Employee turnover is an ongoing issue in organisations because it has long been
thought to detriment overall organisational efficiency and performance (Lee, Gerhart, Weller
& Trevor, 2008; Takeuchi, Chen & Lepak, 2009; Trevor, 2001). Managers are only able to
observe and control some aspects or influencers of turnover (Dalton, Todor & Krackhardt,
1982). Placing voluntary turnover drivers in context with human resource (HR) practices
might provide a means through which managers can understand the less visible aspects of
turnover. HR practices may assist managers to reduce the controllable (evident) and less
observable drivers of voluntary turnover.
March and Simon (1958), the seminal employee turnover theorists, suggest that the
voluntary turnover decision has two competing aspects – desirability of the current job and
desirability of alternatives. The perceived utility an employee garners from the current job
might define the desirability of the current job. The more desirable the current job, the
greater satisfaction and lower the likelihood of a quit. The potential utility the individual
deems available from perceived alternative opportunities might define the desirability of
alternatives. If the potential utility of an alternative outweighs the utility garnered by the
current job, a quit seems more likely (March & Simon, 1958).
Generally, mainstream voluntary turnover research has placed emphasis on
understanding turnover antecedents in the current organisation - the aspects that lower the
perceived utility garnered by the current job (Kirschenbaum & Weisberg, 2002). However,
considerably less research has focused on the alternative that draws the employee away
from their current job (Kirschenbaum & Weisberg, 2002). The alternative to which the
individual moves is the turnover destination. The turnover destination contributes towards
the withdrawal process because the person perceived the alternative as more desirable than
the current job, increasing the likelihood of a quit.
Observing organisational performance may provide an important means through
which to examine the effect turnover destinations may have on withdrawal. Strategic human
resource management (SHRM) and similar organisational development fields hold a
particular view on organisational performance. SHRM theorists have paid particular
attention to the implementation of high-performance human resource (HR) practices in
organisations. Predominantly, extensive research has been conducted on the effect highiii
performance HR practices might have on organisational performance and retention. SHRM
theorists suggest that a combination (system) of high-performance HR practices correctly
implemented in the firm, and aligned with organisational strategy, should bring about
improved organisational performance and employee retention (Arthur, 1994; Carmeli &
Schaubroeck, 2005; Combs, Liu, Hall & Ketchen, 2006; Shaw, Gupta & Delery, 2005;
Subramony, 2009; Youndt, Snell, Dean & Lepak, 1996; Wood, 1999).
The field of turnover destination research highlights the role of turnover destinations
in the voluntary turnover process. Specifically, turnover destination theorists postulate that
antecedents present in the current firm affect the quit decision by influencing the intensity of
the desire to leave, and the perception of alternative opportunities shapes the choice of
turnover destination (Kirschenbaum & Mano-Negrin, 1999; Kirschenbaum & Weisberg,
2002). Research in the field focuses on the influence turnover destinations might have on
turnover intentions, moving away from the traditional focus of internal organisational
antecedents and personal factors (Kirschenbaum & Weisberg, 2002).
The relationship between high-performance HR practices and turnover destinations
has not been extensively tested empirically, with few known studies in existence (for
example: Fields, Dingman, Roman & Blum, 2005). Therefore, there is opportunity for
greater research in the field. The developing South African economy is a suitable
environment in which to measure whether high-performance HR practices affect turnover
destinations at the individual-level, as no known research has been conducted. The South
African economy is said to be suffering from the mass emigration of highly skilled
individuals, who mostly move to developed countries with less prominent societal issues
and less restrictive labour policies, amongst other reasons (Kerr-Phillips & Thomas, 2009;
McDonald & Crush, 2002). A key interest for this research is the role experience of highperformance
HR practices might play in emigration of South African white-collar workers.
The study explores the relationship between high-performance HR practices and
turnover destinations by measuring met expectations and turnover intentions. The objective
of the empirical study is to establish whether experience of high-performance HR practices
in the current job affect the likelihood of particular turnover destinations.
A quantitative study, using a two-part time-separated survey, was conducted on
white-collar workers from three South African provinces, including Gauteng, Kwa-Zulu
iv
Natal and the Western Cape. The first part of the survey measured respondents’ perceptions
of the levels of actual high-performance HR practice provision in the current organisation. In
addition, respondent expectations about the adequate level of the practices (that should
retain them in their current jobs) were measured. The second part of the survey measured
respondents’ intentions to move into a predefined set of turnover destinations.
The final sample of 386 participants was used to analyse the impact of interactions
between actual and adequate high-performance HR practices on a variety of turnover
destinations, using polynomial regression analysis and response surface methodology.
Overall, the results showed that a system of high-performance HR practices exert a
weak to moderate influence on the predefined turnover destinations. Generally, South
Africans with lower expectations about high-performance HR practice provision appear less
likely to leave a job when the employer places greater emphasis on the practices. However,
the likelihood of internal transfer and moving into a different organisation increases for
individuals who possess higher expectations about high-performance HR practice provision,
and have experienced higher levels of actual provision. The findings also show that, for the
most part, the likelihood of emigration increases in employees with lower actual provision
of high-performance HR practices, largely contradicting expectations about emigration.
The increase in the likelihood of internal transfers and moves to external
organisations, despite higher actual high-performance HR practice provision, might point
towards over-provision of the practices, or the possibility of continuance commitment in
South African employees. The findings suggest that, rather than higher emphasis of highperformance
HR practices providing a means for emigration, broader external societal
conditions may be motivating the emigration of skilled South Africans.
As the results showed that a set of high-performance HR practices may exert a weak
to moderate influence on turnover destination selection, there are recommendations for
managers and future research. Implications for managers include promoting the
implementation of a set of high-performance HR practices in the organisation. Researchers
in the turnover destinations field should endeavour to measure actual turnover, rather than
intentions in future studies.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:wits/oai:wiredspace.wits.ac.za:10539/10672 |
| Date | 31 October 2011 |
| Creators | Bussio, Stacy Katherine |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | application/pdf |
Page generated in 0.0027 seconds