three variables would, therefore, give us a possible solution based on the appropriate data analysis technique.
Trust
The change in the management of Walden Sports Inc. has sparked insecurity and mistrust among the new employer and the workers. Furthermore, the workers have lost trust and confidence in the firm due to the mismanagement. There is no longer a proper guideline on how they should work. There is no detailed work schedule and an outline of each worker’s roles. The level of trust between the employer and employee directly affects the job satisfaction and general output (Culbert & McDonough, 1986). If the two parties are not seeing eye to eye, then it is possible for that the worker will develop some degree of resentment and distrust resulting in an inadequate work coordination and thus failure of the company (Kanungo, 1982).
Trust is an important factor in everyday life, it is a mix of feeling and rational thinking as defined by Lewis & Weigert (1985). Most importantly, trust in the workplace has been linked to increased levels of organizational performance and competitiveness (Vineburgh, 2010). When employees feel that their organization is not trustworthy, they tend to find ways to reduce their vulnerability such as reducing their performance (Culbert & McDonough, 1986). The OTI has an internal validity of 0.84 (dimension 1), .78 (dimension 2), and .88 (dimension 3) respectively (Nyhan & Marlowe, 1997; Butler, 1991). The model is a 12-item, and 7-point Likert scale that inquiries on my organization conducts operations in an ethical manner and the organization listens to their employees, and the organization provides proper feedback to their employees
Perceived Organizational Support
Employees often have varied perceptions about their employer. An understanding of this knowledge is therefore very essential in managing any business. Complete emotional intelligence on the part of the company would help him, or she understands how he or she is perceived by the workers and therefore address them at that point. According to industrial and organizational psychology expert Dr. John Meyer, organizational commitment reflects loyalty and willingness to work toward organizational objectives that have been identified by the organization (Meyer, 1997). By meeting the workers at their levels of need, the boss can be able to forge a healthier relationship with the employees. To help the team achieve this, we shall employ the use of the Survey of Perceived Organizational Support (SPOS) (Celep & Yilmazturk, 2012). The SPOS will give us accurate feedback that can help us work on improving job satisfaction.
The SPOS is a 36-item questionnaire which incorporates a 7-point Likert scale with 1=strongly disagree, and 7=strongly agree (Eisenberger, Jones, Aselage, & Sucharski, 2004). The survey requires employees to answer statements such as the organization provides all materials for employee success or the organization values my suggestions. The scale has a reliability coefficient of .93 on the long version and .89 on the short 8-item and on the original 36-item long version carries a very high internal validity being close to 1.00 (Eisenberger, Armeli, Rexwinkel, Lynch, & Rhoades, 2001).
Role Conflict
The role conflict variable occurs when employees experience incompatible work demands (Karkel & Frone, 1998). Some individuals may experience role conflict while working in a certain field that may be incompatible with their personal values or beliefs, such as working on certain days that may be reserved for religious practices (Karkel & Frone, 1998). The new Walden Sports employees found themselves working for an organization that was not the same one that was presented at the time of their hire (Laureate Education, 2012c). One individual was told that he could travel at least once a month so he could talk about the vacation spots to potential buyers and has yet to take one trip (Laureate Education, 2012c). Another employee was told that the company was like a big family and that may have been true at one point, but since she has been employed the organization has failed to live up to those remarks (Laureate Education, 2012c). These employees are working for an organization that has not lived up to their side of the expectations and some employees would rather work elsewhere but feel trapped in their current position Laureate Education, 2012b). One question that each employee may be asking themselves is can I work for an organization that does not do what they say they will? This scale is composed of 14-items of which eight measures the strength of the role conflict variable while the others measure role ambiguity on a 5-point Likert scale (1=totally disagree to 5=totally agree) (Rizzo, House, & Lirtzmam, 1970). The Cronbach’s Alpha indicates coefficient of .65 (Palomino & Frezatti, 2015; Rizzo, House, & Lirtzmam, 1970). Walden employees will be asked statements such as I would prefer to work for another company or My organization keeps their commitments to their employees.
