Human Resources and Performance Evalution of Great Man-Made River Project - Essay Example

1. Research Purpose 1.1 Introduction and Company Background There is big project called the Great Man-Made River Project (GMRA) in my country, Libya. The project is a massive five-phase construction program that involves the tapping of underground water sources in the desert. The water from the source is then transported via 4,000 km of pre-stressed concrete pipelines to areas that require irrigation as well as for industrial or municipal uses along the shores of Mediterranean. The company where I work, the Alnahr Company for Pipe Manufacturing and Construction (ANC), is one of the main contractors of the GMRA. ANC concentrate on one important factor, which is human resources. Human resources, or HR, are widely considered a strategic resource for any organization to achieve their targets. The company's performance evaluation practice and the impact of motivation on employees' performance is my concern. ANC, like many organizations in Libya nowadays, is facing difficulties in managing people. Part of which is to understand their behaviour to extract the best outcome from them, as well as to get them to do things they could not previously do. In any organization, it is the responsibility of the management to effectively utilize human resources in order to direct them in a suitable manner that will satisfy their needs and will produce the required target. Performance evaluation is an effective tool to guide work units to be more efficient by ensuring the most effective use of human resource. Further, it is useful for employees as a guide to what is expected of them on their achievement. According to Harper (1983, p.68) "Most managers do not look forward to conducting performance appraisals. In fact, except for firing an employee, appraising employee performance is probably a manager's least favorite and most difficult task". He points out, however, that "successful managers learn early in their careers that performance appraisals do not need to be negative aspects of their jobs. They recognize that performance appraisals are a lot like organic fertilizer: properly scheduled and handled, they will definitely improve productivity. Because such managers are effective in conducting performance appraisals, they do not have to terminate many employees" (Harper, 1983, p. 68). At ANC, managers frequently ascribe the company's declining performance levels to the following factors: employees' lack of ability, unmotivated employees, poor equipment, tight budgets, and other such problems. However, "Managers need to ask themselves if they (1) set specific, challenging, and realistic performance goals; (2) matched the right people with the right jobs, (3) clearly communicated the goals and parameters to their people; (4) properly trained them to do the job the best way; (5) provided the right resources (time, materials, manpower, and money) to do the job; (6) provided timely and constructive feedback on performance to reinforce the desired behavior and to correct performance before it was too late; and (7) provided sufficient incentive to do the job well" (Harper, 1983, p. 68). Many managers at ANC evade evaluation altogether, and most managers procrastinate as long as possible and do it only because it is a requirement. Harper, (1983) stated that there are many reasons for managers avoiding conducting performance evaluation. The two most common are the lack of training in the fundamentals of performance appraisal and the use of inappropriate appraisal criteria and methods. Other reasons are: (1) it usually involves confrontation, something managers prefer to avoid; (2) it takes more time than many managers are willing to give; and (3) it requires skills that many managers lack. Motivation can take on different meanings, such as: The word motivation is often used to describe certain sorts of behaviour. A worker who works hard and tries to reach to high performance level may be described as being highly motivated. Motivation can be defined as a concept used to describe the factors within an individual which arouse, maintain and channel behaviour towards a goal. Another way to say this is that motivation is goal-directed behaviour (Buchanan & Huczynski, 2004). It is easy to see the things that a person does. However; to guess at why they are doing it is much harder. This leads us to the concept that people behave. For example, a worker performs excellently to reach a high level of performance, but it might also be that she/he gets fulfilment doing the job. A worker could be performing well because she/he wants to keep her/his job, or to impress her/his colleagues, so that performance itself is really a stepping stone to another goal. Thus it is quite a challenge to fully understand what could be motivating someone, because it is difficult to predict people’s behaviour. "Motivational concepts play a major role in most serious efforts to analyse and explain behaviour. In focusing on the motivational aspects of the relationship between men and their work, the industrial psychologist should be able to make use of and contribute to the development of theories of behaviour" (Vroom, 1964, p. 4). In this study, the writer will explore the reasons behind employees' low performance and evaluate the system that is used by ANC (in Libya) by evaluating employees' performance in order to improve their performance. This will also give managers sufficient information about their employees’ strengths, weaknesses and needs for development. A study like this is vital because if performance evaluation is used properly to encourage employees' strengths, help them to overcome weaknesses, and subsequently create a suitable environment, then employees' morale and motivation should improve, with subsequent benefits for productivity. As we can see from the above, understanding ANC employees' performance is an essential benefit that performance evaluation should provide. Further, it is essential for employees’ performance to understand the role of motivation. Therefore, in this dissertation the researcher will analyse the data to identify how well the current system in ANC succeeds in this respect. This will aid in identifying how the company can improve the current system or, if necessary, change the entire system and how motivation will affect performance. . 