‘Piloting enables you to see if the results are indeed likely to give you the kind of information which you are seeking’ (Jankowicz, 1995: 194). A pilot was conducted with Abel Bello with appropriate amendments made afterwards. One particular change Abel felt was required to the original questions was that we failed to provide space for respondents to give an explanation for some of the closed questions, so we decided to replace some of the closed questions for open questions.
3 FINDINGS
Appendix 1 shows an exact copy of the questionnaires which each of the staff was asked to fill out. In total eight of the staff working within the IT department of HSBC replied back to our questions, their answers were carefully analysed and concluded around their views on four specific areas within the department, which included:
Motivation
Performance Management, Rewards and Appraisals
Employee Relations
Role of the Human Resources Department
3.1. Motivation
From our conclusions we found that all of the staff had been working within the department for a number of years thus providing evidence of a low staff turnover and each appeared to be highly self –motivated.
When asked directly what motivates them to carry out tasks? The majority employees answered with very similar replies based around the need for recognition from senior management and personal satisfaction to get the job done. Some felt that other needs to carry out tasks include as stated by one employee ‘In order to obtain Recognition and remuneration from management leading to promotion’. Each of the employees enjoyed a plethora of extra benefits as well as a standard wage, including shares, healthcare, pension, bonus and a company car.
However in question seven where we gave the employees different factors relating to their employment, which included motivation, salary, satisfaction, management and location, and to grade each one in terms of whether they felt it was good or bad, our data concluded that from this list the employees rated Satisfaction and Motivation as being very good within the workplace. This was closely followed by Salary and Location.
The majority of the employees questioned felt that they received the support required to feel motivated within their work, however some felt more recognition was required but not provided due to management being far too distant from its employees and one was quoted when asked whether they received ‘The right support required to feel motivated concerning your job?’ as replying ‘Yes I do but some of my colleagues do not share this view’ believing that ‘Support is there on paper but not exercised’. Yet some of those who felt satisfied still had comments on improvements required, for example one stated ‘Remuneration is not necessarily equal to effort put in’, while another explained ‘It depends on the urgency of the project and the management tends to pay attention to high profile ones’.
Overall the survey showed the HR department is succeeding in motivating its staff and keep job satisfaction very high. The primary research shows a sturdy policy that is motivational, rewarding and successful in keeping staff turnover low. However the department could still benefit from improving training in some areas, possibly adopting a cross-training strategy to improve the work place’s flexibility, for example one employee stated ‘With my skills set I could do more but can’t due to constraints of my job specification’.
3.2. Performance Management, Rewards & Appraisals
Employees felt appraisal methods were satisfactory with none bar one who replied by writing ‘Management needs to spend more time to give fairer appraisals’ disputing them. Many of the employees used the word ‘fair’ to describe them in terms of it reflecting ability, performance and individual self-development. Again there are those who feel that improvements are required including three of those questioned who believe they could be more targeted towards the individual, as one replied ‘They could be more targeted towards personal development instead of the companies performance/objectives’.
3.3. Employee Relations
In understanding how work is organised e.g. teamwork or working as individuals, many of the replies were very similar to what one of the employees had mentioned stating ‘A lot of tasks are team-orientated but there are a few projects which are self-driven’ hence we found that most of the work employees do is team centred but there are occasions when employees work on their own and all work involves an element of time constraint which must be met.
In the end of the questionnaire we asked employees if they could make any changes in their workplace, what would it be? Answers ranged from more assistance with training would be encouraged and cross-training programmes into other job roles. Many of the staff felt that greater interaction with management e.g. feedback and talks would be more desirable. Whether it is feasible to conclude that the management fails to create a good or possible frequent employee relations, but some staff felt that they did not. Two of those questioned felt that their department is not treated fairly, e.g. one explained more support for junior staff is required with greater structures of development programmes necessary and another felt that there was not enough incentive for staff on lower grading.