Procedure
The first step in the measurement would be the defining of our variables and what they shall measure. In trying to understand the psychological aspects of job satisfaction, frequency, and change at the Walden Sports Inc., I collected the necessary data on conflict, trust issues, and the perceptions of the workers. The data collection was by observation, interviews, questionnaires, and scoring cards. These tools of data collection provided the necessary data on the involved variables. The surveys provided primary information from the sampled population. The sampling process was random, and the questions used were similar to avoid any bias. Concerning the score cards, they helped us understand the workers at the firm through the comments on their job performance.
Data Analysis
The analysis of the collected data was carried out in various steps. First, we employed the use of multiple item survey measures to approximate the levels of job satisfaction, job involvement, and organizational commitment. This technique was based on forming a ranking method for the responses. The categories ranged from 1(Not sure) to 5(Strongly accept). The scores for each response was then coded using the Statistical packages for social sciences (SPSS), and further analysis of the descriptive statistics carried out on the raw data (Field 2013). Secondly, I used the STATA 14.2, to generate a summary of the statistics, perform a regression analysis of the data and develop a correlation matrix for the various categories of responses.
Results
Based on the survey of one hundred and fifty-five employees at Walden Sports Inc. on job attitudes, the outcome of the research displayed a positive correlation between the attitude and commitment. Our variables include; affective, normative, and continuance commitment. From the reliability tests and correlation matrix, the highest-ranking variable was an emotional commitment with a correlation of (α = 0.956) and Cronbach’s alpha for reliability at (α = .924). The normative and continuance aspects of engagement were also highly correlated. The reliability of normative commitment was at α = .931 while that for the continuance was at α = .933. The above statistics, therefore, presents affective commitment as the primary cause of employees slacking from their job.
Table I
Correlations of mean measurements with precursor variables
JobSat
AC
NC
CC
JI
RC
POS
TR Mean Std Deviation Alpha
JobSat
Pearson Correlation
1
.657**
.529**
.356**
.477**
-.211**
.580**
.511** 3.5742 1.54141 .951
Sig. (2-tailed)
.000
.000
.000
.000
.008
.000
.000
N
155
155
155
155
155
155
155
155
AC
Pearson Correlation
.657**
1
.621**
.397**
.484**
-.214**
.530**
.533** 3.5505 1.59956 .956
Sig. (2-tailed)
.000
.000
.000
.000
.008
.000
.000
N
155
155
155
155
155
155
155
155
NC
Pearson Correlation
.529**
.621**
1
.545**
.493**
.041
.468**
.490** 3.6753 1.59509 .931
Sig. (2-tailed)
.000
.000
.000
.000
.614
.000
.000
N
155
155
155
155
155
155
155
155
CC
Pearson Correlation
.356**
.397**
.545**
1
.269**
.046
.248**
.387** 4.0237 1.68897 .933
Sig. (2-tailed)
.000
.000
.000
.001
.571
.002
.000
N
155
155
155
155
155
155
155
155
JI
Pearson Correlation
.477**
.484**
.493**
.269**
1
-.070
.452**
.364** 3.2358 1.41264 .944
Sig. (2-tailed)
.000
.000
.000
.001
.387
.000
.000
N
155
155
155
155
155
155
155
155
RC
Pearson Correlation
-.211**
-.214**
.041
.046
-.070
1
-.231**
.041 4.1819 1.23632 .924
Sig. (2-tailed)
.008
.008
.614
.571
.387
.004
.609
N
155
155
155
155
155
155
155
155
POS
Pearson Correlation
.580**
.530**
.468**
.248**
.452**
-.231**
1
.621** 3.9434 1.21830 .892
Sig. (2-tailed)
.000
.000
.000
.002
.000
.004
.000
N
155
155
155
155
155
155
155
155
TR
Pearson Correlation
.511**
.533**
.490**
.387**
.364**
.041
.621**
1 3.6461 1.32614 .952
Sig. (2-tailed)
.000
.000
.000
.000
.000
.609
.000
N
155
155
155
155
155
155
155
155
**. Correlation is 2-tailed and significant at the 0.01 level
Looking at the survey questions themselves, of the N=155 Walden Sports employees surveyed, a minority (25%) have low job satisfaction (JS1) and 20% feel no emotional connection to the organization (AC3). About the same proportion (23%) feels forced to stay with the company out of obligation (NC6). One focus group member mentions that Walden Sports helped pay for her degree. 18.1% felt that their pledge to the organization was partly due to normative commitment (NC4). Some (21%) feel virtually trapped at Walden (CC4), and about the same number (20%) feel their resources would be lost upon leaving (CC5).
