Organisations are constantly seeking for ways and means to enhance their profitability in a global economy. The current organisational trend to gain the competitive advantage has become a more people orientated focus. Numerous studies grant acclaim to employee engagement for its perceived increase in financial performance. A dominant driver effecting levels of employee engagement, is leadership. It is this driver, in particular, that is examined in this study. The aim is to determine to what extent leadership has an impact on employee engagement, which in turn directly impacts on the organisations bottom-line. The study was done by utilising existing secondary data on employee engagement (Connexion survey for 2008) in the Enforcement and Risk Management Division of SARS. A quantitative research study was conducted, utilising measures such as Cronbach alpha coefficient test and factor analysis, to establish a relationship between the two factors. The main finding of the research is that leadership has a profound impact on levels of employee engagement in the organisation of choice. It is also deduced that employee engagement, as a strategy to enhance an organisation’s competitiveness, is a continuous process that must be sustained for a number of years to fully perceive the value. Copyright / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

The objective of this study was to determine the psychometric properties of an employee attitude survey as developed by an Automotive Manufacturing Organization. The employee attitude survey consist of 55 items and was completed by a total of 306 employees employed at this specific organization. An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was performed where only one factor loading resulted out of an anticipated thirteen. The inter-correlations were empirically investigated and indicated that all the items under a specific dimension did have a lot in common with one another. An anti-image inter-correlation was performed. All of the items indicated a satisfying measure of sampling adequacy (MSA) values at .595. The overall reliability of the employee attitude survey was satisfactory. These results suggested that the employee attitude survey is a handy tool for the goal the organization wants to use it for, but it does not differentiate between the thirteen different dimensions of attitude as hoped for. / Dissertation (MCom)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Human Resource Management / unrestricted

More employees in organisations in the built environment are beginning to suffer from ill health related to work when compared with employees in other industries. There are many reasons for this, such as: unsuitable working conditions, physical demands linked to the occupation and the high proportion of transient unskilled and semi-skilled employees. A study concerning the wellness levels of unskilled and semi-skilled employees therefore contributes to the understanding and improvement of employee health within the industry. The main objective of this study was therefore to identify the wellness levels of employees in the built environment and their perceptions of the extent to which their company provides wellness interventions or strategies. The methodological approach used in this study was within a quantitative paradigm, and a questionnaire was used as a data collection instrument. The findings indicated that the employees engaged in healthy activities and that the organisation encouraged the employees to maintain healthy lifestyles. However, there were areas that required consideration. Specifically, more attention should be given to budgeting for wellness interventions, regular health screenings should take place and more attention to substance abuse is required.

South Africa is ranked 44th place out of 53 countries (IMD 2011). It would seem imperative for the South African Government and the private sector to pay close attention to studies of this nature that indicate the importance of certain factors on the motivation of employees. In essence this study could assist Government and the private sector in understanding the importance of different factors that influence motivation of employees and the profitability of organisations. Should organisations re-align their focus on motivation of employees by taking cognisance of the elements addressed in this study, it could have a positive effect on the productivity of individual firms as well as on national productivity. The purpose of this study was to establish which motivational factors have an effect on the motivation of employees that would affect their individual, the organisational performance and customer satisfaction. The study aimed at firstly identifying motivational factors that has an influence on organisational performance. Secondly, investigating the effect of employee performance on organisational performance and thirdly investigating the impact of employee performance on customer satisfaction. The primary objective of this study was to establish which motivational factors have an effect on the motivation of employees thus affecting their individual and organisational performance and customer satisfaction. The relationship between work motivation, performance and productivity is complex. Although work motivation seems to have a significant impact on performance and productivity, it is certainly not the only influencing factor (Fisher, Katz, Miller & Thatcher 2003:82). Research has indicated that besides motivation, productivity is influenced by a variety of factors which could include the employee’s ability, skills, training, and availability of resources, management practices and economic conditions. In the light of the above, this study endeavoured to establish which dominant motivational factors have an influence on employee, corporate performance and customer satisfaction. Different motivational factors including hygiene factors, such as attitude, job satisfaction, rewards, leadership styles and communication were discussed as well as their influence on employee and organisational performance Information was gathered through secondary research. The investigation also included an exploration of different research methodologies, methods of data collection and analysis for this specific study. The main empirical research findings indicated that there is a positive relationship between motivator factors and employee performance as well as between management communication and employee performance. It is recommended that a policy and control manual should be compiled and distributed to new employees as part of their induction programme. The policies should be updated annually to incorporate changes in the organisation and to indicate to employees that management is serious about creating positive relationships between employees and employers. There is also a positive relationship between employee performance and organisational performance. It is recommended that organisations implement employee performance management systems that link to organisational performance goals in order to be able to critically access the performance of the employee in relation to the broader goals and results of an organisation. The relationship between motivational factors and customer satisfaction should however be investigated further. There seems to be different views in the literature on whether customer satisfaction surveys (or other measurements) should be used to support this relationship.