3.4. Role of the Human Resources Department
When asking specific questions relating to the Human Resources department and whether employees understood the role of the department and whether they fulfil their role and how often and why employees have dealt with them. We found that all employees agreed that the role of the Human Resources department was to assist employees with advice and guidance relating to personal, admin and HR issues, as one stated ‘For matters concerning personal, social and administration’. Each of the interviewees felt that the HR department fulfilled their role with many giving examples of how their problems were dealt with adequately and confidentially, however one of the interviewees replied by stating ‘I feel they do in most cases but sometimes I feel they take too long to deal with personal issues’. Again all bar one of the interviewees have dealt with the HR department but each for different reasons ranging from advice concerning relocation issues, payment queries and disciplinary matters.
4. ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION
After conducting the primary research we looked through relevant secondary sources applying it around the primary research obtained. Secondary data was collected concerning theorist’s views relating to the three subject areas that we concentrated on during the primary research collection.
4.1. Motivation
Motivation, whilst difficult to define, remains a highly significant component to the business mechanism. It is of such importance that managers are constantly making
attempts to develop and improve staff motivation, because it essentially holds the key towards improvements in productivity and turnover. Many writers and business theorists use the term motivation differently, but one definition reads ‘anything that causes people to achieve more than they would otherwise do’ (Wall, 1999: 211).
To provide job enrichment, a motivational tool, managers were advised to focus on the motivator factors to produce vertical job loading factors. These consisted of removing some controls on employees, increasing individual accountability for work, giving employees complete units of work and additional authority, freedom, direct feedback and introducing new tasks. We can see how these strategies have been put into place within the HSBC IT department to maintain a highly motivated team. The workload was left up to the individuals to time-manage effectively, hence the freedom acting as a motivational incentive: ‘Employees want to be accountable for their tasks. Having the authority to act and manage themselves is called empowerment, and can act as an effective motivational tool.’ (Walker, 1992: 265)
Recognition from senior management was said by the majority of employees to be their motivation for carrying out work related tasks. Whereas management were found to be very distant from the work force in general, and whilst this led to some criticisms from staff, it might also give them something to constantly strive for at the same time. If gaining this recognition proved difficult, they might push themselves harder to achieve it.
All of the employees received fringe benefits, defined as ‘any benefit received by employees in addition to their wages or salary. Common fringe benefits are a company pension scheme, a company car, discounts when buying the firm’s products and the provision of sports facilities.’ (Wall, 1999: 128). This form of benefit seeks to gain staff loyalty, as they become more motivated with a feeling that they have a fundamental role in the company and therefore develop a sense of belonging. Offering staff shareholder options also has the same effect. Which ‘was found to be an effective and productive method of improving motivation. It makes them more aware of costs and inspires individual creativity.’ (Nieto, 2001: 169). ‘The aim of individualistic HRM techniques is to increase individual employee commitment and attachment to the organisation’ (Kinnie, 1992: 143).
Our research showed many candidates have held their positions for a number of years within the organisation, suggesting staff generally enter with the intention of staying to further their careers. This could come down to the teamwork aspect of the job design too. Our research showed a great emphasis was placed on teamwork, with regards to employee relations, yet this point should not be over looked when considering motivation. ‘Teams also facilitate employee participation in goal-setting, thereby enhancing intrinsic motivation for team members’ (Bacon 2003: 14). Being involved in a team means everyone benefits from extra effort, whereas less effort will have a negative impact on the whole team as well. Whilst teamwork is a generally accepted motivational tool, none of our candidates highlighted it as a positive role for their motivation, instead focusing on recognition and responsibility. In this case, perhaps teamwork is not as successful a device as management might have hoped.
Whilst staff were generally keen to be in their occupation and satisfied with the conditions, management was still seen by all staff to be the least satisfactory part of their employment. This is because the management in the IT department do not seem to be providing the necessary support for employees, as they are too distant, as was stated previously. Research has shown that this lack of communication can have negative effects upon the workplace: ‘lack of formal communication is seen as fostering low morale, low trust and the pursuit of disparate goals – all detrimental to organisational effectiveness and not conductive to the acceptance of chance’ (Townley, 1992: 343).