1.2 Research purpose "Why spend all the time and money on the selection of people when the people you've got are breaking down from underuse?" (Harper, 1983, p. 74). This is the scenario in some of Libyan organizations. They have recruited people but failed to evaluate their performance appropriately thus end up not knowing how to motivate them to reach high levels of performance. The proposed research aims to critically evaluate the performance of ANC employees and subsequently the impact of motivation on performance of the ANC's employees. The purpose of performance evaluation originally, according to ANC’s human resources strategy, is to help staff to improve their performance and, thus, to improve organizational effectiveness. The existing performance evaluation is a goal-based system in which the management sets divisional targets. The divisions, for their part, set other goals for departments or branches. Consequently, the department heads distribute the targets among their teams. At the end of the year, appraisal is carried out based on target achievement. Some employees receive good financial rewards in the form of bonuses and increment, compared to their colleagues. But in spite of the huge budget allocated by the company for bonuses and promotion, the writer has noticed that the morale of employees is decreasing. Also observed is a decline in employees' performance and productivity. Therefore, there is an issue here albeit not a matter of financial reward. Something else is wrong, which makes those employees dissatisfied. Therefore, the writer will analyse the current evaluation system and further critically evaluate the current performance evaluation system that is used by the company not only to find out its strengths but also its weaknesses. The findings and recommendations of this research may help to solve future problems. This will benefit ANC in terms of increasing the employees’ performance level as well as seeing the impact of motivation on performance. In the literature review, the writer will fully utilize the facilities provided by the university, namely, to access books, journals, articles and other sources of information related to the research question and scope. In addition, the literature will be used to shed light on research methodology, to understand the difficulty of linking theory and management practice, and the problems faced by the management professional in attempting to apply experience to different situations (McGuire,1986). 2.1 Literature review Frederick Herzberg suggested that distinctly separate factors lead to job satisfaction and job dissatisfaction. He separated them into "motivator" and "hygiene" factors. He called this a two factor theory of motivation. The hygiene factors can cause dissatisfaction (but not satisfaction). These include company policies and administration, supervision, relationship with supervisor, interpersonal relationships, working conditions, salary, status and security. Herzberg found that the motivators that can cause job satisfaction are achievement, recognition, the work itself, responsibility, advancement, and growth (Buchanan & Huczynski, 2004). One of the important factors that motivate workers to reach high levels of performance is to explain to workers the benefit that they will gain and the profit that may be obtained by achieving the target (Geen, 1995). Lee, Locke & Latham (1989) (cited in Geen, 1995) stated that rewards such as money or perquisites may have at least two effects on performance. One is the establishment of higher goals, which can maximize the amount of money or other rewards that are earned. The other is commitment. When a goal is made more attractive, the promise of reward can increase acceptance of, and commitment to, that goal. Geen (1995) said that low motivation leads to less effort since as matter of course workers will miss the goal rather than high motivation. This gives a reasonable explanation of the behaviour of the workers in the case. People are seen as motivated to exert effort to reach high performance in order to achieve the required goal. In other words, this approach considers the role of goals in human behaviour in order to achieve the required goals by constructing some links between the goal and the actual performance that is devoted to working for that goal (Geen, 1995). Locke's goal-setting theory is an example. Motivation towards better performance depends on the satisfaction of needs (Maslow's hierarchy of needs, Buchanan & Huczynski, 2004). Employee participation plays an important role in intrinsic motivation, which helps in their development and so enhances performance. Intrinsically, motivating employment entails jobs that possess task significance, skill variety, task identity and performance feedback and worker autonomy. To enhance job-related autonomy, a necessary precondition for employee growth, employee participation (e.g. in goal setting) is an effective tool. Intrinsic motivational approaches clearly communicate trust and confidence in employee abilities. According to Hackman & Oldham (1980), major moderating factor in the success of participation is the employee’s need for growth. 3. Research Questions and Scope 3.1 Research Question For the purpose of employees' development, performance evaluation is necessary. Having motivated and satisfied employees is important. Performance evaluation, therefore, is an opportunity to know how employees have been fulfilling their duties and find out to improve their performance. To which extent motivation will develop employees' performance is one of the very important issues involved. The purpose of this research, as mentioned earlier, is to examine the issue of the performance evaluation and the impact of motivation on employees' performance. For more precision, the researcher will focus on a particular company, and subsequently evaluate the performance appraisal system being practised by the company, and determine the contribution of motivation to the performance of the company's employees, in an attempt to maximise the benefit for both the company and the employees. The following are the main questions of the research: 1. What is the purpose of using performance evaluation? 2. How does the performance evaluation system currently operate in ANC? 3. What are the effects of working environment on performance? 4. To what extent does motivation influence employees' performance and productivity? The basis for a change in the current system used or the recommendations for improvement will be provided by the answers to the questions above. 