Globalisation and the falling of trade barriers across the world have changed the way organisations conduct their business. Organisations have to become more competitive to compete against local rivals and imported products. Employees fulfil a vital role in this strategy and productive employees can enable organisations to accomplish this goal. Employees need to be motivated to contribute to the challenges of globalisation and ultimately the success of the organisation. Organisations therefore need to create a motivating climate wherein employees can perform. A number of motivational theories are recorded, but older theories make the assumption than an average human being exists. The more modern theories, which identify the relationship between dynamic variables, are more relevant but to a large extent do not consider the influence of trade unions. Trade unions are still very active in South Africa, and a combined effort by organisations and trade unions could result in a win-win outcome for both parties. Rewards and recognition drive behaviour which will result in enhanced productivity. Monetary rewards are the preferred incentive amongst employees, but the effect of training and development opportunities are often underestimated and under-utilised. Employees are generally eager to improve their skills levels, which could have a positive medium to long term impact on the organisation. Effective leadership is crucial to improved productivity and leaders have to create the environment for employees to perform. Traditional management styles are no longer effective and modern leaders have to develop their skills to achieve sustainability of the organisation.

People who participate in adult education do so for a variety of reasons. The British Columbia Telephone Company (B.C. Tel) reimburses employees who take courses, and does so because it is assumed that employees participate in education for job-related reasons. The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which employees utilizing B.C. Tel's "Financial Assistance Plan" take courses for "job" or "non job" reasons and to determine the extent to which different "motivational types" (derived from contrasting job with non job motivational orientation scores) possessed different socio-demographic characteristics. Boshier's Education participation Scale (EPS), along with Helmreich and Spence's Work and Family Orientation Questionnaire (WOFO), were assembled in a questionnaire that also measured the socio-demographic characteristics of employees utilizing the B.C. Tel Financial Assistance Plan in 1985. EPS items were subjected to a judging process that identified those deemed to be "job" and those deemed to be "non job" oriented. Of the 250 questionnaires distributed through B.C. Tel's internal mail system, 159 useable ones were returned. A total EPS "job" score was derived by calculating the mean over the relevant items, a total "non job" score was derived using the same method for items in this category. Respondents with the highest "job" scores (i.e. most likely enrolled for job-related reasons) were younger employees, those with shorter periods of employment with B.C. Tel, and union employees. Those with the highest "non job" scores were older employees, respondents with children, and management employees in staff positions. Although the first phase of the analysis revealed significant relationships between socio-demographic and EPS variables, a multivariate analysis which simultaneously considered both "job" and "non job" scores was needed because many participants were enrolled for both reasons. Job motivation is not the opposite of, or does not exclude, non job motivation. Thus, a discriminant analysis was performed where the dependent variables were four motivational types. TYPE I respondents were high job/high non job motivated, TYPE II were high job/low non job motivated, TYPE III were low job/low non job motivated, and TYPE IV were low job/high non job motivated. It was concluded that predicting participant type was possible using only two socio-demographic variables, age and employment function. TYPE I participants were younger than TYPE III and IV, and were more likely to be union employees. TYPE II participants were similar in age to TYPE I, but were more likely to be in management. TYPE III participants were mostly management and were older than TYPE I and II. TYPE IV were similar in age to TYPE III, but were evenly split between union and management. Further research is needed concerning the application of the EPS in a business setting. The judging process used to determine "job" and "non job" scores is worthy of further examination in a larger context. As well, it would be useful to examine if other categories exist. Finally, construct validation of the typology of participants developed in this study through in-depth interviews conducted with representative respondents of a similar sample could ratify or refine the classifications used in this thesis. / Education, Faculty of / Educational Studies (EDST), Department of / Graduate