As staff are trusted to be creative and make their own decisions over objectives and tasks. As discussed earlier support and recognition was seen by staff to be the essential motivator for them to carry out tasks. This is a fairly significant problem since many highlighted this managerial gripe, yet the IT department at HSBC is a generally well-motivated and satisfied team with few problems and a great deal of potential.
4.2. Performance Management and Rewards
How performance is managed and rewards are given are closely interlinked with motivation. If the employee knows their performance would be rewarded, they should be motivated to perform better. However what motivates them, and the structure of rewards needs to be taken in to careful consideration. In practice this is not always seen to be the case as in the past when firms have offered rewards for good performance, is the reward satisfactory and will it create competition internally, which will in return have a bad effect on business. (Nieto, 2001: 161)
With HSBC, the primary data showed that the staff were motivated for various reasons and there was no direct link with rewards. Although rewards are given when an employee receives a good appraisal, (as stated in the staff handbook please refer to appendix 4) the way the appraisals are handled has been scrutinised.
Results of our research show that although the benefits and pay do seem to be adequate there are still a percentage of people that feel they could do better, with some employees feeling their appraisals are unfair or their talents unrecognised. ‘A good use of performance appraisal systems lies in the way they can be used to open up a dialogue around personal opportunities, a use which would make them more sympathetic to the rise of expressive’, (Boxall, 2003: 159). What Boxall and Purcell are claiming is that if managers are to get the best results from using appraisals, they need to be more personal if the end results are not to de-motivate. It will also make the employee being assessed feel more like an individual rather than an ‘extra body’ in the running of the company, which should in turn give a better performance level because they will feel their work is valued.
Possible solutions to this problem could be to re-evaluate the appraisal methods used by HSBC to make it more personal. Our primary research lead us to believe that if the remunerations were taken away, the chances that motivation will far are high, as personal motivation will be left solely to personal satisfaction but if the employee is not going to be rewarded for their work, performance of the individual will also fall ‘but there are also organisations that offer relatively cheap mortgages or subsidised private medical insurance’, (Torrington, 1979: 59).
It seems that although the incentives and benefits are provided there is a lack of recognition of those of a lower position. This may be because they do not work closely enough with the managers as those of a higher grade (as stated by one of the employees). If this is so, then more incentives do need to be provided to help encourage those of a lower grade to lift up their performance level. Almost all employees felt that managers need to be more involved with their employees, when asked what changes they would like to suggest. ‘Managers must be aware that some employees desire and need regular contact with other workers and do not flourish without it’ (Bogadanski, 2002: 200). This indicates that they feel managers are too distant from them and in order for the performance levels to be risen; managers need to be more familiar with all levels of staff to encourage them.
4.3. Employee Relations
Employee relations are concerned with relationships between organisation policies and practices and with its staff (Rollinson, 1993: 4). According to Attwood and Dimmock ‘The quality of the relationship with employees is at the heart of the features which characterise an excellent organisation’ (Attwood, 1996: 185), hence can HSBC be characterised an excellent organisation? As we shall explain:
In understanding how work is organised e.g. teamwork or working as individuals, we found that most of the work employees do is team orientated but there are occasions when employees work on their own and all work involves an element of time constraint which must be met. Torrington explains that team working requires less supervision and can be characterised as a form of worker control with managers refraining from day-to-day supervision hence the possible reason for a lack of interaction the employees feel exist (Torrington, 2002: 490), whilst the Human Resources Management Journal reported that ‘Employees report considerable levels of satisfaction from working in teams’ (Geary, 2001: 10). However to understand why using a mixture of both Team-work and individual based work as HSBC do is considered more suitable can be answered when Torrington, explains in his book ‘a team can operate more effectively than the same team members functioning as individuals, however on particular occasions individuals can perform better alone’ (Torrington, 1991: 136), hence HSBC possibly deciding to allocate some appropriate assignments to groups and others to individuals. Attwood and Dimmock also explain that the main advantage of teamwork is that it’s ‘seen as a vehicle for greater task flexibility on co-operation, as well as for extending the drive for quality.’ (Attwood, 1996: 81).
There are two contrasting methods that the present organisation works within the Unitary concept and the Pluralistic concept (Thomason, 1988: 154). The Unitary concept considers the organisation as integrated and harmonious with staff sharing common interests and objectives. The Pluralistic concept organisation is made of powerful and competing sub-groups with their own loyalties, objectives and leaders, where according to Thomason ‘various stakeholders act out their own goal-seeking behaviour’ (Thomason, 1981: 396). In relation to the answers received it might be perceived that the IT Department of HSBC uses a more Pluralistic concept however it does not seem that this can be fully conclusive, but it does seem that way when you consider most employees explaining that most work is done via employees being allocated into specific groups who are set their own detailed tasks.
Lord Sieff explains the policy of good human relations at work cannot be the duty of the personnel department (or the human resources department) alone, but it is up to those at the top to set an example. Good human relations involve a normal attitude, treating everyone whatever their position with respect and compassionate about employees (Sieff , 1991: 119) Although we can’t say that these problems exist within this department at HSBC there are other problems according to some staff including some feeling they don’t share the same incentive or support as they would have hoped and others wishing for greater interaction with management to improve their employee relations. However it is argued that ‘despite many perspective statements that communication is of central importance for the affective functioning of an organisation’ (Sisson, 1989: 329), many organisations in Britain fail to provide adequate attention to communication management (Thomason, 1981: 346) thus we could possible include management in HSBC as being one of those which fail. However Thomason continues by explaining recommendations which can be followed by those organisations that fail in their internal communication methods (and which may be followed by HSBC) is to provide ‘an adequate structure of communications channels and upon access to them’ (Thomason, 1981: 347).
5. CONCLUSIONS
To conclude, the initial decision we had to make was from which member of the group we were going to benefit from a contact in a working environment, after analysing our opportunities, we decided to commence in this task using the information collected via questionnaires from the IT Department of the HSBC Group.
Having linked our primary data to many theorists, we can note that the context of these theories are still widely influential within the workplace, for example allowing the employees the freedom to manage their workload efficiently, was supported by Walker. However recognition from senior management is also seen essential in the workplace by many theorists, and as numerous employees of HSBC have stated that this was their motivation in carrying out work related tasks, the management are having to allow freedom to personnel in managing their tasks, who were seeking frequent recognition from senior management. The business thus would have to analyse conduct a balanced employee relations technique amongst all its departments and not just the IT department. We found from the research that they often carried out teamwork-oriented tasks, which require less supervision and may be more effective than individual based.
However, the employees do not seem pleased about the way the management carry out their supervision, hence the following chapter suggests some ways which the management team can amend this, as well as introduce other Human Resources Management (HRM) policies.
We can also note in our conclusions that, motivation, rewards, and employee relations are closely linked, as with all other individual HRM techniques and aspects, thus if one tends to lack in some form, the efficiency of the HRM will fall significantly as all will be affected, and the employees will almost immediately notice such changes as experienced here.
6. RECOMMENDATIONS
Below are some recommendations suggested for HSBC after careful analysis of the findings, discussion and analysis.
- Greater encouragement of wider employee scope of general skills e.g. providing development and learning courses. And this should be refreshed at least once a year.
- Following on from above, it might also be better to carry out appraisals more than just once a year. Perhaps quarterly or at least every six months, because that way, managers have more familiarity with their employees.
- Team building exercises with the involvement of managers on a regular basis, for example, every six to eight weeks. This will again also help managers to know their employees better.
- Keep the balance of teamwork and individual responsibility, as the staff seem happy with the way this works.
