Changes in Productivity, Satisfaction, and Personal Development

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Changes in Productivity, Satisfaction, and Personal Development

RUNNING HEAD: CHANGES IN PRODUCTIVITY

Changes in Productivity, Satisfaction, and Personal Development in Organizations

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Changes in Productivity, Satisfaction, and Personal Development in Organizations

Introduction

This research is about changes in human resource development organizations. It aims to explain optimal changes that are needed to make some aspects of the company function more optimally. These include productivity, as in efficiency and effectiveness, employee satisfaction with the quality of their work life, the ability of the organization to develop and improve over time, and the ability to measure whether improvement efforts are successful.

Productivity: A Clean, Well-Lighted Place

When it comes to productivity, efficacy and efficiency in performance, one of the first thoughts that comes to mind is ErnestHemingway’s story “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place.” It may seem like a disparate idea, but the gist of the story is that people are naturally attracted to places where they feel comfortable, safe, and free from stress. Perhaps, all organizations should follow this mantra and realize that even something as minimal as having free snacks and clean bathrooms available can make a drastic difference in the level of productivity of employees.

According to Collings (2009) people who are naturally hard-working individuals are quite easy to please. Therefore, simple variables could create great results. For example, the temperature at which people work, the amount of lightning, the comfort of the workspaces, and the atmosphere of the work environment, are factors that cost very little to no money at all. Yet, they cause an impact when it comes to productivity, as far as efficacy and efficiency.

Efficacy refers the usefulness of their role in the company. Itgoes together with efficiency, which is the competence with which they perform. Together, they are the most powerful predictors of success in a company because they guarantee that the demands which the organization supplies will be met. (Johnson, 2016)

In all, individuals operate best from a place of comfort and safety. An organization that wants productivity must provide both. It should be a combination of comfort (not luxury), where all the needs of employees are met so that they do not waste time looking for fulfilling them elsewhere. “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place” may just be all that companies need to become successful.

Employee Satisfaction

Following the “Clean, Well-Lighted Place” paradigm, it is safe to add that employee satisfaction comes from meeting the needs that are inherent to all human beings when they are required to conduct tasks that are not part of the natural routine of eating, sleeping and moving. The hierarchy of needs, according to Abraham Maslow, begin at birth and continues throughout one’s lifetime. It really never ends, because we are in constant interaction with our immediate environment, needing new things every once in a while. The work environment is also an immediate environment. Employees have needs and, if they are not met, the result may be that the employee will place less importance in the task at hand while trying to resolve whatever matter is taking place that prevents them from performing optimally (Johnson, 2016)

One of the best ways to deal with employee satisfaction is by conducting quick culture and atmospheric studies of the workplace to determine the tone and “vibe” of the environment. Clearly, if a group of employees are causing disruption, either physical or mental, they will disturb the tranquility of the environment of others. One of the best ways to prevent this is by knowing the employees and their needs. Offering the basic needs for making it through a day without stress may be the first step to success. For example, the Google Corporation is famous for its work environment, which suits the needs of Millennial employees that enjoy technology, physical activity, food, drinks, vibrancy, camaraderie, and even a touch of inner childhood Adhikari (2016)

However, as ŐzgürŐndayputs it in the article Human Resource Theory: From Hawthorne Experiments of Mayo to GroupThink of Janis (2017), everyone who is human would want to operate in an environment like that. Any workplace would be efficient and productive when employees feel free to roam around, do not have to worry about minutiae such as finding something to eat, and where they are allowed to move around. While rigor is important in some workplaces, the ability to humanize the process and make it relevant to everyone is of essence to establish employee satisfaction.

Most workplaces compensate an uber-rigorous schedule with attractive compensation packages. Other places, such as government agencies, may create employee appreciation programs, awards, rewards, and other things to keep people happy. The point is that, in an age of instant gratification and ubiquitous college degree-granting, fewer people are willing to work in places where they are required to do everything for nothing. Something has to occur to motivate people and keep them working in one place. With Millennials having a minimum of 15 employers throughout their lifetimes, company loyalty is a very rare and precious thing to retain. (Johnson, 2016)

Developing Over Time

Two things have been established thus far. One, is that human agency is the driving force of all organizations and, as such, the latter should operate in a similarly organic way as best as possible. Second, that the work environment needs to adapt itself to the needs of its human factor. Arguably, this means that the human development organization must be willing to change and shift in terms of paradigms, vision, and mission, once the goals of efficiency and productivity are accomplished. The point is to look further into new horizons to achieve more and better. If the same human factor is going to be the way to get to the new goal, then organizational leaders need to give special considerations to the way in which this very important part of the organization will work at its best. (Jain, 2015)

The act of change is not a natural thing for a collective group. It often happens individually. Therefore, to get everyone on board, leaders need to be transparent and prove with data the need for any changes. They should also know the organization back and forth as if it were a person: something that needs direction, a plan, and the means to achieve things. Something with a mind of its own that needs to be consistently redirected toward its goals. This is how development happens over time with everyone buying into it.

Conclusion: A Note on Measuring Success

Based on the previous discussion, organizations and their human resource operate together. One depends on the other. As such, they grow together and, as a result, they also change. The best way to determine change is by looking at the data generated by the organization, which determines the degree of productivity. Ultimately, this is how success is measured, and it is also what will drive the organization forward. The conclusion of all of this is that big change can occur at small intervals and by switching minor things. This is true of organizations and individuals alike. Just one change in a different direction, measured by how success was driven, can make the difference in moving forward. It is no different than making minor changes in lifestyle in order to make it more qualitative. It is all connected, in the end. It all begins with the basics, and a “Clean, Well-Lighted Place.”

References

Adhikari, D. (2016) "Human resource development (HRD) for performance

management: The case of Nepalese organizations",International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management (59) 4, pp.306- 324,Retrieved from:

Collings, D. G., & Wood, G. (2009). Human resource management: A critical approach. London: Routledge.

Jain, R. (2015) HRD Practices in Indian Organizations and Their Impact on ‘Productivity’ of

Human Resources: An Empirical Study. Management and Labour Studies(36), 1, pp. 5-

30. Retrieved from.

Johnson, R. (2016). Transforming HR Through Technology.

Retrieved from tech epg- final.pdf

Őnday, O. (2017) Human Resource Theory: From Hawthorne Experiments of Mayo to GroupThink of Janis,EA Journals (3) pp. 55-110

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