About three-quarters of employees (74%) (JI4) are not obsessively involved in the workplace, and 80% agree that work is not the highest priority in life (JI6).
Pearson product-moment coefficient (Frankfort-Nachmias and Leon-Guerrero, 2007) shows how each variable correlates with its antecedent (Table 1) to show which variables strongly predict attitudes toward the job. Correlation value of .6 to .8 is predictive (Field, 2013). There are moderately acceptable positive correlations between the POS and JobSAT survey results (r(155) = .580, p = .00), and between POS and AC (r(155) = .530, p = .00) which is consistent with Arshadi & Hayavi, (2013) indicating that there’s a significant correlation between perceived organizational support and job satisfaction, and between perceived organizational support and affective commitment.
Overall (Table 1) the survey shows a tendency toward lack of satisfaction with the company. POS (M=3.9434, SD=1.21830) reveals, for example, that many respondents ‘slightly disagreed’ on survey questions, while deviation shows that most responded between 2.72 and 5.16 or moderately disagree and slightly agree.
Table II
Frequency Tabulations
Frequency
Percent
Valid Percent
Cumulative Percent
JSI: All in all, I am satisfied with my job
Valid
1
15
9.7
9.7
9.7
2
39
25.2
25.2
34.8
3
38
24.5
24.5
59.4
4
26
16.8
16.8
76.1
5
17
11.0
11.0
87.1
6
16
10.3
10.3
97.4
7
4
2.6
2.6
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
JS2: In general, I like my job
Valid
1
14
9.0
9.0
9.0
2
25
16.1
16.1
25.2
3
26
16.8
16.8
41.9
4
44
28.4
28.4
70.3
5
14
9.0
9.0
79.4
6
26
16.8
16.8
96.1
7
6
3.9
3.9
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
JS3: In general, I like working for this company
Valid
1
17
11.0
11.0
11.0
2
28
18.1
18.1
29.0
3
30
19.4
19.4
48.4
4
36
23.2
23.2
71.6
5
19
12.3
12.3
83.9
6
21
13.5
13.5
97.4
7
4
2.6
2.6
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
AC1: I would be very happy to spend the rest of my career at this company
Valid
1
26
16.8
16.8
16.8
2
17
11.0
11.0
27.7
3
23
14.8
14.8
42.6
4
26
16.8
16.8
59.4
5
28
18.1
18.1
77.4
6
28
18.1
18.1
95.5
7
7
4.5
4.5
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
AC2: I feel part of the “family” with this company
Valid
1
21
13.5
13.5
13.5
2
22
14.2
14.2
27.7
3
33
21.3
21.3
49.0
4
24
15.5
15.5
64.5
5
22
14.2
14.2
78.7
6
28
18.1
18.1
96.8
7
5
3.2
3.2
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
AC3: I feel “emotionally attached” to this company
Valid
1
31
20.0
20.0
20.0
2
29
18.7
18.7
38.7
3
23
14.8
14.8
53.5
4
27
17.4
17.4
71.0
5
20
12.9
12.9
83.9
6
19
12.3
12.3
96.1
7
6
3.9
3.9
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
AC4: I feel a strong sense of belonging to this company
Valid
1
21
13.5
13.5
13.5
2
29
18.7
18.7
32.3
3
27
17.4
17.4
49.7
4
30
19.4
19.4
69.0
5
22
14.2
14.2
83.2
6
20
12.9
12.9
96.1
7
6
3.9
3.9
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
AC5: This organization has a great deal of personal meaning for me
Valid
1
29
18.7
18.7
18.7
2
31
20.0
20.0
38.7
3
33
21.3
21.3
60.0
4
26
16.8
16.8
76.8
5
13
8.4
8.4
85.2
6
17
11.0
11.0
96.1
7
6
3.9
3.9
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
AC6: I really feel as if this organization’s problems are my own
Valid
1
24
15.5
15.5
15.5
2
21
13.5
13.5
29.0
3
25
16.1
16.1
45.2
4
36
23.2
23.2
68.4
5
23
14.8
14.8
83.2
6
20
12.9
12.9
96.1
7
6
3.9
3.9
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
NC1: I feel obligation to remain with this company
Valid
1
35
22.6
22.6
22.6
2
14
9.0
9.0
31.6
3
22
14.2
14.2
45.8
4
39
25.2
25.2
71.0
5
29
18.7
18.7
89.7
6
12
7.7
7.7
97.4
7
4
2.6
2.6
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
NC2: I would feel guilty if I left this company now
Valid
1
37
23.9
23.9
23.9
2
21
13.5
13.5
37.4
3
19
12.3
12.3
49.7
4
29
18.7
18.7
68.4
5
27
17.4
17.4
85.8
6
15
9.7
9.7
95.5
7
7
4.5
4.5
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
NC3: The company deserves my loyalty
Valid
1
23
14.8
14.8
14.8
2
16
10.3
10.3
25.2
3
18
11.6
11.6
36.8
4
28
18.1
18.1
54.8
5
20
12.9
12.9
67.7
6
35
22.6
22.6
90.3
7
15
9.7
9.7
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
NC4: I would not leave this company right now because I have a sense of obligation to the people in it
Valid
1
26
16.8
16.8
16.8
2
19
12.3
12.3
29.0
3
15
9.7
9.7
38.7
4
29
18.7
18.7
57.4
5
29
18.7
18.7
76.1
6
28
18.1
18.1
94.2
7
9
5.8
5.8
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
NC5: Even if it were to my advantage, I do not feel it would be right to leave my organization now
Valid
1
34
21.9
21.9
21.9
2
23
14.8
14.8
36.8
3
27
17.4
17.4
54.2
4
31
20.0
20.0
74.2
5
18
11.6
11.6
85.8
6
16
10.3
10.3
96.1
7
6
3.9
3.9
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
NC6: I owe a great deal to this organization
Valid
1
30
19.4
19.4
19.4
2
10
6.5
6.5
25.8
3
17
11.0
11.0
36.8
4
26
16.8
16.8
53.5
5
35
22.6
22.6
76.1
6
27
17.4
17.4
93.5
7
10
6.5
6.5
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
CC1: It would be hard for me to leave this company right now, even if I wanted to
Valid
1
13
8.4
8.4
8.4
2
18
11.6
11.6
20.0
3
16
10.3
10.3
30.3
4
29
18.7
18.7
49.0
5
29
18.7
18.7
67.7
6
19
12.3
12.3
80.0
7
31
20.0
20.0
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
CC2: Too much of my life would be disrupted if I decided I wanted to leave this company right now
Valid
1
24
15.5
15.5
15.5
2
18
11.6
11.6
27.1
3
21
13.5
13.5
40.6
4
27
17.4
17.4
58.1
5
29
18.7
18.7
76.8
6
14
9.0
9.0
85.8
7
22
14.2
14.2
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
CC3: Right now, staying with this company is a matter of necessity as much as desire
Valid
1
22
14.2
14.2
14.2
2
19
12.3
12.3
26.5
3
15
9.7
9.7
36.1
4
21
13.5
13.5
49.7
5
31
20.0
20.0
69.7
6
21
13.5
13.5
83.2
7
26
16.8
16.8
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
CC4: I feel that I have too few options to consider leaving this company
Valid
1
28
18.1
18.1
18.1
2
19
12.3
12.3
30.3
3
22
14.2
14.2
44.5
4
34
21.9
21.9
66.5
5
19
12.3
12.3
78.7
6
13
8.4
8.4
87.1
7
20
12.9
12.9
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
CC5: One of the few negative consequences of leaving this organization would be the scarcity of available resources
Valid
1
24
15.5
15.5
15.5
2
14
9.0
9.0
24.5
3
24
15.5
15.5
40.0
4
31
20.0
20.0
60.0
5
32
20.6
20.6
80.6
6
17
11.0
11.0
91.6
7
13
8.4
8.4
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
CC6: If I had not already put so much of myself into this organization, I might consider working elsewhere
Valid
1
28
18.1
18.1
18.1
2
18
11.6
11.6
29.7
3
19
12.3
12.3
41.9
4
29
18.7
18.7
60.6
5
21
13.5
13.5
74.2
6
17
11.0
11.0
85.2
7
23
14.8
14.8
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
JI1: The major satisfaction in my life comes from my job
Valid
1
34
21.9
21.9
21.9
2
36
23.2
23.2
45.2
3
33
21.3
21.3
66.5
4
18
11.6
11.6
78.1
5
21
13.5
13.5
91.6
6
1
.6
.6
92.3
7
11
7.1
7.1
99.4
Total
155
100.0
100.0
JI2: The most important things that happen to me involve my work
Valid
1
30
19.4
19.4
19.4
2
31
20.0
20.0
39.4
3
22
14.2
14.2
53.5
4
33
21.3
21.3
74.8
5
27
17.4
17.4
92.3
6
11
7.1
7.1
99.4
7
1
.6
.6
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
JI3: I’m really a perfectionist about my work
Valid
1
21
13.5