The study undertook to examine empirically the casual influence of certain individual difference factors and situational factors on job involvement and the effect of job involvement on job related effort. In addition, the role of certain individual difference and situational factors as moderators on the above linkage was explored. A theoretical model was developed with need for achievement, locus of control, job scope and participation in decision making as casual antecedents of job involvement and job related effort as its consequence. The moderator effects of age, education, sex and leader behavior on the above linkage were also studied. The model hypothesized a positive relationship between job involvement and need for achievement, internal locus of control, job scope, participation in decision making, and job related effort. In addition, the causal linkage was expected to be stronger for: 1. older people, 2. more educated workers, 3. males, and 4. those who function in a leadership climate of high consideration and structure. Data were gathered from two different groups through structured questionnaires. The pilot sample consisted of employees from organizations in the electronics industry located in the greater Montreal area. The validation sample consisted of people enrolled in the evening program in business administration in the two major anglophone universities in Quebec. All of them held full time jobs. Only anglophone respondents were included in the analysis. The pilot sample size was 139 with a response rate of 47% while the validation sample size was 170 with a response rate of 68%. Convergent and discriminant validation and internal consistency reliability tests indicated that the scales used in this study possessed acceptable psychometric properties. Path analysis, correlations and subgroup analysis were used to test the various hypotheses generated in this study. The results offered only moderate support to causal model originally proposed. The hypotheses suggesting positive relationships between the predictors and the criterion variables were all confirmed. Age, education, sex and leadership behavior failed to moderate the causal linkage in the hypothesized direction. There were no significant moderator effects. Based on the empirical findings, the original model was revised and tested. The results endorsed the validity of the revised model. The implications of the findings were discussed and possible future courses of action outlined. / Business, Sauder School of / Graduate

The objective of this research was to determine whether there is a relationship between the level of maturity of an organization's business processes as measured by the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award's Criteria for Performance Excellence (BCPE) and the level of employee engagement. Two organizations were selected for the study based on their overall level of maturity measured by the BCPE scoring guide representing firms with high and low levels of maturity. The first hypothesis tested indicates a negative statistically significant relationship between the level of maturity of an organization and the level of employee engagement. Next, the level of employee engagement between males and females was significantly different as the level for men was higher than the level for women participating in the study. Finally, no support was found for the third hypothesis exploring differences in the levels of employee engagement between military and civilian employees. This study was limited to predominantly full-time personnel assigned to two of twenty-eight state Army National Guard (ARNG) organizations that participated in the ARNG Army Communities of Excellence (ACOE) award process during the award years of 2009-2010. The absence of support for the BCPE's effect on the level of employee engagement within organizations could be an indicator of other factors affecting employee engagement that are needed to be researched further before any conclusions can be reached.

South Africa has a very low supply of adequately skilled and experience Black Professionals and as a result South African companies find themselves competing for the limited resources that are available. Since the government introduced Affirmative Action and Employment Equity Acts which resulted to an increase in the demand for these professionals, this low supply has lead to increased salaries for these professionals. What has compounded the problem is the staff turnover problem that these organisations are facing. The literature shows that 65% of black professionals leave organisations within three years when it takes five years to recover all the costs of getting that person into the organization. The objective of this research is to uncover the reasons why these professionals change jobs at the rate that they are. It was decided that the best research method to use for this exercise is an exploratory study. Depth interviews were conducted by the researcher and the respondents were chosen through a snow-balling technique where the initial respondents were chosen through a judgmental technique. The following are the top five factors that came out of this exercise which, according to the respondents, push them out of the organisation, these have been listed in order of importance: Career Aspirations and Lack of Mentorship Programmes, Treatment and Respect, Salaries, Affirmative Action and Undermining of Black Skills. The details are discussed in the report. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

The retention of skills is central to the sustained success of an organisation. In an environment of increased globalisation and competition for skills, the retention of skills is increasingly important yet difficult to achieve. An inclusive organisational culture and the effective management of diversity play a decisive role in the retention of skills. In turn, leadership is a key element in shaping and influencing the culture of an organisation and creating an inclusive workplace environment in a diverse culture such as that in post-Apartheid South Africa. The explicit objective of the Employment Equity Act (1998) is to transform the racial composition of the South African employment landscape, but what of the implicit aim of transforming the workplace into one that embraces all races and cultures? Has the transformation process, driven by government through legislation, had a positive impact in the workplace and achieved the objectives of the Employment Equity Act? The aim of this research was to establish if the increasing number of black managers have had a positive influence on the culture of South African workplaces resulting in the retention of black talent. The results indicated that the influence of black managers on the culture of an organisation was limited - largely because the environment was not conducive to the change they envisioned. Consequently black top and senior managers have not influenced the decisions of other black employees to seek alternate employment. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted