194 CHAPTER - 7 Findings, Suggestions and Conclusion
195 CHAPTER 7 Chapter 7. Findings, Suggestions and Conclusion S.No. Name of Sub-title Page No. 7.1 Findings of the Study 199 7.2 Comparison between Penna Cements and PanyamCements 205 7.3 Implications of the Study Findings 206 7.4 Conclusion and Future Directions 208
196 FINDINGS, SUGGESTIONS AND CONCLUSION The study of organizational climate as a causal factor of effectiveness has gained prominence in the HR domain. The current study is undertaken to find out the organizational climate in the select organizations in the cement industry and suggest measures to improve the effectiveness of the organization s climate. This chapter presents the findings of the study and implications to HR professionals and conclusions in light of the findings. Objectives, Hypotheses and Methodology With regard to the literature and need, the following objectives were set for current study. 1. To study the perceptions of employees towards their working environment in the selected private organizations in terms of organizational climate dimensions. 2. To identify the variations in perceptions on organizational climate dimensions among personal variables of employees such as age, gender, education, religion, caste and income variables. 3. To identify the variations in perceptions of organizational climate dimensions among the organizational factors of the employees such as department, work experience and level of management. 4. To offer suggestions to improve the organizational climate in selected private organizations. In order to achieve the above stated objectives, the two hypotheses have been proposed and tested in this study.
197 H1: The perceptions of respondents on organisational climate dimensions differ significantly among different demographic groups of respondents. Based on demographic variables considered for the study, above hypothesis is divided into following sub-hypotheses. H1a: The perceptions of respondents on organisational climate dimensions differ significantly among gender of respondents. H1b: The perceptions of respondents on organisational climate dimensions differ significantly among different age groups of respondents. H1c: The perceptions of respondents on organisational climate dimensions differ significantly among respondents with different educational levels. H1d: The perceptions of respondents on organisational climate dimensions differ significantly among respondents of different income levels. H2: The perceptions of respondents on organisational climate dimensions differ significantly among different groups of respondents based on organisational factors. Based on organisational variables considered for the study, above hypothesis is divided into following sub-hypotheses. H2a: The respondents belonging to different departments differ significantly in their perceptions towards organisational climate dimensions.
198 H2b: The perceptions of respondents on organisational climate dimensions differ significantly among different levels in the organisation. H2c: The respondents having different work experiences differ significantly in their perceptions towards organisational climate dimensions. The study was conducted in Panyam Cements, Nandyal and Penna Cements, Tadipatri. To achieve the above objectives and test the hypotheses, data was collected from 250 employees belonging to different departments and levels of each company. A questionnaire containing 89 statements under 17 dimensions is employed for data collection. The 17 dimensions which constitute the organisational climate are: Job characteristics, Empowerment, Relations, Performance and Reward, Standardization, Managerial Structure, Power and Centralisation, Participative Management, Conflict resolution, Knowledge and Innovation, Risk Taking, Welfare and Security, Teamwork, Communication, Managerial Style, Compensation and Appraisal System. The data collected is analysed to test the above hypotheses. Independent sample t-test and ANOVA tools are used to analyse the data. The following section presents the company wise results of the analysis.
199 7.1 Findings of the Study Perceptions of Organisational Climate in Panyam Cements The sample size for the company is drawn from seven different departments, majorly from production department. Respondents having more than 6 years work experience and at middle level and lower level form the major part of the sample size. Male respondents with an age group of 31-40 years are major respondents for the study. Most of the sample respondents are found to have Intermediate or lower education. All the Organisational Climate (OC) dimensions are positively viewed by the respondents with the mean scores ranging from 3.48 to 4.49 on a 5-point Likert type agreement scale and corresponding standard deviation (SD) ranging from 0.63 to 1.25. The high positive responses indicate the respondents agreement with the existence of positive organisational climate in Panyam Cements. There is positive perception among the respondents about the attributes of their jobs. The respondents of Panyam Cements perceive themselves to be empowered highly in their jobs and have good working relationships with their environment. Even though there is recognition and reward for the performance, the respondents feel that it is not enough to inspire for higher performances. These findings are supported by the respondents perception towards power and centralisation in the organisation. The respondents indicate of power play among the managers. Similarly, even though respondents perceive a good level of standardisation, there is absence of rules and
200 regulations in the case of contingencies as well as respondents find it difficult to agree on policies related to important employee matters. This perception is supported by the perceived managerial structure of the company. It is found that the workers of the Panyam Cement are given sufficient opportunity in the managerial decision making and during conflicts, the stronger party does not force their point of view and principles and organisational ideas are considered. The organisation is found to be open for innovation but at the same time new ideas are perceived to receive consideration lately due to excessive rules and administrative details. It is found that the organisation is open towards risk by adopting novel approaches. The respondents are found to perceive welfare and security adequately in the organisation. The respondents of Panyam Cements view their work environment as team-based environment and there is free and open flow of communication in the organisation. On the contrary, it is found that, even though there is some level of criticism among employees, respondents perceive that managers use criticism constructively. Performance appraisal system is found to be effective by conducting discussions among team leaders and even the compensation policies in the organisation are found to be fair and transparent.
201 It is found that, there are no statistically significant differences in perceptions of organisational climate among male and female respondents except for perceptions of job characteristics and managerial structure. There are significant differences among the perceptions of male and female groups towards job characteristics and managerial structure. The results reveal that, 4 age groups significantly differ in their perceptions towards 4 out of 17 OC dimensions. They are: job characteristics, empowerment, power and centralization and welfare and security. For the other 13 dimensions, there are no significant differences among perceptions of 4 age groups.there are significant perceptual differences among four monthly income groups towards 8 OC dimensions and respondents do not show significant differences in their perceptions towards the other 9 OC dimensions. There are significant differences among the perceptions of respondents towards 4 OC dimensions. Respondents from different departments do not view their organisational climate equally.there are no significant differences among perceptions of the three organisational levels towards job characteristics, relations, standardization and participative management. But there are significant differences among perceptions for the other 13 OC dimensions. The above findings imply that all the demographic variables considered, except caste, have influence on organisational climate. This influence is not similar for all the OC dimensions but it is found
202 that, different demographic factors have influence on different OC dimensions. The analysis of organisational factors on organisational climate shows similar results as of demographic factors. Perceptions of Organisational Climate in Penna Cements Majority of the sample for Penna Cements is male with age group of 31-40 years drawn from more than seven departments. The sample for the study belongs to an education of Intermediate and below. The sample almost equally represents all the departments of Penna Cements. Most of these sample respondents are from lower level of the organisation with a monthly income of below Rs. 10000 having an experience of up to 5 years. All the Organisational Climate (OC) dimensions are positively viewed by the respondents with the mean scores ranging from 3.31 to 4.42 on a 5-point Likert type agreement scale and corresponding standard deviation (SD) ranging from 0.49 to 1.29. The high positive responses indicate the respondents agreement with the existence of positive organisational climate in Penna Cements. There is positive perception among the respondents about the attributes of their jobs and do not perceive that they are less productive. There is perceived job empowerment among the respondents.a mean score of above 3.50 for all the items of relations dimension implies that respondents have good working relations with their job environment.respondents perceive that their performances are well recognized and rewarded in the organisation. But respondents indicate low loyalty towards the organisation.even though
203 respondents perceive a good level of standardisation, there is absence of rules and regulations in the case of contingencies as well as respondents find it difficult to agree on policies related to important employee matters. It is found that the managerial structure of Penna Cements is good from the respondents point of view. It is found that, even though there is indication of power play among managers, the workers of Penna Cements are given sufficient opportunity in the managerial decision making. During conflicts, the stronger party does not force their point of view and principles and organisational ideas are considered for conflict resolution. Even though the organisation is open for innovation, the new ideas receive consideration lately due to excessive rules and administrative details.it is found that the organisation is open towards risk by adopting novel approaches. It is found that welfare and security policies of the company are perceived to be good. It is found that the respondents view their work in a team environment and there is free and open flow of information in the organisation. It is observed that, even though there is some level of negative criticism among employees, respondents perceive that managers use criticism constructively. The compensation policies of the organisation are perceived to be fair and transparent.performance appraisal system is perceived to be effective by conducting discussions among team leaders. The independent sample t test results indicate that there is no influence of gender on organisational climate and both the genders
204 perceive organisational climate similarly. Different age groups considered for the study found to differ significantly in appraisal system, participative management, standardization, work relation and job characteristics. There are no perceptual differences among different age groups towards other organisational climate dimensions. This indicates that age factor influences organisational climate partially. There are significant perceptual differences among four educational groups towards 13 OC dimensions and respondents do not show significant differences in their perceptions towards the other 4 OC dimensions. There are no significant differences among the perceptions of respondents towards OC dimensions indicating that there is no influence of departmentation on perceived organisational climate.there are no significant differences among perceptions of three organisational levels towards job characteristics, relations, standardization and participative management. But there are significant differences among perceptions for the other 13 OC dimensions. This indicates that organisational climate is influenced by the organisational levels of the respondents in the company. There are significant differences among perceptions of respondents having different work experiences towards OC dimensions except for managerial style, compensation and appraisal system dimensions of organisational climate. The above findings imply that all the demographic variables considered, except gender, have influence on organisational climate.
205 This influence is not similar for all the OC dimensions but it is found that, different demographic factors have influence on different OC dimensions. Also, it is found that there are influences of organisational factors, except department of the respondents, on organisational climate. The nature of influence is similar to that of demographic factors that different organisational factors have influence on different OC dimensions. 7.2 Comparison between Penna Cements and Panyam Cements It is found that, standardization and participative management are not affected by demographic factors of respondents in both Penna Cements and Panyam Cements. For all other dimensions, it can be seen that there are significant differences among different groups of respondents across more than three demographic factors. This implies that, there are influences of demographics on organisational climate. Except for gender demographic, the test results for Penna Cements show more significant differences than Panyam Cements among different groups of respondents across age, educational qualifications, income level factors towards OC dimensions. For gender factor, compared to Panyam Cements, respondents of Penna Cements do not show any significant differences among OC dimensions. This implies that organisational climate in Penna Cements is more affected by demographic factors of employees than in Panyam Cements. Also, the demographic factors have more correlations with OC dimensions for Penna Cements than for Panyam Cements. Organisational climate is
206 related with and influenced by demographic factors like age, education and income. It is found that, there is no effect of organisational factors on participative management and standardization dimensions of organisational climate. For all other dimensions, it can be seen that there are significant differences among different groups of respondents across organisational factors. There are no departmental influences on organisational climate. The other organisational factors considered for the study, i.e. work experience and organisational levels indicate influences on almost all organisational climate dimensions. Correlation results are found to be similar indicating that departmentation does not have significant relationship with OC dimensions. Analysis between organisational factors and organisational climate dimensions imply that there are significant relationships and thereby influences of organisational factors of organisational level and work experience but not with departmentation. 7.3 Implications of the Study Findings Different studies have examined the influence of demographic and organisational variables on perceived organisational climate. The current research attempts to highlight the importance of devising a climate on the basis of demographics of the employees in consideration with previous studies. Demographic variables considered for the study are age, gender, educational qualification and income levels.
207 Age is found to have influence on organisational climate; more influence in Penna Cements and less influence in Panyam Cements. Age is found to influence on more organisational factors in Penna Cements than in the case of Panyam Cements. Studies by Sharma (1982) 101, Agarwal and Bose (2004) and Pooja Garg and Renu Rastogi (2006) showed that age has influence on organisational climate. This implies that as age varies, the perception of organisational climate varies among the employees. Hence, HR managers need to consider the age groups of employees in formulating their organisational climate. The study with regard to hotel industry of Michael Cameron Gordon Davidson (2000) 102 for the influence of demographics on organisational climate found no influence of gender. In line with this in addition to demographic factors, three organisational factors were considered to study the factors of influence on organisational climate. Employee department, their organisational levels and work experience are proposed to influence organisational climate. Different studies have examined the influence of organisational factors on perceived organisational climate. Works to study the influence of employee department on organisational climate are very scarce. Present study found no influence of employee department on organisational climate in Penna Cements. For Panyam Cements, employee department is found to influence only four dimensions of organisational climate.
208 Since there is very little influence of department on organisational climate, there may be almost no studies to test this relationship. The study done by Bosco (2000) 103 reported no significant relationship between tenure and organisational climate. However, in line with the studies done by Nagananda (2005) 104 and Balasubramaniyan and Perumal(1991) 105, the present study found to have influence of work experience on organisational climate. The results imply that employees with different work experiences lead to different perceived climatic conditions. Hence, HR practitioners should stratagem in conjunction with employee work experiences. With regard to organisational level of employees, the studies done by Gerber (2003) 106 and Castro (2008) 107 reported influence of organisational level on organisational climate. The present study findings support the previous studies that organisational level influence organisational climate. This implies that as employees move in their career from one management level to another, their perception of organisational climate differs. 7.4 Conclusion and Future Directions Many executives realize that the richest assets and the most difficult problems of a company are its people. People provide business with its greater strengths and, at the same time require management to do its best creative thinking. In an organisation, every department or work group may have a unique climate. The atmosphere of one, for example is tense because of the presence of an authoritarian boss and a lot of neurotic employees. In another place, the pervading
209 atmosphere is cheerful and friendly because the boss is an emotionally mature leader and the employees are relaxed and cooperative. The organisational climate in industry is so important that everyone should be aware of its influence. Although intangible, organisational climate is a real phenomenon. In every organisation there exists elements that exert the profound influence on the existing climate. In some organisations certain factors like structure or process plays a major role, whereas in others the level of technology may be a major influential factor in climate. Climate can influence motivation, performance, job satisfaction and quality of work life. It does this by creating certain kinds of expectancies about what consequences will follow from different actions. Employees expect certain rewards and satisfactions, on the basis of their perception of the organisation s climate. These expectations tend to lead to organisational climate. A sound climate is a long-run proposition. Managers need to take an assets approach to climate, meaning that they take the long runview of climate as an organisational asset. Many think that organisational climate is an indirect determinant of behaviour in an interactive sense. The individual s perceptions of what are out there acts as a moderating or intervening variable between organisational stimuli and resultant behaviour. In view of the above discussion, the findings and their implications should be taken into account in the design of human resource programs as well as in the making of policy.due attention
210 has to be paid to the value systems of the population as a whole, as well the differences in perceptions found between sub-populations. The findings of the study also suggest that, similar studies may be taken up on several organizations in the same industry at a time to examine the variations in perceptions across organizations in an industry. There exists a gap between what an employee wants and has. This study has examined the perceptions of employees. Further studies may explore the relationship between what an employee perceives and what his superior things the employee perceives. This study merely explored organizational climate in the select organizations. There is need to study in these organizations, the organizational climate as an independent variable exerting influence on employee performance and satisfactions, as a dependent variable to be influenced by leadership, structure, technology, etc., and as an intervening variable. While employers have little attitude for influencing demographic characteristics of employees, factors related to retention such as scheduling, opportunities for interpersonal interactions, salary/benefits, staffing, and workload are under an employer's control. These elements can be addressed by managers with the intent of reducing employee turnover. Above all, organization managements should provide necessary facilities, conducive organizational climate and take actions that cater for the welfare of the workers to improve organizational commitment. In sum, the construction of work environments moderates the relationship between certain climatic
211 elements of organizations (i.e. emphasis on teamwork, innovation, quality of communication, managerial support, and the work itself), and employee effective attitudes such as job satisfaction.