- Send the staff on training courses annually after joining to upgrade their skills as some employees felt frustrated as they felt they could not move any higher.
7. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Books:
Attwood .M & S. Dimmock (1996) Personnel Management. London: Macmillan Business Masters
Boxall, P & J. Purcell (2003) Strategy and Human Resource Management. Basingstoke. Palgrave Macmillan.
Ghauri .P, Gronhaug .K & I. Kristianslund (1995) Research Methods in Business
Studies. Essex: Prentice Hall
Jankowicz A.D. (1995) Business Research Projects, 2nd Edition, Kent: International
Business Press
Jay, R. (1995) Build a Great Team!, London: Pitman Publishing
Nieto, M. (2001) Marketing The HR Function. Oxford: Chandos Press.
Rollinson .D. (1993) Understanding Employee Relations: A Behavioural Approach.
Addison-Wesley
Saunders M, Lewis P & Thornhill, (2002) Research Methods for Business Students,
2nd Edition, Essex: Prentice Hall
Sieff .M. (1991) Management the Marks & Spencer Way. Fontana Collins
Sisson .K. (1989) Personnel Management in Britain. Basil Blackwell
Thomason .G. A. (1981) Textbook of Personnel Management. 4th Edition, Institute of
Personnel Management
Thomason .G. A (1988) Textbook of Human Resource Management. London: Institute of Personnel Management
Torrington,D & J, Chapman.(1979) Personnel Management. London. Prentice Hall International Inc.
Torrington .D, Hall .L, Haylor .I & Myers .J. (1991) Employee Resourcing. Institute
of Personnel Management, Essex: Management Studies Series 2
Torrington .D, Hall .L & S, Taylor . (2002) Human Resource Management.. 5th Edition, Essex: Prentice Hall
Townley, B. ‘Employee Communication Programmes’ in Sisson, K. (ed) (1992) Personnel Management in Britain. Oxford:Blackwell
Walker, James W. (1992) Human Resource Strategy Singapore: McGraw Hill
Wall N, Marcouse I, Lines D & B, Martin (1999) The Complete A-Z Economics & Business Studies, London; Hodder & Stroughton
Williams, H. (1996) The Essence of Managing Groups and Teams, Essex: Prentice Hall
Articles:
Bacon, N & Blyton, P. (2003) ‘The Impact of Teamwork on Skills: Employee
Perception of Who Gains And Who Loses’, Human Resource Management Journal Vol. 13 No. 2
Bogadonski, C and Seliff, R (2002) ‘Human Resource Development Quarterly’. Human Resource Quarterly Vol. 11 No 2
Geary, J & A. Dobbins. (2001) ‘Team working: a new dynamic in the persuit of management control.’ Human Resources Management Journal VOL. l1 No. 1
Kinnie, N. (1992) ‘Human Resource Management And Changes in Management Control Systems’ in Storey, J (ed) New Perspectives on Human Resource Management. London: Routledge
Websites:
HSBC, http://www.hsbc.com
Our contacts details:
Abel Bello, [email protected]
8.
TEAM LEARNING REVIEW
Throughout this report we have learned a great deal about working with others. The group consisted of a diverse variety of students, including combined and single honours students, as well as a mixture of second and third year students. Because of this it was crucial for us to appreciate the varying pressures that each individual was under, so that we could tailor our approach to the report to best meet every ones particular needs and limitations. Because of the diversity in the group we were able to use a certain amount of division of labour in the formation of our report. This was beneficial to us as a group as it was clear from the beginning that some members of the group preferred to carry out the more practical tasks- such as collecting primary data, whilst others preferred to undertake the analytical tasks. This enabled us to split the group into pairs in order to concentrate on the relevant areas of research.