3.2 Research Scope For its scope and limitation, the study will be confined to the organizational level and its scope is within ANC and its employees. The evaluation of the current performance evaluation and the impact of motivation on employee's performance will be the concentration of the research. To answer the research questions, the researcher will make sure to provide sufficient details and required information related to the context of the chosen company, and analyse the provided data. 4. Research Method and Validity Consideration 4.1 Research Design/Method According to Burnham et al, (2004) research design is the plan, the structure and the strategy of investigation, so conceived as to obtain answers to research questions or problems. According to the priorities set by the researcher, research design provides the framework for the collection and analysis of the data. The methods to be used in this research must be in accordance with the nature of the problem and the kind of data required to answering the research questions identified. Keeping in mind the method of collecting data, the methodology that has been chosen should be reliable, so that anyone using this method, or the author using it again at a different point in time, would come up with the same results. This means that if the research is repeated, the same results or similar results are obtained. While choosing the research method, the validity of the data was also considered to make sure that the data collected does not seem to be a product of the research method but rather a product of what is being studied (McNeill & Chapman, 2005). The research being concerned with performance evaluation and the impact of motivation on ANC employees' performance, the methods have to be designed to collect both general information on the theory of performance evaluation, motivation and human resource management and the relation between those factors, and empirical data on employees' views. Therefore, both primary and secondary sources of data will be utilised by the researcher. In order to gain in-depth data that will help in providing first-hand information from the involved people who are living the experience, primary data will be collected through questionnaires. On the other hand, secondary data will be collected through the internet, books, journals and magazines, HR procedures of ANC, and ANC's annual reports. 4.1.1 Data collection method The researcher will present quantitative inputs in order to gain deeper understanding of employees' performance evaluation and the impact of motivation on performance. This kind of approach to data not only will provide more detailed information, but great as well since responses from the participants to questionnaires can be compared. The researcher will use this approach to provide more a real bases that can help in analysis as it reflects problem subjectivity (Collis & Hussey, 2003). Thus, the method of data collection and analysis will involve the following: Questionnaires In order to collect appropriate data that could help in reaching a clear conclusion to the research, a questionnaire will be designed. This will be in line with the research questions. Further, it will be designed in a manner that the participants will find clear and understandable. Documentation inspection In addition to the ANC's annual reports, human resources procedures and any other information that can support the research, the data obtained from the questionnaires will be supplemented by documentary evidence from the secondary sources previously mentioned, such as, literature review,. Data analysis and interpretation Researchers have different expectations about the kind of results they will derive from their projects. This, in turn, tends to have a marked influence on the analysis of the results. The analysis of data takes on different interpretations, as the human behavioural element plays a part. Even though there are clear conventions that the researcher can follow when analysing quantitative data, the interpretation and the drawing of conclusions can be influenced by the ideas and the training of the analyst,. According to Punch (1998), the interpretations and conclusions that the different researchers come up with, even though they might have been personally influenced may differ but perhaps not by very much. The SPSS and/or other suitable measuring tool will be used to analyse quantitative data. On the other hand, the available data will be presented through different techniques like percentage, charts and frequency tables. 4.2 Anticipated Outcomes and Tests of Validity To help create an acceptable system that suits the needs of both parties, the researcher expects that the outcomes of this study will provide valuable information that concern the system currently used by the company; a system that will develop an internal understanding within the organization as well as its employees about the importance of both performance evaluation and motivation. Through quantitative research, the choice of the data collection tools will provide the required information. To ensure the data accuracy and validity, the feedback from reliable employees who are involved in the mentioned practice within the organization will be used; furthermore, since the researcher is working for the same company, this will make the task easier as he can reach the concerned people that play a major role in the appraisal activity. This consequently will to increase the accuracy of the information and its validity. Secondary data sources, on the other hand, will be confirmed and the researcher will concentrate on reliable and well known resources. 4.3 Ethical problems of the study and research limitation For ethical reasons, this research will take into consideration all ethical issues and this research will adhere to the academic ethical standards. The permission of ANC's management has been obtained in order to avoid any ethical or legal problems with the company, information that will be used in this research will be treated with utmost discretion thus both the company's management and the participants will be assured of privacy and confidentiality. The data provided will be used for the sole purpose of research and absolute confidentiality will be maintained as to its availability. 5. Research Time and Resources Required The research needs to be completed within a certain time and resource constraints according to the time and resources availability,. 5.1 Time The schedule of the dissertation will be within the time frame shown in figure 1. The work on the said dissertation will start after the submission of the last module assignment (commencement date will be in the third week of May). Starting from this date onward, the researcher will concentrate on the dissertation to meet the submission date. Meetings with the supervisor for consultation and guidance will be arranged by the researcher. This will also inform the supervisor about the progress of the research. Figure 1: Dissertation Schedule 5.2 Resources Required The researcher will require the following resources (as seen in table 1) in order meet the dissertation schedule. The resources required will be within the researcher's budget as most of the resources are available within the university. Table 1: The required resources for the research Resources Computing facilities such as Ms Word, Excel, Internet, E-journals, SPSS software and other search tools such as Google. Books, articles and other publications. The company’s reports and other required documents. Questionnaire tools and materials. Transportation to Libya. Availability Portsmith University Computer services and the researcher's personal computer. Portsmith University libraries and some other libraries such as British library. To be arranged by the researcher. To be arranged by the researcher. Not required because there is no interviews. Read More