13.5
13.5
2
28
18.1
18.1
31.6
3
33
21.3
21.3
52.9
4
31
20.0
20.0
72.9
5
27
17.4
17.4
90.3
6
10
6.5
6.5
96.8
7
5
3.2
3.2
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
JI4: I live, eat, and breathe my job
Valid
1
25
16.1
16.1
16.1
2
22
14.2
14.2
30.3
3
40
25.8
25.8
56.1
4
30
19.4
19.4
75.5
5
17
11.0
11.0
86.5
6
16
10.3
10.3
96.8
7
5
3.2
3.2
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
JI5: I am very much involved personally with my work
Valid
1
21
13.5
13.5
13.5
2
29
18.7
18.7
32.3
3
38
24.5
24.5
56.8
4
29
18.7
18.7
75.5
5
28
18.1
18.1
93.5
6
8
5.2
5.2
98.7
7
2
1.3
1.3
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
JI6: Most things in life are not more important than work
Valid
1
31
20.0
20.0
20.0
2
30
19.4
19.4
39.4
3
31
20.0
20.0
59.4
4
31
20.0
20.0
79.4
5
21
13.5
13.5
92.9
6
5
3.2
3.2
96.1
7
6
3.9
3.9
100.0
Total
155
100.0
100.0
Recommendations
Several books, articles, television shows have profiled individuals with high paying careers who have left their jobs for lower paying jobs, sometimes retreating to small Caribbean islands all due to the burnout dilemma. Burnout is defined as having complete exhaustion, cynicism, ineffectiveness and disengagement from work (Demerouti, Mostert, & Bakker, 2010). Burnout does not happen overnight serving as a long-term and intensely physical, affective, and cognitive strain to certain job demands.
To manage the measured quantities and the causative variables, restoration of perceived trust would be very essential. Walden Sports Inc. is a small company with a handful employees, and therefore the management can easily incorporate a socialist system of living within the institution. By appreciating and motivating every hardworking employee, the workers would feel at home emotionally and therefore have the will to carry on with their already good work. The move will also help restore trust between the two parties.
Communication is also a very critical challenge during any organizational change (Nicol, 2014). Role duplication characterizes the company. This duplication confuses the workers. In line with this information asymmetry, my first recommendation would be to facilitate increased motivation and job attitudes. The facilitation of the two would help the company to develop an effective communication plan. Through an effective communication plan, it would be easy to implement the necessary changes. Communication would also contribute to avoid any possible attitudes among the workers as the management would be able to get in touch which the employees and thus efficiently resolve any challenges at the work place. The Walden sports Inc.’s management should, therefore, set the tone for any changes within the company.
My final recommendation for Walden Sports Inc., focused on job involvement is to review and revise job descriptions with more specific KSA’s (knowledge, skills, abilities), job responsibilities, and organizational expectations. Walden Sports has implemented several new products and as well as services that have created a new department and thus has caused some confusion mostly related to employee responsibilities (Laureate Education, 2012b).
My personal thoughts on the subject are that there are numerous areas needing improvements within Walden Sports Inc., but the review of qualitative and quantitative results gave way to specific areas that could be identified and corrected. I found this case study to be a realistic organizational issue and a great opportunity to build upon Industrial/Organizational knowledge and skills.
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