Throughout eleven ten weeks period of working together we had lengthy meetings at every stage of the work to take on board our findings and plan what we should do next. Due to these regular meetings as a team we were constantly in contact with all group members, which meant that we were always up to speed with what every one was achieving, so from this perspective we found our approach to be complimentary to the initial development of the report. Even though at the end of each meeting we would agree tasks that each person had to complete before the next meeting, these targets were not always meet. This was often the cause of conflict amongst the group, as at times it did not seem as if everyone was putting in the same level of effort. In hindsight we can see that due to the way in which we divided the project, different members of the group had to carry out tasks at different stages in the report. Because of this the group members with less to do had to be more flexible in order to help those out with the heavier workload. Once the data had all been collected and discussed it was more important for the group to work all together as a whole, in order to conclude the report and make suitable recommendations for HSBC’s Human Resources Department.
However the diverse dynamics of the group lead to storming, particularly towards the end of the project. This was mainly due to a personality clash within the group, resulting in a distraction from the report and a progress was temporally halted, as personal and emotional problems took priority over the team project. As discussed earlier having different personalities and tastes within a group can be highly beneficial ‘successful teams tend to include at least one extrovert and one introvert.’ (Jay, 1995: 19). But in deliberation we realise that the conflict arose due to underlying tensions not being addressed at an earlier stage. Williams (1996) developed the ‘avoidance cycle’ model, which explains how an unresolved problem can escalate into a crisis. This model below is an exact reflection of what happened to our group.
Although conflict within a working group is not ideal, we now have a better understanding of how to develop and maintain a good team relationship. The dispute ultimately brought the team closer together as people in were more open, as we realised that not addressing a problem or issue when it first arises can lead to a breakdown in the team. This team report has made us realise that flexibility from all members in a group is key to its success.
9. APPENDIX
9.1. Appendix 1, Questionnaire
HSBC
Feedback Information Sheet
This question are will take just a few minutes of your time and is structured to try and understand your working environment. All answers are confidential and will not be held on record.
Please mark the appropriate boxes, in some cases there may be more than one.
NAME (optional):
POSITION:
AGE:
SEX:
Period of time working at HSBC
1. What do you believe the role of the HR (human resources) department is?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
2. Please explain whether you feel HR fulfil their role? And why
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
3. Have you ever dealt with the HR dept? please explain why and how often …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
4. Please explain whether you feel your skills and talents are used to their best ability relating to your job
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
5. Do you feel your training and development methods were/are satisfactory?
Please explain
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
6. What is your motivation for carrying out work related tasks?
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
7. Which of the below is how you feel concerning your employment. The lower
the number the better.(e.g., if you think management is admirable, circle 1)
Very Definitely not
Motivated 1 2 3 4 5 6
Salary 1 2 3 4 5 6
Personal satisfaction 1 2 3 4 5 6
Management 1 2 3 4 5 6
Location 1 2 3 4 5 6
8. Please tick, which benefits apply to you personally
Shares Holiday
Healthcare Bonus
Pension Sick Pay
Travel Car
Discounts
Mortgage
Savings account (high interest) Low rate interest loans
Others, please specify…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
9. Do you feel you receive the right support required to feel motivated concerning your job, if not why?
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
10. Do you feel your appraisal methods are satisfactory, if not please specify
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
11. How do you organise your work, for example, do you work as a team or when set an appointed task, do you work individually or other?
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
12. If you could make any changes in your work place, what would it be?
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Thank you for your time, Enjoy your day!
9.2. Appendix 2, Org chart, IT operations structure
HSBC’s IT Department was chosen as our link (Abel Bello), was situated in this department. The IT department controls, manages and directs the banks activities. It is a 24hour job, which requires close monitoring of all systems to make sure the bank, runs smoothly. The department holds approximately 1157 employees most of whom are based at Canary Wharf, London.
IT operations structure
Above is a structure of the whole It department broken up into the separate entities in which enable the company to run smoothly.
9.3. Appendix 3, IT Support Structure
Staff Handbook
Gantt Chart
Above is an overview of our planning procedure, which helped us throughout this report.
